faderift | Mirror, mirror in the Hinterlands

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Mirror, mirror in the Hinterlands

WHO: Morrigan, Merrill, Lace Harding, Maria Hill, Beleth Ashara, Malcolm Reynolds, Ruby Lucas, Kain Highwind, Clarke Griffin
WHAT: Eluvian extraction; Morrigan's eluvian has fallen into the hands of the Venatori and their Red Templar accomplices, so it's a mad dash to the Hinterlands to meet Leliana's forward scouts to fight the Venatori and provide cover for Morrigan and her team to secure the eluvian
WHEN: Final days of Drakonis
WHERE: Hinterlands
NOTES: Violence and possibly language? Related ooc post

Skyhold is rarely peaceful or quiet, not in any meaningful way but like pristine glass, tis shattered in the early hours. Morrigan can be seen heading from her rooms towards the back of Skyhold before she is suddenly gone, a few of the more loose-lipped scouts gossiping about how the Witch of the Wilds strode from the rookery later, not angry. Worried.

No argument either with the Nightingale.

Perhaps some had already been informed that she might need assistance. Others might have stopped her on her journey to ask what has someone with her reputation in such a flap.

The answer is the same: something of great value has fallen into the hands of the enemy, assistance and swift action are required to ensure it never falls into the clutches of Corypheus.

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Beleth doesn't really...know anyone here, except. Uh. Her boss. And that one Malcolm guy who was pretty okay, he had a nice ship. And a nice dog. Even if the dog was kind of fat. But that was about it as far as people she knew went, and Beleth is more aware of how she keeps a low profile than ever (a low profile when she's not being assaulted by miscellaneous Templars, thanks Nerva, thanks Cade. She's watching you, Maria). For most of the trip, she is compliant and she is quiet, speaking only when needed. She scouts, hunts if necessary. She isn't entirely standoffish, however, and will make pleasant idle chit chat with whoever wishes it.

She spends most nights at camp curled up with the startlingly large purple hart that accompanied her, using him as a backrest as she writes a lengthy letter, apparently content to save up all her words to use on this work. Assuming they all don't get brutally murdered by Venatori, she supposes.

Maybe they'll be polite enough to send off the letter if they find it on her body. Add a little post script about her fate.

Low profile is pretty much how Kain handles these sort of things, too, keeping to himself just as much and so forth. Though he's been curiously eyeing the hart for a little while now. He's been getting more interested in this world's mounts, lately, and the harts are something he's even more unfamiliar with than he'd been the horses.

"Magnificent..." And so... so purple. "Do you have to adapt much to riding such a large creature? How does riding them compare to horses?"

Beleth looks up as she's approached by one of the strangers, and smiles pleasantly--the smile growing warmer when he compliments her hart. "Thank you, I think he is as well." She turns to smile at the hart--only for it to snuffle at her hair, then snort, before turning away, leaving her with hair that is both messed up and kinda slobbery. "His name is Vaharel," She continues, scowling slightly as she tries to fix her hair. A rebellious name for a rebellious stupid moose.

"I...don't have to adapt? I just, um. Sit on him." She blinks, then glances to the side, rubbing the back of her neck. "I've never...really. Ridden a horse before. So I can't compare, I'm afraid. I'm sorry..." Beleth Ashara, the most singularly useful and knowledgeable Dalish around. In at least a five foot radius. Truly remarkable. "But riding him isn't hard. I just sit and tell him where I want to go." Is riding supposed to be more complicated than that...?

He smirks a bit at the hart's snorting display of... affection? Yes, he'll call it that.

"Vaharel," he repeats the name, not familiar with the word or language overall or anything, but liking the sound of it anyway. "I've never seen such mounts before I came to this world, I'll have to admit. I've ridden some pretty stubborn creatures in the past... but they needed some training before they were ready to carry anyone." He glances toward the hart, holding out a hand to let him sniff, show himself as friendly. "I hope he doesn't mind me petting him...?"

"Vaharel isn't trained," Beleth replied calmly, blinking up at Kain. "And I haven't tried training him. He's wild. I mean, he's tamed, but he's not...broken, I suppose. He carries me because I asked, and he agreed." Just how painfully Dalish can someone be? Beleth appears to be attempting to test the boundaries, for science. She turns to look at Vaharel, and the hart sniffs Kain's hand, then ducks his head down.

"It's not really my decision if you can pet him, but he seems to be fine with it. So I'd say go ahead."

Kain nods in understanding. He may only know a few things about the Dalish from the months he's been in this world, but he thinks it does make sense. They seem to be very close to the natural world. "That's an even more meaningful bond, in that case... built on mutual respect. It reminds me of one type of mount my people used to bond with back home..." He looks over the hart thoughtfully. "I'm considering getting a regular mount here eventually, myself. I'd not considered a wild one of some sort..." But he rather likes the idea.

"Thank you," he says to the hart, reaching to gently pet him. Kain has cared for... a very different sort of animal in his past, but there's the same general idea in approaching them, more or less.

