In Peace Vigilance - Chapter 6

VI: Through the Mirror

Ewan
Valegathe is the second biggest island of the Waking Sea Bannorn. When the Tevinter Imperium ruled this land, this was the location some of the most important places for magic research.
Here stands one of the last Tevinter fortress that were preserved through the centuries that today hosts one of the less known Circle of Magi: Jainen. The architecture of the fortress is very similar to Ostagar: the architectural elements, the materials, the decorations... the similarities end here, though: as Ostagar was abandoned and half-ruined even before the Darkspawn horde swarmed on it from the Korcari Wilds, Jainen is almost intact and well preserved.
The sight was impressive: walls dozens of feet tall, high towers whitewashed by the salty wind and large heavy doors to block the way in... and this was one of the few Circles in which it was more important than blocking the way out. I didn't have to look around to know my companions were just as enthralled by the sight of the stone giant as I was, but for me a whole additional set of emotion layered upon the awe and terror the place inspired: I had fought at Ostagar, they didn't; I had a son with the woman I was about to attempt to call, they didn't even know her.
I just hoped they'd let us in.

Eloise
“It is... impressive.” Jowan uttered.
“You should see it from the inside...” Cullen chuckled, “I mean it.”
“Ha ha, very funny.” the other groaned.
Ewan clapped his hands and then shrugged and started checking the straps of his armor. He wasn't nervous. At all. I smirked looking at him but the smile was quickly wiped out: “Very well, I’m going in. You stay here, I should be back soon.”
“WHAT?” I said outraged. “Then why did we come here in the first place?”
“You volunteered, Ellie.” he remarked, “Jainen is ruled by Isolationist mages, I’m not even sure if I will be allowed in. As a Warden Commander I can invoke a couple of treaties but...”
“Ewan they can't deny us entrance.” Cullen interjected, “You are mages and I am a templar: even if they're isolationists you three are exactly who they would try to keep isolated from the world, while I... well, Isolationists don't see templars very favorably but they have to deal with it.”
“Yes, but let's face it: you're a deserter, Jowan is a wanted blood mage and Ewan is a Warden.” I scoffed, “Way to get in their good graces.”
“You're right.” Ewan admitted.
“Seeing the situation I see no point in sending you alone.” I remarked, “They don't know Cullen is a deserter and I don't see how they could tell Jowan and I are apostates -which I still say I'm not. It's not that we wear robes with a giant A on it.”
“Maybe they'll check for scars on our wrists?” Jowan jested.
“Well, tell them you attempted suicide.” I rebuffed, “One look at your face and they would buy it.”
Ewan chuckled: “That's mean Ellie.”
As we started towards the big door, I couldn't help but wonder why he tried to leave us there: was he really that concerned for us or was he hiding something? Something he didn't want us to know... or see.

Ewan
It wasn’t easy to enter the complex: I may be the Commander of the Grey in Ferelden and a mage, but the templars guarding the Circle gates were less than accommodating. Cullen protested and I invoked the treaties, then finally one of the two sentinels decided to break the stall.
“Let them in.” she said, “Let the Commander deal with it.”
The Commander was an unpleasant man. I understand that working in an Isolationist Circle makes it for a boring life, but some of his remarks were downright rude. He didn’t bother to look at me for the entire time I tried to explain the reason I was there, and in the end he made a point to demonstrate he wasn’t even listening.
“Let me get this straight... you are here because... why?”
I sighed and repeated my explanation: “I need to contact an informant to the Grey Wardens that can be reached only through an Eluvian, an ancient artifact from the Imperium that looks like a mirror.”
“Name sounds elvish though.”
“I know, it is. But most believe they are Tevinter, because many of them were re-framed in the Imperial times. Look, I'm trying to make it easier, here, this is quite an important matter...”
“Why do you need to contact this informant so badly?”
It took me all my willpower to not groan: “A new kind of darkspawn has appeared in the Brecilian Forest, and I learned from other sources that this associate of our order may know about them and their origin. They pose an immediate threat to the security of the eastern bannorns, the Teyrnir of Gwaren and the City of Denerim, so...”
“Who’s this associate of yours.”
“One of the veterans of the Fifth Blight.”
“And you are from... what Circle?”
I rolled my eyes: “Kinloch Hold.”
