#anyway this all comes around to me thinking of my surana showing up at skyhold not believing in gods but believing in ritual | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

greensconnor · 4 years

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i’m asking about your dragon age characters

molly i would KILL for u im ur personal hitman now

anyway i said my city now because the entire bioware writing team sucks shit xoxo and i’m so much smarter than all of them but also fully incapable of having a normal amount of ocs for anything (see: the time i made 20 rwby ocs in less than two weeks) so i have. five worldstates here r some assorted thoughts

uhhh so the worldstates r as follows

eira mahariel (two-handed berserk/champ spec), rhett hawke (two-handed berserk spec), alas lavellan (mage knight enchanter spec), romanced alistair/fenris/dorian respectively

shiv tabris (dual wield duelist/assassin spec), radella “rads” hawke (mage spirit healer spec), kat adaar (two-handed reaver spec), romanced morrigan/isabela/cassandra respectively because im a pc gamer and i think i should be able to date whatever video game woman i like because im infinitely better than cishet men

this world state said yeah i respect mens rights. mens rights to shut the fuck up

twins bronson (sword/shield reaver spec) & bryant cousland (archer ranger spec), carmine hawke (archer assassin spec), syracuse trevelyan (dual wield tempest spec), romanced zevran/anora/josephine/bull. if ur wondering how that works my city now and the warden, hawke and the inquisitor should all meet and so they do because i Said So

riva amell (mage arcane warrior/battlemage spec), graham “gray” hawke (mage force spec), hellathen “hela” lavellan (archer assassin spec); romanced cullen/anders and later blackwall because hawke only likes men who will break his heart. hela doesn’t have a romance because she’s literally 20. who let her lead the inquisition (me it was me). also it should be noted the version of cullen i have in my head only vaguely resembles actual cullen because i write better than dragon age writers ever could and i gave him an Actual Cohesive Narrative and he gets bullied relentlessly for being scrawnier than his mage boyfriend

malien “mal” surana (mage spirit healer/keeper spec), jules hawke (sword/shield reaver spec), ash adaar (mage rift spec), romanced leliana/merrill/krem because i should have been able to kiss krem and its a Crime that i am not allowed to

knight enchanter is a Very op specialization and by Very op i mean it makes a mage with their built-in low constitution stats able to solo the biggest baddest dragon in the game on nightmare mode in under five minutes so like. alas lavellan fist fights dragons for fun send tweet

i think lavellans should be able to hit ppl with bricks for all the shit they endure. thus solas gets pranked by mahariel and alas by which i mean they just tip buckets of water onto him from the rookery

kat might be my only competent inquisitor but she did also try to knock out the right hand of the divine and attempt to gap even tho there’s fucky magic burning up her hand so does she have a brain cell? you decide

also its fantasy land and i do what i want so kat has blue/gold sectoral heterochromia

gray “mage rights” hawke is best friends with fenris which surprises literally everyone. their friendship started because they got into a fist fight and then they were like okay i respect u now. hawke is like hey fenris give me ur sword i have a fun trick to show u [uses his sword as a foci to zap carver in the ass with lightning]

i am Always thinking abt like how cullen could have been one man anti-chantry propaganda machine if he hadn’t so blatantly been shoehorned into every game past origins so anyway bioware forgot about a wholeass moon i can write what i like. [holds up cullen by the scruff of his stupid armor] not only are you bisexual you are also a bottom

i also Hate the whole uwu mage haters get fixed by romancing a mage

unlocked secret dialogue option where my inquisitors verbally cuss out dorian’s dad instead of whatever sympathetic narrative the writers were going for cuz its bullshit.

riva is a showoff and a Menace about being as good as he is because he unabashedly loves being a mage and hes like oooh look at me im sexy i dont need to use my hands to cast magic because i’m just that good ;)) and you know what. hes right.

