Chapter Text
The air around her was acidic and thick. She coughed as she came back to consciousness. The world around her spun as she got to her knees. Everything hurt, her hand felt broken, it burned as if she cut it deep with a blade. With a groan, she tried to stand but stumbled and vomited. Once her stomach had emptied itself, she slowly stood up again. The world swam around her. It was green and smoky, she couldn’t see anything around her, shadows seemed to grow and change shapes around her. Andy searched the green haze, trying to understand where she was. Andy wasn’t sure if she saw the woman or if the figure had called out to her. Andy could see a hill with a glowing woman standing on the edge. There was something about the figure, something familiar.
Andy wasn’t sure if she had called back, but suddenly the air swirled faster around her. She looked around her, when she closed her eyes to focus, she swore she could hear the sound of pincers clicking and they were getting closer. She tilted her head, there was something else...what was it? Absolute terror crawled up from her stomach. It knew.
Andy didn’t hesitate, she opened her eyes and took off at a sprint toward the glowing woman. As soon as she took off, the sounds of creatures grew louder, they came from all around, hungry for her. She couldn’t get a good look at the beasts that followed her, she could catch glimpses of huge scaled spider-like creatures that would disappear back into the mist. A roar erupted behind the creatures. Panic caught in her throat, she couldn’t even scream. How could it be here? How did it find her?
The woman was still impossible far away, on a mountain, beckoning frantically for Andy to reach her. Andy sprinted up the hill, the world around her was still spinning, so rapidly that for a solid minute Andy felt as if she was running straight upward. The creatures were almost on top of her, their screams matched her gasps of helplessness. She reached for the woman, as the woman reached for Andy’s hand burned, the pain caused her to scream but she realized she made no sound.
NOOOOO!!!!!
The shock of cold air hit her face, and the world no longer spun. Andriya cried out with relief. A sharp pain erupted from her hand, causing her entire body to shake with pain. For a second, she was sure her arm was going to fall off, and she fell into blackness.
She could hear voices speak around her, someone mentioned that the prisoner would wake soon. Later, or in response, someone else said to bind her. Another voice said something about the apostates working together. A sharp shock brought her to reality.
Andy looked around her. She was in a cell, a dungeon without light beside the torches on old beams. Her legs were asleep beneath her, her arms felt heavy, and her left hand burned. She looked down and Andy realized why her arms were heavy; they were bound in a large heavy metal band. She studied her hand and twisted her wrist through the shackles, surprised to see no signs of swelling, she had never broken a bone but it felt like her hand should be broken. As she flexed her fingers, she tensed for the movement to trigger a response from the damaged nerves but instead, her hand flashed green. Andy gasped as a large cut across her palm revealed itself in bright green light, shimmered around her fingers then disappeared, it stung but nothing like it had felt in her dream. Andy frowned staring now at her now normal hand, had it been a dream?
Andy looked up, her eyes adjusting to the darkness, it was then she realized she wasn’t alone. Four soldiers surrounded her, swords drawn, steady against her. Andy swallowed afraid to move, what were they waiting for. She tried to study them, looking for the familiar sword across their chest plates but all was hidden by the shadows. What the hell was going on? Andy asked herself. Maybe she had done something in her sleep. It had happened before, the templars could deal with it well enough; perhaps she had fallen asleep in the conclave?
Andy’s mind raced as she struggled to remember what might have led to her arrest. Where was Diana? Where was everyone else? Without warning, her hand exploded with a flash of green, she doubled over as lightning flooded her veins and up her arm. Tears leaked out of her eyes as she curled up small to fight the pain. Through her watery eyes, Andy gasped in shock, the green cut under her skin grew larger, it was the full width of her palm now. Before she could get over the surprise the door to her dungeon swung open and slammed loudly against the stone wall. Andy flinched and half expected the knight commander, but this wasn’t Ostwick, and there were no Circles anymore. The door shut behind them. Andy waited for her eyes to readjust back to the dark, she watched one of the figures motion to the soldiers to leave, and the door opened again as the soldiers marched out. Andy got a better glance at the new arrivals. Two women, both with an air of control about them, led Andy to conclude that whatever she had done was far worse than a spell cast in her sleep. They were both tall, one was slim, hooded, and clever enough to use the shadows to keep herself hidden. The other was a larger build, she towered over Andy, her hand on her sword ready to use it.