He scoffed, “Then why don't you go there?”
I crossed my arms and stood defiantly: “Commander, Kinloch Hold doesn't have an Eluvian, this is the closest we could find. If you let me speak with the First Enchanter...”
“The artifacts in this place are under the Chantry custody. We don't trust our mages to experiment with them, why should we entrust them to outsiders?”
“Commander, that's why I am here.” Cullen interjected, “I am Knight-Captain of the Circle of Kirkwall and...”
“Then why are you with them?” The commander demanded.
My patience was growing short: “Look, commander: the Eluvian wasn’t entrusted to the Chantry, it is part of the original structure. This structure may be controlled by templars but it’s part of the Circle, and by king’s decree it's the First Enchanter who...”
Suddenly he was in my face poking my chest with his finger: “You have independence within your towers and your arling, Warden, but this is an Isolationist Circle, I am in charge to keep whoever wants to enter, and I decide who can see the First Enchanter. I won't bother him for this.”
I grabbed his hand and glared at him. We held our stares for a second, then I smiled and decide to change tactics.
“My my, commander...” I whispered huskily, “There’s no need to get so upset, I never questioned your authority here. I am just trying to find an agreement.” I leaned on the desk and he followed my movements, keeping close to my body. I could his eyes narrowing in diffidence but he glanced hungrily at me. “You look like a strong and capable man... are you sure there’s nothing I could do to return the favor? Think about it...”
He opened his mouth to say something then he realized we weren't alone and blushed glancing at Cullen and the other two mages. Cullen was staring at us appalled, while Jowan had a resigned expression and Eloise was biting her lips not to laugh. Right, they had already see me pulling this stunt back in the days...
“Could you leave us alone for a minute?” I suggested. Eloise dragged a paralyzed Cullen outside while Jowan was all too happy to comply to my request.

As soon as the door closed the Commander turned to look at me in disbelief: “Well, mage... if you’re suggest what I think you’re suggesting, I have to say you have me interested: there’s no much chance for company here, not counting the Tranquils.. it would be nice to get a lively one for a change...”
I caressed the side of his face managed to make sound like excitement the breath I took to keep the content of my stomach where they belonged. “I’m sorry to hear that, Commander, I figured a man like you deserves more...” Oh Maker, I just realized he looked like Howe... Rendon Howe... “...attention.”
“I figured you out for a slut the moment you walked in, mage...” he slurred coming closer. His hand ran over my tight trying to reach my butt as he closed his eyes and leaned for a kiss, tongue first.
I smiled and landed a nice punch right on his left eye.

Eloise
“He'll be fine.” Jowan said to Cullen.
“Did he just...” Poor innocent templar couldn't believe what he had witnessed. I admit I was surprised too: Ewan didn't pull the “hit on them then hit them” tactic since forever. That I knew of, anyway.
“Don't worry about it, he'll be fine.” Jowan chuckled. A muffled noise came from behind the door and Cullen stared at it with a frown.
“He’s... is he...”
“Beating the crap out of him? Yes.” I laughed. “Can't you say he didn't have it coming. I would have done it myself wasn't he clearly disinterested in women.”
“Wh- how can you tell?”
I rised a brow “He did check your ass when we entered, Cullen.... haven't you noticed?”
He flashed a deep shade of purple: “Wh- I thought he was inspecting my uniform!”
“And he did approve how much care you take in keeping it polished.” Jowan snorted. “I hope this helps Ewan unwind a bit, he's so tense about all this...”
I furrowed my brows questioningly: “What do you mean?”
Both men turned to me surprised: “You didn't notice? He's as tense as a lute string.” Jowan asked.
“Yeah, I did, but I assumed it was for... I don't know, this place?”
Cullen snorted: “Definitely not. That's about Morrigan.”
“The one who stole the book from the dalish?” I asked. “The Witch of the Wilds?”
“Yes. They have... history.” Jowan sighed.
“Yes, I gathered that much, she fought with him in the Blight and then stole that book, right?”
Cullen and Jowan exchanged a surprised glance. “You don’t know the story? At all?”
“What story?”
Jowan sighed: “She’s one of the Warden Veterans.” he explained.
