The Underground, as Aurora had taken to calling it, was slowly increasing in size. There were mages who still came to her for help in controlling their powers, and only those who needed it were given combat training. However, there were also mages who did not come to the clearing for training, who just tried to keep low and out of sight of the Templars. For those, the Underground was a way to find help, a shoulder to lean on if needed. From finding cheap housing for those who wished to stay in Kirkwall, to helping those who wanted to flee find a safe way out, Aurora and the Underground did more than just train mages these days.
She was careful to keep a close eye on what they did and said, and always made sure that anything they did could not be traced back to magic. Thanks to her caution, to her friends, and sometimes even the friends of those friends, their group was nothing more than rumors and speculation on the street. Aurora would not take even the slightest chance on them being discovered. Some of the mages they helped did not even know they existed. It was not a huge organization, and it was optimistic to even call it an organization. In Aurora's eyes, it was a loosely connected group that sought to help others out so that as a whole they could survive. Like the roots of a flower.
It was a partly clouded day in the clearing, mages were practicing small spells as a concentration exercise, while others simply sat and mediated. Aurora, Pike, Donovan, and Sparrow stood apart from the majority and spoke amongst themselves about recent rumors concerning mages possibly escaping the Gallows.
"The way I heard it, most of them were captured again soon after," Pike said, frowning with the thought, "Though it's possible that others might've eluded their hounds thus far."
"Anything's possible Pike, even the rumor being false," Aurora added. There was not much love for Templars, even among nonmages, there was a very good chance that one of those people simply made it up in order to discredit the Templars. She did not like to deal in possibilities or maybes. "I won't have us go looking for mages that may or may not even exist."
Sparrow was squeezed in between Pike and Aurora, shoulders hunched forward and elbows propped on her knees. She scratched at her chin and snapped her eyes shut for a few moments, the closest thing to rummaging through her thoughts for some other plausible scenario that wouldn't involve not doing anything at all. She didn't like the idea of inaction, even if the rumours were false. But Aurora was right—better to be safe, and all that. She puffed her cheeks out and sighed harshly through her nostrils, “Might be more to go on if we wait.”
Pike visibly grimaced, but said nothing more on the matter. Instead Donovan clapped a meaty hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. "We will help those that we can, but we cannot be foolish. Impatience will do more harm than good," he said and though his lips lacked a smile, Donovan's eyes were warm.
Rilien refolded the missive and tucked it into the inside of his tunic, taking the few moments necessary to clean his workspace. “Something needing attending to?” The question came from Bodahn, who’d seen the young Templar carrying the message come in earlier, a bit nervous, and hand over the sealed envelope to the shop's proprietor.
The elf nodded slightly. "Yes. I will be out for the remainder of the day, and likely tomorrow as well. Please handle any orders in the usual way.” Bodahn confirmed that he would, and Rilien took a moment to make sure his order sheets were in order and accessible to his dwarven shop-mates before heading up the stairs. It didn’t take too much longer to armor himself in smooth, dark leather, sliding various blades, lockpicks, and potions home in the loops, sheaths, and pouches designed for them. When he was properly attired for his other kind of business, Rilien headed out the front door and made for Sundermont.
He was not usually in the business of outsourcing his more discreet requests, but in this case, he felt that it would be beneficial to all parties involved to bring in Aurora and whomever of her people she desired to have along. The problem was hardly unique, but he was being offered a great deal of discretion regarding his methods, and neither Thrask nor Cullen ever asked him many questions regarding how he accomplished the things they asked him to do. This was for the best. It was enough that when Rilien was asked to take care of a problem, it did not ever become a problem again.
For an elf, he looked rather out-of-place in the wilderness; Rilien wore his city-born nature with, if not precisely pride, certainly an utter lack of shame. A peculiar kind of almost gentrified sophistication was built not only into his wardrobe, but into the way he kept his appearance, and even the way he moved. That said, he passed as quietly as anyone might hope to through the forest, a silent but not invisible shadow sliding between the pillar-like trees and over the irregular landscape under his feet. He had learned of this location not too long ago—Aurora, it would seem, trusted him with the information, and in all honesty, he would have been able to extract it from Sparrow if he’d so desired. But he had as yet left the information unused. He was appreciative, as much as he could be, that Sparrow was finding a sense of community and belonging that had nothing whatsoever to do with him. It made the inevitable future much easier to plan for.
