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[Uccio]

Spoiler

*Nothing disturbed the silence in the dark room except the steady breathing sounding from the elaborate bed. Still, there was movement in the dark. The silent rustle of the curtains awoke the Magister Manius from his sleep. It took a few moments from the old man to realize that there was someone in the room with him. A silent dark character stood next to his bed. Manius winced awake when he noticed the intruder. "What is the meaning of this, who are you?" he asked even though the old Magister knew the answer in his heart.

"Did you think I could not find out that you were behind the attempt on my life?" the character whispered silently. "Guards!" Manius tried to yell but his voice was strangely muffled and could not rise above whisper. He tried to reach for his magic and stand up from the bed only to notice being paralyzed. Manius collected his self-esteem and gazed at the character defiantly, "So Caius, you finally found enough balls to rise against me and came to murder me in my bed. A old man. Really brave boy".

"On the contrary, I am not here to murder you" the character whispered, "I just came to see my master to become a horrible demonic abomination, like a faithful servant does".
Manius stared at the character unbelieving, "Caius?". The dark character by his bed slowly pulled his hood off. It revealed his personal servant, a avvar slave.
"What, Amak?" Manius whispered bemused, this old slave had been his most trusted servant for decades. The last person who would betray him, or so he had thought.

Amak smiled, it was a cold smile. "I could have forgiven you the attempt on my life, which is quite the concession on my part actually. If it only would have included me. By involving my daughter in it you sealed your own fate".
"You don´t have a daughter, only a son", Manius spluttered baffled. Amak just smiled that cold smile of his. It was strangely familiar. Amak put his hand inside his tunic and drew out a small blood red ruby. It looked like it was alive, something stirred inside it. Manius stared at the ruby as Amak placed it on his chest. "These are extremely rare. So rare that they don´t even have value, so count yourself truly important since I am willing to destroy one for you", he whispered.

"No" Manius whispered horrified when he felt the hunger of the essence inside the ruby. Amak gestured few complicated signs and started to cast. "When did you become a mage?" Manius said in wonderment when he felt the touch of the spell. "That is something for you to ponder, my friend" Amak grinned pulling a dagger from his belt.
"No, my sons are sleeping in the next rooms!" Manius cried realizing what was about to happen. He started to scream strangely silent when the demon bound in the ruby forced it´s way into Manius opened mind causing the ruby to crumble into red dust in the process. While the old man´s body started to shake and warp Amak finished his spells releasing the abomination from the binding spells. When the demon turned to look at Amak with a exultant look on it´s deformed face Amak cut his own throat.

In the summoning chamber of his tower Caius winced when his mind returned to his body. He gazed at his own hands reaching out twisting his fingers to feel his own body once again. He stood up shivering unintentionally. Controlling another man´s body and mind made him feel strangely dirty. Like he would have wore another man´s skin while he was alive and conscious. Caius walked slowly to the table and washed his hands in a silver bowl. For some reason he felt the urge to do that.
How in the void Nerva can keep doing that, and even with several people at once, he wondered. To control one person felt uncomfortable enough. The memories and feelings of the other person were really strong. Caius gazed at the Nerva´s notes brought by his remaining agent inside the Ordo Silentia. Despite the information he now possessed of this specific branch of blood magic it did not feel inspirational for some reason. I need to work on something else, he thought.*

[Serelir]

This first part just deals with getting out of Orlais. I haven't written a story in donkey's years, so keep in mind that I'm a novice at this!

