therookery | report | meanwhile, in orlais,

SUBJECT: Halamshiral Visit
PARTICIPANTS: Bastien, Byerly, Alexandrie, Jayce, Lazar, Wysteria, Barrow, Julius, Petrana, Gwenaëlle, Strange, (Demon) Vanya, Evelyn
CLASSIFICATION: Public with some private additions (see below)
DATE FILED: Wintermarch
STATUS: Complete
SUMMARY: Riftwatch went to Halamshiral. The things that went wrong were mostly not their faults; some people made friends; and Research in particular earned a benefactor.

REPORT:

Filed publicly with the Diplomacy Division:

Ambassador—

Our impression from observation and the gossip of our acquaintances is that Riftwatch left a favorable impression on Halamshiral during our visit. The week was not without problems, but with one small exception it is nothing anyone could reasonably blame us for. The usual suspects were very personable among the nobility, and Monsieur Talis in particular has earned gratitude from some of the residents outside of High Quarter for his assistance with the increased demon activity there.

All murder attempts seem to have been personal or accidental rather than an attempt to file unofficial complaints about our presence, which is, on the whole, an improvement. Monsieur Talis and Enchanter Julius may have stories to tell you if you speak with them.

Our friend the Baroness intends to write herself and promised that we would enjoy what she wrote. If there is any additional assistance or information we can provide, you know where to find us.

—Bastien, on behalf of myself, Monsieur Rutyer, and Madame d'Asgard

Filed privately with the Scouting Division:

Yseult—

No one died!

Sincerely yours,

Bastien

P.S. My understanding is that Madame de Foncé, Monsieur Lazar, and myself were the closest calls. I believe what happened with Monsieur Lazar was of a personal nature and he was saved by the poor aim of his attacker. It was so with me as well, except I was saved by the efforts of Byerly, Lazar, and Barrow. I am not certain of Madame de Foncé. It is not outside the realm of probability that she would be poisoned intentionally, but we are without any specific leads as to who might have done so or why.

More usefully, my understanding is that Mademoiselle Baudin made a few useful friends among Marquise Briala's associates, while Monsieur Rutyer has convinced some potential troublemakers among the nobility that they can trust him with their plans and complaints. For my part, I had a conversation with a friend of mine that gave me the impression she may be in some way tied to our old friend Solas, though I am not sure how much she knows.

Delivered directly to the Research Division:

Dear Madamemoiselle Niehaus,

My eternal (or at least very prolonged) gratitude for loaning me the minds and charms of so many of your number this winter. I cannot claim to understand where you and your fellow rifters have come from or how you came to be here, but I can confidently claim Thedas is improved by the fresh ideas you bring with you.

While of course I care very much about the war and the preservation of my country, there is no shortage of people who share that concern. I must assume there are fewer who understand the advances we may see beyond the war if we are adequately interested in and supportive of your work, and I hope I am correct in assuming it is more difficult to secure funding and attention for ideas that do not pertain directly to the war, even if they might benefit people a great deal in peacetime.

To that end, I have instructed my solicitor to establish a trust in Kirkwall—for your convenience, and to avoid continually sending sums of money across the continent in the midst of conflict. It will be overseen locally by Kerav Telar, who will dispense funds for appropriate projects at her discretion and send reports to me as needed. I intend this trust to provide funding for ideas that would advance thought for its own sake, or else improve the health, productivity, or happiness of our world, but which might be a harder sell to those more narrowly concerned with the immediate threat.

Of course, if there comes a time the contents of my personal vault are the last thing required to end the beast in Tevinter once and for all, I would be happy to hear a pitch.

Gratefully,

Baroness Egelatina de Martigny

Delivered directly to the Forces Division:

TO THE COMMANDER OF RIFTWATCH:

IT PAINS ME TO REPORT TO ANYONE THE MALFEASANCE OF THEIR UNDERLINGS BUT IN THIS CASE I HAVE BEEN LEFT NO OTHER CHOICE. DURING YOUR ORGANIZATION'S VISIT TO HALAMSHIRAL A MAN IN YOUR EMPLOY INTERFERED IN MY ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE TO SUCH EXTENT THAT THE CULPRIT, A KNOWN THIEF, ESCAPED. FURTHERMORE WHEN I ADMONISHED THIS MAN HE BROUGHT THE SITUATION TO BLOWS.

MY SOURCES SAY THIS MAN'S NAME WAS BARREL. I DO NOT TRUST SUCH A ROGUE TO HAVE GIVEN A TRUE NAME SO I WILL ALSO DESCRIBE HIM: LARGE OF FRAME, DARK OF HAIR, BROKEN OF NOSE. YOUR ORGANIZATION IS SO MINUSCULE I TRUST THAT IS ENOUGH TO IDENTIFY THE SCOUNDREL.

UNITED AS WE ARE IN OUR OPPOSITION TO TEVINTER AND ITS FOUL ACTIONS AGAINST CIVILIZED THEDAS I DO NOT WISH TO TARNISH THE ENTIRETY OF RIFTWATCH'S REPUTATION WITHOUT DUE CAUSE. ADVISE ME AT YOUR EARLIEST CONVENIENCE HOW YOU HAVE REPRIMANDED THIS VISCIOUS NUISANCE TO ENSURE HE WILL NOT INTERFERE WITH THE ADMINISTERING OF ORLESIAN JUSTICE IN THE FUTURE, AND I WILL CONSIDER THE MATTER RESOLVED. I RECOMMEND HARD LABOR OR PUBLIC FLOGGING.

YOUR SERVANT,

MARSHALL REMON LEVETT, CHEVALIER OF ORLAIS

NEXT STEPS: Various folks have various opportunities for follow-up, but none required!

NOTES & LINKS: OOC post, log post.

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