One Skill Short

The Guardian Broke My Shit

(Maven)

"Think you're ready?"

"More than I was before." She brushed me off and I could tell she wanted to stay focused and hold on to whatever feelings the nightmare had given her. I don't even know if she heard everything that was going on around us as we went through each gate, destroying all the keys we found, and I had a feeling she was just going through the motions of the dialogue here until the big showdown.

I was starting to worry for her because I recognized these signs. Her withdrawing and throwing herself into work. Usually, it was alright and I just had to make sure she ate enough and drank enough water. Doing that here could get her killed.

"Remember, if you see the floor light up with blue streaks, move and move fast. Just a bunch of dodging...like the rock tentacles. This thing is going to look really weird and hit hard. Just...pretend we're fighting a really messed up looking dragon made of rock and lyrium that also can't fly. It will try to knock you from the platform with sweeps of its 'wings'." They all seemed to get the idea now.

I hadn't actually been prepared for everything to unfold and that discovery hit a little late. Witnessing as Valta and Renn were thrown away from the fight and Drusilla charged in with Bull and Odessa. She aimed her hits at the lyrium cluster and Varric, like instructed, stayed back with Solas. They were out of the way of the shorter arms and worked to take the same ones out at the same time as they kept moving.

"Maven! Move!" Odessa called out as the floor under me got brighter. Obeying her absently, I lept away and moved in towards a tentacle, trying to make my movements more fluid so I could slide around the arms without having to jump back. This way I could also avoid having to worry about ground or pincer attacks from the Guardian. It wouldn't risk hitting itself. I was even enjoying myself and, for a moment, wished Cassandra was here to see my progress.

"Shit!" I heard Drusilla yell and I fought myself to not glance back and see what was happening. Then I heard a grunt from Solas and I assumed she shoved him out of the way of something. There were too many loud noises to really be able to tell them apart from one another and make anything from them. With Odessa and Bull dodging and then whaling on the flails, I could only see them because they were a short ways away from me.

It was impossible to tell how much time had passed as we fought, and I could only tell it had been awhile because most of its flails were gone.

"Bull!" Odessa cried out and I took the thud to be him getting knocked into by something. I figured the Qunari Reaver could handle himself well enough.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Definitely Drusilla.

"Veil!" That's when I couldn't take it anymore and I glanced around the back of the Guardian to see Bull beaten up and knocked out and Drusilla skid dangerously close to the edge of the platform; unconscious. Weapon discarded somewhere, I didn't look away from her form. I needed a sign of movement- of breathing- anything.

Solas may have struck the final blow but I was moving for Drusilla, checking her pulse, only to yank my hand back as she rolled towards me onto her back and coughed harshly.

"I hate...this fucking...place." She strangled out between hacks.

"Is anything broken?" I tried to avoid moving her much. She was quiet for a moment and I took that as she was trying to pinpoint something. Then she looked at me.

"Feel carefully along my rib cage...towards the bottom. I think one...one or two of them...ar-are broken. My left arm...dis-located...fuck. Gonna need you...fix it."

"When I find the rib or ribs, can you heal them?"

"Mmhmm." Her voice was tight; pained. I followed her words and moved slowly up along her rib cage, starting from the floaters.