Chapter Text
The wailing continued in the village for three days. No one seemed to know what else to do after the hole appeared in the sky. They were close enough to see what had happened at the temple in the valley but far enough away that there was next to no news. Three days since the explosion and most had come to accept the worst. Their loved ones weren’t coming home. The Conclave had been the end of them, the Temple of Sacred Ashes their tomb.
Delphine couldn’t bring herself to wail like the other women in the village. A part of her would not give up hope that he was still alive. After all the time they had spent together this could not possibly be the end. The rest of her was saying that she had to face the truth. An explosion at the temple had opened a hole in the sky- there was no way anyone could have survived that. Delphine had to accept that he was gone. So, while the families of the village wailed in the streets and looked on at the hole in the sky with horror, Delphine curled up in her room at the inn, his last letter clutched to her chest.
It took more mental coaching than she would want to admit for Delphine to get out of bed on the fourth day. Dread and exhaustion were a nasty combination. Delphine has not slept through the night since the hole had opened in the heavens. The dreams- the nightmares- crashed down upon her in waves. Some familiar, some not. None were pleasant. There had been whispers of demons floating around the inn since the explosion, some falling from the hole, others crawling through tears in the Fade that had supposedly begun to appear in the area. Delphine almost hoped it was a demon that plagued her nights. Demons were easier to kill than the fear and sadness gnawing away at her insides.
There was not much sense in moping about it, no matter how sleep-deprived she was. The world seemed to be falling apart around her- there was a hole in the sky and a war that was sure to carry on. The question was, what could Delphine do about that? She’d been hidden away for so long like a coward. It had only been his final pleading letter that had pulled her out of the protection of her family’s villa. Would it be possible to make it all the way back to the Free Marches safely? She doubted it. Continuing to the temple in the valley was not an option now, either.
A grumbling stomach interrupted any concentration she may have had in weighing her options. So, Delphine continued her musing downstairs, over a bowl of odd tasting porridge.
“The Inquisition! The Inquisition sent news from the temple!”
Everyone milling about the inn jumped as the runner shouted in the doorway. This is what everyone had been waiting for. Though Delphine has a sinking feeling that there would be little good news to share.
Delphine shuffled outside with the rest of the crowd to the square where a soldier in a green hood waited. There had been whispers along the roads about an inquisition when Delphine had reached Ferelden but she had not known whether or not believe them. If she remembered any of her Chantry history correctly, it had been ages since there had been a need to call an inquisition. With all that had been unfolding across Thedas it was not uncalled for- the Chantry needed some force to keep the peace now that the templars were gone- but was it truly wise to introduce another army in all the bloodshed?
The crowd formed around the soldier who stood stone-faced. Nearly the entire village had come to hear what word was being sent. All the clamoring ended when he finally spoke, though.
“The Divine Conclave has been destroyed. Divine Justina is dead.”
Murmurs spread through the crowd. Devoted to the Chantry or not, hearing the Divine was dead so suddenly was enough to shock anyone to the core. She was the hope during this time of war and turmoil- the Divine was going to bring the templars and the mages to heel- she was supposed to fix the mess that Thedas had become.
“But there is hope!” The soldier shouted, “before her death the Divine ordered an inquisition. We are working in her name to the close the Breach in the sky and slay the demons! Among our ranks is the man chosen by Andraste herself. She has sent us a herald to put and end to this disaster!”
Delphine looked on at the messenger in disbelief. Andraste sending someone to save Thedas from the hole in the sky seemed more than a bit farfetched. Nothing she remembered from her Chantry lessons spoke of a herald or anyone else coming to save them. Delphine didn’t seem to be the only one skeptical of the news.
“Andraste sending someone to save us? To close the sky? What nonsense do you think we’ll believe?” One man from the crowd shouted back. Most of the crowd seemed to nod in agreement. Who would believe that the Maker would allow the Divine to die in order to send down a herald?
“I speak the truth! The Herald came out of the Fade after the explosion at the Conclave. He has already sealed the Breach in the sky. It no longer grows! The Inquisition knows with his help we will be able to close it completely!”
It had been growing before? That hole could have killed them all.
Delphine wrapped her arms around herself, bracing for the next wave of dread and worry.
How had the world come to this?
