Chapter 10

Amelie walked over the edge of the hill and spotted the encampment below. She was quickly spotted by a scout. She glared at him as he shouted her presence and alerted the others. Amelie wiped her forehead smearing the blood that had splashed over her skin from an earlier encounter. She raised her stained hands and held them above her head. Her clothing was filthy and damp, the moisture in the air made it clear that there was going to be a storm. Her hair was loose and fell about her frame, swaying in the rising breeze. A slaver walked out of a tent, he was clearly in charge and looked up to see a woman walking towards them. He raised a brow and looked at his men who shrugged. Half of his group were on an actual scouting party so there were only about eight of them here, enough to take care of a foolish woman that wanted to be captured.

'What are you doing here?' He laughs as she gets near. He glances over her body and makes a dismissive face, she won't collect a high price but it would be a nice little bonus. Plus the bag that was slung over her shoulder looked heavy and full. He made a motion to the guard next to him and he darted inside the tent to get the shackles.

Amelie smiled, the smile didn't look right, it was edged with a cold deadly humour; like she had told a joke that was in bad taste and she had been the only one to laugh, despite the obvious tension in the room. Her irises glinted as the normal amber colour had twisted into an abyssal black. 'I hate two things in this world with a passion that can't be explained,' she says softly. Her voice carried in the silence and suddenly everyone was very aware of this small woman and her presence. The man that had spoken felt the hair on the back of his neck rise in defence. She stared him down in defiance, daring him to interrupt her, but he found that his voice had gone. 'Slavers,' she states simply as she aggressively keeps his full attention on her with simply her demean or. 'And liars,' she hisses. She looks at her hand, it was covered in a dark red, the colour of dried blood. The men paled as their eyes registered her fingers. 'The other slavers put up a fight, but they made the mistake of lying.' Amelie says scowling. 'The question is, do you want a painless death or one that is-' Her words are cut off as she feels an arrow flick past her cheek. It had been let loose in terror, the man's finger accidentally setting off the trigger. She widened her eyes in pure anger and her lips thinned to almost a non existent line. Silence descended the camp apart from the panicked breathing from the man who shot the crossbow. Amelie's eyes darted around from face to face before she threw her head back and screamed with laughter.

'Fuck this! Shoot her!' The man said in terror. His guards shocked into life attempt to aim their shaking weapons at her, as the high pitched tones of her laughter echo around them. The arrows that come near her are thrown off course by some invisible source as her mana began to swirl around her.

'You'd rather have absolute agony!' Amelie shrieked as she laughs. Thunder rolled overhead, the rain had begun to fall heavily, the fat droplets splashing over the metal armour and weapons. There were blue overtones in the clouds, it seemed that it was almost infused with Lyrium. Amelie could feel it twisting in her head, the suffocation and it was seeping into her very bones. She looked at the sky, Amelie could almost taste it as her eyes registered the bolt of lightening that was making it's way down towards them.

'Hurry up you idiots!' The slaver screamed as he realised that she was a mage. 'GET HER!' He throws his second of command towards her. 'Kill the stupid bit-' His words are cut off as Amelie screams as she absorbs the bolt of energy; it was almost deathly painful, but the heat and the way her skin almost pulsed with the lightening. He stood frozen in fear, his men on the other hand charged at her, determined to put her down. Amelie flicked her hair over her shoulder and glared at them, grabbing the first man that came close enough. She pulled the blade from his hand, almost tearing the ligaments in her hand she did so. Amelie used her other hand and wrapped it around his throat, holding him in front of her as a human shield. He cried out as he felt the arrows meant for her embed hem selves deeply into his muscles. She ignored the warm blood that spat across her face. She threw him aside, the energy inside her from the lightening bolt becoming too much to bear, she screamed in almost distress. Electricity and force tore it's way from her body, ricocheting from slaver to slaver, their screams echoing in her ears as their bodies erupt and become totally infused with the deadly convulsions. Her eyes watch them blankly as their lives are extinguished in a bloody mess. Pale contorted streaks wound their way down her arms as the lightening left it's mark on her already light skin; they looked like vines travelling down her limbs to her very fingers, the only evidence that she had danced with death.

Only a couple of the slavers were left alive, but barely, she could hear them whimpering and begging for an end. She did the cruellest thing she could think of, and left them to their fate. She simply stepped over their broken and burnt bodies as she made her way through their camp, trying to keep her balance as she slipped on the blood and flesh that littered the grass. The smell of burning meat and hair made her nose crinkle. She could feel her sanity return to her as she walked, her stomach churning as she saw what she had done. Her resolve made her buckle down on what was going on. She was doing this for Orana, her father and that elf that she forced out her mind. The Lyrium in the storm was fuelling her reckless behaviour and gave her a strength she was relying on. Reaching around stiffly she pulled a small red bottle and blue bottle out the bag and tore off the wax seals, greedily gulping their contents. She sighed as the tense feeling in her muscles and aching pain fled from her body, granting her some relief. She barely looked back as she walked out the camp, grabbing a bit of cloth that was flapping in the rain and wasn't soaked in blood. She could hear the fires of the camp as she used the cloth to wipe the red from her face and arms, she refused to look at herself as she did it, simply dropping the soiled material once she was finished, halfway up the mountain to where she knew Hadriana was waiting.

...*...

She paused by the entrance of the slavers tunnels and turned, she was aware that someone was following her and gaining. She furrowed her brow and raised her hand, ready to blast whoever they were from the mountain side. Energy gathered in her palm, her wet hair swirling around her as if she was underwater. The storm had died down a little but she still felt it's presence heavy in the air. Amelie didn't have time for this, at every moment Orana could be losing her father if Hadriana realised she was being threatened. Amelie had to move quickly to reduce the chances, this fool was simply slowing her down. Her anger towards this unknown turned to frustration as she instantly recognised who it was that was following her. Amelie's hand dropped as she let out a frustrated sob.

