Chapter 25: The Game's Afoot
The dreadnought explosion had taken down the red lyrium smugglers and their ship as well, so it wasn't a total victory for the Venatori; but Theo took little comfort in that as they sailed their own ship through the Waking Sea on the way to Orlais. Growing up in Ostwick, he'd been on boats before, but never for days at a time. He spent most of his time on the top deck, staring out at the horizon, alone with his thoughts.
Dorian stayed below decks, curled into a ball and trying not to throw up; Bull paced the decks and spoke to no one. Everyone got out of his way, and even Theo didn't try to talk to him. He exchanged glances with Krem, who just shrugged. Leliana stood at the bow, her brow deeply furrowed as she watched the gulls and the waves, as if she could will the Orlesian coast to appear in their line of sight.
No one was talking and it was driving Theo crazy. He was sure this sort of thing had happened at Skyhold; with so many different personalities and differing opinions, how could it not? But Skyhold was huge and sprawling. The ship was the largest and best the Inquisition could hire, but it was still too small to contain the anger and confusion and frustration.
Josephine and Vivienne de Fer met them at the tiny port nearest Halamshiral. While they were escorted by Inquisition soldiers, there was also a small contingent of soldiers wearing masks and bearing the crest of the de Chalons family. With them was a woman whom Josephine introduced as Grand Duchess Florianne de Chalons, Gaspard's sister. "Inquisitor, it is an honor," she said, bowing low before Theo. "My brother regrets being unable to greet you himself, but he has sent me in his stead to see to your comfort."
"Thank you, your Grace," Theo said. He was prepared to mount the horse the Inquisition had brought for him, but Florianne had brought a carriage large enough to accommodate herself, Josephine, Vivienne, Leliana, Theo, and Dorian.
In the carriage Florianne tilted her head to get a good look at Theo's hand. "Forgive me, Inquisitor, but the tales of your mark are legendary. I hope it's not to bold to request to view it?"
Theo shrugged. His glowing mark was just another part of who he was now. It no longer kept him awake at night and even Dorian, who was picky about his sleep, had grown used to it. But he supposed if he'd heard stories about it and finally had a chance to see it up close, he'd want to as well.
Florianne leaned in. The green light softly reflected off her silver mask. "Fascinating," she murmured before sitting back again. "Is your companion ill?" she asked, eyes on Dorian.
"I've never taken to sea travel, Your Grace," Dorian said with a tired smile. He wasn't even trying to play the Game, and Theo tried not to grin.
Florianne nodded sagely. "I hope you recover soon, Master Pavus, so you might enjoy Orlesian luxury at its finest," she said. She turned her gaze back on Theo. "I was sorry to hear that your quest on the Storm Coast did not go as planned," she said casually as the carriage lurched forward.
He resisted looking at Leliana for some sort of cue. They were in Orlais now, and the Game was afoot. "We have no way of knowing how the Maker will use our successes and failures to his purposes," Theo said with a pleasant smile. His stock answer for everything.
"Your Grace, perhaps you will share with us your brother's hopes for the peace talks?" Josephine asked, turning the discussion to Orlesian politics, a topic that left Theo to simply listen and nod and smile at the appropriate times.
"Cullen is leading the rest of our soldiers on the march from Skyhold," Leliana murmured to him when they'd stopped for a rest break. "If the assassination is to be attempted, we want our people in place."
Theo nodded. He glanced around. "How's Bull?" he asked quietly.
Leliana shrugged. "He and the Chargers are scouting ahead, but I'd imagine they're seeking out a tavern. He is taking the Storm Coast badly."
Night had fallen when they finally arrived in Halamshiral, so Theo was unable to view the burned out remains of the city. Civil war had hit Orlais hard, but nowhere harder than this place. "I apologize for the condition of the city," Florianne said as they disembarked from the carriage before an inn, one of the few establishments open in the city, and relatively untouched by the chaos. "We are not welcome within the Winter Palace at this time, so my brother purchased this inn for our comforts," she said casually, as if anyone would do the same.
Servants, mostly elves, Theo noted, came rushing out to assist them with their things. Inside, hot meals were already prepared and waiting for them. Florianne did not join them for the meal, saying she was exhausted from her day's work and the journey, so they ate without her. "I don't trust her, but neither do I think her malicious," Leliana said in a low voice, leaning in so only their core group could hear. Vivienne, meanwhile, was keeping the servants busy; at first Theo thought it was just her imperious mien, but then he realized that they were unable to listen into the conversation if Vivienne kept them occupied at this task or that.
Bull came back at some point; the Chargers were all heavily drunk, and Theo wondered what other tavern they'd found willing to cater to them. Bull however was still grim and sober. Theo tried catching his eye, but Bull ignored him. It stung a bit; the Iron Bull had been there with Theo since very early on, and he'd given him advice about leadership. What happened to 'dealings before feelings'? Theo wondered as he watched Bull lounge about in a cloud of his own melancholy.
