image [https://i.imgur.com/I37wIuP.png]

The following morning, Caleb found his way to the girl's dormitory, plagued with great worry for Carmen. He hadn't heard so much of a peep from her since last night's devastating events. Caleb felt that he must do something to quell her anguish, even if for a little bit.

Caleb arrived at her door and knocked a couple times, the sound echoing through the empty hallway. No response came. He waited for a brief moment and tried again, this time increasing the intensity with each knock. Once again, her room remained silent.

"Hey Carmen, it's me, Caleb! I just, uh, want to see if you're okay." He said as he patiently awaited a reply.

To no one's surprise, Carmen gave no response.

"C'mon Carmen, talk to me..."

Caleb gently placed his hand on the door and stood by for a few more moments, hoping that she would let him inside. Unfortunately, his efforts were futile and after one last, hefty knock, he decided to call it quits. Caleb sighed and walked away from the door, hanging his head in defeat.

image [https://i.imgur.com/d60vRFl.png]

Three days had now gone by, but Carmen still hadn’t left her dorm room. Even though many more people came to check on her, she continued to lay in the same position, silently staring at the wall. Nothing mattered to her in this moment of darkness and despite the amount of concern people showed her, Carmen made no effort to engage. However, little did she know that a fire was brewing outside of her door.

Having now hit the limits of her patience and worry, Mariah suddenly blasted her way into the room with a fed up expression on her face. The searing hot flames from her Manifest danced along the edges of door frame as she deeply stared at Carmen.

“Alright Carmen! I know you’re sad and going through a difficult time, but you still need to take care of yourself! At least come to the cafe and eat something, it’s been three days!” She exclaimed, showing great concern for her health and well being.

Carmen didn't move a muscle as she continued to lay there silently. Mariah stomped her foot into the ground and walked over to Carmen's bed with a determined cadence. She proceeded to nag and yell, hoping to get Carmen riled up enough to respond. After multiple minutes of being absolutely annoying, Carmen finally sat up and glared at Mariah with her red eyes.

“Don’t you look at me like that missy! I’m just trying to help you get better and trust me, food will definitely do the trick!” Mariah said, giving Carmen a thumbs up.

Mariah showed a big grin before reaching out and opening the curtains. The bright sunlight quickly bathed her bed, causing Carmen to squint her eyes.

As the light hit her, Mariah saw just how much of a mess Carmen was. The bags under her tired eyes were incredibly dark and puffy. Her hair was unkempt and she reeked of slight body odor. Needless to say, Carmen had seen better days. Despite this, Mariah didn’t care one bit as she grabbed Carmen’s hand.

“C’mon, let’s go! You can mope around later!”

Mariah smiled and pulled Carmen out of bed. Carmen gave very little resistance as she slid off of the sheets and onto the cold marble floor. Once she stood up, Carmen stared off into the distance with a blank, empty gaze. Mariah quickly got behind her and pushed, guiding Carmen out of the room and down the steps. The trip to the cafeteria was fairly silent until Carmen finally spoke up.

“Elise… Where is she?” She softly asked with a strained voice.

“Oh, she’s still in the infirmary. During all the commotion, she sprained her ankle pretty bad. She should be healed up by the end of the day. We can go see her if you want.” Mariah replied with a toothy grin.

Carmen nodded and they arrived at the east wing of the main building where one of the many cafeterias were located. The two walked through the debris littered halls and as they looked through the windows, they could see the destruction on the west side of campus. It was completely flattened and obliterated, as though a bomb had gone off. Carmen immediately remembered what happened and realized that her abilities were the cause of all that destruction.

“It’s crazy how much has happened over the past few days. I’ll catch you up to speed once we sit and eat.” Mariah said, quickening her pace once the cafeteria came into view.

After arriving and ordering food, they took their seat at an empty table. Carmen ate a few small bites before asking a question.

“So… What have I missed?”

Mariah wiped her mouth and sat her utensils down. She looked Carmen in the eyes and took a deep breath before responding.

