- As spoken by Keeper Shiven before the gathered clans at the Arlathvhen.

It is asked why we refer to her as Ame’len Fen'Vhenan. Why we invoke her in our darkest moments. Why, when we light our fires, we offer the first flame to her before any other. I will tell you.

It is said that before the Dread Wolf brought havoc upon the world, his heart was wise and kind - but betrayal turned it cold. In the long ages before the Veil was torn, he waged war without cease. He tore down thrones, cast down those once called kin, sowing destruction wherever he went. So great was his power that it sundered Thedas itself, and forced him to slumber, the world reshaped in his absence.

When he woke, all he saw was ruin. The world he had known was gone and in that moment, his grief became a fury so vast, the wolves of the world were said to howl with his voice.

To calm his rage, one was sent to face him - one who blazed with fire, her body bearing the power of gods. The Avvar named her First-Thaw, the shemlen called her The Herald, believing the flames that leapt from her hand were sent by Andraste herself. No matter the name, all agreed: her fire reached the Dread Wolf’s heart and in its thawing, they fell in love.

For a time, he knew peace in the arms of his Vhenan. The wisdom and kindness he had buried returned to him. And the world, for a breath, could rest.

But sadly, peace could not hold in the heart of this grieving god for it was too weakened by an eternity of pain. Unable to let go of the world he had lost, he chose to restore it - knowing it would destroy the world she lived in and the heart she had awakened in him. To protect her and his heart, the Dread Wolf tore it from his body and gave it to her so that his wisdom and goodness might survive within her, shielding her from devestation. Though she begged him to stay, he vanished before she could turn him from his path.

He journeyed where no one could follow, and wherever he went, ruin unfolded. Without his heart, his pain spilled into the waking world. Rivers poisoned, demons rose and dreams turned to nightmares.

In fear, the people of Thedas turned once more to Andraste’s Bright Flame, begging her to destroy the Dread Wolf. But the Herald - who loved him still, and who held his heart within her - felt his pain and saw the wisdom still flickering within. She alone understood that a wolf only bites when it has been made to bleed. And so she set out on the most perilous of journeys to find him.

She crossed battlefields steeped in blood. She faced demons that clawed at her spirit and darkness that tried to break her. But through it all, she guarded his heart. And true to his word, his own heart guarded her as well. In carrying both their hearts, a bond was forged so deep that the spirits came to know her by it. They called her the Dread Wolf’s Heart. And when her strength failed, when the path grew darkest, the spirits came to her aid and carried her forward. Finally she found him at the top of the highest mountain, his hands poised to tear the world apart. Here in this moment, she offered his heart back to him.

It is said that when his eyes fell upon her face, his heart leapt from her body and returned to his. And when it beat once more within his chest, the Dread Wolf fell to his knees, overcome by grief so vast it should have destroyed him.

But it was not the same heart he had given her.

In her keeping, it had not only endured - it had grown stronger. By carrying both their hearts as one, she had entwined them, and each drew strength from the other.

And so the Dread Wolf found the strength to stand and face his crimes. He bound his life to the Veil and stepped into the Fade, to bear his punishment.

But he had not foreseen what it meant to love - and to be loved in return. When Andraste’s Flame came to stand beside him, willing to bear his punishment with him, he tried once more to shield her. She reminded him that their hearts were one and she could bear it - because they would bear it together.

It is said the kiss that followed was filled with such love that it sealed the Veil behind them as they left this world behind.

That is why we name her Ame’len Fen'Vhenan - She Who Carries the Heart of the Wolf. That is why we call upon her in our times of need. When our strength falters and our pain is too much. Because she bore the Dread Wolf’s heart and her own through the deepest trials and brought them forth whole, and stronger than before.

So that we know our own hearts may endure as well.

Found, hundreds of years after the events of the defeat of the last elvhen gods, in an old forest ruin. An old legend, written and recorded by a faithful follower of Ame’len Fen'Vhenan - also known as First-Thaw, Herald of Andraste, the Woman Who Blazes Like Fire, Inquisitor, The Dread Wolf's Heart.

She peels the orange, laying segments carefully on the plate. Her palms smell of citrus, and Solas takes one hand in his and brings it to his mouth, kissing it and then licking along the cool line left by the orange juice. She laughs, swats at him. They sit across from one another, eating the segments of orange. Sweet and then bitter. It is a beginning. It is enough. --- After the fall of the Veil, Solas and Lavellan cross the sea together, and make a new life on an unfamiliar shore.

Some art from my book Faraway Dreaming.

You can find it on Kickstarter – the campaign will run until June 24th, 2025. This was already funded early on, but the the higher the funding for the project goes, the more upgrades and surprises we'll be able to add to the rewards. ✨

www.kickstarter.com/projects/atthisarts/faraway-dreaming