“The Inquisition needs help to restore order. If you wish to protect your families, your loved ones, we are taking recruits in Haven!”
With that the crowd dispersed. Some stalked off, angry and balking at the bearer of bad news. Others stood in groups; hushed whispers followed by glances at the soldier who was preparing his horse for departure. A handful of young men approached the soldier, probably not much younger than Delphine, faces painted with determined looks. It appeared some had been swayed to the messenger’s cause. Protecting those you care about was a noble cause, she could not fault them.
What did she have left to protect now that he’s gone? She’d abandoned her friends at the first sign of trouble and hadn’t spoken to her family since the rebellion had begun.
But a hole in the sky? That was more than her family or the Circle. With the world already up in arms maybe this… this Inquisition could actually do some good. Andraste’s chosen herald or not. If not, Delphine could continue on. Find some other way to survive until she could make it back to the Free Marches.
Delphine rushed back to her room to gather her things.
Traveling to Haven was not what Delphine had expected when she had settled her tab at the inn and left the village. She found herself among throngs of people making the trek into the frozen hills. With the threats of rogue templars and mages and the possibility of demons, Delphine hadn’t expected to see so many risking the trip. The crowds offered a sense of protection. She couldn’t imagine either side of the rebellion attacking with so many civilians on the road. As the day progressed the more obvious the Inquisition patrols became. Their green hoods stood out among the plainly dressed travelers.
When she had started off, Delphine kept to herself, just as she had since she’d landed on this side of the Waking Sea. She harbored no desire to interact with the crowds, even if most of them looked innocent and trustworthy enough. By midday she was chatting with her fellow travelers, hearing their stories. Some were like her, on their way to Haven to see what part they could play in fixing the sky. Others were family members of those at the Conclave, headed to the Chantry there to mourn their dead or check if their loved ones were among the survivors. A few seemed to be devoted Andrastians, making the pilgrimage to see the blessed Herald of Andraste.
Delphine was still unsure of where she stood on the topic of the Herald. Just like the small corner of herself she allowed to believe he could still be alive, she allowed herself the hope that maybe someone out there was looking out for them. Andraste was said to be merciful, after all. Yet there was the rational part of her that saw the story as a tidy way for the Inquisition to draw more people to their cause. She kept her skepticism to herself, not one to squash out the hope of others.
The innkeeper in the last village had told her when she set out that it was about a day and half journey to Haven on foot. Delphine sought out a room in the next settlement she reached as the sun started to set over the Frostbacks. The tavern and inn were packed when she arrived with travelers, pilgrims and soldiers. So crowded that Delphine couldn’t even pay for a space in the stable to sleep in.
“Miss, if you’re looking for a place to stay, I know someone with rooms!”
Delphine happily approached the barkeep as he waved her down after her disappointing conversation with the inn owner.
“Is there another place further down the road?”
“Not quiet. My sister’s a widow, lives down the road ‘bout half a mile. S’got a big old farmhouse with plenty of extra rooms. She puts pilgrims up during the summer season for a few coin.”
The weight began to lift off Delphine’s shoulders at the prospect of being able to sleep in a bed again tonight.
“Just let her know I sent ya’ over and she’ll get ya’ settled for the night.”
Delphine shuffled around in her coat for a moment before passing the barkeep a few bits. She didn’t have much more to spare but it was the best way she had to show gratitude for his help. “Thank you.”
He sent her a toothy grin as he swept the coin up off the bar, “ ’ave a good night, miss!”
Delphine reached the home of the widow Emelia as night fell and she thanked the Maker for the gift of warm food, a roof and a soft bed. The greying woman had welcomed her in with a soft smile and open arms. Delphine couldn’t remember the last time anyone had treated her so warmly. A small part of her wondered if Emelia would be so welcoming if she knew the truth. She shook the thought away as she slipped out of her coat and left her rucksack at the door.
It turned out Delphine wasn’t the only guest that had been sent Emelia’s way. An Inquisition soldier was already enjoying a warm meal by the fire when she arrived. Emelia instructed her to join him while she disappeared into the kitchen. She gave the man a small, polite smile as she settled in across from him. He returned the gesture in kind before returning to his dinner.
