faderift | I LIKED TEVINTER WHEN IT WAS STILL UNDERGROUND

I have heard that, [ Alistair says, from the back, ] about cloves.

[ He doesn't need to look into the chasm. He can picture it, just like he can picture the unnatural splay of limbs and trickling blood of a body at the bottom. Not an ideal situation. But the alternative is also not an ideal situation. The only ideal situation in the Deep Roads is not being in the Deep Roads in the first place—at least not with this much poorly-experienced company. How Cousland didn't get them all killed way back when is a mystery. ]

Someone has rope, right? Someone always has rope.

How far down do you think it goes? Kind of seems like it's endless, doesn't it?

[Newt asks this oh-so helpfully as he stands close to the edge, peering down into the abyss beneath the rather...bare-bone bridge. It's been a long journey, and he's well and truly worn out from his encounters with both bronco and darkspawn. And yet Newt still can't find it within him to be sick of the Deep Roads yet.

He glances back up at the bridge.]

Hopefully sturdy rope.

[ Rey isn't looking down the chasm, rather across it, her eyes slightly narrowed as she mentally steps across the narrow bridge. She's crossed narrower pathways in the Graveyard on Jakku, though those paths were usually not littered with bones. Still, crossing it isn't something that terrifies her. She's fairly certain she can get across. The others... could be another story.

After a moment she shifts, her hand sliding back to her bag. ]

I have rope. Not enough for us to build a better bridge with, though.

[ Hanzo is clearly exhausted; it shows in the shape of his face, the deep dark circles under his eyes, the sharpness of his gaze as he forces himself to pay attention. The quiver on his back has an arrow in it, not in the best condition, and Storm Bow strapped around his shoulders seems to be helping him keep his back up and strong, his attention focussed entirely on moving forward. He has been in the Deep Roads long enough, he thinks, and the need to see the surface again urges him forward.

The bones don't frighten him. Death does not scare him. There's a part of him that thinks, perhaps, it's the only option.

Moving forward, he steps up to the edge, examining it. ]

We must cross. I can go first.

[ If he falls then he falls. ]

Wait—

[ to Hanzo, before he looks back at Rey. ]

We don't need a bridge, but if it's long enough whoever's surest on their feet [ maybe Hanzo, sure ] could string it across so the rest of us have something to hold onto.

[ If it's long enough is the key phrase there. It's not a short walk. But Alistair is not particularly sure on his feet, himself, so if it would work, then he at least would be significantly less likely to plummet down into that potentially endless depth.

Which, thanks, Newt, for that thought. Alistair doesn't know him very well, but he doesn't have to know him well to reach out, pinch the back of his shirt, and pull him back a few more inches from the edge. ]

I've got it,

[ He does. Got it, that is, if it is a length of sturdy rope —

If it is more than a passing idea of how to throw things, apparently he doesn't got that part at all. He gestures for Hanzo's attention. He tosses the rope,

(What, like he's getting any closer to the edge than necessary? Not when they've got a volunteer.)

It cuts a spectacular arc. A winning, picture-perfect moment... as it goes sailing over Hanzo's head and into the dark with the cartoonish scrape-and-slither of falling cord.

If it ever hits bottom, there's no sound. Isaac stares after, a long moment to perhaps reflect on one's life choices, before he turns to Rey: ]

She's got it.

[ They can unclip from the back, one at a time, if they run short. ]

Edited 2018-08-23 15:29 (UTC)

[ Rey watches this exchange with mute horror on her face, so stunned that it doesn't even occur to her to try to catch the rope with the Force until it's well out of sight. ]

Did you just-

[ Her voice is pitched higher than usual when she speaks, and she doesn't even finish the sentence, shaking her head instead, a look of absolute befuddlement on her face. Reaching into her pack she pulls out the coiled rope she'd brought along, keeping a firm grip on it. ]

I don't think it's long enough to reach across the entire chasm. Maybe halfway.

[ Hanzo just stares, watching the rope go flying, moving and falling into the chasm below. For a moment he doesn't know what to do or what to say, his voice caught in his throat. Of course this would happen. Of course this would be what happens to him, trapped in the Deep Roads, rope falling over the edge.

He takes a deep breath, closes his eyes and then relaxes. ]

I can cross and shoot it so that you have half a bridge, but no more. This is our only option.

