[ After the folks on Team Jungle emerge from the Crossroads, save their captive colleagues, kill the Venatori, and turn on their sending crystals to see what's up, there are a few messages waiting. ]

Bets: Can anyone hear me?
Skull: I CAN HEAR YOU.
Bets: [CLEARLY IGNORING THE INANIMATE OBJECT THAT SHOULD NOT HAVE ANY METHOD OF SPEAKING, LACKING LUNGS] This is Lady Betrys Miniver of the Diplomacy Division of Riftwatch. I am--
Skull: IF SHE’S IN DIPLOMACY THEN WHY DON’T I KNOW HER?! I’M HEAD OF THE BLOODY DIVISION!!
Bets: This is Lady Betrys Miniver-- [LOOK SHE’S JUST GOING TO TALK OVER YOU]
Skull: THIS IS LADY BETRYS MINIVER, OOOOH, LOOK AT MEEEE, I’M SO IMPORTANT. I’M MAKING AN ANNOUNCEMENT!
Bets: [As loud as is Appropriate] We are attempting to contact those members of Riftwatch who were dispatched to the Crossroads. Please respond.
Skull: IT’S NO USE, THE CRYSTALS DON’T WORK IN THERE.
Bets: [Still directing all speech into the crystal, but pointedly:] We have been asked to reach out through the crystals in case anyone has successfully left the Crossroads.
Skull: WHERE THE DEVIL IS SALVIO. SALLY! OHHH SALLY!! SALLY COME TELL THIS CHILD THE LIMITATIONS OF THOSE CRYSTALS! AND ABOUT THE LIKELIHOOD THAT ANY OF THOSE FOOLS SURVIVED.
Bets: If you will kindly respond as soon as possible, we will see what can be done for you.
Skull: [ Gasps, quite dramatically, even without lungs. ] I JUST REALIZED SOMETHING. SOMETHING VITALLY IMPORTANT!! [ After a loooooong pause, when it’s clear Bets isn’t taking the bait: ] WELL?! AREN’T YOU GOING TO ASK WHAT IT IS?!
Bets: Please respond to us quickly. We are concerned, I think understandably so, for your welfare.
Skull: [ Whispering: ] IF NONE OF THEM COME BACK, I’LL BE THE HEAD OF ALL DIVISIONS.

---

Freddie: If anyone knows the whereabouts of Valentine de Foncé, please tell him that I am very put out that he has run off into the Crossroads without me and apparently decided to build a home and remain there forever. It is most impolite not to alert one's friends when one moves into a new plane of existence. Should he ever desire to return for a visit, his dinner has been eaten but there is a slice of pie in the cupboard.

---

Coupe: There are only so many times that one may interrupt their own funeral before it grows derivative. You have missed your chance.

---

Salvio: This is-- Seneschal Salvio Pizzicagnolo, with-- Um, we have not received any reports from the members of Riftwatch dispatched to recover-- to investigate, the-- We, um, please. We hope very much to hear some word, soon, of--progress. Or any word at all. And the, uh, the fate--that is, hopefully, the--recovery of those of our numbers who were-- who were… lost. In a-- professional capacity, I would ask for word of my assistant. Please.

Or anyone.

---

Alistair: Everyone come to the main courtyard after breakfast. We're having a competition to choose new Division Heads. The Seneschal gets to be the judge.

I'm going to feel really bad about this if they're really dead. Please don't be dead.

But I mean it. Everyone. Courtyard. After breakfast.

---

Yevdokiya: Hello. [Possibly an unfamiliar voice, Avvar accented.] I would like a list of those that are dead. And where they lived in the Gallows, when they were alive.

Julius: Real question, assuming you can hear us and just can’t transmit back: has anyone tried sending a raven through an eluvian? Do you think the raven would be too disoriented when it arrived on this side to do its job, or would it just carry on? Something worth trying if you haven’t, perhaps, though given how little we know, maybe not with any especially sensitive messages. That could be awkward if the ravens are deeply disoriented, after all.

Aleksei: Are we all aware there is a dead horse in the stable? [ Also possibly unfamiliar Avvar accented voice, punctuated by some muted clinking and jingling. ] And that it has very expensive tack that seems to be wasted on something that isn't going to be ridden?

[ So that was, like, 36 hours to anarchy. Probably not a Thedas record, but still impressive. ]

[ A snappy American (or dwarven or Qunari) accent, familiar only to anyone Howard has bothered in person over the last couple of weeks while finding his way around and becoming slowly convinced this isn’t a fever dream, breaks the mid-afternoon doldrums with, ]

You people really live like this, huh?

[ The time for acclimation is over. ]

You have kids who can throw electricity out of their fingers. And you’re walking up ten flights of stairs, in this heat? It’s interesting, but I hate it.

[ The time for being an ass has begun. ]

Someone explain lyrium to me. Only the dwarves and the wizards without feelings can handle it—I assume everyone else has tried gloves.

[ But, like, he’s not sure. Please confirm. ]

Now, I know we're all increasingly uncomfortable and lacking in certain...amenities, I've found there's at least some aspect of our present situation to be optimistic about.

[ a pause, some shuffling papers, then— ]

In light of the unfortunate turn the weather's taken towards stifling, Diplomacy has received some requests from our neighbors in Hightown. Do we have any among us skilled at making ice? They're offering what I think is fair compensation, and I'd say if the weather cooperates we could ask double their initial price—

[ john breaks off, clears his throat. probably less than professional to be so blunt about haggling?? ]

There are a few caveats that I'm sure we'll all have some opinions about. [ more shuffling paper ] Orlesians are preferred, for some reason, and they'd like any volunteers to be accompanied by someone who isn't a mage, preferably a templar. I assume anyone will do for that. Seems they're less picky on that front, so non-Orlesians, don't feel shy.

