Chapter 65: Escape
Something tickles at the fringes of my awareness. What is that? Loud voices, raised in anger...familiar voices. My brothers. Brothers, as in more than one. Something is off about that.
My eyes open to an unfamiliar darkness. Where am I? My vision quickly adjust to the dim lighting and I recognize that I'm still in Lucis's room. I remember trying to get the rings, and our fight, and finally his sleep spells. I should have anticipated that trick, been ready for it.
"I already told you, Tenebris, Ferox is not well," Lucis explains, his muffled voice sounding from the hallway. Tenebris!
"Then what happened to the Well, you bastard?!" Tenebris accuses.
"Lucis has explained that it was an accident," Etiam states, and I realize that he has returned, as well.
"Let me see her for myself!" Tenebris insists. "Let me check on her, and if it is as you say, I'll go."
I swing my legs over the side of the bed and move to stand up. How long have I been out this time? I get to my feet, but feel the dizziness rising, and my stomach gives a lurch. I barely make it to the chamber pot before vomiting. Once my stomach is emptied, a feel a little better, but I still feel shaky.
"Open the damned door, Lucis. Or I'm going through you."
I try to call out to Tenebris, but my voice is raspy from being ill just now, and I doubt that he could hear it. I stumble more than walk to the door and put my hand on the knob to open it. The light from the hallway spills into the room, blinding me for a moment until my eyes adjust again, and I lean on the door frame for support.
Lucis turns to look as the door opens behind him, and grimaces when he sees my expression. Tenebris's face is much softer, eyeing me with concern.
"Are you alright, imp?" Tenebris asks.
I shake my head slowly, not wanting to stir up the nausea or dizziness again. I take a few steps toward him, but my legs wobble underneath me and I sink to my knees instead. Damn this weakness to the Void. Is this because of Lucis's sleep spell?
"I told you she isn't up to visitors," Lucis says, and bends to scoop me up again. I croak a protest, but he's already murmuring to me, "Don't try to speak yet; I promise we can talk later, just sleep, Sister."
My eyes flick to Tenebris, unable to make myself understood, but I already feel the warm pull of Lucis's spell. Damn it, no!
"What's wrong with her?" Etiam asks.
"She used the ring a fifth time and it nearly killed her," Lucis explains. "Let me get her settled and we'll discuss it."
Etiam comes into the room with Lucis, with Tenebris standing in the doorway. Both of my other brothers seem at a loss as to what to do. Lucis tucks me back into bed, and I do my best to glare at him through the power of the spell. He mouths the words "I'm sorry. Forgive me."
Not a chance. I already forgave you once for something I shouldn't have out of love and concern for you. This is too far.
I shake my head - well, as best I'm able, anyway - before the weariness takes over me and I close my eyes again. I'll never forgive you for this.
Tenebris is gone by the time I wake, of course, and Lucis is by my bedside, wringing his hands. I sit up, pulling the covers around me in a protective motion, waiting for him to do something again. I gather my magic to me in a barrier, prepared to fend him off if necessary. I feel none of the weakness or nausea from before, just rested.
"I'm sorry, Ferox," he says. "I know you must be angry."
"Angry doesn't even cover it. I hate you right now." I narrow my eyes.
His mouth falls open at my statement.
"How long, Lucis?"
Guilt twists his features, but he says nothing.
"Damn it, Lucis...how long did you keep me asleep for?"
"Only a few hours this time, but before...another week."
"Let me up or I swear I will burn this bed with me in it," I warn him.
He moves to let me stand, and when I get to my feet, I feel good, solid. It must only be when he's kept me under for too long. Tonight, I promise myself. I'll go to Tempestas and beg her to do the spell tonight. I can't afford to wait any longer. I try to add up the time, and realize it's been nearly three weeks since Lucis brought me here. The Well of Sorrows...did Corypheus find it already?
I take a few steps before his hand falls on my arm. I shake it off. "Don't fucking touch me," I bite out, my tone as chilly as when I embrace the cold, although I haven't. "If you try to use that spell again, Brother, you'd better be prepared for a fight."
