Of Gods and Spirits

Chapter 1

He had come, and with him a reckoning.

The death that spilled forth from his shadow was smothering. No longer Solas but the Dread Wolf, a stranger wearing the face of her heart.

Why had she let this happen...

Ellana's breathing was labored as she fought to lift herself, she wanted to see him, needed to find him even as the blood streamed from every part of her body. This would be her punishment for her naivete. A reminder of what she could have saved, what she could have prevented. All around her, discarded as if they were little more than after thoughts - the remnants of the Inquisition. Her followers. Her friends. Her people.

She had fancied her plan to hold Skyhold from his forces quite the deterrent. A way to slow his machinations to a possible standstill. To buy time. She just needed time. But that had not been the case - she had stepped too far into his boundaries, and he had retaliated quickly and mercilessly. He had warned her, why hadn't she believed him. He had always been so serious, how did she think this would be any different? The bodies of the dead sprawled around her were a steep price to pay for too much faith in the temperament of a false god. Too much faith in love.

It was unbearable, and she was numb. No tears welled in her eyes, no pained exhale of sorrow. Nothing. She couldn't even regret. She felt hollow. Is this what they called shock? The comprehension too much to register?

Her fingers wrapped into a fist around the earth beneath her. An unconscious effort to remind herself that this was reality. A bitter taste in her mouth at the realization that she was but a shell of what she had been. Fen'harel had taken pieces of her, as if they were trophies, and she had only herself to blame. To fight a god...

Vhenan - a flash of his face

It felt like wave after wave crashing upon her. She was drowning in it. Little bits of memory seeping into her being. Dorian's laughter. Bull's curses. Varric's stories. Sera's pranks. Blackwall's grin. Vivienne's composure. Cullen's loyalty. Cassandra's courage. Josephine's warmth. Snuffed out. All of it. He had destroyed all. of. it. They were gone. She would never hear or see any of them again. Why hadn't she listened. Corypheus had been a poor imitation of what Fen'harel is.

He was to her world what the Evanuris had been to his. The Dalish had been ironically right about him and she had been a fool.

May the Dread Wolf take you

Ellana Lavellan, Inquisitor to the Inquisition, Herald of Andraste, Dalish First, dragon's Bane, First-Thaw, and Mage slowly rolled on her back, and in the face of the destruction of her entire world, began to laugh. She felt it bubbling up inside of her, each small sound wrenching from her body accompanied with the wetness of her blood.

Look at you, making light even in the darkest of times, pet

She clenched her fist. Dorian. His face hovered before her, that cocky grin plastered lovingly on his lips. She'd seen it happen. Watched in horror as Fen'harel's blade had reced from his back, the Dread Wolf unsheathing it from his body as if he were an overly ornate scabbard. He'd fallen to his knees, a sight that had twisted her insides so entirely she'd sunken to the ground with him. She'd felt her spirit leave herself in that moment. He had murdered Dorian. He'd been the only one left...and now.

Now it was just her and him.

If you truly ever loved her Solas, then you...

The tears finally came. Her vision of the pale sky above blurring, the laughter still wracking her body with each sob. He'd pleaded with the Dread Wolf. He had tried to champion their love, to beseech any part of Fen'harel that was still Solas, and he had been punished severely for it. Foolish...foolish, loving, caring Dorian...and when Bull had already...

Vhenan...

...I would not have you see what I become.

If he was still her heart, then she had a black one indeed.

Ar lath ma

Ellana squeezed her eyes shut against the onslaught of emotions that began to reverberated through her being. No, this would not be how it ended. Absolutely not. She'd crawl to him if she had to, he would not tear down the Veil while she still breathed. He would have to kill her first. He would have to. She could feel something building up inside of her, it was painful, it was powerful.

Unlocked, unbound, unceasing...it hurts but I'll help

Cole.

Bleeding, burning, bursting bright, you are diminished but you are not dead. I can help...let me help.

Help? She was little more than blood and bones at this point, how could he possibly help?

Please, let me...

Ellana tried to concentrate on the voice, she needed to know if he was near, if he was in danger. It was getting harder to focus, the edges of the world fading away. No, no please. She needed to fight. She would crawl to him god's be damned! She would crawl if she had to! She could NOT die.

