Mine Massacre

As they approached the Bone Pit they saw far more than was expected, Hubert had told them of the dead minors but the sight before them was something else. Dead bodies charcoaled, tents set aflame and mining equipment scattered amongst debris. It was a massacre.

"You take me to all the nice places Hawke." Isabela appeared on Hawke's right.

"Holy shit." Varric muttered under his breath as he approached.

Hawke took in the sight before her; cautious she pulled out her great sword from its scabbard and held it firmly in two hands. There was only one path before them, leading left, a narrow sloping passage, other than that the Bone Pit was isolated. Hawke thought for a moment weighing up the feeling in her stomach, fear or instinct? She took a deep breath and continued forward anyway. Isabela let out a sigh but the three followed behind their champion.

The silence was eerier than the sound of flames, as they moved further down the side path it became cold and dark.

"I don't like this Hawke." Isabela's voice had dropped a pitch with the hint of fear. She didn't like it either but she had to know what happened.

As the path neared its end an arch made of stone was before them. It appeared to be manmade. Hawke observed the arch and saw that the path opened up to a wide area covered in sand from the nearby shore. Without a thought Hawke crossed under the arch and was greeted by a ground shaking roar of protest. She looked up to see a large mass with wings fly over their heads. Hawke was barely able to recognised what the creature was before a fire ball was hurtled towards the champion and her companions, blocking their exit.

"Shit!" Hawke heard Isabela protest as she removed her daggers.

"By the Dread Wolf! This looks nothing like the dragon on Sundermount. This one seems...larger." Merrill gasped wide eyed at the beast.

Hawke's grip on her sword tightened as she moved into battle mode.

"Bianca's ready when you are Hawke."


The dragon landed with a thud and began its ungracious approach. Its nostrils were flared and its teeth showed amongst a mix of red and green scales. Hawke braced herself and charged forward to meet the beast in combat.

Hawke swung her great sword at the dragon's front and it collided with its left leg leaving a clean slit along the dragon's scaled skin. It let out a roar in return, lifting its head up high and bringing it down with a burst of flames. Hawke's eyes grew wide before she leaped out of the way and landed flat on the sandy ground narrowly escaping the inferno. A shadow soon loomed over her and she rolled quickly to her feat dodging a clawed paw as it slammed into the sandy ground, leaving its imprint.

She spat out course sand that had found its way into her mouth just before another claw passed over her head. The third strike was not so easily dodged and caught her by surprise. It collided with Hawke's shoulder crippling her armour and throwing her to the ground once again. She let out a deep gruff as the wind was quickly knocked out of her.

"Hawke!" she herd multiple voices call out her name.

"You're going to pay for that!"

Then like a quick flash of light Isabela appeared on the dragons left flank and executed a perfect backstab sinking her daggers into the dragon's thigh and leaving a deep gash. Isabela quickly evaded dodging a harsh kick from the dragon's opposite uninjured back leg. She had gotten its attention and the dragon now turned to face her.

Hawke still down searched frantically for her sword, she scurried impatiently and wrapped the hilt in the fingers of her uninjured hand. She propped herself up and tried to allow air to flow freely into her lungs once again.

She suddenly felt something around the sides of her waste and she turned her head to see Varric trying to help her up. His size didn't impact on his strength and with his help she was on her feet again. Hawke began to cough allowing air back into her lungs. She managed a faint thank you.

"It's ok, go help Rivaini" Varric retreated back to aid Merrill.

She turned back to the dragon Just as a stone fist collided with its body. Isabela was dodging sudden snaps of the dragon's large jaw and simultaneous arrows passed by penetrating its rough skin. She felt the blood boil in her veins as she was reminded of the similar beast that took her brother's life. She had lost so much already, she wasn't going let it happen again.

Hawke's brows edged into a deep frown and two distinct lines now creased her forehead. Her heart pumped large bursts of adrenalin through her veins and she could feel it palpitate as she took in her objective. Her legs were positioned, ready to move.

She watched her opponent, its movements ran through her mind slowly and she learnt its offence. She saw its head along with its lengthy neck bend down in attempt to strike. Hawke had to time her attack correctly.