Any volunteers? Or should we wait a week and see how they feel if the weather holds?

Good morning! [ It’s Bastien. Orlesian accent, energetic and cheerful but in a quiet and measured sort of way. ] We still do not have anyone leading the Diplomacy Division. You may have noticed. But we have stopped bringing in candidates, for the time being, due to the, ah—

[ How do you say apparently cursed nature of the position. ]

—mounting costs. The investment of time needed elsewhere. Et ainsi de suite. Anyone who is still on their best behavior can safely return to being horrible, and I believe those of us in diplomacy should continue to report to the other three heads, yes? [ He’s asking someone else, aside, and there’s a barely-audible murmur of confirmation. ] Yes.

As for why no one has been chosen—one moment.

[ Shuffled paper. There’s a list. ]

( Read more... )

We have lost one in five.

[ there's not much more to say. he has, at least, collected himself beyond the briefly visible if profound despair that had caught him at the announcement by the rescue team. ]

Inquisition, this is a matter of some importance, and one that I would encourage you to discuss and contemplate before rushing to a decision.

[ mildly: ]

Or taking up arms.

As we know, the decision concerning the new Divine draws ever closer, and… matters have become more complex as that process has gone on.

The other Division Heads and I have been discussing matters around that, and the potential impact that a new Divine could have upon members of our base, here. It cannot be denied that in our Kirkwall base we have a unique blend of personnel, whether they are those from beyond the Fade, or mages from across Thedas, such as myself. We have members formerly allied with Tevinter and the Magisterium, and representatives from Dalish clans and the Frostbacks. There are many here who have good reason to be cautious of what a new Divine might mean, and how the Inquisition might be utilised or led by the new Divine. Might the people we have fought alongside be subject to harsh restrictions, denied a place in the Inquisition, or forced to heel in an Exalted March?

We cannot know with certainty, but many things are possible.

Certain duties have always been asked of those who pledge to this work. This has not changed — will not, under any banner. But the Inquisition has never held you in bond, and if we are to continue this fight, it must be with unity of choice.

With that in mind, we have discussed the possibility of our Kirkwall base here breaking away from the Inquisition, and becoming an independent faction focused on combating Corypheus and the Venatori, but— this is not a decision we feel we can make alone. We propose a vote to determine what is done. Our base here relies on our ability to work together and our unity, and if the greater number of our members here wish to remain part of the Inquisition, then we will respect that.

Please think on this carefully. There are any aspects requiring consideration; your personal views, how this will impact all of us, but also the matter of how effectively we will be able to carry on without Inquisition funding and backing. It may demand changes and sacrifice from all of us that we cannot predict.

We will arrange a means of voting so that numbers can be counted accurately, won’t be tampered with, but our time is limited. Another thing I would urge you to think on is how our relationship with Skyhold and the Inquisition would continue were we to part ways, and what sort of relationship we would wish to seek out with both the Inquisition, and the Inquisition’s allies.

[ The message begins with a Marcher-ish accent--the cool, crisp tones of the upper classes, but with a precision of enunciation and a slight lilt that speaks to some other influence, harder to place. Her tone is brisk and professional. In the background, the faint cry of gulls. She might be on a ship. ]

Ambassador, Commander, Provost: I hope you do not object to discussing our business via crystal. An agent of mine elsewhere required urgent assistance, and I did not wish to delay our discussion. I am of course willing to answer any questions you might have as to my qualifications for this office, but barring that, I would like to begin by discussing whether there are any plans yet in place in the event that a Divine is elected who is perceived as hostile to many of those who work at this base.

Inquisition, there is a matter that we must discuss, one that I pray you will grant your full attention and consideration, and that I hope you will treat with the gravity that it demands.

( Near silently, Herian slowly exhales. Uncaptured by the crystal she closes her eyes and stays very still, before opening them again and looking towards Lakshmi and Julius. Julius, a fellow Circle mage, a thinker with a honeyed tongue, Lakshmi, a skilled diplomat and tactician (keep your friends close and your very difficult employees who can be destructive closer). There are more she would like to have present, to have their voice heard on it more immediately, but this was the best that could be done in the circumstances. Perhaps, as well, less it better when the waters run the risk of becoming muddied (if not mud outright).

She’d like very much for things to become simple and easy. She knows better than to expect it. )

It has come to my attention that, ( the faintest of pauses, if only because this is so surreal a thing to be saying at all, let alone announcing ) a cure for Tranquility has been discovered, and utilised, by members of our Inquisition. For any unfamiliar with what Tranquility might mean, it refers to an act undertaken to divorce a mage of their connection to the Fade, stripping us of our magic and our emotions. We exist, still, but— some consider it a living death. I personally think that is a sweeping dismissal of the Tranquil, their capabilities and their personhood, but let us not digress.

This might be viewed as a great gift, or a destructive act. We must consider what it means within the Inquisition, and what it means for our relationship with the Chantry. Its implications will reverberate throughout the Chantry and, indeed, all of Thedas.

The Grand Enchanter is already aware of this development. If you would care to share your thoughts, your concerns, and proposals for how we might move forward, I would be glad to hear them. This cannot be resolved by any small group of us, and requires our collaboration and cooperation with one another.