Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

My confusion was quickly replaced with pure agony as green sparks crackled and sputtered from my palm. It was like a shot of lightning that radiated out to my fingertips and up my arm. The intensity of the pain shocked the air out of my lungs in a sudden whoosh, and then it was gone as quickly as it came, choking off the scream building in my lungs to a shuddering gasp.

A door slammed open and brought my mind back to the room. The air was cold and damp, and the stone walls were slick with moisture. The only sources of light were a few sconces that held flaming torches. Four men surrounded me with swords pointed in my direction, their metal blades glinting in the dim flicker. I kneeled on an uneven stone floor that bit painfully into my knees, and my hands were locked in heavy metal restraints that chained me to the floor.

…I’m a prisoner.

Before the panic could take hold, two figures strode confidently into the room, the bright light from outside only revealing feminine silhouettes. As one moved closer, my vision adjusted and I was able to see her sharp eyes, high cheekbones, and extremely short, black hair. Her gorgeous features were marred by one long scar running down the side of her face, and an angry glare that made my blood run cold.

The other was also a woman, and she seemed to melt into the shadows as the door closed behind her. She wore long dark robes overlaid with ultra fine chain mail and a hood pulled low over her brow. The expression on her face was both serious and unreadable as she studied me closely. After getting a good look, her gaze lifted back up to her companion.

The woman with the scar walked with a stiff, upright posture as she sauntered around me, giving me a glance at the shield on her back and making sure I could see the large deadly sword hanging from her hip. Both of them looked ready for a fight, not just because they were armored to the teeth, but also because they held themselves with a raw confidence that practically shouted “warrior.” And even though I had never seen either woman before…something about them seemed familiar.

“Tell me why we shouldn’t kill you now,” the first woman seethed into my ear from behind. I couldn’t place her accent, nor could I miss the slight tremble in her voice. It made her no less intimidating though, as the rage was written all over her face. She continued to pace around me as she spoke. “The Conclave is destroyed. Everyone who attended is dead. Except for you.” As she finished, she turned to face me from the front, fixing me with that frightening glare once again.

Conclave? Dead?  

I had no clue what to say, nor what she was talking about. Finding myself here was an explosion of sensation - overwhelming, confusing, painful, and frightening all at once. I was suddenly conscious with no idea where I was, no guess as to how I’d gotten there, men with swords at my throat, and some kind of… thing on my hand. And the strangest thing was the distinct feeling that I wasn’t where I was supposed to be, despite also not knowing where I came from.

Unsatisfied with my lack of response, the woman grabbed my left arm and held the strange green mark up to my face. More pain lanced up my limb as it sparked, lighting her face in an eerie green glow.

“Explain this . ” She threw my arm back down onto my lap and the restraints on my wrists landed painfully on the tops of my thighs.

“I…can’t…”

“What do you mean you can’t ?”

“I don’t know what that is…or how it got there!”

“You’re lying!” she snarled and lunged towards me, but she stopped short when the lady in dark robes moved between us.

“We need her, Cassandra!” the other woman said.

As I watched them, I could feel the fear curling in my belly, and the echoes of that intense pain still made my arm throb. Tears began welling up and making my voice tremble.

“I don’t understand…”

The second woman regarded me with efficient coldness. It was an improvement from the other one - Cassandra - and her white-hot fury, but still offered zero concern for my situation.

“Do you remember what happened?”

I closed my eyes, trying to calm down and gather my thoughts. There were flashes - out of focus and shrouded in shadows…the sound of insect-like chittering and scuttling feet.

“I remember running. Things were chasing me, and then…a woman?” In my mind’s eye, I saw her - bright and shining, with a large elaborate headdress and flowing robes. She emanated in a warm, bright light that kept me from seeing her face.

Her face lit up with interest. “A woman?”

“She reached out to me but then…” I trailed off, the flashes receding and threatening to slip from my mind entirely. It was like the more I tried to recall the more my memory failed me.

Cassandra turned to her partner and a silent look passed between them. “Go to the forward camp, Leliana,” she said with a grim tone. “I will take her to the rift.” She turned to me as she finished, measuring me up as if she just realized that I was a person and not some monster to slay. Leliana only regarded Cassandra for a moment before nodding and pivoting on her heel to march out of the cell.

Cassandra walked up to me and began unlocking my restraints, only to immediately replace them with rope bindings. She still eyed me with suspicion but it was an improvement from the death glare. I didn’t fight it as she busied herself. Instead I did my best to take a steadying breath and regain my composure. I had no idea what was happening, but panicking wouldn’t help…and at least, for now, my captors did not seem hellbent on my death.

Maybe I can gain their trust. After all, I’m innocent…I think.  

As I watched her work, I noticed unshed tears in Cassandra’s eyes…barely held back from slipping down her sculpted cheeks. Suddenly she seemed so much less scary to me. She was a person too, and clearly they thought I had done something horrible.

“What happened?”

“It will be easier to show you.”

Hands still bound, but now at least able to stand and walk, I followed her out of the prison door. It was bright outside despite thick clouds blocking out most of the sun. Wind blew powdery snow in my face and the brutal cold bit at me through my clothes, making me shiver. I looked up to see people loading supplies and weapons into carts, bustling to and fro with armfuls of salves, and some doing their best to warm themselves near smoldering fires. It was chaotic and somber, and a nervous hum of anxiety hung over everyone like a blanket.

I turned, noticing that Cassandra seemed to be staring off into the distance at something. Following her gaze, I saw it - a huge, swirling vortex of crackling green energy punching up and through the sky. It was like a cyclone, but slower and much bigger, even sweeping up huge chunks of the surrounding mountains as it spun in place. My jaw hung open as I watched it in shock. I had never seen anything like it…and it was hard not to notice the similarities between it and the mark on my hand. As we both took it in, Cassandra began to explain.

“We call it ‘the Breach.’ It’s a massive rift into the world of demons that grows larger with each passing hour.” She spoke softly. Gravely. Every word was heavy. “It’s not the only such rift. Just the largest. All were caused by the explosion at the Conclave.”

“An explosion can do that?” I asked, incredulous.

“This one did.” She turned towards me. “Unless we act, the Breach may grow until it swallows the world.”

Suddenly, an enormous, thundering bang ripped through the snowy hillside and the Breach flared and sputtered angrily. Simultaneously, pain shot up my arm again…I screamed as I dropped to my knees and tears streamed down my face. I could only try to breathe as the horrible feeling passed through me, helpless to stop it. Somehow, it was getting even worse.

Cassandra lowered herself down to my eye level, her look almost pleading as she pointed at my hand. “Each time the Breach expands, your mark spreads…and it is killing you,” she said. “It may be the key to stopping this, but there isn’t much time.”

“The key…to doing what?” I asked once the pain had faded enough for me to try and think. I figured if I kept her talking, I might be able to piece this mess together.

“Closing the Breach. Whether that is possible is something we shall discover shortly. It is our only chance, however…and yours.”

That’s my only option?!  “You still think I did this? To myself?” 

“Not intentionally. Something clearly went wrong.” She seemed less sure of herself. I saw her glance flick from my hand to my tear-soaked face.

“And if I’m not responsible?”

“Someone is, and you are our only suspect. You wish to prove your innocence? This is the only way.”

I paused, dreading the answer to my next question. “So if I do what you want, will I live through it?”

Cassandra’s expression was unreadable, but she held my gaze for a moment before replying. “We have no way of knowing,” she said as she stood up. She reached out, grabbed me by the collar of my coat, and dragged me up onto my feet with little ceremony. Then, taking my elbow firmly in one hand, she began trudging me through the makeshift encampment.

As we passed, a number of people craned their necks and stepped out of tents to get a glimpse of me. Most of them scowled, a few regarded me with cold curiosity. One woman spat when she managed to meet my eye.

“The people of Haven mourn our Most Holy, Divine Justinia, head of the Chantry,” Cassandra explained, pulling me along at a hurried pace. “The Conclave was hers. It was a chance for peace between mages and templars. She brought their leaders together. Now, they are dead.”

We continued past the camp and down a forest path before coming upon a large bridge. It was constructed from sturdy stone and sealed off by a gate with massive wooden doors. As we neared, two soldiers managed to push the doors open with all of their might, throwing their whole body weight against it. Their stares were also filled with malice.

“We lash out, like the sky,” Cassandra continued. “But we must think beyond ourselves, like she did. Until the Breach is sealed.” When we had safely passed through the gate, the doors shut behind us, and she turned to me with a knife in one hand. My heart pounded for a moment, but she only used it to, at last, unbind me completely. “There will be a trial,” she said, cutting through the rope with a sharp, quick movement. “I can promise no more.” She looked at me again, her resolve clear in her expression. “Come. It is not far.”

“Where are you taking me?”

“Your mark must be tested on something smaller than the Breach.”

We began making our way across the massive stone bridge, which suspended above a frozen river. As we walked, mountains with tall snowy peaks stretched as far as I could see in either direction. A group of soldiers huddled around a man in white and red robes. He was reciting a litany in a raspy, tired voice…something about a chant, a light, and someone called the “Maker”. The looks on the soldiers' faces were a mixture of desperate, fearful, and despondent.

That must be a member of this “Chantry”, I guessed. It certainly sounded religious.

Across from them, to the other side of the bridge, another soldier sat on the ground, sobbing. He had his knees pulled up to his chest with his arms wrapped around his legs as he rocked back and forth. Others around him sifted through supplies, still more sat on the ground, getting rest when they could. One soldier leaned up against a stack of crates and was deathly still…I couldn’t tell if he was alive. Always present and looming, the Breach swirled and howled above the snowy mountain peaks…oppressive and terrifying.

