PROLOGUE, PART 3 - PRIDE AND DECEIT
Some hours had passed since Wynne and John's party had left, and Alice was watching the kids take turns as they rode Thorand. She didn't notice when a slow mist started to cover the floor, until the floor was completely hidden beneath a ominous fog. Alice looked around, and realized that everyone, even Thorand, was asleep, barely visible under the mist blanket. She looked around frightened, and produced her staff, trying to see where the menace would come from. "Show yourself! Whoever you are!" said she, feeling the weight of failure beggining to creep down her shoulders.
"I am Barthandelus." Said the hoarse, low male voice. In the white of the mist, a white figure started to show. An old man, dressed in white, with long, long white hair and long, long white beard. He supported his weight on a black, beautiful staff, that was as Kinloch Hold itself, made of a dark stone with barely visible white veins. And his words were enough to send chills up and down her spine. For the first time, she recognized the voice, the voice of her Harrowing, the voice which once said: "True tests never end." Until that very moment, Alice thought some random demons had tempted her, as it happened with other mages. But now she realized that, since her Harrowing, it had always been one: the spirit ahead of her, who seemed not a monster, but an old man. And if it was possible, he seemed more frightening as that old man than he would if he looked like most of the other Pride Demons.
Silence crept over the room as slow steps brought him closer to Alice, who waited with her staff pointed at him, a menace he didn't seem to worry about. She wouldn't allow him to came any closer. She took a step back, raised her staff above her head, and felt her own body ressonate with the fabric of reality. She knew how to move the threads around, and beckon lightning from the sky. That's what she would do. As Alice's staff pointed up, she assumed the proper position, and shouted the Words of Authority that would make lightning bow to her will, and descend upon the demon, even if from the ceiling of the tower. She banged her staff's pommel on the ground, and shouted:
"DE IOVIS FULMINA MITTERE IN TERRAM!"
Alice closed her eyes, and her ears went momentarily deaf with the sound of Thunder. Even with her eyes shut she felt the light blind her. It was only slowly that her senses of sight and hearing returned properly, first blurs and echoes. Until she finally saw, only a feet from her, the dreadful sight of Barthandelus' white eyes, locked with hers, unnafected by the lightning that she beckoned over him.
"That was a remarkable spell, Alice." said he, with the slightest turn to the corner of his thin, pale lips. But his voice... His voice filled her head, and even hoarse and soft, it felt powerful like the very Thunder beckoned. "You show promisse. But you have a long way to go before you can do me any harm."
Alice just stared at him, panting, fear crawling inside her. But if one word could be used to describe Alice, this word, more than 'beautiful', would be 'brave'. She held on, sustaining his overwhelming gaze, not avoiding her eyes from his. She said nothing. She knew that, if she spoke, she would sob, she would stutter, and she would show him all the fear she felt. No. She just kept the silence, waiting for the demon to say whatever he had to say. And thus he spoke: "And why would you want to do me harm, anyway? I am here not to tempt you, not tonight, Alice. I am here to make you a favor. A simple favor, so you will see that I mean no harm to be done to you." That little crook to his lips grew into the smile a tiger smiles before devouring its prey.
Barthandelus turned his back to Alice and pointed at the door as he spoke: "I assume you would like to see, Alice, what the Grey Warden is doing right now. It is a lesson I want you to learn, and it is a piece of knowledge that I am sure you will find useful. Maybe it will settle down the wish you had of being a Grey Warden yourself?"
Alice had never told it to anyone. When, years before, she was denied being turned into a Tranquil, she decided she would, if she could, become a Grey Warden. Give her magic a proper use, do some good with the curse she bore. But she never told it to anyone, not even Keili, not even Cullen! Before she could speak, she saw herself in a room, where a templar looked bewitched ahead of him, not seeing that John Cousland's party stood right ahead. And behind the templar, caressing his brown locks of hair, was which Alice knew to be a Desire Demon. The demon was looking anxiously at the party, who argued amongst themselves.
