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WHO: Kain and YOU
WHAT: Open post for the month! Dracolisk bonding, dumb parrot bonding, shard… curiosity, cute Warden creatures
WHEN: Earlier part of Firstfall
WHERE: All around Skyhold… stables, training grounds, tavern, wherever the griffons are
NOTES: N/A

[Stables]

[Kain has been hanging around the stables lately, watching people come and go with their mounts. He’d lost his own not too long ago, sadly, so he’s been on the lookout for a new one. There are of course the nuggalopes now, and he doesn’t count that option out. It might be really nice to have a large war-beast of sorts.]

[But first, he makes his way toward a lovely looking hunter shade dracolisk. One who he’s been visiting a lot lately. At the moment, she has no official owner. She’s in excellent shape, her previous owner supposedly did great caring for her, and she’s been looked after very well since too.]

[He holds an apple out toward her.]

Hello, girl… how are you today?

[Training Grounds]

[Kain is going all out with his training as always, giving it his all. He pauses eventually for a short break, stretching and catching his breath. He even takes his Grey Warden helmet off for a moment, shaking out his long golden hair. As he’s doing this, something swoops down from above to land right in the middle of that hair... It's a bird, a bright blue parrot with yellow spots near its eyes and mouth. It screeches a greeting.]

”Andraste’s perky tits!!!”

[All Kain does is simply shift his gaze upward. Maybe this needs an explanation? Maybe it doesn’t. He simply sighs heavily.]

Oh. It’s you.

[Tavern: pick an option!]

[Kain is mostly keeping to himself, drinking and brooding. There's a lot on his mind, even though he's supposedly in here to relax a little. He isn’t the best at ‘relaxation’, but he’s giving it his best attempt. When someone approaches, he’ll react slightly differently based on whether he notices a shard or not (he won’t ask if he can’t see it, after all, he hides his own under gloves).]

[Tavern A. Shardbearer]

[Watching curiously, Kain doesn’t say anything at first. But that distinct green glow is hard to miss.]

Was it hard to get used to? That shard...

[Tavern B. No Shard]

[Kain gives a nod in greeting as the other person approaches. He's perhaps had a few drinks by now, as is evident by the random question.]

If we close the rifts, do you think those shards will disappear from people's hands?

[Wherever they keep the Griffons!]

[Yet again, he can’t sleep.]

[That’s a regular occurrence after the recurring nightmares, which have been worse over the past year or so. This time, Kain gets up and heads off toward where the griffons are kept. He’s quiet as he enters the area, so as not to disturb them. He really enjoys seeing them, finding it especially comforting to see such an important symbol of the Wardens alive and thriving here...]

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That's what we all thought. It was a rude awakening, to say the least.

[Korrin's lips form a thin line, eyes darkening as she recalls what she was told of that night.]

It nearly killed her. I'm just glad no one else has arrived with a shard in their chest. I wouldn't give a flying fuck about it being unnatural or not, if it weren't for the danger to the people who bear them.

[It could always be worse, he supposes, definitely feeling like he dodged a terrible fate by just getting the standard hand-shard as opposed to it landing somewhere else. He nods slowly.]

That's what I mean. It's too dangerous, too unknown... as much as it could be useful to have the powers they grant, who knows what may happen to those with them, in the long-term?

[He knows more or less what to expect out of being a Warden, he knows his lifespan is limited. But will the shard decrease his time further? It would be... helpful to be able to plan for that, if that's the case.]

Believe me, I think about that all the time. I don't know what I can do, but I won't let this go without a fight. If there's a way to stop the shards from ruining lives, we'll find it. 'If' being the operative word. I can't say for sure....

[The thought that she can't guarantee anything twists her stomach and she signals for another drink.]

I wonder who might have those sort of answers... [He sips some more at his drink to finish it, gesturing for another one as well.] It's one of the many unknowns about all of this that we're dealing with. And I guess... it's one which is always here, right beside us in the people who bear them. I just hope it can be resolved safely one day for everyone...

[Korrin huffs as she leans forward.] My guess is the one who has answers is the asshole who caused all this anyway, so I doubt he's going to be the sharing type. He's already proven that we're just ants, as far as he's concerned.

Worst evil magister ever. [Kain sighs, gulping down a bunch of his next drink the moment he gets it in hand.] You ever wonder what'll happen next? I mean... assuming we defeat him. What'll become of the shards, the rifts... what'll become of all of this? The Inquisition, I mean...