 

Spoiler

 

The Fall of the Tower at Montpellier

 

A freshening breeze whisked away the tattered wisps of midnight, leaving a limpid sky scintillating with stars. No, too poetic! Elowyn told herself to concentrate on the task at hand, which was aiming the astrarium at a particularly intriguing group of stars in the constellation Eluvia. Elowyn strongly suspected that the star cluster contained an anomaly – a cloud of softly glowing red gas. She’d been standing on the roof of the mage tower at Montpellier, waiting for the sky to clear, and her mind had wandered, as it had a bad habit of doing. She often composed narratives in her head about situations, almost as if she were observing herself from outside. She shook her head to clear it and gazed into the viewfinder to adjust the focus. She had just located the reddish halo when she became aware of a commotion beneath her in the tower. That’s odd, she thought, and turned her head to listen. There were muffled shouts emanating from the floors below, the shattering of glass, and suddenly, the whole tower shook violently! As Elowyn stood in uncomprehending shock, screaming began, then the sound of pounding footsteps, and the door to the roof burst open, emitting a terrified mage.

 

“Anthony?” she asked, as the skinny apprentice fell onto his knees on the rooftop. Elowyn saw a lumbering shape emerge behind Anthony. Before she could cry out, a Templar in full armor raised his sword in both hands and plunged it into Anthony’s back. “Wait, wait!” she cried futilely, as the Templar turned toward her. She backed away toward the balcony railing as he approached her at a deliberate pace. There was nowhere for her to run. Then, behind the Templar appeared a still larger figure, terrifyingly misshapen. As Elowyn prepared to cast a spell, the demon reached out and ripped off the Templar’s head as easily as a cook pops off the end of a string bean. Elowyn gathered the storm in her hands and flung it at the demon, paralyzing it. There was no way through the demon, and no way off the roof. Her only hope was to cast a barrier spell over herself and hope that she could lure the demon away from the doorway. Just then, another Templar came bounding up the stairs and plunged his sword up under the paralyzed demon’s scrawny arm and into its chest. It turned to ashes and blew away.

 

Elowyn prepared a spell to meet this new challenge, when beneath the helmet, a muffled voice called her name, “Elowyn? It’s Guy. We have to get out of here.”

 

“Guy! What in the Maker is going on down there?!”

 

“There’s no time to explain – we have to go - now!”

 

“But what about everyone else? What happened?”

 

Guy ran past her and looked over the railing, then turned and ran back into the tower. Elowyn knelt by Anthony, hoping that he still breathed, but there was no saving him. At least his death had been mercifully quick. She looked up as Guy emerged again with a length of rope coiled over his shoulder.

 

“We’re going down this way. We can’t get back through the building – it’s utter chaos down there.”

 

“We’re escaping? But what about my books? I can’t leave my research behind!” Elowyn wailed.

 

Guy put both hands on her shoulders and gave her a little shake. “El, the tower’s done for. The Circle is broken. There’s no going back.” He tied the rope securely to the balcony and put his full weight on it to make sure it held. “I’m going first. When I get to the bottom, I’ll hold the rope taut for you, so you don’t swing around. Place a barrier spell over that door. If anything comes through, don’t hesitate – start down the rope.” With that, he swung his legs over the railing and dropped out of sight. Elowyn peered over the railing to watch his progress as he abseiled down the wall. Something came crashing out of one of the windows below, and Guy swung quickly out of the way as he descended. Elowyn remembered that she had to block the doorway and flung up an electric barrier just as another figure came barreling toward it from the stairwell. It bounced off and tumbled back down the stairs. Elowyn turned again to check on Guy’s progress and saw that he’d reached the ground. He waved up at her, and she grabbed the rope and swung herself over, grateful that she wasn’t afraid of heights. She spent a lot of time at the top of the tower, gazing at the heavens and wishing she could fly away.

