Uldred's room had the same basic layout as Torrin's - a four-poster bed, a wooden armoire, a coffee table and divan seating. The only difference was, Uldred's room seemed to be devoid of any personal effects. Where Torrin would have half-read books stacked up on edge of his desk, Uldred had nothing. Torrin kept a small silver trinket box on his coffee table that Niall had given him last Satinalia. Uldred's table was clear. He had lived in the tower for decades, yet seemed not to have acquired anything of personal significance or sentimental value.
The only hint that the room was lived in at all was a slender glass vase sat on the armoire holding incense that Uldred lit as soon as he and Niall had entered. Vapours carrying an unfamiliar, bitter, piney scent were quickly permeating the air between them. They lent an even stranger atmosphere to a situation that already made Niall uneasy.
"Have a seat," Uldred gestured to the divan, which was as uninvitingly pristine as the rest of the furniture. Niall sat.
Uldred opened the bottom draw of his desk to reveal an impressive collection of bottles. Without bothering to ask Niall for a preference, he selected a small bottle of port and poured out two glasses.
"Apologies for the business with the cocktails," he said as he handed the glass to Niall and sat down beside him, "I needed you at least somewhat coherent for this conversation so Godwin's concoctions were out. Why mages who deal with dwarves feel obliged to prove themselves by tolerating there liquor – I will never understand."
Deal with dwarves- Uldred must be alluding to lyrium smuggling. Had he assumed Niall already knew about Godwin's clandestine business ventures or was he always so loose-lipped with other people's secrets? Niall decided to feign ignorance and press the point slightly,
"One sip of it was enough for me. I daren't ask how Godwin even got hold of that on the surface."
Uldred raised an eyebrow,
"Come, Enchanter – you don't expect me to believe you haven't noticed Godwin's operation? He is hardly a subtle man."
"I might have had suspicions." he thought back to witnessing Godwin handing over lyrium vials in the corridor in broad daylight. Uldred wasn't wrong that he may lack subtlety.
"Discrete he is not – but he is effective. Plus, Lucrosian's make for useful allies. When it comes down to a choice between free mages or the chantry – they're unlikely to align the with side that requires them to tithe."
Niall laughed nervously, uncomfortable with the conversation veering into political waters. Not that that wasn't where he was expecting Uldred to go.
"And there was me thinking Godwin was only there because none of the Libertarians knew how to tend bar."
"Ah well there is that too. Spending all our time writing manifestos leaves little opportunity to practice mixing drinks."
The levity took Niall by surprise. The last thing he'd been expecting from Uldred was self-deprecating humour. He had assumed Uldred would stick steadfast to politics. Surely that was why he'd asked Niall up here –talk of allies, free mages - this was going to be the recruitment spiel, Uldred's attempt to lure him into the Libertarian fold.
"You lot do hand out a lot of pamphlets."
Uldred laughed,
"That's the legacy of an old friend of mine, unfortunately. His idea of direct action started and ended with distributing piles of parchment decorated in platitudinous slogans. No doubt he's wasting ink on the same nonsense in Kirkwall as we speak." He gave a fond smile at that last comment.
They fell into amiable silence, although Niall was still reluctant to let his guard down. He took a sip of port and watched Uldred as he did the same. Here, Uldred looked more relaxed than Niall had ever seen him. Not teetering on the edge of mania as he had been during their last interaction. Even his skin had more colour in it. Somehow this was more unnerving.
"You look well." he couldn't stop himself from saying. Uldred smiled,
"I slept very well last night. First night in a long time that my dreams were left uninterrupted."
Lucky you, Niall thought as images from his own nightmare momentarily resurfaced. But his kneejerk bitterness over the nightmare he was just now realising he blamed Uldred for dissipated when he realised the implication. If these 'interruptions' that had been plaguing Uldred were anything similar to what Niall had experienced then it was no wonder the man always looked worn out. He thought about asking him but didn't. He'd never met a mage who would readily divulge the content of their nightmares. They were shrouded in a morbid superstition.
So, another silence fell. Niall felt his patience waning. He had to be here because Uldred had something to say, so why wasn't he saying it? For reasons he couldn't fathom, Niall felt a petulant need not to ask outright why he was here. It felt too much like that was what Uldred was angling for, and Niall wouldn't give him that satisfaction. So instead, he changed the subject to something else he was curious about.
