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dragon-age-story · 7 years

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Chapter Two: Haven

"Now that Cassandras out of earshot, how are you holding up?" Varric asked Max as they sat in the local tavern the evening after the Inquisition was formally reborn. "I mean you go from being the most wanted criminal in all of Thedas to joining the army of the faithful. Most people would spread that out over more than one day." Max grinned. "Guess I'm not most people. Don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing." Varric chuckled. "Or a bit of both. Never know. But you might want to consider running at the first opportunity. I've written enough tragedy stories to see what's coming." Max eyes the hairy dwarf. "Varric, I'm not going to run just because the going gets tough. Peoples lives are depending on us. That's why we are sitting in a tavern getting drunk." Varric gave a hearty laugh. "You got me there. Just remember that you are not some big shot hero. Heroes are everywhere. I've seen that. But the hole in the sky? That's beyond heroes. That's gonna need a miracle." "Too bad I'm no miracle. I'm just a man trying to do the right thing. Does that sound too good to be true?" Again Varric chuckled. "That's nothing. Sebastian, an old colleague of mine, has got you beat as far as politeness goes. I swear that man could get his arm ripped off by an ogre and apologize to it for getting in its way." "Isn't Sebastian the Prince of Starkhaven?" Asked Max. Varric nodded. "Yup after Hawke helped him get revenge on his family's murder, and after the mages rebelled, Choir Boy moved back to his home. I'm sure he's boring all sorts of people over there." "What about the rest of Hawke's associates? Where are they?" "Hawke , as well as I, don't think of them as associates. To us they are friends. But to answer your question: Merrill is helping out the people in Kirkwall's alienage. She's doing the best she can but knowing Daisy, she still hasn't memorized the layout of the city yet so she is I imagine still getting lost. Now she just gets others lost with her. But I know she won't let anybody harm those she is helping. Fenris is hunting down any Tevinter slaver taking advantage of all the refugees. I'm not sure exactly where he is now but you can normally just follow the corpses." Max grinned. "Pleasant." "That's Fenris for you. Anders is doing Maker knows what in Maker knows where. Honestly I don't want to know anything about what he's up to. Aveline is still guard captain. I'm pretty sure Kirkwall would fall into the sea if she wasn't on the job. Heard she and her husband had a kid a while back. Feel sorry for the poor bastard. He's gonna be doing drills by the time he's three. Isabela went back to the Raiders. She's calling herself an admiral now. I don't know if that means she's a captain or just has a really big hat. Her plan is to loot enough treasures so she and Hawke can buy an island or something and move in. Hawke's little sister is helping to restore Kirkwall. Apparently she is high up on the important people ladder there now. I'm sure she wishes she could be wherever Hawke is, watching his back. Same with Isabela but I'm sure she would be watching his backside a little more intently." Max studied him for a few moments. "Where is Hawke by the way? Do you know if he was at the Conclave or not?" Varric shrugged just a little too quickly. "I don't know. I haven't heard from him in a almost a year actually." *He's lying.* Max has had years of experience in telling if someone is lying or not. Being the son of a noble will do that. "But I'm sure that wherever he is, he's killing loads of thugs and saving plenty of damsels in distress while laughing like a maniac. He always was the sarcastic dramatic hero." After another hour at the tavern, Max excused himself and went and found Solas. The bald elf was a little odd but very smart. He told Max wondrous things about the Fade, the place where dreams come from as well as demons and spirits home. When he had had his full of knowledge for the day, he found himself wondering around the training ground for the new recruits. By chance he came across the Seeker who was beating a practice dummy to death. She had her back to him so when he spoke up, she jumped in surprise. "I think you need practice dummies made of sturdier stuff." "That would be nice." "Like maybe iron." Her mouth twitched in a grin. He was actually enjoying the challenge of making her smile. "Did I do the right thing? People may say that I'm a madwoman, a fool. And they may be right. I don't think I just do. I see what must be done and I do it...but I misjudged you in the beginning, did I not? I thought the answer was before me clear as day. I won't make that mistake again." Max looked at her. "It's not like you had no reason to. If I had been in your shoes I would have done the same. Just with less yelling and shoving." Cassandra winced. "I'm sorry if I was too rough on you. I was angry and upset and those emotions clouded my judgement." Max shrugged. "It's no big deal. I did stop the Breach from spreading so that's one good thing out of all this." Cassandra looked sidelong at him. Her penetrating gaze made him flinch uncomfortably. "What?" "Nothing...Just... You look familiar now that the world isn't falling apart around us. Where have I seen you before?" Max smiled at her. "I'm a member of the Trevelyn noble family of Ostwick. So you may have seen paintings of me or something. Dad always made us have a portrait taken of us three." Cassandra looked at him quizzically. "You three?" "Oh yeah. I'm the youngest son of Bann Trevelyn. Youngest of three actually. Just don't tell anyone I'm a noble alright?" Cassandra raised an eye at that. Most of the nobles she knew wanted nothing more than to tell everyone that they were rich and 'better' than everyone else. She decided to ask him. "Why don't you want people to know you are a noble, my Lord?" Max frowned. It was something he didn't do often as Cassandra found out. He was very bad at it. He made a 'there you go gesture'. "That's