The lyrium warrior chuckled. "Well, your majesty, I have good news." He turned towards Loghain. "It looks like you are going to get to see the Mac Tir line wiped out."
Alistair scrambled backwards, trying to get back to his feet. "Dammit, Loghain, get out of here. That's an order."
"Yeah, I've never been all that good at those." Loghain moved in. "Ask anyone." He twirled his blade and tapped it against the edge of his shield.
"So the little king is too frightened to face me himself." The lyrium warrior started to circle Loghain. "Sticking me with the child playing at being a knight? How disappointing."
"I know, right?" Loghain grinned. "You know, I only accepted the knighthood because they promised me cake." He flicked his blade at the lyrium warrior's face. "They lied to me."
He twisting, trying to strike at the shoulder of Loghain's shield arm. "I'm going to crush your heart, like I did to your friend."
"Why the heart?" Loghain blocked the blow and aimed a kick at the lyrium warrior's knee. "I mean, why not vary it up a bit? Lungs, kidneys..." He parried a blow. "Is it just the symbolism, or do you have some kind of fetish?"
The lyrium warrior leaped back to avoid Loghain's counterstrike. "What?"
"I'm not trying to be judgmental here." Loghain set his shield. "After the thing with the two dwarves in drag and Isabela, I'm really the last person who should be judging."
Irritation swept over the lyrium warrior's face. Loghain lifted his blade for a strike, and the lyrium warrior moved into the opening, tattoos glowing. Alistair shouted a protest as the lyrium warrior buried his hand in Loghain's chest.
#
Agatha grinned as she stabbed the last of the stakes into the ground. Blue light arced between the coppery rods before forming into a square barrier, caging Solas. She shook her head at Tisallan. "Are we a bad influence on you, or are you a bad influence on us?"
"Six of one..." Tisallan shrugged. "And a half dozen of the other."
"Were, exactly, did you find ward spikes?" Solas looked around him.
"What are ward-spikes?" Arenda stared.
"Agatha..." Cullen looked at the young elven woman. He felt a chill as he realized her eyes were glowing the same as Tisallan's were.
"Commander, you and your companions should start moving." Tisallan frowned as if calculating something. He looked up from the copper spikes to Solas. "What do you think, four blocks?"
Solas turned to look at each ward spike, and shook his head. "Unless they take shelter in a building, I think about half a mile would be best."
"Would someone please explain what is going on?"
Agatha walked over to stand next to Tisallan before nodding to Cullen. "The ward spikes prevent any magic from going in or out. For about five minutes or so." She smiled. "Then they explode."
"You're going to blow up the Dread Wolf?" Arenda's recently reattached jaw again hit the pavement.
"Don't worry." Tisallan shrugged. "He'll be fine."
"No hard feelings?" Agatha raised an eyebrow at Solas.
A smile came to Solas's face as he shook his head. "I do not think that is the part concerning them."
"Oh. Right." Agatha glanced back at the dumbfounded people watching. "Well, nice meeting you and all." She waved at Solas before she and Tisallan turned around and leaped down over the railing. A moment later a griffin took to the air, both of them clinging to its back.
"You really should be running now, Commander." Solas shook his head and sighed. "Five minutes may be an overly optimistic estimate."
Cullen and Arenda exchanged a look before turning to run. The guards were already moving.
#
"Urthemiel!" Magister Valis fell to his knees. "My lord, I am not worthy!"
The glowing being stared at the magister for a moment before turning to look at Brehan. "Is he serious?"
"Why are you asking me?" Brehan stared back at him.
Magister Valis pressed his forehead to the ground. The survivors of the initial blast also started falling to their knees. "Are you..." Urthemiel tilted his head. "Praying?" He laughed. "Oh, that is just..." He stepped further into the room. "Adorable."
"Forgive me, mighty one." The magister actually crawled a few steps closer to Urthemiel. "I did not think the elf spoke truly. I crave only your blessing."
"My blessing?" Urthemiel leaned thoughtfully on his staff. "You wish to hear the music?"
"I wish only to serve your magnificence." The magister looked up at him, nodding eagerly.
Urthemiel walked towards him. "Perhaps we shall start with the exquisite symphony a mind makes..." He set his hand on the magister's head, and then smiled, narrowing his eyes. "When it shatters."
The magister screamed and convulsed before falling to the ground and tearing at his face and eyes. Urthemiel turned towards the others standing in the room. "Slaves, to Tevinter and yourselves." He lifted his staff, and raised his voice. "I give you freedom." He shook his head as they all started to run, and set his staff on the ground. "Try to be less stupid with it," he said in a quieter voice.