'Not you, it wasn't supposed to be you,' she said looking away from him. 'You're not supposed to be here!' Amelie said shaking her head. Her hair began to calm down and simply swayed in the wind as she wiped her eyes.

'I am not supposed to be here? What part of 'do not leave the city,' did you fail to understand?' Fenris replied, his frown speaking volumes. He was also covered in blood, his blade had clearly been used and she could tell by his stance that he was tired and angry. 'What in the name of the fade are you doing here?!' He demanded.

'I could ask you the same thing! You aren't supposed to be here, Fenris! I am trying to protect you and the others!' She says getting defensive. She realised that she had failed to pick up a staff on her rampage and it made her situation a lot more bleak.

'I do not need the likes of you protecting me!' Fenris retaliated with force, his words were almost a physical blow. Amelie sucked in a deep breath and battled with herself not to cry. 'I did not ask for your help!' He added walking forward and grabbing her arm. 'I have been dragged across the coast in the aftermath of your deluded rampage, give me one reason why I should justify to the real Hawke why I bothered to let you live!' He spat looking into her eyes. He could tell that she wanted to cry, but it would not work on him, a pretty face does not prove innocence or a reason. Amelie held his gaze, seeing the crystal green of his eyes become infused with black as the storm raged above them. Water dripped from her hair across her cheeks, causing whatever blood and grime that was left to be washed away. It caused pale streaks to appear and even in this weak light, her freckles stood out. Fenris refused to be swayed by the deep inner emotions that tore through him as he held her arm. He could feel the scarring on her skin and frailty of her limb.

'Because this isn't about you,' she said quietly, her voice strong, 'it's about me.' She pulled her arm out of his grip and broke eye contact, 'it's about righting all the wrongs that I was too blind or too selfish to see in my world. About making people's lives better and not mine,' she mumbled as she pulled out a health potion and forced it into his hands. 'I didn't ask for anyone's help. I don't need it. I honestly didn't expect to come back, and that... that's okay. This world doesn't need two Hawkes. And looking at Garrett, he was a better Hawke then I ever was. No wonder people don't think we're the same.' She shrugged the bag off her shoulder and began to pull her hair into a plait, ready for what was going to come in the future battles.

'So you were just going to leave and expect to die? How is that not selfish!?' Fenris said in complete wonder. 'You are deluded. You...There are no words to the stupidity that you have just conceived,' he says in a sigh.

Amelie looks at him and rolls her eyes. 'You wouldn't understand and I don't have time for this,' she says simply. 'Go back Fenris. You don't actually care about me so don't bother pretending to care about whether I come back or not!' Amelie hisses in retort. 'You can't wait to get rid of me, so why all this?!'

Fenris doesn't seem fazed about her outburst and simply puts the health potion in his pouch before moving closer to her. Amelie stepped back until her back hit the wall of the entrance, incredibly wary of his silent treatment. The Fenris she knew could be deadly without batting an eyelid and seeing the Fenris in front of her with no expression made panic travel down her spine. Her chest rose heavily as she breathed in worry and fear as he came closer still. He grabbed her arm again, closer to the elbow and pulled her to his side as he leant down and whispered in her ear. 'I heard everything.' He said softly, his warm breath caressing the bare skin on her throat. Amelie knew instantly what he was talking about and she couldn't help but close her eyes as her tears fell from her lashes. 'It is time to root out the poison. Not even you, are going to take that away from me,' he snarled lightly. Amelie began to tremble as fear kept her stuck in the spot he had put her in. 'I will tear out her heart, I will tear out Danarius' throat and no mage will ever control me again,' he murmured as he let her go and walked past her, into the tunnel. Amelie's heart felt like it had been torn out, the hate and disgust he injected into his words, made it very clear about how he felt about what he had heard. She felt like falling to her knees and sobbing, but she knew that it wasn't about her right now. She was lying when she told him it was. It was about him, more though, it was about Orana. She couldn't be more selfish than she already was and let Orana suffer the consequences, she had to deal with whatever she was feeling later and get on with it.

She mentally picked herself up, wiped her eyes and grabbed her bag, following him into the tunnel. She caught up with him easily and pushed him against the wall causing his markings to flare up. He looked like he was about to implode with rage. 'Shut up,' Amelie hissed, shoving all personal feelings away in a box. The only reason she was even able to restrain him was because of surprise. She ignored the dirty glare that he was giving her and slapped her hand over his mouth as he began to speak. 'Shut. Up.' Amelie repeated as she raised a brow. 'The only reason I have gotten so far is because of surprise. Literally,' she added under her breath as she desperately tried to ignore the feel of his lips on her palm. 'We are going to do this my way as I am the only one here who knows what will happen and when,' she pointed out. 'It will minimise damage and make us both more effective okay? Don't answer that, just nod,' she said simply. Fenris was furious but he nodded curtly. He raised a brow as she moved away from him and took her hand away. She was normally very docile but she changed in the snap of second. There was a nagging thought at the back of his mind that something he previously said could have been taken the wrong way, but he wasn't in the mood to analyse his actions. Amelie doesn't look him in the eye as she explains what is going to happen as they travel further down the corridor. There was going to be a junction and one door will be locked and that's the door that Hadriana will be behind. He felt his fingers clench as Amelie spoke her name. 'We will return to that door, I have an idea about it. It'll dodge most her goons and traps, but I will be a little useless until I get to a Lyrium potion. First we have to find Orana and her father, they're down this way,' she explains. Fenris mentally sighs and pulls himself away from the wall as he follows. Something wasn't right. Something was going to go wrong. He could feel the apprehension deep in his stomach.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter :) Please review and let me know