 

Guy caught her as she reached the ground. He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the stables. “Guy, where are we going? How can we just leave like this? Don’t people need our help?” The horses were milling around in their stalls, clearly alarmed. “Whoa there,” called Guy softly, as he approached a well-muscled bay. “Can you do this?” he asked Elowyn while he held the bay’s halter. “A wee bit difficult with gauntlets on.” She grabbed the bridle hanging outside the horse’s stall and tacked up the bay as Guy had taught her, though it was difficult for a small elf such as herself to hoist the saddle over its back. As she cinched the girth, Guy said, “Saddle up Whisper as well, and be quick!” As Guy led the bay out of the stable, Elowyn turned toward Whisper’s stall. As she went by, she opened all the stall doors so the other horses could escape, though she’d read that terrified horses often wouldn’t leave their stalls. “There’s nothing more I can do for them,” she thought, and brought Whisper out of her stall. She mounted and walked Whisper over to where Guy was unlocking the gates. “Where are we going?” she asked Guy.

 

“Can your aunt and uncle take us in just for tonight?” he asked.

 

Elowyn considered her relatives’ small courtyard apartment in the alienage. There was a livery on the corner where they could stable the horses.  Her aunt and uncle’s place was cramped, but she was sure they could make room just for a night. They’d practically raised her, and she hadn’t been able to visit more than a few times a year since she’d been taken to the Circle.

 

“I think so,” she replied.

 

“Then let’s away!” said Guy, as he urged his horse into a trot.

[raging_monkey]

I like it

[Uccio]

This first part just deals with getting out of Orlais. I haven't written a story in donkey's years, so keep in mind that I'm a novice at this!

 

Spoiler

 

The Fall of the Tower at Montpellier

 

A freshening breeze whisked away the tattered wisps of midnight, leaving a limpid sky scintillating with stars. No, too poetic! Elowyn told herself to concentrate on the task at hand, which was aiming the astrarium at a particularly intriguing group of stars in the constellation Eluvia. Elowyn strongly suspected that the star cluster contained an anomaly – a cloud of softly glowing red gas. She’d been standing on the roof of the mage tower at Montpellier, waiting for the sky to clear, and her mind had wandered, as it had a bad habit of doing. She often composed narratives in her head about situations, almost as if she were observing herself from outside. She shook her head to clear it and gazed into the viewfinder to adjust the focus. She had just located the reddish halo when she became aware of a commotion beneath her in the tower. That’s odd, she thought, and turned her head to listen. There were muffled shouts emanating from the floors below, the shattering of glass, and suddenly, the whole tower shook violently! As Elowyn stood in uncomprehending shock, screaming began, then the sound of pounding footsteps, and the door to the roof burst open, emitting a terrified mage.

 

“Anthony?” she asked, as the skinny apprentice fell onto his knees on the rooftop. Elowyn saw a lumbering shape emerge behind Anthony. Before she could cry out, a Templar in full armor raised his sword in both hands and plunged it into Anthony’s back. “Wait, wait!” she cried futilely, as the Templar turned toward her. She backed away toward the balcony railing as he approached her at a deliberate pace. There was nowhere for her to run. Then, behind the Templar appeared a still larger figure, terrifyingly misshapen. As Elowyn prepared to cast a spell, the demon reached out and ripped off the Templar’s head as easily as a cook pops off the end of a string bean. Elowyn gathered the storm in her hands and flung it at the demon, paralyzing it. There was no way through the demon, and no way off the roof. Her only hope was to cast a barrier spell over herself and hope that she could lure the demon away from the doorway. Just then, another Templar came bounding up the stairs and plunged his sword up under the paralyzed demon’s scrawny arm and into its chest. It turned to ashes and blew away.

 

Elowyn prepared a spell to meet this new challenge, when beneath the helmet, a muffled voice called her name, “Elowyn? It’s Guy. We have to get out of here.”

 

“Guy! What in the Maker is going on down there?!”

 

“There’s no time to explain – we have to go - now!”

 

“But what about everyone else? What happened?”

 

Guy ran past her and looked over the railing, then turned and ran back into the tower. Elowyn knelt by Anthony, hoping that he still breathed, but there was no saving him. At least his death had been mercifully quick. She looked up as Guy emerged again with a length of rope coiled over his shoulder.

 

“We’re going down this way. We can’t get back through the building – it’s utter chaos down there.”

