[ CLOSED ] THE ANTIVAN CROWS SEND THEIR REGARDS

[ombranera]

WHO: Alistair, Araceli Bonaventura, Beleth Ashara, Anders Detlef, Korrin Ataash, Taashath, The Iron Bull, Twisted Fate, an Zevran Arainai. Guest Starring: Samouel, Cyril, and Merrick, Super Special Guest Star: Leliana.
WHAT: The Crows come for the Ombra Nera.
WHEN: Begins Guardian 6
WHERE: Skyhold/Antivan Border/The Road
NOTES: CW/TW FOR: Flesh hommonculi, violent/gruesome content, torture, blood magic, non-consensual drug use, adult content, adult language, reader discretion is advised. Sign up post, original plotting post, hit me on PM or @ thesouthernbelle if you have questions.

It's a normal morning in Thedas until, abruptly, it isn't. The Crows come calling; they are swift, they are certain, they are silent and leave behind but one witness that won't be alive for much longer (or so they assume). Prize in hand they ride North for Antiva.

Subthreads for portions of the plot are yours to tag around in as you like!

Comments

[justice_is_blond]

The noises, the shrieks and crackling of lightning, the yell from Bull, as well as the whole look of the thing that he'd gotten said this was bad news.

"Andraste's asscheeks. They're not going to follow us out. They're going to fight that thing fully, aren't they."

The tension in his voice isn't due to any dislike or anger. Rather, it's due to worry. He barely knows the people who have hung back, but he can't abandon them. And he can't abandon Zevran either.

"Do you think they have it controlled?" Do either Fate or Alistair know them well enough to say? "If not..." He doesn't know. He's not worn out yet, but he's only done a patchwork job on the most immediate needs Zevran had so they could get him out before they were jumped in the dungeons.

[arlathvhen]

Beleth nods, and tries to look nearly as confident as all the others are. She was a Dalish, she was going to face danger without fear. Okay. She can do this. It's not like eight--nine--lives are depending on her to not fuck this up. And it's not like fucking up is her main skillset. What would her mother do if she were here instead?

Send a letter to the Crows that made them feel so utterly humiliated that they turned Zevran over of their own free will, probably.

Slowly, she gives another nod, as if to assure herself as much as them. Her eyes dart over the three figures gathered there, and then she turns to the stronghold. Bull nixed the exploding doors, so she was going to have to do this the hard way. Crouching down, hanging on what shadows she could, Beleth sneaks on down to the door that they selected. She inspects it a moment, and takes out one of the lockpicking tools from her belt, slowly poking at the lock. After a few moments, she frowns, prods the lock once or twice, then shakes her head.

Silently, she motions the qunari away, and backs up herself, pulling an arrow out of her quiver. Well, they weren't supposed to make more noise than necessary, but when the only other option is disarming the trap by having someone blunder into it...She gets on her knee, steadying the shot, and fires an exploding arrow at the lock.

At the explosion, she smiles, and feels a little better.

[justice_is_blond]

This is a mess. An absolute mess. Better that they'd all died in combat, but there's no fixing that now.

"And what do we do with a group of surrendered Crows who waltzed in and took one of our own?" He's catching his breath and getting a drink of water before getting back to work - he'll be of no use passed out - and maybe he should have just kept his mouth shut. Unfortunately, he's never been good at that.

"Someone who has surrendered should be shown something, certainly, but what else do we do? Leave them here, they come after us. Take them with us, and every time Zevran opens his eyes he sees people responsible for what happened. I'd like to not prolong what he's gone through."

[quietblade]

Growling, Taas follows suit easily and goes for the other side of the beast while Bull has its attention. It was almost second nature to fall into line with another warrior like this, and adding a challenge to that, another way to hack out his anger over this shit? he would take it.

The attacking shades makes it less of a clear path, however, and he's forced to strongarm one into the wall, heaving his axe to see if these bastards could be taken down with a normal weapon or not. If not, he's just going to slam it aside and keep going.

[ombranera]

The noise and rumble draw attention immediately shouting in Antivan from within calling a group of five down from the Ramparts to investigate; it will take time for them to make their way to the caves; but the hornet's nest is certainly stirred.

[foxsays]

Stationed next to Korrin with a hand on her back - though it's unlikely she'd either have a chance holding her back if her temper snaps or that she'd even stop her when she's fairly vibrating herself - she peers around and up at Bull, face about as blank as she can make it.

"He's not big but the longer he's drugged, the more dead weight he'll be." It's not enough time to build up a tolerance, not unless he already has one but give someone too much to keep them under and they don't wake up. From the state of affairs, that doesn't seem like the outcome they're hoping for. "Easier to take a captive when you can make them keep pace."

[quietblade]

Taas turns as his axe is touched, and lowers it a bit as he reads the other warrior's lips. He tenses a bit, but again, it's not really him that's calling the shots here, he's just more than happy to do the dirty work at the moment.

