faderift | FIRSTFALL RIFTER ARRIVAL

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FIRSTFALL RIFTER ARRIVAL

WHO: New rifters & their rescuers
WHAT: People fall out of a rift and get attacked by stuff, as usual.
WHEN: Firstfall/November 14
WHERE: Somewhere a ways off the Imperial Highway between Cumberland and Nevarra City
NOTES: This arrival log is open to all. Solas was able to alert the Inquisition to the general area where the new rifters would be arriving so people can pick them up. Rifters can then either continue on with the main Inquisition caravan to Nevarra City or be escorted back to Kirkwall.

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.

In this world, when the afterimage left by a flare of too-bright, greenish light fades, you will find yourself landing with a wet smack. There is no avoiding the mud: this rift has opened up in the center of some unfortunate farmer's field, and all his hard work plowing and manuring has now been ruined, first by the rain that has churned it into a thick and especially fragrant muck and then by the arrival the rift itself, splitting the air mid-field and making it impossible to safely plant. And now, of course, there's you as well, tumbling out of the Fade and into the shin-deep mud.

The cluster of demons emerging from the rift seem at odds with the setting, strange stark shapes in this empty space, standing out against the grey sky. Some are tall, spindly stick-things with too many eyes who seem like they should tumble down the hill in a tangle of limbs but instead sink into the snow to anchor themselves and use the long reach of their arms to attack. Some are hunched and hooded with no eyes at all, others mere wisps of greenish light that float over the icy ground. None look friendly or familiar. Also unfamiliar is the narrow splinter of light the same sickly green as whatever brought you here that now glows out of the palm of your left hand. It aches, a bone-deep pain that gnaws even through all the distractions.

All around is more fields, except for an abandoned farmhouse a ways off, beside a windbreak of spindly trees topping a low ridge before the next stretch of pasture. As you find your feet, you may catch sight of a handful of figures in the distance, exiting the farmhouse and hurrying away over the hill. If anyone ventures to the farmhouse, they will find the remains of a camp, and may be able to locate a dropped notebook or what looks like pieces of some unknown scientific instrument, apparently broken in the rush to leave.

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[A slight elven woman in armor is crouching down by her mabari, her staff nearby marking her as a mage. She's adjusting Garahel's collar...or she would be if the mabari, perking up at the sight of someone new, moves more than he should.]

Garahel, stop fidgeting. This will only take a moment, if you allow it.

[Glancing over, she raises a finger in a 'just a moment' gesture, then finishes her work before Garahel can be distracted further. Straightening, she reaches for her staff.]

I am Warden Inessa Serra, leader for the Rifts and the Veil project of the Inquisition. Are you partial to tea? I was about to pour some for myself anyway and certainly don't mind sharing.

[Garahel closes in, sniffing at Adalia and looking up at her hopefully as his tail wags. Friend?]

❰ doggo. adalia is very nearly entirely distracted from her quest for knowledge by the appearance of such a handome dog, but the woman's finger allows for no distractions. it almost physically pains adalia to give her a moment to adjust the dog's collar, but adalia stands with her hnds behind her back and her bottom lip between her teeth, quiet and courteous. when that's finally done, adalia makes to drop to her knees and greet the dog, but all those words — she can almost hear the capital letters in them, and that is very intriguing. ❱

Is there a glossary of terms I can look through? I'm sure I know what all those words mean generally, but I haven't gotten the impression this is a caravan of prisoner's, so I have a feeling you're not that kind of Warden. Oh — I would love some tea, thank you!

❰ now adalia drops to her knees, reaching out for garahel witha wide smile. ❱

Come here, beautiful boy, let me get a look at you! Oh, who's a good boy? Is it you? I think it is!

❰ after a moment she blinks, winces just alightly, and looks back up at inessa. ❱

I'm Adalia, by the way. Sorry, I'm not great at manners.

[Garahel's always eager to make friends and this is no exception. He runs around her in an excited circle before coming in close to nuzzle and lick.]

Welcome to Thedas, Adalia. And it's quite alright, I can't be a dog-lover and deny another the chance to meet my closest companion. Besides, Garahel is a very good judge of character. I'd say he's quite pleased with you.

[Garahel lifts up his head and barks in agreement.]