#
Fenris got back to his feet, holding his blade as he prepared to defend his husband and son. Baradies raised an eyebrow at Leandra. "Your -"
The entire section of the warehouse Baradies was standing in suddenly lifted into the air, taking the abomination with it. Lightning swirled in the sky above them as the other parts of the city and building began to rise, taking most of the enemy forces with them.
Leaving the four of them facing... Fenris looked around. Four.
"Leandra?"
"Yes Caleb?"
"Don't you and Gavren ever ask me to babysit for your kids."
#
Siofra laughed. "You think the two of you are going to make that much of a difference?"
"Two?" Kels smirked. His eyes glowed faintly.
Arrows rained down from above, each one taking a cultist. Six were dead before Siofra raised her staff to expand her barrier over them, causing the next arrow to bounce off it harmlessly. Duncan landed in their midst a moment later, stabbing a cultist in the eye with an arrow before yanking it back and firing it into the chest of the next one in line. Kels and Trian charged.
Lenore stood over her unconscious cousin and lifted her staff above her head as she stared up at Siofra. The elven woman turned around and ran. Lenore shrugged, and used the butt end of her staff to smack a nearby cultist in the face.
#
Loghain looked down at the hand sticking into his chest. He smiled, and the lyrium warrior gave him a confused look. "Nice trick." He stepped casually to the side, phasing the other man's hand through him harmlessly. "What else you got?" When the man's eyes widened, he called the Fade to him and sent it outwards as a burst of energy, sending the lyrium warrior flying.
"How the hell did you do that?" The lyrium warrior rolled back to his feet, his hand around the hilt of Jerath's sword.
He smiled, and reached again. "In war..." His eyes lit as his companion joined its strength to his. "Victory."
The lyrium warrior swung his blade and Loghain batted it away effortlessly. The Keening Blade screamed in his hand as he drove it through the lyrium warrior's shield, armor, and heart. "That was for Jerath, you piece of shit." He yanked the blade free. The lyrium warrior crumpled to the ground.
He picked up the fallen sword and looked down at it for a moment before carrying it over to the stunned Alistair, offering it to him. "Your majesty."
"You..." Alistair met his eyes. Then he shook his head and took the blade. "Well done, and thank you."
"I would accompany you back, but the night is just getting started." He pointed to where part of the city had risen into the sky, and saw Alistair's eyes widen. He started to walk away, then turned back to Alistair. "So, the son-in-law issue thing, um..."
"No." Alistair nodded. "We're good." He shrugged. "I mean, as long as Wynne is happy."
"Thank you." Loghain saluted, and headed out of the garden.
#
Salla landed, letting her companions disembark before returning to her human form. "That went well."
"That isn't going to slow him down long, so let's get moving." Agatha grinned. Somewhere back in the direction they had come, something exploded. She looked back in that direction. "So, how mad is he going to be now?"
"I always found him to be a fairly good sport about such things." Tisallan shrugged. "Which is not to say he is not going to be coming after us now."
"Well, let's let folks know where we are then." Salla twirled the coppery staff in her hand, calling up some of the power it had absorbed over the years to enhance her spell. Then she whirled and sent a blast of that power into the sky, where it lit the city as bright as day for the space of a heartbeat.
"Yes." Tisallan nodded. "That should definitely get some attention."
#
The glowing form bent, his fingers glowing white as he touched Brehan's leg. Brehan felt nothing as Urthemiel rather casually shoved the bone back into place. "I trust you can manage to get back safely." Urthemiel straightened. "I have far better things to do tonight than waste my time rescuing you from your clumsiness." He headed back out through the massive hole he had made in the wall.
Carefully, Brehan stood, slowly putting weight on the previously injured leg. It felt good as new. He shrugged, and looked up at the sky. "For the record, this shit here?" He shook his head, and picked up his hammer. "This is why I'm an Andrastian." He headed back to Arenda's house.
For just a moment, he thought he heard someone laugh in response.
#
The four men remaining didn't even last four seconds. "You guys can get back okay, right?" Caleb glanced back at his fathers, who were both again staring at the sky above them.
Hawke blinked, and turned to him. "You two are coming with us."
Leandra shook her head. "Nope, we've got an appointment elsewhere." She started walking.
"Yeah, by now Agatha, Salla, and Tisallan have yanked Fen'Harel's tail." Caleb returned the crossbow to the sling before starting to walk after Leandra.
