Gleam is the daughter of Veness and Sadatt. She was given up by her mother at birth to avoid the templars. Eventually she was tracked down by the Templars and brought into the Circle Tower.
Background[]
Conceived through an illicit relationship between the apprentice mage Veness and Templar apprentice Sadatt, Knight-Commander Greagoir declared the child would be turned over to the Chantry when born. Veness fled from the Circle Tower becoming an apostate and gave birth to Gleam in a wood. She turned the child over to a passing traveler, telling him to take Gleam far away.
Involvement[]
Seventeen years later, Gleam lives in a farm near the Frostback Mountains. Under the guidance of her foster father, Lomo Kettlemaker the blacksmith, she has developed her magical abilities to forge a sword that can cut through steel. One day she saw abusive templars escorting a mage child prisoner. When they tried to bully the mage to do a magic trick, Gleam tried to stick up for him but was struck down by her father in order to silence her. Lomo apologized to Gleam for hitting her but explained that it was the only way to protect her from the templars. That night, Gleam was able to enter the Fade through a dream. There she met a spirit named Venom who warned her of forces who seek to control her and her power. Just then, a rage demon attacked them. Gleam awoke from the dream just before the rage demon could reach her. The next day she traveled with her foster brother, Agmo, and her foster cousin, Datlin, to Orzammar where they traded their goods for dwarven ore. When they returned they found their home burning and their mother, father, and brother murdered. Datlin was able to find the tracks of those responsible and Gleam made the decision to follow them in pursuit.
Over the course of their travels, Gleam encounters several enigmatic individuals. Minderel—a one arm dwarf who is trying to persuade Gleam to forge more magical swords on behalf of his smith guild—and Fallstick—an apostate blood mage who leads a band of Old God cultists. Datlin was sick of eating rabbit meat and weeds during their journey so he strayed from their path and led Gleam and her companions into a fair. Her cousin Datlin becomes overconfident in his fighting abilities and enters a fighting contest against another boy to win them some money (with their dwarven ore as their wager). Datlin loses the fight and Gleam is forced to use her healing magic to repair Datlin's broken nose. Unbeknown to her, this attracted the attention of someone from the crowd who recognized her use of magic. The spectator alerted the templars in the Circle Tower of Gleam's presence. Duty, the most ruthless templar in the Fereldan Templar Order, was dispatched to apprehend her.
Datlin again attempts to win money by challenging strangers to duels, rationalizing that with Gleam's healing magic they would be unstoppable. One shady stranger agreed to the duel but used a knife because Datlin didn't set up any ground rules. Agmo defended Datlin by assaulting the stranger with a stick but was stabbed for his interference. Gleam again was forced to use her healing magic in the open to save Agmo's life. A man then knocked out Gleam from behind. The town rabble tied her and her companions up and planned to turn her over to the templars. Minderel, who has been watching over the group, woke Gleam up by throwing a pebble at her. Gleam used her fire magic to burn through their ropes and disperse the mob; and she was also using the chaos to free her brother and cousin so that they could escape. Minderel leads them to a river where they can wash away their blood: a liability that can be used to track them. Minderel sensed that someone was approaching and secretly hid in the bushes. Meanwhile, Duty and his templars found them at the river and ordered them to surrender. With Gleam's magic dispelled by the templars' powers, Datlin decided to fight them off so they could escape. Datlin managed to fight off a few templars but Duty ran him through from behind. Datlin died because Duty refused to give Gleam back her powers and thus preventing her from healing him.
Gleam as a baby
Minderel later appeared in the middle of the night; and he sneaked Gleam and Agmo away from the templar camp. He led them to the Deep Roads to seek refuge from their pursuers. Yet the Deep Roads are full of dangers: dangers that Gleam and her companions barely escaped from with their lives. Minderel in particular, suffered a major wound in his leg from a battle with a dire Corrupted spider. Gleam was able to set the bone straight and healed his leg but she also inadvertently grew back his arm—albeit not grown as big as his other arm. By chance or fate, Gleam encountered the very Brigands that murdered her adopted family in the Deep Roads. A battle ensued as Gleam tried to avenge her parents. The Brigands were more formidable however, as they had magi and a blood mage within their ranks. Gleam was subdued and the brigand leader planned to turn Gleam over to the "Man of Light". It looked as if Minderel was about to be executed and Gleam taken prisoner but Agmo returned in the nick of time with templar reinforcements. The Brigands were subdued and they were later hanged for their crimes. Gleam's family was finally avenged. Gleam, Agmo, and Minderel were taken back to the Circle Tower, where Agmo and Minderel will stay due to their compliance in aiding and abetting Gleam. After another encounter with Venom in the Fade, it revealed that Duty is really Gleam's biological father. Duty makes a vow to look after Gleam and makes sure that she is properly trained, cared for, and protected.
Trivia[]
- Gleam appears as the cover art for the second issue of the Dragon Age Comic.