gray, on the other hand, does Not want to be mage. he wants to be a druffalo farmer and retire in the hinterlands and be left the fuck alone. unfortunately he is gay and has one brain cell and terrible, terrible taste in men. ribbed relentlessly for this by riva (altho does he have room to talk hes been hung up on cullen since he was like 13)

shiv is trans n kieran is the result of doing the dark ritual with her wife and he looks a Lot like shiv (dark skin pointed ears, shock-white hair) and morrigan always just Assumed she dyed it or did something magic with it so seeing their kid come out like that was a WEIRD time for her

leliana almost Murdered by cassandra in worldstate 5 because the warden is Actually There The Whole Time, but its been 10 years, mal’s cut off all her hair and gotten full facial tattoos and she’s like “no one will know its me its fine” and she’s right. she gets away with it. only cullen like, Knows, because he knew her before the blight but he doesnt have a death wish n he like. will Not piss her off

shes dalish by birth n she was stolen from her clan by templars and thus is vehemently anti-circle and anti-chantry in general

uhhh the vallaslin (elf face tattoos) of my 4 dalish characters are:

eira = ghilan’nain (chose em cuz shes rlly interested in the navigation aspect of the goddess)

alas = falon’din (god of the dead n he picked them because he’s Also the god of fortune and alas is like tee hee fun but also he can and will kill u if u fuck with him so yk its fitting)

hela = june (god of the craft bc she likes to Make things but june is also the god who taught the elves 2 hunt and hela is. a hunter.)

mal = elgar’nan (allfather/god of vengeance bc. she is Vengeful. she is Angry. but yk fucking with shem politics and fucking their divine is like. mal may have little a retribution. as a treat.) yes she has the full half-face solid colour tattoo she does NOT fuck around.

bronson and bryant r not genetically identical but they Look similar enough 2 anyone who doesn’t know them well enough 2 play spot the distance. anora and bronson think this is a super fun game to play, especially when nobles realize they’ve swapped out the king but they’re too nervous to say anything

eira mahariel has two hands. one is for holding hands with alistair and the other is for throttling elven gods, apparently. she’s killed one before so solas she’s coming for your bitch ass next. watch urself.

speaking of eira and alistair are married thru dalish tradition and humans don’t recognize it n alistair loves 2 re-propose to her with random things. he’ll just pick up like. a bit of cheese and be like “marry me ;)” and she’s like GASP but whatever will the chantry say!!!! all of their friends r sick of them

“vhenan if you love me bring me a sword” “you think i could do better than a sword made out of space rock?” “:)”

eira is my youngest hero at 18 at the start of her game and kat is my oldest at 32 at the start of her game.

none of my hawkes are under six foot. rhett is the tallest (6′8″) and rads is the shortest (6′2″).

syracuse trevelyan would have been the Perfect inquisitor if he were not a pretty boy himbo and a gay bastard who does Most Things just to spite his parents.

[corypheus pointing at syracuse’s visage in his crystal orb thingo] i want that twink obliterated

i love the companions from older games return thing i truly do so i make it a point for Every companion to return in inquisition so the gang rlly is all here because i am a Slutte for found family

i lie in my keep worldstates because i dont want to choose between hawke and alistair during here lies the abyss but i never make him king and every time i play inquisition and cole has the wicked grace line it makes me Scream. alistair baby im so sorry i did this to you but i didnt actually do this to you

yes this is my everyone lives au but like. all the time. i have never left hawke in the fade and i do not intend to.

fuck whatever nonsense about wardens not being able 2 have kids. by sheer divine power (me) anora and bryant have three daughters; eleanor, sabina & cecelia n both bronson and zevran make Excellent uncles because i think anora deserves good things because i’m tired of bioware being like women bad, actually,

so like most of the time i have the warden & hawke turning up after the move to skyhold n then staying on, with the exception of bryant, carmine & mal. mal is as mentioned previously just There the whole time with her girlfriend. bryant steps in as king of ferelden w/ interests in closing the big hole in the sky spewing demons in2 his kingdom yk. carmine shows up because she wants to help & she wants protection for bethany but she outright says she’d rather die than be inquisitor so cassandra is shit out of luck.

