Reconciliation
“Talk your shit all you want, but at least save it for when I’m not here!”
“You shouldn’t even be here!”
Phoebe tightly clenched her fists as she seethed in a rage, her right hand only throbbing from the mark even more than previously. Of course between the interrogations and demon fights she wouldn’t be able to catch a break. Not at the forward camp, not anywhere, for the time being. Just her luck.
“Call a retreat, Seeker,” the old Orlesian Chancellor had ordered.
“We can stop this, Roderick, before it’s too late. The path to the temple is our quickest route to the Breach,” the Seeker countered the Chancellor’s demands and offered a plan of action. Leliana had countered with a suggestion of her own, though the thought of trekking a mountain path made Phoebe’s stomach turn. She’d had enough ups and downs already for the day. A straightforward charge would be just fine by her.
. . .
Another rift closed and the team had arrived at the temple quick enough. Phoebe slid her feet carefully across the ground in front of her, pushing any rocks to the side as she searched for steps or obstacles in front of her.
“Strange to be back here again. I wonder if the ashes made it through all this…” She wondered aloud as they entered what remained of the temples main chamber.
“We can only hope it survived, though, with everything in such ruins it’s not likely.” Cassandra’s voice seemed gloomy as she spoke. Such a precious artefact being blown to pieces would be hard for any of the faithful to digest.
The ginger just shrugged.
“At least I’ll always remember the dragon. That was one hell of a fight.” Phoebe herself was forced to seek safety for the fight, but watching her brother and his companions take down such a beast was nothing short of spectacular. She still had one of the beasts scales as a keepsake, though admittedly, it wasn’t much of a good luck charm.
Varric eyed Phoebe curiously as she spoke of the dragon. He questioned her without a word, and the feeling of his lingering eyes had been enough to elaborate further.
“When Haven was a cultist town they worshipped a dragon as Andraste’s reincarnation. Leliana can tell stories of this place far better than I can. Ask her if we make it out of this alive.” It was only when Varric hummed in thought that she realized who had been staring, but she shrugged off the chatty dwarf’s distraction and continued moving forward.
Oh, how she regretted that choice.
Upon turning a corner, her relative darkness had been interrupted by the blinding light from the Breach above her. Phoebe immediately shielded her eyes as a deep, masculine voice rang out in the air. She paid no mind to what it said. She was far too busy adjusting to the abrupt light from the Breach.
“I thought you could not see, Phoebe,” Solas pointed out, snapping her back into reality.
She merely huffed. “A light like that is hard to miss-” again, Phoebe was cut from her thoughts with another light that exceeded the Breach’s intensity. Images filled her head of the Temple, memories, though not hers. The Divine called for help, and she responded, her Mabari companion at her side. Although, this was the first glimpse of the event she could recall.
As the war dog, Sir Tubbs III barked, alarmed by the situation, Phoebe sent him away to alarm others within the temple. The warrior was rather invested in the flashback until it quickly ended, bringing her back into the present.
Unfortunately, the present also meant Cassandra, who eagerly bombarded Phoebe with questions regarding the event. She questioned her rapidly, and the young woman held her head in frustration, shouting to quiet her down.
“Enough! I already told you I don’t remember what happened there. Solas, you’re the expert on this thing, right? What can we do to stop this bloody thing?”
“The rift is unstable, but if we can open it, we might just be able to seal it safely this time, until we can figure out a way to permanently close it. Although, we may draw attention.”
“That means demons, everyone, stand ready.” Cassandra ordered, helping Phoebe find way past the halfway decimated railings.
Leliana showed up with soldiers in time for Phoebe to open the Breach. She immediately heard an ear splitting screech from above… the demon… ew.
“Listen for my voice, Phoebe! I’d rather not see you crushed by that thing!” Leliana hollered in her direction as the chaotic fight erupted.
Phoebe was independent enough to keep some sort of distance from her dear friend, but she stayed close enough to hear any potential calls. She found herself dodging left and right, occasionally disrupting the rift again, thus stripping the large creature of its defenses.
The fight was grueling, and the electricity stung hard, but eventually, the demon went down, much to everyone’s pleasure. Phoebe gasped in exhaustion, raising her hand toward the sky one last time, releasing an agonizing cry as the mark caused what felt like fire to course through her entire arm, knocking her unconscious.
. . .
Phoebe awoke, a wet snout nudging at her hand. She groaned as she rose from her resting position, body aching from the fight. She heard a gasp and a crash nearby; her head snapped immediately in the direction.
“O-oh! You’re awake! I-I’m so sorry, I humbly beg your forgiveness, my lady! I-I am but a mere servant.”
The voice was alarmed; Phoebe relaxed her body, instinctively patting the head of the animal at her side.
“I-it’s alright? I think? But, where are we? How long have I been out?” Phoebe stretched a little as she questioned the servant in hopes of figuring out what had happened.
“We’re in Haven, my lady. You lost consciousness after closing the breach. It’s all anyone has been talking about for the past three days.” The servant paused, remembering the last crucial piece of information. “O-oh, I must inform Lady Cassandra of your awakening! She wishes to speak with you in the Chantry when you rose from your sleep. A-at once!” She ran out immediately; Phoebe hadn’t had a moment to process the request or even ask for an escort.
The redhead took a deep breath, collecting her thoughts. She rose from her bed, kneeling down before her dog. She planted a big kiss on his nose and gave him plenty of pets.
“Thank the maker you’re alright, boy. I don’t know what I’d have done had I lost you..”
She wrapped the dog in a hug, feeling the strange, fiery vibration of the glowy mark on her hand flare. Everso slowly, Phoebe brought herself to her feet. She gave Tubbs a command to stay at her side to carefully guide her to the Chantry.
Many people lined the paths outside, making for quite the awkward walk. Phoebe kept her focus on Tubbs and the ground in front of her. While her faithful companion would keep her from running into anything hazardous, she preferred the extra caution to the whispers of the townsfolk around her. Eventually, she made it to the two large wooden doors and tugged on the handle, opening it just enough for her and her companion to slip through.
She listened closely for the sound of Cassandra’s brash voice, only to hear Rodericks first, followed by her yelling.
“Right, there,” Phoebe took another deep breath and approached the door to the war room, opening the door.
The room went silent for only a moment before the argument continued. Roderick was adamant about having Phoebe imprisoned and executed, but Cassandra defended her, much to her surprise. This woman had little faith in her three days ago, but something had shifted in her tone. She’d come to trust Phoebe, if only just a little; and for the time being, that was good enough for her. It did seem, however, that this trust came at a price. Cassandra wanted her help… again.
“I know this might be a lot to handle, but the mark on your hand might just be the only thing that will save us, Phoebe. We need your help.”
Leliana… She hadn’t realized she was in the room as well. Her expression softened.
“Help us fix this, before it’s too late,” Cassandra proposed.
Phoebe had to take another deep breath before nodding her head.
“Alright, you’ve got it. I just hope you’ve got a plan.”
Cassandra chuckled, placing a book on the table in front of her. In that moment, she declared the Inquisition reborn and threw Chancellor Roderick out of the room.
Phoebe felt a familiar touch on her shoulder, coming from behind. Without hesitation, she turned and wrapped her old friend into a tight hug.
“I’ve missed you, bard.”
“I have missed you too, Phoebe.”