Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Age or A Song of Ice and Fire
The Phoenix and the Griffin
Chapter 14: Righteousness
Agony, the sound of pure agony echoed through the Harrowing chamber. The senior mages had been taken, pushed to their limits by the rebels. There were holes in the wall, pillars of ice and fires in the corners of the room. And dead mages and demons, so Daylen was glad to know that his mentor had put up a fight. Irving was bound by chains of energy, other senior mages around him, similarly bound. They screamed as Uldred and his acolytes tortured them, their blood magic had given them an advantage that the senior mages hadn't trained for. Uldred gripped the cheek of one mage, grinning as the man was turned into a twisted abomination. Irving was still conscious, the only one not recoiling in pain. Daylen felt pride for his teacher, knowing that Uldred's rebellion hadn't been made easy. Niall had also defied Uldred by retrieving the litany of Adralla. Daylen opened the book and read the contents, focusing his magic through the words and the pages. Alistair and the others stepped forward, and in a burst of light, the spell activated.
The Litany of Adralla had been written by Adralla of Vyrantium, under the commission of Devine Clemence I. Adralla had dedicated her life to the academic study of blood magic, and to countering demonic summoning and mind control spells. That is where Uldred's power had been, in drawing thralls to his cause. Daylen felt the passion and dedication of Adralla flow through him, the spirits that mimicked her memory passed their energies into Daylen and he directed that power through the Harrowing chamber. The mana chains were broken, the mages freed. Irving threw his hand forward, knocking Uldred back with a force wave. The demons screeched, melting into puddle of blood and bursting into flames. Daylen felt a rush of euphoria, he knew the Litany was powerful, but he never believed it was capable of killing demons. It reminded him again of the power of magic, not just elements or entropy, but the energy itself. He smirked, watching Irving rise, his teacher would not die to the likes of Uldred.
Uldred had dressed himself in a purple robe, armoured gauntlets and boots and a customised staff. He fancied himself a warlord, leader of a new mage movement. Bulges moved over his face, quills began to form on his cheek and he glared at Daylen. The young man slammed the book shut, his eyes meeting Irving. Teacher and student didn't need to exchange words, and they certainly didn't need to hear what Uldred had to say. Of course he grinned, prepared to deliver some speech about the power of blood and how mages were a chrysalis for something greater. But in truth Daylen had heard it before, heard him rant about mage liberties. Daylen didn't believe in liberty at the expense of other's lives. He understood the want and the need to be free, but he would not condone Uldred's blood lust. Neither would Irving.
Before Uldred could utter a word, student and teacher unleashed fire from their hands. Uldred slammed his staff into the ground, his face turning into a version of a Pride demon's maw. His clawed fingertips shaped a barrier, shielding himself from the flames. Irving lifted the barrier above the flames, cancelling out the gravity around it. Daylen then released currents of electricity, and shards of ice around Uldred. When Irving restored the gravity, Uldred crashed to the floor, electricity burning the scales forming on his skin, the ice spikes pinned his right shoulder and left leg. Uldred roared in frustration.
Those of Uldred's followers not killed by the Litany's power were stunned enough to be easily finished by Daylen's companions. Leliana shot one mage through the neck with her bow, Zevran two more with his knives. Morrigan easily electrocuted two mages that tried to throw fire at her. A third tried to get her with an entropy type spell, the energy swirling around him. Suddenly, an ice spike burst through his mouth. Daylen held the makeshift spear and yanked it out of the man. He threw it towards Uldred, whom disintegrated it with a blast from his staff. Uldred formed a formation of spikes from the ground, nearly catching Sten and Leliana, both of them protected by Shale.
"I have hated you for a long time Daylen Amell," Uldred snarled, his shoulders and belly expanding as the transformation of a full Pride demon began to take place. "All I heard from Irving was praise about you, how brilliant you were, how you were so much like him when he was your age. How you could become a great mage, perhaps the greatest in the tower and I had to fucking laugh every time. Greatness in this place?" Uldred scoffed.
His staff clattered to the floor as his foot expanded. He snarled, multiple eyes aimed at Daylen. Electricity surged across his massive arm, and a whip formed. With a swing of his arm, he lashed at the mage, who rolled to the side, barely dodging the swipe. Uldred swung his arm again, but just when it was about to reach Daylen, a barrier formed around him.
