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Assistant: Title: The Tarnished Herald
        Author: Chasethedreamer Chasethedreamer 
        Chapter: 2/18 
        Summary: The Tarnished Eowyn realizes her journey to become Elden Lord is an unrelenting cycle. She breaks out of the Lands Between and finds herself in the strange world of Thedas as the Herald of Andraste.
        Contents: Chapter 2: Lady Eowyn, both valorous and enshrouded in enigma.
    

    


  

  
  
    
    Eowyn, Cassandra, Solas and Varric made their way to the forward camp. Along the way Eowyn saw the Breach spew out viridescent b@lls of fire that crashed into the ground at random. More demons appeared and the tarnished was given another opportunity to see her new companions in action.“Demons ahead!” Cassandra shouted with her sword already in hand. Varric readied a bolt in Bianca and Solas took out his staff, spinning it expertly in his palm. Eowyn willed the Hand of Malenia into her grip and prepared an emulation of the Waterfowl Dance. She felt Solas’ eyes on her and looked over at him.“How did you do that?” The long eared mage started to ask but then mastered himself. “Never mind, there will be plenty of time for questions later I’m sure.” He stated before casting ice magic at the shades.“That’s if we make it out alive, Chuckles.” Varric grunted in sync with a triple burst of bolts from his crossbow. All struck true.“Fear not. We shall endure, brave souls.” The tarnished declared, then rose into the air. Her dire wolf cape swirled about and sunlight glinted across Eowyn’s Veteran armor, surrounding her in an ethereal glow. Snow and ice kicked upwards as Eowyn danced between the demons, weaving throughout the battlefield with deadly grace. Slash after slash cut the shades down until all perished. The Hand of Malenia vanished from Eowyn’s clutches and she surveyed her comrades for any pains. They were all watching her in awe and curiosity.“Okay, I’m with Chuckles on this one. How did you do that?” Varric asked her plainly after placing Bianca back in its place. Eowyn noted that Solas and Cassandra froze to listen to her reply, the Seeker’s eyes narrowing with suspicion.“Verily, I am Tarnished. I possess a multitude of armaments from which to select.” Eowyn clarified. Her explanation didn’t seem to quell their curious stares.“What does it mean to be Tarnished?” Cassandra asked. “That sounds like a curse from the name alone.”Eowyn sighed, almost penitently. “Tis a foul curse for truth. To bear the Tarnished is to be pursued without respite in the Lands Between.” she said in a murmur that belied her painful memories. Her companions looked shocked and outraged, to their credit. It seemed Eowyn surrounded herself with compassionate people fairly swiftly. Suspicious, but kind.“Where is this Lands Between?” Solas asked next. “Is that what you call the Fade?”“Nay, tis not the Fade.” Eowyn denied and looked inward. “So, this realm be not the Lands Between after all.” She murmured to herself, though her companions heard.“You’re telling me you’re from another world, kid?” Varric said incredulously. “I should’ve stayed in bed, today keeps getting stranger by the minute.” he muttered, shaking his head.“I shan’t speak more of it.” Eowyn declared and started to move on. “We must haste to the Breach anon and smite the demons forthwith.” No one opposed and so on they went.They continued in silence for a while, passing by snow covered trees as their steps made crunching prints in the slush. They travelled past ruins of stone and toward a stairway going upward. At the top of the stairway along the beaten and faded path, more demons and strange green shades roamed chaotically. The Breach loomed, an ominous beacon in the sky ahead of them.“Foul fiends.” Eowyn proclaimed and lifted her right hand with fingers spread. The Sword of Night and Flame blinked into existence in her grasp and the tarnished rushed forward.“I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to that.” Varric muttered and prepared Bianca for battle. Solas gave Eowyn support silently, his eyes squinting in concentration. Cassandra fiercely roared and clashed her sword with her shield, causing the demons to target and move towards her. She met them head on with a wide slash.Eowyn pivoted through the crowd of shades and dropped into a stance. She called upon the Flame and arced her sword above her head and out, and flames spilled forth in a wave. Several demons were caught in the fires and burned to ash. More were vaporized by a midnight beam of magic that raced from the blade moments later.Their enemies were soon dispatched by their teamwork. Eowyn’s companions were able to hold their own against the demons with deft skill, clearly they were fierce warriors in their own right.Cassandra sheathed her sword and looked around. “I hope Leliana was able to make it through this.” she fretted.