How the hell am I going to survive this?  

I took another deep breath. The action felt like muscle memory activated by my own anxiety. It was familiar, like something I’d done a thousand times…a habit so ingrained that maybe I did it even if I don’t remember where I learned it. As my pulse slowed down and I closed my eyes, shutting out the terrifying surroundings, I connected with the cold on my skin. The breath in my lungs. I was able to allow the fear to wash through me, observing without judgment. I wasn’t dead yet, and I was determined to keep a clear head.

I could still survive this. All I had to do for now was put one foot in front of the other.  

We crossed the bridge to another wooden gate just like the first. Cassandra shouted above the wind. “Open the gate! We are headed into the valley!” Two more soldiers obliged and we stepped off the bridge and onto another forest path. This one was fortified with spiked barricades and more soldiers that stood at the ready, weapons in hand…and terror on their faces.

“Maker! It’s the end of the world!” Someone’s voice cried over the wind. Bodies littered the way - soldiers with faces twisted into expressions of fear and pain. Off in the distance, I could see fires raging along the path as the Breach rained angry balls of green energy. From here, I could see it in all its terrifying glory. The cyclone of energy stretched from the hole in the sky all the way down to the valley beneath it.

Oh shit and that’s where I’m headed. Another deep breath.

The Breach thundered again, the mark on my hand ripping pain through me in response. I collapsed to the ground once more, the horrid sensation snaking down to my legs and rendering me unable to stand. Cassandra watched as I writhed miserably, waiting calmly, determination furrowing her brow. When I was finally able to breathe again, she pulled me up onto my feet…this time a little less roughly.

“The pulses are coming faster now,” she said softly, giving my arm an encouraging pat. “The larger the Breach grows, the more rifts appear, the more demons we face.” We continued on our path into the valley.

“How did I survive the blast?” I asked, trying to rub the last of the fading pain out of my arm as we walked. At least I was somewhat functional between pulses.

“They said you…stepped out of a rift, then fell unconscious. They say a woman was in the rift behind you.” Cassandra continued at a brisk pace, gesturing for me to hurry as we walked. I struggled to keep up with the warrior’s powerful strides, breaking into a light jog occasionally when she got too far ahead of me. “No one knows who she was. Everything else was laid waste, even the Temple of Sacred Ashes…I suppose you’ll see soon enough.”

We fell into silence as we walked toward another bridge. One step at a time. Questions could wait until the initial danger is taken care of, and the best place to get more answers about my situation seemed to be the Breach anyway.

As we passed through the doors of the first gate, I couldn’t shake the strongest feeling of deja vu. Something about all this seemed so familiar, and yet, I couldn’t recall the specifics of where or how I would ever have seen something like this. For the most part, I couldn’t remember anything but my name and a few broken fragments of a nightmare. And I also couldn’t ignore a feeling of wrongness beyond the terrifying Breach and how everyone responded to it. There was an alien nature to the entire situation…like a part of me knew all of this shouldn’t be happening…that this was outside the realm of possibility or reality.

Yet here I was. On this path, with this Cassandra lady who…seemed to be thawing out a bit, if not extending a certain amount of sympathy. As we marched on together, we both seemed equally determined to get answers…and I found myself wishing and hoping that I didn’t have anything to do with this.

Because without any memories, I can’t be sure if I’m complicit in all this or just an extremely unlucky bystander.  

As we neared the other gate, a party of soldiers was waiting there for us, huddled against the doors and ready to push them open to let us through. Suddenly, the Breach spat out a flaming green ball aimed straight for us, smashing into the bridge and scattering everything in an explosion of fire. The air was filled with broken chunks of stone, blood, and screaming as Cassandra and I dropped heavily to the frozen river below. When I landed, pain pounded in my skull and doubled my vision. Something heavy - likely a rock - had struck the back of my head in the fall. I found myself splayed on an icy surface, doing my best to roll over onto my hands and knees and shake away the dizziness.

Cassandra, however, popped right up, appearing completely unscathed. She drew her sword as another ball of energy came crashing down in front of us, and the ground where it landed began to bubble up with an inky black goo. From it, a terrible creature burst forth - gray, deformed, and hideous with long spindly arms and vicious claws. It screamed a high pitched wail as it began slithering towards us, upright, its arms raised and ready to strike.

I’m guessing that’s a demon.  

“Get behind me!” Cassandra yelled as she charged forward.

Duh, I thought. I was sure that I didn’t want to fight one of those things. But even as I obeyed her command, more black goo began bubbling up, this time between Cassandra and myself. Yet another demon surged up from the ground, screaming and writhing angrily.

Hoping the thing couldn’t climb, I turned and began trying to scramble up a nearby pile of broken crates and stone. I only managed to get so far, however, as every time I tried to step up, the rock gave way, and I couldn’t get the footing to lift myself up. I turned to the creature as it lurched towards me, and flailed my hand out behind me in a frenzy. I felt amongst the rubble and splintered wood for anything I could use as a weapon. My hand clutched something smooth, wooden, and light enough to lift, and - without even looking to see what it was - I began swiping at the demon in frantic arcs, trying to deter it from coming any closer.

Just then, there was a heavy sonic pulse, but nothing like the Breach. This was quieter, though still very forceful, and it slapped the back of the demon in a translucent red wave. The demon stopped suddenly, rearing back and pivoting around. It started slithering in the opposite direction towards Cassandra, forgetting me completely.

“Cassandra! Look out!” I shouted. But it wasn’t necessary. In a ferocious display of battle prowess, she was able to dispatch the demons all on her own. Sword in one hand and shield in the other, her blade sliced with practiced precision through the air. She cut the first demon down by stabbing it directly through its twisted face and then turned to the other. It raised one clawed hand in the air and swiped at her, but she knocked the attack away easily with her shield. Then she raised her sword and cut directly down onto the beast’s skull, cleaving its head in two. It fell to the ground with a pathetic moan.

I walked toward her, relieved. “It’s over,” I said while casting around a nervous glance for any more.

Cassandra then raised her blade, bloodied from the fight, and leveled it at me. Her eyes were suspicious as she barked an order. “Drop your weapon. Now .”

Weapon? I looked down at my hands and saw that the item I had grabbed was a bow. I rolled my eyes, somewhat annoyed with Cassandra’s relentless suspicion. Clearly I didn’t know how to use the thing, but if it would make her feel better, I’d let it go. It’s not like it was much use to me.

“All right. Have it your way.” I moved to put the bow down.

“Wait,” she said. She sighed and sheathed her sword. “I cannot protect you, and I can’t leave you defenseless. Your life is already on the line enough as it is.”

“Well it doesn’t matter to me either way,” I said, shrugging. “I don’t know how to use it. So if you can’t defend me, it looks like we’re out of luck.”

Cassandra looked confused. “Why do you have a bow if you don’t know how to use it?”

“I was desperate. I just started swinging it at the demon that attacked me.”

To my utter shock, Cassandra snorted. She thought it was funny. “Can you at least use a sword?”

“Well…I mean…” I trailed off, eyeing her huge, heavy-looking weapon. If it was anything to go by, probably not. I wasn’t very strong, and if I had ever been trained to fight I had no memory of it. Just keeping up with Cassandra’s pace was brutally difficult. I was likely only able to keep going because I was running on pure adrenaline and survival instinct.

Cassandra’s mild amusement faded back into her usual serious expression. “We will have to do our best. Just stick close. And take these potions.” She handed me three glass flasks filled with a thick strawberry-red liquid. “Maker knows what we will face.”

“Thank you,” I said, feeling embarrassed and unsure what else to say. She shrugged and we continued up the path. “Where are all your soldiers?”

“At the forward camp. We are on our own for now.”

My heart plummeted into my stomach. Every step felt more hopeless than the last, but there was no other alternative. We had to keep going. We followed the frozen river, the Breach always hovering in our periphery, and made our way towards a set of stone steps leading out of the gulch.

But terror seized me again as we were beset upon by even more demons. Two this time: one spindly and gray like the ones I had seen before, but the other was different - green, smoke-like with a head and arms but no legs. It floated a few feet off the ground, and didn’t charge alongside its companion. Instead it fired off gaseous green orbs that hit Cassandra in the chest and made her flinch. It didn’t appear to hurt her too much, but the green mist that clung to her head and shoulders appeared to be making her weak and sluggish. Suddenly the ease by which she sliced up the previous demons was gone, and she struggled to keep her shield up to withstand the onslaught of attacks.

“Hey! Over here!” I shouted at the green mist demon. I put my arms in the air and waved them around wildly, trying to get its attention. Maybe if I could distract it long enough, Cassandra would be able to recover. “HEY!” I screamed. But it ignored me, continuing to fire rounds of misty orbs in my protector’s direction.

I picked up a handful of rocks along the riverbed, shoving a few in the pockets of my coat as I scrambled up the embankment. I chucked the rocks in its direction, fear and anger moving me, determined to draw its attention. “ I said over here you gaseous bastard! ”

Finally it noticed me…or otherwise determined I was enough of a threat to start firing off orbs in my direction.

Oh fuck.  

I dropped to the ground and managed to dodge the first orb, then rolled to my left as another came hurtling towards me. I popped up and began running away, swerving to avoid its attacks. It was, thankfully, somewhat of a slow demon, and I was able to draw its fire away from Cassandra.

As I began running down the steps to put more distance between myself in the monster, I risked a glance over in her direction. My hurt surged as it seemed the effects of the demon’s projectiles had worn off, and she was able to finish the big gray slug that was still attacking her. She then looked over at me, and her eyes grew wide with fear.

