Lucanis Dellamorte - Official Companion Thread [Spoilers]

I have become somewhat confused as to the purpose of the short story the Wake. Whilst they say Lucanis had undergone a lot of revision during the development process with regard to showing all aspects of his character, I have to assume that the basic narrative was always there and certainly by the time the Wake came out. However, this raises a problem for me now they have revealed that his possession was the result of something the Venatori did to him.  This seems borne out by the fact that the identity of the demon is Spite.

My original theories concerning his apparent "death" were as follows:

I thought that possibly Lucanis had some sort of spirit connection in Tevinter Nights which is why he had such heightened senses and magical sensitivity. Thus, the spirit could have revived him after he was killed or he faked his own death.  However, this is now no longer a possibility.

The second theory was that the Venatori murdered him, as witnessed by Illario, but afterwards the demon revived him. However, again this is ruled out by the latest information.

Of course there was always the problem as to his corpse. If Illario had been present at his death, surely he would have recovered his body for return to Caterina if he could. Even if they followed standard funeral practices of the Chantry as devout Andrastrians (which the Antivans are said to be) and burnt the body, they would presumably be able to see if it was not Lucanis they were burning. So, was Illario not able to recover the body?

Then there is the problem as to where his "death" occurred. I had assumed in Tevinter or on the journey home. Of course, that would not fit with Zara wanting to observe and punish him in the future. However, in view of the dire situation in Antiva when he arrived home, I could not see Caterina allowing him to leave again when clearly his skills would be needed by her, both to eliminate Emil's family (as Viago hinted was likely she would do) but also against the Qunari threat. Yet Viago and Teia were in Vyrantium in the Missing, after Antiva had come under attack, so why were they there?

Next problem is that his recruitment mission seems to take place in Treviso and he can later be found off duty from the Veilguard drinking coffee in Treviso. Whilst he no doubt has an attachment to the place, it seems odd that he would openly hang out in Treviso if the Crows believed him to be dead. I'm sorry but a beard would not be sufficient to disguise him from Caterina, so at the very least, after completion of his recruitment mission, it must become apparent to the Crows he is not dead and he joins us with her knowledge and approval.

So, did they know beforehand? Was Lucanis really thought to be dead or, as people previously have suggested, was this some sort of ruse by Caterina and Illario to conceal his continued existence from other people? In the past it was assumed they were hiding him from the Venatori but perhaps it was to prevent the other Talons from discovering what the Venatori had done to him? Was that in some way connected with Illario?

Remember how he said: "It should have been me." Did the Venatori actually capture Illario and threaten to kill him if Lucanis would not accept being possessed by the demon? You see, according to all the lore, and as confirmed by Flemeth, you cannot force a soul/spirit on the unwilling. To do so either kills them both or simply results in a straight forward abomination. To have a situation where the person continues to coexist with the spirit/demon within them and they look and act normal, they have to willingly accept it. Clearly, Lucanis would never have agreed to this, or at least I do not think he would have done, just to save himself. However, he might have done to save Illario. Hence the latter's grief and guilt at the Wake. Then he was to all intents and purposes "dead" so far as his position in the Crows was concerned and had to retreat into the shadows at the request of Caterina. However, Lucanis had learned how to control the demon, or come to some sort of accommodation with it, because of his strength of will, so he could still be useful to her. Thus, she gave out that he had died so people would understand why he was no longer seen acting on her behalf and why Illario had now been promoted to the position of her successor. It didn't mean she had rejected him entirely but it was a face saving operation. May be she even thought that the Venatori would assume she had ordered his death as a result of discovering his possession and so she could still use him secretly against them.

That's the best I can come up with for the present to explain what seem to be rather contradictory pieces of backstory.   There is a problem in this theory if Neve is the one who recommends him to us.   How does she know he is still alive?   However, she may have recommended a different Crow or knows him by a different identity.  I suppose we will learn more from the podcast, at the very least where he is based prior to the events of DAV and who, if anyone, he is working for.