“She’s resourceful, Seeker.” Varric encouraged absently.“We’ll see for ourselves at the forward camp. We’re almost there.” Solas added.“Prithee, let us hie forth.” Eowyn called from in front of them. The path led to a large stone gate with its door barred. Soldiers guarding the gate were furiously battling demons as a rift spun out new enemies above them. Eowyn didn’t hesitate and flashed forward, her Hand of Malenia already manifested. After a swift route, the demons disappeared and Eowyn seized the rift with her marked hand.“Seal it! Quickly!” Solas shouted as Eowyn pulled against the rift and the green lightning that bound her to it. The rift exploded into verdant sparks and the company put away their weapons for a respite.“Open the gates! The rift is gone!” Cassandra ordered the guards that stood in awe of what they just witnessed. They jumped out of their stupor and opened the giant gate leading to a massive bridge. Eowyn strode forward, passing soldiers and armories lining the walls. She recognized Leliana ahead arguing with a man wearing similar robes to the woman from the realm of green haze, including the bizarre hat.“Enough! I won’t stand for it!” The man shouted irately. Leliana stood poised.“You will not order me.” She warned him in a low voice. Then she looked up and saw the company coming closer. “Ah, just in time. Chancellor, the one I mentioned earlier-”“I know who this is.” The chancellor revealed with a scowl. “As High chancellor I command you to arrest this prisoner and prepare her for trial in Val Royeaux” he decreed, his eyes boring into Cassandra’s.“You dare command me?!” She raged. “You are but a clerk!”“And you are a thug, but a thug that supposedly serves the Chantry!” He shot back. Before Cassandra could retort, Eowyn stepped forward.“I be not a prisoner, and ere the Breach be sealed, I shall not be taken into custody.” Eowyn declared with a regal aura that entranced the chancellor. He gulped nervously, his eyes unable to look away from the warrior before him. She radiated danger and majesty alike. Her blue eyes blazed with defiance.“Dost thou behold yonder mark upon mine hand? I am the sole bearer capable of sealing the Breach. Join thy valorous strength with mine!” The otherworldly warrior raised her left hand up just as the Breach caused it to crackle with green lightning. The viridescent energy made eldritch shapes across her grim face.“I-I but you caused all of this!” Chancellor Roderick blurted indignantly. Eowyn shook her helmeted head in denial. Leliana stood to the side of the chancellor and watched the exchange quietly.“Verily, none of this befallest my honor. Pray, I shall impart further tidings once this matter be rectified. Trust in me, good Chancellor. I shall set all to right henceforth.” Eowyn proclaimed and her stern visage melted into such a tender smile the chancellor gasped. In his mind, the tarnished seemed to perceive his very heart, and thereby captured it. His face slowly changed from fearful anger to one of hope.“I-I, yes. Please, help our soldiers trapped up there.” The chancellor acceded with a sigh, much to the surprise of everyone in the vicinity, especially Leliana and Cassandra.“W-what?! Just like that you fold?” Leliana asked in disbelief. She looked from the chancellor to Eowyn and narrowed her eyes. “Did you use blood magic?” she accused the tarnished.“What did you do?!” Cassandra demanded and gripped Eowyn’s shoulder to turn toward her. Eowyn stood her ground.“I have wrought no deed of ill. I am no recusant! Yet, I alone hold in mine ken the power to seal the Breach. The chancellor doth knoweth this and comprehends it well.” The tarnished said again, and set a gaze of warning on Cassandra. The Seeker released her grip with a huff, but her eyes never left Eowyn’s. Leliana surveyed their dynamic with dark eyes.“I have a troop of scouts in the mountains but I’ve lost contact with them. If you take that path forward it will be more dangerous, but you could come across survivors that may need aid.” Leliana eventually charted after a long look shared with Cassandra. Her eyes flicked toward the chancellor, who was still staring at the tarnished knight.