The Maker rumbled, and a shockwave spread through the Black City. Elissa stumbled, but quickly regained her footing. She leapt across the growing chasm, rushing straight for the Maker's torso. Her Corruption swords struck the heavy armour, but left no mark or dent. Alistair and Cassandra followed, wielding weapons forged of their own, alas their attacks were similarly repelled. Snarling, Elissa combined the swords into an axe, hitting harder. She managed to make a crack in the outer casing, but then the Maker summoned a windstorm, throwing her and the others back. Crying out, Elissa smacked into the base of the crystal throne, winded.
These are mine!
Elissa snapped her head up, eye wide as the Maker reached out with His hand. With a single swipe He snatched the souls of Cassandra and Alistair, and they yelped.
"Let them go!" Elissa roared. "This is between us!"
The Maker gloated. He pressed the souls against His chest, where they submerged into Him as orbs of light.
Afraid are you now, goddess?
Elissa gritted her teeth, switching her axe into a broadsword.
"That was a cheap trick," Dorian growled.
"What god stoops to taking innocents to shield himself?" Leliana spat. "You truly are not worthy of the title of Maker!"
"Less theological consideration and more breaking things!" Hawke proclaimed. She sprinted forward, summoning her trademark daggers. Lahara joined her, balls of fire and thunder ready in her palms. They lashed out as one, deepening the crack that Elissa had made. The Maker groaned, faltering and having to catch Himself on a hand. Hawke pressed harder, jamming her blade into the broken armour, but then the Maker's palm engulfed her.
"Amber!" Lahara tried to counter, but she too was absorbed, disappearing into the Maker's belly.
"Damn it!" Elissa swore.
Before she could begin another charge, however, the Maker swept His arm outward. Another hurricane burst forth. Elissa conjured a shield of Corruption, deflecting the worst of it, but still Josephine was caught. She cried out, flying through the air, only to be snatched and captured as well.
Submit to the light, goddess! The Maker boomed. Your darkness cannot repel me!
"Our attacks aren't strong enough!" Bethany commented. "We're going to need much more firepower to break that armour."
"Even my Corruption weapons barely scratch him," Elissa grumbled.
"Magic doesn't seem to do much, either," Dorian added.
"We cannot give up!" Leliana said. "Everything has a weakness, we simply must…aghh!"
A tornado of thunder and ice showered through, and Bethany, Leliana and Dorian were swallowed by the stream of air. They tumbled skyward, and Elissa gasped.
"No!" She reached out, snaring Leliana's wrist and Bethany's ankle, but the force of freezing wind was too strong. They spiralled into the Maker's hand, and He clasped the three souls, letting them seep into His skin. Blind with rage, Elissa morphed her broadsword into a giant mace. Yelling, she bolted for the Maker, hammering into the segment of his broken armour. The Maker grunted, when He breathed out a hailstorm of fire. Elissa was forced to retreat, raising a Corruption shield. She backed up against the crystal throne, and the Maker shot out a lance of pure white. It tore apart the shield, and Elissa screamed, falling to her knees. She clawed at the ground, her arms shaking.
You have lost, fallen goddess. Now you will perish, along with the souls you once protected!
The Maker drew back His arm, preparing for a final, devastating attack. Elissa didn't move. She had lost all those she cared about, and had no way to fight back. Even her strongest power, to command Chaos, had failed her. Why in the heavens had the Maker feared that, when He had gone to such lengths to see it quashed and destroyed, when it barely hurt Him? Why had He at first wanted to see it spared, and now would see it erased forever?
The cosmos bloomed into brilliance, and pure light flooded from the Maker's palm. It streamed towards Elissa, all consuming, but at the same moment, a ripple ran through the sea of souls behind her. Before the light of death would hit, they raced before Elissa, forming a wall of shadow and light. The Maker's blow slammed into it, but…it held. In fact it did more than hold; it bounced back some of it, and the strings of light split, hurtling into the Maker's chest, arms and face.
Graaah, what is the meaning of this?!
The Maker threw up His hands, screeching as he was assaulted by His own power. The light melted His armour, and bleeding welts were carved into His jaw and chest. He staggered back, rushing to tend the wounds.
Elissa blinked, startled by the rallying of souls. The wall dispersed back into the orbs of white, and they hovered close. One in particular danced towards the ground, before taking on its true form. A happy bark greeted Elissa, and she burst into a huge smile.
