Skyhold-Prisons
Benjamin had darkened the room. Only a small light shined down from the darkness above a chair. The woman, the elf, the spy, sat there looking around the room with more curiosity and less panic then Benjamin would have given her credit for.
He stood there for a while, studying the woman. Trying to get his own feelings under control. That a member of the Inquisition itself could have struck this blow. Outside threats made sense, threats that would use every desperate means in their arsenal also made sense, but this? This did not make sense.
He finally mastered himself, and went tapping into the room with his golden dragon staff. It shined and reflected in the light cast by the torch as he moved forward.
Her head swiveled in his direction. And she brought up a small smile. "Ah, I wondered when the grand Inquisitor himself would grace me with his presence. Seems it is true what they say, to get noticed you have to do something drastic."
"You didn't have to do anything drastic, the Inquisition favors an open door policy, with everyone, all you had to do was bring your complaints to me." Benjamin argued.
She snorted. "But would you have listened? Would you have done anything about it?"
"Is that why you did it? Is that why you betrayed the Inquisition?" Benjamin asked.
She snorted, "I did not betray the Inquisition. The Inquisition betrayed the world."
Benjamin took a steadying breath for himself, this is harder than I thought.
"We defeated Corypheus, we stopped the darkness from swallowing the entire world."
"And yet, you have done nothing with your chosen abilities since then. Instead you sit and play politics while the Chantry and Orlais and Ferelden continues to play politics with my people." The elf pointed out.
"The situation is more complicated than that," Benjamin finally uttered, after taking another moment.
She snorted again. "That is what all the high born nobles say, why the world has not changed in a thousand years, well, if you will not change the world then we will."
"And how do you seek to change the world? How has the Inquisition not changed the world?"
The elf gaped at him, but then her mouth snapped shut. "You left Celene in power. The Wardens continue to reside in their fortresses in the South. No one is freer, in fact the rebel mages you have seen safely delivered back to the Circles."
"And you would undo that? Tear down empires, burn all those who got in your way, throw open the doors of the Alienages and the Circles, and give people freedom in a fortnight? How?"
"By any means necessary." The Elf snarled.
Her words chilled him to the bone.
He began pacing, looking forward. But he kept an eye on the elf out of the corner of his. She looked increasingly smug and triumphant, knowing she had rattled him to the core.
Finally though, he stopped, smiled. "You know, the original Inquisition's mandate was to investigate threats to the South, at that time the Kingdom of Orlais and deal with them. Whether magical, or supernatural. We met the Last Inquisitor, an elf named Ameridan. Yet his organization did not seek to change the world. Nor really preserve it, his job was to protect the world. To investigate. And then allow Drakkon and others to deal with the threats on their own."
"It was a different world back then," The elf sniffed.
"Indeed it was," Ben said turning to her slowly, "An elven mage could run the Inquisition without being known as the Herald of Andraste. Without having a divine mandate."
"What is your point, mage?"
Ben twirled on her and flung his hands on the arm rest of her chair. "My point is if you want the Inquisition to do something, if you want the Inquisition to change the world, then that is not the purpose of an Inquisition, we are not active, we are not reformers. We never have been, we never were, and we never will be. As long as I am Inquisitor we will serve as protectors and mediators. We will shield people from the darkness."
She sniffed again, "And meanwhile my people suffer as slaves."
He began to leave the room, getting all he could out of the conversation, but he turned around one more time. "If you believe that then you have not been paying attention my dear."
Then he ascended the stone steps, and left.
The Inquisitor's quarters
The Inquisitor sat on his rather large and comfy bed. Though the last thing he was focusing on was the comfort of anything, let alone his bed. He had spent so little time here during the war with the Elder One. Occasionally sleeping in different parts of his castle when there was a pinch.
But he did need the solitude now. And there were few places in Skyhold he could get complete solitude. Of course Cole could come bursting in the room any second now.
His hands were buried in his beard and his flesh. He gazed blankly at the far wall. His neurons were firing.
He asked himself two important questions: Where did it all go wrong? And are they right?
Those two questions were duking it out, dueling each other, battling over control of his psyche. He could see the merits of both. He could wonder if they were right. Maybe we have been too complacent, just sitting on our butts, not changing the world. But it bothered him that he could not place an answer to the first one.
Someone who the Inquisition had taken in, given a job, money, an elf…someone who was the perfect sign of what he was trying to build with the Inquisition since being named Inquisitor had betrayed them. Effectively stabbed them in the back. The kind of people he wanted on his side, was now a bitter enemy of his. They wanted to see the Inquisition fall because the Inquisition was not doing enough in their individual estimation.
He tried to not let it, but it was getting at him. Striking deeply into his soul.
He heard the door open and brought up a small smile. It creaked. I suppose no one will respect my privacy after all.
And it was Cassandra, she strode into the room slowly and confidently. Yet, there was something cautious in her steps. She was trying to not disturb him, yet hoping what he needed most of all was to be disturbed.
He didn't pay her any attention.
"Inquisitor." She said.
Nothing.
"Inquisitor." She said.
Still nothing.
"Benjamin!" She screamed in his face.
He flinched and she grabbed him by the sides of his shoulders.
"This is not the end, it can't be. You cannot allow it."
Tears welled up in his eyes, and he murmured at her. "She was one of ours Cassandra, she worked at the Herald's Rest. Fade blast it she probably served me beer!"
