The Wrath of Heaven 6: The Mountain Path
Andras resumed his position in the center of the party, Cassandra leading the way. He follows her up a ladder, the party quickly ascending elevation up the mountain
Once they've all found footing on the snowy, rocky surface, Cassandra speaks. "The tunnel should be just ahead. The path to the temple lies just beyond it."
"What manner of tunnel is this? A mine?" Solas asks.
"Part of an old mining complex," Cassandra answers. "These mountains are full of such paths."
"And your missing soldiers are in there somewhere?" Varric asks.
"Along with whatever has detained them," Solas adds.
"We shall see soon enough," Cassandra says.
Andras can hear on her voice she doesn't hold much hope. Likely one of those "optimistic pessimist" types, where if you always expect the worst, everything is good.
Still, as he follows her up another ladder, he can't help but wonder if any soldiers are still alive. As they draw nearer to the tunnel, Andras senses… something ahead, for lack of better words.
"Hey – I think there's something up ahead," he voices.
The three others pause in their step.
"You hear something ahead?" Varric asks.
"In a sense," Andras replies.
"Right. Take caution," Cassandra says, bringing her arms into guard.
Solas, however, lets his focus linger on him. Andras can't help but find it somewhat uncomfortable. After a brief moment, the mage seems to realize he was caught staring, and brings his staff forward, preparing for the fight ahead.
When they enter the tunnel, Andras' feelings are proved right. Cassandra immediately engages the shade in the center, while Solas and Varric target one of the two wraiths together. Andras turns his attention toward the one wraith not engaged, slipping into the shadows.
The wraith summons icy spectral energies, hurling it act Cassandra. She grunts as the energy hits her, but shrugs it off as she hollers a taunt before bashing the shade in the face with her shield.
With the wraith otherwise occupied, Andras leaps from the shadows and plunges both daggers into the wraiths spectral back. Too late the spirit senses him, and it dissolves into mist.
Andras looks and sees that Solas and Varric have already handled their wraith. With all their attention now on the shade, the demon falls swiftly.
"That was the last one," Solas comments.
Cassandra nods. "Continue with caution."
Slowly, the party delves deeper into the tunnel. Snow and ice have blown in from the outside, the tunnel having not been sealed off from the elements. There are a few frozen cobwebs in the corners, and the way is dark. Here and there, a ray of cold light shines between gaps in the stone, the old structure succumbing to its age. Near those gaps are more drifts of snow and ice. His robes, he thinks, are a comfort in this cold. Solas, with his bare feet, must be freezing.
After that first fight, everyone is on edge as they continue creeping through the tunnels. While Varric tries to prod Andras for more updates on the presence of any demons, Solas keeps sending him curious glances. At least until more demons materialize from nothing.
"No heads up this time?" Varric calls, loosing a bolt at one of the shades.
"No – I felt nothing until just now," Andras replied, sinking his daggers into a wraith.
They finished off the other demons before resuming their path, skirting around bookshelves, overturned desks, and other debris. Andras takes a moment to pick up a book and flip through some pages only to drop it down again.
"Tale not to your liking?" Varric asks.
Andras shakes his head. He couldn't read the text on the page. It wasn't that the book was heavily damaged, no. Rather, the text was written in some form he didn't understand, like a code or something. Maybe he would have been interested in the puzzle at some other time, but with trying to race Death to this Temple, his time was a highly sought premium.
A gust of icy wind rips through the hall, and they all shiver. The light is brighter and steadier, too. Soon, the cold stone gives way to frozen earth and the snow crunches under their feet as they exit the tunnel.
Laying in the snow are three bodies, battered and beaten.
Varric sighs. "Guess we found the soldiers."
Cassandra shakes her head. "That cannot be all of them."
"So the others could be holed up ahead?" Varric asks.
"Our priority must be the Breach," Solas says. "Unless we seal it soon, no one is safe."
"I'm leaving that to the man with the glowing hand," Varric remarks, giving Andras a friendly nudge. Andras moves to nudge back, but the Breach flares, and pain shoots through. He's really starting to wish teleportation was a thing.
As they follow the path, they can hear more sounds of fighting, Andras' hand continues to burn as they get closer.
"Another rift," Andras murmurs.
Ahead, they can see the soldiers who yet live engaged in combat with demons.
One soldier successfully lands a blow, and his momentum carriers him. As she moves through her form, she sees the party. Or, rather Cassandra, the only one among them who has any real status.
"Lady Cassandra!" the soldier exclaims.
And for the first time since Andras has known her, Cassandra smiles. "You're alive!"
"Just barely," another soldier replies.
Wordlessly, the party joins the soldiers and beats back the demons. Just as Andras is about to close the rift, he's knocked from his feet while a tall, thin, green, insectoid demon bears down on him. He scrambles back on his elbows and heels, his hands holding his daggers protectively before him. Twice the demon uses its long, gangly claws to swipe at him, and twice he bats them away with a daggered fist.
A bolt to the head puts the demon down, and Andras can get back on his feet. He looks in the direct of the bolt's origin, and nods a brief "thanks" to Varric before he launches himself at the other terror. As he flows through a form to land a blow, the demon disappears. Everyone looks around for a moment, concerned at its disappearance before it erupts out of the ground, pinning down two soldiers.
Andras closes the distance and leaps at it, both daggers primed for the plunge. This time, the demon doesn't escape his hit, and it falls down, crumbling to ashen dust.
With the demon dead, Andras again raises his left hand, feeling the familiar connection with the rift. He wills it closed, and it obeys.
"Sealed, as before. You are becoming quite proficient at this," Solas comments. Andras can't quite tell if it's a compliment, or something else.
"Let's hope it works on the big one," Varric says.
Meanwhile, Cassandra helps a soldier to her feet.
"Thank the Maker you finally arrived, Lady Cassandra. I don't think we could have held out much longer," the soldier says.
"Thank our prisoner, Lieutenant. He insisted we come this way."
"The prisoner?" the soldier asks, confused. "Then you…?"
"We have to get to the breach, and quickly," Andras says, looking from the soldier back to the party.
The soldier now seems nervous. "To the breach? I don't…"
Cassandra takes mercy on the poor soldiers. "The way into the valley behind us is clear for the moment. Go, while you still can."
The soldier gives a quick, neat salute to Cassandra. "At once." Turning, she then addresses the other three. "Quickly, let's move!" she orders, and then take off with haste to the abandoned tunnel.
As the soldier depart, the party continues its advance.
"The path ahead appears to be clear of demons as well," Solas remarks.
"Let's hurry, before that changes," Cassandra replies brusquely.
As much climbing as they've done before, now the path leads down the other side of the mountain. It's a welcomed relief, Andras thinks. At least now they're getting closer to ending this.
"So… holes in the fade don't just accidentally happen right?" asks Varric.
"If enough magic is brought to bear, it is possible," Solas replies.
"But there are easier ways to make things explode."
"That is true."
"We will consider how this happened once the immediate danger is past," Cassandra states. Just like that, the conversation is ended, and they continue on their way in silence.
AN: I am still working on this. I haven't died yet. I'm freaking out with all the writing that comes with a Master's Thesis, and I'll might need to write a procedure manual for work now, too. So: Double Update. I'm still editing Chapter 7. I want it to be better. But I've got good plans for the Hinterlands.
A quick question: does the Oedon Chapel Dweller have a name? I might have seen him named "Agatha" once...