The door shut again, and Andy was left half-blind again, the larger woman spoke before Andy could see.
“Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you now. The temple is destroyed, the divine is dead, and the conclave has failed.”
Andy didn’t even respond, she looked up at the woman, her eyes finally able to see the woman’s face. The woman had an accent that Andy couldn’t place, a deep scar across her cheek, a fresh scab on the other side of her face, and cheekbones sharp enough to cut someone. The woman’s dark brown eyes confirmed that she was serious. But that was impossible, Andy thought, she was still at the temple, wasn’t she? Andy’s eyes searched the area around her, she had to be still in the temple, her heart began pounding in her chest. The temple couldn’t be destroyed. And the Divine...dead? That had to be impossible.
“That’s impossible,” Andy heard herself whisper.
“What’s impossible?” the woman demanded, now Andy recognized the accent. A woman from Nevarra? How did she end up here?
Andy stared up at the woman, “Everything, we are at the temple.”
“You are in Haven.” The woman snarled, “the only survivor.”
“The only survivor?” Andy repeated, “What are you talking about?” she heard herself scream.
“An explosion,” the other woman said she also had an accent, one that was harder to detect perhaps from somewhere in Orlais, “a blast that leveled the temple killing everyone. Everyone but you.”
The Nevarran had been circling her; like a predator about to leap onto its prey, lifted Andy’s left hand, and on cue, it sparked to life again, “Explain this!”
“I can’t!” Andy yelped through the pain of her grip and the foreign magic in her hand, “What do you mean you can’t?” demanded the woman, she leaned in close, just desperate for a reason to kill her.
“I mean I don’t know what it is or how it got there!”
“You’re lying!” she drew her hand back to slap Andy but the other woman darted forward and stopped her hand. The torch-lit her face, Andy could see her red hair, and clear eyes, “We need her Cassandra.”
Andy started at them, she couldn’t speak, there was no way this was real. This had to be the fade. This had to be a Harrowing, this had to be the demon. She closed her eyes, it had to be any of these things, but if this was true, it was so much worse than any nightmare.
“Do you remember what happened?” the Orlesian woman asked, she got closer to Andy, her face was round and gentle, a face that she could trust.
Andy only shook her head, she looked down at her bound hands, “No,” the women both waited and Andy felt the need to fill the silence, “I thought it was a dream,” she whispered to her hands. How many people were dead? She wondered, how many? What about Diana, and Victor? What about Kris, or Ander, or Kinder, and everyone. She couldn’t be the only survivor, it couldn’t be true, “I was running…from creatures…and there was a woman.”
“A woman?” the Orlesian said in surprise, she drew back but Andy missed the exchanged looks between the two of them.
Andy shook her head, “What did happen? How could this have happened?” when she looked up at them, she could have sworn there was pity in their eyes.
“Go to the forward camp Leliana. We will meet you there.”
The Orelsian nodded and turned, leaving Andy with Cassandra. The woman placed her sword back in its sheath and picked Andy up by the elbow. Andy’s legs turned to pins and needles as she struggled to walk on them, “It will be easier to show you.”
Andy leaned on the woman as she led them down a hallway, they were silent for a time, Andriya's legs waking up as they went up some stairs.