“There is a faster way.” Cassandra countered. “We go through the temple, our soldiers will storm the area with us.”“But my scouts are still up there!” Leliana implored.“We must seal the Breach quickly or more will die!” Solas abruptly interrupted them.“Solas speaks true. Yet we hath no need of yon soldiers to accompany us. We shall traverse the treacherous mountain path and deliver any scout who yet draweth breath.” Eowyn decided. Leliana looked grateful and the chancellor strange, a vindicated smile blooming across his face. Cassandra didn’t argue and nodded at Eowyn. The tarnished looked to Varric and Solas with an open expression. Varric waved his hands in front of himself and shook his head.“Don’t look at me. You seem perfectly capable of handling this, kid.” he deferred with an easy grin.“Though time is of the essence, rescuing those scouts is commendable.” Solas added calmly. Eowyn nodded at them and stepped forward. As she walked past the chancellor she smiled at him again, making his face burn crimson. His eyes tracked Eowyn’s every movement. Cassandra barked orders at the men lining the bridge and strode forward imperiously.As the company ventured onward Eowyn heard the chancellor furiously interrogate Leliana in hushed tones.“Who is that woman?! Where did she come from?”Leliana’s quiet laugh was lost in the icy winds.As they traveled up the mountain path and battled more shades, Eowyn noticed her companions watching her. The moment they found time to catch their breath, she turned to them.“What dost thou seek? Why dost thou scrutinize mine every move with such ardor?” Eowyn questioned her company. Solas and Cassandra stepped forward, but the Seeker was quicker to speak.“What did you do to chancellor Roderick? Are you a blood mage?” Cassandra probed bluntly with no small amount of suspicion. Her hands seemed to itch for her sword. Eowyn gazed at her calmly.“Hast not I already imparted unto thee? I employeth not the dark arts of blood for any intent.” Eowyn replied placidly. Cassandra did not accept such a simple explanation.“Then how did you change the chancellor’s mind?! Only a blood mage could do such a thing so effortlessly!” She countered. Eowyn frowned, unliking the derogatory term.“Verily, I did speak unto him that which he yearned to behold. It so cometh to pass that it aligneth with the truth, indeed. I held no sway o'er thy chancellor, yet methinks he mayhap found favor in mine visage.” Eowyn answered, catching Varric’s eyes with a wink and a small smirk. The dwarf chuckled quietly.“Cut her some slack Seeker. Maybe Tarnished here is just the chancellor’s type.” Varric joked. Cassandra made a noise of disgust but left it at that. Solas then stepped beside Eowyn.“You carry many secrets it seems. I would like to discuss more with you when we have the chance. I want to know your opinion of the Fade and of your time in your Lands Between.” He implored in his calm voice. It seemed Eowyn’s companions opted once again to trust her words.Eowyn was used to distrust, the yellow eyed Nomadic merchants she bartered with in the Lands Between trusted only runes and nothing else. Then there was Gideon Ofnir, who even tried to have her assassinated simply because he didn’t think she could be trusted with even one half of a secret medallion. Even Melina, Eowyn’s constant companion throughout her journey wouldn’t trust the tarnished fully with her secrets, though her reticence regarding the Frenzied Flame was understandable. Eowyn’s heart pulsed with a wistful pain as she thought of her fair finger maiden.Hopefully things won’t devolve to that level here. Eowyn missed having companions along to aid her journeys. It would be a terrible shame to have to slaughter all of these people, though the tarnished wouldn’t hesitate if they attacked her in any way. If there was anything the tarnished warrior was used to, it was being alone and hunted by every being in the realm.“I wouldst desire so as well, dear Solas. When the breach be secured, seek me forthwith.” Eowyn answered the apostate’s request. Solas’ eyes widened a fraction before he nodded, his lips turning upward minutely.