Chapter 2: At the Edge of Destruction
"Not good," Adan said as he attempted to administer another drop of healing potion into the thrashing woman's mouth.
Cassandra had soldiers bring the woman they found in the ruins of the Temple into Haven's Chantry. Seeing the woman seemingly injured by the glowing mark on her hand, they had brought in the local apothecary to administer healing potions to the woman. It had been half an hour already since that happened, and yet no significant changes were seen on the woman, who still screamed in pain every five minutes.
"What do you mean, not good?" Cassandra demanded.
"I'm an apothecary, not a mage, for one," Adan gruffly retorted. "That strange magic on the woman's hands is preventing the potion from doing its work. Unless you do something about this, no amount of healing potion can save this woman's life."
"She needs to live," Cassandra insisted. "She's the only one who can tell us what happened in the Temple."
"I'm not an idiot, Seeker, but I'm telling you, I can't do anything more than hold her down if you don't do something with that hand," Adan replied.
Before Cassandra can say anything else, Leliana intervened. "I asked a scout to bring here the mage who knows something about the Breach," she said, and almost immediately, the door opened. A bald-headed elven apostate, holding a wooden staff tipped with a clear crystal and clad in travel-worn clothes and a woolen knapsack on his back, walked in, followed by one of Leliana's scouts.
"Messere Solas, so glad you could come," Leliana said, stepping forward to greet him.
The elf gave a small nod in reply, but his eyes were immediately focused on the human woman on the pallet. "Fascinating," he whispered. He belatedly returned his gaze to Leliana. "I apologize for my ill manners. May I?" he asked, indicating the woman.
Leliana nodded. "Of course," she replied, and the elf immediately knelt beside the woman. The people around her could only look on as the elven mage worked over the woman, whispering unintelligible words they supposed were spells and passing his own glowing hand over the woman's. Everyone was so focused on him that they were startled when he gave a sharp cry and turned to Leliana again.
"I have heard the rumors, but I never gave credence to them until I saw her with my own eyes," the mage said in a surprised tone. "She really did come out of the Fade? Physically came from the Fade?"
"Yes, she did," Leliana replied.
Solas shook his head. "But that's impossible," he said in an awed voice.
"So the other mages tell us too."
The apostate didn't say anything else, but continued his work. Every now and then, he paused to look inquisitively at some part of the woman's arm and murmur another string of indecipherable words. After a while, he looked up at the apothecary, who looked taken aback at the sudden attention.
"I have temporarily contained the magic to her hand," the elven mage said, "so that the healing potions can do their work. You may now administer your cordials."
"R-right," Adan said, and took his place beside the woman.
The elf then turned to the Hands and Commander Cullen, who stood watching him. "What I've done is only to buy some time for her, unfortunately. She grows worse as the Breach grows larger, and my skills might not be enough to keep the magic from killing her."
"But she has to live!" Cassandra retorted. "She's the only suspect we have regarding the explosion at the Temple, most likely the Divine's murder as well!"
"I cannot do anything else, Seeker," the mage said flatly.
"This cannot be," Cassandra said stubbornly. She turned her suspicious glare at Solas. "What are you trying to do here, mage? Do you intend to undermine our efforts in order to hide the real killer?"
"Cassandra…" Leliana tried to placate the Seeker, but as she looked over Cullen, she saw him have the same mistrustful expression in his face.
The mage, however, kept his calm demeanor. "Believe what you will, Seeker," he said coolly. "All I am offering to do is to help this poor unfortunate woman, as well as understand the causes of the Breach, however I can."
"Will she wake?" Leliana turned the conversation to Adan.
"I cannot say, Sister," the apothecary answered, standing up. "As of now, her condition is stable for five to six hours at least. But as long as I can give her the potion every six hours, she might wake up to answer your questions." He turned to Cassandra. "Can I go now? I have other patients, you know."
Leliana answered for Cassandra. "You may, and thank you," she said. The apothecary only nodded, then went out of the room.
"I can watch over her, study the magic to figure out how to calm it more effectively," the mage volunteered.
"Thank you, Messere Solas," Leliana said, and ushered Cassandra and Cullen out. "We'll leave you to it then." She closed the door behind her, with the apostate looking straight at her as the door closed.
"We need to keep an eye on the prisoner," Cassandra muttered darkly. "And that apostate might be up to something." Cullen nodded in agreement.