The Nevarran opened a large door, the wooden blanks and columns behind it caused Andy to gasp as the cold air burst in, and a few snowflakes fluttered into the chantry. The glare from the sun on the snow blinded Andy for a moment, she lifted her hands to shield her eyes, turning toward the mountain she gasped, a maelstrom in the sky, green light glowing from the fade. It had to be the fade, she realized, the way boulders were floating, visible from here, lightning and thunder circling the hole into nothingness. She stared blankly, trying to understand.
“We call it the Breach, a tear in the Veil that grows with each passing hour. It isn’t the only such rift, but it is the largest. But all of them were caused by the explosion at the conclave.” Cassandra said, her attention on the breach rather than on her prisoner. Andy stared up at it and shook her head, fade magic wasn’t something she had been interested in at the Circle, the few books she had read or lectures she had listened to did little to help here. Not in any of her studies did something like this occur, “An explosion can do that?” she asked, searching her mind for a memory that might help.
Cassandra turned to her, “This one did,” she stated matter of factly, “And unless we act, The Breach will grow until it swallows the world.”
Once again, on que a flash of light erupted from the Breach, turning the sky a sickly greenish-white, the rift expanded, and rock rumbled as more of the mountainside was lifted into the sky. Andy missed all of that, because the moment the breach grew, her hand flashed green in response. She cried out in pain, falling to her knees and rocking slightly to recover from the pain. She looked up to see the woman kneeling next to her, “Every time the rift expands, so does the mark on your hand, it will kill you. It may be the key to stopping all of this, but there isn’t much time
“This may be the key, the key to what?” she asked looking at the woman, seeing hope in her eyes.
Cassandra only shook her head, “The key to closing the Breach, whether that’s possible is something we will discover shortly.
Andy sighed, she closed her eyes, this was magic she had never seen before, nothing she had read could prepare her for this. But the growth of the Breach and the growing in her hand were obviously connected. If she closed the mark on her hand would it close the Breach or vice versa? She opened her eyes and nodded, “Alright.”
Cassandra rocked on her heels, a look of surprise on her face, “You mean?”
Andy struggled to her feet, “Yes, I’ll do it.”
Andy nodded, she could feel everyone watching them, whispers followed them, people cursed her, and spat at her feet. Andy shivered and wondered if they would try anything. But that thought faded fast as another flame of green lightning danced across the sky. What had she learned in school that would help her with this? Spirits would naturally push against the fade, mages dreaming entered the fade but neither would actually cause the Veil to tear. This had to be a power directly linked to dividing the veil. The most obvious answer would be a form of blood magic. Andy dug into her memory, theoretically, a sacrifice would cause the veil to spread so an act of dividing the Veil could work, but something this size would take a lot of sacrifices and even more power. She stumbled with the thought, what if everyone inside the temple had been sacrificed? How did she get spared?
Andy looked up to see Cassandra staring at her. Andy realized that Cassandra was waiting for a response, she had obviously been talking but Andy had been so lost in thought she had completely missed it, “Sorry, what were you saying?”
Cassandra’s face went from concern, to shock, to disgust, “I was saying there will be a trial, but i can’t promise anything else.” She quickly stepped closer and cut the binds from Andy’s wrists.
Andy rubbed her wrists and examined her mark more closely. She looked up at Cassandra who watched her carefully now. “Sorry, I was thinking,” Andy explained.
Apparently, that wasn’t the right answer. Cassandra made a noise and turned to the soldiers at the gate of the bridge, “Open the gate.” she told them, she turned back to Andy, “We need to try your mark on something smaller than the Breach. We will go further into the valley.”
