Chapter 2

Hawke awoke with a start, violently jolted from sleep.

Something was wrong.

He sat up and looked to his side. Merrill lay safely beside him, curled up beneath the covers. Kitten. Huh. Now that he thought of it, Isabella chose a pretty good nickname for Merrill. She was so adorable when she slept, more so than usual. She was so innocent. He'd say naiive, but he knew better. She was just sheltered. A product of a different set of traditions and heritage.

But there was still the matter of what was wrong. He ran through the day in his head. Had he forgotten to pay his tab at the Hanged Man? No, he hadn't been there in weeks except to check in with Varric occasionally. Did he forget to leave a grocery list for Bodahn? He had a nice dinner planned for later in the week with Merrill and he wanted to make sure everything was right. No, he was pretty sure he'd taken care of that. Hmmm. Did he forget to lock his bedroom door before he left? He hated when Sandal got in there and started enchanting things while Bodahn was away. Just the other night, he went to put on a pair underwear and quickly regretted it. He felt as if he were standing outside naked during a Fereldan winter. Little bugger must have gotten into his undergarment drawer again. He had to give Sandal points for creativity though; he was certainly not expecting that.

What was wrong?

...Nyssa.

Was it after nightfall already? Shit! Hawke sprang out of bed and ran into the main room of the hovel. Looking through the high windows above the fireplace, Hawke could see glistening stars highlighting the night sky. The moon was about a quarter of the way on its journey across the sky, so he figured it was only a few hours past sun down. But still, he had no time to waste. He ran back to the bedroom to get Merrill.

"Merrill. Merrill, wake up. We have to go." Hawke said quietly as he knelt next to the bed, stroking her cheek. She smiled and brought her hand up to hold his. She opened her eyes and looked into Hawke's. At that moment, he wished they didn't have anywhere to go or anything to do because he wanted nothing more than to just get back in bed and spend the remainder of the night with Merrill. But they had to check on Nyssa.

"Merrill we have to go. I made a promise earlier that I intend to keep. And if I spend another minute here looking at you curled up in bed like that, I won't be able to leave."

"Nyssa!" Merrill yelled as she realized what promise Hawke was talking about. She sat up and realized she was still naked. She let out an embarrassed yelp and pulled the blankets up to cover herself. Hawke would have laughed, but there were matters of far graver importance than Merrill's endearing, but unnecessary modesty. Hawke picked up his things and left the room. Merrill ran out seconds later, fully dressed and ready to go.

Hawke had pulled on his armor and hefted his sword into its sheath on his back. "Shall we?"

Hawke walked over and opened the door, Merrill close behind him. He could see the stalls. And a set of silhouettes behind them. It appeared Huon had showed up after all. Hawke stepped out the door and started walking towards the pair. Huon was holding Nyssa close to him, whispering something in her ear. Hawke couldn't make it out. He was about to call out to them when...

A flash of steel glinted in the darkness. The next few seconds felt like hours. Huon thrust the blade forward. Hawke was close enough to see the shock on Nyssa's face. The sorrow in her eyes. Killed by the man she loved. Or the monster he'd become. He saw the life drain from her eyes. The sharp inhale of her last breath. And he could do nothing. Huon laid her on the ground, the wooden handle of the blade protruding from her abdomen. A pool of blood forming around her body.

Varric and Fenris came around the corner and down the stairs into the alienage. Hawke stepped closer. Huon turned to face him. Drenched in his wife's blood.

And his eyes. His eyes were hollow. Devoid of emotion. He had been consumed by his dark obsession. His blood magic. And the only thing Hawke could think of at this point was Merrill. Could this happen to her? What would he do if it did? Was he only hurting her by allowing her to continue on the path she was on? Could she really control this?

"Her blood will bring new life to our people." Huon said coldly. He just stood there. Smiling. He'd killed his wife. And he was smiling.

"Shut the fuck up." Hawke growled. "You're going to pay for this. You're going to pay for what you did to her!" Hawke pulled out his sword. He was seeing red. Huon was not going to leave this place alive. He would never hurt anyone else again.

Dark energy swirled around Huon. As it orbited around him, Nyssa's blood was pulled up into it. Circulating around him. Spattering his clothes and face.

Hawke charged.

Huon called forth a group of Shades. Channeling all his rage into each blow, Hawke tore into one of them, cutting it in half. Another advanced toward him. He ducked, bringing the hilt of his sword up over his head. He spun and stood as he did so, extending the blade and using the extra momentum to deliver a killing blow to the Shade's midsection. Now it was Huon's turn to face his wrath. He was only about 15 feet from Huon now and the mage knew it.

Fenris and Varric were holding off another group of shades. Fenris leaped forward and came down, slashing one of the mage's drones diagonally across the torso. Varric finished it off with a bolt to the face. At least, what looked like its face. Suddenly an eruption of fiery energy burst up behind Fenris, blocking him from Varric's view. When the flames cleared a second later, a Rage Demon stood, about to strike. Just as Fenris drove his blade through the last Shade, he felt a heavy blow upon his back, knocking him to the ground. He turned and saw the demon lurking towards him. He tried to jump back up, but he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his back. The creature had left a searing gash across his back. He roared in pain and anger as he fought to stand. The demon was about to strike again, when a bolt burst through its arm, severing it, shortly followed by five more shots to the back, killing the demon. Fenris managed to stand, but he was in no condition to fight. Varric helped him up and went to try and find a guard. Anyone to help.

Merrill shot a bolt of fire from the end of her staff. It connected squarely with the shade that was approaching her, scorching the rags around its head and halting its advance as it tried to put out the flames. Merrill took the opportunity and struck the blade of her staff into the ground, extending the slash into a thin wave of fire that shot towards her enemy and sliced the shade right down the middle. Another came up behind her, but she had sensed it there seconds before. She drew the blade from the ground and spun around, quickly delivering two slashes to the shade's face and arm as it tried to strike her, blinding and crippling the monster. It shrieked and glided backwards, but it didn't get far before being smashed by a huge chunk of stone Merrill had conjured from the earth beneath her feet and promptly hurled at the shade, finishing it off.

