Into the DANGER ZONE

[faderifting]

WHO: All Rifters + the 7 natives who signed up
WHAT: Searching the ruins of Haven for survivors, an Inquisition crew finds something strange. And demons. It's kind of scary that the demons aren't the strange thing.
WHEN: Third week of Harvestmere, 9:41
WHERE: Haven
NOTES: We've broken rifters and rescuers (or "rescuers") into two groups. This log has an arrival comment for each group--you can start smaller subthreads beneath those rather than try to have an eight- or nine-person log, just incorporate surrounding chaos/fighting--and a third top-level set for the whole group's journey back to Skyhold

You were asleep-- deeply or fitfully, for the last time or just resting your eyes for a moment-- and then you were not. And wherever you were was not, anymore, replaced by nothing but the sensation of falling, tumbling into endless, bottomless nothing. If this were still a dream, you would wake before you hit the ground. You can't die in a dream, they say. In some worlds.

But there's no waking here, just a flare of green-white light and a jarring impact, barely softened by snow that lies a foot deep with an icy crust that cracks beneath the force of your landing. The wind is biting cold, the sun is bright, and you are not alone. Others thud to the ground nearby, as bewildered as you, and others run up who look no less confused for having their feet beneath them.

You are also not as you were: in the palm of your left hand there glows a narrow splinter of light the same sickly green as whatever brought you here. It aches, a bone-deep pain that gnaws even through all the distractions. Like that you're being attacked by monsters, some tall, spindly stick-things with too many eyes, some hunched and hooded with no eyes at all.

Welcome to Thedas!

Comments

GROUP 1

[faderifting]

(Group 1 includes: Korrin, Beleth, Lucan, Martin Walker, Barbara Gordon, Yuna, Martel, Araceli)

Haven's destruction was total. Between the battles with demons, templars, and mages, the corrupted dragon Corypheus unleashed, and the avalanche that finally ended the fight and covered the Inquisition's retreat, what was once a small town is little more than charred and broken remains, large portions of which are buried.

But it is far from abandoned: pilgrims and gawkers still come to see the place the Herald of Andraste rose and fell, recruits, agents, visitors and suppliers pass through on their way to Skyhold, and the Inquisition itself has not entirely abandoned the village they destroyed. Teams work to clear debris, to salvage what materials and supplies they can, to find the dead and give them proper send-offs. All those who fell that day deserve rites, but they search especially for the Herald. With an official state funeral scheduled in just a few days' time, the hunt for her remains has intensified, and anyone who can be spared has been sent down the mountains to clear snow and rubble. That includes you.

There is a rift near the edge of town-- almost dormant since the Breach was closed, and guarded by another small team of Inquisition members, just in case. Someone up the hill in Skyhold had the brilliant idea that maybe it still being there has something to do with the Herald, so you've been asked to search this quadrant first. There hasn't been much to see so far, your biggest find a barrel of nails. Useful, sure, but not exactly exciting.

And then the rift nearby crackles to life, all of a sudden. Demons spawn out of it in arcs of green light-- a half-dozen wraiths and terrors, and a despair demon, and you can see that more have arrived on the other side of the hill by the guard team, but rubble and monsters both bar your path. And instead of stopping there another wave comes immediately, and this time the creatures that are spat out are like no demon you've ever seen. The rift claps shut behind them and dissipates with a swirl of green light like smoke.

Beleth Ashara

[arlathvhen]

Sorting through the rubble was a rough, thankless job. Certainly not what she'd signed up for, though the importance of it was enough to keep her from mentally grumbling too much. Those who died deserved to be honored, to have their bodies receive the proper rites. That is what Beleth tells herself as she digs out a box from the snow, filled with--wait for it--more snow.

