Chapter One
Most people don't just wake up one morning and walk out of their front door to be presented with a life changing event. For Aurora Levellan, it had become a harsh reality. Thedas had been quiet for nearly fifty years after the Inquisition disbanded, and Fen'Harel attempted to literally destroy all man-kind to revive his ancient Elvhen people and to bring back the olden years. Once again, the Lady Inquisitor Levellan saved the world by stopping him. In the process, she had put him into a deep sleep. While the Anchor had been literally chopped off of her hand, she had acquired the ability to survive the use of Rift magic. During the calm in the storm, a number of years between the Breach and Fen'Harel's rise, she practiced and explored her abilities and became a secret weapon. She became the most lethal Mage in all of Thedas. After stopping Solas[the love of her life]/Fen'Harel, she fell in love once more and had a son with Abelas, the leader of Mythal's Temple Guardians. Then, a daughter. Neither were gifted with the Inquisitor's genes. Neither were a mage and neither one resembled her fair complexion, white-blond hair, and most importantly her exquisite blue eyes. It wasn't until Aurora was born that things changed. The world seemed to shift, in a way. At least for a moment. The whole room went silent when Aurora was born. Levellan wept when Aurora opened her eyes and they matched her own.
At the age of sixteen was when the Inquisitor had been called upon. History was repeating itself. Aurora opened the front door of her home and where the sky had permanently been scarred, a small tear had erupted. What was worse, all Hell had broken loose. It was like the Sixth Blight had fallen upon Thedas. Her stomach dropped as fear clenched her heart. She grabbed her staff off of the wall and took off down the path towards the Inquisitor's hut. It was much worse than she had assumed. The small tear in the sky had unleashed not only one, but two what she assumed were the fade rifts the Inquisitor had closed with the Anchor. She didn't have the Anchor anymore. Fen'Harel had taken it to spare her life and to spare the Anchor. After his fall, it's location became unknown. She looked away from a rift just in time to see a Terror Demon crawling towards her. With a unsuspecting gasp, she stumbled backwards and tripped. She didn't fall, though. A firm, well-muscled arm wrapped around her torso, steadying her. The smell of elfroot powder, campfire smoke, and lyrium potion was strong – but warm in some strange way. He was Elven, just like her. What shocked her the most was the surge of power that radiated off of him. It was enough to knock the wind from her lungs. "Levellan! Focus!" he shouted at her, the shield he had put around them had started to fade. The fact that he knew her name yanked her back to reality and she scowled at him. "What?" she shouted as she drew her staff, the end popping and crackling with electric energy. "We will talk later. Focus." he said firmly and she pursed her lips, sending jolts of lightning through the demons as the wall crashed.
As soon as it did, Aurora took off running through an opening she had made by completely demolishing the demons in their paths. She was more powerful than they were – good. She paused in a clearing, stopping to see if the Elf was alright, but he was gone. The Demons were gone. Probably burnt to a crisp. He didn't seem like the fire type, though. She ducked as potions in a nearby hut exploded and she took off at a run to the Inquisitor. Bursting through the front door, she found her Great Grandmother bleeding on the floor, two dead Demons around her. "Nan!" she cried, tears filling her eyes. "Aurora, don't you dare cry! Do you understand me?!" the Inquisitor shouted angrily. "I need you to be strong right now. This wasn't supposed to happen but I was never sure. I had a group of mages who studied memories capture what had happened to my life and what I knew. It won't give you all of the answers to why this is happening but it will help. Aurora, my darling you are strong and you are the most capable to do this. We do not have any time to waste." her face had gone pale. Tears were streaming furiously down Aurora's face, but she was silent. "Good girl," the Inquisitor purred as she pulled Aurora close. "I love you so much, my sweet girl." Just then, she thrust a needle into Aurora's temple and injected what felt like air into her head. A scream ripped from her lungs, but she suddenly gasped when fingers wrapped around her brain. The dug and found what was the memory section and ripped into it, forcing their way in. Aurora's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she collapsed, her head resting on the Inquisitor's chest, the needle hanging from the side of her head.
Daylight was streaming in through the open slit of a tent onto Aurora's face when she woke. Her eyes fluttered, adjusting. "Careful, don't sit up." came a familiar voice. One that was suddenly all too familiar in a way that made her heart feel like it was going to explode from her chest. Partially from fear, and partially because in some twisted way she was happy. It didn't make sense to her at all. Her reaction was rather calm. Her eyes widened and her cheeks darkened to a dark plum hue. "Are you alright?" he asked, suddenly seeming concerned. It seemed sincere. "Who are you?" Aurora asked suddenly, turning her piercing blue eyes onto his. He seemed floored for a moment. As if he didn't know who he was. He suddenly tensed and closed his book, setting it aside. He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. "You already know the answer to that question." He didn't answer her, but instead stated what he knew to be true. He had read her like an open book. Like he knew exactly who she was as well. It was eerie, and definitely creepy, but in a way romantic. "No. Lady Inquisitor Lavellan knows who you are. I do not." she corrected, and he jerked. While she was absolutely terrified of him she wasn't going to allow him to talk down to her. He cleared his throat after a moment, seeming to evaluate how to respond. Had she buffeted him? "I apologize," he said, interrupting her thoughts, "My name is Solas. At times, Fen'harel." he said with an awkward expression. She was amused. He seemed so gentle in his ways. She didn't understand how he could be so violent. Aurora eyed him suspiciously, her brow arching as she looked at him. "You followed me to the Inquisitor's home, didn't you?" she continued. His jaw clenched and he looked at her with a sharp expression. He wasn't happy with the fact that who should be a complete stranger read him like an open book. "Yes. I knew she wouldn't be without a plan. She has always been well-prepared." Aurora kept her gaze steady, her fingers tugging on one another beneath the blankets that were draped over here.
"Are we alone?" she asked, this time looking away from him and towards the roof of the tent. Solas didn't respond at first, seeming unsure of what kind of answer to give. "Yes." Aurora looked over at him again. "How did you know where to find us?" she asked, glaring hard now. Was this his doing? Was he to blame for the sky tearing again? "I didn't. I've been asleep for twenty-seven years, Lavellan. This wasn't the only village that had been descended on by the fade rifts. I had a few options, but I chose to come here." He explained, making it all sound so convenient. Apparently, it was his turn to ask questions now, "Why aren't you afraid of me?" he asked, leaning in towards her again. Aurura shrunk away from him, her brows furrowed as he tried to press against her personal space. She warned him with the flicker of a barrier and he smirked to himself. "You are afraid of me." Solas mused aloud. "No – I am not afraid of you." I snipped at him, shooting him an annoyed look. "I am being forced to endure romantic memories, desperate thoughts, and a multitude of other emotions all about you from the Inquisitor. I feel quite awkward and I am having a hard time depicting my emotions from the Inquisitor's. I am not afraid of you." Aurora told him, and he seemed curious now. "Oh? And what are the Inquisitor's memories… emotions?" Aurora paused, staring at him with wide eyes. "You don't need a lesson on how my Nan felt about you, Solas." She snapped, knowing he simply wanted to bask in her own humiliation. Solas realized he had been caught, yet again, and cleared his throat. Aurora watched him as he stood and walked across the room. "Where are you going?" she asked, sitting up a bit. She felt embarrassed from the desperation in her tone. He turned to look at her, his brow arched. "You need to rest, Lavellan. I won't be far." He told her, opening the tent flap. "My name is Aurora… Please call me Aurora…" she murmured as she closed her eyes, suddenly feeling very weary.