“Get down!” she shouted at me. “It’s going to hit –”

A cold pain radiated across my back, but even worse was the heavy feeling that rendered my arms and legs completely useless. I dropped to the ground, unable to stand, and rolled down a few steps before collapsing completely. My vision blurred as a deep exhaustion took over. I was helpless.

I heard Cassandra stomp past me. “MAKER TAKE YOU!” she shouted. There was a rasping screech, the sound of a sword sliding home in its sheath, and then she was at my side, helping me onto my feet.

“We can only rest a moment,” she said. “The feeling should fade shortly.” When she pulled her hand away from my arm, blood covered her gloves where she touched me. I was very concerned by the sheer amount of it, but she behaved as if it were a papercut. “Drink one of the potions I gave you.”

I pulled one of the vials from my coat pocket and popped off the cork before lifting it to my lips and drinking deeply. It tasted light and slightly sweet, and I felt the dull throb in my side ease. When I looked down the bleeding had stopped. It healed me!

“Thank you,” I said, amazed.

“I should be thanking you as well. Let us push on.”

I nodded and we climbed back up the embankment and down another forest path. The Breach was now closer than ever, and we both seem spurred on by our shared victory. It wasn’t long, however, before more green fire rained from the sky, scattering demons along another stretch of river we needed to pass through. Cassandra yanked me by the arm into a nearby bush before we could be spotted. We huddled in the shadow of some underbrush and leaned in close so we could speak in low voices.

“If we charge through without a plan, we’ll be overwhelmed,” she said. “We’re almost there - you can hear the fighting. I think our best chance is to make a run for it, and work with the others to do away with the rest of these.”

There were three different gray demons, flanked by another four green mist demons. The grays could do a fair bit of damage up close, but so could Cassandra. It was the greens I was more worried about. There were so many - and getting hit by one probably meant getting hit by all of them, the way it sapped our energy. Still, all of them were slow. If we caught them off guard and really booked it, we just might make it to whatever allies she had waiting.

“I agree. But who is out there fighting?”

“You’ll see. We must help them. Follow closely and move quickly.”

“Okay.”

Cassandra pulled out her shield and braced it with both arms. I crouched with one hand clutching her shoulder to let her know I was right behind her.

“Three.”

I took another deep, steadying breath.

“Two.”

One step at a time.  

“ ONE!”

We launched forward, low and quiet as we could while sprinting in unison. We made it a few hundred yards before the demons even noticed us. One of the grays and another far-off green completely missed us until we were already well past them. The rest turned and began moving to block our path. Cassandra bashed them out of the way with all her strength, sending another gray flying into the third and causing them both to collapse onto the ground. We kept running, and at one point I shut my eyes from the terrifying sight, trusting Cassandra to lead us through.

“Ahead of me now!” she barked, pulling me by the arm to run in front. I opened my eyes and suddenly the way was clear! Ahead I could see a strange green light and a handful of…men?...fighting off another horde of demons. I risked a look back and saw that the demons we managed to slip past were right on our tails, with Cassandra doing her best to fight them off with her shield until we were able to join the group.

I screamed and willed my legs to run faster, ignoring my burning lungs. As we neared Cassandra’s men, we found ourselves amongst the crumbling stone walls of an old fortress. Above the heads of the soldiers and demons, the green glow I spotted was emanating from a cluster of shards that twisted and shuffled around each other as they hung in the air. Cassandra ran in to join the fray, and I was yanked to one side and thrust behind a partially intact wall, hidden from the fight. As I landed heavily on my backside in the snow, I looked up to see a short, stocky man smirking down at me, a crossbow on his back and his silk shirt parted to reveal a V of hairy chest.

“No offense, but you should probably sit this one out,” he tossed me another flask, this time filled with a smoky purple substance, and I somehow caught it in my trembling hands. “If you end up in a bind, just smash this on the ground at your feet.” He pulled out the crossbow on his back, flashing me a dazzling smile as he did so, before darting back into the fighting.

As I sat in the shadows, I heard horrible inhuman screams mixing with the ringing of blades. Slowly, carefully, I crept to the edge of the wall and snuck a peek. A few men were down, but Cassandra, the man with the crossbow, and a third mysterious figure with pointed ears, a pale bald head, and a glowing staff were making quick work of the monsters together. Eventually, all of the demons lay dead at their feet, and the man with the staff darted over and pulled me out of my hiding spot.

“Quickly! Before more come through!” He grabbed my wrist and thrusted my hand up and towards the weird floating mass of green shards and light. There was a tingle in my palm - a strong vibration neither painful nor pleasant - and my mark sparked to life. Power surged from it, the sound a heavy hum as it twisted and furled, locking onto the strange mass and capturing it in a stream of light. Instinctively, I clenched my fist, curling my fingers and making a yanking motion to pull at the tether of energy. There was a bright flash, and inky black viscera rained onto the ground at our feet. In the sudden stillness that followed, I looked at my hand and then back up where the mass had been. It completely disappeared.

“What did you do?” I asked the mysterious man.

“I did nothing. The credit is yours.” The way he spoke was even and gentle. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly in a serene smile. I tried not to stare at his ears…or his very pale, bald head.

“You mean this.” I lifted my hand to indicate the mark on my palm.

“Whatever opened the Breach in the sky also placed that mark upon your hand,” he explained. “I theorized that it might be able to close the rifts that have opened in the Breach’s wake. And it seems I was correct.” He seemed pleased with himself.

“Meaning it could also close the Breach itself,” Cassandra said. Hope lit up her face.

“Possibly,” he said, shrugging. Then he turned back to me, folding his hands in front of him politely. “It seems you hold the key to our salvation.”

“Good to know!” The short, suave man that hid me earlier sauntered up to us. “Here I thought we would be ass-deep in demons forever.” He gave me a nod before introducing himself. “Varric Tethras. Rogue, storyteller, and - occasionally - unwelcome tagalong.” He shot a sly wink in Cassandra’s direction, which she responded to with a glare.

“It’s good to meet you, Varric,” I said, giving my name as well. I liked him immediately. It was such a relief to meet someone that wasn’t mad at me.

“You may reconsider that stance, in time,” the man with the staff said wryly.

“Aw,” Varric said, feigning hurt. “I’m sure we’ll become great friends in the valley, Chuckles.”

Chuckles?

I eyed the slender frame of the man with the staff. If his worn robes and equipment indicated anything, it was that he was well-traveled. He also had made one of the dryest introductions I’d ever experienced. Still, he clearly knew more than most about the mark and the Breach, and his composure and humble confidence gave me a sense of relief. If he had some idea of what was happening and was managing not to panic, perhaps things could still work out. 

“Absolutely not,” Cassandra interjected. She regarded Varric with a frustrated sigh. “Your help is appreciated, Varric, but –”

“Have you been in the valley lately, Seeker?” Varric asked, cocking a sardonic brow. “Your soldiers aren’t in control anymore. You need me.” He grinned when she went quiet. She made a disgusted noise and turned away from him in clear defeat.

Oof. There is history there.  

“I’m Solas, if there are to be introductions,” the bald man said, giving a small bow in greeting. “I am pleased you still live.”

“He means: ‘I kept that mark from killing you while you slept,’” Varric clarified.

“Then I owe you my thanks,” I said.

“Thank me if we manage to close the Breach without killing you in the process.” His reply managed to dash a lot of the hope I had built up while talking to him. Even he wasn’t sure I’d survive this. My despair unnoticed, he turned to Cassandra. “Cassandra, you should know: the magic involved here is unlike any I have seen. Your prisoner is no mage. Indeed, I find it difficult to imagine any mage having such power.”

Cassandra cast a quick sidelong glance at me and nodded. “Understood.”

I could’ve cried from the relief of hearing that. There was at least one person that thought I was innocent. In fact, he sounded even more sure than I was at the moment.

“We must get to the forward camp quickly.” Cassandra hopped easily over a wooden barrier that had been constructed to brace against an exposed part of the old building’s foundation. Breaking into a light jog, she continued down a nearby mountain path toward the Breach.

Solas followed quickly behind her. As I watched them begin trekking into the distance, I was hit with another wave of exhaustion and anxiety. I was still unsure how I could survive this, and my body was feeling heavier with each step. Varric walked up next to me, all charismatic charm as he winked in my direction.

“Well, Bianca’s excited!” he said, and fell in behind Solas.

Bianca?

I didn’t have enough energy to ask for clarification. Instead, I pleaded for my legs to keep moving, and by some miracle they did. I suppose it helped that staying put would mean being alone on a demon-infested mountainside.

I followed Varric across the stone foundation and clambered awkwardly over the wooden barrier. Cassandra and Solas barely paid mind to how quickly they were leaving me behind, but at least I was able to keep up with Varric. I had a feeling, though, that his pace wasn’t due to his stature, but more so that he was deliberately slowing down so I could keep up with him. Even though the situation was a little embarrassing, I appreciated his consideration, and it encouraged me to do my best to hustle.

Although it’s likely he’s trying to protect me because I’m the only one with any hope of closing the Breach, I thought miserably. It surprised me how much it bothered me, but, then again, who enjoys feeling useless and doomed at the same time?

There were more crumbling ruins lining our path as we trudged down the mountain. The snow started coming down heavily, and as we made our way even closer to the Breach it began to change. The fat, white flakes darkened, and the smell of burning filled the air. A blanket of smoke fell over us as the path evened out and snaked along the same frozen river we had been following to the valley. As we rounded the corner of a steep cliff, we came to a small lake with a cabin and jetty on the far bank that was up in flames.

The snow must be mixing with the ashes. But this isn’t enough to put so much soot in the air, I thought, looking around. There must be more of this up ahead. 