Hawke brought his blade up over his head and leaped through the air, about to deliver a killing blow to Huon. He came down almost on top of the mage and heard his sword clash into the sandstone of the ground beneath him. Had he hit Huon that hard that he'd gone right through him? He hadn't even felt it. He looked up and saw nothing. Just his sword and the ground. No Huon, dead or otherwise. Shit. He hated it when mages knew that trick. He turned and stood, waiting for Huon to pop up somewhere. He looked to Fenris and Varric. Fenris looked injured, but he was tougher than he looked, he'd survive. He looked to Merrill. A shade was gliding towards her, unnoticed as she finished off another with a boulder to the chest. It was almost upon her.

"Merrill!" Hawke shouted. She turned and saw the shade's arm coming right at her. It was about to make contact when she disappeared. She materialized into the ground and traveled through it, re-appearing at Hawke's side. Well, he thought to himself. Maybe that trick wasn't so bad. Then he saw him. Huon stood near the Venehdahl. His arms were raised as he prepared to cast a spell. Hawke tried to move, but his legs were locked in place. "Shit." He said as he looked down. A swirling vortex of dark energy circled around Merrill and his feet. An aching pain started to creep up his legs like a vine, slowly intensifying. He looked to Merrill. She was trapped as well, a look of terror on her face. She looked like she was about to say something, but suddenly the pain shot through each of their bodies. Hawke felt as if his skin was being peeled off. Merrill. She was screaming. And there was nothing he could do. Helpless.

His love only a few feet from him…in agony…and he couldn't do anything. No. It was his turn to save her. Mustering all his will, he began to reach down towards his sword by his feet. With every inch, it felt as if his bones were breaking. The agony only intensified as he got closer. He looked up at Huon, arms still in the air. Lifeless eyes staring directly at Hawke. But the look on his face had changed. That evil grin had been replaced by…fear? Hawke fought harder. Finally, he reached the sword. He might as well have tried to lift the Venehdahl. He felt so weak. Merrill screamed in agony.

"I can't lose you too."

Hawke's voice resounded in his head. He'd told Merrill that. Carver, Mother…Nyssa. He'd failed them. He would not fail Merrill too. That was a promise he would die before he broke.

Hawke roared. There was this darkness within him. It had taken over when he saw Carver die. It gave him the strength to slay the Ogre. He went to a dark place. All he knew was rage in those moments. And when mother died. He tore that bastard who killed her to pieces. It had taken over then as well. He saw nothing but his blade, slashing those monsters to ribbons. Felt nothing but rage. Heard only the cries of pain of his enemies. Smelled nothing but their blood.

The lights went out. His vision narrowed. All he saw was his sword. The pain was gone, at least…he didn't feel it anymore. He stood, sword in hand and began to walk towards Huon. The mage had exhausted himself. The blood of his wife had only been a temporary boost to his power and like a fool, he spent it all on those initial attacks. Hawke stood before him, bleeding and bruised. The mage sliced his own arm and raised his staff to fire an attack at Hawke, but he was no longer there. He looked to his side right in time to catch the hilt of Hawke's sword in his face. He reeled backwards, disoriented and swung the bladed end of his staff at his attacker. Hawke caught it like a twig. Huon tried to pull it away, but Hawke tore it from his grip and hurled it across the alienage. Huon stumbled backwards. He was terrified of this human who simply refused to die. Hawke closed in and delivered a crushing punch to Huon's face. The sharp knuckles of Hawke's gauntlets tore into Huon's cheek, leaving three deep slashes along with a broken cheek bone. Huon fell to one knee. Hawke stood over him and raised his sword. Huon spun around and drove his dagger into Hawke's arm as it came down. The blade lodged itself in Hawke's left bicep.

He felt nothing.

Hawke's knee came up, connecting with Huon's chin, knocking him onto his back. He lifted his right hand as he tried to cast a spell at Hawke. A last ditch effort to fend of this attack. Before Huon even saw it, Hawke's sword cleaved through his wrist, severing his hand. He stared in terror as it fell to the ground beside him. He looked up into Hawke's eyes as he raised his sword. He saw nothing. The darkness was in control. Hawke's only emotion was rage and it was painted all over his face. Soaked in Huon's blood, he sneered at the fallen blood mage. Huon grinned maliciously at Hawke. "You're no better than me. You're a monster. Just like-"

"I AM NOTHING LIKE YOU!" Hawke roared as he drove his blade through Huon's sternum.

The life drained from Huon. His outstretched arm went limp as his grin faded.

Hawke came out of it. There was a knife in his arm. That hurt…a lot. His sword was in Huon's chest. That bastard got what he deserved. Merrill was…

"Merrill!" Hawke spun around and saw Merrill lying on the ground by the merchant stalls. He ran over to her. He came to her side and fell on his knees, cradling her head in his arms. He put his ear to her chest. She was breathing. Thank The Maker. He looked up and saw Varric coming down the stairs into the alienage.

"Awww did I miss all the-" He stopped when Merrill came into sight. "Oh Daisy. No." He came to Hawke's side.

"She's still breathing. We need to get her to Anders." Hawke said, deeply concerned for her.

"Fenris should see him as well. As much as he'll complain, that gash on his back is pretty nasty and I don't think any regular doctor is equipped for that kind of wound. I left him with a guard near the stairs into Lowtown." Varric said.

Hawke lifted Merrill. "Alright, let's go."

"You will never lose me Ma Vhenan. You will never lose me."