The Hinterlands
The Hinterlands was one huge battlefield. Every corner they turned mages and templars were fighting one another and innocent people were stuck in the middle. To Ela, it felt as if the entire area was crumbling to pieces. Even the air felt charged and tense. The Crossroads had been the first mess they had come across, but they managed to quell the fighting, bringing about a relative safety to the area.
As told, Mother Giselle was there waiting for her. She was a soft-spoken woman with a kind face, who urged her to go to Val Royeaux to try and change the Chantry's opinion of the Inquisition. Initially, Ela faced the idea with skepticism, the Chantry preferred to argue over who was guilty for the Divine's death, rather than try and stop the Breach. It seemed to her that they were better off without the political downpour a Chantry alliance brought with it. Yet, the more the mother talked, the harder it was to brush off her words as nonsense. Gaining the Chantry's support would help the Inquisition build numbers and influence; yet, the thought of heading to what was basically a templar hive made her skin crawl.
Ela groaned inwardly as she kneeled next to their small campfire. No matter where she went there seemed to be no lack of templars. Pulling a folded parchment from her jacket pocket, she pored over the map of the Hinterlands she had been dutifully working on all day. The dim firelight threw deceiving shadows across the weathered parchment, forcing her to strain her eyes as she reviewed it.
For only being in the area one day, they had found more problems than they could solve in a week. They had discovered four rifts, a mage stronghold, a templar camp, and a group of bandits that attacked anyone that got too close. The only gains they had made was establishing two camps and making contact with the Horse Master. Who, of course, had a list as long as her arm for them to complete before he would offer the Inquisition any assistance. Running back and forth all day had grated on Ela's few remaining nerves, but she calmed herself with the thought of how her efforts would help the refugees. The moment she saw how bad things were she decided she would do whatever she had to in order to alleviate some of their suffering.
A cool breeze snapped through the trees and sent their campfire thrashing as it struggled to keep its hold on the logs it greedily devoured.
"So, Ela, what's your story?" Varric asked from across the fire. He was wiping down his crossbow, Bianca, a content look on his face. "You're the Herald's sister and a mercenary captain, but, other than that, no one seems to know anything."
She pulled her mind from the map to glance around their camp to ensure the others were asleep before looking back at the dwarf. He seemed a decent type. For a majority of their trip, he had worked at lessening the tension between her and the Seeker, to no avail of course. Cassandra seemed set on holding a grudge against her.
"Thats the way I like it," she replied folding her legs under her, "I'd rather have all the attention on Aiden so I can take care of his enemies while they are distracted."
"Well that's one way to keep him safe," the dwarf chuckled, "Though I doubt you'll be able to remain undetected with a near seven-foot-tall Qunari shadowing your every step."
Ela laughed despite herself. "You have a point."
She was not surprised to find that Varric was growing on her. He wasn't like any of the other dwarves she had meet. They were all stern and focused and bearded; whereas, Varric was polite, charming, and completely clean shaven. Save for the out pour of chest hair he seemed to have. Even better, he had the most outrageous stories. She could not help but think how she would have tried recruiting him into her band if she had meet him before the Breach. But then again...where would that put him now? She threw the thought from her head. Melancholy would do nothing to help her rest. "What about you, Varric? What's your story before Kirkwall?"
"Uh uh, no fair, you never answered my question." He protested with a grin.
She leaned backward thinking of an answer. "Mmmm, my story...my story is that I'm a lowly mercenary captain, who's spent most of her life with her brother on her back avoiding templars. I'm really not all that interesting."
"Oh, I think not." Varric assured her. "You've spent most of your life caring for your brother and keeping him from the Circle, while simultaneously leading a mercenary band? You have to have some good stories. Nothing as great as 'My brother is the Herald of Andraste' I'm sure, but good stories nonetheless."
She clicked her tongue with a smile at the assertion, thinking of all the wild stories and unusual jobs she worked with her mercenary band. "Well once, while I was trying to secure the Bloody Suns a job, Aiden released a pen full of pigs into the village. The smell of shit was everywhere and the pigs trampled a field of crops." She leaned back thinking of the day and how warm the sun had been, how relaxed they had been. "Kata and the others had to go into the pen to drag Aiden out. For whatever reason, Aiden thought it a game. He made them chase him round and round the pen, all my men were slipping and falling into the muck."
