What did you do today in DA? [Spoilers]

So...its over...after three years, almost to the day I got the Mark, Corypheus has been defeated. For all of his bluster of being a God he kind of went out like a chump. It still feels...good.

Afterwards we had the obligatory final party. I do not know how Josephine managed to set everything up so quickly, she truly is a credit to the Inquisition. But even in the midst of all the partying and joy the Inquisition is now free. And I can't help but wonder what is next. It was in the back of my mind. Even after everything we have been through, after wanting to focus on the party. It was there. The Inquisition still has so much more to do. That much is clear. And walking the tightrope between enlightened reform and becoming the next Corypheus will be a difficult task. Maybe more so then defeating the monster. I am confident...no I hope that I am up to the task.

News has also reached Skyhold that Cassandra has been elected Divine Victoria. I know how much she is going to hate it. But I am happy for her, and even more so over joyed for the people of Southern Thedas. If she is as good at her job because she hates religious formality as I was as Inquisitor because I hate politics, she will do just fine. Either way she does have good ideas, and hopefully good advisors working for her.

I do wonder how much time I will be able to take off.

***

So its not even been two months and already the Dwarves are in trouble and requesting our aid. Earthquakes have been ravaging the Storm Coast and we are off to solve it. This likely means Darkspawn... still its an excuse to get out of the house, and back to our job.

Meanwhile while me and the Inner Circle set off for the Stormcoast Leiliana is moving off to Val Royeux as the Left Hand for Divine Victoria, to make final preparations for her coronoation. This means the position of Spymaster is now open. Josephine, Cullen, and Leiliana will be coming up with new candidates but I am thinking Briala might work.

3.
The Dasher got the message. I guess there’s no turning back now. There may be a way to do business in the future but for now I’ve made it clear that I’m my own master and I pull the strings. Gallivanting about the Ferelden countryside we found odd glowing skulls propped up on sticks. When you look through the skulls bizarre shards get illuminated. Shards that you will not see nor feel for that matter, even if standing upon them before locating them through the skulls. Why skulls? What is it all about. Josephine managed to dig up some clues pointing us out into the western approach. So, we went there.
To an oasis where some Orlesian’s had set up a mining business.



The mine was shut down however. In the middle of the oasis we found the doors to an old temple or maybe tomb. We cleared out the oasis from rifts and demons before we investigated the temple closer. There was a strong feeling of unease, even dread emanating from the temple doors. The shards were made to fit perfectly into some hollowed carvings in the door. I shuddered inside as I inserted the shards into the door. The felling of unease dissipated as we stepped inside. A ward of some sorts? Inside there were more magical doors. We would have to came back at a later date.


As we came back to Haven our esteemed leadership had not yet managed to decide overall templar/mage conundrum so I set out for Redcliffe to see what could be gained from Fiona. As we neared the town gates we came upon a weird kind of rift. Viv suggested that it distorted time around it.
In Redcliffe we soon understood that no one was actually expecting us and to make things even more muddied a Tevinter magister was now in charge. We met Fiona in the tavern. Viv was absolutely dripping of sarcasm. Hahaha. Yeah, you go get them gurrrl.





We soon got to meet the Tevinter sleaze in person. So, the mages had indentured themselves to a Tevinter magister.



This had happened after we met Fiona in Val Royeaux but she had no recollection of us meeting.
Magister Alexius’s son turned acutely ill and fell in my lap. Poor little boy. He was kind of cute, I guess.



Only it was a ruse to give me a note without the magister noticing.



Apparently, I was in danger (!) and he wanted to have a clandestine meeting in the chantry. Probably not that kind though. We went to the chantry fully expecting a trap and had to help this dashing young man battle demons and sealing another time distorting rift.



The man was a Tevinter mage and went by the name of Dorian.



Formerly apprenticed to Magister Alexius. He had been working on time controlling magic with the magister. Until Alexius had gotten involved in some Tevinter supremacist cult. Felix joined us and informed us that coming here, snaring the mages etc. was all done by these “Venatori” in order to get to me.



Not the Inquisition, but specifically me, “the one who survived” as Alexius phrased it.
If/when we would go to Redcliffe castle to put an end to all this Dorian wanted to come with us. I said I’ll think about it. We spent some time in Redcliffe, talked to a lot of people and enlisted some. Eventually we found a locked shed in the harbour and inside we found the hideous truth about the “skulls-on-sticks”. The Venatori had used the skulls from numerous tranquil. Tranquil with no means to defend themselves, with no drive to defend or even flee. May the Venatori be turned to dust. My own inclination for negotiating “help” from Magister Alexius went from low to negative.