 

“We’re escaping? But what about my books? I can’t leave my research behind!” Elowyn wailed.

 

Guy put both hands on her shoulders and gave her a little shake. “El, the tower’s done for. The Circle is broken. There’s no going back.” He tied the rope securely to the balcony and put his full weight on it to make sure it held. “I’m going first. When I get to the bottom, I’ll hold the rope taut for you, so you don’t swing around. Place a barrier spell over that door. If anything comes through, don’t hesitate – start down the rope.” With that, he swung his legs over the railing and dropped out of sight. Elowyn peered over the railing to watch his progress as he abseiled down the wall. Something came crashing out of one of the windows below, and Guy swung quickly out of the way as he descended. Elowyn remembered that she had to block the doorway and flung up an electric barrier just as another figure came barreling toward it from the stairwell. It bounced off and tumbled back down the stairs. Elowyn turned again to check on Guy’s progress and saw that he’d reached the ground. He waved up at her, and she grabbed the rope and swung herself over, grateful that she wasn’t afraid of heights. She spent a lot of time at the top of the tower, gazing at the heavens and wishing she could fly away.

 

Guy caught her as she reached the ground. He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the stables. “Guy, where are we going? How can we just leave like this? Don’t people need our help?” The horses were milling around in their stalls, clearly alarmed. “Whoa there,” called Guy softly, as he approached a well-muscled bay. “Can you do this?” he asked Elowyn while he held the bay’s halter. “A wee bit difficult with gauntlets on.” She grabbed the bridle hanging outside the horse’s stall and tacked up the bay as Guy had taught her, though it was difficult for a small elf such as herself to hoist the saddle over its back. As she cinched the girth, Guy said, “Saddle up Whisper as well, and be quick!” As Guy led the bay out of the stable, Elowyn turned toward Whisper’s stall. As she went by, she opened all the stall doors so the other horses could escape, though she’d read that terrified horses often wouldn’t leave their stalls. “There’s nothing more I can do for them,” she thought, and brought Whisper out of her stall. She mounted and walked Whisper over to where Guy was unlocking the gates. “Where are we going?” she asked Guy.

 

“Can your aunt and uncle take us in just for tonight?” he asked.

 

Elowyn considered her relatives’ small courtyard apartment in the alienage. There was a livery on the corner where they could stable the horses.  Her aunt and uncle’s place was cramped, but she was sure they could make room just for a night. They’d practically raised her, and she hadn’t been able to visit more than a few times a year since she’d been taken to the Circle.

 

“I think so,” she replied.

 

“Then let’s away!” said Guy, as he urged his horse into a trot.

 

Awesome, no need to be modest. 

[Shienis]

So, what's with Tevinter low birth-rate?

 

So far, 3 magisters that we know of only had one child: Alexius, Dorian's dad and Maevaris' dad?

 

One would think they wont stop at just the one seeing how kill happy the society seems to be

 

I was thinking about this too, but from a bit different point of view. In addition to what have already been said, I think they are scared to give birth to a non-mage. Imagine how scandalous would it be if a Magister (or even an Altus) had a child that can't use magic. Which brings me to another question: what happens if an Altus has a non-mage child? Considering that magic appears during childhood, by reaching 10~15 years it should already be clear if the child is mage or not. Will they bear the shame and raise the child responsibly? Or will they declare the child a bastard (if the mother has personality for that) and send it to study abroad? Or will the child meet a fatal accident/disease? Or will the child just disappear without trace?

[Serelir]

what happens if an Altus has a non-mage child? Considering that magic appears during childhood, by reaching 10~15 years it should already be clear if the child is mage or not. Will they bear the shame and raise the child responsibly? Or will they declare the child a bastard (if the mother has personality for that) and send it to study abroad? Or will the child meet a fatal accident/disease? Or will the child just disappear without trace?

