Chapter Twenty-Three: The Truth
Our troops nervously escorted the Tevinter delegation and I to the château. It turned out the horsemen in the woods were a mix of magical soldiers, and mercenaries from the Free Marches paid to escort the 'Vints and fight on their behalf. They set up camp on the parade ground, leaving me to wonder just what sort of country Orlais was if it let foreign powers operate so freely on its soil. Of course, that is a harsh evaluation. It was the middle of a particularly bad winter, and the nobles who could have intervened were in Halamshiral.
While my mind burned with a desire to interrogate Tiberius and his mages, all of whom were dressed like armoured clowns or jesters to my eye, I had a more pressing concern. Julie's injuries were still very much at the forefront of my attentions, and Tam shared that sentiment entirely. Both of us hurried off after we had agreed to allow the meeting to take place without much more words.
McNulty's people were set to dealing with the dead, stripping armour and weapons, dragging the large number of corpses out of the north archway. Both the delegation and ourselves avoided that route, entering via the western passage instead. The stench of blood and guts was extremely pungent in the air regardless, and I found myself retching a little as we entered the garden. I reminded myself to have the mages purge the passageways with ice and fire.
The garden itself was a hive of activity. Wounded people were being moved up, and the civilians were being moved down from the upper levels again, helped by Soprano's people. Soldiers with their longbows slung carried stretchers or held people by the shoulder as they ascended the stairs on one side. On the other, startled children were pulled along by their relieved parents, most of whom were still armed themselves. Their resilience was impressive.
The Captain herself was with Mike, waiting to report in the middle of the four paths that crossed the inner courtyard. Knowing I wouldn't be climbing past the evacuation of the attics, I walked over to them. They saluted, and I quickly returned the gesture, calming my heart's desire to tear through the crowd to the bedroom.
"We've sent people to watch over the woods," said Soprano, her eyes flicking quickly to the Tevinter delegation, "Everyone else is helping people get back to their homes." Pleased that she had taken control in such a competent fashion, I nodded approvingly.
"Excellent work," I replied, "Anyone who lost their home to the fires can sleep here, as long as there's room. I'm sure the wounded will need space." There was no shortage of WIA, and the healers were already at it. There was a strange hum in the air, if you strained your ears to hear it over the other activity.
"What about the Tevinter mages?" Barris asked. The Templar looked at the subject of his worries with nearly unrestrained hate, but his eyes were full of worries when they moved to me. Considering he had seen what I could do, I found the question a little pointless. If they started trouble, I intended to end them. Furthermore, it seemed to me that the 'Vints themselves knew what I could do, and looked like they were behaving.
Unfortunately, the Templar had spoken within earshot of others.
"What about them?" said Tiberius, in a mixed tone of curiosity and contempt. Which coupled with his haughty, Tevinter accent was a bit amusing. Not unlike the clothing he was wearing, which was revealed to be a deep blue colour, but still looked like something more suitable for the circus than the Magisterium. I swear, before I came along, the entirety of Tevinter looked like a funeral procession or a colourful farce. Earth fashion being an unintended consequence of my arrival, albeit a later one.
Barris was far from shy about expressing his concern either. "Unlike the mages here, you've been taught to misuse your abilities," he said, "It's dangerous, even with the Marquis' presence." Perhaps it would have been. The unspoken objection was obvious, of course. Barris was displeased to have mages associated with the Imperial Chantry around, mages who did not submit to the Divine of its southern cousin. We had no 'hedge' mages nor Tevinter-born ones, so even the Libertarians' attitude towards magic was restrained, which helped later but bred contempt for those who didn't share the opinion.
"I am a magister," Tiberius smiled, while seeming threatening nonetheless, "I have come for an extremely important purpose, and all of my subordinates know it. They would not defy me and live." He turned to walk away.
"And besides, we both know that the Marquis could quite comfortably kill us all himself," the old man said, before striding away to talk to his people. My eyebrow raised itself. It seemed to me like he was putting a lot of faith in unverified reports. He wasn't, in fact.
Barris stormed off on his own to talk to Velarana, presumably about being prepared to fight the 'Vints if it came to it. Annoyed by his behaviour, but not wishing to have an argument about it, I let him go. Leha approached, hands behind her head and a scowl on her face.
"We're lucky all of this happened when it did," she said, kicking a stone away, "Otherwise we'd be set back a huge number of coins as well as the people we lost. Should've been more careful." I hmmed my agreement with that. Measures would have to be taken.
"It's been a terrible night," Ciara said, "I'm getting sick of seeing so much blood." That sent a bolt of guilt through me. I turned away from her, not wanting to meet her eyes.
"Get used to it," Tam replied, "All three of us know where Julie is taking us. Orlais will come, and we will fight." Leha nodded, moving her hands to her hips.
"For someone who wrote a thing called 'common sense', she sure doesn't seem to have a lot of it," the dwarf mused, "She's a genius for pity's sake, could make herself as rich as an Antivan prince if she wanted to." I wasn't sure just how rich that was, but it was true nonetheless. Leha would steer her towards it at every opportunity, which actually benefited Julie's less mercenary motivations to a considerable degree. Adam Smith would be proud to hear it, I think.
