Cullen paced back and forth outside the camp. Something inside his heart told him that she could not be dead. There was no way she would have survived so much only to die now. He should have kissed her. He should have told her that he had feelings for her. There were so many things he should have done, but he had been too afraid, and now he would never get the chance. No. She was alive. He would tell her later. He heard approaching footsteps, but he did not cease his pacing.
"She's gone, Commander." Cassandra insisted. He shook his head.
"No, she's not." he retorted. The Seeker sighed.
"No one could have survived that, Cullen." she said, her voice sad. He turned on her.
"No one could have survived the explosion at the Conclave either, but she did, didn't she?" he argued. Cassandra frowned.
"I want her to have lived as well, Cullen, but it's just not possible." she said before returning to the camp. He continued to march back and forth, digging a trench in the snow with his feet. It had been nearly two days, but he knew she was coming. He heard a shout from one of the scouts up ahead.
"Someone's coming!" they cried. He sprinted as fast as he could. As he came around the corner, he saw her. She was the most beautiful sight, even though her red hair was wet and frozen to her pale, white skin. Her violet eyes were hazy and unfocused. She collapsed to her knees before him, and he immediately scooped her up into his arms. She was shivering violently, and it felt like he was holding a block of ice in his arms. He kept her as close as he could to his skin as he wrapped her in his warm cloak. Her eyes fluttered shut as she smiled with blue lips.
"Stay awake, Renna. Stay with me." he murmured as he ran her back to the camp. He rushed to the side of a fire where a group of mages, including Dorian, were seated. Cassandra watched with a shocked expression. The mages began working to return some warmth to her frozen body and Cullen turned to the former Seeker. "Looks like I was right." he said cheerfully.
The first thing Renna heard as she began to wake up was Cullen's voice. It was angry, and shouting, but it was him. She smiled softly. She could not really remember her trek up the mountain, but somehow she was back where she belonged.
"What would you have me tell them? This isn't what we asked them to do!" he shouted.
"We cannot simply ignore this! We must find a way!" Cassandra yelled back. She heard him snort.
"And who put you in charge? We need a consensus or we have nothing." he pointed out.
"Please, we must use reason! Without the infrastructure of the Inquisition, we're hobbled!" Josephine pleaded.
"That can't come from nowhere!" Cullen argued.
"She didn't say it could!" Leliana cried, defending Josephine.
"Enough! This is getting us nowhere!" Cassandra roared.
"Well, we're agreed on that much!" Cullen snapped. Renna chuckled softly and winced as she sat up and opened her eyes. She had clearly broken some ribs and maybe a few other things. The healers had worked on her, so the bones were repaired, but her body still felt like a giant bruise.
"Shh. You need to rest." Mother Giselle said soothingly. Renna did not know she was by her side. She smiled at the woman.
"From what I can hear, they've been at it for hours." she pointed out. Giselle smiled back.
"They have that luxury thanks to you. The enemy could not follow, and with time to doubt, we turn to blame." she replied. "Infighting may threaten as much as this Corypheus." she added. Renna nodded and planted her feet on the ground. She was a bit dizzy, but she felt good.
"The only thing yelling gets us is a headache and a small army of frightened children. I need to calm them down." she said, trying to stand. Mother Giselle steadied her.
"They know. But our situation- your situation- is complicated. Our leaders struggle because of what we survivors witnessed. We saw our defender stand...and fall. And now we have seen her return. The more our enemy is beyond us, the more miraculous your actions appear, and the more our trials seem ordained. That is hard to accept, no? What 'we' have been called to endure? What 'we', perhaps, must come to believe?" she nudged. Renna sighed.
"Mother Giselle, I just don't understand why what I believe matters. Lies or not, Corypheus is a real, physical threat. We can't defeat that with hope alone." she said sadly. Turning away from the woman. She walked out of her open tent to see Josephine and Leliana sitting beside each other. Cullen had a hand on the back of his neck like he always did when he was frustrated. Cassandra was looking over maps and shaking her head angrily. Everyone seemed so broken by what had happened. She started to head over to Cullen when she heard a voice behind her.
"Shadows fall, and hope has fled." Mother Giselle sang, emerging from the tent. "Steel your heart, the dawn will come." Renna smiled fondly at the woman. "The night is long, and the path is dark. Look to the sky, for one day soon, the dawn will come." Everyone was beginning to look for the source of the voice.
"The shepherd's lost, and his home is far," Leliana sang without looking up. Renna could see a small smile on her lips. "Keep to the stars, the dawn will come." everyone was beginning to join in. Cullen looked up with a soft grin, and Renna returned it. "The night is long, and the path is dark." he joined in, giving her a meaningful look. She rolled her eyes. "Look to the sky, for one day soon, the dawn will come." she sang loudly, her soft alto blending in nicely with the voices of the others. She stopped singing when everyone in the camp came and began kneeling before her. She was so startled as they continued their hymn, bowing their heads before her as though she was some sort of prophet. They finished their song, and Mother Giselle lightly touched her arm.
"An army needs more than an enemy. It needs a cause." she said simply before walking away. People began laughing and cheering again, and Renna blushed under their regard. Someone tapped her shoulder.
"A word?" Solas said, dragging her away. They stopped just outside camp, where they could speak in silence. "The threat Corypheus wields, the orb he carried? It belongs to my people. He used the orb to open the Breach. Unlocking it must have caused the explosion that destroyed the Conclave. We must learn how he survived. And we must prepare for their reaction when they learn the orb is of my people." he explained. She nodded. The elves had a bad enough reputation among some people as it was.
"What is it and how do you know about it?" she asked. He smiled in approval.
"Such things were foci, said to channel power from our gods. Some were dedicated to specific members of our pantheon. All that remains are references in ruins, and faint memories in the Fade, echoes of a dead empire. But however he came to it, the orb is elven, and with it he threatens the heart of human faith." he said. She frowned.
"I will not let them turn on your people, Solas. It isn't anyone's fault." she promised. He smiled again.
"Whatever the case, their trust in you can't grow in the wilderness. You'll need every advantage. By attacking the Inquisition, Corypheus has changed it. Changed you. Scout to the north. Be their guide." he suggested. She raised an eyebrow, wondering if he would elaborate further. "There is a place that waits for a force to hold it. It is a place where the Inquisition can build, grow. Skyhold." he said simply. She nodded and listened as he gave her more specific directions. She took them to her advisors, and they agreed that this is where they would go. The next morning, she led the people, her people, north. Less than one week later, their eyes fell upon a fortress that looked as though it was made for their arrival. Skyhold.