Adventures in the Far Reaches (for Weiss Ritter)

Xatarias

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"I appreciate it, sir-Orion. But... It's like Vyllen said, I might learn to win a duel or two during class if I put the work in." He glances at his feet, kicking up a bit of dust as he shuffled nervously. "But I'm dead out there in any case. I was written off for so long, no one bothered to think of how I might get through it. Not when there was a whole class to teach. Only Ilyanna..."

Surprisingly, the young man didn't sound emotional, simply careful in choice of words. Your realize that this discussion must have been run and re-run in his head ever since that tragic day he lost his arm. He was a cripple- everyone new what that meant.

"I'm not angry about it. I realize why they did what they did... But I've given this a lot of thought. I'd make a better mechanic than a warrior, and it just so happens that it's also the best chance for me to live after I come of age. And even if I don't get selected for temple school..."

You can almost hear Ilyanna screaming why as Devin gives a sad little smile.

"Well, some people didn't expect me to make to sixteen seasons. I'll consider myself lucky."
 

Weiss Ritter

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Orion stared in silence for a moment. A frown tugged at his lips.

"I know," He sighed. "I was in a similar position during my time in the proving grounds."

It had been years ago, but more often than not that torturous time in his life felt like it was mere days ago. Doomed attempts to make it through the obstacle course before his own power betrayed him, being reduced to a screaming and flailing wretch every time his sparring partners pressed him enough for his unstable Ta Moko to send the white-hot blades slashing through his body yet again, and being regarded with pity at best by his own clan as the day of his Trial an seemingly inevitable execution at the jungle's hands grew closer and closer. How could he ever forget? How could he ignore it when it seemed ready to happen all over again?

"I just...want to give you a chance, Devin. No one deserves to be written off without one," Orion crossed his arms over his bare chest. The frown refused to be suppressed. "I know the best way for me to do that is just to let you and Ilyanna focus on crushing that exam without me butting in with lectures on swordplay. But..."

When Orion was young, he would have given almost anything for the privilege of just being able to train like any other would-be warrior of the clan. Ever since he had surpassed them, he'd only come to realize how many problems couldn't be solved by simply stalking and killing them.

"...I guess I'm not used to just doing nothing, but I'll try to be there if you do need me. For what that's worth."

Orion tried to force a slight smile.
 

Xatarias

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Devin hesitates a moment before awkwardly giving your arm a pat, his face tight with a strained grin. The gesture does little to alleviate the tension.

"I appreciate that, sir. You've been kind to me when you didn't need to be, so... Thanks."

His smile was a little more genuine as he hoisted his pack and exited the courtyard- headed home to his burrow you and not the temple grounds. No doubt all this talk of imminent mortality led him to seek a little privacy. As you begin to put the proving grounds back into order, you hear voices in the distance.

"Don't worry Dev, we'll show you mercy~"

It took you right back to your own time as a youngling. The archived teachings of your ancestors. Certain lessons seemed particularly poignant at the time and still rattled in your brain. You remember the first Elder Donya, tears in her eyes as she choked out one of the first ships logs after Skyhold's descent.

The serum worked... Better than we had hoped. But the others... In the end, all we could give them was mercy.
 

Weiss Ritter

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Orion's forced smile lingered even after Devin had turned and gone. Had he done more harm than good? It wasn't planned on the Firevein's part, but Grandmother might have said that the reminder of his mortality would motivate Devin to study that much harder. Steel didn't become useful until it was allowed to roast and then hammered into a tool worthy of the great clan Cloudclimber.

But he wasn't Tysera, and Orion knew he would have to do better if she intended for him to speak at the council. The cantankerous matriarch only looked like she was keeping her political rivals in line with sheer force of will and acidic wit. Her body may have atrophied, but the elder's mind and senses seemed as sharp as ever.

None of the those thoughts made the young warrior feel confident about his own future. Double-checking to make sure all the obstacle's traps had been fully reset and the practice weapons all in place was a welcome distraction. Orion was just about to return his practice blade to its space on the rack when he heard the distant voices.

The young man's jaw clenched. Yes. "Mercy". It was taking him on a less than pleasant stroll through memory lane. The clan's ancestors had been forced to assume the grim duty of putting their own out of their misery. Some among the clan seemed all to eager to follow their example...or claim so, anyway. In Orion's experience, the bulk of those tended to get much less willing to make "sacrifices" for the good of the clan when their own flesh was on the line.

His grip on the practice blade tightened as he stalked toward the voices. The tranquilizer's lingering effects, if any, felt very distant now.
 

Xatarias

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You round the corner, taking in the sight of several jeering youths. The irony of Donyas invoking their family's motto, a phrase rooted in anguish and sacrifice, to taunt a peer is not lost on you. Devin seems to be doing the smart thing and making himself scarce, head kept low, his pace quick but not so much that it would encourage pursuit. It was like a pack of dogs reasserting the established order.

Technically speaking these children were beyond your authority. As a concerned citizen, you could talk to their parents. As your Grandmother's aide, you could ask for the incident to be brought to one of the Donya's representatives... Somehow neither course of action seemed promising.