"Do me a favour," I said to Leha, "Distract the Tevinter people while we go see her? And go see a healer yourself for Christ's sake." Leha smiled, having a look at the wound she received by an arrow. It didn't seem to be bothering her too much, though she winced when she turned the arm too quickly. Ciara stuck out her tongue between her teeth with disgust, not wanting to think about being stuck like the dwarf had. They quickly departed, Ciara dragging Leha towards the nearest mage. Which happened to be Velarana.
Tam and I climbed the stairs and bolted through the corridors, which were clear of people now, at a near-sprint. It was hard, considering that the floors were wet and muddy from the traffic they had seen in the hour before, but we managed. Together, we burst into our bedroom.
Julie was still unconscious and sweating still more profusely on the bed, her upper body covered with a light blanket. The healer was on a stool beside her, observing with a studied and neutral expression, but not doing his magical thing. Armen was by the right-side window, looking out at the Tevinter camp as we entered before moving towards the bed when he noticed us. His face looked grim, and I prayed it was only because he distrusted the 'Vints.
"How is she?" I asked.
The healer looked up at us, and frowned deeply. A finger stuck out towards Tam.
"You," he said, "Clean yourself up." The finger moved to a bucket and cloth at his feet. Tam was covered in gore, having hacked no small number of Templars to death with sword and dagger a little while earlier. Understandably, that wasn't the best thing around a sick person. The Qunari obeyed, wasting no time in beginning to strip off, dumping her bloodstained Earth-panoply by the doorway and taking off the undershirt, leaving her exposed from the waist up and still covered in blood. She began to clean herself. The mere suggestion that her state could have harmed Julie's recovery was enough to send her into action. Strangely, I felt a sense of pride about her.
The healer turned back to Julie.
"The Marquise's flesh is fully healed," he said, placing a hand on Julie's forehead to check her temperature, "But I fear the fever will be worse than I had predicted before. The arrow may have been deliberately dirtied to encourage this. There is nothing I can do but wait, and occasionally apply my arts to relieve her. It is best if she stays asleep for this process."
Disbelieving the man as he had said exactly what I didn't want to hear, I looked to Armen for confirmation. He was the closest thing to an expert on magic that I knew I could rely on, and if there was a slim chance to help, I knew he'd know about it. The mage inclined his head, indicating that he was with the healer on this. I clenched my fist. I would have to use the antibiotics we had brought from Earth, something so valuable as to be utterly priceless. I turned to leave, to run to the basement to retrieve the medicine as fast as my legs could carry me, but was confronted by the sight of Tiberius standing just outside in the corridor.
The magister strolled into the room, staff tapping off the floor in sync with his footsteps, every sign of interest in what was going on over his face. His eyes went from right to left, scanning everyone in the room. Armen and the healer backed away as they caught his gaze, so uncomfortable with his presence they both were. Julie wasn't exactly in any position to react. Yet. I crossed my arms to display my displeasure. Finally, his eyes came to rest on the bare-breasted Tam, who had frozen in place half way through scrubbing with a frown on her face.
Tiberius smirked, and his head swivelled back to the patient on the bed.
"I presume this is the infamous Julie Marteau," he said, moving level with me, "I was hoping to meet her, just so I could have something to talk about with those extremely tedious Orlesian courtiers that seem to inhabit every corner of their Winter Palace."
Tam found her curved dagger from somewhere and took a pace forward, but I was able to forestall her in time. She growled to herself, retreating to near the cabinet and beginning to get dressed again. Glad I had stopped her, I breathed a sigh of relief before turning back to the magister.
"Well, she's a little busy almost dying right now," I said sarcastically, "The Templars wounded her."
"I can see that. Without further treatment, she will most likely die," he said, not taking my hostility to heart, "Perhaps I can help." Surprised he would offer, I felt a surge of hope after the grave prognosis he had given seconds before. He was an extremely powerful mage. I wasn't thinking particularly straight. Neither was Tam. Her grip on my arm to warn me relieved itself instantly.
"That would be great," I said quickly, "What do you need?"
The question brought a strange, almost troubled expression in return. He glanced at the healer disapprovingly, like he knew there would be trouble. That should have been the first clue, but I wasn't a magical theorist or a mage myself. The healer scowled back, but seemingly too afraid to say anything. Tiberius did dominate the room like that, in a way I've only ever seen Julie or the Empress Celene accomplish. Helped that he was an inch taller than I was, I guess.
"Clear the room," he replied at last, "Other than that, I have everything I need."
"I'm staying," Tam said immediately, in a fashion that would brook no counterpoint.
"So am I," Armen added, almost as an afterthought.
That wasn't what I wanted to hear.
"Get out," I said through my teeth to both mages, "Now." The healer responded quickly, already well aware of how quickly my wrath would grow a hole in his head. Armen looked at me with sadness, one born of pity at the extent I wanted to see Julie awake and healthy again. My soul wasn't fully my own anymore, I have to admit. Too many things had happened, and I had shared them all with both Tam and Julie.
Of course, the only way I could have removed Tam was by shooting her and I knew I had no right to ask that of her in the first place. Besides, if it all went wrong, she was the only person I would have been able to be with. So she stayed. At an arm's distance to the magister, no less, dagger at the ready. I was grateful that she hadn't complained about the others leaving.
Tiberius for his part had respectfully lowered his head, waiting for that business to be over with, before closing the doors and locking them. He moved to the side of the bed, and produced a long needle from a pocket in his tunic. Thinking it was for Julie, both Tam and I flinched to our weapons, but he held it in his palm while he took off one of his warm winter gloves, revealing a well manicured hand. We relaxed.