Andy nodded her reply and slowly she and Cassandra followed the ruined road to the remains of the temple. Cassandra didn’t speak, and Andy’s mind returned to her lack of knowledge about the veil. What had happened? She closed her eyes and realized; she didn’t remember. In her mind, where the memories should be was a blank space. Andy stumbled in thought, suddenly she couldn’t focus her mind on any but the fact she couldn’t remember. There had to be a clue with that; dreams could be forgotten because it was the fade; time and images were created by the dreamer and spirits, but being at the temple hadn’t been a dream. Andy started the day over in her head, she remembered going through the Qunari mercenaries to get into the temple. Diana had been with her…
A large rumble of thunder with a blinding flash of green light distracted her. Andy watched as the maelstrom spun faster and expanded with a ripple that moved the clouds around it. Before she could react, her hand erupted in burning pain. she had accidentally been struck by lightning when she was learning how to use it. It felt like that, the shock and pain went through every nerve in her body, sending her to the ground the pain too great for her to scream. Cassandra appeared next to her and helped Andy back to standing, “The pulses are coming faster now.”
Andy quickly translated that meant she was running out of time. If they didn’t hurry, the mark on Andy’s hand would kill her, then the world would be swallowed up by the breach. Andy turned to Cassandra, “What did happen?”
Cassandra only shook her head, “They say you fell out of a rift. A woman was behind you. No one knew who she was. That was three days ago.”
Andy looked back up to the breach, still no answers to what happened just more questions. She was in the fade...physically. That wasn’t possible, was it? The last time that happened, Darkspawn were created and it was, again, because of blood magic. Andy realized Cassandra was staring at her again. She shook her head to clear her thoughts, “Sorry, I was--”
“Thinking.” Finished Cassandra, she rolled her eyes.
They followed a group of soldiers past the first checkpoint to the temple. Almost halfway across the bridge, the sky erupted again. Andy prepared herself for the shock, as she watched in horror as a comet of Fade energy crashed down in front of them. Andy threw up a shield as fast as she could, the bridge exploded around them. The ground disappeared beneath Andy; she and Cassandra hit the frozen ice below.
The ice barked and settled but did not break. Andy’s shield had worked, several stones missed their heads. Cassandra rose to her feet, looking like a warrior queen. Andy slowly rose to her feet, she saw what had the warrior’s attention. The fade comet wasn’t just energy, it was a demon. “Stay behind me!” commanded Cassandra, she charged at the monster with a battle cry.
Andy swallowed as the woman raced into battle, she was not a warrior, she did not do that. She watched the fight and then realized she was hearing the ice crack near her feet. Andy looked down, the ice was bubbling...a faint green light growing from below. Another demon, she opened her mouth to call for help, but Cassandra was busy. She had to fight this on her own.
Andy searched the debris around her, the first checkpoint should have weapons...those who gave them willingly. Sure enough, she saw a staff buried by rock and a templar shield. She pulled it from the debris and twirled it, she wouldn’t have time to attune to it, but it would do for now. Directed power was better than wild magic any day. The Shade rose up, it howled victoriously now that it had arrived in the world. Andy screamed back.
The creature swung its claws at her but froze as Andy directed ice to surround the beast. Spinning she thrust her staff, sending lighting to burn the demon.
It screamed as it broke free, and then shrieked in terror as Andy set it on fire. The creature turned and fled, straight into Cassandra’s sword. Still screaming the demon sunk into the ground, turning to shadow and then gone. Andy searched the ice, “I think that’s all of them.” she breathed, trying to remember the last time she fought a demon. She looked up with a half-smile at Cassandra but was shocked to see her sword still pointed at her.
“Drop the staff, now!” commanded Cassandra.
Andy snorted, she shook her head at the stupidity of it, “Do you really think I need a staff to be dangerous?” she challenged. She threw it down, furious.
“Is that supposed to reassure me?” Cassandra said, the sword still ready for use. Andy almost wished she would try it.
Andy froze for a moment. She had forgotten, that just because she could save people, she was still a mage. To everyone, she was an animal. A beast that couldn’t control itself. “Yes.” Andy breathed softly, “It is. I haven’t used my magic on you.” Andy nodded to the warrior’s sword, “Are you going to use your sword?”
Cassandra hesitated and then sighed, her face turned red as her sword point dropped to the ground, “You’re right.” She admitted. Cassandra motioned for her to pick up the staff, “I cannot protect you. And I should remember you came along willingly.”