[He supposes he'll just go back to serving as a Warden, his path is pretty clear. But he can't help but think what this organization will do, since its purpose is so tied up in the world's current crisis.]

[Drumming her fingers on the bar, Korrin shrugs.]

Even if we defeat him, there'll be a ton of aftermath to clean up. That's not going to go away overnight. Past that, the Inquisition was going to be formed anyway if peace talks fell through, so the fate of mages and Templars will have to be decided. Though it's hard to know what direction that will take without a new Divine. Fuck the system, a Divine shouldn't even be dictating that anyway.

If that's the next task, the Inquisition's work may never be done. Though you're right, there should be a great deal more yet to be accomplished...

[Kain takes a thoughtful sip of his drink. He'll definitely argue in favor of the mages when that time comes, he has more than enough good reason to do so. They'll need all the help they can get.]

Do you think that can change? Having a Divine in charge, the way the Chantry's run in general?

Sure, and maybe my nuggalope will begin regularly farting out gold coins and I'll be made Comtesse of Kirkwall. Change is needed, but there's always pushback even when what came before obviously wasn't working. People hate change and will fight it even when it's to their benefit. A new Divine would have to be truly exceptional to be any different.

[Kain gives a small sound of amusement at her comment, nodding agreement. He's never been the most... devout to the Chantry, even if he'll attend the odd service now and then. So he appreciates her stance. Besides... there's more than one path to the Maker, after all.]

Then let's hope that someone with those exceptional qualities is out there and willing to take on that responsibility. We're already experiencing plenty of upheaval with Corypheus out there, and the formation of this Inquisition in response... who knows, it could be a start to such changes. [Sigh, but what do people do when they're afraid of so much changing so fast?] Or it could just make them cling all the more to the past. Who knows?

I'm pin my hopes on Mother Giselle, who's probably the most reasonable Revered Mother I've ever met...but she's probably trashed her reputation just by throwing her lot in with us. Beyond that, I don't have a fucking clue who it could be. [Certainly not Sister Nightingale or Seeker Cassandra, for the same reasons. Which is a shame on one end, a relief on the other.]

At this point, they could put a nug on the Sunburst Throne and more would get done.

A nug isn’t such a bad idea… What about a bear? They would command authority as the Chantry deserves, wouldn’t they?

[Although he tries to pray to the Maker and he definitely believes in sinfulness (he has countless transgressions on his soul), Kain pretty bad when it comes to following the Chantry all that well. So Korrin’s ideas seem as good as any.]

I hope they get it over with soon, and as painlessly as they possibly can manage.

They won't, not until Corypheus is dead. There's too much chaos, otherwise.

[Which she's privately grateful for, as it means the issue of mages isn't fully decided yet. Then she smirks.]

Personally, I'd go for a honey badger. They're fierce as fuck and don't bother to hide it.

[He definitely sees where she's going with that, and is even vaguely amused in his Kain-way. So he's more dry than serious as he responds.]

So then... it's in mages' best interest to draw out this battle... maybe we can find another evil magister to take his place next, keep it going.

[Yeah, thanks but no thanks.]

That would work too. Or a high dragon. If you want to go all the way with ferocity, there's no better choice...

True, but a high dragon wouldn't fit in the Grand Cathedral, unless it's one of those weirdly miniaturized creatures that Tevinter sometimes makes. And that seems a damn shame to do to something as majestic as a high dragon.

[Korrin shakes her head sadly, not wanting to see it come to that.]

And yeah, I'll pass. Whatever magisters that might still exist, I hope they're still imprisoned or sleeping or whatever it is they do that won't interfere with us.

They would clearly need to build a place outside for it to perch and give commands. [He raises an eyebrow.] You know, all those times I dreamed of my own dragon for a pet, it was never miniature.

[Not even once. He also finds the idea really sad in ways.]

I hope you're right. One is bad enough, but the thought that more could be out there, somewhere waiting to be woken... it's unsettling.

Especially since they're all going to be as batshit as Corypheus, you know it.

[How could anyone become what they are and remain sane? Not possible.]

If they know what's good for them, they'll leave dragons alone anyway. We kill them if we must, but we don't clip their wings like that.

It does seem to be a requirement for the position. Or being one turns them that way over time, who knows how it works?

[Yeah, he's of the same sentiment, really.]

Exactly. They may cause trouble and have to be fought at times, but they're far too... majestic, to alter in such a way. [Even in the old days, they lived in the dragon lairs and not the other way around, after all.]

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