"I would appreciate if you didn't tell your mages or any local clerics about what you're going to see," Tiberius said, bringing the pin between his thumb and his forefinger, "It would not benefit anyone, not least yourselves." He removed the blanket covering Julie, and grimaced at the arrow wounds.
Before I could respond, Tiberius poked himself gently but firmly on his wrist opposite, drawing a small stream of blood. I could only wonder what the hell he was trying to do. My first thought that he intended to do a blood transfusion, which would probably have helped considering Julie had lost some blood, but how it was meant to fight an infection was beyond me. I recoiled as he squeezed the wound, drawing still more out.
"What are..." I started, but was interrupted as he began to weave magic.
The blood poured from his wrist and formed a snake like formation, hovering in the air above Julie and glowing. It grew and grew, until he sealed the wound magically with a small gasp of pain. Tam looked shell-shocked, whereas my confusion was complete. How did this help Julie, I could not help but think. I would be joining Tam in shock soon enough.
The snake coiled itself, the 'head' turning into a thin spike not unlike that of the pin used to draw it out, and shot towards Julie's back sharply. It buried itself between her wounds, entering fully and disappearing leaving only a small bruise. I couldn't believe my eyes. The magister wasn't done yet.
Tiberius placed his bare hand on her back, and a red glow emanated from it of the sort I associated with healing. The glow seemed to extend through Julie's skin from the spot he touched, until it covered her whole body. I looked closer, and could see that it was patterned as if it was following her veins and arteries. The realisation clicked in my head. The magister was using blood magic.
As I stepped around the bed to stop him, Tiberius stopped himself. He removed his hand and the glowing died away in a second. Whatever he had attempted was done. Tam and I practically jumped to see if Julie was better. I put my hand on her forehead, and it was more cool than it had been. I nodded to Tam, and smiled widely. We both began to laugh a little. Julie was saved.
"A blood magic technique I developed myself," Tiberius explained, putting his glove back on, "When I was a younger man, I saw many a good mage die from the fevers after surviving the wounds. After I inherited my father's seat at the top of our society, I threw myself into extensive research in how to counteract them. Not something you'd learn from a southerner, I assure you."
"Thank you," I blurted out, unable to say anything else.
"You are most welcome," Tiberius replied warmly, "We can talk in the morning. She's waking up, and I am sure you have some explaining to do." Quite the understatement.
Sure enough, Julie was stirring. Tam quickly brought the blanket around her again, which was wise given that the cold had been let in entirely through all the open windows during the battle. Tiberius opened the doors and exited without another word, leaving us to talk to her. A wise decision on his part.
Finally, Julie awoke and rose unsteadily onto her palms. "What happened?" she asked groggily, "Are we safe?"
"We won," I smiled, "We'll explain everything."
Julie blinked a few times, looked at us and then at herself.
"Why am I naked and covered in blood?" she asked.
Tam and I couldn't help but laugh, bringing her into our arms. She was definitely going to live.
The process of explaining everything took quite a while, so much so that it was almost three in the morning by the time we got to sleep. Replacing the blood-soaked sheets and mattress didn't exactly help in that regard, but at least the noise of the wounded had largely died down. Word got out that the lady of the house was awake and alive, which lifted spirits among those still awake.
Julie didn't have anything to say about the arrival of Tiberius and his people, though I could see the cogs of her mind turning when she received the news, hand on chin no less. No doubt considering how the development fit into her own hugely ambitious political machinations. I could not help but be impressed and terrified at how quickly she moved from a relatively poor tax-dodging blacksmith to someone very much the master of her own fate.
It does help to be a genius, though.
Tam inspected both Julie and I to insure we were okay, something she would continue to do after every risky situation from this point onwards, and we washed ourselves before falling asleep. I was utterly exhausted, and drifted off almost instantly with Julie lodged between me and Tam. She wasn't going anywhere, that was for sure.
Scandalously, I awoke at midday, bolting upright when a stray beam of light glanced over my eyes from the window.
It was a lot later than the time I had wanted to get up at, and I was surprised that no one had knocked on the door before then. Afraid that the Tevinter delegation was waiting, I climbed out of the bed, which we had returned to its former place by the left-side window, and began getting dressed in a fresh uniform. I nudged the other two to get up as an afterthought.
Julie opened her eyes first, and raised herself as if she hadn't been asleep at all. She gasped as she placed her bare feet on the cold wooden floor, but tolerated the sensation, tiptoeing over to the place where the clothes and boots were. I watched her as I put my beret on, curious as to what she was doing. She quickly began dressing in a pair of desert-pattern pants, a sand-coloured t-shirt and finally, a British Army jacket that was a little too big for her. To finish it off, she tied her long hair back and donned a khaki beret. In short, she looked similar to how I did by the time she was finished.
I was baffled, tilting my head at her to try and get her to explain. "What are you trying to achieve with that?" I asked, as she pulled on the boots formerly belonging to me.
"I'm meeting the magister with you," Julie said, looking at me like I was slightly dumb, "I thought it best to look official."
I really didn't want her to come, because whatever Tiberius wanted, I doubted she would approve. And Julie wasn't one to express her disapproval diplomatically. Tevinter's systematic slavery wouldn't help matters either, a thing so repugnant to Julie's sensibilities as to merit no time to speak to people who benefited from it at all. The argument that would have erupted had I expressed my reluctance would have been far worse however, and quite rightly so as I had no real reason to exclude her, so I sighed my compliance with her plan. Besides, she looked god damn good in uniform.
