[open]

[katabasis]

WHO: Wysteria Poppell, Flint, & U
WHAT: Catch-all for Kingsway
WHEN: Throughout the month - backtagged and forward dated to your heart's content.
WHERE: Kirkwall, various
NOTES: Wildcards welcome; let me know if you want some specific and I'll pull something together for us.

[Starters are in ye olde subthreads.]

Comments

[foxsays]

"People see that many ships leaving the docks again so soon and they'll be thinking we're at war with someone else. I'm wary of causing any sort of scene, especially when I have no idea how long our guest's presence is going to stay a guarded secret." They've had Venatori get into the Gallows before, she went after one, if she's had a nightmare of waking up to blood in the streets then that's between her, Korrin, and a carefully worded lie about why she's leaning out the window at three in the morning to see for herself that Kirkwall is very much Kirkwall and nothing especially terrible has happened.

None of it is good, there's a resentment at Skyhold handing her this - it's her job, yes, but it's also a fucking nightmare thanks - as her stomach tightens itself into a knot.

"There's not anywhere we can leave it safely. I know pirates. You know pirates. They're as likely to take if they could and we can't, there's an opportunity to learn from it, equally I wouldn't have the Venatori or any Tevinter forces getting hold of it either." Maybe that's an argument she can use even if it feels clumsy but Flint hates Tevinter, she'd not have them anywhere near a conveniently bereft Qunari ship if she can help it. "Kirkwall will have to deal with what's in its waters in the short term for what won't be there in the long term if it helps us win a war."

Not a popular argument to make with the people but there's time to refine it. Probably time to go to Madame de Cedoux with a 'how would you word this hypothetical situation if I had this in my lap not that I do but if a bitch did'.

[katabasis]

Just because it's a clumsy argument doesn't mean it isn't true. If there aren't Tevinter ships - Venatori affiliated or otherwise - to be found in the Amaranthine this very day, then it's only a matter a time. And she's not wrong that they're better served by the dreadnought in their hands than in anyone else's, but--

"I somehow doubt anyone will tolerate a dreadnought's presence in the harbor here. And if Kirkwall could be convinced to abide by it, I can't imagine the Inquisition's friends among the Qun would accept anything other than a very prompt return. So it might be best to settle the matter of what we're meant to do with the thing after its recovery. I imagine that will somewhat dictate the terms of engagement."

To make a very dry joke.

[foxsays]

"Calling them friends is overstating it, I'll have to talk to Coupe and Herian, probably Thranduil and Beleth too to figure out what, exactly, we say about it all. Since it's going to be coming from the Inquisition and I'll need to ask the rest of naval presence their opinions just to get a feeler for it."

Even if she's willing to ultimately disregard bullshit opinions because you don't pass up a Qunari dreadnought but she's trusting the influx of pirates as well as the general ill-feeling towards the Qun to sway opinion to the we're keeping it camp.

"Maybe we need to start looking into having somewhere a little out of the public eye for situations like this, it's not going to get any better in the future. Say we get to the ship, we manage to work out how to sail it, bring it back here, it might give Skyhold ideas. Or there's just having all our ships in one harbour. If anyone decides to torch it then that's our navy."

Kirkwall being Kirkwall it went up in flames twice before the Inquisition showed up she's not made of faith.

[katabasis]

Then as long as she's polling for opinions--

"If it were me, I'd see that dreadnought conveniently disappear somewhere between here and Brandel's Reach and have no further word spoken of it until it makes sense to. What the Qun doesn't suspect we have can't hurt us, but the minute word travels North that we've recovered one of their ships-- there will be expectations then that will do the Inquisition no good in any direction." Either the Qun resents them for keeping it or the Marches do for giving it back. "There must be some place along the coast it might be tucked away, along with whatever other ships you might care to keep secret."

How close is anyone's guess. The Waking Sea isn't exactly known for its easy navigation and he can only make an educated estimate as to the depth of a dreadnought's hull. But seeing as they are currently speaking purely in fantastic hypotheticals, why not?

[foxsays]

"Last time I was in Brandel's Reach there was a Cetus that has eaten a Chantry brother, what waters are safe when those aren't meant to be there." Flint do you regret coming to the Inquisition? (The Qunari, of course, have their own name for those, her stomach sours with the drink in it.) Go investigate this for us and almost die-- on cue the kraken hurls a bone carving out of his bowl. "I might have words with Lady Vivas about keeping a ship of hers tucked out the way, especially if things in Antiva resolve themselves one way or the other. Making friends with the Qun-- on the one hand I can see where the decision comes from, we're short of friends.

"On the other? How many of us would the Qun take without destroying utterly?" And here it is; the part of her that cases the building, watches as many days as she might for the guard patrol to change, climbs up, over, plans her ins and outs. The tide rises, the tide falls, but the sea is changeless-- abhorrent, going against everything in her bones to hear those words said to her face, that belief, that certainty. "Open the door, invite them in, allow them a seat at the table. The door is opened. There's the gap beneath. Where the hinge won't sit right. The space you make so you have elbow room without spilling wine on your neighbour's plate. They disavowed the last Arishok but here we are again, perhaps, and worse. Everyone we ask we have a begging bowl in hand."

She would rather allies who'd have better terms and would fuck them over simply: Llomerryn, Nascere, Antiva, Rivain. Less traditional, more cutthroat, a more delicate dance. Perhaps if they hadn't disgraced themselves they'd have had Nevarra.

[katabasis]

(Regret? He doesn't know the application of the word as well as he should.)

"That may be," he says. It is. "Which is all the more reason for us to make certain decisions before we find ourselves in the position of having tried to pursue both possibilities in hand and having made legitimate progress toward neither. The one way to make unknown waters more secure is by charting them, and the Inquisition - Thedas, even - has neither the time or the resources to split its attention as often as it tries to."

[foxsays]

"All the more pity that we lost our ally in Llomerryn who was meant to give us news of Tevinter though there's opportunity for somewhere closer I think." Charles is willing, more than willing if she judged the look on his face right and if they had a ship of their own in Nascere (she needs to speak to John about it more, still has to introduce herself to Max then see how this lands) but sounding Flint out if they're going through this doesn't hurt. "This is all the Inquisition tries to do. We're one Inquisition, one banner but no single leader, everyone with their own agenda who think their agenda matters more. It's--"

The glass set down she leans back, looks both older and younger than twenty-three in the way you do when you end up doing this sort of thing and you've been here three years and want to hiss seriously at people more times than you can count.

"It's a nightmare at times. The things you find yourself arguing about in the first place. Everyone could do with a spell on a ship to teach them some focus and discipline on working together and getting the job done but you'd want to throw half of them overboard."

(She's being charitable at calling it half.)

[katabasis]

Speaking of why he's here in the first place-- Vane has clearly been loose with conversation. Or the men have talked while they've been in Kirkwall. Or, or, or. Either way, Nascere and there investment in it can hardly be a secret. Still, some flickering look passes over his face at the sideways reference to the place. If Bonaventura is at once older and younger, then for a moment the man in the chair across from her is both heartsick and blade sharp.

He makes no mention of the place. Instead--

"Let them argue then. In the meantime, the rest of us can go about our business while they're otherwise occupied." It all must come square at the far side of things.