I know I've been a terrible author for not finishing Templar Enchanted and not updating it for over a year. I do have my reasons (army career, having no life of my own and being relocated to a brand new city over the past year), but now things are dying down and I AM FINALLY GOING TO FINISH THE LAST TWO CHAPTERS OF THE FIC!

I know people are still reading it and I keep getting asked why I stopped and keep being told how much they need closure, so I'm going to deliver.

Much love,

TheBroodyElf

I am a contraption; a raging, mechanical contraption that is designed to kill. My eyes burn. From sweat or blood, I do not know any longer. Not that it matters.

My armour, once silver and bright, the sun's beams blinding with brilliance as it glanced off the silverite surface, is now stained with crimson. Whether that crimson originates from my own body or from those of my enemies, I know not. And I care not. If I ever was remotely human, it was but a distant dream.

I have lost count of how many I have already struck down. Venatori, demons, Red Templars and possessed Grey Wardens... they all look the same to me, their dismembered and mangled corpses strewn across Skyhold's scarlet grass.

With Evelyn gone to the Temple of Sacred Ashes to face the Elder One himself, it is left to me and my troops to defend this stronghold and all of its occupants with our lives. Leliana's spies are hidden in the shadows, taking the enemy by surprise whenever the opportunity arose, providing significant assistance to my dwindling soldiers.

Whilst the sheer number of the enemy took us by surprise, the attack itself was very much anticipated; we would have all accompanied Evelyn to the Temple if it were otherwise. For as much as it tore my heart to see her walk away towards a frightfully uncertain battle, I knew that I could not fail her as the Commander of her forces. Duty always comes first to Evelyn. Always.

I have been at it for so long, swinging and thrusting my blade into the bodies of countless enemies. My entire body has gone numb from the pain and swelling. I feel my breastplate weighing heavily down upon me, and my knees tremble as I lunge towards yet another enemy to strike.

An arrow rapidly flies by my right ear and straight through a Red Templar's forehead, stopping him in his tracks as he swung his great sword to attack me. I turn around to see Leliana, her red hair, damp with sweat, plastered across her face. She nods at me when our eyes meet, and I nod back, too winded to yell out my thanks.

Suddenly, the ground beneath us starts to tremble. I look down, eyes wide in shock, trying to ascertain the cause of this sudden occurrence. Could it possibly be an earthquake? Right at this moment? In the middle of what could probably be one of the most prominent battles of the Dragon Age?

Maker have-

"Look! The sky!"

-mercy...

A blinding green light zaps up into the breach, causing the earth itself to tremble from its mighty force. I dig my blood-stained sword into the ground in an attempt to steady myself, my eyes wide and my jaw dropped as I stare up in equal measures of shock and awe. Then, as suddenly as it began, the light disappears.

All is silent for a time as we allow what had just happened to sink in.

And then we all gasp in unison.

The sky, once scarred by the gaping, monstrous hole we dubbed The Breach, is now healed once again, with a breathtakingly beautiful display of aurora australis lights shimmering up in the heavens above us.

"She has done it," I hear an officer whisper in disbelief to my right. "The Inquisitor has done it."

I feel a momentary surge of joy, but it is quickly dampened and altogether replaced by a fear that grips at the very core of my heart.

Is she alive? Does my precious Evelyn yet live? Or was the force of that blast forceful and destructive enough to kill her?

My chest suddenly feels incredibly tight, and I can barely draw breath.

"Commander! The demons are gone!" a soldier yells from a distance.

"As are the Red Templars!"

I force myself out of my darkening thoughts and look around at the scene before me.

It is, in every sense of the term, a bloodbath. A massacre. Corpse upon corpse litters the crimson blades of grass, most of them so badly mangled that, if it were not for the distinctly different uniforms, it would be impossible to tell the enemy apart from the Inquisition.

As my soldiers have pointed out, all of the demons have disappeared along with the Breach. The Red Templars, however, have not; they yet remain, but what little force of them was left standing on their feet now lie unconscious on the ground. I quickly approach a relatively unscathed one to check for any signs of life, but there are none to be found. It appears that whatever foul magic sustained and empowered them has ceased after the Breach was sealed.

I look up from the Red Templar when I hear footsteps rapidly approaching me.

"Commander," Knight-Captain Rylen says. "Your orders, Sir?"

I look back down at the dead Templar, my jaw tense and my gaze hard.

"Burn all the corpses. We must get rid of every last trace of the enemy force."

I look back up at him when I realise he has not moved or made any sign of acknowledging my response.

"What then, Commander?" he asks hesitantly.

I stand up and take a deep breath, closing my eyes momentarily before gazing out at the snowy landscape beyond the fortress walls.

"Then, we wait."

"This is nonsense."

"How is this nonsense?"