"No, John, you can't do it! You can't possibly allow the demon to go away with the templar!" said Alistair, barely shouting, covered in blood (except for the mages and Leliana - who used a long bow - everyone was dripping blood, in fact), pointing at the demon and the templar.
"Alitair is right! To allow this to go... It's a monstrosity!" said Wynne.
John looked at the both of them, and at Leliana, that, even though silent, agreed with Alistair and Wynne with her deep blue eyes. The Warden sighed and shook his head, as if the answer was plain and obvious and they failed to see it. He Looked back at the possessed templar and then back at his party, and said: "This templar will die anyway. We either fight the demon, who will no doubt send the templar against us and make us kill him, or we let the demon be, and the templar dies a bissful death. He won't live anyway, so why deny him that?"
Horror still struck the faces of Leliana, Alistair and Wynne, but slowly, it started to turn into doubt and, soon, conformation. Morrigan smiled and nodded in approval, approaching John, and whispering loud enough for the others to listen: "It's good to see that some people here have reason." Sten followed right after, not minding at all to have his words heard, as was usual of the horned giant: "Indeed. Fighting the demon would be a waste of time. You chose wisely, Warden."
So, they all turned their backs and left the room, John the last of them. Thus, the party did not see what Alice saw: the moment where John looked back at the demon, and the entity moved her lips saying "thank you", and John smiled kindly, almost as if he had nothing at all against the monstrosity. Was what he did wrong? Would you, in his place, have killed the templar instead, reader? Alice thought so, and she was horrified not only at what John Cousland did, but even more at his kind smile at the spiritual beast who took hold of the templar.
It was then that Alice was back again at the misty hall with the sleeping mages (and dog) and the terrible Pride Demon who called himself Barthandelus. He said: "I hope, one day, you learn this lesson, Alice. It will be important in your path, and I would hate to see it go to waste."
"What lesson?" hissed she, the anger inside her starting to surpass the fear she felt in beholding the cold eyes of Barthandelus. "That John desecrates that which all the Grey Wardens stand for? That he consorts with demons as would any filthy blood mage? No!" she exclaimed, finally gathering the courage and walking her way past Barthandelus and towards that door that would lead her after John Cousland's path. "I cannot, I will not allow this to happen!"
As Alice did so, Barthandelus stood still, just following Alice with the movement of his eyes, and staring ahead once he could no longer see her. "Then," said he "you will be terrified at yet another one of John Cousland's... liberalities. I bid you farewall, Alice Amell."
As Alice walked away, she noticed the fog was no more, and the rustling of pawns on the rocky floor that ran towards her. She turned to see Thorand comming in her direction, barking a couple of loud barks to call her attention. She stopped and smiled at the dog, cursing the fate that led him to have such an ill intentioned master. "Hey, boy!" said she, as she patted the dog's head and crouched to look at him. "I need to follow the others. You're a strong dog, so I ask you, take care of the children, will you? Help them if they need."
Thorand simply barked once more an ran back the way he'd came. For a moment, Alice stayed there, stunned at the dog's intelligence. It was as if he understood all the words she spoke, and it was dazzling. How she wished she could own one of these dogs, or at least have one of them around. But for now, other things had more importance. Alice stood, took a deep breath, and looked towards to darkened path ahead of her. The tower was dark, and thus she simply whispered "Fiat Lux" and her staff's head shone with a pale yellow light that lit the path ahead of her. And on she went. What would be the other of John's liberalities?
But one thing Alice had to confess: John Cousland's party was remarkable. They succeeded where the templars have failed, and she was amazed to see corpse after corpse of abominations, trail after trail of defeated demons. As I said before, Alice had a keen connection to the Fade which she dreaded to explore, still, sometimes it was too strong for her to ignore. She could feel that the demons were cowarding, they were retreating to the upper most floor of the tower, the Harrowing Chamber, where, she was sure now, the true source of all that evil dwelt. She doubted she would be able to stop them, but she had to do something. Maybe Wynne would help her? She also thought on counting on the help of those who seemed to be less atuned with John's actions, the blond man and the red haired woman. Maybe, the four of them could take out John, Morrigan and Sten.