Even more green balls of fire and crackling energy rained down around us now, landing on the frozen lake. I swallowed heavily, my eyes locked on where they landed. The telltale black goo bubbled and sloshed as demons burst forth to attack. Suddenly there were a handful of grays with one green flanking them, and one of the grays was slightly larger...more intimidating. It actually wore armor - a plate of metal that was affixed to the warped arch of its back, a black feather plume running along it and curving over the top of its head.

They just keep getting worse!  

“Aren’t you glad you brought me now, Seeker?” Varric shouted above the sound of screeching demons.

Cassandra rushed the grays, projecting more of those red sonic pulses I had witnessed earlier. She hit her mark, and the armored gray immediately began slithering towards her. By now it was obvious to me that she had some ability that forced demons to target her, bringing them in close so she could slash them to ribbons. It was comforting that we were on the same side...for now, at least.

Distracted by her impressive display, I managed to let another gray sneak up on me. It screamed as it reared back to strike, and I yelled and fell clumsily to the ground in my fear and surprise. I tried to scramble away but, just as its blow was about to land, Solas appeared at my side.

He pulled his staff from its holster on his back with practiced grace, even giving it a leisurely twirl before jamming the end, hard, into the ground before him. In the blink of an eye, streams of icey blue light slid along the ground and slid up the demon towards its head, covering its entire body and freezing it solid mid-strike. Solas then twirled his staff again, and began throwing a series of rhythmic wipes in the demon’s direction. He didn’t hit it with his staff, but instead more icey bolts of blue light - ice shards, I realized - flew out of the orb attached to one end. Unable to move, the demon took the rapid series of projectiles straight on, and suddenly it burst into a spray of ice and demon ichor which splattered all over me.

I gagged at the stench of demon guts as it decorated my clothes, hands, and face. I did my best to hurriedly wipe off my hands in the snow, then desperately swiped at the sticky black goo that threatened to drip into my eyes. Don’t throw up. Don’t throw up. Don’t throw up.  

Solas, rightfully focused on the battle, had already turned away from me and was firing off ice shards in the direction of the larger demon facing off with Cassandra. Varric was skillfully picking off a couple of greens in the distance, as well as easily dodging the incoming projectiles as he flipped and hopped along the rocky slope that bordered the lake.

And I…just stood there awkwardly. They clearly had things under control, and it was best that I stayed out of the way. But even so, it was embarrassing to know that I would literally be dead without their help, and that the most helpful thing I could do in return was try not to die. I considered plopping down onto the snow to give my legs a rest - maybe it would help me keep up with them on the way to the Breach - but decided against it. I was running on pure kinetic motion at this point, and if I rested, I would likely be unable to get moving again.

Eventually the group dispatched the remaining demons. Varric’s arrows landed true with every shot, and made short work of the greens. Solas had managed to freeze the other gray, and Cassandra cleaved it in two - horizontally through the abdomen this time. With an almost casual gesture, she lifted her shield to block her face, hair, and torso from the spray of black, gooey demon entrails. Once it was apparent they had taken all the demons down, they nodded at each other and sheathed their weapons again, ready to press on.

“So…are you innocent?” Varric asked as we walked.

I sighed and answered honestly. “I think so…but, I don’t remember what happened.”

Varric chuckled. “That will get you every time. Should’ve spun a story.”

A story, huh? Maybe that would’ve been the easier route if I knew what the hell was going on, but today had just been one confusing, jarring shock after another. Lying required at least a little context and motivation that directly conflicted with the manipulated persons…and I didn’t have either. I wanted to know what was going on just as much as the three of them…maybe even more so. And it seemed all our interests aligned, as the only way I was going to get answers was to go to the Breach.

Though I could absolutely see Varric spinning stories and charming his way out of desperate situations.

“That’s what you would’ve done,” Cassandra piped up, turning back to glare at him again.

“It’s more believable and less prone to premature execution,” he retorted. He had a point.

We began climbing up another set of stone steps that led up a hill and away from the lake. The Breach grew larger and more terrifying with every step, and my heart leapt when I realized how terrifyingly close and large it was. It was one thing to see something so massive and scary off in the distance but now, as we traipsed through the destruction and fire it left in its wake, the terror was starting to become suffocating. Still, I was determined to press forward, even if I was only motivated by a need to stick close to my protectors. If I ran off now, the demons would easily overwhelm me.

“I hope Leliana made it through all this,” Cassandra said.

“She’s resourceful, Seeker,” Varric assured her.

“At any rate, we’ll find out soon enough.” Solas gestured ahead with his staff. “We are almost at the forward camp.”

Up and up we climbed along the mountain path. With every step, my lungs screamed, and my feet were frozen and hurting from the cold. I tried not to think about frostbite as I trudged forward, eyes fixed squarely on the backs of my companions.

Green balls of energy were falling around us even faster, but for the most part the path stayed clear as we neared the crest of the foothill. More stone ruins were scattered about in crumbling chunks. Here and there we saw crates and supply wagons had been destroyed and abandoned. At the steepest portion of the hill at the top, the path curved and gave way to another set of stone stairs. My legs ached as I climbed, Varric stopping every few feet now to wait for me to catch up to him, looking at me with bemused pity every time.

“Another rift!” Cassandra shouted. She and Solas were an easy fifty feet or so ahead of us and had reached the top already.

“We must seal it - quickly!” Solas said.

I watched as they lunged in the same direction and out of our view, heading towards the rift. Varric looked up at them and then back at me, conflicted. I was still doing my best to climb, going as fast as my legs and lungs would allow. I finally noticed the distant sound of monstrous growls and roars. Another voice managed to yell above the din.

“They just keep coming! Help us!”

I waved a desperate, tired hand at Varric. “Go!” I gasped. “I’ll get there as soon as I can!”

Varric only thought about it for a second before nodding, pulling his crossbow from the holster on his back, and scurrying up the steps to join Cassandra and Solas. He stopped midway and turned to look at me.

“Don’t forget the flask!”

I nodded in understanding, and then he ascended the last handful of stairs and disappeared from view. I stopped for a moment, my hand clutching the branch of a nearby shrub to keep from falling over. But I didn’t let myself stop for long, and, one stair at a time, I clambered up until I could finally see the fight.

This rift was just like the first - twisting, glowing green shards suspended high in the air above their heads. Because I was joining late, none of the demons nor my allies noticed my presence, and I crept carefully around the perimeter of the fight so I wouldn’t draw attention. Just beyond the rift and the fight beneath it, there was another large stone building with a tall wooden gate. It was flanked by a perimeter made of upright, sharpened logs, suggesting there was a settlement just beyond.

While I was gawking at the scenery, I suddenly realized the ground beneath me was vibrating. I looked down, and there I saw a very familiar patch of black ichor bubbling up beneath my feet. As quickly as I could, I rolled to one side, assuming a demon was about to pop out. Instead, the ichor exploded upward in a flash of green energy that erupted from the ground. It flared for a few seconds, before destabilizing and disappearing with a vicious hiss.

More of these same eruptions popped up randomly within a few dozen feet of the rift. I spotted an archer perched on a nearby rocky outcropping as she concentrated hard on lining up a shot. She was aiming for one of the demons trying to flank Cassandra, but as she took aim, the ground beneath her began to bubble up in the same way it had done to me.

Without thinking, I started sprinting towards her, panting and trying to get enough air in my lungs to scream a warning, but it was too late. The ichor erupted, engulfing her in a blaze of green fire. I watched in horror as she screamed and flailed miserably, then dropped to the ground. I did my best to hurry up the back of the outcropping to her side, collapsing to my knees next to her.

Somehow, she was still breathing. All of her flesh was singed black, two brilliant green eyes gazed up at me with pain and worry. Her hair was burned away, and her lightweight armor was melting into her flesh. The terrible, fetid smell of burning hair and skin wafted up from her in waves, and I had to will myself not to gag. She couldn’t speak, instead lifting one trembling hand toward me, and only making garbled, choking sounds.

“I’m here,” I tried to assure her, taking her smoking glove gently in my unmarked hand. “I’m going to stay with you. Just hold on.” But I knew she wouldn’t make it. Her injuries were too extensive. Help would come too late.

The flasks!  

With my free hand, I dug desperately into my deep coat pockets and pulled out one of the flasks with red liquid. I let go of her hand long enough to uncork it and held it up to her lips. She was still conscious and staring at me, refusing to acknowledge the flask I offered.

“Drink this - it should help!” I pleaded.

She only responded with a slight shake of her head. She placed her hand weakly on the center of my chest, and then I saw the light leave her eyes as her arm fell limply to the ground - dead.

Shock and anger made the tears flow. I wiped them away in frustration. I was tired of crying. I was tired of feeling useless. And I was tired of passively watching as the bodies piled up.

There must be something I can do!  

I looked up at the rift. I was almost eye level with it up here. The fighting below was still going on, my presence and the archer’s death completely unnoticed. I stood up, determined, and ignored the painful sting of my blistered feet as I scrambled to the edge of the outcropping. I felt the mark on my hand flair to life, the energy there crackling and buzzing in response to my intention, and to my immense satisfaction.

When I reached the ledge, as close to the rift as I could possibly get, I took aim with the mark and my heart skipped a triumphant beat as a beam of energy lanced out from my palm, capturing the rift as I had done before. I embraced the familiar vibration as I locked onto it, hoping that I could close it. Even if I couldn’t help the fight, I could at least make sure no more demons came down on the people below.

I clenched my fist and yanked my arm back in a pulling motion. The rift burst and sputtered, but to my dismay it didn’t completely disappear like last time. Instead it dissolved from an angry mass of twisting shards into a fine green mist that hovered in the same spot. I took aim with my mark one more time, ready to try and close it again. Perhaps one more blast would do it.

“They stopped!” Someone below gasped.

