A/N College is becoming a hassle lately so expect a lot of irregularity in when I post a chapter. But none the less I WILL continue to post and update this story. Scorpio's Legacy is still a 'maybe' that I'll be done with it by 2015 so for those of you who read it, have patience. There's only a dozen chapters left in book one.

Anyways, lets get back to the story!

Read, Review, and Enjoy!

(Revised as of May 20, 2015)

I'm tied to a tree, I'm alone and tied to a tree.

I sigh as I glare at the blindfold covering my eyes to see if I could simply burn it away with my mind, of course it doesn't work and I'm stuck with relative darkness and the animals roaming by without a care as my only companions. Erianne decided to leave me for the darkspawn, much at the behest of ALL her companions. Even Sten vouched for my release, having been a prisoner himself before and not enjoying it even if the Qun demanded him to do so. Leliana threatened to leave and only after Erianne convinced her she didn't have anything left to go back to since Lothering was destroyed did Leliana stay silent, severely pissed, but silent. Alistair and Morrigan had a verbal debate while tying me up on how powerful I am magically. Thankfully Morrigan refused to tell him and he simply binded my hands with a special trick the templar's use to block magic. I pull at the restraints even a little bit and they tighten even further.

Sadistic bastards. Templar's always coddle what they can't control, even in my home universe.

They didn't gag me for some reason, so when Erianne was going to try and torture me I simply argued that she had become exactly like Owen. She slapped me tearfully for two minutes straight before Leliana and Alistair pulled her off of me. I never shouted, never responded after that. Not until I heard Bodahn and Sandal moving by. "This was because I was kidnapped the night Erianne and I slept together and she blames me for it."

I hear them stop instantly and I hope for a moment or two that they were going to help me. "I'm sorry messere, but my son and I can't help you. We don't agree with it at all, but we need to make a living. Again I'm sorry." Then they were gone.

It's been about eight hours since then I think.

I sigh and relax my hands before slowly pulling a finger out of my restraints to touch the iron locking knot of the bindings and whisper the incantation. It takes ten minutes for me to slowly cut through the iron lock knot and rip off my blindfold. "Oh..." I rub my bruised wrists and heal them before looking up and finding my stuff hanging from the tree. I flash into bird form and fly up to cut each of the items down, mumbling how crazy Erianne has become over the years as I go.

"And now I can't believe I ever helped her." I mumble as I see that I'm stuck in the middle of a forest with no way of knowing where to go to get out. I fly up to the treetops and circle the area to see that I don't recognize anything, not one damn thing. I glide down to the abandoned campsite and flash into my wolf form to sniff any and all the scents in the area. I find nothing and nearly give up until I smell blood and look around to find that I was dripping blood as they transported me here. I follow the small trail south, nearly over the whole 'save the universe' thing before I find a bread crumb. An actual bread crumb with Sandal's scent all over it.

That clever little boy.

I lick it up and follow the trail west, then north east until it ends at a stream. I growl out in anger before flying over and sniffing the other side for anything, anything at all. I find a flower, just sitting there, a little white flower, an Andraste's Grace.

Dear sweet Leliana and her vices.

I sniff it like there's no tomorrow and hunt around for the source before finding a cut down bush of them near a smaller creek a mile further north.

Gods above Erianne was determined to lose me.

I sniff the area and howl out as I find Leliana's faint scent, maybe six hours old now. They were close.

I follow it through the forest, across a few plains, and down a road until it stops at another clearing just as the sun is about to set. I poke my head out of the tree-line and spot their camp, nearly the same as it was in the other clearing, only Leliana and Alistair's tents were parked further away from Erianne's.

Got you.

I close my wolf eyes and focus in on their conversations. "-just saying it's a bit overdone!"

"Alistair, I really doubt that I overcooked the rabbit. Your definition of 'cooked' is either charred or raw so please just hand me the leeks." Leliana replies with a smile.

Alistair mumbles something a moment later that I can't pick up and Leliana responds with, "I don't know. I feel terrible just leaving him there defenseless! It's worse than killing him!"

Alistair scoffs, "By the way she said it he sounds like a cold blooded murderer. He can rot for all I care."

