A book with ancient Elvhan on the spine stood out to him and he pulled it off the shelf. Rubeus tried to open the book but it would not budge.
"Some are locked," Fritigern said, his knees up to his chest as he flipped back a few pages to start this section from the beginning. Rubeus examined the book further trying to figure out how to open the book.
The lock was complex and required a key to open. Rubeus sighed and put the book back.
As soon as he placed it back on the shelf, the door to the cabin opened. Fritigern didn't budge, and it wasn't who they expected. It was Varric.
Rubeus looked at Varric with an irritated expression.
"Oh," Varric said and chuckled. "Hello."
"Good afternoon," Rubeus replied politely. "What are you doing here?"
"N-nothing," Varric said at the door and nervously whistled. "What are you doing in here?" Varric asked.
"Reading fiction," Rubeus replied nonchalantly.
Fritigern said nothing but glanced over the top of his book at Varric.
"I saw Cassandra speaking with a white-haired elf near the crew's quarters," Rubeus responded, taking the copy of hard in Hightown from the shelf and flipping to the third chapter. Varric narrowed his eyes at the Inquisitor.
"Hmmm—- you should sign a copy of your latest book for the Captain when we get back to Skyhold." Rubeus mused, casually.
"Well, of course, anything for my undying fans. I'm surprised you're in here though. With a friend. I thought no one was going to be here." Varric said and closed the door. He had picked the lock, but nicked his finger on the mechanism and licked the blood from it and pinched it to stop bleeding.
"I was brought here by the first mate. If anyone has permission to be here, it would be him." Rubeus responded, flipping another page in the book. "You don't have a crew member with you and I didn't notice a key in your hand. It raises a lot of questions."
"I was hoping to find the letter I sent to Michela. Looks like I've been caught." Varric said. "Alright, ask away," Varric said and sat down.
"The original one you sent when you said you had a contact that could help us or a different letter?" Rubeus asked.
Fritigern sat up and stared at Varric cautiously.
"No, my first letter. My apology." Varric commented.
Rubeus put the book away on the shelf.
"I wouldn't mind seeing the letter myself. I should be looking over mail concerning a mission before it's sent out. I just prefer to let people have this privacy when speaking with old friends," Rubeus's tone remained casual and calm. The lack of emotional response, a cause for concern.
"Hey! I thought things were fine between us. Hell if we were in Kirkwall. I would grab my apology letter from her! We talked. I thought she was okay with me, but it looks like she wanted me on this ship after all. She's up to something, why else would she be reacting to every situation differently. It's like she's two different people and I know an actor when I see … see…. One." Varric said and was suddenly out of breath. "I think she's in trouble. I need to see if she left me a hidden code and maybe I just missed it." Varric said in defence of himself.
"I've already gotten in enough trouble already," Rubeus laughed.
"Inquisitor, we need to get the Captain," Fritigern said with concern.
"Maybe we should…" Rubeus said in agreement as he watched Varric sweat.
"What me? I'm…. whew…. I'm fine." Varric began to pant before he needed to sit down on the desk chair by the door. Michela's desk with letters scattered about in a chaotic mess. Stacks of letters held down by bottles of ink were open.
"Come on Varric, we're getting out of here," Rubeus stated
"Who leaves a desk like this on a ship?" Varric stated as he almost fell out of the chair. "I like berries," Varric commented as his eyes crossed.
Up in the wheelhouse, Captain Michela and Honey were together discussing details of the night shift. Cassandra and Fenris were hanging around the bottom of the stairs watching curiously. Once they finished talking, Michela emerged alone and headed down to the main deck.
"Minnie! Bring my dinner to the war room, I'm going to be working tonight." Michela called over to the cook.
"Right away Captain! Would you like some fresh coffee?" She asked. Michela was going to respond until she spotted Fenris and Cassandra staring at her.
"Sure, thank you." She said and waved Minnie off before crossing her arms at the two who blocked her path. "Can I help you?"
"The inquisitor said I should be reporting to you or Fritigern for what duties I have around the ship," Cassandra explained. "And I can not find your first mate anywhere."
"Good evening Captain, you look nice today," Fenris said pleasantly.
"Fenris was helping me look," Cassandra explained, as he nodded in agreement.
"Thank you, but you've already finished dinner? I must have lost track of time. Well, perhaps I can give you something to do. Oh! The whale was let go and it looked like he left some blood on the deck. Could you collect it for me?" Michela asked
"Collect the blood of a whale?" Fenris asked rather offended at the suggested task.