"Fine. Give the murderers, assassins and torturers their quarter."

[ombranera]

"Offer us sanctuary." A girl, curled tightly in a ball dares to look up, eyes flicking from bow to ax to mage. Death is expected. As is torture. Mercy? Mercy is something new. Even if she is fairly cetain it is far from merciful to be spared. Stronger, now, she swallows and forces the words out. "From the Crows. As you did for him."

[arlathvhen]

Three qunari should be enough, and Beleth has seen what they can do. For a moment, she looks longingly at the direction the others have retreated. Every survival instinct in her, the panic welling up is telling her to run, to keep running until everything is behind her. They don't want to trap this thing, they want to kill it, and Beleth isn't really sure if it's even possible.

But she stays, anyway.

Instead of the golem, she works on the shades. She fires volley after volley of arrows at all the little creepy ass fuckers, trying to clear a path to the golem for the two fighters. A few explosive arrows are used, far enough away from the others to keep them from getting caught in the crossfire.

[qunari]

Taas gets a look, briefly, but he's not here to argue his point of view. Doesn't matter whether or not he agrees, only what he does. Anders has a fair point as well...

But that girl that piped up just proved what he'd suspected. Wasn't the first time he'd fought people who'd really rather have not, who didn't have any other choice. Slaves in Tevinter and recruits for the Crows shared more in common than he really had a liking for.

Not to say they shouldn't keep a close eye on them. Bull turns his eyes towards the girl. "...he knows what being a Crow entails. Better than the rest of us. And he's just proven why being loyal to them might not be their best bet."

[qunari]

Shit.

The spray of innards stings like shit, and he can feel the bile burning against his skin. But rather than let that slow him down, Bull spits and hurls himself back at the golem, axe swinging overhead and brought down into the flesh crook of the thing's...shoulder? Close to a shoulder. Likely to contain joints, tendons, weak points.

Obviously gutting it wasn't going to present a problem.

[gatheringstorm]

Korrin snarls as she feels that hex weakening her, but she persists as long as Taas is in sight. Beleth's help is greatly appreciated, though, and she'll take advantage any distraction that provides, swinging her glowing spirit blade. At least her barrier's still holding, and will do so as long as she remains active. All she can do is hope that she lasts longer than the hex does.

[justice_is_blond]

He can't kill someone who has asked for mercy, though, and sanctuary. If she's been held, forced... Anders sighs and shakes his head.

"He has." His stern tone has vanished, become more hesitant. Justice is even torn - if she's been pressed to do this against her will, she deserves an advocate. On the other hand, if she'd had any dealings in what happened to Zevran, where's the justice in showing her mercy?

"How much did you have to do with what was done to him?" The question is directed to the girl that's spoken.

[arlathvhen]

"We didn't offer Zevran sanctuary, that was the Hero of Fereldan. He came to the Inquisition of his own free will, after he had ten years to prove himself." Bull may have grabbed Taas' axe, but Beleth's bow is still aimed at the prisoners. "We're being merciful just making it quick and clean. Think about it--what would they do if they had won and we had been captured? And what are we going to do, if we drag them back?"

She turned to Bull, though her bow never wavered. "Do you want to explain to Leliana, Josephine, and Cullen why we have a gaggle of Crows that were trying to kill us just hours ago? They'll just throw them in the cells and forget about them."

Those nerves that had been getting more and more frayed with each passing day had a new path, and anger given a new purpose--to keep a promise, to give vengeance to one of her clanmates, and her teacher. She's careful in how she phrases everything, however. Calm. Methodical. Sensical. She doesn't want to appear as someone murdering for the sake of murder.

[gatheringstorm]

Upon hearing the reaction from Beleth's shot, Korrin instantly casts Barrier just in case any Crows are closer than they think. Hers ought to last a while, but she'll keep renewing it for the others' sake, to provide them with some protection. One hand grips her staff, the other on her spirit blade hilt. The blade itself will be seen as soon as their targets appear.

[arlathvhen]

"It smells nice." Beleth comments quietly, leaning down to sniff at it, as if to demonstrate. She's watching his body language carefully, eyes fixated for any sign of discomfort. This is, oddly, easier for her to deal with than the stronghold. They're alive, there's nothing to kill, and no risk of her getting others killed. It's dealing with people, and that's what she's good at.

But it kills her that it's Zevran that she has to do this for.

"And it's pretty. Fragrant and pretty, just like you." She doesn't stop leaning against him--he's tensed, but she wants him to associate the feeling of a person touching him with good things. With compliments and happy thoughts. "Remember how you scolded me about how I needed to soak more? Maybe I'll do that when we get back. Even use some of those fancy soaps, so I start smelling like a flower, too." A gentle smile. "You can use them too, if you want."