"Cole..." the name a whisper on her lips. A prayer.

Yes, yes I'll help, you'll see!

She understood now why she couldn't pinpoint his whereabouts. His voice had been in her head. Ellana could feel it now, washing relief over her body. He was there for a moment in front of her, hovering as if he could fly. And maybe he could...maybe he always could. She'd never given it much thought after he had become more "spirit than human". His eyes looked directly into her, sad yet happy. That's not right, you can't be both, can you? If anyone could it would be Cole. She mulled over these thoughts even as she saw the threads of light appear, seemingly attached to herself and him, as if they were being interconnected, laced together. So very odd...And then he was descending. His essence poured into her, melded into her existence. She felt so much, so very much. Echos solidifying on her skin, beneath it. Agony, torment, pain, confusion, hatred, she was being choked by it - deep, dark, and dwelling. She was being consumed. And then all at once like her head had broken the surface of some all encompassing black sea, breathing for the first time, an airy-ness, lightness, lifting, lofty, full.

So full...

And they were one.

She wasn't sure how long it had taken, it felt like hours...it felt like seconds.

It was painful. It was powerful.

It felt like a breath of fresh air gracing every part of her wounded body. Renewing and reinvigorating. Like taking a drink of crystal clear and cold water after having gone for decades without. If Cole was still there she didn't feel him in the way she had previously, they were intrinsically tied now. One being. She somehow knew he was alright and the relief that came with the knowledge was immeasurable.

He was quieter now. Content?

I have purpose...

There was a crackling in the air as The Herald of Andraste sat up slowly. She drug her hands over her body where her injuries had once been. Testing. Reassured when she found only faint traces of mars on her skin where gashes and holes had resided. Nothing but dried blood and stains lingered. He had healed her entirely. Then it hit her.

Hands.

Ellana turned her attention instantly to her left hand. It was there. A small jagged scar in the middle of her palm, a shadow of the anchor left as a memory. A warning. Somehow merging with Cole had made her whole again. She clenched and unclenched her fingers, testing her control. It was perfect, as if she hadn't gone without it for the past three years. As if he had never taken that part of her with him that day.

Using this new found strength she stood, casting her sight about the ruins of Skyhold's courtyard. Bodies lay lifeless as far as she could see, friends and foes alike. She knew who's body lied just over the steps to the main hall. The intricacies of his robe glinting in the dull light. Her feet moved of their own volition, taking her closer and closer to him. Dorian.

So dim now...

Yes..so very dim now. She knelt beside him, gently turning him onto his back, the serenity of his demeanor causing her heart to ache. The silence of his character in death was in such stark contrast to the vivacity he had had during his life. His dazzling personality locked tightly inside the unyielding finality of his mortality. How could this have happened? Why had she been too slow? He had been her best friend, and she had failed him. Ellana let her hand trace the contours of his face, memorizing it as well as she could through the blurring of her vision as tears welled. There was blood..everywhere. Her eyes traveled down his body stopping at the gaping wound in his chest. Gods, it must have hurt. It must have hurt even more knowing it had been Solas...

The betrayal. The betrayer. A malice took root in her heart then. Turning with purpose Ellana gazed towards the entrance to the main keep.

Vhenan

He had done this.

She could feel him more sharply now, whatever merging with Cole had done, it had definitely made her more aware of other mages. However, where the other Elvhen in Skyhold were shadowy pulses, Fen'harel was like a beating heart, solid. Her breath caught for amoment as she realized just how much more noticeable he was in comparison. Stronger. She shook the fear away before it could cling, closing her eyes. One deep breath after another, calming herself.

The Dread Wolf inspired hope in my friends, and fear in my enemies

That had been an understatement. If this was what he truly felt like, the word dread did him no justice. But it didn't matter. Just another thing she can consider a lie of omission to pile up next to the regrets she has so meticulously gathered. No, she would not fear the Dread Wolf, even if she goes to her death now.

If...

He isn't what you think

"Cole, don't."

She was in denial even now. Oddly, that was at least comforting, for it had been denial that kept her alive through her battles with Corypheus.

It had also been Solas...

