allthisshitisweird | TEST DRIVE MEME!

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TEST DRIVE MEME!

Surprise, Beartch

Bet You Thought Etc.

Maybe the Inquisition sent you, maybe you came seeking the Inquisition. Maybe you fell out of a rift into this world last week and are still just trying to find your feet. However it happened, early fall finds you in the Hinterlands. Tucked between Ferelden's massive Lake Calenhad and the icy Frostback Mountains, the Hinterlands are a hilly region covered in patchy forests and small farms trying to eke out a living between the boulders. Though somewhat remote, the area is rich with game and minerals and home to Redcliffe, a bustling town on a busy trade route.

The Inquisition has set up several camps and sent personnel to try to restore order to the region, unwilling to let it slip into chaos. There's a lot to be done, some of it straightforward killing bad things, some of it weird and nebulous morale-building.

I. DRAGONS

There is a dragon in the Hinterlands. Everyone knows this. It's difficult not to notice when a dragon flies overhead with a mouth full of screaming sheep (alas, the poor dead sheep) or scorches your fishing boat and makes you swim for it (alas, the poor soaked fishermen). But she's only rarely sighted, and her lair is as of yet unknown, if "yet" is defined as "the moment before this exact moment, right now." Because you've found her. She is, at this very moment, screeching so loud it rattles the cliff sides that are trapping you in her territory and raining fire down over the only clear path of escape. She and her two dozen children don't care if you only wanted some elfroot and spindleweed. They also don't care if you have a sword. You look way more delicious and less woolly than a sheep.

II. CROSSROADS

In the year since the Inquisition's formation, the Crossroads have changed. Most of the refugees from the Mage/Templar War have moved on--if not back home, to new places--and there's been some progress rebuilding the homes and fortresses ruined by the war. Very few people are still living in caves. But rather than quieting down, the Crossroads have begun to bustle. Between the Inquisition's locally stationed forces and the increasing number of travelers and merchants now that the roads are safer, there's enough business to support a tavern with a few rooms for rent, and the Crossroads are becoming a trading post in their own right rather than a dot of houses on the path to Redcliffe--a great place to stop for a drink, to buy basic weaponry, or to unload all of the bear skins you've collected.

III. BEARS

You have turned the wrong corner, forded the wrong stream, crested the wrong hill, entered the wrong cave. Maybe you are far from camp. Maybe you are in camp. Whatever has happened, wherever you are: you are being chased by bears. Did you provoke the bears? Are they huge? Babies? Fade-touched? Mage-controlled? What are they chasing you away from? What are they chasing you into? What do you plan to make out of their hide if you kill them? What do you think they'll craft out of your hide if they kill you?

IV. CRYSTALS

Members and trusted agents of the Inquisition are given access to one of the Inquisition's stores of ancient, mysterious sending crystals, allowing them to communicate instantaneously by voice. It's magic. And a magical excuse to ask everyone what their favorite constellation is in the middle of the night.

Or to call for help because you've been treed by bears.

Either way.

V. MISCELLANEOUS

Choose your own adventure! Hunt game, kill demons, gather herbs, track bandits, haggle over the price of armor, fall off a deceptively tall rock, get lost circling the same hill ten times trying to find a way up to the weird glowing skull on a stick you can see is up there, climb trees or abandoned towers, rummage around in empty homes, run from a dragon, cry over how cute that fennec fox you just shot was, set up camp and chat around the fire, knock yourself out (figuratively, or even literally if that's more your speed)-- the Hinterlands are your Frostback Mountain oyster.

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Waver had had this reunion all planned out in his head. What he'd say when Rider stepped out of that summoning circle, how he'd embrace his king, all of it. Now he could only feel himself prick at Rider's commentary, but in the best way possible.

"I remember!"

In a moment, Waver was on his feet to prove just by tall he was. "And of course I'm Waver Velvet, idiot! Who else do you think I'd be?"

It felt so natural to fall into that patter, even if Waver had long stopped using it in most areas of his life. He wasn't nineteen anymore, he was twenty nine and that was the only time he'd indulge that particular phase of his life.

"Boy, you are aware you look a great deal different from when I last saw you, yes?"

He laughed all the same and reached out to yank him right into his arms. Which also meant onto his lap but obviously he wasn't thinking about that minor detail. Iskandar was far too pleased with the situation at hand to think about how he'd just pulled an adult man onto him so they were essentially cuddled here where basically everyone could see them.

Such was the way of a man who held no sense of shame.

"Come here, boy! You have grown so much! Just look at how you have grown your hair!"

The hug was the hug Waver wanted to give before he and Rider parted, and the one he wanted to have whenever he saw Rider next. Being on Rider's lap was absolutely immaterial in this moment, he could only burrow deeply into Iskandar and hope that his grip didn't let up anytime soon.

