CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The walls of Adamant Fortress shook as the Inquisition laid siege. The air hung heavy with dust and smoke. Captains shouted orders to their troops; drums beat. The sky rained with arrows. Soldiers cried out.
The sharp smell of blood stung as Myra and her party fought their way through Adamant. An arrow whizzed past. A Shriek charged her. She dodged. With a whir, her Spirit Blade took form. The Shriek cried as she buried her sword deep within.
Blackwall charged in front. He raised his shield. A second Shriek scraped the metal.
The warmth of a barrier surrounded Myra. She sourced it to Solas. He threw lightning. It cracked through the Shrieks.
Myra's heart pounded. "Solas, behind you!"
Cole stabbed the oncoming Shriek. It cried out. Solas's form blurred. Fade Step, out of the way. Cole stabbed the Shriek once more. His daggers dug in.
Myra whirred her blade and finished the Shriek. "Coast clear, let's move!"
They regrouped and pushed further inside the fortress.
"Have the Wardens gone mad?" Myra awed.
"Mad with purpose," Blackwall said.
"Mad with power," Solas growled.
"They're hurting people," Cole murmured.
"We have to stop them," Myra said.
She kicked open the door.
"Inquisition!" cried a Warden.
Perhaps they can be reasoned with.
"We do not wish to fight, only to stop Clarel!" Myra called to them. "Please, get to shelter!"
"Myra?!"
Her heart stopped. A senior Warden clamored towards the group. Solas drew his staff but Cole lowered it.
It was the voice that spoke of summer days and lost love. He removed his helm.
"Myra, it's me! Wardens, at ease!"
Stroud looked between the two. "You…know each other?"
Darrell ran and swept her up in his arms, spinning her around. Even when buzzed short, his hair still shone bright as a flame. That bulbous nose, those crooked teeth, oh, how she'd missed it all.
"Darrell!" Myra hugged him back. "Is it really you?"
"Is it really you? You look, so much…older. No, it has to be you," he pushed a matted hair from her eyes, "I couldn't forget this face."
"Not to interrupt the happy reunion," Blackwall said, "but…"
"We need to get to Warden-Commander Clarel." Myra looked into Darrell's bright eyes. "Do you know where she is?"
"She's with Erimond, preparing for the ritual."
"Ritual?" Stroud said.
"We have to stop them!" Solas cried.
Darrell grabbed Myra's arms. "I'll go with you."
"No, Darrell, please," she tried to push him away, "take shelter with your troops until the fighting's over."
"If you think I'm leaving you again…" Darrell said.
"I can't lose you again…" Myra said.
"I'm not leaving you."
"Inquisitor…" Stroud said. She looked back. He motioned her onward.
"Fine," Myra said.
Darrell smiled, then turned back to his troops. "Wardens, find shelter until I return!"
"Yes, ser!"
Myra and Darrell led the party onward. They reached the battlements. A trebuchet hit mere feet in front of them. Darrell held Myra steady.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm fine," she said. Looking into those eyes through his helm made her fall in love all over again.
"Our soldiers can't get through!" Stroud said.
"Clear the area around the ladders!" Blackwall said.
Her party made quick work clearing the first ladder, but the second one proved more difficult.
A Pride Demon stomped through the battlements. It grabbed an Inquisition soldier and threw them off.
"Solas, Stroud, help the soldiers!" Myra cried. She cast a barrier. "The rest, cover me, I'm going in!"
"Myra, wait!" Solas started to yell, but she'd already charged in. "Fenedhis lasa!'
Myra's Spirit Blade whirred to life. She leapt and stabbed. The creature reeled back in pain. Myra held on tight as it shook. When she didn't dislodge, it reached behind her. Myra uncast her Blade and fell to the ground.
"Myra!" Solas cried.
Myra felt her heart stop. The demon's fist rocketed towards her. She froze.
Darrell leapt in front, shield outreached. The demon flailed once more.
"It's weak! Attack now!" Myra called.
Darrell yanked her by her collar. They ran out of reach.