Leliana gasps, "Alistair! He wasn't hostile at all! He was kind and they seemed to know each other! I think Erianne is bias in her opinion."

Alistair groans, "We've been talking about this all day! What do you want us to do? Go back there, untie him and say, 'Oh we're sorry for knocking you out and leaving you in the middle of nowhere tied to a tree to be eaten by wolves, but can you tell us what went on between you and Erianne because we're really curious.'" He states sarcastically.

"Tis interesting that none of you have asked me how I know him." I open my eyes and see Morrigan walking over.

"Oh great, what do you want?" Alistair mumbles lowly.

Leliana raises an eyebrow, "Morrigan? How did you two know each other? You said he was a friend in the forest." Leliana asks, ignoring Alistair in favor of getting to the bottom of their leader's outburst.

Morrigan sits down and sighs as she stares longingly into the embers lightly dancing around the campfire, "Tis a tiresome story, though the short explanation is that he is my brother."

Alistair does a spit-take from his tasting of the stew and nearly hits the two of them as he gags, "He was what now?!" he exclaims in disbelief.

She scowls at him, "He is my brother, not by blood, but a few years back Flemeth took him from a clearing near Lothering to train him in ancient magics I cannot even understand. He molded into the hut naturally and I came to call him my brother over time."

They stare at her in shock and I use their distraction to sneak further into camp, hiding behind Leliana's tent to listen. "Wow... so that's why you were so protective of him. Oh I feel so embarrassed! I nearly killed your brother!" Leliana pauses before sounding horrified, "Oh by the Maker! We left your brother tied to a tree in the forest!"

Alistair audible gulps. "Oh Maker."

Morrigan laughs as she waves their concern off like usual, "Tis impossible for him to die from such simple means! Mother taught us well, including how to break hold from a templar's bindings."

Alistair chokes on his drink by the sound of it, "What?! Why didn't you tell me that?!"

Morrigan scoffs, "As if I'm going to betray my own brother for the trust of a simple fool like yourself." She stands, "Tis all I am willing to speak of. Twas not his fault that he abandoned our fearless leader in that clearing. Mother made sure he couldn't find her until she was already gone." She walks away and I stifle a whimper as I now understand my relationship with Morrigan.

Brother and sister, trust for trust, life for life. For the first time in a while I'm proud to be her adopted brother.

"Wow, I never thought I'd say this, but Morrigan was right." Alistair breaths. "Erianne's bias leadership caused us to take an innocent man prisoner!" He sighs and sounds like he's running his hand over his face, "Ok, the next time we see him, if we do see him, I'm apologizing and hearing him out. This is becoming ridiculous. I mean we took eight hours creating a false trail away from our new campsite just to be sure he couldn't track us! Who does that to a stranger you've never even met?!"

"I'm sure he's alright Alistair. I wouldn't be surprised if we find him wandering into camp before morning." Leliana comments in her usually optimistic fashion.

I smile and step out from behind her tent. I approach from Leliana's back, although I never expected Alistair to see me instantly, "AH!" He jumps up and grabs his sword as Leliana and everyone else in camp turn to me or run over to see what was going on.

I flash into my elvish form and block his attack with my staff, "Alistair! Calm down you skittish bastard!" He freezes as he recognizes me and backs off.

"You- How the-? Why... Wha- what is-?" He stutters.

Leliana cuts him off by hugging me. my muscles clench tightly from the unfamiliar physical contact. "Oh I'm so sorry! We didn't know anything about you and-"

I cut her off, "I'm alright." I push her back gently and take the Andraste's Grace flower out of my pack. "Thanks for the trail." She takes the flower and stares at me in surprise.

Morrigan laughs, "Oh how marvelous! Tis most amusing to see Alistair jump ten feet into the air at the sight of a lone wolf!" She laughs again. "Tis also interesting to see you again brother. I hope you made it here without much trouble?"

I simply nod to her with a smirk.

"What the Maker is going on out here-?!" Erianne steps out of her tent and freezes in shock as she sees me again, "You- How?" She breathes in disbelief and anger.

