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Harritt grunted and returned to his forge, the rhythmic clang of hammer on steel resuming as if their conversation had never happened.
The interface shimmered before Daniel's eyes as he stepped away from the forge:
[Quest Complete: Meet Haven's Best and Brightest]
[Experience Gained: 150 XP]
The notification faded, leaving only the crisp mountain air and the distant sounds of training. Daniel exhaled, rolling his shoulders. One task down, countless more to go.
His feet carried him toward the training grounds, where the rhythmic thwack of steel against straw-filled dummy grew louder. There, in the center of the yard, stood Cassandra—her sword a blur as she delivered punishing blows to the practice target. Her movements were precise, brutal, each strike carrying the weight of someone who had spent a lifetime honing her body into a weapon.
Daniel watched for a moment, impressed despite himself. When she finally paused, chest rising and falling with controlled breaths, he approached.
"You're kind of a force of nature, aren't you?"
Cassandra turned, wiping sweat from her brow with the back of her gauntlet. "When I need to be."
"It's impressive," Daniel admitted.
She sheathed her sword, her expression unreadable. "You flatter me."
"I'm trying," he said with a half-smile.
Cassandra studied him for a long moment before her gaze drifted toward the Chantry. The lines of her face tightened, something troubled flickering in her dark eyes.
"Did I do the right thing?" The question came out quieter than he expected, almost vulnerable. "What I have set in motion here could destroy everything I revered my whole life. One day, they might write about me as a traitor, a madwoman, a fool."
Daniel considered his response carefully. "And they may be right," he said. "What does your faith tell you?"
Cassandra's jaw clenched, but her voice remained steady. "I believe you are innocent. I believe more is going on here than we can see. And I believe no one else cares to do anything about it." She exhaled sharply. "They will stand in the fire and complain that it is hot. But is this the Maker's will? I can only guess."
Daniel tilted his head. "You don't think I'm the Herald of Andraste?"
Cassandra's gaze met his, unwavering. "I think you were sent to help us. I hope you were. But the Maker's help takes many forms. Sometimes it's difficult to discern who it truly benefits, or how."
The weight of her words settled between them. Daniel glanced at the Breach, its sickly glow staining the sky. "What's going to happen now?"
Cassandra followed his gaze, her voice hardening. "Now we deal with the Chantry's panic over you before they do even more harm. Then we close the Breach. We are the only ones who can." Her hand tightened around the hilt of her sword. "After that, we find out who is responsible for this chaos, and we end them."
She turned back to him, her expression fierce. "And if there are consequences to be paid for what I have done, I pay them. I only pray the price is not too high."
A wry smile touched her lips as she continued, "My trainers always said, 'Cassandra, you are too brash. You must think before you act.' I see what must be done and I do it! I see no point in running around in circles like a dog chasing its tail." Her smile faded. "But I misjudged you in the beginning, did I not? I thought the answer was before me, clear as day. I cannot afford to be so careless again."
Daniel shook his head. "It wasn't like you had no reason to suspect me."
"I was determined to have someone answer for what happened," Cassandra admitted. "Anyone."
Silence stretched between them, filled only by the distant shouts of soldiers and the crackle of torches. Then Cassandra asked, her voice softer now, *"You've said you don't believe you're chosen. Does that mean… you also don't believe in the Maker?"
Daniel hesitated. The question was heavier than she realized. In his world, faith was different—complicated. But here, in this place where the divine felt tangible, he had to choose his words carefully.
"I believe He exists," he said finally.
Cassandra's eyebrows rose. "You do?" She seemed genuinely surprised. "I'm surprised but… I suppose it's comforting." Her shoulders relaxed slightly. "Surely, the Maker put us both on this path for a reason. Now it simply remains to see where it leads us."
The sun had begun its slow descent behind the Frostback Mountains, painting the sky in hues of orange and violet. The training grounds were quieter now, most of the soldiers having retreated to the warmth of the tavern or their bunks. Only Cassandra remained, her silhouette stark against the fading light.
She turned to Daniel, her expression thoughtful. "It occurs to me that I don't actually know much about you."
Daniel raised an eyebrow. "What do you want to know?"*
Cassandra hesitated, as if realizing she hadn't prepared for this line of questioning. "I'm… not sure. Where are you from?"
Daniel smirked. "I thought you knew that."
"I suppose I could ask Leliana," Cassandra admitted. "She has collected a frightening amount of information on you. But I don't want to ask her. I want to hear it from you."
