Finding Home (Completed)

Chapter XXXVII

They'd barely made it through the door and Fenris was just lying Iri to rest on the bed in her chambers when a pounding came at the door. Orana pulled it open as Justice came to the top of the stairs, watching as Cullen shoved his way inside. "Where is she?" he demanded as Orana stared at him with wide eyes. "Well, don't just stand there girl! Where is she?" he continued in an agitated tone. Justice cleared his throat, calling their attention, "She is here, in her chambers." he announced. Cullen sprinted up the stairs, following Justice down the hall and into Iri's room.

He rushed to her side, kneeling beside the bed and taking her hand in his, "Oh, Iri." he said sadly, concern plain on his features. "What happened?" he asked, turning to face the scowl Fenris held for him. "Why are you here? How do you even know of this?" he responded, not answering Cullen's question. "Hawke told me, now what happened?" he repeated. "We battled Dumat in the undercity. Devotion is ill with the blight, as you can see and she has depleted herself beyond what is acceptable." Justice interjected. "Dumat?" Cullen breathed, "What does that mean for her?" he added.

Fenris grunted, pacing by the end of the bed as his mind whirled around what to do next. "It means, she has entered uthenera and if we do not wake her soon, she will be lost to us for millennia." he replied flatly. "She can not be lost to us! She is needed here and I refuse to believe that she would leave us at a time such as this." his voice cracked as he said the words. Fenris stopped pacing, letting Cullen's words sink in, "You are right, Cullen. Amatus, help me look." he said, pulling a confused look from Anders. "What are we looking for?" he wondered. "Lotheriel has foresight, she would have seen this coming and she would not have allowed it were we unprepared. There must be something....." he mumbled as he dug through the nightstand.

Anders moved to search through the wardrobe as Justice approached the bookshelf against the far wall. He ran his fingers over the leather bindings as his eyes scanned the titles. When he came to one with no title, he smiled as he pulled it off the shelf. "Pride." he said, waving the book in Fenris' direction, "You recognize this, yes?" he continued. "A book?" Anders asked, "Lotheriel's journal, Amatus, she has kept them since she was able to write. Very good Justice." he responded as he reached for the book.

He opened it to find a letter, neatly folded and tucked inside the front cover. 'My dearest Fenris, do not fret, emma lath, all is well and I am but asleep. Cleanse the orb before you awaken me and we shall continue on our journey. And, ma'fen, do go easy on Cullen, he is as concerned as you and the future holds great friendship for the two of you. You will find what you need in my journal. All my love, Lotheriel.' "What does it say?" Cullen wondered, peeking over Fenris' shoulder. He handed the letter to him and took a seat on the foot of the bed, opening the journal to find what he sought.

He set the book down and stood, opening a drawer in the wardrobe to retrieve the arulin'holm. He wondered for a moment how Iri had come by this spell, but quickly realized it was likely the Vir'abelasan. They'd seen it performed, when Andruil had first created the blight. It spread like a parasite, prompting the creation of the arulin'holm. Cullen and Anders stepped to the side and Justice gave him an encouraging nod when he caught his eye. One corner of his lips turning slightly upwards as he pulled the orb from its place of concealment, an obscure nook between the waking and the fade.

Cullen no longer flinched at the use of magic, but his eyes went wide as he watched. Fenris read the spell in a voice too soft to hear, the orb lifted from his hand and began to spin. As its speed increased, red light poured out from the swirling grooves across its outer shell. As he spoke the last of the spell, he raised the hand holding the arulin'holm, bringing it down in one swift motion. It cut through the orbs surface with ease, protruding out the other side. The light flared before immediately dying out as the orb turned to dust, scattering to the floor.