And there isn't, but there really ought to be. I can explain, however. The Veil is a metaphysical barrier between the physical world and that of spirits, called the Fade. It's what powers our magic, where souls go when they dream...and when they die. You stepped through the Veil to arrive here. That green tear in the air which produced all those demons? That is a rift, a phenomenon existing a little over two years now.

❰ — oh. adalia's heart clenches a little at that totally genuine, totally unthinking welcome, and she avoids looking over at inessa by paying attention to garahel instead. it's stupid that such a little thing should affect her so. people welcome people to new places all the time, it's just what's done, this isn't any kind of special moment.

even if it kind of feels like it is, a little bit. welcome somewhere... ❱

He is a darling and I love him already. I don't suppose you'd let me steal you away, would you lovey? No? Not even if I promised you steak dinners every night?

❰ she grins, finally raising her head to listen to inessa's explanation, nodding along as if this all sound familiar — which it kind of does, in a way. ❱

There's a similar thing on my home plane. I wonder if they're just two words for the same thing... though the Weave isn't its own plane, precisely. You do magic by manipulating the Weave, telling it something is the way you will it to be, with so much conviction the Weave has to listen. Is magic like that here? And what caused the rifts? Are they a natural occurrence, or an aberration?

[Mention of steak has Garahel perking up, and Inessa smirks.]

Now you've done it. I'll have to find him some steak before long, or his guilt-tripping will be unbearable. Such a spoiled mabari, or he would be if he didn't go out of his way to earn it.

[Given his size and build, it's evident that he's a war dog, and indeed the mabri looks rather smug at the complement. She listens with interest at Adalia's explanation, tilting her head.]

Quite similar, then. Mana is a measurement of one's ability to channel energy from the Fade, and this energy is expended in the practice of magic. Just as the Fade can be reshaped by those who have grasped its nature, so can the world of Thedas be manipulated by magic via willing different effects into being. The ability of a living being to expend mana is what defines a mage, and it is an inherent trait. Mages can be taught to control their abilities, but no one born lacking such can gain them.

As for the rifts...they are not natural. An ancient magister called Corypheus created the Breach -the mother of all rifts- in an attempt to physically cross over into the Fade. No doubt he wished to reach the Black City--once the Golden City, seat of the Maker. Instead, he severely damaged the Veil separating the physical world from the Fade, hence the rifts. The arrival of those from beyond subsequently new, as well. We had never heard of other worlds until then.

Oh, darn, well, if that's such a chore I'm sure I could take him off your hands for a few hours and do it myself!

❰ said in that joking manner of someone who doesn't even slightly expect to be taken seriously — she'd only steal an animal who looked unhappy in his current circumstance, and garahel is certainly not that, not nearly. inessa seems like a very kind person, and garahel is a very happy dog, so adalia is happy to just love him from afar.

...afar being up close, at this particular moment.

adalia nods along to inessa's explanations, absently scritching garahel behind the ears as she takes it all in, then immediately begins ticking point soff on her fingers once inessa's finished. ❱

Not two words for the same thing, then, because we have no concept of mana where I'm from, really; anyone can do magic if they study it, but it's hard and people rarely try at it, so most people are just normal; my magic is innate so I'm what would be called a sorcerer in my world, but there are wizards who learn magic through study, I had a companion like that, and warlocks who gain the ability to do magic from "powerful beings" like eldritch horors and fey creatures and suchp.

❰ a deep breath, and then back into it: ❱

I really think we should sit down and start writing ourselves a glossary of terms, because only a few of those concepts meant anything to me. Do you have a quill? Vellum? We should start soon so that I can have it ready the next time a rift happens. How often do they happen, by the way? Are people always pulled theough from their home planes, or can a rift just be a rift, with no one brought through?

❰ you have just been conscripted into helping adalia start a project, inessa, hope you don't mind...? ❱

Hm...I suppose we would be most similar to your sorcerers, then? In that it's an innate gift. The other variations are not applicable, as much. And...I'm afraid that you must exercise caution, using your magic in public. Mages are distrusted and feared, only slightly less as of recently, and explaining why will in and of itself be a long tale.

As for the rifts, I believe only demons emerged until roughly two years ago, when the first rifters emerged at the ruins of Haven.

[So many questions, but that's fine. As Garahel nuzzles and pants happily at all the attention, Inessa gestures back to her area of the camp.]

