A horse cart passed over her head, the wheels turning and squeaking and rattling as if they passed over a bumpy road, an invisible horse leading it over an invisible road that tracked through the sky. She sat in a small clearing, perched on a rock with her ankles crossed and dangling over the side. If she slipped forward it would only be a short drop into a wealth of heather that blanketed the ground in front of her, the smell of the plants drifting up to where she sat. Everything was bathed in the shifting greenish light of the Fade, but even without that hint she would know that she was dreaming. It was too quiet, too peaceful, and always she felt something other lurking just off to the side where she couldn't see it. She had given up looking for it days ago; knowing that the demons that watched her hungrily from the shadows did not want to be found. So she was content to let them linger and lurk. As long as they left her alone, she had no quarrel with them or desire to get into any fights.

Killing Mouse had given her a brief reprieve from the demons that normally haunted her. They had seen the death of the greater demon as a warning, but their memories seemed just as short as they were long here in this timeless place, and eventually one or two began to grow bold again. They were easy enough to dispatch, of course. Fighting a foe as worthy as Mouse gave one a different perspective on other weaker demon-kind. She was no longer afraid, and that lack of fear gave the others pause and less to hold on to when trying to manipulate her. Their illusions seemed to lack something essential in them as well, something that she couldn't quite place but certainly felt as keenly as she saw.

So she sat on her rock, content with the false peace and hummed to herself an old tune that came from her childhood, originating in that fuzzy span of memory from when she lived with her parents. The false serenity gave her some rest from the hectic pace that waking life brought every time she woke up, what with the party of rebels always on the move, always worrying about who might be over the next hill, and taking care of those injured in the skirmishes they were forced to engage in when a small band of soldiers heading for the civil war crossed their path. But here, there was none of that, and for just a little while she could rest. If only there were someone to share this peace with here.

Mistaking her calm for absentmindedness, one of the demons slunk into the clearing, a glowing hot spirit of Wrath that slunk toward her like some slug made of lava. Before the creature could even begin to conjure up her childhood past and the trauma of being taken from her family, Solona turned on the creature, shoving her willpower in it's molten face and summoned a blast of cold air that froze its form. It screamed and retreated, overwhelmed by the mental force that Solona displayed as its form darkened and cracked, turning black under the frosty air.

Satisfied that the creature wouldn't bother her again, Solona sniffed and went back to her humming, knocking the back of her heels against the rock she was perched on and looked to the ever changing sky.

Then she felt it.

Something lurked beyond the ring of shifting trees before her, and though she was alarmed by its presence it felt like no demon that she had ever encountered. Looking around, Solona tried to spot whatever it was with her eyes as the force seemed to come closer, but had no luck. Quiet suddenly, a small bird dropped out of the sky, a common house sparrow, and it landed on her knee, staring up at her with small beady eyes. Its form wavered as all things did in the Fade, tendrils of mist streaming behind its movements.

"Greetings." A deep voice boomed, and the shadows that had been lurking under the trees seemed to slink away from the sound.

For a moment, Solona wasn't sure where the voice had come from, looking for some large creature to come out of the ring of trees, then she realized that it was the bird that had spoken in the deep voice, and couldn't help but to openly stare at the creature. "Greetings?"

The bird hopped further up her knee, flicking its head from side to side as it looked at her in the peculiar manner that birds moved, fluttered its wings once and seemed satisfied. "You mortals are very strange." The bird deduced after a while, its deep voice reverberating in Solona's chest, powerful and strong despite its tiny size. "You are demon touched, and yet you do not let them in. Why is that?"

She didn't need an explanation as to what the creature meant, realizing immediately that it could probably sense her blood magic and perhaps any mark that Mouse may have left on her Fade-self before he died. "I don't want to be one of them." She replied simply, wondering what exactly it was that the bird wanted. It didn't feel like a demon, but she couldn't think of anything else that it could be. Maybe a spirit, but spirits weren't known for freely interacting with humans. "I accepted their knowledge in a moment of weakness, but I won't be so weak again. My mind and body are my own. They can not take it from me."

