FicWad

(Ayla's POV)

I watched Talc disappear over the hill, following close behind Varric. I tentatively took a step. It was time to put the game in motion again. Muscles screaming from exhaustion,

I staggered a bit to get myself going. I was wearing a silver top nicely form-fitting but not to revealing. And loose fitting leggings. Very comfortable. I saw some shoes by the door but chose not to put them on. I'm Dalish in this world, and Dalish dont use shoes. Instead they put on footwrappings. Not that I knew how to put on footwrappings. I found a few strips of cloth by the table by my bed. A few scraps of paper with hastily written notes lay next to the cloth. By the looks of it, healers notes. I bet there were about me when I was passed out. So many new experiences so quickly.

I snuggly wrapped the cloth around my feet making sure to give enough support to the arch of my foot before wraping it up my leg and folding the tip of the cloth back in on itself. Tight and secure.
Hopefully I did it right.

I gathered my daggers and placed them on my back. Opening the door I felt the smack of cold air against my face. But I was more surprised the the crowd of people standing along the path.

Talc had only just left this same way, hadn't she?! Two heavily armored soldiers came up to me and grasped a fist to their chest. They bowed ever so slightly to me but said nothing. Walking in between them I felt every eye fixated on me. I heard the whispers, “The Herald of Andraste. Thats her! Saved us all. Maker bless her.”

This must've been what Talc had be yelling about. This wasn't awkward. Not at all. Unsure of what to do, I took a step forward and gazed into the eyes of the crowd. Every time I met a persons eyes, they wilted down to the ground. Were they afraid of me? Surely not, I hardly seemed threatening. Keeping a small smile on my face, I continued down the path.

A familiar face looked at me from the crowd, it was the man who I suspected threw the snowball at me earlier. I made eye contact with him and my suspicions were confirmed when his face turned bright crimson and he looked down to the ground. I couldn't help but chuckle softly.

Seeing the crowd getting thinner I hurried forward. Making my way up the stairs, I got a full view of the Chantry. Its beautiful architecture reminded me of the chruches I've been to back home. I took a moment to study the intricate designs along the main arch.

I pushed the heavy door open and immediately heard yelling. “Have you gone completely mad?!” That sounded like Chancellor Billy Goat. “She needs to be taken to Val Royeaux immediately!”

“I do not believe she is guilty.” Was that Cassandra? Finally believes I had nothing to do with the explosion I see. Its about time.

“The Prisoner failed! After she threatened me, she couldn't even hold up her claims! She must be guilty then! If she really had intended for it to be closed she would have done so!”

“As I said, I dont believe that at all!” Cassandra sounded like she was getting frustrated.

“You dont get to decide that. It is your duty to serve the Chantry.” The Chancellor's voice lowered.

“My duty is to serve the principles on which this Chantry was founded. Chancellor. As is yours.” Cassandra retorted. Sensing a good time to enter, I swung open the door. And was greeted by a very angry Chancellor, Cassandra and Liliana.

The Chancellor strode up to me and pointed a finger into my chest “Chain Her.” He's eyes glaring with anger, “I want her prepared for travel to the capital for trial.”

Unable to mask my anger, “Oh its a trial now? Last time you threatened me with execution!”

“Disregard that, and leave us.” Cassandra interjected.

Still glaring at me he whipped around to Cassandra, “You walk a dangerous line Seeker.”

Still in a calm voice, “The Breach is stable, but it is still a threat. I will not ignore it”

“You all still suspect me dont you. Even though I did my best to close the Breach.” I shook my head with obvious disdain.

“You absolutely are still a suspect. You said you could close the Breach and you didn't. What other lies are you hiding!” The chancellor's eyes narrowed at me.

I flinched and hoped no one would notice.

“Someone, was behind the explosion at the Conclave. Someone the Most Holy did not expect. Perhaps he died in the explosion, or still has allies that still live.” Liliana spoke up, striding towards the Chancellor. Her penetrating gaze not leaving him.

“Wait, now I am a suspect?” The Chancellor stammered.

