Special thanks to the readers and Bioware!

I ran, faster than I had on the night of my capture. Sharp stones beneath my bare feet got totally ignored and my heavy breathing was so uncontrolled that it was a miracle I hadn't yet passed out. The rags barely worthy to be called clothes were damp from sweat and dirty, but still better than the option of running naked while a group of armed qunari chased me.

The forest was unfamiliar to me and my only way was forward. I trusted my nose when I smelled the ocean and headed towards the sounds of seagulls and waves. In such danger, my keen senses worked almost too well and I planned to use that to my advantage. My mind was blank and my body too weak to cast even the simplest spell as I used all my energy to escape.

That was all that mattered. Escape. I didn't care if my feet came off later or if I had no choice but to swim across the ocean to get away. I had to escape, because this was my one and only chance.

For a fraction of second, I thought about the unrest back at the camp that had provided me such an opportunity. I had no idea what had caused the rage in my tribe, but confusion and disorganized ruckus were rare among an united clan of qunari soldiers. Because of their calm but serious stance, escaping had been impossible. Even if I had been left alone occasionally, I had known of the eyes that were constantly watching me.

Such is life as a freak of nature. I was feared, but not avoided because of it. On the contrary, I was being kept in a tight leash.

During the ruckus, that leash had snapped for the first time in years. Before the one who had been holding it could have noticed, I had started running. One small event had overturned all my instincts, all my fears and personal rules.

Nothing could stop my legs, not anymore. I hadn't ever attempted running away simply because I had been afraid of dying. Now that the scent of salty water was so near, I would have gladly stabbed myself rather than let my tribe punish me if I got caught.

I heard more roaring somewhere behind me, but the noises couldn't break my concentration. I could already see the harbor in the distance and the wind made the trees in front of me swing like curtains, teasing me with images of freedom. It was so close, but my vision was getting blurry all of a sudden. Narrowing my eyes didn't work anymore and the adrenaline gushing in my body had been depleted, leaving me as empty as a bottle of ale in a dwarven feast hall.

The noises behind me got closer. Panic slowly crept through my spine and my hands trembled. Wheezing and gasping, I grabbed my left wrist and squeezed hard, commanding myself to calm down. Running had switched to clumsy walking and I was aware of the leash that would soon reach me again.

My left hand touched the pocket of my so-called trousers. It held the last pieces that could either save or kill me. An item I had been forced to carry around as an experiment to strengthen my endurance and willpower.

I glanced over my shoulder. A gruesome and painful death of torture, humiliation and disdain or a quick death of losing my mind before my head exploded?

I made my choice and took my hand from my pocket. On my palm was a tiny bright red shard of pure lyrium, poisonous in many ways to the most. The tribe however had seen no harm in trying to enhance my abilities by, quite literally, forcing such substance down my throat. After many long years, I had learned how to control the power that would instantly destroy lesser minds, though it was not perfect. Considering my situation, 'perfect' was not something I could even begin to hope for.

My fingers clutched around the shard and opened again. I gulped and put it in my mouth, closing my eyes as I swallowed. Everything fell silent, like I had been transported to a graveyard. It didn't last and after a short while I stared at the sky, seeing nothing but white for a moment. When the lights of the stars appeared in my vision once more, I felt overwhelming amount of magic inside me and sighed from relief. A gradually growing headache would have suggested that my story was over, that eating a rock would finally have been my doom.

There was no time to admire my new strength and after one last glance in the direction of my pursuers, I called forth enough energy to teleport myself all the way to the harbor.

#

Certain that the qunari wouldn't give up just because I had disappeared, I quickly began to search for a ship that would leave before the morning. A freak like me couldn't show herself to the qunari soldiers of other tribes that might have occupied the local inns, yet I needed the name of a ship that would set sail as soon as possible. I noticed some Orlesian galleons and smaller ships, but most had been instructed to other docks while the qunari visited the city. It wasn't uncommon behavior. I was well aware of how frightening even two full tribes of qunari soldiers in one place could be.

My luck had turned drastically. Judging from the murmurs I happened to hear from my hiding place, a storm was coming and everyone seemed to rather wait for a better weather than risk losing crew and ships. I knew that once a qunari captain had made up his mind, there was no way to change it. The language the Orlesians spoke was alien to me, but I got the impression that none were too happy about the prolonged stay of the horned men.

I focused for a moment to feel the power of raw lyrium inside me. My forehead was covered in sweat and my fingernails had a bluish color from the shivers, but other than that I was in control. Compared to the first experiences when I had heard annoying whispers and had had an urge to claw my eyes out, I was quite comfortable right now.

I had enough magic to keep teleporting through the whole city, but in the ocean there were no resting spots. Besides, my plan was to conserve energy to make myself invisible and fight if it came to that. I needed someone willing to face the storm.