"I've never had one before, but, ah. He caught my eye, from when I first arrived to Skyhold. It took me a while to save up enough to buy him, but--I'm pretty glad I did. I'd say that if you aren't familiar with the mounts from Thedas--Well, horses are easier for beginners, I suppose, but if you can listen to the other animals..." She paused. "Just--Stay away from the drascolisks. They're evil looking." She shuddered a little. "They look like...a dragon and a horse were bred together." Because who would like that? Huh????

"But--tell me about your world. I've heard very little about other worlds." Mostly because Beleth has been staying away from the rifters because they might be demons and they were definitely wild cards that she wasn't sure how to deal with. But she's been trying to fix that, since all the hubbub with Galadriel. "What kind of mounts did you have?"

Kain pets the hart some more. “I can certainly see why he’d catch your eye… but I actually like what I’ve seen and heard of dracolisks.” Who would like a creature like that??? Kain, that’s who. He has to admit, it probably isn’t to everyone’s liking though, so he can see why it wouldn’t fit just anyone’s taste.

“Back home, we ride large birds called chocobos as our most common mounts. The yellow feathered are especially common and stay on the ground, but the black feathered ones can fly.” Of course, that’s not the only thing, and he hesitates before explaining the rest, knowing how this world feels about dragons. “It’s no longer a practice in my time, but in my father’s generation and before that, we dragoons rode upon dragons. I’ve been on my father’s, in the past. But it was only limited to dragoons, and with airships taking prominence, having a dragon army fell out of favor.” Which he sounds disappointed about, he’d cared for his father’s dragon but always wondered about getting his own one day, restoring the dragoons to their former glory.

Beleth ducks her head, looking sheepish when Kain admits that he likes dracolisks. Way to stick her foot in her mouth. "I'm sorry, that was rude of me. I'm sure that they have many good qualities. And everyone is entitled to enjoy whatever creatures they feel suit them." She's not sure what those good qualities are, but they probably exist. Maybe their creepy faces scare away creatures that would otherwise attack you.

She listens with interest to his explanation of birds large enough to ride. Her eyes widen in amazement, then her expression turns into alarm when he moves on to talking about riding dragons. He speaks about dragons like you would horses--something that could be tamed. Or maybe more like with her hart, where the two of you cooperate? She slowly turns to looking thoughtful, nodding along with Kain. There's no question that High Dragons are smart, but they're also very prone to trying to eat people.

"We used to have something similar to those birds you speak of. They were called griffins--The Wardens use them as their symbol, you can see them on their crests. As for the dragons--well. I don't know what yours are like, but ours are...very aggressive. Maybe if you got a dragon egg and raised it from birth. I mean, even the babies are pretty hostile, but if you get them before they hatch, maybe you can temper the urge for them to, ah. Kill you." She pauses, glancing off to the side. She doesn't even know why she's bothering to think this over, because this is a terrible idea.

"--But that's all academic. Getting an egg would be near impossible, and you'd have to pray that it was female, or it wouldn't be able to fly. And then it would take years upon years to get it old enough to ride. And to top it off, the Inquisition would never allow it."

“No that’s quite all right, about the dracolisks. I’m not offended. If anything, I like the look of them because they appear to be so fearsome. I like the thought of charging into battle on one…” Yes, something to strike fear into his enemies’ hearts. At the same time, he really would bond with such a creature too, he’d enjoy that even. It’s just the right sort of companion for Kain.

He’s really intrigued by the talk of the griffons, and listens intently to her explanation, ever curious to learn about such beasts. The Wardens are interesting to him anyway, but this adds to it. “That’s fascinating, about the griffons. As for the dragons, the wild ones are hostile on my world as well. I’d never advise trying to approach them unless you’re prepared for battle…”

He looks distant for a moment as he thinks about the dragons his people had once fought with. “They did raise them from birth… and had bonds with them like no other. It was undoubtedly because of their closeness that they managed to keep them on their side.” So yes, it was more of a close connection than a taming exactly. “You’re right, though, it’d be difficult to achieve here. Perhaps impossible.” He’s not about to get on the wrong side of the Inquisition if he can help it. “It’s too bad… but a dracolisk may be the closest thing I’ll get, here.”

"It would certainly make a statement to your enemies." Beleth is quick to admit, and she's quite sure it's the truth. What that statement is, will remain to be seen.

She listens to him explain how dragons worked in his world, and it certainly sounded close to here, even though she personally couldn't imagine such a thing happening. But then, how many people had tried? "Well, it doesn't help that for a long time, it was thought that dragons were extinct. The reason this age is called the Dragon Age is because it was at the beginning of this age that they started showing up again. So, most people haven't had a lot of experience with them in the first place."

She paused. "But it'd still be a lot of work--And what if you got an egg, and it was a male? Could you release it into the wild? It's a lot to consider. And it'd be a long time investment. And we may find a way to get you home yet."

“It certainly will. Even if it only unsettles them somewhat, I’ll be pleased with the results.” Especially with him in full dragoon armor upon one of those creatures. He likes the mental image already. Of course, it’ll take time and work to get one. More and more he’s starting to think he’d like to take one from the wild, himself. The bond would be more genuine to him… and if he can’t have a dragon, this is the next best thing.

