[semi-open] a friendly query

[stabsbooks]

WHO: Cassandra and rifters/shardbearers
WHAT: Rifter interrogations
WHEN: Following Cassandra's log with Galadriel and the advisors' conversation
WHERE: Skyhold
NOTES: For planned rifter/shardbearer interrogation threads with Cassandra! If we haven't discussed your character's thread, please drop me a note here or hit me up on Plurk for general (this can be very general) setup/discussion of what you hope the outcome to be. She'll be most interested in talking to rifter mages, but we can swing her interrogating anyone with a shard.

With or without your support, she had said to the Spymaster, and she had meant it. She would have preferred that Leliana understand her position, the necessity of action - but she does not, and dwelling on it will do nothing to change that now. Whether anyone else sees it or not, Cassandra at least recognizes the risk that the shardbearers pose. If nothing else, they must understand who the rifters are, what they are capable of - and what they may do.

There are still plenty who agree with her, who are not as idealistic in this matter as Leliana, and it's not difficult to find soldiers willing to find those of interest and bring them to her, one at a time. She waits until each is seated before she turns to face them, and always begins the same way, whether she recognizes them or not.

"I am Cassandra Pentaghast, and I represent the Inquisition. State your name, and where you come from."

Comments

[aintwejust]

"From a distance. Like I said, a lotta light and fire and suddenly the sky went crazy and we tried to git." If there's one thing he learned during the Blight- when the sky lights up? Find shelter. Something big and bad and deadly is going down. "Didn't much stick around to figure out what was go'n on. Got the girl back and headed up to my usual doctor to see if anything could be done."

The answer? Was nope. A lot of nope.

"Well...Didn't bother me none till that rift opened up in the middle of the fout-" He catches himself, clears his throat. "In the middle of the courtyard. Felt like my hand was 'bout to melt right off. Clos'n that sucker hurt. Tends to flare up like that whenever I'm around rifts or when I'm try'n to close 'em. Aches a li'l at night but not near as bad as when I'm 'round the rifts."

[stabsbooks]

Cassandra raises a single eyebrow at the aborted curse, but says nothing. There are better ways to express oneself, but she can understand the impulse, especially with what he's describing.

"You are not a mage, are you, Captain Reynolds?" she asks. Just to be sure. "Have you felt anything from the shard other than pain?"

[aintwejust]

"No Ma'am. Mighta hada cousin somewhere way back what was and got sent to the Circle but magic ain't really in my blood. It's part a what makes this so unsettl'n." He wiggles his fingers a bit, staring at his palm before pulling his glove back on. Just looking at the damn thing gives him a headache.

"More pain when it comes t'clos'n rifts. A tug, sometimes, though I'm not all that sure if it's in the hand or in my gut scream'n 'this is a bad idea, demons come from there' when time comes to yank or flip inside out or whatever it is we do when we haul those suckers shut." That isn't all that useful but it's something.

[stabsbooks]

"Hmm," Cassandra murmurs.

All in all, he seems...more or less harmless. He had certainly offered her nothing but respect, and even some small kindness, when he had been assigned to share her tent in the Emprise du Lion. Certainly nothing to raise suspicion.

His story of the girl is commonplace enough as well; simple enough that it hadn't been embellished, plain enough that it had to be the truth. It paints him as the hero, but of course that is to be expected. And he is of Thedas, and as familiar with the dangers of demons as any of them; there is no reason he should wish to open further rifts. Nor should he be able to, without any magical talent.

She peers at him. There are more questions she could ask, of course. But she has many, many people to question, and Leliana's words haunt her despite her efforts to suppress them. Leliana had been wrong in many ways, but in one thing she had been right. They need those with the mark to close the rifts. They cannot risk alienating necessary allies.

Abruptly, Cassandra nods her head, and steps back.

"You may go," she says. "Thank you."

[aintwejust]

Without much else to offer? He waits her out. Either there'll be an order or a question and he remembers enough from his own time in the army to know any undue fussing or commentary here won't help him and it sure as shit ain't gonna leave her feeling all that kindly to the next person after. Not much he can do to ease that scowl when the situation seems a mite dire but he can try to make things easy.

Make this go smooth. He knows his own share of how vexing it is to have things not go smooth.

He stands with a salute, fist to the chest Fereldan style. Or Marcher. Or- he forgets, sometimes, which it is, but it's respectful. "Anytime, Seeker. You ever need me, you know where to find me."

Funny thing is he actually means that. Dips his head all civil like before slipping out for the next sonofabitch that has to wander in.