"Don't consider it so deeply," Dorian said when Theo finally joined him in bed. He still looked a bit pale and drawn, but snuggled into Theo's arms when Theo reached for him. It was comforting to have Dorian against him. "Everything he held to be true turned out to be wrong. It's disconcerting to realize that your place in the world is not quite what you'd thought."
"Are you saying you identify with Bull?" Theo teased.
"Actually I am," Dorian said. "My father insisted over and over again that he would never stoop to blood magic. And then he did. He called it his 'last resort'. It was a terrible betrayal," he said quietly. "We had our differences, but I sincerely believed him. A bit naïve on my part, but it was a lesson I needed to learn. Perhaps it's a lesson the Bull needs to learn as well," Dorian suggested.
Theo was just starting to accept his place in the world; he had gone so long without one that it was hard to comprehend what Dorian had gone through, and what Bull was going through.
"Don't look like that," Dorian said, caressing Theo's hand. "Rest. It's our first night in a proper bed in nearly a fortnight. And I could cast a silencing spell…"
"Have I told you I love you?" Theo asked with a grin.
"Why won't Bull talk to me?" Theo had managed to corner Krem in the common room of the tavern during breakfast. If anyone would know why, it was Krem.
Krem sighed and ran his hand over his close-cropped hair. "Do you know how hungover I am?" he asked at last. "Maker's balls, I'm lucky I'm able to stand this morning."
Theo sighed. "Look. I need to know if it was something I did. Or didn't do."
Krem shoveled a forkful of bacon into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "The Chief hasn't really said much to me, to be honest. I wish he would. He went Tal-Vashoth for us." He prodded at a pile of eggs and looked disgusted. "I don't know what to think about that. I'm grateful, but… shit. Tal-Vashoth. That's big."
Theo nodded. "Thanks," he said and headed for the stairs. But Josephine was on her way down, and she had that smile that clearly said she needed to talk and it would not be pleasant. He sighed; he couldn't avoid the inevitable forever, so he took a seat at another table and waved her over.
"Leliana told me what transpired on the Storm Coast," she began. "I regret not going and being able to speak with Bull and this Gatt myself."
Theo sighed. "Bull had made up his mind from the beginning," he said.
"If you'd brought more troops…"
He could see her calculating the numbers, probably going off of what Leliana had reported. "But we didn't bring more troops; this was supposed to be an in and out mission. We had no way of knowing how things would turn," he said.
"We needed that alliance," Josephine said.
Theo rubbed his eyes and tried not to scream. "Why? What would it have accomplished, aside from us being able to say we allied with the Qunari? Is this really a question of what we needed, or about the prestige we wanted?"
Her eyes narrowed. "You were in command."
"No, I wasn't. This was a Ben-Hassrath mission. We hired Bull and the Chargers, remember?" he snapped. "They weren't volunteer soldiers. They work for us, but they can leave any time the terms and pay aren't to their liking."
"Fine. We hired a Ben-Hassrath agent and his mercenaries," Josephine said. "If he's now considered Tal-Vashoth, he's no longer Ben-Hassrath. Looks like the terms have changed."
Theo shoved his chair back. "If you're unhappy with what Bull's done for the Inquisition, and you doubt his loyalty or ability to keep serving, then you fire him," he snapped. He stormed up the stairs to his room and slammed the door. Dorian was still in bed, sipping tea and nursing his residual sickness. Theo flopped down and buried his head under the pillow and shouted into it. Then he lay there for a bit, head still under the pillow until Dorian lifted a corner.
"Feel better?" he asked sardonically.
"Not really," Theo grumbled. "You?"
Dorian shook his head. "Oddly, no. I hope you don't think I'm a dreadful bore?"
Theo shook his head. He sighed. "I know the Storm Coast got fucked up. But there's nothing we can do about it now."
Dorian chuckled. "You really must give up this self-flagellating guilt complex of yours," he said, and Theo glared at him. "I'm serious. You drag yourself through the mud over things you can't control. You are the Inquisitor, but you're still human."
Theo sighed and sat up. "Try telling that to any number of the people disappointed with me right now," he grumbled. "They weren't there; there was no right choice. Either way we were going to lose people."
"That's war," Dorian said simply. He rubbed Theo's shoulders, massaging the knots of tension that seemed to have taken up permanent residence. "You can't bear the brunt of this, and you can't feel guilty because the Bull is feeling guilty. It solves nothing."
Theo slumped back into Dorian, who grunted slightly. He craned his neck around to look up at Dorian, and smiled. "You're right. As usual. I'm not sure what I'd do without you around."
