Chapter Text
It was too bright. The light that had just guided her before was now searing her eyes. Melia knew she had to escape, hurrying up the rocky path ahead of her. She's had this dream before: the greenish sky, monstrous spiders chasing her, a woman reaching out to her, bright lights, pain, a blast. Sometimes, in-between dreams, she would mumble incomprehensible words, her head rolling from side to side, little drops of cold sweat rolling down her forehead. Melia knew she had dreamt this before, even though she could not make out any more details. She sprinted, not looking back, trying to reach the extended hand of a strange woman – -- Pain. The light was too bright.
Solas tensed. The young woman the Inquisition’s forces had brought in a few days back had still not woken up. In fact, her state seemed to worsen – the mark on her hand shone brighter each passing hour, flashing, emitting little green sparks every once in a while. Meanwhile his efforts had been for naught – he couldn’t seal the Breach, not like this, not yet, maybe not ever. And his patient hadn’t awoken yet either. His brow furrowed. It might be time to leave. The seeker – Cassandra – looked ever so threateningly at him as she had when he had first offered to help. Confused, angry, frustrated – Solas felt her mirror his emotions, yet while her emotions were triggered by shock of another one’s actions, his own emotions were solely his own doing. “One more attempt”, he thought to himself. “One more.”
Melia felt reality pull on her, dragging her into the here and now. She tried to open her eyes, push out of this state of darkness and ever-repeating dreams, yet her eyelids lay heavy. “She’s waking up” said a muffled voice from far away. Melia clung to the voice – she would not drift to sleep. Not this time. Not again. She opened her eyes, making out only shadows at first. Black, grey, shadows, slowly forming into objects. A wall. A room? A door. Her left hand hurt. Melia tried to focus, and she made out chains, restraining her hands tightly. “Good. Welcome back” said the voice. To her? Who...? Melia wanted to see the speaker, she was desperate for another person, someone to make sense of all this. She gathered all her strength and turned her head to the side. When her eyes finally managed to focus she saw--- “No!” she screamed in a voice strange to herself, eyes suddenly wide open in fear. It can’t be! None of this makes any sense! What is happening? – a string of thoughts rushed through her, adrenaline pulsing in her veins. And then she felt the darkness clouding her mind again, her eyelids heavier than before. The faint was overwhelming her, but Melia didn’t care – she couldn’t tell what was real anymore. When her eyes finally closed again an image lay clear in her mind: the great black wolf starring at her, speaking to her…
"Get the seeker." Solas gestured to the guard, his eyes fixed on the young elf who had just woken up - only to faint moments later. "But... she's not awake yet" said the guard, looking suspiciously back and forth from the older, bald elf to the younger, female one. "Fine." Solas stood up abruptly and took a deep breath. He turned around to face the guard, a young man who had probably never seen magic this close before in his life. There was no need to bother explaining that - now that the patient had returned to this world - any sleep she would fall into was one she could easily be awakened from. "I will tell her myself." The guard let him exit the cell and frowned, feeling as if he had just been told off by his parents. Solas took long, determined steps to seek out Cassandra, yet couldn't help smiling. He surely knew his effect on the young spirits of this world. He entered Cassandra's room with a nod to the guards after a short walk. The last days had left traces of exhaustion and worry on her face. The human woman looked worried when she turned around, but a small flash of hope flickered in her eyes. "Any news?" she asked, crossing her arms as if to save herself from disappointment. "In fact, yes" Solas replied, "I am fairly certain your prisoner has returned to us."
Cassandra left quickly to alert Leliana, the Left Hand of the Divine, to the news. Solas knew that they would undoubtedly rush to question the prisoner now. Too many questions remained unanswered, too many lives had been taken without explanation. He found himself wondering how they all got there, too. The mark on the young woman's hand was something he had never expected to find. The people who had brought her in said she walked out of the Fade... yet he knew he was invested in this by far more than his curiosity for the Fade. A young elf walking out of the Fade, surviving a blast that had killed countless others, bearing a mark full with power he only recognized all too well...
"Ser. If you have time... there is another rift we need you at. Lady Cassandra asks to meet you there."
The young carrier pulled him out of his thoughts.
Solas saw him timidly holding his staff. With two short steps he crossed the room, took his staff from the messenger and nodded.
"I will come at once."