Solas and Stroud struggled with two Despair Demons. She clutched her stomach, which turned to ice in recollection.
"Kill Pride, I've got a score to settle with Despair," she growled.
Darrell nodded. He knew.
In a blur, Myra Fade Stepped into combat. "Solas, dispel the left. I'll take right!"
The demons' barriers fell, Cole backstabbed one, Stroud jabbed the other. Myra and Solas cast Chain Lightning. The demons froze in paralysis.
Finally, the demons fell.
"We must hurry," Solas cried. "Our soldiers cannot withstand the demons for long!"
"Myra!" Hawke ran to them. "Thank the Maker you're here!"
"Hawke," Myra said. "Help the soldiers, we're going after Clarel."
"I'm on it! I'll catch up to you!"
They reached Clarel, Erimond, and the remaining Wardens just before they began the ritual.
"Clarel, don't do this. Don't fall for Erimond's trap!" Myra called out.
"What trap?" Erimond cried. "Fighting the Blight? Do not keep the Wardens from their duty!"
"Binding mages to Corypheus?" Stroud said.
Clarel stepped back. "But…Corypheus is dead…"
"Do not waver now," Erimond growled. "We are so close."
"Please," Myra said. "The Wardens have a proud history. You have fought the Blight, sacrificed yourselves to save the people, time and time again."
Solas scoffed, but Darrell grabbed her hand and held it tight.
Myra pulled Darrell closer to her. "I am intimately tied to the Grey Wardens. I would not oppose you if I did not believe you were being misused!"
Clarel stood silent for a moment.
Erimond looked positively furious. "Clarel…"
Her voice trembled as she spoke, as though awakening from a terrible nightmare. "Perhaps we can test the validity of these claims."
"You bitch." Erimond began the ritual himself, pulling a Pride Demon from a massive Fade Rift. "My master prepared for this."
Clarel's face turned bright red in anger. "Bastard, you've been using us this whole time!" She shocked him with a blast of lightning.
Myra grinned, only for her jaw to drop.
The fortress shook as an enormous black dragon landed atop a nearby tower. Its scales shone black as smoke. It breathed foul energy, blasting bright red between Clarel and Erimond. Suddenly, lightning crackled through its massive form. Clarel had shocked it, but the dragon merely shook off what seemed little more than a nuisance.
Erimond bolted away. Clarel charged after him.
"Clarel!" Myra cried.
"After her!" Hawke said.
The pursuit began. Shrieks and Terrors gasped at them. They sidestepped. They parried. They shook them off. Myra wheezed. Sheer willpower kept her going at full-speed.
The dragon joined in pursuit. It stuck its head in after them and blasted foul, red energy.
"Columns!" Blackwall called. He tugged Myra back with him. Myra trembled.
She heard its huge wings take to the skies, felt the fortress sigh as the dragon disappeared.
Everyone breathed for a moment.
"Let's move!" Myra said.
The pursuit continued. Myra took the steps two at a time, shoving past soldiers and demons alike, her party following in suit. Finally, she caught sight of them.
Clarel had cornered Erimond on a broken bridge.
"You!" She shot fire. "You corrupted the Grey Wardens!"
He writhed in pain. Then, he laughed. "All I had to do was dangle a little power in front of you and you were eager to get your hands bloody."
Clarel snarled. She ripped energy across the Veil and shot. It pushed him further to the edge of the bridge. She threw every spell Myra knew and more at him, each blast pushing him closer and closer to that immense drop. He cried and begged for his master's aid. He laughed and choked.
Finally, just as she went to kick him off the edge, the dragon swooped down and snatched her into its gaping jaws. Blood spurted about. Myra closed her eyes, heard the thump of Clarel's surely lifeless body. No…
"Myra!" Darrell grabbed her hand and yanked her. They ran. The dragon circled overhead. She could hear the flapping of its massive wings.
"In war, victory…"
Myra heard Clarel's feeble voice as she passed.
"In peace, vigilance…"
She looked back as she ran. Started to turn. Started towards her…
In death, sacrifice.
