A/N: I own nothing related to Dragon Age.

Prologue

The concept that perhaps one might have seen it all was a dangerous one. Having survived demons, a Blight, and the start of the Mage-Templar War, it had seemed to Commander Cullen Rutherford that peace would finally be achieved in Thedas.

That morning he had watched as both sides of the conflict had marched from Haven to the Temple of Sacred Ashes. The day had started with such potential, such promise that there would be an end to the war. He had ignored the nagging voice in his mind that it could all go horribly wrong again in the blink of an eye. In hindsight he should have listened to that voice, he should have drawn on the experience Kinloch Hold and Kirkwall had provided for him. If he had then perhaps the Temple would still be in tact and the peace talks could have proven successful. Perhaps if he had listened, he wouldn't have been thrown to the Chantry floor by the force massive explosion that consumed the Temple and those inside. Racing outside his eyes had instantly fallen upon the sickly green glow of the massive tear in the Veil that that had formed above the Temple.

It had taken very little time to gather his soldiers and race with his forces to the Temple to join search for survivors. The blast had shook the entire town, and most of his soldiers were waiting at the gates when he arrived. The scouts who had been going about their duties near the Temple had been the first to arrive, reporting that no one in the outermost parts of the Temple had survived. At first he believed no one would be found based on the horrors that greeted them in the outermost section of the destroyed holy site. The Temple was silent, charred remains frozen in place, the horror of their final moments preserved in their mangled and twisted forms. A pit had formed in the Commander's stomach as he took in the scene. He could not even begin to imagine what had caused so much destruction. So many lives wasted and lost in the blink of an eye.

"Commander," a scout called, drawing Cullen from his observations, "we need you inside."

Quickening his pace, he made his way into what was once the inside of the refurbished Temple of Sacred Ashes. They had found a survivor, perhaps they might yet have some answers. Yet they had found someone so near to the blast point, surely if someone had survived the explosion they had played some part in its creation. How anyone could have escaped the death that surrounded them caused Cullen to approach warily, taking in the scene around him as he walked to the center of the site.

"When we arrived several spirits had come through the rift," the scout told him. "We made quick work of them, Commander, but after...a woman emerged from the Breach."

"I'm sorry, she emerged from...the breach?" Cullen asked, looking at the scout who merely nodded.

"She collapsed, ser," the scout added as the approached the scene. It seemed this woman was indeed more than a mere survivor. "One of the other scouts claimed to see another figure behind her, but only this woman came through the breach."

In the center of the large hall he saw a body of a woman motionless on the ground. Several of the Inquisition's soldiers had surrounded her from a short distance, weapons at the ready. None of the soldiers seemed willing to approach the unmoving figure and Cullen shook his head. She seemed relatively small, her figure slight, surely a dozen trained soldiers would have been able to handle any trouble from this woman. As he drew near to her his eyes finally noticed the reason for his soldiers' apprehension. Her left hand had been marked with what looked like a small version of the rift and it glowed with the same sickly green as the sky above them.

"Maker's breath," he said softly, lifting her palm to examine the mark more closely. He noted the slight crackling coming from the mark, surely a connection to the tear in the Veil. Her face creased slightly, almost as if the mark were causing her pain.

"Find the Hands," Cullen ordered, releasing her wrists and studying the culprit before him for a moment. She was young, of that much he was certain, but her appearance gave away little else about her history. Her clothes were simple, but her ungloved hands showed no sign of coming from a commoner's background. They were smooth, her fingers well manicured. With a sigh he shook his head, she hardly looked the part of the mastermind behind the explosion just the daughter of some Chantry patron perhaps. However, he had learned to never underestimate a woman based on looks alone. Carefully he searched her for weapons, finding a small dagger hidden in her vest pocket.

With another sigh, he lifted her off the ground, noting that those around him seemed frozen as they watched him. The scout he had directed his previous order to had remained rooted in place and he shook his head. Even if this woman was behind all the destruction that surrounded him it would do no good for the Inquisition's forces to suddenly forget all of their training.

"Find the Hands," he said in a firm tone. "Tell them what has happened...and have them meet me in Haven."

"Yes, Commander," the scout stammered before scurrying off.

"You two, with me," he barked at the two nearest solders. "The rest of you, stay on your guard. We don't yet know what caused that thing...or what else might come out of it."

"Commander," another scout said as he began making his way out of the Temple, "there's been a report of a smaller rift opening up further down the mountain."

"Of course there is," Cullen said, shaking his head. "Send a group to deal with whatever comes through it. The village must not be reached."

He didn't wait for the response, but simply turned to deliver the prisoner to his colleagues who would surely be able to get the woman to divulge the details of what had occurred within the walls of the Temple. It was not his skill set to deal with the interrogation of prisoners...he was needed on the mountain to keep whatever the Fade spit out at them from making to the innocents below in Haven.