This is my second fan fiction story and yes I do realize I'm stretching my creative juices by having two very different stories going at once, but this one was absolutely screaming at me to be written! It is the only way I can get it out of my head. I'm beginning to think that I need to find a Dragon Age Anonymous club!
If you enjoy my ramblings feel free to review and give your suggestions or story ideas, etc.
As usual, Bioware own all characters so if you recognize it, its theirs.
This story is the result of me wondering about the chastened tribes in Ferelden. What if they weren't just a small band of nomads, but a deep culture existing similar to the way Native Americans did, long before the land had been occupied by civilized men.
I now have a much deeper understanding when other writers complain about plot bunnies running rampant in their head! So here is mine.
This will eventually be a female mage / Alistair romance, but it will take a long convoluted path. Also don't expect it to follow the game plot, I intend to take this story wherever my mind, or the mind of my readers wanders. Enjoy!
The Circle
There was something going on, she wasn't sure what; but everyone was bustling around, busier than usual. The tower was in a heightened state. There were visitors, and this in and of itself was very unusual. There were almost never visitors to the Circle of Magi tower.
She pondered the meaning of visitors while sitting in the apprentice dormitory on her usual bunk. Maybe now would be a good time to attempt to escape. She was always thinking of escape, working out detailed plans in her mind. She hated it here. Hated it so much that she had even considered ending her own life to get out of this prison. Had even made feeble attempts at that as well. The idiots had thought she was attempting blood magic, but couldn't prove it. They had thrown her into the dungeons for months after that one. She had managed to convince them that she wasn't using forbidden magic in the end. She had paid a high price though. But if she thought hard about it, she really did want to live. She just wanted to get out of this wretched place.
She hated almost everyone in this place, mages and templars alike. How she wished for her old life back. Living freely, relying upon the land for her needs traveling with her tribe. Her father was a chieftain among the chastened warriors and if she had not been captured that day she would have been a powerful woman with status. Perhaps even a chief herself someday.
Her thoughts returned to her current situation. She frowned deeply. She hated the templars because of their unrelenting watchfulness of them. The way they looked at her like she would explode at any minute. Over the years there had been some who were worse than others. Those that looked at her with pure hatred in their eyes were not the ones she feared the most. It was the ones that hid something else behind the hatred. Lust perhaps, desire, not the normal desire. But the desire to dominate mages by whatever method they could. She shuddered, now was not the time to think about that. There was never a good time to think about that.
She hated the mages too, weaklings who merely allowed their captors to do whatever they wished to them. They cow towed to their captors all too easily. She knew that if she could find mages willing to assist her in her escape attempts that it would work. But, she could never find willing accomplices. They were too afraid of their captors to even think of such things. Weak willed idiots, she thought.
They were also slightly afraid of her. No, not slightly she thought with a smirk. They all feared her both mages and templars alike. She was a powerful mage. Her spells were easily twice as powerful as most of the other apprentice weaklings. Between that and her attitude and her rebellious ways, and her sharp tongue she had never managed to make friends at the tower. So she had never been able to find fellow mages willing to make an escape attempt.
She sighed; it didn't really bother her much. She knew that someday she would get out of this hellhole and return to her people. She didn't need to befriend any of them. She felt a twinge of regret about the way she behaved over the years, if she had been more docile perhaps she would have found other mages to assist her? Oh well, too late to change now. The hatred that she held so close had kept her from losing herself through the years of torture and abuse.
Unlike a lot of the other apprentice mages, she had been taken when she was older. Most were brought to the circle tower when they first showed signs of magic, at the age of seven or so. She however had arrived when she was thirteen, and she remembered the life she had lost. Remembered her friends, her family. It made her bitter and rebellious. She had fought against the templars, and her teachers at every turn.
She was determined to make their lives as miserable as they in turn made hers. She wasn't really succeeding though, if she was honest with herself. They were definitely winning that battle. She had the scars to prove it. She had been beaten so many times she had lost count. She was also intimately familiar with the tower dungeons; she had spent almost as much time down there as she had in the dormitories. She had gained a reputation among both the templars and senior mages as a hellion. A troublemaker, she knew she had pressed her luck, but she could not care less.