That was surprising: we all knew the names of the heroes who fought alongside the Warden - Ewan - to put a stop to the Blight: King Alistair, Sister Leliana, Sten of the Bereshaad, Senior Enchanter Wynne, Oghren of Orzammar, Zevran Arainai, Shale of House Cadash... Ghigo the Mabari, even. I couldn’t remember this Morrigan person being one of them... when he told the Commander she was a veteran, I just assumed she was a generic ally of his, not one of the Warden's Companions... “Never heard of her before we met Solan’s clan. Do they always forget to mention her name because she's an apostate?”
“And the daughter of Flemeth, yes, maybe.” Jowan conceded. The daughter of Flemeth? Wow! “But that’s only part of the issue with her. She left the group right after the battle of Denerim because she was... with child.”
I frowned: “And what does this have to d-” then it dawned on me: “Wait. You mean Ewan’s child? Are you telling me he knocked Flemeth’s daughter up?”
“In a blood magic ritual no less.” Cullen scoffed, “Apparently he was meant to do so he could kill the Archdemon and live to tell the tale. Haven’t Avernus explained to you why Wardens are the only ones who can kill an Archdemon?”
He did, but I didn’t quite register the anomaly. I just assumed it had something to do with the concoction or someone else dealt the fatal blow or...
The door opened and Ewan joined us followed by the Knight-Commander that had a nice shiner on his left eye.
“All settled. The Knight Commander will escort us to the repository.”
I could just stare at him in shock.
“What?” he asked glancing down to see if there was something wrong with his armor.
“Nothing. Let's go see if this works...”

Ewan
The Knight Commander sent a recruit to escort us to the repository where the Eluvian was stored, and another to fetch him a raw steak. It was quite easy to convince him, really, specially after his mentioning what he was doing with the Tranquils... after the incident of the “Tranquil Solution” in Kirkwall, the Order was quite strict about Tranquil abuse and harassment from templars, and mentioning I was on friendly terms with the Left Hand of the Divine did the trick... not that I didn't intend to tell Leliana a few things that may remove this asshole from this place and send him digging latrines in Alamar...
I tried to ignore him as I was working on the Eluvian: the mirror had very specific ways to activate it correctly, and a huge chunck of them was lost to the memories, until Morrigan found her way to recreate the process, and even then part of her notes were open to interpretation. I was taking a huge risk, but I decided to trust her. Last time, it didn’t went so bad.
As the Eluvian started to glow, I hissed out a “Yes!” Not every Eluvian worked the same way, and it was necessary to figure out the password to open them, which was different for every one of them. Luckily, Morrigan's worked for me as well, though I wondered why the password was Ma lin Mythal enaste... my Elvish was rusty -at best- but it definitely had something to do with my blood being something related to an Elven god...
Jowan looked at me with a curious expression: “You should have say Urthemiel enaste, that would have been more likely.”
I frowned: “Why, what does enaste mean?”
“Favor. You just told the mirror that your blood was blessed by Mythal, the elven goddess of love and justice.”
“Did I?” I looked at the mirror perplexed then shrugged, “It worked, didn't it?”
Cullen glanced at Jowan surprised then turned to Eloise: “Is it true?”
She shrugged: “I suppose. Jowan is the most versed on elven lore among us.”
“Is he?” the templar that escorted us spoke for the first time. He was young, and clearly interested in the novelty of visitors. “I though you were...”
Eloise eyed him with a sarcastic smirk: “I am the Grey Warden lore expert. Just because I'm an elf it doesn't mean I was interested in their lore... I sucked milk from my mother, not hidden knowledge.”
The guy frowned: “Shouldn't be the Warden your Warden expert?”
“My knowledge on the matter is practically null.” I admitted with a chuckle, “I received limited training before and after my Joining, due to the special circumstances of my recruitment... and after no Warden offered to train me, apparently it would have been... offensive to teach me things after I ended a Blight...” I sighed: Wardens and their fucking secrets... “But I know a great deal of ancient Fereldan lore, on Flemeth in particular.” I added with a smirk.
The recruit looked at the three of us a bit taken aback: “The Fereldan knows elven, the elf knows Wardens and the Warden knows Fereldan... Does any of you have any competence in the field you're supposed to know best?”
“No.” we said at unison, and cackled up.
“What are we supposed to do now?” Eloise said eventually, “Call Morrigan's name?”