“You! And many others.” Her voice grew darker as she spoke. “B.. bb.. but not the Prisoner?” I could see the Chancellor get smaller under Liliana's scrutiny.

“You were not at the Breach Chancellor, I was. I heard the voices in the temple, the Divine called to her for help. Surely if she caused the explosion the Divine would not have entreated her.”

The chancellor strode over to me and grabbed my hand. “So her survival, this thing on her hand. It was all a coincidence.” I yanked my hand out of his. Hold up there buddy, no one is touching me anymore without my sayso. I glared at the chancellor and rubbed my hand trying to ease the small pains.

“Providence. The maker sent her to us in our darkest hour.”

“Whoa hold up. Let me get a moment to say something!” All three pairs of eyes turned to look at me. “I'm not some special hero that your 'maker' sent to you.” Although to be fair, considering how I got here, it was a very distinct possibility. One that I did not look forward to discovering.

“I have this mark now, and its connected to the Breach somehow. Discovering the truth of these matters is what we should be focusing on. Not if i'm some god's chosen one.”

Cassandra scowled at me, “No matter what you are, or what you believe. You are exactly what we needed when we needed it. I cannot forget that, nor will I dismiss it as a sign.”

Cassandra walked to the other side of the room and grabbed a large book. She returned and slammed it on the table, “I assume you know what this is Chancellor. It is a writ from the divine, granting us the authority to act.” Squaring her shoulders, she continues, “As of this moment, I declare the Inquisition reborn!”

Cassandra made a move towards the Chancellor. He stepped back fearing Cassandra's rage. Jabbing a finger into his chest, she continued “We will close the breach. We will find those responsible, and we will restore order. With or without your approval Chancellor!”

Stunned by the onslaught. Chancellor Roderick turned and fled the room.

“It is the Inquisition's prerogative to discover the truth in these matters. But I fear we are not ready, we have no leader, no force of numbers, and now not even the Chantry's support. How are we supposed to discover anything under these circumstances?” Liliana asks.

Cassandra sighed, “We have no choice. He must act. Hesitating may bring about more chaos and more unnecessary death. It would not be what Devine Justinia would want.”

Turning to me, “We can only accomplish this with you and your mark.” I mulled over my options. Briefly mind you, I already knew I wanted to help. No wanted isn't the right word. I needed to help. But what they said seemed to echo what Talc had been so upset about. Maybe my life was the one that mattered. But that wasn't my fault. I was going to save everyone. It would all be okay if we followed my lead. My thumb and finger rose up to my lips as I pondered.

Cassandra held out her hand to me, “Will you help us before its to late?”

Smiling, I nodded and shook her hand. “I will help in anyway I can.”

Both Liliana and Cassandra beamed up at me. “This is good news, I'll send word to our forces. The Herald herself will aid us.”

“Lets get preparations underway then.” I say.

“Leave that to us Herald. You go and rest, you look exhausted and you are still recovering from closing the Breach.” Liliana put her hand on my arm and pointed back towards my cabin. “You may also wish to speak with Varric or Solas. I'm sure you have many questions. The Qunari, Talc, her cabin is nearby as well. Should you wish to speak with her. I understand you knew each other already.”

Cassandra gave me a sly look, but didn't press any further.

“Yes, I should go see her as soon as I can. I'm sure she's just as confused as I am. Thank you. I'll bid good day. Cassandra. Liliana.” My nod my head to each and turn and strode out of the Chantry. I was finally going to have a good chat with Lauren. But I didn't want to do that here. Too many ears to overhear us. I still had a lot of explaining to do.

I made my way out of the Chantry. The crowd that had gathered to watch me and dispersed, thankfully. I remembered the map of Haven in my head. Solas' hut was towards the right of the Chantry and Varric hung out by the fire pit. Note to self, avoid Solas' hut. Find Lauren. Get out of here to find somewhere private to talk.

I made my way towards Varric's spot. I suspected Lauren would be there. It was now obvious Varric had taken her under his wing. I smiled at the thought, even if he was a bit of a rascal.