A noise pulled her from her torment. There, atop the stairs to the main hall, staring at her with wide eyes was Abelas. Ellana couldn't say it surprised her, she had been at the temple of Mythal, heard their secret exchanges. They studied one another a moment. Hers a look of understanding, his one of suspicion. Had he watched? Had the Dread Wolf sent him back to finish her off in his stead? Whatever the case, Abelas turned quickly and made his way into what had once been the throne room of the Inquisition - most likely to seek out his new master.

It was effortless really, she'd fadestepped before but this was something else entirely, like she crossed through terrain an air all at once, landing gracefully on the top step. She had a full view of the the banquet hall now, as the doors had been clearly destroyed in the battle. She noticed the back window first, once homage to her ancestry, now shatter like her people, pieces of it glittering on the floor about the throne as the light from the fading sun peered through. Half of the right side of the wall had been torn away. The entire room was in disarray, littered with the bodies of The Inquisition. How many had tried to stop him, what had their deaths been like. Had they hated her?

Steeling herself against the thoughts, her eyes once again found Abelas as he made his way to the dark silhouette that stood in sharp contrast to the light glinting off of the shattered glass. The sentinel moved with purpose, not so much hurrying as running to his Fen'harel and dropping to one knee before him.

No god need prove himself

He didn't want this to happen
Cole. She could feel something aching inside her at those words, quenching the fury some.

"Fen'harel, the Inquisitor..."

Abelas trailed off as he glanced over his shoulder. So that was it, he could feel her presence as she could feel his. She smirked a little, the first time she had met the Sentinel he had regarded her with little more than faint irritation, now he looked downright terrified as she fadestepped once more, coming up just behind him. His eyes widened.

Ellana watched him stand to face her, blocking her view of the figure beyond - she wanted to hit him to be honest. There was a fury inside of her that she couldn't quite dispel, but this particular Elvhen was not the subject of her wrath. He was just in the way, and she would fix that.

A tingling sensation started in her fingertips, how would she do it? Fire, ice, force...she could pull him apart if she wanted, rip that smug face into a million pieces.

Ellana

No, not now. Don't spoil it, Cole.

"Varem'an"

She felt her breath hitch at the sound of his voice, dark and foreboding. Her reaction only served to infuriate her more. How dare just the mere sound of him hold that much power over her. How dare it.

Abelas blanched at the command. " Fen'harel...sathan.." Even as he spoke to Solas behind him he kept his eyes fixed on Ellana, waiting to shield his master if necessary.

"Daras." It was a command from The Dread Wolf, one the Sentinel knew better than to argue with, yet she could still see the inner argument he was having. Abelas didn't want to leave her alone with him. Ironic, considering the power play.

Ellana cocked her head "Well, run along puppy." her voice dripped with venom. His spine straightened noticeably as he all but angrily barged past her. A small victory. Petty, but she would take it.

Now they were alone.

She studied his back, taking in his presence, it was tangible, his power. Swirling around her, lightly prodding her new found one. All encompassing, it changed the feel of the room entirely. Ellana had only seen him once during the battle, when he had killed Dorian, when he had ripped her heart from her chest. In that moment he had looked the part of the villain, but now he felt like it. A tinge of pain settled in her when she noticed his hands were clasped nonchalantly at his back, too much like Solas, and not the Dread Wolf. Too familiar. And then her eyes came to rest on auburn locks of hair tumbling down his back, wrapped and beaded ceremoniously with assortments of metal clasps and soft leather twining. How had she not noticed this when she saw him earlier? It was such a blatant change.

He shifted slightly, the movement pulling her from her thoughts and setting her nerves aflame as his magic pushed more harshly against her own. Setting her chin high in defiance, Ellana willed away the feeling of suffocation, for when he did look upon her he would not see someone afraid, a subject to his power. He would see her.

Fen'harel spoke, the sound of his voice catching her off guard, his voice softer than before, more Solas than Dread Wolf.

"What have you done, Vhenan?"

She stared at his back, brows furrowing, processing his words. What had she done? SHE? He has the audacity in the wake of this blood soaked destruction to ask such a questions? In the wake of ripping away all that she held dear. In the wake of murdering her companions. Her people. Her friends. HIS friends!

