"Please forgive me." I could feel her tears trickle down the side of my cheek where the sensation of her kiss goodbye still remained. I move my hand to touch my cheek and realize the smell of lavender has left my senses. She's gone.

My eyes shot open to see the morning sun attempting to break through deep snow clouds. A shiver ran down my spine causing my teeth to chatter. I move to roll over in search for the warm body that was in my arms when I fell asleep, only to see that she was no longer there.

"Hallie?" When I receive no response, I quickly move to stand and take in my surroundings. Our camp was quiet, save for the horses off to the side clicking theirs hooves and grazing. My gaze locks on Dhruva who is standing next to the tree Hallie tied him off too. Her pack sits against the same tree, no longer with mine by our bedrolls. Realization hits me then, the dream I had was real. She left before I would wake. But why? I sigh and throw my head back, looking towards the sky. My eyes go wide when I realize that I woke up late.

"Shit!" I quickly turn and roll up my bedroll, trying to not over think why she would leave without any explanation. I quickly move around camp, packing everything up. When I make it to Beth and Dhruva I sigh.

"Well, I guess it's just the three of us now." Beth ignores me, but Dhruva lifts his head up in my direction. Why in the hell would she leave? We were both going to Haven together. Unless what happened last night—no. I felt her aura, not strongly but I still felt it when we brushed ours together, never connected. I couldn't connect with hers, not like that. she deserves more. But, did that make her feel rejected? I sigh out of frustration and run my hand through my hair, attempting to clear my head. But to no avail, I just feel more frustrated with myself than anything.

Dammit! I shouldn't have been weak. I should have let her pull away from me when she kissed me. But, even that still doesn't make sense. She still laid with me, she still allowed me to hold her. I could feel her understanding. Her aura as it brushed against mine felt content, happy even, as we lay there tangled up within each other. In my dream she asked for forgiveness and I felt her tears. She was hurt by leaving me. I place my fingers on the side of my head to rub my temples as my brain searches for information to form explanations. She was worried about her being a mage and going to Haven. Which means she would not go into Haven alone, at least logically in my mind she wouldn't. If she left me while I was sleeping and was hurt by the action of doing so, then she had an alternate destination. She left not because of last night, but because she is not going to Haven. She is going to the Conclave.

I sigh while looking at Dhruva and Beth. "Change of plans, we're going to find Hallie."

I tend to the horses as quickly as I can, making sure that they are both saddled and our packs attached. Then I attach Dhruva's reins to Beth's saddle before mounting onto Beth and riding out of camp. I traveled through the darkened woods towards the Temple of Sacred Ashes as swiftly as possible. Though we are unable to move too fast due to the fact that Dhruva is without a rider and attached to Beth. We approach a clearing and I glance up at the sky. 'Why does everything seem much darker than before? Something isn't right. I need to get to Hallie faster than this.' I bring Beth to a halt and dismount. I begin to head towards Dhruva until I hear a muffled scream off into the distance. I whip my head around to the direction the distant agonizing cries came from, only to realize that I know that voice.

Hallie.

Without further thought or logical planning, I move my body to run as fast as I could through the woods and in her direction. It is all an exhausting uphill battle, she is far. Panic and dread fuel my body to push further. Limbs aching until they go numb as I kept them moving fast and hard. Then a powerful force booms in the sky, bringing forth a deep green light that pierces through clouds and spreads fast, swirling throughout the no longer white sky. I halt in my movements and stare as the sickening green crackles above me. Hitting my ears with nothing but the sounds of deep and loud rolling thunder. My eyes drop before me as a powerful gust of wind roars through the woods coming directly towards me. Before I can comprehend what is coming, the force hits me hard in the chest, throwing my body back in the air and down the hill. My back hits the ground with a loud smack causing the ground to vibrate beneath me and through my bones, knocking the wind out of my lungs. I clutch my chest and gasp hard for air but to no avail. The lack of oxygen as I continue to gasp turns my vision blurry and dark. I twist my body to roll to my side while my hand still clutches my chest, gasping hard, begging my lungs to grant me breath again. I can feel my body fading out while I desperately clutch onto life and force my aura to remain strong. Visions of Kirkwall flash through my mind, Bethany, mother, Carver, and my companions. Everything of my life before I left Kirkwall, while I continue to fight for air and remain conscious. Then I see Hallie, her face fills my mind. Last night, touching her and holding her. The taste of her lips on mine, sweet from the berry wine. The smell of lavender and herbs, her smell. Then the sound of her distant agonizing cry breaks through. Pushing my head up and my eyes wide. Air blasts through my lungs, cold and painful. I attempt to push my body up with trembling arms, but fall weak back to the ground. The air is heavy around me and my vision growing dark once more. I fight against heavy eyelids and a dizzy mind. In the brief moments my vision breaks through the darkness, the trees and ground around me spin violently. Forcing me to slam my eyes shut, allowing my consciousness to fade into the darkness.