She gives the box a much deserved kick, right as the crackling of the rift starts, earning an undignified squawk and jumping backwards from the box. But the true culprit is easy to figure out. Demons aren't exactly subtle. Within a moment's breath, she's got her bow out and strung, firing at the demons. She only pauses to beat a quick retreat to a safer distance, hopping on top of a pile of rubble. Ha, now she's tall. Not that it would really do much to keep her out of the reach of the demons, but it was better than nothing?

"DEMONS. WE'VE GOT DEMONS, AND--" She squints at the creatures that fell through the rift, then shakes her head, turning back to the others. "--PEOPLE-SHAPED DEMONS...?"

[shocktroops]

Lucan had been shifting through rubble for weeks prior to his arrival in Skyhold so this particular mission was nothing tough but necessary. He had been tossing a small pile of flatten rocks off into a nearby snow drift as a way to break the monotony when the air begun to feel heavy. For a second there he almost swore it tasted funny to, but the thought was not one he could continue to dwell on as the the rift sparks to life.

There's a loud smacking pop as he draws on his own magic to step to Beleth's side on the ground below. His fingers are quite to reach to his belt where the hilt of his spirit blade rests. "I'll take care of the ones that get close, keep the rest off me."

Demons are bad enough, the people shaped ones will have to wait their turn.

[arlathvhen]

Lucan nearly gets in arrow shoved in his eye for his efforts, Beleth just about jumping out of her skin when the mage suddenly appears next to her with no warning. None of the Dalish mages ever did that. Luckily, her skin stays attached to the rest of her, and she manages to reign in enough control that he just gets an arrow pointed at him, but not fired. Once she realizes that this isn't some new demon, she quickly ducks her head apologetically.

"I'm so sorry, ser, I--Well, the demons--" Once she was sure she had stammered and was apologetic enough that the human probably wouldn't get mad, she nodded to him, and pulled a vial from her belt, pulling the cork off with her teeth. An insidious smell came from the vial, which Beleth didn't pay attention to, instead grabbing her arrows, and dripping the liquid onto their heads. She turned to Lucan, putting away all but one of the arrows.

"Alright. Just be careful." And with that, she took a shot, sending an arrow right at one of the terrors.

[shocktroops]

"It'll be fine." Lucan is quick to encourage Beleth with softer words that did not match the bitter expression on his face. The sourness is not due to any anger he might have towards her, but rather the demons that had so suddenly appeared. They were a danger to all and he could hardly blame the hunter for their appearance, but it was their duty to see them defeated.

Reaching back to pull the staff from it's place upon his backside with his right hand while his left snatches the hilt from his belt he begins to concentrate on the moisture in the air around them. Not knowing when or if anyone else from the second group would be able to meet back up with them, Lucan's goals quickly became clear. In the near distance between the outcropping of rubble where Beleth had perched herself and Lucan stood a thick wall of ice erupted from the ground to serve as blockade.

Knowing it would give the hunter the time she would need to nock her arrows, Lucan focused his energy on conjuring his spirit blade into existence before stepping forward to charge the closest enemy in their path.

[arlathvhen]

Well, that was handy. With the extra time afforded by the blockade, Beleth felt comfortable enough to sink to one knee, carefully aiming her arrow. With the added care, and the poison she'd poured on them, the arrows were seeming to do a decent amount of damage. She couldn't fire them rapidly like this, but each one hit, and each one hurt.

And each time, she aimed towards whatever got closest to Lucan. It made her...pretty nervous to have a mage just waltzing out into the thick of the fighting. Dalish mages stayed behind the line of hunters, safe from attacks--if her brother had tried jumping out like that, she'd have had a conniption. But the odd sword that formed in Lucan's hand made her suspect that it wasn't as suicidal for him.

Well, hopefully. She continued letting arrows fly out at the demons, face tense. At least it was more exciting than shoveling snow around.

[shocktroops]

Beleth would soon learn that not all mages were content to cast their spells from range. Since his magical abilities manifested as a child he had always felt like he had little to no control over his powers and while surviving his harrowing had helped to boost his confidence it was not until Lucan begun his training as a Knight-Enchanter did it all feel right.

