Disclaimer: We do not own Dragon Age Origins or the Elder Scrolls Series

Co-author and Beta: Etheral-23

Greetings from House Telvanni

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Sarya couldn't imagine a better way to spend her time. Book in hand as she traversed through unknown, uncovering the mysteries of places unknown and studying the arcane matter of creation itself. Ever since young she had this thirst for knowledge, the need to understand. Understand the world, its laws, what made it work. The how and why of all events in the cosmos.

Such was that drive it had led her to study with some of the greatest Telvanni mages, learning the oldest lore and the most complex magics. Even the power to traverse to the realms of Oblivion and beyond, following in the steps of the famed Divayth Fyr, was hers to command.

No door was locked for the youngest daughter of Miara, no realm, no possibility, was beyond her reach. She would brave the darkest and most obscure worlds, and even brave through the blindingly bright and dangerous, all in her never ending quest to see and understand it all...

So of course right now she was kneeling on the dirt picking up plants.

"Hmm" She mused as she chewed on the green blue-tipped leaf. Opening the Thedosian botany book she got at the Wonders of Thedas, comparing the information there on elfroot with her own analysis. "Health restoring properties, so that checks." She rolled the now pasty leaf in her mouth. "Bit of stamina regeneration too, but not really noteworthy"

Let it never be said Sarya considered some knowledge to be 'beneath her'. The importance of the alchemical properties should never be underestimated. The thought of experimenting entire species of flora from another continent enticed her scholarly mind; this Brecilian Forest was just ripe with opportunity.

Having left the Imperial Highway hours ago, the young Telvanni mage wandered into the forest where it was said the Dalish Elves were currently residing. As important as it was to meet her distant daeruhn, her academic mind had been in motion since leaving Denerim reading the books she had bought. Unless sleeping at her camp or bathing in a river she had her head in a book studying all she could of this unknown continent.

And the dark elf was quite impressed with how extensive the alchemical arts were taken seriously here. From this elfroot to blood lotus and deep mushroom, all had very detailed pages and drawings of each item in question. What also sparked her immense curiosity was the substance called lyrium. She had also bought several potions for study, and while she would prefer a raw sample, sadly this substance was said to be dangerous and toxic. Never mind the Dwarves kept a tight hold on it given they were the main distributors of it.

So at the moment she roamed through the beautiful forest inspecting what plants were shown in her book.

There were other things she could be doing of course, the thought of meeting with the clandestine Mages' Collective to acquire more information on the Circle of Mages piqued her curiosity immensely. But she had agreed with her family to split, and her route took her away from Denerim. Well, she hoped the letter she left at their secret cache would make their way to them eventually.

The nature of this 'Fade' was an oddity for her. Aetherius' connections felt week enough as it was, the thought of a non-aetherial realm having such a strong bond with mortal lands was fascinating. If a touch worrisome, for that carried dangerous implications on the nature of Thedas. And the Chantry books, which she suspected were heavily biased and censored, were not of much help...

Perhaps she would eventually run into someone who clear up some doubts on the Fade, a hedge mage or-

Her ears twitched as they caught the faint noise of a branch breaking.

"Hmm?" She turned her head in curiosity. This was a forest after all; it must be an animal... or bandits. Acting out of habit, she casted Detect Life, and the pulsing heart-like signature of three humanoid lifeforms shined before her eye, sneaking through the trees. "If you're friendly I promise I won't harm you" She loudly spoke, "If you're not friendly, well, you're toast I'm afraid"

From within the foliage emerged three elves, all wearing leather armor with distinctive symbols and iconography that was tribalistic in nature. One of the most notable traits was that they all had paint on their faces. Ahhh, so these were the dalish elves.

One was a woman with short fair hair combed back, her armor allowing for more mobility at the expense of less protection. Another was a man; his fair hair was of a slightly darker shade, his armor covering more of his body. The last one didn't have the light skin tone of his companions, but a much darker complexion, his hair was dark with multiple braids, and his body was much more muscular while still being somewhat slim. They were all carrying bows and arrows on their backs, with either daggers or swords at their waists.

"Oh!" Sarya's ears perked up as she smiled. "Hi there!"

They did not seem to return the amicable greeting. "This is a dangerous place for you to be in alone, flat-ear" The woman spoke back.

"Flat-ear," a drone came from the Telvanni mage. Was supposed to be an insult? Oh she has heard worse names in Skyrim by drunkards. "If you're trying to insult someone make up a more impactful word or swear word. You will most definitely gain a reaction out of that."

The two male elves look at one another; "Is she trying to educate on how to insult people better?" The short haired elven man asked getting a shrug from the other. "Um, did you come to join the Dalish?"

"Tamlen," The female Dalish quickly chided.

"Never hurts to ask Mithra."

Sarya thought for a moment before getting to her feet; "No I have not come to join you, but I have come to meet you. It's a learning experience when two different cultures meet for the first time after-all."

"Different cultures?" The elven man beside Tamlen spoke up; "You a foreigner or just fell on your head?"

"Oh, right!" Sarya pointed at herself; "It's probably best to show you what a cousin from Tamriel actually looks like."

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It was not just the echoing shouting that alerted Zathrian and Marethari, but also a brief yet undoubtedly powerful burst of magical energy. It came from the direction in which three of their hunters had been sent to scout, which immediately put them on alert. They told their Firsts to stay with the clan and wait for them; they would handle this situation themselves. Two Keepers, wise in years (many in Zathrian's case) and powerful in magic, few opponents could stand before them.

Zathrian wore a look of cold determination, his robes decorated with the pelt of a white wolf, with his chest and shoulder pieces reinforced by multiple stripes of hardened leather. The upper part of his staff shined brightly with the lyrium infused on it. While Marethari's form fitting robes possessed more nature based aesthetics, namely that of trees, were decorated with the feathers of ravens in the shoulders, and ironbark pieces covering different parts of her collar and right shoulder, arm and leg bracers. Her own staff carved into the intricate shape of a hunched dragon.

Looking at them, one would not expect Zathrian to be the older of the two, given Marethari's wizened features and gray hair.

They raced through the trees with ease born from experience, moving in between them like no human grown in the cities could. They expected their hunters to have run into something like bandits, or perhaps one of those rogue mages from the Circles. Or Gods forbid; they had actually found a hostile spirit in the woods...

What they found was... different.

Mithra, Tamlen and Theron kept shooting arrows over and over to an elf-looking figure that could in no way be an actual elf. Beyond the intricate robes she wore, the only thing that got their attention was the gray skin and red eyes. The being looked annoyed as she kept up a barrier that blocked the hunters' shots with no trouble.

"Is this how you treat fellow elves?!" She cried out.

"Elves aren't Grey skinned with red eyes demon!" Mithra yelled back.

"Demon... Oh I'd love to see your reaction to the rest of our kin back home honey! How about leaving the forest for a while and expand your scope of understanding! And maybe actually get smart!"

"Will shut up and die, go back to the Beyond!"

"Never been there!" Sarya let out a disgruntled sigh as she crossed her arms; "Eventually you're going to run out of arrows, can we talk sensibly then?!"

Theron growled; "I've never seen such power from a demon before!"

"That's because I'm not a demon your idiot! I'm a Dunmeri Telvanni mage!" Sarya snapped back as Zathrian and Marethari landed to the ground; "Oh goodie, are you here to reason with those three morons here?! Or have you come to attack your distant cousin too!?"

The shouting and confusion was wearing the male Keeper's patience thin, he struck the ground with his hand, sending a pulse of magic as he shouted with command in his voice. "Enough!"

The hunters ceased in their assault, staring with apprehension at both their Keepers and the newcomer. Sarya for her part tilted her head curiously, hoping at least someone was willing to listen.

"All this shouting isn't helping, so instead of acting like Shems who attack everything that is different on sight, you should act like mature adults!" He spoke with reproach, making the younger elves wince at his disapproving glare. He sighed, running a hand over his bald head as he pointed his staff at the gray woman, "This, I suspect, is not a demon" He said, much to the surprise of the others.

"But... look at her!" Tamlen waved his hand at the other 'elf' who merely glared at him.

"Appearances of demons can be deceiving yes" Marethari agreed, taking a step forward, showing no sign of hostility to the woman. "But so can that of mortals" She stood a few feet away from her, a barrier still separating them, looking up and down at the woman. "What is your name?"

"Well, finally, someone with manners" Came the exasperated reply, followed by a small curtsy. "My name is Sarya Redoran, honorary mage of House Telvanni"

The Sabrae Keeper rubbed her chin in thought, "Well, you don't feel like a demon. Your essence is too corporeal, but there is something... strange about you. And I don't mean just your looks"

A brow rose from the dunmer; "Are you mage yourself?"

"I am; my name is Marethari Talas. Keeper of the Sabrae Dalish clan. This is Keeper Zathrian of Clan Orava." The elderly Elven woman gestured to the bald elven man who came beside Talas.

"Your magic feels... strange," Zathrian commented as he gazed at the barrier. "I am unsure how to describe it."

That was a troubling to Sarya. And was further cementing her possible theory on why magic was so different here. It was not coming from the immortal plane of the gods.

"I believe it's because I am not from here, Thedas I mean" The grey skinned elf explained, much to their surprise. "I hail from the lands of Tamriel, far beyond to the east across the sea"

"What?" The huntress Mithra exclaimed in shock, her follow hunters exchanged looks of bafflement "That is... impossible"

"Nope" Sarya corrected with a bright smile, "The word you're looking for is 'improbable'. But alas, I can dispel any and all of your doubts" She waved a hand at herself, "My kind are called the dunmer, or Dark Elves as we are known. The gray skin and red eyes? It's our natural looks. There are many elves just as varied and different from each where I come from"

Her words sent waves of disbelief and astonishment to the thedosian elves. The Keepers were looking at with both disbelief and fascination, while the hunters seemed conflicted on the whole affair.

"Marethari" Zathrian called to her fellow Keeper, "A word?"

They moved a few paces away, discussing in hushed tones something none of the other elves could discern. The three hunters looked at the 'dunmer' (who still had not put down her barrier); this one tilted her head at them. They couldn't lie, those red eyes of hers coupled with her very outlandish look was still intimidating and fearsome.

"I've yet to hear an apology from you lot" She droned.

And the fear was replaced with irritation. The dark haired elf, Theron, let out a long sigh, "We... apologize we acted too rashly"

"Good. Now say it like you're not swallowing a snail and I'll accept it"

Tamlen held his friend by the shoulder as this one growled and took a threatening step towards the red eyed elf.

Fortunately, at the moment the two Keepers returned.

Zathrian began, "I believe we owe you an apology for how our hunters behaved. And so we would like to make a proposition to you"

"Is that so?"

