[ while gale ushers karlach to safety, aqua immediately turns in the direction of the gunshot with a frown. ]
I'll go head.
[ WE ARE ONCE AGAIN TAKING OFF BUT LIKE AT LEAST HE KNOWS THIS TIME!! she has her keyblade ready, prepared to cast a defensive spell if needed. she runs towards what might be the source of the noise.
[ hawke, of the three probably flinches the hardest, and despite the lack of pain, immediately presses a hand to her stomach. (but there's.... nothing there...? ) ]
Behind something sturdy now, quickly!
[ hawke takes out one of her daggers and follows behind Aqua- sticking with (part of) the team this time for- well. teamwork makes the dream work or something. she will, however, draw attention to herself while aqua does the investigating ]
[ To clarify, it's not clear whether or not the gunshot came from the group. It was so loud it was difficult to make out which direction it was coming from.
But this group is definitely up to something.
As Hawke and Aqua get closer (and Gale, genuinely can't tell if he's been left behind or not), they'll notice that the group isn't crowding around something as much as they are carrying something. It looks like a person...?
They tense up when they hear you approach, but relax once they recognize you.
They trust you. Everyone in this city trusts you. ]
Ain't nothing, Hawke. [ Says Ginger. ] Just cleaning up.
[ Meanwhile, Karlach is shoved inside the house, and there's silence for a moment.
But after a few moments, she'll let out a scream that can be heard through the door. Hawke and Aqua likely won't hear it from where they are now, and neither will Gale if he's gone with them. ]
[ carrying someone...? aqua is staying with hawke at the moment, though she'll still be trying to pinpoint where the gunshot came from—are any of these people with them carrying a firearm...?
but first, the immediate problem at hand. she remembers the task they'd originally set out to do, what they'd overheard when they were getting coffee what feels like ages ago ]
[ hawke probably notices gale doesn't tag along after her anytime soon but puts it aside to deal with this matter first. maybe karlach just needed extra reassurance!!! ]
Carrying out mischief? You know I'm nosy. Come now, how am I to tell everyone I had nothing to do with it if i simply don't know what I've done?
[ There's no answer from Karlach at first, until suddenly she comes darting out of the house, her arms wrapping around Gale's waist and face wet with tears.
She speaks, for a second, Gale, you hear a different voice, a different little girl, ] Gale, help. Please, help.
[ Inside, the house is dark. Do you go inside?
Meanwhile, Hawke, you actually have so much rizz. Ginger and Brown Hair share a smile, and Brown Hair shifts so that you can see that they're carrying... Anders! Also, they're not carrying a body—they're carrying a corpse, because his throat has been slit open, and it's clearly no longer bleeding. ]
Couldn't let 'im get out. Not after what he'd done, you know? I don't think he wanted to live anyway, was saying Kill me. At least just fucking kill me. when we got to him.
[ They're not carrying any firearms, but you can see they have age appropriate weapons like swords and crossbows. ]
[ well he does not catch sight of the corpse that is being paraded down the street, or he might be more concerned about using magic around them, but - can he send a little globule of light or two in there? ]
[ meanwhile that sure is a corpse! would aqua recognize anders at all, given she's besties with hawke?
regardless, she doesn't leave her side right away, casting her a concerned glance. tension builds immediately, palpably dangerous—they're no longer exchanging pleasantries or bantering over hand pies. ]
...What do you want to do here?
[ spoken to hawke. she'll provide extra firepower if needed—and she does have plenty of it. ]
[ well, first things first: hawke goes dead (heh) white. she doesn't drop her dagger because she's seen far too much to be that much of a flower anymore but she does
look incredibly furious
ruh roh ]
What have you done?!
[ she won't start throwing daggers at people (don't injure anders more than he's already-) but there is certainly a sense of they better start talking. and fast ]
[ Don't worry about it, Gale. The mob is otherwise engaged. You can send your ball of light into the house without fear.
Well, maybe with a little fear. The light spreads into the house, and at first... you don't see anything. No disarray, no mess that would suggest robbery or intrusion. Nothing wrong at all.
Until, you look a little further in, a little higher up. You can see a chair tipped over, and legs hanging in the air.