“CHANGE HER MIND VARRIC” “she once doubled down on insisting amaranth was a shade of blue because she didn’t want to admit to being wrong. no one’s changing her mind seeker”

alas is the middle child of eight and is thus very good with children and also bossing around people older than him. 2 of his older siblings come to the inquisition when stuff in wycome has been settled

i left ash with the basic canon background with Some variation (he grew up under the qun and left of his own free will when his magic was discovered n he realized he couldn’t take living as a saarebas

kat on the other hand was raised tal-vashoth and has bounced around basically all over thedas and leads her own merc company when the conclave blows up. she also speaks multiple languages. is there a language she doesn’t speak? probably not

just realized how long this got so im gonna like. stop my general rambling now but lmao yeah theres some basics. waves hands.

#sol.txt #sol.orig #long post #late night followers im SO sorry for this #but also like.#i love them so yall just have 2 cope w/ it #no thoughts head dragon age #peonydarling

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musingmycelium · 5 years

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god okay i info dumped on discord bc thats just who i am as a person so i’m cross posting it here in case anyone else is curious about my canon world state. under a read more bc its, uh, maybe a bit of a monster.

i've got a dummy complex worldstate for no reason other than i like to make things difficult for the sake of a good story i guess. for origins my canon warden is an apostate, ellanis tabris who in an 'accident' had his leg crushed and it never recovered, causing it to have stunted growth. he uses a cane to get around and his disability helped hide him in the denerim alienage since apostacy is probably one of if not the most dangerous crime for an elf.

he's only one of three, though. his best friends growing up are noure surana and attie nehrios. noure gets taken to the circle when they're 17 (and ellanis and attie are 15) and comes into play a bit later, while attie is a seamstress and budding red jenny.

as far as origins itself goes ellanis' canon route is deep roads - dalish - haven - redcliff - circle - redcliff. fairly standard stuff up until haven/broken circle tbh. in haven during the guardian's first trial instead of shianni ellanis sees noure (whom the alienage presumed dead when arrested bc it wasn't, ah, a clean arrest) as the ghosty thing and during broken circle ellanis finds noure again and 'conscripts' them into the wardens. really he just takes them with him and destroys their phylactery so they won't be followed. (noure's phylactery is stored in kinloch instead of the spire after their fourth escape attempt since it gave them too much of a head start to make the templars wait to get it) theres a lot of Feelings surrounding connor but other than that ellanis doesn't super change things there either. he does, however, not have any idea about the dr. which is the biggest break i have from canon in dao with the exception of my inclusion of More City Elves. instead of morrigan going to ellanis she, as his best friend, knows he'll refuse to do it and instead goes straight to alistair. morrigan actually never tells ellanis anything about the ritual, ever.

during unrest in the alienage ellanis meets up with attie again, who is already working to clear the slavers out herself, and she falls head over heels for morrigan pretty quickly. fast enough that when morrigan sets out on her 'nobody follow me' thing attie does anyways bc thats just who attie is as a person. and besides she can't stay in denerim now that she's maybe or not killed a nobleman for what happened during the wedding.

and now its awakening time

ellanis meets up with anders for the first time and through him learns a bit more about noure's time in the circle. (noure and anders and karl were lovers for roughly three years before shit hit the fan hard) and fuck canon here because ellanis doesn't have time for this. plus the architect is interesting and yah maybe insane but he's in the place for a little madness. ellanis lets him live and strikes a bargain with him, they share research and any ferelden wardens who prefer to answer their calling not by fighting darkspawn but by potentially furthering the cure are welcomed by the architect. but after awakening ellanis leaves vigils keep in nate's hands and goes on 'offical leave' to work on his own cure..... and to live in antiva with zevran...... lkjkjlkjkjkj

noure, after broken circle and during awakening, goes to nevarra via orlais. it takes them a couple of months to settle but noure finds viuus (yes that viuus) who takes them on as an apprentice of sorts bc he's also in a bit of a jam. it works, sorta, noure learns more spirit based magic and reconnects with a part of themselves the circle tried to beat out of them. it only lasts for about two years, though, because templars find them, one a recent transfer from kinloch and noure isn't exactly a forgettable face. so!