Making my way down the steps I paused. Sure enough, there was Lauren sitting by the fire, warming her hands. She was talking to Varric. It must of been funny because Varric began to chuckle and slapped her on the back. She smirked with a shrug and chuckled back.

I sighed. She seemed a lot happier now. Maybe this would be easier than I thought.

I gave Varric a nod as I sat down beside her. Everything went quiet as Talc's smile faded from her face.

We sat together with only the sound of the fire crackling to break the heavy atmosphere .

Talc shifted uncomfortably in her seat, loathed to break the silence first but a myriad of emotions playing across her face.

I could sense none of them were anger. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her open her mouth as if she were going to speak, then she seemed to curse herself and look away again.

"How are you?" I finally asked gently. Talc let out a sigh of relief, happy I had started the conversation for which she seemed to have no words.

"Better." She murmured softly. She let her head drop forward.

"I'm really sorry about earlier." She added with a sorrow and sincerity that hadn't been there before. I could feel the guilt rolling off her slumped shoulders.

I felt my heart breaking all over again. This was all my fault. Why couldn't I find the time to talk with her. She'd always been terrible with apologies.

"It's okay, I guess I kinda deserved it." I said leaning over to press my shoulder against hers. She gave a soft chuckle and a small nod.

Varric eyed us both sensing the awkward atmosphere. “So, now that Cassandra is out of earshot, are you two holding up all right?” He asked, probably just to break the feeling.

I blinked and drew my gaze from the firepit to Varric's eyes. “I mean, you Alya go from being the most wanted criminal in all of Thedas to joining the armies of the faithful.” Shifting his eyes to Talc, “And you Talc, you didn't exactly receive a warm welcome from Cassandra. Ordinary people would have spread that over one day.”

Talc grunted her agreement,"I don't mind the rude welcome. It's been a while since I've been able to fight so much." She smiled pushing her arms out, cracking her fingers.

“I'm still trying to process everything.” I sighed. “Too many questions, not enough answers. I'm not even sure we'll be able to fully understand whats going on.” I wasn't just talking about the Breach or Thedas. Whatever was happening with Lauren and I, I had no answers for. Not even educated guesses.

“Alot of people died in that explosion. There were many lives affected, not just mine and Talcs.”

“Alot of good men and woman died that day. For days after, we've been staring at the Breach, watching demons and maker knows what fall out of it. Bad for Morale would be an understatement. I still can't believe anyone was in there and lived, let alone two beautiful ladies like yourselves.”

I smiled falteringly. “We were fortunate indeed.”

"My beauty is bewitching." Talc smirked, with a toss of her snowy hair. She paused though and asked. “If it was so bad, why did you stay? Cassandra said you were free to go. Even insisted you leave back in the jail.”

Varric stifled a pained chuckle, “I like to think I'm as selfish and irresponsible as the next guy, but this? Thousands of people died on that mountain. I was almost one of them. And now theres a hole in the sky. Even I can't walk away and leave that to sort itself out.”

My breath hitched and my eyes went wide. “Did you say thousands of people? I didn't know it was that many.” My head dropped as the full weight of Varric's words sunk in.

“We've got to do something. I can't sit back and let more death happen.” I turned to Talc, “Dont you agree Talc?”

Talc gave me an indifferent shrug. She didn't seem to care as much as I did, "As long as we're in town, might as well have an adventure." She said it begrudgingly, an adventure was clearly not something she had in mind.

“You might want to consider running at the first opportunity though. I've written enough tragedies to recognize where this was going. Heros are everywhere. But this hole in the sky? That's beyond your average hero. We are going to need miracle workers.”

Talc looked up at him, “You've written enough tragedies?” Varric smiled, “Ah yes, I'm quite the storyteller. Have quite a few series out on the market right now. I'm always on the lookout for the next big idea. Maybe I'll stick around and see if you two are it. You've proved to be quite the goldmine thus far." He said with a wink.

“We appreciate all your help Varric. Now if you dont mind, I really need to discuss things with Talc.” I stood up and turned to Talc. “Will you join me Talc?” I held out my hand to help her up. She took it and thanked Varric.

