Mirror, mirror in the Hinterlands

[arcaneadvisor]

WHO: Morrigan, Merrill, Lace Harding, Maria Hill, Beleth Ashara, Malcolm Reynolds, Ruby Lucas, Kain Highwind, Clarke Griffin
WHAT: Eluvian extraction; Morrigan's eluvian has fallen into the hands of the Venatori and their Red Templar accomplices, so it's a mad dash to the Hinterlands to meet Leliana's forward scouts to fight the Venatori and provide cover for Morrigan and her team to secure the eluvian
WHEN: Final days of Drakonis
WHERE: Hinterlands
NOTES: Violence and possibly language? Related ooc post

 

Skyhold is rarely peaceful or quiet, not in any meaningful way but like pristine glass, tis shattered in the early hours. Morrigan can be seen heading from her rooms towards the back of Skyhold before she is suddenly gone, a few of the more loose-lipped scouts gossiping about how the Witch of the Wilds strode from the rookery later, not angry. Worried.

No argument either with the Nightingale.

Perhaps some had already been informed that she might need assistance. Others might have stopped her on her journey to ask what has someone with her reputation in such a flap.

The answer is the same: something of great value has fallen into the hands of the enemy, assistance and swift action are required to ensure it never falls into the clutches of Corypheus.

Comments

gather your party and venture forth;

[arcaneadvisor]

[[ooc: this is the purely optional stage, hence no custom starter, you can absolutely feel free to skip this stage.]

camp & maybe some other rad stuff

[eviscerates]

camp.
( it's nighttime, they have a fire going, and Ruby is trying to figure out the mechanism for this new trap. There's a book open in front of her, with the light from the fire flickering over the pages, and Ruby is humming to herself and maybe occasionally singing or making guitar sounds veerrry quietly.

occasionally she sits back, looking critically at the contraption, sucking her finger because she caught it on a sharp element, and starts pulling it apart and working from the beginning. )

I hope you're worth it, you stupid... ( indecipherable grumbling )


on the move.
( very early, maybe still dark, and they're on the move. her cloak is a beautiful rich red with velvet brocade, which might not appear to be the most practical choice for such a mission as this... and yet. ruby moves with a bow and quiver of arrows at her back, and is always quick with a smile and a hand to help someone up a tricky part of slope.

ruby occasionally can be seen talking to morrigan and then disappearing off head, returning sometimes a half hour or hours later, checking in, speaking with her in a low voice. )


bears D:
( ruby's head snaps towards the west, inhaling deeply, and her voice is low. )

Bear, ( she advises, bow in hand and an arrow ready before she has even had a moment to think of it. it's not close, not yet, but it will be soon.

it can't even be heard right away, and she's given them advance warning - wolf hearing is good for that. when it does appear, minutes later, she lets her arrow fly, and it barely seems to scratch the damn thing. )

BEARS!!

[dragoon_pride]

[Though he’s generally keeping wary himself, always on guard for hints of trouble, Kain is surprised when Ruby suddenly mentions the bear. His head raises and he glances around, not noticing it at first. But sure enough, the sound of the lumbering creature catches up soon after. Huh... those are some really good senses she has there...]

Thanks for the warning!

[He definitely means it, too. Kain gets to his feet at once, and after the arrow goes flying, he’s springing to action as well. The bear meanwhile roars, agitated. Kain charges forth, lance in hand, jabbing it into the bear’s side before he darts away to dodge a swipe of its claws. Despite the heavy armor, he's surprisingly light on his feet.]

[eviscerates]

Anytime.

( He's speedy, huh? Ruby grins, but it's a fierce, determined thing rather than anything mirthful. Focus, she reminds herself, and even if these aren't silver tipped arrows, they'll do a lot of damage. She fires another, before she remembers her caltrops. Reaching into her pack, she grabs a handful of them, running closer to the bear so she can fling some under its feet as it tramples in a tight circle to try and get Kain. )

Watch your feet, ( she warns, but maybe it's not necessary. )

on the move;

[arcaneadvisor]

[The girl is intriguing, though she has to question the cloak; bright enough that many an eye will be drawn to it, the first one to be spotted by the enemy. But she has the value of being one who has come through the rifts.

It is the disappearances though, that is what catches her attention and so at least she clears her throat, curiousity replacing the darker look that has settled on her face since leaving Skyhold.]

I had thought you an artificer, not a ranger or a scout. And yet off you go, always alone.

[There is something else, something that niggles at her that she can't quite put her finger on, not yet, distracted as she is.]

camp!