"She is supposed to be resting, not attending some banquet and exerting herself so soon after the battle!"

I scowl, suppressing a shudder as the cool winter air blows against my face. Leliana, decked in her spymaster gear, flashes me a small smile, looking calm and collected as per usual. Josephine, on the other hand, is practically bouncing on her toes, biting her lower lip and looking over at the Skyhold gates with wide-eyed anticipation.

"What is taking them so long?" she complains in her heavy Antivan accent, standing at the very edge of the staircase landing overlooking the Skyhold courtyard. The crowd beneath await in equal, albeit eerily silent, anticipation.

"Patience, Josie," Leliana says soothingly. "They must be utterly exhausted from the battle. The Temple of Sacred Ashes is a fair distance away, after all."

I swallow back a wave of unease as I focus my eyes at the direction of the gate, clenching my jaw as I attempt to hide my almost unbearable impatience.

"They're here!" a scout yells out, his deep voice echoing throughout the courtyard. I could almost feel everyone perking up; even Leliana breaks her cool demeanour, her clear blue eyes widening as she stares down at the courtyard in an almost hawk-like manner.

My hammering heart drowns out the sound of my quick and shallow breaths, the breeze stinging my never blinking eyes. The crowd sees her before I do, screaming out in delight as they finally emerge through the gates. I let out a loud sigh of relief at the sight of her breathtaking beauty, a wave of overwhelming joy and relief choking me. Her gait clearly displays her weariness and her skin is clammy and gleaming with a sheen of sweat and a splattering of dried blood, but she seems otherwise unharmed. I see Cassandra limping beside her, battered and battle-weary, but with a look of pride and contentment that I have never seen on her face before. Dorian, despite being slightly bloodied and bruised, yet possesses that familiar bounce to his step, walking as proud as a peacock beside his leader.

I can barely contain myself as she draws closer to where Leliana, Josephine and I await on the landing of the steps leading up to the Great Hall. My legs are twitching with anticipation, almost ready to pounce on her as a cat would on a wad of wool; so eager am I to just hold her in my embrace.

My heart skips a beat or two when I see that she has started to ascend the steps towards where I stood. I have waited so long for this moment; so long, in fact, that I decide to wait not a moment longer. I dash down the steps at the speed of lightning, barely catching a glimpse of her widening eyes and the sweet little o her mouth forms when she sees me before I throw my arms around her, armour and all, and all but crush her against my chest, burying my face in her matted, windblown locks.

"You're alive," I whisper, certain she cannot hear me over the roaring crowds. I pull back just enough to cup her face in my gloved hands, stroking her soft cheek with my thumb. "Oh Maker, you're alive."

She hears me this time, and stands on the tips of her toes, bringing her lips to my own. I let out a strangled sob of relief as I feel the heavenly familiarity of her soft, warm lips and savour their sweet taste.

"I've missed you," she says in a weak voice, her eyes gleaming bright.

"Oh, my darling, how I've missed you," I respond, my voice raw and breaking with emotion. I bury my face in her hair again and inhale as deeply as I could, closing my eyes and blocking out the rest of the world. "More than you could ever imagine."

I vaguely feel Cassandra and Dorian thump me on the back as I continue to hold Evelyn, and Josephine barely manages to make herself heard as she announces the start of a banquet in the Great Hall.

"Come on," she pats me on the back and pulls away to smile up at me. "We'd better starts heading inside before this lot trample us under their feet."

I grin widely, wider than I have in a very long time. The weight of the world has finally lifted off my shoulders now that my beloved is back, safe and sound in my arms. My mind is teeming with questions about the battle, but I decide that now is certainly not the time to be asking them. For the first time since this has all begun, Evelyn can now finally rest. And rest she shall.

I do, however, notice the marked absence of one of our members from amongst our ranks.

"Darling," I look down at her with a quizzical brow. "Where is Solas?"

I can see that she pauses momentarily at the entrance to the hall, her jaw tensing markedly, her eyes hardening like glass.

"He left," she replies simply in a quiet and controlled voice.

"He—he what?" I stammer, my eyes widening in disbelief. "He just left?"

She takes a deep breath and looks up at me, meeting me with a weary gaze.

"Yes," she responds. "No explanation, no nothing. He's… he's just gone."

"I-"

Varric's loud, abrupt laughter echoes throughout the packed hall and cuts through the tension building up around the topic, and I stop myself short, deciding to let it go. For now, at least.

"You must be famished, darling," I smile down at her, keen to alleviate the tense atmosphere.

"Oh, I most certainly am!" she responds with enthusiasm, her eyes roaming around the hall, taking in the multiple dishes lining the tables.