Devin nearly makes it down a side street when one of the bullies expertly hurls a stone, striking the amputee in the small of the back. This rouses a chorus of cruel approval from some and winces from others. You recognize the thrower... None other than the Elder Donya's grandson.
 

Weiss Ritter

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Orion had no intentions of stopping even when he realized the identity of Devin's tormentors, but when the stone smashed into poor Devin's back, the Firevein's heart thundered and his jaw clenched.

"I'm impressed," His voice cut through the jeers as sharply as a blade through flesh. For a moment, Orion's crimson glare burned hot enough to melt steel as he briskly stepped forward to offer Devin a hand up. "Skyhold needs as many talented hunters and mechanics as it can get these days, but rather than training or seeking the wisdom of your elders, you spend your time hounding one of your clanmates-and as pack no less. You must be very confident that your trial won't end in thornapes fighting over which of them gets to eat the marrow in your bones."

His blazing gaze swept across the youths. There was a twitch in Orion's expression when he recognized some of them were the students he'd lectured about camaraderie mere hours before. Inevitably, his gaze settled on the Elder Donya's grandson.

"The Donya family is renowned for its bravery and and its willingness to give of itself for the greater good of the clan. If you're the heirs to that legacy, I fear for your family's future."
 

Xatarias

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The mere sight of you cows most of the younglings, but many visibly flinch when you deliver your scathing admonishment. Devin mumbles something unintelligible, no doubt an apology for inconveniencing you, but you don't hear him. Tension mounts as you stare down the group of adolescents. A few murmur apologies and make good their escape.

The young Donya moves towards you but is held back by his companions.

"Renly-"

"Shut it Lorn! I'm not scared of Tysera's wonder boy." The young man fixes you with a venomous stare, pointing a condemning finger in your direction. "Gramps says your family's softness will be the ruin of the clan. Cripples like that are an affront to the tenant of Strength."

You feel Devin flinch in your grasp. Glancing down you see not fear or anger, but shame in his expression. Some part of him accepts Renly's words.

"But we're taking all your seats, so it won't matter anymore. Cloudclimber won't be weak anymore!"
 

Weiss Ritter

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The fear most of the younglings regarded him with was cathartic to the once-abused scion of the Fireveins, but it was the way they flinched at his words that felt like a true, if faint, victory. Maybe, just maybe, his words would remain with them in a way merely scowling and stomping his feet never could.

Renly stepped forward even over the objections of his cohorts. Some may have struggled to decide whether the Donya bravo was being brave or stupid. Given his tormenting of a tired, one-armed youngling with an entire gang in tow, Orion was not inclined to think charitably of the Elder Donya's grandchild.

Orion cocked his head at the boy, almost daring him to throw a rock or punch just to see where it would get him. It was almost tragic how the other succeeded in holding Renly back.

"Perhaps you need to spend a little more time in the archives or ask your grandfather to remind you of Cloudclimber's traditions," The warrior's tone was as cold and sharp as steel. He didn't avert his blazing gaze from Renly for a second, but he did offer Devin a reassuring squeeze when he felt the amputee flinch. "Whether or not a youngling is welcomed into the clan as an adult is decided by the Trial or the Temple. Not untested children who think tormenting one of my students after a long, hard day of training with a half-dozen friends makes them strong or clever."

Orion pointed at Renly with his training sword. It was a gesture meant to emphasize a point, not a threat. "Is that so? If your family manages to pull that off in spite of your Gramps taking such a boisterous brat into his confidence, I'll have to applaud them. Is there anything else your grandfather discusses behind closed doors you would like to share with me?"

He almost mockingly tilted his head again. It belied the pause Renly's words had given him. Even if the Donya weren't tripping over themselves to get rid of the woman who had become high chief in all but name, there was little doubt in his mind that they would regard her kindly if they knew her body's true condition. Of course, Tysera's Donya counterpart was hardly a spry young thing anymore either. If the worst came to pass, how much longer before he and their other elders found themselves in the same place?

"Go home, boy, and never trouble any of my students ever again. Unlike you, they're offering their sweat and blood to actually make Cloudclimber strong while you hinder them and offer useless rants about it."
 

Xatarias

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Your speech seems to make Renly's companions shrink with every word. This isn't the council hall, and the fact that you were Tysera's deputy in all but name carried significant weight with these youngsters. The Donya brat had provoked the heir of a powerful chieftain- and most seemed wary of the fact.

Renly for his part seems unrepentant and increasingly hostile as several more of his companions murmur a formal apology and make themselves scarce. Clearly the brat didn't like his authority eroded- certainly an inherited trait. He takes a step towards you, but stumbles as a walking stick suddenly clatters between his knees.

"Blast it, I never seem to keep my hands around the damned things. Hands aren't what they used to be... Ah young Renly. Fetch an old man his walking stick would you?"

Councilman Kazanki moves quick for the oldest citizen of Skyhold. As soon as Renly dislodges the offending length of wood from his legs, the old man steps forward and snatches it from his hand. The following pat of appreciation might as well have been a hammer blow for the way the young Donya winces.

"Thank you, thank you. Kat was just taking her Gramps out for a walk when I heard some friendly voices. Not every day you get Tysera's right hand mingling with Donyas. The sight of two families setting aside their differences warms this old man's heart, wouldn't you say Kat?"