There was something unexpectedly earnest in her tone. Daniel exhaled, letting the memories of this world—his world now—surface. "My clan never stayed in one place for long, though we primarily roamed the Free Marches."
Cassandra blinked. "Oh? I didn't think your people roamed that far north. Clearly, I'm mistaken." She tilted her head slightly. "I'm told some members of your clan might still be alive. Do you intend to go back?"
Daniel shook his head. "For me, wherever I am is home enough."
A flicker of understanding passed over Cassandra's face. "That's how I feel now, after years of tending to business for the Divine."
Daniel studied her for a moment, then said, "I'd like to get to know you better."
Cassandra stiffened slightly, as if the request caught her off guard. "There's… not much to know."
Daniel laughed. "You're being modest?"
"Do you think me a braggart?" she countered.
"No," Daniel said, grinning. "I think you're interesting."
Cassandra sighed, though there was no real irritation in it. "As you wish." She squared her shoulders, as if preparing for a formal introduction. "My name is Cassandra Pentaghast, daughter of the royal house of Nevarra, seventy-eighth in line for the Nevarran throne. I joined the Seekers of Truth as a young woman and was with the Order until they withdrew from the Chantry. I remained as the Divine's Right Hand, carrying out her order to form the Inquisition—and here we are." She spread her hands slightly. "That's all there is to know, my lord."
Daniel's eyebrows shot up. "You're a member of Nevarra's royal family?"
Cassandra waved a dismissive hand. "The Pentaghasts are a very large clan. Half of Cumberland could say the same."
"Really?"
"No," she admitted dryly. "But it feels that way. I have hundreds of relatives so distant, they need charts to prove we're related at all. And they have them, oh, yes. The Pentaghasts value their precious blood like it runs with gold."
Daniel leaned against a nearby post. 0And you joined the Seekers to get away from that?"
"It was a life worth getting away from," Cassandra said, her voice edged with something bitter.
"So you're not on very good terms with your family, then?"
"I do not visit, if that's what you mean."
Daniel hesitated before asking, "You don't think being noble gave you opportunities others don't have?"
Cassandra's expression darkened. "An opportunity to be decadent, perhaps. To be useless to anyone but myself." She folded her arms. "The Pentaghasts are famed for dragon-hunting, but few actually pursue the craft. Most are fat and lazy. They pay lip service to the Maker and care only for idle pleasures and past glories." Her voice softened slightly. "My brother was all that kept me in Nevarra. Once he was gone, so was I."
Daniel studied her face, noting the shadows in her eyes. "You don't seem to like your homeland much."
"My family polluted it for me," Cassandra admitted. "What little I saw of my homeland was through the bars of a gilded cage. My uncle treated me like a porcelain doll to be placed on a shelf and dusted only when necessary. Thus, I did not see Nevarra—the real Nevarra—until much later. By then, I realized I knew it not at all."
Daniel hesitated before asking, "Your uncle? What about your parents?"
Cassandra's jaw tightened. "They had the misfortune of taking the wrong side in the second attempt to overthrow King Markus. The King executed them but spared my brother and me because we were family—and children at the time." Her voice was steady, but her grip on her sword hilt tightened. "Thus, we were raised by my uncle, a Mortalitasi who preferred the company of his corpses to the living."
Daniel blinked. "Your uncle was a… Mortalitasi?"
"A death mage," Cassandra confirmed. "He still is. My countrymen do not burn the dead; they bury them in special crypts. The Mortalitasi supervise the crypts, like priests. Uncle Vestalus oversees the Grand Necropolis." She shook her head. "Nevarrans spend more time honoring dead relatives than they do with living ones. It is odd to be so fascinated with death and its trappings. I will never understand it."
Seeing the discomfort in her expression, Daniel decided to steer the conversation elsewhere. "So you were the Right Hand to the Divine?"
Cassandra exhaled, some of the tension leaving her shoulders. "To Divine Justinia, yes. And Divine Beatrix before her, in fact. The position is normally reserved for Templars of the Knights-Divine, but my circumstances were… unusual."*"
Daniel ask "Unusual how?"
Cassandra gave him a sidelong glance. "You don't know the story? Thank the Maker." She smirked slightly. "I will tell you if you wish, but it isn't as exciting as some drum it up to be. The short version is that I once saved the previous Divine's life. My reward was becoming her Right Hand."