Muffled sounds briefly broke through my unconscious body, as I felt myself being lifted from the ground. The voice of a woman, heavily accented, breaks through momentarily.

"It's the Champion. Take him to the dungeons and wait for my return. The rest of you with me!" She shouts orders with a determined and sharp voice. Her voice was the last thing I heard before my mind slipped away again.

I woke again on dark and cold stone floor. I attempt to sit up when a sharp pain hits the side of my head causing me to grit my teeth. I place my hand on my head to rub the sore spot on my temple.

"Guess it would have killed them to be a little gentle. Well at least they didn't shackle me. There's a plus." I rub my eyes lazily and glance around my surroundings.

The dungeon is dark with stone walls all around, save for the door which is a barred opening. Across from me is a similar dungeon with the door wide open, albeit empty. I sigh and run my hand through my hair. Which gets stuck in a few tangles of dried mud. 'What the hell happened back there? How long have I been out?'

My mind struggles to recall bits and pieces of the events that took place before my body fell unconscious. But immediately stops when I remember the green power piercing up through the sky and tearing it apart. And Hallie, her scream fills my stomach with dread. I can feel the bile coming up my through my stomach and chest. I gag and quickly shift my body to the side as the stomach acid shoots out of my mouth and lands on the hard stone. I lean my back up against the stone wall and throw my head back, closing my eyes hard. All my mind can think about is Hallie. What happened to her? Why did she leave in the first place? Guilt lays heavily in my chest. Another person I've lost. Another person who may be dead because I was a fool and never caught on. Too distracted by emotions and desires to be able to put any logical sense to my mind. I could have caught on, I could have figured out that she had no desire to go to Haven had I dug harder for information. I could have also let her stay in fucking Wycome. Where she would have been safe and alive. So many should haves and could haves rushing through my mind. She came with me because I asked her too. I feel like the biggest fucking idiot.

My thoughts are interrupted when I hear a door slam open. Followed by voices.

"Cassandra, I must disapprove of placing her body back in the dungeons. Her mark is unstable and I have been unable to reach her in the fade. There is no true telling what will become of her, or the mark given the current state her body is in." A soft voice of man speaks. I remain against the wall to keep myself hidden as I listen for information.

"Solas, she is a prisoner and the only person that survived the Conclave. The people will want her charges answered. As do I. You say there is no further help you can provide to her and no guarantee she will wake. The breach grows as we speak. Our attention must be turned away from her at this point and turned to stopping this chaos." The woman with the heavy accent speaks then. My curiosity peaked when she spoke of the only survivor and this 'breach'. I can hear their footsteps as they move closer.

Silence followed by the two of them as they approached the cell across from me. The man, who I can only assume is Solas was an elf. He was bald and oddly tall and broad for an elf, and clearly a mage. His staff lay attached to his back. The woman who he had called Cassandra was dressed in leathers and armor with an Andrastian symbol on her chest piece. She had a shield attached to her back and a long sword sheathed at her side. She had short black hair with a braided crown. Her features were stern and sharp. 'She's a seeker of truth? With an elven mage? That shit doesn't add up.'

My analysis of the two of them was cut short when a group of guards came up behind them carrying a body. The closer they came to the cells the more I was able to make out the features of the body they carried. The first thing I noticed was the person's hand, lazily hanging down the side. It glowed a bright crackling green, a similar green to what I had saw pierce the sky before I was knocked out. 'What the fuck?'

As the guards loomed closer, I began recognizing the Dalish armor the person wore. My stomach dropped. 'It can't be.' I stood and moved my body to the barred part of my cell to get a better look. Then as they came right in front of my cell I saw her bright red hair, laying still and lazy off her shoulders. Her face was lifeless and her skin was pale as one guard carried her under her shoulders and another carried her at her feet. I couldn't push my body to move or my mouth to speak. I just stared at her face and watched as they carried her stilled body into the cell and placed her down on the stone. One of the guards immediately placed her in chains. Although he seemed extremely hesitant to touch her glowing hand. 'Why did her hand glow?' I know she did not cause that green magic in the sky. There is no way. It was too powerful. It was rift magic, powerful and twisted. My mind raced, I wanted to know what happened to her. I wanted to reach out to her, to hold her, to say goodbye. My lips quivered slightly at that last thought as my eyes remained locked on her. I was once again cut from my thoughts when she began to move. Her body convulsed and thrashed upon the stone floor. Causing one of the guards to jump out of fright. Both of the guards quickly left her cell as Solas entered behind them.