The bird fluffed up its feathers and gave a series of shrill melodic chirps. "Very good!" It cooed, hopping to her other knee and peering at her even harder than before. "You are very strong, as you must be. Your fortitude is remarkable, despite your squishy, immutable nature. I could learn from that, I think."

"Learn from it?" Solona asked, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. "What could you learn from me? And if you don't mind me asking, what are you?"

The bird ruffled its feathers and dipped its head. "Fortitude." It replied simply, cocking its head at her in return. "It is what I am, and what I strive to be. I am the power that lives within a soul, the force that overcomes all obstacles when Hope isn't enough."

Solona's eyes went wide with wonder. "A spirit!" She whispered, bending slightly to get a better look at the small bird perched on her knee. "I have never seen one of your kind like this."

Fortitude watched her, but didn't bounce away, instead preening its tiny feathers with a tiny beak. "Mortals are usually not very interesting." The bird replied. "You are interesting, though. You have good fortitude, like me. I have never seen one of your kind like this." It echoed her words back to her, and Solona got the impression that it was amused by its own wordplay. "I want to see you persevere."

"You will… be watching me, then?" She asked, holding her finger close to where Fortitude stood on her knee and the bird fluttered on, keeping balance as she lifted her hand so that she could look the tiny bird in the eye.

"Yes." Fortitude bobbed its head sharply. "I will be close. I strive to become my namesake, and I feel that you can add to my path, mortal. Your body is weak, so if your fleshy self begins to fail, call me with your will, and I might be able to help."

Her heart beat faster at the deal the little bird was proposing, and took a moment to collect herself and think. "You don't want to see beyond the Veil?"

Fortitude ruffled, making a disappointed noise. "Nay, what would I gain by looking at your silly world that is unchangeable and unchanging? I like it here just fine, thank you. It is the strength of self that I seek, not idle tourism. Leave that to the pesky dark ones that lurk in the shadows."

"I…" She had no words to express her feelings. The utter bewilderment that a spirit had chosen her, the relief of knowing that she wasn't alone in the Fade anymore. It was simply too much to say, so she ran her finger over the strangely liquid-like feathers on Fortitude's back. "Thank you so much."

The bird ruffled its feathers then dipped its head. "I will be near." Fortitude jumped off her finger in a flutter of wings and tracked an unsteady path toward the sky where it was enveloped in blindingly bright light. A loud roar echoed over the plains of the Fade, and she only saw a hint of movement against the blue-green sky as the Spirit disappeared.

•º•.•º•

"No. No no no no! If you keep flailing around like that, then you're gonna get stuck in the belly an' then where would you be?" Kallian shouted, obviously aggravated and folded her fists against her hips, dual swords still in hand.

Across from her, Sticker's younger brother Elai looked properly chastened, the daggers in his hand wavering slightly. Though from nervousness or exhaustion, one would be hard-pressed to tell. The boy had recovered somewhat from his broken nose that Kallian had given him upon their first meeting, his face still bearing the ugly purple and yellow splotches of a receding bruise. "I'm sorry." He mumbled, dipping his head in shame.

"Don't be sorry!" Kallian replied with an aggravated sigh. "Get better! When you're out there, the guards ain't gonna play nice 'cuz you're a kid. Yer an elf, an' that's reason enough that they'd be likely ter try an' kill ya. Now again!" She raised her swords and Elai jumped into a defensive position just in time to keep Kallian from running him through, making a sloppy double parry that threw Kallian off course, but not out of control.

Others watched the two fight, Sticker amongst them with his shoulder leaning against a beam and a grim look on his face. Kallian had taken a personal interest in seeing to Elai's training. While he knew that none here at the Knifers knew their way around a dagger better than the red-headed elf, Sticker still wasn't entirely pleased with the arrangement. All the hard work he'd done to keep Elai out of the Life… Gone. Logically, he knew that Kallian was not responsible for the turn of fate, that she was just making the best of a bad situation. But his frustration had to go somewhere, and so tensions between himself and Kallian had gotten worse in the past handful of days. He threw himself at patrol opportunities, looking to burn off some excess anger and for the most part it worked. But watching Elai fight and get good at it so fast… That set him to getting frustrated all over again.