"Yes" Marethari took over, "If what you say is true then our meeting here holds a significance of proportions I can't even begin to express. A whole other continent where elven kind lives, the things we could learn from each other" She said with eager fascination.

"Which is why" Zathrian continued with a gentle smile, "we would like to invite you to spend some time with our clans"

Sarya gave the hunters a glance before dispelling her barrier she gave a respectful bow; "I would be honored. This was the reason I came to this forest. Meeting fellow daeruhn, learning and exchanging our cultures."

"Daeruhn?" Keeper Marethari cocked her head curiously. This was shared by Zathrian who raised a brow.

"That is Dunmeri for kinsmen." The telvanni mage chuckled as she followed the Keepers back to the encampment. "Can I ask why you all are wearing face paint?"

"This is called vallaslin," Zathrian kindly corrected; "And it is not face paint."

"Oh, facial tattooing." Sarya spoke with genuine curiosity; "They look beautiful."

"Thank you."

The three hunters mildly groaned but followed; "I get the feeling things will be getting noisy." Tamlen grumbled with Theron and Mithra nodding in agreement.

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Upon following the Keepers, Sarya was greeted by the sight of strange but elegantly craved wooden wagons in a massive clearing within the forest. Marethari had explained them as Aravels which were used as both storage and houses.

They explained to her that usually the clans would travel on their own, but from time to time gathered in order to exchange supplies, information, things of that nature. It was by fortune that their scouts had spotted each other, and upon hearing news of the rising Darkspawn threat in the south, the Keepers decided it was safer to keep the clans together for the time being. Until they managed to make their way out of Ferelden.

The dalish had turned their collection of wagons and tents into a small community that was simply buzzling with activity. From what Sarya could see, nearly every elf was doing something. Be it preparing food, tending to their beautiful deer-like creatures they called 'hallas', tanning leather on racks, forging weapons, etc. She could see the dalish were a people who did not have much, so every member could be counted to pull their own weight. It was admirable.

Her scholarly mind couldn't help but draw comparisons between them and other elves already, specifically with the tribalistic bosmer. Though she doubted these elves were partial to cannibalism...

One of the sentries spotted their group with the Keepers at the front, and was half-way through a greeting when he saw Sarya. His jaw hanged so open she swore a fly would enter his mouth and he wouldn't even notice.

More and more eyes settled on her as they entered the camp properly, gasps and exclamations of shock were everywhere, more than a few elves swearing 'By the gods'. Honestly, the gawking was getting old, but at least they weren't shooting arrows at her.

"Peace, my kin" Zathrian lifted his arms placating, "Do not be frightened by our guest"

"Is she some kind of weird Qunari woman?" An elven boy not older than a teenager and having no vallaslin spoke.

Another voice countered; "I thought Qunari were supposed to be giants with horns?"

"Not all of them have horns I heard," An older elven woman retorted back.

Marethari raised her hand to hush the growing crowd; "Our guest is not a Qunari. In fact, she is our kin. She is an elf." Silence took over the camp as the only sound was the hallas and birds in the trees. Talas gestured to Sarya; "I'll let our cousin explain."

The Telvanni mage felt everyone's attention on her before she cleared her throat; "Hello! My name is Sarya Redoran, mage of House Telvanni and Dunmer of the lands of Tamriel." She waved with a smile.

There were questions.

Many, MANY questions.

So many in fact it took a few minutes for the Keepers to restore order, making the clans sit and stand in a large circle like they often would when it was time to hear the elders tell the old stories. The children sat eagerly in the front, and even a few adults sought better spots to better listen to the foreign elf, climbing up to the Aravels and the trees. Everyone in the clan was extremely eager to hear about their kin across the sea.

The Firsts, which Sarya learnt were the apprentices to the Keepers, stood closely next to their mentors. A light browned haired young woman named Lanaya who was Zathrian's First, who remained mostly quiet throughout the exchange. And the most adorable little creature Sarya had ever laid her eyes upon, the dark and grey robed mage called Merrill who just kept looking at the dunmer with the biggest most curious eyes she believed only children were capable of. Ugh, everything from her braids to her voice was cute, Sarya just wanted to eat her up.

But, she had an audience to address. This was feeling more and more like a lecture at the Arcane University.

"Now, where to begin..." Sarya mused from her spot, sitting upon on a log. Well, it would be better to get some of the most... awkward stuff out of the way. "Let me just start by saying that elves back home are like any other mortals. They can be friendly, they can be obnoxious, they can be cruel, they can be wise, they can be snobbish, they can be peaceful and they can be aggressive. I know you may have your own ideas and expectations of elves back home so... try to keep an open mind" She used her magic to conjure the image of a dunmeri male, much to the curiosity and wonder of the crowd. "My kind is called the Dunmer or the Dark Elves as the rest of Tamriel calls us. Proud, sometimes to a fault, we worship our ancestors and the gods we chose long ago."

"Do they have their own kingdom?" A voice asked, almost desperately. The thought of elves having homes to call their own was a fantasy to this people, one they dearly wanted to believe.

"All elves in Tamriel have" The answer sent joyous whispers among the crowd, and Sarya was beginning to understand how much they had needed to hear something like that. "The dunmer call Morrowind their home. To make a long story short, one of the human populations, the nords, enslaved them long ago and but the elves there banded together and earned their freedom"

Waves of disgust rolled through the crowd. "Shems are the same everywhere..." An elven man spoke.

"But you heard her!" It was the same huntress she met in the forest, Mithra, who replied excitedly. "They actually took down the humans a few notches!"

Laughs and words of approval rang through the crowd.

"And then the dunmer began practicing slavery themselves"

The laughs quickly died down.

Sarya grimaced; "Not one my people's proudest of moments. The dunmer enslaved many for centuries as servants, workforce, anything." Disgust rang in her voice as she shook her head. "The Arnesian War thankfully ended slavery in all of Tamriel during the third era."

"That was brave to tell us such a thing." An elderly woman with grey hair in a bun spoke who sat beside Theron. "You could have kept that to yourself."

"Better to be truthful about your kin back home. Our people have done equal good and bad in their histories. Sometimes those are extremes. Thus I'll let you all judge for yourselves on your cousins back in Tamriel. NOW!" A few jumped as Sarya shifted from somber then to brightly; "The Maomer or Sea Elves. Some call them tropical elves since they all live on an island." Everyone took a gaze of an image of an elven woman with colorless pale skin and eyes with white long hair. "These folks have harnessed something called serpent magic. And said to have tamed deadly sea serpents."

"Is magic that common where you are from?" Lanaya asked in wonderment.

"Oh indeed. Much more so than here I can tell you that much. Anyway, the sea elves in general are nasty raiders, they haven't had the best history with the people of Tamriel, more so in recent years. Though fortunately things have calmed down somewhat. They particularly have a long rivalry with our next group of elves here"

The illusion shifted to two figures that were simply majestic in looks. Tall, taller than any human even, with long golden hair and an equally golden skin. The eyes of the male and female figures seemed to shine like jewels. "The altmer, the High Elves. They are called the 'Cultured Ones' for a reason, their cultural contributions to the rest of Tamriel can't be denied, and many claim they even introduced the first written language. Highly adept mages, they are perfectionist in every aspect of their lives, be it art, craftsmanship, anything. Their home of the Summerset Isles is a sight to behold"

"Creators, look at them..." An elf in the crowd muttered amongst the myriad of whispers.

"Awww" Merrill let out a cute whine, "What I wouldn't give to be that tall..."

Chuckles and a few laughs rang through the crowd, those familiar with Merrill had already come to expect such things from their 'quirky' First. Theron smiled fondly at her as he shook his head in amusement.

"Don't be fooled by their appearance" The dunmer warned them, "The altmer can be very snobbish, looking down on other races, including fellow elven races. A radical political faction of their government called the Thalmor took it to the extreme once" Sarya was glad she never got the chance to properly meet one, her mothers had made sure of that. "What the humans did to you? The Thalmor would have done it to everyone"

A hush fell over the camp; "They purged countless villages they deemed unclean. This was every other race except Altmer. These people were monsters by every definition of the word. Two great wars were fought against them. The first one took all of Tamriel by surprise. They damned near destroyed it all. But were held back, and only just. Then thirty years ago came the inevitable second war. However that time, we were ready and tore them apart. My mother was at the head of it."

"Your mother?" Marethari leaned in.

"Miara Redoran, I'll talk about my family after I tell you about your cousins." Sarya winked at the Keeper; "The Thalmor were wiped out completely. A new government took over in Summerset afterwards."

"Gods," a young elven man ran his hand over his face; "I may not be fond of shem but that sounded beyond barbaric."

Sarya gave her fellow elf a long look; "Oh trust me hun I have not even gotten started. I have not gotten to the Ayleids or Dwemer yet, but will save the extinct races after I tell about the living ones"

"EXTINCT!" every Dalish outright yelled while gawking. A trouble hardened gaze fell on Zathrian's face; "That is not good news."

"Eh, you might not think that after you hear about them, Keeper. The Ayleids had it coming for all of the horrifying things they had done, as for the Dwemer... despite them being the greatest minds in all of Nirn. They had enslaved an entire elven race called 'Snow Elves' and blinded them, making them into servants."

Needless to say, the sheer weight of what was told to them hit them like a giant boulder. For the dalish, their enemy had been the humans and their Chantry, taking away their lands and forbidding them to worship their gods. It had always been like this, the humans who enslaved the elves, the humans who brutally abused their kind even today in the cities.

To hear that another race of elves was capable of being just as cruel, if not crueler; to their own kind... it was a very bitter and horrible truth. Poor Merrill looked heartbroken, while Marethari and Zathrian tried to remain composed in the face of that revelation but hints of their own concern surfaced through the cracks.

Sarya paused for a moment as she saw the various dalish go through different stages; disbelief was very evident on many of their faces. Most looked shaken, to the point they had to sit down to properly assimilate what they just learnt.

And elderly elven man in dalish leathers and braided bangs sighed; "This will be a lot to take in my dear. I for one am grateful for your honesty. It is better knowing all the sides of our kin in Tamriel."

At that the Dunmer nodded in agreement; "Glad to hear this... You are?"

"Paivel, I am Hahren or Elder of the Sabrae Clan." He gestured to his side to the other male elf who sat beside him in leathers; "Sarel is Hahren of Orava."

Sarel, whose red hair was partially grey gave a nod; "We are teachers of our history and culture."

"Then I'll likely be getting know you two quite well. Now, I have two more living races for you all to know. And this one resembles you more than others." An image soon appeared of a brown skinned elven man and woman with touch of green wearing hard leather gear. The Dalish took note these elves were roughly the same height and build as they were. "The greatest archers and hunters in all of Tamriel. The Bosmer, or Wood Elves, they live in the dense forests of Valenwood. By far they are the friendliest of our kind."

