He took the bottle and held it between his hands without drinking right away. "No, none of us. Not even the most paranoid. Not even the ones who actively despised our charges. Knight-Commander Gregoir was hardly what anyone would call lax or lenient. He was hard but fair. He emphasized vigilance. And that's the true horror of something like that. There's a very good chance that no one could have seen it coming, not even Uldred's and his conspirator's associates. Mages don't want to believe such things of each other, either."

He took a very long swig, wiping his lips afterward with the back of his hand. "Maybe it can't be prevented. Maybe the best we'll ever do is contain it. If we can." And die when they couldn't. "Ferelden was lucky that happened in a tower physically cut off from the rest of the countryside. If they had been able to leave, the Blight would have been just one concern. Redcliffe, Honnleath, no telling where it would have stopped.

"I told myself I wouldn't bog down in talking shop tonight. I'm sorry."