Imprints in Stone [AU]

[Varric]

"That's fine too," the dwarf replies easily. "If you're up for it, you can carry her. Just be careful to not drop her." She's skinny as hells, but you were never the most buff. An illusion of being a strong dwarf doesn't make you stronger.

[Marian Hawke]

Garrett scoops up Cindy, carrying her back to their rooms -- he struggles far more than it looks like he should, but he manages it. He lays her gently on the bed, curling up beside her once she's situated, letting her pet him gently.

[Varric]

As they get settled in, Varric brings in some tea and sets it on the nightstand. He starts to leave, then hesitates. "...I... you're both a bit older, but sometimes I read to the twins," he says slowly, a half-spoken offer.

[Coquette Blacquin]

He can't see what changes in Garrett, but Cindy's hand pauses a moment. "We'd like that," she says, as she resumes rubbing his back. "Do you have any adventurer tales? Those are his favorite."

[Varric]

"Carver too, though he has a fondness for romance elements he'd never admit to," Varric replies with a smile. "I have a good one about a young girl that gets lost in the woods and adopted by a pack of semi-awakened wolves. She's a natural beast-talker and... well, it goes from there. Wouldn't want to ruin the story if you're interested."

[Coquette Blacquin]

"That sounds lovely," she agrees, and the three of them settle in.

[Marian Hawke]

Reading is generally not a participant-friendly activity. There are some gasps and ahs, some questions when things get confusing, but generally, aside from the one reading, there's quiet. Still, Garrett is quieter than most -- or maybe it's just that Varric's used to Carver asking a million questions and interrupting the story.

At the end of the second chapter, however, Garrett speaks up, his head still in Cindy's lap: "I want to do the delve."

When there's an awkward pause as they try to figure out what on Aldis he means, he blushes a little and backs up a few paces: "You said before that Merrill needs a Delve, to fix her head. But it sounds like it's a new thing, and I couldn't find any information at the Temple of Alydra about it when I looked. So maybe it's not well tested. I want to test it. I want to see if I can help, and I'm not good at people."

[Varric]

And, even if you can't look at it, you know you could use it yourself as well (oh Marian). "That's entirely doable. Take at least two or three days to arrange, but shouldn't be too hard to arrange," Varric says, trying not to sound too eager. "Would I be correct in assuming you'd prefer to do it here and not at SummerHill?"

[Marian Hawke]

"Yes," he says, swallowing. "What's involved?"

[GamesMaster]

A delve, as it turns out, is a fairly simple concept. There aren't a lot of expensive ingredients if you have enough magic to cast spells of the fourth circle and above, as Wynne and The Doctor both do; the chance of a ritual such as this one failing altogether at that skill level are slim enough that there's no need for the focuses to help settle the  magic. Nor does it require a very elaborate incantation, nor a particularly large space for the requisite drawings. Indeed, the complications are far later in the process: when the band of adventurers chosen make their way into someone's mindscape, the place where their subconscious manifests on the Dream Plane, and try to fix the problems from the inside.

To that end, the most complex ingredient involved is a number of people who know the patient well. It seems the patient has to trust the participants to some degree; when tried with staff members who had not met the patient, or ones who had barely been introduced, they had found themselves unable to interact with the subconscious, as the patient just didn't seem to register their existence. With the twins uneasy about how they'd react to the inside of Marian's head, that means Varric, Zevran, Isabela, and the long-shot Helene are their best bets at going inside.

Wynne casts the ritual after warning them that it's better to retreat than to mess things up, that they can always try again but making the situation worse is a bad plan. Then they arrange themselves around the room, each on their designated cushion, and Wynne's casting takes hold of their astral forms, putting their bodies to sleep as they enter the dreamscape.


The first thing they notice is how red everything is. At first, they can't make out any features; everything around each of them is red, brilliant red. Helene's the easiest to spot against this backdrop, standing out like a sore thumb with how blue they are, but all of their outfits have been done in red, and it really makes the red undertones stand out in their skin. 

The next thing they notice is how small the room is. There's no windows or doors; the floor slopes up a few feet beyond where they're standing, and the ceiling is low overhead, making Zevran duck just a touch. There's no room to fit anyone else, no room for summons or anything of the sort, and there's no sign of Marian, nor even Garrett. Just red, and small, and a pervasive feeling of fear.

[Tethras Clan]

"Well... this is.. something," Zevran says, voice light and airy despite the tenseness of his body. His hands drift downward. A second later, he tenses even more. "Gear check," he snaps out as he realizes that one of his daggers is missing.

[Varric]

A moment later, Varric calls outs, "everything present. Helene?"

[Helene Dakesh]

"This one has this one's gear," they say, voice tight, controlled. A moment later, they add, "This one's form is not as this one expected."

Which is odd, because they seem fine to him -- but then again, the changes they made recently were mostly not visible over clothing. 

[Isabela]

"Everything seems to be in order here," confirms Isabela. "This has to be that gem we broke," she adds, looking around. "Any clever ideas on how to get out of here? I can't cast that nifty teleport trick she does."

[Varric]

"Mindscape- guess we bring- and become- what we think of," Varric hazzards, looking around. "I can try and blast our way out but... probably not the best first plan. Could try digging but... best I have on me is an adamantine dagger and a pair of hammers. Maybe acid?"