TEST DRIVE MEME!

[faderifting]

TEST DRIVE MEME

Maybe you’ve been around for a while, or maybe you’re new to the Inquisition. Maybe you’re new to Thedas, having recently fallen from a tear in reality and been collected by uniformed rescuers. Whoever you are, you’ve been sent to Kirkwall, to an outpost where many of the Inquisition’s members and allies work on some of the biggest mysteries and problems the organization must solve if it’d like to keep the world from ending, where “ending” means “falling under the power of an ancient powerful corrupted being who wants everyone to bow to him as a god.”

And just to be clear, it would like that. It would like that a lot.

I. THE GALLOWS: The Gallows is an island fortress in Kirkwall’s harbor. It’s been home to, in order: Tevinter slaves, a Circle of Magi, a lot of creepy red lyrium, and now the Inquisition, which has occupied the fortress with the provisional Viscount’s blessing. There are walls that still need rebuilding and corners that still need dusting, but for the most part the Inquisition has gotten down to business. There’s space in the stone-floored courtyards to train or spar; or, if your skills don’t lie in the realm of hitting things, there’s a large library and several offices supporting the Inquisition’s areas of research and diplomatic efforts. If you don’t know what to do with yourself, then by all means, ask; someone will definitely be able to put you to work.

II. KIRKWALL: A quick row across the harbor will take you to Kirkwall proper. The city is built into the cliffs, from exclusive and wealthy Hightown at the top to impoverished Darktown in the abandoned mining tunnels below. In the middle is Lowtown, home to taverns, merchants, and plenty of trouble to keep anyone looking for it happy. You’re welcome to spend your free time and your money here—but try not to annoy the locals too much, please, in case their welcome runs out. It’d be a shame to have to pack again so soon after arriving.

III. QUESTING: Barely had time to make yourself at home, did you, before you were sent away from Kirkwall again—but this time on a mission. There’s a rift outside of Markham, pouring demons into the fields, and the Inquisition has been asked to lend a hand. Maybe literally. If you have an anchor embedded in your palm, you’re needed to close the damn thing. If not, maybe you’re here to fight demons or guard against bandits on the road, or to gather samples and take notes on the rift’s location once its closed, or to speak to Markham’s nobility afterwards to make sure that they fully appreciate the Inquisition’s efforts. Regardless, it’s a long trip, so we hope you like campfire cooking and sharing a tent.

IV. SENDING CRYSTAL: Joining the Inquisition gets you access to the very latest in barely-understood magical communication devices—namely, a crystal, small enough to wear around your neck, that will allow you to communicate verbally with anyone else who has one. Or everyone else who has one. Say hello.

V. WILDCARD: The whole of Thedas is yours to explore, from coast to uncharted wilderness. Choose your own adventure!

Comments

herian amsel | da original.

[dashing]

SENDING CRYSTAL.
I fear it had been overlong since last we spoke, Inquistion. For those not yet known to me: I am Herian Amsel, Knight Enchanter of the White Spire. For those better acquainted with me, I apologise for my abrupt absence. My orders bid me elsewhere. I hope the seasons have not treated you poorly.

KIRKWALL.
( SHE'S ON A HORSE. HAS A STAFF. LOOKS DRAMATIC AF, so same as usual.

Herian frowns as she rides into town, the sounds of hooves lost to the general din of this place. Her gaze is sharp and careful, and if she spots a familiar face then it'll be marked by the faint quirk of her brow and a nod - smiles are reserved for those of more affectionate acquaintance. Regardless, she dismounts in a smooth motion, leading the giant palomino horse over to the conveniently located water trough. )

Good day.


KIRKWALL OPTION B:

( she just Sparta kicked a pickpocket against a wall, nbd. Maybe she was getting your purse back, who knows. )


OR WILDCARD BRUH.

kirkwall b.

[ipseite]

( Flattened to a nearby merchant's stall like a frightened cat, clutching her small purse to herself and huge eyed, it isn't hard to see why Petrana might have looked like an easy mark - the glow of an anchor-shard calling her unlikely to be local, her soft, low accent hinting otherwise at Orlais, the way she carries herself even in her simple dress not suggesting a woman accustomed to places like this or even a great deal of independence.