We made our way back up towards the Chantry. I saw the soldiers around us whispering and staring at us. We continued walking back behind the Chantry and made our way into the woods.

Deep snow made walking difficult. Talc made easy strides but the snow was up to my knees. I was pretty sure my feet were going numb. The snow began thinning out and out of the corner of my eye I spied boat docks and a large lake. The lake had frozen over.

“Lets head out to that cove across the lake. Its pretty cold out here, I'm certain the ice is frozen through. It should support us.” Rather then stepping out on the ice, I used my ice skating skill to shuffle across and head towards the cove.

Talc was close behind me though more unsure on the slippery ice with her tallness. I reached the cove first and began to gather some firewood for a small fire. Talc caught up with me and began helping me.

After we collected enough loose sticks, I piled them in a small circle. “Um you wouldn't happen to know how to light a fire without a match do ya?” I turned to Talc.

She just glanced at me with a sheepish look on her face, "In theory." She replied.

I took that as a no. “Well let me try this instead.” I thought back on what happened to me when the Pride demon hit me. I focused on the energy forming from the ground. I looked to the sky and saw threads dangling. I reached for them and felt energy shoot through my arms.

Focusing my hand towards the sticks, I felt the strings leave and dance around the sticks. Make fire. Make fire. Make fire. The strings continued to dance around until they sparked. Small at first but each time they touched a stick they sparked. Keep focusing.

I poured more willpower into this small act until. Poof! The sticks caught on fire. Talc jumped startled by the sudden display of power. “I did it!” I beamed at Lauren.

She raised an eyebrow at me, clearly not impressed. "Your Rift Stitch is a better trick." She huffed. "Does it have anything to do with how we got here?"

“Would you believe me if I told you I honestly don't know? It's not like this happens all the time back home." I said taking a seat beside her. "I remember touching the power outlet and then I was here. Greeted with Cassandra pushing a sword into my throat. Trust me it was as pleasant as it sounds.”

"Well you seem to know an awful lot." Talc said, tossing a stick into the flames. “We seem to have landed in some kind of political upheaval. What's that all about? What's the deal with you being the Herald?"

"Well, first off. We are in a world called Thedas. Specifically in a country called Feraldin. We just so happened to arrive the day the Conclave was destroyed and thousands of people died. Except us of course. Oh joy.”

“Whats a Conclave?”

“Right, so you have to understand that this place has a few... I guess youd call them religions? Its a bit deeper then that. In this area, in Feraldin, the government is ruled by the Chantry. Think of it a lot of like the Catholic system. The beliefs are different but the structure is similar. Anyway, the 'pope' of the Chantry is the Divine. Divine Justinia in this case. Anyway, not long ago the Mages and the Templars started warring with each other.”

"Ooo! Templars!" She interrupted, "halfway to Assassins Creed." She laughed.

I chuckled and continued, “Sorta kinda. These are like those templars but with anti-magic powers. They have a horrible habit of abusing their powers. Punishing mages and innocent bystandars unjustly. The kind of crimes that make your skin crawl.

Anyway, these two groups were going to meet and come to some peace agreements. Justinia was presiding. But, then boom. Ahhhhhh! Why shouldn't I kill you now? Look there goes the pretty Herald!”

"So we're in the middle of a tug-o-war between the Templars and Mages and the mark makes you the hero in all this?" Lauren lay back to look at the stars.

"Which side are we on?"

I signed again, “This is where things get complicated. To be honest I dont know how much I should tell you.” I felt the daggers Lauren's eyes shot at me. Whatever path to healing we'd just been on was suddenly crumbling underneath my feet.

“What do you mean 'you can't tell me?' It's just a game Michelle. How can I play if I don't know the main plot. Or are you just enjoying your high-horse, Herald?" She sneered.

“Lauren it isn't like that I swear. I... I do have a reason for not wanting to tell you.”

“Do tell," she mocked me.