I gripped both of my hands hard against the bars of my cell when she began painfully screaming as her body thrashed and convulsed. My mouth went dry and my throat clenched up as I watched her in horror. Cassandra turned then to speak to me, but her voice was muffled out as I ignored her presence completely and watched Hallie's body screamed and twisted in agonizing pain. Solas had kneeled down beside her and produced a blue glow upon his hands and moved it across her glowing palm. His brows were furrowed as he focused hard on her palm, sweat began to bead up against his forehead that shimmered against the firelight in the darkness. After a few long moments her body began to calm down and return back to its lifeless state. Solas then let out a breath he was apparently holding in and moved his body to sit with legs crossed in and his hands settled upon his knees. Then he closed his eyes and steadied his breathing.

Anger swelled up inside of me then. "He's just going to sit there and nap! She needs help! He needs to help her!" I growled through gritted teeth. My knuckles grew white and my hands were forming blisters along my palms as my grip was held tightly on the bars of my cell. Cassandra tried speaking to me again, this time I listened but never turned my gaze to look at her.

"I am Cassandra Pentaghast, Seeker of Truth and Right Hand of the Divine. I found you unconscious about a mile off from the Temple of Sacred Ashes. After I found you, our scouts found her. They said that she stepped out of the fade with her hand glowing from the mark, before falling unconscious as well. They also say that an unrecognizable golden woman was behind her as she stepped out, but disappeared as soon as the rift closed. She has been unconscious ever since." She pauses and then nods towards Solas before continuing. "Solas here is an apostate. He came to us after the breach formed in the sky and offered his knowledge of the fade to us. He has been trying to reach her in her sleep to attempt to bring her back. She was the only survivor from the Conclave and with a mark on her hand that tied her to the explosion. Everyone else, including Divine Justinia most holy, were killed when the breach was formed. This woman is our only suspect." She spoke to me, her voice certain and stern. Not a hint of question. She truly believes that Hallie caused all that destruction.

I finally shifted my gaze to look at the woman. "No." I matched my voice to her certainty. "She is innocent. I know she is innocent."

Cassandra narrowed her eyes to me and gave me a level look. "That remains to be seen."

I move my gaze back to Hallie as does Cassandra. "Did you know her?"

I ponder her question for a moment, deciding how much information I should give them about Hallie. I resolve to tell the seeker what I know, it may help prove her innocence. "Her name is Hallie. I ran into her while I was traveling to Wycome. She left Clan Levallan to escape an unwanted bonding. I invited her to travel with me to the city. When we arrived I had discovered that her Clan traded within the city often, so I asked her to come with me to Haven where she may find a new life. I should have let her stay at Wycome. She had expressed worry that she may not be accepted here due to her being an elf. I know she is innocent, it was because of me that she was even out here." Not the whole truth, but I wanted to respect Hallie's wishes of hiding her being a mage and her true reasoning of leaving her Clan. Or the fact that she was exiled, that may add more suspicion rather than argue her innocence.

"And what of you Champion? Why were you traveling to Haven?" Cassandra asked me, completely ignoring anything I had said about Hallie. Seems she is determined to blame Hallie for it all, regardless of my input.

I snort a laugh at her question. "Oh, that's easy. I came to break out my friend that you all so lovingly kidnapped to get to me." I gave her a short amused look, though it was more of mocking than amusement.

She scoffs at me and rolls her eyes before replying. "Varric I presume." I can't help but smile when I notice her annoyance. Seems he has ruffled a few feathers here. Good. I am fucking glad he did.

My mirth immediately leaves my features when I see Solas wake and stand next to Hallie. He glances down at her once and shakes his head before leaving the cell. His expression is conflicted and regrettable.