She could hear Dorian's laughter in the back of her mind, accompanied with a soft giggle from Sera. Something broke inside her then. Snapping.

It hurts...

Her voice spilled forth from her, softly at first, building in tension "You dare? This is my questions to ask, NOT yours!" The room shook. The air became alive with her own energy, it prickled her skin, spilling out of her fingertips. She could see his darkness recede some, dwarfed by her light.

Whether or not Fen'harel had felt the change he gave no indication. His back still rigid and facing her. He wouldn't even look at her. She was insignificant still. This pushed Ellana further over the edge of her resolve. How dare he keep his eyes from her. How dare he treat this paramount moment as if it was little more than a mere annoyance. No. He owed her his undivided attention. This could not and will not suffice.

"Ithast tarsul mar vhenan! Brithenas fra'ahn mar solas eman dalem!" The ancient tongue of the Elvhen spilled out of her mouth effortlessly, whether or not it was Cole's doing, she did not know, but there was a deep satisfaction in speaking to Fen'harel in this language. It made them equals. No more lording his knowledge over her, no more secrets in front of her.

He turned then, slowly, obedient to her request, his left hand coming up to rest on the back of the throne. The movement giving her full view of the sword at his waist. The same sword that had been unceremoniously ripped from Dorian's body. Was it still covered in his blood? She followed the hilt of it with her eyes, glancing over the gleam of h is armor as her sight trailed up his body. He was cover in more than just the Tevinter's blood. It practically stained his being, splatters of it along his neck and chin.

How much of that was Cassandra's? How much of it was Blackwall's or Sera's? Bull's? How much...

Look at what your pride has wrought

It hurts so much

She felt sick.

"Mathem?" there was a sneer in his voice taking her aback. His entire demeanor was foreign to her now. The hair billowing over his right shoulder did nothing to help how estranged she felt from him. It's like he was someone else entirely. It's like Solas had never existed.

I was Solas first, Fen'harel came later. An insult I took as a badge of pride.

When she did not answer, a mask of agitation covered his face. "Satisfied?" he repeated, dropping the Elvhen.

The snipe pulled her back to him. "I understood you the first time, Dread Wolf." Ellana watched as his hand squeezed the top of the throne at the sound of his title on her lips.

"Then you should answer, I have little time for games."

She bristled. "You have little time for games? The ancient Elvhen with all of his millennia? You speak to me with such contempt why not just strike me down where I stand? Or do you wish me to bend the knee like the rest of your good dogs. Worship you for "freeing" me of my slave markings?" She took a step forward, leveling herself with him next to the throne. His eyes followed her intensely his jaw clenching as she came ot a stop just short of a foot before him. Ellana could feel her magic pressing at his in this proximity, whether he allowed his to make way for hers, she could not tell, but she did notice as his started to coil and wrap around her own. Entangling. It was intimate. It was intrusive. He was not her Solas. He would not do this.

Her eyes met his defiantly, angrily holding his gaze. Spine made of rich steel. "Diana'ra" Her voice stern. He would know this was not a request, but a demand. He was the Evanuris now, and she the rebel god. They were on two different sides of the coin, not the same. He would not manipulate her this way.

Fen'harel regarded her composure for a moment, his magic still wrapping itself around her own. The Dread Wolf's eyes were but slits as he allowed it to linger longer than necessary, testing her resolve. An eyebrow quirking as she shivered noticeably.

It hurts...it devours..dark jaws

No, he would not manipulate her this way. He would not break her.

"Dirth'ar ma'diana!" she screamed at him. He stopped instantly.

"Tamahn mah soun elgar" though his words felt kinder there was no change in the mocking look of his eyes. Another long moment passed before he continued, presumably, the thought struck Ellana bitterly, to let her regain herself. He still affected her, and he knew it. It pissed her off. How easily he had turned the tables. This had been a mistake, she'd walked in here with such determination, and she was already dwindling in his presence. He was devouring her, and he wasn't even trying.

"I did not want to do this, I told you to live your life, to stay away."