Kain nods to the explanation, he’d heard some things here and there confirming what she’s telling him about the dragons. “Which can be dangerous, being unprepared for them… I’m willing to lend any aid I can, from what I know of them.” Whether in battle or just general dragon information. He likes knowing he has one thing that he really understands here, so much about this world has him out of his depth.

“All too true. There’s no risk of that back home- the males and females both develop into full-blown dragons. But I know it’s very different here. There are more… complications. Though I’m in no rush to return home, who knows what may happen...” Still, if he ever thought that this was a more permanent stay… well… restoring the dragoons in some way could be a goal, eventually. Maybe. If it ever came to that.

"If you want to talk strategies about defeating dragons, I think you should save it for someone likely to fight a dragon. I'm afraid that I would probably just run in the opposite direction, if I had the choice." She's sure there's more than enough people in the Inquisition that are perfectly willing to risk getting eaten by dragons that it doesn't matter if she tries to avoid it.

"Or talk to Seeker Cassandra. I heard that her family did stuff with dragons. And I heard that she fought five dragons at once! All alone! While riding another dragon!" The rumor mill would never lie about something like that, surely. "But--She might be scarier to talk to than the dragons. So. That's up to you."

She doesn't mention anything about him going home. She feels like she's in a different world in Skyhold, totally different from her isolated clan. But more and more, she realized that it wasn't that different. At least everyone knew how the races worked, how magic worked, how life moved in Thedas. Whether or not she'd be content--Well, maybe if she moved to Middle Earth, where elves like Galadriel existed...

"...Are there elves in your world?"

"Understandably so, combat against dragons isn't for everyone. Nor would I want anyone to take such a risk who didn't want to." Indeed, there's no room for hesitation or fear when it comes to a battle against such a fearsome foe. Kain is used to dragons and battling them, but he knows not everyone shares that specialty. There's plenty in this world he's never gone up against, after all.

"I may have to ask the Seeker sometime. If she really did as great a feat as that..." Kain does wonder how much is exaggeration and how much real. It sounds like almost too much to believe. Still, don't rumors have some grain of truth in them, somewhere?

He shakes his head. "There was a dangerous Dark Elf that some of my companions had to fight, but otherwise no elven people like there are here. Oddly, we do have dwarves, though." Why one race and not the other, who knows, exactly?

The watching gets noticed. It isn't a new feeling, particularly since entering Skyhold which contained a more concentrated group of peoples she usually only saw few and far between on her travels. But it isn't ideal if they're going to be fighting together. So one night, after a small scrounging of her own for herbs to add some flavor to her rations other than dry and technically sufficient, she sat by Beleth as she tended to making her own meal.

"See anything interesting?"

Beleth starts when the woman sits down next to her. She has, mostly, stopped jumping every time someone makes sudden movements near her, but there are things that are still hard to adjust to. Templars are, after all, a particular sore point. When Maria speaks, she gets a small, sheepish smile. Better, probably, to feign ignorance.

"Nothing tonight. Which I suppose is fortunate. Anything interesting that's out and about this time of night?" Beleth gestures out around her, to the Hinterlands at large. "We probably don't want to meet, anyway."

"Given our current company? Dragons, likely."

Abominations, more likely. But she can read a crowd. A Templar traveling with a group of mages was there for more than one reason, and being present to take care of the worst was always one of them. That didn't need to be openly stated.

She starts shredding some of the herbs in her hands, letting them fall into a small pile in a bowl before her.

"But that wasn't what I meant."

Beleth is silent for some time, staring into the fire while Maria starts shredding up her herbs. She thinks over the possible options open to her, and the most agreeable choice would be continuing to deflect her questions. However, while agreeable, there's a decent chance that it would be a useless endeavor. After a few moments, she decides what she wants to say, and turns to glance at Maria from the corner of her eye.

"I am Dalish, and my brother is the First. I've spent my life being wary of Templars. I apologize if I've made you uncomfortable, I assure you that I don't believe that you're going to do anything rash or violent. At least not without provocation." That sounds nice. Polite, impersonal. And Beleth doesn't have to mention Cade or Nerva. "I've been trying to unlearn that worry. It's...a process."

"We're all adjusting."

But it was a decent enough excuse, she supposed. Few Templars hunted after the mage leaders of the clans, but there were always the rumors. Some never quite realized the Holy March had ended ages ago.

"But unless you're a direct threat to someone's life, you'll be fine."

"What if they're a direct threat to me?"

She lets it slip without thinking, a bitter muttering that says that she already knows the answer to that, thank you. But she shakes her head, giving Maria a wry smile. "But thank you. I try to avoid being a threat to anyone. I don't think I'm very threatening?" A laugh followed that. Of course, she doesn't look very threatening, few elves do. And Beleth found that being underestimated was a tool she could use, as surely as an arrow.

"I don't see why I'd threaten a Templar, anyway...It seems like a poor idea."

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Mirror, mirror in the Hinterlands

if u wanna talk to the loser elf

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