Chapter Text
He watches her as she lays upon the cold stone floor, breath nearly imperceptible; another failure, another victim of his miscalculations. His magic burned into her palm, her survival seems an unlikely prospect. The life within her is dwindling, barely detectable now, the Anchor too seeming to weaken as he's studied it, trying to find some way it could be removed, transferred, or otherwise utilized for it's intended purpose, but there is no influence he can assert over it now. The magic may have been his, but the Anchor is now completely in her possession. Such a waste. All his planning and the Anchor is inaccessible, useless, and likely to be gone soon.
And here he is, watching as his plans crumble before him, still lacking most of his power, and the orb still out of reach. He can only hope it still remains somewhere in or near where the temple had been.
He studies the still body, so small and vulnerable in this unconscious state. He might have wondered what sort of person she had been but the marks across her face tell him enough. Of all the people to end up with his magic upon them it has to be one of the Dalish. Of course, if she doesn't wake up, it won't matter anyway. And how can she? She had supposedly passed physically through the Fade, who knows how such a journey may have affected her. Then there was his mark upon her hand, tied to the Breach. If the Breach continued to grow it would surely kill her. No, there is little chance she will ever wake, it would take some kind of miracle and he is not one to believe in such things.
There is nothing more to be done here. One final chance, up the mountain with Cassandra's soldiers, one more attempt, he will try to seal the rifts himself. If he fails, he will leave, escape back into the wilderness out of the Seeker's reach, he should have enough power to stop any who might follow. Perhaps he can find and reclaim the orb, find some way to clean up this mess. What other choice does he have?
Standing up he takes one final look at the unconscious form, and the still flickering magic attached to it, before heading back into the cold morning through the heavy door. The harsh vibration of the Breach looming above, fills his senses as he steps out into the cold. Even within the stone walls he can feel it but it is much stronger out here, like a low vibration crawling beneath the skin and working it's way into his bones. Everything about it tells him it is wrong, the Veil was never meant to be ripped apart in this fashion, it is causing nothing but damage to both sides. Though he knows it's form without having to see it, he still turns his head to look up at it briefly, before setting off to find the Seeker.
It doesn't take long for him to find her. She turns at his approach with a stern and questioning expression, "Is there any improvement on the prisoner's condition?"
"There is no change and there is nothing else I can do for her, either she will wake or she will not. I doubt we have long to wait either way, with the Breach growing as it is." The Seeker's displeasure at his words is clear, but he keeps going anyway, "I would like to return to the mountain, I would like to study a rift directly, perhaps I can better understand the magic involved that way, or determine some way to close it."
The frown deepens as she looks at him, "Do you believe she will wake?"
"I..." he hesitates, not sure of her reaction, but decides on the truth, "I believe it is unlikely."
The large woman face is hard and clearly displeased as she considers this news, "Very well. There is a patrol leaving shortly, they will accompany you. Learn what you can from the rift and report it back to me."
He nods and turns to join the patrol. He has no intention of ever making such a report.
***
The Breach flashes above, the power of it pulses through the Veil, raw and threatening.
In the dark, a flash of green draws a small moan as the figure bearing it inches back towards consciousness.
***
He has failed yet again.
None of his efforts have any effect on the rift above them. They have been fighting off the demons as best they can but unless the rift is closed they will just keep coming.
He begins to maneuver himself towards the edge of the fighting, hoping to make his escape amidst the chaos of the battle, when he feels something familiar at the edge of his senses. His attention is drawn back down the path to see Cassandra heading towards them, a smaller figure following a short distance behind. A flash of green shimmers as her left hand reaches for the blades at her back, clinging to them as she runs at the nearest demon, fear is clear on her face even as her determination pushes her forward.
It can't be. He feels the pulse of the anchor, even amidst the chaos of the rift and the demons, which are finally beginning to thin out with their arrival, but next to it's familiar spark there is other magic surrounding it, mingled with it. She must be a mage. Why had he not been able to sense it from her before? Yet she does not use any magic now, she continues to fight clumsily with the blades in her hands.