Interesting question! The flipside to all the stories of hiding and disowning mage children elsewhere. Maybe they need a child exchange?

 

Here's the next part of my story:

Spoiler

A Visit to the Montpellier Alienage

 

Uncle Sean and Aunt Kitty were nonplussed to see Elowyn show up at their door in the wee hours of the morning accompanied by a large human in a full suit of armor. Kitty’s terriers set up a chorus of barking that only grew louder the more she tried to shush them. Uncle Sean looked a bit sleep-tousled and bleary-eyed as he opened the door, but his happy welcome when he recognized Elowyn brightened his features.

 

“Ellie!” he cried, “Come in! Come in? And who’s this?” Elowyn tried not to wince at her uncle’s use of her nickname. She’d been just “Elowyn” as long as she’d been in the Tower, quashing any attempts by her fellow mages to shorten her name to Ellie or the even more hideous Wynnie. Guy whisked off his helmet and offered his hand, “Guy du Bessay, at your service,” he said, introducing himself in his melodious baritone. “Oh!” exclaimed Aunt Kitty, appearing at the door, “This is the Guy we’ve heard so much about!” Elowyn winced yet again and drew Guy into the apartment, shutting the door so the curious neighbors wouldn’t eavesdrop.

 

“So Elowyn has told you about me? Good things, I hope?” Guy inquired.

 

“She said you were handsome,” replied Aunt Kitty, “but she was too modest. She never told us you look just like a prince out of a fairy tale, a real Knight in Shining Armor!”

 

Elowyn blushed a completely unbecoming shade of red that clashed with her hair. “Aunt Kitty! Honestly! I can’t tell you anything!” she cried, wishing she could wipe the big grin off of Guy’s face. Her aunt subscribed to all the chatty rags about the Grand Game in Val Royaux and was obviously familiar with the Bessay family. Elowyn found it tremendously embarrassing that poor elves living in the alienages subscribed to such trash and, even worse, looked up to the barons and dukes and great families of Orlais as if those very same people weren’t responsible for their oppression. But she couldn’t say all this to Aunt Kitty. It wouldn’t do any good to squash her aunt’s enthusiasm – she had little enough out of life as it was, and if stories of the rich and famous brought some joy, Elowyn wasn’t going to take that away from her.

 

“So,” said her uncle, a man whose few words were often drowned out by his wife’s gushing exclamations, “what brings you here in the middle of the night?”

 

Elowyn deflated even further. “Uncle Sean, there’s been trouble at the Tower. I’m not sure what happened, but if Guy hadn’t rescued me, I’d be dead. I saw Anthony die at my feet!” whereupon she burst into tears.

 

As Kitty gathered Elowyn in her arms, Guy gave her uncle a brief explanation. “There’s been trouble at the Tower for some time now. I don’t know if Elowyn’s told you any of it, but the Knight Captain is completely corrupt, and the First Enchanter was incapable of reining in his excesses. One of the young mages was finally driven over the edge and allowed herself to become possessed by demons. The Templars didn’t act quickly enough – the mages used it as an excuse to attack the Templars, and, in the ensuing mayhem, demons overran the Tower.”

 

“Now wait just a minute!” exclaimed Elowyn, “The mages attacked the Templars? It was the Knight Captain who started all this! Everyone knew Captain Hervé was abusing children, and no one did anything about it!”

 

“We tried!” said Guy in exasperation, “We did the best we could, those of us who knew what was going on, but we couldn’t go against orders.”

 

This was an old argument between the two of them. Ever since Guy had befriended the quiet little elf girl and noticed the bruises on her arms and throat, the two of them had been arguing about how to get rid of Knight Captain Hervé. Well, someone had finally done it, and Elowyn only wished it had happened sooner. Though when she thought how her first concern had been for her books, she felt ashamed. “A lot of people will suffer because of this,” she told her uncle. “Any mages who survive will be made Tranquil.”

