PROJECT: Rifts & the Veil

[frprojects]

PROJECT

RIFTS & THE VEIL

↠ Personnel

↠ Reports

↠ Archives

↠ Inbox

Figuring out how to permanently strengthen the veil to prevent further tears, who and what rifters are, and how to prevent the anchors from eventually killing those who have them are all high priorities. Kirkwall's particularly thin Veil makes it a good—if slightly dangerous—testing ground for many of these efforts.

DIVISION: Research
LEADER: n/a	STATUS: Active

Comments

[eolasemah]

I've....

[Is this worth arguing? Can she spare the energy? Melys wasn't here for the others, mage after healer after mage claiming they knew what to do, we'll figure it out, we'll fix it. It's too late, and someone with a shard in her hand who doesn't want to understand isn't going to.]

...I'm not. [How even to say it without sounding self-pitying?] Just mine.

[aforethought]

[ if their positions were reversed, melys would have a very different set of opinions on this. you do what you have to survive. fuck the rest.

but right now she is the rest, and there's no trusting this. the girl's acting from a place of desperation, and melys has been desperate enough to know how dumb it makes you.

she hangs up. ]

[eolasemah]

[SIna buries her face in her hands, too numb to even cry. If she waits for their permission it may be too late.
It's already too late.
But maybe it doesn't have to be a total waste.]

[motherfucking_ghost]

I can't say I like it. But I guess you natives would know better?

[eolasemah]

[His voice makes SIna a bit nervous-- it was much louder the last time she heard it.]

...nevertheless, I appreciate your input.

[motherfucking_ghost]

It just--it sounds really risky. Even with supervision. He made the offer, which means he wants something out of it, or he's expecting to get something out of it.

[eolasemah]

It is risky. ...terribly so. But everyone else who's claimed such expertise has left, simply decided not to help.

[motherfucking_ghost]

Then we make ourselves the experts, right? Who's really had time to make themselves an expert on these shard things anyway?

[eolasemah]

No one.
But we.... I... don't have a lot of time to spare.

[wontforgetyou]

[There's a pause on his end, too, long enough for him to take a deep breath or two. He's upset, but it's Sina, and he doesn't want to be upset at her.]

Look, don't apologize. It's no like any of us had a choice there. Just- why? Why do it?

[eolasemah]

[A long pause, as Sina deliberates. Tell him? Or let him operate as her other friends do, under the ignorance of her condition, to maintain normalcy as long as she can?]

...I.... I just want it gone.

[wontforgetyou]

Aye. I see.

[Given where her shard is, he does understand wanting it gone, but he doesn't think that trusting a Venatori's a good idea. At all. Still, it's her life, and her choice, and he's got to respect that - even if he doesn't entirely agree with what she's doing.]

Hope I'm wrong and this'll work for you, Sina, but- promise me you'll be as careful as you can? I don't trust him one bit.

[eolasemah]

I promise. Because... I don't either.

Return to the Blackmarsh

[circleprodigy]

SUBJECT: Investigating the Blackmarsh
PARTICIPANTS: Inessa Serra, Anders, Kain Ventfort, Melys, Myrobalan Shivana, Loghain Mac Tir
DATE FILED: Harvestmere 9:43
STATUS: Complete
SUMMARY: Basically, Anders spoke to Inessa about his misadventure in the Blackmarsh with Warden-Commander Cousland, and the trap that the First laid for them. Namely, an orb that brought them to the Fade. So, they went to retrieve it in hopes of understanding Corypheus' orb better/gaining an advantage for the Inquisition.

REPORT: In Harvestmere of 9:43 Dragon, I gathered a team to enter the Blackmarsh, an abandoned and cursed area once explored by the Hero of Ferelden. It was brought to my attention by Anders that one of the encountered darkspawn possessed an orb which brought Warden-Commander Cousland and his companions to the Fade. As it sounded quite similar to the orb Corypheus bears, I thought it worth investigation. Anders joined the team, as he was familiar with the area, and his knowledge proved invaluable.