Andy cautiously picked up the staff, half expecting Cassandra to suddenly chop off her head as she bent down. She could see the shame in her eyes, Cassandra must be someone who had hoped not to judge mages so quickly. Andy had called her bluff.
“Who are you?” Andy asked her, “I mean how did you learn to fight demons?”
The Nevarran dug through the crates around them, “I am Cassandra Pentagast, Seeker of the Chantry, and the Right Hand of the Divine.”
Andy blinked, wondering if she had zoned out again. One of the most powerful people in Thedas had her sword pointed at Andy’s neck. Not only was she the Right Hand, but she was also a Seeker. The greatest of all the Templars. Andy shook her head, “Perfect,” she breathed to herself, “I thought I had half a moment to convince you I wasn’t a wild animal.” Andy sighed heavily, “So much for that.”
Cassandra smirked and raised an eyebrow. She said nothing as she handed Andy several red potions. The two set off along the mountain road silently.
Andy recognized the hillside as they climbed up the stairs, they were nearing the second checkpoint. She felt a wave of power, another mage. She gripped the staff in her hand tighter, reaching into her will and preparing her spells. Cassandra raced up ahead of her, she must have sensed it as well, her sword at the ready, “You can hear the fighting!” she called back to Andy.
“Yeah, but who’s fighting?” Andy asked herself but not loud enough for the Seeker to hear.
Andy caught sight of several soldiers, a mage, and what looked like a crossbow firing arrows faster than anything she had ever seen. But that wasn’t what caused her to stumble. A tear in the Veil, green smoke from the fade circled the air. She could hear snarls and wind that wasn’t from this world. The Seeker brushed past Andy, and Andy turned her attention to the battle.
Three shades cornered the mage, Andy didn’t hesitate. She brought her staff down hard into the earth as she leaped from the ruined steps, lightning followed her motion; the three shades were stunned. The bald mage spun with his staff, ice erupted from the snow, and impaled the shades. Arrows erupted from a shade that Andy had missed, it screamed and turned to ash. Andy began to direct her will into her staff, when the bald mage grabbed her wrist, “Quickly! Before more come through!” He thrust her hand at the tear.
Something pulled inside of Andy, she stumbled at the sudden movement of will. For a wild second, she knew it wasn’t her magic, it was something else but before she could focus on what it was, the magic reacted to the rift. The energy had no direction, it was a magnet that reacted to iron. She had to tell it what to do. Andy imagined pulling the sides of the Veil together, a seam that split, a few stitches and it should be good as new. With a sound like a cannon, the tear closed, Andy stared at the empty space where dreams had been moments before. She turned to the mage. He was handsome, tall for an elf, with a hero’s chin and dark brown eyes. He had a proud smile on his face but it was strange to see such a proud smile on the face of someone dressed in such simple earthy gear.
“What did you do?” Andy asked him, she studied her hands, the mark on her hand was the same side, but it felt different as if she had put ice on a burn.
“I did nothing,” He answered, “The credit is yours.”
Andy shook her head, “No,” She looked carefully at her hand, “This, that wasn’t me.”
A smug look crossed the elf’s face, or maybe more of an excited look, “I theorized that the mark on your hand could have an effect on such tear. As far as I can tell the magic that created the breach also created the mark on your hand.”
Andy nodded, “I guessed as much,” she tried again to reach for the will within the mark. It hadn’t pulled from her reserves, so where was it coming from.
“Does this mean your original theory still stands?” Cassandra interrupted, “It could close the breach itself.”
“It’s possible.” Andy and the elf said together. She looked up at him surprised they were on the same wavelength. Andy opened her mouth to question the mage but a gruff cough stopped her.
“It seems you hold the key to our salvation,” Solas said with a smile of relief on his face.
“Good to know,” a blonde dwarf pushed down the edges of his crossbow, “I thought we would be ass deep in demons forever.”
