"Cold. Too cold. She won't be able to survive in this. I wish I could have told her. Maker, I should have told her. She's dead now, or freezing to death. I shouldn't have let her, but it was the only way-"
"Cole." Cullen groaned. The walk was menacing enough without the strange boy narrating his every thought. "How many times have I asked you to stop?"
"I'm sorry. It's just that you're so loud."
It had been hours upon hours since they fired the signal for Nethra. Cullen had repeatedly ordered scouts to patrol the mountains for any sign of the Herald. However, she was nowhere to be found.
"What an interesting gift you have, Cole." The strange elven apostate said to the even stranger boy. Cullen didn't like the elf one bit. He screamed ulterior motives to Cullen, and yet no one else mentioned it.
"It can hurt sometimes. If their pain is too loud. But I would bear it anyway if I know it would help. Your pain is loud sometimes."
"You said you saw the archdemon in the Fade. Is that where you are originally from?"
"Who can say?" The boy replied quietly. "An old friend. Here and gone once more. She is beautiful, like I remembered. But she does not know. And she is gone again. How long must I wait? A world full of strangers – a world full of-"
Cullen looked at Solas, who was frowning. "Cole, I think he wants you to stop." Cullen suggested.
"Her dreams haunt her, yet they calm me. So familiar, like the same person. Bare and perfect. No bindings like the rest of them. Ar lath ash. Ar lath ash."
Cullen didn't understand what he was talking about. Clearly they were Solas' thoughts, but they didn't make sense.
"Cold. So cold. My ears are freezing off. They won't find me. They won't find me. Something is hunting me. The wolves howl. Ashes. Embers. I'm closer. I'm…"
The two men turned to Cole with wide eyes.
"Cole? Who are you reading?" Solas asked calmly.
"Her. She's near. I can see her sometimes, but she shines brighter than everyone else. She's hard to see, like a bird flying in front of the sun."
"Where is she?" Cullen grabbed the boy's shoulders.
"I don't know. Near."
Cullen turned to one of the soldiers. "Camp here for the night. Start searching for the Herald."
Nethra woke up with a groan and a scream – a groan for exhaustion, and a scream for the multiple ribs and the left lower leg bone that broke from her fall.
She let out a whimper as she attempted to stand. She grabbed her warped-looking staff and used it as support.
Shrill noises echoed throughout the small cave she found herself in. She finally found the exit by listening for the mountain wind. It must have been an old mining complex, like the one she went through with Cassandra, Solas, and Varric back when people still thought she was a killer.
She sighed, wondering if she would ever see them again.
She limped out of the tunnel, immediately being hit by the harsh gusts of the Frostbacks. She walked for what seemed like hours. Every now and then, she would pass a fire pit, but the coals were never warm enough to be from the Inquisition. She walked on, cursing herself for not wearing something warmer that night. Solas always told her to wear a certain cowl on their trips. It was hideous, so she never bothered.
I wouldn't mind looking silly right now if it meant I was warm.
She was shaking uncontrollably soon after. Her elven ears did not stand a chance against the freezing temperatures, and she could feel the sharp pain of early frostbite clawing at their tips.
Tears fell from her eyes, only to become frozen on her cheeks. She was going to die here. Alone, freezing, and weak. She could hear wolves howling from behind her, probably waiting for her to fall over so they could attack. She managed to push out three more steps to get to a large rock structure. She had hoped it would possibly break the winter winds for even a moment, but to no avail.
She let out a whimper as she fell to her knees. She could hear voices. Perhaps it was Andraste talking to her, like the people thought she did. Perhaps it was the Dalish gods, whispering about her betrayal to them. Her eyes were half-open when she spotted a faint orange glow in the distance.
"There! There she is!" She could hear Cullen's voice.
"Thank the Maker!" Cassandra too.
A warmth enveloped her.
I'm dead. There's no more cold. But I'm still in pain…
A pair of strong arms picked her up, pressing her into a warm body.
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Hang in there, Nethra. Please." She heard Cullen's voice whisper in her ear.
A hand pressed against her forehead. She became warmer, but her ears hurt more.
"Ma ane eth, da'lin. Ar'an ane min." You are safe, child. We are here.
"Ara me naeg!" It hurts! Nethra cried, "Ma' uren…" My ears…
She didn't understand. Solas did not teach her half of these words, and yet she could speak them.
"Ma ju as'an ane ea laderem." You will be healed.
Nethra let out more sobs.
"What are you saying to her?" Cullen asked.
"Ir abelas, Cullen." She cried, "Ir abelas…"
"Sh…ma ju'ea ga gonun." You will be alright.
"Nethra…"
For the second time that evening, everything went black.
Hello! Sorry this was so short, but the next chapter is pretty long so this seemed like a good place to end it. Remember to fav/review/follow if you liked it! Let me know if you have any suggestions :)