"Probably wither away from loneliness," Dorian said, and they both laughed.
The tavern was a powder keg of emotions; Josephine paced and glared, and Leliana lurked in the shadows reading letters and writing notes to send out. Even she and Josephine weren't talking. By late afternoon Theo could hardly stand it anymore. He tugged a cloak on and ducked out a back door by the stable. The outside air was refreshing, and he hadn't realized how stuffy the inn was. Besides, he wanted to see Halamshiral by daylight. News of the city burning had reached the Free Marches when he still called Ostwick home. The elves in nearby city states had been confused: rise and rebel in retribution, or understand it as a warning?
Of course the nobles had their reasons for doing it. Everyone had a reason for everything, when it came down to it. But so many had died, innocent as well as guilty, and for what? For an Empress to keep her throne, only to have it nearly stolen from under her?
In a way, Corypheus was a preferable enemy, Theo mused. At least he had one objective, and there were no games involved. The only guessing was wondering where he would strike next. Even then it was growing easier to deal with, as the Inquisition's reach grew ever longer and stronger. If they could just root out Celene's would-be assassin before the ball they would strike yet another blow to the enemy.
Theo walked the streets of the city with his hood up. He felt eyes on him with each step he took, but whenever he turned to look, he saw no one. He'd tried to grab the shoddiest cloak he could find, but even that was finery by the standards of the struggling city. Gradually he came to a more burned out section of the city, and thought he may have reached an unspoken boundary. He felt the glares as he stared down a street lined with charred buildings. He took a deep breath and walked down it.
He happened upon several elves there. They lounged in doorways and glared suspiciously, or huddled away from him when he passed. "Fucking shem," someone muttered, and Theo found it hard to be offended, being in their territory as he was.
"You lost, shem?" a female elf called. She had long brown hair that blew in the wind and narrowed, suspicious brown eyes. She wore a ragged apron with a dishrag tucked in at her waist. Theo looked up at the burned sign over her head. Another tavern.
He shrugged. "Not anymore. You got ale?"
She glared at him. "Not if you're only trying to patronize me."
"I just want a drink," he said evenly. "I have coin."
She appraised him. "I can see that." She sighed. "You won't be the first oddity I've seen all day. Come on in before the Qunari drinks every last keg we have."
Theo wasn't sure if he felt nervous or elated that the Iron Bull was here. It would be a chance to try talking about what had happened, away from the prying eyes and ears of their companions. But he wasn't sure that Bull wanted to talk. The elf girl was leading Theo inside the dim tavern now, and he knew it would be rude to turn back so he swallowed his pride and followed her.
Bull was lounging, taking up an entire corner just by himself. The few other patrons and servants gave him a wide berth, and he seemed to enjoy it. The elf girl, however, sauntered right up to him and perched on his knee. "Found you a friend," she said, reclining against his chest.
"You know each other?" Theo asked. He'd seen Bull flirt with the tavern girls back at Skyhold… and in any city or town they were in. But it was always casual; this seemed deeper somehow.
"I was stationed here in Orlais when I started the Chargers," Bull explained. "Met Eris here, but haven't seen her since I joined up with the Inquisition." Theo stood before him awkwardly, unsure of how to respond. Bull seemed more cheerful than he had since the Storm Coast. Maybe it was Eris, maybe it was all the alcohol. Bull sighed. "Take a seat."
Eris got up to get Theo a drink; when she brought it back and set it down, she returned to the counter to allow them a chance to talk. "Why did Gatt keep calling you Hissrad?" Theo asked after a moment of tense silence.
"It means illusionist. Or more essentially… liar," Bull said. He sighed. "My old Tamassran would shit herself if she found out that one of her kids went Tal-Va-fucking-shoth," he said at last, taking one of the shots lined up on the table in front of him.
"You weren't exactly following the Qun to the letter before all of this," Theo pointed out, sipping at the weak and bitter ale.
"That's not the point," Bull said, glowering at him with his single eye. "The Qun… it gave a me place and a purpose. Without the Qun I don't know what I have anymore."
"Because the Inquisition didn't give you any of that either?" Theo snapped. "You told me when we met that you wanted to join the Inquisition because you thought we did good work. Was that just another one of your illusions?"
Bull swore and downed another shot. "You wouldn't get it."
Theo nodded. "You're right. I have no idea what it means to have no place or purpose in this world. No non-Qunari could possibly get it." He was on a roll today; first Josephine, and now he Bull. The Inquisition was going insane. He wished they'd never heard of the red lyrium smuggling to begin with. He downed the rest of his ale; it was bitter and hit his stomach hard. He dropped a small bag of coins on the table and got up. "Enjoy wallowing, Bull," Theo said and headed for the door.
"You forgot your cloak," Eris called after him.