why. I don't like being treated like a noble. I've had enough of that growing up. I don't need nor want people to go parading my name around like its something worth honoring. I don't deserve to be a noble so I don't want to be treated like one." "Why don't you deserve it? Did you do something bad?" Max shook his head. "No nothing really bad. I didn't kill anyone or steal something if that's what your asking. Nothing as base as that. No I did something far worse. At least my family thinks it is." "Well what did you do?" Max shuffled his feet. "I don't feel like talking about it. Not yet." Cassandra groaned. "You can't do that. You can't peak my interest then leave me wanting more." Max raised his eyebrow. "Oh? You want more about me? Hmmm. I don't think I'll tell you. First you have to tell me a little something about you 'Right Hand of the Divine'." The Seeker flinched. "You know my title?" Max chuckled. "It's not hard to put two and two together you know. I heard your name once or twice in the Chantry when I was younger." "And how old are you, if I may ask?" "Thirty. A I'm not dumb enough to ask a lady her age. Varric, maybe but not me." Her mouth twitched in a grin. *So close.* She sighed. "So why are me about myself?" "Just trying to make things between us less..." Max searched for the word. Cassandra raised an eyebrow. "Antagonistic?" "Precisely." "Well if you must know, I was born and raised in Nevarra." Max grinned. "I got that that from the accent." She looked sidelong at him. "My accent isn't that noticeable." He nodded."It absolutely is. But don't worry: it works for you. It's still nicer than an Orlesian accent, that's for sure." Cassandra looked at him quizzically. Max tried to keep a straight face for as long as he could but her stare was too much. Finally he let out his pent up laughter and she realized that he was teasing her. She scowled and rolled her eyes. "Do your friends like it when you make fun of them?" She asked, annoyed that she had thought he actually liked her accent. He smiled again. *That smile of his is infectious.* she thought. It was hard not to smile with him. "I wouldn't know. I don't have a whole lot of friends." "Somehow that doesn't surprise me." He grasped his chest and feigned a wounded look. "Ouch." "Why don't you have a lot of friends? Is it because no one can stand your constant teasing?" Max sighed. "No, I just preferred to be alone. I was like the lost sheep of my family. Didn't know what I wanted to do with my life, kept to myself. That kind of thing. What about you? Do you have many friends? Wait let me guess: no one brave or stupid enough to approach you in order for the friendship to start burning has came up to you yet?" Her mouth twitched in a grin again. "You approached me. Your talking to me. So what does that make you?" Max went to speak then shut his mouth once he realized that he had been outsmarted. He shrugged and faced the defeat with dignity. The two talked for about thirty minutes before Cassandra retrieved a practice sword and tossed it to him. Not ready for it, he dropped it. It clanked on the rocky snowy ground. Max eyeballed it uncertainly. "What was that for?" "Training. I want to see how well you can hold your own in a fight. When we were stopping the Breach, I noticed that Uluru were quite flimsy with a sword. I want to make sure you know what you are doing else I have to clean your entrails off the battleground." "Just to let you know, I don't use swords. I'm more of the sneaky stabby type of guy." Cassandra raised her eyes. "You use daggers? Hmm. From your choice of weapons at the Breach, I thought you were a swordsman." Max shook his head. "I only used the sword because that was what I had. I prefer to fight using daggers. Or stilettos if you have any. But I'm not fighting with a sword unless I really have to. Bad things happen when I use a sword. Not used to its length." Cassandra nodded. Then groaned. Max wondered why and then he found out. Varric had come up behind them and had overheard their conversation. "I have a good friend who would have blushed with all this talk of sword and dagger length." Max couldn't hide his grin. Cassandra rolled her eyes. "Ugh. What do you want Varric?" "Oh just stopping by to tell you that you both are need in the war room." Max groaned. "Why me? I'm not important enough right?" Varric gave a hearty laugh. "'Not important enough'? Was that a serious question?" Max stared blankly at him. "Well, shit. You really don't know?" "Don't know what? What is it I don't know?" Varric doubled over with laughter. Max pestered him about what he didn't know but Varric just waved him off as he walked away back towards the tavern. Max looked to Cassandra. "What was that all about?" She took a couple seconds before she responded. "Some say you are the Herald of Andraste. People heard about what happened at the Breach. People have heard stories of how we found you." "How did I survive the blast?" "No one truly knows. They say you stepped out of a rift. A woman was there behind you. No one knows who she is. But people are saying that it was Andraste herself sending you to help us." "That sounds like the last thing I remember before I woke in chains. In my vision or whatever you want to call it, a woman did reach out to me as I was running away from some type of creature. But that's all I remember. What do you think about it?" He asked her. "Yes I believe she sent you in our hour of need. What else could it be? But what about you? How do you feel about it?" Max shrugged. "I don't know how I should feel. I don't feel like I've been 'touched by Andraste' or anything. Anyway, we should probably head down to the war table. I suppose we are important." ******************* They walked into a large room with a wide table in the middle. Three people stood around it. Leliana was on the left side of the table, and two other people were were standing across from the door. A male and female. The male had short sleek blonde hair and a stubble filled face with a small smile. He had on a chest plate with red feathers lining the top. At his side was a gleaming iron sword. Beside him stood a small dark skinned woman with her long black hair tied in a bun. Locks came out on the sides of her face and a bright smile lit up on her face when they entered. She wore a dazzling yellow skirt that immediately caught every eye whenever she entered a room. But her smile, Max noticed, was just a mask. He was used to nobles wearing a mask to hide their real plans. Although this woman's smile did seem authentic. Maybe because she thought he was the Herald. *So a noblewoman and a soldier and a hero. Odd trio.