"You two aren't going..." Fenris cut off as a dragon with glowing green eyes landed in front of his son and niece. The massive beast lowered his neck, and both kids leaped aboard. With a beat of mighty wings, an Old God took once more to the sky.
"Fenris?"
"Yes Hawke?"
"I am starting to question our parenting skills."
"Starting to?"
"Is it just me, or were they glowing?"
#
"So..." Kels turned towards Lenore. "You're good, you can get him back safely?"
Lenore felt the tingling that signaled the return of her magic. "Yes." She looked at their faces. "I take it that means you aren't coming back with me?"
Duncan yanked one of his arrows free of a corpse. "We've still got work to do." His eyes were cold and hard.
"Where are you..." Lenore started to ask.
Somewhere else in the city, a spell shot up into the sky, turning everything as bright as day. Sparks rained down in a shimmering shower, lighting up the top of one of the towers.
"Well, there's our signal." Trian hefted his shield.
"Let's move." Kels headed in that direction.
Lenore watched them go before she sat down next to Carver. She ruffled his hair as he started to stir. "Oh cousin..." She sighed. "You have so much explaining to do." She drew her legs to her. "Starting with why the crown prince of Ferelden was glowing."
#
The dragon landed, and Leandra and Caleb slid off the neck. Magic swirled as the beast shifted back into the glowing Urthemiel. The glow faded from everywhere but the eyes, leaving Kieran standing there. Caleb couldn't help but wonder if his own eyes looked that cool at the moment. Kieran turned. "It is done?"
Loghain stepped out of the shadows, light shimmering in his eyes. "It's done." He nodded to Leandra. "I think your boy toy is showing off a bit."
"You're just jealous." She grinned.
"Damn right." Loghain shook his head. "He's got a great butt."
"Asshole." She shook her head affectionately before gesturing at Caleb. "We're off. You boys have fun now." Caleb followed, readying his crossbow as he moved.
They hadn't gone far when they saw the first group heading towards the tower. The four in the lead had horns. She grinned. "Hey, hornheads." They stopped at the sound of her voice and began to turn towards her. "Kadanshok defransdim vashedan. Ebra dathrasi vashetoh saar-qalaba kata! Itwa-ost."
Caleb aimed his crossbow. "Well, you got their attention."
Leandra grinned before leaping down into the fray.
#
Duncan nocked an arrow as they came upon a group rushing towards the tower. The group saw them, and the leader started to twirl a staff in their direction. A pulse of energy from Kels shut the spell down before it had firmly formed. Trian and Kels both charged.
He narrowed his eyes. Loghain hadn't been sure which mage it was, but he'd given the man his word. The arrow took the spellcaster between the eyes. If he had to get them all to be sure of killing the one responsible, then that was exactly what he was going to do. He sighted down the arrow at the next staff-wielder, and fired. "For Alai, maleficar."
#
Loghain followed Kieran into the building. Siofra stopped dead in her tracks when she saw them. The five men with her glanced at her nervously. "Kill them..." She ordered as she started moving back the direction she'd come.
"Loghain?"
He drew his blade in response, and called the Fade to him. His eyes glowed brighter. "Get her." He headed towards the men, who started looking as if they wanted to be anywhere else.
Kieran started after the fleeing mage.
#
It had all gone wrong. She'd been so close, and it all had gone wrong. Siofra sliced her arm as she frantically called for her magic.
He entered the room behind her. She shook her head. "You don't understand!" She reached for the strength in her blood. "All I wanted..."
"Was power." Green fire trailed from his eyes. "An answer, as you called out. Begging and pleading and letting the anger fester when no one came to save you. As it has been since the dawn of time." He moved towards her. "Calling and calling, wanting to be saved until nothing is left inside you but rage, desire, envy, fear, and despair." He tilted his head. "And yet here you stand, living proof."
"Proof?"
"That it has always been within your power to save yourselves." His eyes narrowed. "You called for me." He spread his hands. "I have answered. Here I am. Is this not what you desired?"
"This isn't what I wanted!" She flung a spell at him.
The magic washed over him as harmlessly as if she'd thrown feathers. "Finally, you understand the reason for the silence."
"All the sacrifices I have made, and you..."
"I remember." He was only a few feet from her, and there was nowhere left to flee. "Your own baby sister, weeping as the life drained from her veins. Onesa."
"Onesa..." She repeated the name.
"Malinda. Davis. Labean. So many more whose names you did not know. Others who died from the poison of your words." He caught her by the throat. "For their sake, I promise you this, da'len." The glowing eyes whirled. "For the rest of your life, you will have my undivided attention."