Emelia bustled back in moments later, placing a bowl of soup and thick slice of nut-filled bread before her. The smell of her fellow boarders’ meal had already awoken her stomach, Delphine did her best to thank the older woman before digging in.
“I’ll be upstairs making up a bed for you. Help yourself to a second bowl if you need it, and just shout if you need anything, miss…”
“Del. My name is Del.” She’d been in such a hurry to warm up inside she hadn’t properly introduced herself. Delphine could only imagine the scolding she’d receive from her mother if she knew. “Thank you, ma’am.”
Emelia just smiled and walked off, cooing something about how polite she was.
The pair ate in silence for a while. Delphine silently thanking the Maker for the warmth filling her belly and the feeling returning to her frozen toes. The closer she gotten to Haven the colder it seemed to get. Oh, how she missed the mild winters in Ostwick.
“Headed to Haven then, miss Del?”
Delphine nods at the soldier as he stands, finished with his own meal. She keeps her eye on him as he wanders the room, seemingly interested in the knickknacks Emelia has decorating the space. He didn’t appear untrustworthy but the rigid posture and polished armor was too much a reminder of a life not far in her past.
“And you’re with the Inquisition?”
He looks at her briefly, over his shoulder, “I am.”
“The green is already recognizable. Lots of you on the road these days.”
“There are quite a few people on the roads to keep safe these days.”
Delphine nodded in agreement as the soldier settles back into his spot at the table. “So why are you headed to Haven?”
“To help.”
The man almost looked amused. “To help?”
“There’s a hole in the sky. For the sake of the world not ending I’d like to help the people trying to close it,” she must have sounded as unsure of her decision as she felt because the man just quirked an eyebrow. “Forgive me for not being reserved at the thought of Chantry authority with all that’s happened.”
“Your caution is warranted. It is always wise to question those you follow.”
He almost sounded as if he spoke from experience.
“And why did you join the Inquisition?”
“I was in the right place at the right time when the world first went to shit. How the Inquisition has stepped up with this mess just proved I made the right choice, found the right people to follow. You don’t have to worry, miss, about the people at the Inquisition.”
His words sparked a slight glimmer of hope, but Delphine had seen too much that to trust a stranger at their word. “So, they’re the kind of people who just want to close the hole in the sky. They’re not interested in trying to take over all Thedas, or something like that?”
“If the Commander is planning on conquering Thedas, he hasn’t informed the rest of us.”
Joshua, the Inquisition soldier, departed Emelia’s farmhouse at first light and Delphine left with him. It seemed a safer bet to make the final leg of the trip with her new acquaintance. Along the way he was checking in with the sentries and patrols, even taking a moment to introduce her to some of them. Delphine caught accents of all kinds; most were human or city elves but there were a handful of Dalish and dwarves among them. It seemed all walks of life were intent on making a difference. She hoped that was a good sign.
When they weren’t checking in, Joshua turned out to be a rather chatty traveling companion. It gave Delphine the chance to gather bits and pieces of what she wanted to know.
“The Herald? To be honest I don’t know all that much about him. Most people don’t,” Joshua admitted.
“Except that he walked out of the Fade after the explosion?”
That tidbit was the part of the story Delphine couldn’t wrap her head around. To physically be in the Fade…the implications of the went far beyond Andraste.
“That and he’s a Dalish mage-“
Dalish? How many elven mages could have been are the Conclave besides him? Did she dare let herself hope he could have been the one to step out of the Fade?
“Del?” Joshua’s brow was furled as he placed his hand on her shoulder. “Are you alright?”
“Oh? I’m fine. Just lost among my thoughts. You were saying?”
“I was saying-” Joshua makes a sweeping gesture towards a semi-fortified village- “that we’ve arrived.”
Apparently, he was a bit of a dramatic as well.
Looking up at the gates of Haven was not overly awe-inspiring, though Delphine figured it was never meant to be. The village was supposed to be a stepping stone on the way to the Temple of Sacred Ashes, not the lodgings of a budding army. Like the village, the masses weren’t all the impressive either. Considering how many Delphine had seen on the roads leading into the valley, there was next to no one walking around. It was all a tad underwhelming.
“If you’ll come with me to the Chantry to drop off a report, I can help find you a place to get situated,” Joshua offered.