I shrug and cross my arms, "It takes a lot more than that to lose your trail Erianne, especially since I already knew where you'd be heading." She goes to yell and I cut her off, "NO! You had your chance to speak and you knocked me out! I'm here to help you defeat the Blight! I'm not here to be attacked for something I didn't even have control over!" I watch as her anger starts to boil but I stop her, "Flemeth kidnapped me you idiot! I didn't have a choice if I wanted to stay or not, and by the time she gave me a map of the wilds to get back to Lothering you were already long-gone!"

She glares at me angrily.

"Tis true. Darien was taken by mother a few years ago and trained him in ancient magic while refusing him the ability to meet up with you again if he even wished to do so." Morrigan states plainly.

Erianne shakes her head and opens her mouth only to be cut off again as Leliana steps forward, "I am not casting this poor soul out again, not after I let you convince me I was punishing a terrible man who turned out to not be at fault!" She states passionately.

"Punishment without reason is not justice." Sten comments bluntly.

Erianne looks at Alistair for help but he shakes his head. "I hate to admit it, but Morrigan is right. This man has done nothing wrong... yet." My support frowns at him, except Sten who was already frowning. "The Grey Wardens can't turn away allies simply because of personal bias." Erianne cringes as the logic finally sets in.

She lowers her head in defeat, she'd lose all her collected support if she turned her back on me now and she knew it. "Fine." She bites out. "He can stay, but I'm not trusting him until I have reason to!" She turns and stomps back into her tent before turning back and shouting, "And you owe me one Alistair!" She whips the tent flap shut.

I shake my head and sigh, "I used to pity her, I helped her be free of a terrible life and this is how she repays me?" I turn to the group, "Thank you for all your support, and for not killing me by following leadership blindly." I smirk at them and bow respectfully, "I am Darien, rogue mage, shapeshifter, and a slightly renowned cook."

Alistair groans, "Oh great, now there's two Morrigan's?"

Leliana ignores him and holds out her hand which I take happily, "Hello Darien, my name is Leliana, a former Lay-Sister at the Lothering Chanty. The rude ex-templar is Alistair." I nod to him. "Sten is the tall stoic one." I incline my head to him in respect as his multi-hued eyes burned into my skull. "And you already know Morrigan. Bodahn and Sandal are the two dwarves running their merchant cart in the corner of camp. They like to tag along to keep us supplied with goods. You can find some camping supplies with them later."

I smile warmly to them all, finally content to see this Blight out with a group, "Greetings to you all. Tis interesting seeing such an array of different peoples working to end the Blight, although I suppose that's a given in these times of crisis. I hope to fight along side you all soon enough."

Everyone ended up giving me a small list of basic things I should know about each of them over the next half hour, and I'm not surprised that I already know almost everything they had to tell me.

Another benefit of knowing the game. Not the Orlesian one, Dragon age, but I did enjoy The Masked Empire quite a bit. How anyone can live only to play the game is just insane... and that rhymed.

Finally as I retired for the evening I procurred some camping supplies from Bodahn who was happy to help. After some struggle I managed to set up a small five by seven foot tent just as the rabbit stew Leliana made with Alistair was ready.

We all sit down to eat, even Morrigan, Bodahn, and Sandal came over as I talked about how I tracked them down. Even Erianne was surprised by the lengths I went to find them. "Nah, tis simple instinct when you're a wolf." I state modestly. Morrigan laughed at it.

Leliana then went into story-mode and told us a tale about Flemeth, which Morrigan and I interrupted constantly to clarify what we were told by Flemeth about the story, which annoyed Leliana I think.

After supper we all went to our separate tents and I laid down on my cot, just thinking about how much I've had to deal with to get to this point.

It's seriously starting to wear on my mind, although I'll have to stay strong if memory and reality stays parallel. The Tower is going to be hell.

I fall asleep, knowing I'd definitely study the different demon classes all night just to prepare for the hell ahead.

Apparently we camped about a mile away from Lake Calenhad, so after a short jog our party of Erianne, Leliana, Alistair, Morrigan, and myself arrived through the ruins of the Imperial Highway as we set our eyes upon the infamous Ferelden Tower of Magi. Sten, the Mabari, (whose name I haven't caught yet) Bodahn and Sandal all stayed behind to keep the camp running. Much to Sten's own annoyance.

