Holy War: Chapter 1, An Amnestic Beginning
A wise man once said; a man's downfall merely gives him another opportunity to rethink his strategy and rebound, however this advice was void to a man down on his knees with a metal bondage stock locking his arms in place and a sack over his head, allowing only his mouth and his ultramarine eyes to be seen. Through the sack the prisoner could count four gladiators surrounding him with their longswords drawn at him.
"Oh Maker, what happened?", he thought still feeling it hard to keep his eyes open. The only thing close to an answer he would receive would not be from the men who stood watching him, but from his left hand which, with a green pulse, flickered as if it had a mind of it's own. The sting that the flashing and flickering brought with it gave him a good enough shock to help him be awake and aware for the door to his not-so-humble cell being slammed open. He quickly identified two figures which approached as two women who he thought were with the chantry, while unsure about the latter he would still much prefer it over any mages.
However his vision of kind and pleasant chantry women was quickly shattered as the woman to the right looked quite angry, and seemed to be only held in check by her hooded and more composed looking companion. The angry looking woman stepped around him, getting behind him, and pulled the sack off his head which allowed his blond hair to flow to his neck, and then leaned down to him
"Tell me why we shouldn't kill you now?", she snarled in his ear.
While he shocked by this woman's threat, the man refused to be intimidated by this women, "How about the rule of law, you think the chantry would allow murder?"
While he may of pushed her over the edge with his backtalk, judging by the angered look on her face, the man was able to tell that the other woman, who stood stoic at his actions, would keep the other in order. As she began to circle him, the women in what he now recognized as black armor with some sort of symbol on the front that was foreign to him began to explain what had happened.
"That would imply you are innocent, the conclave is destroyed, everyone who attended it was killed, except for you!". She ended her brief explanation with her finger pointed at him, accusing him of a crime which implied more consequences, and filled him with more guilt, than ever thought possible by the man.
"W-What?", he stuttered and would under normal circumstances feel like a fool for doing so, but that was not something not on his mind at the moment as he was to trying to keep himself from completely breaking down on the spot.
"Explain this!", she shouted as she grabbed his arm as it began to flicker again, but before he was able to answer she flung it back down with almost enough force to throw him off his balance.
"I can't, I don't remember." He knew if he did not answer this woman's questions correctly that there would be consequences, severe ones by the fact that she looked to be getting angrier by the second. He was not wrong as she lunged forward and grabbed him by his shoulders.
"You're lying!", she shouted, seemingly momentarily blinded by rage. Before she could do any serious damage to the prisoner she was stopped the second women who entered the cell with her, " We need him Cassandra.", she said while pulling her companion off the prisoner.
"For what!?", the man asked, not wanting to be left in the dark by his captors.
The hooded woman now turned to him, "do you remember how this began?", she asked in a calm but assertive way in what could be easily perceived as an orlesian accent. Taking a heavy breath to regain his composure while the more aggressive woman began to undo his stocks, as much composure as someone in his situation could maintain, he began to think back.
"I remember running away from what looked like spiders, there was green mist everywhere, and then.. there was a woman". Stopping in her tracks, the orlesian turned to face him.
"A woman?", she asked with what sounded like genuine curiosity.
"Yes, there was a woman, but will you please explain more of what is happening outside?", asked the man, now only held with cuffs.
"It will be easier just to show you", the woman in black armor told him as she helped him up.
But before they exited his short-lived prison, the hooded orlesian turned to the man and asked him, "Wait, before we go, what is your name?".
"It's Lukas", he in turn told her, conveniently withholding his surname.
"I am Leliana, and my friend here is Cassandra", nodding to the woman in black before opening the door out of his cell.