002.

[sangsues]

FORM: Crystal
SENDER: Etienne Guerinet Beaumanoir
RECIPIENT: everyone (sorry)
WHAT: whats all this
WHEN: post-proposal etc
WHERE: the walliest kirk
NOTES: Orlesians

( A quiet clearing of the throat; one can naturally assume it is a very beautiful clearing of the throat, done by a very beautiful man. )

This matter of the phylacteries for rifters… it seems sensible. If they are such a valuable resource to the Inquisition, the closing of rifts, and so on, being able to find said resource if a rival power were to try and overpower them and abscond with them makes sense, I think. For their own safety, for our own safety. If Corypheus and his forces were, for example, to make an attack on a party closing a rift and kidnap those rifters for nefarious purposes, it would be better for all if we were able to find them as quickly as possible. The phylacteries are an established way of doing just this, no?

By all means, if you wish to see the world end, protest. Even if this is not your world, though, I think we can all agree that you are currently in it. It’s fate is not entirely irrelevant to you.

Comments

[koteletten]

Not merely plausible. There is an incident in the records of just such a situation as you describe. I believe the rifters were subjected to all manner of torture and experimentation by our enemies before they were eventually located.

[sangsues]

Maker’s mercy. How could such a thing come to pass and phylacteries not be implemented immediately?

[thunderproof]

It seems that phylacteries are not made for the protection of those whom they point to. Strange.

[sangsues]

You would prefer to be left in the hands of the venatori, then?

[thunderproof]

I would prefer to be free, on all counts. If a consequence of that is danger from the Venatori, then at least I chose that.

[sangsues]

And if the consequence is lending the power of your link with the Fade to the Venatori because you captured by them and the trail is hard to follow, is that something the rest of us should suffer?

[thunderproof]

Aren't individual anchors very weak? I'm sure the Inquisition would find me before anything too terrible could be done with mine on its own.

[sangsues]

Groups of rifters can and have been taken, for purposes of experimentation. It isn't always a matter of individual anchors.

[thunderproof]

❰ murder dad called her out and now she has to stop answering, much as it pains her. but how to end this conversation without appearing to cede the point. HMM. ❱

I have no interest in debating the matter further. Consider this an end to my part in the discussion.

private ;

[aenseidhe]

Save your debates, Adalia. [ Iorveth chimes in, voice a calm thing, but with certainty to it. ]

These men have no means to dismiss this policy, and Skyhold watches this network. The less they know of the arguments we bring, the less time they'll have prepared to counter them.

You've every right to be angry, but we must play our cards close if we're to do better than the mages did in their negotiations.

perma-private ;

[thunderproof]

❰ oops, caught out by dad — ❱

I haven't been making threats, at least.

❰ said in that tone children use when they know they've done something wrong but they haven't done the worst thing they could do. ❱

It's... less anger than I just want everyone to shut up and stop poking at the hornet's nest. So many of the others are just making us look worse.

❰ which is not what iorveth was concerned with, so: ❱

I'll stop.

[aenseidhe]

[ oh no, bae, it's okay, he won't pull a thranduil this time. in fact, there's a soft laugh he lets out before answering her. ]

You aren't in trouble, it's alright. I've been guilty of it already.

[ he was the first one to be guilty of it, stabbing an innocent message board on the crystals. woops. ]

They'll speak whether they have valid points or not, because they're humans that love the sound of their own voices. The privileged love nothing more than telling the downtrodden to stop complaining.

You're right in your want to shut them up, and were we in my home, I'd be doing it with you. It just doesn't suit our needs at the moment.

[ imagine yourself a head pat here, booboo. ]

[thunderproof]

❰ adalia's sitting in her room, moping, feeling very Judged despite iorveth's claim she's not in trouble — and then he speaks of needs and she perks up, looking down at her crystal with excitement. ❱

What are our needs? Is there a plan?

❰ please let there be a plan. adalia would rather not die fighting this, but she will if she has to, and that would suck a whole lot. ❱

[aenseidhe]

Political maneuvers and clever arguments that have not already been publicly voiced.

[ so many good ones have already been aired, and made useless to them now. ] All that's been spread on the crystals already, even solid plans, have to be considered null. The Inquisition will have already heard them and had time to prepare to counter them.

[ be they rebellion plans, escape theories, or simple arguments against the policy. they have as long as they delay the negotiations to prepare to combat them. ]

I've some thoughts, but I'd rather not voice them over the crystals, even private. Thranduil's doubtless thought of more. You may want to approach him about it in person.

[thunderproof]

Oh, fuck him.

❰ is the incredibly uncharitable, petty first thing out of adalia's mouth. but he is gwenaëlle's husband, and a man in a position of power here, who can coordinate all the rifters of the inquisition. after a moment she breathes a sigh and nods. ❱

I'll talk to him. Maybe this time he won't all but call me worthless! We can all have dreams, mm?

[coiledscales]

We would prefer to not be told what is good for us, when we already know what we'd like, all things considered.

[koteletten]

But have all things been considered? You are strangers to this world, while we are natives. Do you claim to already match our understanding of its dangers, after so short a time?

[coiledscales]

I know enough about magic and how it works to know that I don't wish to give anyone power over me. That ought to be enough.

[koteletten]

And yet, it is not. In any case, people already have power over you; someone has power over each of us. That is the way of the world. You may not like it, but it cannot be avoided.

[coiledscales]

In this case it can be. You can make a more informed choice, if you so wish.

[koteletten]

Can I? Pray tell how.

[coiledscales]

Perhaps by soliciting the opinions of those affected by your proposed policy change? It would certainly make things a bit easier, rather than these sweeping proclamations and the inference that we're ingrates for not wanting anything to do with it.

[koteletten]

And how would that free either of us from the power of others? I would find myself beholden to your whims, and you would still be dependent upon the goodwill of the Inquisition.

[koteletten]

An excellent question, to which I've no answer. Lack of resources to research the possibility, perhaps? The Inquisition is nothing if not desperately frugal.

[sangsues]

Perhaps. Or perhaps they hoped to avoid it for as long as possible, given the response.