"Ferox, I'm sorry, I just…" He recoils, taking a step backwards, worrying his lip in a sign of some deeper emotion, but Lucis's feelings aren't my problem right now. My walls of anger are firmly up around me, and I decide to leave them there. I don't need our twin connection confusing things for me.
I start walking toward the door, turning one last time. "Stay away from me." I slam the door open, enjoying the sound of it crashing against the wall, and take the short walk to my own bedroom.
Closing and locking the door behind me, however, that confidence is broken and a sob escapes me. How could he have done that to me? My own brother…
The tears end after a minute or two, and anger settles back in. It's easier to deal with the rage than to face my sadness at the betrayal. Etiam I could understand. Wanting to free spirits from the Fade, having Fen'Harel's friendship back...those motivations make sense, I suppose. Hm, I wonder if I could convince Etiam? Etiam looks at the world in analytical terms, weighing the probabilities of success. He'd seemed genuinely surprised at my illness, which makes me believe that he has no idea that Lucis has been using magic to keep me asleep. I don't want to risk my window of opportunity, though. Approaching Etiam, if it doesn't work, will give me away.
Getting to the ring is an impossibility at this point. I'm sure Lucis has moved it by now, and would never give me the luxury of searching again. No, if I'm getting out of here, there's only one way: the dragons. I feel a little better about the idea, trusting the generals more than I would trust either Lucis or Etiam at the moment - I mean, after all, I'm Dragon Girl.
I check my closet and find that the bag I had packed earlier is still there. Apparently Lucis didn't bother going through my room. I check the contents, and nothing appears to have been moved, supporting the conclusion.
I gather the spell components: six crystals, clear in color to store the energies needed, and a small pouch of sand to represent time. It's not a complicated spell, it just requires multiple types of magic and more power than one mage could summon on her own. This is going to work. I smile to myself, thinking about seeing Varric again. The idea makes me a little sad, however, knowing that he's been worried about me, and Tenebris probably reported back about my "poor health". Damn you, Lucis, you don't get to make decisions about my life that way.
I forego dinner, not wanting to even see my brothers again. Lucis knocks several times on the door, but I refuse to answer. After a while, he gives up and goes away, saying he's leaving a plate of food outside the door. Good, go away. I wait until I hear his footsteps retreat back down the hallway before I unlock the door and open it a crack. I move the plate inside, but don't eat any of the food, not trusting that my brother hasn't tampered with it.
Night falls and I sneak through the darkened corridor, holding my bag steady so as long to allow any of the objects to make noise as they bump against one another. I'm dressed in purple armor, the bright orchid color of lightning magic, with white accents and elaborate embroidery that adorn the fabric, swirling circular patterns in silver thread. It's one of my favorites, of course.
My feet, covered in soft boots, make no sound as I carefully slink down the hallway, down the stairs, and into the dragons' chamber. I light the crystal, but keep the lighting dim.
"Tempestas, I'm here, but keep it low," I whisper. "I need your help, and it needs to be tonight."
"Ferox," she greets, her voice a low rumble, but quieter than usual. "You have not visited in days, I was worried."
"More brother problems, which is why we need to wake the others and do the spell tonight," I tell her. "I can't stay here any longer."
Tempestas exhaled, the breath sounding like the rush of wind before a rainstorm. "Then I will come with you, when you go."
"Thank you, dearest friend. You don't know how happy I am to hear you say that right now."
She moved from her area, stretching her thick, powerful legs and we walked together. The others we need will be fairly far down the underground chamber. "What has Lucis done, small one?"
"Every day that I have not visited you since my return is because he has been spelling me into magical sleep to keep me from leaving the City."
Tempestas growled, "I will eat him for his insolence."
I sigh, and shake my head. "He was wrong, yes, but I think he's sick, Tempestas. He can't see a way to have a future in the world the way it is; he believes destroying it all and starting over is the only option."