In the corner of Hawke's eye Merrill raised her arms and outstretched her staff as she summoned the earth. Hawke watched the ground move and shake as suddenly it rose. She watched as the skilful Blood Mage moulded the ground beneath them to her liking and as it soon became enclosed around the dragon's leg immobilizing it while buying Hawke some time. She had often wondered how such a petite elf possessed so much magic.

It was time to strike. Hawke dashed forward towards the beast struggling to free itself from its stone prison. She felt light and agile, and it showed in her movements as soon she passed her companion. The dragon caught sight of her and before the two collided it managed to break the magic's hold re enabling the use of its limb.

She could feel the eyes on her back as the dragon lashed out, jaws passed by her side as she dodged its grasp. She heard the loud clap of jaws catching nothing but air, and only then she could tell her body was still intact. Focusing on what was before her she executed her plan; the dragon's neck was close thanks to quick thinking. And without another thought she grabbed hold of the dragon's neck and positioned herself on top of it and close to its skull.

Surprised and unwilling the dragon thrashed about in desperate attempt to remove its unwanted passenger. Hawke grabbed hold of its rough pelt in order to keep her current status. Its head moved ungraciously from side to side in mid air and multiple roars escaped its Jaws. Hawke gaining balance griped her sword more tightly and with as much force as she could manage speared it through the dragon's thick skull with a defective crunch.

Her blue eyes always burned brighter when she was determined and full of Rage.

A roar was cut off sharply and Hawke began to descend almost immediately. The dragon's lifeless head hit the ground with a thud, and Hawke graciously rolled onto the sand beneath her, breaking her fall. She rose to her feet and turned to stare at what remained of her opponent. It was no longer the large fearless beast that it once was; now it was just another corpse left in the wake like all the rest. It was a sad demise, although it left her no choice. Blood soaked and battered she stood in triumph.

She stood staring at the dragon's lifeless corpse until she felt a hand roughly nudge her shoulder. She felt the pain serge up her arm as her injuries were no longer coated by adrenaline, she winced slightly in return.

"Hawke." Isabela appeared in front of the champion unimpressed. Hawke was able to quickly hide the slight look of pain covering her features.

"Dead bodies, everything's on fire, I don't like this. Any of that sound familiar?" The pirate asked sarcastically. "Even I would have thought twice about this."

Hawke smirked back at the pirate "Bela its ok, the dragons dead."

"You could have died." her voice lowered with the sudden realisation of her words.

"What's gotten into you all of a sudden?" Hawke asked curiously. Isabela was acting unnaturally serious for once.

"I, I...nothing. Don't worry about it."

Isabela sighed "let's just get out of here before you find a demon that needs slaying or a kitten stuck in a tree." Smiling Isabela had re-established her walls but Hawke was still left a little more than curious.

"Yeah champion let's go." Varric smirked

"Why would there be a kitten all the way out here Isabela?" Merrill seemed preoccupied by Isabela's diversion.

"I'll explain on the way." while she spoke her eyes couldn't help but dart towards Hawke. Isabela hoped Hawke didn't think anything of her sudden spill. Besides what they had was just sex, right?


"Ow" Hawke complained as a warm newly dampened cloth was placed amongst the cuts and grazes upon her shoulder. "You could have warned me."

"Oh please, where would the fun be in that?" Isabela smiled deviously at Hawke's response.

Hawke sighed, knowing the pirate too well.

"If you change your mind about the healing, you look for the lit lanterns." Anders said before exiting through Hawke's large estate doors. He had offered his services but Hawke refused to take up his time. Anders had more important things to attend to and roaming the streets was not safe for an apostate especially in this particular time frame.

Varric had offered to escort Merrill home. He had also promised a couple of rounds at the Hang Man later, after Hawke had gotten 'patched up'. Her injuries turned out to be a bit worse than expected but nothing untreatable. Isabela and Hawke were the only ones to remain now and the setting slowly sinked in.

The light glowed dimly from the open fireplace in the High Town estate where Hawke sat patiently. Her Armour was pulled forward exposing her back, shoulders and all her injuries, sweat still marked her forehead and dampened her hair. One arm was free of armour and she hunched forward in retaliation to the dampened cloth and the pressure applied by Isabela's hand. She bit her lip ignoring the slight sting.

"Thank you." Hawke said turning her head slightly in order to catch a glimpse of the Pirate. Her body was close and she appreciated her touch probably a bit more than she should.