After the demon's defeat, the red templars were suddenly not so much of a threat anymore. But it was due more to a mass retreat than any miraculous lapse in strength; no one was exactly sure where they fled to, but they cleared out of the inner courtyard not too long after Envy fell. When the Inquisition decided to do a comb-over of the fortress, they were revealed to have completely vanished. Ser Barris surmised that they left through a postern gate, and had been preparing to leave Val Royeaux during the siege.
What they discovered in the empty corridors of the fortress was discouraging. In Knight-Captain Denam's quarters, they discovered the body of the Knight-Vigilant and papers implying Denam was aware of the red lyrium's dangers. In another room, they found plots to assassinate Empress Celene; and from another set of notes found scattered throughout the fortress, higher-ups had been aware of Envy's impersonation, even encouraging it, and the Seekers were not meant to exist in the new world the "master" was building. They could only surmise that this "master" was the Elder One, as Knight-Captain Denam had the courtesy to disclose earlier.
The aftermath of the battle was devastating for the templars. Of the ten that had fought alongside the Inquisition, there now stood only five: Ser Barris and Ser Fletcher, with three other men. As it was soon revealed, they were the only uncorrupted still standing in the fortress. The Red Jennies themselves had two casualties, while the Inquisition was lucky to have suffered none. However, everyone was a little more bruised and battered than before.
With nothing left to do, they all left the Seeker fortress. The Friends of Red Jenny disappeared into the alleyways and rooftops of Val Royeaux, while the Inquisition and five battered templars gathered up their prisoner and hailed coaches to take them to the Chateau de Ghislain. The carriage that originally bore them to the fortress had been smashed to pieces, the horses slain or stolen, and the driver, dead.
The first thing Madame Vivienne did upon hearing of the Herald's struggle against Envy was to quarantine her with a magic barrier and summon a spirit mage still loyal to the Circle to inspect her for signs of possession. Cassandra was displeased, for Ahnnie had been in the presence of not just a Seeker on the way back but five templars, and the Seeker herself had witnessed Envy's demise firsthand. But the precautions were understandable, so she did not raise much of a fuss – there was no use in doing so, especially when Ahnnie was cleared within the hour.
The girl had been carried back to the chateau largely unconscious and languished in her chambers with a fever, so she posed no difficulty for the spirit mage when he inspected her. As soon as the he was gone and the barrier taken down, Solas took to nourishing her back to health with a strong and bitter herbal brew.
Ahnnie did not know how much time had passed since then; everything had been so dream-like, so fuzzy; but at a certain point, she was lucid and noticed the elf beside her with keen interest. "Hey, Solas," she greeted him with a small smile.
He put aside the bowl of tea or whatever it was and smiled back at her. "A good morning to you, too. How are you feeling?"
She blinked, thinking about it. "Fine, I guess...you?"
"Likewise."
A silence passed between them. Then, licking her chapped lips, Ahnnie began, "What you helped me to do, to counter Envy...I can't thank you enough. Without you, I might have fallen to its temptation."
"I only did what I had to," the elf demurred.
"I know." She looked down on the folded hands on her stomach, noting absentmindedly how they seemed a little paler than before. "Um, Solas, if you're not upset, or anything–"
"Why would I be upset?" he countered.
She blushed. "Well, I just wanted to make sure. So, if you don't mind...could you teach me magic again?"
"Of course; I would be happy to."
Ahnnie breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank god. Er, thank you. I...I just don't want something like Envy to happen again. And I realized...if I learn to control it properly, magic can do me a lot of good. Like, I don't have to be an expert at it, but I'd like to know how to counter demons when they try to possess me, for example." Looking up at him, she added, "I also don't want to be helpless anymore."
Solas nodded. "I understand, da'len."
She liked being called that; da'len. It made her feel like a child again, and in a good way. But she knew she couldn't be a child forever. She would not want that, anyway. With a heavy sigh, she addressed Solas in a more solemn expression, "Tell me...how many of my, uh, bad memories did you see?"
Solas' eyes slanted in pity. "Are you sure you want to ask that question?"
