Healing the Dark - Dragon Age Inquisition Fanfic

"What have you got?" Holli asked.

Sera had received a missive from someone somewhere, and with a not-so-subtle look at Holli, they'd slipped away from the rest of the camp under the guise of gathering firewood.

Sera squatted on the ground when they found a quiet, private spot, and Holli followed suit opposite her. Sera unrolled the little message, her face scrunching up. Not great then.

"He likes to beat the elven stablehands."

Holli rolled her eyes. "Can't really use that."

"Nah, he'd be proud of that," she agreed.

Holli had seen a few instances of elven racism, even in the Inquisition. They were just looked down upon. She had asked Solas why; it turned out there was a fair bit of bloody history, subjugation, betrayal, and slavery... Also, they looked different to humans. Not so different from her own world in some places.

The pair sat silently while they tried to figure out if there was indeed some way to use this.

"You ever thought about just lying?" Sera asked.

"I did, but given his reputation, I'd need something more concrete and irrefutable."

"What are you two doing?"

Both looked up from where they were squatting on the ground to find Iron Bull stepping out of the bushes.

"Ah, you're not shitting, are you?"

"We are, pervert," Sera retorted.

Iron Bull reached out with his foot and nudged Sera's shoulder, tipping her over.

"Who wants to perve on little girls? That's disgusting. Where's the firewood? It's getting low."

"We haven't found any yet," Holli said.

They hadn't been gone that long.

"Well, let's get to it."

"You're here to help us?" Holli asked, getting to her feet.

"Cassandra doesn't want you out here with just this one for protection," Bull told her.

Cassandra had brought more people with them this time around. All of them—Varric, Solas, Bull, Blackwall, Vivienne, Sera, and herself. Despite Holli getting better with her magic, if Cassandra had her way, Holli would be wrapped in bubble wrap and carried around on someone's back. Or maybe one of those baby bags that sat on the front.

Holli understood she was the only one who could close the Breach right now, but Cassandra's protectiveness was going a little overboard. And it wasn't as if Holli was particularly reckless and impulsive. There had been the one incident at the Crossroads ages ago. And every day her magic improved and became stronger. Solas had even taught her a few aggressive spells of his own.

They wandered about the woods and gathered wood; by the time they got back to camp, Sera and Holli had a few pieces each, and Bull was loaded. That would probably be enough to get them through the whole night.

Holli grabbed one of the books Josephine had given her and sat by the fire to read.

"Found anything useful?" Varric asked, poking at the flames with a stick.

"Not really. It's all more about the Templars and not so much the Seekers of Truth."

"The Seekers of Truth don't have much of a written history," Cassandra told her. "And what we do have is kept from the public."

"Why? What are you all hiding?"

"Our abilities and how we came to attain them for the most part. But there is much of our history most of us are not made privy to."

"You don't find that suspicious?"

"Yes. But I am also aware that what we do is necessary, and we do help and protect the people."

"So is it an 'ends justify the means' type of organization?" Holli asked.

"I wouldn't quite put it that way," a little hesitancy to her reply.

Holli didn't bother pushing further. If Cassandra had anything that might help, Holli was pretty sure she would have offered it by now.

She really was all in for the cause.

-

"The Herald of Andraste!"

Holli was getting used to the title; enough she didn't cringe every time she heard it anymore. She looked towards the voice where a pair of men in masks came to her.

"Lord Esmeral Abernache," he greeted. "Honoured to participate. It is not unlike the second dispersal of the reclaimed Dales."

Holli wasn't familiar.

"Ah, Lady Vivienne!" He smiled widely when Vivienne came to stand beside Holli. "We met at last summer's ball? The Duke introduced us."

"Indeed, I could not possibly forget the occasion."

"The Lord Seeker is willing to hear our petition about closing the Breach. A credit to our alliance with the Inquisition. Care to mark the moment? Ten Orlesian houses walk with you."

"It's a shining day to have the best of Orlais in step with the Inquisition," Holli laid it on thick, offering a radiant smile. "The first of many inspirational and influential partnerships, I hope."

"Oh, you're a sweet little thing. People will give you anything." He gestured for her to walk with him, the others falling into step behind them.

They walked along the bridge towards the fortress; the banners of the Order hung over the gate.

"Here we are!" The man said, spreading his arms wide. "Therinfal Redoubt."

"The Lord Seeker abandoned the White Spire to come here," Cassandra all but spat the words.

"It appears they've sent someone to greet you," Abernache told her. "Present well. Everyone is a little tense for my liking."

There was a Templar or a Seeker—she wasn't sure which—waiting for them at the gate. She recognised him from Val Royeaux when they'd met Lucius.

"I present Knight-Templar Ser Delrin Barris, second son of Bann Jevrin Barris of Ferelden," a man introduced them. "Ser Barris, may I be so honoured as to present Lord Esmeral Abernache...?"