"And yet she betrayed you. Betrayed the Inquisition. Responsible for who knows how many deaths of our comrades, the lives of our patrols. The eighteen people killed during the assault."
Ben smirked, "You're not exactly helping you know."
"The truth always helps, and it looks like you are needing to focus your thoughts."
His smile, though more wan, was a lot more genuine. "Thank you…I suppose you are right."
She joined him on the bed and Ben wrapped an arm around her side, leaning across her shoulder. They stayed like that for several moments.
"She thinks we haven't done enough, enough to change the world. To put things right."
"And do you agree with her?" Cassandra asked after a moment.
"I honestly don't know." Benjamin whined.
"I do, and we have done enough. Though it's not a surprise you would ask the question, after all, you are a philosopher…and a good man."
He sighed. "And you are the warrior, so straight in her purpose. So blind to all alternatives."
"You think I am blind to alternatives? That I do not doubt? The Seekers of Truth were supposed to seek the truth, no matter how painful. It was just a tragic lesson that some of us forgot their purpose."
"So," Ben smirked, "you are sort of a warrior philosopher then?"
"If you'd like." She smiled.
Benjamin sighed and, though he was very sorry to go, he disentangled himself and started pacing around the bed. "But what of it? Durnham is not wrong. My time as Inquisitor has shown that, people are afraid, they are under the boot heel of powerful nobles from across Thedas. The Inquisition and his goals do not differ…"
"But our tactics are." Cassandra argued, uncrossing her legs to join him.
She rubbed his back and he felt better which somehow made him feel worse.
"You cannot feel bad. You cannot lose your purpose, not now. Not when we still need you, you are our Inquisitor Benjamin Trevelyan."
He sighed.
"You just said, that we have a job to do, that the Inquisition must gather."
He brought up a small smirk, "I have learned my lessons well. Still not sure if I am the Herald of Andraste, yet ask any peasant, and it's me…sent by the Maker to vanquish all evil. In our greatest time of need. We needed to hear that, but personally, I doubt."
She spun him aside and took him by the shoulders, "Then be that person again, doubting is good. Questioning yourself, the Chant, the Maker himself is good. But when you have to act, you have to act. Right now Durnham seeks to tear the world apart, when we defeat him, we can debate tactics on our own later."
Benjamin bit his lip, musing it over. "You're right." He agreed, slapping her on the shoulder. "Thank you."
With that he turned and marched up, heading for the throne room. "First, summon the prisoner, we have something else to do…"
…
The Inquisition, or at least the few guards and curious onlookers, were gathered in the great hall a few hours later. The Inquisitor was holding court. He had done so a few times since the war with the Elder One ended. Judging bears, petty disputes between local farmers, and declaring matters of public policy.
Their power in such matters was still in limbo. The Inquisition was not a Government, they were not a realm, and they did not have any real power per se. Yet, they could judge their own affairs. And with Benjamin's status as the Herald of Andraste it gave him a certain legal respect with a great many people.
He had no laws, not really. But his word was law in matters of the Inquisition, or in all those matters that other powers considered appropriate for the Inquisition to judge.
I have always been uncomfortable with this power. Benjamin thought. A power of petty Kings of old. Not even the Orlesians invested this much power in one man. Maybe the Tevinter Imperium. Ben snorted.
Which is why he had always given that power over to others should the situation arise. If it was not his place to judge, he would turn them over to the proper authorities. If there were proper authorities to judge the people in question.
And before him now, the Elven spy who had caused them so much grief. Shackled, bound, and escorted by two of the people she used to serve.
Josephine started reading the charges, as was her usual due. "We all know what she has done, this Elf is guilty of treason to the Inquisition, and of passing information along to a terrorist organization which has resulted in the death of many soldiers of the Inquisition. And she has not offered anything in her defense."
"Why should I!" The elf stepped forward. "I am proud of what I have done! The Inquisition has grown to become a blight on the lands. It must be stopped if all of us are to be saved."
"Well, I have heard many things on this throne, arrogance, desperation, resignation, excuses…and even some whining…but this is the first I have heard of bold arrogance towards the Inquisition." Benjamin chuckled.
"Mock me if you want, the truth will be known when the mobs of angry elves are trying to destroy the Inquisition." The Elf continued.
Benjamin sighed and shook his head, yet he did not speak for several long minutes. Long enough to draw curious glances.
"Inquisitor?" Josephine hissed.
"Hmm?" He asked.
"Your judgement Inquisitor."
"Oh right! Sorry, this is court."
A chuckle swept through the hall.
Ben allowed himself a small smirk, "Well, you are judged, to take care of the sick and dying soldiers your efforts infected. To attend to their every needs under Dagna's and the Nurses supervision. To attend to them day and night until they pass, or they are cured." His face was grim. "And when that happens, you will spread the truth of what you have seen, under guard, of the Inquisition."
"And if I say something you do not like?"
"Then we will cross that bridge when we get to it, it is decided."
"It is decided." Several voices echoed.
Court soon broke up, now that the freak show was over several people went about their merry way and back to their lives or things of interest.
Though Leliana came forward through the remaining crowd, and nodded slightly towards the Inquisitor.
"Ah Spymaster, report."
"We found him."
The Inquisitor's mask of joviality instantly dissolved. "Where?"
"He is in Kirkwall Inquisitor."