An enormous energy shot from Clarel's fingertips, straight into the dragon. It tumbled down from the sky and landed on top of her. The bridge shivered, then began to crumble.
Myra took off running once more. Everyone was leagues ahead of her. Her legs were so tired, her heart pounded in her chest. All she could see was the other side of the bridge.
Then, she felt it…falling…
She looked upwards at the sky, saw her companions begin to fall into the cavernous depths beneath the fortress. Surely, the fall would kill them.
No. Not yet.
She wasn't sure what voice spoke in her mind, only that she should listen. She twisted in the air, facing the ground, and with a last burst of energy, summoned a Fade Rift beneath them.
She watched the green energy crackle beneath them, then she clenched her eyes shut.
Please, please, open…
She felt her falling slow, the world turned upside down, and then…
Thump!
The companions landed into the Fade.
"The stories say you walked out of the Fade at Haven," Hawke said. "Was it like this?"
"I...don't know…I still can't remember," Myra said. It had been so long since someone had asked her to remember the events at the Conclave. The gaping hole in her memory continued to scare her.
"Well, whatever happened at Haven, we can't assume we're safe now," Hawke said.
"In our world, the Rift the demons came through was nearby, in the main hall. Can we escape the same way?" Stroud asked.
Myra spotted the Rift he spoke of on the horizon. "Only one way to find out."
Myra began to lead them. Darrell kept close by. "Is this what the Fade looks like? You know, when you dream?"
"It varies depending on your location," Solas answered, walking between the two. "This is not the area I would have chosen, of course, but to physically walk within the Fade…" He sighed. "This is fascinating."
"Just don't be distracted by your studies. The Fade is still a dangerous place," Blackwall said.
Solas's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Thank you for the warning."
Myra snickered. "Solas, you're the expert on this place," Myra said. "Anything helpful?"
He looked to her and smiled. "The Fade is shaped by intent and emotion. Remain focused and it will lead you where you want to go." He closed his eyes as he walked, as if tuning into the energies surrounding them. "The demon that controls this area is extremely powerful. Some variety of Fear, I would guess. I suggest you remain wary of its manipulations and prepare yourself for what is certain to be a fascinating experience."
Myra shivered a bit in pleasure. Darrell looked between the two of them. Myra cleared her throat.
They pushed further ahead through the strange twists and turns of the Fade. The area they explored seemed to have a ghastly green glow to it and was cave-like with the slimy rocks that lined the paths.
Myra led her party up the stairs only to be greeted with a jaw-dropping sight.
"By the Maker, could that be…?" Stroud said.
An old, Orlesian woman stood before them, dressed in the Divine's garbs. "I greet you Warden," she said. "And you, Champion."
"Divine Justinia?" Myra said.
She smiled.
"From the little I remember of what happened at Haven, I…thought you were dead," Myra said.
"You think my survival impossible," the Divine said. "Yet here you stand alive in the Fade yourselves. In truth, proving my existence either way would require time we do not have." Her eyes twinkled. "I am here to help you. You do not remember what happened at the Temple of Sacred Ashes, Inquisitor."
"No, I don't," Myra said.
"The memories that you lost were stolen by a demon that serves Corypheus. It is the Nightmare that you forget upon waking…It feeds off memories of fear and darkness, growing fat upon the terror. The false calling that terrified the Wardens into making such mistakes? Its work. This place of darkness is its lair."
"Can you help us get out of the Fade?" Myra asked.
"That is why I found you. Before you left the Rift at Haven, the demon took your memories. I have them here, for you, Inquisitor."
She outstretched her hand for Myra to come closer. Myra looked to Solas. He nodded and ushered her on.
Myra touched the Divine's hand. She cried out in pain. Her head ached, felt as though it might explode.
She saw the Warden mages holding the Divine hostage, Corypheus holding the orb towards the Divine, stealing her energy. She saw herself kick the door down to the room. "What's going on here?!" The Divine smacked the orb from the magister's grasp. Myra caught it as it rolled towards her. It seared into her flesh. She screamed as a Fade Rift consumed them.