"Tam, are you coming?" I asked.
"If I see that saarebas again, I'll end up trying to kill him," she informed us politely, before putting a pillow over her head, leaving only her horns and hair visible from behind it. Blood mages were only for killing, in her mind. Julie had more ambivalence, given that that class of magic had quite possibly saved her life.
"Fair enough," I replied, shrugging at Julie as she smirked, "Let's go."
So we did. The outer corridor was warmer than I thought it would be, before I remembered that I had allowed people to stay in the château's other rooms. All the fireplaces must have been going, including the ones downstairs. The dirt had dried on the floor, staining the wood in a dried riverbed along the middle of the long space, but it wasn't anything that a bit of mopping wouldn't solve. No one else was around. I guessed there was too much healing and mourning to be done for there to be a swarm of activity. We descended to the garden with no interference, where we found Leha and Ciara looking for us. It smelled a lot less like blood, thank God.
"There you are," Leha stated flatly, her face telling that she was about to start a rant, "The Tevinters are waiting in the ball room. Cheeky buggers had me fetch your flag, something about it being an official diplomatic meeting between two noble houses. Was tempted to tell them to shove their orders where the sun doesn't shine, but Armen just told me to get on with it before storming off. I swear, the mages getting uppity like this is why you surface-types put them down in the first place." The dwarf took a breath, before eyeing me sharply for a response. The ballroom was one of two such rooms, and the one we hadn't converted to storage.
"Well, you'd be a little arrogant if you could shoot fire from your fingertips?" I said cautiously, thinking that she was arrogant enough without that ability, "Who's in there exactly?"
"The big shem, a littler one, and some scary-looking masked guards," Ciara reported cheerily in her lyrical accent, amused at Leha's annoyance, "Only five of them in there at the moment. Wish they'd all go away." That was encouraging, because it was far fewer than would be needed to overcome Julie and I, even without our handcannons.
"Good," I said, "We'll go in on our own."
"McNulty told me to tell you that the preparations for the pyres has started," Leha added, "And that there won't be enough wood or fuel for all the bodies unless we use some we've saved for the winter." I frowned, not pleased at that news. I would have just ordered burials instead, but when I had suggested that before at the Wolf's Lair, everyone went crazy, fearing that spirits would decide to hijack the corpses. It sounded idiotically superstitious to me, but considering I had met a spirit, I wasn't taking any chances.
"Fetch Velarana from wherever she's hiding, and tell her to get a team of mages together with some skill with fire," I said to Leha, "That'll save us some money and effort." Appealing to the dwarf's sensitivity to monetary problems was wise, as Leha gave me a big satisfied smile in return, sauntering off to do what I had asked. Ciara decided to tag along, no doubt disliking the idea of hanging around 'Vint mages. Not sure I can blame her.
With little else to do, I wordlessly walked to the door of the ballroom with Julie and entered.
The place was as bare as I remembered from the first inspection I had done, save for the large table stuck down to one end of the large space with a smattering of chairs. These were now occupied, at least those at the head of the table, by Tiberius, a younger man of twenty-something and three masked mages. They were having a lunch of bread, cheese and some sliced meat. Behind them, the flag of the United Nations and the banner of the Tevinter Imperium hung on footsteps echoed on the floor, bringing the attention of our guests to us. The magister smiled warmly again as he noticed, and waved us over like he was a natural part of the settlement. Bemused, we complied.
"Ah Marquis, finally," said Tiberius, "Your people have been most hospitable, but I was beginning to wonder if we were ever going to get the chance to talk before I leave." Implying that they had to leave soon, which lightened the weight on my heart caused by their presence.
"You killed many men who were trying to kill them," I replied, "Glad to see that you're making yourself at home." Now that I was sure it wouldn't be a lengthy arrangement.
"And the famous commoner Marquise, Julie Marteau," Tiberius continued, standing from his meal, "We have met before, but you were somewhat... indisposed? Allow me to formally introduce myself. I am Titus Tiberius Pansa, military attaché to the Tevinter ambassador in Orlais." He rose from his seat, took Julie's hand and planted a modest kiss on her knuckles, which didn't impress her much but was still very much expected of nobles of any rank.
"Thank you for saving my life," she replied politely, "I understood you took some risk in doing it." Meaning using blood magic in a land where that got you burned alive or hacked to death by Templars. I certainly wasn't going to be the one to inform Barris.
"Think nothing of it, it was my pleasure to aid the Marquis in any way I could," the magister replied, taking his seat again, "After all, I needed to make a good impression." If I knew why that was so, I maybe would not have allowed it. I still would have had the antibiotics as an option, and Tevinter meddling has had mixed results for me in the years since, to say the least.
"Good to know I'm worthy of a good impression," I said, sitting down.
"Oh, this is Gaius, by the way," Tiberius said, looking over his shoulder to the young man dressed similarly to him, "My eldest grandson, and an accomplished battlemage in his own right."
I nodded a greeting, and only got a stare back. There was a strong family resemblance, though the magister's grey hair was a striking difference to the dark black hair of the grandson. The former was also undoubtedly taller than the latter. Unusually for a mage, Gaius carried a sword. Of a type I was familiar with, but we'll get to that.