 

“We just need a place for tonight,” said Guy. “We’ll have to escape the city tomorrow. When they don’t find our bodies at the Tower, they’ll be searching for us.”

 

“Maybe they’ll think we got turned to ash,” said Elowyn hopefully. Then her face blanched. “I forgot about the phylactery!” she said in horror. “They’ll be able to find me!”

 

Guy turned to her and tapped his breastplate. “I have it right here.”

 

“But how? The phylacteries are under lock and key!”

 

“I knew that the situation was explosive, and I took the opportunity afforded me by guard duty and liberated your phylactery. I knew we might have to run.” Guy explained.

 

Elowyn gazed at him in admiration and wonder. “I didn’t realize you were planning all this,” she said.

 

“Well, not all of it!” he replied. “I had nothing to do with the demons. That’s on Hervé’s head, as far as I’m concerned.”

 

“Just a moment,” her uncle interrupted. “Are you saying that demons have overrun the Tower and could escape into the town?”

 

Guy looked chagrined. “No, Elowyn and I killed the last demon. When we left, the Templars were gaining the upper hand. I wasn’t able to save the other mages, only this one.”

 

“For which we are grateful!” exclaimed Uncle Sean, clapping Guy on the shoulder and immediately regretting it as his friendly gesture met Templar armor. “Well, I am sorry for those who’ve suffered, though relieved we won’t have to be hunting demons tonight. Thought I’d have to string my longbow!”

 

Aunt Kitty came back into the room from settling the dogs. “I made up some pallets for you in the sewing room. Mind the wool!” she said.

 

It wasn’t an idle warning: the sewing room was packed floor to ceiling with skeins of yarn and various bits and bobs pertaining to her aunt and uncle’s cottage knitting and tapestry business. Elowyn helped Guy out of his armor.

 

“Sorry about my aunt,” she muttered. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

 

“I’m flattered!” Guy replied, easing his leg out of a cuisse. Elowyn piled the armor as best she could in a corner. “We might have to leave that,” said Guy, “A bit difficult to blend in wearing a suit of Templar armor.”

 

“But don’t you need it?” asked Elowyn, dismayed. “Who’s going to question a Templar about his business?”

 

“They’ll be looking for a rogue Templar and an escaped mage,” he said regretfully, as the thought of his disobedience sunk in.

 

The shock of the evening’s events was just catching up with Elowyn, too. She stifled a huge yawn. “Let’s try to rest and we can make our plans in the morning,” she said. We won’t want to head out in daylight anyway.”

 

“Do you think the ostler at the livery stable will say anything?” asked Guy.

 

“No, they’re my aunt’s cousins,” said Elowyn. “Elves protect one another’s secrets, and I slipped them some extra coin for good measure.”

 

As Elowyn settled into her pallet and drew the covers, she didn’t think she’d be able to calm her mind, still roaring with images of Anthony being cut down in front of her and the demon bursting through behind the Templar. But sleep caught up with her, stole away her thoughts and wove them into dreams.

[Uccio]

Such children still carry magic in their blood thus are a asset to the family. Maybe not the number one hope but still.

[Red of Rivia]

I am back

[raging_monkey]

Hey red

[MisterJB]

I was thinking about this too, but from a bit different point of view. In addition to what have already been said, I think they are scared to give birth to a non-mage. Imagine how scandalous would it be if a Magister (or even an Altus) had a child that can't use magic. Which brings me to another question: what happens if an Altus has a non-mage child? Considering that magic appears during childhood, by reaching 10~15 years it should already be clear if the child is mage or not. Will they bear the shame and raise the child responsibly? Or will they declare the child a bastard (if the mother has personality for that) and send it to study abroad? Or will the child meet a fatal accident/disease? Or will the child just disappear without trace?

Depends on the family.

Alexius' father was going to kill Felix because he had magic but only barely. But since his parents loved him, they killed his grandfather first and sent him to study in the highest non-magical place of learning in the world, the University of Orlais.