Meanwhile, the Mob is starting to look at Aqua's keyblade with alarm given Hawke's rage. But mostly, they seem confused. ]
The hell's the matter, Hawke? This the guy that blew up the Chantry. What'd you expect?
[ There isn't an ounce of remorse in their expression. In fact, they hardly seem even bothered with the fact that they're carrying a corpse. They're not afraid, as if they can't fathom that you'd hurt them. Especially over something like this. ]
[ the way we still have a third sidequest to completely send sideways as well
gale freezes where he is - enough so that the lights he's summoning flicker a bit before returning as cold shock courses through him, tightening an arm around Karlach's shoulders. ]
Don't look.
[ seeking solace in that void, then. he isn't quite sure what to do at this point - check if he's still alive, maybe? but that seems like a vain hope. looking down the street to see what Hawke and Aqua are doing, where they've gone. They're always much better at these things than him. ]
hawke is obviously seething, and if she's about to go apeshit, who is aqua to stop her? —except she may have to try and intervene a little, given there's a crowd around them.
if she's able to, she'll try to cast a large barrier around them, to shield (if not gently push back) the rubberneckers from whatever's about to happen between hawke and the people who killed anders. uh... i got a 9. :( ]
Mages are as human as everyone else- they deserve a chance to live as they like!
[ it's the same thing she told anders recently (forever ago) and have said insistently since. sure, his methods left a lot to be desired but that's no reason to out of your way to kill him! (he did, however, kill the divine justice but look, shh it's not about her right now) ]
You've got five seconds to put him down and back away before we have problems.
[ given the barrier around them and the fact hawke is now t-minus ten seconds away from going ape shit, gale uuuuuuh. you're on your own, sorry dude. ]
[ Oh yeah, you do have a third sidequest, don't you?
Well, Karlach for once obeys, though it doesn't seem like she even has the werewithal to look back into the house, sobbing openly and anguish as plain as day, ] My dad! My dad.
[ She steps back, wiping furiously at her eyes and looking at you for answers though— her gaze catches on something else, closer to Aqua and Hawke.
Hawke and Aqua, it's becoming very clear to the Mob that you're upset with them, and just as they're about to fall in line and drop the body— ]
—What did you do?
[ What was that last sidequest? Help out a man who committed a grave sin make amends with those he hurt?
Aqua, just before your barrier closes around you, you see Terra approach. Terra, who'd had his will and agency stolen, possessed to abduct innocents to be turned into mindflayers until he was freed from his shackles. Now he spends his days as a jail guard, one of the few positions available to him as he works to atone for his crimes.
Gale and Hawke, you'll recognize him as well.
He's looking a little worse for wear, apparently no part of the Mob's plan to abduct and kill Anders.
He also looks surprised to see you, ] ... Aqua? What's going on?
[ he looks between the growing mob and karlach, a little lost and - awkwardly - silent for a long moment. how is he supposed to answer? isn't he supposed to be the hero here? to help people? right now he's helping absolutely no one - not karlach, not aqua, not hawke. completely paralyzed with indecision. ]
You'll stay with us, everything will be fine-- Don't worry.
[ don't worry? there's a crowd about to erupt into violence here, but alright. ]
aqua's attention is no longer on hawke or anders. she looks taken aback to see terra, her heart immediately twisting with regret. (she was supposed to watch after him, make sure he didn't go down the wrong path...) ]
Terra? What are you doing here? Why did this happen?
[ she can't really answer his question—she's not sure herself. isn't he the one responsible for keeping anders behind bars...? how did he fail to stop this from happening...? ]
[ Terra's appearance puts a bit of a damper on her desire to stick a blade right into the foreheads of the ones holding onto Anders' (oh maker, she's so sorry Anders) body but-
they've still got five seconds to leave him and move back. tick tock, fellas. ]
Hey! Eyes over here. Aqua, you're okay with Terra?
[ You need to act fast, Gale. Unfortunately, sometimes being a hero requires you to think quick, act fast, because Karlach is struggling, and she needs support. ]
... My dad. My dad's dead because of him. [ She's mumbling, half to you, half to herself, eyes fixed on Terra. ] He helped abduct my mum, and now my dad—
[ The look in her eyes reminds you of another innocent, manic with fear and panic. What happens when good people are hurt, over and over? Where's their reward for being so good?