Suddenly, I picked up a sound of shushing. I fell on my knees and swiftly crawled behind some barrels near one of the buildings. There was movement close to the fishing boats that were separated from the main area of the docks. Shadows sneaked from a back alley and slowly headed to the beach. Were it not for the lyrium, not even I could have seen the mysterious group in the darkness.

One of them gestured the others to stop and went to the gray cliff that divided the harbor and the rest of the coast like a wall. The stranger leaned against the stone and peeked carefully before waving the rest to follow him or her. There weren't many and they all vanished behind the corner of the cliff as silently as they had appeared.

After observing them, I assumed they weren't qunari. They were too short and too careful. I took a glimpse of the dreadnought that belonged to my tribe before dashing after the group.

The waves grew more violent and my feet got wet when I passed the cliff, staying close to it while trying to locate where the figures of shadow had gone. When I lifted my gaze from the ground, I saw a large ship not like the qunari and Orlesian ones at the docks. It was elegant, but not full of carved decorations like the Orlesian ones. It had cannons and sturdy build, but it didn't seem as deadly as the qunari warships. The fog concealed the tree tall masts and the sails looked like lumps of clouds when they weren't opened. The ship was nothing extraordinary but at the same time stood out the most.

It wasn't near the beach, but the distance to it could be cleared by swimming. As I looked at the water, I was stunned to see the mysterious group there, headed towards the ship. There was no moonlight, so I still couldn't tell if they were humans or elves.

Any race other than the qunari was a better option for me, so I ran forward. I doubted that they would turn around to face me while swimming with such a hurry, which was reason enough for me not to lower my head and crouch to keep myself hidden. I ordered my legs to move faster than ever, telling them that this was the only way for me to complete my escape.

While the first figures started to climb the ropes on the side of the ship, I stopped behind a bush of roses and muttered few words. With one gesture, I finished the spell and became invisible. Such magic was straining to sustain, but I only needed it until I would find a place to hide aboard. I stood up again and concentrated, taking a good look at the deck of the ship. It wasn't too far, but the fog lingering on top of the ocean made it tough to see properly. I put faith in my abilities and believed there were no other mages who could detect my presence.

After the last person had climbed up, I gathered a large portion of the energy the lyrium had given me and cast a teleportation spell. It pulled me in and only a second later I found myself on the ship, surrounded by humans running back and forth to release the sails and raise the anchor.

I watched my step as I moved out of the way to the door leading to the lower deck most likely. While they couldn't see me, I had the advantage of perceiving the people who were not allies nor enemies at the moment. Behind the steering wheel was obviously the captain. It was a woman with soft-looking tanned skin, dressed in a revealing white tunic and gorgeous jewelery. Although I hated anything that reminded me of chains and shackles, the golden collar around her neck was magnificent in my opinion. When I had been forced to wear a collar, I would have proudly accepted it had it been as beautiful as the one this captain had. The curls of her dark hair settled like rivers made of chocolate and the blue bandana gave more contrast to the color.

For some reason I had been so captivated of her beauty that I almost didn't dodge in time when one of the men lost his balance and fell down just beside the door. Collision with him could have ruined my concentration and I learned from it immediately. As the ship was being steered away from the coast, I slipped through the door at the same time when the man who had fallen was taken inside.

I quickly walked down the stairs before the others supporting their comrade could and scanned the area with few glances. Judging from the smell of fish, the kitchen and food storage were somewhere on my left. I heard lots of grunting and laughing noises right ahead and when the injured man was taken there, I was certain that the area was the crew's quarters. The only choice left was to go to the right.

The ship was unexpectedly clean and had been well cared for. I didn't notice any rats or mold and no foul stench filled the air. A skilled carpenter had made repairs to the floor and walls and the rooms were more homey than anything I had witnessed. I had a home long ago, but couldn't remember what it was like to live in such a place. My tribe had made it perfectly clear that I was an outsider, left alive only because of my skill.

Before I got too cozy, I continued into one of the rooms located far away from the main hall. Through the door, I could already smell the scent of incense and when I entered, I could instantly tell that it was the female captain's room. I hadn't seen other women during the hassle of departure, but I could sense the presence of the brown skinned woman inside the cabin. There were luxuries I hadn't dreamed of in ages: coffee, sweets, a double bed with thick red pillows and a bath. Seeing the last one made me almost strip right there and wash off the clods of dirt from my body. The comfy bed however was even more tempting. I couldn't recall the last time I had slept on something that could have been described as 'soft'.

Clattering sounds of steps in the hallway alarmed me and I reacted by shutting the door a bit too hard. I bit my lip and cursed when the sounds halted, indicating that someone had heard the noise I had made. When I heard the steps again, they were slower and silent, like those of a sneaking assassin. My focus was failing and I ended up recklessly using even more of the lyrium energy inside me to sustain my invisibility spell, causing my body to reject the substance and make me dizzy.

