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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Okay, yes. Well, the Doctor can't argue with that, so he just shuts up and watches as Jamie makes fire. Which the Doctor is well out of practice. He's become too reliant on his Sonic.

"Well... Dragons don't exist where I'm from. I wasn't sure how bad it could be."

But then the young man's face is lit up, which is good, because the Doctor doesn't really know where he was going with that one... The Doctor frowns for a moment, because this can't be...

"Jamie?"

Not knowing that dragons exist really only means one thing - that this man, whoever he is, is a rifter like himself. Almost automatically, let his eyes drop to the other man's hand, looking for the tell-tale green glow that would mark him as someone with a shard. He has it as well, but since currently his hands are covered by leather gauntlets, made from the same dragonskin as the rest of his armour, it might be a bit harder to notice.

On the other hand, they're easy enough to remove, and he starts to contemplate if it might not be a good idea to do that now to help with the explanation that's probably coming. That thought doesn't last long, though, because the moment he hears his name, his head snaps up, the narrow-eyed expression that'd been and gone back again, as though it'd never left.

"Aye, I'm Jamie. How do you know my name?"

Edited 2016-11-03 17:32 (UTC)

Even within all the danger, the Doctor manages a smile. "Oh I knew you... lifetimes ago now. I was a completely different person back then. But you... You seem just the same."

Excuse him as he goes a bit nostalgic and so forgets to explain who he is. It's getting on in years, there's a lot to reminisce and sort through.

If not for the fact he's carrying a torch right at the moment, chances are his arms would go right across his chest in a mixture of denial and disbelief. As it is, his expression covers a lot of both of those emotions, the suspicion that's there deepening even further.

"You knew me? Look, I've not clapped eyes on you before in my life. Just because you're a rifter like I am doesn't mean a thing, even if we are both stuck with this shard and everything that comes along with that."

Plus he still doesn't know what the man's doing here, other than possibly being daft and trying to talk with a dragon, and his mouth tugs quite firmly off to one side.

"Now are you going to start giving me some answers, or am I going to have to take some steps to get some?"

"Whoa, oh, oh!"

The Doctor raises his hands in a placating manner.

"Jamie. Right. I look really different, but I'm the Doctor."

Unless Jamie can't remember him, but he thought the Time Lords had allowed for them to remember one adventure... To be fair, his memories of his early days isn't what it used to be.

"You're the Doctor."

It's less a question than a statement, and a disbelieving statement, at that - complete with arched eyebrows that threaten to climb up and disappear into his bangs. Or the part of the bangs that are still visible under his helmet, anyway. There's still enough of them there that the disbelief on his face is fairly easy to see, regardless.

"Aye, and I'm the King of Scotland. Look, I don't know what your game is, but I'm not so sure I care for it. It might've been some time since I've seen the Doctor, but I remember what he looks like. And you don't look a thing like him." The hand that's not holding the torch shifts, moving closer to a sword that's slung on his side, although he doesn't go to pull it free of the scabbard just yet. "So how about telling me who you really are?"

The Doctor makes a kind of shrug with his arms and everything. Because everything is an act.

"I'm the Doctor."

Statement.

"And you're not the King of Scotland. But I think we pretended you were at one point... Or did I pretend I was? That was aeons ago.... So what was your last adventure with me? The Cybermen's Tomb, have we done that yet? Or those Space Pirates? I'm a time traveller, hard to guess where you're at in your timeline."

The skeptical look on Jamie's face stays right where it is - for a few moments.

As the man calling himself the Doctor starts trying to pin down what they might have done together, though, something changes in Jamie's expression, the skepticism shifting to a more stunned disbelief as he hears one thing after another that he and the Doctor've done together. It's possible that the man could've heard one thing or two from someone else, granted. Jamie's told the odd story or two himself over the past year, but the chances of all three of them being mentioned at the same time is slim.

He's still not entirely convinced just yet, but there's something there that is starting to look like he wants to be, and he purses his lips for a moment before he answers.

