The Daughter of Tethras
Disclaimer: Don't own Dragon Age
A/N: Because I want you to speculate, and I want to remember this, here is a future quote from Cole: "Two flames burn hot in a heart hung by guilt. One he has snuffed and one that has opened his eyes. He is not worthy to hold either, and he knows it."
Chapter 26 (Thrown Away Like Waste)
The ground shook beneath her like that of a violent earthquake, and a distant roar beckoned her to wake. Every bone in her body ached and every muscle on her body felt like it was on fire.
Bianca's eyelids rolled apart and she stared up at a dark sky and purple clouds while groaning. "Where am I?" She moved her fingers first and hummed as warm sand squished between her fingers and fell along her hands. She rolled onto her side and blinked several times, splashing the moisture in her eyes out onto the ground.
She tried to listen to her surroundings, but all she could hear was the wind whistling in her ear. When she tried to breathe, she got a mouthful of hot sand that swept across her dry tongue and down her throat. She reeled back, coughing violently and wiping her mouth with her arms.
"God." Her eyes adjusted and she looked down her body, seeing nothing but the garments she typically wore beneath her armor. Her axe was also nowhere to be found. "What…"
The image of her mother grabbing the axe flashed before her mind, and with it came a throbbing sensation in the side of her head. "No." She rubbed her eyes, cringing as sand glued itself to her tear stained cheeks. "Where the hell am I?"
She pushed herself onto her hands and knees, groaning as another jolt of searing pain shot through her body. "H-Help." She wanted to call out, but her throat felt so constricted that she was certain she wouldn't be able to shout.
As she raised her head up, all she could see was dark sand that stretched out as far as the hills could see. "Am I in a desert? She abandoned me in a desert?" Bianca forced herself to stand, nearly falling over in the process. She raised her hand over her eyes and looked out. "Is anyone out there? Anybody?"
She held her arms over her stomach, breathing heavily as she took a shaky step forward. "Alone. I'm alone in the middle of nowhere." She continued to move forward and tried to fight back the tears forming from the pain still in her body; it was the worst pain she'd felt since the last attack she suffered from the Carta.
She must have woken at some point of time after Davri took her from Skyhold, but whatever happened between then and wherever she was now, she couldn't remember.
There was a shrill hiss behind her, followed by what looked like green vomit flying past her. She turned to look and saw a long and pale reptilian creature with a wide face and pointed tail staring her down.
"Shit." Fear gripped her and a rush of adrenaline burst through her body as the creature charged for her. "Stay back!" She surged forward, running as fast as she could. There wasn't any chance she could fight the creature bare handed and survive, but when she glanced back, the creature was fast on her heels. "No, no, no."
The creature reared its head back and jerked it forward, spitting another burst of green slime at her. Bianca shrieked and rolled to the right to dodge it. She landed on her back and looked up to see the creature upon her.
Her left hand surged, generating what felt like a spike through her hand. Remembering the anchor, she raised her hand and created a small rift that sucked the creature away within seconds.
She started panting heavily, staring at where the creature was with wide eyes. Her clothing was drenched in drool and it smelled of old flesh. "There's no way in hell I'm getting out of this desert." She heard a voice nearby and jumped up excitedly.
To her surprise a random Chantry sister was walking by, uttering the chant. "Hey!" She waved her hand in the air, but the sister didn't respond. Bianca called out again, but the woman disappeared over a hill. "Oh come on." She ran up the hill, practically climbing with her hands to reach the top. "I know you can hea…" Her voice trailed off when she saw the view below.
Once again there was nothing but rolling hills of sand and rocks that went farther than she was expecting. The Chantry sister was gone like a whisper in the wind. "Please." She let out a whimper and shivered as a rush of wind blew past her." She looked to the sky and screamed out in anger. "You could have given me a fighting chance, Mother! Leave me with a sword, a knife, anything."
Another roar echoed from the distance, sending a shiver down her spine. She hugged herself and limped forward. "Alone. Always alone. No one can hear me scream out here." She raised her head and took a deep breath. "Dad'll come looking. Dad and Cassandra, Solas too. They'll come looking."
She was tempted to sit, but terrified that if she sat down she'd die in the sand. "No." She narrowed her eyes and scanned the horizon and the field of sand below. "I have to keep moving. I have to find my way somewhere."
That's when she saw it. In the middle of the ocean of sand was a pointed rock formation that appeared to be flickering with yellow light. "Fire?" Her eyebrows rose and her mouth opened wide. "A campfire? Campfire means people. People means I can get out of this place!"
She bolted as fast as she could down the hill, nearly falling over and rolling in the process. When she reached the rock, her excitement vanished away and her heart dropped to her stomach.
