Calderas Inbox for Inquisitor Lavellan

[arlathvhen]

Beleth Lavellan

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At Home, After the Vesper Event

[goethbeforethefall]

Solas has kept himself busy, in his time in Caldera.

He has done good deeds and made of himself the mild-mannered victim of cruel fate. He has showcased magics of helpful and kindly nature, and gone to great pains to make himself seem... small. Humble. Below notice and above reproach, both; there are very few exceptions.

But his reputation is a lie. One that Beleth and Felassan alone know the fullest truth of. One that Rook and her companions have the shadow of, and know it to be that of a vicious reality.

"Vhenan," He says, from the doorway. His hands are poised behind his back, his face a mask of calm that he knows will not fool her; as clear a warning of danger as any, "I would show you something. Come."

He leads her across their home. The garden is in its first bloom, early lilacs perfuming the air above delicate upshoots of new grass, and tiny spring violets that wink purple and blue amongst the turf. It is soft underfoot, green and alive, beautifully young and vibrant; he opens the door to his workshop, and it is dark within.

Until he gestures, and then it is brightly-lit, with veilfire.

"Some weeks ago, you extended to me a gift of your trust in me," He begins, strolling into the room with careful steps. Here and there are stacked small projects, and large; the forge smoldering redly in one corner, the pipes grumbling vaguely overhead, an eerie glow from within a small box. A set of magnifying lenses of many sizes is racked neatly against the wall, "I had not anticipated that you might do so— but you are forever surprising me. I... Have been contemplating my answer, and have come to the conclusion that there can be only one."

He stops and with no small drama, and a brief flare of fire, reveals that there on the workbench is a neatly-piled, stacked and counted, horde of Bones. There are more than a thousand there, even after the purchase of the Dread Wolf's power... enough wealth to buy any favor in Caldera, even an audience with one of the gods.

"I have often hidden my plans from you, lied and obfuscated. But now, I would offer you the same in return. Trust. Honesty. If you can accept it, even now, after so long."

[arlathvhen]

True enough, as Solas predicted, when Beleth looked up from the bonsai she'd been trying to carefully grow and trim (no telling what it's supposed to be yet, so who knows how successful it's going), her face starts a fond smile, then quickly drops into concern. A thousand possibilities run through her head, but she knows the only resolution will arrive by rising to her feet, and following him.

The house they found is slowly turning into a home, and it usually brings Beleth great pleasure and peace to walk through the garden, admire what they have built thus far. But her worries flit around her head like fretful bees, and she can only think about what Solas will show her. Something, she knows, that will be nothing inconsequential.

Stepping into Solas' workshop, a place she'd been thus far avoiding -- easier to deny involvement, went the line of logic, if you don't actually know what's going on. Stepping from the bright light of spring and into the dark left her blinking, until the strange green glow from the veilfire throws everything into focus, casting strange shadows on the stranger objects.

She spends a few moments hesitating, wondering if it would be better to not see. But no, she'd stepped over the line that she'd spent so long trying to balance, hadn't she? Even if only Solas and Beleth knew it know, she'd chosen her side, and now Solas was treating her choice with the respect it deserved, as he always did.

"I understand why you did it. You were trying to keep me safe, from trying to oppose you. Or trying to help you." Both were things that led down their own paths, and it was no surprise Solas relished neither of the ends. "But... Thank you, Solas." She turns to face him, slipping a hand into his. She doesn't know what he's about to tell her, and it frightens her a little -- she is aware, more aware than nearly anyone else, that Solas still has his goals, and what he will do to achieve those goals is... well.

But he's trusting her. As long as they're together, and trust each other, she's sure that they'll figure it out.

"I'm listening, Vhenan. Whatever you give to me, I will accept gladly."

[goethbeforethefall]

"I am going to request my orb, and my dagger," He says simply, laying the truth baldly between them. It is a hideous, horrible moment of vulnerability, and for a breath or two he wants to snatch the words back somehow, like hands that've strayed too close to the fire.

But it's too late: he is committed, and she forewarned. And... it is mutual, again. They can only betray one another, or hold true, now; in truth, he cannot blame her, were she to do it. The stakes were as they had ever been, after all.

But her hands are small and gentle in his own, cool, dry fingertips, and the gentle chafe of his thumb against her knuckles. Once the initial panic begins to fade, he feels...

...he feels...

lighter.

For all the terrible risk in this admission, in this moment, he is free, even if only for a little while, from the terrible, weighty burden of being alone, and of the lies that uphold that loneliness.

[arlathvhen]

His admittance is followed by a long breadth of silence, as Beleth's eyes widen, and her eyes fall back to the pile of coins, as though they had already been transformed into Solas' instruments.

Her hand squeezes his unthinkingly, and she would swear that there was a pang of pain from where her left hand had once been. The orb -- she remembered the brief flash of it that she'd seen, when the Divine knocked it from Corypheus, and Beleth, unknowing, had scrambled to grab it before he could retrieve it.

An act that had reshaped her body, her life, and Thedas itself.

But this is different. The orb won't be a weapon that Beleth will have to wrest away from a monster, it will be--Hmm.