[chainlightning]

[ It's the music more than anything else that catches Merrill's attention -- well, that and the fact that she knows Ruby, has met her before. She smiles, leaning against her staff as the fire flickers until the wolf-woman is finished with her latest song, only then going to carefully settle down next to her. ]

That's a song from your world, yes?

[ The contraptions and traps are looked at, but ultimately ignored; she's used to seeing them from Varric, but she hardly knows much about them. ]

What's it about?

if u wanna talk to the loser elf

[arlathvhen]

Beleth doesn't really...know anyone here, except. Uh. Her boss. And that one Malcolm guy who was pretty okay, he had a nice ship. And a nice dog. Even if the dog was kind of fat. But that was about it as far as people she knew went, and Beleth is more aware of how she keeps a low profile than ever (a low profile when she's not being assaulted by miscellaneous Templars, thanks Nerva, thanks Cade. She's watching you, Maria). For most of the trip, she is compliant and she is quiet, speaking only when needed. She scouts, hunts if necessary. She isn't entirely standoffish, however, and will make pleasant idle chit chat with whoever wishes it.

She spends most nights at camp curled up with the startlingly large purple hart that accompanied her, using him as a backrest as she writes a lengthy letter, apparently content to save up all her words to use on this work. Assuming they all don't get brutally murdered by Venatori, she supposes.

Maybe they'll be polite enough to send off the letter if they find it on her body. Add a little post script about her fate.

[dragoon_pride]

Low profile is pretty much how Kain handles these sort of things, too, keeping to himself just as much and so forth. Though he's been curiously eyeing the hart for a little while now. He's been getting more interested in this world's mounts, lately, and the harts are something he's even more unfamiliar with than he'd been the horses.

"Magnificent..." And so... so purple. "Do you have to adapt much to riding such a large creature? How does riding them compare to horses?"

[nofury]

The watching gets noticed. It isn't a new feeling, particularly since entering Skyhold which contained a more concentrated group of peoples she usually only saw few and far between on her travels. But it isn't ideal if they're going to be fighting together. So one night, after a small scrounging of her own for herbs to add some flavor to her rations other than dry and technically sufficient, she sat by Beleth as she tended to making her own meal.

"See anything interesting?"

ota

[chainlightning]

[ For all her clan had wandered, it seems as though Merrill hasn't done this much traveling since they settled outside Kirkwall -- not, at least, until coming to Skyhold herself. She'd missed it, but it's still not quite the same; there are no halla, no aravels, and the Keeper is hardly telling everyone to behave themselves. Instead there is Morrigan, stern and more worried by the hour, and a strange assortment of companions. She knows a few of them besides Morrigan -- Ruby, not to mention Malcolm and his mabari -- but Merrill is otherwise somehow both friendly and shy toward the others.

She may offer a hand up a particularly steep incline, or otherwise may be found distracted, looking at some elfroot or another herb -- or a particularly nice rock or completely useless flower. Luckily, even if she gets a little bit behind, she's much better at navigating in the outdoors than in the middle of civilization.

When they make camp, Merrill helps to secure some defenses, casting spells that function as traps in case any wolves or Red Templars come across them in the middle of the night. She goes out a fair amount so that none of the party trip the spells on accident, staff in hand as she casts. Once she's decided that they're covered, Merrill returns to the fire to eat and talk, then eventually retires to- well, whatever tent has a spot for her, really. ]

[dragoon_pride]

[As for Kain, he mostly keeps quiet during the traveling itself. He observes a lot, though, feeling it's important to know something about those he'll potentially be fighting beside. Once they settle in at camp, he's sure to help wherever needed with the set-up and anything else that needs to get done. He notices Merrill setting things up, casting spells around the area.]

[Later, while around the fire while they're eating, he finds himself taking a spot near the elven mage. He glances over at her.]

Looks as if we'll be well-protected for the night. Your spells... what sort of magic is that?

[He's still finding out things about the world's magic, and sounds quite interested.]

2 hrs late with starbucks

[aintwejust]

[ A man, his dog, and another march. It ain't all that different from the norm and Mal just trucks right along with the rest without fussing. Work's work, coin is coin, and whatever it is they're hauling seems like it's worth something to the right people. And a lot of the wrong people.

Making sure the wrong people don't keep hold of it is kinda important.

He does what he can to keep Jayne out from underfoot, takes a few extra hours of watch when night falls, gets up early to scout ahead when need be. It ain't much, it ain't an army, and it ain't his Crew-

But it's work. And he's good at what he does for a reason. ]

journey to the Hinterlands;

[arcaneadvisor]

Morrigan has walked mountain ranges several times in her life, has gone to many strange and varied places; if she could do it pregnant, if she could do it with a small boy and with the ragtag band of misfits that the Hero cobbled together.