I lead her to one of the tables with great difficulty, considering she is a hero with whom everyone wants to shake hands and congratulate. Finally, I manage to convince the nobles and Inquisition forces alike that our Herald is exhausted and in much need of substantial sustenance, to which they fervently agree with, nodding their heads vigorously as they step aside and make way for us.

I can barely eat as I sit by her side, unable to take my eyes away from her. I lose myself in her beauty, so natural and incandescent, even through the evident marks of a long and hard fought battle. I smile as she gobbles up her meal, barely chewing in her ravenous state. I gently remind her that she may suffer from a stomach ache if she does not slow down and chew her food, to which she grins sheepishly and starts to chew in an exaggerated and deliberate slow pace, resulting in a joyous fit of chuckles erupting from me.

She pushes her empty plate away (after finishing a second helping) and slouches down in her seat, patting her full stomach.

"Maker's breath," she sighs weakly, her eyes barely open as she exhales. "That was incredible." She slowly turns her head towards me and looks at my plate. "Cullen, you haven't eaten a thing! Is anything the matter?"

"I'm quite alright, my darling," I smile reassuringly and take her hand in mine. "I have eaten, just not as nearly as much as our starved saviour," I grin and wink at her exaggerated roll of the eyes.

"Starved and exhausted," she groans, barely able to keep her eyes open."

"You need to rest, sweetheart. I am certain the festivities can go on should you choose to retire early."

"Yes," she replies, wincing as she moves to stand up. "I am honestly a few seconds away from collapsing."

"Come then." I take her hand and lead her towards her quarters, taking extra care to stave off anyone showing signs of approaching her with a stern shake of the head. There will be time for proper congratulations in the days to come.

I pause at the foot of the stairs leading up to her bed chamber and carefully lift her up in my arms. She lets out a surprised 'Oh!', but does not protest otherwise. I slowly proceed to climb up the staircase, cradling her as though she were the most fragile thing on the face of the Maker's earth.

Once inside her bed chambers, I see that her fireplace has been lit in anticipation of her arrival by the servants, as directed by Josephine. A hot bath has also been prepared, with additional water warming by the fireplace in case the water has cooled down extensively. I proceed to undress her, softly kissing her bare skin as it is revealed. My heart aches at every bruise and scar, the latter denoting a wound recently healed with magic. I bite my tongue, resisting the urge to question her about anything in relation to the battle. Once undressed, I help her into the hot bath, watching her melt into it, groaning in relief as the water soothes every inch of her aching body.

Neither of us utters a word as I bathe her, the crackling fire and the tinkling water droplets the only sounds dancing in our ears. Evelyn is barely able to keep her eyes open, and her head droops to one side a few times. My jaw tenses and my stomach tightens when I notice the crimson-tinged water trickle down the sides of her face as I gently scrub her scalp with my fingers. I make a mental note to ask Dorian whether those injuries were healed or missed, although they seem to be healed, judging from the minimal amount of blood I washed away. Once I deem her clean and the water cooler than I would like, I softly nudge her awake and wrap a large towel around her beautiful, yet battered naked body, before carrying her to her bed. I pull back the covers with one arm and cautiously lay her down, removing her towel as I do so. I gently left her head up and spread the towel over her pillow to absorb the moisture from her washed hair. Once I run out of things to do to ensure her comfort, I simply sit by her side on the edge of the bed, stroking her hair as I watch the rise and fall of her body with every precious breath she takes.

I feel my own eyelids grow increasingly heavy with each passing moment, and I strip out of my armour to relieve myself of the heat emanating from the fireplace. I do not fall asleep for what seems like ages, my eyes still hungry to take in her every detail, as though seeing her for the first time.

Suddenly, at what seems like a blink of an eye, the room is tinged with the pale grey hue of dawn. I blink repeatedly, startled to find myself curled up beside Evelyn, my body over the quilt, my head resting on the edge of the pillow beside hers, placing me as close to her as possible. I feel the warmth of her palm against mine, her fingers weakly holding my hand, resting them both close to her chest. She is sleeping on her side, facing me, with a most pleasantly content expression on her perfect face.

I consider slowly getting up and leaving her to rest alone for however long she required, but her grip tightens around my hand at the slightest movement.

"Stay," she mumbles without opening her eyes. "Please… Cullen. Stay."

My heart swells at the sweet pleas falling from her lips, and I settle my head down on the pillow again, moving closer to her warm body. I rest there on my side, watching her silently in the pale dawn light.

"I love you," she murmurs groggily, her grip tightening once again around my fingers.

"I love you, my darling," I whisper, raising my free hand to brush her curls away from her eyes. She lets out a light sigh of contentment, and I soon find my consciousness slipping away again, eager to join her in her deep slumber. The questions are still teeming in my head even as I drift asleep, but I quiet them and tuck them away into a corner in my mind, saving them for later.

For now, Evelyn shall finally rest.