Prompt 1: *Codex Entry: The Dalish take on a constellation, from the "The Dragon Age Weekly Writing Prompts" Reddit thread, 10/9/2021.
Some say that figure trapped in the sky is a woman, forever safe from the one who lusted after her and murdered her father. Others think the points of light are remnants of the Old God of Mystery, a sign Razikale continues to watch over the world.
The shemlen's tales are far kinder than the truth.
Imagine a mirror, warped by the ages, clouded by dust and corruption. What would you see in that mirror? Would the reflection be reality?
No. In such a mirror, the truth is distorted, the light plays tricks, and the shadows lie. This is just one consequence of Fen'Harel's betrayal, of his vile trickery that forever sealed our gods away. But this, too, is a tale of love.
The one the shemlen call Eluvia is obscured from us, and us from him. You know the stories of Dirthamen and Falon'Din, how the brothers were inseparable. But Dirthamen's shadow is fortunate. Falon'Din gets the chance to be with the People, at least one time, as he guides us to the Beyond. But Falon'Din's reflection was never connected to the People by death — he was connected through blood, through life. Just as he was bound to his brother, our people were bound to him.
So desperate he was to return to his people, he pressed close to the Veil and did everything he could to reach across. He loved the People so dearly, he was willing to sacrifice the connection to his shadow for the chance to come back to us. But the Veil distorts reflections like a warped mirror, and the People did not understand what it was they saw, what they heard. The secrets twisted into the unholy, and the knowledge was tainted by the darkness, and Dirthamen did not realize until too late what his blood interpreted as truth.
The unfortunate reality is that no one can truly claim to know Dirthamen any longer. The disciples are long bound in Silence, and the whispers across the Veil are madness to our ears. The tragedy of Dirthamen is in the destruction of his most cherished people, for he destroyed those he loved in his anguished attempts to return to them; and he yet remains in darkness, mourning the loss of his blood.
Regardless of belief or intent, even an act of devotion can destroy the very people you love. Do not be fooled by the reflection in the mirror; do not be trapped where shadow dwells.
—Deshanna Istimaethoriel, Keeper of the Lavellan clan
As told to Li-Asra of Lavellan as a child. He still chose Dirthamen's vallaslin.
A/N: This legend is part of the canon of Where Shadow Dwells, which can be found on my AO3 account.