"Morbid curiosity, I guess."
For a while, he said nothing. Then, "I couldn't understand most of them. I am not fluent in your native tongue, after all." But she knew there were memories he didn't have to know Vietnamese to understand. It showed on her face, and he sighed a moment later. "I honestly don't know what to say," he confessed. "I never imagined it was so..."
"It's okay," she whispered. "I just never told you." Not that she ever would have told him, or anyone else, for that matter.
Solas busied himself with a potion from his bag, pouring it into the bitter tea and swirling the bowl so that it mixed evenly. "You try to suppress those memories," he then said. "I can understand why. But you need not bear them alone; if there is anything you wish to say, I will listen to you without judgment."
Ahnnie blinked. It felt so strange, knowing there was someone else who was privy to some of her darkest secrets. For how long had she wished for someone like that, staying by her side and willing to understand? Someone she didn't have to hide things from, whom she could trust without fear of burdening them or implicating herself? Her lower lip trembled, but she caught it with her teeth. "I...well, sometimes, when I'm alone, I..."
"Yes?" he gently prompted.
"Sometimes I just..." She shook her head. "I just can't believe that...that it all happened to me, you know? One moment, I was just a regular kid, and then the next..." Her nose congested, causing her to sniff. "It messed up my thinking. Like, I can't believe I actually thought it was a good idea to keep my stepdad in the house, just because my little brother would miss him...he was obviously a toxic presence, doing us more bad than good. Then I ask myself, why did this happen to us? Other kids get to live a normal life – why not us?
"And..." She gulped. "If I'm not careful, I...I find myself remembering...that time, in the bathroom..." A desperate hand clutched her stomach. "And I wonder why I didn't just – just end it all, if that was what my life amounted to! I never imagined something like that could happen to me; and I was so scared, 'cause what if I got a uterine infection, or my mom found out? God–" She shut her eyes tight. "There were times when I was just so tired, that I wished I wasn't alive...but I was too afraid to...You know what?" she suddenly asked. "Sometimes I think my coming to Thedas was a result of that wish."
Solas stopped swirling the bowl and looked thoughtfully at her features. She didn't notice his stare until she reopened her eyes.
"Yes?" she asked, curious.
He shook his head. "It is nothing." Then he gestured for her to sit up, and she obeyed. With a careful hand, the elven mage held the bowl up to her lips and tipped the liquid in. She gave it a hesitant sip, scrunching her face upon tasting the bitterness, then relaxed a moment later as a pleasant warmth began to emanate from her stomach. "I mixed it with a sleeping draught," Solas explained when she asked about it. "Rest now, and you should feel better when you wake up again."
"I feel better already," she breathed as she settled back down into the blankets. Spilling some of her soul had helped alleviate the long buried pain, and if there was anything she learned from Cole, it was to slow down and think of the good things. And look forward to them, she added in her mind as she laid her head against the pillow.
Solas brushed the stray hair from her face before taking away the empty bowl and rising from his chair. "Sleep well," he murmured, and then quietly left the room.
The day of departure finally arrived. Val Royeaux was a beautiful city, but Ahnnie wasn't sure she wanted to stay in it any longer. Thus, she welcomed the chance to step aboard the ship commissioned by Madame Vivienne, surrounded by familiar people whom she knew she could trust. It was only recently that she made the Madame's acquaintance, but after all that happened Vivienne's face seemed as welcoming as an old friend's.
"Do be careful with that," the Madame was chiding the porters carrying her luggage. "And make sure to secure it well in the hold. More to the left, please; leave some room for the others to come aboard. Oh, don't drag it like that! Do you want to test my patience?"
From beside Ahnnie, Blackwall gave a chuckle. "Wonder how she'll take to having it brought up the Frostbacks. I don't suppose she'd start yelling at the mules?"
"The Madame commissioned porters in Jader ahead of time to come along and watch the mules," Josephine put in, "so I believe she will be snapping at both."
"Might as well hex the wind and snow while she's at it," Blackwall said, clearly enjoying himself.
"Do not forget the rocks," the ambassador added.