"What are you going to do with them?" If she's going to be in it, then she must be in it all the way. It's too late to walk any of this back. She's chosen her side, and Solas has accepted it. Him standing here, telling her this, is him accepting her decision. And if that's the situation, then there is no more willful ignorance -- nor allowing anything to be hidden. "Will they even allow it? With your full magic, and both of those implements, you'd... probably be able to rival any of the faction leaders, wouldn't you?"

With that much power... there was a lot that he could do. That they could do. It almost frightened her, the idea of it.

[goethbeforethefall]

"I do not know. Perhaps they will not; but they restored much of my power to me already. This much will be only a few steps more."

And if they do not, if they deny him, then Solas shall simply have to look elsewhere to satisfy his plans. What is needed here is perspective, as much as the power itself. And with his orb, and his dagger, Solas would have both.

"We were brought here against our wills," He begins, gently, a small shake of their joined hands emphasis to the point, "To be returned home so unceremoniously is... the best we can hope for, from these so-called gods, these Leaders of Caldera. I am yet undecided as to whether they are to be opposed, or if their purpose is acceptable— but when we leave, it should be on our own terms."

He lets go her hand, his own sliding up, to grasp at her shoulders, gentle still, but insistent, bending towards her with the intensity of his sincerity, and passion of purpose. Solas realizes, abruptly, that he has come not to inform Beleth, but also to ask for her blessing. That she would approve of his path has become important, somehow— important to him, at least.

"The Orb and the Dagger were made to breach barriers, and to create them. With their power, I will— I will attempt to bring Felassan with us, to our place in space as well as time. We are already displaced, the damage half-done, and I would not see him discarded if he can be saved. Vhenan, I must try."

[arlathvhen]

"You having power while trapped in their world is something that can aid them -- just as you aided people when the earthquakes happened. But if you are given the ability to escape..." Then all that they had invested into allowing him to have his power would be gone, as he left, and took her with him -- though she doubted they would miss her and her meager abilities as dearly as Solas, who had done so many quests, and had been given so much in return.

Her first instinct is that these leaders should indeed be opposed. That they should be fought against, if possible, forced to release the hostages they'd taken captive, that have been forced to bleed and even die for them. But then she thinks of Finn, of Barcus, and Ashton, and the other people here. They would not want the leaders to be cast aside, when it could risk the entire world.

She had thought about attempting to get everyone to come together, to leverage their aid in exchange for better circumstances. But even that would be no small task. Most of the Visitors were obliging enough, friendly on the surface. But she felt that attempting to point them all in one direction would be... difficult. Maybe if things with Triton shook out just right... She knew better than anyone how having a specific danger to rally people against could raise an army.

But Solas is grasping her, and she thinks, vaguely, that if anyone else that she had ever known in her life had held her in such a way, she'd be lashing out. But Solas, she trusted. She understood. Whether or not she agreed--

But then he mentions Felassan, and suddenly, Beleth recalls the vision in the orb, bought for a poem written for love. Of the three of them, standing in the Fade. And a fourth -- and that's when she makes her decision. She has enjoyed her time in Caldera, enjoyed the people here. But there will be no infant, not if Beleth can avoid it. Their future does not rest in Caldera, but in Thedas, and it must be all three of them.

She'd promised him.

"Yes," She finds herself agreeing, the hand that had been grasping his reaching up to cup his face, a thumb swiping over his jaw. "He deserves as much. Rook and most of her crew have already been removed from Caldera. Only Davrin knows what you are capable of, and he has not seen fit to involve himself. I will keep an eye on him, anyway. I can't do much to help you, but... I'll do what I can."

This was the way it had to go, wasn't it? If this was the path before them, then she would walk it with him, without half measures.

[goethbeforethefall]

How like Vhenan to think first of the politics of their situation, to consider his safety, and the interference of the Veilguard. So caught up had he been in despair, and in plans for the future, in his own work and power, and in Felassan's concerns...

...He had, for some few, blessed weeks, forgotten about them entirely.

Yes, she says, and he bows towards her in naked relief; having come this far, this honestly, he cannot hide it from her now. One hurdle past, and he will not need to sleep by her side, and kiss her in the morning, and love her whilst also hiding from her his actual motives. He will not need to lie, to save Felassan, not to her; Solas knows better than most, what a privilege that lack of choice truly is. Faith, answered with faith, and hope with hope. His smile is soft, tender and real.

"Ma Serannas," He whispers, eyes closed and pressed close, his brow right against hers, as near as a kiss, and vows to deserve it, "I will not betray the faith you put in me, Vhenan. Never again."

[arlathvhen]

She watches Solas bow before her, then he presses his forehead against hers, and Beleth closes her eyes, taking in the feeling of him. Of the two of them, together. Working as one. It's almost perfect -- almost. There's one thing that weighs on her, the knowledge that she's carried with her this entire time, since first she reached for Solas when the two of them found each other in Caldera.

He still wants to tear down the Veil. And now he'll have the instruments to do it.

But she's committed to this path, now. And she knows, she knows that Solas can see reason. That he will see reason, eventually. Will all of this mess with the timeline? If Solas escapes, if they all escape, will they be in his time, or her own? But Solas is right -- she's putting her faith in him. She'll trust him, just like she always has. It'll work out. It has to.

"I know," She says, soft but confident, hands cupping his face gently. "I know. Everything is going to work out. I love you, so much. Always."