"Centurion, I think you can wait outside," Tiberius said to the nearest masked mage. The man turned and walked away to the door we had entered from, flanked by his two subordinates, one of whom carried the Tevinter banner. They left with no sign of an opinion on why their commander would be hanging around in the middle of the Dales, talking to two infamous people.
"There we are," the magister said, "Now we can speak more openly, don't you think?" Or more secretly, I thought.
"Grandfather, I must tell you again that I do not think it wise that we are here," Gaius said, "We can still leave." Curiouser and curiouser.
Tiberius laughed it off, earning a frown from his grandson.
"You'll have to excuse Gaius, he thought you were a myth for much of his life," the magister explained, "He wasn't very pleased when he discovered that his scepticism was wrong." My patience for the game he was playing ran out sharply.
"Are you going to you tell me where you got that flag?" I asked, "That's the only reason you're here." That the particular pattern of a rising sun existed could have been a coincidence, but someone using it to make an appeal to a man from Earth couldn't be. I needed to know where he got it. Perhaps there was a portal of some kind back home, I kept thinking.
Tiberius examined me for a moment, before replying.
"Your hostility is interesting," he said, "I suppose you've heard all the scare stories about my homeland. Blood mages run amok." I had heard that, but that wasn't the primary problem I had with the country. Nor was it Julie's.
"The slavery might put him off a little more," Julie said harshly, "That you're alive at all is down to you saving my life. Otherwise, I'd have killed you myself."
"I am certain you would have tried," Tiberius smiled in response, "Alas, I did save your life, so here we are."
"Do you own slaves?" Julie asked, pressing her point home by pulling out her handcannon.
"Yes, many," Tiberius replied, "But none of them serve me involuntarily."
"What does that mean?" said Julie, not believing him, "They're slaves."
"They weren't born as slaves," Tiberius continued, as if talking to a know-it-all pupil, "I don't find the buying and selling of slaves to be immoral, but I find that slaves that are bought and sold have no real loyalty to their masters. So I offer positions in my household to the poor, provided they become my slaves. People whose families would have starved to death in the street get food, shelter and education. I get loyalty, loyalty I can enforce by law if necessary but loyalty earned by esteem rather than force. My household is the most secure in the Imperium as a result. Necessary, considering the secrets I have to keep contained."
Clearly, he had thought this through. Not that I was happy to hear he only recruited slaves as opposed to buying them. In fact, I wanted to blast his head, but he had shown no hostility and there was the small matter of the consequences of killing a diplomat to consider. I could certainly believe that slaves were a liability for security, and I have profited from that problem myself since.
"Most slaves don't object to slavery generally," Tiberius added with a frown, "Only their place within it."
"I think we're getting off topic," I said firmly, brooking no further argument, "Tell me where you got the flag or I'm having you ejected from the estate."
"Lieutenant Keijiro Okuba," Tiberius responded immediately, "I doubt you know who he is, but I am sure you know where he is from."
"Earth," I said, "Japan." A country made up of a set of islands on the eastern most edge of the largest continent, and one of the most advanced nations on Earth.
"Indeed," said Tiberius, "I met Keijiro in a swamp on Seheron seventy-five years ago."
He reached for a large bag, opened it, and began laying down the contents. The warflag with the sunbeams was first, followed by a larger hinomaru with just the sun. After that, two firelances, one long and one short automatic one, a small handcannon, a bayonet, a curved sword, a set of binoculars, a set of insignia, a journal and a set of letters. All of which I had seen before, either in person or via the technology of my world.
"A Nambu," I said, picking up the pistol, "My great grandfather had one of these." I set it down again, when Tiberius grinned knowingly at me. Which was a little off-putting.
Julie picked up the long firelance, and opened the bolt, inspecting every inch of it. It was an inferior design to my own precision firelance, but she took in the details to memory anyway. She probably knew more about the design after a few minutes than I ever would anyway. Something occurred to me, as I looked over the items again.
"Seventy five years ago would make you, what? Ninety-something years old?" I asked, "You don't look that old." He didn't even look sixty, in fact.
"Magic," said Julie, still unimpressed, "Probably blood magic."
"Actually, a good diet and healthy living have as much to do with it," Tiberius replied with false graveness, "But yes, there was more than a little magic involved. And don't worry, Gaius here is just as old as he looks. I spent most of my youthful years on the battlefield, you see." He got started on his own family late, apparently. Not uncommon for male Tevinter soldiers, I would learn.
"How did this Keijiro guy get to Thedas?" I asked, "Did he speak Common?"
"Keijiro got here the same way you did, through the Fade, and he spoke only broken Common at first," Tiberius responded, "Never got his head around Tevene."
So he was sucked through the Fade at some point, probably during the great war that provoked the creation of the United Nations. I doubt he would recognise the country he left behind, if he had lived to see it on the day I myself was taken from Earth.
"Out of curiosity, may I ask what country are you from?" His face was that of polite inquiry, so I felt no need to hide it.
"The United States of America," I replied, using the full title for effect, "Why?" Tiberius nodded, like a guess of his had been correct.
"The great enemy," the magister said, "Keijiro spoke of your homeland many times, in the early years. Seldom afterwards, unless he was drunk."
I snorted at that. I had trained with Japanese soldiers at one point. Like I said, things had changed. "Actually, our countries are very close allies now," I replied, "Japan was utterly defeated, but we needed them to recover so we could defend against the Soviet Union." I was testing to see just how much he knew. The answer was 'too much'.