"It looks good, doesn't it?" he said, muffled into Rider's shoulder.

"And I haven't seen you in ten years," Waver added quickly. "I was planning on changing that under my own steam."

"Ten years? It was but a moment in time for myself."

How surprising. It did explain why the boy had grown up so much though. A pleasant surprise, to be sure. Of course he had hardly minded the tiny nature of Waver's body before but to see him a man now was a wonderful thing. One he was quite enjoying because it seemed the mage fit quite nicely against him like this. A far more reasonable size when it came to matters of affection.

Never mind the fact that the one who was an unreasonable size was Iskandar himself.

His face became softer and he just pulled him into a firm embrace that would let Waver cling to him for a time. It seemed that his former Master had been missing him and needed this time. He would give that to him.

"Have you missed me so much?"

"Yeah."

It wasn't worth unpacking a single word in public and turning something that should be happy into something far more depressing. Waver didn't want to utter a word about how badly he had slept, how seeing Rider's death replay for night after night had impacted him, how everything made him just want to see his king again. So Waver didn't dare. He simply sighed, happy, and let himself stay where he was.

Besides, a presence like Rider was easy to miss.

"Why does that surprise you?"

"No. That does not surprise me."

Iskandar was one who knew the impact he had on the world. It was why he didn't even question the reaction that Waver had here save for confirming the cause of it. It was touching honestly, to know that Waver had loved him in such a way that ten years later he would cling to him like this, to still see him as his King. Even without the full confirmation of the fact, he knew that was what was in his heart. Words were unnecessary for the hand gripping him said it all. (And the fact that he wasn't complaining about being in his lap.)

"It is good to see you again as well."

Waver breathed out, finally picking his head off of Rider's shoulder so that he could look the man in the eyes. It was a wonder, seeing that face again, knowing it wasn't just another dream. He'd probably flop back against it soon, in a few minutes or an hour, but there had been something that caught his attention and curiosity.

"How long has the passage of time been on your end?"

"Let me think. I believe I have been here a little over a month? I had just seen you before that and you had sworn yourself to me."

Which meant his last memories were moments before his own death, something that he was so very aware of. Iskandar knew what that final ride towards Archer meant for him but there was no sign of regret or distress on his face. Just a warm smile that showed how pleased he was with how he had lived his life. Even this second chance at it.

"Bucephalus and I were riding toward him and then we were riding out of water to find ourselves here. It was quite the surprise!"

"So you didn't--"

The words may have fell flat, but Waver knew he could trust Rider to fill in the blanks. Rider hadn't gone through his death yet, a death that Waver had seen and had replayed far too many times in his head over the years.

He wasn't sure how to feel about that fact either. It was a good thing that Rider hadn't gone through that, truly, but where did that leave them? Waver had emotions attached to something Rider hadn't even experienced yet. All the grief, all the hurt, all the low, background heartbreak for ten years, and now this.

In front of any other person at Clock Tower, Waver's reaction would have been a carefully blank face and a simple huh. In front of Rider, Waver simply let his mouth hang open for a few moments before he said, "Time works weird here then."

"Yes. I know what I am to face. I know how that ride ends for Iskandar, King of Conquerors."

No one had to tell him the answer to that. He knew what the result would be. It was something he'd embraced the very moment he'd told Waver to live, the very moment he'd galloped forth. There would be no winning that battle because a number of circumstances had ensured he wouldn't be strong enough for it. That was just how things were and he'd decided to see it to the end with a smile on his face.

What better end for him than with a smile after all? It was how he wanted to be remembered.

Yet here was this boy who was now a man. One who had lived with that final memory weighing so heavily in his heart. It could have broken him but instead he'd kept his word and had lived. Perhaps he knew little of all the details but the fact that he'd lived at all said so much to this Spirit.

"It does. So we could spend our time dwell on what is and what shall be or we can focus on what we have currently. Which shall you do, Waver Velvet?"

Waver wanted to be able to give a reply with some level of wit. Get another drink. That'd be a good response, wouldn't it, making light of so much while acknowledging how heavy things felt. But he couldn't do it, not without the words ringing false. Rider would pick up on it too.

"As much as I know you don't dwell on the past, I think I'd at least like to know what you've been doing for the past month," he said finally. "Perhaps in a quieter space."

"Well I suppose I might have to let you off my lap then."

He laughed softly before finally unfolding his arms so that way Waver could get up. There were a number of places they could go here but the best was one that only he could provide for them and would be all too familiar for the mage. So once he was free to stand, he left the tavern to head out to where his horse was. That same black horse that he'd been riding on when he'd been pulled here, his dear friend Bucephalus.

Mounting him, he reached down to hold out his hand so that Wave might take it and he could pull him up onto it to ride in front of him as he had when he was smaller. In truth he was still a good deal shorter than him which meant this should still work nicely enough.

