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[[OOC: 18th Drakonis, 9:41]] Varric Tethras
The trees had been thinning for the last mile. Each gap in the canopy widened Vamaya’s view of the sky, and with it, the vortex over the mountains. Against the pale blue, the green light surrounding it looked like a disease. In the distance she could see columns of smoke leaking upwards from various campfires and chimneys, and then as she began to emerge from the wood, she could see Haven itself. The settlement’s brown and greys sat in ugly contrast to the snowy backdrop, and from this distance she could make out the people, attired in drab clothing or blockish armour, milling around and treading more of the snow into slush.
All in all, it was about as she had expected. Few shemlen settlements she had seen had ever demonstrated a willingness to work with and complement the environment around. They attempted to tame nature the way they did everything else – forcefully. It was going to be hard, working in these surroundings. And she was not altogether convinced that the faith Keeper Suriah had placed in her would be repaid. She could lie to her own kind well enough, but could she be convincing enough for these people?
She wanted to return to the safety of the forest, but there was no question of turning back. Besides the shame that would come with returning empty-handed, she wanted to understand what the Breach was for herself. Besides, if she saw any indication that the Inquisition might be hostile towards the Dalish as a whole, she wanted to get that word back in time for her clan to get to safety.
To that end, Din was with her, although at the moment he was soaring overhead. Not for the first time, Vamaya wished she could do the same. To get a sense of the layout of this place ahead of time would be a huge advantage.
No point delaying. She left the treeline, heading for the camp, and received her first surprise; she wasn’t challenged. Wearing an open, if slightly nervous expression, she strode with the air of somebody who knew where they needed to go and that was apparently enough to avoid questions. There had been scouts in the forest a little while ago, but she hadn’t wanted to be seen by them. So she hadn’t been.
She couldn’t just wander around in the hope of eavesdropping on something useful, though. She needed to make herself valuable, so that people would tell her the useful things directly. Once through the gates, she cast around for a friendly face.
There weren’t many. Admittedly it was an improvement on what she had expected, which was to be shot, stabbed, or told to piss off, but there were still a fair few human faces souring at her appearance. And slightly to her left, a dwarf, wearing silks.
She didn’t really quite know what to do with that information, but he wasn’t human and he wasn’t scowling at her, so she made a beeline for him, a smile already on her lips.
“Hello! Um…is this where I join the Inquisition?”
The trees had been thinning for the last mile. Each gap in the canopy widened Vamaya’s view of the sky, and with it, the vortex over the mountains. Against the pale blue, the green light surrounding it looked like a disease. In the distance she could see columns of smoke leaking upwards from various campfires and chimneys, and then as she began to emerge from the wood, she could see Haven itself. The settlement’s brown and greys sat in ugly contrast to the snowy backdrop, and from this distance she could make out the people, attired in drab clothing or blockish armour, milling around and treading more of the snow into slush.
All in all, it was about as she had expected. Few shemlen settlements she had seen had ever demonstrated a willingness to work with and complement the environment around. They attempted to tame nature the way they did everything else – forcefully. It was going to be hard, working in these surroundings. And she was not altogether convinced that the faith Keeper Suriah had placed in her would be repaid. She could lie to her own kind well enough, but could she be convincing enough for these people?
She wanted to return to the safety of the forest, but there was no question of turning back. Besides the shame that would come with returning empty-handed, she wanted to understand what the Breach was for herself. Besides, if she saw any indication that the Inquisition might be hostile towards the Dalish as a whole, she wanted to get that word back in time for her clan to get to safety.
To that end, Din was with her, although at the moment he was soaring overhead. Not for the first time, Vamaya wished she could do the same. To get a sense of the layout of this place ahead of time would be a huge advantage.
No point delaying. She left the treeline, heading for the camp, and received her first surprise; she wasn’t challenged. Wearing an open, if slightly nervous expression, she strode with the air of somebody who knew where they needed to go and that was apparently enough to avoid questions. There had been scouts in the forest a little while ago, but she hadn’t wanted to be seen by them. So she hadn’t been.
She couldn’t just wander around in the hope of eavesdropping on something useful, though. She needed to make herself valuable, so that people would tell her the useful things directly. Once through the gates, she cast around for a friendly face.
There weren’t many. Admittedly it was an improvement on what she had expected, which was to be shot, stabbed, or told to piss off, but there were still a fair few human faces souring at her appearance. And slightly to her left, a dwarf, wearing silks.
She didn’t really quite know what to do with that information, but he wasn’t human and he wasn’t scowling at her, so she made a beeline for him, a smile already on her lips.
“Hello! Um…is this where I join the Inquisition?”