Across the street, the Mob sneers at Terra. They've forgotten your ultimatum, Hawke, distracted now by the guard in their midst. Anders remains slumped over in their hold, nothing but an added weight in their eyes. ]
You're not here to lock us up because you're shit at your job, are you?
[ And Terra shakes his head, eyes still fixed on Aqua. ]
No, I. I'm not. I only wanted... [ It's then that you notice a box in his hand from a local bakery. The kind a little girl might be delighted to get a dessert from.
Because he did go down the wrong path, Aqua. And even if you save him, how is he supposed to live with himself? What is he supposed to do now?
[ she doesn't respond to hawke, attention honed in on just one person—but hawke can probably get the sense aqua will try to deal with terra herself. (that is unless gale interferes, though she isn't aware of what he's doing at the moment, either.)
her barrier is still glimmering fiercely around them, not allowing any of them any escape. ]
Did you abduct that girl's mother...?
[ is it something he can even atone for? can the love of her parents possibly be replaced by such a simple gesture? ]
[ well isn't this a right mess? don't you just love when everything comes to head at the same time??
hawke will whistle sharply, attempting to bring attention back to her because her vs mob vs terra (vs aqua (vs.... gale r u still ok back there)) sounds like a disaster in the making. it's already a disaster lbr. ]
Hey! Enough! You've already done your bit for the day. Drop Anders, leave, and we won't ring up the Captain's Guard about sending the lot of you into prison cell he left behind. Chop, chop.
[ Gale, as you gather your magic, you might feel a familiar ache in your ribs. An itch. Why is that? Did you forget something...?
But then Karlach's face steadily shifts from shock and surprise into something you might be more familiar with, Gale, rage.
Her voice comes out a heartbroken snarl, ] It's him.
[ And Terra doesn't deny it. He looks just as heartbroken, lost. Aqua, for a second, your control over your magic falters, you too feel a familiar itch in your wrist and instead of a glimmer of protection, you see two, giant black dogs circling Terra, ready to tear flesh from bone.
But that's not now. That's not you. (Is it?) Your barrier stays in place, and you face Terra. ]
I- it wasn't me. I don't know what to do, Aqua. What do I do?
[ Discomfort roils in the space around all of you, and you're alone here, but the space feels crowded with anxiety, a thumping of your hearts like you're running out of time. You have to do the right thing. How do you fix this before it gets worse?
Eventually, Ginger throws Anders at you, Hawke. ]
Fine! Take 'im! We ain't got no use for a corpse anyway.
[ that is familiar. rage. karlach is filled with loss and terror and -- hadn't he promised her once? to help her with the person who had done such things to her? he's having trouble remembering in this moment exactly the shape and nature of that person, but he had promised. revenge is not his nature. or maybe it is. after all, what is seeking to become a god in this world anything but revenge against a lifetime of being crushed beneath a boot. revenge is finally pushing back against the ones that would hurt you, when they come to find you.
someone else too. when he comes, he won't find you alone.
it doesn't feel like the right thing, like the heroic thing, to make certain choices here. maybe a better hero, a better leader, would know the way out of this. but he'd tried talking, hadn't he? talking hadn't helped. talking had made everything so much worse so quickly. his ribs ache.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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Go, stay down - we'll be right back!
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I'll go head.
[ WE ARE ONCE AGAIN TAKING OFF BUT LIKE AT LEAST HE KNOWS THIS TIME!! she has her keyblade ready, prepared to cast a defensive spell if needed. she runs towards what might be the source of the noise.
what are these protein freaks crowding around? ]
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Behind something sturdy now, quickly!
[ hawke takes out one of her daggers and follows behind Aqua- sticking with (part of) the team this time for- well. teamwork makes the dream work or something. she will, however, draw attention to herself while aqua does the investigating ]
What's all this, then?
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But this group is definitely up to something.
As Hawke and Aqua get closer (and Gale, genuinely can't tell if he's been left behind or not), they'll notice that the group isn't crowding around something as much as they are carrying something. It looks like a person...?
They tense up when they hear you approach, but relax once they recognize you.
They trust you. Everyone in this city trusts you. ]
Ain't nothing, Hawke. [ Says Ginger. ] Just cleaning up.
[ Meanwhile, Karlach is shoved inside the house, and there's silence for a moment.