"I'll have someone watch over her and the apostate," Leliana said. "Meanwhile, let's do what we can to keep the demons away and close the smaller rifts."
The others nodded and they walked out of the Chantry.
"Sparrow," said a scout, tapping the woman's shoulder to get her attention. "Sister Nightingale wants a word with you."
"I'll be over in a minute," Sparrow replied, and continued bandaging the injured arm of the templar in front of her. When she was done, she stood up and walked over to where Leliana was.
"Sparrow," Leliana said. "We've got a woman who's seemingly afflicted by the same magic as the one that created the Breach. She's being tended to by an apostate, with the name of Solas, in the dungeons."
"You said Solas?" Sparrow retorted sharply.
"Yes. An elven mage who volunteered to help with the Breach," Leliana said. If it wasn't for her training as a bard, she would have missed the icy glint in Sparrow's eye. It was enough to concern her, and she asked, "Is something the matter?"
"None, Sister," Sparrow said, her face now inscrutable.
Leliana inspected her face for a few seconds, then continued, "I want you to guard them, and to report back any changes that happens."
"Yes, Sister," Sparrow replied. She turned to go, but Leliana held her back. "Is there something wrong, Sparrow?" she asked, a hint of suspicion in her voice.
Sparrow looked at Leliana's hand on her arm, then at Leliana's face. "Nothing, Sister," she replied, lightly holding her hand. Leliana pulled her hand back. Sparrow gave a small smile before turning towards the Chantry.
She woke with a scream.
The apostate, Solas, opened his eyes to see one of Sister Nightingale's scouts holding down the woman, who was thrashing on the floor in pain again. "Help me!" the scout cried out as she desperately held on to the flailing arms of the woman.
Solas went over to the woman, and with a slight flexing of his fingers, he cast a spell to calm her. The screaming and the thrashing stopped, and the scout heaved a relieved sigh. "Please give her a few drops of the healing potion beside her," Solas ordered the scout, who quickly did as she was told.
"Will she be all right now?" the scout asked Solas, her eyes still on the woman.
Solas leaned heavily back on the wall. "The spell I've cast only gives her relief for a short time only," he answered.
"Do you know what this magic is?" the scout continued to ask.
"Unfortunately, no," Solas slowly answered, intrigued by the curiosity the scout was exhibiting. "I was attempting to contact some spirits in the Fade through my dreaming, before she woke me up," he continued, scrutinizing the scout's reaction to his words. The scout, however, had her hood to cover her face. "Until I can fully know what caused this… mark… on her hand, I can only calm the magic, but not eradicate it fully from her."
"Is there nothing you can do with this magic?"
"I am trying my best," Solas answered. "However…"
"Is there truly nothing you can do for her?" the scout said quietly, now turning to look at him straight in the eyes. Her bright green eyes met Solas' startled grey ones, as he felt a thrill of recognition at the sight of her face. He opened his mouth to say something, but the scout cut him off.
"I am called Sparrow, a scout in Sister Nightingale's employ," Sparrow said, breaking her gaze on him and focusing again on the woman. "I am tasked to keep this woman alive, so I have to ask those questions."
"You are most definitely welcome to ask any questions," Solas answered, his face returning to the calm exterior he had before. "And to answer your last question, none."
Sparrow glared at him, and he calmly returned her hostile glance with his own inscrutable gaze. Their silence was eventually broken by the woman's whimpers, and the scout turned her attention again to the sick woman, while Solas closed his eyes and returned to dreaming.
"She's getting worse," Solas heard the scout say after a time. He opened his eyes again. Sparrow was looking at the unconscious woman with pity in her eyes as she continued wiping down the sweat on the woman's face.
"The more the Breach grows, the worse the magic is going to be," Solas answered. "Soon, it will completely consume her, and cause another explosion that will completely destroy the Veil itself."
In the blink of an eye, he felt the cold of steel on his throat. "Help her then," the scout said coldly.
"I can't," Solas said. The dagger pressed slightly onto his throat.
"Can't, or won't?" Sparrow asked vehemently. Solas looked at the scout's burning eyes. "I will not let you destroy this world without you lifting a finger for it," she continued, threatening.
Solas smirked. "What would you have me do, then, Sparrow, scout of the Nightingale?" he asked sarcastically.