She scoffed. When she spoke she was surprised her voice remained steady. "You knew I wouldn't do that. I couldn't. I didn't save the world to have you turn around and destroy it so easily. I didn't bleed for this, for us, for nothing. I'm not here to try and sway you, we're well past that. You..." Ellana closed her eyes for a moment. She must keep calm. The fury was there but she would not let it consume her, not yet. "You have taken everything from me. My friends..they were your friends as well, you know. Dorian was your friend as well." The pleading edged its way into her voice involuntarily "Solas, what have you do-"

The Dread Wolf visibly flinched, and the like a storm breaking into a calm horizon he tore himself away from the throne and lunged at her. The suffocating feeling of his power once more pushing itself into her own, entangling, ruthless. Ellana cried out as she felt the full force of his body colliding with hers, a flash of green light echoing on the walls as her back hit stone floor, hard. The immediate weight of him on her panicking all of her senses into thrashed out trying to push him away, to free herself of his presence as it was smothering her entire being. Seeping into her skin. He smelled the same, the woods, the earth...he was someone else entirely but he was also familiar and it drove her mad thinking about it.

Cole had brought her back from the brink of death, made her strong...but he was still stronger. He was so much stronger. He grabbed her hands effectively pinning them to the floor on either side of her head. His fingers interlaced with her own, crushing. Ceasing her weak attempts at defense.

"Enough!" He snarled. It was animal like. "You speak to me as if you would believe I have no notion of great loss, as if I did not warn you of the consequences!" Ellana turned her head, holding her breath , his eyes and scent were too much to bear. She could feel his magic forcing small cracks in her own, seeping in. His voice lit her on fire "No no vhenan, you will look at me!" She denied him. "Itha fra'em!"

Ellana felt it then, as it slid up her body and gripped the muscles in her neck. Straining, she fought with all her might as he forced her to face him once more. Where his grey irises had been now rested a swirling blue light. Mythal.

"I told you I did not want you to witness what I would become! I begged you to live your life! To leave me! I did not want to do this! Don't you understand? I had to watch every single on of them die for you by my own hands! You knew I would eventually need Skyhold! You knew I would come for it!" Each word dripping with hatred, and Ellana couldn't tell whether it was for her or himself. They both were creatures of fury and regret now.

"You would place the blame on me?" the voice that came out of her was little more than a whisper. Hoarse and strained.

His grip on her lessened some, recognition flickering in those swirls. His voice softer, a whisper to match her own. "No vhenan, but your romanticized notions of what I am capable of did no one any favors."

It stung. Those words. A nail in the coffin so to speak.

You hurt...he hurts...

She could feel her head singing below the waves again. Drowning.

"Why..." There it was, the blurring of the vision. Where was her resolve now? Strangled and tainted by his very touch. Why, why was everything so cruel? What had she done to be dealt this hand? What divine power had she wronged - ripped from her world, forced to defend another only to be powerless to save it from herself. From her own heart. Foolish. Swallowing back the bile that rose from somewhere deep within she shook as the words slid from her mouth, "I wish I could kill you" A confession. Fen'harels' grip tightened once more, his aura darkening.

She flinches as the tears start rolling down her cheeks. But he could kill her...

He leans forward his forehead touching her own, his hair sliding off of his shouldering and tickling her face, his body pressing further into her. "I know..." she can feel the sincerity of those words and it breaks her. She had been dying earlier, laying in the courtyard surrounded by the corpses of her friends. He had known she was there and he had left her to die. Alone. For all Ellana knew he had seen the moment one of his agents had struck her down. Had watched as they outnumbered her so entirely. He had let her fall, had not come to her aid. He had not stopped it. He had in essence, commanded it.

She hated him right then. She hated him because she still loved him. She hated him because he had killed Dorian, he had killed them all, and he was going to kill her. Discard her for a better world.

"No..." the word choked out through a sob. "You killed them, you left me to die. If Cole..."

"Vhenan" the word was a warning, one she would not heed. Her senses were overwhelmed, he was far too close, he was smothering her.

"Vhenan, I could not..."

And with that the delicate thread of her sanity snapped.

"NO!" she only had a moment to register the shock on his face as he was propelled through the air landing hard on the throne behind, toppling it over with his the force of the impact. His magic retracting and enveloping him, returning to its core, ripping away from her. She could feel emptiness where it had been until her own filled in the holes, repairing, healing. She was on her feet instantly, a golden aura enveloping her body.