I smirked: “Not quite...” I replied as I stepped into the Eluvian.

Eloise
I watched Ewan disappear into the mirror in disbelief. I was expecting anything but this: what the...
“Should we follow him?” Cullen asked dubious.
Jowan was just staring the glowing surface mouth agape. “How does...?” he tried to say then lost his words: he didn't even know what to ask.
I sighed and then shrugged: “I guess we should.” I answered Cullen before entering the mirror myself.
The landscape wasn't quite right.
I was in what looked like a square, surrounded by a shining mist made of magic that looked like lyrium dust. All around me stood mirrors, some broken, some dark and some reflecting images, as well as some strange sculptures that looked like stylized trees. The sky was unnaturally blue, almost bright cyan, and under my feet glowing stones formed several paths that led to this or that cluster of mirrors. I had seen such types of architectures only on books on elven ruins, but none of them described the place as “glowing”.
“Where are we?” I asked to Ewan and I finally noticed he was covering his eyes as if in pain. “Hey, are you all right?”
“Yes, don't worry,” he answered with a groan, “This light is just... ugh! I need a moment to get used to it...”
I looked around: “Yeah it's weird, but took me but a second to adapt...”
“Maker's breath!” Cullen exclaimed as he entered from the mirror, “What manner of place is this?”
“Are we in the Fade?” asked Jowan who had followed him in tow, “Maker I didn't remember it so... bright.”
All of them were disoriented and blinking in the odd light. I frowned: “Uhm, maybe it doesn't affect me because I'm an elf?”
“Maybe...” Ewan groaned, “but now it's a bit better... we should find...” he started to look around at the mirrors, “Woah, I didn't imagine this place to be so...”
“Weird?” Cullen offered, still covering his eyes with a hand.
“No... well, it is weird, but it's so... alien.”
I blinked: “Maybe we don't see the same thing?” I noted, “I mean, odd coloring and light aside, this looks like a jam of Elven architecture in a deserted plain... could this be the Fade?”
“No, I don't think so.” Ewan stated, “But it's definitely close... I feel the Veil so thin we may even enter the Fade physically...
“That wouldn't be good.” Cullen groaned, “Last time someone did that, it ended with a two-centuries long Blight.”
“Yeah, we better stay... here... wherever here is.” I agreed.
Ewan was wandering around looking lost.
“What are we supposed to do, now?” I asked him. I had no idea what his plan was, and if he was confused...
“We need to find Morrigan's mirror.” he stated. “She can't be far from an Eluvian, she brought... she needs to be close to one to...”
He stopped abruptly and I almost bumped into him. Cullen and Jowan reached us as I noticed what made him stop in front of one of the glowing mirrors...

Ewan
The the mirror reflected the image of a little boy. I was startled at first, not understanding what it was: an image from the past? A sort of test of wits? It was eerie to see that little kid who looked just as surprised as I was. He looked oddly familiar, though his features weren’t anything near uncommon: he had long dark brown hair tied in a low tail and hazel-brown eyes. He must have been around six or seven years old, and he was dressed with a simple purple-red tunic. He had a cute face, his cheecks reminded me so much of Aed, when he was his age and...
“Maker’s breath.” I exhaled. I did have find Morrigan’s mirror!
“Hi!” the kid said. “Are you a spirit? You don’t look like one.”
“Hello, little one...” I had to blink and take a deep breath, the surprise to seeing him was wearing off, leaving me emotional. I had to get a grip on myself. “I-I was looking for your mom, I guess.”
The boy smiled and nodded. “Are you a Grey Warden? I have an amulet with that symbol, mother says it’s the Grey Warden’s crest.” he asked pointing at my breastplate, where my order’s heraldry was chiseled.
I nodded and his smile widened. I heard the ticking of paws approaching along human footsteps and I spotted my mabari Ghigo and Morrigan approaching the glass. I couldn’t see much of the ambient they were in, the background of the figures was a twirl of bright lights and colors, probably the mirror show only a few feet in range.
“Kieran, who are you tal-” Morrigan froze when she saw me. Hurt, anger and panic crossed her strong features as she snapped her fingers at the mabari who was bouncing around excited. Kieran? Well it did have a nice ring to it, better than Urthemiel...