The templar completely ignored him, his eyes fixed on Cassandra as he came towards her.

"I'm the one who sent word to Cullen," he told her. "He said the Inquisition works to close this Breach in the Veil. I didn't think you'd bring such lofty company. This... promise of status has garnered interest from the Lord Seeker. Beyond sense. The sky burns with magic, but he ignores all calls to action until your friends arrive."

"Should a Seeker lead the Templars this way?" Holli asked Cassandra.

"In an emergency," she replied. "If there is no other recourse, but his goal should be to restore them to order."

"He has taken command. Permanently," Barris told them.

"If he feels there is a holy mandate..." Cassandra said.

"That is what he claims, and our Commanders parrot him," he sighed. "The Lord Seeker's actions make no sense. He promised to restore the Order's honour, then he marched us here to wait? Templars should know their duty, even when held from it."

"'Bout time one of you gobs said that," Sera muttered, earning a snicker from Holli, which got them both a glare from Barris.

"Win over the Lord Seeker, and every able-bodied knight will help the Inquisition seal the Breach."

"If you know what you should be doing, can't you just overthrow the Lord Seeker and join us anyway?" Holli asked. "A mutiny, or desert, or something?"

"We cannot abandon our orders. Not while the officers who survived the Conclave follow him. We've been asked to accept much after that shameful display in Val Royeaux. Our truth changes on the hour."

Barris gestured for them to follow him further into the fortress.

"The Lord Seeker has a...request before you meet him."

"What is it?" Cassandra asked.

"It's a request of the Herald," Barris said. "The Lord Seeker asked for her by name."

"My name's not Herald," she groaned.

"He called you Lady Whitlock. He changed everything to meet you."

This had her brows furrowing. She didn't go around giving people her name very often. In fact, she hardly told anyone at all outside of those she saw regularly. She looked to Cassandra questioningly.

"Your name has spread farther than you realise," she said.

Holli was uncomfortable with that.

"Why'd he change everything?" She asked Ser Barris.

"I don't know. He's been fixated on you for some time now."

"Fine, what do I have to do?"

He explained the standards she had to raise—the people, the Maker, and the Order. He wanted to see what order she'd put them in. She hoped he was watching.

She stepped up to the wheel of the people, raising it as high as it would go. She had no love or even fondness for the Maker or the Order. But the people, they were who they were doing this for. So people could stop being attacked by demons, to bring back a semblance of normality to their lives. She didn't touch the other flags, returning to Barris and wondering if he would make her do it again.

She wasn't altruistic, definitely not a hero of the people or anything like that—here or in her own world. But when shit happened, it was the normal people who tended to suffer the most, those just trying to get by. And she had seen what this mess was doing to the people in this world.

He did ask her to explain her choice.

"It's not obvious?" She asked.

"I suppose it is," he conceded.

-

Holli looked around, confused about where she was and how she came to be here. The air here felt different—wrong. And the fogginess was giving her Silent Hill vibes—a favourite game and a favourite movie of hers. Though now she wondered if she needed to watch out for creatures similar to theirs.

Through the fog she could see fire and hesitantly walked towards it. The others had vanished; she wasn't sure how or where to. The stupid Lord Seeker did something to her.

When she got closer, she could see the flames were coming from people; they looked like the corpses from the ruins at the base of the Breach.

She wove her way through them, careful to avoid them. Though she wasn't sure if they were really there. There was no heat from the fire.

At the end of the pathway, Cullen and Josephine were standing there. They looked empty and unnaturally still.

Leliana appeared, stepping between the two.

"Is this shape useful? Will it let me know you?"

Probably not. Holli liked Leliana well enough, but they weren't close and really didn't know much about each other at all.

"Everything tells me about you," she said, moving to stand behind Cullen, drawing a blade, and bringing it to rest against his throat. "So will this: watch."

Holli wasn't sure what to do. She was pretty sure this wasn't real. Cullen and Leliana were back in Haven.

"What are you?" Holli asked.

The fake Leliana sliced her blade across his neck, black blood pouring out of him, and he dropped to the ground. Black blood, definitely not real then.

"'What are you?'" The fake Leliana imitated Holli's words and voice flawlessly before vanishing.This wasn't going to go anywhere good.

There was a high-pitched laugh from the darkness, and Josephine came walking out of it, the same dagger the fake Leliana had had was in her hand.

"Being you will be so much more interesting than being the Lord Seeker," she said, toying with the dagger in her hands.

The Lord Seeker was possessed! That was why he had been making so many strange decisions. Was this demon the Elder One the Knight-Commander had been spouting off about?

When Holli turned to follow Josephine with her eyes, the woman was gone.

"Do you know what the Inquisition can become? You'll see."

Holli whirled around, but there was no one there.

