Ballad of a Broken Man

"A good question," Wynne mused, searching around. "Does anyone see another portal or a door?"

Ciara saw a portal open up at the other side of the island they all stood on, just as the world began to tremble. Ciara almost fell to her knees, cursing her skirts, but Cobian thankfully caught her arm and held her up.

Morrigan paled. "That isn't good."

"What the fuck is happening now?" Torph cried out.

"I guess the Sloth demon isn't making it easy for us to leave!" Narascha complained.

"This place is collapsing," Myra breathed out sharply. "Everyone, run to the portal, now!"

"What happens if we don't make it?" Alistair cried as they raced across the ground, pieces of it crumbling away beneath their feet, falling into the endless abyss of the void around them.

"Your body will be a mindless husk!"

Sten grabbed Narascha and hefted her over his shoulder, just as Cobian grabbed Torph and leapt across the ground.

The stupid skirts were in Ciara's way, but she kept them hiked up as best as she could. The problem was that Alistair, Shale, Wynne were lagging behind. They weren't going to outrun the dream falling to pieces around them, and if they fell into the Fade they could be lost forever. Their minds gone. A familiar figure rushed past them towards the ruined land, and Ciara paled.

"Niall!" she yelled.

Niall threw his hands up, and a giant shield held back the island's collapse. Myra and Lawrien slowed to a stop, Lawrien about to turn around to help, but Wynne latched on to their shoulders. Ciara yelled at the others to continue on. To get out of here.

"But-" Cobian protested.

"Come on!" Morrigan snarled, snatching his wrist and yanking him past, Torph still over his shoulder.

Ciara could see the absolute horror on Torph's face as he stared out into the Fade.

"Stop!" Wynne cried.

"But we have to help him!" Lawrien hissed. "He can't hold that back forever!"

"I'll make an ice bridge-" Myra said.

"It's alright," Niall said softly, glancing over his shoulder back at them. "I've been here too long. The Sloth demon has been using my life force to power this realm and all its dreams and nightmares. I'm so sorry for that. So let me do one last thing to save you all."

"I'm so sorry I couldn't help you earlier," Myra choked out. "I was here-"

"You were protecting the students. You did well," Niall said firmly. "So let me do this!" He gave a shaky smile. "My mother always told me I was destined for great things. I doubt this is what she meant, but I can use the last of my life to save all of you. You who will go on to defeat the Blight." He gritted his teeth. "Go, Lawrien! Go Myra! Save us and be the best mages this world has ever seen!"

Lawrien's cheeks were stained with tears, but she nodded. "I will!" She grabbed Myra's wrist and reached out for Ciara's, and together they ran for the portal, Wynne right on their heels.

.::.

He was gone. Niall was gone.

Lawrien stared blankly at the space where the door had been seconds ago. His life was gone. That was it. He was dead. He was dead and gone and had died protecting them.

"...Lawrien?" Myra called out to her hoarsely.

Mouse chuckled beside Lawrien's feet. "You get so easily attached. People die all the time. It's what they do."

"What do we have here? All you minions have rebelled against me?" Sloth laughed. "Escaped slaves? My, my, don't you brats have some nerve, but playtime is over. You all have to go back now."

"Like fuck!" Torph protested.

"Yeah, fuck you!" Narascha yelled.

Lawrien growled lowly and turned on her heel, raising her hands towards the Sloth demon.

.::.

Ciara startled at the large glyph that appeared above the Sloth demon's head. No, not just one, two, three-

Another appeared at the Sloth demon's feet, forcing him to the ground, earning a startled snarl.

"I'M BLOODY SICK OF IT!" Lawrien bellowed.

Ciara instantly ducked behind Alistair as fire, ice and lightning crashed down on top of the Sloth demon, raining down hell. Alistair flinched, but thankfully he had already brought up his shield. She heard a lot of yelps and cries, but thankfully nobody else had gotten caught in the crossfire. No, those who had been close had been dragged back by Lawrien's Force Magic.

Holy shit.

That was a lot of spells.

Since when could Lawrien cast that many at once?

Mouse chuckled darkly. "It is surprising to say, but Lawrien is clever, using the lyrium around us to empower her magic. It's such a shame you couldn't do that out in your world. It would be so entertaining."

A blinding flash over light blinded them all, and Ciara gasped, sitting up straight with a yelp. She was on the floor, as was everyone else, of the Circle tower, all except for Myra, who was knelt by Niall's body, pulling some kind of scroll from his robes with a solemn face.

"Thank you for everything, Niall," Myra said softly, her head bowed. "We'll take care of Uldred now. You... please rest... we'll fix this..."

Lawrien walked over and squeezed her shoulder gently. "We'll come back for him."

Myra bit her lip, but nodded. "Right. Let's deal with Uldred now."

.::.

"So, how exactly are we going to kill Uldred?" Narascha asked as they continued on the halls, fighting their way through the drakes next.