"Oh… well it's worth a lot. You know never mind I'll do it." Michela laughed it off. "Fritigern is probably doing some of his tasks if he disappeared. It's been a long day everyone needs to get some rest." Michela said before her expression turned serious and she looked towards the officers' deck.
"Is something wrong?" Cassandra asked.
"Someone's in my room," Michela said with a dark malicious glare and she stormed off up the stairs to the wheelhouse.
"HONEY!" She shouted. "Someone's in my cabin. Bring them to me." Michela ordered.
"Yes Captain," Honey responded. She paused before leaving the wheelhouse.
"Please," Michela added calmly. Honey nodded with a smile and left for the captain's quarters.
"Should I go with her?" Cassandra offered.
"Both of you go with her, Bring them to the main deck," Michela said and grabbed her Captain's hat. "We have a thief on board."
"Shit" Fritigern cursed, seeing the state of Varric. "He's been poisoned. This is bad."
"One of us should get him to the med bay while the other gets the captain," Rubeus suggested.
Varric couldn't move, let alone talk as the two men tried to drag him to the door. Standing in at the entrance were Honey, Cassandra and Fenris.
"What are you doing here?" Honey bellowed.
"Hello Honey." Fritigern waved innocently.
Rubeus peeked around from behind Fritigern with Varric in his arms.
"Varric's been poisoned!" Rubeus exclaimed.
"You are all coming with me to see the Captain, NOW!" Honey barked. "Fenris, Cassandra, help me escort these three."
"What were you thinking going into the captain's room?" Cassandra asked. Rubeus just threw Varric over his shoulder like a sack of flour and glared at Fritigern.
"Hey, I wasn't expecting your guy to trip the lock." Fritigern sighed and silently followed Honey as they were escorted to the main deck.
"We'll see how long he remains "my guy" after this," Rubeus replied dryly.
Michela waiting at the platform for the culprits to arrive. An audience already seated in battles and boxes watching in silence as they were marched to the deck like guilty prisoners.
"Well, well. Lookie what the cat dragged in. A couple of thieves." Michela said and crossed her arms. "Rubeus, Fritigern and Varric. Why am I not surprised? Your mercenary crew was far too conveniently placed. Honey. Clap them in Irons as I go investigate what they stole." Michela said and turned to walk away.
"Wait, Varric needs an antidote!" Rubeus expressed.
"He should have thought about that before breaking into my room! Let see how tough he is as he faces his nightmares." Michela snarled as she walked away. Rubeus let Honey cuff him with zero resistance and glared daggers at Fritigern.
Varric going pale as he knelt in the ground while Honey cuffed him.
"What!?" Fritigern states seeing Rubeus glower at him. "This was unexpected!"
"Can I have some water, mom?" Varric asked, Cassandra, catching him before he fell over.
"You've outdone yourself this time," Cassandra commented.
"Oh, he got nicked by the Captain's slice lock?" A crewman said pointing at Varric.
"Oh, how long do you reckon till he croaks?"
"I got 30 gold for 5 minutes. He's a dwarf."
"I would easily give him 10, you're on." The two started gambling and took out coin purses to put down.
"Do you think Varric is going to eat it?" Rubeus asked.
"I'm not sure, Michela designed the trapped lock herself. That's why." Fritigern said and looked to Honey who was listening. "That's why I would have stopped him if I knew he was going to attempt it. You can pick the lock, but there are three back up mechanisms to prevent breaking in. Varric tripped the poison lock." Fritigern explained.
"Any idea what poison it is? You are the poison master here," Rubeus questioned.
"I don't know what she used, she made that thing over seven years ago. We know better than to touch it." Fritigern said.
"She also made a point of warning me, I passed it along to Dorian but I just assumed Varric already knew better because of their previous interactions." Rubeus sighed.
"You people have a bad streak of luck," Fenris said, looking at Varric concerned.
"He probably deserves it this time," Cassandra commented. She kept hold of Varric, keeping him upright.
"I'm not going to disagree," Rubeus called out, eavesdropping on Cassandra and Fenris.
Soon, Michela returned and stood before them with her face pouted in annoyance. Standing there quietly looking at Varric.
"So, what were you looking for?" Michela asked and waved her hand over Varric. Cassandra let go as if some demon had taken over him.
"What are you doing?" Cassandra asked.
"Teaching him a lesson," Michela said as Varric's eyes cleared and he was forced up onto his feet from the magic. From his skin particles of blood poured out but soon disappeared into a sickly purple droplet of poison which floated in her palm. Varric gasped for air and scratched his skin where Michela had aggressively withdrew the poison.
"Oh, my gold." Complaints were heard.