“Hasten forth, for we must seek out yon scouts posthaste!” Eowyn declared. The others agreed and they pressed onward.Another rift was opened along their path and Eowyn spied wounded scouts among the demons summoned near it. She hurried forward and willed the Starscourge Great-swords into her hands. The tarnished lifted Radahn’s intricately carved onyx great swords above her head and called upon the innate gravity magic within. With a fierce cry she forced the demons to converge near her with a wave of purple magic, then slammed the weapons down. In a burst of unstoppable force around her, the demons were blown away, vanquished in one mighty blow.The veteran helmed knight wasted no time connecting with the crystalized rift and breaking it apart. Solas approached with soft bare feet.“You are becoming quite proficient at this.” Solas noted. At that moment a scout limped forward, their face shining with gratitude.“Thank the Maker you arrived when you did. We thought this was it for us.” They praised. Eowyn focused on their injuries, her countenance stern.“Thou art wounded! Approach hither, that I may tend to thy hurts.” Eowyn commanded, yet the scouts needn’t be told twice. They gathered near the tarnished as she knelt and prepared her seal for another miracle. Golden waves of light poured from her and amongst the scouts, their injuries closing instantly. The men were amazed and some cried out in surprise. Whispers of ‘mage’ were heard, but not with accusation.“You bring the Maker’s own light with you.” One scout acclaimed as he saw a large gash on his chest seal itself without even a scar.“Make haste, noble squire, descend yon mountain forthwith. The trail doth appear unimpeded. Fair Leliana awaits thy tidings.” Eowyn directed and the scout saluted, his face a study of adoration. The scouts fled the area quickly and Eowyn motioned for her company to press on.“Close by is the entrance to the tunnel that leads to the temple.” Cassandra provided as they climbed several ice-slick ladders.“Pray, what manner of tunnel is this? A mine-shaft, perchance?” Eowyn quizzed idly.“It is a mining complex, yes. These mountains are full of such paths.” Cassandra answered.“Maybe more missing soldiers are in there somewhere.” Varric added.“Along with whatever keeps them trapped.” Solas finished.“We shall behold anon,” Eowyn replied quietly. They entered the aged and decrepit tunnel, and hiding in its ice covered walls were more demons. Eowyn and her crew dispatched them swiftly, and ventured further in.“These dark passages dost appear to be yet in service.” Eowyn determined after spying boxes of materials and ropes that didn’t look as ancient as the tunnel itself. There was even a room with shelves filled with books and a desk littered with papers.There were more enemies ahead and more dark rooms to explore. Eventually they came across a balcony of sorts. Red colored stones jutted out from the ruined walls and below another rift loomed with emerald light. One huge crimson stone broke through the center of the ground below.“Lo, the Breach dost lie directly above us. This rift be linked unto it.” Eowyn cried, pointing upward. The dizzying cleave in the sky looked even more menacing up close.“This rift is the key. If we close this one, the Breach should be sealed.” Solas gathered while gazing up at the vortex. Green light shone on his face, casting his grey eyes into a darker hue. The missing soldiers languished nearby, a few of them locked in combat with shades. The companions finished off the remaining enemies and moved closer to the Breach. Cassandra stopped to hear the soldier’s reports before rallying them to follow her.Eowyn walked down the winding steps with her team, steering clear of the malevolent crimson stones along the path. Varric, she noticed, was becoming more anxious the more red stone they came across.“What is red lyrium doing here?” He questioned in a tone Eowyn hadn’t heard him ever use. He sounded scared.“I don’t know,” Cassandra answered seriously. Her sword and shield were bare and her countenance severe. Solas’ eyes flickered from one place to the next, his bald head glistened with sweat.“Pray, what doth lie within the mystery of the scarlet lyrium?” Eowyn asked Varric, who seemed the most perturbed by the crimson stones.“It’s evil. Don’t touch it!” Varric answered, giving the cursed lyrium a wide berth.“PREPARE THE SACRIFICE” A voice suddenly thundered around them.“What was that? Who is speaking?” Cassandra questioned desperately. Eowyn pondered why they were hearing such things in this place.“Lo! 'Tis the shadow of which I spake afore. This surely be a remnant of yore.” Eowyn figured.“A memory? The Fade is thin here, thin enough for us to hear memories of what transpired.” Solas deduced, his voice thick with academic fascination.“PLEASE HELP ME!” A female voice cried out from the memory. Cassandra made a soft keening sound of despair.