"Duke!" She wrapped her arms around the mabari, and Duke licked her face, his tail wagging fast. Not longer after another soul materialized, and Elissa was met with kind, wrinkled eyes. At once Elissa rose to her feet, her jaw agape.
"It's been awhile, hasn't it?" Wynne's warm voice spoke, and she scratched Duke between his ears.
"Wynne?" Elissa could barely form her long deceased friend's name. "How did…"
"We are all with you, Elissa," Wynne said. "I was one of the souls of the dead who called to you, through Leliana. The old souls who were destined to be destroyed, discarded as unwanted memory. But you saved us, and thus our power is yours." She turned briefly to the Maker, who was struggling to make his counterattack. "For all the reverence we gave Him, the Maker never had the power to see our true strength. He does not understand our souls, and what they are capable of. So, just like the Chantry priests who followed His name, His ignorance became fear, and He wishes to subdue it before it can destroy Him."
"But how can I defeat Him?" Elissa asked.
Wynne nodded. She beckoned to the sea of souls, where another came forth. This took on the armoured form of Duncan, and he bowed his head in greeting. Elissa sucked in a breath. He looked just the same as he had in Ostagar, all those years ago.
"You still think like a warrior on the front lines," he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "You must think like a general commanding her troops. Our strength is your strength, and it is one even this false god cannot withstand." He drew his sword. "Worry not for your friends, either, for the Maker does not know the extent of our power. Destroy him, and they will be set free."
Duke barked in agreement, and Elissa squared her jaw.
"Then destroyed he shall be."
She stepped into the maelstrom of dancing light, raising her arms. The forms of Duke, Wynne and Duncan fell back into the fold, and Elissa closed her eye. She brought her hands together, and the souls began to merge, forming a single, towering beam of brightness. A sword of souls that only she could wield.
Finally Elissa snapped her eye open, the Maker directly in her sight. The Maker glared back at her, gathering pools of brilliance in His own palms. They stretched upwards, and the Maker smashed them together, forming a giant double-blade.
You cannot win! He proclaimed. The power of divine light is all-knowing, everlasting and eternal! I will crush you!
He lunged, bringing His light-blade down with all His strength. Elissa countered, swinging her own Soulblade to meet it. The pillars of light clashed, the pulses of force generated enough to tear the Black City apart and rip the crystal throne to pieces. The Maker's blade began to crack, and He cried out.
Impossible!
Elissa yelled, throwing all her weight behind the Soulblade. At least it cleaved through, scoring a deep tear from the Maker's neck down to his lower torso. Black blood fissured through, and crystals started to sprout across the wounds, freezing them in white agony. The Maker screamed, throwing His head back, and from His open mouth spilled the orbs of light He had stolen. They streaked through the heavens, coming to land beside Elissa and taking form.
"Nice one, Hero!" Hawke commended, slapping Elissa on the back. Her other friends gathered round, seemingly no worse for wear.
"Everyone, are you alright?" Elissa asked.
"Sure, still in one piece," Lahara answered, rubbing the back of her neck.
"Yes, and we are grateful for your rescue," Cassandra stated.
"And guess who else we found while we were inside that thing?" Alistair chimed, stepping aside. Behind him smirked an all-too familiar silver-blonde elf, and he waved. Elissa caught her breath.
"It seems I am getting all the chances these days," Zevran—the real Zevran—said, running a hand through his hair. "This must be my, what, fourth lucky break?" He chuckled. "Indeed, some lovely goddess must be watching over me!"
"Zevran!" Elissa broke into a broad smile, and she clasped his hand. "But I thought that the Soulsong…"
"The Maker was not quite as done with me as He claimed," Zevran explained. "While He reclaimed the power He had given me, He did not release my soul. For you see, he cannot exist in the Unseen Realm without it."
"Really?" Elissa asked.
"This realm is toxic to Him," Zevran went on, "but so long as He has possession of a soul, He can resist its corrosion. Thus, I was hoping the Soulsong would destroy me, so He too would be slain." He scratched his nose. "Alas, when have my plans ever gone the way they were meant to?"
Elissa laughed.
"I'm glad you're here," she said, patting his shoulder. Zevran nodded, slipping aside as the group surveyed the wounded Maker. "Care to help me finish things off?"
"Oh, with pleasure!" Zevran winked. "I have been His eyes and ears for long enough. Now I will return to being your blade!" He bowed, shifting into his orb form. The sphere of light sped into the Soulblade, and it flared.
"Hey, count me in, too!" Hawke said, also jumping into the blade.
"Smash his face in, Elissa!" Dorian said, following the Champion.