"IRVING!" Uldred roared, turning to the First Enchanter.
"Stay away from my student," Irving said, defiance in his eyes.
"And my friend!"
A light shined over Irving, the smite of a Templar. Uldred yelled, Alistair stepping towards him, the light shining off of his body. He held up his sword and rushed towards the Pride demon. Daylen and Irving both used fire and ice respectively, piercing and burning Uldred's legs so he wouldn't move. Alistair jumped onto Uldred's chest, driving his sword through his belly. He dragged the sword out and stabbed underneath his breast, twisting it through his body. Daylen and Irving again used their elements to topple Uldred, leaving him vulnerable to Alistair. The former templar stabbed again and again, ripping and tearing through the abomination's flesh. He raised his sword, and Daylen enchanted it with fire, then finally Alistair imbedded the blade through Uldred's heart.
"Well, truthfully Uldred, I never much liked you either," Daylen said.
"I thought we were getting along just fine," Alistair walked off of the demon's body, sheathing his sword.
He looked over his shoulder, watching the Pride demon turn back into a broken and gutted man.
"I even thought of naming one of my children after him," he walked up to Daylen and smiled.
"The grumpy one," Daylen finished his friend's joke and they both pushed their heads together. "Thank you for helping to save him."
"Anytime, now go reunite with your teacher," Alistair patted Daylen's shoulder.
The young mage looked towards his weakened teacher. Irving smile at him, limping slightly. Daylen walked to his side, putting Irving's arm over his shoulder.
"My boy, you came back?" Irving asked.
"Well, I'm a little ashamed to say that I didn't come here for a social call, I was a little surprised old man, how'd did you let things fall apart like this?" Daylen grinned and Irving chuckled.
"You know Uldred, never thought he actually had the balls to make good on his rants," Irving said.
"I'm glad you're all right," Daylen held Irving tightly, the closest thing to a hug he and Irving would share right now.
"And I am thankful you came back my child, even if it was just to draw the mages into the fight against the Blight," Irving said and Daylen guiltily smiled, he knew the old man would figure it out.
"Greagoir was worried, they considered sending for the right, said they would stop only if they saw you," he told the First Enchanter.
"Then let us go and meet the Templars and put them at ease, alas I'll need your help to get down those steps, curse the Chantry for putting the circle in a tower," Irving chuckled and Daylen joined him.
Alistair and Leliana looked at their friend with his teacher and smiled.
'It reminds me of Duncan and myself,' he thought.
'Seeing them together like this, it reminds me of seeing a father and son!' Leliana thought.
Daylen looked at the line running through his eye, a mark to forever remind him of the danger of battle and the importance of being aware of his surroundings. He listened to the birds singing, the rustle of the leaves, the blow of the wind and the ripples in the water as fish came up. The Hinterlands were beautiful and dangerous, for miles and miles Daylen walked with his companions. They came upon refugees whom had escaped an attack on their village. Darkspawn scouts and raiding parties were becoming common place. Then they came upon sickened fields, Ferelden would face both a pandemic and a famine due to the blight. Daylen rubbed Alpha's fur, the dog trying to get his attention to play. Two days since the tower, since Greagoir cancelled the Right of Annulment. Over those two days Daylen had bonded with Morrigan by giving her a book about her mother, bonded with Leliana by giving her flowers he remembered her saying she liked, and discussed the Qun with Sten.
As barbaric as some people found it, Daylen understood the appeal that such a thing could offer. He also saw Sten's point of view on many things. No one was comfortable with who they had been born to be. Lords wanted more wealth and more power, farmers wanted to be lords and knights, and knights wanted to be heroes. It felt somewhat like Sten was insulting Daylen, though Daylen wasn't bothered by it. They both came to a sort of understanding, that wisdom could come from the Qun, or the Chant, people needed wisdom in their lives. Then there was Zevran.
Daylen titled his head to the right, grabbed Zevran's arm and knocked him to the ground!
"Impressive, you reacted just two seconds later than the last time," the elf assassin said.
"I couldn't hear where you approached from, damn it," Daylen chided himself.
"Don't feel too bad, I'm the best of the Crows after all," Zevran grinned.
"Really, you slept with one of your targets...she died by complete accident," Daylen said, his deadpan expression made Zevran drop his grin for a moment.
