Okay, I know the chapters are getting shorter, but at least the build up is over! We'll be getting to the other characters soon! Hooray!
In her mind, it seemed as though only seconds had passed when Amelia awoke. But for her body, it had been millennia. She sat up, and stretched, but the aches and pains throbbing from her every muscle did not subside.
She looked down to Terry, who seemed in much a similar state to his mistress. (As far as dogs are concerned, anyway.) She gave him a pat on the head and examined the world around her.
Where were the buildings? The Shamrock, the tower blocks, the houses. Even the street lamps were gone. There was nothing around her but some trees, some rocks, some grass and other plants, a lake and Duncan, who was completely un-fazed by the time travel.
"Take time to rest," she struggled to hear him say, "but try not to take to long. We have much to do, and only two days in which to do it."
A million rocks and stones rattled and rolled in Amelia's head as she got to her feet. She could barely recall why she was where she was, or where the hideous abomination for a dress had come from. She took a moment, rubbing her head, to try and call-back the events before the white light.
I remember... an errand... She thought, and... a glimmer, no... a sword... a man... a... monster... a fight... blood, so much blood... Am I dead?... no. No, I'm not dead, but... I am gone. A warning... a request... an offer... goodbye... a journey...
Finally, it had all come back to her. She had abandoned her whole life at the drop of a hat. And now she was here. But where was "here"?
She looked around again, "Where am I?" she at last spoke.
"The same place you where before," said Duncan, adjusting his gauntlets. "just a few thousand years before it existed."
She frowned. He has said that far too casually for her liking.
"...right." She finally sighed, "Time travel, and all that. So I know already know when, but you haven't actually told me Where this When is..." She clutched her temples as she forced out the most confusing sentence she had ever said.
Duncan pulled out a scroll from his belt and handed it over to her. She unravelled it. 'Map' she thought.
"You are now in the country of Ferelden. Ruled by a monorchy and groups of Noblemen. Your family, the Couslands, previously stewarded the lands of Highever, until Arl Howes treachery occurred." As he mentioned new places, places Amelia had never heard of in the years she spent studying history in high school, he pointed to areas on the map. "We shall be travelling south through the Hinderlands, where we shall meet the rest of the Wardens at Ostagar. There, you shall partake in the joining ritual."
The more Duncan spoke, the more her head ached. Where are all these places? She thought, Why have I never heard of them? When is he gonna teach me to sight those things? What ritual is he talking about? These questions and more flooded her mind, until she gave up, and gestured forward, as if to say 'let's just go'. It would be simpler for everyone if she just asked later.