It was with these thoughts, as Alice scanned the inside of a room, that she heard hurried, stealthy steps comming from the hall. She went quickly to the door and, when under the threshold, peeked down the corridor to see a limping form try to run as fast as it could, hurt as it was. "Halt there!" said Alice, but whoever the person was, and it was a woman, she did not stop. Just looked over her shoulder and kept going, trying to go even faster now. "Halt, I said!" Alice shouted, but the woman was almost at the door which would lead to the lower floor.
Alice couldn't remember when it was the last time she conjured such powerful spells with such short time between them. But whoever this woman was, she was going to stop. Alice once more raised her staff, and felt the air around it connect her with the muscle spasms that made the other woman move. She closed her eyes and, when opening it, pointed the staff towards the woman pronouncing the Words of Authority which would cease and lock all the muscles in woman's body, save those needed for breathing and speaking: "In statuam lapidis tu!" And suddenly, the woman halted. She whimpered and sobbed when she realized she was at Alice's mercy, and even under the influence of the spell, her body shook in fear.
Alice approached this woman in slow steps, eyes narrowed at the shadowy figure who revealed itself when the pale light of Alice's staff poured over her. It was not a mage from the Tower. Alice had no idea who she was, which served only to raise Alice's mistrust towards the woman. Alice asked: "Who are you? What on the Maker's name are you doing here?"
The woman sobbed once more and said: "Please... Please, I mean you no harm. I'm just on my way out of the Tower, and..." She stopped speaking when she saw Alice's narrowed eyes widen in what was the clear picture of hate. She remembered then. The woman now locked under her spell was one of the blood mages she saw toppling the statue of Andraste. Alice said slowly, hissing, between clinched teeth: "H-How did you escape the Grey Warden's party?"
"He let me go... He is a good man, I promised him I would repent and-" The woman could speak no more. Alice rose her left hand with her fingers curled like claws, and the hate in her eyes became evident and terrifying to the blood mage. So, this was the other choice Barthandelus mentioned. John Cousland not only allowed the demon possessing the templar to go free. He also did the same to the blood mage. But no. Alice would not allow such heretic actions to simply happen. Slowly, she began closing her hand, and as fingers approached each other, the blood mage's body started to crumble upon itself. When Alice's hand balled into a fist, blood poured out of the other woman's every oriffice bigger than a pore, and acking, she fell on the floor, lifeless.
Alice enjoyed the feeling.
She enjoyed the feeling of crushing the body of a blood mage to the point that, mind the irony, the very blood gushed out of her body. The mage took a step closer to the corpse by her feet, and gazed upon it with disgust and superiority. She had never killed anyone prior to that moment. And the feeling, Alice thought, was good. Righteous killing, standing before the corrupt and wicked and not faltering. She, Alice told herself, had just acted as a Champion of the Just.
The sight of that woman, falling there, every single bone in her body broken, in a pool of blood, was almost hypnotizing Alice. On the other side of the Veil, Barthandelus watched. He reveled as the pride inside the young woman rose to heights they never reached before, and he basked on that feeling. It was going to be a lovely hunt. A hunt like the ones which only present themselves every other century. But now, it was time that Alice snaped out of that bloody trance.
Back to the physical realm, the pull of Mana began once again, and very, very strong, stronger than at any moment since the breaking of the Circle began. As you may imagine, reader, John had reached by now the Harrowing Chamber and was engaging Uldred in battle. A few stories down, Alice rushed up the stairs, no longer minding to carefully inspect the rooms of the tower. She wanted to reach John Cousland, and stop him from doing whatever it was his intention of doing. The Circle could not be saved. The dead woman was proof of that. John would leave blood mages to live, and so, how could anyone trust this man to do what is right, to spare only the righteous?
Now, reader, you would have known of Alice in the Tale of the Hero of Ferelden if she hadn't met Cullen in the room before the Harrowing Chamber. Only the sight of him could have stopped Alice in her resolve to go and attack the Grey Warden, send him away and... Yes, of course, why not, kill him. But meet Cullen she did, and this made her halt her hurried steps and gaze in awe as she saw him alive, caged inside a barrier, but alive!