"Keijiro was more contemptuous of the Russians," said Tiberius, his eyes looking upwards as he remembered, "He was fond of telling the history of his country, almost as if it was a epic story of characters. I knew his perspective was partial when he spoke of the decadence of your country." No doubts there.
"You say you met him on Seheron?" I asked, "Is there a way back to Earth there?" That would have been a complete bitch to get to, but I would have attempted to bring as many as wanted to come.
Tiberius shook his head. I had already been told that there was no way back, but thought perhaps that the magister knew of one. "Keijiro died in the summer," he said, "Of old age. He refused all magical treatment throughout his life, you see, unless he wasn't awake to object. Strange, considering all the fighting he went through. He refused to leave Seheron for twenty years, and fought by my side the whole time, looking for a way back no matter what I told him. When I first met him, he was knee deep in twelve Qunari corpses, bleeding badly from a wound between his legs but still standing, the blood of the savages on his bayonet and pooled around him."
Of course, having a superior weapon probably helped greatly, but even still, that was an impressive feat. I was glad that Tam wasn't there to hear him refer to her former people as savages though, and even I found it objectionable. However, not enough to say so. He had answers I needed.
"This is very interesting," said Julie, laying the long firelance across her lap, "But why are you here?"
Tiberius leaned back in his chair, considering how to broach the subject. Gaius scoffed from behind, rolling his eyes at his grandfather's supposed reluctance. I still had no idea what his problem was, though I would learn soon enough.
"Just tell him what you want," the younger Tiberius said, "Skirting around it won't help you convince him."
"No, but he'll want to understand why regardless," the elder Tiberius snapped, "You're too much like your father, impetuous!" The grandson stared defiantly back, until the magister turned around to us again.
"So? What's the big deal?" I asked.
"Keijiro and you are not the only people from your world to come here," Tiberius said, with some reluctance, "Our ancestors are responsible, I'm afraid." He braced himself, as if to receive personal blame, but I had none for him. Perhaps the Japanese lieutenant had blamed him, at first.
"How?" I asked, surprising him with my apparent grace. His eyes softened again. He was beginning to like me, as opposed to being amiable out of a desire to get something out of me. Whatever that was.
"Two thousand years ago, a mere handful of decades after the foundation of the Tevinter Imperium, my family grew concerned about the elves and their power," Tiberius began, "You understand that the elves once possessed a mighty empire of their own, yes?"
I nodded.
"Well, it was founded on magical power, much like our own," the magister continued, "The various cousins of the family at the time came together to deal with this problem they saw on the horizon, as well as increase their own standing in the Imperium itself. They were of a middling rank at the time, heavily involved with the army and the nascent magical academies, but were not of the magisterium."
Tiberius paused to drink some water, and I indicated with my hand for him to continue, so that he knew I was listening. He thanked me and began again.
"They sought power, and for a mage, there is only one source of power; the Fade," he said, "So they sought to breach the Fade."
Julie slammed her palm down on the table hard, shaking the plates and cups loudly with the impact.
"Ha! I knew it!" she said, "If your people were trying to enter the Fade before, then the magisters were responsible for the Blights!" Tiberius frowned. It was an old point of contention between the South and the North, whether or not Tevinter was responsible for bringing about the archdemons' plagues.
"I do not know the truth of that," Tiberius replied, "I doubt anyone was responsible for that, except for the old gods themselves. I believe this way because of what did happen five hundred years before the Golden City was supposedly breached. If you'll let me continue..."
Julie pouted a little, but agreeing with a wave of her hand, she let the point stand.
"Regardless, the first recorded blood sacrifice by a human conclave of mages was made, in the western hills near the edge of the Imperium's current borders where no one could interfere. The Fade was breached," Tiberius continued, "Every mage in attendance felt their power surge, but then something went horribly wrong. We know not how exactly, but the power they were gaining returned to the Fade, and a person was flung from the portal before it finally closed itself." By this point, I was truly enraptured by the tale. The ones with truth in them often do that, and I could tell the magister believed every word to be true. In a sense, I was living proof that it was true, and so was Keijiro.
"He was clothed in segmented plate armour and a red cloak," Tiberius said gravely, "And he was not pleased to be there. My ancestors' cousins were stunned to see him, and enraged that their plan failed. They attacked him, most unwisely. For if they had paid any heed of what had happened, they would have known that the reason for their failure was that he was immune to magic."
"Just like Sam," Julie said, "He must have..."
"Yes, the man slaughtered all of them but one," Tiberius confirmed, "His sword fell upon them with a terrible fury. Thirty two of my ancestor's cousins, slain. No matter what magical arts were unleashed against him, the man... the soldier... walked through it like it was nothing but rain. The thirty-third was to join the others, until her mask fell off. The killing stopped instantly."
I knew a romantic side track when I heard one.
"Let me guess," I said, "She was beautiful, he threw aside his sword, they worked out their differences."
Tiberius laughed. "You have it exactly, Marquis," he said, "He spoke Ancient Tevene, by some bizarre coincidence. She felt a terrible guilt for bringing him to Thedas, and he was alone in the world. It was simply a practical arrangement at first, but they came to love each other. She took his name, becoming Lucia Tiberia Major, the mother of my family's entire bloodline, and he named the estate that became my birthplace, Trevevorum. They built it on the exact spot where he had arrived."