"Those war games. We'd stopped them, but...your people weren't going to let you get away so easily. Does that sound familiar to you at all?"

His face falls slightly at the mention of that. "There was a trial. I was punished quite severely."

He offered a small shrug. Water under the bridge now. Well, had been for some time. And while he knows he has a new body, it's not something he remembers to talk about unless someone else mentions it.

"But like I said, that was aeons ago for me. I take it that was far more recent for you?"

Jamie remembers the trial - or the first part of it, anyway. The outcome is another matter, as they'd been in the middle of things when he'd fallen asleep and pulled through to this world. The thought that maybe things hadn't gone well for the Doctor isn't a good one, and even though he's still skeptical about the whole thing, a flicker of dismay can be seen in his eyes for just a moment.

The question, on the other hand, gets him lifting his chin, expression going almost stony as he looks at the other man.

"Depends on what you'd call recent, I'd say. It's been over a year ago, now. But I remember what the Doctor looks like, even so, and you don't look a thing like him. Care to explain that part of things?"

"Oh! That. That... was part of the punishment. Time Lords have this way of cheating death, we call it regeneration. Every cell in our body renews itself. But it means that physically we look different, sound different, have different tastes. As part of my punishment, they forced me to regenerate."

He'll just skip over the part that it's happened eleven or so times since they last met. He pulls a sceptical expression. He wants Jamie to believe him, but he isn't sure the lad will.

Deep down, there's a part of Jamie that does want to believe him, wants to trust that this strange man who's calling himself the Doctor really is the Doctor, no matter how improbable what he's being told is. He may have adjusted to life here over the past year, but he's missed what had been before - the life that he'd lived before he fell through a rift and wound up with a shard embedded in his hand, the adventures that he'd had...and his friends, as well. That part that wants to believe what's being said wars with the skepticism, and even the flickering light from the torch doesn't completely mask the inner struggle from showing on his face.

"What happened to Zoe, then? I fell through the rift and came here, but Zoe...she's not with you any more, is she?"

Edited (icon edit) 2016-11-17 17:13 (UTC)

The Doctor sighed a bit heavily. "Jamie, You know how my life is. People come into it, travel with me for awhile and they they move on to other things. Part of my punishment was that you and Zoe were returned to your proper times and places. I was forced to face things alone for a bit."

It wasn't that long. Not as long as he had been in the Dial, anyway.

"I am the Doctor, but I'm from the future. The events you're asking about were... thousands of years ago for me."

He could say billions, but he think thousands is a big enough number for Jamie to understand.

Billions would be a bit difficult to wrap his mind around, true, but thousands he could do - and for a moment he wound up staring at this new, strange version of the Doctor. Had it really been that long? And then the rest of it sunk in. After years of thinking he'd never see Scotland again, the Doctor's people had sent him back - and they'd sent Zoe home, too, apparently, and separated them from the Doctor in the process. Only- that hadn't happened for him, and after a moment, he shook his head quite emphatically.

"You mean they sent us home? But- Doctor, that never happened. The last thing I remember before coming here was being stuck behind one of those forcefield things of theirs because they wouldn't let Zoe or I see you, and that was when we were on your planet. I never went back to Scotland. I wound up here instead. How could that be?"

The Doctor pulls a hand down his face.

"Good question. I would guess you were kidnapped. And I just told you all about your future. I'm an idiot."

To be fair, while they're safe-ish, the Dragons are a bit distracting.

"We can talk about time travel and the details of the trial later. For now... What do we do? Just sit here and wait them out?"

He hates waiting.

"Think we've both been kidnapped, if that's the case."

The rest of it- well, the Doctor has a point. That's not to say he doesn't have questions, because he does. Lots of them. Asking them while there's still a dragon on one end of the and possible bandits or red Templars on the other isn't really the best idea, though, and he knows it. His eyes flick back and forth between the two openings - the one where the dragon is still visible, although there's currently no sign of the dragon. The other end's not from where they are, but he knows it's there, even if the Doctor doesn't. There's an important thing that Jamie needs to know before he decides which way to go, however, and the fact that it'll also help him with the belief that this man is the Doctor doesn't hurt, either.