With a spirit blade of white and blue pure energy solidified in his left hand and his staff in his right he steps forward and the entire world becomes a blur as he advances across the battlefield with the aid of even more magic. Beleth will catch only catch site of air and smoke trailing in his wake before he appears with his blade poised to strike his first target.

The spectral wraith form is cleaved apart with one swing of his magical blade that causes it's ghost like body to break apart in flecks of black-green ash that vanishes back from the rift it came. Before the demon has vanished completely Lucan has already turned with a spell prepared and as soon as his staff is brought forward a blast of cold wind carries the spell forward and connects in a brilliant array of ice and frost that envelops the next wraith until it's frozen in place.

yuna (rifter) | any format welcome!

[fayth]

The first thing she became aware of was the sense of falling. Rather, it felt sort of like being hurled along some nameless space, up until the point she made hasty contact with the ground. The snow around her kicked up with the force of the impact where she laid for a moment more, face down.

When she lifted her head, eyes finally opening, she had to squint at first, the brightness too harsh, but eventually diminishing... just in time for a terror demon to come into view. Scrambling to her feet, Yuna reached for her staff, which she was lucky enough to find just beside her, retreating slightly while she made an attempt to get her bearings.

As she looked from side to side, she had hoped to see someone familiar, Lightning? Tifa? But she saw no one she could recognize... and to make matters worse, they were apparently in the same demon-facing predicament she was in.

Turning back to the approaching threat, who screeched its unholy scream, she found her resolve, tightening her grip on her weapon. "Ifrit!" she called, waving the staff in conjunction, but... the aeon didn't come. A fear began to rise in her chest as she took another step back, "V-... Valefor!" her call was going unheard!

Her heart began to beat faster and faster -- what was going on?! Spinning on her heel, she needed to retreat, figure out what was going on with her magic, and broke into a run. Only... she didn't manage to get far at all as the demon, appeared right in her pathway again, knocking her back off of her feet in surprise.

With a large downward arc, it moved to rake it's claws down in the direction of its prey.

[shocktroops]

[Just before the creature's claws can come down to rend a glistening blade of brilliant blue and white light is thrust forward to block the oncoming strike. The demon responds with a shrill shriek that echoes out and into the back of your mind, but Yuna's savior is quick to turn the blade before sending it back to the creature.]

Begone!

[The spirit blade cuts through the demon's flesh like a hot knife against butter, ichor thick and vicious pours from the body of the beast briefly before it's entire being begins to disintegrate as it is banished back into the fade. With just one monster among many defeat, Lucan turns his green eyes downward and on to the young woman.

Out of caution the blade is turned on her next.]

What are you?

[fayth]

( the air seemed to be trapped in her lungs as the scene unfolded in front of her, but the wave of relief she felt at the creature's disappearing was short lived. still from her spot on the ground, her mismatched eyes turned towards the tip of the blade that now pointed towards her. how... could she possibly answer a question like that? ) I...

( but that was when the pain set in. deep and burning, her staff forgotten as it dropped from her hand, she grasped at her left wrist, wincing. slowly, as she turned it over to show the palm, the sparkling green of the mark came into view.

looking up at the man that had saved her again, her face was contorted with a mixture of confusion and discomfort. she didn't quite know how to answer his question still, and so instead, asked one of her own... ) What... is this place? Where am I?

[shocktroops]

[Lucan watches carefully as the young woman stares back and the look in her eyes is enough to send a shiver down his spine. The fear and confusion in Yuna's expression is one he has seen countless times before when facing down some of his past assignments.]

Maker's breath...

[Whatever witty follow up he had prepared to say was lost the minute the pain took hold and the green glow became visible. Was that the mark? The question comes to him instantly and unable to resist he reaches out with his free hand to take hold of Yuna's left arm. He draws it forward more roughly than he might have if they were not still surrounded by a few other demons to get a better look. Rumors had spread everywhere about the Herald and her ability, but Lucan had never seen it for himself and from what he could see during this quick glance was strangely similar.