She regarded Fen'harel as he stood slowly, a look of madness about her. He eyed her warily, straightening the fur pelt that wrapped around his body.

"Ellana" No more vhenan, no more games. "Even with that power, you stand no chance. You must know this." Calm, un-phased, as if he hadn't just been thrown away from her with such force a moment earlier.

She did know it, but she didn't care.

"You will have to kill me before you can finish what you started."

The sneer came back across his face, not before she caught the desperation that proceeded it. "You ask me to rip my own heart from my chest!"

She scoffed at his words. "How can it be so hard? You've done so to mine!"

He paled. "Ellana I must do this. Why must you torment me further? Why can't you just go live what life you have left?" A green tinge replacing the blue of Mythal's power in his eyes. His power, The Dread Wolf, something familiar to her connected with the Fade itself. The wellspring.

She breathed in her resolve and continued, watching as every word was accompanied with growing shadows upon the wall in the room despite the sunlight still in the sky. So this was his power, dark and inky - such a terrible magic for someone who fancied them-self a savior. "How can I live when I am already dead, vhenan? You speak of torment as if you've not inflicted it upon yourself. As if you don't deserve it."

He took a menacing step forward, the shadows crawling along with him. "I'm well aware of what I deserve. A thousand lifetimes devoid of your presence if it would forgive me my sins. If it would make you happy, a thousand and a thousand." His words clawed at her, trying to tear some shred of her love for him out. "But I can not turn my back on the people. They need me, vhenan. I did this to them, I must set it right...in another world" He closed his eyes, the shadows shrinking some as he tried to find the words he wanted to say. "In another world, I would've stayed." When he opened his eyes again the green tinge waned, the shadows becoming ever smaller. His breathing becoming ragged. She stood rooted in place as she watched The Dread Wolf fall to his knees, an exasperated sigh of despair ripping from his chest.

Ellana watched him bewildered, her own anger replaced with suspicion, anxiety at his actions. What game was this? She felt her heart begin to beat faster, a pulling sensation in her chest. She could see the tears glinting in his eyes as he looked up at her in anguish. Fen'harel had become Solas once more before her.

"It would be a lie for me to say I am not tired of this. I know this is unfair. I know I play the role of the villain in this world, in your world." His arms lay at his sides, as he sat motionless and vulnerable. She tested the situation with her power, seeking out his own and finding none. He had retracted it completely. What?

"If you would save them Inquisitor...Ellana, this is your chance."

He hurts...it's been so lonely, he sees their faces in his dreams

"Is this some trick, Dread Wolf?" her voice did little to aid her conviction. He remained still, quiet.

Everything in her warred. This is what she could have only hoped for, Fen'harel, laid bare like a sacrificial lamb. The Dread Wolf, giving her a choice. A choice that could save this world, that could stop mountains of blood from spilling across her love's hands. He was making it so easy, a gift. All she had to do was take it, all she had to do was...her heart clenched. A trepidation nestled into her mind. All she had to do was kill him. But why...why must he look this way? Why now? Why be Solas again? He was more Solas now than he had been in the last three years. How could she...no...this was unfair. She took a step back shaking her head, raising her hands in defeat. How could she beat a villain that twisted her emotions so, how could she win against him?

You fool.

"This..this is cruel, I told you I could not..." The words stung, they stung because they were more true than she ever wanted them to be. She was, in the end, useless against him. The blade of her abilities had been dulled against him, worn down. She was a fool. How could she have brought her friends to stand against him, she had killed every single one of them. Every. Single. One.

He chuckled then, a sorrowful sound as he hung his head low, shaking it slightly. It was so Solas. "Then we are at a stand still, you can not kill me and I...I can not kill you. At least not this way"

It was all terrible. Truly. The feeling of utter helplessness. She wanted to go to him, to touch him. She wanted to throw him from edge of the mountain...she wanted to fall with him. Every fiber of her being was at war. For every part of her that wanted to step forward there was a part that wanted to flee.

Go to him...he hurts...

