Chapter 34: Temptations
Violena opened her eyes, she looked around and found herself in a strange place. The sky was luminous green. It was clear she was in the fade. Her eyes darted around to see herself in a castle that looked very similar to the Redcliffe castle. But she did not recognise the walls.
'I must be in the upper floor, where the Arl's and his family's rooms are located,' thought Violena. Then she took a deep breath to ready herself. Once, she felt ready, she walked on the pathway, towards a closed room. She opened the door, the room was a large bedchamber, furnished with fine quality furniture and a bed. The walls were covered with tapestries depicting Redcliffe's sigil and colours. Near the bed, she saw an old man standing.
The old man was dressed in fine silken tunic. His wrinkled face had a grey beard and he wore his long grey hair in a ponytail at the back of his head. He looked to be at least in his fifties. Assuming him to be Arl Eamon, Violena approached him carefully.
"Who are you?" demanded the old man, looking at her in a somewhat fearful expression.
"I am Violena Amell, my lord," said Violena with a curtsey, "Are you Arl Eamon of Redcliffe?" she asked.
"Yes, I am the Arl Eamon," answered the old man, "Why are you here?"
"I am here to help you, lord,"
"Help me?" Eamon looked surprised, "help me with what?"
"You are in the Fade, my lord," answered Violena, "A realm of dreams, a demon has trapped you in here."
"A demon? Fade?" Eamon narrowed his eyes, "Am I in danger?"
Violena nodded, "Yes, my lord," she spoke in concern, "I am here to save you, I promise you, my lord Eamon, I will not rest until I get you and your son to safety."
"My son?" the Arl looked worried, "What has happened to my son? Connor calls for me but I cannot find him, this blasted fog is making me run around in circles. And where is Isolde? Where is my wife?!"
"Lady Isolde is safe, my lord," said Violena, "But your son is possessed by a demon when he tried to help you."
"What? Possessed?" exclaimed a horrified Eamon, "Then we must find him. You will help him, will you?"
"Of course, my lord," nodded Violena, "That is why I am here. Please trust me,"
"I… I trust you," said Eamon with a hint of hesitation in his voice, "Please save my son!" he pleaded.
"I will, my lord," said Violena, "Now I must leave to find him, wait here,"
The old Arl nodded, "Maker help you, child," he said as Violena walked away and left the room.
Violena then noticed the doors to other rooms, opposite the Arl's room. She approached one of the doors and opened it. It was another bed chamber looking very similar to the Arl's room. Here however, she noticed a small boy standing near his bed. The boy was dressed in a fine silk shirt and pants. Violena recognised him from earlier. It was the boy she was looking for.
Violena approached Connor, the boy looked up at her.
"Who are you? Are you the one who made father ill?" he asked nervously.
Violena gave a kind smile and shook her head, "No Connor, I am here to help you," she spoke softly.
"Why should I believe that?" snapped Connor, crossing his arms, "You could be a liar, or you could be the demon herself."
Violena sighed, it was going to be difficult, "I assure you I am no demon, child," she spoke gently, "Let us talk calmly, we can figure this out."
"No!" yelled Connor, "You are here to hurt us, I will not let you."
Before Violena could respond, the boy suddenly slumped on his knees to the ground and screamed in agony. Then, he transformed into a shade demon.
Violena quickly drew her staff and with a few bolts of arcane energy, she destroyed the demon.
Violena then turned around and left the room, she then noticed Connor standing at the far end of the pathway. Violena walked up to him. Her staff ready in her hand.
"Why do you keep hurting me?" demanded Connor, "Why are you trying to stop me?"
"You have taken a child and trapped his father in the fade against his will," said Violena sternly, "This is our world, you have no place here, demon."
"Connor invited her to come," retorted Connor, "It was a fair bargain, she kept his father alive and she is allowed to do as she likes."
"No! she will not leave this place alive," proclaimed Violena menacingly, "The boy and his father will be saved from her clutches!"
"You will not stop her!" yelled the boy and again he fell on his knees and transformed into a shade demon.
Violena was ready this time as she was already expecting it. She quickly shot a fire ball from her staff, killing the shade instantly.
As soon as the shade demon was killed, a luminous arcane portal appeared nearby. Violena had seen such portals earlier, they were gateways within the fade to go to different places. Violena took a few deep breaths to steady herself and then she stepped into the portal.
xXxXxXxXxXx
The portal led Violena to a new location. An empty field which did not look like Redcliffe castle. There in the centre awaited a woman like form. The form while having a woman like appearance did not seem like a normal human woman. The skin was purple in colour and very scantily dressed. The only piece of clothing on her body was a small thin strip below her waist. There was some jewelry on body On her head were long horns curving upwards.