Why don't I make us some tea while you write? Have you eaten? Camp rations are hardly exciting, but they're filling enough. [Garahel whines.] Yes, you'll have treats. Maker's breath, you're going to have people thinking I never feed you.

Edited 2017-11-17 20:35 (UTC)

❰ the idea of mages being feared draws adalia up short and distracts her from everything else — she even stops petting garahel, she's so confused by the idea. ❱

Distrusted and feared? Whatever for?

❰ magic is totally normal and very useful, who could possibly dislike it? a truly perplexing world this is, where only sorcerers exist and no one else can touch the weave. the idea leaves adalia feeling unsettled — what if elly were here? would she be unable to do magic at all, due to this world's constraints? — and rather than dwell on it, she plows ahead again, focusing instead on inessa's explanation of the rifts, and then her offer for tea. ❱

Tea would be lovely, thank you. ❰ the mention of food comes just as adalia's stomach growls loudly, and she blinks for a second before laughing, embarrassed. ❱ Ah, no, I haven't eaten. Thank you, tea and rations while I work would be great.

[Inessa chuckles and nods, pausing once they reach her tent and ducking inside quickly to retrieve her kettle, mabari crunch treats, and the rations which largely consist of nuts and dried fruit, along with jerky.]

Others are hunting for game, if you prefer something more fresh.

[She ducks back in one more time to retrieve a quill and a blank book. It had been on her mind to use it for her research, but she doesn't mind donating to Adalia's idea. It's not as though she can't get another.

As she starts a fire and gets the kettle ready, Inessa continues.]

We are partly feared for the power we possess that others never will, but some of it also comes with the danger of possession. Everyone else does not remember their trips into the Fade when they dream, but we do. We interact with its inhabitants and some -demons- try to tempt us. If a demon possesses a mage, the resulting abomination can destroy villages unaided. Such instances are few, but feared greatly for the damage they cause.

Contributing to that is the Tevinter Imperium, the magocracy to the north. They were the only country where mages rule...and the only country to practice slavery and blood magic. That hardly sets a good precedent. In addition, it is believe that the Tevinter magisters of old are responsible for the first attempt to physically breach the Veil, resulting in the Blights that have nearly destroyed this world.

[So much can be blamed on Tevinter, honestly.]

This will do me fine, thank you, I was travelling before I fell through the rift. Honestly, this plane is so much like the one I come from it might as well be the same... Up until the moments it very much is not the same.

❰ which is maybe even more disorienting than it would be if things here were completely different. at least then adalia wouldn't be lulled into thinking she could expect the same things from this place as she could at home. she'll stumble over those expectations so much more than she would over an entirely new rule set, she's sure.

the book and quill are received gratefully, and as soon as inessa begins speaking, adalia starts writing. it's familiar work, and though adalia's found while travelling that she's so much more of a physical person than she would have ever thought, she likes this — quill in hand, taking notes on new ideas, educating herself with the assistance of an elder. this was her life for years, and though the scenery has changed, it's easy to fall back into old habits.

she takes down notes without thinking about what she's hearing or writing at first, and only once inessa has stopped does adalia let herself consider and judge what she's heard — if she were to let herself think about it, she wouldn't be able to write fast enough to get it all down without stopping inessa and making her repeat herself. ❱

I have never heard of demon possession before now... Another difference between planes, I think. Why are demons interested in possessing mages in the first place? Is there something they need that only mages can give them? If so, can we give it to them without a need for possession or violence?

❰ a thought occurs to adalia, and she frowns. ❱

Am I susceptible to this? I think we've established that my magic doesn't work like yours, but will that matter to these demons?

❰ slavery is a universal Bad, and the idea of a whole country that uses it makes adalia's face pinch in disgust, but blood magic... that she is unfamiliar with. ❱

Define blood magic for me, please, I haven't heard of a similar concept on my own plane. Also, is that Blights with a capital b? What makes them deserving of such a title?

[Garahel plops by Adalia, inhaling his mabari crunch treat while Inessa explains. When he's done, the mabari rolls over against her, happy to be an armrest.]