She was beginning to worry that they were considering making her tranquil. The first enchanter had called her into his office just the day before to discuss her behavior. He talked to her gently, he was a kind man and seemed to care for her in his own way. She was one of the few people in this place that she had respect for. He worked tirelessly to maintain the uneasy balance between templars and mages. She knew that he had little choice in the matter, but he did what he could.
Irving had looked at her with sadness in his eyes as he said "you do not make this easy for me, you know." She knew what he meant. She secretly regretted any pain she had caused him, the others, they didn't matter. "I am sorry senior enchanter, I know I have been difficult." She didn't know what else to say, she could not be anyone other than who she was. She hung her head down. He had cared for her almost like a father; he knew the story of how she came to be in the circle. He also knew it was harder for her than the others because she was older when she arrived. She had been on the edge between childhood and adulthood. A difficult time of life to say the least; and then to be torn from her family, her life, all of it ripped away in an instant. How could they expect her to be anything else?
She had promised Irving she would try harder, and she really did mean it . If nothing else for him. Her mind wandered back to the activity in the tower. She wanted to know who the visitors were and what they wanted.
She snuck out of her dormitory as quietly as she could. She quickly came upon a group of templars and tucked herself back into the shadows as she listened. "War will be here soon, if the mages can help then I say put them on the front lines so we can be rid of them!"
She recognized the voice, an older templar named Garrick. He was one of the few she feared. His hatred for mages ran deep and she had found herself the brunt of his anger many times. He was skilled at hiding his blows so that the other templars would not find out she had been beaten. He had blackmailed her into not saying anything by threatening to expose her as a blood mage. She was not of course, but it wouldn't take much to convince the others if he made the accusation. She almost growled as she thought about it. "No" she breathed, she cannot do this now. She threw those memories down deep, mentally placing them into a trunk as she closed the lid and locked it tight. Perhaps one day, she would find herself in position to repay him for what he had done.
She continued quietly using her skills to blend into the shadows and made her way outside the senior enchanters office. She listened closely. The voices inside were arguing heatedly. She recognized Irving's voice, and also Vallena. She was an elf mage and the head of the primal school. One of her main teachers here at the tower. Here was another mage she had learned a grudging respect for. Other voices intermingled with theirs as she listened.
"Mages are needed for the coming war to fight with King Cailan" someone said. "Agreed," said Irving's voice, "but we cannot force mages to fight and die, this must be their choice." "Mages have no choice," said another voice, she recognized the Knight Commander. "I say we each come up with a list of the most likely candidates and then work from there." "Very well" said Irving, "we will speak on this again soon I am sure."
As she heard the meeting break up she sped away as quietly as she could to get back to her dormitory unseen. She got back safely, she was a bundle of nerves. The King needed mages for the war with the darkspawn! This was an opportunity she intended to make the most of. An opportunity that might never be repeated. She had to find a way to be included in the mages chosen for the army! She felt that this was her moment and that if it slipped out of her fingers she would regret it for eternity.
For the next few days, Shelina attempted to blend in with the other apprentices and did her best to stay out of trouble, for once. She listened intently when she heard snatches of conversation. Apparently the lists had been made and the mages were to be gathered to be given the choice to fight for Ferelden. She however was not on that list, mainly because she was still an apprentice and had not yet passed her harrowing. By the Gods! She had to get on that list or die trying!
She approached Irving when the opportunity arose. "First Enchanter" she said. "You know that the tower is not the place for me, I will never be able to submit myself to the will of the templars, or the Chantry. I will never be more than a thorn your side. Will you consider allowing me to fight the coming darkspawn?"
"You may find this hard to believe, but I have indeed considered it. You are one of the most powerful mages I have ever seen here in the tower; you would be a force to be reckoned with. But, the Knight Commander fears you, he believes that if you are allowed to join the battle, you will find a way to escape and eventually become a threat to Ferelden." She could hardly blame the commander for thinking these thoughts. She took heart though, knowing that Irving might be convinced to argue her cause.
"Is there nothing I can do to convince him that I would fight to the best of my ability to defeat the foul creatures threatening our land?" she asked.
"I do not know" said Irving. He had a pensive look on his face and stroked his graying beard deep in thought. "Perhaps there is another way, but, it would be infinitely more difficult." She glared at Irving with a defiant look "you know I would do anything to be out of the tower."