Delphine agreed, following Joshua up and into the slow, snow-covered village. As they approached the chapel the chatter began to grow. On the front steps of the Chantry it seemed a fight was ready to break out- an apt metaphor for the situation of the world at the moment. Now Delphine understood where everyone in Haven was.
The tension in the air was palpable. Joshua gestured for Delphine to stay behind him. She scoffed, only slightly offended by his protective instincts. Though, the two sides gathering did look to be more than ready to attack the others.
“Your kind killed the most Holy!”
Delphine noted the man at the front of the crowd wearing the most recognizable armor in all Thedas. So, if he was a templar that meant the side he was arguing with was compromised of mages.
“Lies- your kind let her die!”
Delphine’s fists clenched as the templar grabbed at his sword. “Shut your mouth mage!”
Before the man's sword left his scabbard another figure stepped between the pair, his voice echoing across the gathered crowds. “Enough!”
“Knight-Captain!”
She marveled at the second templar- in her life Delphine had seen few in the Order who would stop a templar from lashing out at a mage. Yet this man was not only a templar but one of importance. His armor looked expensive and well kept, covered in a full fur mantle.
“That is not my title. We are not templars any longer. We are all part of the Inquisition!”
Both the mage and the templar appeared to back off, if just a bit, but neither looked pleased. Even in the face of natural disasters or the end of the world, templars and mages would not get along. One well-dressed soldier wasn’t going to change lifetimes of tensions.
“And what does that mean exactly?”
Joshua began to grumble under his breath as a man decked out in chantry robes approached the Inquisition Commander.
“Back already, Chancellor? Haven’t you done enough?”
“I’m curious Commander, as to how your Inquisition and it’s “Herald” will restore order as you’ve promised.” Delphine would have been happy to hear the answer to the Chancellor’s question but the malice rolled of the cleric in waves. His smirk was more than enough an indicator the he held no desire for a true conversation about restoring order.
“Of course you are-” the Commander turned to each group gathered at the entrance- “back to your duties, all of you!”
Grumbling, the groups slowly dispersed, while the Chancellor remained to stare down the Commander. Joshua didn’t budge, probably curious with whatever was about to go down between his boss and the cleric.
“Ah, Herald, you’ve returned.”
Delphine followed the Commander’s gaze down the path to see a party approaching. The woman in front bore a Seeker’s emblem on her breastplate. Delphine wondered if she was the Right Hand of the Divine that Joshua had told her about. The figure behind the Seeker brought her world to a halt.
He walked up, draped in leather armor, a simple disciple staff at his back. For a moment she wondered where his lightning staff was- he had worked tirelessly on it for weeks- but it would make sense he had lost it in the explosion. Otherwise, he seemed to be in one piece. His mousey hair was still as messy as ever and his signature half-smile graced his lips.
It took every ounce of self-control Delphine possessed to not run out to him. She had nearly come to terms that he was almost certainly dead, yet there he was, the one they were calling the Herald of Andraste.
“Mages and templars were already at war. Now they’re blaming each other for the Divine’s death,” the Commander explained as the man Delphine had mourned stopped at his side.
“Which is why we require a proper authority to guide it back to order.”
The chantry chancellor obviously rubbed the Commander the wrong way and he was already beginning to do the same to Delphine. It was obvious that the Chantry had already failed at forging peace in Thedas. What more authority did he think they held over the people?
“Who, you? Random clerics who weren’t important enough to be at the Conclave?”
It appeared the Commander had a sharp tongue when provoked.
“The rebel Inquisition and it’s so-called “Herald of Andraste?” I think not,” the Chancellor spat back.
The “Herald of Andraste” was not pleased either. His upper lip twitched up at the name, something Delphine could pick up on, even from a distance. The title must not sit well with him, not that she blamed him. “I don’t believe I’m Andraste’s Herald any more than you do, Chancellor.”
“That laudable humility won’t stop the Inquisition from using the misconception when it suits them!”
“The Inquisition only claims that we must close the Breach or perish.”
Delphine didn’t quite enjoy the picture the Commander painted with that claim. A supernatural disaster, the downfall of the Chantry, the destruction of the Circles and a civil war. The world was looking at the threat of unraveling, so his picture was accurate, but that didn’t make the idea any less terrifying.
“You say that now Commander. We shall see if the sentiment remains true.” Everyone in the vicinity seemed to let loose a sigh as the Chancellor strutted off.
