Part 80: It Was A Dark And Stormy Night

PART 80: IT WAS A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT


[Here we are in the Denerim Chantry. We have a few moments of peace and quiet before heading out on our REVENGE MURDER RAMPAGE.]



[Let's rummage through Dorothea's drawers.]



[And it's the last leather piece for our collection. Which means we unlock...]



[The Battledress is an amazing set of light armor. 1 in 4 attacks will whiff completely with it on, and it has an armor rating higher than the heaviest plate mail.

Unlocking it in the DLC also unlocks it in the main game, so Bianca's going to be wearing this from now on.]



[It's a shame that it looks basically identical to every other set of leather armor.]



I am so glad to see you... or anything after... after last week.

My thanks too. I'll help how I can.



Thanks for getting me out of that place, Leliana. No market for a helper.

No market?

That Raleigh wasn't going to keep me long. A spy ringleader like Marjolaine painted you, you were going to the highest bidder.

Maybe even the Empress.

I just wish I had been there for Tug.



They did him first because he wouldn't shut up. Drove Raleigh's men crazy for days, laughing at them.

He was stalling for me. They said they‘d take my hands. Only way to trust a mage.

Oh, Sketch.

All I see is red, but it doesn't matter. We can't fix this.



So we don't fix it, but we can set it right.

I'm not sure I know what that means.

As long as we try.

Try what? ...Leliana!





Silas, was it?

Yes, I had to follow. I hope to earn the good mother's trust. And yours.

I stand ready to go after the commander. And this Marjolaine, who put you at his mercy.



[And Silas finally gets his bloody intro, when we're about twenty minutes from the end of the DLC.

I quite like Silas. In a world of monsters and magic, Silas is literally just Some Guy. He knows how to swing a sword, and you did him a solid so he'll do you one. And that's it.]



Apparently this now involves nations? Or threatens to?

I don't pretend to understand all that. I was in Raleigh's "care" a lot longer than a week.

Whatever I can do to settle my debts, I will.

So, did I free a criminal?



I poached some game. I'd have taken my lashes, but Raleigh doesn't like "inconveniencing" the king's law.

He had me for months. For no reason beyond his own amusement.

How does a petty criminal get so quick with a blade?

Former soldier. I was probably not too far from Raleigh during the war.

Glad to say I'm nothing like him now.



Is that what I had to look forward to?

No, he ransoms important prisoners to whoever wants them most.

But only after he's "had his fun."

So, you'll follow me. Where do you think that will lead?

If can end this, I hope to serve the Chantry. They will already know my good intentions.



What about you?

Me? Nobody cares what I want.

You should.

...

No doubt Dorothea is waiting for me.

I'll follow you where you lead. I owe you that, and more.





She's beautiful.



[Oh, it's that guy!]



Missy! Need something to perk you up? Road ahead will be a tough one.

Lem? How...?

Eh, I went to ground when Marjolaine showed her colors. Almost gave you up after the week.

Hard to miss your escape, though. Lots of people thanking their Orlesian she-devil.

So, need anything?



You're right back to selling, even after all this?

Marjolaine left me dry, too. Pissed about that, but the payout must be good to drop resources like us.

You're saying you'd have done it too?

Well, not to me, but I understand. That's the game. It's all in the game, yo.

All right, show me what you've got.



[The Gray Fox! Wait, nevermind.

This is our last chance to buy stuff from Lem, so let's sell all our junk and tool up with as much as we can afford.]



[We can also chat to this woman, who Leliana menaced with a knife in the last update.]



You work in this temple?



I am giving my life to the Chantry, yes. If you'll excuse me.

You are still shaking from when I woke up?

It's nothing, miss. Excuse me.

I thought you Chantry people were made of stronger stuff.

An affirmed does not have the experience to deal with your... pain.

It makes me ashamed of my own ignorance when I first came here.





Our Marjolaine has secured Commander Raleigh as an escort to leave Ferelden. No doubt she expects a reprisal for her various crimes.

It would be a shame to disappoint her.



I need to know some things before this goes ahead.

As would I.

I know nothing about the commander. Beyond what he did.



Commander Raleigh is a noble who apparently distinguished himself to King Maric during the Orlesian-Fereldan war.

Many on both sides have been reluctant to abandon the hatreds of that conflict.