well, its around the same time that anders leaves the wardens for good. and ellanis puts anders in touch with noure. they decide to meet in kirkwall, because rumor has it that's where karl is and thats gonna be the place they need to go first.

attie though, she's just hanging out with morrigan and stirring the pot in orlais as a jenny. she also works with the mage underground and defo either knows or works with briala as a kind of agent. her story is more foggy tho bc i haven't read Super much of TME or played some of witch hunt

da2 comes in and i've Recently, like as of last week i think, decided to swap my canon hawkes. william is now my canon hawke instead of the twins. he's an apostate who's magic is mostly clairvoyancy and a shepherd.. or he was until the blight. bethany dies during the escape and its only the Beginning of the sad times for william.

with his pretty suble magic william makes for a Superb smuggler, and lands the gig with bartrand quickly. he Also, gets a bit of a crush on varric while they're still going around raising money. he takes carver, varric, and isabela with him to the deep roads thinking that keeping his brother close will be safer. and, well, it isn't.

act ii is a bunch of horse shit anyways but william tries to keep out of things until isabela is directly threatened by it and only then steps in seriously. for the most part all of the things which go down with petrice are done with noure and anders. they don't like the qunari being in town either but they, at least, can use the situation to weaken the chantry and by extension the circle. even if its only a bit. during act iii the two of them build up the mage underground and start preparing to take direct action against the circle. william is, still uncertain but he doesn't stop them. his magic has never been a large danger to himself, it's suble enough and under control enough that he's never really had to fear templars. he feared them for his fathers sake, for bethany's sake, but not his own. not really. and well, we know how da2 ends but i hate the retcon of 'hundres of casualties' bithc! where! so no, only the grand cleric and a handful of upper level chantry people where inside when it went up and they deserved it.

ellanis is working on the blight cure during this time and makes it far enough that he and zev are surprised by twins (two girls named adaia and killian) but otherwise ellanis is mostly chillin in antiva

while attie is now definitely working closely with briala both as a jenny and as an agent

and we’re up to dai with my canon quizzy - da'ean lavellan, the clan storykeeper (next in line after his father) who only attends the conclave because idrilla was going to first and they didn't want to loose the clan first. i've got... way more canon deviance in dai than anywhere else bc dai Suxxs but its way too long but basically!

da'ean romances both dorian and the iron bull bc im poly and i said so, idrilla comes to skyhold as magical advisor and she works where morrigan does in the game (tho morrigan still shows up she's not an offical position as much, which suits her and attie just fine). linayel, da'ean's nas'falon (qp) arrives with her and he slots in as an archery trainer.

plus, ellanis is the warden contact instead of the many (some really wild??) canon contacts. leliana tries to contact him to be quizzy but he's travelling and misses it, and when noure contacts him on william's behalf and mentions corypheus (ellanis knows about legacy bc william brought noure and anders along) ellanis puts some pieces together and comes to skyhold. he'd already been working to figure out the weird calling (it is and yet isn't the same as the blight he remembered) so he's already a bit aware of the situation. william doesn't stick around for long, basically just long enough to get confirmation ellanis is on his way. even tho he misses varric this isn't his place

adamant goes down wicked different bc ellanis is the fucking HOF. by this time he's developed his magic enough he can pretty much take down all of the wardens within a good 300 foot range just nearly instantly. (a combination of his blight cure research and his natural entropic aligned magic hohohoho) so he makes it to clarel Fast. instead of falling into the fade ellanis (anyone else remember just fucking punching rifts closed in awakening? lol) works with da'ean to open up the rift in the main courtyard and suck the nightmare into the real world. and then he fuckin annhilates it bc he can

WEWH is also different but this time its bc of attie (and morrigan's different now too bc she's been dragged into things by her wife) briala's at the palace yeah, but now she's also got attie waiting in the wings. instead of getting stuck in place by the quizzy attie is able to manuever things to implicate gaspard and celene alone (mostly bc i hate the blackmail on briala it just doesn't vibe well with her character to me). so instead of the shitty options of 'gaspard rules with briala shadowing him' or 'celene and briala end up back together' its 'celene gets put in place by briala and now briala calls the shots'

idrilla romances solas, and as a dreamer she's sure something is fishy but can't figure out what exactly. (until trespasser that is, when she figures it out at the murals) but she provides a good foil to his asshatry and as offical magical advisor steers the inquisition with morrigan's info about the arbor wilds. she knows the rituals and the magic bc she's first and they make it through far faster than in canon, making a quick alliance with the sentinals and beating samson well before the canon battle area.