"We're going to forge a new future," Bethany vowed, hand in hand with Lahara. "A future of our own making, without the whims of fate sitting on our shoulders." She kissed Lahara's cheek, before they too merged with the Soulblade.
"And no god is going to take that away from us," Josephine chimed, letting herself return to light.
"This is not the Maker I believe in," Cassandra stated. "He claims His title, but shows none of His divine qualities!" She clasped her hands, ready to transform back to light, her eyes boring into the Maker. "The true Maker is above you, Old One, and I will not let you usurp His Holy name any longer!"
She raced into the Soulblade, and Alistair clenched his fist.
"Everyone deserves their second chance," he said. "Nobody gets it perfect the first time, but that doesn't mean we should be denied any attempt!"
"Yes," Leliana agreed. "We may stumble, we may falter, we may even fall off the path entirely…" She clasped her fist to her chest. "But every step we take is our own, and there are always those beside us who will guide us back!"
The pair leapt into the Soulblade together, and it burned brighter than ever. Elissa took the blade in both hands, before she began a steady walk towards the Maker. His weapon broken, His wounds corrupted, He retreated, terrified by the weapon that would be His undoing. The darkness of Corruption was already seeping over Him, rotting His armour and oozing into His skin. The crystals sprouted further, a parasite taking over, and the Maker winced and hissed, like an Archdemon in its death throes.
This…cannot…it cannot be…that light…greater…than…God's?!
"Know this, Maker!" Elissa raised her Soulblade, focusing into a single, final attack. The blade vibrated, channelling each souls' thought and desire into unified purpose. "It wasn't just me who defeated you. Every soul, living and dead, fought for their right to be reborn. And they will not let you take that away from them!"
She swung the blade, and the Maker shrieked like nothing Elissa had ever heard. The Soulblade cleaved right through Him, shattering the remains of His armour, tearing His face and severing His limbs. From the wound the crystals flourished, spreading like wildfire inside Him and decimating all they touched. The Maker writhed, trying to pull the pieces out, but they were too many, seeping too deeply.
No, no…NO!
At last a giant shard erupted through His chest and back; the stake of death. The brilliant azure faded from His eyes, and His body collapsed into the Black City. The spire crumbled, and the ground fell apart, swallowing His form into the depths. The buildings, structures and roads all sank on top, until all that remained was the stump of the crystal throne, tarnished and broken.
Elissa let out her breath, lowering her Soulblade.
"It's done." She released her weapon, and the souls dispersed, freed from their single purpose. She watched them float freely, before turning her attention to the new world. It had edged closer, and now loomed over the city ruins like an enormous moon. Elissa studied its colour and form, marvelling at its creation. Now, there was no more threat. Their future home was protected, ready to prosper without the brooding of a jealous god. The thought brought back her smile, and more orbs streamed to her, dancing in excitement.
"Congrats, Hero, you did it!" Hawke grinned, hooking an arm around Elissa's shoulders.
"I knew you could beat him, sis!" Bethany said, throwing her arms around Elissa.
"Was there ever any doubt?" Lahara asked, chuckling and punching Elissa's shoulder.
Elissa laughed, swarmed by the embraces of her friends. Their love and happiness at victory radiated into her, and her heart swelled.
"It wasn't only me," Elissa countered. "We all did it together. So thank you all."
"A team still needs a good leader to see things through," Josephine smiled. "Well done."
"Or to put it in simple terms, Etro one, Maker zero," Dorian stated.
"A score I have long wanted to see settled," Zevran said. "I was not disappointed!"
"That was amazing!" Alistair proclaimed, punching a fist into the air. "I thought taking out an Archdemon would be the highlight of my life, but destroying God himself?!"
"Not the God we believe in," Cassandra reminded. "I still believe He exists, out of our reach and understanding. But I am content knowing no other being shall soil His name."
"Indeed," Leliana answered. "Now, we are free."
Elissa nodded, her smile turning bittersweet. Stepping back, she walked to the crystal throne, laying her hand upon it. Even though the crystal was scarred and damaged, it remained full of life. The shards lit up, warm and inviting, before becoming a streak of brilliance. It shot to the new word, leaving a light trail in its wake.
"It's time," Elissa stated. "The new world awaits."
"Awesome!" Hawke held her breath, making a tentative step onto the path of brilliance. She turned back, offering her hand. "So, who's coming with?"
"Always in such a rush, Amber," Bethany chided, taking her sister's hand. "Lara?"