Qunari are surprisingly very impatient people when it came to roles.

"We're going to see the tower? Oh great, mages just love me." Alistair states to no-one in particular as we approach the docks. I look up at the just barely brightening sky of dawn and stare in awe at the massive tower sitting so perfectly near the water's edge on an island barely even larger than the first floor's walls.

If I remember correctly a templar holds us back-

"You! You're not looking to get across to the tower are you? Because I have strict orders not to let anyone pass!" The annoying templar states before we even get close.

Ah... there you are. Carrol I think his name is...

Erianne, as the leader of the group, folds her arms and speaks, "I am a Grey Warden and I seek the assistance of the mages."

Carrol raises an eyebrow suspiciously, "Oh, you're a Grey Warden, are you? Prove it."

Erianne blinks slowly, "Prove it?"

"Kill some darkspawn. Come on. Let's see some righteous Grey Wardening." He mocks.

I decide to stay out of it and just let Erianne stay in the leader role for now, until she does something stupid like try to kill the mages for templar support or something else equally as bad just to piss me off.

Erianne plays along and looks left and right, "There aren't any darkspawn here."

Carrol seems to take it half-hearted, "That's good, I suppose. Wouldn't want darkspawn smeared across the landscape. I hear their blood is black. Is that true? You'd know if you were a Grey Warden."

And he's back to mocking. Wonderful! Tis a rarity truly!

Morrigan and I share a scoff of annoyance from the back of the group as the conversation progresses.

"It's not black, but it burns you when it touches your skin." Erianne seems a bit agitated now, but still patient which is a bit shocking.

Carrol winces, "Oh, pleasant, eh? Good thing I don't have to kill them then. Anyway, it was nice chatting with you. Now on your way. Right now. Go." He waves his plated hand dismissively, nearly slapping Erianne on the nose from how close he got.

Well, that was rude... and suicidal.

Erianne sighs, "Your superior won't like that you've given me trouble."

This worries Carrol, "Oh, really? You think Greagoir would be upset with me for not letting you in? Wait... actually, he would. Good point." He says in defeat.

Erianne smirks, "Well, we should try our best to avoid that, shouldn't we?"

Carrol turns to grab onto the small boat, "He's the big guy around here... I bet he could deal with one Grey Warden." He pauses for a moment to add, "Alleged Grey Warden."

"And I bet I could throw you overboard and you'd sink like a rock." Erianne deadpans.

Carrol stares at her in shock as we board the small ferry and get comfortable. He sighs and unties the boat before hopping in and mumbling something about how he didn't get paid enough for this.

I look down and admire the dark water and how it seems to absorb the morning sunlight before looking up and swallowing in intimidation at the size of the tower as we dock. We get out and Carrol ties down the boat before crossing his arms and staying clear of Erianne as she pushes the front doors open with the help of Alistair.

I have to be careful here, as a mage this should be... interesting at the very least.

"...and I want two men stationed within sight of the doors at all times. Do not open the doors without my-"

"Holy freaking Andraste's fluffy bed sweaters!" I stagger forwards at the overwhelming energy pulse that hits me, vibrating my senses and shattering my resolve.

"What's wrong?" Leliana asks worriedly from my right as she goes to help me.

I stand back up and shake my head to feel the energy not dissipating, it was strong and that alone worried me. "I can feel the Veil here. Tis cracked substantially. Something must have happened." I look around worriedly at the walls and feel the slips of Fade energy drop in and out of existence around me.

This... chaos is horrifying... blending of energies constantly shifting and changing, no finite cause or purpose...

I shiver at the experience.

Erianne frowns at my reaction and looks to Greagoir, "What's going on here?"

He sighs tiredly, "I don't have time to entertain visitors-"

I cut him off impulsively, "Why is the Veil sundered here?" I ask forcefully, forgetting to stay incognito.

He frowns and looks at me strangely, "Who are you? How can you tell?"

I blink and bite my lower lip, "My name is Darien and I'm... sensitive to fade energy." I break eye contact after a few seconds to avoid his piercing gaze.

