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

<3

[youwonscience]

Can't complain. I'm officially Inquisition now, with a job and everything. And, uh, Kirkwall's climate is definitely an improvement, so there's that.

[There seems to be so much to say, Cosima doesn't quite know where to begin once she's answered the question. She settles on:]

Did, uh, everything go okay? With your, um. Quest. Job. Thing.

[She is really, really trying not to pry.]

[dashing]

( And then she does smile, more broadly. ) You feel better settled, then?

( That is a relief. And perhaps that shows a little, and perhaps that suggests that it was a matter that her thoughts left her gnawing on, from time to time. Perhaps.

With a glance to the Noble Steed™, Herian gently pets his nose so he pays attention, before she hands the reins over to a worker in Inquisition garb, and hands him a coin with the quiet request to take the horse the rest of the way to the stables, and then she tilts her head towards a slightly less chaotic street. )

Well enough. Easier to discuss in less din, I think. If you would care to join me? ( She offers Cosima her arm, though... she's not sure how that'll go. )

[youwonscience]

[Cosima takes Herian's arm as if it's the most natural thing in the world.]

I mean, I still feel out of place, but as long as I remember to wear gloves, Kirkwall's got so many people from so many places I can kind of be anonymous now and then. It's nice, just taking a walk without it being A Thing.

[She hadn't felt trapped in Skyhold, exactly, and it's not as if the Gallows is the most comforting place to sleep, but it feels a little more like a life, here. And she really is better for having work, to no one's surprise.]

[dashing]

( With a quiet breath that isn't a laugh but is definitely amused, Herian leads them down a pathway - less crowded, less risk of pickpockets, on the way to hightown even if the likes of her have no place there. Halfbreed, and so on. It seems a safer place to stroll. )

Mm. Naturally 'tis required that I voice some disdain for the Inquisition's choice of Kirkwall over Starkhaven, of all the Marcher cities.

( How dare they, etc. Her disdain sounds very lacking in commitment, however, though she can't say she's thrilled to be here. There are so many terrible stories, such dark history. )

I am— glad, however, that the anonymity allows you some freedom. ( Rifters were always so much a spectacle in Skyhold. That she could sympathise with. But! A breath, and she's... trying to think what to say. Normally Herian is content to her brooding silences, letting people wait, yet here she is fumbling a little for words. ) If all is to the satisfaction of the advisors when they review the report, I believe I will be stationed with the rest of the Inquisition, for the foreseeable future.

[youwonscience]

Hey, that's great.

[It really, really is.]

I mean, I think it's great. You might not want to be stuck here, but I, uh. I wasn't sure I'd see you again.

[As if either of them had forgotten their parting, which seems unlikely. It also sounds incredibly overdramatic when Cosima says it aloud, so she hastily adds:]

You know, with rifters just appearing and disappearing. And there's no real consistency as to when it happens or who goes, at least as far as we've been able to work out yet. It's a really frustratingly small sample size.

[dashing]

( A very slight smile quirks the corner of her mouth, but she looks ahead as they walk. Discretion in terms of how pleased she is, sort of. )

The company is... a great relief, after so much solitude.

( No less dramatic, and Herian's smile turns to a frown. Apparently when she was leaving abruptly it was easier to express things than when they actually had time to... do whatever they might do. She slows as they reach a courtyard. )

Truthfully, I did have some apprehension that I would return to find you departed, selfish as that may be.

[youwonscience]

Well, I briefly fell through a rip in time, but I'm back again.

[This is possibly more alarming in content than in tone.]

I miss my family, yeah, but I've been here long enough that I'd miss people here too. If I went back.

[Probably 'when,' not 'if,' but she doesn't actually know. She wonders sometimes about Delphine - there one day, suddenly gone the next.]

[dashing]

( She stops walking, turns to face Cosima, hand resting over Cosima's wrist lightly. Definitely alarming in content, though she doesn't really address it, just studies Cosima for a moment. Prolonged silence, sharp gaze, as if the Fade might have left some further mark on her. Herian, for her part, has a scar on her cheek that is healed, but still a little pink and fresh, just over her cheekbone. )

And you would be missed.