Why doesn't she use her magic if she had no skill with weapons? Could it be that she does not know how? Does she even realize her own power? Her magic is not weak, he can tell that much, but little else. Could the explosion have changed her? Her passage through the Fade? The Anchor itself? He doesn't think so but he has no other explanations.
The demons are nearly gone when he realizes that as he has continued fighting he has simultaneously been moving slowly towards her, his intention to run forgotten. He is only a few steps away when he feels the final demon fall. The flash of the Anchor catches his eye and without another thought he acts, "Quick, before more come through!" He shouts and grabs the small wrist, holding tightly as she automatically tries to pull away. He sends his own power into her, in part to help trigger and guide the connection, but also to begin to gauge her power and ability.
He feels it as the Anchor and rift connect, power merging as the Anchor succeeds in shutting the tear in the Veil as if it had never been. A wave of relief hits him and he lets go of a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, releasing the girl's hand and withdrawing his own magic at the same time.
Perhaps not all is lost, perhaps a chance remains to turn around his failure. Here she stands before him, a miracle he does not believe in, but standing there just the same, and it changes everything.
She turns to face him then, "What did you do?" Her bright grey eyes meet his, curious and unsure, but there is something else is in them as well, something oddly like recognition, but he has to be mistaken.
He dons the humble, disarming mask he's adopted among these people. He needs her to trust him. "I did nothing. The credit it yours," he offers a friendly smile meant to put her at ease. Her eyes narrow slightly at his words however, as if not believing him, so he tries to explain, "Whatever magic opened the Breach in the sky is also what placed that mark upon your hand. I have theorized the mark may be able to close the rifts that have opened in the Breach's wake. And clearly, I was correct." His efforts to appease her seeming doubts are apparently unsuccessful however, as she continues to look at him with some kind of skepticism for which he cannot determine an explanation.
Cassandra steps forward then, drawing his attention away from the girl, "Meaning it could also close the Breach itself."
"It's possible," he replies, nodding at the Seeker to acknowledge her words before returning his focus to the newcomer, "It seems you hold the key to our salvation."
Why is she looking at him like that? Like he is both familiar and strange, as if seeking answers in his face. He finds it rather disconcerting and is relieved when the dwarf rogue speaks then and draws her attention away from him.
By the time Varric has finished his introductions, Solas has recollected himself and wears a soft smile again to offer his own introduction. As the conversation continues, it seems as if her attention is repeatedly being drawn back towards him and each time she seems to be looking for something, but he remains unable to discern a reason for such behavior. She couldn't have recognized his magic, surely, and it is impossible that they have met previously. He finds himself puzzled and unnerved at her strange attention.
He finally finds relief from her searching eyes the moment he asks her name causing a sudden panic to flash across her face. It was not the reaction he'd been expecting to such a normal question. Everything about her up to now had been unexpected and confusing. Who is she?
"You can call me Lyara," she finally declares.
"A pleasure," he replies, showing no reaction to the obvious struggle she demonstrated at the request. Now it is time to see if anything he's guessed about her is right. He turns back to the Seeker, "Cassandra, You should know, the magic involved here is unlike any I have seen. Your prisoner is a mage, but I find it difficult to imagine that any mage could be so powerful, much less one so obviously inexperienced."
The shocked response is immediate, "Wait, what?! I don't have any magic, that can't be true!" Her wide-eyed surprise makes it clear that the magic she clearly possesses is indeed new to her.
He soon regrets the suddenness of his announcement though, as the Seeker immediately turns renewed suspicion onto her prisoner, he should have realized the woman would react badly to such news. Whatever the girl is, she's not responsible for what had happened here, but the simple fact of her being a mage would unfortunately be viewed as a mark against her in this world. It is infuriating, but he reins in his feelings for another time, and does what he can to ease the larger woman's fears, hoping she believes his assessment of the girl's abilities.
He finally turns back to the girl to further confirm his suspicions, "Tell me, Lyara, are you able to use your magic in any way?"