The huntress doesn't look with favor at Renly, but she has only daggers for you. Apparently she didn't forget the slight you left her with at the canteena.

"I couldn't say what makes you happy or unhappy, Grandpa. Your deviousness is beyond me."

Kazanki guffaws and Renly yelps as his back was slapped.
 

Weiss Ritter

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The fear most of the bullies regarded him with was something right out of Orion's boyhood fantasies. How many times had he dreamed of avenging himself against his and others' tormentors as an unstoppable force of nature after dragging or sometimes being carried into his hammock? Again, however, the more rational part of the hunter's mind regarded the sight with uncertainty. How much of his words would really stick with the Donya boys? He wouldn't be around to thwart their every attempt to bully Devin or others like him. Ancestors forbid if all this just wound up encouraged Renly and the likeminded of his followers to spiteful new heights...

Orion didn't budge when the young Donya took a brazen step forward. Brutalizing the boy wasn't really an option, but if he threw the first punch, perhaps a humbling deflection followed by a light blow to the back? Nothing harder than the stone the brat had hurled at Devin.

His gaze was so focused on the brat before him that Orion almost didn't even notice the stick falling through the air until it was too late. Almost. The Firevein's now-inquisitive eyes glanced over the familiar figure of Kazanki...and Kat. The former never quite failed to impress him with the dexterity he still possessed despite his advanced age. The latter seemed every bit as livid with him as she had the day before.

"Good to see you're doing well, Kat," Orion's tone was more wary than warm, but it certainly wasn't hostile. He hoped it would remain that way, but that would depend on her. The huntress's dry remark did earn a not insincere chuckle and faint grin from Orion, though.

"Hmhm...well, it'd make me happy to think that we can leave the worst of the politics and arguments in the council chambers where they belong," His gaze wasn't entirely casual as he regarded Kazanki. Had the elder intended his words to be a veiled rebuke just as the pat he'd given Renly had been? Ilyanna had spoken to him about compromise just this morning as well. It was a wonderful thought, but where was the mutual respect in being expected to roll over and allow the people he loved or the ones he'd been charged to nurture to be disgraced and derided?

"I hope your walk's been a pleasant one. These days, mine tend to be more..." Orion glanced in the direction of the lava-ravaged hull the shamans has been working so hard to repair. The image of that man tossing his giggling yet oblivious daughter into the air while he and his wife exchanged tight, knowing smiles still lingered. "Mixed."
 

Xatarias

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"We're not friends," Renly protested, oblivious to the conversation's undercurrents. "This pretender is- aghhhh~"

The little Donya whimpers as the grip on his shoulder becomes steely, embers of Strength fluttering from Kazanki's body.

"Oh? A disagreement?" The councilman leaned in towards his captive with a menace that belied his charming grandpa visage. "You know, back in my day we sorted these things out on the Letting Grounds."

For the first time Renly shows true fear at the mention of the clan's ancient dueling grounds. Just outside the gates of Skyhold, generations of superstition left those obsidian fields empty and eerie. Some said that the black sand underfoot had a hunger all its own- ever dry even after the blood of countless combatants was spilled. Judging from the Donya's expression, he knew the implication as well as you did.

"Orion hasn't had his first kill yet either, so by the book, you two are equal combatants. No chance to name a champion in your stead." Kazanki mused as Renly began to shake. "But of course with your family's good name at stake, I wouldn't expect a brave Donya like yourself to try and weasel out of a matter of honor, hmm?"

At some point the rest of Renly's gang has made themselves scarce, leaving their leader to contend with the current situation alone and quite clearly afraid.
 

Weiss Ritter

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Gratifying as it was to see Renly writhing under his elder's "gentle" chiding, Orion tried not to enjoy it too much. There were likely several reasons why Kat was reserved around Kazanki. Perhaps the councilman's words were from the heart, but who was to say there was no possibility of him turning his guile against Tysera's deputy one way or another?

"...I don't know," Orion said after a moment's deliberation. His tone was cool as he crossed his arms over his chest. There no point in twisting the knife now that Kanzanki had shattered the one-defiant bully's bluster. "I think we've reached enough of an understanding to avoid the trouble. Right, Renly?"

His crimson eyes would have regarded the boy just long enough to note his reaction before shifting to Devin. "Are you alright? I don't want anything else to unnecessarily distract you from your studies and training."
 

Xatarias

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Renly's expression remains poisonous, but he has the sense to nod at your suggestion. Kazanki gives a gap-toothed grin and releases him.

"Well that's a relief. Always a shame to have such young potential eviscerated before maturity. Why don't you run along and tell your grandfather it's been too long since I beat him in a game of stones?"

The Donya takes his opportunity but not before shooting Devin a look that holds malicious promise for the young amputee. Part of you wonders if you had really done Devin any favors by intervening.

"I'm fine sir... If you don't mind, I'll be getting to that studying. Mum will be expecting me soon anyhow."

He leaves with his gaze fixed firmly at his feet, making his way home with a quick but uneven gait. Kazanki watches with you, wrinkled face unreadable.