Tamlen dryly stared back; "And the bad part?" He droned out; "Can we just get to that over with before the positives?"

Oh dear...

"Ahhhhhhhh..." The fact she was taking this long to express herself after talking about slaving and genocidal elves, the dalish knew they wouldn't like this at all. Why change the current trend after all. "It's sort of a... delicate subject that even LOTS of people in Tamriel aren't comfortable with. You see the bosmer follow something called 'The Green Pact'. They venerate plant life so much that they follow a strict meat-based diet, as well figure out how to craft things without the use of plants and trees"

"Huh, that is interesting" Marethari addressed, "But it can't be all there is too it" She wouldn't be this hesitant to tell them if it was.

"Well" The grey elf clicked her tongue, her eyes shifting awkwardly. "Bear in mind that in modern times the bosmer are very open about the interpretations of the Green Pact, so many of them don't follow it as strictly, how much it's followed varies from settlement and even individuals" Many of the dalish exchanged uneasy looks, wondering what she was getting at. "So, part of the Green Pact involves the bosmer having to consume whatever they kill, or" Her volume lowered as the mumbled out the last words, "whoever they kill..."

She let her words sink in for a moment.

It started slowly, but when they began catching up to the meaning of her words many of the elves present began to look very sickly and green. Sarya awkwardly mused they might look like bosmer if they kept that up.

"Young lady" Zathrian began slowly. "Are you telling us that these elves, whom you called the 'friendliest of our kind'... are cannibals?"

"...Not all of them" Sarya stressed those words as best she could; "As I said, not all the Bosmer are strictly adherent to the Green Pact."

"How does that make it any better?!" a young female Dalish exclaimed warily; "THEY EAT PEOPLE!"

"NOT. ALL. BOSMER. EAT. PEOPLE!" The dark elf let out a droned sigh; "The empress of Tamriel is a bosmer and she and her children do not follow the Green Pact!"

THAT particular tidbit of information seemed to push all disgusted thoughts about cannibalism out of their collective heads. As the dalish were now staring at the dunmer woman with stunned incredulity.

"...What" Theron flatly spoke. His sentiments of disbelief share by pretty much everyone in the clans.

They all had been rendered silent once more.

"Perhaps" Marethari, though clearly shaken she managed to retain a certain degree of composure (which Sarya gave her respect for), gently questioned. "A touch more contexts would be required" His fellow Keeper nodded eagerly, their Firsts pretty much on the verge of a panic attack.

"Oh right. Tamriel is under the banner of the Cyrodiil Empire, a looooot of stuff went down in the last decades so right now the current dynasty is led by Emperor Nihlus Crassus the First, a human. His wife Keya and their children Mathius and Alynia are all elves"

"You're joking" A puffy cheeked dalish whom Sarya noticed lacked any kind of face markings, exclaimed in denial. "You honestly mean to tell us t-that an elf sits as empress of an entire empire? Over not just elves but HUMANS as well?"

"Yes," Sarya spoke plainly noting the various looks of disbelieving gazes of the dalish. She showed the image of Nihlus, Keya, and their children. "The Empress is a dedicated veteran of the Imperial Legion who served for over four hundred years."

Everyone went silent and stock still; "A-are the elves in Tamriel immortal?" A dalish around Sarya's age asked. By the all looks she was being given all the dalish wanted to know.

"Not immortal, but we have incredibly long lifespans. There are at least a few elves over several thousand years old in Tamriel. The only Elves who do not age like that, beside your people, are the Orcs. And the last group of living elves on Tamriel"

Eyes went wide as the image of a green skinned elven man appeared with tusks protruding from his lower jaw. A fierce gaze shone from his eyes.

"Fenedhis lasa!" A dalish who wore the clothes of a smith, greyed hair combed back, and face markings in the shapes of two tree branches over his brow and cheeks (Varathorn, the Orava master craftsman as Lanaya helpfully whispered into Sarya's ear), exclaimed something Sarya couldn't properly understand. A swear word of some kind she imagined. "I am willing to suspend my disbelief regarding elves with kingdoms who live for centuries, an elven empress, and cannibal elves. But I refuse to believe something like THAT" He gestured at the illusion, "In any way could be an elf!"

The sentiment was shared by many of his kin. Indeed, orcs were the least 'elvish' race of them all. With their huge powerfully built muscles and tusks, the only resemblance they shared with their other kin was the pointy ears. Indeed, Tamriel hadn't always considered orcs as parts of elven kind for a long time; many of Malacath's children didn't even consider themselves elves at all.

Sarya barked a laugh, "Oh trust me, the orsimer, the pariah elves, or orcs as they are commonly known, are as much elven as you and me. Though they pride themselves in having evolved their own culture far beyond that of the ancient elves. They live by their code, that of bloodlust and vengeance, but also honor and martial prowess. Orcs are among the finest smiths and warriors in all of Tamriel"

Zathrian let out a long sigh beside his fellow Keeper who rubbed her eyes; "I say that was a lot to take in my dear."

"I know, and I can fully share with more knowledge later. But I think everyone probably needs a break Keepers."

Both Marethari and Zathrian gave a nod in agreement. The female Keeper turned to everyone as she stood; "Let us all focus on what we have learned this day. I imagine our cousin has questions for us as well. But let us resume our work for the day."

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

After the summary lesson on their distant kin, the dalish were all too eager to show her around camp. With the Keepers promising to exchange knowledge with her regarding their people in Thedas, and Sarya assuring she would teach them all she could. Oh she couldn't wait to learn more about their history and their magic.

Marethari and Zathrian thought it fitting that her guides should be the hunters who attacked her on the forest, joining them were the Firsts Merrill and Lanaya. Oh the cute braided elf just wouldn't stop with her questions, not that Sarya minded; she was much like a very curious child.

"What magics are you specialized in?"

"Oh honey" Sarya let out a soft laugh, "What magics aren't I specialized in?"

Theron and Tamlen rolled their eyes at the haughty tone the grey skinned elf used. Theron's braids swayed as he lightly shook his head; the more they knew about Sarya the more they realized her attitude was rather insufferable. Acting like she knew everything, bad enough that many in clan were too quickly enamored by her tales.

Oh alright, he was happy to know that somewhere in the world elves lived much better lives than they did here. But was it really something to take pride in? Perhaps in a sense, but the dalish still struggled on day after day and Theron would never forget that fact. 'Tamriel' was a world away for them.

And yet the look on sweet Merrill's eyes whenever she heard Sarya recounting more about those lands, it was like she had discovered Arlathan itself.

The hunter allowed himself a small smile, seeing Merrill in high spirits never failed to lift his spirits. So he would tolerate the woman who seemed to love having people pay attention to whatever she had to say.

"Now, my turn for a question" The dunmer spoke with a grin, "Does your 'vallaslin' have any significance?"

"It's a rite of passage," Lanaya explained; "When a child reaches adulthood be it eighteen or younger a ceremony is done. Each vallaslin is a representation of our gods."

"That sounds painful," Sarya winced.

"Oh it is," Merrill remarked in a bubbly tone; "though after a while the numbness sets in and you hardly feel a thing!"

The dunmer looked to the faces of her guides; "So which symbol of your deities do you lot have?"

Merrill was rather happy to explain; "Mine is to Falon'Din, Mithra is of Ghilan'nain, Theron also has Falon'Din, Tamlen has Dirthamen, and Lanaya has June!"

"Hmm, I stick by my words I told to your Keepers, they are very beautiful." Sarya smiled back loving the energy that Marethari's First had.

Theron wasn't sure he felt like asking, but hell he was curious; "You have any tattoos?"

"My mother Miara, twin brother Oryrn, and elder sister Sofie do. As for me, nope! I just never found something I really liked" The dunmer's red eyes widen in surprise, the cause being the white deer-like creatures with multiple curved horns that gently pastured in the stables. Without a word she rushed over the fence to stare more closely at the animals who looked back at her with curiosity, "Ohhh I've half a mind to get a tattoo of you little fellas~!" She gushed, completely enraptured by the animals, "You kind of remind me of indriks!"

Mithra actually let out a short laugh, "These are the halla, they are very important to our people"

"Ohhhh can I ride on? I reeeeeally want to ride one" She was almost bouncing on her feet like a child.

"Don't overstep your bounds" Tamlen reproached with admonishment, "Outsiders can't ride halla just like that"

"I am afraid Tamlen is correct lethallan," A woman's voice caught their attention and saw two elven woman, one with pure long white hair and the other with a short ponytail and red, both dressed in simple leathers. "Unless you wish to join one of the clans or gain permission by earning our trust from the keepers you are not allowed," the white haired woman said in an apologetic tone. "Andaran atish'an, I am Elora, Halla Keeper of the Orava Clan."

The red-haired Dalish gave a small bow; "I am Maren, Halla keeper of the Sabrae Clan."

A disappointed noise came from the dunmer; "Well guess I'll have to earn your trust then."

"It's not that easy," Mithra dryly commented back.

"And it shouldn't be," Sarya surprisingly agreed; "Trust takes time and effort. And I am a weird foreign elf that just showed up an hour ago."

"Well at least you acknowledge it" Theron replied with judgement in his voice, "We dalish don't trust easily, and for good reason. We seldom have any friends outside the other clans."

"Well that's depressing" The grey elf casually stated, before smiling widely. "But, I'm eager to prove myself! Shouldn't be a problem"

The last comment made a few of the dalish feel rather insulted, even though it apparently wasn't her intention. But Sarya spoke with utter confidence, to her there was no doubt that she would prove her worth to their clans eventually, it was only a matter of time. Again, that so self-assured attitude that Theron found himself disliking, and by the expression on Tamlen and Mithra's faces, he wasn't alone. The hallas' caretakers were reserving their judgement until the words were turned into actions.

But sweet innocent Merrill only looked at the taller elf cheerfully, "Oh, there is lots of do you can do for the clans. We are always doing some task or another, it you could help us with that it'd be of great help"

"I was thinking more along the lines of exchanging magic spells and history with your Keepers" Sarya shrugged, "That honestly sounds like a much better use of my skills"

Mithra droned to Tamlen in a whisper, "I really don't like her…"

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

Sarya was soon brought over to the area where master Varathorn was working along with and another elderly elven man in smithing garments whom Merrill informed her was master Ilen. At present the craftsman of Orava worked at the makeshift forge while the Sabrae's gave a pleasant smile as he sat on a stump working on a bow; "Andaran atish'an Lethallen."