But after a few moments, she'll let out a scream that can be heard through the door. Hawke and Aqua likely won't hear it from where they are now, and neither will Gale if he's gone with them. ]
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I guess the upside is he might be close enough to hear that scream? ]
... Karlach?
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but first, the immediate problem at hand. she remembers the task they'd originally set out to do, what they'd overheard when they were getting coffee what feels like ages ago ]
...Do explain.
[ SOMETHING IS OBVIOUSLY NOT RIGHT HERE. ]
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Carrying out mischief? You know I'm nosy. Come now, how am I to tell everyone I had nothing to do with it if i simply don't know what I've done?
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She speaks, for a second, Gale, you hear a different voice, a different little girl, ] Gale, help. Please, help.
[ Inside, the house is dark. Do you go inside?
Meanwhile, Hawke, you actually have so much rizz. Ginger and Brown Hair share a smile, and Brown Hair shifts so that you can see that they're carrying... Anders! Also, they're not carrying a body—they're carrying a corpse, because his throat has been slit open, and it's clearly no longer bleeding. ]
Couldn't let 'im get out. Not after what he'd done, you know? I don't think he wanted to live anyway, was saying Kill me. At least just fucking kill me. when we got to him.
[ They're not carrying any firearms, but you can see they have age appropriate weapons like swords and crossbows. ]
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regardless, she doesn't leave her side right away, casting her a concerned glance. tension builds immediately, palpably dangerous—they're no longer exchanging pleasantries or bantering over hand pies. ]
...What do you want to do here?
[ spoken to hawke. she'll provide extra firepower if needed—and she does have plenty of it. ]
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[ well, first things first: hawke goes dead (heh) white. she doesn't drop her dagger because she's seen far too much to be that much of a flower anymore but she does
look incredibly furious
ruh roh ]
What have you done?!
[ she won't start throwing daggers at people (don't injure anders more than he's already-) but there is certainly a sense of they better start talking. and fast ]
cw: suicide
Well, maybe with a little fear. The light spreads into the house, and at first... you don't see anything. No disarray, no mess that would suggest robbery or intrusion. Nothing wrong at all.
Until, you look a little further in, a little higher up. You can see a chair tipped over, and legs hanging in the air.
Meanwhile, the Mob is starting to look at Aqua's keyblade with alarm given Hawke's rage. But mostly, they seem confused. ]
The hell's the matter, Hawke? This the guy that blew up the Chantry. What'd you expect?
[ There isn't an ounce of remorse in their expression. In fact, they hardly seem even bothered with the fact that they're carrying a corpse. They're not afraid, as if they can't fathom that you'd hurt them. Especially over something like this. ]
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gale freezes where he is - enough so that the lights he's summoning flicker a bit before returning as cold shock courses through him, tightening an arm around Karlach's shoulders. ]
Don't look.
[ seeking solace in that void, then. he isn't quite sure what to do at this point - check if he's still alive, maybe? but that seems like a vain hope. looking down the street to see what Hawke and Aqua are doing, where they've gone. They're always much better at these things than him. ]
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hawke is obviously seething, and if she's about to go apeshit, who is aqua to stop her? —except she may have to try and intervene a little, given there's a crowd around them.
if she's able to, she'll try to cast a large barrier around them, to shield (if not gently push back) the rubberneckers from whatever's about to happen between hawke and the people who killed anders. uh... i got a 9. :( ]
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[ it's the same thing she told anders recently (forever ago) and have said insistently since. sure, his methods left a lot to be desired but that's no reason to out of your way to kill him! (he did, however, kill the divine justice but look, shh it's not about her right now) ]
You've got five seconds to put him down and back away before we have problems.
[ given the barrier around them and the fact hawke is now t-minus ten seconds away from going ape shit, gale uuuuuuh. you're on your own, sorry dude. ]
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Well, Karlach for once obeys, though it doesn't seem like she even has the werewithal to look back into the house, sobbing openly and anguish as plain as day, ] My dad! My dad.
[ She steps back, wiping furiously at her eyes and looking at you for answers though— her gaze catches on something else, closer to Aqua and Hawke.
Hawke and Aqua, it's becoming very clear to the Mob that you're upset with them, and just as they're about to fall in line and drop the body— ]
—What did you do?