"When I'm done, the Elder One will kill you and ascend. Then I will be you."

The voice sounded from all around her. So this demon wasn't the Elder One then.

"This Elder One thinks he can become a God? Not very original..."

That cackling laugh sounded again. "He knows. He was there."

Josephine appeared in front of her again.

"Glory is coming," she said. "And the Elder One wants you to serve him like everyone else: by dying in the right way." The woman backed away before stalking into the thick fog and out of sight.

"I am Envy, and I will know you!"

Holli turned to see Cullen standing there now.

"Tell me Herald, in your mind, what do you think? Tell me what you feel.

He stabbed a shade of herself, the thing dropping to the ground. Honestly, right now it was all just fear and confusion. She at least understood she was dealing with a demon—a demon of envy. It wasn't killing her, though. It had to learn how to be her first, maybe?

A red light grew from the fog up ahead, and Holli followed it, not sure what else to do. But standing there wasn't going to get her out of here. Beneath the red light, she could see the shade of herself again, of when she had woken in the dungeon of the Chantry, her hands in that stockade. Cassandra was pacing back and forth.

"Our one chance to make peace between the mages and templars, and now it's over!" She spat.

Holli watched a moment, but it was just a reenactment of what happened, although Cassandra was a lot more blamey than she had been.

The demon obviously wanted her to follow a specific path, showing her visions of what the Inquisition could become once the demon had possessed her. Would anyone realise it wasn't her? Surely Solas and Vivienne would notice, even if the demon perfected its act.

The further she progressed, the more twisted the place became, with tables and chairs sitting on walls, desks and shelves on the roof, and interior rooms with grass floors and gnarled trees in the walls...

As she was leaving one of these rooms, a new voice called out to her; it didn't sound like the demon; it wasn't taking the guise of anyone she knew.

"Wait."

She looked around but couldn't see anyone. She warily went back into the room, but there weren't even very many hiding places.

"Envy is hurting you," the voice said. "Mirrors on mirrors on memories. A face it can feel but not fake. I want to help. You, not Envy."

He sounded young.

"How do I know you're not Envy and this isn't a lie?"

"I'm not a lie. I'm Cole. We're inside you. Well, I am. You're always inside you."

She turned around for the source and found a boy standing upside down from the roof. He couldn't have been much older than her. Seventeen, eighteen maybe? He looked pale and maybe a bit malnourished, and his shaggy hair could have used some conditioner.

"It's easy to hear, harder to be a part of what you're hearing. But I'm here, hearing, helping. I hope."

She moved closer to him, but it was difficult to see his face beneath the wide-brimmed hat.

"Envy hurt you, is hurting you. I tried to help. Then I was here, in the hearing. It's—it's not usually like this."

"We're in my head? Not the Fade?"

"Yes, in your head."

"Am I possessed? Christ, if you're not Envy, how many other people are in here?"

There was a bone-chilling screech from outside the door, and she backed up, wanting more distance between her and it.

"I was watching. I watch. Every Templar knew when you arrived. They were impressed, but not like the Lord Seeker."

She looked behind her where the boy was sitting on the headboard of the bed.

"Because the Lord Seeker is Envy, and Envy wants to be me," she sighed.

"Yes. It twisted the commanders, forced their fury, their fight. They're red inside."

"We're all red inside," she told him.

"Wrong red," he shook his head. "Anyway, you're frozen; Envy is trying to take your face. I heard it and reached out, and then I was here."

She pursed her lips, thinking his words over.

"If it bothers you, I can make you forget. That helps."

Before she could say anything, he shook his head.

"No, you need all of you right now to fight. Maybe later."

"I'm not much of a fighter," she told him."It's your head."

"Yeah," she said, waving around at the decor. "Why is it like this in here?"

She'd have thought it would resemble more of her own world and what she was familiar with.

He stood up, walking across the bed towards her. "All of this is Envy: people, places, power. If you keep going, Envy stretches. It takes strength to make more. Being one person is hard. Being many, too many, more and more, and Envy breaks down, you break out."

"So we just have to keep moving, tire it out?"

"Maybe. I hope it helps. It's more than sitting here waiting to lose your face."

"I would rather keep my face," she agreed.

"It's a good face," he added, his head tilting to the side slightly as he looked at her.

She could feel her cheeks heat up at his words. "Ah, thank you. I- I like your hat."

She was shite at receiving compliments like that and shite-er at giving them. Maybe she should have said he had a nice face too. He was cute.

At her words, a smile lit up his face. He was even cuter when he smiled.

She shook the thought off. Now wasn't the time!

"All right, tire Envy out. I can do that. I'm exhausting to deal with."

She could put on a brave face, but the thought of dealing with a demon alone did scare her.

"This way," Cole said, leading her out of the room.

She breathed a silent sigh of relief he had decided to help her. If left to her, she would never have been able to ask.