"Anything" he questioned. "We shall see, but, you are still an apprentice anyway, but perhaps." His voice trailed off. Irving was deep in thought. He remembered back to when this willful girl was brought before him. He had thought it a mistake to take in an apprentice at this age, but he had little choice.
He had sought the advice of other senior enchanters concerning the girl. None of them had any useful advice until he had sought out, Tannita. She was an elf mage who came to them from the Dalish. She was the only one who had ever come to them from their ranks, and this had been her own choice. He did not understand her reasons, but she had proven to be a strong ally over the years. She had learned her magic from the elves and it was different from the magic they taught at the tower.
She was a seer. One who could place her mind into a meditative state and see glimpses into the future. It was never a clear picture, but it often led to insights that proved useful. Her visions had always proved correct, and sometimes he gleaned important information from them. He had kept her abilities from the Templars a secret. He knew they would fear it and probably insist that she be put to the sword because of it. He had come to rely on her heavily over the years, and it was her that helped him maintain balance between templars and mages.
It was because of her that he knew that the darkspawn invasion was indeed a blight, something few others agreed with. They foolishly felt otherwise, but Tannita had told him that the archdemon was indeed behind this. He also knew that if they failed against the darkspawn that the future of humanity in Thedas would be threatened as it had never been before.
When he had asked her about their new charge. She had responded that she would meditate for an answer. When she returned to him after several days she had some very interesting and disturbing thoughts about the girl.
"She is a most powerful mage" which they both already knew. "She may even become too powerful to control one day. She is a child with a destiny." Irving listened quietly to what Tannita had to say. He had felt the same, this child had a purpose, but he had no idea what it was.
"She is not meant to stay in the tower, she will one day change the future of Ferelden." I cannot see clearly the part that she is meant to play, but, I do know that without her there will be much death and destruction. Perhaps even the end of our days." She frowned when she thought of this. The images in her mind were not clear, but she felt that this girl would be the catalyst. Her visions had been disturbing, but she knew without a doubt that this girl was the key. She just could not see where she fit into the scheme of things.
"Thank you Tannita, you have been most helpful" Irving had said at the time. As he thought on it now, he wondered if her time had come? He would have to think on it further. For now, however, he came to a decision.
"Your harrowing will be tomorrow" he said without further explanation. He knew the girl was ready, he had actually planned on doing it before the impending war had been bought to their doorstep. As for the rest, he would need to consult with Tannita again.
Shelina was shocked by his statement. Her face showed her surprise. She had been anxiously awaiting her harrowing, had even started to worry that she would be made tranquil if she did not change her rebellious ways. But to have him say it outloud gave her a shiver down her spine. "As you wish First Enchanter" was all she had been able to say. "Return to your dormitory and prepare yourself" Irving said still looking pensive. She left quietly and did as she was asked.
She tried to calm her thoughts to prepare for the harrowing, but found that she was wound tighter than a drum. She could hardly stand the waiting. She wanted to get the ritual over with.
The next day before dawn two templars came for her and ushered her to the harrowing chamber. The test had been a simple one, resist the request of demons to enter the land of the living. She had passed it easily. There was no need for the circle of templars with their blades ready to cut her down if she was unable to resist the calls of demons.
She could have told them that, her own people had prepared her to face down demons almost from the first day that her magic abilities had been discovered. In this respect the circle could not teach her anything that she didn't already know. Although she did learn from the circle mages, her own people had been much more powerful.
Most of Ferelden was oblivious to this information though, as the tribes had kept their secrets and no one would give them up, even when tortured. She herself had given no information. She almost laughed out loud when she thought of the many tribes of the chastened hidden deep in the wilds. Existing in almost total secret. Even the name given them by Fereldens was silly, who came up with chastened anyway?
Her people were proud, strong, skilled magicians schooled in the old ways. Individual clans alone numbered in the thousands and the naïve fools didn't even know they existed.
As she considered all of this she picked at her apprentice robes. How she hated wearing dresses! Who had come up with this idea that people with magical power, both male and female, should all wear flowing robes? Even the Templars wore something similar.
By the Gods, she had to get out of here!