Merrill Had explained those words and what they meant to the dunmer. The Telvanni gave a light bow; "Serjo." She saw the confused looks from her guide's and Ilen; "It's a term of great respect."

"Respect you say?" Ilen cocked a brow curiously.

"It comes from having a mother who is a smith."

"Hah!" Varathorn barked a laugh, "I can already imagine what your childhood must have been like then"

"The smell of the forge is a familiar an endearing one to me" The dunmer replied fondly. "Threat of black lung notwithstanding"

Ilen smiled as he finished the bow and begun carved a piece of wood with a knife, "Did your mother teach you the craft then?"

"Oh she tried, but my calling was with the arcane arts. My siblings learnt it far better than I ever could" She snorted, "Oh if my mother were here she'd talk both your ears off."

"I must admit" The craftsman of the Orava said, "I'm curious about the craftsmanship of our kin across the sea. If it's not too much of a bother, could you conjure those illusions of yours to show me and Ilen a few sets of armors and weapons?"

Sarya only beamed before generating the widely known elven armors and weapons of Tamriel. "Beside my people's bonemold and chitin armors, the Orcs, and the Dwemer's, the majority of elven armor is very light weight."

Ilen and Varathorn looked in in awe held a critical eye to the armors and weapons shown to them. Theron raised a brow beside Merrill; "Bonemold and Chitin?"

"Basically crushed bone put together with a resin and leathers and made into either light or heavy armor. It is a very versatile set of gear that can be as hard as steel. Chitin is used from the harden shells from an insect called Ash Hoppers. Like before using resin and leathers and you have Chitin armor. Mother had been trying to create a newer variation of Bonemold for a while now."

Armor made out of bugs, Tamriel was upside down…

While the young Telvanni conversed, Varathorn and Ilen gazed at the golden armor with engravings of a hawk or an eagle into its design. Few times had they witnessed such beautiful craftsmanship before. And the same could be said of the weapons as all had a hawk motif into their designs. These were truly wondrous works that made the smiths proud, knowing other elves could still refine the craft to such degree.

The sentiment also went to the greenish glass-like armor accented with gold. Even the weapons held such a magnificent beauty to them that neither smith could find the words to properly describe them beyond one; "Beautiful," Ilen whispered in reverence.

"Think of our hunters and warriors in these armors Ilen," Varathorn smiled at his fellow smith; "I would love to make such beautiful works."

"Well you better start hoarding up ore like a dragon does gold" The Sabrae's master craftsman snidely retorted, "I barely have enough materials to supply our own huntsmen with proper gear. Leather and iron armor is the best I can do on a good day"

Sarya pressed her lips, "I take it it's hard for your people to get quality materials"

"If it's not the humans who make it hard then it's the wilds making things more challenging for us" Ilen said. "The best gear you see, our more intricately designed shields and blades? Those were done with time and care, with the materials we had to spare. We reserve our more quality plated armor for times of conflict"

"Hmm" Sarya hummed in thought, taking a look over the dalish weapons and pieces of armor. "What about trading with other clans?"

"There is that, but the one time I know we can make armors like that in bigger numbers is during the Arlathvhen, a gathering of all the clans" Varathorn smiled fondly, "Ahhh you should see it, master smiths and craftsmen of many different clans working together with the best and talent supplies we have."

Ilen brightened up as he turned his fellow smith, "Oh do you remember that set of armor clan Lavellan showed us? Ancient style elvish smithing made in the Dales, beautiful like a dream, a memento of our past"

"Indeed, those are rare, found only in ancient elven ruins"

Sarya tapped her chin as she thought for a moment; "What if I found ore for you to mine to help make your weapons and armor?"

That gained her Varathorn's and Ilen's attention; "How so my dear?" the Sabrea smith questioned.

"I know a spell that can detect ore veins."

Her words were met with minor disbelief from a few; "Are you being serious?" Tamlen grumpily asked with a cock of his head.

"Very. Miners use it when exploring caves to find any deposit of ore veins. Mother used it too since she had worked in mines often for her own ore." The hunters were not convinced; "Alright, how about I show you lot tomorrow by exploring the forest and finding some ore veins. What do you say?" Sarya beamed as set her hands on her hips.

The eager expression on Merrill's face told them they had no choice…

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

Come the next morning, Theron and Tamlen began guiding the elf from far off shores through the woods on the quest of finding mineral ore veins that would be of great value for their craftsmen. The two males stood a few paces in front of Sarya who chatted with Merrill energetically about spells or something; it honestly went right over the hunters' heads.

"You find something yet?" Tamlen asked with mild annoyance.

The grey elf casted a spell in her hand, small blocky shapes floated in her palm as she surveyed their surroundings, "Not yet" She replied before continuing her conversation with Merrill. "As I was saying, the Fade is not present in Tamriel. We draw our magic from Aetherius, the realm of the gods"

"That's fascinating;" Merrill uttered in astonishment. "I simply can't imagine the idea of magic not coming from the Beyond. And you say it's no realm of dreams?"

"To call Aetherius 'a' realm is a very wrong. There are infinite realms and smaller pocket dimensions that make up the dimensions where the spiritual entities of Order and Stasis reside.

"And you believe the gods live there, like, true gods?"

"We call them the 'aedra', in the ancient language that means 'Our Ancestors', the gods are embodiments of universal concepts that formed to make creation. You can say they are spirits of the highest ranking, whose nature transcends all mortal understanding. A bare base yet effective statement would be saying that while all gods are spirits, not all spirits are god"

The First of Sabrae tapped her chin as she nodded in understanding, "If a spirit holds so much dominion over an aspect of reality, it makes sense to call such a being a god"

"Then, we have Oblivion, which is inhabited by the spirits of Chaos and Change, the 'daedra', which means 'Not Our Ancestors'. As they did not have a direct role in the creation of the world. Now, many in Tamriel have called the inhabitants of Oblivion 'demons', and yes while that terminology does in fact fit a lot of them, it's more complicated than that though while many of the entities that live there are harmful and corruptive, some are neutral, and lastly some are good sort of. It is just their way of thinking is too alien for mortals to understand"

"We dalish hold that all spirits can be dangerous, they are subject to change depending on the mind of those who confront them" Merrill explained. "But I'm curious; does that mean you don't draw magic from Oblivion at all?"

"Oh no" Sarya corrected, "We can in fact draw magic from the realms of Oblivion to cast certain spells, namely, the summoning of daedra"

"Woah, woah, wait!" Theron understood enough of their conversation to get that she meant by that. The dark tanned elf spun around to Sarya sharply, "Do you mean to say you actually summon demons?!" He threw up his arms and let them fall, "What, is living sacrifice practiced in Tamriel too?"

"Oh please" Sarya rolled her eyes, "Living sacrifice is a barbaric practice. Our skills on conjuration have advanced to the point that we do not need to sacrifice people to summon spirits. That is a shortcut taken by people who thirst for power. A true mage relies on their own preparation and skills"

"You could summon a spirit?" Merrill was much too excited about the concept, to Theron and Tamlen's growing horror.

"Yes," at that the two hunters paled and the dark elf rolled her eyes. "Without sacrifices."

"Will believe that when we see it," Theron said in almost a challenge.

The dark elf gave a sideways glance to the hunters; "If I summon a spirit would you attack him?"

Merrill gave Theron and Tamlen a look; "Promise me that you won't!"

"Merrill!" Tamlen outright yelled; "She can summon spirits! You know how dangerous that is!"

The Telvanni only shook her head before lifting her hand as a purple flame cloaked her hand. "Do. Not. Attack. him!" she warned Theron and Tamlen who both instinctively grabbed their bows as the dark elf released her magic and what appeared was a tall humanoid being wearing regal clothes? With charcoal skin, long black hair in a ponytail, horns adorned the top of his head, red marking on his face as he gave a polite bow to Sarya.

"Mistress Sarya!" The butler raised a brow as he stood upright at the small elven woman looking at him wide eyed, then at the two male elves in leathers aiming bows at him. "May I ask why these two are pointing their weapons at me?"

"Cause apparently in this country conjuration is so archaic they require living sacrifices," Sarya droned with a dry glare at Theron and Tamlen.

"Truly? How utterly primitive."

"Yeah, these lands are terribly backwater, but thankfully I am here to teach them the error of their ways!" Sarya beamed at her own proclamation.

"And they are very fortunate to have you, mistress" The horned entity spoke reverently with a hand to his chest as he bowed at the waist.

With the initial shock of the actual demon summoning done without blood magic over with, Theron and Tamlen couldn't help but feel insulted once again. It was almost like she was trying to actively piss them off...

"Oh my, this is wonderful!"

Oh sweet Merrill, the hunters mentally begged, please don't sound so excited about the demon right in front of you...

"Can you teach me?" She asked excitedly, much to their horror.

Surprisingly, relief came from Sarya's reply, "I'd love to, Merrill. But I don't think your clan would be too fond of daedric summoning"

The First let out a sad yet adorable whine of disappointment, while the hunters sighed in relief.

"This is Butler," Sarya gestured to the Daedric entity who gave a nod; "His race is called the Dremora or the Kyn as they call themselves. They are spirits of war but can choose to follow another path. Butler here being a prime example."

"Ever since I came to be, I envisioned myself as pack mule." Neither hunter could tell if this demon was being sarcastic or not. Butler turned his gaze back to Sarya; "Do you require anything mistress?"

The Telvanni shook her head; "Nope, just wanted to show this lot the advancement of conjuration in Tamriel compared to here."

"Ah, then I hope this lesson was enlightening to all. Farewell." And as he bowed he or it vanished in purple light.

Tamlen looked to Theron; "We should tell the Keepers of this."

"I'll gladly tell them myself," Sarya spoke up as she crossed her arms under her bust. "I will gladly tell them all the schools of magics I work with. I will hide nothing from your clans."

"Your people delve into dangerous things" The dark skinned elf admonished.

"Theron" Merrill reprimanded him with a frown.

"I sincerely hope the rest of your clan isn't as close minded as you" Sarya replied with a scowl.

If looks could kills, both elves would have set each other on fire by now.

"Enough you two" The First put her foot down, "For now, let's continue with our task at hand. Sarya, can you spot any mineral growths now?"

The dunmer let out a soft sigh, deciding it was of no use to argue with the hunters. She casted the spell once again, and did a double take as she spotted a glowing signature further up ahead. "There" She pointed down to a large crevice where a small stream flowed. "There is something up ahead in the crevice"

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

As the two hunters went to inspect Sarya's find, both she and Merrill wandered further in the forest. The young Dalish asking all manners of questions about Tamriel magic, what types of magics were practiced? And the Dunmer mage was happy to tell all as they roamed the forest.

"So in Tamriel there are eight schools of magic." Merrill's voice in awe at the thought of it. "So much to learn, what were they again?"