Violena as a mage well trained and having passed her harrowing, quickly recognised the demon and its kind. A desire demon in her true form. Violena confidently approached the desire demon.
"Well, we meet face to face," spoke the desire demon in a sultry tone, "You see my true form and stand in my domain."
"It is here that I am most powerful, yet I have no wish to engage your power," she continued speaking in a flirty tone, "Nor should you engage mine. Mayhap we can converse instead?"
"What do you want?" demanded Violena
"I possess the boy's soul," answered the demon, "we could fight for it or we could negotiate like civilised beings."
Violena looked surprised, she suppressed her urge to laugh at the demon talking about civilised behaviour. Still she was curious to see what the demon has to say.
"What could you offer me that I would want?"
"I am desire," answered the demon, her hands caressed her own body gently in a sensual manner, "Whatever you creatures of the living world wish, I seek to provide. Lust, love, power, wealth…. Anything that you could ever want."
"There could be things that you desire," she continued, "tell me what you would like and see it granted."
Violena scoffed, "All I want from you is to leave the boy, free his father and never trouble my world ever again."
"Now that I cannot do,"
"Then you have nothing to offer me,"
"Is there really nothing else you desire, Violena Amell?" asked the demon, "I know when you lie to my face."
Violena was silent, the demon continued talking,
"Violena Amell, the daughter of Lord Geeselac and Lady Revka Amell," the demon spoke slowly, "born to high nobility of Kirkwall in the Free Marches. A life of privilege was to be yours;
"A life full of sumptuous feasts, fine silk dresses, servants to attend to your every whim, wealth beyond imagination. Handsome lords and knights trying to win your heart…. And not to forget the love of your parents."
Violena cursed internally, the demon had read her mind perfectly. Everything the demon had mentioned was what she had always desired. Violena looked aside with a scowl on her face.
"A life that should have been yours but denied to you because you were cursed with magic," the demon continued speaking, "But I can grant it to you…. if you so desire it."
Violena looked up at her, "And how will you accomplish that?" she questioned. "If you know so much about me, you must also know that I was thrown out of my house by own parents. My own father and mother gave me to the Circle because of the humiliation I brought House Amell with my existence."
The demon laughed, "So, you are interested in what I offer hmm?" she asked, "And worry not about how I will do it. I can make them and everyone you met forget the past. I can send you directly to your house and it will be like as if you had never been a mage."
Violena looked at her skeptically, as the demon continued, "I can remove your magic also if you desire."
This seemed to attract the young mage girl's interest. She raised her eyebrows in response. She wondered if something like that was even possible.
"Yes, I can get that done," said the demon as if she had just read Violena's mind.
"But what will happen to the boy?" asked Violena, "People are waiting for me outside, they will know if I allow you to continue to possess the boy."
"I will not show myself in the boy so soon," answered the demon, "I will leave for now, the boy will become normal and no one will suspect anything. I will however return in future when I feel like it.
"But that you need not worry about," she said dismissively, "Now will you take what I offer or not?"
Violena turned aside and looked away silently, the offer was very tempting. She may finally get what she had always wished for. Then she looked at the demon to give her answer.
"No," she spoke loudly.
"Why not?" asked the demon softly, "Do you really want to squander your only chance to be something what you have always wanted?"
"It is true that I have always desired to have the life as a noblewoman that I was born as," answered Violena, "But one thing the Circle has taught me is to never trust a demon!"
Saying that, Violena quickly drew her staff and started uttering offensive spells.
"Such a pity I have to kill you now," responded the demon.
Violena launched an icy spell on the demon, thus freezing the desire demon in her place. Then she followed it with more offensive spells at the frozen demon.
The demon unable to defend herself due to the freezing spell was quickly destroyed under the barrage of offensive spells from the young mage.
Violena then noticed a new portal form up in front of her. She entered it to return back to the mortal realm.
xXxXxXxXxXx
The ritual was completed and that was the end of the demons plaguing Redcliffe. The soldiers and what civilians still remained in the village were now occupied with cremating the fallen. The village of Redcliffe was finally free from the demonic siege and the people would have some peace after all.