"Hmm... perhaps." He watches me suspiciously before turning back to Erianne. "Now, we're dealing with a situation that doesn't concern you."

Erianne folds her hands behind her back respectfully, "As a Grey Warden, I have a right to know what's happening."

Greagoir rubs his forehead, muttering something about Grey Wardens needing recruits constantly, "I shall speak plainly: The tower is no longer under our control."

I scoff and everyone looks at me. I look at each of them in slight surprise before saying, "At the very least! Unless you templars LIKE demons and abominations stalking the halls!"

He frowns at me, "How do you know this?"

"It's painfully obvious that the air itself is saturated with darkness. How you aren't able to detect it shows your weakness." I state plainly, again... forgetting my place here.

He shakes his head sadly, "We were too complacent. First Jowan and Solona, now this."

Wait... Solona? As in Solona Amell?! What?

"What has become of the First Enchanter?" I ask out of necessity, only he would know what happened to Solona, the default Human female mage from the game.

Maybe she can help us defeat the Blight, if we can find her.

Greagoir shakes his head, "We don't know. We saw only demons, hunting templars and mages alike. I realized we could not defeat them and told my men to flee."

Morrigan tsks. "For all your bluster, you templars are simply cowards."

"We were taken by surprise." Greagoir refutes.

I shake my head, "That is no excuse, have some backbone!" I flinch as once again everyone looks at me and I have to back down because I'm a mage.

I've got to shut up already!

Erianne glares at me, "Darien!"

I shut up already.

She turns back to Greagoir, "I'm sorry for my companion's... rudeness. We have been quite stressed with the Blight and all. What is your plan?" she says, trying to redirect his focus.

Morrigan folds her arms, "This should be interesting."

Greagoir frowns with determined fury, "I would destroy the tower, raze it to the ground, but I cannot risk more of my men. The doors remain shut until we receive word from Denerim."

I shake my head, "Fuck my life." Everyone looks at me in confusion from my strange statement as I run a hand over my face, "You really sent for the annulment? You weak-willed fool..." I shake my head at him.

"What's the annulment?" Erianne asks curiously.

I cross my arms as I glare at Greagoir, "A piece of parchment that allows the slaughtering of innocent and guilty alike inside a circle tower. Good thing there's a civil war raging on, or we would have came too late to stop it."

Alistair speaks up, "The mages are probably already dead." He says sadly.

I frown at him and close my eyes for a second, using a passive magical sense to find any other mages in the area. I see them down the hall and open my eyes, "They are not, I sense their power, everything down the first corridor is empty besides innocents and children."

Erianne instantly glares at Greagoir who looks surprised by this news, and angry. "You left children there?!"

He whips his head around to the Elven Warden, "We couldn't be certain-"

I cut him off, "No of course not! Why would a templar be sensible?!" I snap my jaw shut.

Fuck all! Has my time with Morrigan and Flemeth completely destroyed my sense of control?!

Erianne agrees, "We are rescuing the tower, with your permission or no." She growls out forcefully.

Oh man, she is about to explode on his templar ass...

...

Ok, that was a terrible choice of words on my part, ew.

Greagoir sighs with resolution, "Without word from Denerim I must decide our course of action. I will allow your attempt, but the doors remain shut after you enter unless the First Enchanter himself tells me otherwise." Erianne nods once, accepting his terms.

As we all walk over to the large doors that barred entrance to the rest of the Tower I cringe at that chaotic feeling again.

Erianne turns to Alistair and asks, "Alistair, do the templars do this a lot?"

He looks back thoughtfully as four templars push on the heavy metallic door to just budge it from it's sealed position, "As I recall, shutting the door and throwing away the key was definitely plan B. Normally they don't have a total crisis like the Blight or civil war to deal with at the same time."

She looks to me next, all business. "Darien what can you sense?"

I close my eyes and wince before opening them again, "Death, darkness, and a lot of blood. Too much for many to still live. Expect horrific sights." I say half-sense half-memory from the game.

She nods worriedly while thinking about what to do, "Alright, Alistair, Darien and Leliana, you three are with me. Morrigan I need you to hold off the templars until we can rescue the First Enchanter."