"I don't suppose your own childhood condition has anything to do with you special affection for that boy? Forgive me for being presumptuous, but when you're as old as me, one tends to find echoes of the past around every corner. Are we in for another surprise out of this batch of younglings?... Or are you just wasting your time?"
 

Weiss Ritter

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If this was a victory, it didn't quite feel like one. Nothing about Renly's expression made Orion feel confident that even his and Kazanki's combined presence might not be enough to deter the stubborn and venomous child. Perhaps the brat's band would remain dispersed at the very least, and with Renly's...courage, as it were, but he was loathe to plan on it and Devin looked anything but relieved.

"I don't mind," Orion tried not to let the unease sneak into his tone. His gaze flickered back over the stewing Donya boy. "But Devin? Let me know if anything else...interferes with your or any of the other students' work. It's my duty to prepare you all as well as I can, and I don't want the class to bring anything but their best,"

...And ancestors knew harsh words even from clanmates you loathed had a way of eating away at any trainee's resolve.

There it is...

Orion took a subtle breath and a moment to think when Kazanki did indeed turn that old yet sharp mind of his upon him. "Painful or not, whose childhood doesn't have influence on the man or woman they become?"

He turned to face the elder with a slightly less unreadable expression. It was faint, but there was tension in the Firevein's handsome face a discerning eye may have noticed. "He honestly caught me off-guard during the class's last exercise, and I've heard promising things from the Temple. He might not be a legendary warrior in the making, but strength comes in many forms."

Orion paused for an instant to take a quick breath. Surely Kazanki-eldest of the eld-of all people could appreciate that? The Donya may have been best known for their reverence of martial power even by Cloudclimber's standards, but it wasn't their physically fittest members who sat on the council.

"Regardless, it's the Trial and the Temple that decide these things at their ordained times and no sooner. Until then, I don't want to see any potential demoralized out of my students by younglings wasting their time with such...games."
 

Xatarias

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"Heard things from the temple, have you? Never took you for the religious type." Kazanki cracks a crooked smile while Kat flushes and looks the other way. "But I pry too much. Your projects, your business... However, when I have Donya's in every nook and crook threatening, bribing, and cajoling for votes? Well, you see why I might get concerned when Firevein's strongest and brightest is shouting in the street with a schoolyard bully."

The councilman twirls his walking stick idly, giving you a knowing glance. Kazanki currently ranked among your grandmother's coalition, but you both knew that the wily old buzzard was sensitive to the slightest change in political balance. He had survived this long for a reason, after all.

"My district's laborers are hard at work assisting the shamans repair hull breaches. We're willing to do our part, you see. But it is worrisome that our mutual adversaries feel so confident that they can blatantly upset the status quo."
 

Weiss Ritter

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"Hmph...!" Orion let out an amused huff in spite of himself, though his smile wasn't a terrible happy one. "I'm more...worldly than anything else, but...it's complicated,"

He shrugged and found himself forced to frown under Kanazanki's probing glance. Out of all Tysera's lessons that he had yet to master, the differences between a warrior and a leader seemed to be the area she was least proud of him in. When Kazanki put it like that...yes, it sounded petty and poorly handled. But...dammit, what would a leader like Tysera have done if she couldn't just cow Renly with a thinly-veiled threat? Ancestors, it was hard for Orion to imagine things not getting even worse if he'd been brazen enough to hint at serious violence against the Donya boy. Petition the Donyas themselves? A bad joke they'd probably enjoy. Ignore the matter altogether? Just tell himself that he was working toward a larger, more worthy goal than any one youngling's pain? It made his gut twist just thinking of it, and yet...warriors fought battles, leaders waged wars in one form or another.

...By the moons, he just hoped he hadn't made things worse.

"I know...." Orion sighed and habitually crossed his arms over his chest again. His eyes and ears strained to make sure they were alone before he continued. "They've chafed under Tysera for years now, and I doubt they were pleased when her eldest grandchild came back as her champion rather than a corpse. It's not just recklessness, though. People are getting afraid, some desperate. I see it every time I come back from a hunt. I'm sure the Donya sense it too, and it's easier to blame all of us for the clan's hardships than it is to end them."
 

Xatarias

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"Well the closer I get to dropping dead, my mind starts to wander towards the clan's future. I've done right by my district over all these years, but it won't make a lick of difference if the Donya's run the whole thing into the ground if and when they overthrow your grandmother."

"Grandpa..." Kat grabs his shoulder, nervously scanning your surroundings for eavesdroppers. But headless of who might be listening, Kazanki waves her off and continues.

"It's true! The Elder Donya hasn't been the same since Shadowglen warriors punched a bunch of holes through his favorite son. He'll never forgive Tysera for holding us back from war, and now it's all he thinks about."

You find yourself with a bony finger leveled at your chest with all the authority of a thunder god.

"People are scared and it serves the Elder Donya's short-sighted purposes. So what the hell are you doing about it? I don't care about all the assurances and soothing bribes Tysera sends my way, I can count. Your family's coalition is buckling under the Donya's block. It's not a question of if but when..."

The fact that Kazanki sought you out speaks volumes to how frustrated he is. But any reassurances you could give him would simply ring hollow. You aren't privy to Tysera's endgame and she's only gotten more secretive with her worsening condition. If the cynical Kazanki was worried, then who else was wavering?... Couldn't your grandmother see this coming? Was it presumptuous for you to try and do anything about it?
 