"I didn't help bring down a god to go last!" Lahara replied, taking Bethany's other palm. "Let's go!"
They began walking down the path. Soon their forms turned into light, and they hurtled towards the new world like shooting stars.
"It's going to be incredible," Josephine said, following suit. "Thank you for all you've done, Elissa. I will pray for your everlasting peace."
"As will I," Cassandra said. "It has been an honour, Elissa."
Both she and Josephine faded into the path, and it wasn't long before the other souls started to join them. The first few were hesitant, but once they touched the path, they blazed forward. Then the flood began, illuminating the cosmos in a beautiful sea of shinning brilliance.
"Truly amazing," Zevran breathed. "I thought I had seen quite the sights in my life, but this…"
"Come now, there's much more to get mushy-eyed over," Dorian said, giving Zevran a light push. "We have a new world waiting!"
"And I cannot wait to see what lovely delights it will hold," Zevran said. "Elissa, I am forever grateful for this. It is a chance I do not deserve, but…"
"It wasn't your fault what the Maker made you do," Elissa interrupted. "Go, enjoy your new life."
"I intend too," Zevran smirked. "Peace be with you, old friend."
He and Dorian stepped onto the path, soon engulfed into the slipstream of light.
"Wow…" Alistair breathed, watching the cluster of souls flow towards the new world. "We really made it, huh?"
"We did," Elissa said squeezing his shoulder. "The future's all yours, Alistair."
"Thanks to you," Alistair smiled. "I'll make you proud, I promise."
He strode onto the path, fading into light. The last of the souls went with him, leaving the Black City empty. As Elissa looked on, warm hands grasped hers, and she was brought face to face with Leliana.
"We are going as well, yes?"
Elissa smiled sadly.
"It's for you alone, Leliana."
"What?" Leliana held Elissa's hands tighter. "This was not part of the deal!"
"Nor was you still being here," Elissa countered. "My love, I have to stay here. Someone has to renew the soul cycle, so a new plague of Corruption doesn't destroy the world again." She glanced to the debris-filled chasm. "And I have to make sure He never comes back."
"No…" Leliana's eyes filled with tears. "Then I will not leave this place!"
"Leliana…" Elissa held her cheek. "You can't stay. This isn't your place. You have a new life waiting for you, with none of the pains of the past to hold you back."
"None of it is worth losing you!" Leliana wrapped her arms around Elissa, holding tight enough to hurt. "I love you." Her body trembled. "I can't…I won't…"
"You'll find new love," Elissa insisted. "And I won't ever forget you."
"But you'll be all alone again!" Leliana wept. "It's not…fair…after all…you've…"
Elissa held the bard close, kissing her tears.
"I'll be alright, love," she whispered. "Let me go, Leliana. I want you to find happiness once more."
Leliana opened her mouth to speak, another protest on her lips, when her eyes suddenly went wide. Colour drained from her face, and she cried out in warning, pulling Elissa round. Startled, Elissa staggered, and then Leliana screamed. A spear of white had pierced her back, and wisps of her soul-light started to leak out.
"What?! Leliana!" Elissa cradled the bard as she fell into her arms, shivering and wounded. She snapped her head up, looking around for the source. She soon found it; a figure standing by the broken crystal throne, another spear in his hand.
"The soul cycle must be broken!" Solas declared, raising his weapon. "I will not have you deny my people their chance again!"
"Solas!" Elissa bellowed his name, letting Leliana rest on the ground. She summoned her Corruption broadsword, every vein seething. "I'll kill you!"
She charged with the force of a bull seeing red. Solas aimed another spear, drawing more from the crystal throne. Elissa tore through them all, before she slammed her blade into his face. Solas groaned, but Elissa didn't let up. She rammed him against the throne, merciless, holding him by the throat.
"You bastard," she hissed, closing her fingers tighter and tighter. "You murdered an innocent and for what?!"
"For…my…people…" Solas choked, his hands on Elissa's wrist. "Humans…destroyed…everything! They don't…deserve another…chance…"
He dug his nails into Elissa's skin, and red light burned from his fingers. Elissa flinched, her grip loosened, and it was enough for Solas to knock her away. He glared at her, pulling out another spear.
"You are all violent war-mongers!" he spat. "Our people were in perfect harmony before the Tevinter invaded! Filling their minds with greed and lust and power…I won't have the cycle repeat again!"
Elissa wasn't listening. Instead she morphed her broadsword into a long dagger, her eye intent on the perfect place to strike. However, as she made to charge, as Solas made to throw his spear, a dark shadow descended. It spread over Solas, and he cried out, trying to force it away.