Varric gave a throaty laugh. "I can't imagine they were happy about that."
"No, no they weren't. Neither were the villagers. They ended up chasing us out." She stretched out her arms over her head with a grin. "Oh, Kata was the filthiest and the angriest. He was covered horn to toe in pig shit. He wouldn't even talk to Aiden for three weeks."
"Well, Qunari's aren't known for their pleasant dispositions."
"I would have never guessed." She said smiling.
Varric placed Bianca across his lap and sighed looking up at the star-studded sky.
"You should head to bed, we've much to do in the morning. Watchtowers to place, rams to hunt, demons to slay."
"Horse Masters to appease," he added standing "You're right though. See you in the morning."
"See you in the morning." She parroted back as he sauntered to his tent.
She watched from the corner of her eye till he tucked himself inside his tent before folding up her map and turning to face the farmlands with the fire at her back. Taking a deep breath in, she let the crisp air fill her lungs. It was pleasant, clean and warm, not like the air in Haven that stung whenever she breathed in. The camp was blessedly silent as well. Only the chirp of crickets and the crackle of the fire pierced the evening. No clatter of swords here, or the crackle of magic. Crossing her legs, she relaxed herself and slipped into the black recesses of her mind that the spirit held.
Keeping herself and the spirit separated was always a daunting task. The mental barriers only kept it at bay for so long and did almost nothing to keep it quiet. It was a constant nuisance. Pressing against the barrier ever so often, looking for chink, testing her limits, reminding her that one day she would need it.
Despite its annoying behavior, it rarely forced itself on her. It simply sat, waiting for a weak moment, a moment when she would agree to give in. She had agreed before in a moment when she had been sure she would die. A moment when she had wanted to die.
As Ela worked she could feel the spirit creep closer slowly. It was weak because of its distance from the sword, but it still managed to keep a majority of its strength.
'You left him alone,' the spirit hissed sinisterly, 'He nearly died there and you left him alone in a pit of vipers.' The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. The spirit was constantly trying to get a rise out of her, to twist her to its will. 'Surrounded by templars, corrupted mages, and murderers. You're a sore excuse for a protector, girl.'
She did her best to ignore it.
'He could die there and you'd be nowhere in sight. Nowhere to help him. Just like the Conclave. Useless." The spirit reminded her. "Though, if you died here, I'd move on to him and I could help him more than you ever could.'
"You would only ruin him," Ela snapped mindlessly, "and yourself."
It scoffed at her from the darkness.
"You are not as infallible as you believe, demon." She cursed herself for responding. It was pointless to argue with it, but it had angered her.
'Spirit!' It rebutted hastily, slamming against the barrier. It caused a dull pain in the back of her skull and she was thankful it wasn't stronger. 'I am no lowly stalker of the Fade.'
"So, you say." She scoffed back, knowing it would irritate the spirit. "Yet, you cannot remember what you were. Only the purpose a hundred-year-old mage forced on you."
'Purpose is all I need to keep myself whole. I may not remember what I was, but I know what I must do. And I won't let a foolish girl like you hinder me. Those before you would have been better protectors. They were innocents and pure.'
"Innocents you let die."
'I could do nothing to save them.' It said solemnly.
Ela put the last touches on the barrier and gave herself a mental pat on the back. Even with the spirits taunts, she had managed to restrengthen it to her liking.
'Will you leave now? Run back to those templars to play the good mage?'
She hated the way it said it. Like she had a choice in the matter. "You know as well as I do I have no choice."
'So you say.'
"So I say," she growled, angry it had used her own rebuttal, "now begone demon I have to sleep."
It laughed deeply. "I think not, foolish girl."
Ela's mind recoiled from the milky black depths and came slamming back to reality. Her eyes shot open to the stinging rays of the pinks and reds of the early morning sun. The night was all but gone, along with any prospect of sleep.
Her legs ached, her neck was stiff, and her bladder was near bursting. She groaned as she stretched her neck out, rubbing at the sore muscles. It had taken longer than she had expected. The spirit had to have known, it was just a cruel jab to try and weaken her. To try and force her back to Haven.
Standing, she stretched her limbs and bounced on her heels, waking her aching joints. Her eyelids felt like lead, but she knew there would be no rest before they headed out. It was a cruel jab indeed.
