congrekate | dragon age au!

dragon age au!

The rumor mill is still going on as to why Jonathan Strange fled the circle to become an apostate mage. Some say that it's as simple as an argument with his former tutor. Others say that the man never really recovered from his actions in the Mage-Templar War. The most likely answer is that something snapped after the death of his beloved. The one thing everyone can agree on is that it's really a shame someone with such potential threw it all away. He could have easily made his way up the social ladder, working at a court somewhere!

To which Strange would respond that he was doing perfectly fine right now, thank you very much, even if he was currently living in a shack that leaked when it rained, he had not even half of the books he was used to, and he heard people whisper behind his back, calling him the 'mad mage of the Dales'. So be it. His plan was probably a bit mad to begin with: Jonathan Strange planned to summon a god.

Not just any god, of course. He had gone through the various pantheons, trying to find the perfect one to grant him what he wanted (power, mostly, a way to take the tools and trade of necromancy and make it more solid, to raise the dead instead of raising spirits.) And eventually, Strange settled on Fen'Harel. He could draw upon the power of the location of the Dales as well as his status as an outsider himself to appeal to the god. The ritual itself was the most complex part, but modified necromancy bindings and a few of his own additions should suffice.

And so, Strange performs the magic. And poor Solas is probably just damn confused as to what he sees when he's forcibly woken up from his nap. The shack is small, covered head to toe with knick-knacks and trinkets, some of magical significance, others not. Dried herbs cover a table and books cover almost any other flat surface. Good luck trying to find where Strange sleeps as the bed has also become storage space. The mage himself looks wild: a middle aged human with scruff and hair that looks like it hasn't seen a brush in years, clothes ragged and dirty. And he just regards Solas with sheer confusion.

"I thought the wolf part was literal."

This is an elf. This isn't a dog. Did he make a mistake in the summoning? And if he didn't summon a god, then who the hell did he summon?

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The cooking part would be an interesting sight with how covered in... well, everything Strange is. He examines the man for a moment before shrugging lightly and moving to retrieve kindling. Thankfully a wooded area away from any water sources that were too close meant plenty of dry materials that would catch fire. He gathers the twigs and leaves in a tidy pile with a few heftier branches arranged in the center. He could start the fire himself and remove an entire step for Strange, but the other mage was insistent that he could handle it himself.

Once prepared, his gaze shifts back to Strange and he gestures to it. Whenever he's ready, Solas is prepared to watch.

Taking one of the sharper and sturdier pieces of kindling, Strange stabs it through the nug to serve as a makeshift spit. Gesturing to the pile of kindling, Strange starts to mutter under his breath. From the inside of the stack, a small flame appears and starts to grow outwards until it's a serviceable sized flame, large enough for roasting the nug on.

"There we go," Strange mutters, with a little sigh. Carefully, he scoots a little closer, holding the nug in the fire in an attempt to get the damn thing roasted as quickly as possible.

"Fire's simple," he explains, watching his dinner carefully. "Of course, some of the other mages from the Spire prided themselves on fire as a specialty, but even those who didn't focus on that element could at least manipulate it somewhat."

So Strange could light a fire. That bode well for the man's personal survival out here though Solas is unsure if he should be too thrilled by that prospect or not. He still needed to test the theory of whether the bond between them broke if Strange met an untimely end at someone else's hands though he was attempting to not play a strong part in that just yet.

"I have noticed the education of mages here is limited." Likely due to their shorter lifespans. There was little time to experiment and master different elements or styles if one was unlikely to live for even a full century. "What are your specialties?"

Because Solas can assume he knows them, but he wants to hear it described by the mage himself.

Strange keeps an eye on the nug as he talks, occasionally rotating it on the makeshift spit. He doesn't mind answering these questions. After all, they're just questions about himself. Solas could ask anyone to find out more about the man—and, Strange has a feeling that after all this is done and he's slipped from the bond, Solas probably would ask around to learn more about the mage that trapped a god in the first place.

"I know the basic elemental work. Creating a fire, making ice, things like that. My other specialties are more...esoteric. I wouldn't classify myself a spirit mage, but I have spent some time studying the Fade. It was a personal variation on a spell to summon a spirit that let me bind you in the first place. Recently, my research has focused towards Necromancy for obvious reasons."

It seems that with the exception of binding, Strange falls along the lines of jack of all trades, master of none.

Strange is more skilled than Solas had first suspected though he supposes when one is dealt a short timeline for achieving things, one makes the most of it.