At present, however, he would have to intrude. He approached the clearing unnoticed by anyone, watching with an unreadable face as various mages, ranging from the very young to the rather wizened, practiced their craft in small, precise ways. A cluster including both Aurora and Sparrow stood off to one side, and it was these he approached, breaking the tree line and making a beeline for them. One young woman looked up and started when she noted the new arrival, enough noise to alert the rest to his existence, anyway.
"Aurora.” He waited until he had gained the attention of the speaking group before he continued. "I was recently passed a job from Ser Cullen. I believe it might interest you.”
Sparrow eyed her fellow mages with pursed lips, scuffling the dirt with the toe of her boots. They were far enough from Kirkwall to refrain from being overly cautious, but she still felt itchy. Not even the great trees, weaving back and forth in the wind, could soothe her soft-spoken worries. She'd forgone Amalia's dragon-made regalia for soft-leathers, far more comfortable for treks in the woods such as these, and not drawing unwanted attention. Her hair had grown longer over the months. Forgoing clippers and choosing instead to pull it back from her face into a loose knot, it made her appear much less intimidating. Not soft, but different. She exhaled noisily and stretched her arms over her head, arching her back and settling back into place. It was a nice day.
A noise snapped her attention sidelong. She'd spotted someone jerk backwards, and instinctively drew back her hand, fingers splayed. Warmth pulsed down her arms, and crackled at her palms. It took her a moment, blinking owlishly, to realize that the person approaching them was none other than Rilien. Silent as a ghost. Looking no more nonplussed by their reactions as if he'd been invited all along. Thankfully, no Templars were in pursuit. She dropped her hands dramatically and clicked her tongue, a grin slowly creeping it's way onto her face, “Can't you make a little noise? Or wear a bell?”
"It'd suit him, I think," Aurora agreed with a smile. She was surprised to see him there too, at first, but as it always did when it concerned Rilien, it soon faded away. She'd known him long enough to understand that she had to expect the unexpected with him. She looked past him and waved to the mages, asking them to calm down. "It's okay, he's a friend. Please continue with what you were doing before," she bade them. Even so, she couldn't help but over hear the word tranquil whispered between them.
Pike watched the man carefully, while Donovan stood relaxed with his arms crossed, as if waiting for something. Likely waiting for Aurora to ask what the job was. She turned back to Rilien and chewed on her lip, looking somewhat puzzled. "Ser Cullen is a Templar, is he not?" She asked, looking first to Sparrow and then back to Rilien, "What kind of job would a Templar have for you?" Aurora asked.
"He's asking you to hunt down a mage, isn't he?" Pike said, his frown deepening. "It's what Templars do, after all," He added, as Donovan's hand clasped his shoulder once more. That drew even more looks from the mages collected, and caused Aurora to sigh audibly.
Sparrow's grin smothered itself into a thin smile. Rilien hadn't told her he'd been planning to come up here at all. Neither did he mention needing any help, seeing as it concerned Cullen and who-knows what. Truthfully, she had nothing against him, but he was a Templar, and generally, Templars meant trouble for most of the people she surrounded herself with. Including Rilien, ironically. He didn't owe them anything, so why did they continue dogging him for solutions?
Rilien turned his head slightly, staring down Pike for several long seconds, his citrine-yellow eyes unblinking. "Attempting to see everyone as for you or against you will make you blind.” Blinking slowly, he returned his eyes to Aurora, ignoring the jest that suggested he wear something that would allow others to hear his approach. "What Ser Cullen wants is for me to ascertain the location and activities of two apostates, before Meredith comes to believe the matter one that she has to send a troop of Templars to deal with.” He adjusted the arms in his sleeves slightly.
Pike continued to look at the man for a moment more before his gaze averted, his eyes dropping to Rilien's feet. Meanwhile, Donovan gave Pike's shoulder a gentle squeeze as he nodded in agreement with Rilien's thoughts.