What demons want is control over our bodies, our power. They thirst for the waking world, but they also enjoy corrupting us, and each attempts to do so according to its type. A pride demon will appeal to your sense of pride, a rage demon to that corresponding well of rage within you, and so on. In the Circle of Magi, a mage was put through their Harrowing in order to become a full-fledged member of the Circle. This Harrowing consisted of sending a mage into the Fade, to face a demon. If they resisted, they succeeded. Those who failed were not permitted to survive, as they would become abominations. My tempter was a demon of pride, and I carry the lesson learned from that day with me, always.

[The water is nearly heated to her liking, so she ducks back into the tent one more time for some cups.]

I...cannot say if you are susceptible, at least not with irrefutable certainty. That I have not yet heard of an abomination who was once a mage from beyond may be a good sign, but the number of rifters is still very few. We may not know unless many more arrive.

[As for blood magic...Inessa's expression darkens, her tone taking on a slightly forced calm. This isn't an easy subject for her.]

Normally, magic requires mana...or lyrium, if you want to speak of the mineral which mages and Templars can use. Some mages, however, access magic through the shedding of blood. Such magic is often learned through demons, and it is one thing many offer if they wish to tempt a mage with power. Then, too, that practice is addictive and corrupting on its own. If you need more power, your own isn't enough after a while. Tevinter is infamous for those blood mages who have bought slaves only to sacrifice them for some rite. Much of it is geared towards the mental or physical domination of other beings. Finally, blood magic can be used to part the Veil, directly summoning demons into this world. For all those reasons, blood mages are hunted down on sight.

[Her normally calm, kind voice grows cold, lacking any sympathy whatsoever for those mages. They had destroyed her tower, and she can't forget or forgive.

Right, the Blights. She takes a cleansing breath while pouring the tea.]

Blights -which ancient Tevinter mages are also blamed for- are when darkspawn, lead by an archdemon, travel to the surface world, tainting and destroying all they find. There have been five in our history and according to the lore that the archdemons come from the corruption of the Old Gods, there may be two more in the future. Each time, the destruction has been incalculable and world-changing. The latest was ten years ago, in Ferelden. My order, the Grey Wardens, is dedicated toward the eradication of darkspawn and combating the Blight wherever it is found.

Edited 2017-11-19 04:22 (UTC)

❰ again, adalia transcribes without thinking, though when inessa says "not permitted to survive" the scratching of her quill stops, and a look of horror passes over her face. still she presses forward, unwilling to make inessa stop and re-explain anything, though this time it takes her longer to write everything down, and she stares at the book for a long moment after she finishes. ❱

That... that's monstrous. You murder people for being unable to resist temptation when you purposefully put them in the path of it in the first place?

❰ it sounds more complicated than that, adalia can see how that's a simplification, but it's essentially what happens, so far as she understands. sorcerers — mages here are naturally at risk for targeted demonic manipulation, and in order to be a member of this circle, they had to resist or be killed.

adalia would have been killed. ❱

This is voluntary, at least, yes? A mage chooses to join a Circle, and knows what is expected of them? What happens to mages not in the Circle?

❰ blood magic and grey wardens get an asterisk noted next to their notes in the book for further questioning, but this is the more important line of questioning, at the moment. ❱

[Inessa shakes her head. She keeps her voice calm, wanting to focus on the facts more than anything else.]

Membership was mandatory, from the moment magic manifests. I was barely five years old when brought to the Circle, and though that is on the young side, there were always children within. Mages who leave or never join are hunted by Templars, either to bring to the Circle or if blood magic is suspected, executed.

I say this in the past tense, because a scant few years ago there was a rebellion, escalating into a war between rebel mages and the forces of the Chantry, namely Templars. Only the Breach and the involvement of the Inquisition has brought it to a stalemate, as there are now even greater concerns. The matter won't fully be resolved until a new Divine sits on the Sunburst Throne and either revises or reinforces Chantry law.

[Handing over a mug to Adalia, Inessa sits while just holding hers for a moment, enjoying the warmth in her hands.]

Before you ask, I was not part of the rebellion. Despite many aspects of Circle life that ought to be revised or eliminated, I cannot forget what I gained from being there, namely an education. In Thedas, that is a rare thing for an elf. Without the Circle, it would have been a short and dead-end life. When the Circles fell, I joined the Grey Wardens. They saved my Circle tower when I was a child, and I wanted to repay them through service.