“Hello, Morrigan.” I said with a smile.
She grabbed her - our - son and pushed him away from the mirror. “Kieran, please, go in the other room, I will handle this.”
“But mother...”
“Do as she says.” I told the boy, “Ghigo, keep him company...” I told to the mabari who abruptly stopped acting like an excited puppy and nudged the kid away with his snout.
As we remained alone, for a moment neither of us spoke. She entered the mirror and stood there, just glaring at me arms crossed while I had to struggle to remember why did I looked for her in the first place, all I could think of was my son... I always imagined him like a shapeless toddler -sometimes with dragon tail and wings- and that helped me detach myself from the idea of him, but now... now he had a face, a name even, and I saw the family resemblance: he had my mother's eyes, my hair, my brother’s cheeks, my cousin Carver’s jaw, Flemeth's cheekbones and Morrigan’s chin... it was too soon to see who did he get the nose from, I just hope it was from the maternal side: all us Amells usually had honkers, specially my brother...
“Morrigan... he’s beautiful.” I whispered.
“I knew I shouldn’t trust your pretty words, Warden.” she growled, “You made me a promise, we made a deal, and that’s how you repay my trust? You will never have my son, it’ is crucial that...”
“Hey, slow down, Morrigan, that’s not why I’m here for! Seeing... Kieran? Well, it was a wonderful surprise, but totally unintentional...” that came out wrong, “Not that I would mind to finally meet him properly and help you rising him, of course, but I trusted you in the past and I will keep doing it...”
“And because of this trust you brought a templar with you?” she motioned at Cullen who didn't look very steady on his feet.
“Oh, them... these are my friends, Morrigan, this is Cullen, and these are Jowan and Eloise... We need yo-”
“Jowan?” she frowned, “Isn't he the blood mage who poisoned Arl Eamon?”
“You did what?” Cullen and Eloise exclaimed at the same time.
“Please...” I begged to all of them, “I need to talk to you, Morrigan...”
“Talk!” she scoffed, “It seems your favorite pastime... You missed driving me insane with your constant probing for useless information?”
I snorted. For the second time today I wished I could punch someone, but this time I'd better restrain myself since Morrigan would put up way more of a fight than Knigh-Commander Douchebag... “Very well, let’s see how useless this is...” I crossed my arms mimicking her stance, “I met Flemeth in the Fade, there are female darkspawn that look like you in the Brecilian Forest and all this has to do with a sister of yours.”
Morrigan's stance shifted abruptly from, defensive to alert, her eyes wide in disbelief.
“Did I peak your interest, perhaps?”
“Possibly.” she admitted with a frown, “Tell me more.”
We gave her a brief resume of our encounter in the forest with the Morrilocks and how we initially mistake one of the shifters for an Archdemon, and also reported Flemeths words as I remembered them: “Morrigan was not the first to escape my grasp. What does it mean, Morrigan? Did other Witches of the Wilds managed to avoid the fate to become Flemeth’s new host?”
“It is... more complicated than this.” she shifted her feet, uncomfortable, “The Black Grimoire... the more I think of it, the more I believe it was a trap of sort. Flemeth seems to have many other means to survive...”
“WHAT?” I asked outraged, “You mean I got my ass chewed, a burn scar and teeth marks on my favorite robe for nothing?”
She groaned at my antics: “Oh, please, you already knew that! The fact that she appeared to you in the Fade should have been an hint, does it? And it confirms my suspicions, though I can't say what exactly she is.”
“You did tell me...” I recalled, “I believe your words were: not even truly human.”
She nodded, “But as I already told you once, I don’t know anything about my sisters, not even if I still have some... and who or what they are.”
“But you might know something. You did research your mother’s lore, did you?”
She shook her head: “I did but I’ve never learned anything like...”
A kid’s voice interrupted her: “Father.”
I looked behind Morrigan and there he was again, Kieran, my son. He had reactivated the mirror and entered this strange place, Ghigo barking on the other side powerless: apparently the mabari couldn't cross the magic glass. This time, though, he didn’t look like a six-years old kid anymore, his posture was... upright, confident. The stance of a man.
“Kieran!” Morrigan gasped, “What are you doing here, I told you...”
“I can tell you what you need to know.” He said approaching us, his eyes glowing slightly. We all stared at him in disbelief, suddenly worried.
