View Flat HTML
View Metadata
Search Post
Annie is on her trike on her way to school.
This van labeled HAZARDOUS MATERIALS is also on its way to school.
The van hits a patch of black ice. It goes spinning, it turns over, it slices itself open on a wrought-iron fence with spikes, and it disgorges boxes which smash open on the pavement. Some of them skitter clear into the slush.
Some of them - along with most of the van - land on Annie.
There is a whirl of bewildering pain and confusion -
- and she falls to the ground, injured and in more kinds of discomfort beyond that and moaning.
She slowly starts to heal before the eyes of her sole witness.
six artifact pileup annie in thedas
+ Show First Post
keep_busy
keep_busy
"I will try not to fly into a rage over the thing where he attempted to kill you."
keep_busy
Annie will hold Stalas's hand! Because it is there. And may help remind her not to fly into a rage.
Bhelen is in his room! There is another person with him; a pregnant dwarven woman. They's conversing in low tones.
keep_busy
...Being around a pregnant person with Annie's weird sense is weird on a whole 'nother level than just being around people in general. She doesn't say anything though.
first-and-final
Stalas hasn't seen Rica since they first met, nearly three months ago now. Huh, maybe the rumours about King Endrin's line are true.
"Bhelen! Sorry to interrupt, but I thought you might like to meet my betrothed."
"Bhelen! Sorry to interrupt, but I thought you might like to meet my betrothed."
Pregnant dwarven woman: looks curious, but also like she would like to hide behind Bhelen. See: how she subtly hides behind Bhelen. And then studies Annie, trying to be subtle.
Bhelen looks a bit caught off guard, but he'll deal with it. "Stalas." He looks at Annie, and inclines his head. "Atrast vala, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Bhelen looks a bit caught off guard, but he'll deal with it. "Stalas." He looks at Annie, and inclines his head. "Atrast vala, it's a pleasure to meet you."
keep_busy
"Atrast vala." It would be so rude to leap at Bhelen and send him to another universe for trying to kill Stalas right in front of his pregnant girlfriend. Watch Annie not do that.
first-and-final
Stalas squeezes Annie's hand encouragingly. Good for Annie, not throwing the kingdom into chaos so soon after Stalas stabilized the succession! Also he loves his brother and would miss him!
"How do you like Orzammar so far?"
keep_busy
"On the whole it's very nice, although I'm not sure I'll ever get used to eating mushrooms every day."
Bhelen nods. "We try to break it up with imports from the surface, but... There's only so many things we can import, and they only go to the higher castes."
He sounds annoyed with this. (He is annoyed with this.)
He sounds annoyed with this. (He is annoyed with this.)
keep_busy
"I've been speculating that the reason plants won't grow under rune lights has something to do with the kind of light. When I've learned more I'm going to try to make a full spectrum rune light, and that might help. It'd be another thing entirely to get the infrastructure to mill wheat or make enough lights to satisfy an orchard, but it'd work for potatoes and squash and strawberries and things like that."
... Blink.
"That," he says, "sounds like a fantastic idea. But who do you plan to have work the fields?"
"That," he says, "sounds like a fantastic idea. But who do you plan to have work the fields?"
keep_busy
"I don't know. I don't really understand the caste system; if this were my world I could just sell the rune lights and explain what they did and anyone who felt like taking up farming could get one, but I get the impression that new careers don't come up very often and aren't that easy to break into here."
... Bhelen's pregnant girlfriend says, soft and shy, "Do you think that, um, the. The casteless could take up farming? If you're, willing to have them work for you, my lady."
keep_busy
"Is that a thing? Then yeah, I guess that's the obvious solution, if there's a bunch of people without a caste-approved job lined up for them already. I don't have a strong desire to personally manage a farming corporation, I could just let them have the lights and some seeds strictly so I feel less indulgent eating bread for breakfast."
Bhelen frowns, which means he thinks it's an excellent idea but is trying to figure out how to implement it.
"... You don't know about the casteless?" asks Rica, surprised.
"... You don't know about the casteless?" asks Rica, surprised.
keep_busy
"There might have been an offhand mention in a history book that I didn't have any context for... but not really? I'm from literally not this world. And my understanding is the caste system doesn't apply to me because I'm a human so it didn't seem urgent."
first-and-final
"I swear I've mentioned them but I might not have explained - I did tell you about my mother, but I might not have gone into detail about the underlying social structures. Congratulations, by the way," he adds in Rica's direction.
"Ah, thank you," says Rica, shy.
"Having the casteless farm is an elegant solution, but I suspect many would turn up their nose at buying food from them," mutters Bhelen, sort of mostly to himself. "But I think the lower castes that don't get imports from the surface wouldn't, and that could open the doorway to more - we'd have to be careful about keeping a monopoly on the market, because otherwise some merchant would snatch the chance and the castless would be back to being trapped in Dust Town..."
Rica squeezes his hand.
"Having the casteless farm is an elegant solution, but I suspect many would turn up their nose at buying food from them," mutters Bhelen, sort of mostly to himself. "But I think the lower castes that don't get imports from the surface wouldn't, and that could open the doorway to more - we'd have to be careful about keeping a monopoly on the market, because otherwise some merchant would snatch the chance and the castless would be back to being trapped in Dust Town..."
Rica squeezes his hand.
keep_busy
"Trapped in - sorry, can you back up and explain the problem?"
... Bhelen seems to be sort of unwilling to explain it; he glances at Rica.
Rica clears her throat. "The, casteless are considered - dirty, unclean. Unfit to work in, most legal jobs." Her voice wobbles a bit, and it's Bhelen's turn to squeeze her hand. She smiles at him, a little. "Most turn to begging or, stealing or working for the Carta as - thugs, or smugglers, or. Other things. The lucky ones can become noble hunters, or, get paid coppers working long hours for a merchant."
Rica clears her throat. "The, casteless are considered - dirty, unclean. Unfit to work in, most legal jobs." Her voice wobbles a bit, and it's Bhelen's turn to squeeze her hand. She smiles at him, a little. "Most turn to begging or, stealing or working for the Carta as - thugs, or smugglers, or. Other things. The lucky ones can become noble hunters, or, get paid coppers working long hours for a merchant."