❰ this time, adalia makes no move to write anything down, just sits and listens with the pit in her stomach growing deeper with every word out of inessa's mouth. taken from their homes at the first sign of magic... that wouldn't have been so bad for her, she didn't know anything of her family in the first place. but forced to be there, never allowed to leave... ❱

Good, ❰ she hisses, can't help herself, when inessa talks of rebellion. it's impossible not to imagine herself in the place of these mages, these sorcerers who have done no more wrong than be born with a beautiful gift. if she had been born into this plane, instead of her own... even if she'd had parents, here, she would have lost them. she would have been put in the path of temptation, and she would have died, because she can't say no when she thinks selling her own soul might mean being of use.

her eyes raise sharply to inessa's when the other woman denies being part of the rebellion, and adalia's mouth pinches in barely-restrained disgust before she hides it behind her mug of tea. she can't make enemies here, not before she really knows the lay of the land.

...it is rather tempting, still. ❱

Your education was worth your freedom, then? ❰ she responds coolly, once she can speak without yelling obscenities. ❱

[That reaction has Inessa straightening to her full (not very impressive) height and leveling a glacial stare at the woman. Her voice doesn't raise in the slightest, but it does gain an intensity as she speaks.]

So quick to judge, when I have been nothing but welcoming. I am no Loyalist, I do not seek the return of the Circles exactly as they were; why would I, when I was cut off from family which I never saw again? But no elf in Thedas is truly free, not when we are second-class citizens forever reminded that our worth is less than that of anyone else. You do not know what alienage life what like, what we suffered. I do; I may have been young when I left, but it is forever burned into my mind. Would you rather me say that I was grateful for life in the tower because at least that way I was not constantly ill and hungry, or subjected to violence if a noble shemlen was so inclined that day? You have no right to judge me for finding what good I can in my situation.

Who said I was judging? ❰ she was totally judging. ❱ It seems a high price to pay, is all I was getting at. Your freedom, opportunities to matter, a life... Your mages lose a lot, if they're caught by these Templars.

❰ they lose so much more than adalia would ever willingly give up, and enough that she'd fight to the death not to be taken in the first place. security, a full stomach, health — none of that is worth her freedom. that there are people to whom the exchange is acceptable...

ugh. ❱

You used a word I don't know. Shemlen? We don't say that where I'm from.

❰ it's a... probably transparent and possibly shitty attempt to, if not smooth the feathers she rustled, then give them a chance to move past them. better that than making an enemy, right? ❱

[There's a flat stare, of course she was judging.] My point was that some of us were not truly free to begin with, outside the Circle. It isn't as simple you make it sound; opportunities to matter were never going to happen for a city elf.

[Perhaps when Adalia sees an alienage with her own eyes, she'll begin to understand. Inessa tells herself silently that this young woman is new, that there's much she hasn't seen. Perhaps all she needs is time and personal experience to fully understand.]

Shemlen is an ancient elven word for humans. It means 'quick children', as elves were once thought to be immortal, so humans aged very quickly before their eyes. City elves often shorten that to just 'shem' or 'shems', for the plural form.

❰ not with that attitude, adalia almost says, but she bites her tongue. it's true enough she has next to no concept of what life is really like here, beyond what she's been told. there's no way to know what opportunities there are or aren't for these city elves, or what opportunities they can make for themselves, without living in thedas for a while first.

fortunate, then, that it seems that's what she's going to have to do. ❱

It doesn't sound like a very complimentary word, ❰ she says slowly. race politics here are so different from what she knows — elves, it seems, have taken the place of tieflings, and humans and elves were never so hostile to each other in toril. ❱

It's not exactly friendly, no. [Inessa shrugs as Garahel observes them, glancing back and forth as they speak.] Nor is 'rabbit', which at best is condescending, though the the slur 'knife-ear' is almost always a precursor to violence against elves. If you hear that, there will be trouble. If you hear it in Orlais, there will be trouble and those involved will get away with it.

Fortunately, we're based in the Free Marches, more specifically the city of Kirkwall. The provisional Viscount tolerates the presence of the Inquisition, and that gives us some measure of protection. Even so, the city has deep scars from the past. It's not the more removed location Skyhold would have been for newcomers, for better or for worse.

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FIRSTFALL RIFTER ARRIVAL

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