Weiss Ritter

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There was already a noticeably growing amount of tension in Orion's face and body, but the mention of the Elder Donya's son was enough to crack the young man's mask with a visible frown. There were many things the Fireveins and the Donya did not see eye to eye on, and Renly's behavior made him want to strangle at least the ones who enabled him, but few felt the pain of the war with Shadowglen more strongly than them. Orion's father more than just his parent. He had been one of the precious, precious few people who loved him in spite of the Ta Moko's ravages. Watching that man, that beacon in a sea of pity and contempt, painfully waste away from accursed venoms even after the battle was over had been every bit as torturous as the worst of Tysera's trials.

Orion's jaw clenched. It had not been easy for even his beloved grandmother to rein him in. Even today it wasn't an easy subject to discuss with her. Just thinking about that dark chapter in his life was enough to get his heart pounding and trickles of adrenaline flowing through him.

The young man flinched as if physically struck by Kazanki's words and outstretched finger. What was he doing...? Either failing as a leader of anything more than a hunting party or having ever-greater duties thrust upon him by people who would have been content to let him die in the jungle if not for Tysera. It depended on who was asked and how Orion himself felt at the time.

"I'll speak with my grandmother this evening," Orion's words came out stiffly. The fact that there was nothing else he really could have said only made it harder. "In the meantime, I hope the rest of your walk is a more pleasant one. Kazanki. Kat."

Orion nodded politely as he could manage and if not halted, would have turned about to return the practice blade to the rack and make his way back home.

...Ancestors. It would have taken a fairly dark dream for him to imagine that a day spent couching younglings who he once thought were untainted by the pain of his own childhood could end on such a bitter note.
 

Xatarias

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The distance to your home was a short one, but there was still plenty of time to brood over your newfound responsibilities. People seemed to be losing faith in your grandmother. Whether the weakness brought on by illness was bleeding through her facade, or her actual leadership was flagging, you couldn't say. The real question was whether Orion Firevein had a place in these political dealings...

The game of stones had a central mechanic of upgrading one's pieces at critical moments during a match. Was this Kazanki's move? Promoting a pawn even as the queen was captured?... Or was the old man even on your side? He certainly didn't leave you with an impression of confidence. In the end, he would do what was best for himself and his district, but perhaps he would be willing to assume a certain amount of risk if it kept power from the Donya's greedy grasp...

It was enough to make anyone's head spin, much less a simple hunter who's greatest problem previously was attaining the affections of one alluring shamaness.

"No dummy, like this! Do you want to end up in the belly of a Thornape?"

You arrive at the house with Syndra and Alec practicing with low current arc casters in the courtyard. True to form, your younger sister was instructing her twin on the finer points of the quick release.
 

Weiss Ritter

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The trip back home was too short to give Orion a chance to truly steady his nerves, yet long enough for all the questions and concerns Kazanki and Tysera were raising to swirl about in his mind like carrion awaiting a feast. Kazanki was peerless in terms of raw experience and Orion doubted there were many minds that were the equal of the canny councilman among Cloudclimber's ranks, but he couldn't have been alone. How many other allies of Tysera were wavering in their resolve or weighing the benefits of throwing their lot in with the rising Donya versus the risks of the aging Tysera and a successor whose feats as a warrior were of questionable value in a political arena? Ancestors, that wasn't even taking into account their own heirs. Kazanki's body and mind had aged splendidly, but they had aged and Tysera's condition had painfully shown the young man how cruel time could be. Even if Orion threw himself into this writhing nest of corpsevipers with wild abandon, what assurances did Orion have that any plans he made would survive these elders?

Ancestors...the more Orion thought about it, the more he dreaded the idea of becoming more than just Tysera's aid and Cloucclimber's champion, but the alternative made his guts clench too. Even the Elder Donya seemed hesitant to say it outright during the meeting Orion had walked into, but the path Clouclimber would march along if his family got his way was clear enough. Renewed raids, even war, against Shadowglen and possibly the other clans in a dubious bid to solve the resource problem. Effective death sentences for anyone the family dealt "weak" according to their narrow definition of strength. The reduction of the Priesthood from innovators who could find solutions other than martial power to mere maintenance crews, if Ilyanna's words were any indication.

The sight of Syndra and Alec training was a very, very welcome sight. A weak smile took root in Orion's weary expression as he approached the pair.

"She's not wrong. You might want to adjust your stance a bit too. Accuracy's good, but unless you're certain you can your target in a single volley, you have to be ready to ready to reposition in a single heartbeat."

Orion's skill with the arc caster was a pale shadow of his utter and and renowned mastery of melee, but between his Ta Moko-given gifts, natural affinity for martial learning, and years of experience despite his youth that would have crushed nearly any other warrior outright, he did consider himself better with it than most. At the very least, he was skilled enough to pass on a few tips to his younger siblings for a minute or two.

"How are mom and Grandmother doing?" He asked at least, still smiling, but the apprehension visible in the burdened young man's gaze.
 

Xatarias

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The next practice shot goes wide and Alec lets out a snort of frustration, setting his bow aside.