"As long as he hears nothing of them afterwards, he is willing to leave the handling of these matters to my discretion. If they are no longer Templar problems, they do not require Templar solutions. It seemed to me that this would interest you.” He tipped his head faintly to the side to indicate the various mages practicing their skills in the clearing. He did not believe that every apostate possessed the character required to live safely outside the bounds of a Circle, but he also did not believe that none of them did. All that he was required to do was take these two in particular off the Templar radar and out of the rumor mill.
"One of them is named Evelina, and Ser Cullen believes we will locate her in Darktown. The other is Emile de Launcet, and his location is undetermined, but his father, the Comte de Launcet, lives in a mansion in Hightown. It is suspected that he and the Comtesse are hiding their son from the Templars.”
Aurora tilted her head and brought her hand to her chin as she thought about it. Not that there was a decision to be made on whether she was going to help or not, that much was a given. It was as Rilien said: if it were no longer a Templar problem, then they would not be required. Instead, she'd make it a mage problem so that a mage could deal with it. No, instead the thoughts were on another matter entirely.
She turned toward Pike with her arms crossed and spoke, "You're coming with me on this one." She said, "Open your eyes a little, so to speak. It'll be a fine learning experience, I'm sure." Next, she turned toward Donovan, smiling. "Think you can stay here and watch over the others while we're away?" She asked.
The man looked passed them toward the mages who were now all watching them and nodded in agreement. "Aye. I will make sure they get through their regiment," though before he left them he leaned down and looked at Pike, "Do not give them any trouble and do not do anything foolish, yes?" Once Pike agreed with a slight incline of his head, Donovan straightened and went to the other mages.
"Sparrow?" Aurora asked, looking at the woman. A smile soon broke out on her face though as she laughed. "Do I even need to ask?"
The ember-eyed woman knuckled her nose and dropped it down to tap at her chin, feigning thoughtfulness. Even if there were any other options, should Rilien request anything of her—they both knew she'd be there, indefinitely. No other choice, really. If any mages were involved, she wanted to personally see it through. In her experience, even the slimmest chance of salvation was worth pursuing and if they could prevent her friends, these mages, from suffering future troubles, she'd do anything. More than that, she wanted to be involved in these things, in Rilien's secret disappearances. Tight-lipped as he was, she felt a whispering of neglect. She threw her head back and laughed too, slapping a hand down onto Aurora's shoulder, eyes alight. “Course not. Course not.”
She was careful to keep a close eye on what they did and said, and always made sure that anything they did could not be traced back to magic. Thanks to her caution, to her friends, and sometimes even the friends of those friends, their group was nothing more than rumors and speculation on the street. Aurora would not take even the slightest chance on them being discovered. Some of the mages they helped did not even know they existed. It was not a huge organization, and it was optimistic to even call it an organization. In Aurora's eyes, it was a loosely connected group that sought to help others out so that as a whole they could survive. Like the roots of a flower.
It was a partly clouded day in the clearing, mages were practicing small spells as a concentration exercise, while others simply sat and mediated. Aurora, Pike, Donovan, and Sparrow stood apart from the majority and spoke amongst themselves about recent rumors concerning mages possibly escaping the Gallows.
"The way I heard it, most of them were captured again soon after," Pike said, frowning with the thought, "Though it's possible that others might've eluded their hounds thus far."
"Anything's possible Pike, even the rumor being false," Aurora added. There was not much love for Templars, even among nonmages, there was a very good chance that one of those people simply made it up in order to discredit the Templars. She did not like to deal in possibilities or maybes. "I won't have us go looking for mages that may or may not even exist."
Sparrow was squeezed in between Pike and Aurora, shoulders hunched forward and elbows propped on her knees. She scratched at her chin and snapped her eyes shut for a few moments, the closest thing to rummaging through her thoughts for some other plausible scenario that wouldn't involve not doing anything at all. She didn't like the idea of inaction, even if the rumours were false. But Aurora was right—better to be safe, and all that. She puffed her cheeks out and sighed harshly through her nostrils, “Might be more to go on if we wait.”
Pike visibly grimaced, but said nothing more on the matter. Instead Donovan clapped a meaty hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. "We will help those that we can, but we cannot be foolish. Impatience will do more harm than good," he said and though his lips lacked a smile, Donovan's eyes were warm.
