Title: Venatori
Fandom: Dragon Age
Characters/Pairings: Calpernia, Samson, Maddox
Rating: T
Summary: Templars working together with mages? What a curious idea. This could only end horribly wrong. / Based on a prompt from Dragon Age Kink Meme: The Elder One's generals meet for the very first time.
Disclaimer: Dragon Age is not mine.
A/N: random title is random, I really didn't have any ideas.
Venatori. It's not the first time Samson hears about this group, and certainly not the last, since the Elder One ordered them to cooperate. He's not entirely sure what to think about this mage cult or whatever they are, but he has a certain idea in his head. Templars working together with mages? What a curious idea. This could only end horribly wrong.
They've been working separately but now they are supposed to join forces. It's understandable that the Red Templars aren't the only fraction serving Corypheus. Gods are good at convincing people. And it's easy to say yes when you are desperate, Samson muses glancing at his fellow templars.
Tevinters are coming! – it sounds almost like a curse. He can feel the tension in the air. They might be fighting for the same god, but it doesn't change the fact that the rest of Thedas loathes the Imperium for certain reasons. His soldiers have seen the dangers of magic, before and after everything in Kirkwall fell right into the void.
So they wait, because the Elder One commanded them to wait for the other group, the infamous Venatori. They are supposed to be different than other Vints because..? When few of his templars began explaining, Samson stopped listening once he heard it had something to do with Tevinter politics. The Venatori are supposed to be a rebel fraction opposing their government? Mages and politics? And when he thought the situation couldn't possibly get worse…
Three days passed, and finally the Venatori arrive. Templars gather, too curious to miss the occasion to see the dreadful Tevinters with their own eyes. They all seem excited (for something else than lyrium, this once), talking in hushed voices.
"If they expected a welcome party or that we would drop to our knees, they're gonna be severely disappointed," one of his men whispers to another, and Samson has to fight with a smile.
He glances at Maddox standing by his side, calm as ever. Then his eyes scan his troops, united, every soldier standing tall. They look ready to face whatever is coming.
When the Venatori finally arrive, Samson isn't sure what he should think about them.
It's a long way from the Imperium, no wonder they don't seem as... majestic as Samson expected. He looks at them, rather confused, because they look ordinary. Too ordinary. He has seen Tevinters before, and he always thought they like showing off their status almost as much as Orlesians. He half expected a big parade of people dressed in fancy yet completely unpractical clothing, blood rituals accompanied by wild dancing and trumpets.
The Venatori look like soldiers. Samson can't decide whether he should be disappointed or relieved. He instructed his templars to stay calm, prepared to feel magic so strong it would be suffocating. But there's nothing. And he knows how much blood magic reeks. Yet there's only the slightest hint of magic in the air, nothing even close to what a templar can feel inside a Circle tower, surrounded by mages.
It's clear to see not all Venatori are mages. Again he notices they simply look like soldiers; some of them are warriors, some archers or rouges. They don't look like sellswords or slaves, which can only mean they fight for the Venatori because they want to, and they believe in their cause.
Among warriors he sees a woman. Her clothes are odd (for him at least, since he never pays much attention to Tevinter fashion), the staff she holds in her hands looks more practical than the ones he saw Kirkwall mages using.
Maddox turns his head to him. "That would be their leader, Lady Calpernia."
She holds her head high, but there's something different about her. She has hidden strength coiled in her limbs, like all mages, and she's… rather short, especially comparing to muscular gladiators standing by her side.
His gaze returns to Maddox. "She's, uh..." Samson takes a breath, trying to find the right word. "She's... a girl," he says weakly.
"Are you surprised there's a woman in charge of the Venatori?"
"No, what I mean is... I've seen Tevinter magisters before, and she's..." Samson waves his hand in Calpernia's direction. "You sure that's her? I heard rumours saying Lady Calpernia sets people on fire if they displease her. It's only fair to say I expected someone different."
"I'm certain the rumours are false," Maddox says with a slight confusion in his voice. "Why would she treat her own people like that?"
"Well, she's a mage from Tevinter..." Samson shrugs, merely repeating what the rest of the world says about the Imperium. It's easier when he doesn't have to think about every detail.
"It doesn't matter she's Tevinter, or that she's a mage. What matters is that she's a woman who has enough power and influence to command other magisters. And the Elder One chose her, of all people in the Imperium. Imagine how much power and potential a person must have, to be chosen by a god."
Maddox looks Samson in the eyes. "But I believe you know it all yourself."
Samson moves his gaze to Calpernia who glances back at him. He observes as she says something to her fellow mages, then walks towards him, ready to introduce herself.
"I'll leave you two so you can talk," Maddox bows his head and walks away before Samson gathers enough courage to stop him.
Truth to be told he'd rather use his support. Maddox knows how to talk to mages, to people in general. Samson isn't sure if he's ready to face the fearless Venatori leader alone, in front of other Red Templars watching him with anticipation. As their General he has to do this, of course, so seeing Lady Calpernia walking straight to him, he braces himself for whatever is going to happen next.
The first thing that comes to his head once she's standing right in front of him is that she's at least a head shorter than him. And significantly younger.
"General Samson," her voice is clear, strong, and for a second his thoughts drift to a woman who used to be the Knight – Commander of Kirkwall. But something tells him Lady Calpernia and Meredith Stannard don't have much in common.
"We meet at last," Calpernia says with the smallest hint of smile on her lips. He's not sure if she's mocking him already. Then he notices the gap between her front teeth and all these freckles on her face, and once again Samson is surprised the leader of the Venatori is so…
Well, it's hard to define. Different than expected? Young? How old is she anyway, she looks barely twenty…
"I gather your men do not require much sleep, but I propose we should move as soon as the Venatori get some rest," she continues, oblivious to the turmoil in his head. "The Elder One needs us to take action, therefore I strongly suggest…"
"We leave at sunrise, then," he cuts her off, half wondering if she had a whole speech prepared.
Her eyes go wide as she stares in shock at a person who dared to interrupt her so rudely. Then her brows knit, her whole face turns bright red. It's so obvious she indeed had a whole speech ready for him. Too bad he's not going to listen to it.
"Very well," Calpernia says, clearly mad at him. She turns around without a word, and walks away.
Samson lets out a sigh. He's always been good at making just the right impression.