Theo shook his head. "Give it to someone who needs it," he told her. "And the coin on the table… take it. Keep it, hand it out, whatever you need to do." He headed out the door. Dusk was falling and several elves were out in the streets watching him. He glanced back; Eris was in the doorway, and he saw her shake her head ever so slightly.
He found his way back to the less destroyed section of the city. "Inquisitor? A word?" He jumped, startled by Florianne melting out of the shadows with two de Chalons guards lurking behind her.
"Your Grace. You startled me," he said with a smile even as his heart pounded. He was irritated; he'd been so angry with Bull and Josephine and the whole situation in Halamshiral that he was unaware of his surroundings. "Do you make it a habit to wander the streets of the city at dusk?"
"Not always, but it was of utmost importance that I speak with you alone," she said. "You keep impressive company, but my words are for you alone." She glanced around and dropped her voice. "I fear there is a plot afoot to assassinate the Empress at the ball."
Theo nodded. "You've confirmed what we suspect as well," he confessed.
Florianne's eyes were worried beneath her mask. "While she was not officially invited to the peace talks, Empress Celene's former lover, Briala, has made little secret of her intentions to be present. She and the other elves of Halamshiral have much reason to see her dead."
From Theo's limited experience the elves of Halamshiral were tired and wary, but he supposed that, given enough motivation, anyone could feel the need to act aggressively. "Have you made the Empress's security aware of this?" he asked. "While I appreciate your confidence, it's not necessarily my place to get involved in this manner."
Florianne opened her mouth to speak, but there were heavy footfalls behind them. Theo spun around, but it was only Bull. "Grand Duchess, may I present The Iron Bull?" Theo said, remembering his manners, though he was still irritated with Bull.
Florianne nodded politely and Bull just tilted his chin at her in acknowledgement. "Boss. I've been an ass."
"That's an understatement," Theo said, but he fought to hide a smile and reveal just how relieved he was that Bull was actually speaking to him again.
Bull sighed. "It's not something I ever expected, you know? I…" His voice trailed off and he tensed. Theo started to ask him something, but Bull waved his hand for silence. Then he wheeled around just as the first knife-wielding man leapt from the shadows, growling something in Qunlat.
More emerged. Florianne screamed. Bull shouted for them to run and Theo didn't question it. He unceremoniously grabbed Florianne's arm and took off. She fumbled to pick up her skirts, but they'd only made it down one alley when she tripped and sprawled over the dirty ground. Theo swore under his breath and helped her up, but by then shadowy figures were closing in. The waning light of day made them hard to discern. His left hand tingled strangely; he rarely thought of his mark anymore, and yet it had picked one of the worst times to act up.
He held up his glowing hand. "Stand down," he ordered. "I am the Inquisitor, and this is the Grand Duchess Florianne de Chalons." Next to him Florianne had slipped a wicked and tiny dagger from her sleeve and brandished it.
Their assailants laughed. "This is no place for nobles," one said, grabbing at Florianne. She slashed at his arm. He swore and before she could act again he pulled back and hit her in the face. She crumpled to the ground.
Theo knew that custom dictated that he should defend Florianne; but with what? He'd gone out walking without his bow; even if he had it the quarters were too close to get any good shot. He had a knife, but they'd see him go for it. All he had was his mark, but oddly, the band didn't seem intimidated by the supernatural green glow. He glanced around and spotted an opening in the group of shrouded men. He reached for Florianne's hand and helped her to her feet.
"If you'd like coin I can procure it for you," he said evenly. "What's happened in this city is terrible, and we can work on getting resources to help rebuild."
"That's what they all promise," another man said. "We're tired of pretty talk."
Theo didn't think. He grabbed Florianne's arm and flung her at the break in the wall of attackers. She scooped up her skirts this time and ran ahead. Theo followed, keeping the end of the alley in sight, when yet another shadowy figure stepped out from an alcove and blocked his path. The man said nothing and Theo didn't have a chance to fight him, nor to turn and see his pursuers before a searing pain shot through the back of his head. A white flash blinded him and he thought his eyeballs were going to pop right out of their sockets, while his teeth rattled in his jaws. His breath caught in his throat as he slumped forward and then hit the ground.
Author's Note: Karebear was having a bad week, so this chapter's for her :) Also, Eris appears with Bull courtesy of Karebear and her story "Fight to Hold" (check it out, it's Bull/OC and pretty awesome!)
Many many thanks to Spazapho, karebear, Ioialoha (who made mention of Theo's self-flagellation thing-I loved it, had to work it in as a Dorian line it was so good!), redrosemary, SteveGarbage, Kaeberlily, mille libri, CynderJenn, and FenZev, and everyone else, as well as those following/favoriting. I appreciate the support for the story so very much!