The both of them laughed, and Ahnnie couldn't help but smile as she listened to their exchange. The fight in the Seeker stronghold appeared to have made them more familiar with each other; Blackwall now regarded the ambassador with a newfound camaraderie (as much as his sense of chivalry would allow, anyway), and Josephine couldn't help fussing over the bandage on his arm every once in a while.
The captain soon began the announcement of setting sail, and Ahnnie looked back at the harbor one last time. I wonder if Cole is nearby, she thought, searching for any sign of the bedraggled young man. She had felt no sensations of being watched while going through the city, and none of the companions ever remembered seeing him either, causing her to wonder whether he had just been a figment of her imagination. If he's real, I hope he's okay. He was badly injured...
"Ay! Inquisition! Don't forget me!"
Ahnnie jolted upon hearing the exclamation. She thought at first that it was Cole, but then quickly realized that the voice was female and Cole wasn't half as outspoken.
Cassandra looked at the gangplank. "Maker's breath," she murmured, shaking her head. Blackwall and Josephine shared the same reaction, although the ambassador was more amused. Solas on the other hand was curious, tilting his head around them to get a better look.
Madame Vivienne whirled around, stimulated by the insolence. "Excuse me?" she asked, eyes narrowing at the figure sauntering aboard. "You must be mistaken. I don't recall you being a member of the Inquisition."
Two burly shipmates blocked the new arrival upon hearing the Madame's displeasure. But Ahnnie stirred in their direction and said, "No, it's okay, she's with us. Hi, Sera."
Sera's grin went from ear to ear as she parted the shipmates and stepped aboard the deck. "Knew you would come through for me," the elf chuckled, hooking a chummy arm around Ahnnie's shoulder.
Ahnnie blinked at the sudden gesture before looking up to smile sheepishly at the Madame. "Yeah, I forgot to tell you about her...we recruited her on our first night in the city. But she was a big help at the Seeker headquarters, right, Cassandra?"
The Seeker made a disgusted noise, but nodded anyway.
Madame Vivienne looked from Herald to Seeker, lips pursing in disdain. "Well, then. I put my trust in your judgment." But she made a careful aside to the captain a moment later, eyes flitting suspiciously at Sera as she spoke. The man nodded and sent someone down to the hold – to tighten up the cargo, Ahnnie suspected. She did not blame the Enchanter, so long as it wasn't because Sera was an elf. That seemed unlikely thus far, given her indifferent reception of Solas.
Beyond the girls, Cassandra was pinching the bridge of her nose. "All the curses in the world cannot explain how irked I am right now."
Solas chuckled. "Tired of repeating 'Maker's breath' over and over, Seeker?"
"I will soon tire of the others, should I take them up."
Josephine chuckled as well, but grew thoughtful a moment later. "Perhaps it is not so bad as we think. Lady Ahnnie must be bored, constantly surrounded by those at least a decade older than her. It might do her some good to have someone her age in the Inquisition to talk to."
"We never denied Sera's helpfulness," Blackwall put in, "but you do have a point."
"Let us hope she does not get roped into whatever mischief this Sera cooks up," Madame Vivienne interjected as soon as she was done with the last porter. "Now that, I won't stand for."
"Ar dirthan'as ir elgara, ma'sula e'var vhenan."
Ahnnie turned in her saddle to look at Solas, assuming that he had been speaking to her. But she soon saw that the foreign sentence was meant for Sera. Oh, that's right, Ahnnie thought, they're both elves, and Sera probably knows a few words. It made her a little sad that she was excluded in this respect, having neither the knowledge of Elvish nor opportunity to converse in Vietnamese with any of the companions. Oh well; I'll just listen to what they say. Maybe I'll pick up a word or two.
Sera stuck out her tongue and blew a raspberry. "Pppbbthh!"
Solas blinked, taken aback. "Excuse me?"
"'Scuse yourself," the elven archer retorted. "Whatever you said and what I did, same difference to me."
It was one of the rare times Ahnnie saw Solas well and truly flustered. "I'd hoped, well, our people can sometimes feel the rhythm of the language despite lacking the vocabulary," he said after a moment of stunned silence.