In the castle of Redcliffe, Alvar, Alistair and Violena now stood in the master bedchamber. Beside them stood Bann Teagan, Arlessa Isolde and a couple of the castle's elven servants. They stood at the foot of the main bed where lay an old man. His eyes were closed and his long hair was untied and let free. The man in his late fifties had his eyes closed and lay unmoving. Two young mages, one male and one female stood beside him. The male mage had placed his hand on the old Arl's neck, feeling the pulse.
After examining the Arl for a few minutes, the healer turned to the nobles waiting.
"The Arl still lives my lords," said the mage, "However, I see no change in his condition. He still sleeps the sleep of the dead."
Alvar, Alistair, Violena, First Enchanter Irving, Teagan and Isolde were disappointed on hearing this. They exchanged glances with one another.
"Has Lady Violena killing the demon not done anything, Kinnon?" Bann Teagan asked the healer.
"Not much, my lord," Kinnon shook his head, "The Arl is free from the demon but it seems the demon had put the Arl under some manner of a sleeping spell."
"Is there nothing we can do to wake him?" asked a concerned Isolde.
The female healer looked at the Arlessa disappointedly, "We do not know, my lady," she answered. "But I will try my best to wake him."
"Then do it," ordered Bann Teagan, "Try everything you can, we need my brother awake. The realm needs him now."
"They will, my lord," said Irving, "Petra and Kinnon are some of my best healers, they shall attend to the Arl until it is no longer required."
Bann Teagan nodded and then he along with Lady Isolde, Alvar, Alistair and Violena left the room. Irving and his two mages started working on ways to awaken the sleeping Arl.
xXxXxXxXxXx
In the main hall of castle Redcliffe, stood Bann Teagan near the Lord's chair on a raised dais. To his right, stood Alvar Cousland and his companions. To the Bann's left stood First enchanter Irving, Ser Marlon and his knights of Redcliffe. In the centre of the hall, stood Jowan, held under restraint by two knights.
"Jowan!" bellowed Bann Teagan, "You have been charged with using blood magic and attempted murder of the Arl of Redcliffe through poisoning. Do you deny these charges?"
Jowan looked down and shook his head, "no, my lord," he answered softly.
"Do you wish to say anything in your defense?"
"I was convinced by Teyrn Loghain to poison the Arl," said Jowan, "I know it does not excuse my actions and I will accept any punishment I am given. All I wish to say is that I am sorry, I wish I could go back and do things differently."
"Foolish boy!" exclaimed Irving, "Violena has told me everything you have done. You should have come to us, if you ever needed any help with your studies! And now, you do this!"
"The laws demand that he be executed," said Bann Teagan, then he glanced at Irving and Alvar, "Do you have anything to say, lord?"
Irving shook his head, his face cold. "Punish him as you see fit," he said.
Violena and Leliana in particular were not happy on hearing this. Jowan had committed a crime but Violena had spoken to him and she could understand why he did it. She was still upset about his betrayal which had almost led to her being punished brutally but still a part of her was sad to see him die. Jowan had been her best friend since she could remember.
As for Leliana, the Chantry sister had always believed that every sinner deserved a chance at redemption. Jowan as she believed had committed sins, but he had also offered to help and set things right. He had accepted that he had sinned; clearly, he deserved a chance to atone.
"He shall be executed!" declared Alvar.
Leliana and Violena turned to Alvar in shock.
"Alvar, please, he deserves a chance at atonement," pleaded Leliana.
"This maleficar is the reason for all the death and destruction that has happened here," spoke Alvar, "he shall be executed without mercy!"
"But it was Loghain who sent him," explained Leliana, "He wouldn't have done anything if Loghain had not ordered him to."
Alvar turned to Leliana, "If he wasn't a maleficar, he wouldn't even be in Loghain's hands. If he had not escaped from the Circle, Loghain would have never found him!
"Loghain will get his due when the time comes, but that does not mean Jowan escapes punishment."
Then he turned to Bann Teagan. "Bann Teagan, this maleficar is no common criminal," he said, "He shall not be executed as one. He has committed sins against the Maker himself, he should be punished appropriately."
"What do you have in mind, Lord Alvar?" asked the Bann
"He should be burned at stake in full view of the commonfolk, in the village centre," proclaimed Alvar.
Alvar heard gasps behind him, and before any of them could protest, he turned over his shoulders, "That is the only proper way to punish a heathen maleficar!" he declared sternly, leaving no room for discussion.
"So be it, lord," said Teagan, with a nod, "He shall be executed by being burnt at stake in the morrow. I will have the men make the necessary arrangements."