Inbox - Fade Rift

[nonvenomous]

Book/crystal/correspondence/action/whatever you desire.

Comments

[acreage]

[ athessa and barrow would've, of course, helped; did help, with the immediate problems in the aftermath. but there had been a moment, spike digging into his stomach and richard still trying to free himself, when holden had thought, this is it, and — you don't forget who it was that saved you, without a moment's hesitation, after something like that. 

i'm certain, dick says, and he hums acknowledgement. he would've, but that's not really the point here. ]

Hell of a way to get to know someone.

[ well, at least: how they react in a crisis. ]

[nonvenomous]

[ To know is such a strong word. Richard sighs to himself, focus drawn out into the middle distance while he takes stock of his own capacity for base minimum kindness. ]

You conducted yourself admirably for a man with a mortal gut wound.

[ An easy fact for him to derive from. ]

[acreage]

[ he wouldn't say so; all he really managed to do was survive, and that can be better credited to others' efforts. ]

Well, that wasn't my first time dying, [ as one says, i used to take piano lessons. ] Maybe I'm getting better with experience.

[ in response, maybe, to memory of "have you been tortured before?", the hazier recollection of dick answering the question for himself.

anyway, morbid humor? morbid humor. ]

[nonvenomous]

I’m sorry [ he says, ] we were complacent. This should have been a routine mission.

[ No one was really in charge, per se, to assign blame. Still, near death over the dissolution of a single rift would be a lot for anyone to contend with, and humans in particular are always wanting to talk about the things that happened to them. ]

There are more exciting and terrible ways to die in Thedas.

[acreage]

To be fair, I don't think anyone could've possibly seen that coming.

[ unless murderous innkeepers are more common than he's been reassured, in the aftermath. it'd take some impressive paranoia to look at a kindly old man and think, that's definitely a guy who taxidermies people for fun.

(and on the topic of more terrible ways to die — there's a question mark, privately, isn't there. he's not entirely sure he isn't dying right now, won't be until months pass and he still isn't. but that's a problem to be dealt with by letting it sit at the back of his mind, and leaving it there. a question of what did and didn't accompany him into thedas.)

and on the topic of more exciting ways to die — ]

Speaking of. I'll take that story about the ice cave demons, if you aren't busy.

[ is he partially calling because he's bored in here? maybe so. ]

[nonvenomous]

[ Richard pauses partway through prying tight-packed clothing from his pack, splinted hand hooked in at an odd angle for leverage. It occurs to him that this might be less strange if he stopped what he was doing and walked over to where Holden is.

But it would also be less efficient. ]

...Of course.

[ Of course. ]

A Rift opened beneath the frozen surface of a lake near the village of Erith, last winter. As I am sure you experienced upon your arrival, Rifts -- as points of free entry into this plane -- are often utilized by demons seeking to sow discord.

[ He did warn that Loxley was the superior storyteller. ]

[acreage]

[ he. he sure did. there's a slight pause before holden realizes he is not elaborating on that. ]

Did someone come through that Rift?

[ that'd be a pretty shitty introduction to thedas, jfc. ]

[nonvenomous]

No. Or, [ he unrolls a folding knife from its binding within a folded scarf, and tucks it away into a pocket, ] if they did, we found no identifiable remains.

[acreage]

Like the Rift at Ostwick.

[ and, actually, here's a thought he would've dwelt on earlier if not distracted by. the house full of murder. ]

What's the difference between Rifts that spit out Rifters, and the ones that don't?

[nonvenomous]

[ https://media.tenor.com/images/fda0bc0a82dd6754c66113a2b4dfa2e5/tenor.gif ]

I'm -- not actually sure. We're notified of an imminent arrival and dispatched to collect them.

[acreage]

[ huh. ]

Which is how Wysteria and Ellis knew we were coming.

[ mused aloud. ]

Has anyone tried going through one, from this end?

[nonvenomous]

I don't know the answer to that either.

[ But wouldn't it be nice to finally find out without drawing suspicion to him personally. ]

It might be a question better posed to the accumulated experience of Riftwatch overall.

[acreage]

Might be. It'd be weirder if someone hasn't tried it yet.

[ something to think about, anyway. doors tend to go both ways, in his experience; even the protomolecule had followed that logic.

presently, with good humor, ]

You know, my schedule is pretty empty, [ you need the rest, he asks you ] but I'm aware there's still a war going on. If there's something you need to get back to...

[ he likes the company, but it's an out if richard wants it. ]

[nonvenomous]

I agree.

[ Just look at the sorts of people Riftwatch attracts. ]

It’s inconceivable that no one in the history of the organization has -- at the very least -- leaned in to peek at the other side. Never mind -- [ what else has he wondered about? ] something along the lines of a non-mage attempting to parlay with a demon.

[ He is preoccupied with his consideration of taboo to the point he nearly misses the out on offer, and has to consider it anew with his hand still full of dirty laundry. Hm. ]

I do have preparations to make. [ He pauses again. ] Do you need anything? Reading material?

[acreage]

Especially with Rifters dropping in on them for years. [ at least two years, he knows from talking to wysteria. ] Not to mention the issue of the monsters.

[ though on that note. ]

I didn't think demons [ christ fuckING HELP HIM ] were really the negotiating sort.

[ he's read about deals with the devil, of course, but the point is always that demons always work in those loopholes so they win in the end, and people suffer. monkey's paw. ]

Please. [ reading material. ] I'm not picky on subject matter.

[nonvenomous]

Hard to say. [ Re: demons. ] They can speak, can't they?

[ What’s the worst that could happen? ]

I’ll bring some books by tonight. I’m overdue for a library visit.

[acreage]

And play the fiddle, so I hear.

[ or maybe that's just the devil. ]

Thank you. And I didn't say before, but I'm glad you're doing better.

[ physically, at least, not crossing the line of our silent pact to not talk about feelings. ]

[nonvenomous]

I’m not aware of any instrument proficiencies they might have, [ Richard says, and also: ]

Thank you.

[ Two hours later, he will arrive in whatever infirmary situation they have Holden laid up in with a small stack of three books, one of which is a helpful, illustrated guide to torture devices. The other two are lusty barmaid style romance novels.

Rather than hand them over directly, he leaves them with the healer on duty at the door. ]

[acreage]

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