"Ah yes, but she still died, she was a good lay too, not my best work. There was a beauty in Antiva city, a Rivaini woman," Zevran sat beside Daylen on the hill and sighed, a far off look in her eyes. "Great skin, very athletic, she and I had quite a passionate affair. She was in an unhappy marriage."
"Did she end up falling and breaking her neck too?" Daylen asked.
"Oh no, she went on to live a very eventful life, after I killed her husband..." Zevran took note of the look of shock on Daylen's face. "It was a job from the Crows, nothing to do with her, at least I don't think so, sometimes I just got a name and nothing else."
"You don't always know who hires you?"
"Not always, I met Loghain once, if you could call it that. It was brief, I just said 'The Antivan Crows, send their regards,' and he just told me to get the job done. The business affairs of it were handled by Arl Howe," Zevran explained.
"Just out of curiosity how much was I worth?"
"Twenty five sovereigns, but that was for Alistair as well," Zevran said.
"Twelve gold coins and fifty silvers," Daylen said.
"Not that I would have seen any of that, that's without expenses, I never really covered the financial aspects of it. Listen Daylen," Zevran shifted uncomfortably. "About what you saw in the Fade..."
"It's all right, there's no judgement from me," Daylen said.
"I never thought there would be, but still, you've been a better person to me than even some of my friends in the Crows. I still feel like I need to explain myself, we're taught to take extreme measures of pain, those machines you saw were a way to test a person's ability to stand physical torture. But there were other ways, starvation, exposure to certain temperatures, I had hot coals put onto my back and my feet dipped into buckets filled with ice," Zevran explained.
"It makes sense, they were training you to endure torture so you wouldn't give away who hired you," Daylen said.
"Partly yes, but keep in mind we weren't always told who hired us. It was part of indoctrinating us into a routine, I never got used to the pain, what I did get used to was the pain stopping. Part of me began to feel grateful to the trainers," Zevran stated.
"Why did you break when we captured you though, you gave everything away," Daylen said.
"It wouldn't have been difficult for you to figure out why we attacked, besides at the time I thought you wouldn't care, bandit, assassins, they were the same thing to your strength. I've been killing people for the Crows for years, I've killed people who had no blood on them, all because they were just a name given to me. What I'm saying is I've killed truly better people than you," Zevran explained and Daylen nodded, not at all insulted. "When I was told though that you were a Grey Warden, and that there could be a Blight, well, it bothered me."
Daylen blinked in surprise, quite taken aback by Zevran's statement. Again the assassin shifted uncomfortably and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"I'm not at all bothered by what Loghain did at Ostagar, but to kill the last hope his country may have, the Grey Wardens have been around as long as they have, and a consistent story throughout history is that the Blights ended because of their actions. I'm not so out of touch that I couldn't see the folly in that," he explained.
"So that's why you offered to come with me, even if it meant looking over your shoulder and never going home to Antiva, won't you miss it?" Daylen asked.
"Of course, it was home, as strange as it sounds, what I'll miss most is the smell of leather," Zevran said and Daylen looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Is that some kind of euphemism?" he asked.
"It may as well be, no, I lived next to a leather factory, boots, gloves, it reminded me of my earliest memory of my parents. The Dalish gloves I kept on me," Zevran muttered.
Daylen made a mental note as he stood up.
"Thank you for the trust Zevran, we'd best go back to the others or Wynn will think you tried to kill me again," he said.
When Daylen got back to the camp, he saw Sandal and Bodahn working with Levi Dryden. He was a travelling merchant, part of a shamed noble family apparently. They met him on the road from the circle, and he told Daylen about the location of a Grey Warden keep, Soldier's peak. Alistair verified it had been lost when the Grey Wardens tried to take part in politics, joining a rebel movement an age before. Daylen promised Levi help to at least analyse the keep, only after he had finished in Redcliffe. In the mean time Levi helped Bodahn and Sandal with items. Alistair had just finished having a flame rune applied to his sword, nodding to Daylen as he passed.
"At this pace we'll reach Redcliffe soon, it'll still be a wait for the circle mages though considering what they're bringing, I intend to stay in the castle and keep an eye on things," Alistair explained.
"That's where I'll be," Daylen said.
"Daylen," Alistair shook his head in dismay, sheathing his sword. "Spend time with your family there."
"You know me better than my cousins," Daylen said.