[ Turning his head, he glances at his quiver. One arrow. He could make the shot without question, but... ]

I am happy to walk the whole way alone. I can judge how difficult it is and report back.

[Jester snorts. Her mouthful of pastry means that she also sprays crumbs everywhere.]

Oh, jeez! You are all such babies. It is just a skinny teensie-eentsie-weentsie bridge with bones all over it, over a big big really deep chasm into nothing and nowhere! What is the problem? I could skip across that thing!

I'll go with you-- [to Hanzo. She brushes crumbs against her skirt and petticoat, and holds out her giant quanri hand to him.] Here! If you hold my hand, you will also get a blessing, so we can be sneaky, and whatever put all those bones there won't even know we are crossing, okay? The Blessing of the Trickster. It is a really really good blessing, man. And I bet you are a really really good shot, right, everyone?

[Everyone, right? She looks significantly around at the rest of their party.]

So there is to-tally nothing to worry about. And I can tell you guys if it is difficult too. You should always get two opinions on stuff. That is like, the basics. Okay?

[And with that, Jester steps toward the bridge, whether or not Hanzo has taken her by the hand and accepted the Blessing of the Trickster.]

[It's not the first time that someone has had to grab Newt by the clothes to prevent him from tumbling into a seemingly endless abyss and it surely won't be the last. Not in his lifetime, either here, or back home. He collects trouble and danger as readily as he does stray creatures. That he lacks his creatures here in Thedas makes him much more of a target for trouble.

He turns to Alistair, offering a sheepish smile.]

Er, thanks for that.

[He follows the rope as Isaac tosses it, his gaze matching the trajectory of it as it disappears.

Well. So much for that option.

He listens to the conversation happening around them, considering.]

I can use my wand to provide some light, if that helps.

[Normally, Newt would offer to go with Jester and Hanzo both. Except even he isn't foolhardy enough to try such a venture, not after his rounds with bronco and darkspawn both.

He also isn't sure how long he'll be able to provide light for them, given that he is fairly exhausted.]

Edited 2018-08-23 23:28 (UTC)

[ For a moment, Hanzo is completely baffled. For a Qunari to come up to him - obviously Tevinter, obviously part of the world that they loathed, that they had been at war with - and offer a hand is something that he had never, even for a moment, considered a possibility. Every instinct inside of him is telling him that he ought to reject her outright just because of who she was, but... If he did that then he would be making a fool of himself.

The Inquisition had not rejected him, after all, and these ones had even come to help save him.

Ignoring all the instinct that is telling him to ignore her and brush her off, Hanzo nods his head and moves forward, hesitantly reaching out and taking Jester's hand. He's not entirely sure if he ought to feel any different, but he doesn't focus on that - he focuses on anything else, trying to ignore the fact that it's a Qunari and he's a Tevinter... Something.

Something not worth thinking of. ]

Any light would be welcome, [ he admits, moving forward. He can see well enough, but even his good vision can fail him in completely darkness. ] while she and I cross. We can report the dangers if you all wish to wait.

[ And he's off, starting to make his way across the bridge. ]

[ Rey had opened her mouth to volunteer to go across with Hanzo, but then Jester called them all babies and volunteered herself, so she just presses her lips together, leaning back on her heels and watching as they start to cross.

After a moment she pulls her lightsaber from her belt and ignites it, adding the glow of the plasma blade to Newt's wand. The light isn't exactly going to travel all the way across the chasm with them, but it will help them not die for the first few feet, at least. ]

Do darkspawn cross these bridges? Seems like an inconvenient way to get any number of creatures from one place to another.

[ This is really unfair. Croissants remind d'Artagnan keenly of home, and when they'd first been unveiled, he'd grabbed one immediately. He'd quickly regretted it; old, stale, and overly sugared, this is not what he needs after days in those tunnels. On one hand he should be grateful for any kind of food.

On the other hand, he's still d'Artagnan. God knows he can put up with an empty belly for a little longer. ]

No, thank you. [ He puts a hand up, trying not to seem rude. He probably seems rude. ] Save it for the others, I'll be fine. Not that I don't appreciate it.

[ For the barest moment, he thinks they'll safely rope themselves across. Then the rope is gone, and Hanzo has volunteered for heroics, and every second that passes makes this seem less wise. ]

At least use what rope you can. If you fall--

[ He turns to look at Newt, frowning. Are you a wizard or not? ]

Surely there's some magic that can make them safe. I didn't make it out of those tunnels to be beaten by a bridge.