"No, of course not, I didn't have any idea I had it until just now. I have certainly felt a lot of magic, or something, in the air, and there's the power in the mark but..."
She has some ability to sense the magic around her, he realizes with slight surprise, but how much? "So you can feel the magic around you?"
"Yes, it's around the rifts, the demons, ...you. The Breach feels like it's making everything vibrate, like an insistent hum just below the surface of everything," her trepidation at the sensations is clear in her voice.
More surprises. He anticipated she would feel the Breach, and even the rifts but that she can sense demons and the power of another mage is unexpected. She is much more sensitive than all but a few mages. No wonder she is so frightened, the sensations must be quite overwhelming for someone so unused to such things. He would have to test her ability further, to determine just how far this talent extended, once they were not in so much peril that is. For now he simply seeks to reassure her, or failing that, at least offer some explanation for her new perceptions, "That is a sign that you do indeed possess magic, otherwise you would not be able to feel what you do. Have you ever felt such things before?"
"Well, no, but I just thought, with all that's going on..." Her uncertainty and confusion is clear and he feels some slight pity for her. To have lived so cut off from magic all her life and now to be so submerged in it. To feel like one is drowning in what should be giving them life and vitality. And it is his fault.
"I see." He hides his thoughts as he addresses the situation at hand. "Cassandra, while the emergence of her power at this time is curious, I do not believe it could have possibly triggered what has happened, more likely it is just another side effect of the immense power that was unleashed." He hopes that this explanation will at least ease some of the Seeker's suspicions, which will only serve to hinder them in their mission if left unchecked.
Fortunately the Seeker chooses to believe him and they are able to proceed without further argument.
As they move, he continues to observe the strange mage, whom fate somehow chose to bear his mark. It is more than apparent that she is inexperienced in more than just magic, and that she is terrified. Her fear is such that he continually expects her to try to run or hide or otherwise shy away from the demons and general chaos around her. Her fear is nearly a palpable thing and yet she continues to stand with them, rallying herself to fight and yet managing to maintain enough control and sense not to rush in where she would put herself or others in unreasonable danger. She stays close to him and Varric most of the time, doing her best to defend them when needed but ready to follow their instructions and get out of the way. The one thing she doesn't do is back down, she is a brave soul and he has to give her some credit for that.
Still, she knows nothing of fighting and she is in constant danger as a result; as much as she tries to defend them, they spend more time defending her. He does his best to keep her covered with a barrier at all times as well, it is easier to simply protect her from any blows she receives than trying to prevent them from hitting her, he does not have the time and focus for that but he must do what he can to keep her safe. She possesses the mark and he needs that, if she is lost, it will be too. He has lost enough, he cannot sacrifice the Anchor if there is any way to keep it safe. He will make sure she reaches the Breach no matter what and with her clear lack of skill, he thinks success unlikely without the barriers.
He is frequently torn between admiration and annoyance with her. She bears her fear well and refuses to back down, but most of her efforts are ineffective and he and Varric often have to direct their efforts towards keeping her safe before they can commit their focus back to the enemy. There are a few times her efforts are beneficial but those are in the minority
After a particularly bad fight where she was apparently unable to avoid getting hit by every wraith in the area he decides to go to her and suggest that she might prefer to just stay back, away from the fights from now on. As he approaches he catches sight of her face, miserable with frustrated helplessness, and it causes him to stop in his tracks, suddenly unsure of what he will say. He watches as Varric approaches her, and tries to make her feel better.
"I know I'm useless and I don't want any of you to get hurt because of my mistakes." Her words ring with a distinctly ashamed tone to them.
Is that what she is thinking? After all but rising from the dead that morning and having her life in constant danger all the way up this mountain and she is more concerned about us getting hurt? He shakes his head in confusion and turns away, moving back in the direction of their path.
The demons at the second rift are dealt with in fairly short order and she only hesitates a moment, glancing back at him, before raising her left hand and sealing the rift. He is gratified to see she can easily close the rifts on her own now. Perhaps, this will work after all.