"Who was that girl you sent to steal my drink?"
"Hm? Oh Kariela – one of my apprentices."
"Is she your new protégé now that you're pissed off at Jowan?"
The blunt question was the first time Niall had been able to catch Uldred off-guard. He couldn't help but feel pleased with himself. There was something very satisfying about flustering someone so controlling. He could see Uldred trying to work out how Niall knew about his falling out with his favoured apprentice.
"Jowan was an ungrateful young man."
Maybe it was the alcohol or the safety in knowing Uldred was leaving in the morning – or both, but something was emboldening Niall to keep pressing.
"You did seem to spend a lot of time with him. I noticed he wasn't there tonight."
"I invested a lot in that boy. And he threw it back in my face."
"Is this really just about Lily?" Niall couldn't mask how odd that seemed to him.
Uldred wrinkled his face in disgust, just for a moment, that returned to his practised neutral expression. But it was enough to confirm to Niall that this line of question was aggravating him.
"It hardly matters now – it's been dealt with."
Dealt with? Uldred must have been under the impression Jowan had stopped seeing Lily. Well, Niall wasn't about to correct him on that. In fact, Niall had to admire Jowan just a little for having the audacity to lie to Uldred, that seemed a risky game to play. He must really care about this Lily. Niall tried to imagine what he would have done at that age if someone had told him he couldn't be with Petra. He felt an uncanny urge to defend Jowan to his apparently prudish mentor.
"He's hardly the first apprentice to break the rules around relationships. Aren't you being a bit harsh?"
Uldred scoffed at the suggestion,
"I happen to think I've been very lenient."
"Oh, come on – you're telling me you've never had your back up against one of those dusty bookshelves?"
Uldred scowled,
"I think I should have taken your brandy as well as the cocktails, Enchanter."
"Evading the question, Senior Enchanter."
"We seem to be veering remarkably far from the topic I brought you here to discuss."
Niall could have punched the air victoriously – although he wasn't entirely sure why throwing Uldred off his rhythm felt like such a victory. He had backed Uldred into a conversational corner. Niall lent back in his chair and waited.
"I suppose I should be getting to the point. You wouldn't want to be here all night." he paused, "Do you remember a soldier visiting the tower? A Ser Cauthrien?"
Did he? It took a moment for Niall to place her. She was the woman he had met in Uldred's office and escorted to the guest quarters. Oh, she had asked about Uldred.
"Yes, she was with the King's army."
Uldred seemed to smirk at that,
"That's true. However, Ser Cauthrien is more directly under the command of Teyrn Loghain."
If he had a point, Niall was missing it.
"What do you know of Loghain? I know Circle mages tend to lack even the basest understanding of any politics beyond the Tower walls."
He wasn't sure if Uldred shared Torrin talent for inadvertent condescension or if he being deliberately insulting. Either way, Niall took pleasure in responding,
"He liberated Ferelden from the Orlesians. The Hero of River Dane."
Uldred almost seemed proud of him,
"I see you paid attention in your history classes."
Niall had in fact paid no attention whatsoever to the Circle's history lessons. He had, however, been born in Gwaren, where it was impossible not to know Loghain's story. His mother would tell him bedtime stories of Loghain and the Night Elves to get to fall asleep.
Niall hadn't given the Hero of River Dane a single thought in decades. It was just another reminder of the tower's isolation that Niall hadn't even thought to wonder if the man was alive or dead.
"I must have done. So, what's the Teyrn got to do with why I'm sitting in your room?"
"I'm getting to it." Uldred took an unnecessarily long sip of port, "Had you wondered why I, of all the mages in the tower, am being sent to Ostagar? Wynne's a senior enchanter but she's a healer. I am not."
The question had never crossed Niall's mind. He realised that he'd never once considered that Uldred was being sent against his will. He always assumed wherever Uldred was, it was exactly where he wanted to be - with the ironic exception of the Circle itself. Although, Niall thought, if anyone had the means to escape the Tower if they wanted to, it would be Uldred.
Niall shook his head,
"Didn't Irving decide?"
Uldred raised his eyebrow.