Yeah, I have the magic!

[Some magic, anyways. Magic that, at a touch of her hand, has now given Hanzo extra sneakiness. Safe-bridge-crossing, not so much. But that's like psychology, isn't it? Believing it can make it happen. The Trickster's Blessing feels like a warm tingle where their palms are pressed together, and spreads quickly up his arm.]

Don't even worry about it, you guys, we are totally, totally going to be fine--

[Hand in hand with Hanzo, Jester takes her first step onto the skinny bridge, and then her second step. The wavery glow from the magic wand and the cool glow from the glowing sword gives them a little light to see by, as they start inching across the deep deep cavern.]

One foot in front of the other, and then we are on the other side...

I will not fall.

[ Not because he is hand in hand with a Qunari, of course, but because he is a Shimada, and they do not fail. He had carried that for his entire life; he knows who he is, what he has done, what the world expects of him. He knows what he must do - and he also knows what the Inquisition expects from him. His position is weaker, now, with secrets revealed, and he is on edge, desperate to prove himself as worthy without risking the depth of all his secrets.

Hanzo moves with Jester without pause, the bow on his back strapped on tight, but giving a faint, light glow. It's barely enough to be noticeable, but Hanzo sees it and hisses. ]

As fast as you can.

[ Pause. ]

Please.

[ Before his spirits spoil everything. ]

[Newt watches, holding out his wand as far as he's able to. He keeps his face stoic, though, internally, he has a plethora of doubts about just how much that particular bridge can handle.]

That's the spirit.

[He turns back to d'Artagnan while keeping his wand arm steady.]

My magic doesn't always work, here. And I only have so much energy. I will do my best but I don't want to make promises I can't keep.

[And by 'do his best,' Newt absolutely does mean that he will jump after them if they fall, if that's what it takes.]

Well, [ Alistair says, ] if you can promise not to throw that—

[ what is the word ]

—staff—

[ clearly not a staff ]

—wand off the cliff, then you'll be doing well, apparently.

[ He looks at Isaac, sidelong, with his eyebrows raised—not quite inviting him in on the joke, not quite that nice, but inviting him to take it well, at least. Probably everyone won't die. Or, if everyone does die, it won't be because of the rope. Probably. ]

[ D'Artagnan still has his doubts that any part of this is a good idea, and now he watches their progress across with bated breath. He'd made it through those tunnels with Hanzo. If something happens to him now--

Of course that means his eyes are on the man when his bow starts glowing, and he leans forward with a frown. ]

Wait. Should it be doing that?

[ He looks at Newt, who he's newly established as their expert in all things magical. ]

That's not you, is it?

[ Hanzo is doing his best to appear nonplussed about the glimmer that Storm Bow is giving off, but he is not as successful as he might like, he thinks. He knows what is happening, of course; his spirits are reacting to the danger he is in and warning him to be careful.

Warning him with light. In the middle of the Deep Roads, which are pitch black.

He could curse.

He grits his teeth before he speaks, shaking his head, letting his voice carry back. ]

The bow is enchanted. It is meant to do that, on occasion.

[ And he sounds a little bit like he's trying to scold something. ]

I might be able to catch one of them if they slip, but not both.

[ Rey offers, glancing over at Newt, fairly unphased by the glowing bow. Shit glows around here sometimes, she's just used to it, now. ]

So if both of us are on alert... they should get across in one piece.

[Newt arches an eyebrow in the general direction of the glowing bow. He knows only a little of how enchantment works here, and so it doesn't seem as odd to him, the bow, as, perhaps, it ought to.

Still, he can't help but comment wryly at the sight of it.]

The extra light seems useful.

[He turns to Rey and nods. It's a better plan than having none at all.]

Sounds good to me.

[Newt turns back into a steady position, wand at the ready, in case he's needed. He can, at least, try, even if his magic proves useless in the end.

But, of course, he can't help but turn back to Alistair with a response.]

Not the lowest bar for me doing well, but close enough, I suspect.

If all goes well, you may not even be tested.

[ Let's hope, anyway. He would rather not have to rely on someone else's magic to get him home, no matter how reliable it may be.

He folds his arms, watching the pair of them with concern. ]

I LIKED TEVINTER WHEN IT WAS STILL UNDERGROUND | Closed

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