The Baroness and the Queen of the Blackmarsh that had terrorized the area before remained defeated, though issues persisted in the Blackmarsh itself. Blight wolves still roam the area, and the dead. The Veil there is unstable and perilously thin, prompting the Fade to bleed into the physical realm and form visions of the area's past. They were unsettling but at least in once instance rather useful, as we were able to witness the incident of which Anders had spoken about, regarding the orb. The largest threat to the area was the rift, which proved difficult to seal even with two shardbearers. It was akin to attempting to sew a rip in cloth which is falling apart; pull the edges back too hard and a new tear forms nearby. So it was with our first attempt to seal the rift. Only through focusing on both simultaneously were we able to succeed.

Afterward, it was Anders who recovered the orb. Its description seems to match both Anders' memories and what we have been told of Corypheus' orb, and though intact it remains inert at this time. Further research will be needed to determine its capabilities.

NOTES & LINKS: Log and map

[circleprodigy]

Continuing the research regarding anchors, I'm planning to compile a survey for those bearers interested in participating. I have some sample questions below, but if there is something you believe I have missed and ought to be added, please inform me. I want this effort to be as comprehensive as possible. Once any/all edits are made, I will make it available to all.

In addition, I intend to ask for volunteers for regular monitoring regarding their anchors. Perhaps twice weekly? Volunteers can also be requested for tests, but I would prefer the nature of those be known to me beforehand. The safety of those participating is paramount.

<B>Note:</B> This survey is purely optional. All information is confidential and will not be shared beyond approved Inquisition personnel. <b>Name:</b> <b>Native or Rifter:</b> <b>Date of Arrival/Date of Anchor Acquisition:</b> <b>Location of Arrival/Acquisition:</b> <b>Location of Anchor:</b> <b>When the Anchor was first acquired, how long did the initial physical reaction persist? What was the severity?</b> <b>Since then, what other circumstances have caused those symptoms to resurface?</b> <b>Have you participated in a rift closure? If more than once, how many times and how far were these times spread apart? Please describe the shard's reaction and any physical symptoms.</b> <b>Has your anchor evolved to the point where you have abilities beyond rift closure? What are they, and how many days passed between acquiring the anchor and this new ability? <b>How did these new abilities manifest? How long did any physical symptoms persist?</b> <b>Have these abilities been battle-tested?</b> <b>Since the acquisition of the anchor, have you noticed any other changes in the anchor or how bearing one has affected you?</b> <b>After the battle at Adamant, several anchor-bearers physically entered the Fade. If you were among them, how did your anchor react while within? Were there any long-lasting effects?</b> <b>Has the anchor acquisition changed your relationship to the Fade in a less tangible sense? For dwarves: Have you gained the ability to dream? For others: Have you found lucid dreaming easier/possible?</b>

[motherfucking_ghost]

notes/addendums/clarifications

"When the Anchor was first acquired, how long did the initial physical reaction persist? What was the severity?" Physical reaction sounds kind of vague to me. Like does it mean the pain, the sparking? How long until you're used to it? Mostly they seem to react to the rifts, or when under a lot of strain, or with magic. Severity also should have a scale like 1-10 least to most, something like that. You know someone is going to say 'it hurt like balls' which, while accurate, isn't going to prove scientifically useful.

"Have you participated in a rift closure? If more than once, how many times and how far were these times spread apart?" Personally I've done a lot and haven't kept track, though I might be just a case of...really being into closing rifts and all, so I couldn't tell you how many or how long apart they were. Rifter Church is an outlier and should not be counted. I'm just saying this one might be a bit more difficult to gauge for some people.

Also: are there more maybe Fade-y symptoms than lucid dreaming? Is there anything else besides that to be aware of? I'm not sure if it's possible to succinctly clarify it or change the wording of it, but most Rifters aren't going to know much about the Fade to begin with, much less if they've had any changes to it.