It was just a lantern near an empty tent and empty bench. Making matters worse, there was a dead and decaying body positioned directly before the tent. "Oh god. I'm going to die out here." She sat on the bench and buried her head into her hands.
Her eyes were too dry for tears, so rather than waste time trying to cry, she forced herself to stand and look around. "I can't give up. I have to look for something. Anything." She walked around the rock formation and spotted a strange sloped rock jutting out from the ground and pointing horizontally at the structure. "Maybe I can get a clearer view from here."
She climbed to the tip and started to look around. In the distance were two tall rock formations that towered over the horizon. The tops resembled clouds frozen in time. Figuring she came from that direction, she opted to go another route.
Making her way to the top of another hill for yet another large landscape, she was able to see another rock structure in the distance with a firelight. "May as well." She hurried to the rock, disappointed but not surprised to find another empty space. "There aren't even any weapons here. What the hell."
Bianca continued to run, no longer feeling any pain in her limbs due to the fear that overpowered it. Eventually she came across a Dwarven statue that caught her attention, but with it were a group of Venatori that were inspecting it.
She yelped in surprise when she came to a stop, then threw her hands over her mouth. It was a group of three Venatori, one wielding a staff and a book while the other two wielded swords. She looked for a hiding place to throw herself into, but there wasn't any.
"Traveler." The mage spoke with an aggressive voice, hiding a growl beneath it. "Do you know who you interrupt?" She held her breath and shook her head, praying they wouldn't attack her while she was unarmed. "Identify yourself."
"Just a lost soul." The mage chuckled as the two warriors started to approach her. "Venatori, can you see the glow on her hand?" Her blood ran cold and a paralyzing fear shot through her body. "She bears the anchor. Venatori, it is the Inquisitor. Defenseless! Corypheus wishes her head. Destroy her."
She studied the greatsword in the hand of the Venatori without the shield and was struck with an idea to retrieve the blade. She had to get it somehow, to defend herself.
"You won't touch me." She lunged for the Venatori, reaching out and grabbing for the Warrior's wrist. The mage shouted a chant and her body froze on the spot. She ground her teeth and grunted as she tried in vain to move. The warrior backed away from her and the mage glared with wild eyes.
"So long we've been in this desert." The mage approached her, encircling her and scanning her with his revolting gaze. "How long has it been since we've seen a woman without armor? And the gods would send us Andraste's Herald?" Her eyes grew and once more she tried in vain to move her paralyzed arms.
The mage reached for her face, caressing her chin as a sickening smirk formed at his lips. She tried to pull her head away. "Before we kill her, Venatori, what do you saw we treat ourselves-" A loud swishing noise interrupted him and a pained grunt followed. The mage turned his head and Bianca saw the two handed warrior drop.
A dagger was embedded deep into the back of his skull. The second warrior that held a shield covered his front and began looking around when a figure appeared behind him.
The figure cut low with his dagger, slashing the Venatori in the lower right leg. The shield holder screamed out in pain and dropped towards the ground. The mage scowled and broke his hold on Bianca, allowing her to sweep the broadsword off the ground and point it to the enemy.
"Stay the hell away from me." The mage raised his hand and with a mighty shout, he summoned a ring of fire beneath her. Realizing she was still without decent armor, she jumped out of the way before it exploded.
"Sorry." The mage lurched forward as the tip of a dagger exploded from his chest. "I don't think my girlfriend would be happy if I let you kill the Inquisitor." Bianca squinted while trying to contemplate the familiar voice. When she looked for the person behind the mage, she saw a dwarf. As his deep and aggressive tone processed in her mind, her heart began to fill with horror.
"No." Her hands began to shake and she stepped back, muttering under her breath. "It can't be. No. Not you." The mage fell dead on the floor and Lantos sheathed his two daggers. Bianca's throat was too raw to scream and she was still too exhausted to run any further. "Stay back, Lantos!"
"Come with me."
"Go to hell." She would rather die out in the desert than go anywhere with him. Lantos narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms.
"I am the one chance you have at making it out of this desert alive." She glanced to the side and Lantos smirked. "You could take your chance against the elements, the red Templars wandering about, the Venatori, and every vicious creature here…"
The distant roar caused her to gasp and throw her head in the general direction. "Which includes that." Lantos shook his head and muttered at the noise. "I'm pretty sure it's a dragon. We may have woken it up…"
It's a bit short yes, that's because I separated this into two parts. Now because I double posted for you yesterday, I'm only able to give you this one. What are your thoughts? Do you trust Lantos? Does Bianca really have a choice right now? Also, who is the 'we' that he speaks of in the end, because it certainly can't be Bianca.