"Take this magic away from this unfortunate woman, and I'll let you live."
Solas smiled mockingly. "Would you truly? Would you truly kill me if I fail to keep the woman alive?" he asked.
"Yes," the scout answered coldly. Solas studied her face. An ironic smile curled up his lips. "Some lessons could never be unlearned, it seems," he said.
Sparrow inhaled sharply, but before she could say anything, Solas stood and walked over to the woman's pallet, ignoring her surprised gaze at him. He picked up his staff, and as Sparrow watched, blue light slowly emanated from it, lighting up his fingers and the woman's body as well. Solas' brows furrowed in concentration as the green light on the woman's hand pulsed in response to the blue light from the mage's staff. The woman started to whimper again, then screamed as the lights intensified around her.
"You're –" the scout began to say.
"I am attempting to take the magic from her, as it is somewhat compatible with my own," Solas answered. "I am using an ancient spell, or so the spirits have informed me, to accomplish that."
Sparrow glanced uneasily at both Solas and the woman, who was now screaming in earnest. She heard two templars rushing down into the dungeons to check on them.
"What's going on?" one of the templars asked, but Sparrow moved quickly to intercept them.
"We're trying to help the sick woman, as instructed," Sparrow explained, even as bolts of lightning started shooting out from Solas' staff.
"Helping her?" the other templar asked incredulously, ducking just in time before a bolt of lightning could hit him.
Sparrow turned to the mage. "Stop!" she cried out, jumping away from another bolt of lightning. One of the templars wasn't so quick, as he was hit by one bolt. The force of it threw him a few feet away, and he hit the floor with a loud thud.
"Just a moment longer!" Solas replied, grimacing at a bolt of lightning which narrowly passed near his face.
"It's not working!" Sparrow cried out as she quickly went over the templars' side to pull them both out of harm's way.
"It will!" Solas replied, but Sparrow could see his knees shaking in exhaustion. Gritting her teeth, Sparrow sprinted towards him, and bodily knocked him down, cutting off the flow of magic between him and the ailing woman, who abruptly stopped screaming.
Solas attempted to get up, but Sparrow held a restraining hand on him. "Stop," she said. Then she turned to the woman and quickly assessed her injuries. After giving her a bit of healing potion, Sparrow settled the woman more comfortably on the pallet.
"You didn't let me finish," Solas said after a while, sitting up and leaning once again on the wall.
"You'll just hurt yourself and kill her if you continued," Sparrow curtly replied. She turned to Solas, who was gingerly holding one arm against his chest. "Like that," she muttered and took another bottle of healing potion from her belt.
"I can heal myself," Solas said, but Sparrow shook her head. "You've spent enough mana casting that spell, and you detest lyrium potions –" Her eyes widened in shock at her words, while Solas raised an eyebrow in amusement. She bit her lip as she thrust a bottle of healing potion at him, avoiding his gaze, then stood up to turn her attention to the injured templars.
"It's… a comfort that you remember things about me," Solas whispered as he gratefully drank the healing potion, making a face at the slightly bitter taste, then pouring a little onto the burned skin. Sparrow didn't say a word more. As soon as she tended to the soldiers' injuries, she sent them back up to the Chantry hall.
When Sparrow returned to the woman, she found Solas kneeling by her and inspecting the marked hand. She watched him cautiously, tightening her grip on the daggers on her belt. Solas noticed the gesture, and leaned back to keep a distance from the woman.
"I am sorry," Solas said, pulling his injured arm closer to his chest. "I am afraid I cannot do anything for her anymore. I… am too weak to completely take the magic from her."
"Thus, your spell cannot work," Sparrow said flatly. "What do you intend to do now?"
"This is a lost cause. I can't learn anything more from this woman. I intend to go far away from here, where I can be able to study the Breach at a safer distance," Solas said. He moved a few of his fingers, wincing when it felt painful. He looked up to see Sparrow give an ironic smile.
"Of course you would," Sparrow said, looking over at the woman again. Solas opened his mouth to retort angrily, but Sparrow waved it off and continued, "You have done some good. Her breathing's easier already, and her color is slowly coming back. I think the Seeker will allow you to go now."
"Do you believe me a coward?" Solas muttered darkly.