Daniel chuckled. "But what does a Right Hand do, exactly?"
Cassandra flexed her gauntleted fingers. "What is your hand capable of? It gives, it takes, it beckons… it makes a fist." She met his gaze. "Leliana and I expanded the Divine's reach beyond the Grand Cathedral. We went where she could not." Her expression grew somber. " After Beatrix, I was tired of the position and wanted to return to the Seekers. But Justinia convinced me to stay. Her vision for the future gave me hope."
"You thought she could really change things," Daniel said softly.
"Justinia knew the war was coming long before it began," Cassandra replied. "She tried to avert it, but the forces arrayed against her were too strong." She clenched her fist. "Sometimes you have to break a bone so it can be reset. That's where the Inquisition comes in. It was to be the answer: a means to preserve as well as an agent of change." Her voice dropped to a murmur. "I only wish she had lived to see it."
Daniel couldn't resist. "So, what's the story about you becoming the Right Hand?"
Cassandra groaned. "Sweet Andraste, do you really want to hear that? It was, what—eighteen, twenty years ago? Some still discuss it like it happened yesterday. The tale gets bigger each time it's told. I barely recognize myself within it now."
Daniel grinned. "I'm sure you're just being modest."
Cassandra snorted. "I was there. I think I know what happened." She crossed her arms. "To hear others tell it, I alone saved Divine Beatrix from a horde of dragons sent to assault the Grand Cathedral. Rather impressive for such a young Seeker, wouldn't you say?"
"And the truth is?"
"I stumbled upon a conspiracy to kill Beatrix," Cassandra admitted. "A Templar Knight-Commander was at its heart. And there was a dragon battle at the Grand Cathedral, but I had help from loyal mages that rallied to the cause. They freed the dragons from magical control. Without them, the Divine and I would both have died." Her lips thinned. "Yet I became the Right Hand, and they are forgotten."
Daniel chuckled. "You're delightful, you know that."*
Cassandra scowled. "No, I do not know that."
"Mm-hmm."
"I object," Cassandra said flatly. "There is nothing 'delightful' about me."
"I beg to differ."
Cassandra sighed. "I think I preferred you in the stocks."
Daniel laughed before sobering slightly. "What happened to the mages that helped you?"
Cassandra's expression darkened. "They went back to their Circles, with rewards and privileges and Most Holy's gratitude. Many of them died at the Conclave."
Daniel shook his head. "That's rather typical of the Chantry, isn't it?"
"Even worse," Cassandra said bitterly, "few know of the Knight-Commander's involvement at all. That sort of willful blindness needs to change."
As the last remnants of sunlight had faded, leaving Haven bathed in torchlight. The air grew colder, and Cassandra exhaled, her breath visible in the chill.
"We should retire," she said. "If you're hungry, the tavern should still be serving."
Daniel nodded. "Join me?"
Cassandra hesitated, then shook her head. "I have reports to review before we leave for the Hinterlands."
Daniel smirked. "Afraid I'll find you delightful over ale?"
Cassandra shot him a glare, but there was no real heat in it. "Goodnight, Herald."
As she walked away, Daniel watched her go, the weight of their conversation lingering. For all her brusqueness, Cassandra Pentaghast was far more complex than she let on. And that, he thought as he turned toward the tavern, made her all the more fascinating.
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Name : Daniel Carter
Race: Elf
Level 2 : 321/1250 EXP
Professions: Mage
Gold Coins: 680 Coins
Weapon: Staff of the Dragon
Armor: Light Armor of the Dragon and Templar Scribe Scowl
Accessories: Lifeward Amulet
Inventory: Acolyte Ice Staff, Morning Star, Stiletto, Hunting Longbow, Fire Resistance Cowl, Mercenary Coat, Acolyte Fire Staff, and Disciple Lighting Staff
Crafting Materials: 3 Elfroot, 6 Iron, 2 Blue Vitriol, and 1 Dawn Lotus
Valuables: Aquamarine, Silver Bracelet, Figurine of Maferath the Betrayer, 2 Shadow Essence, and Gurn Gallstone Charm
Potions: Lesser Health Potions x8 and Lesser Regeneration Potions x5
Skills: Chain Lighting, Flashfire, Barrier,
Armor Schematics: Shokra-taar Schematic, Antaam-saar Schematic, Avvar Armor Schematics Acquired, and Stone-Bear Armor Schematics
Potion Recipe: Lesser Regeneration Potion recipe