But if I had to venture a guess, I suspect he's also a miserable bastard at heart.

I could have died in that dungeon. Like Tug did.

I recognized a familiar spirit in you, and I had faith. It is a strength you come to understand in service.



I’m glad you didn‘t start preaching at the time.

[I admit it. I prefer angry teen Leliana to god-bothering grown-up Leliana.]

I hope I am not preaching now. I just wanted you to be aware of the tools you already had.

If this is the last the Chantry sees of you, I have still balanced some of my shame.

A lot of people followed me out. What happens to them?

Some will be turned over to the city guard, although the difference in treatment may well feel like freedom.



Others, like Silas, have more than paid for their petty crimes. He wants to join the Chantry.

Perhaps he wants a chance at Commander Raleigh.

I would not blame him.

Whatever happened to 'thou shalt not kill'?

You know a lot for an outsider in Ferelden.

The members of this temple have been most helpful, though they technically owe no allegiance to Orlais.



They suffer too if secrets given to the Chantry are not safe?

Mmm. My actions could harm all nations ministered by the Chantry.

This seems like a lot of trouble for a few papers.

If Raleigh finds the support to act on them, the number of lives at stake would be considerable.

But Ferelden and Orlais are at peace.



It might be more accurate to say we are merely no longer at war.

...Tell me how to find Marjolaine.

For your own reasons, I trust?

Do you want your precious papers or not?

Not if I inflict more harm in the process. Call it a concern of my trade. "Thou shalt not kill", right?



This isn't just between Marjolaine and I.

I hope she did not know of the abuse Raleigh would inflict. But I am sometimes foolish like that.

I must pray for the commander, but I would not cry if this world lost him.

He is escorting Marjolaine to the Waking Sea where she will wait for passage.

I have suggested a path. Be careful.




AND SO...





Pathetic girl. You're in the heart of my Ferelden. What do you hope to gain?

_{Your head!}

What?!



_{YOUR HEAD!}

...

What?!

_{Oh, for...}

Listen to the commander, pretty one. There's nothing for you here.



I doubt that.





[These are Sand Stalkers, little monsters that live in beaches. This is their only appearance in the entire Dragon Age saga. Enjoy!]



Now for the master of these beasts. And Marjolaine.



...And the papers.



[So Raleigh books it like a coward, leaving us with a creepy one liner and some dudes to kill.]







[Imagine some exciting thunder and lightning sounds.]



[Nothing on this path is remotely a threat. Until...]



[Oh, Harwen. You do banter so.]



[The Dragon can do some annoying things- like stunning everyone around it, but it doesn't have that much HP.]



He seems annnoyed.



[Harwen's got a billion HP and he's helped out by a mage buddy. Your first priority is taking out the mage.]



[He's the final boss of the DLC, so we can burn any last remaining poultices, bombs, oils, lotions, magical hatracks etc on him.

Eventually...]



Ahhh---!

[VIDEO: The Big Finish]



You're better than Marjolaine said. The bards of Orlais have earned their reputation.



But I remember the scared little girl in my cell.



Orlais and Ferelden will both hear the facts of your legacy...

Once I've had my fun, of course.





*crunch*




LATER...



All this. Undoing every one of these lives. It's more fun when it's personal.



I wonder, what did the lovely mother offer for her papers? Something as entertaining as what I did to get them?

You are still trying to hurt me. Why?

So innocent. Even when your concern threatened to expose me.

All I wanted was a way out. For us.



Oh, you are my pretty thing. But I knew we'd end up like this. You would turn on me, because that's what I would do.

So I did it first.

We are the same.



No.

So you say, but here you are, weapon in hand.

You see your own distrust on every face. Did I ever know you?

If this was reversed, you'd wake every day expecting my blade.

Marjolaine...



We are the same.



We are the same...



Do you want to know a secret?



That moment I keep, because even now, I don't know what ending serves best.



But being able to choose, that is the truth of this story. The rest, it changes with the audience.



All things change... when they find purpose.




THE TRUTH OF YOUR STORY

Nice words from Leliana, but this story needs an ending.

Should we kill Marjolaine?

Voting closes in a few days


NEXT TIME: Back to the Future!

NEW CODEX CONTENT:
An Introduction