Giggle. "What's your name?"

"Eliana Fabil, magister of Tevinter. What brings the Inquisition to Redcliffe? Gathering the wayward mages already?"

" - We mostly came to see if the Arl needs help, and if we can ally with him, help him keep the countryside under control."

"We'd need to talk to the mages here before deciding anything - anyone's welcome to join the Inquisition as an individual, but it's been kinda unclear if the mages sheltering here are an organized group we could ally with or more just... People all taking the same offer of sanctuary."

"But we're not rounding anyone up. Just... Extending offers."

"The Arl is, alas, not in residence at the moment. The one the southern Circles call their Grand Enchanter is, however, and I would advise you extend your offer to her quickly. Within a day, I would estimate, she will find herself confronted with a much more pressing one, presented by one of my... colleagues within the Magisterium."

"Why are you telling us?"

"Because it was my impression you would object to the mages' forceful enslavement. I do, but there is little I can accomplish alone."

"We do, and we can help you."

" - If you also have a political or personal motive, I'd like to know now too, those are fine but annoying to get blindsided by."

"...Let us speak of that somewhere more private. The guards should be willing to open the gate, now that the rift is closed."

"Fair enough."

And are they? 

After a little bit of hemming and hawing, yes. (It is a large armed party, but there are already a lot of mages in town, so how much worse can things get... And they might have heard of the one that closed the rifts, the Herald of Andraste or something.)

...She's the one who's been closing the rifts, yes. (She wants to get into the town without incident a bit more than she wants to correct them. But only a bit. She's clearly holding her tongue.)

Better to stay on the safe side. They need all the divine favor they can get in these times. The gates are open.

Where does Eliana want to talk? 

Redcliffe is a town built on the south shore of Lake Calenhad. The eponymous cliff walls off the western side, and the road in from the gate follows its sheer curve. A broken windmill stands at the top, overlooking the drop to the water and the castle standing on an island a little ways offshore, connected to the town by a causeway. The buildings get denser towards the docks, with the large stone chantry being a sort of secondary focal point. Not too far from there is an inn, which will do as a place to speak.

They take a table in the corner, and Eliana sits with her back to the wall. "Where to begin... Let me ask. Did you notice anything strange, about that rift you closed?"

"...Yeah."

"My perception of time started acting oddly, like I was on a lot of stimulants but also... Not really like that."

"Not your perception of time. Time itself."

"How?"

"'Magic' would be the short answer. With enough blood sacrifice, anything is possible. The long answer is that the nature of time is something Gereon Alexius, the one coming to enslave the Circle mages, has been researching for a long time. He has now turned the fruits of his studies to the service of a new patron, one who wishes to bring back the glory of Tevinter by any means necessary. I disagree that this is a desirable outcome, and take strong issue with his methods. I came south to intervene. But time is... fragile, when twisted. As you saw at the rift, there can be strange consequences when reality is under other sorts of strain as well. My disruption of Alexius's magic did not go well, and I was sent backwards in time. This is now the fourth time I have experienced this sequence of events, but this is the first time you have shown up to Redcliffe so early."

"...That has some fascinating implications about the nature of reality in this world."

"...Anyways."

"Do we usually show up at some point in the loop?"

"So far. Between one and six weeks from now."

"So well after Alexius has had time to dig into position."

"Typically, yes."

"Do you know how to end the loops?"

"In theory. Obviously, I have not yet succeeded."

"What do you think will work?"