"Still any good at running?"

"Fair point, we both have, but you were asking about yourself, not about me."

And he offers a bit of a grin, for reasons. And then that question comes. It's a good one.

"Well, I don't do as much of it in this body because.... well look at the age of it! But, I've gotten a lot of practice recently, so I'd say I am."

He'll not mention the Dial, or the creature, or the castle, just yet. And he flashes a grin, because, really, the running was the best part.

"Aye, you've gotten old."

There's a flicker of a grin as he says that, though, a hint that he's not entirely serious. Maybe that's a good sign - if he's willing to tease the Doctor a little bit, perhaps it means he's on his way to accepting that he is who he really says he is.

For now, though, there's this cave to get out of, and he starts to inch out into the corridor, keeping an eye on the end where the dragon is.

"Right, then. Think we're far enough back that if yon dragon decides to breathe we'll be safe, but just in case be ready to run. We'll make a break for the other end and hope there's not a fight at the end of it."

The Doctor looks confused now. "So, this isn't a cave."

Because, everyone knows that a cave only has one entrance and exit. A tunnel on the other hand...

"And you were going to mention that to me... wait. Did you just say fight on the other side? Why would there be a fight?"

"Aye. I said that before, you know."

Okay, granted, he might not have been as clear as he could have, but he had mentioned there being another end to this place before - and the problems that could go along with it.

"Red templars and bears, remember? Now, I know we could handle it if it were bears, even if there are a lot of them around here. The Red Templars would be much more of a problem, though, if you ask me. They're not like Templars back on Earth, Doctor."

"Oh, yes, yes yes. Of course. I was slightly distracted with dragons."

But he'll get over that...

"Nothing here is anything like anything on Earth. So how is this lot different?"

Because he can't actually ask the question in a normal way. Usually the companions are the ones asking the questions.

"Because they've been turned into super men, for a start. They're stronger, and faster, and can last longer than regular soldiers in a fight."

Which might not seem too different, given some of the monsters they've fought over the years, but there's more to it than just that, and even though he knows what the Doctor's likely going to think of what he says next, he goes on anyway.

"There's a thing here called lyrium. It's something that helps with magic, mostly, but-"

Something in his face shutters at that, giving him an oddly closed off expression before he forces it off his face. There's unpleasant personal memories there, recent ones, and ones he doesn't want to think about right at the moment. It's not as important as the red lyrium right now, anyway, and after a moment he shakes his head.

"Never mind that. Anyway, there's a red version of it and it's not good at all. The Red Templars use it to get their powers, and it...changes them. More than just the powers. It makes them monsters."

The Doctor caught that expression. And for a moment his own was all concern. Not because of the topic at hand, but because something clearly bothered Jamie. He was about to ask Jamie about it when the moment past.

"Monsters? I don't throw that word around lightly. What do you mean monsters?"

"Aye, maybe you don't."

Then again, the Doctor hadn't fought them, yet. Jamie, who'd done so more than once, had no compunctions about calling them what they were - and even though he started to move down towards the far end of the tunnel, they weren't close enough to it just yet that he felt he had to go quiet. So he opted to explain, just a little bit more.

"Monsters, Doctor. Like the Cybermen. Or the Daleks. Some of them even wind up turning into creatures that look like they've got crystals growing out of them, all red and glowing like they'd come from the depths of Hell itself. And they're corrupted just like they'd be if they'd come out of Hell, too."

"Lovely description, don't really tell me much. What do they do that makes them so bad?"

After all the Doctor has dealt with his own personal hell. Because what else do you call a week on repeat for 4.5 billion years? How bad can these things be really?

Edited 2016-12-02 00:28 (UTC)

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TEST DRIVE MEME!

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Gah hit post too soon. Sorry.