A giggle came from the telvanni mage; "Restoration, destruction, illusion, alteration, mysticism, enchantment, conjuration, and thaumaturgy. Now, some of these blend into each other depending on the region and the type of traditional magic they teach. A person could spend their entire life studying one school of magic alone. Or be diverse and study many."

"And not have worry about Templars, Chantry, or being locked in a Circle. It sounds lovely," Merrill said dreamily

"It is... until a calamity threatens to destroy the world. Hordes of monsters, dangerous warlocks, armies of daedra who decide to invade just for funnies"

"Oh" The First made a disturbed sound as her ears dropped a little. "Does... Does that happen often?"

"Once or twice every era" The dunmer dryly replied, "Haven't seen it happen in my lifetime yet, but I no doubt will live to see one. Thrilling really"

"That sounds scary" The dalish mage mumbled.

"Oh don't worry honey, whatever happens my mom will take care of it. She'll make a fuss and complain, but it's pretty much her job, Hero of the Scrolls and all"

"She works as a book keeper?"

Sarya bit her lip, "Ohhh Merrill I swear I could eat you up" It shouldn't be possible for this girl to be so adorable. "Remind me to teach you and the other mages back in the camp these spells, I can think of some that'll be of great use for the dalish. Detect life will definitely be more..." The red eyed woman stopped mid-sentence as she blinked, surveying around through the trees and foliage. "Do you feel something around here?"

The dalish grew pensive. "Yes, I do... there is magic in the air around these parts" The first of the Sabrae clan held her staff; "Sylvans have been known to wander in this area of the forest watch your back, lethallen."

"Sylvans?" magic danced around her hands as she remained alert for anything.

"Trees brought to life by the possession of spirits." Merrill's voice was grim and stern.

A bewildered gaze came from the Telvanni mage; "Spirits here actually possess inanimate objects rather than they being the trees themselves" Well they certainly did not sound Spriggans that was certain. "Are they hostile?"

"Yes."

There was a rumble, the sound of wood cracking and twisting. "Hmm," A deep, slow and ancient voice murmured from behind them; "What manner of beings be thee, to come before this elder tree?" Both ladies slowly turned to the sight of giant humanoid figure made of pure wood. With long limbs, a tiny waist and large upper body, a face with eyes and branches like horns on its head. On its back was more branches with pink and white leaves.

The Sylvan titled its head in curiosity at them; "Skin grey, what an odd sight. Yet I can see you are not a sprite"

"Oh I'm the weird one?! You're a giant talking tree!"

"Your red gaze does not deceive, even if you find it hard to believe"

The dunmer rolled her eyes, "And he's a poet..."

"Oh old one" Merrill shows much more respect to the spirit, giving a small bow. "It is a pleasure to meet you"

"A most friendly greeting" The sylvan replied, "I am thankful for this meeting. Elves, humans and beast often pass, yet most care not for talk, I am glad to see you have more class"

"Rather hard to speak with animals I imagine" Sarya commented with a grin, "What about the other trees, do their spirits no talk to you?"

The great tree waved it's long arms, "Ahhhh, their voices are soft and silent, their rest one should not disturb, lest they became violent"

The mage from Tamriel tapped her chin as she looked at the spirit up and down, the entity was a curious one, and this seemed like a good chance to satiate a curiosity of her. "Tell me, are you spirit of nature, or from the Fade?"

"In dreams I was born, from the earth my essence did not spawn, but now this bark I don" The old living tree 'explained'.

Though Sarya understood his words, he was born from the Fade and now resided in a tree, his essence having turned into one with nature. "But have you ever met spirits that were not born of the Fade? I mean actual spirits from the world around you"

The ancient sylvan tapped its chin. "Of earth and sky I've heard them speak; beings old and wise, so very unique. Spirits not of thought and emotion, but born from nature's motions"

A smile graced Sarya's lip. It should not have come to any surprised; Kyne's blessing could be felt throughout these lands. So no surprise her daughters be here "Have they been seen recently?"

"Walk within the deepest forest they dwell, solitary when at peace, but their rage none can quell"

That sounded like Spriggans alright. And unless you knew their language they would kill you on sight. Sadly her mother knew their tongue better than she did, so it was best not to venture their way and cause trouble.

Having sated that curiosity the Telvanni gazed to the Sylvan; "Do you have name?"

"To the forest I welcome thee, I am called the Grand Oak, sometimes the Elder Tree"

"I am Sarya Redoran, mage without peer!" The dark elf said 'humbly'. Well, it was humble in her mind, if she really wanted to brag she'd have used a longer title.

"I'm Merrill, first of the Sabrae clan!" The bubbly elf introduced herself, 'merrily' Sarya thought amused.

"I bid thee salutations" The poet inclines its head of bark and leaves in greeting, "And it must be said, with great elation; Your Company's a treasure, it has truly been my pleasure"

Their meeting with the mystical tree was suddenly cut short by the shout coming from one of the hunters in the distance, "Merrill! You need to come and see this!"

Sarya huffed to herself, noting her name was omitted. The dunmeri mage gave one last nod to the Great Oak, biding him farewell, "I am sorry, but we must depart. May the winds carry your poems far"

"Dareth shiral" Merrill inclined her head respectfully, the two departing to rejoin the hunters.

"Sky's blessing to you" The oak spoke as he resumed his regular form, twisting himself back into a normal looking three, "And may the earth makes you anew"

Huh, if one were to ask Sarya, she'd say that sounded a lot like a phrase based on the teachings of Kynareth. Food for thought.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

The news of a good sized vein of veridium ore swept through the camp from the stunned lips of Tamlen and Theron. Actual Veridium! Saying both Master Ilen and Varathorn were shocked and then overjoyed would have been a glaring understatement. But the luck did not end there discovering a good portion or a rare material Varathorn called Ironbark. A very rare form of wood that is both stronger, lighter, and more flexible than steel.

Sarya only beamed at the adulation given to her by the now very happy Dalish smiths. Upon being shown the sights both Keepers had people quickly mining for the ore and bark at the place shone in the forest.

"We can actually give our warriors proper gear and weapons!" The joy in Ilen's voice was matched by his fellow smith.

"Ma nuvenin lethallin," Varathorn breathed out a cheerful sigh. The old Dalish smith looked to Sarya; "Enansal Lethallan. It must have been Mythal who sent you to us."

The Telvanni gave a light chuckle before noticing Zathrian and Marethari gesturing for her. Bidding a quick farewell to the two old smiths who were starting their work, Sarya noticed a look from the two leaders of the clans. "Something on your minds?" The dunmer asked with a cocked head.

"Theron and Tamlen explained you summoned a demon?" The Orava Keeper spoke in a hushed tone not to garner attention.

A long groan came from the Telvanni; "I was showing an example of how advanced Conjuration has come in Tamriel compared to here. The fact you need blood sacrifices in your country is glaring."

"Regardless, Conjuration as you call it is something of a deep taboo in Thedas," Marethari stressed her words quietly.

Sarya placed her hands on her hips; "I understand, I'll refrain from using that practice around people so not to cause a panic." Her voice a mild drone.

The two Keepers gave a grateful nod; "As for the rest of the magics you told to Merrill. Would you be kind to explain them?" Talas gave a smile.

"Especially the one that found that ore would be most kind," Zathrian added with a polite grin.

Sarya let out a happy squeal as she vigorously clapped her hands. "Magic teaching time!" The Keepers would be lying if they said her expression wasn't a touch unsettling.

She requested (very eagerly) for them to bring their Firsts and gathered a few materials of her choosing for them to practice on. Sarya had disappeared for a few minutes, only to return with multiple books stacked in her arms. The Keepers did not bother questioning where she had been storing them. A small learning circle had been set up near the Keepers' tents, joined by their curious Firsts. Though it would be fair to say Merrill wasn't as much curious as she was 'high-on-sugar' excited at the prospect of learning magic. While there were a few other mages in the clans, their leaders decided to first learn the spells themselves before passing it down to the others.

They all sat on logs as Sarya handed copies of the same tome, the cover of which depicted a tree, one half full of foliage and the other just bare branches. As a sign of good faith, Sarya was given a text that held everything they knew about the elvhen language, which she used to compare and reference a text of her own. The language 'ehlnofey', which she explained were the predecessors of most of mortal kind, held various similarities (too many to be coincidence) to their own language as they came to find. Needless to say they were also very interested in seeing what the dunmer could decipher by using this ehlnofey tongue as a reference to study their own ancient dialect. It was bound to have interesting results.

Perhaps even restore their lost language.

But for now, they dedicated their attention to the practical spells that could be of so much more use to their people.

"Alteration is all about understanding that reality is a big falsehood, and as such subject to change by the users will" Sarya spoke while going over the different words of elvhen and cross-referencing them with her own book. "The school specializes in altering the properties of the physical world"

Zathrian tapped a page with interest, "Skin hardening spells..." He discovered much to his amusement that they functioned almost exactly like the venerable 'rock armor' spell employed by many mages to protect themselves. "I'm familiar with the properties of some of these metals, but a few others are unknown to me"

"Those are from Tamriel" Sarya explained, "It's better if you familiarize with Thedas metals seeing those are native, that way you can understand their properties and apply them to your flesh and skin"

Marethari was deep into the lecture, focused on spell that would prove vital to the dalish. The ability to detect the lifeforce of nearby creatures. This could be a life saver, when journeying through dangerous territories.

She ran her finger over the paragraph, it wasn't just sensing the life around you. It was about casting upon your eyes the ability to see the 'flare', the life itself a being projected just by, well, living. The book instructions stated one had to use the same sense for feeling magic, concentrate on it, and cast it upon the user's gaze. With time it would become instinctual, leading to the user to be able to cast Detect Life more frequently and with little to no preparation.

The Keeper of the Sabrae gathered mana in her hand, directed it to her eyes as she focused on the world around her, and was greeted with the sight of every nearby figure lighting up at the rhythm of a heartbeat.

Marethari only looked in awe at the various forms of life she could now 'see'; "The applications for this one spell alone can help us hunt, be careful of hostile animals or people. Amazing..."

Beside her Lanaya gasped as she used the same spell; "It's so beautiful..."

"This is for the spell to find veins of ore." Sarya smiled as she pointed to the right section of the book in Zathrian's hands, "I have an array of spells for anyone curious. How to become invisible, how to see in the dark like a cat, or create a small ball of arcane light to hover above you for a certain amount of time."

"Have one to breathe under water?" Lanaya joked dispelling the detect live spell to read on healing.

"Actually... Yes. A very handy Alteration spell," Sarya smiled as the Keepers and their firsts gawked at her. "If you're good at enchanting you can fuse that spell onto an object like jewelry or clothes. There is even a spell to make heavy objects lighter!"

