Chapter Text
Lythana Lavellan was head of the Inquisition. She led one of the biggest and most respected forces in Thedas. She had started as the First of a Dalish clan, looked down upon by almost every other race, and had risen through the ranks of the Inquisition since that first day in Haven, until she was the most revered person in all the lands. She had succeeded time and time again against Corephyeus, and was due to be married to a well-respected, and extremely handsome, member of the Orlesian Court, that had been recently brought on as leader of the Inquisition’s forces - both on Josephine’s recommendation. Their marriage would strengthen the position of the Inquisition, she had said. Only, something felt amiss – as if there was a gap in her life that needed to be filled.
Cullen Rutherford was a Red Templar. He was high up in the ranks of the Order, second only to Samson himself. He was resilient to the madness that the red lyrium brought about, and so was one of the few Templars left with a clear head, as well as one of the most skilled of those left among their ranks. He had joined the Templar Order with pride and dignity. It had been his reason for living at one part of his life. Now, however, he was beginning to doubt. He was doubting the cause the Templars now fought for. He doubted his orders to kill the Inquisitor.
Lythana was in the Emerald Graves when it happened. She, Dorian, Sera and the Iron Bull were fighting what seemed like an endless stream of demons. One after another, they fell, and Lythana began closing the rift as soon as there was a gap to do so.
“That was awesome,” Bull laughed. “Ten times more demons than usual! I actually broke a sweat!”
Lythana rolled her eyes. “Stop gloating, that rage demon nearly burnt your arm off.”
“It’s true,” Dorian joined in the teasing. “Luckily I was there to protect you.”
Bull made a helpless noise as the rest laughed.
Lythana moved over to the pile of goop the rift had left behind to try and salvage anything useful. Just as she was pulling out some Shadow Essence and wrinkling her nose at the slimy feeling, she heard a grunt and the sound of steel clashing behind her.
She whirled around and jumped backwards to see Bull fending off a Red Templar that must have been about to strike at her. How he managed to squeeze in between them, she had no idea, but she was grateful nonetheless. Suddenly, a large group of Templars descended upon them. At least six archers surrounded them, both on the same level and on higher ground. Four warriors and three rogues moved on them. It was going to be a hard fight, Lythana knew immediately – especially after just having closed that rift.
She sent a fireball at two of the archers and turned away from their screaming to paralyze a warrior that was running at her with a bolt of lightning. Bull took on two other warriors with what seemed like ease, but she knew that he was taking strain. Dorian immediately cast shields on all of them before freezing as many Templars as he could.
They fought for a long time, and as hard as they could, but it was largely futile at that point. They were all exhausted, and Dorian and Lythana were extremely low on mana – but new Templars just kept appearing.
Lythana cast spell after spell on a Templar that was moving surely towards her, all in vain. She cast a look around for help, but all of her companions were occupied with their own enemies. She swore in elvish. This was bad.
Just as she thought that she was done for, a man came in between her and the Templar before her. He fought off the Templar easily, sending him to the ground in a matter of seconds before turning to her.
“Are you alright?” He asked with such gentleness that his voice sent her heart fluttering. She had never seen him before. He had slightly curly, blonde hair, soft brown eyes, and was wearing a red coat with dark fur lining the top.
Lythana nodded. “Thank you.”
“You can thank me when they’re all dead,” he replied lightly before heading into the fray once more.
Lythana had to admit, she was a little stunned. She stood there dumbly for a moment or two, blinking as she watched him fight, before she could muster up the sense to help.
With the man’s aid, the Templars were dealt with in a matter of minutes, and the reinforcements stopped coming. Lythana staggered over to a nearby rock and sat on it with all her weight, leaning on her staff for support as she fought to catch her breath. Her companions all leaned against nearby boulders, eyeing the man wearily.
“Thank you,” she said again when she could breathe evenly once more. “Who are you?”
“Cullen Rutherford,” he introduced. “I am a former Templar, and I wish to aid the Inquisition. I heard that the Inquisitor was travelling in these parts, so I sought you out. It seems that I arrived just in time.”
“A former Templar? I thought all the Templars were either with the Inquisition or serving under Corephyeus,” Lythana said.
“I remained with the Order for a time,” he explained. “But I became… Disillusioned with what they are doing. I left recently. I have valuable information that the Inquisition could use.”
“Does that mean you take red lyrium?” she asked.
“I took it for a time, but I was resistant to its effects. I haven’t taken it for some weeks now.”
Lythana pursed her lips and squinted at him, considering. She looked over to her companions expectantly.
“I don’t trust him, boss,” Bull said.
“He could be useful,” Dorian supplied. “We can have Cassandra watch him.”
Sera shrugged. “If he does anything funny, I can just stick him full of arrows.”
She looked back at the man – Cullen – and crossed her arms over her chest. He seemed to be being open and honest enough. He had admitted that he had been part of the Red Templars up front, much like the Iron Bull had admitted to being Ben-Hassrath when she first met him.
“What can you add to the Inquisition?” She asked.
“I’m a skilled warrior, as you could see,” he replied without missing a beat. “I also have experience in leading troops. Whatever you need me for, I can do.”
“Very well, Cullen,” she said after a moment’s further consideration, holding out her hand. “Welcome to the Inquisition. We’ll be travelling back to Skyhold soon. You can help us fight some more demons in the meantime.”
Cullen took her hand firmly when he shook it. His warmth radiated through his gloves, and sent a barely-contained shiver down her spine.
After collecting anything useful that they could find from the dead Templars, they set off to find the next rift, with Lythana striding confidently at the front, and Cullen trailing slightly at the rear of the group.
What she didn’t see was the dark expression that crossed Cullen’s face momentarily, as the pieces fell into place for him. What she didn’t know was that it was his plan to get close to her, before he made his move – the Red Templars had learned from their mistakes of facing the Inquisitor head-on. What she didn’t realize was that his doubts were already beginning to gain a firmer grip on his mind.