And that was all it took, that little voice, reassurance, her feet were moving before she knew what was happening. Arms enveloping him before she could stop herself, she was overwhelmed with a need to comfort him. To make it better. Compassion. Solas' body stiffened under her touch before he returned the gesture, his arms wrapping tightly around her. Yielding, pulling her onto his lap. Breathing in the scent as he buried his face in her hair.

How long could they stay like this? Forever? Would they turn to stone eventually, wrapped in each other.

Nothing lasts forever

Ellana pulled away slightly and looked at him. Really looked at him, for the first time in years, eyes searching his own. He was foreign yet familiar. Her left hand slid into his hair, a smile forming on her lips. This shouldn't be this easy... He was Fen'harel but she could see pieces of Solas there in the way his eyes roamed over her face. She felt her heart beat quicken as he leaned forward, his gaze finally resting on her lips. This shouldn't be this easy.

He was so close, but this time it was natural, not forced. Only intimate. His hand slid to her neck, gently stroking her jaw with his thumb as he pulled her forward, angling slightly to accommodate the change in position. He stopped, his face only a breath away from her own, she could feel a warmth pooling in the pit of her stomach. He spoke softly, then, affectionately. "Ar lath ma, vhena-" Ellana felt the world shatter as his sentence was abruptly cut off in a cry of pain. She jumped in confusion, her small moment of peace, broken.

She was touching him frantically as he buckled over in pain. "Solas!" his name a question that was answered as she noticed the arrow shaft protruding from his back. No... She instinctively went to grab for it, to help brace him, panicking. As soon as her hand wrapped around the arrow she felt a burning sensation shoot through her arm, it was agonizing. Letting go with a cry of pain, realizing too late how the arrow was covered in runes that glowed a vibrant blue.

Lyrium

Solas gripped her waist with his free hand in response to her cry. He was worried, she wanted to dwell on that notion, to hide away in it. "El..Ellana?" Her name came out through clenched teeth, he was clearly trying to keep the agony from lacing it.

Ellana would have answered except that her eyes were staring daggers at the figure they had come to rest on casting a long shadow upon the two. There, standing in the opening in the wall behind the fallen throne, was a woman. Had they scaled the keep? How? The only thing through that hole was open air and mountainside, very steep mountainside. She watched as the figure notched another arrow, it was glowing just as the other. Panic rose in her at the realization "No! Please!" She scrambled out of Solas' grasp putting her body between his and the attacker. Her hands up as if to shield herself and all she loved. All she had left. Fool.

The woman seemed to regard her curiously over the tip of the arrow, tilting her head. "You've got to be kidding me..." A click of the tongue, signaling their annoyance.

Focusing, Ellana could make out features, long auburn hair, not unlike that of Fen'harel's, it was in a sloppy braid over her right shoulder, June's Vallaslin adorned her face. A Dalish.

"Move Inquisitor." Commanding, no room for request.

"I will not." She could feel as her will became tangible, her magic thrumming up from the ground beneath her. The archer stiffened noticeably in response.

"You do realize, if this arrow can do to him what it did, you won't stand much of a chance, right?" The woman pulled the bowstring even more taut. Ellana considered it a moment, the arrow had actually harmed Fen'harel, would that mean death for her? After all, he was the god...

Behind her Ellana could hear the remaining Elvhen entering the hall. Of course. She'd nearly forgotten that many of the Dread Wolf's allies had lingered after the battle. She glanced down at where Solas sat clutching at his chest, Abelas had appeared at his side silently inspecting the damage.

And then everything happened at once.

Fen'harel made a feral, earthy sound as a green glow erupted from his being, it pulsated out - burning away the lyrium arrow. Ellana turned shielding her eyes as the force of it knocked her forward onto her knees. This was his power. It was overwhelming. She scrambled back some, barely registering how Abelas bowed low, his forehead to the ground as the Dread Wolf howled angrily. It was terrifying. She had tried to use her own power to quell some of the turbulence but it was effortlessly ignored by Fen'harel's primitive force. She felt a hand on her shoulder and whirled around to see the woman, bow across her shoulder, green eyes piercing her.