Narascha couldn't wait to get her hands on this Uldred bastard for causing this entire mess. Fucking towers.

"Burn him alive," Lawrien said

"Shoot him full of arrows," Epona replied.

"Ice him," Myra said.

"I vote on electrocuting him until his organs explode," Ciara grumbled.

"That would be quite the messy death," Zevran mused, then grinned. "I like it."

"I think we should kick him off this huge tower we had to climb," Narascha offered.

Torph cackled. "Fuck yeah!"

The next room made them all go silent again. Narascha paled, horrified, at the dead Templars imprisoned within a large purple magical cell that reached up to the ceiling. There was only one man still alive in there, huddled at the side of the prison closest to them, far away from the dead bodies.

All the amusement they had tried to dig up died in mere seconds. There were no smiles anymore.

Fuck, Narascha was getting really tired of this.

The Templar was praying feverish into his hands, but seemed to register them and immediately growled. Narascha saw all the blood drain from Myra's face, while Ciara stared wide eyed at the Templar. Lawrien looked pained, flinching, and surprisingly enough she gripped Morrigan's wrist, Morrigan who stared at her, startled.

"This trick again?" the man snarled. "Do you not grow tired of this? I will not give in to you! I will remain strong!"

"He's been tortured," Torph whispered to Narascha. "Poor fuck."

"Cullen..." Ciara knelt down in front of him, wide eyed.

"Uldred is dead." Myra's voice was ice.

Lawrien reached out and grabbed her hand, wincing.

"He's scared, Myra," Lawrien whispered.

Myra's frown deepened. "I know. Don't worry, I take no offence."

No offence?

Cullen's eyes widened and he leapt up to his feet, staring at Myra with absolute horror. The room they were in grew rapidly chilly, and Narascha shivered.

"No! No not you! Maker I won't give in!" Cullen cried. "How far have they delved into my thoughts to summon you? Andraste forgive me! You broke the others, but I will remain strong! For my sake, for theirs! Shifting through my thoughts, tempting me with her, with Myra who is probably long dead! Torn apart by demons! I should never have loved her. Not a mage!"

Narascha inhaled sharply, eyeing Myra, whose face flicked with absolute heart break, before her eyes went cold and her jaw tightened.

"He's starved and needs water," Torph said, searching the cage. "Fuck, is there a way to get my water pelt through?"

"The man has been tortured," Sten said. "He did well to last so long."

Cullen's eyes instantly snapped to him, full of rage. "I did well? My friends are all dead!"

"And you still survived."

"Sten, not helping," Lawrien murmured.

"I can't break this..." Ciara admitted, glancing down at her hands. "My abilities as a Templar began to weaken after I joined the Grey Wardens. I can only use a little of those skills now."

Alistair grimaced. "It's the same for me."

"Then we kill the one who created this prison," Myra said sharply. "We end this now."

"He still doesn't believe this is real..." Lawrien said weakly.

Myra's face hardened, and she turned on her heel and headed straight for the stairs. "I'm aware, and I'm trusting you to help me kill Uldred, Lawrien. You, Ciara, and all your companions. Help me save Cullen. Help me save this Circle. Help me save my home."

"There's no need to ask," Ciara said. "I'm with you until the end."

"Let's go kill Uldred." Lawrien grinned hungrily, cracking her knuckles. "I can't wait to burn him to smithereens."

"Let's do this then." Alistair nodded. "We'll put the Circle to right."

Morrigan snorted. "Or we could let it collapse."

Wynne huffed. "Of course you'd say that."

"You have to kill them all!" Cullen shouted, panicked as he pressed himself up against the prison walls. "Every mage up there. You have to get rid of them all. The sounds coming from up there-"

Cullen shuddered.

"We'll rescue the others and kill Uldred and any other demons up there," Lawrien said, making him stiffen.

"To ensure this horror has ended you need to kill them all!" Cullen yelled, desperate. "Please!"

"I agree with this man. We should kill them," Sten said.

"You just don't like mages," Torph pointed out.

"They are dangerous."

Wynne shook her head at Cullen. "Child, I know you're angry-"

"You have no idea how I feel!" Cullen howled.

"He's right, there's only a few who do in this room," Lawrien said, following after Myra. "And don't call him a child. Not after this..."

Narascha struggled not to look at Torph, she knew that he probably was one of them. If his dream was anything to indicate by, the Carta were not known for being kind.

"Let's go. I'm keen to end this," Myra said.

"Please-" Cullen tried, staring at Ciara.

"Save your breath," Ciara hushed him. "You know my feelings already."

"Even after seeing what these mages did?" Cullen asked desperately. "You were once a Templar-"

"Once, now I'm a Grey Warden. Besides, I trust Lawrien, Myra and Anders until the end," Ciara said firmly. "We're going to kill Uldred and all the demons up there. We'll be back for you soon."

Narascha nodded. Time to see what waited for them on the last floor.