"You summoned spirits?" Along with potentially binding them, as he's seen those in Tevinter and elsewhere in Thedas doing. Another form of servitude where the spirit had little choice but to comply once they were called into existence outside the Fade. "And what ones did you attract?"

"Most of what I summoned were wisps, fragments of spirits to enhance my magic." If Strange has any compunctions about binding spirits, it's not showing in his words or actions. Spirit mages draw upon the power of spirits all the time. Why shouldn't he do so as well?

"The results have been mixed for more powerful spirits. I tried for Compassion once, but that was a failure. Knowledge went much more smoothly. We were able to work together for a while before I broke the bonds and released it back into the Fade."

Probably leaving the spirit a little messed up in the head thanks to being forcibly summoned in the first place, but Strange doesn't know that!

"So this is hardly your first time tearing someone away and forcing them to stay for your benefit," he returns, tone bordering on calm aggression. "Have you thought of simply seeking them in the Fade and speaking with them?"

A novel idea for mages in this day and age of Thedas, he knows. Maybe if they spent less time being fearful of what would happen if they risked something for knowledge, they could be pleasantly surprised by the results. Instead, their own inability to keep control of their emotions and desires caused nothing but corruption in all they touched.

"Why would I do that when my methods work perfectly well?" His response is arrogance mixed with ignorance. Summoning and binding the spirits worked, so that's what he did. Why would he swap to doing something different?

Besides, he wasn't going to leave Arabella. He's nervous enough as is leaving her corpse for so long. Solas said he would preserve her and the spellwork was strong, but this is the longest he's been away from her since she died and he undertook the quest to bring her back to life.

Nothing in this line of conversation could go well for either of them. Solas would remain bound to Strange until he found a way to break the spell no matter how angered he became at the man. And yet, Solas can't let this topic rest.

"Do you view spirits as nothing more than a means to an end?" A teaching of the Circle, no doubt. Their understanding of the Fade was so limited it was baffling how they managed to summon or speak to spirits at all.

The unfortunate answer here is yes. Strange doesn't think about things like the personality of various spirits, their feelings, how they would even react to summoning to begin with. Oh, he'll try and be nice to them and pleasant while said spirit is summoned. And he's not a sadist: he doesn't want to hurt the things. But at the end of the day, the comfort of a spirit pales in comparison to Strange obtaining his goals.

"And what do you view them as in comparison?" he asks, knowing full well that if Solas is asking this question, spirits must mean something different to him than they do to Strange and the Circle. "You've hardly had any training on the matter—are you so foolish as to think of them as equal?"

"As individuals," he returns sharply and simply with no hesitation. "Something you would have realized if you had tried to speak with one. Or were you too frightened of what would happen? I know far more of the Fade and those that reside in it than you or your Circle."

He had spent countless years wandering it and before that, the Fade had been far more accessible and open to him and the rest of Elvhenan. That Strange would try to claim otherwise was laughable.

"I'm not frightened," he hissed, glaring at Solas all the while. At least, he tries to tell himself he isn't frightened. Some aspects of the Fade do scare Strange more than others. But he's got to tell himself he isn't frightened, he's got to push himself forwards anyway. He needs to bring back Arabella, after all.

"And, as far as I know, no one in the Circle is an ancient elven god. We've made do with the knowledge we had. If you would care to share more information about the Fade with the Circle, then we'll happily listen."

Probably not. But, at least, Strange would listen.

He laughs at that though it is humorless. After all his time trying to speak to the Dalish in the Fade, trying to make them understand, he would not bring himself to speak to those of the Circle. If he couldn't rely on those that had become a mockery of the People to listen to him on matters of their history or the Fade then speaking to the Circle would be an even larger waste of his time.

"Your knowledge is founded on fear and a desire to control." Whether it was the mages with strong connections to the Fade or the spirits they summoned, all the Circle sought to do was control. "There is little that will change such ignorance."

"Did you even bother to pay attention to what was going on in the world during your little nap?" Probably not, as Strange was the one who woke Solas up in the first place. But a little thing like 'the obvious' isn't going to stop Strange's ranting. "Look at what's happened in Kirkwall, at the White Spire. Whether you realize it or not, things are changing. Now, more than ever, people would listen! I would certainly listen!"

There's a little bit of distancing himself from the Circle, though Strange hasn't fully realized that yet. Yes, the Circle's magic was formed from a desire to control. And yes, so was Strange's magic. All of this was to gain control over death, to bring back one person who had passed. But as much as Strange was a part of the Circle, he wasn't entirely it. Yes, there was a desire to control. But there was also a desire to simply learn.

