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

Edgard's face which had gone stony at Wysteria's comment transforms into fear at her scream. Edgard jumps and the floorboard groan underneath him. His bow drawn, he shouts at her,

"Is this a joke or does something really have you?"

Her shriek resolves into a triumphant (and distinctly unladylike) cackle as she removes her arm from the wall. Got you says rise of her eyebrows and the distinctly self-satisfied look flicked in his direction.

Though let it be known that playing his own card against him isn't the only reason she's pleased with herself. Clutched in her hand is a small case bound with a cord. Once out in the object, she tugs loose the cord and opens the slim case.

"There we are. Tucked behind a beam. Not to worry, my arm is simply slimmer than yours and was able to reach farther Monsieur. Apologies; I should have directed you to the panel adjacent to this one."

Edgard lowers his bow and initially pouts, pride stinging, but then Wysteria’s absolute pleasure at tricking him gets a laugh out of him. His laugh gets quickly cut off for him to say with great seriousness.

“I will get you back for that one. How did you know that was there?”

He maintains a distance from her, but peers curiously at the case. He raises his eyebrows at her, mouth quirking.

“Shall we take a look?”

"A woman's intuition," she declares firmly, and lest he question her further on the subject she promptly migrates to the rucked up bed so she might dump out the contents of the case on the mattress there where they might both peruse it.

As sworn by the owner, there are papers there and some loose jewelry - the latter being of rather fine quality, if not terribly abundant. Heirlooms, perhaps. Pass downs from when the family was richer and more influential, maybe. After pawing through them for a moment or two, Wysteria plucks out a particularly plain ring and holds it up to the light drifting in through the room's singular window so she might turn it thoughtfully this way and that.

"Everything seems to be as described."

Edgard puffs out air in skepticism and raises his eyebrows.

"It was a little too precise for your intuition."

He looks at the loot on the bed and picks up a necklace with a red gem on it and whistles softly.

"Rich jewelry for rich people. Do you know how many people you could feed if you sold this?"

Edgard knew running errands for a rich man was going to bother him, but not until he saw the items did he realize how much.

"I doubt there is much market for jewels in Orlais right now, save perhaps in Val Royeaux or Halamshiral. So I expect very few. No, the value is all in the favor we might eventually glean from its owners by returning it. A bit of good social credit is worth twice what anyone within twenty leagues is likely willing to pay."

Northern Orlais is all destitution these days, isn't it?

She's still studying the plain ring, turning it thoughtfully this way and that between her fingers and then drawing it near for a closer examination of the band's interior. Hm. Fascinating...

Edgard watches her examining the ring and carries on with a huff,

"Even a little bit of money can feed a lot of people. Even just in this town. There are people starving, I saw them. What good does social credit do them? These people keep these things for what? To look pretty? To let people know they are above them? I-"

Edgard is really getting on a roll here and Wysteria is still looking closely at the ring. It's extremely irritating.

"Why are you so interested in that ring?" He spits the question out like it's an accusation.

"Because it is so comparatively different. I find that sort of thing fascinating, don't you? When something is very understated in an otherwise elegant collection. It's charming."

It's a bright, breezy statement as she turns the ring once more in her fingers. It is also, if the lightness and air of her tone is any indication, clearly not the whole truth. But without further fanfare, Wysteria drops the plain band back into the box.

Edgard pauses and watches her drop the ring into the box. He considers her inexplicably finding it in the wall due to her 'intuition'. He picks it up to look at it. He considers Wysteria a moment. He doesn't have a good read on this person, but she does seem to notice things he does not.

Still holding the ring, he looks her dead in the eye.

"Is there a reason we shouldn't give this back?" He says seriously. "Not to sell it." He clarifies, hoping she'll take his meaning. "If there's a reason, it doesn't have to be in here. Plenty of other items here."

That warrants an alarmed sidelong look and a severe pinch of disapproval in the line of her mouth.

"Are you suggesting that we steal from governing officials if a war torn region with which we are allies, sir? Certainly not. I can think of no reason whatsoever."

Edgard can think of a lot of reasons one might not follow orders or keep objects out of certain hands, but they are not ones he is willing to share with this virtual stranger. He continues to keep the ring, flicking it around his fingers. He looks at her significantly.

"Are you going to tell me what's special about this ring or not?"

She strictly does not meet his significant look, her attention fixing itself on studying the rest of the collection—turning this gaudy ring over, rearranging that strand of pearls, and so on. Best to pack these things back up and be on their way.

"I really could not say."

Which is true. She would have to study it for longer than these moments to decipher the exact nature of its enchantment.

"Now, unless you mean for us to take up residence in this place, might I suggest we gather our things and return to our headquarters? I'm sure there a great many other things to which our attention might be turned now that we've completed our work here."

MOD PLOT ↠ A THOUSAND WRONGS

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