"You're always gonna be better at casting than I am, Syn. I don't get why you're trying to make me into a striker- Master Kendrik says I'm handier with a staff than anyone- owwhh owww quit it~"

You watch as Syndra pounces on her younger brother, mercilessly rubbing his scalp with a clenched fist.

"Because, numbskull, I won't be around when we're in the trials. And if you happen to scavenge parts for an arc caster out there but can't get your hands on a rune blade? What then, dead meat?"

"I just don't understand why it has to be alone" Alec sniffles. "We're always together."

Syndra winces outside of her brother's vision, her hands tightening, causing Alec to yelp. She releases him and kicks the arc caster into his fumbling hands.

"That's not how it works, dummy." She said briskly, fully recovered. "Grandma's inside, Orion. Mom just got done with her treatment."
 

Weiss Ritter

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Orion's smile broadened faintly at the pair's exchange, but even this was tinged with unease. Yes, one day his siblings would have to take the Trial as well. The normally inseparable twins would be left to cope on their own. They weren't like Devin and their ordeals wouldn't see them purposefully thrown into a depthmaw's den or made to starve until a pack of hexapumas could be tracked down and begged from, but...things happened in the jungle. Even to promising students like them. Not even the ancestors could fully comprehend what that would mean for the close-knit yet struggling Fireveins.

"Good. Thank you, Syndra. Alec? She's not wrong, but the next time she puts you in a hold like that, see if you can't give her ribs a tap," Orion smiled thinly and made a sharp gesture with his elbow to illustrate.

The inside of the Fireveins' family home was a breath of fresh air to the now-crushing atmosphere of Skyhold and its endless struggle to carve out a place in the harsh wilds. It wasn't enough to ease the tension in Orion's movements as he briskly made his way deeper inside to find Tysera. Kazanki's grim tidings-whatever Tysera had to say about "needy fuckers"-needed to be addressed, not to mention the report on his more promising students, planning for his and Ilyanna's work in northern patrol, and how to fit at least visits to the council chambers into his duties as warrior and instructor.

...Yes, it was very good that the treatment wouldn't be cutting them short this time.
 

Xatarias

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Alec gives his sister a speculative glance as you demonstrate your move. Syndra reasserts the established pecking order by sticking her tongue out at him.

You duck into the house as your siblings resume practice, finding your mother tidying up the kitchen-turned-infirmary. She offers you a warm smile before resuming her work hiding the family's secrets.

The matriarch herself looks much recovered from yesterday's episode, placidly sipping her tea while scratching out figures in her tome-like ledger. At ease in her element, Tysera looks ten years younger without her wrinkled features drawn into a scowl.

"That's a face I haven't seen since I dug you out of that depthmaw's den," She remarked, barely glancing your way. "Disappointing batch of younglings, or did something else put you in a mood?"
 

Weiss Ritter

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Orion offered his mother a faint but warm smile in return. One that grew a bit less forced at the sight of the rejuvenated Tysera.

"I was quite happy with my younglings, actually," The young man said as he took his customary seat across from the Firevein matriarch. "They're a solid class overall. I'm going to have to keep my eye on Vyllen for the reasons we we discussed last evening. She's one of my fastest learners and seems to be a strong leader so far, at least where hunting parties are concerned. I'll need another chance to see how she copes under pressure, though. Devin actually managed to get the drop on me when I was this close to winning the exercise,"

Orion held up his hand. A few scant inches separated his thumb from his index finger. His smile broadened with pride in his students, though only for a moment. "It was good to see that Ilyanna' wasn't exaggerating about that mind of his, anyway."

The tension he'd entered the room began to make its way back into his body as the young man braced himself for what might come next. "Renly Donya and his pack thought it would it'd be fun to harass Devin after the lesson was over. I scared them off, but I think Renly's more stubborn than his grandfather. He started ranting about how the Donya are going take over the council and make Cloudclimber strong. It took Kazanki 'happening' to walk by to make him run off with his tail between his legs."

Orion took a breath and leaned inches closer to Tysera. There was no trace of even a forced smile left in his expression. "He isn't happy, grandmother. He's still no friend of the Donya, but he seems certain that the Council will fall to them if things remain as they are. The man has his own district to fight for. I doubt he'll sacrifice that just to stand by us on principle."

The young man's expression was tight and his gaze inquisitive as he watched Tysera's reaction. This was larger than "just" him and his reluctance to pledge himself to an influential huntress already. It would take more than one wedding to a single family already receptive to closer ties with the Fireveins to halt the Donyas' advance. Yet if there anything else Orion could have done, his grandmother seemed reluctant to share how her prized political pawn could become more in the campaign against their rivals.
 

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If Tysera was surprised by the bad news, she did a good job hiding it. Other than the occasional nod or grunt, her attention seems mostly fixated on the neat rows of figures scrawled in her notebook. She makes one last notation before setting aside her razorbeak quill.

"So the Donya grow more brazen and the ever-fickle Kazanki begins to waver... Extend the invitation to whatever younglings you deem most fit. Nothing official mind you. Simply let them know that they have a place among us once their trial is over. It might be a bit premature, but I don't want to miss our chance recruiting them while the Donyas are hungry for any opportunity to undermine us. This Renly, did you shame him?"