* Cassandra gestured to the soldier saying, "This is Commander Cullen: leader of the Inquisition's forces." "As they are. We lost a lot of men because of the Breach." The mans voice even sounded like a soldiers. "And we'll lose a lot more before this whole thing is over." Max said. Cassandra turned to the lady in yellow. "This is our ambassador: Josephine Montilyet." Josephine bowed her head. "I've heard much. It's an honor to finally meet you." Max bowed in reply. Finally Cassandra turned to Leliana. "And you already know Leliana." Max rubbed his bearded chin. "Yeah her name does ring a bell." He said sarcastically. That earned a chuckle from Cullen and a coy smile from Josephine. Leliana hid a grin and Cassandra ignored the comment altogether. Leliana nodded and said, "My business here involves a degree of-." Cassandra cut her off. "Leliana is our spymaster." Leliana sighed. "Yes. Tactically put, Cassandra." Max grinned. "That's an impressive bunch of titles." Max thought he heard a snicker come from Cassandra's area but when he looked at her, she had on her usual stone serious face on. "So why did you three call us down here? Just to admire the glowing green mark on my hand spewing out magic? That's a popular thing to look at nowadays from what I've been told. Or do you want to talk about the so called 'Herald of Andraste' business? That's a close second." Leliana spoke. "We called you down so we could discuss what to do next." "Why me though? I'm not that important other than the blasted thing carved into my hand." Cullen chuckled. "Not that important? You are a hero who saved the world from being swallowed up by the Breach. I say that makes you at least a little important." Max shook his head. "All I did was stop it spreading. I didn't get rid of it. Hell, some people even think I put it in the sky in the first place." Josephine spoke with a heavy Antivan accent that sounded very enticing. It made him want to listen to her voice more. "The Chantry seems to think that. They already did even before you stopped it. And Chancellor Roderick has been at the forefront of that belief." "With all due respect, I say hang the Chantry. I don't see them out here trying to stitch the hole in the sky." scoffed Cullen. "The Chantry's only strength is that they are united in opinion. And yet they may bury us in them. We should try to come to a truce with the Chantry before anything else. Maybe there are some sisters sympathetic to our cause?" She said in question. Leliana stepped forward. "Not sisters but a we may have a mother of helping. There is a woman:Mother Giselle, who is out in the Hinterlands aiding the refugees trapped amongst the fighting. She has shown interest in helping the Inquisition. We could reach out to her and help aid the refugees at the same time. If that's fine with the Herald?" She poised the question at Max who jumped as he realized everyone was looking at him, expecting an answer. "Why are you all looking at me?" Cassandra sighed, annoyed. "There may be rifts spread throughout the Hinterlands. That means there may be demons preying on the refugees. And since you are the only one who can seal them, you need to go with whoever goes to meet Mother Giselle." "You had me at demons preying on the helpless. We can't have that now can we?" Cullen nodded. "Now all that's left is to figure out who is going. The Herald obviously. I say he be accompanied by force of twenty men at least for protection." Leliana shook her head. "Out of the question. A force like that would only attract unwanted attention. We need to send a small force of maybe four or five people including the Herald. That way, they can help without drawing too much attention tho themselves. My scouts can occupy any good base camp spots and keep an eye on what's going on." "I will go with the Herald." Cassandra said. It was not a question. Max raised a hand. "Um, the Herald has a name you know. It's Max by the way. Just for future references." Cassandra ignored him. It was a favorite pastime of hers it seemed. "Who else will go with him?" Josephine asked. "Solas should go. He knows more about the rifts than anyone else." Suggested Cassandra. "Varric should go as well." Max said. Instantly, Cassandra shook her head. "Out of the question. I am not going anywhere with that dwarf. I've had enough of that rogue to last a lifetime. If I spend any more time with him I'll go mad." Max looked her in the eyes as he said, "Cassandra, Varric has the most experience here besides maybe Leliana as far as following someone around killing bad guys. Besides, if I have to put up with both Solas and you, I'll go mad." "But-." Leliana cleared her throat. "It makes sense, Cassandra. Varric joined Hawke on many of his 'adventures'. If anyone knows how to work as a small team, it's him." After a few moments. Cassandra relented. "Fine. But if he annoys me, I'm throwing him off a ledge." Max smirked. "I kind of want to see that now." Cassandra turned to him. "Then I'll throw you off a ledge." "Can it be a small rock instead?" "For you I'll make it a mountain." "Aww we've only known each other a day or two and yet you are already giving me gifts." "I'll give you a gift in the shape of a fist." Josephine cleared her throat loudly, causing both of them to turn back to the table. "What?" They both asked at the same time. "Let's focus on the task at hand and not at throwing each other off mountains." Max shrugged. "She started it." "Did not." "Did-." Cullen interrupted them. "Please for the love of the Maker, be quiet." Max grinned at Cassandra. She snorted in disgust.