"Then get to know them, god knows you've listened to me go on about how much I want to know my sister, you should want the same thing for you and your cousins," Alistair stated and walked with Daylen to the tent Leliana had set up.
"Still not going to talk to the Hawkes are we?" she asked.
"Of course he isn't, see if you can talk sense to him Leliana," Alistair smiled.
"It isn't that I don't want to get to know them, I made a commitment to helping Conner, I need to make sure that Irving and the others can carry out their work and that there aren't anymore undead for Conner to use," Daylen explained.
"Don't you trust the protectors you helped create?" Leliana asked.
Her question surprised him, and despite her tone being harsh, she still smiled at him as she stood.
"Bevin and his sister, your cousins, all of the villagers, they became stronger that night because of you. They'll endure thanks to you Daylen, you did more than just fight for them that day," Leliana explained.
"You saved the boozie smith's daughter, I bet he's making even more weapons for the militia, then there's Bella," Alistair teased and Daylen turned away as he blushed.
"Honestly, I don't know what we would talk about," Daylen said.
"Just do what you do with us, listen to us talk about life and our point of views and just nod and say you agree...that's a great way to make friends," Zevran explained.
"I don't do that...but do you think they'd approve?"
"Just be yourself around them Day," Leliana said.
"Day?"
"Yeah, don't tell me I've lost approval," Leliana grimaced.
"No, no, it's fine, when it's us you can all just call me Day," the mage smiled softly as he spoke.
It was what Surana and Jowan would call him. It was the name of a friend and not just an acquaintance.
"So I have a pet name for you now," Zevran put his arm around Daylen's hip and grinned.
"Don't think of it as that please," Daylen groaned.
"I will never stop calling you it then!"
Alistair and Leliana both laughed, and after a moment Daylen joined them. It was a good escape from the pressure of the incoming task. And he was thankful for all three of them. When they were fully packed and continuing onwards, Daylen walked ahead with Leliana.
"You and Irving seemed very close," she said.
"Well he was my teacher," Daylen said.
"Don't be coy, you were really worried about him weren't you?"
"I was worried about everyone in the tower."
"I could tell, just like you were worried about everyone in Lothering, and everyone in Redcliffe, I knew my visions had led me to the best person," Leliana explained.
"I'm not that good a person Leliana," Daylen lowered his head as he spoke.
"Now you're just being modest, you are truly one of the kindest people I've ever met," Leliana said.
"I've tried to be, but sometimes, sometimes I wonder if I'm not just being cruel," Daylen said.
"What do you mean?" Leliana asked.
"Those people in Redcliffe, they'll still struggle, the people in Lothering, they've lost their homes. The mages in the tower, they'll still live trapped, unable to choose anything for themselves, and there will only be more restrictions on them now. If I save Connor, the only future he has is to be trapped in a tower for the rest of his life. Just like Irving, just like Wynn, just like it would have been my destiny," Daylen explained.
"So you think it's pointless to save him, then why go to all this effort then?"
"Because he has his mother and father," Daylen rushed ahead, running down the path to Redcliffe village.
He saw people repairing some of the broken huts, applying new layers of straw or hammering in wooden planks. Some were working the fields as well, replanting and sowing.
"Look it's the hero, he's come back," one of the men said.
Daylen was sprinting at that point, the praise and cheers just rushed through him. He didn't want to hear them, not whilst there was still more to do. Some of the villagers now had better armour, Scale Mail and Splint armour, heavy metal shields and some of the villagers were even using heavy chainmail gloves and boots. The materials of their weapons were also better too. Carver was sparring with some of the soldiers, Bethany not too far from him.
"Cousin," she called out.
But he ignored them, continuing on a path towards the castle. Guards at the gate opened it as he came into their sights. He ran through the courtyard, making his way through the corridors and to the throne room.
"Amell," Teagan was waiting at the door.
"Lord Teagon, what has happened when I've been gone?" Daylen asked.
"Connor was calm for the first few days, he refused to eat at first, but then he demanded more and more food, quality of meals we couldn't provide," Teagan began.
"It must be the demon acting through him," Daylen said.
"He panicked and began thrashing at one point, we thought he would break his neck because he was moving so erratically. Isolde wouldn't leave him, I was able to convince her to eat and take a rest. I entertained Connor and gave him some books, but he became spiteful at one point, even when Isolde returned from her rest. He had another episode, I fought off a few shades before Connor went into a deep sleep. He's been asleep for two days now," Teagan explained.