“That was Divine Justinia’s voice!” she exclaimed, then spun to face Eowyn. “Just what are we hearing?”As they got closer to the large rift, dim figures became clearer. A remnant of Divine Justinia could be seen tied in binds of magic, her face a rictus of terror. The man cloaked in shadow could be seen as well, along with a memory version of Eowyn. Her Sword of Night and Flame was in her hand.“WE HAVE AN INTRUDER.” the shadow’s voice bellowed. It pointed a sharp finger toward memory-Eowyn. “KILL HER” it commanded.“RELEASE HER FORTHWITH AND BEGONE” Memory-Eowyn ordered as she got into a battle stance.“That’s your voice! Is this vision true? Just what are we seeing?” Cassandra cried, mesmerized by the vision.“Verily, I would ne'er speak falsehood unto thee.” Eowyn promised softly, as she watched her memories unfold before them.Soon the vision began to fade away and the company once again focused on the Breach.“This one seems to be closed, albeit temporarily,” Solas supplied with a critical look toward the crystalized rift. “I believe that mark could open the rift, then seal it properly,” he hypothesized. Eowyn looked toward the quasi-closed breach.“Perchance thou art correct. I shall endeavor to partake in this, yet I fear that fiends shall be drawn to such a venture.” She guessed, but lifted her marked hand nonetheless.“That means demons are coming! Stand ready!” Cassandra shouted at the soldiers that lined the walls. They readied their weapons, drawing swords and nocking arrows.Eowyn linked with the rift and her power blazed forth, causing it to open. Green smoke suffused the area, manifesting a towering giant of a demon. Silver scales covered its hide, and great horns reached upward on its head. It barred its sharp teeth and a haughty laugh escaped its mouth.“What manner of fiend dost stand before me?” Eowyn wondered, willing the Coded Sword into her right hand. Her seal in her left cast Golden Vow across the battlefield, lifting the spirits and strengthening the resolve of the soldiers and her companions.“It’s a Pride demon! Be wary!” Solas shouted even as his staff conjured bubble-like shields upon his company.Eowyn flashed toward the Demon. It created a whip of azure lightning and spun it at her. The tarnished rolled away from the attack and slashed with her Coded Sword. The holy blade connected with the rigid scales and slid straight through. The demon screamed in outrage and whirled the whip of lightning again. Eowyn leapt backward out of harm’s way and prepared an incantation.“Retreat henceforth, I beseech thee!” The tarnished commanded, her voice thundering against the crumbling walls. Solas, who was closest to the Pride demon, ran back up the steps after shooting Eowyn a quick look. Cassandra stepped backward behind Eowyn, her shield a barrier between her and the demon.“What are you-” She started but then gasped. Eowyn jumped into the air and was inexplicably transformed into a massive dragon’s head. The symbolic head of Agheel roared and bellowed huge gusts of flame from its mouth that completely enveloped the Pride demon. Eowyn could hear the demon cry out in agony as it burned. The soldiers nearest the attack retreated in a panic, never once seeing such power before.When the flames died out the Pride demon was lying on the ground in a smoking heap. The rift crackled as its hazy center became crystal.“H-how could-” Solas started but then focused. “Disrupt the Breach, Eowyn! It harms them!” He called to her. Eowyn reached out her hand and released her green lightning toward the rift and pulled. The rift changed shape rapidly and green auras appeared around the battlefield. The Pride demon bellowed in pain again. Eowyn ran forward and cleaved at it with her Coded Sword. The essence of the demon began to falter and soon, after tandem attacks from the company, the Pride demon was vanquished. The rift became crystal once again.“Seal it now!” Eowyn heard cries from all sides ringing in her ears and reached forth. The rift spun futilely before exploding in a shower of green sparks.Eowyn looked up as a wave of energy raced toward the vortex above them. The Breach crackled and burst, the swirling clouds receding. The rift was still there, but smaller. Eowyn closed the Breach.Soldiers and scouts cheered around her. Cassandra pressed close to Eowyn’s side, eyes searching for injuries. Finding none, the Seeker allowed herself a smile. They have triumphed.'
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