***
They resupply and are able to enjoy a short time in the relative safety of the forward camp. However, listening to the argument with the Chancellor grates on his nerves. He almost smiles as the girl vents some of her own frustration at the petty bickering, "How do you expect to keep anyone safe as long as that THING is in the sky?!" At least she is properly aware of what the priority should be and the anger seems to push back some of her fear.
When they finally leave the camp he sees that the girl seems to stand a little taller. The fear remains but she is clearly fighting it.
He isn't sure why she chose the mountain path, it seems the rougher path but they encounter few enemies there. As they head up the mountain her fear changes to simple cold. He watches her do her best to control the shivering and he begins feeling sorry for her then. She is clearly out of place here, he can only wonder what twist of fate brought her to the Conclave. And then to have the Anchor thrust upon her, to wake up with the sky broken and the world against her... Apparently she remembers very little of the experience and that must make it even more frightening he supposes. He knows well enough what it is like to wake up with the world utterly changed, and powerless to do much about it, she likely felt something slightly similar when she awoke that morning.
It was with this new sympathy that he responds to her request for some kind of magic to fight the cold. It costs him little to help her and the others this way, besides, he can not allow her to fall due to numb hands, not when they are now so close.
When she asks about seeing in the dark, he can't help but smile slightly at the earnest yet childlike curiosity she expresses. If she survives today, it will likely fall to him to begin teaching her something of the magic she possesses. She will at least need to learn some amount of control over her magic, for her own safety. So he willingly offers an answer to her inquiry: "It is possible to do, but it takes quite a bit of energy, I would not be able to sustain the effects for all four of us for as long as it will take us to reach the other end of this passage, especially if we find demons inside."
"I guess that makes sense, I was mostly just curious. Thanks for telling me," she says with a small grateful smile.
"Think nothing of it. If we are successful in closing the Breach perhaps I can help you learn more about your newly realized powers."
"I hope we get that chance."
He hopes so too. The Breach needs to be closed and after that he may still need her help, so it would be best if she survives.
They get through the tunnel without too much trouble, the girl generally managing to stay out of the way and watch their backs with moderate effectiveness.
They find Cassandra's missing people near another rift, fighting a losing battle. There were more demons here than the previous rifts, and he is concerned with how long it might take them to clear all the demons and close the rift. Shortly after they begin fighting, he feels the Anchor as it connects to the rift. What is she doing? He turns to try to stop her, or warn her, or something; but then there is a flash of power and he can feel a change in the rift and the demons they are fighting. Somehow she has disrupted the rift, allowing them time to clear now the weakened demons as new ones are prevented from appearing for a short time. The battle finishes quickly after that and she closes the rift immediately. What made her think to try such a thing, he has no idea but it was an inspired move and would clearly be invaluable if these rifts are as widespread as he fears.
He begins to wonder if she will ever stop surprising him as he approaches her after the battle, "One more sealed, you are becoming quite proficient at this." She smiles, and it is a little more genuine this time. For some reason he feels glad to see it.
Not a minute later and she is surprising him again when she reveals her reasoning for choosing the path they are on. Travelling this way was slower and could be viewed as riskier in lacking the support of more soldiers, but she was willing to take that risk for the chance of saving these people. It is a kind of wonder to him that someone so clearly terrified is yet willing to make decisions based on consideration for others. He does not know if he supports her choice, but he has to respect her ability to make it in such circumstances.
***
The temple had been utterly destroyed and the land upon which it lay, corrupted. He reaches out, trying to detect some sense of his orb, but he feels nothing. He hopes it is simply the Breach and the other corrupt elements that are somehow interfering with his ability to sense it. He doesn't truly believe that's the case, but if the orb is not here, then where could it have gone?