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dragon-age-story · 7 years

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Chapter One: Destiny? Or Dumb Luck?

It’s basically a re-telling of Dragon Age Inquisition plus a little of its dlc.  Max is alone in the world. Plagued by never ending nightmares and cursed with the Anchor, he’s the only hope for Thedas. Only he doesn’t think that someone as broken as himself can fix the world. But someone has to make things right. So far, it’s not going so well.  Searing hot pain shot from his left hand and up through his arm all the way to his neck, jolting him awake. He cried out in agony. The sudden terrible pain was almost too much. And as fast as the pain had appeared, it vanished. He shuddered. He was lying face down on a cold stone floor. With considerable effort, he managed to wriggle into a kneeling position despite being chained to the floor. He took a deep breath. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a bright green glow. He looked down at his left hand and flinched in shock as green tendrils of light coiled around his hand. It was coming from a strange mark that went from one side of his palm to the other. Even as he stared at it, it once again erupted in a blast of energy, sending another burst of pain up throughout his entire arm. He cursed through the pain as he looked at his surroundings. He was surprised he hasn’t done so earlier. He was in the middle of what looked to be a jail room. Jail cells were on all sides. The room was dark and musky. Under his feet was the Chantry symbol. *Great. I’m in a Chantry jail. Wonderful. But that raises the question: How in the Maker did I get here?* Maxwell thought. Maxwell, try as he might, couldn’t remember how he landed himself in prison or why he had been thrown into it in the first place. Suddenly a door facing him opened and several people he assumed were guards, marched in forming a square around him. Judging by their armor, they were Ferelden. They unsheathed their swords and pointed them at his chest. *Now I really want to know what I did.* No one moved until the door opened again. Two women entered. The red headed woman on the left, he instantly recognized as Leliana: veteran of the Fifth Blight and the lover of the famed Hero of Ferelden. She was wearing a light blue cowl over simple chain mail. The cowl shrouded most of her facial features in darkness but her observing greens eyes studied him from behind the cowl. She had no weapons but Maxwell somehow knew that she had some daggers hidden on her person. The woman on the right was a tall with short dark hair cropped up. Her angular face was twisted in a snarl. Deep brown eyes gleamed in the darkness. She wore body armor with the Seeker symbol painted in white on her chest. She was pretty in an odd threatening way. Like she would kill you without a sweat and look good while doing it. But she held herself in a way that told Maxwell that she had great authority and knew what to do with it. Though he would never admit it, he was more than a little scared of her. And later as it turned out, for good reason. The two woman looked at the man on the floor and both saw different things. Leliana saw a cheerful sly man who was slightly below average height with long dirty blonde hair loosely but nearly gathered behind his head. She saw bright unwavering blue eyes rise to meet hers and a kind if nervous smile on the ends of his mouth. He had a lean well muscled body. She noticed that his hands were rough looking and calloused. Which meant either he was a farmer or a fighter. And he didn’t have the look of a farmer. She also noticed that he had an air of arrogance about him. Like he was used to getting what he wanted. But she couldn’t help but think she had seen this man before. The Seeker was seeing an entirely different person. She saw a short man with unkept dirty hair and blue mischievous eyes. She too noticed his friendly kind smile but mistook it for an arrogant smirk. Light stubble was spread across his dirty face. He looked small and weak. She didn’t see the proud brave glint in his eyes. She only saw the nervousness that she turned into fear. Leliana saw a kindhearted brave warrior and the Seeker saw a dirty weak maybe even cowardly man. “You going to stand there gawking or are you going to introduce yourselves?” Maxwell asked. The Seeker ignored him but Maxwell thought he saw Lelaiana’s mouth twitch. The Seeker started to circle around him. His eyes followed her. She spoke with an accent he placed as Nevvaran. “Tell me why we shouldn’t kill you now.” “Because I’d like to keep on living?” Maxwell said. Again she ignored him. “The Conclave is destroyed. Everyone who attended is dead. Except for you.” Maxwell scoffed. “You think I’m responsible?” The Seeker reached down and grasped his now green left hand. “Explain this.” She ordered. “I can’t.” Maxwell said. And he meant it. He had no clue as to how or why his hand was glowing. “What do you mean you can’t?” The Seeker asked, growing angrier. “I don’t know what that is or how it got there. On my hand. And all glowy.” She suddenly grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt. “Your lying!” She shouted. Luckily, Lelaiana put herself between them before the Seeker could do any harm. Her Orleasian accent was obvious. “We need him, Cassandra.” She said calmly. Cassandra backed off. For now. Lelaiana turned to Maxwell. “Do you remember? How this began?” She asked. Maxwell wracked his brain trying desperately to remember something. Anything. But to no avail. The only thing he though he remembered was a hazy vision like thing. It was all he could remember so he decided that it was good enough. “I remember running. Things were chasing me…and then…a woman?” Leliana crossed her arms. “A woman?” Then it finally dawned on him. What Cassandra