 

Emperor Drakon's father was a non-magical Tevinter nobleman who was married off to a chieftain from a Southern tribe.

 

[Red of Rivia]

Hey red

zup!

[raging_monkey]

Nothing much

[Warden Commander Aeducan]

I am back

Hello Red, it's good to have you back. LOL where have you been?

[Red of Rivia]

Hello Red, it's good to have you back. LOL where have you been?

I was in Russia! FINALLY I AM BACK! And... we have a lot of things to talk o-o

[Uccio]

Welcome back wanderer. Hopefully had a fun trip.

[raging_monkey]

Yes glad to have ya

[Serelir]

I have a question about the Imperium: what's the climate like? From what Dorian and others say, it's warmer in the north. The few depictions have shown barren, desolate, gray landscapes. It doesn't seem that such a climate would be capable of supporting a major civilization (unless everyone just eats magic pancakes), so I envision it more like the areas it's supposedly based on, that is, Mediterranean, with vineyards, olive groves and rams. 

 

Anyone know for sure or have ideas about the landscape?

 

In the meantime, still heading slowly toward Tevinter:

 

Spoiler

Night in the Montpellier Alienage... and the Next Morning

 

She was walking in the Fade. She knew it was the Fade, because the staircases were upside down. Then she wondered how she knew the staircases were upside down. Didn’t they look the same upside down and rightside up? As she pondered this conundrum, she noticed darkness seeping into the edges of her vision. A man dressed in rich, soft silks entered the space through a doorway that appeared off to the side, disconnected from any walls. The Templar icon was emblazoned on his doublet, but the man wasn’t Guy.

 

He was handsome in an arrogant way, a sneer marring the corner of his shapely mouth. “Not this again!” thought Elowyn. “Are all Templars handsome? Is it a qualification of joining the Order?” As the Templar strode over to her, she suddenly realized who it was: Hervé, the Knight Captain of the Montpellier Circle Tower. She cringed backwards, trying to hide herself in a fold of the shadows that defined the nebulous space they occupied. She was a little girl again, a thin little elf girl, cowering in the corner, and suddenly, the space changed, and she was in the Knight Captain’s office, and he had just locked the door. Elowyn began crying uncontrollably, terrified for her child-self.

 

Was it worse, knowing what was going to happen and being powerless to prevent it?

 

The man came to a stop before her, menacingly close. He reached out and petted her hair. “Such lovely hair,” he said, then grabbed a handful of it, jerking her head up. “For a craven little elf!” he sneered, spittle flying from his lips. “You’ve been disobedient again.” He pulled open her clenched fist and shook her wrist. Little crumbs of biscuit flew out. “You’ve been warned about feeding the rats. Now we have a rat problem!” It would have been better if he had shouted, but his voice was soft and sibilant. Elowyn tried to speak, but her throat was parched, and her tongue couldn’t manage to form words. In desperation, she began gathering her mana. There was no protection from this man. She knew it was useless, foolish even, to attempt to protect herself. Hervé sensed her gathering power and seized her by the throat, choking her. She gasped as he stripped her mana from her. He shoved her head down hard on the desk and took off his belt…

 

“Elowyn! Wake up!” someone was shaking her. She cracked open her eyes. It was Guy, thank the Maker! “Are you alright?” he asked.

 

“Demon,” she croaked.

 

“Again? The same one?”

 

“Water,” she managed, gesturing. Guy poured her a glass of water from the pitcher on the table. She took a long drink. Her throat felt sore and bruised.

 

“The one that’s in Hervé. That is Hervé – or, I don’t know. I think he has a demon inside him.”

 

“We’ve talked about this, Elowyn. Templars can’t become possessed.”

 

“I don’t know what it is!” She started crying. Too much crying lately. She wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. “I was just a child.”

 

“It wasn’t your fault,” Guy told her, as he had many times in the past.

