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envihellbender · 5 days ago

Note

Assign a Fear to each Dragon Age Inquisition companion.

Spoilers for Dragon Age: The Veilguard. If you don’t want to read them I strongly recommend skipping the Solas section at the end.

Dorian: the End

Necromancy and the Mortalitasi are strongly connected to the End. They are specifically necromancers trained in Nevarra who all have different specialities, mostly involve working with the dead and many involve tending to the necropolis itself. It is about the inevitability of death, and reusing the vessel that people have left behind. Necromancers do not need to create corpses for their magic to work, they are everywhere and there are always wisps and spirits ready to fill them. That is the same motivation for the End, it does not need to cause any ritual or anything else. Death is inevitable. It comes to us all.

Whilst Dorian is not from Nevarra, although Tevinter also has quite the strong ties to the End, it is confirmed by Emmrich in Dragon Age: The Veilguard that Dorian was trained as necromancer for a term in the necropolis. His connection to the End is so strong he was sent across Thedas to study it. When we first meet Dorian in Dragon Age: Inquisition his main ally is Felix, a young man who is infected with the Blight and for whom death is inevitable. We know he has an issue with substance misuse, particularly alcohol. Whilst addiction is not associated with the End the stagnation as Dorian wished his sexual desires would drown could he connected. We also know that his father intended to “fix” his sexuality with blood magic, another indication as to how finality and death has been stalking Dorian most of his life.

Vivienne: The Corruption

The Orlesian Aristocracy was a breeding ground for the Corruption. To most it simply looked like extravagant wealth and elitism, the elite drinking and scheming whilst the world outside burned. What people didn’t see was the Corruption and the Crawling Rot’s disease which filled their lungs and blood. They no longer had a sense of identity, each requiring a mask in order to declare it to those around them.

Everything Vivienne did came from a place of protecting herself as well as other mages even if this did not always seem clear. Ever since a Vivienne was taken into the Circle she was not allowed a sense of individuality, she was one mage in a tower of many. She was an insect under a microscope to the Templars so she had to build herself up to be strong, well-behaved, and in control. The picture of what a mage should be, a part of a loyal collective and the blood of the Chantry. The other part of the Corruption she falls into is unhealthy love - her paramour is Bastien de Ghislain. He preyed on Vivienne, a young nineteen year old in the Orlesian court causing a scandal due to him being already married. She was devoted to him, despite how against the relationship the court was and the fact he prioritised another woman. A tragedy that ended when a disease filled his aging body, and nothing Vivienne did would save him.

Four years after they met Vivienne was appointed Empress Celene’s Court Enchanter. This was her being fully brought into the virus of the Aristocracy. She no longer had her own mind or identity, even though that was something the Templars stamped out of her long ago.

Sera: the Web

The Friends of Red Jenny are Avatars of the Web, their mischievous but almost moral nature means they are not obvious candidates as they only strike fear in the aristocracy. Their power is terrifying, the control they can have over several countries is something everyone should be wary of regardless of whose side they’re on. The first indicator of the Friends of Red Jenny is a letter found on an Antivan Crow, that leads to a painted box in the Fereldan First Enchanter’s office, which can be delivered to a door where only the letter box opens in Denerim. The second time is with a woman in the Hanged Man in Kirkwall who wishes to be rid of the groups of thugs killing civilians at night. Both of these show subtle acts that control the narrative from afar, pulling at certain strings to result in a desired outcome. Perfect for the Mother of Puppets.

Sera was taken in by the Friend’s of Red Jenny at a young age, she had an almost unnatural talent with the bow. Being an archer involves controlling the battlefield from a far, and being able to disappear at a moments notice. This is built upon by her Tempest specialisation where she can use alchemical flasks to expand her tactical style of combat. Upon first meeting her she sends this a series of clues around Val Royeoux which leads to a noble who is an enemy of the Inquisition. Sera does not know why the Inquisition needs to deal with him, she just knows. This feels remarkably similar to how Avatars report their connection to the fears manifesting.

