Chapter 1

When she had awoken and found herself in shackles, Shadow was understandably worried.

When she discovered the strange mark on her left hand that gave off a creepy green glow and caused her to feel a white hot pain when it flared, she was understandably freaked out.

What the fuck is going on?

Just then, the door to her cell opened and two women entered. One wore a hood and hung back as the other began to circle Shadow. "Give me a reason why we shouldn't kill you now," the second woman demanded.

Shadow had plenty of reasons but kept them to herself and continued the staring contest she started with the hooded woman. She highly doubted the angry woman wanted an actual answer.

Angry continued, proving her right, "The Conclave has been destroyed and everyone is dead. Except for you!"

Shadow snapped her attention to Angry. "What do you mean everyone is dead?" she demanded, fear beginning to truly set in. That can't be true. There's no way that can be true.

Angry ignored her and grabbed her left arm, holding it up. "Explain this!" Her actions seemed to do something to upset the strange mark and it once again flared up, causing Angry to release her hold and Shadow to curse under her breath at the pain. "I can't," she growled. "I don't know what that is or how it got there!"

"You're lying!" Angry began to lung forward, murder in her eyes, but Hood intercepted her.

"Cassandra, stop! We need her!"

Shadow tried to get the answer she need most. "Is it true? Is everyone dead?"

Hood also ignored her. "Do you remember what happened? How this began?"

Shadow's fear increased and thus her patience decreased. "How what began? The last thing I remember is running and seeing some woman -"

Hood stepped forward. "A woman?"

"Damnit, someone tell me what the fuck is going on!" Shadow demanded.

The angry woman, Cassandra, told Hood to go to some camp, calling her Leliana and saying she'd take her to the rift. Shadow demanded once more for answers and finally the woman relented, saying it would be easier to show her.

When Shadow saw the green hole in the sky, she was understandably terrified.

Cassandra explained to her what the Breach was and that it was expanding and with it the strange mark. She explained that the mark was killing Shadow but was also possibly the key to dealing with the Breach.

Don't do it. Nothing good ever comes from you helping others. "I'll do what I can." Shit.

Shadow ripped her wrist free of the elf's grasp. "What did you do?" she asked, holding her left hand in her right and fighting to not allow the pain to drive her to her knees again.

The elf shifted his staff to his right hand and gestured with his left. "I did nothing. The credit is yours." He immediately jumped into an explanation of how he was the one to theorize that the mark could close the rifts. "It seems you hold the key to our salvation."

The pain finally decreased, though it wasn't completely gone. When she asked herself, If it causes me this much pain when closing a small rift, what will it do when I attempt the big one, she was understandably filled with dread.

When Shadow first saw the man with the strange cloak, she was understandably irritated. First, the man congratulates Cassandra on closing the rift when he just clearly saw that it was Shadow who closed it and Cassandra was still referring to her as a prisoner. And Maker damn it, her hand was literally killing her!

Then he made the comment about losing people to get her there and she felt sorrow and guilt rip through her. No one should be dying because of me. She tried to reassure him that she was going to give it her all, but he didn't seem to believe her and after speaking with Cassandra, gave Shadow a distrustful look before running to help one of his men.

She felt a hand touch her arm and she looked down to see that the dwarf, Varric, was now standing next to her. "Don't take Curly's words to heart, kid. He's just terrified like the rest of us."

After the vision had faded, Shadow found herself with more questions than answers. What was the thing that was harming the Divine? Who was it talking to?

But there was no time to ponder such questions because a freaking pride demon had come out of the massive rift and was trying to stomp on everyone! And some smaller demons kept showing up, making it all the more difficult to fight the big one. Shadow discovered that while she couldn't close the rift when so many demons were coming through, she could apparently manipulate it and cause the existing demons to collapse for a moment. With this knowledge, they were able to bring down the pride demon.

"Close it quickly! Before more come through!" The apostate elf, Solas, yelled.

Shadow aimed her marked hand at the rift and began to close it like the others. She couldn't hold back the scream this time when the pain ripped through her body. She felt herself fall to her knees but kept her hand up, refusing to stop now. Her vision began to dim and she fought to stay conscious. Oh no you don't. After what was surely an eternity of pain, she felt something snap and her body go flying.

When she hit the ground and felt everything draining away, she understandably accepted the peace darkness brought her.