 

“I know. I just… no one did anything! They all knew. They knew and yet they did nothing. How many children suffered that monster?”

 

“It’s over,” Guy said.

 

“How do you know that?” she said angrily. “That bastard probably survived.”

 

“He didn’t.”

 

“What? You saw him die?”

 

“I killed him.”

 

She looked at him blankly. “You did what?!”

 

“I killed him. He had it coming.”

 

“I don’t know what to say. I… thank you! Thank you! He deserved it. I hope you made him suffer.”

 

“It was pretty quick. There was a lot going on.”

 

Elowyn found her smile reflected on Guy’s face. “I don’t even feel the slightest bit bad that you killed your superior officer,” she said. ”He deserved it. I only wish I had been the one to end his life.”

 

“There’s just one little problem,” Guy said. “We’re fugitives now. In the eyes of the law, both of us are criminals.”

 

“I don’t care! What kind of justice would punish the slayers of monsters? What kind of society tolerates the abuse of mage children? They’re wrong! They’re wrong, and they are the criminals!”

 

“Nonetheless,” Guy began.

 

“Nonetheless nothing!” Elowyn ran her hands through her hair.

 

“Nonetheless, we need to abscond, to skedaddle, to take ourselves off.”

 

“Where can we go?”

 

“Ah, I was considering that. I think that a visit to Rochambeau is necessary, at least for a few nights.” Rochambeau was Guy’s family estate, situated north of Lydes. Elowyn knew there was some kind of unhappy history between Guy and his family, but he’d never been forthcoming about it.

 

“Are you sure? Will your family welcome you back?”

 

“They’ll have to. My father, at least. He’ll help us. I don’t know about my stepmother. Perhaps if we don’t stay too long. We need money, provisions, and some horses that don’t have the Circle brand.”

 

“Alright,” Elowyn agreed. “Is it wrong of me to feel excited about meeting your family?”

 

“Just don’t be surprised if they ask you to fetch the chamber pot.”

 

Elowyn threw a pillow at his head.

[raging_monkey]

Its warmer up north since it's near qunari territory the more south you go varies or location the east is temperate from what I know of thedosian geophaphy west I'm not to familiar

[Serelir]

The Anderfels are to the west, right? So, mountainous, snowy. Which is a little weird, but maybe the poles are E/W and the world spins what we'd consider sideways? Since there's no up and down in space, perhaps we should just label west as north. The Kocari Wilds didn't seem particularly cold, and the Arbor Wilds appeared to be tropical. Anyway, I was just trying to figure out whether Tevinter got a lot of rain or not.

 

Hey, where does your story start? I came to this thread really late and have just read the most recent bits of people's stories. 

[Uccio]

As I understood it, Tevinter is warm. Close to tropical, at least mediterranean.

[Serelir]

I'm going to go for Mediterranean. Tropical would just be beastly with all those elaborate black clothes. The Qunari can keep their bananas!

[raging_monkey]

The Anderfels are to the west, right? So, mountainous, snowy. Which is a little weird, but maybe the poles are E/W and the world spins what we'd consider sideways? Since there's no up and down in space, perhaps we should just label west as north. The Kocari Wilds didn't seem particularly cold, and the Arbor Wilds appeared to be tropical. Anyway, I was just trying to figure out whether Tevinter got a lot of rain or not.

Hey, where does your story start? I came to this thread really late and have just read the most recent bits of people's stories.

Like uccio said it's tropical if varies pendin location.

My story ended this season til August. Leaving him open for cross use by anybody. Ill pm you the back story and current alliance s in bit

[Serelir]

Thanks! I wanted to introduce Elowyn to the First Enchanter when she gets to Minrathous, and perhaps take a field trip.

[Uccio]

Well the First Enchanter is part of house Vaellanius, so you'll be seeing Caius tower then.

[Serelir]

I hope so! I'll have to figure our whether House Caius will be friend or foe.