“I dont think its smart if the others learned about us. Who we are. Where we come from. Or... that we know what the future is like. ”

“Pfftt," Lauren laughed pushing herself up on her elbows. "The future? Seriously?" She gave me dubious look.

When I didn't respond, she sat all the way up. "You are serious! Michelle it's a game! Varric is the digi- baby of miles of codes. What would he do if he knew how the game ends?! The exact same thing he'd been programmed to do. Nothing. What would it matter if your name isn't Ayla. Not a thing. That's the most ridiculous reason to keep me in the dark!"

“This isn't a game, Lauren! Varric isn't the problem!" I huffed, getting a little irritated. "Solas is the problem. If he guesses that I know all about him, its very likely he'd kill me just for the knowledge. Especially after how he acted after I woke up.”

Lauren shook her head, "We're in a game, it's not a game. Whatever, make up your mind. So he's like the final boss in disguise or something and you're scared of the big bad wolf?" She said with a smirk. She paused and continued, “Why are you speaking in Spanish?”

I couldn't help but snicker, “Oh yeah, that was me trying to figure out if the others spoke Spanish. Solas didn't react so i'm confident he can't understand us. I'm glad my Spanish threw him off our conversation”

"Oh Miicheelllle," Lauren said cutely, "your Spanish throws everyone off. Besides, it's a game. I doubt it would detect language options outside the menu setup.”

I rolled my eyes, “Humour me. And Hey! I made myself clear enough! Point being, he's way smarter and knows a lot more then he lets on. You saw how he acted when Varric asked us about our past. How we knew each other. I almost felt him looking for ways to poke holes in our story.”

"That's so completely stu-nevermind. Please continue with your completely valid reasons for keeping secrets from me.” she muttered darkly

“Ah, heres actually the really interesting part. This world is made up of 3 sections. Our space, the Deep roads, and the Fade. I always imagined the Fade up in the sky somewhere, but I bet the truth is more complicated then that.” I was making gestures to illustrate my point. “Separating the Fade from us, is a magical barrier called the Veil. Thats what the green vortex is. Its a tear in that Veil allowing access to the Fade.”

“And that's bad?"

“Well, yes. For the most part. Its bad because the Fade is the space where spirits/demons live.” Yes I actually did say spirits slash demons. “They can come into our world and are corrupted. They attack those around them.”

“What do you mean corrupted?”

“Spirits here take on actual characteristics. Rage, Desire, Pride, Hope, Wisdom. Just to name a few. Solas is the real expert on these things. Anyway, if they encounter people, they can twist from the purpose and become demons.”

“Ok, I follow. But i'm still not connecting Solas and me not knowing anything.”

I breathed in and continued, “Well heres the thing, in this world, when you dream, you are entering the Fade. Those with magic wake up remembering their dreams. Then there are those with more powerful magic. They have complete control over their dreams. They are called Somniari. Think of it as lucid dreaming on steroids.”

“and?”

“Solas, is a Somniari. A very powerful one. He's spent his entire lifetime studying and moving about in the Fade. He can access anyones dreams, manipulate them, and gather information from anyone he chooses to.”

"So," Lauren began as she started to doodle in the snow with a stick, " You're worried if both of us know what happens in the game, then it is more likely he will figure out that you know the future."

I nod, ignoring that tone in her voice that let me know she was just humoring me, “its incredibly likely that he will figure it out anyway. But how much he will find out. Thats a different question. He already thinks i'm some great puzzle to solve. My behavior certainly didn't help any. I'm trying to avoid him as much as possible. As for the Fade, well. You remember I'm such an active lucid dreamer back on Earth, I bet you I'll be a Somniari here!”

Lauren scoffed, "you mean that nighttime kickboxing you like to do that would leave dents in the our walls? You better have that sleep fighting under control because I already lost one security deposit because of you. Anyway, you sound really excite about being the object of his interest."

I was too excited to acknowledge her light jab I continued, “If thats the case, then things will get very interesting. Very fast. And i'll be able to protect you from him! Maybe... he's still super powerful. At least we'll have a better chance at it.”