I looked down and, to my bewilderment, the demons had stopped attacking. Instead, they swayed and wobbled aimlessly, and a green misty halo hovered around each of their heads. I hadn’t managed to close the rift, but it looks like I did manage to help the fight!

I looked down where my three protectors stood. Cassandra’s mouth was hanging open in astonishment. Varric was grinning at me from ear to ear. Solas gave me an approving nod. And at least for a moment, I felt no exhaustion and about twenty degrees warmer.

“Finish them! Before they can recover!” Cassandra commanded, snapping out of her surprise. She wasted no time swiping at the large, ugly gray in front of her, managing to dispatch it quickly despite it standing a good two feet taller than her.

“We must defeat all the demons before the rift can be closed!” Solas echoed, slipping back into his dancelike pattern of staff flourishes. He froze another demon nearby, and paused long enough to yell one more order at me. “Be ready to seal it when the battle is done!”

I nodded and crouched low, trying to stay out of sight of the demons. They managed to kill the rest of them easily enough, with most getting cut down before they could regain focus. The rift remained a glowing mist for a few seconds longer, only to regain its chaotic shard form just as the demons recovered from the blast. But even the few that remained to finish the fight were severely weakened by whatever I did, and were gone in a matter of moments.

The instant the last monster was slain, I thrusted my hand back into the air once more. The beam of energy sprang forth from my palm, but this time when I pulled my arm back, the mass exploded into a rainfall of black ichor, this time completely gone. I sighed in relief, then looked down at the fallen archer and her green, unseeing eyes. Slowly, I reached over and covered them with my hand, gently encouraging her lids to close.

“I’m sorry,” I murmured to her. “I wish I knew sooner.”

“That’s not a burden you should let yourself carry.” Varric’s voice interrupted my thoughts and made me jump. For such a sturdy looking man he moved very quietly and had managed to sneak up on me. “In war, people die. Focus on the lives you save.” He gave me an encouraging pat on the arm and gestured to the ground below us. A few bodies were scattered around there as well, but more soldiers were alive than dead. The survivors were now walking amongst them, making sure they were truly lost, and likely, taking a tally of the fallen.

“The rift is gone - open the gates!” Cassandra shouted towards the stone structure.

We regrouped and entered the large wooden doors. As we walked, Solas and Varric saddled up beside me and matched my feeble gait.

“We’re clear for the moment,” Solas assured me. “Well done.”

“Whatever that thing on your hand is, it’s useful,” Varric agreed.

I grinned at them. I couldn’t fight the way they did, but at least I was good for something.

However, my brief feeling of accomplishment was replaced by severe frustration once I realized where we were. Didn’t Cassandra say that the Breach “wasn’t far?” At this point, I was so fucking tired that I just wanted all this to be over - one way or another. If I didn’t die from demons or rifts, then it was the exhaustion that would get me.

At the very least, it seemed this bridge was a bit larger and more fortified, and as I looked around, I realized this was the forward encampment. The soldiers here were huddled around warm fires and sported thick furs to help fight the cold. They all had the same grim, resolved expression that Cassandra’s face defaulted to, but there was less of an air of fear and panic here. Perhaps these soldiers - the ones closest to the Breach - were the more experienced ones. It would explain how they had survived this long on the front lines…a significant feat, from what I had experienced. There were also a number of supply carts and crates, and what I assumed to be clergymen…one of which was arguing angrily with a familiar face.

“We must prepare the soldiers!” I heard Leliana insist as we approached them. She reproached an older man in the same red-and-white robes I had seen clergymen in before. He was standing in front of a green tent and flanked by red banners similar to ones I had seen among the ruins.

This man is with the Chantry? Why doesn’t he want me to try and close the Breach?  

“We will do no such thing!” The man said stubbornly. His brow was furrowed in an obstinate scowl, and he spoke with self-importance that annoyed me immediately.

“The prisoner must get to the Temple of Sacred Ashes - it is our only chance!” Though they were arguing, I noticed that Leliana, unlike the clergyman, never raised her voice. Instead, she did a remarkable job of keeping a lid on her frustration, even as it showed, and simply kept stating the facts. And she was right, of course. What other choice did we have? I, of all people, would love to know!

“You have already caused enough trouble without resorting to this exercise in futility!”

“I have caused trouble?”

“You, Cassandra, the Most Holy - haven’t you all done enough already?”

Leliana’s voice lowered to a dangerous octave. “You are not in command here,” she said in an even, frigid tone. Even though I was sure I was frozen through, my blood still managed to run cold in my veins.

“Enough! I will not have it!” His lips curled into a satisfied smirk when he spotted me. “Ah, here they come!”

Leliana was relieved to see us. “You made it! Chancellor Roderick, this is –”

“I know who she is,” he sneered. “As a grand chancellor of the Chantry, I hereby order you to take this criminal to Val Royeaux to face execution.”

I was confused at who he was talking to at first. Apart from him, everyone definitely wanted me to try and close the Breach. But then it dawned on me that he was talking to Cassandra, and I couldn’t help but snort under my breath. Varric quickly jabbed me in the outer thigh with his elbow and we exchanged silent but amused looks.

If he wants to have a go at bossing around Cassandra then by all means. Let him lose his balls.  

“Order me?” she said, indignant. “You are a glorified clerk . A bureaucrat!”

“And you are a thug, but a thug who supposedly serves the Chantry!”

Leliana corrected him. Quickly. “We serve the Most Holy, Chancellor. As you well know.”

Roderick threw up his hands in frustration. “Justinia is dead! We must elect a replacement, and obey her orders on the matter!” He was still the only one yelling, and sounded a lot like a child throwing a tantrum amongst these calm, confident warriors.

“Please don’t talk about me like I’m not here,” I said. My voice was gravelly and low…tired. I was out of patience and not sure how much more of this bitterly cold, demon-infested hellscape I could deal with. We needed to get me - and my mark - to the Breach so I could try to close it and/or die trying. And now that I was as close as ever, some church asshole wanted to throw me in jail just for the sake of flexing his too-big-britches.

“You shouldn’t even be here!” He barked.

I’m really about to punch a man of the cloth. I may only be a threat to demons in very specific circumstances, but I knew I could take him, at least. Chancellor Roderick had clearly never even seen a battlefield before today…and likely I hadn’t either, but at least I knew to be humble about it. And between all of the traumatic things I had seen in the last few hours, plus the state of my body and the chunks of demon goo stuck in my ears, I was feeling a little unhinged.

I bet it would be easy. Just one swift kick in his birdlike chest.  

Cassandra moved to stand between Chancellor Roderick and me, and I willed myself to calm down. These harsh conditions were getting to me - clearly I was not built for them, but I was doing my best. To be cut down like this by some idiot who had no idea what I’d been through threatened to bring out frustrated tears, but I willed them away. I wasn’t the only one fighting…and I owed it to everyone to keep my composure.

The Chancellor’s voice softened a bit then, to my surprise. “Call a retreat, Seeker,” he said. “Our position here is hopeless.”

“We can stop this before it’s too late.”

“How? You won’t survive long enough to reach the temple, even with all your soldiers.”

“We must get to the temple. It’s the quickest route,” she insisted.

“But not the safest,” Leliana said. “Our forces can charge and create a distraction while we go through the mountains.” She pointed to the nearest one, with a rough trail carved out of one side and a system of ladders and wooden landings that scaled up toward the peak.

Cassandra shook her head. “We lost an entire squad on that path. It is too risky.”

“Listen to me,” Roderick pleaded . “Abandon this now before more lives are lost!”

Just then, the Breach boomed, flaring and sparking energy that charged the air around us. My mark responded in kind, radiating a now-familiar pain up to my shoulder. However, this time, I didn’t collapse. I didn’t cry out. Rage helped me continue to stand out of sheer stubbornness. I stared, unblinking, at Chancellor Roderick.

My arm was twitching uncontrollably at my side as tears streamed down my face. I was covered head-to-toe in both human blood and demon shit. I was tired. I was desperate. At that moment, I decided I was ready to die if it finally put an end to all this death and suffering.

I wanted him to see it. I wanted him to stop denying my chance to try to fix this. I wanted him to see what I felt when I held that archer’s hand as she died. Lose more lives? Too many lives had already been lost! And the rest would be lost anyway, if the Breach is left to grow!

But I kept it all in. I kept my mouth shut. This wasn’t the time or the place. So instead, I made him look. The others only gazed at me silently, helpless to do anything but watch and wait.

Eventually, the pulse passed, and the air calmed as the howling wind took the place of that horrible, thundering boom. Everything was quiet for a few beats as I continued to stare angrily at the Chancellor. Slowly, Cassandra stepped between us, breaking my line of sight. We made eye contact, and I willed myself to take another steadying breath.

“How do you think we should proceed?” she asked softly.

She was giving the choice to me. We were going to proceed forward, one way or another, and it was my life that was most directly on the line. She probably also saw the state I was in, and between my fatigue and my delirious anger, she could tell I was approaching my limit.

“I say we charge,” I said. I looked over at the Chancellor. “I won’t survive long enough for your trial. Whatever happens, happens now.”

I wished something could be done about those scouts, but at the end of the day, that’s not what they were asking of me. They wanted to know how best I could make it to the Breach. I knew I was in no shape for a long, steep climb up the sheer side of a mountain and a fight with whatever terrors befell the missing squadron.

Cassandra nodded and, to my complete shock, smiled at me! Well…she smiled a little. But still, I couldn’t believe it! Before I could fully process this development, she was already turning away and yelling more orders.