Cole: the Eye

Cole was always an avatar for the Eye, even before the spirit of Compassion found him. He didn’t like his abilities back then, he hated seeing exactly what his father thought of him, and knowing precisely what he did to his mother. It made Cole bang his head against the wall repeatedly until he felt dizzy trying to make the sounds stop and the visions disappear. People didn’t like it when he voiced them either, they’d call him a liar, a sneak, an eavesdropper, a cheat, or worse… A mage. That was the worst one, because Cole knew he had magic. Ever since it first showed itself his mother said if they knew they’d take him away. And he knew they would. He saw it inside their minds when some poor child was dragged away by Templars. Cole probably knew what happened to them better than anyone else.

Perhaps it was the Eye that attracted Compassion to Cole when he was abandoned in the tower. It certainly played a part in the twisting Cole into being a killer, or saviour as he saw it, of the mage victims of the Templars. You could understand why, he could see into every single mind in the tower. He felt their agony and pain overwhelmingly, and whilst he could manipulate their minds into being calm it wasn’t enough. That’s why he had to kill. Thankfully, when he managed to get a good grasp of his abilities he started being able to use them more effectively. It was amusing really, that that was what led him to the Inquisition. An appropriate place for the Eye to end up.

Varric: previously the Web but was one of the rare types to change to the Lonely

Previously I’ve stated that in Dragon Age 2 Varric is the Web. To carry on from that, in Dragon Age: Inquisition Varric evolves from just the Web to the Web and the Lonely.

After Varric had to leave Kirkwall, his strength as an Avatar of the Web began to wane. His realm became a mixture of the Web and the Lonely in Skyhold, something which solidified when Hawke was left in the fade. He’d always had some affinity for it, the family was essentially his responsibility after all - no one else would deal with their mother’s drinking. Addiction is tied to the Web, but the sheer loneliness of being alone to care for his mother, with no father or brother willing to help, he became wrapped up into himself. He was like the spider at the centre of the web who was wrapped in a cocoon of silk rather than one who ventured too far out. With his business deals, his suite at the Hanged Man, and Hawke his ability to tell stories whilst keeping everyone at arms length began to fall apart.

Of course, when the Chantry exploded all of that changed. Varric had to leave the city that he’d known his whole life, his home. His book, his lies he’d made truth was what protected him for awhile, it gave him a strong position within the Web. Of course, then was dragged in cast irons with Cassandra to the Conclave. The final nail in the coffin to cement Varric desertion from the Web to the Lonely however was Hawke’s death. It was the proof he needed for how allowing anyone too close would only result in pain. The cocoon of web and fog would keep him safe.

The Iron Bull: the Eye mixed with the Slaughter

The Iron Bull was born into the Eye and had the strong desire to be apart of the Slaughter. Or rather, Hissrad was apart of the Eye, and Iron Bull belonged to the Slaughter. Hissrad found it quite simple, ever since he was a small child he could read people. That’s what Tama said anyway, in reality it was more like he just heard more than everyone else did. He didn’t have to do anything, he just heard all of there thoughts. Everything from what they wanted to breakfast to the kind that would get them thrown in prison. It was exhausting, overwhelming, there were too many thoughts in his mind and too many sounds surrounding him. That’s when he learned to fight, or rather hit things. He smashed and threw them, finally finding someway to express the pain that he was too small to deal with.

When he began his work with the Ben-Hassarath, becoming apart of the Eye was a natural extension. It caused him to become better at his job, he didn’t even need the training he sped through. He didn’t need to learn how to examine micro-expressions he simply knew exactly who was lying, why, and what they actually thought. To begin with he’d had to physically prove it but eventually everyone just accepted Hissrad just knew things. Eventually it began to destroy him, and when he put himself in for re-education he realised that the re-educators were like him. Every single one of them. They had the same abilities as him. The ones he’d been desperately pushing down because he was terrified he had some latent magic ability, the re-educators had them. That was when he learned all about the Eye.