[gatheringstorm]

Araceli's touch always makes the tension less than it otherwise would be, and though she's too riled up to show that appreciation fully, she darts her kadan a grateful look. The comment makes her sigh and she nods, unsurprised. "Fortunately, we have enough who can more than bear his weight. We find him, gut the rest. They deserve nothing else."

[gatheringstorm]

"Sanctuary? After what you did? Fuck off."

Not at all inclined towards mercy of any sort after what the Crows have done to Zevran, Korrin stares at the lot of them with barely-contained rage simmering in her eyes. Even so, her temper is leagues more controlled than Taas', and she remains close to her Tal-Vashoth friend. She rests a hand on his arm, her glance upward saying that she completely agrees with him even as the result may not be in their hands.

"We could drag them back to Skyhold, but what they ought to get is a round of executions. We might as well save them the paperwork and do it ourselves."

[ombranera]

"...Go." It's rough and ragged, but Zevran shifts his weight more onto Fate than Anders. He squeezes the mage's shoulder once in a weak grip before shoving him back. He is not worth any of their lives, not even a little. He has not the breath or strength to say such, but he can do this. "Go. Keep them alive."

Arrows and ax work well enough on the shades- they burn to the touch and write, staggering and bloodied. Such is the cost of being on this side of the veil. Wounded they press on, driven by rage and pain- those struck with explosive arrows vanish is a cloud of ash and sulfur. Those caught by the edge of Korrin's spirit blade fall back, leaking smoke as a living creature would blood. They circle and strike again until cut down or shot down.

The golem snarls, a wet burble rippling along it's grotesque form in a gelatinous wave; something pops inside it's torso just as something cracks under Bull's blade. It swings a meaty fist around to strike at him as it opens it's many mouths in a pustlent deluge of bile- acidic and explosive in a spray of foul, hissing fluid that smells of rot.

[qunari]

That's one way of ringing the bell.

Axe falling readily into hand, Bull takes to the front, pressing forward through the ruins of the door. Time to see how far the Crows would let them in before converging on them. "Let's move!"

They need to make this look earnest. Press ahead like they have every intention of taking on the entire fortress if it means getting to Zevran.

[ombranera]

This is too far removed from where he'd been from the past however long for him to sort out what he must do.

Then again he had both eyes in the fade as well...

He shifts, slowly, curling an arm around her shoulders. The motion is slow and tentative as though it pains him- and it does in no small way, each little pocket of ache where he'd been cut flaring under his skin long after he'd been healed. But it is Beleth. His little bird.

And she'd come for him.

"I have...a fragrant soap from Orlais. Something that will have you smelling of lavender." Every word is slow. Rough. Whether from disuse or screaming himself hoarse- he can't remember.

The Ride Back

[qunari]

He leaves Zevran to more tender hands for the first few days, though he stays within line of sight. Keep an eye on their backs, making sure no one gets the drop on them on the return journey. He doesn't need to verbally affirm with Zevran that he's there. He just is, persistently.

It's not until the third day rolls around that he sees slivers of the elf starting to surface, even if they're just scraps of another mask. He pauses beside him as they're packing up, eye resting quietly on Zevran where he rests.

"Still here?"

He doesn't ask if he's alright. He isn't. That's plain enough for anyone to see, and he won't insult him by asking.

[ombranera]

"More or less." More honest than he'd like but- any twist of humor he could manage is slow in coming. The worst of the fog is gone but there remains a shaken uncertainty about him. Is he here? where is here? What had they done to him, is this another trick, another ploy-

But not even the Crows could know how he'd come to trust the Iron Bull. He was everything they were meant to fear. Powerful and canny. Fingers stumbling a little over the laces of his pack he tries, for the third time, to knot them. "Does it become easier?"

The eye. If Anders has not been able to mend it by now...

[qunari]

He'd thought so, when he first looked at it. He might not lose the eye, but it wasn't going to be doing him any good from here on out. Not unless the healer had a miracle or two up his sleeve.

Bull sighs quietly. "It's always gonna be a pain in the ass," he admits. "But you got two for a reason. You're still alive. Always room for improvement, then."

Regretting it now was just a waste of time. Thought for Zevran that might be harder to put into practice. He's still got those shakes, still raw on the edges.

"Want a hand with that?"

[el_tybs]

"Cyril!" Oh thank the Maker, he responded. There is clear relief in the sigh he gives after yelling his name, cursing lightly afterward when a guard approaches him as he nears the gate. Sam moves the crystal away at that point, his words loud, breathless, and unclear over the other end as he hurriedly explains his rush and the trouble. There's shouting from the guards after a few moments about tightening the watch before he starts talking to Cyril again.

"It's Merrick-! I need you to get a bunch of blankets and bring them to your room." He had considered taking Merrick to the healing tents, but after being around him and the others it was clear a sense of privacy was much more appreciated, even if he wasn't responding at the moment.