had said earlier about the Conclave. Maxwell’s stomach pitted into a knot. “Wait. The Conclave was destroyed? Well that’s, damn. All those people? Gone?” Cassandra laid a hand on Leliana’s shoulder. “Go to the forward camp, Leliana. I will take him to the rift.” Leliana nodded and left the room. Cassandra helped Maxwell stand and guided him out of the jail and up through the Chantry. “What did happen, if I may ask?” Cassandra sighed. “It will be better to show you.” Maxwell definitely did not like the sound of that. Some guards opened the Chantry doors and they stepped outside. The sudden light blinded Maxwell at first but his eyes gradually adjusted. He immediately wished they hadn’t. There was a giant green hole that made up a huge chunk of the sky. It almost looked like a thunderstorm. A messed up thunderstorm spewing large fiery mini-explosions instead of electricity. It had a striking resemblance to something. “Heh. It looks like a woman’s lower region.” “Ugh.” Cassandra said. As he stared up at the hole, Cassandra explained what the hole was. “We call it the Breach. It’s a rift between our world and the world of demons. It’s not the only such rift, just the largest. It grows with each passing hour and if we don’t stop it now, it will swallow the world.” “Lovely.” Maxwell cried out in pain as the Breach ruptured and the mark on his hand flared up. He fell to his knees, cursing. Cassandra knelt before him. “With each rupture, your mark spreads. And it is killing you. You may be the key to stopping this but there isn’t much time.” Maxwell groaned. He looked back up at the Breach in all its terrifying splendor. If what she said was true, this thing could destroy the world and kill millions upon millions of innocents. And he wasn’t about to let that happen. He breathed deeply. “I understand.” Cassandra looked genuinely surprised. “You mean?” “I’ll help stop this… Whatever it takes.” She helped him back up and led him through a small village. The townsfolk glowered at him and spat as he walked by. Some even had a murderous look in their eyes. Cassandra noticed him looking at the angry crowds. “They have decided your guilt. They need it.” Maxwell gave a half hearted chuckle. “I don’t care if they need it. It’s making me nervous.” “The people of Haven mourn Divine Justinia, head of the Chantry. The Conclave was a chance for peace between the mages and Templars. She brought their leaders together. Now they are dead.” The two of them made their way to an icy bridge. Maxwell shivered. They were in the mountains with snow covering the ground. Wind raced by them causing the snow to swirl about. Maxwell shivered once more. He wasn’t used to being out in the cold. The Free Marches where he was born, didn’t have many snow covered mountains. Most of the mountains in the Marches were barren aside from the occasional tree. So he was really not used to the cold. His nose was already running and he could feel his fingers start to numb. “We lash out like the sky but we must think as she did. Beyond ourselves.” “Because everyone can do that.” Maxwell said sarcastically. Cassandra rolled her eyes as she turned to face him. She brought out a dagger and Maxwell was sure she would gut him but instead, she cut through his restraints. “There will be a trial. But I can promise you nothing.” She turned and started walking across the bridge. “Where are you taking me again?” He asked as he followed. “Your mark must be tested on something smaller than the Breach.” She said as if that explained everything. “Yes I got that but test it how?” “I don’t know. But your mark seems to react with the Breach so maybe it might do something to close it.” “So you want me to close a huge rip in the sky with just my hand? Who do you think I am? The Warden?” “Of course not. The Warden wouldn’t have made the Breach in the first place.” “Wait. You still think I did this? To myself?” “It may not have been your intention but something clearly went wrong.” Maxwell chuckled. “Something is clearly wrong with your head.” Cassandra ignored him and kept walking. Maxwell had no choice but to follow behind her. They rounded a bend in the road when the mark flared up again moments before another pulse erupted from the Breach. He gasped and fell facedown in the freezing snow. *This is getting really annoying.* Once again, the Seeker helped him up. “Come. We must keep moving.” “Easy for you to say.” Max retorted. “Your hand isn’t blowing up with pain every time the sky rumbles!” “Just be glad we need you to close the Breach. If it was up to me, you would still be rotting in that jail.” “Well that’s a cheery thought.” “Just come on.” They continued moving down along the path. Soon they reached a bridge with a dozen guards on it. Some of them waved at Cassandra in greeting. She nodded back as they began walking across. Out of the corner of his eye, Max saw one of the balls of energy spewing from the Breach speeding toward them. He grabbed the Seeker and dove to the side as the ball exploded upon impact, causing the bridge to crumble beneath them. They both fell several feet onto a frozen river. Max grunted as he hit the ground. He looked up with just enough time to roll to the side as another ball fell. As he watched, some creature emerged from the ball of energy. “The hell?” He said before the creature lunged at him with long claws intended to slice his chest open. The blow never came. Cassandra, who had recovered from the fall before he had, brought her sword through the creatures chest. The thing howled then slowly disintegrated into a small pile of ash that the wind soon disrupted. “Stay behind me!” She shouted as she surged forward towards two more of the creatures. Max stood up and momentarily fought the urge to escape. In the end, he decided against it. The Seeker had just saved his life. He wasn’t going to