"Silence! You Explain." Michela pointed at Rubeus first. He stared at Michela, looking her dead in the eyes. A deadly serious expression on his face.
"Fritigern wanted a book to read. I've read a lot of books. He wanted my opinion. I followed him to where the books were," Rubeus explained. Everyone looked at him in awe, at how ridiculous he sounded. Michela returned to his state with absolute severity.
"In respect of his privacy, I won't disclose why he wanted a novel," Rubeus replied.
"I don't care about that, I'll deal with him later. Mostly on how he was able to slip into my chambers without me noticing." Michela glare at Fritigern who smirked at her with a wink.
"Honey, slap him," Michela ordered.
"Yes captain," Honey replied. She approached Fritigern and aggressively struck him. The sound of her palm hitting the other Qunari's face echoed across the deck. It hurt too, as he nearly lost his balance.
"As for Varric, he mentioned something about a letter. But he was also poisoned, so I don't know how much of that is true or him under the influence," Rubeus said. His serious expression never wavered and his eyes never left the captain.
Michela rubbed her eyes aggravated, the sound of disgust comparable to the seeker.
"Honey, throw Fritigern into the brig. Take his clothes and find out what he has on him. Lock Varric to the medical bay bed. He's going to run a fever all night, let's hope I got enough out." Michela said and crossed her arms at Rubeus.
"You are going to come with me," Michela ordered. "I have some questions for you." Rubeus kept his eyes on Michela.
"Ask away then," he responded without flinching.
Michela led Rubeus to the Captain's Quarters surprisingly, she brought him to the bookshelf where she waited for him.
"How good is your ancient elvhan?" She asked.
"Better than most Dalish mages but far from perfect," Rubeus replied earnestly. "Why? I thought this was an interrogation about what happened, not my reading comprehension."
"You perused my books, yet you only touched this one," Michela said and pointed at the red bound sketchbook he looked at. "Why?" She asked plainly.
"Honestly?" Rubeus said, "Fritigern told me I'd find it interesting. I only read one page before I put it down."
"Was it that bad?" Michela asked rather hurt.
"It felt weirdly personal. I didn't want to continue with it further. I ended up reading Hard in Hightown… again," Rubeus laughed.
"Oh… you may go then," Michela said and crossed her arms.
"... that's it?" Rubeus replied looking very confused.
"Yeah, that's it. Fritigern is allowed to come in here, but he's supposed to ask first. Not break my lock." Michela sighed.
"Varric could learn a thing or two about breaking from him," Rubeus mused.
"Varric's an idiot and he's lucky this poison is so old because if I kept it fresh it would have killed him in 30 seconds. The door is locked, I feel no pity." Michela picked up hard in high town and walked over to the window. Then threw them all overboard.
"The book I had… where did you find it? Is it someone's journal?" Rubeus asked. A curious spark in his eye.
"It's MY sketchbook. It's not a journal." Michela said and sighed loudly "ugh~ it's my collection of victims that the Imperium has forgotten about. Elves, sympathizers and old magisters pushed out of their seats. People who wanted to change things, people who wanted families. They were murdered, banished and sacrificed for the greater good of Tevinter." Michela was upset, but a solemn expression proved it was for a different reason. Rubeus looked intrigued.
"I would be interested in reading more. With your permission of course," he replied.
Michela picked up the book and opened it to a page in the middle that was bookmarked. Hawke's portrait was in there, along with another. He looked familiar, stoic eyes and brown hair, but Michela flipped the page before Rubeus could get a good look at it.
"Wait, go back a few pages!" Rubeus demanded.
"Him?" Michela blinked and turned the page back to the man with long dreaded hair tied in a knot on the top of his head. There was a scar on his forehead and he bore a striking resemblance to an apostate elf he hadn't seen in a year.
"Who is this? He looks like someone I've met before…" Rubeus remarked.
"I don't even know if he's real. I met him in a dream." Michela said and traced his cheek. "He helped me…" Michela quickly shut the book.
"He's just… " Rubeus could not come up with what he wanted to say. "I think I know him?"
"You couldn't possibly know him, it was a spirit nothing more," Michela said and put it away.
"But I've seen him somewhere, I swear it!" Rubeus argued.
"He's not real… Wah!" The ship suddenly jolted. Flashes of horrid green light struck outside.
"A rift? In the middle of the water?" Michela shouted as a Demon materialized in the room. A despair demon lashed out at Rubeus. Michela summoned a small ice wall to shield the inquisitor.
"Do you have any weapons in here?" Rubeus asked. The anchor flared as he used the agis to give them extra cover.