There is no time for stragglers, if she thought she could accomplish this alone then she would have gone but the Venatori want the eluvian badly and so she urges the party onwards, her responses shorter and sharper the closer they are.

Two scouts are waiting for them when they make it to the Hinterlands at last, an elven archer with a healing burn across the whole of one cheek and down onto his jaw, and a human soldier, her hand gripping the hilt of her sword tightly.

"We managed to track them down to a cave," the archer begins. "Tevinter bastards from the looks of things, a few of those mages.

"I swear we saw Red Templars too! They've headed for a cave, difficult to ambush them, had to get the wounded back to camp." The soldier adds, always looking over her shoulder as if expecting the enemy to appear.

"Whatever questions you have, we'll answer as best we can."

[dragoon_pride]

As they meet the scouts, Kain’s already serious expression turns even moreso. He’s faced Red Templars before, and the whole notion of that poisonous lyrium infecting their minds disturbs him deeply. It also means they’re up against some tough foes, but that was something they’d already known to expect. Right, so they know the types of fighters they’re facing, now to find out just how many are lurking out there.

"Formidable enemies… Did you get a good sense of their numbers?"

[arcaneadvisor]

A look is shared between the scouts, the soldier shifting her weight from foot to foot as. There's a quiet moment where they confer together, glancing at between Morrigan, Kain and the rest of the gathered company.

"Half a dozen zealots, at least two mages," the soldier says at last, glancing to the archer to confirm.

"We believe we saw a spellbinder but they're sticking close to the artifact, likely the one entrusted to see it delivered safely. Not that that'll be happening," he hastens to add, giving a grim smile.

"Oh and no gladiators fortunately. Bloody hurts when they rush you with those shields."

"Red Templars though. At least one archer."

The pair fall silent, ready for further questioning and to allow the assembled group to confer amongst themselves.

venatori combat;

[arcaneadvisor]

When the scouts have finally answered their questions and the final preparations have been made, it's time to go. Splitting into two teams seems natural enough and once it's been decided, the reason becomes clear quickly.

Morrigan has been fairly vague about what it is that they're retrieving; large enough to require a wagon, rare enough that she would not see it damaged and yet that still says little. But the Venatori clearly want it and at the mouth of the cave is a rough camp with some chests, a fire, a few rough barricades and plenty of Venatori wandering about. Several mages patrol, along with a decent force of zealots.

Worryingly there are archers. Red Templar archers.

The fight isn't going to be an easy one but Morrigan is determined to get the eluvian back.

[eviscerates]

There are Red Templar archers, but there's also Red Riding Hood archers, so at least that's-- it's something, right? No? Well, a girl has to try. She inhales deeply, picking up the heavy, smokey smell from the fire, obscuring most of the rest, and echoes from the cave.

"I have an idea," Ruby starts, glancing to the rest of Team Venatori (they don't have a cheer yet, sadly) and she's chewing the inside of her cheek, weighing the options. "But I'm not sure if you're going to like it."

A beat as she considers, looking at her collection of spike mines and elemental mines. Maybe this could be nice and easy. Or maybe it'd be a disaster and Emma will kick her ass later.

[dragoon_pride]

It hasn't concerned Kain all that much what they're after, he's just come along to offer his lance in battle, regardless of the reason. But the strength of the forces that are out here is definitely a sign that this item is important and undoubtedly not the sort of thing that should fall into the wrong hands.

Kain is eyeing the Venatori and Red Templar archers. The archers are especially worrying. He's thinking about how they could approach this, when Ruby speaks up. "What are you thinking to do?"

eluvian extraction;

[arcaneadvisor]

Whatever battle rages behind them, the team responsible for extracting the eluvian press forward. There will be time enough to worry later as Morrigan breaks the barrier that seals the mouth of the cave from far enough it could be mistaken for stray magic from the battle.

The passage is narrow, loose stones that can cause a trip or stumble and from the back there's an eerie red glow that might be more than familiar to those that have ventured to Emprise du Lion recently. And there, in the distance, at the back of the cave lies what looks very much like a mirror, but Morrigan knows it and curls her lip in what is still more a snarl than a smile.

After all, there stands an obstacle between them and their prize.

"Blood of the Elder One!" The spellbinder raises his staff, and flames light up the mouth of the cave.