By now the creatures on the battlefield are still moving and out of the corner of his eye he catches the movement of a shadow. He lets go of Yuna and motions to her staff on the ground.]

Questions like that will have to wait, my lady. When demons are not trying to kill us.

[fayth]

( that tug of her arm was enough to get her back up to her feet, where she now looked him over, searching his face for some sort of explanation that he likely didn't even have.

really, she's just grateful not to be on the receiving end of that sword any more, the tension in her shoulders relaxing just slightly as she takes her hand back from his grip. catching the same movement he must have in her peripheral vision, her head turned towards the approaching threat.

with a quick swoop to the ground, she gathers up the summoner's staff again, holding it out in front of her in a protective stance and instinctively moving closer towards him.

demons. is that what they were? )

I-- I can't summon here. ( it probably didn't make any sense to lucan what she meant by that, but yuna felt compelled into honesty all the same. with a half step back, she was just slightly behind his taller form. maybe it was time to try something different... )

Protect! ( -- she cried, raising her staff in the air, her spell crackled to life, a hexagonal barrier forming into a sphere all around lucan. well... it was something, at least... )

Lucan Aslin | Open to All

[shocktroops]

[The light around Lucan glimmers with magic as he erects a disruption field around him and two of the tallest demons on the battlefield. He managed to clear a path, fade stepping to advance himself in the battlefield when he caught the arrival screeches of the Terror Demons.

The Knight-Enchanter has faced them before and their tactics of opening smaller rifts to bounce around the battlefield make them unpredictable and deadly. In this instance he doesn't want to give them a chance to even start moving and as the field of magic expands out to encompass himself and two other demons he is quick to yell back for additional assistance.]

You have 10 seconds.

[With his movements unhindered by the field the spirit blade hilt in his hand is swung in a hard downward arc in hopes of sending the at least one of the monsters to the ground.]

Korrin | OTA

[gatheringstorm]

Korrin is on the quiet side while helping out around the remains of Haven. That last night is still fresh in her mind, and it's not as easy to focus with such memories intruding at every turn. So, she skimps on conversation and focuses on her task of energizing debris in silence, allowing others to retrieve supplies or dead as they're uncovered. Her work is brisk, in the hopes that the sooner this is done, the sooner she can leave.

She's not too far away when the rift erupts with that loud crackle and flash of green light, spewing demons everywhere. Turning from her work, the qunari mage scowls as she instantly speeds over (thank you, Fade Step) to her nearest allies and casts Barrier over them as well as herself. "I knew something was going to happen here. Fucking knew it."

She frowns at mention of people-shaped demons, which...makes no sense, but there's no time to stand around and wonder. Cue a Chain Lightning spell for the demon-shaped demons.

[sandsofhell]

Walker has seen a lot of things in his life, this was all new to him, dreamlike almost. He would almost mistake it for a lucid dream as well, if it wasn't for the feeling of cold wind against his exposed, sun-burnt skin, or the pain that he felt in his hand.

It wasn't like he wasn't holding his own, he might have lacked his firearms, but his knife still got the job done whenever he was able to get close enough to one of the creatures. That or they made the mistake of treading too close to him. And as beat up as his armor is, it was still durable and able to stand up from most physical attacks that were thrown at him.

Then another flash of light caught his attention. Did that...woman? He thinks that's a woman, they look female and humanoid enough, sans the obvious height and horns. Just conjour up what looks to be lightening?

This certainly takes the cake for a whole new level of weird. But at least she wasn't trying to kill him...yet. He couldn't let her get the chance either. Not knowing where he is, who the people and creatures around him are and feeling a tad cold, but he also didn't feel like making any enemies either.