She is trying. She is adapting. She manages better than some might, her willingness apparent in, yes, the plainness of her clothes and her presence in the market at all. Still; the learning curve in some places is steep, especially when it's so rare she can expect to have her hand held through it. )

I - thank you -

Remembering your paid run out BUH

[dashing]

You are welcome.

( "None are necessary" is also true, but to have even the ability to offer thanks dismissed when you have recently been robbed does not seem to sit well with people. She is learning. She is also holding the thief by the scruff of his neck and with one arm pinned behind his back, apparently unconcerned by his struggles. )

Are you harmed?

mocks u with my 100 icons

[ipseite]

( Petra holds the man's gaze for an uncomfortably long moment, catching her breath. )

I don't think so, ser, only greatly startled.

( She hesitates - )

Perhaps he has learned his lesson for today?

y u do

[dashing]

Mayhaps.

( The human is lean, and younger than might be guessed at first glance. Though she releases him, he is still caught. ) Better he be placed with the city guard. Theft is theft, failed though it was.

Sending Crystal

[circleprodigy]

It's good to hear your voice again, Herian. [Inessa doesn't judge or lecture, they all do what they must. Garahel, perking up, lets out a friendly bark in the background.]

Are you in Kirkwall already or on your way?

[dashing]

And yours, Inessa.

I am arrived, though only by a small collection of minutes. Not so pleasing to behold as Skyhold, I think. Have you been well?

[circleprodigy]

I quite agree...and well enough, I suppose. You're fortunate in terms of timing; it was no small feat, getting the Gallows habitable but now the red lyrium is gone. The Veil remains thin, but all rifts have been sealed. I think the griffons like their new roost, as well. It affords them quite a view.

[dashing]

By no design of mine, though I cannot deny relief to be spared such a task. How fare the Wardens? Do they enjoy the view as well as the griffons?

( a faintly, very very faintly, joking tone. maybe. )

Kirkwall

[youwonscience]

[Cosima's first instinct when she catches sight of Herian at a distance is to fling herself at Herian like a romcom, or at least like a homecoming YouTube video involving a soldier and a very enthusiastic golden retriever. But, for the sake of Herian's dignity, she comes running up and stops short, grinning.]

Welcome to Kirkwall.

[She is totally not out of breath at all. Smooth, Niehaus. Very smooth.]

[dashing]

( A rare moment of brightness - her mouth tugs at one corner, a smile that she doesn't quite catch in time. She bows, excessively formal in a way that is teasing only because it's Cosima that it's directed at. )

I checked the Gallows first. '''Twas a pleasant surprise to find that you were not so located.

( Herian, please. But she's smiling, and Cosima is breathless, and now she's been sassy she's not sure what to do. )

[youwonscience]

Okay, look, I have only been imprisoned once since you left, and it totally wasn't my fault at all.

[In the slightest.]

Man, it's good to see you. When did you get back? Or ... not back, but here. You know what I mean.

forgive me my lack of icons rn

[dashing]

Only once?

( Her tone says "forgive me my insolence" and "babe HOW" simultaneously, somehow. The horse raises his head from the trough, water dripping from his mouth as he shakes out his mane. She huffs out a quiet. Death of laughter at the creature, rubbing his neck before she retrains her focus on Cosima - it never left her, really. )

I arrived some hours past, but I had reports to make that could not be delayed, now that my mission is completed. ( And a moment of hesitation and a grin, only brief, ) It is good to see you, as well. Have you been well?

WILDCARD, BRUH

[puravida]

My goodness — no, please, you must, I beg! Stay precisely where you are!

[ Hey you, dramatic AF, hold still a minute: There's an ink-stained young woman brandishing an easel. She sets it down hurriedly, frames her hands against the sky, ]

A half hour's time, this is all I ask,

[ She's already fumbling out a long stick of charcoal. ]

never has there been a wildcard more perfect

[dashing]

( Herian freezes in place, because when a mage of a tower is ordered to hold still, they obey. When a knight is issues an order as they swing their blade, they must stay their hand. She is perfectly still, and then... she takes in the person before her. )

I...