Andy stared at him, there was something interesting about him. He had a broken nose that hadn’t healed very well, warm brown eyes, and a large gold chain on his neck. He took a step closer to her as he shifted the crossbow to his back.
He gave a small grin as he approached, “Varric Tethras: rogue, storyteller, and occasionally unwelcome tagalong.”
Andy stared at Varric for a moment, she couldn’t have heard him right, she studied him again closer, noticing his hair, his smirk, “The Varric Tethras?” Andy heard herself speak, “From Kirkwall? Don’t you know...didn’t you…” She looked around noticing the laughter on the elf’s face. Andy swallowed hard, she knew she was blushing now, “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I have so many--”
“You may reconsider that stance, in time.” warned the Elf.
Varric wiped the sweat from his forehead, he gave the smallest shake of his head, “Aw, come on now Chuckles, I’m sure we’ll become great friends in the valley.”
“Chuckles?” Andy glanced over.
“My name is Solas since we’ve decided to do introductions. I am pleased to see you still live.”
Andy gave a small nod as she weighed what he said. She glanced back down at the mark and then to Varric. Varric nodded, “He means, I kept that mark from killing you while you slept.”
Andy turned to Solas, for a moment she was at a loss for words. She wasn’t sure what to say at first. She closed her eyes and forced herself to calm down, “Thank you Solas,” she glanced around swiftly, she wasn’t sure it was the right thing, “How did you---how did you do that?”
Solas shifted his weight, he almost looked embarrassed, “Healing magic and minor wards, but I fear that your mark has passed the point where those will help.”
Andy nodded, she stared at her hand deep in thought as memories about wards rose into her mind. If whatever had caused the breach put the mark on her hand, then the wards would either repeal it from her hand, or keep it there. Or it was Solas’s attempt at keeping it this size. Perhaps it was a rift? But why would it have an inverse reaction around rifts? She had to close another, and find where the power was coming from. Andy looked up and realized they were staring at her. Someone must have spoken and she had missed it, “I’m sorry, what?”
Cassandra groaned, “Solas is an apostate, unlike you.”
Andy shifted her weight, “Not to put too fine a point on it, but all mages are apostates now.” She turned back to Solas, “So that’s how you know so much about this?”
“My travels have allowed me to learn much of the Fade, far beyond the experience of any Circle mage.” He sighed, “If the Breach is not closed, we are all doomed. I came to offer what little help I could.”
Andy flexed her fingers and studied the mark, “Let’s say this works, and it closes the breach. What will you do then?”
“I hope that whoever is in charge remembers who helped and who did not.”
“Well, that's what Bianca and I do.” Varric smiled. Andy couldn’t help but smile back. She was standing in front of a hero. What was she supposed to say?
“Absolutely not!” Cassandra barked as she towered over Varric, “Your help is appreciated Varric--” She spat out his name as if it left a foul taste in her mouth.
“Have you been in the valley Seeker?” Varric interrupted, “Your soldiers aren’t in control anymore. You need me.” He winked.
Cassandra groaned and marched away, grumbling to herself in her native language.
With a sigh Solas followed, Andy turned to Varric unsure of what to do next. He gave her a small smile, “Well, Bianca’s excited.”
Andy’s heart swelled, “That’s Bianca?” She couldn’t help but get excited, this was as close to meeting Garret Hawke as she ever would get to.
“Oh yes. And she will make for great company in the valley.”
“This way!” Cassandra yelled from a broken fence, “The road is blocked, we should go through here!”
The ragtag team followed the trail in silence. Andy wanted to talk to Solas privately but with the Seeker in earshot, she couldn’t trust what was discussed to be understood. It would only be a few words that would make Cassandra scream ‘blood mage’ and slaughter them both. So instead Andy tried to magically poke at the mark on her hand, find where the power was coming from, how it worked. The magic of the mark was separated from her own, that much she could deduce but how it reacted to the rifts was still a mystery. And why did it need her will to direct it?