"Damn, the chances of the demon permanently possessing Connor increases when he sleeps, where is he now?" Daylen asked.
"In his room with Isolde," Teagan said.
"I'll need her to be out of the room in case the worst happens."
"I wouldn't try to tell her that Amell!"
"She'll be in the way, and if I end up having to..." Daylen couldn't say the words, he simply grit his teeth together and shook his head.
"Isolde is stronger than you think," Teagan said, a confident smile on his face.
"The recent danger she's faced may have hardened her a little but..."
"No, you misunderstand, Isolde has faced danger before. She was the daughter of an Orlesian governor, she became sympathetic to the rebellion and began to pass information to us," Teagan explained.
"Her father wasn't likely to turn her into the authorities, she was in no real danger," Daylen said.
"I think you underestimate how far Orlesians are prepared to go to advance in the game."
"They're still people."
"True, it was difficult for us to see them as such though, especially considering all we lost even before we rebelled. Many of us still see them as enemies, waiting to strike at us," Teagan said.
"Loghain?"
"Yes, how did you know?" Teagan asked.
"At Ostagar, he was always getting into arguments with Cailan about Orlesian reinforcements," Daylen said.
"That's sounds like Loghain."
"He must have endured so much abuse from Orlais to have developed such hatred," Daylen said.
"He was a commoner, the Orlesian nobility often did abuse their authority," Teagan said.
"Enough about Loghain, we need to focus right now on Connor, and getting him help. The mages are on their way, they'll be able to stop the demon," Daylen explained.
"Thank you Amell, you've done so much for our people," Teagan said.
"It isn't over yet," Daylen said.
Teagan took Daylen to the family quarters, where Daylen saw the Arl of Redcliffe in his bed, his nutrition clearly maintained by magic. He looked over the Arl for a moment, looking at the field that kept Eamon alive. Daylen turned away and followed Teagan to Connor's room. As they entered, a vase was thrown at the wall beside them.
"SHUT UP STUPID WOMAN!" a voice that wasn't Connor's yelled.
"Conner, please," Isolde pleaded, trying to hug the boy.
"You have always been weak, always been a fool, don't touch me!" Connor punched his mother's cheek, his eyes glowing purple as she fell to the ground.
"CONNER!" Teagan yelled.
The boy's hands glowed with entropic magic. Daylen barged in front of Teagan, deflecting a bolt cast by Connor. Then he grabbed Connor's head, using life drain to take just enough to make the boy pass out. He gently placed Conner on the bed and looked to Isolde.
"Roughly how long had the demon been projecting its voice through him?" he asked her.
"I don't know," she rubbed the bruise on her cheek.
Teagan helped her up and she leant on him for support, there were bags under her eyes and her skin was pale.
"Come Isolde, you need to rest, the circle magi are on their way," Teagan reassured her.
Daylen looked over Connor, the boy was beginning to sweat and flinch. His body language was akin to someone having a dream. Though Daylen knew in the boy's case it would be a nightmare. Soon afterwards, Daylen's companions arrived and he, Alistair and Leliana took turns to watch Connor. Zevran volunteered surprisingly, though Daylen regulated him to guarding the door. On Leliana's shift, Alistair and Daylen stood at the castle gate and waited. The blonde warden had added some mail gloves and extra padding to his Templar disguise and Daylen looked over a shoulder pad and arm armour that Irving had made before he left the Chantry.
"I'm glad you kept that, you need something better to defend your arm," Alistair said.
"You don't need to worry about me," Daylen said.
He slid his arm into the gauntlet, he replaced the grey shoulder pad with the silver armoured pad he had bought from Bodahn. It reminded Daylen of the eastern armour that he had seen his grandfather wear sometimes.
"You just seemed to take what that Templar at the tower said to heart," Alistair pointed out.
"Cullen was traumatised from what happened," Daylen said.
"You know, it's strange, most people would accuse you of being a Loyalist with that mind set," Alistair said.
"I'm no loyalist, but if you want to put a label on my mind set you could call me an Aequitarian like Wynn and Irving," Daylen said.