leave her to fend these things on her own. Besides, he had said he would help close the giant hole in the sky. And he always at least try’s to keep his promises. He looked down. A sword lay at his feet. Not his preferred weapon of choice but it would do. He picked it up just in time to party one of the creature’s lunge. He jumped back as it lunged once more then he dove forward and stuck the blade into its chest. It fell. He looked over at the Seeker and saw one of the creatures creeping up behind her. He did the only sensible thing to do: he threw the sword at it. Cassandra was blocking one of the creatures when something whizzed by her face. She killed the creature in front of her then spun around only to see a creature, its arm still outstretched towards her throat, with a sword lodged in its neck. She turned back to the prisoner. He had just risked her life to save it. And that outraged her. “Drop your weapon! Now! And what were you trying to do, slice my head off?” She shouted at him. The prisoner just smiled and said, “I believe I was saving your life. As for the weapon: fine. Have it your way.” Cassandra growled. “Wait.” She sheathed her sword and strapped her shield to her back. “I cannot protect you. And I cannot expect you to be defenseless. I should remember that you agreed to come willingly.” “See? You can be well mannered after all.” The prisoner said with a smug face. She scowled. The prisoner was beginning to get on her nerves. The two made their way along the riverbed before coming to some stairs. As they climbed, Max could hear shouting of in the distance. “You can hear the fighting off in the distance.” Cassandra said. *Brilliant deduction there.* “Who’s fighting?” “You’ll see soon enough. We must help them!” She picked up the pace and Max followed. The reached the top to see two people fighting off several of the creatures which Cassandra had told him were demons called Shades. Cassandra charged into the fray, sword flashing. Max charged in after her. The two people they were rushing to help out was a bald elf with oddly tall ears and a beardless dwarf carrying a weird looking crossbow. Arcs of electricity shot out from the tip of the elf’s staff and practically vaporized any shade unlucky to get hit. The dwarf shot bolt after bolt from his crossbow, felling the Shades as if he had been doing it for years. Maxwell only had enough time to kill one of the demons before the elf grabbed his left hand and thrusted it towards the rift. Green energy surged from his hand to the rift. Max felt a slight tingling feeling as the rift closed. What remaining demons immediately died. “What just happened?"Max asked. The elf answered him. "I theorized that your mark could close the rifts. And it seems I was correct.” “Guess that’s one good thing about this thing.” The elf grinned coyly. “It seems you are the key to stopping this.” Max sighed. “Aren’t I just the luckiest guy alive then.” Chuckling, the dwarf said, “Good to know. And here I thought we’d be ass deep in demons forever.”, as he pulled a trigger causing the crossbow to fold in on itself. He strapped it to his shoulder and stepped up to Max, hand extended. Max shook the dwarf’s hand. “Varric Tethras: rogue, storyteller, and occasional unwelcome tag along.” The dwarf said as he winked at Cassandra. The Seeker grunted with disgust. Max sensed that the two did not like each other all the much. “Are you with the Chantry or…?” Asked Max. The elf chuckled. “Is that a serious question?” Varric grinned. “Technically I’m a prisoner. Just like you.” Cassandra said, “I brought him here to tell his story to the Divine. Clearly that is no longer needed. Your help is appreciated Varric but-.” Varric interrupted her. “Have you been in the Valley lately Seeker? Your soldiers aren’t in control anymore. You need me.” He said with a twinkle in his eyes. “Unfortunately.” Max decided to change the subject. A very tactical idea he thought. “So what have you thought of the weather lately?” Varric and the elf laughed. Cassandra rolled her eyes. Varric grinned. “An old friend of mine used to say that all the time.” The elf nodded and said, “My name is Solas if there are to be introductions. I am pleased to see you still live.” Varric chuckled. Max was finding that he did that a lot. “He means ‘I kept that mark from killing you while you slept.’” “You seem to know a great deal about it all.” “Solas is an apostate, well versed in such matters.” Cassandra said. Solas shrugged. “Technically all mages are apostates now, Cassandra. Yet you should know: your prisoner is no Mage but I find it difficult to imagine anyone with such power that he has shown.” Cassandra nodded. “Noted. Now come. We must reach the next barricade.” She turned and led the way down to a lake. Max caught Varric’s eye and shrugged. “That’s a nice crossbow. Never seen one like that before.” Max commented. Varric smiled. “Ah isn’t she? Bianca is one of a kind.” Max laughed. “You named your crossbow Bianca?” “Yes and she is very excited to go kill some demons. It’ll be like old times but with less blood magic.” “Like from your journeys with Hawke?” Varric choked. “You’ve read my books?” “No but I’ve heard the stories. Everyone has. He’s a legend and a hero in my eyes. Good that the mages have someone to look up to. Did he really kill the Arishok in a duel to save that pirate lass?” Varric smiled lost in thought, reliving old memories. “Yup.” “Nice.” They followed Cassandra and Solas. Fighting their way through demons, they soon came to another bridge. Guards were patrolling it and in the middle, stood Leliana and a man garbed in Chantry robes. “So this is the man who created the Breach?” The man asked. Leliana nodded. “And why is he up and walking free?” Leliana answered him. “Because he is the only one capable of closing the Breach.” Bewildered the man said,“ You want to close the Breach? But our situation here is hopeless. We should call a retreat while we still can.” “Are you ordering us, Roderick?” Cassandra said as she glared at the man. “We can stop this before it is too late.” “Or we can retreat. Elect a new Divine and obey her thoughts on the matter.” Max held up his hands. “Wait wait. None of you are actually in charge here?” Roderick pointed an accusing finger at him. “You killed everyone in charge!” “No I didn’t! I’m not even a Mage. Doing something like that would require a little thing I don’t have called magic.” “We will argue about who’s fault it is after the immediate danger has passed.” Cassandra said. “And to do that, we should charge with the soldiers.” “Sure lets charge with the soldiers. Anything to make this nightmare go away quicker.” Max said through gritted teeth. “Well then that’s settled. Let’s go throw our lives away to close a hole in the sky.” Varric said. “I like the way you think.” Max said as they crossed the remaining bridge to the Temple of Sacred Ashes. “I’m all kinds of impressive."Varric grinned. "Ugh.” Cassandra said. “The Temple of Sacred Ashes has seen better days.” Max said as the four of them stared at what remained of the famous temple. Once it had been an underground lair for a cult. Then The Warden discovered it during the Fifth Blight in order to find Andraste’s ashes needed to heal Arl Eamon. Afterwards, it was excavated and shared with the world. It was once a beautiful temple filled with hope. Now it was reduced to a rather large pile of rubble. Big red crystals littered the sides. Varric eyed them nervously. “You know that’s red lurking, Seeker.” “I see that Varric.” “Yes but what’s it doing here?” “The magic used here may have caused it to form.” Solas suggested. “Whatever. Just don’t touch it. That stuff is evil.” Varric said. They made their way down to the temple alongside Leliana and some of her scouts. As they neared the bottom, they heard a deep luminous voice. “Keep the sacrifice still.” Cassandra looked around, confused. “Who are we hearing?” Solas said simply. “At a guess: the person who created the Breach.” They reached the bottom of the crater that was the remnants of the explosion that destroyed the temple. The air above them shimmered and an image appeared. Max saw an old lady being suspended in the air as some dark figure approached. The lady shouted for help and then suddenly he appeared asking what was going on. Then the image faded. Cassandra grabbed his shoulder. “You were there! Who attacked? The divine, is she-. What are we seeing?” “I don’t remember.” Max said. “Remnants of ancient magic lingers here.” Solas said before Cassandra could hit him. “Well good for us.” Max retorted. Varric cleared his throat. “Um, guys? Look up. The Breach is a long way up.” Max did. The Breach was in fact, a long way up. It was literally the sky above them. “Yeah how do you expect me to close that, much less reach it."Max asked. "Simple. We close the original rift. Seal it and perhaps we seal the Breach.” Solas gestured to a rather large rift(luckily closed) directly under the Breach. “Open the rift, then slam it shut with all your strength.” Solas advised. “Oh that’s it? Sounds easy enough.” “I must warn you: opening the rift may attract attention from the other side.” Cassandra unsheathed her sword and brought her shield up. “That means demons! Stand ready!” She nodded to Max once all present were ready. Max shrugged then thrusted his hand towards the rift, feeling that slight tingly feeling as the rift was slowly being pried open. When it fully opened, it was calm for a split second before a jet of green erupted from it. Then a huge hulking demon burst from the light. It had broad shoulders and towered above all of them. Large horns swept back from its head and small beady eyes peaked out from above a mouth filled with long, very sharp looking, teeth. It roared with ferocity. Max flinched at the sheer volume of its roar. *Maker curse my luck.* he thought before shouting a battle cry. Then he did the dumbest thing to date: he ran straight at the giant demon with just a sword. He felt Cassandra running besides him and he saw bolts, arrows, and magic fly past him at the demon. It swatted most of them away. Max swiped at its belly and instantly regretted it as he felt a jolt of electricity pass up his arm. He cursed. His sword was made of simple metal which electricity loved. He could feel his arm going numb already. *Great.* Cassandra’s sword glanced harmlessly off the demon as well. Instinctively, she brought her shield up which quite possibly saved her life as the demon swung at her, it’s razor sharp claws extended. Her shield blocked the claws from ripping her open but the sheer force of the blow sent her flying. It was then that Max realized he and Cassandra were the only ones who had swords. Everyone else had only bows and hunting knives. Cassandra struggled to get up off the ground but she had hit her head during her trip so she was dazed and confused. The demon, ignoring all the projectiles hitting it, moved closer to Cassandra to finish her off. Max wasn’t about to let that happen. *No more die today.