Down in the sparring ring Kallian called a hold to the training for the time being when Elai made a bad step and nearly twisted his ankle, falling on the dirt floor with a pronounced thud. Two others came forward, taking Kallian and Elai's place in the ring and resumed fighting while the two got something to drink. She handed the younger boy a flagon, and he gratefully took the watered down wine and drank greedily, thankful for a break.

"You're gettin' better." Kallian said after a moment of drinking and silence, watching the others out in the ring. "It'll be easier after you hit your growth spurt. You'll probably be taller than your brother, I reckon, an' you'll get a better reach. That'll help you in a fight."

Elai nodded, smiling at the praise and took another drink. Then, as if struck by an idea, he suddenly turned to look at Kallian, wide-eyed and curious. "How old are you?" He asked, cocking his head to the side.

For some reason Kallian felt like that was a deeply personal question, and turned her eyes toward the stone ceiling of the Highever Estate's basement as she tried to recall the date. "I'll be eighteen in… four months."

She didn't realize that Elai's eyes could get any bigger, but they did, and the boy looked properly awed. "Your da didn't get you married an' send you away?"

Kallain smiled sadly at the boy's innocence and naïveté, for obviously he wasn't aware that it was her wedding that had taken place months ago to only end in great tragedy. "He tried."

Elai settled back against the stone pillar, still keeping his eyes firmly glued on Kallian. "I thought you were older." He admitted sheepishly, fingering the lip of his flagon. "You're good with knives an' people, so I just figured…"

Reaching over, Kallian ruffled Elai's hair until the boy backed out of the way, looking slightly bewildered. "It don't matter how old you are as long as you do what ya need to do. People'll follow you if ya get things done. Understand?"

Slowly, Elai nodded, not quite understanding but not wanting to show that he didn't get it. The dinner bell rang then, and those training in the sparring ring stopped what they were doing to go to the mess hall. After dinner was over Kallian talked with the other Knifers that would be out on patrols that night and when they broke the leader of their little group was left to her own devices.

She didn't stay standing around for long, grabbing her own gear and headed out after the others a few minuets after their departure. Once out of the gates that ringed the Highever estate, she took to the roofs, her feet taking her directly to the Arl of Denerim estate. Kallian had been there many times over the past week, though had never gotten close enough to rouse the suspicion of the guards. As she walked along however, she began to notice that there was a shadow following in her wake. Her pace increased, and she leapt from rooftop to rooftop, heading always in the same direction then when she had sensed that whoever was following her was around a corner, she grabbed the edge of a chimney and swung behind it, putting her back to the stone and waited with bated breath.

A familiar figure darted by, his orange hair immediately giving him away in the night, and Kallian stepped out of the shadow of the chimney. "Sticker? What're you on about?" She called quietly, knowing that he would hear.

He skidded to a halt, knocking loose some shingles under his feet and came to a stop before careening off the edge of the building. Whipping around, he found Kallian quickly, then relaxed, but never let his guard down fully. She could see the way that his jaw clenched, like he was chewing on something sticky. He looked a bit frustrated, perhaps at being caught, but he came closer to Kallian anyway, standing just outside swinging distance and crossed his arms over his chest. "I want to know what this is all about with Elai." His protective older brother side was coming out, and he knew it, but he couldn't help being protective of Elai. The boy had no place here, and the rapid acceleration of his skills under Kallian's training was unsettling.

Heaving a large sigh, Kallian dipped her head briefly and crossed her arms over her chest as well, taking a moment to think. "I don't have any siblings." She finally admitted, meeting Sticker's gaze. "But I wasn't my ma's only baby."