(linayel romances cass but their story is still quiet and vague as of yet but linayel mostly remains in skyhold to help train and strategize)

then da'ean kicks corypshits ass soundly becase that fight Sucks Ass.

#oc ramblings #i've been sitting on making a post about this for awhile anyways tb #h #now i've got one hehehehe #my ocs #my worldstate #just so i don't mcfuckin loose this

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shift-shaping · 6 years

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The Lioness and the Wolf - VII - Of Your Dreams

This work is also available on Ao3. If you enjoy my work, please reblog, leave a comment, or donate to my Ko-Fi. Thank you!

Rating: Mature

Genre: Slow Burn, adventure, talking

Pairing: Solas x Surana

Warnings: Gaspard, dialogue heavy

Part seven of The Lioness and the Wolf. Part one.

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Everything was easier for him in the Fade.

Being surrounded by magic, by spirits and shifting landscapes and an entire world controlled by will, was all much more familiar to Solas than the ironclad reality of the waking world. He’d spent his last few visits scouring the endless twisting plains for some sign of his friend, for a shred of hope that Wisdom was not lost.

Now he returned with a more concrete purpose. It was unlikely, but if Eirwen were sleeping, he could find her and explain where he was and what happened to him. Finding other mages over significant distances was not easy, especially if he did not have a strong bond with them, but finding Adaar had not taken much effort and Eirwen was at least as magically gifted. The raw power of another mage would draw him to them like a beacon draws ships in the sea.

When he fought at her side, he’d gained something of a sense for her magic’s signature. It was bright, as that of most powerful mages was, but tinged with fuzzy sparks owing to her innate storm abilities. Her experience in healing and shapeshifting made her magic more amorphous as well, its shape and structure ill-defined. The unusual combination of her training in creation, healing, shapeshifting, and combat magic was distinct, uncommon to him despite his countless years of experience.

He did not find her, despite the hours he spent searching. Were he not so desperate for the distraction, for the act of hunting itself, he might have given up after only a few minutes. He thought that if he waited long enough she might go to sleep so he could find her, but her signal never appeared.

Even after the fruitlessness of his search became apparent, he continued sleeping and came up with excuses to stay in the Fade. A small part of him wished to look for Wisdom again, but he knew that quest would only result in disappointment.

He did not have long to wander. A harsh hand shook him, the world of his dreams falling apart as the waking world re-materialized around him. He awoke with a start, magic jolting to his fingertips. His vision focused on the figure beside him, a dwarf with a greasy beard and small, beady eyes.

“What? What is it?” He sputtered, sitting up as Sam leaned away.

The dwarf shrugged nonchalantly. “I got food. You said you’d cook.”

Solas took a moment to catch his breath, then nodded and set to work. They’d stolen a number of cooking implements from the prison during their escape, and Solas used them now as he started a fire and heated a pan.

“I was scared you weren’t goin’ to wake up!” Sam sat on the other side of their small camp, picking between his toes. “You’ve been out for most of the afternoon.”

“Abelas. I was... searching for someone.”

Sam grinned. “What kind of someone?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re looking for someone in your dreams, right? So that would make them the man or woman of your dreams. That kind of someone.”

Solas sighed and poked at the fire. Whatever food Sam had found went into the pan with a small chunk of butter. “That is... not quite how it works. I can find other mages in the Fade if they are powerful enough, like looking for a camp at night by the amount of light it lets off.”