"Alright," Niall conceded, "I think I assumed you wanted to go and fight."
He seemed pleased with that answer. Niall could tell Uldred was revelling in the theatrical build-up to whatever he wanted to say.
"I have been corresponding with Teyrn Loghain for some time. He is sympathetic to the plight of the mages. Ostagar will be our chance to speak in person. Ser Cauthrien informed me that the Teyrn requested my presence there personally."
There were infinite possibilities for what that could mean – some of which were terrifying.
"What exactly does 'sympathetic' mean?"
"That is precisely what I must go to find out."
"But then what? Are you planning to usurp Irving?"
Uldred cackled then quickly composed himself.
"If I wanted that wretched title I could have had it after Remille was killed. Or anytime since then if the mood had taken me."
Niall didn't doubt that that was true, but it seemed reckless of Uldred to confess as much out loud.
"What then?"
"Well, what have I been pushing for all these years? More autonomy. Less chantry oversight. Haven't you actually read any of our pamphlets?"
The joke was a clear deflection. Uldred continued,
"If the Teyrn is truly looking to aid the Libertarian cause, it is vital that I find out precisely what he is planning. If the Teyrn is determined to make changes I must be in his ear. I must guide him to act in the best interest of the mages. Wouldn't you say?"
"I suppose so, yes."
"So, you see – it is imperative I go and speak to him in person?"
Niall prickled with irritation. They were going around in circles.
"Uldred, I've already said yes, what are you getting at? What does this have to do with me?"
Uldred sighed.
"I have not been well these last months."
That was not what Niall had expected to hear.
"Have you seen a healer?"
"I'm afraid it isn't that kind of ailment. The problem is my dreams and the unwelcome visitors to them."
A chill ran through Niall as he understood what Uldred was saying. It was not uncommon for mages to have the occasional demon infest their dreams. It was an unpleasant reality of having magic. But the idea of it happening every night, of a single-minded demon stalking one mage – it made Niall shudder.
"You've gone rather pale, Enchanter. Which I will take as signifying you understood my meaning."
"I think so."
"Then you also understand then, why I had taken so much interest of late in your work on mental resistance."
Right then, a lot of things clicked into place in Niall's mind. Uldred's interest, his urgency, not wanting Torrin around – it made sense.
"Do you recall the book you were reading – the reason I first approached you with an invitation?"
Niall thought for a moment,
"Adralla of Vyrantium … "A Defence Against Dreamwalkers"
"Precisely. I confess in your case I did not do my usual due diligence. You could easily have taken my note straight to Greagoir. But it was a calculated risk. I needed someone with expertise in the rather obscure area of defending oneself in the Fade."
The irony did not escape Niall, that he had been besieged by a demon only the night before. Uldred must have been truly desperate if Niall was his last line of defence against becoming an abomination.
Abomination – even the word made Niall feel ill.
"Uldred," Niall had no idea where to start, "I will do whatever I can to help you. But I'm not an expert in anything."
"Niall, did you truly believe me brilliant enough to have taken one look at your research and solved its every problem overnight?"
Niall stayed silent.
"Well if so – you flatter me. I have been fortifying my mind's defences for a long time. Your research provided a fresh perspective on what had become a dead end – it helped me see what I had been missing in my own work. And it also confirmed that you yourself are capable of casting powerful defensive spells."
"Me? What does it matter what I can cast?"
There was a panicked edge to Niall's voice as he wondered if Uldred had somehow used him as demon bait. He didn't even know if such a thing were possible.
Uldred continued with his voice as steady as ever.
"Lately, one particular demon has been becoming more persistent. Within the Tower I have access to every available kind of defence. But it is vital I go to Ostagar - this opportunity won't present itself again."
"So, you're saying when you leave the Tower, you leaving yourself open to possession?"
"I do not buy into Chantry propaganda, that every mage is a walking grenade, ready to fall to possession at any moment. That said, I also I know the demons circle me much more closely than most - certain risks I have taken with my own work have all but guaranteed that. I would be a fool not to take precautions."
Certain risks, Niall did not allow himself to wonder too long what that might mean.
Uldred stood and walked over to his bed. From underneath he pulled out an ornate wooden storage chest. The chest was locked with a seal Niall had never seen before. Uldred produced a thin pick and, with what seemed to be a combination of lockpicking and a spellwork, opened the chest. Niall watched as Uldred pulled out a scroll and handed it to him.