Ela yawned as they made their way through the alcove of trees. The breeze rustled the leaves overhead soothingly and the sun provided them with a pleasant warmth that was none existent in Haven. Letting herself reveal in the single-minded peacefulness, she cleared her mind of her sorrows and enjoyed the peace.
The crunch of leaves slowed as they came to a stop. They seemed to have an unspoken agreement among themselves; whenever they came to a pleasantly peaceful spot, they either made camp, or simply took a moment to enjoy it.
Ela stooped to pick up a particularly gangly elfroot when she heard the soft steps of Solas approach her. Glancing sideways she shoved the elfroot into her bag and stood to face him. Her gaze was filled with suspicion she knew, but she found it hard to trust the mage. He was a mystery greater than herself.
He spoke of no home, no family, no friends. Varric had his stories and his friends from Kirkwall and Cassandra had her faith and her own family back in Nevarra. But Solas. He talked of nothing but his Fade walking. It unnerved and fascinated her.
"If you do not mind, I have a question for you." Solas voiced moving to her side.
"You don't have to ask permission."
"Very well then," he said clearing his throat. "Why did you keep your brother from the Circle?"
The question caught her off guard. Why? Because he would have been killed for a family curse was the honest answer. Because he was too young to understand why his family wanted him dead, another. Because she loved him too much to watch him suffer. "I don't have to tell you what mages suffer through. Had he been thrown into the Circle I never would have forgiven myself."
Solas seemed to consider her answer before replying quickly. "You are not a mage. Why does it bother you? Why help him?"
"B-because what they go through is wrong," she said her voice rising slightly, "To be locked up in a tower and only let out when you are to do work for someone who fears you isn't right. Aiden doesn't deserve that. If I could lock myself away in order for him to be free for the rest of his life I would. I'd do anything to keep him safe."
Solas leaned on his staff giving her a completive look. "You care for him a great deal."
"For some people family is more important than anything." Cassandra interjected quickly. Ela turned her head as fast as a whip to face the woman who stood under an oak, arms crossed over her chest. The sudden answer had seemed to gain the entire groups attention.
The Seeker fidgeted at the sudden increase of eyes. She turned her head to look Ela in the eyes. "I cannot agree with what you did in Haven," she said flatly, "but...I can understand why you did it."
"Aiden is very important to me. He's one of the few family members I have left." Ela replied dryly. "I'm glad you can understand why I did, what I did. One day, I hope we will be able to understand one another better."
"Likewise."
An awkward silence fell over the group and it prickled in the air. It seemed to poke Ela all around to ensure she could not ignore it.
"Well, that was...something." Varric stated with a smile.
"Indeed it was." Solas added smirking.
"Hey while we're asking questions, what's with you and the qunari?" Varric asked. "Are you friends, or is he warming your bed at night?"
"Varric!" Cassandra chided, visible disgust across her face.
The dwarf ignored the Seeker's chiding and stared at her with an expectant face.
Ela choked back a laugh and the tension in the air seemed to vanish. "He is one of my oldest friends," she laughed, "but if you ask him I'm his Kadan, whatever that is."
"Well, that's not as interesting as a lover, but it's something." Varric said shrugging.
"Why did you want to know?" Ela asked, grinning against her better will.
The rouge shrugged again. "I thought it would give me material for something new." The Seeker grunted in disgust from the side, but otherwise made no comment.
"Am I to be in one of your books?"
"Hmm, maybe," Varric answered as they headed out, "I couldn't tell you till it's done though. That would spoil all my fun."
Ela smiled against her will for the second time.
Aiden sat crossed legged on his bed, an old tome spread across his lap, and a plate of food at his side. The sun had set long ago and he had illuminated the cabin with a few candles that threw dancing shadows around him. Sleep pulled at his eyes. The tome was doing little to keep him awake, but it was one of the few things he could do while he waited for his sister to return. Her letter had stated that she would be back today and he had waited anxiously for her arrival ever since.
She had only been gone a week and three days, but it felt like an eternity. He would have been worried if she didn't write as often as she did. Almost every other day the Spymaster had a letter from his sister.
He had done any and everything he could to distract himself from her impending arrival. Training, reading, running, he had even learned how to make a few new potions, but nothing seemed to keep his attention. Somehow, he always ended up back at the gates, counting the wild nugs, while he waited for her. Kata had caught him more than a few times and had set him back to work with a disapproving grunt.