[youwonscience]

[Cosima, humiliatingly, pinks up a bit, but says,]

Yeah? Always nice to hear. I didn't even succeed in introducing bad pub food trends from home before we left Skyhold, so, you know, a little unsure of my long-term contribution to Thedas.

[dashing]

( Listen, Herian is an emotional mess masquerading as an ice cube, the pink is helpful. It prompts a twitch of a smile that she schools away out of habit more than the desire to mask it from Cosima. )

Perhaps the businesspeople of Kirkwall will be eager to profit from such a venture.

( A little more relaxed, less— well, Eternal Herian Intensity than the comment that preceded it. It was a relief to be in the company of friends, if that was the appropriate term. It seemed strange to ask. )

In truth, Lady Cosima, such matters are beyond the scope of my judgment. Thedas is a web so complex that even the most cunning of spiders might be caught in it. Each moment that you are here I think you better it, even if the marks of change are rendered in spirit rather than law or stone.

[youwonscience]

That's very sweet, considering that when we met I was pulling up rashvine with my bare hands, [Cosima says with a grin.]

What are you going to do if you stay? Do you know yet?

[dashing]

It would be poor form to hold such a thing against you, surely.

( With that said, very gravely, she grins and ruins it. )

Better you are remembered for your skill in snow combat. I heard you did impressively.

( """impressively""" )

[youwonscience]

[She bursts out laughing properly.]

Look, I'm from California, we keep all our snow on mountaintops and then don't go bother it. Like reasonable people. It's not my fault I never got the finer points of snow combat.

[dashing]

My apologies. ( She does not sound apologetic, really, for all that she says it with that usual steadiness. What a jerk. )

I could offer you tutelage in such arts, if you so desired.

[youwonscience]

Wait, does it snow a lot in Kirkwall? I was led to expect distinctly less snow here.

[Seriously, as if this had been a prime motivation behind the move.]

[dashing]

( Quietly conspiratorial: ) In all truth? I have not visited Kirkwall before, so I can claim no expertise as to its weather. It could snow in Starkhaven, as I recall.

( But it has been a very long time since she was home, since she has visited her city. The city was never really hers, either - the alienage and the Circle were her homes. The city was home only to humans and the wealthy.

Head canting to the side a little, Herian makes as though to speak further, something possibly slightly whimsical given the brief flicker of animation, and then reconsiders whatever she was going to say and just smiles fractionally instead. )

[youwonscience]

[The look Cosima gives her in turn is quizzical, though she doesn't push. At least not aloud.]

Well, in the meantime I suppose you could train me in something a little more seasonally appropriate. Though I warn you, I haven't done anything that could be described as "athletic" since I played little league. Uh. Sports for children.

[Since Herian left, she really has gotten better at catching things she needs to explain.]

[dashing]

Children?

( Asked with her trademark seriousness, brow furrowed, expression confused. What are children?

Apparently she's gotten a little more teasing. Or is just making up for lost time, whatever. )

[youwonscience]

Surely you've noticed the smaller, less hairy dwarves running around?

[She'd be better at playing along if she could stop grinning for a second.]

[dashing]

Is that what those are? I'd no notion.

( A glance over her shoulder, apparently trying to get a look of """children""". )

In Starkhaven people hatch from eggs, fully formed.

[youwonscience]

Man, those have to be startling, eggs that big.

[She pokes idly at Herian's arm.]

Good results, though.

[dashing]

They seemed normal enough - chicken eggs, now those are suspiciously small.

( Her brow quirks with a poke and she looks down, before looking back to Cosima. )

Only good?

[youwonscience]

I mean, it's a very small sample size, [grave]. I'd have to meet a lot more beautiful knights from Starkhaven to be sure you're not an outlier.

[dashing]

( SMOOTH.
Herian can't contain her smile, glancing away for a second as she battles it, though the effort is brief and she's not entirely interested in securing the victory. )

That I can well understand, but I'd be forced to voice objection, lest there be another more like to win your favour.

[youwonscience]

Okay, sure, but would she constantly make fun of me? Because that's also very important and probably not something you're born with, so.

[How did this get so science-y, whoops, it just happens.]