"My attempts at reaching her in the fade have once again proved fruitless. She is heavily clouded by a dark energy. One of which I am unable to break through. Her mind is blocked off, I am afraid the chances of her waking remain extremely low, if at all at this point. There is nothing else I can provide for her. The mark continues to grow at a quickened pace, along with the breach. I fear that my theory is proven correct, the mark is tied to her indefinitely and her body fights to reject it. No mortal was meant to carry this mark, nor can any mortal harvest this kind of magic and sustain life." Solas' words hit me hard, like a blow to the gut. She will not survive then. Any hope that I had that she would wake quickly drained from my body. Replaced by determination to kill whatever or whoever did this to her.

The three of us quickly turned our heads when another guard bursts through the entrance to the dungeons. Panic written all over his face, though it is strenuous for me to look at him behind these damn bars.

"Lady Pentaghast, another rift formed just outside the keep!"

Cassandra nods and turns to Solas, who is already grabbing his staff from his back. "Solas go with them, I will remain with the prisoner." Then she turns to me. "Champion I know I am in no position to request your aid but—"

I cut her off with a nod as Solas rushes behind her and out of the dungeons. "I will help, but I need my staff back. If you would be so kind."

Without hesitation she moves to unlock my cell. The moment the door opens I rush over to Hallie. I drop to my knees by her side and look at her hand with the mark. It pulsates and thrums erratically with green magic. I shift my gaze to her face, her breathing is short and extremely faint. "Please hold on, come back to….us" I whisper to her. I then move my hand to brush a lock of hair away from her face.

"Champion you must go now." Cassandra insists while she stands at the cell opening, my staff in her hand. I slowly stand and walk over to grab my staff from her. I look once more to Hallie and then force myself to the door leading out of the dungeons.

When I reached outside I had to cover my eyes for a moment while they adjusted to the bright light. When I could finally uncover my eyes, my gaze shot up to the crackling sound in the sky. Looming above the location where the temple is located in the mountains was a giant swirling green light, surging and swirling up from the temple to the sky. Which then spread out far beyond where the temple is located and covered the once clouded sky with a sickening green that pulsated and swirled. It reminded me of the fade, but that shouldn't be possible when the veil separates the fade from the living world. I stared at the sky with wide eyes as fresh snow falls softly on my face and all around me. Thinking about all the possible ways any person could possibly possess enough power to rip the veil open, allowing the fade to bleed out so violently like this. My thoughts shifted when I heard a familiar voice behind me.

"Hawke! What are you doing here?" The voice was skeptical and worried, but I would recognize that voice anywhere. I briefly smiled and turned around to face the person behind me.

"Varric!" I announced cheerfully, though his face was quite the opposite in expression. "I came to rescue you of course." I tried to steady my voice, I am glad that he appears to be in good condition. But, it didn't stop the uneasy and grim feeling that threatened to spill out of my chest. He gives me a look that I can only describe as 'What the fuck?' and then glances at Solas who stood near me with his staff drawn. When Varric's gaze reaches me again, I give me a nod of approval hoping he will get it and withdrawal from his questioning. There is no way I am ready to talk about how I got here or about Hallie. He lets his questioning look drop and brings his hand to his chest, giving me a knowing smile. I have no doubt he will hound me with his questions when this is all said and done.

"Aw, my hero." Is all he says, I open my mouth to say something witty or sarcastic, but get cut off by Solas.

"My apologies for interrupting your reunion, but we must head to the rift." With that I nod towards Solas and grab my staff. Varric removes Bianca, his crossbow, from his back and loads an arrow.

"Well Bianca, cheers to another round of demons." Varric says rather sarcastically. Though honestly, I never expect anything less from him when faced with battle. But then his words replay in my mind.

"Wait, demons? You have got to be shitting me." I remark. To which Varric chuckles and Solas briefly purses his lips before moving forward through the falling snow and to the gates. I look at Varric who just shrugs his shoulders with a shake of his head and a sigh, then follows Solas across the bridge towards the gates. Leaving me completely dumbfounded outside of the dungeons. It wasn't enough for someone to tear a giant hole in the sky, but demons too? This is set to be an absolute shit show. I sigh and move my body to follow them through the snow against my body's every desire. With thoughts that I have no doubt are filling everyone else's mind. 'How are we going to possibly be able to fix this giant hole in the sky?' And then of course, Hallie. So much of my mind and body just wants to stay by her side. Wants to go back in time to just last night, when she was alive. Alive and happy and with me. Such thoughts are pointless. I can't go back and I can't stop any of this from happening. I shake my head to clear my thoughts and resolve to keep my focus on following Solas to the rift and helping any way that I can. At this point, it is all that I can do.