Sam nodded, looking down at his toes. Solas deliberately turned away as the dwarf picked something particularly grimy from beneath a toenail and suppressed a gag. “Did you find ‘em?”

“Unfortunately, no. She is likely awake, in which case I cannot locate her. She would need to be in the Fade consciously for me to find her.”

Sam considered this for a moment, pausing in his picking to frown at the fire Solas’s spell made. “What’s it like? Having magic?”

“Describing magic to one without it would be like describing sight to a blind man.”

“’Like touching, but better’?”

“I... suppose. In that case, it would more resemble a general use of all your senses, but better. You have access to an entirely separate set of skills through a force you can physically feel. I imagine a dwarf’s stone sense is along similar lines.”

“Don’t got that either.”

“You did not come from Orzammar, then?”

Sam looked up from his toepicking with a frown, his brows furrowed as if he were thinking very deeply about the subject. “I don’t think so.”

“You aren’t certain?”

Sam shrugged. “I’m pretty sure I was born on the surface, but I don’t remember so I don’t know. My mom told me I was, but she might be lying.” He considered the middle toe on his right foot. “Just cause I’ve been told something is true, doesn’t mean it is.”

“Wise words,” Solas replied, impressed. Sam burped appreciatively.

“You and me could be a good team, you know,” Sam said as he finally put his feet back into his shoes. “An elven mage and a dwarf that isn’t drunk all the time? We’d be unstoppable.”

Solas decided to ignore his idea, at least until he brought it up again. “You mean you are not drunk all the time?”

Sam shook his head and frowned heavily. “Nah. Hate the stuff. Alcohol, that is. Makes me real sick. Bread too. Wine is okay, though.”

“Are you allergic to wheat?”

“Why’s that matter?”

“A lot of alcohol is made from wheat. As is, obviously, bread.”

“I... huh...” Sam crossed his legs and stared into the fire, still frowning deeply. A long silence followed, during which Solas focused on finishing their meal. Finally Sam jolted upright, grinning, and spoke so loudly it made Solas jump. “See?! This is why we make such a good team. Your smarts, my skills and talent and fighting ability and good looks? We’d be unstoppable.”

Solas chuckled and gestured to their meal. “It is finished.”

“Thank the Maker,” Sam gushed. He poked at the meat and took it into his lap. “But listen, really. We could be bounty hunters or something. It’d be so good.”

“I am with the Inquisition. As... tempting as that is, my time is heavily occupied with my duties.”

Sam waved his hand as he tore off a piece of meat. The smell of the food tempted Solas to eat, but he couldn’t bring him to. “Just drop it.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. Who cares? There’s better horizons. More interesting shit.”

That made Solas smile, though he was getting tired of Sam’s insistence. “I assure you, my time with the Inquisition is plenty interesting.”

“Is it lucrative?”

Solas snorted. “I am living in a castle and the food is excellent. Gold is hardly a concern.”

Sam’s jaw dropped, his beard touching the middle of his chest. “No way. A castle?” Solas nodded. “Shit, can I join? I want to live in a castle.”

“I imagine you would be allowed. We could venture to the nearest Inquisition camp, as I have been attempting for several days now...”

“Days? Where are they?”

“I am not sure. I suspect something has pulled our troops from the region. It concerns me, but there is nothing I can do for the time being. I need to find my companion, and the camp. Barring either of those options, I will return to Skyhold.”

“Skyhold...” Sam smiled, softer now, and looked up through the trees. “It even sounds fancy.”

“It is.” A similar fond smile pulled at Solas’s lips, and he finally took some food from the pan. “It is an ancient elvhen fortress in the Frostbacks. For hundreds of year it stood empty, but now it sings with life.”

“Do people actually sing?”

“Sometimes.”

“I’ll fit right in, then.” Sam smiled, showing bits of food between his teeth as he tore off another bite. “Let’s find a camp, then. I want to see this fortress for myself.”

Solas nodded as he chewed and swallowed. “First I need to find Eirwen and ensure her safety. If I cannot meet her in the Fade, we will go on to a camp and attempt to send an emissary back to Fort Revasan.”