When Hissrad began the Bull’s Chargers and became the Iron Bull, that was when he desperately wanted to become something else. He saw the Slaughter, and he knew he wanted that. He didn’t want to be a person anymore, just a mindless thing. He didn’t want to know what everyone around him knew and thought, he wanted to just think about how to kill them if they decided to be a threat. Even his name the Iron Bull was a symbol of the Slaughter. His own personal army even had a song. And to his delight, the further he got from the Qun, the more he found himself becoming one with the Slaughter… even if he would never lose the Eye, it had distorted into something unique.

Cassandra: the Dark

The Pentaghasts were very closely connected to both the Dark and the Hunt. Being from Nevarra there were necromancers and dragon hunters in her family - the latter being self explanatory. The necropolis is constantly shrouded in darkness even in the gardens. Whilst it is primarily a city of the dead, it would feel almost sacrilegious to have it be anything other than the underground sanctuary it has become. Cassandra discusses how her uncle sees her as a doll, someone to dress up and put on the shelf to display. One interpretation here is one of child abuse, which is also an interpretation of Maxwell Rayner from the Magnus Archives canon. If we take this to be representative of the Dark, then there’s a clear parallel.

Cassandra kept up the family tradition of being an Avatar for the Dark even though it took her a long time to realise it. The Seekers are a group that work from the shadows, they are usually associated with the Eye but for them to have connections to the Dark is not unheard of. However, this is primarily due to the initiation ritual that each Seeker has to go through. It is essentially a form of the Rite of Tranquility for a non-mage, cutting someone off from their emotions and the fade itself. This feels almost like an internal form of being trapped in the dark, the light inside of the person has been extinguished leaving them hollow and numb. It is a sense of coldness and emotional blindness with which the Dark is associated.

Thom Rainier/Blackwall: the Stranger

Thom Rainier had always lived in the shadows, mimicking other people. That was why when he saw a group of children killing an innocent dog as a child he was unable to say a word. He was too busy acting like other people, too busy working on being accepted and becoming apart of something to break the illusion. When he was a chevalier, that was why he did whatever he was told and gave whatever orders meant the biggest payday. The only truly important thing was the mask, and he got so remarkable at it that he stopped recognising himself.

The way Thom Rainier was able to replace Blackwall was reminiscent of the Not Them. There was many, many clues that he was not a Grey Warden: his knowledge of the order had holes and inconsistencies, he seemed more preoccupied with being a motivational speaker and training thieves than he did fighting darkspawn, he couldn’t detect darkspawn, he did little to cover his appearance beyond growing a beard (a noble at the Winter Palace actually recognises him), he didn’t know anything of the real Blackwall (he doesn’t seem to know even his first name or what he was from), and despite all this he managed to convince a great deal of people. He managed to convince Alistair, lie his way through saying he knew Duncan, and when you are at Adamant he speaks as Blackwall to an entire keep of Wardens. Despite all of this, he manages to some how trick everyone that he is a different man - almost exactly like a Not Them. It was as if everyone couldn’t remember Blackwall ever looking or seeming different.

Solas: the Extinction

Solas never wanted to be the Extinction. He had been associated with several Fears, he had connections to the Slaughter, the Web, and the Stranger. He felt particularly comfortable alongside the Mother of Puppets or Mythal as she was known. Of course, she pushed him to take a physical form, to war with the titans thus killing them and cutting dwarves from the fade, and when he helped unleash the blight upon the world… All of these things went beyond the End. It wasn’t something he ever wanted to be, Elgan’arn had been desperate for the place of Avatar of the Extinction of the Slaughter and the way he executed spirits en masse, almost mindlessly he was almost there. The issue was it was mindless, it didn’t mean a thing. Every single time Solas cut something else from the world it came with meaning and pain. Not that that stopped him.

As much as Solas tries to right his wrongs, how much he declares he regrets so much, he still keeps acting this way. He refused to side with the Evanuris but he did send many spirits to their deaths in order to enact his plans. He imprisoned the Evanuris, and when he finally became reunited with Mythal he attempted to erase her from existence and consume her power.

#envi writes #dragon age: inquisition #tma au #Dorian Pavus #vivienne de fer #sera dragon age #Cole dragon age #varric tethras #the iron bull #cassandra pentaghast #thom rainier #solas dragon age

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