"He never healed after losing his mate," Tempestas says, glancing away from me. "It was a tragedy, yes, but he allowed it to eat away the light inside of him, leaving only darkness."
"I fear you may be right," I reply, nodding my agreement. I look at the separate areas for each of the dragons, no more than a stall or pen, really, but with enough space that they can sprawl out a little and get comfortable for their long sleep. Usually only one, sometimes two of the generals are awake at any given time.
Tempestas and I stop in front of one of the pens, and I recognize the blue scales of Mirage, one of Etiam's dragons. She is the dragon of illusion, and, if she agrees, will stand in for Etiam in our ritual. Ice dragons are by nature shorter and stockier than lightning ones, and their heads are wider, but her scales shine with a pale blue light even as she sleeps. She's lovely.
I step back, and Tempestas approaches Mirage. She inhales deeply, and when she exhales, I see the shimmer of magic in her breath. "Wake, Mirage," she calls, the magic washing over the sleeping dragon. I see Mirage's breathing deepen, and a wash of cold rushes across the floor of the cavern, chilling my feet.
The sturdy dragon shakes her head, making a sound that falls between a yawn and a growl. Sleepy dragons are cute, I think, amused. "Good morning, Mirage."
"Tempestas?" she wonders, blinking at the other dragon, and I realize she's confused, having been awakened out of order. She and Tempestas probably haven't seen one another in a few hundred years, at least.
"The Stormbringer requests your assistance with a spell," Tempestas explains, and Mirage, the younger of the two, snaps to attention immediately.
"Of course, Destroyer," she says, and I smile at her reassuringly.
"Thank you, Mirage, your help is appreciated. It will also be a chance to see some of the others you haven't seen lately."
"Who else?" Mirage questions, her head tilting in curiosity.
Tempestas looks at me for the answer.
"We need Vita," I tell both of them.
"Are you certain?" Tempestas asks. "The dragon of creation is loyal to your brother; waking her could alert him."
"We need her power." I'd thought carefully about which dragons to choose. There are six types of power needed for the spell: lightning, fire, cold, spirit, life, and death. My brothers and I could have done all six ourselves, but my power to use creation magic is limited, and the dragons can only use one type each at a time. Which means I'm going to have to take Tenebris's place by using blood magic, as well as covering the fire and cold. I can't handle the life domain, too, and I need a dragon who can bring a lot of magic to the table to make this work, to compensate for me splitting my own abilities.
I still have the lyrium potion I'd had at Adamant; of course it's older now, the components likely losing some of their potency during that time. Still, it should give me a little extra boost to be able to sustain the magic long enough to complete the ritual.
The two dragons and I make our way to Vita's chamber. She's a fire dragon, and larger than Tempestas or Mirage; but special, in that the red of her flames is countered in several sections by the green glow of creation magic. The world has not seen her like since. Vita and Lucis were very close when we were younger. I wonder what their relationship has been like since Andraste. He hasn't mentioned her, not once.
Mirage does the waking this time, exhaling a pale blue cloud of magic into the chamber. Vita stirs. She raises her graceful head, and the scent of wildflowers follows her. "Twin of Lucis?" she asks groggily. "Why do you have Tempestas and Mirage with you? Is it time for the generals to return?"
"Not yet, old friend. I'm afraid I need your help with something. A magic ritual."
"Magic? Why is Lucis not with you, then?" she asks suspiciously.
I take a deep breath, the tightness returning to my chest when I think about my brother. "Vita, when is the last time you spoke with Lucis?"
She thinks it over. "Before my last sleep, it had been...three hundred years or so."
"Vita, you've been asleep for another two hundred since then. He's different...I think he's going mad."
"Then why don't you help him?" she asks, getting defensive. Maybe using Lucis's dragon wasn't the best idea.
"I tried; I took him with me, tried to give him a new purpose, tried to help him learn to love the world and humans again...but he's decided that ending and letting them all die is easier. I can't let him do that."