“At least you're confident.” Lauren said rolling her eyes.


“I know Talc. And we still need to figure out how we got here. Lets see what our plate looks like, figure out how we got here, stop a rampaging elf, close rifts, slay demons, oh yeah why not a dash of save the world.”

"I'll leave the heroing to you.” Lauren quipped. “The only plate I'm interested in is the one with a one-way ticket home. But since we're stuck here, I'll back you up. Now, even if you won't tell me your endgame, how about some stuff about the gameplay? Battle systems? Shoot, I'll settle for knowing why people hate Qunari."

We sat together as the fire crackled. I explained a few things about the Qunari. I was glad she was there. I wasn't completely alone in this strange misadventure. If anyone could help me get through it, it would be her. So many questions, so little time.

“Do you like being a Qunari Lauren?”

She chuckled, “Not gonna lie, it's pretty awesome. Finally get to be tall and strong. And the horns are pretty cool. But It's gonna take some getting used to. What about you? Being an elf all its cracked up to be?”

“Well, I can see better for one thing.”I felt Lauren turn and look at me, “Do you mean?”

“Yep, I can see with both eyes now.” Back as a human, I was blind in my right eye. I got into a bad car accident that scared my face. It was a horrible day
“Its taking some getting used to.” I parroted back to her. “Its certainly different then I imagined.”

I felt Lauren wrap an arm around my shoulders and give me a firm squeeze. “I'm happy for you Michelle," the squeeze turned into a playful chokehold, "But just because you have your eyesight doesn't mean you can ditch me. You were a headache to keep out of trouble with one eye, I can't imagine the mischief you'll cook up now."

"I yield! I yield!" I laughed and playfully swatted her arm. We both settled back into comfortable silence. The fire began to die and soon I heard the insects singing.

“We need to get going Lauren. I'm still pretty weak from closing the Breach. Id rather not get back while the sun is totally down. And by the looks of it, we dont have a whole lot of time.” I stood up and began trampling the remains of the burning embers of fire.

That doused, I turned and helped Lauren up. We exited the cove and skated back to the docks. Feeling no rush we trudged through the snow. This time, Lauren lead the way. She was able to cut a path in the snow allowing me to walk a bit easier.

We returned past the Chantry. It was oddly quiet. Only a few torches illuminating the pathway.

“Lead the way... Talc.” I winked at her.

Talc chuckled and turned to the right of the Chantry. My eyes widened. This was the way towards Solas' cabin. We entered the cul-de-sac where he's cabin was, but there was still no sign of life. I breathed a sigh of relief. Talc continued past Solas' cabin. I didn't even want to look in its direction.

She continued down the stairs and turned into a cabin near the bottom. I stayed outside the door, not wanting more excuses to hang around.

“Good night Talc, I'll see you in the morning.”

I walked forward and gave her a big bear hug. Her massive body completely surrounding mine. She sqweezed just a bit too hard before letting go.

I laughed and turned towards my cabin.

As much as I didn't want to hang around that area of Haven, I couldn't help but look up at the stars. There were so many out tonight. I let my mind wander as I studied the little balls of light twinkling in the night sky. My arms, once wrapped around my body, flopped limply by my side. Swaying loosely back and forth, I felt myself relax and become content. A small smile etched on my face. I knew everything would work out. I was fine. Lauren was here and she was fine. There was a lot of work heading my way, but I was looking forward to the challenge.

“The Chosen Hero of Andraste, a blessed hero sent to save us all!” A smooth and calm voice drifted behind me.

Had I been paying any sort of attention I would have heard him come up behind me. Instead like the idiot and empty headed lame-o that I was. I let my guard down. I jumped and whipped around to see Solas standing right behind me. A smug smirk plastered on his face.

“Sssss.... Solas! I didn't see you there.”

Ah crap... I was trying to avoid just this. Sooo not what I needed tonight. Thank you stars and your tempting prettiness. I blame you entirely.

He chuckled before asking, “Might I escort you back to your cabin, I have quite a few questions for you.”

Oh... poop...