Rilien refolded the missive and tucked it into the inside of his tunic, taking the few moments necessary to clean his workspace. “Something needing attending to?” The question came from Bodahn, who’d seen the young Templar carrying the message come in earlier, a bit nervous, and hand over the sealed envelope to the shop's proprietor.
The elf nodded slightly. "Yes. I will be out for the remainder of the day, and likely tomorrow as well. Please handle any orders in the usual way.” Bodahn confirmed that he would, and Rilien took a moment to make sure his order sheets were in order and accessible to his dwarven shop-mates before heading up the stairs. It didn’t take too much longer to armor himself in smooth, dark leather, sliding various blades, lockpicks, and potions home in the loops, sheaths, and pouches designed for them. When he was properly attired for his other kind of business, Rilien headed out the front door and made for Sundermont.
He was not usually in the business of outsourcing his more discreet requests, but in this case, he felt that it would be beneficial to all parties involved to bring in Aurora and whomever of her people she desired to have along. The problem was hardly unique, but he was being offered a great deal of discretion regarding his methods, and neither Thrask nor Cullen ever asked him many questions regarding how he accomplished the things they asked him to do. This was for the best. It was enough that when Rilien was asked to take care of a problem, it did not ever become a problem again.
For an elf, he looked rather out-of-place in the wilderness; Rilien wore his city-born nature with, if not precisely pride, certainly an utter lack of shame. A peculiar kind of almost gentrified sophistication was built not only into his wardrobe, but into the way he kept his appearance, and even the way he moved. That said, he passed as quietly as anyone might hope to through the forest, a silent but not invisible shadow sliding between the pillar-like trees and over the irregular landscape under his feet. He had learned of this location not too long ago—Aurora, it would seem, trusted him with the information, and in all honesty, he would have been able to extract it from Sparrow if he’d so desired. But he had as yet left the information unused. He was appreciative, as much as he could be, that Sparrow was finding a sense of community and belonging that had nothing whatsoever to do with him. It made the inevitable future much easier to plan for.
At present, however, he would have to intrude. He approached the clearing unnoticed by anyone, watching with an unreadable face as various mages, ranging from the very young to the rather wizened, practiced their craft in small, precise ways. A cluster including both Aurora and Sparrow stood off to one side, and it was these he approached, breaking the tree line and making a beeline for them. One young woman looked up and started when she noted the new arrival, enough noise to alert the rest to his existence, anyway.
"Aurora.” He waited until he had gained the attention of the speaking group before he continued. "I was recently passed a job from Ser Cullen. I believe it might interest you.”
Sparrow eyed her fellow mages with pursed lips, scuffling the dirt with the toe of her boots. They were far enough from Kirkwall to refrain from being overly cautious, but she still felt itchy. Not even the great trees, weaving back and forth in the wind, could soothe her soft-spoken worries. She'd forgone Amalia's dragon-made regalia for soft-leathers, far more comfortable for treks in the woods such as these, and not drawing unwanted attention. Her hair had grown longer over the months. Forgoing clippers and choosing instead to pull it back from her face into a loose knot, it made her appear much less intimidating. Not soft, but different. She exhaled noisily and stretched her arms over her head, arching her back and settling back into place. It was a nice day.
A noise snapped her attention sidelong. She'd spotted someone jerk backwards, and instinctively drew back her hand, fingers splayed. Warmth pulsed down her arms, and crackled at her palms. It took her a moment, blinking owlishly, to realize that the person approaching them was none other than Rilien. Silent as a ghost. Looking no more nonplussed by their reactions as if he'd been invited all along. Thankfully, no Templars were in pursuit. She dropped her hands dramatically and clicked her tongue, a grin slowly creeping it's way onto her face, “Can't you make a little noise? Or wear a bell?”
"It'd suit him, I think," Aurora agreed with a smile. She was surprised to see him there too, at first, but as it always did when it concerned Rilien, it soon faded away. She'd known him long enough to understand that she had to expect the unexpected with him. She looked past him and waved to the mages, asking them to calm down. "It's okay, he's a friend. Please continue with what you were doing before," she bade them. Even so, she couldn't help but over hear the word tranquil whispered between them.