“Kieran, I told you to go in the other room.”
“He needs to know, mother,” he deadpanned. Even his voice sounded more mature, and had a strange resonance, like an overlapping melody. “I don’t want him to die.”
“Get out of here, Warden!” Morrigan hissed, pushing my chest, “Now! It is dangerous for him when he goes like this!”
Before we could do it, he started talking and... that melody had us enthralled: we felt compelled to stop and listen to him.
“She is beyond your comprehension: the true nature of Asha Bellanar is a mystery even to those who believe in her.” he said, “She walked through the ages ever changing: sometimes stealing her bodies, sometimes generating them, sometime creating them through arcane horrors and rituals... she’s one of the few true abomination who walk the land of the living, but most of all she's a woman who knows the heart of men, and a spirit of justice and vengeance...”

Eloise
“’Twas in the Blessed,” Kieran continued, “two ages since our brother Andoral had awakened and killed by the Elvhen whose sister doomed the Breed of the Sky. The world was rejoicing, for twins were born... But from a far more ancient and sinister womb, two other twins, girls, were produced. She loved both as she loved any of her daughters, but Her Who Never Ages can be as cruel as nurturing: when one of them revealed her true colors, she sent her to me... to us who hadn’t awakened yet, seeking the power of the Old Gods...”
That didn't make sense to me. Our brother Andoral? Was the Old God talking through him? The Elvhen must have been Garahel, but... did he have a sister? And what was the Breed of the Sky? And Flemeth had twin daughters, but... Revealed her true colors? What did he mean?
“Kieran stop it!” Morrigan whispered in panic.
“Flemeth sent her daughter into the Deep Roads?” Ewan asked ignoring Morrigan’s objection.
“Ewan, don’t...”
“Chatha was the strongest.” Kieran continued, “but Macha was the kindest, and when Flemeth tested her, she failed, so she decided to send Chatha away. But her daughters were too close, they wouldn’t have parted willingly unless something major was at stake, that it was clear to the Woman of Many Years: they would have refused to separate... so she tricked her.
“Chatha stole the Black Grimoire, the trap she had set up for her, and ran. The information in the book proved true, but incomplete, mother also fell for it. The ventured the deep roads, looking for the power her mother was after... just as Flemeth intended. She Who Never Ages was clever, but she hadn’t considered one thing: though her body is resistant to the Blight... her daughter’s was not.”
“The Blight?” I immediately caught what that meant: “You mean Chatha was turned into a...”
“A broodmother, yes.” Kieran stated matter-of-factly. My stomach rolled and I noticed also Morrigan was paler. Even Ewan, who has seen first-hand the horrors of the blight seemed wavering a little. Only Cullen and Jowan looked at us in confusion: none of them knew what a broodmother was. I hoped they never find out.
“She was an abomination even among her kind, because she retained her mind: Flemeth’s blood preserved her awareness, untouched by the taint. While her body was one of a darkspawn, she retained her conscience and will, and made her able to overcome our Calling...”

Ewan
A broodmother. Of everyone here, only I did encounter them, and several times: in Bownammar, in Kal-Hirol, in the Dragonbone wastes... I wonder if Morrigan did find the Mother’s corpse when she was there repairing the eluvian... The horror of their form, the sadness of their fate, the brutality of how they are... made... and all the while, retaining her mind, her conscience... it is enough to drive anyone insane, even the daughter of Asha Bellanar... Maker, I tried to imagine how could have been to deal with the Mother had she had the knowledge of Morrigan or Flemeth... My mind refused to for such a thought, and instead something else occurred to me: “Are the Architect and Chatha related, somehow? Is she who...”
“No.” he sighed, lowering his gaze in... was it shame? “He is one of the Seven, but his mind refuses the memories. But these are tales that the Architect himself told me, as he was trying to awake me and perform the Joining ritual, to make me join his cause and sing a song to keep peace between the Red Breed of Darkness and the surface world. But the Taint spread and the Fifth Blight begun...”
“Ewan, STOP!” Morrigan shouted, interposing herself between me and Kieran, “Seriously, are you insane? This is my-our child speaking with the voice and knowledge of an old dead dragon, does it look normal to you?”
I blinked and stared at her confused for a second: “You mean... it isn’t?”