"That's the code of ethics isn't it? Can't say I learnt much about Magi politics as a templar. What I'm trying to say Daylen is that you're kinder than most people would be, if I'd heard that from Cullen I don't think I'd be as forgiving," Alistair explained.
"Fear can be warping, I don't think Cullen is all he said."
Alistair smiled and patted Daylen on the back.
"That's our hero!"
"I'm not a hero."
"Those people in the village would disagree," Alistair pointed past the gate. "The children at the tower would disagree, and I disagree. Try not to be so hard on yourself Daylen!"
Daylen nodded hesitantly and looked at the path ahead. He could see the caravan from the tower in the distance.
Irving set up the ritual in Connor's room, other mages prepared lyrium dust and carefully sprinkled it in a circle around Conner's bed. Wynn had put the child into a sleep, and Teagan kept Isolde aside. They couldn't afford any kind of interruption from her.
"Further examination confirmed what you told us Daylen, a Desire demon, one of the more powerful of the hierarchy," Irving stated.
"But the ritual will allow a mage to go into Connor's dream and face the demon directly within the fade," Daylen said.
"Yes, you remember this one don't you?" Irving asked, smiling as Daylen looked over the work the other mages were doing.
"I didn't have the resources necessary to carry it out, and I never actually saw it performed," he said.
"But your return was most fortunate, regardless of the reason whether it be to save this boy or recruit us into the war against the blight, the fact remains that you saved the circle lad," Irving explained.
"Yeah, now I just need to save Connor," Daylen huffed.
Irving looked at Daylen, puzzled as the Warden stepped into the circle.
"You intend to go?" Irving asked.
"I made a promise, I intend to keep it," Daylen said.
Without even needing to see his eyes, Irving knew the determination that filled his old student. The determination that was reflected in his eyes every time he failed a spell, every time he got a theory question wrong and every time people doubted him. 'Red eyed boy' they would whisper, the boy whose first conscious act of magic was blood. Irving nodded to the other mages and they joined him in the casting of the spell. Daylen closed his eyes, lifting his hands just a little bit, exhaling both his breath and some of his mana. Incense burned in the air, putting Daylen's mind into a trance like state. He focused on the fade, and on the boy in front of him. The support that the other mages gave him, acted as the stairways for his consciousness to descend into the fade. His body manifested in the fade, in Connor's dream. But it manifested in a manner he only had a vague familiarity with, his body was a shadow surrounded by light, yellow energy surging through his eyes. He appeared before wisps and shades, their forms seemingly shocked before they reacted violently. Daylen raised his hands, squeezed his fists together and opened them as he spread his arms in a wide arc. There was a surge of energy, and the demons were burned until they disappeared.
He broke off into a run through the corridors of the Redcliffe dreamscape. Nightmares manifested before him, the embodiment of Connor's fears, his armour wrapped in armour, skin deathly pale, hair burning from the flames of a funeral pyre. They attacked Daylen, and as he fought the nightmares, he could hear the helpless screams of both father and son.
"CONNOR!" a father trapped within a loop, desperately searching for his son.
"FATHER!" a son who just wanted to save his father.
With fists of flame and lightning he violently paved a path through the demonic entities blocking him. The castle shifted, literally turning upside down. But Daylen continued walking, across the ceiling, across the walls. He knew enough about the fade not to be disorientated by it. Barging into Eamon's room, he saw the Arl searching.
"My son, where is my son?" he demanded.
"Arl Eamon?" Daylen followed the man's reaction.
"Where is he? I've tried to find him, but I can't see him through the fog, who is out there?"
"Your life has been linked to your sons, not only does the demon gain power through him, but through your life force as well," Daylen said.
"A demon, then my son is in danger, I must find him, CONNOR!" Eamon yelled.
"I will find him, and I will save him," Daylen said.
Eamon froze, upon hearing Daylen's statement, he seemed to have been lost in a trance. As if he as looking back on a long life and remembering someone. Daylen continued forward, going past Eamon and breaking through another door.
"FATHER!" he heard Connor yell.
Running through the fields of Redcliffe village, he rushed towards the windmill. Only when he walked inside, it was an upside down version of the castle's throne room. Daylen faced the boy looking frantically across the room.
"Who are you? Where am I? Where is father?" confusion and despair was written across his face.
"Someone once made you a promise Connor, to help your father, but they aren't helping him. They're leeching off of the both of you, but you can sever this connection. That is how you will best help your father," Daylen explained.