“Well, quite a bit actually. Yesterday, the Olunas Guard came and arrested Lady Ravala. Apparently she used her mind abilities to take control of multiple students and had them assault the school. They said they found documents and journal entries about this elaborate plan to take the Headmaster’s position and run the school her way.” Mariah replied with a serious tone.

“They suspect that the Headmaster was sent away somewhere remote by her command, because they still haven’t located him at all.” She added, picking up her fork and taking another bite of food.

Carmen was dumbfounded by what she was hearing.

“What?” She softly said, not processing anything Mariah had said.

“Yeah, it was so crazy to hear all of this. I had no idea Lady Ravala was that strong, though she did always seem so stiff and bitter. I could definitely see how she would want to be the one in charge. It's honestly a perfect little plan if you think about it.” Mariah replied with a chuckle, continuing to stuff her face with more food.

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“That’s not true!!! Not true at all! What about the purple pills and the dead students under the school?? What about the Headmaster’s evil schemes!?” Carmen exclaimed, staring Mariah in the eyes.

“Huh!? What are you-”

Mariah was swiftly cut off by Carmen’s sharp voice, increasing in volume with each passing second.

“I literally fought the Headmaster before he left! He’s the one that killed Rivell!!! Ask Cassidy!” Carmen continued, growing frustrated by the false information that had been circulating.

Mariah was perplexed by all of the word vomit coming from Carmen, not understanding anything she was talking about.

“We talked to Cassidy about what happened, but she said everything after the initial attack is a blur. All she remembers is waking up next to Rivell’s dead body. She hit her head pretty hard during all the commotion, so it’s no surprise she can’t remember anything that happened.” Mariah replied, growing mored concerned about Carmen.

Carmen couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her mind raced to piece things together, but nothing added up.

“Well, what about all of the students that went berserk!? The pills are what made them transform! Surely the Olunas Guard could see that similarity between them, right!?”

“What pills do you keep talking about? No one has mentioned anything about that. And no, none of the affected students remember anything about that night. It’s almost as though their minds were wiped or something, must’ve been a side effect from Lady Ravala’s ability.” Mariah replied with a furrowed brow.

“B-But… That doesn’t make any sense. How can they not remember anything about these?”

Carmen reached into her skirt pocket and noticed that the pill she took from the basement was no longer inside. She frantically dug around, desperately trying to grab hold of something that wasn’t there. Her eyes went incredibly wide as panic began to set in. Mariah set her fork down and leaned forward, pressing her hand against Carmen’s forehead.

“Are you sure you’re okay? You haven’t slept in days, maybe your mind is playing tricks on you or something.” Mariah calmly said, trying to quell her tension.

These words did nothing but irritate Carmen further, causing her to slap Mariah’s hand away. Carmen quickly stood up and angrily glared at her. Mariah flinched at the intense blood lust permeating from Carmen, but before she could speak, Carmen stormed out of the cafeteria.

“What the hell is up with her?” Mariah muttered, having never seen Carmen act like this before.

Carmen walked down the hall with many thoughts racing through her head. Something deeper was going on and she couldn’t quite figure out the why or how behind it all. As she navigated the building, multiple students would stop her and ask how she was doing. The amount of questions she received about that day was overwhelming and she began to feel suffocated. The world around her spun as her exhausted mind hit its limits.

Carmen sprinted out of the building and into the woods, desperately wanting to be somewhere quiet so she could gather her thoughts. After aimlessly wandering around, she eventually found herself at the clearing where she and Varric would train. She located the fallen tree on the opposite side and took a seat, looking up at the cold winter sky as she sighed.

Even though it was freezing outside, the amount of numbness she felt completely dulled the chilly air. A few moments passed until she heard the grass rustling behind her. Carmen looked over and saw Varric walking up with his arms crossed, clearly not in a good mood.

“You’ve missed three days of training in a row… Where have you been?” He asked with an annoyed tone, not pleased that his time had been wasted.

