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

[ichaer]

And we shouldn't believe everything a talking darkspawn says because of the whole talking darkspawn bit. Because, again, it's been a decade. People change a lot in that amount of time so how can we be so sure that the same has not happened here?

[justice_is_blond]

Which is why I put the if in there. But I don't know that we can generalize him as simply as you think. He's not just a talking darkspawn. The Emissaries are that. The Architect has lived hundreds of years, and by that point I believe any changes happen exceedingly slowly. Older people don't tend to change much at all.

We cannot be certain of anything, but I strongly believe he's smarter than to use red lyrium, and he doesn't want another fight. Or attention.

[ichaer]

Oh yes, I am so terribly sorry for generalizing it so very simply despite the the fact this Architect is still a darkspawn that talks at the end of the day. And guess what? When the world around you changes rapidly and your own is threatened leads to people, no matter their age, tend to change too which I imagine includes talking darkspawn.

And I'm not saying that it'll use red lyrium but Corypheus' allies are using it on the darkspawn at an unknown rate. It might just decide to take drastic measures to end this or it might not as you said but that's still a big problem. We don't know and I can't rightly just agree it'll still be happy to see us with such huge unknowns.

[justice_is_blond]

[A beat, before slowly:]

...You have listened to all I've been saying? That I lean toward not talking about him and leaving him alone? That he may feel cornered? Because it sounds like you're trying to argue against something I'm not saying.

I believe that in regard to him, no news is the best news we can have. I also know that he is far more complex than you're implying. If we simply call him 'talking Darkspawn' it's an understatement and underestimation.

[ichaer]

[ A beat, before just the most aggravated yell. ]

And I'm not talking to only you right now and I'm not the only one listening to you. I'm only saying that we, as in all of us here, should not go making any huge decisions based on anecdotal evidence from a decade prior like paying him a house warming visit. That's all because I'm really tired of us being at the shit end of the stick, Anders.

[ Really... despite all the anger, she just sounds sad. ] Yeah... well it'll help me sleep better at night.

[justice_is_blond]

I understand frustration. I was there, when Jonas agreed to an alliance I still don't agree with, but that changes nothing - the Wardens made an alliance with the Architect. I also very much understand being tired with the shit end of the stick.

All we have is anecdotal evidence and speculation. We need to stay calm and talk, and maybe refrain from telling the man I love to shove something up his ass, please.

[ichaer]

It's just hard to swallow and I still think it's dangerous to call it an alliance after so long but we'll figure the details of that out later, I guess. But Clarel and the others did the same thing before marching us to Weisshaupt, all anecdotal evidence and speculation...

Not saying any of you are like her but you can see why this is hard for me, right?

And I meant that whole 'shove it up your ass' thing in the nicest way possible.

[justice_is_blond]

I've been betrayed by Warden leadership as well. It's why I left, why I had to leave, originally. So yes. I can absolutely see why it's difficult.

But I doubt Clarel called for input from every Warden on anything, and I doubt you could walk up and speak with her. Nate, Alistair, and Teren are available. ...Teren may stab you, but she'd stab anyone, and it would also be in the nicest way possible. This is different because you can get to know the people in charge, and you can ask questions, argue with them, and so on.