“Hey! Lightning Girl!”
Andy jumped and looked around, “Sorry, what?”
Cassandra made another disgusted noise in her throat while Varric shook his head, “Where are you from?”
“Oh, right. I am Andy--Andriya Trevelyan.”
“Finally, a name!” Varric shook his head, “And where are you from?”
Andy stopped in her tracks and she studied Varric for a moment, she just thought everyone knew, Cassandra didn’t ask anything about her. So why was Varric? The seeker had made it apparent that Varric didn’t work for her, but she would still get information.
“It’s your accent. Ansburg? Ostwick? This is going to bother me.”
“I don’t have an accent!” Andy instantly replied, she looked around at everyone’s faces, “Or...I do?”
“Uh-huh,” Varric rolled his eyes, “Soooo, why’d you do it?”
Andy spun around, “I didn’t!” She didn’t mean to scream, she glanced around, “I don’t remember. But if I did, this--” she waved the mark, “obviously proves I didn’t.”
“Or something went wrong.” Cassandra said softly, “Let’s focus on making our way to the forward camp, and then we can discuss what happens after.”
Varric shook his head, “Should have spun a story,” he looked over at Andy.
“That’s what you would have done,” Cassandra stepped between them as if she figured they would plot out a lie.
“It’s more believable!” Varric argued with the Seeker, “And..less prone to result in premature execution.”
The truth hung in the air. Varric and Cassandra jogged past Andy as the realization hit her. She was going to be executed. Andy sighed in defeat, no one would believe her, and if they found out she was part of the Tranquil Network, it was a death sentence. She tried to remember as they walked up the forest path, that she had never planned for an attack, she had never wanted a war. She may not remember what happened at the Conclave but she would remember planning for something like this. Wouldn’t she?
“Another rift!” Cassandra shouted. Almost as if the mark had a mind of its own, it flared from her palm. The energy tore through her hand up her arm, she nearly fell over it hurt so much. Andy stumbled against the pain, she tried to push it away but it felt as if her will was being dumped into a bottomless pit of magic. Nothing she could do would stop it. Solas was next to her, she watched him try a repulsion ward. She gritted her teeth and tried a paralysis one. Anything to numb the pain.
“Andriya,” Solas searched her face, the fear evident in his face. There was nothing he could do now.
Andy blinked back the pain and struggled to her feet, “It doesn’t hurt as bad when I use it.” She explained through gritted teeth.
Solas nodded and spread out his fingers, Andy felt an arcane shield drift over her. She turned her attention to the demons crawling from the rift.
Demons fell before Andy as she stepped closer to the rift. She lifted her hand and released her will. The power of the mark flowed from her hand, but this time she followed the power through her mark; she needed to find its source. The magic seemed to be coming from somewhere else, it was as if it was coming from inside the rift. Maybe it was pulling a seam together, Andy closed her eyes as the rift closed. Her trace spell collapsed with the rift. Whatever was causing the power of the mark, was still active but Andy had no idea where it was. The access to power didn’t end with the rift being closed.
“Well done,” Solas said as the guards allowed them into the forward camp. Andy shook her head, “The way to the forward camp is clear.”
Cassandra sheathed her sword, “I hope Liliana made it through all this.”
“She’s resourceful, Seeker.“ Varric consoled. Cassandra didn’t listen, she jogged ahead to the gate. Varric sauntered after the seeker. Andy watched them for a moment but caught Solas’s hand before he passed.
“No,” She confessed now that Cassandra was out of range, “I only direct the power, I have no control over it. It doesn’t belong to me. It’s trying to leave.” Andy dared to look into Solas' eyes, his eyes almost looked sad, “If we don’t control this soon, it will kill me.”
Solas studied Andy for a moment, she could see his mind searching for a reply but there wasn’t one to give, “We should hurry.”
Andy nodded her agreement.