Carmen gave him no response, she simply looked forward again. Varric sighed and took a seat next to her. They sat there in silence for a few minutes until Varric softly spoke.

"I heard about what happened at the school..."

Once he mentioned LaVeda, he noticed that Carmen flinched slightly as she looked down at the ground with a somber expression. Varric sighed again before placing his rigid hand on top her head.

“If you need to cry, I’ll allow it… I won’t think you’re weak for doing so, but only for today though.” He said with a rare gentle tone. As soon as the words left his mouth, a single tear streaked down her face.

“Why’s it always me? Everyone close to me always gets hurt… Why me?” She muttered under her breath.

“If I hadn’t told Rivell to come along, he’d.. He’d still be alive… He should’ve stayed behind and helped the other students, but I insisted that he help us instead. His b-blood is on my hands…”

Carmen’s voice began to tremble, causing her to pause for a brief moment. Varric silently waited for her to continue as a chilly gust of wind blew through the clearing.

“It’s obvious that I don’t need to be here anymore, everyone would be better off. If I wasn’t around, no one would have to suffer…” She added, tears now beginning to funnel down her cheeks.

“Stop it…”

Varric’s voice was incredibly stern as it cut through the air. He wasn’t going to entertain these thoughts of hers at all.

“Sometimes things happen that are out of your control and there’s nothing you can do about it. Never blame yourself for the demise of others, it’s disrespectful to those that have fallen or experienced those hardships. Life will move forward the way it wants to move forward, regardless of your actions.” Varric added, his voice growing more direct and fatherly.

Carmen didn’t respond, she simply looked down at the ground sulking. It was clear that his words were going in one ear and out the other. When he noticed her lack of reaction, Varric gripped Carmen’s shoulder and turned her towards him.

“Look at me! Don’t you dare throw your life away because of a few rough patches, you’re stronger than that. Don’t… Don’t be like me, wishing and hoping life was different than the cards dealt to you. Wasting your life away and becoming stagnant… It’s miserable and I don’t need you going through this either.”

Varric’s voice was quite different as he hesitated through his words, no longer sounding like the hardened veteran he was. It almost seemed as though he needed to tell himself these words as well.

Once Carmen’s eyes met with his and she processed what Varric said, Carmen burst into tears. Her cries were loud and filled with pain as the deep sorrow finally surfaced. Varric brought her head in close to his chest, prompting Carmen to grip his shirt tightly and sob uncontrollably. Varric didn’t speak a single word as she had her moment of grief.

An hour went by and Carmen’s loud cries eventually turned into soft whimpers. She had fallen soundly asleep on Varric’s chest, resting for the first time in days. When the cold winter air blew by, he could feel Carmen trembling in his arms.

“Geez, what am I going to do with you, kid?” Varric muttered with a slightly annoyed sigh.

He took off his coat and put it around her as he picked her up. Carmen remained asleep while he carried her away into the woods.

After a short trek, they arrived at a little cabin not too far from the clearing. The cabin had a simple porch, a stone chimney, and a small well off to the left side. He walked up the steps and entered the building, shutting the door swiftly to combat the cold air.

Varric placed Carmen on his couch and walked over to the fireplace. He pointed his finger at the wood already placed inside and exerted his Core Energy. A fire immediately ignited, lighting up the room with a deep orange and yellow hue. As he stoked the fire to a more controllable level, the embers playfully danced in the air. Varric fetched some blankets and placed them over Carmen.

‘Sucks she had to go through all that, but… I’m grateful for it. Made me realize what I need to start doing to move forward. I’ve gotta get back on my feet and take hold of my life again.’

Varric let out a soft sigh as he slightly brushed strands of silver hair away from her face. He stepped back and went to his own room, closing the door behind him and laying down on his bed. His conversation with Carmen played back in his head over and over as he stared at the ceiling. Eventually he closed his eyes and took a short nap, resting from an emotional afternoon.