"Mythal…what…are you doing?!" Solas writhed, arching his back. "You promised…you'd…aaghhh!"
His form shifted, changing shape. In moments his body had been replaced by a silver-haired woman's, her face lined with deep wrinkles. Frowning, she held out her hand, where a white orb now sat, agitated.
"I think that's quite enough of that, Dread Wolf," Flemeth said, tossing the orb onto the light path. The soul swiftly fled, scattering to the new world. "Dear Etro, I am sorry."
Elissa blinked. For the longest moment she stood there, frozen in confusion, until it was eclipsed by panic. Breathing fast, she rushed to Leliana, pulling her into her lap. The bard's eyes were closed, her breaths shallow as more of her soul spirit leaked from her wound.
"This was not how it was meant to be," Flemeth said, stepping to Elissa's side.
"What can I do?" Elissa's eye streamed with tears. "What can I do?!"
"Hush, Etro," Flemeth soothed, "for there is still a way you can save her."
"Tell me!" Elissa grabbed Flemeth's wrist. "Tell me right now!"
"You will have to repair her soul with your own," Flemeth said. "The piece of you that she holds can heal, but it will need help. Alas, there is a price for doing so."
"I don't care!" Elissa shouted. "Whatever it takes, I'll…"
"My dear, it will abolish your powers, and condemn the new world to the fate of poor Thedas once more," Flemeth explained. "This was what the Maker planned upon. He wanted Leliana to die so your power would never be whole, so you could never challenge Him. That was why He tainted the Soulsong." She gently touched Elissa's shoulder. "But if you entrust your power to me, you can share your soul and be with her."
Elissa shivered.
"Why…" she uttered, "why should I trust you…when you let him hurt her…"
"T'was a risk I was forced to take," Flemeth said. "For you see, like the Maker, I cannot exist in this Realm without a soul, and Solas was the only one willing." She closed her eyes. "Long before I was Flemeth, and long, long before I was even Mythal, I was something else. While Etro guided the souls of the dead and the Maker created the world, there was another god whose task was to keep balance. I was that Old One, and in my wish to help Etro, I condemned her to her fate." She sighed. "I was as much to blame for her death as the Maker was. For Etro was lonely, and her desperation let the Maker take advantage of the both of us." She shook her head. "You carry that same fear, child. It breaks your heart now as it did hers all those eons ago. So let me take that burden away. I failed Etro once, but not this time. Let me atone for my mistake, and you can be with the one you love, and live with the souls you so cherish."
Elissa lifted Leliana closer, brushing their cheeks together. The bard's breaths were slowing. She didn't have much time to make her choice. And while she had been preparing to take on the burden of the goddess of death, even now there remained a part of her still reluctant. The Maker had offered her false paradise, an illusion of happiness…but while her mind told her to also reject Flemeth's offer, after all the lies and tricks and pain, her heart felt otherwise. There was a deep sincerity to Flemeth's words that she couldn't explain—an apology thousands of years in the making.
And she was going to trust in it.
"…I'll do it." She lowered Leliana slightly, kissed her forehead. "I'll give you my power, and you can oversee the dead. I can only pray I won't regret it."
"I vow you will not," Flemeth said. "I am tired of living amongst fearful mortals, my existence channelled through pain and suffering. But the dead need a protector, to let life flourish as it was meant to. And this will be my atonement."
She reached out, and Elissa joined her hands with the woman's. A blue light passed between them, and Elissa felt the flower in her eye shrivel and decay. Instead a new seed sprouted in Flemeth's eye, blossoming into its black and white petals.
"Thank you, Etro," Flemeth said. "Now heal your love."
Elissa pulled Leliana close, kissing her deep. Leliana managed to respond, and the light stopped leaking from her chest. Her breaths returned to normal, though her eyes remained closed. Relieved, Elissa picked up the bard, cuddling her against her chest as she rose to her feet. She turned to the path of light, a strange sense of completeness washing over her. She exchanged a final knowing nod with Flemeth, before she strode onto the brightness. Warmth flushed over her, and she smiled.
"I'll never forget you, Leliana." She kissed the bard's forehead, then began walking, both of their forms starting to fade away. "I'll search the ends of the new world, find you and fall in love with you all over again. I swear it."
She held Leliana tight, before her body faded into light.
Had she watched more closely, she would've noticed the smile spreading on Leliana's lips, before she too disappeared.