"What is it?" Niall asked, thinking it best not to unroll or do anything else with it without express permission. Almost every inch of visible parchment was covered in runes. Some Niall recognised but others that were far more intricate than anything he was familiar with.
"That is a copy of the Litany of Adralla."
Uldred didn't need to explain what that was. Niall had read about the Litany – the culmination of Adralla of Vyrantium's life's work. It was incredibly powerful. He'd had no idea there were copies of it in the tower. There had never been any listings in the stockroom that mentioned it.
"I have two," Uldred continued, "One, I will take with me to Ostagar. The other, I leave stewardship of to you. Its power is simple to wield for a mage of the right skillset, which you have proven yourself to be."
Niall ran his hand over the scroll, tracing the faintly glowing runes with his finger. He knew what the Litany was for, which begged the question,
"Uldred – why are you giving this to me?"
For the third time that night, Uldred cocked his eyebrow in a way that told Niall his attempts to plead ignorance were unconvincing.
"You need me to use this – if when you return to the Tower you're-,"
"Yes." Uldred cut him off before he could say it. But they both understood.
The air between them was thick with tension. Niall had a thousand questions but to most of them he suspected he may already know the answers. He finally said,
"You were right. I did need to be sober for this."
"Quite." Uldred said.
After that, what else could they say? They sat mainly in silence for a while as Niall processed what had passed between them and the gravity of what Uldred had asked. They finished another drink each until, at last, Niall moved to leave.
Niall, litany in hand, opened the door into the corridor – only to come face to face with an unfamiliar templar. The man moved quickly - grabbing Niall by his arm and twisting it up around his back. He bent Niall's wrist backwards and it strained a way that made it clear even the slightest attempt to struggle would break it.
Without letting go of Niall's wrist with one hand, with the other he unsheathed his sword and pointed it at Uldred's chest.
"What are you doing out after curfew?" if his intention had been to sound intimidating, the crack in his voice betrayed him.
Uldred did not flinch.
"Let go of my friend." he said evenly.
The templar responded by forcing Niall's arm further up his back. The jolt of pain made him drop the Litany, drawing the templar's attention to it.
"What is that?" he shouted.
Uldred shushed the templar and Niall was half-convinced he was about to get them both killed. Whoever the templar was he could not have been at the tower long. He looked very young and Niall didn't recognise his face at all.
"My good man, people are sleeping next door. There is no cause to shout."
The templar lowered his sword slightly, though the move seemed to be an unconscious response to Uldred's authoritative tone. His eyes were still darting between the Litany to Uldred, unsure what to do next. Niall could feel the man's hand sweating where he had hold of his wrist. He was sure he could wriggle free now if he needed to. He opted to stay still, not wanting to risk a skittish new recruit running him through with his sword if he tried to move.
"I will not tolerate Maleficarum – if this is evidence of blood magic-,"
Uldred shot him an indignant look,
"Ser Cullen, you are addressing a Senior Enchanter and you would do well to remember that. The item on the floor pertains to our research. Our only infraction is continuing to work into the night."
Niall was in awe of Uldred's ability to remain in control even with a templar's blade pressed against his chest. The templar, Cullen apparently, released Niall from his grip. He muttered some anti-magic incantation, which had no effect on the Litany but seemed to satisfied Cullen himself, who then picked up the scroll. He scowled at the Litany as though he didn't trust it not to burst into flames. Or start spitting out demons.
"I will be taking this to be examined by a senior templar."
Niall's eyes widened in panic. It confused him that Uldred did not seem equally concerned.
"I am sure your supervisor will only tell you what I already have. And speaking of, where is Ser Drass? This should be his watch."
"The First Enchanter reassigned me here. Not that that is any of your business, robe."
The attempt at an insult and caused a smile to tug at the corners of Uldred's mouth. Though it disappeared fast when Cullen ordered them,
"Come with me. You'll be confined to the cells until I am sure you are no threat."
With the man's sword still drawn, Uldred and Niall had no option but to follow him.
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A/N - This one was a bit different, with the whole thing being just one scene, so do let me know what you thought 3