"Uh-huh," Sera nodded. "Know what else is good? Words that mean things. Like these. Words."
Solas left her alone after that, his face disturbed. Feeling bad for him, Ahnnie chimed in, "Elvish words mean something, too. It's just that we don't know what they mean." After some thought, she added, "Any sound has a meaning to it, actually; it just depends on how the listener perceives it."
"Very insightful, da'len," Solas smiled at her.
She beamed back at him, rather proud of herself for thinking that up.
Sera gave her a curious glance from the corner of her eye before pulling back her horse into step with the girl's. "So," she began, "you and him're sweet on each other, yeah?"
Ahnnie spluttered for several seconds, much to Sera's amusement. "N-no!" she yelled out a moment later, drawing looks from Cassandra and Blackwall ahead of them. "That's not how it is," she clarified in a more controlled voice, though her face was beet red. "He and I, we're not like that at all. We're more like, like–"
Sera chortled. "I never said what kind of sweet!"
But Ahnnie frowned, still reeling from the shock. "U-usually, when someone says that..."
"Right, well don't get your panties in a bunch. It was just a joke. You know what those are? Jokes?" Before Ahnnie could reply, Sera continued, "Anyway, I was just curious. You seem close–"
"Not that kind of close," Ahnnie interjected.
"–and you like the elfy language, yeah? Wanna know what'll make him real pleased to hear you say?"
"I thought you didn't know Elvish..."
"I picked up a few words here and there," Sera explained. "This one I got from the alienages. It's real useful. For, um, saying thanks, I think; with lots of respect."
Ahnnie couldn't help but have her interest piqued. "Really?"
"Yeah! C'mere." When she leaned her head in, the elf whispered the word into her ear. "And if you want to make it more elfy, you gotta add this word–"
Ahnnie withdrew her head and practiced saying it a few times. "Like that?"
"You're a natural already," Sera winked.
"What does it mean?"
"He'll tell you when he hears it," Sera assured her. "Just go and make him proud."
Ahnnie found her opportunity when their party stopped for a small break on a hill. Itching to show off her new knowledge, she sat down next to Solas as soon as she had her horse hitched with the others'. He was settled against a boulder, unhooking the skin from his belt to take a much needed drink. "Solas, I don't think I ever told you how much I appreciate what you've done for me," she began.
"Mm?" he asked, his mouth still on the skin.
"I know this is random, but I just wanted to say..." She ran the words through her mind again, making sure she had them right. "...fenedhis lasa, hahren!"
All of a sudden, Solas spat and choked on his drink. With an alarmed gasp, Ahnnie struck his back vigorously, worried with every hacking cough that each one would be his last. Only after he had calmed down, albeit with a newly drenched shirtfront, did she dare to ask after him in a trembling voice.
"A-are you okay? Can you breathe? Does it hurt? If you need, I can go refill your skin–"
Solas coughed again and wiped the moisture from the corner of his mouth. "Where did you hear that from?" he asked, his voice wheezing.
"What?"
"What you just said..."
"You mean, fenedhi–"
"Yes!"
"I got it from Sera..." She gulped, the realization dawning upon her. "What does it mean...exactly?"
Solas coughed twice before he was able to speak again. "I shall try to put this in the politest terms possible. You, very cheerfully, told me to go...go pleasure myself with a wolf's...penis."
"...Huh?"
Seeing that she hadn't fully comprehended, he decided to be blunt. "Basically: 'Go fuck a wolf dick, elder'."
Ahnnie's eyes widened in horror. Now she understood. "Sera!"
Blackwall hummed a sprightly tune as he moved the knife across the piece of wood. He blew off some sawdust and scraped the wood again, delicately shaving off a thin piece with the sharp blade. When he was done, he wiped off the excess sawdust and held out the wood to get a better look. "Ahnnie," he then called out, "tell me if this looks right."
The girl was at his side within a few seconds. "Yes?" she asked, curious.
He held out the freshly carved wood to her. "What do you think?"