"I'm afraid dwarven enchanting is a touch beyond our capabilities" Zathrian commented regretfully. "We don't really have the raw lyrium for it, and handling it is very dangerous for non-dwarves and those" He sneered in disgust, "Circle Tranquil. So instead we do a more complicated version, but one still very effective if I do say so myself"

"Oh, we don't have lyrium back home. So we use other materials"

"Truly?" Lanaya remarked curiously, "What do you use then, an amalgamation of resources that have magical properties? It's been theorized that with the proper materials that are sensitive to magical energy one could recreate an enchant-"

"Souls!" The grey elf said with a wide smile, "We use souls!"

The four dalish mages looked at her with growing horror. Sarya could see by the widening eyes and expressions of pure fright they were considering running away as fast as possible.

"Let me clarify" She held up her hands. "We use ANIMAL souls to power enchantments"

"...That somehow makes it better?!" Lanaya screeched, making quite a few elves from the clans look up at their direction, before deciding it was better to leave the mages do their craft and carry on with their day.

"It's no different than killing an animal for its body parts. The soul just goes through the Dreamsleeve, the cycle of spiritual reincarnation, where the soul undergoes a process of renewal so it can be born again."

An uneasy gaze came from Zathrian as he rubbed the back of his neck; "I suppose that's... better, knowing that the soul of the animal can be reincarnated." Still there was hesitation in not only his eyes but the rest.

"Is Necromancy known in your land?" Sarya's question caught the four off guard.

Marethari gave a slow nod; "Sadly yes. I take it they have it in Tamriel?"

"Yes, and it is an illegal practice throughout Tamriel. I bring it up because those who illegally practice it tend use Black Soul Gems. Those can house the souls of people, be it elves, humans, or beast-men." Of course she was not going to bring up that Serana is a necromancer along with her mother, cause that would just be bad...

"What happens to the soul?" Merrill asked with worry.

"They are trapped in another very dreary and desolate realm, to say it's not pleasant is a massive understatement. This is why the empire holds the use of Black Soul Gems as a very grave crime. If the guard doesn't deal with you, then the various knights' orders will"

"Well" Zathrian breathed out, "I am relieved to see even the humans in your lands have standards"

It wasn't what he said but how he said it. There was something in his voice when he mentioned humans or anything human-related, mostly the humans of Thedas and their Chantry. It was like a small contempt which hinted at something larger. But then again, Sarya wasn't surprised, the entire day she had been plagued by questions about Tamriel, moments where the elves had put the 'unfair humans' in their place, even if they were aware the elves were just as flawed. They all carried various degrees of mistrust, resentment, and even hate for humans. So it wasn't a surprise to think Zathrian too fell into that category.

She couldn't blame them, the dalish entire history revolved around being screwed over by humans.

"The magic of your lands are very refined" Marethari said, changing the subject. "But I've noticed you haven't mentioned how ingrained magic is to your society"

"Oh believe me" Sarya snorted, "I'd love for magic to be of a more everyday use beyond alchemy and the usual utilitarian enchantment everyday folk can buy. Ironically it is the people of ancient civilizations who used magic to an even greater degree, the only modern day people who even come close to displaying such integrity between magic and everyday life are the altmer"

"And you said elves in Tamriel can live for centuries" Lanaya noted before turning to her mentor, "Maybe with them you can find the cause of your longevity, Keeper"

Zathrian let out a soft laugh, "I'm not so sure, my dear"

"Oh?" Sarya tilted her curiously, "You mean to say you're older than you look?"

"Keeper Zathrian has been with us for over three centuries," Marethari spoke with respect in her voice. "His longevity had brought some hope that perhaps some of us would regain our long life as well."

"Sadly," Zathrian shook his head; "It seems I have been the only one. I know not how I was given this gift. But I will use it to help my people however I can."

Rubbing her chin the Dunmer smiled; "At the very least your wisdom has been a boon for the Dalish I'd imagine."

"To those willing to listen, the young can be rather difficult at times." Zathrian chuckled.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

The days became routine for dalish and their guest, and Theron was hating every moment of it.

The gray elf would meddle into business that did not concern her, voicing her opinion even though nobody asked for it. Acting with such superiority, like she knew better than anyone, when she studied their own culture, history, and lore. While half of the clans were entranced by her and her pretty stories, others like Theron were growing tired of Sarya's attitude. Her backhanded comments, how she voiced her disagreements, uncaring of how her choice of words could be seen as insulting.

Most of all it bothered him how taken with the foreign elf Merrill was, following her around like a lost puppy, eager to learn more magic...

The hunter scoffed while he worked on his bow, catching sight of the source of his current bad mood currently arguing with the two hahrens. Oh boy it'd be another one of 'those' days again...

"I'm just saying" The dunmer spoke, "I'm sure there is plenty of land to settle on"

"It's not that simple" Paivel shook his head, "The humans have made it clear that if we were to do that, their chantry would just take it away again"

"Then travel further" Sarya replied, unwavering in ther stance. "There are lands still unexplored in Thedas right? Further south, even if the cold is too much. Or find a new home across the seas. You can't wonder forever and expect that will somehow help you rebuild."

"That would mean leaving behind our heritage" Sarel said offended, "Losing who we are"

"Cultural pride is not worth the lives of people" The mage refuted.

"And lives have little meaning if they lack identity"

"You could build a new one," Sarya spoke with patience as she sat on a log opposite of the Hahrens to speak with them. "Yes, not forgetting history is a good thing. But losing yourselves in the past will make you blind to the present and the future." She gestured around them. "I see two great clans who could grow well beyond their pasts into something much greater. I'm not saying forget who your people were, all I am saying is become something more than they were."

Paivel sighed; "You make it sound easy child."

Theron groaned with a scowl. It would not be easy, not with the Shems and their Chantry condemning them if they did what Sarya suggested. The hunter shook his head before taking notice of someone took a seat on the log beside him; "At it again are they?" Fenarel's voice being light and jovial.

A hunter and longtime friend of Theron since children. Fairer skinned, with sandy blond hair down to his shoulders, and wore one of the new armors made by master Varathorn and Ilen. His green eyes danced with mirth; "You'd think after several weeks she'd stop trying."

A scowl remained on Theron's lips; "She loves to hear herself talk doesn't she. Thinking she understands what our people have been through."

Fenarel kept his mood; "A fresh perspective isn't a bad thing. And you have to admire that fiery passion of hers. It definitely livened up the clans."

"...You're quite taken with her," Theron glanced with a light glare; "Could say you fancy her by your tone."

"Doubt I could keep up with her pace," Fenarel chuckled; "Though sharing her bed is not a bad thing." Theron felt his jaw lightly go ajar.

"Really?" The dark haired elf groaned, "Great, now aside from getting into your head she's gotten into your pants..."

"I'm just saying; she's not that bad. Sure, she lacks... people skills, but her heart is in the right place"

"You'll forgive me if I don't heed the words of someone who has shared her bed. I suspect your opinion is a touch biased"

Fenarel let out a short laugh, "I think somebody's jealous"

"UGH!" Theron let out a disgusted noise, "Spare me the thought, I can barely tolerate being next to her."

"Oh that's not what I'm talking about" The darker skinned hunter didn't like the teasing look his friend got in his eyes. "I believe you're jealous that Merrill follows her around all day"

Theron did not reply.

"Come now, everybody knows you carry a torch for her"

THAT did get a reaction out of Theron, a pretty hilarious one in Fenarel's opinion. "What?! No, I- What?! No, of course not! I- Stop looking so smug!" The blonde hunter would admit his smirk was in fact pretty smug. "There is nothing between Merrill and me" His retorted with finality.

"Of course there isn't, you haven't expressed yourself properly. And Merrill is too... Merrill, to notice you're interested as well"

"Oh you're just begging for me to... Wait what do you mean by 'as well'?"

Gods help him, he sounded so hopeful.

Though something could have happened a few days ago if not for that blasted dark elf.

XxX ~ several days ago ~ XxX

Theron sighed as he sat under a tree by the lake in the forest close by the clans' camp. A smile reached both his eyes and lips as Merrill sat beside him. "Oh this quite lovely isn't it?" Marethari's first said with a spirited smile.

"Yes it is," the Dalish hunter muttered while staring at Merrill's face.

"Remember when we were little and snuck into the lakes to swim?" The First reminisced with fondness, "We used vines to swing and jump right into the lake, until-"

"Until Tamlen got his ankle wrapped up in the vine!" Theron finished with laughter in his voice. The image of their friend dangling and screaming bloody murder as he swung by the air was fresh in his mind. "I remember!"

"He screamed so much" Merrill giggled, though felt a bit bad laughing at the expense of their friend. "Don't think he ever swung himself into a lake again. A shame, it's still pretty fun!" She reached out to the water, the magic under her command making a thin stream of the liquid emerge from the surface and dance around her arm without wetting it.

Merrill made it look so simple, so natural. Theron could only watch fascinated at her display of control, "I never get tired of watching you" He coughed awkwardly when Merrill tilted her head at him, "do magic, I mean. It's... impressive"

"Oh, this is nothing. You should see some of the stuff Sarya's teaching me!"

Ugh, again with that woman. He'd rather not talk about her when he was spending time with Merrill. "Hmph, wish I could have been born with the gift" He idly tugged the necklace around his neck. "I dunno, maybe... I could do more for the clan, like you"

Merrill couldn't help but notice the rather melancholic tone his voice had taken, the way he traced the beads of his necklace. A hundred beads to be exact, each carved into the shape of an animal. Deer, hawks, wolves, rabbits, etc., chasing each other across its length. It had been made with great care and love.

The necklace his mother had made for his father, the previous Keeper.

Merrill may not understand much of the world, and sometimes the words people spoke went right over her head. But even she could see Theron longed for a stronger link to his parents, something to make them proud.

She sent the water back to the lake, and gently placed her hand upon his. "I don't think you need it" She smiled softly at him, "I think you're already great without it"

"You really think so?" Theron's voice a hush whisper.

Merrill only smiled "I know so." Her eyes shone with warmth and understanding.

Theron's smile was one of pure honest joy. Speaking to her, just… being near Merrill made his days be all the brighter. Her quiet concerns, her simple acts of kindness, how she thought of the well-being of the clan. But most of all how simple it was for Merrill to cheer him up whenever he was down. Her voice was a melody to his ears, and those pure green eyes the most beautiful landscape.

He could sit there, holding his hand for the rest of his life, and he'd knew for certain it'd be a good life.

"Merrill~!" Sarya's voice echoed so loudly it startled both Dalish. "I have some cards ready, you wanted to learn Legends didn't you?!"