He was a Roman legionnaire, I realised. The red cloak, the armour, the killing, all of it. That might explain the expansionism of Tevinter to some extent, depending on just how influential Tiberius' family had been. I have written extensively about the influences that produced American civilisation elsewhere, and to those who are familiar with that work, you will know the scale of Rome's achievements. Tevinter, I often think, would be the result if Rome had been ruled by mages instead of ordinary men. Alas, I am getting off point, and so was Tiberius.
"What has this got to do with Sam?" Julie said impatiently, "I keep asking that, and you keep going into longwinded stories."
"I have to agree there," I said, the trance broken for the moment.
Tiberius held up his hands, as if urging us to wait for it.
"Tiberia had three children, one of whom is my direct ancestor," he said, "The match proved to be incredibly potent. The children were some of the most powerful mages ever seen in Thedas, and my ancestor became the first of my family to sit on the Magisterium. We believe that your direct contact with the Fade seems to gather its power, but it cannot affect you as there is no magic in your world. So it remains dormant, except in a very specific set of circumstances. So, for the past two thousand years, my family has sought out more of your kind, as they are periodically removed from Earth and brought here, and there have been many."
"Has your family found any of, whatever you call us?" I asked, "And how periodically are we talking about?"
"We call your kind outlanders, and we have never found any alive until Keijiro. He was injured, making use of his power impossible," Tiberius said, shaking his head, "The translation from one world to another seems to occur randomly. When a new arrival comes, the Fade flares in my estate, pointing the way to where the next traveller has arrived. We believe most of the outlanders arrive outside of the known world, and perhaps most of those have drowned in the sea." Which is how he found me, and why he got himself assigned to Orlais as a diplomat, incidentally. It took some months to organise. He even found the helicopter, or so I would be informed later.
"Over the years, my family has found a good number of dead outlanders. They have all been soldiers, and were often killed by locals whom they attacked or who feared them. My own father believed that it was spilled blood calling to spilled blood, battlefields calling to battlefields. The only way for the Fade to breach your world is for you to inadvertently make a blood sacrifice equal to that which Tiberia and the others made so long ago."
By that reckoning, there should be a great number of people from the 20th century running around, but then, I had been extremely lucky. If it hadn't been for Fraser's men, the dragon would have killed me. If it hadn't been for Julie and Tam, Orlais' justice would have killed me. If it hadn't been for Armen, Ciara and Leha, any number of other quirks and differences would have drawn the attention of authorities that could have killed me. I felt like I had just walked a tightrope over some tall cliffs. I can only imagine what would have happened if we had crash landed over the sea.
However, I was beginning to understand his purpose here.
"So... you want to use my Fade-power?" I asked, "Like some kind of magical battery?" That drew confused looks from the 'Vints, but Julie was on hand to explain better than I could.
"He's asking if you want to take magic from him like one draws water from a dam," she said, "To use him like a source of magic." It would certainly fit the Tevinter profile. From what Tam had told me, they would do anything to advance their position, up to and including mass murder if the magisters of old were any example.
"No, no, not at all," Tiberius objected, "I want to cement a permanent alliance with your house, so that we may add your power to our own." I didn't take his meaning.
"How would an alliance give you my power?" I asked naively. I was thinking of an alliance in modern Earth terms, of course. Paper, not blood, being the bond that sealed it, ties of reputation rather than family keeping them strong. Julie groaned loudly, and I glanced at her for a clue. She looked at me like I was an idiot.
"You should understand noblespeak by now," she complained, "He wants you to marry into his family, you big imbecile!"
I returned my gaze to Tiberius, who was nodding deeply.
"I happen to have a wonderful, beautiful granddaughter, Aurelia, who would be a perfect match," the magister said, "Given your noble rank, you could even live openly in the Imperium, and you are clearly a man of integrity as well. It is more than even I could have hoped for." The man was already planning the wedding. It was not the last such proposal I would receive from nobility, but it was by far the most startling. I felt like my tongue was numb in trying to respond to it, not least because it had been made with Julie sitting right beside me.
"You can't be serious," I said, "Move to a slave estate to marry a woman I've never met, to have children so that your family can gain more power? Why on Earth would I do that?" This Aurelia could be Helen of Troy and still it would be a terrible idea, I thought. Julie looked suitably pleased at my reaction, at least.
"Think about it," Tiberius said, leaning on the table, "You have already been attacked by the Templars. Thanks to Madame Marteau here, it is only a matter of time before Orlais and the southern Chantry try to destroy you. The other states are too weak to protect you, and I know you would not flee to the Qun. It does not need to be a romantic arrangement either, simply a political one. Such marriages are common in the nobility, north and south. In Tevinter, you would have respect, status, money, power, and absolute security."
"Yeah, but I'd also have no soul," I replied, "I can't have children with someone I don't love, it's... just nasty. What the hell do we tell the kids themselves? Sorry, Mom and Dad are only on diplomatic terms with one another? Oh, and here's the women I really love? Makes my skin crawl just thinking about it."
Of course, there was a very real problem beyond that. I would undoubtedly be forced to fight, as part of the family's contribution to the Tevinter military. I shuddered with the thought of it. My father's own family had fought for a slave state a century and a half before this, but they had volunteered because of the threat of invasion. I would be compelled to do so, without any higher principle at stake. I wouldn't do it.
"I understand," said Tiberius, conciliatory in tone, "I do not expect you to say yes now. I expect you to come to me once the Orlesians have had their turn." Which they would.