Ahnnie bent down for a closer look and let out a gasp of awe. "Chopsticks!" she exclaimed. "You made chopsticks?"
Blackwall shrugged. "Just thought I'd give it a try. Well? Are they any good?"
The girl took the thin pair of sticks in her right hand and studied them for a bit. They were around seven to eight inches long, made of a medium toned wood, and were rounded on one end and pointed on the other. She knelt down and used them to pick at the snow, pretending it was rice; then, she picked up a leaf, and held it before her eyes. With a smile, she turned to the Warden. "They're well balanced and I really like the grip. The wood is a good one, too, nice and sturdy. I just think the ends should be a little smaller," she said, running a finger down a tapered point.
Blackwall nodded as she handed back the chopsticks to him. "Nothing too serious, then," he said. "They'll be done by the time we get to Haven, and hopefully I can find some resin to varnish them with. Then I can give them to you."
Ahnnie blinked. "Really?"
"Of course. I'm not the one who knows how to use them."
She felt touched. "You didn't have to..."
"I figured it's the least I could do, to make you less homesick." His eyes met hers apologetically. "There being no demons where you come from, and, well...what happened with the envy demon...I just don't want that to be your biggest impression of Thedas."
She smiled up at him. "I've forgotten it already," she reassured the Warden. "And thank you...I'll be sure to use them. The chopsticks, I mean."
His beard moved up in a gentle smile that made her feel warm despite the snowy air around them. But a shout from the templars stole his attention a moment later, as did Ahnnie's. In alarm, they found Knight-Captain Denam trying to break free of the five templars holding him down, and rushed over immediately to help them. Cassandra was there a split second later, as were Sera and Solas.
"Careful," Ser Fletcher cried, "he's gone mad!"
Captain Denam was writhing and screaming like a man set on fire. Even without his armor and weapon, the Knight-Captain boasted an unruly strength. It was not enough to surpass the five templars, but it certainly gave them a hard time. In his thrashing, he struck Ser Barris on the bandaged side of his face; with a curse, the templar struck back with an armored elbow, knocking an ugly bruise onto the Knight-Captain's temple.
Cassandra was about to order some of the templars back to use her ability, when Madame Vivienne flicked an imperious finger and sent a jolt of electricity down the Knight-Captain's spine. Ahnnie shut her eyes and ears upon hearing the buzz, freezing like so until Solas assured her it was over. When she opened her eyes, she saw the stunned Knight-Captain panting on the ground.
"Ugh! Just let me shoot one through his head already," Sera scowled, pointing her bow at Denam. "He's gone loony–"
"We need him for questioning," Cassandra interjected as she pushed through the templars to inspect him. "And thank you, Madame Vivienne – that was quick of you."
"My pleasure," the Enchanter nodded, stuffing her hand back into her fur muff.
Sera looked from Cassandra to Vivienne with a disgusted grimace. "Tough luck getting answers out of a loony," the archer muttered before stalking off. She re-shouldered her bow as she went, grumbling angrily to herself.
"Wait, Seeker," Solas said, drawing up to Cassandra's side. "Let me give him some of the sleeping draught. It'll help calm him down."
"Better double the dose," Blackwall advised. "Wouldn't want him rearing up like that again."
"Do you need any help?" Lady Josephine asked, peering worriedly over the Warden's shoulder. Behind her, Madame Vivienne's porters were watching the group with wary eyes, hoping they would not be called upon if assistance was required.
"I will be fine. He is still right now," the elven mage assured them all.
Ahnnie bit down on her lower lip, watching Solas tend to the man with trepidation. Then she turned to Ser Barris, who was off to the side clutching his face in pain. She decided to ask after him, being unable to look at the Knight-Captain any longer. "Are you all right?" she asked the templar, settling onto the log beside him.
He seemed surprised at her approach, but did his best to muster up a smile. "I am fine, thank you."
"He hit you pretty hard..."
"It's of no consequence."
She nodded, looking off in another direction. "Is Sera right?" she asked at last. "That he's, um, not mentally sane."