“Do you think your friend is okay?”

Though he hesitated a moment, Solas knew instinctively that she would be fine. “She is extremely clever, and a very talented mage. Few things would seriously threaten her, and I imagine none of them are at Fort Revasan.”

An uncomfortable grin took over Sam’s kind smile, and Solas grimaced at the seedy expression. “She must be pretty great.”

“She’s the Hero of Ferelden. She will be fine.”

---

Eirwen’s initial plan regarding Gaspard was not to have a plan at all. She didn’t think she needed one, as she had nothing to lose or gain by talking to him.

Nothing to gain or lose personally, anyway. She could use this meeting for her troops, if not for the Inquisition as a whole.

Still she did nothing to improve her appearance beyond fixing her hair and putting cleaner clothes on. For days now she’d been living in the plains, bleeding and starving and relying on her magic for survival. She’d spent the last day sleeping in a prison under the supervision of a Templar. If she needed to dress up to meet someone, they would need to find her at Skyhold.

Eirwen knew a little about Orlesian nobility from her travels. She expected duplicity, a literal mask, and a heavy dose of racism. She had no interest in “The Game” but knew how little her preference mattered. Regardless of whether she actually tried to play, any Orlesian noble would verbally destroy her.

She figured someone would get her and take her to meet him on his terms, perhaps in his tent or office. Instead, the inevitable knock at her door brought her face-to-face with the Duke.

“I thought Orlesians wore masks.”

Gaspard was a formidable man, easily a head taller than Eirwen and broad even in his riding gear. He was significantly older than she’d expected, but she wasn’t sure why she thought he was younger. He bore heavy lines on his face, accentuated by the shadow of dark hair on his oval-shaped head.

He smiled and she kept looking him over, not reacting. “There is no need for formalities. We are two former soldiers having a conversation.” He bowed slightly, and she returned the gesture with a spark of hesitation. “May I?” He gestured toward the table in her room, but he must have noticed her wariness because he did not enter; instead, he gestured behind him and Lezare stepped out from his shadow. She nodded to Eirwen. “I understand you are Ferelden, in culture at least.” There was an unmistakable note of superiority in his voice that nearly made Eirwen roll her eyes. “Perhaps you would feel more comfortable with a neutral party?”

“No,” Eirwen said flatly, quickly, glancing at the Templar. Should something unexpected happen, Gaspard could not prevent her from escaping like Lezare could. “We’ll be fine.” She stepped back, showing the Duke inside. “Thank you for the offer, though.” Her eyes briefly met Lezare’s, but she couldn’t read her expression. She left the door open, mostly because her crow form struggled with doorknobs. She knew full-well that Lezare would most likely be on the other side waiting for disaster, but putting distance between her two main concerns would buy her valuable time.

“I’m surprised anyone in Orlais knows about the Blight,” she began, finding her flask by her bed and unashamedly taking a drink. It burned on the way down and she hissed, shaking her head. “I was worried Loghain told you all it was an elaborate myth, created by the Grey Wardens to take over Ferelden, or something.”

“No, he was far more concerned with Orlais spontaneously invading a darkspawn-infested swamp.” Gaspard looked at her flask, one brow raised slightly. “What are you drinking?”

“I’m not even really sure anymore,” she smirked and put the flask back down. “I just dump whatever liquor I can find into it.”

“La Félicité du Fantassin. The Infantryman’s Bliss.”

“Is that what you call it? A random selection of alcohols?”

“It was not uncommon to find half-empty bottles and split them among us. The truly desperate would pour it all into one flask, as I assume you do.”

Eirwen nodded. “It tastes like shit, though.”

He shook his head, smiling slightly. “That is irrelevant, no?”

She shrugged noncommittally. Instead of sitting across from him at the table, Eirwen sat down on the edge of her bed. “You said former soldiers.” She nodded to the sword at his hip. “You’re still fighting.”

“I misspoke. We are both still fighting, are we not? I fight for my countrymen, you for... yourself, I suppose. Or perhaps for another drink.”