* Max did the only sensible thing he could do. He ran at the demon and flung himself onto its back. He stabbed the demon with his sword. Another bolt of electricity surged up his arm. He ignored the pain and began climbing. The demon tried to swat him off but it’s reach wasn’t long enough. It growled in frustration. Max shoved his blade through the beasts neck and shouting,“No one else dies today!”, he thrusted his left hand outward at the rift. With every last ounce of strength he had left, he closed the rift. He vaguely saw a pillar of energy shoot upward from the rift and felt the demon below him stumble and collapse. Then all went black. He awoke to the sound of a door opening. He groaned. His head was pounding with a splitting headache. He opened his eyes. He was in a small cabin. Entering the cabin was a young elven girl carrying a box filled with plants. Once she noticed that he was awake, she dropped the box in shock. “Oh! I didn’t know you were awake!” Max sat up. “It’s alright. I just-.” She fell to her knees and bowed, kind of. “I beg your forgiveness and your blessings. I am but a humble servant.” Max couldn’t help but smile at her. “No need to get all serious. Where am I?” “You are back in Haven, my lord. They say you were the one who stopped the Breach from growing.” Max breathed a deep sigh of relief. “Then…we’re safe?” “That’s what people are saying. But Lady Cassandra said that she wanted to see you after you woke. At once she said. At once!” The elf said as she backed out of the hut. *Weird. Elves are weird. Guess I should go see what 'Lady’ Cassandra wants.* Max grimaced as he struggled to stand. “Yeah, wouldn’t want to wait around to see if I don’t need help standing or anything. Just walk out without checking on me. It’s cool.” He said to no one. He stretched his muscles. He felt like he hadn’t moved in days. His left arm was still asleep; because of the mark or just lack of movement, he didn’t know. Once he thought himself steady enough to walk, he opened the door to the hut and was greeted by the sight of dozens and dozens of people kneeling and applauding. He heard several people call out, “That’s him! The Herald of Andraste.” Used to large crowds, he raised his hand to wave. Too late, he realized he had raised the hand with the mark. The hand that was currently almost completely asleep. His left arm just kind of swung oddly up into the air then fell back to his side as he attempted to wave. His cheeks went red in embarrassment. He settled for a nod to the crowd. He walked along the path to the Chantry, smiling and nodding to the crowd gathered as he went. He had no idea what this 'Herald’ business was but he figured he would play to the crowd. He pushed open the big Chantry doors and stepped inside. At the back of Chantry, he heard Cassandra and Roderick’s voices from behind a door. Seeing as no one else was inside, he crept up to the door, listening to the argument going on. “He should be taken to Val Royeux for trial.” Roderick said. “I do not think he is guilty.” Cassandra said in Max’s defense. *Took her long enough to realize that.* He chose that moment to open the door. Cassandra was leaning over a large table that had a map of Thedas on it. Leliana was off to the side observing. Roderick was standing at the head of the table. As soon as Max stepped in, Roderick turned to two guests standing beside the door. “Chain him. I want him prepared for trial.” “Disregard that and leave us.” Cassandra ordered. The guards bowed before marching out. Roderick turned back to Cassandra angrily. “You walk a dangerous line, Seeker.” “The Breach stable but it is still a threat. I will not ignore it.” She retorted. Max spoke up. “I did everything I could to close the Breach. It almost killed me.” “Yet you live. A convenient result insofar as you are concerned.” Roderick spat. “Have a care, Chancellor. The Breach is not the only threat we face.” The Seeker said. “Some one is behind the explosion at the Conclave. Someone Most Holy did not expect. Perhaps they died with the others or have allies who yet live.” Leliana chimed in. Roderick looked appalled. “I am a suspect?” Leliana nodded. “You. And many others.” “But not the prisoner?” He asked. “I heard the voices in the Temple. The Divine called out to him for help.” Cassandra said. Roderick scoffed. “So his survival? That thing on his hand? All a coincidence?” Cassandra’s voice went just a little less steely when she said,“Providence. The Maker sent him to us in our darkest hour.” Max realized that Cassandra was a religious sort so he decided to do something that he normally wouldn’t do but he thought it would help get him on her good side if that was even possible. He quoted scripture. Granted it was one of the only verses from the Chant of Light. His parents had made him memorize it when he was a child. “Though all before me is shadow, yet shall the Maker be my guide.” He quoted. Cassandra looked startled but she quickly regained her composure. “We lost everything. And then you came to us.” Leliana looked at him. “The Breach remains. And you are still our only hope of closing it.” Let’s hope I can close it next time.“ Max said. "You can’t be serious.” Roderick said. It was then that Cassandra dropped a large dusty book on the table. It made a thud when it landed. Roderick jumped with surprise. Cassandra looked him in the eyes. “You know what this is Chancellor? A writ granting us the authority to act. As of this moment, I declare the Inquisition reborn. We will close the Breach, find those responsible and restore peace to Thedas with or without your approval.” Roderick, dumbfounded, couldn’t even come up with a decent comeback before he stepped out of the room. Leliana looked a little worried. “But we have no leads, no numbers, and now no Chantry support.” “What choice do we have, Leliana? But we must act now."Cassandra turned towards Max. ” with you at our side.“ Max didn’t even have to think about it. "If your truly trying to restore order.” Leliana made the smallest of smiles. “That is the plan.” “Help us fix this. Before it is too late.” Cassandra extended her hand. Max shook it and was surprised at how strong her grip was. She nodded. Max grinned. “Let’s go save the world and all that good stuff.” Leliana smirked. Cassandra just rolled her eyes. “Cheer up, Seeker. The world hasn’t ended yet.” Cassandra snorted. “Keyword in that sentence is 'yet’.” Max grinned at her. “Way to stay positive.

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