faderift | MOD PLOT ↠ A THOUSAND WRONGS

WHO: Everyone!
WHAT: Assisting with the aftermath of occupation
WHEN: August through Kingsway
WHERE: Field of Ghislain
NOTES: OOC post. Please use appropriate content warnings in your comment subject lines as needed.

The Fields of Ghislain are, as the name suggests, broad open plains, more flat than not, more grass than trees. There are famous orchards around Arlesans at the southern end, but they fade into grassland and farm land, wide fields of wheat and corn separating quiet farming villages and the occasional bustling market town, the even more occasional country estate.

High summer here has always meant long hot days, dusty roads, and preparations for the harvest. Now it also means recovery from the sudden end to the area's year-and-a-half of occupation by the forces of Corypheus. On first glance, the area appears to have escaped relatively unscathed. There are a few burnt villages here and there, a few new rifts, and the scarred valley where the Battle of Ghislain took place, but there are also crops growing strong in the fields and markets open for business, people going about their lives.

On closer inspection, there's more work to be done. The immediate threats are obvious: an unusual number of rifts and the general thinning of the Veil they signal, small bands of enemies—including bands of darkspawn with red lyrium growths—still marauding through the region, isolated patches of red lyrium to be destroyed and Blight to be contained.

Most places have at least one building that's been destroyed by fire or force, some practically essential—a grain store, an infirmary, a watch tower—some invaluable in other ways—a chantry, a mayor's office, a monument to heroic ancestors. Some places showed more resistance than others, and there whole neighborhoods or even entire villages have been gutted by fire and the ruins shoved over like block towers. Some survivors fled and now return to pick through the debris, while others remained, living in shanties in the ashes waiting for a chance to rebuild. Despite the crops ripening in the fields there are signs of malnutrition in many places as well, stories of crops confiscated to feed the invading troops and only meager rations returned, worse off even than those affected by shortages elsewhere in Orlais.

And it's not just the material that the enemy has taken or destroyed. Every decent-sized village has its missing, people who were arrested and taken away in wagons or simply vanished one day out of the blue. Where there was resistance there were executions to discourage it, and while the inhabitants have already taken down and buried the displayed bodies, there are a few places where there is no one left to do so, or where magic placed remains out of reach but always in sight.

There are opportunities too: the enemy lived and worked here for 18 months. They did their best to cover their tracks when they left, but it was a hasty and unexpected withdrawal, and there is a wealth of information to collect and work through. There are houses they occupied that haven't been entirely cleaned out, papers only half-burned in an abandoned office, a storeroom in an outpost basement they forgot to empty. And there are the people who have been forced to live and work alongside them all this time to be spoken with, the names they've learned and the conversations they've overheard, the training exercises held on their village greens, all to be teased out and taken down.

One abandoned operation commands particular attention: the site that Riftwatch—then the Inquisition—observed on the eve of the Battle might be a shrine to the Old God Dumat. At the time this was a newly-discovered ruin and little could be discerned for certain, but during their occupation the Venatori have undertaken massive excavations. They've uncovered not just a shrine but a significant temple complex, much of it underground. Exploration of the lowest levels will be handled by a particular team, but there is more to see and do besides. The warren of ruins and the remains of the camp outside them must be searched for clues as to the Venatori's purpose here, and a preliminary study made of the site's contents. There are also the slaves who did the back-breaking labor of digging out the complex and now need assistance. Many are locals, who simply need a ride back to their homes. Others the Venatori brought with them from Tevinter, and they will need to be interviewed and local communities persuaded to take them in.

It is an unimaginable amount of work, but Riftwatch isn't doing it alone. The Inquisition still has a large number of noncombatants, many of whom have been sent to help with outreach and rebuilding in particular. The Exalted March, too, has plenty of volunteers that aren't exactly fit for the front lines. There is enough ground to cover for everyone, but there will be times when Riftwatch agents will be working with—or at least alongside—those from the Inquisition and the Exalted March, and orders are clear that they are to maintain good working relations and not start any trouble.

In between all of this there will be long rides by horse or cart from this village to that one over dirt tracks with cicadas buzzing in the sun, sweltering afternoons broken up by sudden, drenching thunderstorms, warm evenings playing pétanque on the green with the locals over a pint of cider. There will be as many wary as grateful, but hopefully by the end of the summer Riftwatch can tip that balance a little bit.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

transit.

They are allotted a cart from the stables, loaded with bundles of shingles and an assortment of tools, along with a plodding draft horse to drag it from the stables to the village across the way. The directions were vague in a way Aleksei appreciated: down the lane as far as you can go, right at the bend, left past the crooked tree and over the hill, you'll be able to see from there where to go.

It's an excuse to saddle up Tova, anyways. Aleksei brings her up alongside the cart to make conversation, because what else are they to do with their time? There are a pair of Chantry sisters with their bundles of supplies sharing space in the cart, and both seemingly disinclined to answer either Aleksei's light flirtation or his more genuine questions, so his options for conversation are limited.

"Have you ever repaired a roof?"

Leaning back in the saddle, question posed in such a way that either of the Chantry sisters could volunteer if they were so inclined, even if Aleksei isn't anticipating their input.

"I've heard Riftwatch's work is usually much more exciting."

rebuild.

The Inquisition had sent a handful of dwarves ahead already, though Aleksei's instinct is to say that none of them will be much for repairing burned out roofing. But dwarves are known for their craftsmanship. Perhaps the Inquisition has done well to send them here.

But the destruction is disquieting. What's left of the villagers are going to need to decide what is beyond salvage, and that is a sad thing.

"What are you betting they ask of us? Go out to harvest or try to salvage what's left of those buildings there?"

The sweep of Aleksei's hand encompasses a string of buildings. The fire must have started from the center, and spread. Caught by the wind, or encouraged, it's hard to say. Either way, the damage has been done.

He's never built anything like a lowlander home. But then again, he's never taken in a harvest either. The question is almost a shrug, and the preference sits squarely on their hosts shoulders as far as Aleksei is concerned.

tracking.

"Do darkspawn and Venatori have any distinguishing marks between their footprints?"

Not that these were necessarily footprints, not perfectly intact ones. The ground was just soft enough to mark the passage of some small band of creatures moving through the area. There was a river a short ways away, and Aleksei sighs to think of it. If their quarry makes it to the water, their job would be far more difficult.

He straightens up, brushing a bit of dirt from his hands before looking expectantly in anticipation of an answer.

wildcard.

[ for all your whims. when aleksei isn't making himself useful, he's probably in the nearest tavern drinking, dancing or gambling. alternately, he's bedding down in one of the stables, so he's available to bump into there. ]

“Claws, sometimes.”

Lazar shrugs. Not in ignorance, or indifference — not really. Just disquiet. Some little wiggling sense of unease back behind his eyes, where the thoughts pinch a little sharper.

“Or moving wrong. Got their balance all fucked up. More —” He hunches his weight forward to demonstrate, bulk overhanging itself. “— Tips them over, if they’re big enough. Saw one walked on its hands.”

"Did you kill it?"

Darkspawn are hard to kill, aren't they? Aleksei has been considering that as they walk, humming at the possibility of overtaking their quarry rather than just finding a hole in the ground to throw explosive into.

"They sound like they move slowly, and not very well."

That isn't something that they can glean from tracks though. Aleksei gestures towards the river, meandering after the tracks without explanation.

MOD PLOT ↠ A THOUSAND WRONGS

aleksei | open

tracking;

no subject