For the eagle-eyed though, something lurks close to the mirror, close to the red lyrium growing from the rocks but the real and present danger is a much more pressing matter, of course.

[arlathvhen]

Beleth has spent most of the trip very compliant and quiet. She skirts around the battle that the other group engages the Venatori in, and enters the cave to collect whatever miscellaneous artifact the strange shemlen mage gathered up for the Inquisition. She eyes the red glow warily, because anything from Emprise Du Lion makes her a bit jumpy lately, particularly that red lyrium. She nocks an arrow, holding her bow down, but ready to fire.

When they finally get close enough to see what it is they've come this far to retrieve, Beleth squawks loudly, more like a startled bird than an elf. She's never seen one in person, but she's heard about them. She's heard various suggestions on what they do exactly (one tale says that they show you the future and then steal your life away, another suggests that the ancients used them to speak--maybe like the sending crystals?), but one thing she knows for sure. That is Elvhen.

"An Eluvian?" Beleth shouts at Morrigan, even as she carelessly launches an arrow at the spellbinder, one that explodes on impact. She doesn't even flinch at the explosion, turning to look at Morrigan. "You have an Eluvian?"

[arcaneadvisor]

To see her eluvian again, even under these circumstances, fills her with some small measure of relief. It was sanctuary not only for her but for Kieran, the place where he grew safe and convenient should trouble brew in Skyhold beyond what they've had to deal with since she had arrived. Her lip curls when she spots the Venatori, when the red lyrium so close to the eluvian feels so wrong and she readies her staff, watching out for where the others are.

Beleth's shout catches her attention for a moment before she watches the floor about the spellbinder glow sickly orange, marked to explode should someone venture close.

"Be careful!" Morrigan snaps back as she sends lightning arcing from her staff, the air crackling. "We are here to retrieve it, nothing more!"

And it nags at her, that there is only one spellbinder here with it when there are Red Templars outside working alongside the Venatori.

bonus: s'up guys, fifteen minutes late with starbucks;

[arcaneadvisor]

The battle is over at last.

The Venatori and Red Templars were good enough to leave their cart and between all of them it's a simple matter to get it covered once again, loaded and strapped down safely for the journey. A chance to catch their breath, to down a few healing potions or chug some lyrium.

Before they can even think about looting the corpses however, something large approaches from around the hill, a great heavy axe in hand.

A Venatori brute, a monster of a man, all gleaming pointed helm and heavy armour, set on vengeance for those slain or simply to do his duty, none can say. Slow though. Slow enough that they can make a break for it should they choose or they can fortify their position and fight.

[ooc: optional mini-boss; if skipped then the eluvian can be hauled the fuck out of there but the camp can't be looted. If fought then the eluvian can be made safe and the camp can be looted.]

[eviscerates]

Ruby is unstoppering a bottle and tipping back some potion, savouring the strange cooling and warming sensation that is has trickling through her limbs, righting some of the echoes of pain and easing the tension in her. The weapons hadn't harmed the Wolf, before, but she does not feel so confident of her relative indestructibility here as she does back home, where silver weapons are rare, and here silverite weapons make her tense.

Point is, she's still holding the bottle when the brute appears, and her hand drops, eyebrows raising in quiet exasperation. "You have got to be kidding me."

It's not like they can just leave him wandering around, after all, and she looks back towards some of the others. "Ready for round two, kids?"

[dragoon_pride]

Settling in and resting are basically the plan… at least until the brute appears. Even Kain had briefly dropped his guard, figuring they were done for now. He’s even got his helmet off as he wipes away blood from a small cut on the side of his face he’d somehow gotten in the midst of things before. He gasps at the sight of the fearsome enemy coming toward them.

“No time to waste!” He shoves the helmet back on and glances around to ensure that they’re prepared, or as close as can be at the last second. “Cover from the ground, I’m going airborne!”

Lance in hand, Kain springs off from the ground, soaring far into the sky above the battlefield...

there and back again; the 'you're always throwing spiders' remix

[arcaneadvisor]

If the Brute was fought;
At last he falls. Strange how much smaller he looks with the life gone out of him but no others are coming and Morrigan is moving quickly, lifting the wrappings to check on the eluvian once again, her face pinched and tight until she seems sure all is well.

No doubt there are wounds that need tending to but there's a camp full of Venatori and a couple of Red Templars, plenty of loot and perhaps even some intelligence right there for the taking.

Leliana might crack a smile.

Return to Skyhold;
You'd think that having her eluvian back would make her happy.

You'd be wrong.

And a fool.

So now you know how Alistair feels, congratulations.