Morrigan frowns in annoyance and goes to form a rebuttal, but then we lock eyes and she simply nods as she turns back to watch the struggling templar's with apprehension.

Erianne turns to watch the templars as well while Morrigan grabs me by the arm and drags me aside, "I have a thought." She whispers in my ear softly.

I smirk, "Just the one?" I whisper back.

"Ah, such wit. Truly, you and mother should form a troupe of jesters and tour the countryside." She laughs mockingly at her own sarcasm, "We have an opportunity that I believe we should take advantage of."

I smile as we share a thought, "Mother's Grimoire, I remember her rants."

She smiles back, "Yes, I was wondering if you still remembered your years spent with us."

I raise an eyebrow, "How could I forget?" I shiver, "The taste of mother's wood-rot stew still haunts my dreams."

She grimaces, "Don't remind me. Surly mother's secrets would serve us better than a tower of frail and corralled mages would they not?"

I smile, "T'would be best if they were 'liberated'."

"Darien! We're entering!" I share another look with Morrigan before turning back to run over and join up with Erianne and the others. "What was all that about?" She asks as I approach.

"Not much, just call words and such, 'bleeding templars' is ours."

She nods slowly, watching me with suspiscion as we search the first array of rooms for survivors. None to be found. Walking further down the hall we come up to a door and Erianne pushes it open to display a group of mages, one white haired elderly woman does quick battle with a rage demon that somehow makes it past a barrier on the opposite door of ours. In a flash of ice that stabs the demon to death, the fight was over and now she turns her attention onto us. I scan the crowd as Wynne walks up to greet us.

No, no-one here would have known what happened to Solona. I have to keep an eye out, maybe I'll ask Wynne later.

"You? Why are you here? Why did the templars let you through?" Wynne stands defensively, "Are you here to warn us? Are the templars attacking?" she asks worriedly.

I go to respond, "We are-" When a flash of spirit energy rushes into me from her direction. I freeze in shock and blink at the surprising feeling, "What- what are you? I... I can sense-" but I cut myself off and shut myself up before I reveal too much.

Wynne frowns at my outburst, "And who are you? I can sense you are a mage, but more as well."

Erianne looks over at me, "He's... special." I cringe at how she said it, like I was mentally disabled. "The templars are waiting for the Rite of Annulment."

Wynne lowers her head sadly, "They sent for it, then. I feared they might have. What else could they do?"

I frown at her low standards of the templars, "With proper training they could have made a push to test the strength of the demons, and find survivors for rescue."

Wynne looks at me like a mother does to a misbehaving child, "And risk their lives for our safety?"

I gawk at her, "That's why they're here for for the Creator's sakes!" I just shake my head at her, surprised at how... protected she was.

Erianne stops us from continuing the debate, "We are not here to discuss what could have been done!"

Wynne starts pacing with her worlds, "They abandoned us to our fate, but even trapped as we are, we have survived. If they invoke the Rite, however, we will not be able to stand against them."

"If they invoke the Rite I'll slaughter every last one of them." I growl out furiously.

Wynne shakes her head at my insistance, "Hah! One mage up against over eight dozen templars?"

I fold my arms confidently, "I am no mere mage. I trained to withstand a hundred foes at once if I must. Tis what you do to survive in the wilds."

Erianne shakes her head at us, "We're wasting time! We have to save the Circle from ruin! Greagoir will only let us out if the First Enchanter survived."

I scoff and mutter under my breath, "Let them just try to keep Morrigan and I from leaving, they'd die quicker than they can call upon their Maker to save them."

Wynne nods impatiently, "If anyone could survive this, it would be Irving. It was he who told me to look after the children. It's... a long story." She turns to point at the shimmering wall of power that was her barrier, "I erected a barrier over the door leading to the rest of the tower, so nothing from inside could attack the children."

"Dispel it, join us and we will save the circle." I state bluntly, losing my own patience. Erianne nods in agreement.

"Petra, Kinnon... look after the others. I will be back soon." Wynne speaks to the two mages on either side of her.

Petra looks worried, "Wynne... are you sure you are all right? You were so badly hurt earlier. Maybe I should come along."