Then, they were running, her and the Divine. They climbed to the top of a mountain to reach the Fade Rift, Fear Demons chased them. Myra reached for the Divine's hand, but the Divine was just out of reach. Finally, Justinia drew back. "Go, warn them!"
Myra shook her head. "I'm sorry," and jumped through the Rift.
…
Someone drew their sword. "What did you do to her?" Darrell cried.
Solas's voice. "Peace, Warden, she lives."
Cole spoke. "She is helping. Let her help."
"She's waking up!" Hawke cried.
Myra struggled to sit up. Solas gently lifted her to her feet. "Are you alright, vhenan?"
She had doubled over. Her head still ached.
"Yes, I'm fine." She stood with his help.
"Vhenan…" Darrell said. "You used to call me that." His features depressed. "I guess I couldn't expect you to wait forever."
Myra frowned. "Darrell, I…" But what could she say? No, she couldn't wait forever. Grey Wardens rarely return to previous lovers.
"So the Mark wasn't from Andraste, but from the Anchor," Stroud said.
"Corypheus intended to rip open the Veil, use the Anchor to enter the Fade, and throw open the doors of the Black City," the Divine said. "Not for the Old Gods, but for himself. When you disrupted his plan, the Orb bestowed the anchor upon you instead."
"I never thought this was Andraste's doing," Myra said. "I did this myself, through my actions."
"And now you can be certain," the Divine said. "I will prepare the way ahead." She disappeared.
"So…we have a visitor…" A deep voice rumbled through the rocks.
"You must get to the Fade Rift and slam it closed with all your strength!" The Divine said as she led them onward.
They came to a final clearing, where a tall, monstrous creature with spider legs protruding from its back stood, waiting for them. Its spider legs twitched and swayed as it spoke. An enormous, spider-like creature stared down at them from above. "Some silly little girl comes to steal the Fear I kindly lifted from her shoulders…" The persona of the Nightmare laughed. The spider legs writhed with his laughter. "You think the pain will make you stronger? Who filled your head with such dribble?"
It started towards them. She drew her staff.
"Do you truly think he'll stay with you?" the demon whispered. "He's going to leave you, just like Trewyn. Just like Darrell. He'll never come back. You will be alone."
"Quiet!" Myra cried.
"Do not let it shake you," Solas said. "Do not give it power. Fight it."
Myra bit her lip hard, then spit at the Nightmare. "Darrell came back, and I'll return to Trewynn in the Beyond. Solas is beside me. I am not alone!"
It cackled. "You will be soon."
The fight began. It danced around the party, summoning its minions to do its dirty work, but Myra, fueled by rage, had none of it. She followed its dance around the battlefield and sliced with her Spirit Blade, chipping away at its strength.
When it finally crumbled, Myra and her party started for the Rift. The spider-like monster, the Nightmare itself, began to chase them.
"Someone needs to buy us time," Hawke said.
"A Warden created this mess, a Warden should fix it," Stroud said.
"A Warden needs to fix it on the other side of that Rift. Corypheus is my responsibility!"
"I'll do it."
Myra looked to see Darrell standing behind her.
"Darrell, no…"
"We don't have time to argue, Myra," he said.
Myra shook her head. "No, Darrell, you can't."
"Get to the Fade Rift. I'll cover your escape."
"Darrell, no! I love you!" Myra said. The tears fell all too readily. She wiped at them furiously. "Please don't go. Please don't leave me again, I can't…"
He took off his helm, threw it, and kissed her. Kissed her to stop her from arguing. Kissed her one last time.
"Go."
"No!"
He motioned to someone behind her.
"You heard the man, he said 'Go!'" Blackwall picked her up and heaved her over his shoulder.
"Darrell, no!" Myra cried. She kicked, screamed, pounded at his back, but it was too late. Blackwall dragged her through the Fade Rift as she screamed her lost-love's name.
Darrell gave her one last look before he disappeared from view entirely.