Everything Strange says is small in comparison to what will happen once Solas gains control of his focus. Those were cards Solas would keep close to his chest. Strange had no need to know what power Solas was truly capable of, of what he wanted to do to completely reshape Thedas most likely into ruin. That was his burden to bear and mull over as he recovered from his long sleep.

"Then listen to this," he starts, speaking evenly. "You are a fool to squander what knowledge a spirit could share with you and force them into servitude for your petty goals."

"Petty?" That's what annoys him the most. Because petty? How is bringing someone back from the dead 'petty?' How is saving a life, how is giving life back any sort of petty?!

By now, the nug smells slightly charred. Quickly, Strange pulls it out of the flames, blowing out any smaller flames that still cling to the beast's flesh. He's still glaring at Solas all the while as he does so.

"There's nothing petty about bringing back someone who didn't deserve to die. That's just, nothing more."

Solas remains tall at Strange's hostility. The man could think what he wants, but his goals were petty and selfish if all he wanted was to forcefully bring back a dead woman. Solas may understand the urge, had gone on his own quest for vengeance when Mythal had been slain, but he had the time to learn. Those living in Thedas today did not have the luxury of time.

"I was unaware you were so important as to decide matters of life and death," he says plainly. There was no life to 'save' no matter what Strange thought and harming spirits over it would serve no purpose.

"I am when it comes to her!" he snaps. Because for all of Strange's pride, for all of Strange's egotism, for all of his arrogance, that's what it boils down to in the end: he's a mage who's simply unable to accept that his loved one has died. All this power, all this magic at his disposal and he can't save her? Unacceptable.

Yes it's petty and yes it's selfish but Strange does not care.

He dismisses Strange's anger with a wave of his hand. The man wouldn't change his mind, but he would be fortunate enough that Solas was forced to lead him to a repository of ancient elven materials. What Strange would be able to do with any of that would be up to the other man.

"You will have your chance, no matter how foolish I think the effort is." Solas could promise that, but he would not promise a chance without judgment. He had to have some fun in this adventure after all.

"A chance is all I require," Strange grumbles, before grabbing the slightly charred nug and (badly) tearing part of the flesh off to eat. Because all he needs is one chance. Strange is so wrapped up in himself, so sure in his opinion that he can save Arabella that he's barely listening to Solas as is.

He's got to do this. He's not sure what he'd do otherwise.

That being said, right now, Strange is sulkily eating the nug, in a bit of an immature fashion. He'll still happily yell at Solas given the opportunity but this is cooked, he's hungry, and he wants to eat.

"Such confidence when you require forcing others to do your bidding to make progress," he returns with no small amount of animosity. Solas will forever be disgruntled at this turn of events. It was not in his plans and he doubts Felassan or any others who know of him would be able to find him with how far off path he was.

"What would you have done if this spell failed?" Did the man even have a plan B?

Strange shrugs. He's got food in his mouth when Solas asks the question so he pauses, chews, and swallows. "Try again. Do some more research and tweak the spells components. Find another way to try and bring her back. There's plenty of options, I simply need to narrow down which one to use."

For all of Strange's confidence and arrogance, he had no plan B. It's very obvious.

"Your 'plenty' of options sound similar to all that you have tried before." Something he merely points out to be more of a pain in the ass than what he already is. Still, it is very clear to Solas that he is the best plan Strange has going on at the moment. This man was more of a mess than he thought.

"You are fortunate a worse fate did not befall you in this ritual of yours." Had a demon shown up instead of who he intended to summon, the mage would have been in far more trouble.

And thus Solas picks up on the fundamental truth of Jonathan Strange: he is a goddamn mess. At the moment though, he's a goddamn mess who's trying his hardest not to seem like a goddamn mess. So that smug superiority is still there as Strange finishes off the roasted nug in his hands.

"What, summoning a demon? One of your precious spirits? I could handle it. After all, you're still bound." Solas might berate and attack and disparage Strange all he wants but at the end of the day, Strange is still the one who's holding the metaphorical leash...for however long it would last.

He smiles, one full of quiet confidence. Oh, he was bound, but he was not as much at Strange's mercy as the other man thought. By the time Strange realized it, Solas had a feeling it would be far, far too late for him to even try anything to stop the shifting balance.

"Your understanding of the inhabitants of the Fade is laughable," he returns simply. No matter how much Strange claimed he had summoned and bound spirits, Solas refused to acknowledge that Strange might know what the hell he was talking about and doing.

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