Pike watched the man carefully, while Donovan stood relaxed with his arms crossed, as if waiting for something. Likely waiting for Aurora to ask what the job was. She turned back to Rilien and chewed on her lip, looking somewhat puzzled. "Ser Cullen is a Templar, is he not?" She asked, looking first to Sparrow and then back to Rilien, "What kind of job would a Templar have for you?" Aurora asked.
"He's asking you to hunt down a mage, isn't he?" Pike said, his frown deepening. "It's what Templars do, after all," He added, as Donovan's hand clasped his shoulder once more. That drew even more looks from the mages collected, and caused Aurora to sigh audibly.
Sparrow's grin smothered itself into a thin smile. Rilien hadn't told her he'd been planning to come up here at all. Neither did he mention needing any help, seeing as it concerned Cullen and who-knows what. Truthfully, she had nothing against him, but he was a Templar, and generally, Templars meant trouble for most of the people she surrounded herself with. Including Rilien, ironically. He didn't owe them anything, so why did they continue dogging him for solutions?
Rilien turned his head slightly, staring down Pike for several long seconds, his citrine-yellow eyes unblinking. "Attempting to see everyone as for you or against you will make you blind.” Blinking slowly, he returned his eyes to Aurora, ignoring the jest that suggested he wear something that would allow others to hear his approach. "What Ser Cullen wants is for me to ascertain the location and activities of two apostates, before Meredith comes to believe the matter one that she has to send a troop of Templars to deal with.” He adjusted the arms in his sleeves slightly.
Pike continued to look at the man for a moment more before his gaze averted, his eyes dropping to Rilien's feet. Meanwhile, Donovan gave Pike's shoulder a gentle squeeze as he nodded in agreement with Rilien's thoughts.
"As long as he hears nothing of them afterwards, he is willing to leave the handling of these matters to my discretion. If they are no longer Templar problems, they do not require Templar solutions. It seemed to me that this would interest you.” He tipped his head faintly to the side to indicate the various mages practicing their skills in the clearing. He did not believe that every apostate possessed the character required to live safely outside the bounds of a Circle, but he also did not believe that none of them did. All that he was required to do was take these two in particular off the Templar radar and out of the rumor mill.
"One of them is named Evelina, and Ser Cullen believes we will locate her in Darktown. The other is Emile de Launcet, and his location is undetermined, but his father, the Comte de Launcet, lives in a mansion in Hightown. It is suspected that he and the Comtesse are hiding their son from the Templars.”
Aurora tilted her head and brought her hand to her chin as she thought about it. Not that there was a decision to be made on whether she was going to help or not, that much was a given. It was as Rilien said: if it were no longer a Templar problem, then they would not be required. Instead, she'd make it a mage problem so that a mage could deal with it. No, instead the thoughts were on another matter entirely.
She turned toward Pike with her arms crossed and spoke, "You're coming with me on this one." She said, "Open your eyes a little, so to speak. It'll be a fine learning experience, I'm sure." Next, she turned toward Donovan, smiling. "Think you can stay here and watch over the others while we're away?" She asked.
The man looked passed them toward the mages who were now all watching them and nodded in agreement. "Aye. I will make sure they get through their regiment," though before he left them he leaned down and looked at Pike, "Do not give them any trouble and do not do anything foolish, yes?" Once Pike agreed with a slight incline of his head, Donovan straightened and went to the other mages.
"Sparrow?" Aurora asked, looking at the woman. A smile soon broke out on her face though as she laughed. "Do I even need to ask?"
The ember-eyed woman knuckled her nose and dropped it down to tap at her chin, feigning thoughtfulness. Even if there were any other options, should Rilien request anything of her—they both knew she'd be there, indefinitely. No other choice, really. If any mages were involved, she wanted to personally see it through. In her experience, even the slimmest chance of salvation was worth pursuing and if they could prevent her friends, these mages, from suffering future troubles, she'd do anything. More than that, she wanted to be involved in these things, in Rilien's secret disappearances. Tight-lipped as he was, she felt a whispering of neglect. She threw her head back and laughed too, slapping a hand down onto Aurora's shoulder, eyes alight. “Course not. Course not.”