Dragon Age: Inquisition — Story Playthrough — Part Twenty

The Inquisition armies had thwarted Corypheus' goals at the Temple of Mythal, Morrigan had drank from the Well of Sorrows and was now imbued with knowledge of the ages, and Samson had at last been captured and judged.

Now a weight hung through the air and sat over Iselia's shoulders. The end seemed nigh. They needed Morrigan to sift through her recent education and find out the best way to defeat Corypheus and his faux archdemon and quickly... Corypheus was enraged by their theft of the Well and surely would be hunting them down right now, on his way to them as they lingered in Skyhold.

Suddenly, there was a commotion.

Leliana was distressed. Morrigan's son had activated his mother's eluvian somehow and had raced inside, Morrigan was terrified and chased after him. She had known Morrigan long before now and had never seen the woman worried like this. Iselia had to go in after her and help.

Iselia hurried inside, and expected to find herself in the realm in-between... but instead landed in the physical Fade once more.

What was going on?

There was shouting in the distance. Morrigan calling for Kieran. Iselia raced towards her voice and found Morrigan pacing the Fade, distraught, desperate to find her son.

She didn't understand why he had done this. It required immense power to direct the eluvian towards the Fade... she knew he had been powerful, but... she turned to Iselia and asked her to help, to please help her find her son.

After some time roaming the Fade, they at last found Kieran... with an older woman who Morrigan was very, very surprised to see. Her own mother. Flemeth.

Flemeth had been searching for Morrigan and Kieran for a long, long time, but thanks to Morrigan taking in the Well of Sorrows, Flemeth was able to find her and Kieran at last... for Mythal's soul was inside of her, and now Morrigan was bound to Mythal.

Flemeth did something to Kieran. Transferred his 'old gold' soul out of him and into her. And now Kieran was practically a normal child once more.

Iselia wasn't quite sure how to react to this whole situation. As a learned mage, she well knew of Flemeth the so-called witch of the wilds and how she had been possessed by a powerful spirit. It seemed that the spirit was Mythal! Which was extraordinary. She didn't quite grasp the whole family situation that was being laid out before her, but the boy seemed safe, despite Morrigan's worry. And it was Morrigan who was now bound to Mythal. She didn't have to worry about her son.

Flemeth told Morrigan to listen to the voices of the Well. They would tell her all she needed to know. She then allowed them all to leave. She had what she wanted. The old god soul from Kieran.

Back in Skyhold, Morrigan was acting strange. The voices were telling her that her mother spoke the truth. They would be able to teach her how to transform into a dragon and take on Corypheus' dragon. She just wished she wasn't bound to her mother for all eternity.

With the knowledge of how they could face Corypheus' dragon and separate the two powers so that Corypheus could no longer resurrect himself, they returned to the war room and tried to work out a plan. They needed to find the old magister and his dragon and take the battle to them when they could.

The army was still returning from their fight in the forests near the temple of Mythal so they couldn't do anything just yet, but Leliana could send out her scouts and try to find his lair...

Suddenly the sky turned green and Iselia's mark blared into life. The scar in the sky was torn anew and the fade was spewing into this world. Corypheus must be in the remains of Haven, at the temple of Sacred Ashes where this all began. He must've reopened the main rift.

Iselia had no choice. She couldn't wait for her army; she had to go and face Corypheus, now.

Gathering Morrigan and her people, they raced for Haven and prepared to fight. As they arrived, the ground was torn asunder, floating in midair as though it were a part of the fade. And Corypheus was waiting for them. For her.

Corypheus' archdemon flew down and Morrigan swiftly transformed into a dragon and took the battle to it whilst Iselia and her group could focus on the magister.

Red lyrium spewed forth from the magisters' hands and annihilated Dorian within the first few moments of their fight. Iselia quickly revived him and they took the fight a little more carefully.

Morrigan and the archdemon circled the floating ruins, screeching and attacking one another, all the while Iselia chased Corypheus higher up the ruins.

During the battle, the two dragons dug their teeth and claws into one another and plummeted to where Iselia and her group were fighting. Corypheus took the moment to disappear further into the ruins whilst Iselia was forced to now fight the archdemon.

Morrigan had transformed back into a woman and was lying in a pool of her own blood on the ground. Iselia didn't know if she was dead or alive but she had no time to check, she had to fight this dragon and finish off Corypheus!

The archdemon was dead at last and Iselia herself witnessed as a red magical essence rose up out of the dragon and re-infused with Corypheus. He was whole once more. Surely now if he died, he would stay dead. They had to try!

Racing up to the top of the ruins, they found Corypheus and hurled all they could at him. Magic, swords and crossbow bolts. Everything. Until he roared with anger and with his elven orb in hand beseeched the names of the old gods. Dumat, any ancient one who would listen to him, he asked for their aid.

With the elven orb in reach, Iselia's mark, her anchor, glowed a bright green and commanded the orb out of Corypheus' hands.

With the power of her mark and the orb combined, she closed the breach in the sky for good and then, snarkily remarking about how Corypheus wanted to enter the Fade, she summoned a fade rift inside the man and tore him apart.

There would be no resurrecting from that.

As Corypheus disintegrated, Solas raced up the ruins and pounced upon the elven orb. It had fallen from Iselia's hand. It was smashed in pieces upon the ground. It was ruined. It couldn't be repaired.

He seemed distraught over it and said that even if they could repair it, it would not recover what had been lost.

Before Iselia could question him, Cassandra called for her, pleading to hear if she were still alive.

Iselia hurried down the ruins to meet her people. Morrigan was still alive! Which she was very grateful to see. What she wasn't grateful to see was that they all looked at her with that reverence again. It was unnerving, truly.

The breach in the sky was gone. The rifts in the fade were gone. It was over. They had a hell of a cleanup though, what with all the red lyrium still around.

They made the trip back to Skyhold where everyone there had seen the sky healed. Everyone across Thedas had probably seen the great green beam shoot up into the sky and repair it.

Everyone knew what she had done. Everyone knew that it was over now. The bad guy had been defeated.

The people of Skyhold lined the pathway and cheered her on as they returned.

And Cullen hugged her, grateful that she had survived this madness.

Leliana pulled her aside and told her that they couldn't find Solas. He had disappeared. She would send out her scouts to search for him, but it was possible that he simply didn't want to be found.

Iselia was confused and sad. Surely they were friends? Why had he left like that? Had he only been with them for the orb Corypheus was wielding?

Either way, celebrations were underway and everyone wanted to speak with her. She could worry about Solas after she woke up, hungover, tomorrow. For now, she was going to get absolutely plonkered and create her own magical fireworks to mark their victory.

 

Until next time! 🐲⚔️

(No, it's not finished yet.)

 

---

 

_{All screenshots in this post are courtesy of me, @kaelci and are from the game: Dragon Age: Inquisition.}