OPEN: Bloomingtide Rifter Arrival

[faderifting]

WHO: New rifters & helpful Inquisition volunteers
WHAT: Welcome to Thedas!
WHEN: Bloomingtide 7
WHERE: The Imperial Highway near Sulcher's Pass
NOTES: This log is slightly backdated, so it's safe to assume safe arrival at Skyhold and begin RPing there as soon as you're ready OOC. It is open to any characters who would have volunteered to go welcome the rifters, whose arrival sites can now be predicted, thank you Solas.

You were asleep—deeply or fitfully, for the last time or just resting your eyes for a moment—and then you were not. And wherever you were was not, anymore, replaced by nothing but the sensation of falling, tumbling into endless, bottomless nothing. If this were still a dream, you would wake before you hit the ground. You can't die in a dream, they say. In some worlds.

But there's no waking here, just a flare of green-white light and a jarring impact onto cold dirt and long grass. When your breath returns and the light's after-image fades from your eyes you will find yourself lying flat on stone, squinting up into sunlight and a shifting, blinding green tear in reality.

You are also not as you were: in the palm of your left hand there glows a narrow splinter of light the same sickly green as whatever brought you here. It aches, a bone-deep pain that gnaws even through all the distractions. Like the fact that you're being attacked. Surrounding you and the rift through which you arrived are five massive beings made of fire and molten, veiny flesh, rearing back to throw flames at anything that breathes. But mind your step, getting out of their way: the stone beneath you is the ruin of the Imperial Highway, elevated high enough that dropping off either side or the crumbled gap ahead will not be much more survivable than the fire.

Luckily, you are not on your own. Around you others are rising from the ground, equally confused, with the same green lights flaring from their hands. And help is already here—prepared, this time, unsurprised by your appearance, with armor and a few extra weapons to hand off if you've come empty-handed.

Comments

[eviscerates]

Maybe. Or maybe it was telling me that I should stop sharing stories from my world. ( A little tilt of her head, and she elaborates: ) Merrill was pretty excited to hear about him. I think she might appreciate this more than me, especially after the extra-fun headinjury.

( Ruby grins a little, nodding as she sips her potion. )

Great. It was a really big demon.

[gatheringstorm]

On fire. Don't forget the fire part.

[She grins, then tilts her head to size up the poster.] It doesn't look too heavy. I could help haul that back, as long as I don't need my hands free.

[eviscerates]

Right, on fire. With spikes?

( This could get out of hand. )

If you could, I would be very grateful. I'll be able to carry it sometimes, but an entire journey? Yikes.

[gatheringstorm]

I'll even do it first, so you can recover a bit more from that head-thumping.

[She steps over to test that out, but is pretty certain that she's carried heavier.]

We should try to recover as much as we can from the rifts, anyway. Not an entire fucking tent's worth, but still. A lot of the items that have made it here are things never seen in this world before. That kind of uniqueness ought to be preserved.

[eviscerates]

You're going to become my favourite person, if you aren't careful.

( So very lighthearted, so very self-mocking, somehow.

And Ruby laughs, because she doesn't yet know that this jerk is going to be using so many AC points to torment her with random shit flying her way. Sucker. )

Hopefully these rare, precious items won't cause very many concussions.

[gatheringstorm]

Unless the demons start using them as ammunition, I doubt it. But just to be on the safe side, stick near me when a rift appears and I'll make sure you're covered.

[She doubts Vivienne had this in mind when teaching her how to fortify her Barrier spell, but whatever. It's her call, and she'll protect Ruby/others from random posters from above.]

Favorite person, huh? I'll try not to let that get to my head.

[eviscerates]

Thanks, I'll try to keep that in mind.

( For now, though, she is going to hold the potion back towards Korrin. ) You need any?

( And a snort. ) It's a dubious honour, trust me.

[gatheringstorm]

As it is with me.

[Her smirk fading, she shakes her head.]

Nah, I'm fine. Keep it, in case anything else falls from a rift. If it happens to me, I'll be protected. Might even gore them, if I'm not careful.

[eviscerates]

Oh, God. I think I've fulfilled my walking-rift-target quota for today. Someone else can have that honour.

( But knowing her luck it probably would be her again, honestly. )

Not all of us are lucky enough to have horns, sadly.

[gatheringstorm]

[She grins at that last comment, testing the weight of the framed poster. It's really not that bad, relatively-speaking. Just don't speak of her as a beast of burden and it's all good.]

That could be fixed, you know. I bet Sam or Alejandro could craft a great pair. I've seen that kind headgear exist in Orlais, rarely, but still.

[They're too good to interact with 'oxmen' beyond hiring them for grunt work, but for a fancy costume party? Yeah, it's been done.]

[eviscerates]

Do you think the world is ready for a wolf with horns? It might be a little much.

( These are the real questions of the Inquisition )

[gatheringstorm]

I've heard weirder things, trust me; walking trees, talking darkspawn...a wolf with horns sounds a lot more mild by comparison.

[eviscerates]

One day we're going to accept that weird stuff isn't actually as weird as we want it to be.

( :'| their lives )