Next, we turned to mystery of the disappeared wardens. We would have to go to the Storm coast. We had gotten an invitation to meet up with as mercenary band on the Storm coast. The Bulls Chargers they called themselves. Led by a Qunari by the name of The Iron Bull. On the coast our scouts had run into trouble with a group of bandits that called themselves the Blades of Hessarian. We looked for the Chargers first and helped them defeat a group Venatori zealots.



It turned out that The Iron bull had been sent by the Qun to gain information on the Inquisition and the Breach. Apparently, they were concerned and seriously considering an invasion of southern Thedas. Sod them, as if we weren’t having enough of problems. Well, long story short. Bull was hired.



The chargers hired. The Blades of Hessarian were enlisted with minimal bloodshed after I defeated their leader. There had been a group of Grey wardens on the coast. They had been looking for someone specific. Possibly a rogue warden? Their quarry had given them the slip and none of the were left.




Back in Haven our four leaders were still in deadlock. So, I decided to take charge. We learned that the Templars had all retreated to an old abandoned fort called Therinfal Redoubt. I would go there but not alone. Josephine had a group of no less than ten noble houses that would send their own envoys to accompany me and the team, thus putting a whole lot of political pressure behind us in the negotiations.



(I have never berfore noticed that Cole is mingling with noble entourage! Cool Cole!)

When we got to Therinfal Redoubt it soon became clear that all the Lord seeker cared about was me.



Once again me and only me! It must all be interconnected in some way. The divine’s murderer, my interruption of the ritual, my survival, the Tevinter Venatori and the Lord seekers odd behavior. The situation was dire, dire indeed and way worse than we expected. We were greeted by a young templar asked me to perform a short ritual before seeing the lord seeker.



They wanted me to raise three flags in order: I chose the people, Andraste and the templars. I kept my motives to myself. After the test, we were ushered in to see the Lord seeker but was greeted by the knight-captain instead. He was raving about the situation and about how all templars had to be changed. The templars which accompanied him had a strange almost mutated look upon them and at a given signal they cut down their brethren and attacked us. There were attacks on the younger templars by these “changed” templars all over the fort. We fought our way inwards upwards until we found the Lord seeker outside the big hall. Before I could challenge him, he grabbed me by the neck and pulled me… somewhere else.






Well shit, the Lord Seeker was the Lord Seeker no more. An envy demon had taken on his outer shape and usurped the templars. It was now after me. In the service of some “Elder one” it would use the Inquisition to spread even more chaos and destruction. I would have none of that!



Trapped inside my own mind the demon was playing mind games on me and trying to pry all my internal secrets from me.









It may well have succeeded if not for me being possessed by another more benevolent spirit – Cole.





Together we beat the demon on its own game.






Back in the real world we learned that the demon and the ranking officers had been giving red lyrium to a select group of templars who would be changed. When we arrived, they had begun to force it unto lesser willing templars.
It would be a fierce fight but we did not back down. The demon hid behind a powerful magical barrier.



We also found evidence for a templar lead plot to assassinate the Empress of Orlais.

We needed as many senior templars as possible and ordinary lyrium to break it. Eventually we defeated the last of the “red templars” broke the barrier and went further in to have the final showdown with the demon. I proved a formidable opponent but we were victorious! Cole proved his worth in the fight!
In the aftermath, the templars were unsure of what to do. There wasn’t much left of their order. A demon had tricked them, they were naturally very uneasy about the whole prospect. I offered them a position within the Inquisition if they would disband. They all agreed and were all conscripted and they all swore fealty to the Inquisition.




Back in Haven they were a bit tense. Cullen felt it wasn’t my decision to make. Well I’m sorry. A decision had to be made.



The situation became even more tense as Cole materialized on the war table!



Cassandra and Cullen wanted to kill him on the spot. I stayed their hands.



I had to do some sweet-talking.



Cassandra apologized for being harsh and was actually glad not having to be the one deciding on the fate of the templars. In a way, it seemed they all were rather relieved not having to the one to make that decision. Now all we needed was enough lyrium make an attempt to seal the breach for good…