"We need to go. Now." And with that the woman pulled her towards the opening in the back of the hall. Ellana didn't fight, there was no reason to. This was salvation. Glancing back at Solas, she watched as the green glow cast a dark shadow upon the walls of the room, inky in its appearance, solid. And then in horror - she watched as the shadow seemed to crawl towards him, enveloping his body, his voice twisting its howl to something entirely bestial.

"Inquisitor NOW" the voice was a mere echo in the back of her mind, muffled by the power before her.

He was changing into something...

Fen'harel The Dread Wolf

He's angry

Fear struck her. It vibrated her being. No...he had been Solas again only moments before. He had shown her that he was still him, how could he change again so quickly? Why was everything so fleeting...

You need to leave, it's not your fault..he hurts, but you need to go

Cole? He sounded so much more clearer than he had been. Had he been speaking before?

He's afraid of hurting you...please go

Alright - even as her mind was finishing the thought she felt herself being pulled forcefully into the opening at the wall. Panic pulsated through her, where she had been nonchalant before she now realized where this was heading. "What are you do-!?" her sentence left unfinished as she was yanked out of the opening, a scream forming on her lips. One minute she saw the great expanse of the fall she was about to take. Cole could fly, could she? And then her face collided with a feathery surface, a warm feathery surface. She heard and ear piercing screech and tried to right herself, fumbling to grab anything to keep from falling off of whatever it was she was on. Ellana felt hands pulling her upright in a saddle big enough for two. She barely had time to register her surroundings before she felt a lurch and wind smack her in the face. The woman was facing her, oddly calm considering the circumstances. Much to her embarrassment she found that she was basically in the archer's lap. The world lurched once more and fell all around her, chaotic. Gods what was happening, were they actually flying?

"You can hold onto me until we land, not many people are used to this kind of travel." Ellana instantly wrapped her arms around the woman grateful for the stability even as she felt the heat rise to her cheeks. How pitiful she must look. The fabled Inquisitor basically petrified with fear. Some hero...

Ellana watched as Skyhold became smaller and smaller in the distance, a greenish hue enveloping the fortress.

Solas...

How long had they been flying ? At this point her limbs were numb from the cold air she was perpetually blanketed in. Her legs stiff and painful. The woman she clung to tightly seemed unfazed however. How could anyone be used to traveling like this, what were they even riding? She could see in the distance mountains as they came in and out of her line of sight with the undulation of the creature they sat upon.

Her mind wondered where Skyhold was in the horizon. Where Solas was...

Fen'harel

Gods she had been so stupid. She had been caught in him again, about to give into something - whether that be The Dread Wolf or her own desires, or maybe they were one in the same. Lying to herself did no good at this point. She felt ashamed. She felt pathetic. Her mind shifted, it was too exhausting to think about it. Lyrium arrows...this woman? The Dread Wolf, not just Fen'harel but the entity itself, was it truly Solas? Why did he seem like so many different people wrapped up in one skin -

Ellana's thoughts were interrupted as a screech shattered across the open sky. It was as ear-piercing as it had been the first time she heard it. What was this thing? She pulled herself back slightly from the woman and turned her head to look behind her and take in her surroundings. A large wing came into her vision, and her jaw dropped as the subject of her curiosity came into her line of vision. The beast, somehow sensing her gaze, turned its head to the side, its golden and black eyes making her breath hitch. It was both beautiful and frightening to behold. It can't be... She quickly turned away staring into the eyes of the woman who had pulled her onto the great beast. Amber orbs peered into green ones - she let her eyes travel down the archer, viewing the armor the woman was clad in, leather, the colors reminding her of Dalish hunting armor. And there upon her chest in polished silver, a locket with the insignia of a griffon.

Grey Wardens.

Author Notes:

Elvhen - Of course credited to my terrible understanding of the awesome work that Fenxshiral is doing

Rough translations

"Varem'an" - Leave us

"Daras." - Go (you)

"Ithast tarsul mar vhenan! Brithenas fra'ahn mar solas eman dalem!" - Gaze upon your heart! Look at what your pride has destroyed!

"Mathem?" - Satisfied?

"Diana'ra" - Stop

"Dirth'ar ma'diana!" - I told you to stop!

"Itha fra'em!" - Look at me!

"Tamahn mah soun elgar" - There is that strong spirit

"Ahnsul" - why

"Ar'eolasa" - I know