Besides, they at least seemed to have a common enemy, so in sign of solidarity, he moved to swiftly sneak up behind one of those large, green creatures with deformed mouth, and hit it in the back of one of it's knees to bring it down to a more comfortable level to knife.

[gatheringstorm]

Good, the new person from the rift isn't completely defenseless. Well, for now that's good. Hopefully they're not hostile outside of fighting demons, but Korrin will take what she can get. She whirls her staff around, keeping a defensive stands as she fires away at it from a greater distance. Most mages don't go toe-to-toe in combat and she's no exception.

The shriek that demon makes causes her blood to run cold and Korrin scowls at yet another reason to hate the Maker-damned things. Those terrors couldn't be killed fast enough for her liking. She raises her staff again, ready to summon a lightning bolt, when one of those spindly demons phases in behind her and knocks her flat on her back.

"Vashedan!" Korrin's barrier allows her to absorb those blows as she moves to stand, upon which she locks the creature in a sheet of ice, freezing it in place. "Now, while it's stuck!" That won't last long, and in seconds it will break free.

[sandsofhell]

He doesn't waste a second, while the show that she's displaying looks like it's straight out of Hollywood, it could wait for now. Though the snow did slow his movements, his body has been forced to pull itself through far worse areas where just walking was difficult at best.

In an instant, he feel upon the damned creature, blade flashing out dangerously. The tip hitting home, slicing into the creatures flesh before sliding it out and moving on to wherever the next target would be.

"He's down, next!" Killing comes as easy as breathing to him, and that should probably be considered self-evident.

[gatheringstorm]

Korrin responds to that with a sharp nod, her estimation of her current fighting partner rising. This was no place for civilians, not now, and every moment counts, since she can't be certain anyone else who suddenly arrived knows how to defend themselves. One more down, several others left to go.

In light of that, Korrin decides to go for spells that affect more than one at a time. As a despair demon approaches with wraiths in tow, she brings forth Chain Lightning again to damage and stun them. That ought to buy the man with the blade enough time to get in a least a few good blows.

Martin Walker -Rifter- OTA

[sandsofhell]

He had only nodded off, his body was tired and felt like it could fall a part at any second. Then a flash and he woke up swiftly, his body still feeling the stress from his previous excursion. Almost instantly his body was hit with the feeling of cold ice flurrying around him as he unexpectedly found himself acquainted with the ground.

Snow, this was snow, not sand and a sharp pain in one of his hands. Slowly he stood up, his body not protesting much as it became ready to burst back into action. Though the pain he felt did distract him somewhat from the task at hand, it also helped to keep his mind off of the pain that the rest of his body felt. It didn't help that he was dressed more for a hot and dry climate, not one of ice and snow.

Upon glancing at his hand he became very acutely aware of the green glow coming from it, similar to the light that he saw flash before his eyes before he woke.

He was torn away from his observations as he became even more aware of his surroundings, creatures, somewhat human in shape but clearly not human. His hand almost immediately went to grasp for his gun, only to find it missing. Cursing he went for his knife, and to his relief, grasped it and slid it out of it's sheath with ease.

"STAY THE FUCK BACK!" Walker yelled out in warning.

He looked around himself with a threatening scowl on his face. These things wanted a fight, he could tell from the way the moved towards and around him. Well if so then he was going to make them work for their kill, whatever the things are.

Araceli Bonaventura; ota/any format

[foxsays]

Bracing herself for water, the breath is knocked from her instead when she lands in the snow, her fox on top of her to further wind her. Uttering a curse, she forces herself to breathe, vision blurring as she squints and coughs; cold, cold hard ground and she's dimly aware of her hand not being quite right but there's a hideous screeching sound and she scrambles back, hand going to her hip--

Her pistols are gone.

"Lux, back!" The fox scampers just in time as she gets up, looking for the lost pistols with an awful sinking feeling. She'd fallen in surprise, leaping between mooring poles when a sudden green glow had frightened her, fox leaping her way and her pistols are likely ruined now, lost in the waterways of Castileos.