"We will go riding and talk."

Waver slid off Rider's lap with ease, pausing only to finish his wine. He had already paid at the bar, but left a few coins behind just in case someone questioned if he had paid for what he consumed.

Seeing Bucephalus again was strange, but not as disorienting as seeing Rider had been. Horses existed that looked like Bucephalus, that acted like Bucephalus. Still, he gave the horse a friendly hello pat before taking Rider's hand.

It was a smoother motion than before, thanks to Waver's longer legs and better control of his great long limbs. No half falling over the saddle, just a smooth hop up and settling against Rider. This was far more leisurely than the last time

"Don't go too fast then," Waver said. "I'm not going to be screaming over galloping hoofs."

Trusting Waver to stay on was easy enough as he set off on a slow walk away from people. They did not need to linger when they were in the search for privacy. What better location than nature itself? That was this man's opinion anyway.

"I will not ride fast. We are not in a hurry to reach locations just now and I know you will want to hear my voice."

Smiling as they went, Iskandar let a hand settle on the man's leg. Just to enjoy the comfort of being together like this.

"Now, where shall I begin for you?"

"What happened after you initially arrived might be good," was the suggestion. An unkind thought, one that wanted to protest the unfairness of Rider departing before anything could happen to his person and yet Waver still had to witness it all threatened to bubble up.

He placed a single hand atop Rider's, like that was the thing steadying the bits of anger that wanted to come through rather than Waver's own self control.

"I arrived here to find myself in the middle of a battle with demons. Quite the surprise! Once that was done I was moved to Skyhold where I have been spending time learning about the histories of this world. The people here are rather fascinating too."

He held up the hand that had the shard buried in it. Like the one that Waver would have buried in his own since they were both Rifters. It ached for him but his pain tolerance was so high that he barely noticed. He had to wonder if it was the same for the mage before him.

"These have proven to be a link or an anchor that binds us to this world."

Waver paused, his attention going to his other hand, the one lightly holding onto the saddle. Truth be told, he had barely registered the shard and any level of pain because he had been so distracted and overwhelmed by well, everything. Now that he was actually paying attention to it though, Waver could feel the thing smarting.

"Right," he said faintly, turning his attention back to Rider.

"Have you managed to get anyone to follow your lead in world domination yet, or has learning world history been your primary occupation?"

"Far better to gain allies and friends. I am not human yet so conquest currently would bring no satisfaction to me."

As badly as he might want to conquer, he wanted to do so as a human with all the limitations that came with that. Not all could understand him throwing away powers but it was his wish. To be fully human so that it took intelligence and charm to win the lands he desired.

"Besides, knowledge is a powerful tool."

"If you're still in Heroic Spirit form, how are you remaining manifest?"

It was a nicer way of asking if he had contracted with someone else. Truth be told, it was a question Waver didn't want an answer to. Any response that wasn't 'no one' would be too devastating to hear.

"Likely because my powers and form have adjusted to suit this world. For example my dear friend who we ride seems but a horse now. I cannot send him away."

There were still some adjustments he was making to how his abilities worked now. However he had but one conclusion. He was not human. He was very much still a Spirit but in another form. Still a dead man walking.

Waver breathed an internal sigh of relief at that. Of course there were more questions now, questions that only a mage would ask and only a mage would care about, but those could all wait. Waver knew himself. He'd be diving into magecraft and this world soon enough, burying himself in books and refusing to come up for air until forced to do so.

"Interesting," Waver said faintly, his back relaxing from the tension that had suddeny shot up it moments ago.

"And you've made friends, I take it?"

"But of course! This is myself we speak of!"

He laughed and rubbed the top of Waver's head. He would have to look into getting Waver some friends as well. The boy might be a man now but he had a feeling he was just as hopeless as he'd always been. Some things just were not likely to change without him around. Of that he was certain.

"I am friends with mages as well. I shall have you meet them so you can see what differences there between you."

A younger part of Waver wanted to snap what am I, a dog!? when Rider rubbed his head, but the rest of him was glad for the contact. Really, anything after ten years was more than he could have ever asked for.

He shifted, however, at the mention of other mages, unsure of what to make of it. There was no reason to assume that the social order of mages back home was the same in this world, but part of him still tensed at the idea.

"And if you were to describe the differences between them and me?"

"Your view on spirits certainly varies. It seems a common thing for people to have a caution around them here and that it is ill advised to summon them."

That was the biggest one he'd taken note of so far anyway. Naturally there were more but he hadn't quite dipped into the fast depths of what magic was like here. Primarily because he'd not been here long and he'd thought he'd like to start with the histories first.

"So you must have been incredibly popular when you arrived."

To Waver, it sounded like good, old fashioned fear of ghosts and the supernatural. Ridiculous for a mage, whose trade was precisely in the beyond and the impossible.

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