[ What was that last sidequest? Help out a man who committed a grave sin make amends with those he hurt?
Aqua, just before your barrier closes around you, you see Terra approach. Terra, who'd had his will and agency stolen, possessed to abduct innocents to be turned into mindflayers until he was freed from his shackles. Now he spends his days as a jail guard, one of the few positions available to him as he works to atone for his crimes.
Gale and Hawke, you'll recognize him as well.
He's looking a little worse for wear, apparently no part of the Mob's plan to abduct and kill Anders.
He also looks surprised to see you, ] ... Aqua? What's going on?
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You'll stay with us, everything will be fine-- Don't worry.
[ don't worry? there's a crowd about to erupt into violence here, but alright. ]
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aqua's attention is no longer on hawke or anders. she looks taken aback to see terra, her heart immediately twisting with regret. (she was supposed to watch after him, make sure he didn't go down the wrong path...) ]
Terra? What are you doing here? Why did this happen?
[ she can't really answer his question—she's not sure herself. isn't he the one responsible for keeping anders behind bars...? how did he fail to stop this from happening...? ]
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they've still got five seconds to leave him and move back. tick tock, fellas. ]
Hey! Eyes over here. Aqua, you're okay with Terra?
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... My dad. My dad's dead because of him. [ She's mumbling, half to you, half to herself, eyes fixed on Terra. ] He helped abduct my mum, and now my dad—
[ The look in her eyes reminds you of another innocent, manic with fear and panic. What happens when good people are hurt, over and over? Where's their reward for being so good?
Across the street, the Mob sneers at Terra. They've forgotten your ultimatum, Hawke, distracted now by the guard in their midst. Anders remains slumped over in their hold, nothing but an added weight in their eyes. ]
You're not here to lock us up because you're shit at your job, are you?
[ And Terra shakes his head, eyes still fixed on Aqua. ]
No, I. I'm not. I only wanted... [ It's then that you notice a box in his hand from a local bakery. The kind a little girl might be delighted to get a dessert from.
Because he did go down the wrong path, Aqua. And even if you save him, how is he supposed to live with himself? What is he supposed to do now?
How is he supposed to make things better? ]
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Him? You're certain?
[ there's light, gathering around his hand. ]
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[ she doesn't respond to hawke, attention honed in on just one person—but hawke can probably get the sense aqua will try to deal with terra herself. (that is unless gale interferes, though she isn't aware of what he's doing at the moment, either.)
her barrier is still glimmering fiercely around them, not allowing any of them any escape. ]
Did you abduct that girl's mother...?
[ is it something he can even atone for? can the love of her parents possibly be replaced by such a simple gesture? ]
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hawke will whistle sharply, attempting to bring attention back to her because her vs mob vs terra (vs aqua (vs.... gale r u still ok back there)) sounds like a disaster in the making. it's already a disaster lbr. ]
Hey! Enough! You've already done your bit for the day. Drop Anders, leave, and we won't ring up the Captain's Guard about sending the lot of you into prison cell he left behind. Chop, chop.
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But then Karlach's face steadily shifts from shock and surprise into something you might be more familiar with, Gale, rage.
Her voice comes out a heartbroken snarl, ] It's him.
[ And Terra doesn't deny it. He looks just as heartbroken, lost. Aqua, for a second, your control over your magic falters, you too feel a familiar itch in your wrist and instead of a glimmer of protection, you see two, giant black dogs circling Terra, ready to tear flesh from bone.
But that's not now. That's not you. (Is it?) Your barrier stays in place, and you face Terra. ]
I- it wasn't me. I don't know what to do, Aqua. What do I do?
[ Discomfort roils in the space around all of you, and you're alone here, but the space feels crowded with anxiety, a thumping of your hearts like you're running out of time. You have to do the right thing. How do you fix this before it gets worse?
Eventually, Ginger throws Anders at you, Hawke. ]
Fine! Take 'im! We ain't got no use for a corpse anyway.
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someone else too. when he comes, he won't find you alone.
it doesn't feel like the right thing, like the heroic thing, to make certain choices here. maybe a better hero, a better leader, would know the way out of this. but he'd tried talking, hadn't he? talking hadn't helped. talking had made everything so much worse so quickly. his ribs ache.
anyway he's going to cast fireball on terra. ]
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