But there's little time to think, only time to rush out of the way of the onslaught of ice, her heart hammering as she frees her rapiers in time to meet green gnarled claws, the shock of impact on her crossed blades jangling all the way up her arm to her shoulder as her blood runs cold.

[gatheringstorm]

A moment later, a very tall horned woman appears in a blur, carried forward by waves of magic. There's no time to talk, as Korrin renews her Barrier spell, covering herself and the apparent human and her fox. At the moment, there are no time for questions, so she doesn't bother.

"Hey! Over here!" She shouts at the demon, then whirls her staff, launching a salvo of lightning blasts that home in on the creature. With any luck, that ought to distract it long enough for those rapiers to find use.

[foxsays]

Later, when she has a chance to sit and breathe she'll ask about the things attacking her and whatever the horned woman is doing but instinct has her moving, running forward to slash along one side before she slides neatly, bringing the blade up in what would be a killing stroke to a human.

Does something like this have a heart?

Stupid thought because she has to roll out of the way, Lux racing in to grab at the ankle, tugging hard as Araceli moves to strike again. Still, she's one to remember to be grateful and she manages a nod and smile in Korrin's direction.

"Gratitude for the assistance!"

[gatheringstorm]

Korrin flashes a brief smile as she readjusts her stance, eyes on the nearest demons. When this is over, she'll have to ask how an Antivan found her way through a rift to the Frostbacks. Because she has to be Antivan, right?

Whirling her staff, she then unleashed a blast of lightning, shocking one target before it arcs to nearby enemies. That lightning never gets close to her new companion or the fox, though. "Watch out, they--"

And the qunari mage is interrupted by a terror demon phasing back from the Fade, knocking her flat on her back in the process. "I hate these things!"

[foxsays]

Without thinking - a better strategy than some might think because if she was thinking she'd be panicking, probably doing a lot of yelling and absolutely not concentrating on fighting things she can't even name - one hand goes for her pistol. After all, she hasn't met anything that doesn't go flat when the shot hits but of course, it's not there at her hip, and the only thing that gets her attention is the lightning. She's not struck but she feels something, some spark in the air around her that brings her out in goosebumps. Not a storm hag, why would one be in a place full of snow like this after all? She knows the stories, how they ride along in the clouds but brew out at sea and besides, they don't have a shape.

"What are they!" 'Things' only goes so far when she doesn't even know what her rescuer happens to be after all. "How does anything--" Cutting herself off, she swears viciously and almost envies being able to disappear and spring up again because it's a neat trick. Or it would be, rather, if the one doing the trick weren't a vicious creature attacking her and the stranger.

Heart in her mouth, she grips her rapiers and runs, bracing herself for impact; slight of build, she still has the advantage of being on both feet and behind it as she brings her blades together and bears down with all her weight, grunting with the strain. It doesn't feel like flesh, not at all, somehow more and less at once and the scream is awful, worse than metal on metal or a ship right as the hull breaches and the mast goes but she twists both wrists in opposite directions, willing the damn thing to die.

martel | open!

[apostasia]

The first thing Martel is aware of is

pain, and he has no immediate reason to question it. This is hell, obviously. The ache in his hand - the ache in his chest - the gurgling sensation of

Muscles that didn't anticipate being used again scream in protest as he drags himself up onto his hands and knees, high enough to - charmingly - take a moment in all of the excitement that he's only dimly aware of to vomit blood and bile. He makes a fairly striking image, wounded before he landed hard in the rubble, shock white hair plastered to his skin by sweat and catching all of the dust and debris to it, silver amulet dangling bloody from his neck - not a small man, either, several inches above six foot if he stood, shoulders like an ox.

Whether or not he looks like anyone (or anything) to inspire compassion is debatable, but he certainly doesn't look like he's in any fit state to do anything much about whatever response he does inspire.