Chapter 6:

Sylina felt sick on the night of her Harrowing as she walked up the stairs with a templar guard. He had woken her up in the middle of the night and she had almost screamed before he put his hand over her mouth. He had said, "It's time," and she had nodded and followed him. She had been expecting this. She knew apprentices were taken in the night to complete their Harrowing. She suspected it was so that they could not prepare or so that they did not know the exact day it would be held. The templar wore his helmet so she didn't know who he was. She figured this must be ritualistic since most of the templars in the tower didn't wear their helmets. It was easier for them to see and react without the hunk of metal on their head. Sylina's stomach clenched as they reached the door to the Harrowing chamber and the unknown templar opened it for her. She looked back once before climbing the stairs.

Upon entering the chamber she was surprised by the glass windows in the huge room. She suspected it was one of the biggest rooms in the tower. Most of the windows in the tower were small, but these stained glass windows encompassed the entirety of the chamber. It was rather beautiful. She saw Irving and Greagoir standing near the middle of the room and she headed toward them. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cullen standing with other templars. She suppressed a small smile, trying to hide her happiness at him being there. Her nerves were threatening to get the better of her and she was practically shaking.

Greagoir walked over to her with a stern expression. "'Magic exists to serve man, and never to rule over him,'" he quoted from the Chant of Light. Sylina almost laughed she felt so nervous. Was she here to be lectured on the Chant of Light? Greagoir continued, "Thus spoke the prophet Andraste as she cast down the Tevinter Imperium, ruled by mages who had brought the world to the edge of ruin."

Ugh, Sylina thought, this can't be happening. I have trained for a year to listen to a sermon from a man that despises me.

"Your magic is a gift, but it is also a curse, for demons of the dream realm, the Fade, are drawn to you, and seek to use you as a gateway into this world." Sylina fought back the urge to roll her eyes. Perhaps this was just part of the ceremony as hopefully every mage that made it this far knew all that already.

She turned as Irving began to speak, "The Harrowing exists to prevent that from happening, child. The ritual sends you into the Fade, and there you will face a demon, armed with only your will." He walked to her side.

Sylina was speechless for a second. She was going into the Fade! To face a demon! Was she ready for this? Irving obviously expected her to say something. She gathered the last of her courage and took a deep breath. She reassured herself that she had been trained for this her whole life and she would never let Irving down. "I have been ready for a year First Enchanter." She said hoping her voice didn't shake.

She heard Greagoir make an annoyed sound in his throat and turned to him, her green eyes flashing angrily. "Know this apprentice," he practically growled at her, "if you fail, we templars will perform our duty. You will die." His voice stayed neutral, but she wondered if he was secretly wishing for her to fail.

He pointed at a pedestal in the center of the room. "This pedestal contains lyrium: the very essence of magic and your gateway in the Fade." Sylina stared at it then looked incredulously at Greagoir. She knew mages could go into the Fade with lyrium. She should have seen this coming, but she had not.

Irving put his hand on her shoulder and she looked back at him, "We keep the Harrowing a secret out of necessity, child. Every mage before you and every mage after you will go through this trial. As we have succeeded, so shall you." He lowered his voice and whispered to her, "Keep your wits about you and remember that the Fade is a realm of dreams. The spirits may rule it, but only your own will is real."

Greagoir, seeing him whisper, raised his voice: "The apprentice must go through this test alone, First Enchanter," he said in warning. Sylina glared at the templar. He truly wished for her to fail - she saw it in his eyes.

So, she thought, he has never forgiven me for the death of his templar three years ago. Greagoir pointed at the lyrium pedestal and said with a frown: "Begin your Harrowing." Sylina turned to look at the pedestal. She started walking toward it. To her left she saw Cullen shifting nervously. She smiled in spite of herself. Somehow his presence made her feel more confident.

She reached the middle of the room and looked down into the swirling blue liquid. It was beautiful. She felt her nerves reach a high pitch as she put her hand over it. The lyrium reached out to her hand and engulfed it. She tried to jump back, but was rooted to the spot. Her heart was in her throat. She looked at her glowing blue hand and felt like she might faint. What was this? She had never heard of lyrium doing this. Was it enchanted? Of course it is, you idiot, she thought. Her last thought before she fainted was that she was going to die.