"I will?" Connor asked, and for a moment it seemed as if he believed Daylen.
But then Connor's eyes took on a yellow hue, and a man's voice whispered underneath his own.
"No, I don't believe you, you want to hurt father, you want to hurt me," he said.
"Connor, you need to calm yourself, focus on where you are, where do you think you are now?" Daylen asked.
'What exactly was Jowan teaching him?' Daylen wondered.
"I am home, I am..." Connor put his hands to his head and yelled in a mixture of pain and frustration. "You're trying to confuse me," he said and the scenery changed, into his room.
Frozen statues of Irving, Wynn, Isolde, Eamon and other mages and servants were set around them. They began to crack as the roof was broken apart, exposing the area to a surging yellow sky. Soon the walls collapsed, leaving the mages on nothing but an island floating amongst the chaos of the fade. Suits of armour, portraits, tapestries, all manner of paraphernalia from the castle and Redcliffe floated amongst them. Even people walked aimlessly through the sky, knights, villagers. Daylen spotted Jowan on his knees, Isolde with a scolding tone, another version of her weeping and versions of Teagan stern, or putting on the performance and voice he had when under the demon's influence. But Daylen focused on Connor, the boy went to the bed and saw his father lying on it.
"He's fine, he's going to be fine," he and the demon whispered in unison.
"That's a lie Connor, if you were to cease to exist then that would sadden your father," Daylen said.
With a wave of his hand he dispelled Eamon's image, and panic spread across Connor's face.
"No, no, no, why? Why are you trying to stop me?" he demanded, more in the demon's voice than the voice of a child.
"Enough!" Daylen grabbed Connor by his shoulders, looking him in the eyes. "Concentrate Connor, focus, look at your surroundings, notice how they are reacting to you," he explained and as Connor looked around the scenery became calmer, everything that had broken apart began to put itself back together. "This place is the Fade, it's where we pass through as we sleep, and as we die. And it is a source of power for people like us, mages Connor. But magic also comes from us, it is ours to control. Concentrate Connor, control, this dream can end, and the nightmare that the demon has infected you with can be dispelled. It is as much a creation of your mind as it is the demon's."
Connor looked at his hands and closed his eyes. He followed Daylen's movements, the man letting go of his shoulders and slowly lifting his hands, forming his fists. Both tilted their heads back and exhaled.
"Feel the pillow beneath your head, your toes on the sheets, the cold air through the castle. Focus on the reality beyond the dream, on where we truly reside, wake up," Daylen calmly stated, not commanded, not urged or begged.
Connor's eyes opened, and through blurred vision he could see the ceiling of his bedroom. He heard his mother weep like she was at a distance.
"Mother," he whispered.
"That's it, she's worried Connor, go back to her, go back to where your family truly is," Daylen said.
"NO!" there was a great cry and Connor was pulled out of Daylen's grip.
Connor screamed, his body fading in a flash of white light. The floor collapsed underneath Daylen and he fell through the Fade, passing sections of the castle, living quarters, the courtyard, until he landed in the dungeons. He rolled onto his back and grimaced in pain. Rising to his knees, he looked towards the cell across from him. Inside was Jowan, just as he had found him in the dungeons the first time he went to Redcliffe castle.
"Lady Isolde was looking for a teacher to show Connor how to conceal his magic, she knew that if the Arl ever found out, regardless of how he felt he would have obeyed the law, sent the boy away," Jowan explained.
"What did you have to do with the Arl?" he heard his voice demand.
"Loghain said he would grant me royal immunity from the circle, and I thought I was protecting the realm, I had no idea..."
"A little boy could now be the meat sack of a demon Jowan," Daylen's voice had utter fury in it.
"I know, I know, I didn't mean for any of this to happen, please, let me out of here I have to put this right please," Jowan leant against the bars, his eyes watering, genuine regret and desperation across them.
"Put it right? Like you did at the circle with Lily and me? No, you're better off staying here, and if, if the Arl recovers then he'll decide your fate."
"He could very well execute me Day."
"NO! Only my friend's get to call me that!"
He remembered the utter hatred he had in his voice. Daylen remembered walking away, but then stopping. A battle raged within him, the part of him that wanted to believe that Jowan deserved to live and another part that wanted him to suffer for his crimes. And even now, Daylen wondered if he made the right choice, if the choice he made was one born of light, or darkness. He remembered turning back and opening the cell.