And if you don't have any Rifter volunteers for monitoring, I'd be up for it.

[circleprodigy]

Thank you, Church. This is exactly the kind of feedback I was hoping to hear. I'm grateful for the offer, and the input. Both are needed, as you see.

You're quite right, some of the wording was a bit vague, as I was uncertain how it ought to be phrased. I do like the 1-10 scale, that might help with clarity as well.

It's quite alright if you can't recall specifics regarding rift closure and shard usage, especially since you've been so active. I was curious if repeated/regular usage has had any broad effects on the shards and those who bear them. Do you think such extensive use explains your anchor's evolving abilities, or was it the other way around?

This is quite true, about the Fade. If they've nothing to compare it to, then gaining answers might be difficult. I'm not certain there are more side-effects other than the dreaming, though I'll take any notable change and see if a pattern emerges.

[motherfucking_ghost]

I do remember there's a lot of pain at first, really distracting, so the wording can probably stay as-is, just add the scale.

Good question! This one might benefit from being a little broader/more vague then? Like I could give a ballpark of, dunno 15 spaced out every month or every other month, for example. None of the results are going to be accurate I guess but I see where you're going with it.

Maybe you could separate the Fade bit into two questions, one for natives and one for Rifters? Natives would know better, and Rifters might be able to more generally say if something's changed, esp about dreaming or sleeping patterns or weird otherworldly forces they're not used to.

A letter to Inessa

[foxsays]

Warden Serra,

If this information isn't relevant to the scope of your project then I apologise for sending it your way. When I first arrived in Thedas two years ago in the first group of rifters, myself and another, Marcel Gerard had been working together to learn what we could to help others such as ourselves fit in. There was much that was very strange to us, a great deal to learn; one never stops learning of course but I'm sure you can imagine that it's a challenge to know where best to start in an entirely new world.

I collated this information, and though much of it is out of date given I haven't added to it for so long with the demands of bard training then my own work, for new arrivals I hope it would still be of value to help them learn more about Thedas easily.

Yours,
Araceli Bonaventura y Castell

Attached is the following set of pages.

[crowncitizen]

[At some point, somewhere in her office Inessa will find a note signed by Prompto with the following:]

Since then, what other circumstances have caused those symptoms to resurface?

What if someone has new symptoms that they didn't have when they first got it? Would this question cover that? Maybe include an additional line inquiring about new symptoms?

How did these new abilities manifest? How long did any physical symptoms persist?

This kind of goes for the other questions about "physical symptoms" too, but maybe list a few examples? Or ask to describe any pain and where they felt it? People can get pretty vague about that stuff unless prompted.

Have these abilities been battle-tested?

Would this include sparring or just going "hey dude look at what I can do!" and testing it out with other people?

Has the anchor acquisition changed your relationship to the Fade in a less tangible sense? For dwarves: Have you gained the ability to dream? For others: Have you found lucid dreaming easier/possible?

Might be hard for rifters to answer this since we're not that familiar with the Fade to begin with.


On an additional note, I've had an instance where I fell asleep and ended up remembering more things from home. Like, not just a few minutes or something I would have just easily forgotten. Like whole days' worth of stuff. Another rifter says it happened to him, too.

Sending Crystal, at some point

[circleprodigy]

Thank you for the input, Prompto. I appreciate the feedback, and will work on revising the survey to incorporate these points.

Would you be willing to describe your describe your 'dream' experience in more detail, either in another note or in person? And do you know if this other person would as well?

[crowncitizen]

I'm not sure if the other person would, to be honest. But I would be! On here or in person works fine. It'd be easier than just writing it out.

[circleprodigy]

Very well, please meet me in my office whenever you have the time.

[crowncitizen]

Okay! I can be there later before dinner if that works for you?

[circleprodigy]

That's fine with me. Thank you, Prompto.