Ser Barris grimaced and shrugged. "Perhaps," he ground out. "He wasn't right in the mind back at the headquarters, either. But at this point, I believe it's more a withdrawal from the red lyrium than any of its effects."
Again, this red lyrium. Just hearing about it made her want to shiver. "So if the red templars have been taking it...would they, too, experience the same thing?"
"I would assume so," Ser Barris affirmed. "Same thing with regular lyrium, although it's much less aggressive than the red variety."
Wait – "So there's regular lyrium?"
"Of course," the templar said, sounding surprised. "You didn't know? It's what gives us Templars the power to fuel our abilities. Mages sometimes take it to increase their mana as well."
She blinked. "Then...you guys have to keep taking lyrium, or else have withdrawals?"
Ser Barris nodded grimly. "Lyrium wears away at the mind even when taken regularly, so that's why you don't see many older templars in service," he added. "Stopping its consumption just brings on the side effects sooner. But it's worth it to do our duty; how else can we combat magic and demons? Luckily for the Seekers, they don't need to take it to use their abilities. That's why they're our superiors."
Man, lyrium sounds worse than steroids. It made her wonder about Commander Cullen, and the other templars of the Inquisition. Are they really doomed to the same fate? That sounds horrible! Why would the Chantry allow them to ruin themselves like that? It seemed a cruel twist of fate for an organization of warriors under the Andrastian faith. But they seemed convinced of its necessity, its virtue, even, as Ser Barris mentioned. She supposed, then, that it must be a powerful tool; but is it really worth it, in the end?
As for those who took red lyrium...well, one look at Captain Denam told her their path was no better, either.
Knight-Captain Denam gave them no more trouble on the way back to Haven, even as the Inquisition soldiers led him away to the dungeons beneath the Chantry. The only trouble they had was navigating through the howling snowstorm, which was much more intense than anything Ahnnie had ever seen blow through Haven. It was amazing anyone could navigate through the perpetual white curtain racing down from the sky, and that was not counting the knee-high snow.
Everyone was thus grateful for the chance to shut it all out in the stone halls of the Chantry. With a shiver, Ahnnie stomped off the excess snow from her boots and watched as the others rid themselves of their own crevices of snow. Blackwall in particular had parts of his beard frozen, little icicles hanging from the ends of his mustache so that his open mouth seemed like a cave.
"Great Maker!" the Warden swore. "That's going to take a while to recover from."
Sera was hiding her hands beneath her armpits, and was perhaps the one who took the brunt of the weather as she didn't think to bring enough winter clothing. "It's only 'cause you're the Inquisition, okay?" she told them all, her voice shivering. "But I'm not doing this again. Ever."
Josephine shook off her cloak and strutted frozenly towards her office, eager to take advantage of its fireplace. "Ah, Val Royeaux," she sighed. "I am missing you already."
Madame Vivienne on the other hand was too speechless to say anything, merely following the nearest Chantry sister to the first available room. She didn't even mind that her porters had to stable the mules immediately, rendering her luggage temporarily unavailable.
Ahnnie shook off the snow from her cap before plopping it back onto her head. "Jesus," she muttered, "is this Haven's winter? It's freezing!"
"It is Wintermarch now," Cassandra affirmed, "so yes, it is winter."
Ahnnie's eyes widened. Wintermarch? That's like, January on Earth! Now that Cassandra mentioned it, though, she had noticed snow on the way back long before they reached the Frostbacks. "How long have we been away for this time?"
Solas tilted his head in thought. "I think about six weeks," he then said.
She ran the months through her head. If what Solas said was true, then they had been away for all of Haring and it was now a new year. Then she frowned as she thought even farther back. Oh my god! I've been in Thedas for five months! If it was mid July when she came and Kingsway, the ninth month, in Thedas, then that meant it was now the middle of November back on Earth. How quickly time had passed her by!
Leliana and Cullen then emerged from deeper within the Chantry, bringing her mind back to attention. After exchanging a few words with Cassandra, they pulled the Herald into another war room council, and Josephine was summoned within a few minutes to attend it. This time around, hot spiced wine was available for all attendees, making the proceedings a little more bearable.
