Inbox - Fade Rift

[nonvenomous]

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

Comments

[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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