The girl's fear, which had seemed to recede for a time, now seems to nearly overwhelm her as they enter what remains of the temple. The pulse of the Breach is much more like a deep throb here, it saturates the air and reverberates through the ground. When the voices start it is a surprise. He quickly determines what has caused them, but the sounds unnerve him nonetheless. When they discover the red lyrium he finds the sensation of its presence to be utterly repulsive and he watches the girl as she struggles against the nearly paralyzing affects of the near panic induced by all of these things. If she is anywhere near as sensitive as he, he can hardly blame her for being so adversely affected by it. He too hates being here, but it is a necessity. Just a little closer, and if the Breach can be closed, it should improve matters immensely.
The vision that manifests is a bit of a shock to all of them and it proves his fears. Though the image is distorted, he knows that Corypheus had been here, and that it is he who is responsible for this horror they now face. But what exactly happened? How had this girl ended up with the Anchor and where was Corypheus or the orb now? The vision did nothing to answer any of his questions. The Seeker immediately begins questioning the girl but it seems she has no answers to give either.
These questions have to wait however, the more pressing matter is that of the Breach, "Echoes of what happened here. The Fade bleeds into this place." He explains, hoping to prevent further debate about the visions before moving on to the issue at hand. "This rift is not sealed, but it is closed, albeit temporarily. I believe that with the mark the rift can be reopened and then sealed properly and safely. However, opening the rift will likely attract attention from the other side." He looks to the girl upon finishing his speech, she seems distracted somehow, but she apparently has heard and understood because she quickly prepares herself at the Seeker's call. The score of soldiers Leliana has brought with her spread out and position themselves for a fight.
At a signal from the Seeker, the girl raises her hand and opens the rift, power and demons spilling forth in a great wave.
The battle seems to drag on, new demons continue to appear but the girl is smart enough to remain focused on trying to disrupt the rift rather than fight. It is the only thing that keeps them from being overwhelmed. Slowly, they reduce the number of demons and the girl manages to slowly increase disruption times, which lead to their eventual success in clearing the area. The moment the last demon perishes, the Seeker's voice rings out again calling for the rift to be closed.
He watches the girl raise her hand without hesitation, power flowing almost effortlessly now. He feels the connection, feels her pushing the rift closed. For a moment everything seems poised on an edge, unmoving, unchanging, like a boulder poised atop a cliff and there is not enough force to push it over the edge. What if it doesn't work? What else was there to try? And then there's a shift, a small nudge pushing past the edge, a little more, and then it is as if a giant door slams. The rift shuts, sending a shockwave out, closing the Breach. He lets out a sigh of relief before looking back to the girl, now collapsed on the ground.
He hurries over. Had the shock been too much? Had the effort to close the rift drained her somehow? He bends over her, studying her, reaching for her pulse with his hand the same time he reaches with his senses to see if the life in her magic remains. After a few tense moments, he feels both, very faint but steady. The Anchor too seems to be stable now. A second sigh of relief escapes him as he looks up to find The Seeker, Spymaster, and dwarf waiting for his assessment.
"She lives, but the effort of closing the rift has drained her almost entirely. She is unlikely to reawaken soon. She will need rest for a few days."
"And the Breach? Is it closed as you hoped?" the Seeker asks solemnly.
"It is closed and should be safe for the time being. I was right in thinking that the mark is the key, but to seal the Breach completely will take more power than she alone can provide. We will need help."
His gaze falls again to the small unconscious figure before him. She looks nearly the same as she had that morning and yet utterly changed. She somehow seems more real now, as if there is a small spark where once there was only emptiness. She now bears more substance in her being, small as it is, than anything he has yet encountered in this sundered world. He can't place what it is about her that gives him this impression, perhaps it is simply due to the mark, the fact that his own magic is now part of her. When she awakes he will have a chance to study her further.
***
They bring her down from the mountain and back to Haven. She is placed in a cabin and monitored with care. He occasionally checks on her to confirm that the mark has remained stable.
Whispers of 'Andraste's Herald' begin to spread throughout the town before even a day has passed. A prisoner, an elf, and a mage, now raised to a position of religious icon as she sleeps. How much more will her world have changed before she awakes again? He again feels a pang of sympathy for the girl and can only hope she will bear such changes better than he has.