"Go!" he snarled.
"Daylen I..."
"Just go Jowan, get out of my sight, your help is the last thing this place needs," Daylen had said.
"Daylen, oh, I'll try to repay this kindness, I'll try to put things right," Jowan said.
Daylen grabbed Jowan by his shoulder and forced him out of the cell, pushing him down the corridor.
"Consider this the last act of a friend and pray we never meet again, GET OUT!" Daylen yelled, making Jowan flinch.
Jowan lingered, clearly wanted to say more.
"GO!" Daylen roared in anger.
And so Jowan ran, leaving Daylen wondering if he was truly a righteous person or not. True he had come to the decision to save all that he could at the circle, but even that choice had filled him with doubt. Especially when he encountered a templar. The scenery changed before his eyes, and he was back in the tower again, facing that Templar. He remembered speaking with Cullen sometimes, he always seemed timid, but trapped behind a magical barrier, surrounded by his dead friends, something inside of him had broken.
"You broke the others, but you will not break me," Cullen said.
Daylen saw men filled with fear at Ostagar, but he had never seen a man crying like Cullen was. The templar had gripped his head tightly and screamed.
"Still here? I close my eyes but you are still here when I open them," he said.
"Because I'm real Cullen, and I'm here to help," Daylen said.
"Don't blame me for being cautious, the images...the voices...so real," Cullen grimaced in pain. "Why did you return to the tower? How did you survive?"
"Greagoir told me what happened, I knew that I needed to help," Daylen said.
"You're too late, those infernal blood mages hid amongst you, they all deserve to die for what they've done, especially Uldred!"
"I have the Litany of Adralla, and I'm going to save Irving, Uldred will die but I won't be the cause of a massacre," Daylen retorted.
"Are you blind? There's already been a massacre, no matter what magic you have you can't save them. No one should have this power, and to think I always thought we were too hard on you," Cullen explained.
"I'm going to save as many people as can be saved Cullen," Daylen said.
"Are you really saving anyone by taking this risk? To ensure this horror is ended...to guarantee that no abominations or blood mages live, you must kill everyone up there."
"I'd rather spare maleficarum than risk harming an innocent."
"Thank you, I knew you would make a rational decision," Wynn said.
"Rational? How is this rational? Do you understand the danger?"
"I know full well the dangers of magic, but killing innocents because they might be Maleficarum is not justice. I know you are angry..."
"You know nothing," Cullen interrupted Wynn. "I am thinking about the future of the circle, of Ferelden."
"I do not want the blood of innocents on my hand," Daylen said.
"I am just willing to see the painful truth, which you seem content to ignore, but what can I do?" Cullen sighed in defeat.
He seemed to accept that whatever would happen next was in Daylen's hands.
"This'll all be over soon," Daylen said.
"Maker turn his gaze on you, I hope your compassion hasn't doomed us all," Cullen said.
Those final words from Cullen haunted Daylen still. And he often found himself wondering if what the Templar said was true, or if they were just the ramblings of an understandably angry and traumatised man. He wondered if he had truly been kind or compassionate, or right, or if he had just made a stupid decision based upon an inability to coat his hands in the blood of supposed innocents.
But shaking all of that self doubt aside, Daylen dispelled the demon's attempt to impede his path. And he advanced through a shining light, a portal to another part of the fade. He walked down a narrow corridor, rocks and dirt like it would be on the road. The path led to a clearing exposed to the Fade's yellow sky. Daylen narrowed his eyes at the figure sitting in the middle of the clearing. A Desire demon, but different from what he had seen before. She was wearing gold shoulder armour, and blue sleeves on her wrists and legs. Her skin was a darker purple, and blue flames glowed around her scalp like hair.
Resting his head against her lap was Connor, calmly sleeping, the Desire demon caressed his face like a loving parent. She looked up at Daylen and smirked.
"Very well, no more illusions, now we meet face to face. You see my true form, and stand in my domain!"
Next Chapter 15: Virtue
Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, bit of a change of the recipe of the story, next chapter will again be a Daylen focus chapter, with perhaps two Fausten and the Targaryens chapters to follow it. This way I can better tell the story arcs between each characters, as they are multiple chapter arcs.