Seeing your expression she snorted.

"No Kazanki intervened. No doubt he'll hold it as a favor towards the Elder. That buzzard always hedges his bets... I don't care what it is, Orion. Tact isn't the Donya's strong suit. They'll cross the line soon, and I want you to put them down hard when they do. Publicly."

Massaging her temples, Tysera fixes her gaze on the far wall and an awkward silence follows.

"What do they want, Orion? The Donyas have never appreciated having their power curbed, but have I led so poorly that they would tear the clan apart simply for their own selfish interest?... Or perhaps I'm the one clinging to power, to the detriment of us all. Sometimes it's hard to tell..."
 

Weiss Ritter

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Orion nodded in turn and tried not to frown too visibly at Tysera's analysis of Kazanki's intervention. Was that the elder was really trying to accomplish back there, or just a side benefit? Either way, the warrior's failure to consider that did not make him feel much better about his prospects as a politician. Orion was relieved when the rebuke he half-expected from his formidable grandmother never came. Quite the opposite. Put them down hard...

Kazanki's remark about the Donyas and Fireveins setting aside their differences may well have been a complete jest, but Ilyanna's counsel about compromises and the small speech he'd just given the younglings about their true foes outside Skyhold's walls would not be so easily waved off. The young man hesitated for an instant before nodding somewhat eagerly at Tysera's instruction. Brats like Renly needed to grow up, and if the Donya wished to be regarded with respect, they needed to behave respectably. If they did, wonderful. If not...well, a chance to remind them what Tysera's "wonder boy" could do would have its own perks.

Orion's heart skipped a beat when, for the first time in recent memory, Tysera looked truly uncertain. Some small part of him was relieved. Even she, a living legend with decades of experience as a leader, had doubts and fears that echoed his own. All those uncertainties haunting him day in and day out were not a sign that he might not be a completely inadequate inheritor after all. The greater part of him recoiled at the sight of the great and once-unshakeable pillar in his life showing its cracks as well as its age.

Another awkward silence reigned for several more moments. When Orion spoke, it was not with as much certainty as he would have liked. "I think most of them want the clan to be strong and prosperous. They just disagree with us on how to get there, and the clan is going through a difficult time. But Grandmother?"

He looked the Firevein matriarch in the eye with a faint but trusting smile. "It isn't about why they want power. It's about what they'll do with it once they get it, and you know the answer to that better than I."

Orion leaned back. A pawn becoming a queen...it wasn't a thought that gave him much comfort, but he hadn't mastered the jungle by being passive. Why would Skyhold's invisible battlegrounds be any different?

"...Still, grandmother, people may become willing to pay whatever price the Donya demand if they start to think this is more than a passing lean season. We need solutions of our own. We need to offer more than just promises soon."

There was, of course, the not so little matter of the mighty vessel he and Ilyanna discovered. Scrapped, it would only earn them a brief reprieve at best, but the power the clan could command if only they could get it flying again...!

And then there was whatever master stratagem Tysera was...hopefully about to share.
 

Xatarias

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Tysera frowns for a moment longer before giving a firm nod. She gathers her notes and turns them towards you. You scan a detailed account of the council factions and where they stand on various issues.

Tysera seems to have them arranged in such a manner that her highest priorities pass in her favor and lesser ones are given more to chance. You note that she even intentionally but not obviously concedes on certain issues as a means to lull her more staunch opponents into complacency. It is intricate, brilliant, and very very fragile. By your estimation, the next Trials will swell the eligible voting blocks and pull power from the Firevein coalition directly into the waiting hands of the Donyas... And unlike Tysera's patchwork alliance, the opposition is cohesive and utterly loyal to their Elder.

"As you can see, we're one Trial away from having the Elder Donya being king in all but name. No one has wielded such power since the Flower wars, and we all know how that ended... Our family needs another district seat on the council, but more than that, it needs to be stolen from the Donyas to at least maintain the status quo. I'm afraid the vacancy your uncle left is all but lost to us what with the expansion of the foundries..."

She glances up at you, eyes gleaming.

"I have pulled a few strings and secured you a position as Arbiter in the Gate district. The Donyas will appose, but they'll find their allies have been paid off for this one. The place reeks of corruption and its citizens are tired of their councilmen being content to line his pockets. It's a disgrace... And it also happens to be seated by a Donya. So... Are you up for playing sheriff? You'll have to move immediately of course."
 

Weiss Ritter

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A tingle of mixed emotions ran through Orion's body as he leaned forward to scan over his grandmother's notes. Whatever her reservations had been before, she was being forthcoming now. For better or worse, he would be playing a larger role in council politics than assistant, apprentice, and a shirker of nuptial duties.

"...Fuck!" He hissed under his breath after several long moments spent absorbing Tysera's intricate web. One hand slapped against his forehead as if it awaken him from the nightmare. Orion might have been pushing for quicker and more concrete plans just a moment ago, but only in some of his darkest dreams had a Donya victory seemed so close and complete. By the stars, no wonder Renly had been so eager to gloat! If something didn't change, and fast, nothing short the Cloudclimber's evisceration would be enough to even challenge the Donyas' grip on power for at least a generation, likely more.