"It's not like you could have forced him anyway," Julie said flippantly.
"Oh, do you know that?," Tiberius replied, "I could have taken you as a chip to trade."
Julie pulled her handcannon up and levelled it at Tiberius. The magister leaned back in his chair again, looking like a toddler had just threatened him. I admired his courage, at least, and noticed that Gaius seemed far more jovial all of a sudden. Which distracted both Julie and I quickly.
"This is not going to plan, is it grandfather?" the mage snickered. Tiberius gave him a disapproving look, the sort only a grandfather can give. Utterly withering.
"You'll have to excuse my grandson, he was never on board with offering you Aurelia's hand," the magister said, "They're cousins, and he wants to marry her himself. Even though it isn't healthy." That set off my alarms for nasty, and apparently, Tiberius' as well.
"Other families do it to preserve the bloodlines," Gaius insisted.
"We are not other families, as this entire conversation has demonstrated," Tiberius snapped, "The man who will restore our power is sitting across from me, not standing behind me!"
In other words, it was me and not Gaius. The presumption riled me a little, but I let it slide on account of the amusing face that it produced in the younger man. He looked like he had just been forced to eat a raw lemon, his lips pursed together. Noble inbreeding was fairly legendary on Earth, and I guess it was progress that at least the magister knew it was a bad idea. The irony is of course that Tiberius was right in the end, though not in the way either of us would have invisaged.
"So, you've made the offer," said Julie, crossing her arms, "It'll never be accepted. Time to go."
"I believe so," Tiberius said, standing up with no hint of malice, "You may keep Keijiro's things. I already have everything of sentimental value to me. The letters are to his wife on Earth. Should you find a way back, I would appreciate if you would deliver them to his real family. He fostered several of my nieces and nephews, after my sister was assassinated, and he has helped raise my many grandchildren. I owe him that much."
We followed the two 'Vints out of the hall, through the garden, and eventually out of the eastern archway, where his little army was waiting under the watchful eyes of Soprano, Mike and Leha.
I grumbled at being so close to the damned dracolisks again, but the magister and his grandson seemed entirely at ease with the beasts, mounting them as easily as a horse. Despite the things hissing like snakes as they shifted their weight.
Surprisingly, the Vints had been ready to leave since morning, or so Soprano whispered to me as I came level with her.
"Farewell Samuel Hunt, Marquis de la Fayette," Tiberius said, his dracolisk rearing as it turned to leave, "I am sure we will meet again."
"Go home, you lunatic," I shouted back, "You'll never see me again."
That got the whole Tevinter group laughing. Evidently his eccentricities were common knowledge. The old man rode off past his columns, and the whole group of Vint mages and Marcher mercs filed around to follow his remarkably brisk pace. All except Gaius, who rode up beside me.
"I'll hold you to that," the younger man said.
"Piss off, Gaius," I replied, giving him an obscene gesture, "Run along before I decide to smite you." The man was barely out of his teen years, and undoubtedly able to smite others with his magic. But not me. He grinned maliciously back, before joining the retreat.
"Making friends I see," Soprano said, looking for an explanation. One wouldn't be forthcoming from me.
"I hope not," Julie replied, "I wonder how Tam will react."
"Badly," I said, knowing for certain, "Even more so when she agrees with Tiberius on one thing; Orlais is coming." Which ironically, would not be our fault. At least not directly.
"Then I was right," said Julie, turning to me, "With your help, we can make everything we need to hold the chevaliers at bay forever!" I groaned inwardly. That she had chosen to open up this debate in front of Soprano and Mike was severely irritating. And yet, her bright green eyes pleaded with me, defusing my irritation instantly. Julie always was good at using them, but she was completely sincere this time as well.
I gave in, but only partially.
"A compromise," I said, rubbing the back of my head, "I'll help you, but only to make things that you would have come up with eventually." Nukes and mustard gas would be cheating, after all.
Julie took my hand, and continued watching the Vints ride down the avenue towards Hearth.
"That's all that I ask," she said, "I wonder why this... Keijiro did not give your technology to Tevinter." It was an interesting question.
"He probably didn't know how it worked," I replied, "His job was different to mine, and he came from a different time. He was trained to fight, not to think." Whereas I had to do both in order to survive. Not to mention that I came through with a large number of books, which stored knowledge that I didn't have.
"We should avoid that with our own people, I think," Julie mused.
I couldn't agree more.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: And so the second of my strategic-level plots drops like the bomb. That's the last chapter for the Rebellion Arc, folks. This was somewhat rushed, so it will undergo an edit at some point.
LordGhostStriker: Not quite. Well, sort of. We'll hear more stories about what Keijiro did when he was alive at a later date.
Tactus501st: Careful, it's like heroin. Highly addictive awesomeness.
5 Coloured Walker: Always appreciated.
Drgyen: The healer may become a bigger character, but his role isn't so large in this volume.
IComeAnonymously: The Familiar of Zero is probably an unconscious influence on this story, yes. I didn't set out with it in mind, but I have seen it.
Fenris: I'm fairly sure this chapter answers all your questions.
Pyryp: Pretty much exactly what I was going for, cheers.
Guest: Indeed he can, but he doesn't want to, and there are plenty of ideas around today that survived the Enlightenment.
Asahar4: Leliana is only acting according to the interests of her loyalties. It's not personal. Much.