"The other's need your protection more. I will be all right. Stay here with them... keep them safe and calm." Wynne retorts calmly.

Erianne nods, "Let us be off. We have talked away enough time."

We all walk up to the barrier and I'm just done by this point.

Who talks for five minutes about saving the children?

"Here we-"

I cut her off by dispelling her barrier through shear force alone, holstering my staff as the both of them stare at me in surprise, "We must not dally." I move ahead of them, arming myself with my staff once again and readying my nerves for what fresh hell this tower has in store for us.

Alistair stacks up with me at the doorway leading to the library. I nod to him and he rushes in with Erianne and Leliana firing arrows from the doorway. I find my first target and stop only for a moment to see the horrifying mesh of flesh and blood blended into a literal abomination.

"RAAAARRGH!" It screams an unholy scream that chills me to the bone.

I throw down a cone of cold as two more round the corner to attack us, freezing them in a thin layer of ice.

Alistair rushes them and shatters one while the other two are taken down by shattering arrows via Erianne and Leliana.

I shake my head at the dead sacks of flesh as they collapse to the ground. "Poor fools."

I could be one of them if I'm not careful, I have to remind myself that I'm not all powerful. This is reality, nothing is a game anymore, I have to remember that.

Attacking with the same tactics as before, we easily slaughter our way through the rest of the Library and even take down the three rage demons being lead by an abomination in the next room.

Uldred, or the demon possessing Uldred for that matter, must be extremely powerful to be able to rally enough demons to do this within a week!

I breath in the fade energy to bolster my own mana and soul as we rest by the stairway to the second floor, "Ahhh... I can feel the power in the air..."

If I was bonded with a spirit I could have replenished it with this energy it's so plentiful.

I take a moment as everyone has a quick drink from their waterskins to reach up and say, "I am quite pleased with the increased amount of fade energy here." I twist my hand and silently cast a spell-weave that sows the Veil together to lessen any spilling of fade energy in the immediate area.

Wynne is naturally surprised since she's the only one who can feel it, "You- you are controlling the Fade? But you are-"

I cut her off, "I am a mage who has specialized in the study and manipulation of the Fade. Nothing more."

She blinks at me before shrugging as she gets back up off the floor. "We should hurry, the others must be in danger."

Erianne agrees and we regroup to climb the staircase that lead to the second floor.

"Please, refrain from going into the stockroom. It is a mess and I have not been able to get it into a state fit to be seen." I shiver at the blank mono-toned coldness Owain's voice holds as we exit the stairwell and enter the second floor.

We follow the direction the voice came from and find of all people, Owain still trying to tidy up the stockroom.

I never understood why he came back here, all well, at least I'll be able to test out a theory of mine.

I step up and grab Owain by the head, "Take a deep breath Owain." pressing a palm into the mark on his forehead, I focus my energy and force it to rip into his mind, momentarily reconnecting him to the Fade.

His eyes widen in shock, "Wha-? How did you- Oh Maker." He smiles. "I'm finally free!" He shouts in happiness.

I shake my head as I'm surprised that it actually worked, "I'm sorry, but this is only temporary you have only a few moments."

He looks sad, happy, but sad from his freedom, "At least I have this moment, thank you."

"Owain? What has he done to you?!" Wynne stares at Owain in shock.

Owain looks at Wynne and grins, "He has given me back my connection to the Fade!" His grin drops into terrible sorrow, "Oh it's so terrible, having every single emotion drained from your mind. It's torture Wynne! The templar's are monsters for using it!" Owain shouts with his new emotions and quite powerful voice.

I refocus us, "Owain? What were you doing here?" I ask carefully, still mentally taking notes on how my spell effected him.

He frowns in thought, "I- I was trying to tidy up. I tried to leave but someone left a barrier at the door out of the apprentice chambers. I couldn't find a way past so I went back here." His voice turns to a growl, "To return to work for the templars."

Wynne is shocked, "Owain? You hate the templars? Why? They have protected us for so long. I thought you wanted to be made Tranquil. I distinctively remember you fearing your Harrowing."