"No…" Vita replied. "He wishes death upon the humans? But the reason he pulled away from the world was to spare them. He loved them that much."
"I know. I held out hope that he could recover, but now he's been holding me hostage here against my will. I need your help to leave. I don't want to have to hurt him, but I can't stay here anymore. I'm going to save them all."
Tempestas turns her head toward me. "Vita, Ferox is in love."
She looks surprised. "You? Truly? You do seem different. Calmer."
"My dwarf is good for me. He's a big part of the reason I need to go back. Please help me."
Mirage steps forward. "Why did Etiam not help with Lucis?"
I sigh. "Because Etiam is on his side. They're working with the elven god, Fen'Harel."
Mirage nodded her massive head bobbing. "If your wish is only to leave, and you do not wish us to harm them, I will help you," she says.
"As will I," Vita agrees. "Though after, I will seek out Lucis for myself and determine if what you say is true."
"If you can help him, please do. I haven't been able to get through to him. I think he fears losing me, and feeling the pain of loss again like he did when Andraste died. But I'm not going to die. I'm going to win, to rise triumphant over our enemies, and save the world."
"And I will be at your side," Tempestas vowed.
"You're leaving, Tempestas? What about the Blight?" Mirage asked.
"For the Stormbringer, and the sake of her love, I will risk it."
I smile. "Thank you dearest Tempestas. Thank you all. Let's do the ritual."
The six crystals are arranged in a circle around the pile of fine, white sand. I've buried my opal ring underneath, although it makes me nervous to use something so precious for the spell. We stand in a large circle, as well, facing our respective crystals. I drink the lyrium potion and feel the light intoxicating influence rush through me. I'm ready.
"Cleansing flame, sacred fire, I call upon you," I say, allowing my fire magic to light the first crystal with an orange-red glow. I feel Toth move a little, but I ignore it. Tempestas goes next.
"Dark clouds gather, ferocity of the storm, I call up on you," she says, reciting her part of the ritual. Lightning magic illuminates her crystal, vibrant orchid in color.
It's my turn again. "Chilling cold, frozen and stoic, I call upon you," I chant, feeling the small numbing of emotions that comes along with using the cold. My crystal lights with a bright blue-white radiance, near blinding. I smile.
"Spirits of the Fade, truth and purpose, I call upon you," Mirage calls, and her crystal lights with an olive green not unlike the sky in the Fade.
"Light of creation, purity of nature, I call upon you," Vita states, her crystal glowing green-white, just as bright as my cold one had been. The faint smell of fresh grass follows.
Last one...please work. I make a small cut on my hand and let the blood drip. "Blood of my body, intent of my mind, I call upon you." The blood droplets rush forward toward the crystal, and it lights with a red light, surrounded by a black aura. So far so good. "Our hearts, minds, and spirits combine in one purpose, just as all places connect. Use our shared intent to forge the Way." A wave of magic erupts from the circle of crystals, shattering them. It blows the sand away, scattering it, revealing my ring below, glowing white. I shield my eyes against the pulsing magic, step forward, and claim it. It's cool to the touch, and I feel the power. It worked.
I slip the ring back on my finger and notice the sparkling colors underneath seem a bit brighter now. Varric. I'm coming home. I remember that when we first made them, the rings were fully charged. I don't want to assume that's the case now, but one trip should still work, even with bringing a dragon along.
"Thank you all," I say, repeating what I said before. "I couldn't have done this without your help."
"Ferox, we should be away. We will probably need to fly," Tempestas tells me.
Dragon riding. I grin, and nod emphatically. "I understand. Are you alright having a rider, then?"
In response, she lowers her leg to the side, allowing me to climb up to her neck. There's a small section right behind her head with shorter spikes. I sit right behind them, looping one leg over as though riding sidesaddle, and hold on tightly.
Footsteps sound in the chamber. "Ferox!" Lucis calls, running toward us.
"Goodbye, Brother," I say with a sad smile before giving my new ring a twist, and experience the satisfying sensation of seeing the cavern blur away.