“Don’t let anyone riot while we’re gone,” the Herald joked, shooting the Commander a small grin.
“The walls will still be standing after you leave. I hope…”
The Herald won’t be standing for long, Delphine mused, a small smirk growing on her lips. Before Joshua had a chance to stop her, Delphine bolted out towards the elf, and for once managed to catch him by surprise. The pair tumbled into a heap on the ground while everyone looked on in shock and confusion.
“What in the world?”
The body under Delphine began to shake with laughter. “It’s all right, Commander. I brought this upon myself.”
“You surely did.” Delphine shoved herself up into a sitting position so she had him pinned by his stomach. “So now you must suffer the consequences.”
Joshua’s horrified face made Delphine snicker a moment while the rest of the Herald’s new friends watched with varied levels of amusement. If her mother could see her now, oh how she would die of embarrassment.
“Is she your girlfriend, Herald?”
Delphine made a face at the dwarf. As if she would ever think of being with this lug of a mage. “I would say that would never, ever, happen… but it seems stranger things have been happening in the past few days.”
His dwarf companion got a good laugh out of that.
“You have a point, Delphine. Now I think I’ve learned my lesson, can you let me up now?”
“Not yet,” she gripped both sides of his collar and began to give him a solid shaking to drive home her point, “Elazar Lavellan! Don’t you dare let me think you’ve died again! Next time I’ll kill you myself!”
“Alright, alright. I am truly sorry I worried you Delphine. It won’t ever happen again, though. I promise.”
Accepting his apology, Delphine rolled off, allowing Elazar to stand and then help her to her feet at his side. The pair dusted themselves off, Elazar sneaking a toothy grin in her direction as they did. They had been apart for what felt like ages now. So long that even despite their reunion Elazar was practically buzzing with joy. Delphine could read it plain as day on his face, even without his smile.
“So, if you’re not his girlfriend, who are you, Miss Delphine?” The dwarf asked, looking her over not so subtly. Delphine had chosen to dress as inconspicuously as possible for her journey so her clothes offered few clues.
“With a whirlwind entrance like that, you must have some past with the Herald,” the last member of Elazar’s party chipped in; a bald-headed city elf in a green get up.
“Unfortunately, yes. I’ve spent quite a lot of time with this idiot. As for formal introductions-” curtseying slightly, despite the fact she was wearing trousers, Delphine gave the Inquisition members a wide smile- “my name is Delphine Athelyna Trevelyan, I’ve studied nearly my entire life with Elazar at the Ostwick Circle. It’s a pleasure to meet all of you.”
“The pleasure is mine, because now I have a source of embarrassing stories on our lovely Herald.” The dwarf grinned, “Varric Tethras, by the way.”
“As in the author?”
“The one and only!”
Delphine had so many questions for the dwarf but Elazar quickly cut in to finish introductions, he always was one to lead conversations. “Delphine this is Solas, our resident Fade expert, and Seeker Cassandra keeps everyone in line.”
“Herald, that is not my-”
“Oh, come on Seeker. We all know that’s what you do,” Varric added, sharing a grin with Elazar.
He already was sharing inside jokes with these people? How long had Elazar been with them? What had she been missing for all these months?
“Ugh.”
“And lastly, Delphine, this is Commander Cullen.” Elazar clapped the blond man on the shoulder. Cullen seemed momentarily thrown by Elazar’s friendliness but his strong posture never changed.
She’d never seen Elazar so friendly with a templar before. Delphine decided she’d follow his lead for now.
“A pleasure, Commander. I’ve heard many good things about you.”
Cullen’s brow scrunched up, “who’s talking about me?”
“Why Joshua, of course.” Delphine glanced over to the soldier who was looking a little hot under the collar.
“And what has the Lieutenant been saying about me?” Although he came off as strait-laced, Delphine didn’t miss the mischievous glimmer in his eye as he stared down the nervous lieutenant.
Oh, had Delphine thrown someone from the pan and into the fire? “Only good things, I can assure you, Commander.”
“As much as I’d like to stay and watch this unfold-" Elazar chuckled, watching the Commander’s stone gaze turn Joshua into a sweating mess- “I believe Delphine and I have much to discuss.”