( Normally her silences are as Dramatic as the rest of her, but now she just looks a little puzzled, and looks to the side, a little over her shoulder, juuuuuust in case . )

Have you need of aid?

takes one to know one *fingerguns*

[puravida]

Very much so, [ Earnest, her hand moving in quick stripes along the page, ] You see — ah, your chin out a little more, yes? Looking up, as if to the sun above.

[ It's Kirkwall. Up, as if to seagull shit, is more likely. ]

You are a mage, yes? [ The... stick, and all. Staff. She's never been entirely clear on what makes them so special (on stage, it's all the glitter and feathers). ] Very good, very good indeed, we've a deadline to work upon and I hope you will forgive me to say you are a vast improvement upon that raggedy blonde fellow —

ayyyyyy

[dashing]

( Herian is just stunned enough to comply, before her upward tilt to sunlight and bird crap grinds to a halt, because quite honestly—

u fuckin wot, m8? Except more Starkhaven, and less whatever the Thedas equivalent to a bogan might be.

She frowns at the dark silhouette of Kirkwall's depressing architecture against at bright sky, and looks back to the person instructing her, who she is entirely certain is none whose service she is sworn to. )

I am a Knight Enchanter of the White Spire, ( Because, sure, that place is still functional and still matters. Mmhmm, ) returning to the Inquisition. Other matters demand me, I fear more urgent than the deadline you labour to. Surely there are many in Kirkwall who would be glad to assist.

OMG OMG YOU'RE BACK HELLO I MISSED U

[eolasemah]

B

A few steps away and out of view until the pickpocket fell, there stands a diminutive and rather alarmed-looking elf, who watches the scene in impressed surprise before lifting her gaze to the familiar face. And then she smiles faintly in greeting. hay gurl

I AM SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING but HELLO HI I've missed u 2

[dashing]

Ah.

A few thoughts in quick succession. Elf was obvious with only a peripheral awareness, her jaw tensing at the noticing of bare feet and patterned skin, before recognition catches up to her own prejudice. There is not a smile; she is surprised, eyebrows raising, but the tension in her jaw does ease.

"First of Dahlasanor." And a bow, formal as ever, though considerably less frosty than the first time they spoke. It has been a long time; hopefully this meeting will not involve being taken captive.

[eolasemah]

Sina's smile dwindles when Herian looks at her that way, and she resists the urge to glance aside and break their gaze. She knows better now. Their common experience has taught her not to show weakness.

Sina tilts forward in a small bow herself, and her voice is low when she says, "it's good to see you again."

[dashing]

Herian's mouth doesn't tug into a smile, not really. There's just a little flicker at the corner of her mouth, more a softening than something specifically mirthful or cheery. She— could not state easily her regard for either Sina or Pel, and perhaps not even her regard for the Dalish, in truth. It is a tangle.

"And you," she finally says, before clearing her throat - just faintly awkward. "I had heard the Inquisition had expanded its bases, but did not anticipate to see some faces away from Skyhold."

Which isn't meant to sound displeased, and she tries to shift her tone so as not to be cold, to convey that it's a good surprise.

crystal

[sulena]

Céad míle fáilte, Herian. It is good to hear your voice again.

( Says one heavily Starkhaven accented sing-song voice. Because, oops. Someone now sounds so very, very happy. )

1/2

[dashing]

( whaaaaaaat is happening what is going on what what what )

2/2

[dashing]

( The voice clicks, and she nearly doubletakes. )

Saoirse? ( It has been a long time, suffice to say. She's speechless. There's a long silence, and she sounds a bit dazed when she continues, lapsing into their alienage dialect, (because this scrub is lazy rn) ) Likewise. Are you well?

let's be lazy scrubs together

[sulena]

Ah! You got it in one. ( She laughs, happily at that before fully lapsing back into their dialect from home. )

I am doing well now, though it was hard at first as you can imagine. We moved to Kirkwall and the Gallows quite suddenly but I have been spending time in the alienage doing work. They have helped me settle back into the city.