“Leliana, bring everyone left into the valley! Everyone! ” Leliana didn’t even nod, instead she immediately sidestepped Cassandra and sprinted back the way we came. The rest of us, plus a smaller group of soldiers, began marching forward through the gates and up a path towards the Breach. As we descended the stone steps onto a mountain path, Roderick’s voice floated out to us one last time.

“On your head be the consequences, Seeker.”

Cassandra only furrowed her brow slightly, that resolute determination still plain across her face. At that moment, I decided I liked her. She was the guiding force in all of this, and these people were lucky to have her and Leliana leading them.

As the doors began screeching shut, I cast a quick glance behind me and saw Chancellor Roderick gazing after us. Before he was completely out of sight, I lifted my marked hand up in a cheery wave before flicking him off. His shocked and confused expression caused a giggle to bubble up from my throat. Hopefully it wasn’t the last laugh I’d get before my untimely death, but even if it was, being able to break out into genuine laughter helped lift my spirits a little.

Of course that was completely doused when we started making our way up yet another path. At the top was a jagged, dark ridge with another crumbling stone fortress sat atop it, bolstered with wooden beams and platforms. Above it, the sky was dyed an ominous black from strong gusts of wind kicking up plumes of ash from the burned landscape. From the base we could already hear the screech of demons as well as the urgent cries of soldiers that were attempting to beat them back.

Cassandra only pulled ahead enough to guide us, flanked now by soldiers. The rest of the group went as slow as me this time, no one saying anything as we walked in unison. Solas jogged lightly up to my side and removed the staff on his back, using it as a walking stick as he offered his arm. I took it gratefully…what began as a body-numbing coldness was slowly morphing into a painful burn. My feet were likely bleeding from all of the hiking, and I was sure I would lose consciousness out of sheer exhaustion at any second.

“Nearly there. You are doing well.” At the very least, Solas’s encouragement made me feel a little less embarrassed to have to be coddled like this. I also began to feel a lot warmer as we walked, and it occurred to me that he may be using magic to help me recover.

“Thank you,” I said, meaning it and feeling significantly better.

By the time we got to the top of the hill and entered the fortress, I was able to walk on my own again, and my head was much clearer. I drank one of the red potions from my pocket and it immediately made a difference on my feet and legs. I felt my blistered skin cool immediately and I was able to walk without pain again.

Once we were inside, we were greeted by more soldiers rushing back and forth. The top of the fortress had been blown completely away, and green balls of energy fell directly upon them. The Breach was spitting demons out of the sky almost without pause now, causing small explosions and raising demons wherever they landed. In between bouts of demons, soldiers did their best to regroup and tend to the wounded, while also trying to hold their desperate position. If something wasn’t done soon, Cassandra and Leliana’s forces would be overwhelmed.

Wasting no time, we pushed through the fort. The reinforcements that escorted us up the path began breaking off to confront any demons that tried to get in our way. We came to a large archway with stairs leading up to it and an exit to the valley beyond. When we passed through, the air became so thick with ash and smoke that I had to cover my face and mouth with the sleeve of my coat. The way before us was an eerily flat clearing of broken stone and marble tile, with a large, black outcropping of rock fanning outwards from it. Crumbling stone was everywhere, as well as raised wooden platforms and barricades. It seemed we were finally entering the blast zone of the explosion that caused the Breach.

We moved quickly through the chaos, spotting a rift a few hundred feet ahead of us that barred soldiers on the other side from regrouping with the others in the fort. My protectors pulled ahead slightly, ready for another fight. Again, the rift sparked and flared as I neared it, beams of energy shooting out and causing black ichor to bubble up from the ground.

Solas flourished gracefully with his staff, calling up a stream of light that encircled the four of us, and then shrouded us all in a silvery halo. As two grays popped up from the ground, Cassandra quickly drew the largest one in, slashing and shield-bashing with renewed vigor. Varric started firing off arrows and darted away from the focus of the fight, and I did the same in the opposite direction, bolting for a raised wooden platform nearby.

I managed to reach it safely and scrambled up a ladder to the top. Staying low so as to remain unseen, I crept toward the edge and got as close as I could to the rift, glancing around to make sure I wasn’t being targeted. The coast seemed clear, but before I could do anything, both demons were already dead. Then, before I could close it, more beams of light shot out and two more grays, plus two more greens rose from more black ichor and screamed as they began to attack.

“How many are there?” Varric yelled.

“We must seal it properly to get past!” Solas wasted no time firing off more icy shards at the demons.

I thrust my hand out, connecting the rift to my mark with a beam of energy, and pulled. The rift disrupted just like last time, dissolving into a green mist and both damaging and stunning the demons below. The group finished them off quickly, to my relief. But once again, I went to close the rift and even more beams of light shot out from the rift. Two, to be exact. One that landed on the ground amongst my companions and one directly next to me, blocking me from the ladder and my only path of escape.

My heart sank as a new demon - this one green but much bigger than the gaseous floaters I had seen before - materialized right in front of me. It had to be eight to ten feet tall, with long, skinny arms and legs and a scaly tail. It’s face was terrifying - no eyes, just a wide, screeching mouth full of vicious, razor-sharp teeth.

Fear froze me in place. It was the scariest thing I’d seen up close yet, and I couldn’t run or fight it. I’d almost resigned myself to my death, when an arrow whistled through the air and caught the demon square in the shoulder. I looked over and saw Varric cocking his crossbow, his eyes focused on me.

“THE FLASK!”

I shoved my hand into my pocket again. Gripping it, I yanked the flask out, raised it into the air, and smashed it at my feet. The glass shattered, and I was enveloped in a smoking purple mist that quickly faded away. I looked up at the demon expecting for it to be injured or stunned, but it seemed totally unaffected. Panic seized me again and I froze, waiting for it to lunge in my direction. But the claws and gnashing teeth never came. Instead it’s head was swiveling around as if looking for something. I looked down at the shattered glass beneath my feet and noticed…I had no feet! My entire body had disappeared!

I looked up at the demon again. After searching for a few more seconds, it finally seemed to give up on me and instead turned to the fighting below. Another demon just like it was on the ground, getting ready to take a giant swipe at Cassandra. The one closest to me tilted back its head, opening its mouth wide and screeching so loud I had to clap my hands over my ears. Then, it ripped open a swirling green portal in the ground beneath it, slipped silently down into it, and disappeared.

Almost instantly, it appeared again, but this time it was on the ground next to its companion. It shot up from another portal, attempting to knock Cassandra and Varric off their feet. Unfortunately, Cassandra was thrown down onto her back, but Varric backflipped out of the way, shooting a flurry of arrows at the beast as he flew through the air. Solas freezed one of the monsters, but the other was able to cast some kind of green ring out around it that swallowed Cassandra and managed to…slow time in its vicinity?

I shook my head, trying to clear it. Now wasn’t the time to gawk lamely at the demons. Now was the time to do the one thing I knew I could!

My hand shot out, and I noticed I had become accustomed to the gesture. The rift disrupted into a mist, and both demons were rendered helpless just long enough for Cassandra to get back on her feet. Varric also had just enough time to line up a really precise shot, hitting one of them square in the chest and doing some serious damage. Solas cast another silver halo around himself and Cassandra. Disrupting the rift had clearly hurt the monsters, but these were more resistant to the effects. They recovered quickly and soon were screaming and swiping again, both getting solid hits on Cassandra.

However, the attacks proved ineffective, and I assumed it was due to the silvery halo that hung over her. Was it some kind of barrier? I didn’t have enough time to think about it though - I was already lifting my palm up for another shot at disrupting the rift. As soon as the beam of energy shot out and connected, the demons below turned to me in unison, screaming angrily in my direction. Cassandra hit one of them with a red sonic pulse, and it turned back to her, but the other started to slowly shuffle towards me in rigid, jerking movements. Apparently, I was visible again.

Hurry up! I begged my mark, the seconds ticking by agonizingly slow. I felt the connection fully form, and began instinctively clenching my fist just as I saw it tear open another portal in the ground. But before it could teleport beneath me, I yanked my hand back and the rift disrupted again. The demon stood lamely in place, swaying dizzily and unable to move or attack. Solas froze it solid, with Varric finishing it off in a hail of arrows. Cassandra dropped her shield to the ground, gripped the hilt of her blade with both hands, and then shoved it into the other demon’s belly, twisting viciously. It screamed as it fell to the ground in a pile of bubbling black goo.

Before anyone could move, my hand flew out one more time, capturing the rift in a beam of light from my mark and pulling. It burst into more black ichor that rained down onto the ground. With the rift finally gone, I made my way towards the ladder and climbed down quickly to join my companions.

“Sealed, as before,” Solas said as I walked at a clipped pace to join them. “You are becoming quite proficient at this.”

“Let’s hope it works on the big one,” Varric said, his gaze following the trail of destruction before us and up toward the Breach.

With the rift gone, the soldiers trapped on the other side were moving slowly toward the fortress. Most of them were seriously injured, and those with lesser injuries were doing their best to help them walk. Out of the haze walked a tall man in heavy armor with a plume of feathers lining his collar. He made a beeline for Cassandra, while gesturing for the his men to keep moving towards the fort.

“Lady Cassandra,” he said. “You managed to close the rift? Well done.” As he got closer, I could see that he was very handsome, with tousled blonde hair, chiseled features, and a flattering scar that cut across his full lips.

“Do not congratulate me, Commander. This is her doing.” She gestured in my direction.

The man - this “Commander” - sized me up in a single glance from my feet to my head, and suddenly I was very aware of my hideous state. My clothes were torn and dirty, blood was splattered up and down my body, and I could only imagine what all this demon viscera was doing to my hair.

And yet, everyone else seems ready for their close-up, I thought, casting a jealous glance in Cassandra’s direction. Varric was doing okay too, with a handsome, mischievous grin always plastered on his face. Even Solas barely looked winded.