Sparrow shook her head. "No," she said sincerely. "You may leave this place as you see fit. You are not in any obligation to stay." She sighed. "We all have our place in this world. Yours simply isn't here."
"Where would yours be?" Solas asked.
Sparrow smiled sadly. "Mine will always be at the edge of the world's destruction."
Two days later, a soldier came running into the barricade Cassandra was in. "Seeker!" he called out.
"What is it?" Cassandra answered, pushing through the soldiers to reach him.
"She's awake," the soldier said as soon as Cassandra reached him. "Sister Leliana says to come at once."
In the dungeons, the woman with the strange mark was truly awake. And fighting. Slightly cursing, mostly screaming.
"Let me out of here! Do you know who I am? What I am? If I get out of here I swear you're the first ones I'm going to destroy," she threatened. The two soldiers beside her both had glazed expressions in their faces. As soon as Cassandra entered, the soldiers stood at attention, and even the woman stopped whining to look up at her.
Cassandra looked down at the woman, who was now sitting up and looking back at her warily. Even when kneeling, the woman had a bearing that suggested a noble upbringing. Certainly, no commoner would be glaring at Cassandra and ordering the soldiers about as fearlessly as this woman did.
"You're awake," Cassandra said. "The murderer of the Divine is awake."
"Murderer?" the woman cried out, scandalized. "I would never –"
Cassandra grabbed the chains that held the woman's hands, pulling her up. "Explain this then!"
"If I knew, then I would have already!" the woman answered sharply.
"You-!" Cassandra gripped the hilt of her sword, but Leliana's hand held her back.
"We need her, Cassandra," Leliana said. At the mention of Cassandra's name, the woman's eyes widened.
"Cassandra?" The woman looked closer at the sigil on Cassandra's armor. The insignia of the Seekers shone brightly, making the woman's eyes grow wider. "Seeker Cassandra Pentaghast?" She turned her astonished eyes at Leliana. "Then you must be… The Hands of the Divine!"
Leliana frowned. "Who we are, or what we are, is not important here," she said. "You were found, the sole survivor of an explosion that leveled the Temple of Sacred Ashes, an explosion that killed hundreds of people in the Temple and its vicinity, including the Divine. What have you to say about that?"
The woman was horror-struck. "What?" she cried out. "I… I have nothing to do with that explosion!"
"Explain that then!" Cassandra angrily repeated.
The woman looked down at her hands, and was surprised to see the marked hand, crying out in pain as it shot out sparks of energy. "I… I don't know!" she pleaded. "If I did, I would tell you! Please believe me!"
Someone behind her spoke. She supposed it was the scout she first saw when she woke up. "She speaks the truth, Sister, Seeker," the scout said. "She has no idea how the mark came to her hand or what happened to her in the Temple."
"How can that be?" Leliana asked. The woman didn't hear any response from the scout at her back, but figured the scout shrugged.
Cassandra, meanwhile, looked grim. "Be that as it may, it still remains that you are the only suspect in the death of the Divine. And you will answer, one way or another," she said darkly. She pulled up the chains again, this time rougher to force the woman to stand. Then, with one swift move, she unsheathed her sword and held it against the woman's throat.
"No!" The scout behind her cried out. The woman herself couldn't move out of fear at the glint of steel at her throat, but she saw, at the corner of her eye, the scout step forward beside her. "She is our only key to closing the breach in the sky! The mage Solas theorized the mark on her hand can be used to close the breach once and for all!"
"Did Messere Solas truly say that?" Leliana stepped forward and held a restraining hand on Cassandra's shoulder.
"Yes, sister," the scout answered. Leliana glanced at Cassandra, who grudgingly sheathed her sword. The woman couldn't stop the great sigh of relief that escaped her. She turned to the scout. "Thank you—"
"Let's do that then," Leliana said. "I think you should test that out on one of the smaller rifts in the valley, on the way to the Temple. I'll meet you at the forward camp, then we shall go together to the Temple and close the Breach. Sparrow," turning to the scout beside her, "join Cassandra and lead this woman to the nearest rift."
The scout nodded, but the woman bristled, "Do I even get a choice in this?" she remarked caustically.
"None," Cassandra said forbiddingly. The woman opened her mouth to retort, but a withering glance from Cassandra stopped her. "Follow me," Cassandra commanded. "Let us make use of that mark on your hand to close the rifts then."
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