“Of course is not! What do you people think? Just because he has its soul doesn’t mean he has it’s memories! He’s not an abomination, and even if he were, he could read its hosts mind, not his guest!”
I swayed, stunned speechless. I always feared my son would have been such, just as the possessed darkspawn became the new Archdemon... but my son wasn’t neither darkspawn or dragon: he was a human kid: if he retained his form, his soul -albeit merged with the one of an Old God- should have been the one of a human!
“This shouldn’t have happened, not even here at the Crossroads...”
“Crossroads? Is that the name of this place?”
“It doesn't matter,” Culles exclaimed pushing his way to Kieran. Both Morrigan and I shielded our son from the threatening templar, but I noticed he didn't even have a hand on his sword, “You must bring him away from here, cross the Eluvian both of you, immediately!”
“What do you mean, what's happening?” I asked panicking and turning to look at my son.
“Don't you feel it, Ewan?” Jowan was looking around, his staff readied in his hands. I glanced surprised at Eloise and she was in the same stance, ready to fight. “The Veil is torn, spirits are coming.”
Meaning demons. I turned around and spotted my son behind Morrigan: the presence of an Old God probably didn't go unnoticed, and spirits were coming for him... to get a piece of this powerful being, and following him into the real world...
“Tell him I love him...” I said to Morrigan, “and that... I’m proud of him.”
Her angry expression softened a bit into sadness, as she regretted for a moment our unexpected reunion had went that bad. “Farewell, Ewan.”
She turned and grabbed Kieran's wrist, pulling him towards the Eluvian. He stretched a hand to me and I grabbed it instinctively, squeezing it for a second before releasing him, as I watched them cross the ethereal glass. The mirrored surface of the Eluvian darkened, becoming opaque. Some magic obviosly still lingered because the glass was still emitting a soft purple glow.

Eloise
I could hear them whisper, hungry and frustrated.
Such power, such glory within reach...
Where is our God?
Where is our feast?
Ewan and Cullen both unsheathed their swords. “Where is our Eluvian?” Cullen asked, “I'd rather not fight here.”
“Yeah, it would be best not to warp the Veil more than it already is...” I agreed.
“And I want to see what I'm aiming at.” Jowan groaned. Apparently neither he or Cullen were yet able to see very well in this place are were wavering, blinking at the strange illumination of this place. I frowned: neither me or Morrigan seemed affected by it, and Ewan seemed to be adapting, what manner of place was that? Morrigan called it “the Crossroads”, but I've never heard of such a place, nor I imagined it could exist.
I started following the path we took before backwards “This way.” I shouted, but the humans were moving slowly.
Ewan readied his swords: “This whole place feels wrong, I can't even get a good feel of the Veil...”
I grimaced: “Neither do I. But it feels so thin it could...” I stopped: in front of our mirror stood a gigantic pride demon.
Well, fuck!
We stopped in formation: Cullen and Ewan on the front, Jowan and I forming a rearguard: we didn't want to risk casting spells here, but we could support the sword-wielders with minor enhancements and healing... hoping it wouldn't attract more spirits.
HELLO MAGE, the pride demon said to Ewan, ignoring the rest of us. THE MIGHTY VENGEANCE DID WARN YOU. I AM BOUND TO YOU AS YOU ARE TO ME. I WILL ALWAYS FIND YOU.
“Is this...” Cullen asked, his voice not quite confident, “Is this the same...”
“Hello, Mouse.” Ewan deadpanned. Mouse?
The pride demon was hovered over Ewan, as he was trying to enfold him, completely ignoring us. DO NOT INTERFERE, MORTALS. HE. IS. MINE.
“You know each other, I take.” I said.
“It's the demon from my Harrowing.” Ewan explained. “Apparently it's the kind of spirit who doesn't know the meaning of no.”
THE MIRROR IS SHUT. YOU NEED POWER TO GET OUT OF HERE ALIVE. YOU NEED WISDOM. JOIN ME AND I WILL GIVE IT TO YOU.
Ewan scoffed: “I’m not up to become an abomination just yet.” he slashed his starmetal sword on the creature's snout making it jerk away from him. If you want me come and get me... if you dare.”
The creature growled disappointed.
IT WILL BE MY PLEASURE.