“Is it?” the Commander said. “I hope they’re right about you. We’ve lost a lot of people getting you here.”

It was a grim thing to hear out loud, but it wasn’t as if it was lost on me. “You’re not the only one hoping that,” I said.

“We’ll see soon enough, won’t we?” His voice was slightly strained - a bit clipped. I supposed the Commander was still very distrustful of me, and at this point I didn’t blame him. The others were coming around by now but, from his perspective, he still attributed every horror I had seen so far to my doing. I would be suspicious of me too. “The way to the temple should be clear,” he told Cassandra. “Leliana will try to meet you there.”

“Then we best move quickly - give us time, Commander.” She started up the path again, and we followed.

“Maker watch over you - for all our sakes.” He caught my eye one last time, his expression full of that grim resolution that seemed to haunt every experienced soldier I came across. Then he turned to join his men, rushing to the side of a limping soldier and throwing an arm around the man’s waist to help him walk.

We pressed on toward the Breach, jumping carefully down a rocky ridge to another flat area within the blast radius. The silence here was eerie in comparison to the chaotic din of battle we had just escaped. Ash was still thick in the air, but the stillness kept it from choking me like it almost did before. More blasted stone outcroppings were interspersed with bits of crumbling ruins.

“The Temple of Sacred Ashes,” Solas said.

“What’s left of it,” Varric said, his usual cockiness replaced with a sober melancholy.

“That is where you walked out of the Fade and our soldiers found you.” Cassandra pointed at the base of a collapsed tower. “They say a woman was in the rift behind you. No one knows who she was.”

She eyed me with expectation, as if waiting for me to explain…perhaps hoping that being here would trigger a memory. But I still had no idea who the woman was or if it was the same one I saw in my few fractured memories. When I could only offer silence, she merely shrugged and kept walking.

As we explored, I was horrified by the sight of what I thought were burning, bloodied skeletons that dotted the path. I couldn’t help but look closer, and saw that there was still flesh on the bone, but it was bloody and shriveled - so sunken that it made it look skeletal from afar. They posed in positions of fear and agony - some standing, others kneeling - all with hands thrown up in front of their faces as if they were instantly mummified by the heat of the explosion. The smell of scorched flesh hung thick in the still air, making me gag. Everything in the vicinity was charred, black, and blasted to bits.

We came across more chunks of blasted stone remains of the temple. The closer we came to the Breach, the more skeletons littered the ground, their bloody mouths open wide in silent screaming. I shuddered, trying my best not to let the devastation affect me. If I survived this, I could process and grieve later. And if not…then it wouldn’t matter regardless.

We walked along a ridge of blasted black stone, and I noticed green lines of energy slithering up some of them like mineral veins. I expected complete and total devastation, but it looked like the epicenter of the blast had left more structures intact…that or the temple was very sturdy. I was surprised that as we went further, whole sections still stood, and we walked along a corridor that had been ripped from its foundation and sunk into the dirt. We rounded a corner and came upon a large stone archway, and just beyond…the Breach.

We found ourselves at the top of crumbling tiered stone pathways and steps trailing down to a rocky clearing. Hanging directly in front of us was the largest rift we had seen yet with a crumbling tower sitting directly behind it. It had to be ten to twenty times larger than the rifts I had already closed, and floating tendrils of green energy swirled up from it into the cyclone that had ripped a hole in the sky. The vortex was eerily slow and silent, leisurely swirling clouds and huge chunks of stone caught up in its path.

“The breach is a long way up,” Varric said. And he was right.

I sighed, also gazing up at it and unsure what to do next. Footsteps approached us from behind, and I was relieved to see Leliana again. She led a squadron of soldiers and carried a bow and quiver on her back.

“You’re here! Thank the Maker!” she greeted, relief in her voice.

Cassandra turned toward her, gesturing at the stone walkways. “Leliana, have your men take up positions around the temple.” She only nodded in agreement before gesturing to her squadron and heading for a nearby ledge. Cassandra then turned to me. “This is your chance to end this. Are you ready?”

… what am I going to do - flap my arms and fly?  

“I assume you have a plan to get me up there?”

Solas shook his head and pointed at the giant rift. “No. This rift was the first, and it is the key. Seal it, and perhaps we seal the Breach.”

 “Then let’s find a way down,” Cassandra said. “And be careful.”

 But then, a low, booming voice echoed through the temple, unfamiliar and terrifying.

“Now is the hour of our victory.”

My body had an immediate and involuntary reaction to the voice. My heart pumped hard, and my hair stood on end. Suddenly I was on hyper alert, as if my body was remembering something I couldn’t.

“Bring forth the sacrifice,” it thundered again.

“What are we hearing?” Cassandra asked as we searched for a way down.

“At a guess: the person who created the Breach,” Solas replied.

Trailed by Leliana’s men, we went up a short flight of stairs covered in rubble, picking through carefully to avoid falling on the loosened stone. More green veins of energy swirled through blasted stone embedded in the destroyed temple’s walls, and the air was filled with the same electric charge we felt during the pulse at the forward camp. As we walked, Leliana’s archers broke off to station themselves at various vantage points that centered on the rift. The rest, swords drawn, kept pace with us as we looked for a path that would lead us down to the temple’s bottom floor.

We rounded a corner and came across large red crystals giving off crackling, angry energy. Varric looked very distraught to see it.

“You know this stuff is red lyrium, Seeker?”

“I see it, Varric.”

“But what’s it doing here?”

Solas observed it as we went by, and I followed suit as the group picked up speed and gave the crystals a wide berth. “Magic could’ve drawn on lyrium beneath the temple - corrupted it.”

Varric could barely stand to look at it and flinched away in disgust as we passed. “It’s evil - whatever you do, don’t touch it.”

The deep disembodied voice echoed again. “Keep the sacrifice still.”

It was followed by a new voice - feminine and mature. She spoke in a pleasantly accented cadence, despite the fear in her voice.

“Someone, help me!”

Cassandra gasped. “That’s Divine Justinia’s voice!”

We hurried along even faster now. There were more deposits of red lyrium as we went - the stuff was everywhere, growing out of the black rocks closest to the epicenter of the blast and giving off an alarming heat. Finally, we came across a set of stairs that led down towards the bottom floor of the temple. We descended, then carefully leapt off a low ledge to the ground beneath the rift.

It was even more enormous up close, and may not have been as high up as the Breach, but was still higher up than any rift we had seen before. I could probably reach it with my mark if I stood right beneath it, but I knew that was literally the worst place to be when it came to these things. I found it strange, however, that despite its enormous size, it wasn’t spilling out any demons.

Divine Justinia’s voice came again, louder than ever now. “Someone - help me!”

A new voice, one that shocked me, responded. “What’s going on here?” 

Cassandra turned to me, confused. “That was your voice - Most Holy called out to you, but…”

Like before, the giant rift above us seemed to respond to my mark. My palm sparked to life, and the temple was filled with a flash of white, blinding light. It faded quickly, and above us was a terrifying apparition of someone - or something - large, ominous and shrouded in shadow. 

There was also a woman wearing an ornate headpiece and a set of white-and-red robes like I had seen other clerics of the Chantry wear. It was Divine Justinia - she was being suspended in the air, her arms trapped in swirling red magic. She gazed up at the phantom, terrified.

“What’s going on here?” It was me! In the vision, I barged into the room, and I was clearly surprised by the scene I had stumbled onto.

I watched as Justinia’s eyes went wild with fear as she turned her head toward my vision-self. “Run while you can! Warn them!” she pleaded.

The evil phantom wasted no time. “We have an intruder,” he thundered, extending a too-big-to-be-human hand and pointing at me with a long, razor-sharp claw. “Kill her. Now!”

Then, the vision was gone, dissolving into mist and absorbed by the rift. I watched for a few moments longer, hoping to see more, but the rift stayed silent.

“You were there!” Cassandra gasped. She grabbed me by the shoulders and gave me a firm shake. “Who attacked? And the Divine, is she..?” Tears formed in her eyes, desperation painfully written all over her face. “Is this vision true? What are we seeing?”

“I don’t remember!” I literally had the same amount of context as her. She seemed to remember herself then and let me go, wiping away the moisture on her cheeks as subtly as she could manage.

“Echoes of what happened here,” Solas said, observing the rift closely. “The Fade bleeds into this place.” He turned to the rest of us. “The rift is not sealed, but it is closed - albeit temporarily. I believe that with the mark, the rift can be opened, and then sealed properly and safely. However, opening the rift will likely attract attention from the other side.”

“That means demons!” Cassandra called out to Leliana’s soldiers. “Stand ready!” I spotted Leliana, too, standing on a nearby stone platform with bow in hand.

The soldiers that had followed us down to the rift began to position alongside us, ready for a fight. Around the temple, archers notched their arrows and took aim at the ground beneath the rift, ready to fire. When they were all in place, fanned out and centered on the rift, one of the men leading the group gave Cassandra a nod, which she returned. I took a long, deep breath.

It’s time to end this, I told myself, scared but determined. I will do my part. Even if…even if it kills me. If I have to die today, I refuse to do so in vain!

Cassandra then faced me again and nodded, fully composed once more as if the tears had never happened. It occurred to me she may have worked closely with the Divine. Perhaps, she had felt useless watching this “Most Holy” suffer and die right before her eyes…and maybe she felt better now that there was something she could do - something she could hit. I could empathize with that, after the day I had.

Taking another deep breath, I stepped forward and gazed up at the enormous rift, now hanging directly above me.

Here we go!

