Ch.10

When Rhys saw the dust rising into the air, he knew immediately what the mages were doing. It had been easy enough to spot them in the distance, travelling south on horseback. This was an expedition, not a normal journey; there were too many mages and supplies to be considered otherwise. They wanted to reach the ruined keep, which meant that they would have to cross the river as quickly as possible.

Rhys breathed a sigh of relief, glad he had made it back before they left. He wasn't sure exactly when the Fereldans had arrived, but judging by the bodies lying beside the road, the incident had taken place sometime just before dawn.

As he walked up to the group, he noticed that most of the horses were saddled, suggesting the mages planned to ride from the start. Of course, since he"d already warned them, they would "t expect him to stop them. It would take a bit more effort to get them off their mounts, but now that he knew their plan, it should only take a few minutes.

"My lords," he said, bowing slightly at the waist as he approached. "It appears that you"ve come prepared for the journey."

"Yes, milord," one of the mages answered, shifting uncomfortably in his saddle. He was one of the older men—one who might have started as a foot soldier decades ago. Rhys knew that there were any such people in the Order anymore; the younger mages were trained by former mages or mercenary leaders. The man was wearing leather armour and had a red bandana tied around his head, although there was no way of telling if it had been military-style at one point.

"You didn't happen to see anything that looks like an elf in these parts, did you?" another mage asked, looking at Rhys with suspicion.

Rhys smiled. "No, I have not. Are there any elves hereabouts?"

The mage shook his head. "We're hoping that Aelbur and the others will help us once we arrive. What about you? Have you seen an elven lord among your travels?"

Rhys rubbed his chin. This was important to the Order, especially at this juncture. If anyone found out about Rhys"s true identity, he would "t live long enough to see the sunrise. To all outward appearances, he was just another human mage travelling to fulfil his oath to the Order, but in reality, he was so much more.

"No, my lord," he replied, suddenly looking forward. "But I have heard of one that could help me—someone who travels with the Order."

"We've encountered them before," their bandana mage said. "They are a strange group, for certain, and they do nothing that anyone else cannot do. But they are t the sort you want to bring trouble onto yourself."

"How can you be certain that is the case?" Rhys asked.

"Because every time one of these elf-seekers has found their way to us, it was only because someone from within the Order had betrayed them. Then again . . ." The red-bandana mage nodded to the others, who stopped in place and began to move away from the road. "If they had discovered this land through a simple journey, there would be no need to continue searching. It seems their interest goes beyond the boundaries of this land."

He looked at the mage, then back toward Rhys. "This does not make us your enemy, my lord, but you should keep a close eye on what we do here. Those elves may come to find us, and in the absence of any other information, we might prove to be an ally."

Rhys smiled. "I don't think my father would be happy to hear this about the elves."

The red-bandana mage nodded, folding his arms across his chest. "But he's not here, and we can't ignore the possibility of our being attacked by elves. From everything I"ve learned over the years, elven mercenaries are well respected on the field of battle. If they claim you as their own, it won't matter if your father wants them dead; they will kill you first."

***

Hours later, Evander stared at the ruins of the keep, still unsure what to say to Rissa. He considered the reality that her people had chosen to leave her behind to save themselves, even though she was never to have known any better. They had taken the human into their midst, helping him along in his training, but in the end, they abandoned him when the time came to earn his trust.

Perhaps things would be different in Orlais, where elvish society was somewhat less rigid than that of the elven tribes on the continent. The humans of Celene"s world had come together to build their kingdom, but she still thought of herself as a member of one race above all others—one that was equal to and above all others. But that wasn't how the rest of the world viewed things, and even among the elves, there were more traditionalists than others.

He sighed, unable to bear the silence any longer. "So what did you mean by that? When you spoke about your skin having an essence . . ."

Rissa turned toward him, her eyes clouding with grief. It hurt to see her like this; after spending so long trying not to feel anything, she now couldn't stop herself. And as much as he had hoped for something more, there was nothing he could do to help her now.

She opened her mouth to speak, but a loud clanging sound caused them both to turn around. A wave of dark magic washed over them, accompanied by the shrieks and moans of many tortured souls. It seemed as though the elven army had reached the keep—and quickly.

Evander held out his hand, concentrating on his arcane senses, hoping to catch any sign of movement, but everything was obscured by the dense clouds of despair and agony. Suddenly, the two of them were flung to the ground.

At first, Evander thought the explosion had been meant for him. After all, who else stood in such proximity to the ruin? Then, however, a blast of light struck the earth a dozen feet away, sending smoke into the air. The raging fire flared up from within, throwing off heat and light, as the stony walls shimmered with energy.

"Celene," Rissa said, recovering quickly. "The mages know they can't defeat you. They"ve come to get rid of you."

Evander slowly got up to his knees, holding himself to make sure he didn't faint. He looked down at the charred remains of Celene"s troops, but only for a moment before another burst of light filled the sky. Once again, the world seemed to spin, and this time, the elf wasn't able to recover.

He felt the weight of an arm on top of his back, then cold. Through the flames and swirling dust, he saw Rissa staring at him, eyes full of pity and sorrow.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

Evander tried to nod, but only managed a gesture. Instead, he gently grabbed hold of her shoulder with one hand. She allowed him to pull her closer, resting his head on her chest. "I thought I was gone," he whispered.