The sounds neared and when someone was almost behind the door, I scrambled on top of the bed and rolled down to its empty left side, hiding in the corner and hoping that whoever was coming wasn't about to use the wardrobe right next to me. I panted heavily and tried to calm my breath before the person entered.

It was the pretty captain and she had unsheathed her two daggers. There was a wild expression on her face and her golden eyes gazed around the room like a hawk. Despite the high heels of her long boots, her steps were muffled and I spotted no openings in her pose, not even when she walked. I had met many men who had no other satisfaction in their lives than killing and they had learned to become masters at that. Although the captain seemed more gentle, she still reminded me of those men.

"I know someone is in here," she stated, not lowering her weapons. "So let us act like adults and solve this without a mess."

At least I understood her language. Her exotic appearance had fooled me but I was glad that if these were my last moments, I wasn't going to be killed by a citizen of foreign lands, hearing nothing but gibberish words as my life would fade away.

"Come on, don't be shy," the captain smirked. "I'm willing to talk here, don't make me change my mood."

Her voice was girlish, something I had missed while living among a tribe full of qunari soldiers with their tones of baritone. I had been taught to assume a battle whenever encountering a stranger, because that was the only thing I had been allowed to do. Fight after a fight, blood spilled by me and my enemies.

Now I didn't have the goosebumps of danger and I had dropped my guard completely. I never ran away from a battle, but I also never sought for it willingly. Magic was still strong in me and if I had to fight, I had no choice but to believe in my victory. Charging against a ship full of humans would only make me the same as the qunari I so much hated.

The captain had a displeased glare and she seemed ready to attack anything. "If it's your wish, then I will smash everything in this cabin to smoke you out. I'm sure that at least one of the swings will hit you and then it will be too late to parley."

As she moved closer to the bed, I whispered a command word and let go of the invisibility spell. My eyes were instantly captured by the captain's, but I saw her relax just a little. The tension in the air gradually disappeared and the knuckles of the woman's hands weren't white anymore. I hadn't anticipated such a reaction. Whoever I had been introduced earlier had shot a glare of disgust at me and treated me no differently than a dog. If the others like me in the tribe hadn't shown me the good things in this world, I would have struck the captain down right after boarding her ship.

She was staring at me with big eyes of wonder, not anger. "Well," she sighed and put her daggers away, "looks like I was wrong to expect a pirate assassin of Castillon's crew."

Pirate? I gasped and glanced around like it would provide me some proof.

"Are you a runaway slave?" the woman casually sat on the bed, still eying at me. "You certainly look like one with those clothes, if you can call them that."

My lips made a thin line and I was actually embarrassed for a while. The captain obviously wasn't bothered of how exposed her breasts and thighs were, while I didn't even know what it was like to live as a woman anymore. Once per month I was reminded of my gender, but that was about the only thing that separated me from the qunari men of my tribe.

"It wouldn't hurt to at least tell me your name," the woman giggled. "I am Isabela, captain of the Siren's Call. If Castillon didn't send you here, then you have nothing to worry about."

My name, I thought and felt a sudden warmth inside my cold body. No qunari mage had a name, only a title and even that was an insulting one. From the day of my capture, I had repeated my real name three times in the morning and three times in the evening so I wouldn't forget it. When I couldn't say it anymore, I had written it on the dirt. Three times in the morning, three times in the evening.

I hungered to hear my name once more in a voice that wasn't mine. I rubbed my hands and saw a piece of paper and a quill on the captain's table. As politely as I could, I pointed at them and showed a pleading expression.

Isabela lifted an eyebrow. "You can't speak?" she asked.

There was no point in trying to explain what it meant to be a mage among the qunari to her, so I nodded and looked apologetic. She blinked twice and rose up to get the paper and handed it to me. She dipped the tip of the quill in a bottle of ink and offered it with a curious, yet somehow sad look in her eyes.

I managed a slight smile as thanks and began to write. Every letter brought me delight and I could hear myself laughing in my head as my name was slowly being formed on the paper. The first name was my identity. It was me, not a Saarebas. The surname was my family. All my true loved ones, not the Arishok, my leash the Arvaarad nor the qunari soldiers who would have rather seen me burn alive.

With one last glimpse at the paper, I gave it back to the captain. I followed how her eyes moved and was happy to see her read it at least three times through before lifting her gaze.

"Reneka Hawke, eh?" Isabela grinned.

I nodded and blushed a bit after hearing my name from lips not mine.

Isabela walked back to her table and took one small nail from one of the drawers. After rolling it in her fingers for a second, she raised the paper with my name on it on the wall and attached it with the nail. She let go and tapped her cheek with a forefinger, as if she was admiring a new painting.

Her eyes flew at me again and she smiled. "Alright, Reneka Hawke," she said. "I welcome you to my ship. Try to behave well."