I shot my marked hand out, willing the familiar beam of energy to latch onto the giant rift. It wasn’t as terrible as I expected, but the vibration was definitely stronger and more intense than the previous ones. Still, it was easy enough to brace against the discomfort, and like I had done before, I pulled my arm back in a firm yank. The rift roared and crackled, and there was a flash of bright green light that knocked me onto my backside. I wasted no time scrambling to my feet, and finally looked up to see what happened.

An enormous demon - almost as big as the rift - towered before me. It was more humanoid than the previous ones, with actual legs and arms tipped with sharp talons. However, nothing else about this thing was human. It’s “skin” reminded me of an exoskeleton, with spiked ridges running along its back and huge horns jutting out from the top of its head. It also had far too many eyes, and a huge gaping maw with long, protruding fangs.

However, the scariest thing about this monster was the way it looked at me. It actually sized me up, showing more intelligence than previous demons I had faced. And then it chuckled …clearly unimpressed.

Well shit, I thought numbly.

The room broke out into chaos. Cassandra charged past me, sword and shield drawn. She was already firing off those familiar red pulses and was joined by a handful of soldiers, one of which tackled me out of the way as the monster reared back to take a swipe in my direction. We rolled across the ground, away from the fight, and before I could thank him he had already popped up and rushed back in to help.

The air filled with the whistling of arrows being fired from all directions around the temple. They hit their mark, but the demon easily batted them away. Cassandra and the other warriors that rushed in were also struggling to do any damage, despite a series of precise stabs at its feet and legs. Either the thing was too powerful to hurt, or he was using some kind of barrier like the one Solas was able to cast.

“We must strip its defenses!” Cassandra shouted above the noise. “Wear it down!”

I popped up too, knowing exactly what to do. I gave the battle a wide berth, moving as quickly and silently as I could. I circled around the rift to the crumbling tower that sat behind it. Creeping along the back, I peeked around and saw the demon, fully engaged with the soldiers. To my horror, it materialized a long, crackling purple light that it gripped by one end like a whip. It was rearing back again, I realized, about to bring it down on the heads of the soldiers facing off with it directly.

I sprang from my hiding spot. I knew that if I waited any longer, we were about to lose good soldiers. I prayed that I could disrupt the rift while the demon’s back was turned, and stop any more lives from being taken.

I connected with the energy of the rift, the sensation even more intense than before. It bordered on painful now, but I ignored it. I ignored everything - my fear, my exhaustion, that feeling in the back of my mind that was screaming all this wasn’t possible. I pushed it all down. I was determined to help the day be victorious.

Just as the demon turned slowly, spotted me, and began stalking in my direction, I yanked my arm back and the rift disrupted into mist. My hope soared as the demon responded in kind, just like all the others. It was stunned and helpless, even dropping to one knee in an attempt to regain its strength.

“Now!” Cassandra barked. “While it’s vulnerable!”

Swords slashed, and arrows flew. The demon was taking real damage, even bleeding purple blood where the blows managed to land. My relief was short-lived, however. Just as it was able to lurch back up into a standing position, more demons came spilling out of the rift. These were grays again - a handful of them. They screeched and slithered directly towards me, and all I could do was run.

I darted around the back of the tower again, spurred on by the inhuman cries of the demons that pursued me. I came back around to where the soldiers fought again, and then pounded towards a cluster of archers posted up on stone platforms. Leliana was one of them.

“Prioritize protecting the prisoner!” She ordered. “If she dies, it’s over!”

The archers then fired directly on the monsters chasing me. I did my best to dodge the demons’ attacks while still keeping them in range of the arrows. My legs ached, my heart pounded, and my lungs gasped for air, but I kept moving anyway, knowing that if I stopped it meant death. One of the grays did manage to swipe me right across the back, its claws digging painfully into my flesh and sending me splaying across the temple floor.

When I managed to scramble onto my backside and look up, two demons were slithering towards me, ready to finish me off. But the arrows kept coming. They thudded heavily as they hit vulnerable spots on the warped gray bodies. One, two, and then three arrows whistled and landed square in the first one’s face, and it finally fell to the ground in a pathetic wail. The second went the same as the first, Leliana’s incredible archers striking true in rapid succession.

“You must find a way to get back to the rift!” She called down to me. I nodded in understanding, struggling shakily to my feet, but still determined.

I cast a glance around the chaotic battlefield. The soldiers were doing okay, but were already quite bloodied and tired. A few were too injured to continue, propped up against the stone walls and fighting for their lives. Varric and Solas were working together to finish off the rest of the smaller demons that had come through the rift. Solas was even able to cast another barrier around Cassandra, who still faced the largest demon head on. It was back on its feet again, firing off massive balls of purple lightning in the direction of the archers, who dodged out of its way. It seemed it was also able to call up its barrier again, and all attacks centered on it barely made a scratch.

I sprinted over to Varric, an idea in my head. He was covered in blood and demon guts, and had begun lining up a precise shot at the largest demon’s head just as I approached. He was alarmed and relieved when he saw me.

“Varric, I need another potion!” I shouted.

He didn’t even hesitate. “It’s my last one - make it count!”

I nodded, clutching the flask in my hand as I made way back around the battlefield and towards the tower. I wouldn’t survive another swarm of demons on the ground, and I was pretty sure a disruption would call more of them. Despite my desperation, my legs were beginning to fail me. Even at my fastest, I could only manage a light jog. After a long, exhausting day with no food, no rest, and a constant stream of fear and adrenaline, I’m pretty sure my body was starting to give up.

Just one more push, I told myself. We’re almost there! 

I finally made it to the base of the tower, the side closest to the rift crumbled in a slight slant to the top. If I was careful, and if my body held out, I could crawl up and disrupt the rift in relative safety. I wouldn’t make it all the way up, I knew, but at least I could climb high enough to be out of the horde’s reach.

I ignored the protest of my aching muscles as I gripped the potion in my hand and smashed the flask at my feet. Invisible, I snuck past the fighting to grab onto one of the stones and found a foothold at the base of the tower. With considerable exertion, I pulled myself up onto the wall and, moving slowly and carefully, I made my way up, occasionally glancing over my shoulder at the fight.

The warriors weren’t doing well. They were bloodied and tired. The demon just kept firing powerful swipes at them. Knowing I was their only hope, I shot my hand out, clinging desperately to the rocks with my other hand. The pain was even more intense now, but I still easily ignored it. I willed the mark to latch onto the rift, and pulled back with my arm.

The potion’s effects fell away from me and a misty plume - I was visible again, but I had managed to get a good ways up. The rift disrupted, severely damaging and stunning the big demon. More grays came pouring out, heading towards me. I kept climbing up the rocks, just barely getting high enough to be out of reach of their claws.

Arrows began whistling through the air in the direction of my pursuers. I looked up and saw Leliana, flanked by half a dozen archers, stalking across the battlefield towards me as they fired upon the monsters with practiced ease. I looked back towards the warriors and the larger demon, confident the archers would make quick work of the weaklings below.

The larger demon had managed to get back up on its feet, but it was tired now. Its movements were sluggish, and it was bleeding profusely. Cassandra and her warriors still slashed at it mercilessly, but their blades were bouncing away uselessly once again. The demon had managed to get its shield back up, and was even emitting more deep, ominous laughter.

I can fix that!  

I flew my hand out again, capturing the rift with my mark and yelping out loud from the pain that shot through my side. Each rift disruption seemed to be getting more intense and painful, but I was determined. I grit my teeth, closed my eyes, and pulled, praying that I could keep my grip on the stone wall.

The rift disrupted again, and the demons responded in kind. More grays spilled out, but the tide of battle was turning now. Cassandra had the largest demon on the ropes, and the flood of them that spilled out still targeted me, even though I was out of reach. Leliana and her archers began picking off the grays easily, and Varric and Solas joined the warriors in one final push - firing constantly on the big monster. I clutched the stone wall with all my might, and begged my body to hang on just a little longer.

This time, the huge demon didn’t get up. Cassandra threw away her shield, clutching the hilt of her sword in both hands, and lunged at the demon, catching it in the center of its chest. She twisted the blade, roaring back in its twisted, ugly face.

“MAKER TAKE YOU!”

It screamed in anguish for an agonizingly long time. Finally, its body started to go limp and in slow motion it began leaning forward lamely, falling to the ground in an earthshaking boom. The warriors around it stabbed the corpse, making sure it was over, and the beast was truly dead. Just as Cassandra brought down the big one, Leliana and her archers finished off the smaller ones beneath me. I was so focused on holding on that I didn’t see Cassandra’s order, but I heard it. Her voice rang above the noise just as my grip on the rocks began to slip from blood the stone drew from my hands. 

“Seal the rift! Now! DO IT!”

I threw out my marked hand one last time, a massive stream of energy catching the rift and shooting pain through my body so intensely that I felt it in every inch of my skin. It penetrated and numbed my brain, lighting every nerve ending in my body with a searing heat. As I connected with the rift, the feeling changed, becoming less painful but still overwhelming. Memories began to bombard me, like pieces of a puzzle crashing into place. My family. My friends. My home…

My world, I realized.

Tears streamed down my face. I could remember it - everything I was before I came to Thedas. I felt clarity and disbelief as I realized the context of where I had seen it all before, and also why it felt so unbelievable at the same time. It was because I didn’t belong here. In my reality, the events I witnessed today were nothing more than fantasy. A beloved game I played often to relax and escape from the troubles of my own world…

I shook my head, promising I would puzzle this out later if I managed to live. For now, it was time to end this battle. I pulled my arm back as hard as I could, and the giant rift exploded in a massive, blinding ball of light.

And then I was falling, unable to stay conscious. I never felt myself hit the ground. I only heard shouts and barked orders muffled and fading into the distance as my vision faded to black.