The sight of Alice, too, would be a balm to Cullen's suffering, if he were not expecting that she would be used as an illusion to break his will. So, as soon as Alice showed herself, Cullen barely lept to the opposite wall, clinging to it like a bug who wants to crawl away, but finds himself suddenly rendered unable to crawl on walls. "Get away from me!" said he "You will not tempt me, not even with my dearest infatuation! No, begone, demon!"
Alice looked at him for a moment, and smiled. She wouldn't expect nothing else from him. No, no demon would ever be able to possess him, to seize control of the most righteous of minds. Thus, Alice approached the barrier, trying in vain to dispel it, and found out it was possible to touch it. "Cullen, it's fine. It's me, I'm no demon. Remember what I told you? Close your eyes, beckon the Maker and the holy prophetess Andraste, send the demon away. I am still here."
Cullen opened his eyes, blinked, and, slowly, he approached the barrier, touching it on the opposite side of Alice's hand. They both looked at the hands that didn't touch because of the barrier in between, and smiled kindly at each other. "I am proud of you, Cullen. You stood your ground. Your faith in unshakable." To what he answered: "I'm so glad to see you alive Alice but... But... Those other people! They want to save the mages held in the Harrowing Chamber! You, and only, Alice, would spend so much time with them and do not give in! Wynne, and the Grey Warden, they want to let the other mages live!"
Alice nodded in resignation at that. She already knew it was their plan, but how much of the mages left alive would indeed be maleficar? "We need to talk to Gregoir, Cullen. Maybe, the both of us can-" A huge explosion was heard inside the Harrowing Chamber, and the whole tower shook. Alice went on: "Maybe the both of us can convince him to call for the Right of Anullment even if John is successful in saving the First Enchanter."
"Yes", answered Cullen "Yes, let's do that. But please, stay here, don't go in there. I can't stand to see you-"
Alice's hand changed place, and touched the barrier as if she was hushing Cullen with a touch to his lips. What is curious, you see, is that all this barrier interrupted touching would never happen were it not there. All this time, since Alice became a woman of notice and kindled Cullen's feelings and desires, they would always refrain from any display of affection or action that could lead into temptation. Alice refused to be Cullen's downfall, Cullen refused to allow his weakness to doom Alice. After all, as far as I am concerned, templars are celibatary, despite what some Orlesian named Fereldan she-soldiers might say.
"You hang in there, Champion. I will be right back."
Under Cullen's protests and punches against the barrier, Alice went up the stairs and entered the Harrowing Chamber.
What follows now you are well aware, reader. The Circle was restored, inspite of Alice's and Cullen's ardent protests, and Alice even accused John of allowing a blood mage to escape, when in the presence of the Knight-Commander. But John did save a lot of people, and it spoke louder than Alice's and Cullen's voice. Besides, John had, let us say, a much stronger warrior band, plus some very grateful mages on his side. There was nothing Alice and Cullen, or even Gregoir, for that matter, could do.
Oh! One curious part was when Alice accused Morrigan of being an apostate, that she should stay in the Circle instead of being allowed to wander free from templar supervision. That was when John eyed Allistair and told everyone that Morrigan was conscripted, much to Alice's anger. As I told you before, she had dreamed of being a Grey Warden once, and now, because this apostate was clearly seducing John Cousland with her barely lack of upper body clothing, she got conscripted.
In the end, Wynne walked out with John Cousland's party, while Alice and some other surviving mages were to set for Recliffe in the next morning, so they could help the arl's son, possessed by the Demon of Redcliffe. There, in Redcliffe, Alice kept to herself, under the watch of the templars, and took part in the ritual that sent Morrigan to the Fade to deal with said demon. She understoon that speaking against John Cousland, at that time, in those conditions, was futile. Moreover, two thoughts were constantly keeping her mind busy: first, righteous killing felt good. Was it right to feel that way? Second, if an abomination can be brought back by slaying the demon in the Fade, why were apprentices killed when they failed their Harrowings? It was the first seed of doubt, that would remain enclosed and forgotten inside Alice's mind for a long, long time.