"We have to get on deck!" The Captian ordered as Rubeus leapt out of the way and rolled towards the door. A click could be heard and a hidden panel by the bed opened. A wall of weaponry behind a hidden door. Falchions, daggers, Hand axes, throwing knives. A modest collection of sharp-looking weapons all neatly hung with care.
"I'm borrowing this!" Rubeus shouted out as he grabbed the long sword.
"Be careful! That's!" Michela watched as he brandished the sword and paused. "Just, be careful near lightning." She said nervously and followed after him.
"Let's go!" Rubeus called fending off the despair demon and slashing at it with the blade. He gave the demon a swift kick in the chest sending it flying backwards and crashing into bed.
Michela grabbed a yellow jacket off the wall, once it was on she quickly equipped her pauldrons and sword belt.
"It's mine." Michela disappeared in a puff of smoke and appeared behind the demon. She sliced it up the back with her rapier and stabbed it through its throat with a hidden blade on her wrist. The demon reeled but didn't perish. Michela shocked at how powerful it was as she needed to dodge the next coming attacks.
"Over here!" Rubeus bellowed, drawing the demon's attention. The demon turned away from Michela and went to swipe at Rubeus. He narrowly blocked the attack with the blade and went into a parry. The riposte, though nowhere as fancy as Michela blade work was brutal enough to leave the demon staggered. Rubeus adjusted his stance.
"Eyes on me, tough guy!" he taunted.
Michela sliced the Demon through the neck and lopped off its head as it collapsed into the dark mist on the ground.
"Upstairs, come on," Michela shouted and ran for the door. Once upon the main deck, it was filled with demons attacking the crew. Varric was being held by Minnie while Cassandra and Fritigern shielded them from a rage demon that threatened to burn the ship down.
"Riggers! Fire on deck! Emergency showers over the main mast!" Michela shouted as she came on deck. Michela jumped off the upper deck and made an ice slide towards the rage demons and slide down. Rubeus jumped over the rail following Michela.
Fritigern was on fire as he kept the demon off Cassandra when Michela arrived. She took in a deep breath and spat ice across the demons back. Water splashing across Cassandra and Fritigern. "Move!" Michela ordered. Rubeus ran to the side of the boat and looked into the water.
"The rift, it's under the boat. I can feel it!" He shouted.
The demon was alive and well and broke free of Michela's ice as they escaped being pinned.
"Prepare the diving bell!" Michela ordered as she walked up to the rage demon and stuck her hand inside it. The flames licked around her but did not burn her. She froze the demon and ripped out its core before walking over to Rubeus. The warriors onboard handling their own against the demons.
"How well can you hold your breath?" Michela asked as a massive boom swung out over the starboard side. Hanging from the hand was a beautiful golden bell with hand grips. Michela climbed up on the boom and jogged across it to the bell.
"Not amazingly, but I'll manage," Rubeus replied heading to the bell. Cassandra broke away from the fighting.
"Captain, Inquisitor, Let me accompany you." Cassandra demanded, "I will help keep Rubeus covered so he can close the rift."
"I'm coming too." Fritigern tried to leap up, but Honey grabbed him.
"No you're not, you're in trouble still," Michela said sternly and turned to Cassandra and Rubeus. The wind picked up a chill on her face. "Rubeus, stay in the Bell. Cassandra. When the path is clear take him to the rift and make sure he doesn't drown. I'll take care of any demons down there." Michela said and climbed onto the bell and took hold.
"By your lead, Captain!" Rubeus responded.
"PREPARE TO DROP!" Michela shouted.
"YES, CAPTAIN!" The deckhands shouted back. Michela smiled, gripping the rails as a thrill of excitement overcame her.
"NOW!" Michela shouted as the bell let loose at her call and they plummeted into the water. With breaths held tight as they submerged under the surface. They submerged fifty feet under the surface until the rope went taught. Two of them swam under the bell and took a breath.
Michela dove down and disappeared into the depths of the water. After a quick breath, Cassandra and Rubeus swam for the rift. The seeker cautiously watched for any straggling demons and covered Rubeus's flank as he beelined to the rift.
It was eerie alive underwater as the sounds of orcas echoed in the distance. The effects of the rift twisting them into scattered songs. Michela was gone, and the dark ocean depths below made it feel like they were suspended over eternal nothing. The surface far enough away it was out of sight and only the diving bell and rift to guide them.
Rubeus raised his hand, the anchor glowed an ethereal green as the energy of the rift shifted and stitched back together. Locking with the rift, Rubeus could not move as Cassandra spotted something moving below them in the water.