“If only. I’d rather fight only for myself. It’s easier that way.”

“What is your fight now, Warden? The Archdemon is dead, you do not lead the Inquisition... you are not even fighting for mages, despite being one yourself.” He leveled his gaze, his expression respectful but confused. “I admire your accomplishments, and I have great respect for the Grey Wardens, however... I am not sure what brought you here.”

Eirwen’s eyes narrowed. He knew full-well what brought her there. She’d told Lezare, and Lezare must have briefed him. Why would he ask a question he already knew the answer to? “Do you know where my troops are, Gaspard?”

“I... assure you I have no idea what you are referring to.”

“Deserters from your army, from your war, kidnapped my men and took them somewhere. They left me for dead, and were it not for the kindness of a person your soldiers are keeping in the prison of this fort as we speak, they would have succeeded.” She spoke clearly, with no hint of slurring, and kept her voice even and low despite her accusatory words.

Gaspard sighed heavily, as if exasperated, and looked away from her. “Those bastards... We should have hunted them down and killed them before they could cause such damage.” He shook his head and turned his gaze back to her. “They call themselves the Freemen of the Dales. It is absurd.”

The bed creaked as Eirwen shifted her weight, crossing her legs before her. “Mm. Why are Orlesian soldiers acting like common bandits? They’re harassing Inquisition troops and refugees passing through the area.” She’d nearly mentioned the Dalish, but caught herself. That clan struggled enough without Gaspard’s men harassing them.

“They are not our soldiers, not anymore. They are cowards. Many men took up arms to fight the Empress, whether they had the heart for it or not.” He tilted his head, the ghost of a smirk returning to his face. “Not everyone is fit for war.”

“So, what? No one takes responsibility? You let your ill-trained men run wild in the Dales, disrupting trade and attacking your allies?”

“No.” He was unexpectedly firm, and the disbelief on Eirwen’s face must have been obvious, because he leaned toward her and went on with sudden and alarming conviction. “I wish to make peace with the Inquisition, if not an alliance. I will work to eradicate the Freemen of the Dales, and you will take a contingent of my soldiers with you to destroy their base in the Exalted Plains and retrieve your men.”

A harsh reply buzzed on her tongue, but she held back. That was a suspiciously good offer.

“Consider it an act in good faith,” he said before she could question him. He sat back and cleared his throat, looking towards the open door for a moment before turning his hard, dark gaze back to her. “I must admit to some curiosity on my part. Do you still hold the title of Warden-Commander?”

Eirwen swallowed and looked away, effectively giving him his answer.

“In that case, I am certain you know of the insanity at Adamant Fortress.”

“What?”

He stood and straightened his shirt. “I suppose they are Orlesian Wardens, in truth. None of your concern, really.”

“What is happening at Adamant?”

“Lezare!” He called suddenly, giving Eirwen a start. The Knight-Captain stepped inside with a quick bow. “Prepare a small group of our best men at Revasan and assist the Warden-Commander in getting her men back from the deserters.”

“As you wish, my Lord.”

“Gaspard.” Eirwen stood, her voice and posture hardened. She no longer cared about Lezare’s presence. “What have you heard?”

The Duke glanced at Lezare, feigning confusion. “My sincerest apologies, Warden-Commander, but that is confidential information. Perhaps we may speak again at a later time, in more discerning company.” There was a flicker of offense in Lezare’s eyes, but the schadenfreude did nothing to soothe Eirwen’s frustration.

Gaspard bowed to her, and Eirwen’s jaw stiffened. “I need to know, Gaspard,” she insisted, unmoving. “Or at least the Inquisitor does. Send her a missive. You aren’t doing us any favors by withholding information.”

“Again, I apologize. I will consider the missive, but I cannot give you any more information at this time.” He bowed to her, deeper than he did before. “Another time, Warden-Commander. It has been a pleasure.”

She clenched her fist, but let him go. For now, she would take the soldiers and find her men. She would deal with Gaspard, and Adamant, in due time.

#solavellan #solasmance #the lioness and the wolf posts #solas #solas rarepair #glimpses

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