Kata was anxious too; he could see it even if no one else could. Ela had never left him behind before. The two were closer than he liked to imagine. The Qunari watched the gate as much as Aiden did. They had taken up residence in a cabin outside of Haven off to the right hidden behind a group of trees. Kata often sat outside between the tall pines, watching the gates as he cleaned his weapons. And if he wasn't doing that, he was following Evsa. He seemed sure that she was up to no good.
Lilith snored quietly from her cot and Aiden envied her. The idea of sleep was beyond tempting. He rubbed at his eyes and tried to focus back on the wavering characters in the tome. Staves, and auras, and focal points, he was too tired to make sense of any of it.
His head lolled forward every time he let his guard down. He was sure that his battle was close to an end, when the jiggle of the door handle pulled him from sleeps tight grip. Her mane of hair was the first thing he saw, and he leapt from his seat to hug her, sending both his plate, and his tome clattering to the floor.
Ela greeted him with open arms. She smelled like dirt, blood, and honey, but the hug felt like home. When he pulled away, he could tell she hadn't slept well. Her eyes were heavy and dark circles shadowed them.
"I missed you," Aiden said taking her pack. "What was the Hinterlands like? I heard there was a dragon there. Did you see it? Did you bring me anything?"
"Only for a moment," Ela smiled. "It flew right over our heads and gave such a great bellow! It was beautiful! And check the bottom of my pack." Aiden's face pulled into a large grin as he ravaged through her pack. She had books, scrolls, knives, maps, notes, and at the bottom was a round shape wrapped in a threadbare cloth. Aiden yanked it out his heart pumping. He unwrapped the ball hurriedly revealing an onyx black sphere.
"Where'd you find it?" he asked holding it to the dim firelight. The orb reflected his face back at him, the tiny flames of the candles painting him in an orange light. "There isn't a single scratch on it."
"Close to the place I saw the dragon. There was onyx everywhere and I found that. Thought you'd like it, since all your little baubles got lost or stolen after camp got raided."
"Thank you." He rolled the stone in his hands sitting back on his bed. It made the waiting worth it.
"Ahh, good to see ya Boss." Lilith yawned from her cot. Her blond hair was a tangled mess and looked like it belonged in a tree rather than on a person's head.
Ela nodded to her in acknowledgment before plopping onto her cot and kicking off her boots. "It's soo good to be back," she lilted laying back. "How've you all been? Where's Evsa? And Kata?"
Lilith gave another long yawn, stretching across her cot. "Kata's watching Evsa, watch the mages, who are drinking in the tavern," she informed, "He still doesn't trust her."
Ela grunted in understanding while staring at the tome that he had discarded on the floor. "How's your studying going?"
Aiden groaned as he collected the tome. Moving to his bed, he slammed the book shut sending a plume of fine dust into the air. "It's boring," he coughed fanning away the dust, "this one's all about the importance of a properly balanced staff and their focal points and auras. Evsa let me look at hers to get an idea of what it was talking about cause my staves old and bent."
"Why do you think that I had you read it?" His sister implored.
Aiden raised his shoulder in a shrug, then stopped, it was another test. "To understand how a staff should feel?" He guessed. Ela shook her head. "To know what a staff's aura does?" Another no. Aiden sighed racking his brain, trying to remember what else was in the tome.
As he thought, Kata shoved the door open with three pints and a fistful of bread in hand. His face pulled into the smallest of smiles when his crimson eyes landed on Ela and she returned it with a twinkle in her eye. Nodding to her, he and passed the pints between himself, Ela, and Lilith.
Ela thanked him quietly and smiled as she took a long sip. Aiden watched with envy wondering when Ela would let him try beer. He was fourteen, basically a full-grown man.
"Aiden?"
"Ummm, so I can be ready for a new staff?" He guessed snapping back from his daydream.
Ela's eyes light up at him from over her pint. "You'll be coming with me to the Hinterlands next time." She said between sips. "There are Rifts everywhere, demons, fighting; people are starving, it's dangerous Aiden. The staff you have for training, it isn't good enough, so…I'm having a staff made for you, and that," she said pointing to the onyx sphere, "is going to be used in it. I'm going to the blacksmith to have it made in the morning, so no run tomorrow, just meet at the usual spot for training."
"I will." He said nodding his head a toothy grin overtaking his face.