Sticker inwardly recoiled at hearing that, wondering what he had just stuck his foot into. Kallian noticed his discomfort with the subject immediately, but she wanted to set this matter straight. Having him looming over her shoulder all the time and questioning her judgments was starting to get annoying, even if he was just looking out for his brother. "Miscarriages an' plagues are common place, yanno. She tried hard to have kids before me, an' they went to the Void, one way or another. I had a little brother too once. He lived about a year an' then caught the wheezes an' died a few months after that. Then my ma didn't want to try for no more babies, an' even if she did, she got in trouble with the guards an' got killed. I had Soris an' Shianni fer a brother an' a sister then, my cousins. But now I ain't got them either. I don't know if they're dead, or alive or in jail or shipped off to slavers. Maybe they took my pa too, I don't know. But they was the only family I had, an' now I ain't got none of that.

"It was my fault Sola lost Norris. I didn't want her to loose her brother an' be alone like me, an' I don't wanna see that happen to you either. Outside the Alienage, anythin' goes. You know that. You've been part of the Life longer than I have. If he's gonna be out here, then we can't be coddlin' him. I don't want another dead boy on my hands." Her speech delivered, Kallian waited to see what Sticker had to say, watching him closely in the dark.

Sticker drew a long breath and tried to resist the urge to squirm, finding himself at a loss. Eventually, he found his words. "Thanks for lookin' out for him, then. He's just a kid an' doesn't know the first thing about what it takes to live like… this."

"I know." Kallian replied easily. "He's too sweet to be cut out for this. That's why he's gotta be ready."

Sticker nodded and looked up to the Arl of Denerim's estate just a few streets over from where the two stood. "Why do you come here all the time?"

Her gaze flicked to the fortress-like estate surrounded by its high walls and patrolling guardsmen. "Because I got a score to settle." She replied honestly, hooking her fingers in her belts at her hip. "There's a man sittin' high an' mighty in that castle playin' with the lives of what family I do got left an' he's gonna pay for that." And if Vaughn is still in the dungeons, Maker help him because when I find him he's gonna pay in blood.

Sticker watched the emotions play across Kallian's face, her hatred clear as a bell in the moonlight. He looked to the castle once again, thoughtful. "You want the plans to the keep?"

Kallian's gaze instantly snapped to Sticker's face, curious and questioning. "What?"

"Old gang I used to run with was planning a heist in the estate." Sticker explained briefly, nodding at the estate and turned his attention to Kallian. "We got maps of the place and marked entrance points and tunnels. It was going to be the biggest job we ever pulled, but it got called off when ownership changed hands. Didn't know the guard patterns anymore an' needed to start over again. If we pay em' a visit, we might be able to get our hands on the maps."

She thought about it for a few moments, weighing the pros and cons. From her time in the prison Kallian could have tracked the route from where she had initially woken up after being abducted to the Arl's suite and down to the dungeon, but beyond that was mostly unfamiliar with the territory. "Didn't you quit your old gang?"

Sticker snorted. "Escaped it, is more like it. Nobody leaves their gang, you know that."

Kallian nodded in agreement. It wasn't uncommon for gangs to swear to a faction for life. Leaving a gang was about on the same level as being a traitor or sell-out, and anybody trying to get out of the Life stood a good chance of being beat to death by enraged gang mates. "So they ain't gonna be happy to see you."

"Well, they won't see me at all if I can help it." Sticker replied with a telling grin. "You're good at sneaking, right?" An answering grin from Kallian was good enough for him. "Tomorrow night then. We'll pay a visit to my old mates."

"Tomorrow night." Kallian agreed readily, unable to help the feeling of elation that welled up within her at the idea. One step closer.

Specialization #2: Spirit Healer yaaaaaaaaaaay

For those concerned with Elai's understandability, worry no more. Talking with a broken nose, split lip and bit tongue is hard, but he has luckily recovered (mostly) from that trauma and will now speak like a normal person. Next chapter: Mission Improbable! Sticker faces his old gang-mates? Haha, if this were a TV show, that's what Kallian's voice actor would say. Anyway, see ya'll next week!