At that Sabrae instantly stood up beaming; "Coming!" She looked back to Theron with a bright smile; "See you back at camp!" And like that she ran off.

For a moment the Dalish hunter was frozen in place before lowering his head he let out a long frustrated growl. "That damn woman!"

XxX ~ present ~ XxX

A disgruntled sigh came from Theron; "Hopefully lethallin, you and Merrill will actually get there while you're both still young," Fenarel laughed as he stood up and walked away.

Theron really wished he had some arrows right now as he glared at his departing friend and then to Sarya who was still speaking with the Hahrens.

"Fen'Harel ma halam." He quietly muttered going back to his work.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

Sarya's presence was all too common for the clans now, much to Theron's chagrin. There blessed instances in which she just seemed to disappear for hours at the time, moments in which he, Tamlen and others could finally breath in relief, even if it was just temporary.

Where would she go? The dark braided elf honestly did not care.

Unfortunately she would come and things would on as they have. Sharing her knowledge with the clan, while acting she knew about their own history far better than any of them. And yet somehow some of his kin acted like it didn't bother them. Honestly, he thought his days wouldn't get any better so long as that woman was still around...

But today, he and Tamlen caught a break. An opportunity.

The shemlens they had scared away, one thing from their fear induced rambling stuck with them.

"We should go to these ruins" Tamlen prompted. "It's our chance to bring something back to the clan!"

"I agree" Theron nodded in reply, before shuffling as hesitating swarmed his thoughts. "But, shouldn't we bring a mage? What if they actually saw a demon?"

"Oh please" His friend waved it off. "These shems could be scared with their own shadow. Besides, if we do that we risk Sarya finding out. And I don't want that outsider getting the credit; she's already insufferable enough as it is..."

That was true, he was glad Tamlen and Mithra weren't entranced by the dark elf and her craziness. The two Dalish strolled through the forest path the shems had found with their bows at the ready for anything. Not going too far they reached a large stone entrance-way, they could tell it was well made, but not by the dwarves. The forest had reclaimed this area, covering it so much they could not see what this place actually looked like.

"What do you think?" Tamlen looked in awe at the entrance.

Theron took a long look at the architecture; "If I remember what Keeper Marethari showed me from some books this is elven."

A smile came from his longtime friend; "And beside those two shems, no one has been here in ages."

There was a whistle that came from behind them, "That is a big entrance." Theron and Tamlen froze before slowly turning their heads and seeing Sarya standing beside them. "Hi!" She waved with a bright smile.

Tamlen felt his eye twitch; "How did you know we were here?"

"Ran into those humans you chased off. Boy did they scream bloody murder seeing me. Called me a Darkspawn," The Telvanni huffed. "Heard them before introducing myself they were going to tell a village nearby so I wiped their memories and teleported them to the Imperial Highway."

Theron closed his eyes and slowly breathe out through his nose, fighting back the irritation he felt. "Okay. Thank you. Goodbye"

"Wow that's what I get after saving your Sabrea and Orava from a mob of angry humans?" Sarya crossed her arms, "I think I've earned myself a bit off dungeon crawling fun"

"Yes" Tamlen forcibly spoke, sarcasm dripping from his every word. "Because you're just owed everything. That's how it works, you wave your fingers around, do magic, and then act like you know better than every else"

The dunmer blinked a few times, "Well... I do know better than everyone else"

There wasn't arrogance in her voice, nor smug haughtiness or anything similar, she spoke with honest conviction. Oh sweet Creators she actually believed that...

Just how much more pretentious could this woman get?

The darker skinned dalish finally had enough, "Forget it, go back to the camp; this is an entirely dalish matter!" He motioned to his friend to follow him, "Come on, Tamlen" And continued on their way.

"You do know I'm going to follow you regardless right?" They didn't make it five feet before Sarya's voice called again, "It could be dangerous, and Merrill would be very distraught if anything were to happen to you two"

Theron and Tamlen groaned as they dark elf continued; "I mean those constructs you call 'demons' could be haunting these ruins. How would you be able to fight them?" Sarya walked passed both creating a candlelight spell as they went within the ruins.

Both hunters glared; "If we kill her would the Keepers be angry?" Theron growled out in a whisper.

"Oh we would be exiled before we could blink. And Merrill wouldn't forgive either of us." Tamlen groaned; "Come on."

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

It was thanks to... oh Tamlen and Theron felt the bile in their throats to acknowledge Sarya's spell was useful, lighting the way for them as they went down some stone stairs. Finding themselves at an intersection the dark elf stopped at the sight of a metal brazier on the wall; "Wonder if that is connected to that veilfire Zathrian told me about. If more could find a torch for you two."

The shorter haired elf spotted one such torch in the ground; he picked up and inspected it. It was not made of wood but of pure metal, "Hmm, would this work?" He mused.

"Let me see" Sarya inspected the object closely, "Hmm, I do feel enchantments on this thing. So maybe if I juuuuuuust" She trailed off as she channeled her magic through the item, beaming happily as it lit up with pale green flames, further illuminating the room. "There we go!"

"Now with this we can split up" Theron was all too quick to say, "You know, to better explore the ruin"

The mage hummed in reply, "Promise you won't be poking anything dangerous okay?"

"We'll be fine" Tamlen said tiredly. "Just, you go that way" He pointed behind her to, "And we'll go this way. If we do find a demon, we'll call for you" With that, the two left. Eager to get away from the grey skinned woman.

Going down a long hallway Sarya lit up the few metal braziers she saw with Veilfire. She inspected a few stone carved statues and murals on the walls. Likely homage to the gods the elves of Thedas believe in.

The dunmer could not help but smile as she found herself in a modest size room with shelves littered with books and scrolls. Seeing several braziers she quietly lit them dispelling her candlelight. Cobwebs and dust coated every inch of the room. Carved in the walls were least several murals.

Casting a small wind spell Sarya blew away the dust and cobwebs. "Let's see what we got here."

She approached the walls to better look at the murals, they were ancient elven frescos as she's seen from old books the dalish had. Very nice, quiet artistic looking. The first mural seemed to depict the elves, cowering before men in armor and robes, Tevinter she supposed.

The next mural was of the elves rebelling, fighting back against their oppressors, as well as joining with the barbarian tribes to overthrow them.

The third mural was different in which all the focus was directed at one particular figure, a human woman, drawn to be larger than all the other humans and elves, depicting her importance. Her hair was long and flowing, she thrusted her hand forward, directing an army to fight against Tevinter.

Above her, the sun shined radiantly.

"Hello there" She mused, tracing her fingers over the figure. "Are you Andraste by any chance?" She spoke as though the painting could answer her. "I wonder who you were truly, would you accept what your Chantry has become, the ignorance, the hate, the fear?" She paused, "Or would you condemn it, would you fight against oppression again?"

No answer. Of course there wasn't one.

"I've only seen pieces of what the Chantry has done, and I hate it already. To be driven by fear and superstition, to scoff at progress in exchange of empty platitudes and dogma... those things have the plagued the world enough. I'd love to see the day where reason and understanding become more valuable, that is better to seek new knowledge than to burn that which you don't understand..."

Her gaze shifted, thinking back of the dalish. Their lives were harsh yet they lived on, even though they shouldn't had too, theirs was a proud and rich heritage, they should be doing so many wonderful things instead of wasting their time retelling old stories, hoping to recover a past that would never return.

Her gaze left the Frescoes and went to the shelves of books. Absently her mind wandered. She recalled her first time entering the Fade and encountering the circle mage Neria and the interesting thought construct Valor. After that unique encounter she had ventured back to that world several times. She had made a point to to study every inch of the dream world that she was very certain was not of Aetherius.

By chance she had encountered Valor once more. The two conversed for hours as they traveled the strange dream world. Near the end she had offered him a chance to become something more than a construct of thoughts, whether he decided to take the offer she will find out when going back into the Fade.

Perhaps he'd be watching over the warriors of Ostagar in the meantime, many spirits would likely be drawn to battlefield, like moths to a flame before the immense surge of death and all those powerful emotions raging through the conflict.

She pressed her lips, remembering how her mother had informed them via their rings she would be joining the battle at Ostagar. Tragedy had struck the human nobles she had been staying with, and now she accompanied the younger son to the ancient fortress in order to help him find his brother.

Alas, no matter how hard she tried her mother's worries were proven correct in the end. She was dragged into yet another war she had no stake in. Well, she wouldn't be a Doom-Driven hero of the Scrolls if she were to chicken out after all.

Her ring pulsed, almost if on cue. She activated the enchantment to receive the communication at the other end, Oryrn's orb lighting up above it as well. "Hello?"

"Oryrn, Sarya?" It was their mother's voice, she sounded... tired, weary even.

"Is everything okay?" Oryrn asked in concern.

"Are you okay, mom?" Her worry mirrored her twin's.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine but..." She paused for a moment; they could almost feel her running a hand of her face and hair in exhaustion. Miara let out a long sigh, "At Ostagar, we... the battle was lost"

"What!?" Both twins shouted; "Are you alright!? What about Sofie! And mama Serana" Sarya's voice growing more and more frantic.

"Sarya," Miara's voice though tired held a calming paternal tone. "We were hurt but nothing life threatening. However Marcus, Neria, Gin, Brianna, and a young warden named Alistair are in rougher shape."

Oryrn spoke up; "What happened?"

"The Darkspawn had outnumbered us. Serana and I fought alongside Duncan while Sofie went with Marcus and the others to light a beacon for Loghain Mac Tir and his men to flank the beasts from behind. The beacon was lit but no forces came. We were betrayed, Duncan asked me to save Marcus and the others. Getting there we were ambushed by Darkspawn. Someone... saved us, but I'll explain her later."

"Truly," the husky voice of an elderly woman spoke up with an eerie mirth. "That is rather quite rude young Thur."

A long pause came from both Sarya and Oryrn; "Who is that? And why did she call you Thur?" Only dovah called their mother that.

Serana made herself known by speaking up; "We're working on that. But as of right now, it's just us who survived Ostagar. Besides that bastard Loghain."

"That does not make any sense," Oryrn's voice no longer his usual calm; "I've been in Redcliffe for a while now and people praise him greatly. He was the longtime friend of the late King Maric. He willingly left his friend's son to die?"

"Believe me, we want answers as much as you," Miara responded with rage in her voice; "But now the Darkspawn have nothing stopping them from advancing further into Ferelden."

"Oh gods..." The youngest daughter muttered horrified. "W-What are you gonna do?"

"We" Miara paused momentarily, "are working on it. For now on stay put, I'll inform you about the next course of action once we have one. First we need to tend to our young Wardens"

"I hope you keep safe" Oryrn voiced.

