Sending Crystal; Locked to Grey Wardens

[pinprick]

FORM: Sending Crystal
SENDER: Nathaniel Howe
RECIPIENT: The Wardens
WHAT: Office meeting re: the Architect and whether to tell the Inquisition about him.
WHEN: Current
WHERE: Skyhold
NOTES: TW: Mention of broodmothers.

[A gruff but refined voice.]

I am Senior Warden Nathaniel Howe. I was one of the Wardens personally recruited by the Hero of Ferelden after the Archdemon was killed. The others here who can say the same are Velanna and Anders. We were party to something that deserves an explanation.

[A sigh that might as well say "this is going to be a long one."] After the Archdemon was slain, the Blight...continued more than it ought. It was no matter of clearing up stray patches of darkspawn. They were organized, and marching over Amaranthine in Ferelden. Most alarmingly, some were able to talk and order themselves like had never been seen before.

The reason... [he takes a second, figuring out how to make this as short as possible] The reason was a creature known as the Architect. He was...is a darkspawn magister like Corypheus, but his aim was different. He sought peace and enlightenment, and the awakening of the darkspawn to thought and purpose entirely free from the compulsion of the Old Gods. He...thought of them as his children.

He began to experiment. As we drink darkspawn blood to change ourselves, they drank the blood of Grey Wardens to awaken, to become thinking beings with conscience. Doing so did not always produce...good results. His experiments woke the archdemon Urthemiel and began the Blight. And they created the Mother.

The Mother was a broodmother he had awakened. She was driven mad by it. It was she who organized the darkspawn after the Archdemon was slain. That was the end of the organized darkspawn attacks after the Blight.

The Architect...we spared the Architect. More than that, we allied with him against the Mother. It is his desire to rid the world of all future Blights, and so he continues his work, trying to free the darkspawn of the control of the Old Gods.

We have kept him a secret from the world. Now, the world is threatened by Corypheus, a darkspawn of independent thinking, who wields power of the Calling like an Old God. I believe that if there is a time to share our secret alliance with anyone, it is now. The Inquisition fights against Corypheus for the fate of the world. The Architect may have answers we all need.

But I wanted to ask for your opinions before meeting with the Inquisition's leaders. Is there a good enough reason for us to keep this from the Inquisition?

Comments

[byblow]

That's--

[ Accurate. The first part. But just you wait.

Also, literally wait a moment while he pauses to mouth I'll explain later at Zevran. ]

Well, great. As long as you don't see the talking darkspawn and his unknown number of followers becoming a threat--I'm sold. If he does turn up, and we get asked why we covered up something like this again, I'll tell them you didn't think it would be a problem.

[justice_is_blond]

[A heavy sigh.]

Is he still... I don't know why I'm asking. I really don't expect you to keep things from him. While I don't agree with what Jonas did, I have every reason to believe the Architect didn't want a fight. He wanted to hide away and work on his projects, which were to end the Blights for good. It backfired. But he could have eliminated every Warden and every villager in the area of Vigil's Keep and Amaranthine and he chose not to. He chose to step back.

Corypheus, on the other hand, wants power and destruction. The two of them could not have gotten along back in their magistering days, and if anything, I'd expect the Architect has gone more to ground to avoid Corypheus.

Which leads to what we expect if we do tell the Inquisition. Do we truly think they'd ignore a potential source of information on Corypheus, or is it far more likely they'd go after him, seeking information, and we'd all wind up facing the Architect's Darkspawn army on top of Corypheus' demons and thralls?

[byblow]

I'm cupping the crystal to my ear and being very sneaky, but I promise he's heard worse.

Why are we ignoring a potential source of information about Corypheus? Bully for him, if he stops the Blights, but it won't do us any good if we're all dead. And if he's what you say, he shouldn't be marching any armies on anyone who's asking for help with Corypheus.

They aren't stupid, you know. Leliana isn't. They aren't going to send an army after him now. Even if they wanted to, we apparently can't say where he is, so—good luck to them, I'd suppose.

[justice_is_blond]

[Alistair being 'very sneaky' is a mental image that would get a snort from Anders if the conversation wasn't this heavy.]

My concern is that he'd fear attack and tricks and move preemptively.

And Leliana isn't stupid. Josephine doesn't seem to be. I'll stop there.

[Mark it on the calendars, you've got time as he inhales, exhales, and thinks.]

If we could find one of his disciples, we could potentially send a message through them. There's no guarantee they'll cooperate instead of attacking, they all seemed to have some individuality, but we could try it.

[pinprick]

That's not a bad idea. Do you remember the Herald he sent to Amaranthine to warn us of the attack on Vigil's Keep? They know the purpose of coming in under a white flag.

[byblow]

Yes, by all means, let's try to check in on the darkspawn magister with an army at least every decade. Let's make it a rule. Someone write it down.

[justice_is_blond]

I don't think I could forget much of that day. But yes, I do. Whatever they are, they're not regular Darkspawn.

[byblow]

I doubt they'll send him a letter to say hello, Ser Architect, we know you exist. I mean, it's possible.

It's also possible they'll come across him without us, somehow, and panic because--because that's a perfectly reasonable response to talking darkspawn magisters--and attack him, then blame us for not saying anything sooner. And it's possible he's dead, and it's possible he's changed his mind and thinks the best way to protect darkspawn is to wipe out everyone else, and it's possible he's been captured by something scarier than he is, and it's possible--

[ he could go on for a while. ]

[justice_is_blond]

What if heads that aren't cooler prevail? Namely, half the heads there? One of them tried his hardest to be part of two slaughters, and the other? I've still no idea what was going on with the locking-up of elves and yelling.

If we tell them, we're offering them input on him. Even if we don't actually offer that, they'll feel like they have it. And then if we start trying to explain why attacking him is not a good idea we start to deal with other secrets. It feels like we're seeking to knock a hole in the foundation of a wall.

[failedfirst]

He has my sister. [She cuts in, though there isn't anger in her voice. Desperation, maybe.] If he feels threatened by the Inquisition, he will preserve his life above those of his followers.

[byblow]

He... has your sister.

[ Prompting, only slightly disbelieving. Please explain. ]

[failedfirst]

He abducted her and infected her with the darkspawn taint. She... was helping him, last I saw her.

[pinprick]

Perhaps we could negotiate for her release. [Though last Nathaniel remembers seeing her, Seranni had been perfectly happy to stay where she was.]

[failedfirst]

[Now she sounds angry. Sorry, Nathaniel.]

And do what? Sit and watch while whatever he did to her kills her? As long as she's with him, she lives.

[byblow]

[ He takes a moment to feel bad for being an ass in the past.

One moment.

Then he proceeds to be an ass in the present. ]

How do you know she's alive?

[failedfirst]

I saw her. Two years ago, in the Deep Roads. I... do not know if she still lives, but if she survived nearly ten years before that, I would think she still does.