She nodded at him with a smile and turned to Kata. The two talked about Evsa and her loyalty and the dangers of staying with the Inquisition, but Aiden hardly listened to a word of it. He was fixated on the idea of training with his sister. Even when the others settled into their cots and blew out the candles his mind continued to race. He dreamed of fighting at Ela's side, clad in green mage robes with a black staff in hand. It was no sword, but it was his. They fought back demons and bandits and he helped her heal. It was everything he wanted. Almost.
He woke with the sun the next day, eager to train. His sister's cot laid empty, her pack resting where her head had been the night before. The sight of her empty bed had him scrambling to get ready. Pulling on his training clothes, he raced to get his breakfast, scarfed it down, and rushed to their training spot through the deep snow.
Where he expected to find his sister, instead he found Solas. The mage was staring up at the Breach with his hands folded behind his back. His face was set in a stony gaze, regal and completive. He turned at his arrival.
"Your sister told me you tend to rise late." Solas stated with a smile. "I'm glad to see you here so early."
Aiden narrowed his eyes at the elf. "Where's my sister?" He asked plainly.
The mage smirked. "She neglected to tell you of your new training arrangements? No matter. I will be training you from now on and your sister will assist as she sees fit," he pulled Aiden's training staff from the snow and handed it to him, "We will start today's training with-"
"Ela isn't joining us today?"
"No, she thought it better if I trained with you alone first." Solas answered calmly. "I have extensive knowledge of the Fade. With some work I may be able to help you better control the Mark."
Aiden took the staff gingerly, his face downcast. The excitement that had fueled him earlier seemed to dissipate into the air around him. He had hoped Ela would finally train him herself. Yet, it seemed like she had cast him to the side again.
"Come now," Solas said taking his own staff in hand, "we have much to do today. We will start with the fundamentals so I can see where we should begin."
They trained till the sun hung low over the mountains. Training with Solas was completely different from training with Ela. Solas was patient, and explained every spell to the letter that he wanted him to cast. When he slipped and fell from swinging his staff to quickly, the mage showed him how to properly steady himself while casting. He even gave him more breaks and a satchel of snacks for when his stomach demanded attention.
By the end of the day his muscles did not ache as badly and he left in better mood than he had expected. He followed Solas as they made their way back to Haven. Rounding a bend, they found a group of recruits, swords in hand, practicing combat with Ela at the head, hollering at them with every mistake.
"What's she doing?" He asked aloud.
"From what I understand she is training recruits as a form of payment." Solas replied without stopping.
"Payment to who?" He struggled to keep up with the mage and stared back at his sister. She had her arms crossed against her chest and a scowl on her face.
Solas took a moment before answering and Aiden grew more anxious every second that passed. "Well, everyone seems to have a different answer. If you ask some, they will simply say the Inquisition. If you ask others, they will say the Commander."
"The Knight-Commander?" Aiden had heard a lot about Commander Cullen since he'd been in Haven. The man was from Kirkwall, where the Mage and Templar war had begun, and he had been one of Meredith's templars. The information made him hate the man. Templars were the entire reason he and his sister could not be with their family. And this one had played a role in starting the war.
"Just Commander now, "Solas corrected him, "He left the Templar order."
"Doesn't mean he isn't still a templar." Aiden hissed. "He could be trying to trick us."
The taller mage looked down at him from the corner of his eye. "For someone so young, you hold a lot of anger towards Templars."
"They are the reason all this is happening."
Solas chuckled lightly. "I cannot disagree with you. The Chantry's tight grip on the mages caused the war and they used the templars to make that grip." Solas explained. "But, perhaps, not all of them are part of the problem. Some have decided to help us try and stop the Breach. Even going so far as to leave the Chantry, or the Templar Order just as our Commander did."
"How do you know he really left?" Aiden asked with suspicion.
The mage smiled at him. "I see you resemble your sister in more than just appearance," he said. "Suspicion is a healthy trait to have, but it can hinder you if it is too strong. Think on this, if the Commander really is still loyal to the Templar Order, he would have tried to drag you back to them by now, but he has not; instead of being suspicious of him, think of what you could learn from him."
It was an odd concept to consider. Learn from a templar? The people his sister warned him about as early as he could remember. The killers of mages young and old. It made no sense to him and yet Solas' words echoed in his head for the rest of the day.