Orion's teeth gritted and his heart was starting to pound. That was when he caught the glint in his grandmother's eye.

"Arbiter Orion Firevein has a nice ring to it, and I was younger when you made me track down that pack of hexapuma to beg food from. How much harder can it be to catch us an oily Donya?" The young man man smirked, but the gears already turning in the hunter's mind. The entire point of that hellish exercise had been to ensure that the blossoming prodigy's newfound powers didn't make him arrogant and sloppy. He was under no illusions that hunting through the jungle and pursuing his prey in Skyhold were two very different matters, nor the fact that it would mean grappling with this entrenched Donya in their own territory.

"Hrm...does this mean Ilyanna and I are off the northern patrol, or will that position be waiting for me when I return?" It was a secondary concern and Orion's tone reflected it. Ilyanna wouldn't be thrilled if their plans were disrupted, but he was confident they could work around it. If anything, the archives would have been a better place to train Ilyanna to ensure their salvaging efforts in the jungle went off without a hitch once the immediate threat of Donya supremacy was passed.
 
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Xatarias

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Tysera smirks at your enthusiasm and turns the page on her ledger.

"Heft Donya has had his seat on the council for a little over two seasons, and during that time he's gone from complacent towards to utterly complicit in the smuggling that goes on in the Gate district. Of course since dereliction of administrative duties has been a problem in that district for generations, no one is too eager to do anything about it. Arbiters come and go as one shit storm rolls into the next... I don't need to tell you how hard that is on the people that live there."

Another page is revealed cataloging contraband seized in neighboring districts, petty crimes, damaged property both privately held and owned by the clan. Gate district was a cesspool. As the only district where outsiders were allowed to visit, it functioned as Skyhold's one and only outlet for trade, ill-gotten or otherwise. Growing up, younglings were told to avoid the area and well-heeled adults abided by the same advice.

"Don't confront Heft directly, but do your best to crack down on the enterprises that line his pockets. Hopefully, he will tempted to move against you and will overextend. I mean for you to win the people in the district and take his seat next election... That is the ideal scenario, but I won't lie to you grandson, the man is a viper. This might end on the Letting grounds if it plays wrong."

She pauses for a moment, as if considering her own words, face unreadable.

"And to answer your question, the vote is in four days. It suits our purpose to have you less visible during that time, so your little adventure need not be interrupted."
 

Weiss Ritter

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Orion nodded and scanned over his grandmother's notes. If anything, the stories he'd heard about the Gate district seemed to underplay just how much it had been allowed to rot away. It seemed a district in name only and simply trying to imagine what life for the people trapped within it was like was enough to force a frown upon his features.

On the brighter side, such as it was, Tysera's advice mirrored his preliminary plans. Someone was bound to be bold or desperate enough to take a chance that this new Arbiter might actually be able to make a difference in their cesspool of a home, and Orion would only need one tip or a single small crime to work with. Small prey could be used to guide him to or bait larger quarry, up until he worked his way to the very head of this serpent. It was never quite so simple and there were almost always surprises in all but the most routine of hunts, but those prospective difficulties weren't what gave him pause.

His crimsons eyes widened faintly and rapidly glanced over Tysera when she presented her ideal scenario. An entire district? His...? Orion's gut clenched in a way normally reserved for precious few predators in the jungle. Still...what exactly had he expected? He had all but asked for a large role in the Fireveins' political war against the Donya and their allies, and this was a far cry from replacing Tysera as the grand architect of their alliance. He had already conquered far, far worse challenges in the jungle...

Orion nodded again, his preliminary plans expanding. "The Letting Grounds? You say that like it's a bad thing."

The young man's dune-dry tone and serious glance belied his flippant words. He had no doubts Tysera was about to regal him with a painfully reasonable explanation for why such a simple solution playing to her grandson's well-proven strengths was something to be avoided. Not only that, but Orion was already musing over what would transpire even if he did handily outmaneuver Hefter and be ushered in by its jubilant citizens. The Gate district's woes were far older than the Donya's term. Perhaps he and every other councilman who lorded over it had been corrupt incompetents, but everything Orion knew about politics gave him the sinking feeling that this churning mixture of desperation, corruption, and outsiders was not simple a problem.

Sometimes, the greatest victories came after the glorious battle was fight. A frustrating notion for a warrior of his caliber to grapple with.

"Good..." Orion said with some reservation when he noticed the change in Tysera's demeanor. At least some part of her was probably calculating the risks of indulging her grandson and his eccentric shamaness...whatever they were against offering up a much-needed infusion of salvage. "Who knows? Ilyanna may pick up things I and the other hunters would miss. Maybe we'll even get another lucky find. No matter what, though, I think it'll be good for all of us if she gets some more experience out there. If this...viper of ours gets bold or desperate enough to attack me...indirectly..."

The young man's jaw clenched and his eyes blazed for a moment. Other Arbiters and common citizens of the Gate district might have been vulnerable to bribery or having their families threatened. Orion's blood relatives seemed far too prominent for those to be issues...but the unofficial addition to the Firevein family as far as he was concerned enjoyed "only" the protection of the temple and what their adventures together had taught her.