Josephine took center stage for the first part of it, informing the two others of the progress made in Val Royeaux. "You should prepare to send another regiment to the capital soon," the ambassador then told Commander Cullen. "The Chantry has now welcomed Inquisition protection at the Grand Cathedral."
"That sounds like good news," the Commander nodded. "A shame the templars abandoned their senses as well as the capital, though."
"Speaking of which, we've received word from Grand Enchanter Fiona in Redcliffe that the rebel mages are amenable to an alliance," the spymaster said. "With the Chantry no longer a threat, this means we now have an opening to approach the templars and mages."
Ahnnie fidgeted. "But, about the templars–"
"We've put the Lord Seeker on the defensive with our aid to the Chantry," Cullen assured her, an encouraging smile on his face. "It might take some time, but something can be reached with them. I'm certain not everyone in the Order will support the Lord Seeker."
She shook her head. "No, there are no templars to negotiate with. Like, at all."
Both Leliana and Cullen blinked at her. "What?" the Commander asked, dumbfounded.
Josephine heaved a weary sigh. "Unfortunately..." And she began to relate to them the events at the Seeker headquarters, sparing no details except for the specifics of Ahnnie's attempted possession, which she did not know of anyway. "The only templars we have on our side are five knights who escaped the battle with us."
The news took the wind out of Cullen's sails. Ahnnie felt bad for him as she imagined the thoughts that were probably running through his head. It must not be easy to hear something like that about a group he was part of. Then she turned to Cassandra, wondering what the Seeker thought not only of Lucius' betrayal, but the disappearance of the other Seekers – this Elder One...he doesn't want them in Thedas, and the red templars probably took the remaining Seekers away with them. She's always so serious, though; it's hard to tell what she's thinking.
"Well," Leliana said. "That leaves only the mages."
Commander Cullen was speechless for a few seconds, looking as though someone had just murdered his best friend in front of his face. "Knight-Captain Denam is imprisoned below, you say?" he murmured a moment later. "Yes, I'll look into it...and I'll see what I can do for Ser Barris and the other templars..."
Ahnnie sipped her wine, unable to look into the Commander's haunted face. Instead, she listened to Cassandra, taking solace in the Seeker's confident voice.
"We will prepare to leave for Redcliffe, then. We will require soldiers like last time, however; there's no knowing if this invitation is a trap set by the mages."
"Of course," Leliana agreed. "What happened in Val Royeaux cannot be repeated. In that case, I have a solution that can save us the soldiers from Haven."
Cassandra nodded. "Please."
"While you were away, a young man by the name of Cremisius Aclassi came bearing a message for the Inquisition." Leliana paced about the war table as she spoke. "Apparently, he comes from the Bull's Chargers mercenary company, and his commander – a Qunari by the name of Iron Bull – has offered to assist the Inquisition. We need only come to the Storm Coast to see a demonstration of their prowess and work out negotiations from there. My latest report from Harding indicates she is in the Storm Coast right now; you could meet with this Iron Bull first, giving my people down in Redcliffe time to secure the area, then travel with Harding and her regiment south to the Hinterlands."
"That seems a sound plan to me," the Seeker agreed.
"Whatever works best," Josephine said when Ahnnie looked at her.
Commander Cullen appeared to have recovered from his shock, though his face was still grim. "Very well. It'll give us the time we need to hold an advantage over the mages. Whether or not we gain anything with the Bull's Chargers will not be so important, so long as we can ensure Redcliffe's safety for the Herald."
Ahnnie said nothing as the matter was then decided. What followed were merely the deliberations on logistics, supplies, and routes. She only stayed long enough to finish her spiced wine; when even that was done, she interrupted Leliana to be excused from the room. "I'm still a bit tired from the journey," she said, "and I'm not feeling all that well, either."
A Chantry sister showed her to a guest room a moment later, as the blizzard was still going strong through the town. Ahnnie couldn't care less. She threw off her coat the moment she was alone and crashed down onto the bed for a much needed slumber.