"You two. I'll talk to you later"

"Goodbye mom, take care" Sarya gently said as the transmission was cut, leaving her alone with her thoughts that raced through her mind at high speeds. Sitting over an old chair in the room, she took in a deep calming breath as she massaged the bridge of her nose. Her hand descending over her mouth as she tried to bring order to her wary mind.

It was a matter of time before the Darkspawn advanced further into the country, and she doubted they would leave the forests unscathed. She needed to warn the dalish, get them to spread word to the other clans in Ferelden to move.

To where? Sarya was not sure.

Standing from the chair she was barely within reach of the door when she felt it. Darkness. Pure, raw, malevolent, cancerous dark magic in its most disgusting form. It made her blood turn icy at the mere sensation of it. Her heart skipped a bit at the thought of Theron and Tamlen being in danger.

She raced out of the room and through the hallways the two hunters had taken. Ignoring every piece of architecture and culture that would usually catch her interest, her focus was only on getting to Merrill's friends.

She followed the trail of the pulsing darkness; the stronger it grew the closer she got to the source, of that Sarya was certain.

The dunmeri mage came to a screeching halt as reached the final chamber, her red eyes finding the fallen form of Theron on the ground. And in the center of the room, above the steps of a platform, stood a great mirror that radiated magic.

From it, she could feel the raw source of darkness. Spreading like a disease, infecting everything within its reach.

Sarya acted on instinct, firing a blast of raw arcane power with enough force to shatter the mirror, and pushing back the sheer corruption. The shards of glass, once malignant and dangerous when whole, fell to the ground inert.

The dunmer wasted no time and knelt before Theron, "Oh gods" His skin was deathly pale, his veins were pulsing visibly. The corruption had spread over his body. She frantically scanned the room, looking for his friend. "Tamlen?" She called once, "Tamlen!" She yelled but she heard no response, her shout echoing through the ruins.

She casted detect life, trying to find any signature that could belong to him... but it was no use.

"By Mara what is happening?" She whispered as she looked back to Theron. Trying to stir him or call his name did nothing. "I have to get you back to camp." She nearly used teleportation to quickly go back to camp, but hesitated, she had no idea what Theron's condition was. For all she knew the sudden transmission would be detrimental for his well-being.

With a groan from the afflicted dalish she picked him up and placed his arm over her shoulder. "You may hate me Theron, but I won't let you die." Whatever he had her instincts told her it was dangerous. If it was contagious or not, she only prayed her unique heritage would kept her safe.

XxX ~ xx ~ XxX

The journey back to the camp was slow but thankfully no wild animals showed up as Sarya dragged Theron back to camp. When she noticed the wolf statue Fen'Harel at the top of the hill, Sarya felt relief, but it was brief, she soon yelled for help.

She was lucky Fenarel and Mithra were close as they heard Sarya's cry and ran to the rear of the camp. "What is-" Mithra's irritated words soon became still as she and Fenarel saw Sarya dragging an unconscious Theron up the hill. "What happened?!"

"We were investigating an old elven ruin. I had split up with Theron and Tamlen to look around. When I found Theron he was like this"

Fenarel was swiftly at her side and helped take Theron's other arm over his shoulder; " And Tamlen?" The dunmer only shook her not knowing where the short haired hunter was. "Mithra, go get Keeper Marethari and Keeper Zathrian!"

The female hunter nodded and dashed ahead as Sarya and Fenarel brought the unconscious Theron into camp; "Any idea what Theron has?" the Telvanni mage questioned as people gasp and gathered around them.

"If it's what I think it is, we need to have the keepers check you over lethallan." Sarya heard the fear in Fenarel's voice as he spoke.

It was less than a minute when Marethari and Zathrian ran over to them; "What happened?!" The ancient elven man spoke quickly before he paled at the sight of Theron with fear etched on Marethari's face; "Oh gods, take him to my tent!"

Following his instructions Sarya and Fenarel took the unconscious dalish hunter into Zathrian's tent and laid him down on the wolf furs. As soon as that was done Marethari took the Dunmer by the hand as Zathrian knelt beside Theron. The female keeper carefully looked over the bewildered Telvanni and even used her magic as if to detect if anything was wrong. But what got Sarya was the level of fear she saw in the eyes of Marethari. Whatever Theron had it was extremely serious.

A weary but thankful shuddered sigh escaped the female keeper's lips; "Mythal be praised you don't have it!"

"I don't have what exactly," Sarya asked slowly.

"Blight disease..."

"Blight?" She exclaimed in surprise, her tone rising. "What Theron has, that's the Blight?!" Mara's blessings, nothing she had read over the subject, nor the stories she had heard, could even begin to make justice (or rather horror) to what she had felt in the ruins.

That Taint, that sheer corrupting presence. It was enough to make her feel sick. And Theron had taken a full blast of the malignant essence.

And Tamlen... gods she didn't even know what had happened to Tamlen.

"Sarya" Marethari placed her shoulders on the Telvanni, "I need you to tell me what happened. Where were you three?"

The dunmeri let out a wary sigh, running a hand over her dark locks. "Theron, Tamlen and I went to some ruins, elven in origin we believe. We split up for a moment when I felt this... corruption spreading. I raced towards them but I only found Theron, Tamlen was nowhere to be seen" She paused for a moment, letting the Keeper digest the information. Her eyes became mournful momentarily before the steeled themselves once again. Sarya could respect that dedication to her role.

"Were there darkspawn?"

"Think I would have known if I saw a darkspawn" By the sounds of it, one should recognize the monsters on the spot. "But no, the corruption was coming from a mirror"

She frowned in confusion, "Mirror" Her eyebrows nearly disappeared into her hairline. "Creators, what they found must be an Eluvian"

"I've read that word in passing in your books" Sarya commented before asking, "What are they?"

"In the old empire, the Arlathan elves would use those mirrors for communication and long distance travel, as portals"

Her answer made the Telvanni mage's eyes widen in sudden realization to what that mirror was, "We have those in Tamriel, we call them wayshrines" Her gaze shifted in worry, "But if the corruption was coming not from the mirror, but the place the mirror was linked up to... Just what in Oblivion was on the other side of that thing?"

For that, the Sabrae Keeper had no answer. "What happened to the Eluvian?" Marethari asked quickly.

Sarya sighed as she rubbed her arms and glanced to Theron; "I shattered it. The evil coming from that thing was too powerful. I wasn't going to risk it infecting anything else..." She lowered her head as she felt shame wash over her; "I should have been with them."

Marethari gave the dunmer a stern gaze; "And you would have either ended up like Theron or poor Tamlen wherever he is. As to what was behind that mirror perhaps its best we do not know."

"Theron!" Merrill's panicked voice rang out throughout the camp as she ran towards Sarya and Marethari; "What happened to Theron!?" fear danced in her eyes as she saw the young hunter lying in Zathrian's tent with said Keeper using his magic on him. "THERON!"

She almost rushed towards the tent till Sarya grabbed her by the waist restraining her. Merrill screamed in both elven and the common tongue with Marethari trying to calm down her First. The young Dalish mage was in full hysterics with tears in her eyes trying fruitless to be freed from Sarya's hold.

"You have to let Zathrian treat him," Sarya tried to calm her friend down.

Merrill however was not listening; "Let me go! What's wrong Theron?!"

"He has the Blight!" Marethari finally yelled as silence fell around the camp.

Gasps of horror and shock went off through the camp, the confirmation of their fears made everyone panic, knowing full well the horrors the Taint could inflict on the living. Many gave the tent upon which Theron was being treated a wide berth.

"No" The First of the Sabrae clan muttered horrified, her head shaking, "H-He has to pull through, he will pull through won't he?" The bitter tears fell down her checks. "Keeper Zathrian is helping him, so he'll be okay, he'll be okay!" It sounded like she was trying to convince herself. "And Tamlen, h-he must be around somewhere, we just need to find him and, and...!"

"Merrill, shhh, calm down" Her Keeper gently said, taking the younger mage into her arms. "Zathrian has more experience than any of us, you need to keep faith"

The braided elf stiffly nodded, but her sobs would not stop.

Sarya tiredly ran her hand over her face, "Is there anything that can be done?"

Marethari sighed as she consoled her First, "The only real cure for the Blight is to become a Grey Warden, but all of them are in Ostagar"

Oh... Sarya gulped nervously as she remembered something very important.

"I... should inform you of this" She began slowly, loud enough for the clans to hear. "I recently received information about the current situation at Ostagar from my mother" The dalish's attention were now solely on her. "The human army... fell, the Darkspawn can now march unopposed into Ferelden"

The silence in the camp was almost deafening, even the forest seemed to have fallen silent.

"Oh gods..." Mithra whispered horrified, as cries of fear and disbelief were heard from many of their kinsmen.

As Zathrian was still occupied with Theron, it fell to Marethari to keep order. She momentarily let go of Merrill, her hands raised in a placating gesture. "Peace, peace! It'll take time for the Darkspawn to reach the areas of the forest, we have enough time to inform the other clans and prepare an evacuation!"

Fenarel stepped forward, "Where would we go?"

"We can cross the sea and go to the Free Marches" The Keeper of the Sabrae clan replied. "So long as we suffer no setbacks, we can make it in time. Begin preparations to depart, immediately"

At her command the dalish of both clans began to move, there was much to be done if there were to save themselves.

Merrill looked at Marethari pleadingly, "And what of Theron?"

Marethari turned to the tent, and saw Zathrian stepping back from Theron's form, a hand covering his mouth as he looked at the young elf's body with a critical eye. He exchanged a look with his fellow Keeper, who understood his meaning instantly. The look her mentor gave Merrill was heartbreaking, "Zathrian has done what he can... it is in the gods' hands now"

Merrill's lip trembled as the tears fell with renewed intensity.

It was at that moment that Sarya swore she would not let Theron die, no matter the cost. She was a powerful and resourceful woman, she would find the way to save him. Even if she had to deal with dark powers to do so...

But Fate has a funny way of making an already bad situation even worse.

"Keeper Marethari, Keeper Zathrian!" The voice of a female scout rang through the camp, a hunter in leather gear quickly run towards them, "There is movement nearby!"

"What is it?" Zathrian quickly asked, "Is it bandits, shems, Darkspawn?" He asked the last part with trepidation.

"No" The hunter shook her head, "The other scouts say they have found wolf tracks, but too large for them to be of regular wolves. They've been surrounding the area, almost as if something was stalking us"

It was then that Zathrian's expression had gone from cautious to one of absolute horror. As if he knew what was happening.

Then, the howling began.

Sarya summed up the situation perfectly with just two words;

"Oh no..."

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Another chapter will be on the way!