Owain looks conflicted, the intensity of his emotions almost overwhelming him, "I know, but now I wish I died attempting it! You don't know how horrible it is! All the color gone from the world! Every single thought blocked except the duty to serve our captors!" He tears up and I pat him on the back with a small amount of empathy. "Thanks. I'm sorry, I am not myself right now."

I nod in understanding and so does Erianne as she finally breaks out of her shock. Leliana and Alistair are still staring at Owain, lost for words.

"Don't worry so much Owain your still alive." Wynne tries to comfort him.

His anger flares, "I wish I died! There is no life in being forced into the Rite!"

Wynne frowns in confusion, "No-one forced you Owain, you chose-"

He cuts her off, "NO! No I didn't! I chose to do my Harrowing but Greagoir refused! He said that a weak minded mage as myself only deserved to serve!" He shouts furiously. Wynne stares at him in shock and horror.

I stare at Owain in surprise, worried that my spell might have actually damaged his memory.

Damn this guy is animated when out of tranquility!

I push us back on track, "Do you know what happened here?" I ask softly.

He shakes his head, "No, all I know is that Niall came by to get the Litany of Adralla with a few other mages before they left to go further up I think." he scratches his balding head, "Oh by the Maker, I'm bald!"

I nod while silently rolling my eyes, "To protect against mind domination, or blood magic. I remember it."

Flemeth taught me well, so well in fact that she actually had me memorize the Litany of Adralla since she had a copy, or the original, or something akin to it, in the hut.

Wynne seems saddened greatly, "Niall would know, he was in the meeting. Blood magic... I was afraid of this."

"I wasn't afraid of any of it because I lost my soul!" Owain exclaims in a failed pity joke. I pat him on the back as he tears up again.

Poor guy.

Erianne sighs, "Great, now what are we going to do?"

I leave Owain to mope over his terrible existence in the corner and speak up, "I have it memorized." Everyone stares at me.

"What are you serious?" Alistair asks in doubt.

"Flemeth taught me well, and I did some studying on my own when I left so... yeah. We don't need it." I smile at them.

Wynne looks at me suspiciously, "I would ask you how do you know of it's existence?"

I frown at her deeper, "I memorized a copy of it, or the original, or some rendition of it, during intense combat once a week. I'm surprised the templars don't know it by heart. Its actually really simple."

They stare at me for another moment, contemplating my words before Owain jumps up and yells out, "AH! It's fading!"

I jump around to face him in shock as He falls to his hands and knees and begs at our feet, "Please by the Maker kill me and end my torment!"

I blink as he starts having a horrid reaction to my spell, tearing out what hair he has left, "Calm down Owain!"

He hugs my legs, sobbing uncontrollably, "Please! Ple-"

I panic a bit and quickly slice his throat, watching as his body hits the floor to echo across the walls in silence.

He mouths 'thank you' before dying in a pool of his own blood. I take in a deep breath to calm myself before turning my head to see everyone staring at me in absolute shock in the silence.

I close my eyes sadly and turn back to Owain's corpse to speak, "Hahren na malana sahlin emma ir abelas souver'inan isala hamin vhenan him dor'felas in uthenera na revas..."

Goodbye Owain. I hope you find your peace in the afterlife...

A/N And unfortunately a minor character dies... It always bugged me how the templars and mages preached the usage of slaves, oh I mean Tranquil as necessary to maintain peace in the Towers. The next chapter is coming tomorrow so I can catch up, again.

Also, I realized that to be able to tie in Dragon Age Inquisition to this story in January 2015 I literally need to post five chapters a week until the end of December. So... I'm going to try to do that. Lets see how long I can last :) Don't worry about the quality dropping, I always make sure the plot makes sense before posting the chapter, or at least makes ENOUGH sense that the main parts can easily be translated... and again I ramble. :) Overall, expect me to Maybe post chapters during weekdays and not on weekends in the near future. If it works out alright then everyone will win! If it doesn't then it'll stay at two to three a week and Dragon Age Inquisition won't be written until late February 2015.

One update for everyone, I'm starting a poll to see who Darien could or should romance during both DA:O and DA:II so go to my page and cast your votes! :)

(Revision: The poll has already ended. Give me feedback on how you like/dislike this revision! :) )