Darktown, Kirkwall is not a place of peace, of beauty, or freedom. Darktown is a place of desire, of
cowardice, and of blood. Despite these disturbing truths, some people still call Darktown home, a home to
the desperate and truly vile. It is a home where the only justice known is vengeance. This is the home of Maxamius
Vonrell.
Inside a broken down shack on the far side of town lies Maxamius on his cot, fast asleep. The day begins
with a stir. Slowly, he tosses and turns, kicking his thin blanket off the cot and onto the cheap wooden floor.
Rubbing his emerald eyes, he stares at his stained tan walls, the fragmented ceiling and its constant leak.
As he stumbles to his feet, Maxamius gives out a long yawn and stretches. Grabbing his clothes, he puts them on in a
routine way. First, the dirt brown, musky pants; then, his thin white shirt, which becomes less white with each
passing day; next, his musky brown leather sleeveless vest, which he leaves unbuttoned. He dons his wristguards,
the only real armor he wears, and finally pulls on his tarnished black shoes, smeared in dry mud. He reaches for a bowl
on the floor that has collected rain water from the night before. Not one to let good water go to waste, he uses it
to rinse and clean off his face for the day ahead before setting the bowl back from whence it came. He then grabs his
crudely made bow, the quiver, a rusty knife, and his belt pouch when a knock is heard on the door.
"Max! let's go! Athrenil is waiting at the docks!"
Maxamius groans and goes to open the door, "Yea, yea. Keep your shirt on, Bosley."
Maxamius walks outside and closes his door. Once he knows everything is secure, he and Bosely set off. Bosely stood
over six feet tall in comparison to the 5'6 tall Maxamius. With a greatsword on his back, a reinforced chainmail suit
over his red shirt, with a double plated shoulder guard on his left shoulder, Bosley stands as an imposing figure.
His look of pure awe and might are continued by his matching dual plated wristguards and greaves, wearing his
dark leather pants under the greaves, and heavy boots on his feet. People would say Bosley was
a bull of a man, although he would quickly correct them and say a mad rhino. He was a bald man with a scar across
his nose. a grizzled look complete with some five o'clock shadow, and nearly 300 pounds of pure muscle. Bosley
looks over to Maxamius during their walk to stir up some conversation.
"We got to get you some armor, Max. You look like a rioting peasant." Bosley claims in his thick accent as
Maxamius laughs softly, "I am a rioting peasant, Bos. Besides, it's hard for someone to get armor from the scraps of
others if you have a big rhino trampling them in half."
They both give a hardy laugh with Bosley slapping Maxamius back, almost causing him to fall to the ground.
"Ask Athrenil; you have been in with us long enough to get some gear."
"Oh yea, and owe the boss even more; great plan. Bosely." Max gives an over dramatic thumbs up.
"Don't be such a twit about it. You do great in our kind of business. Besides, I think Athenril likes you." Giving
Max a friendly elbow nudge, "No one else has gotten their own place to live with only two years of work on the belt."
"I earned that, Bosley."
"O yea! A real tough smash and grab you had there. One small box with two drunk, unarmored guards. Good going there
champ."
Maxamius sighs, conceding the point. He knew not to waste his breath against this, even if there is no merit or
proof to Bosley's claims.
"Do you know what she has planned for us today?"
"Ahh same old bull, just larger caravan. We go in, smash the faces, take the swag, she sells it, we get our cut in
a few days."
"Larger caravan? Is she planning on giving us any help?"
Bosley smiles. "Actually, yes, now that you are saying something about it. We got some new hires yesterday."
"O goodie; armatures." Maxamius rubs his forehead in frustration
"I wouldn't say that. One's a mage; she seems more then able to handle her own."
"Did you say 'she'?"
"What? You gone deaf now too? Yea! She and her brother arrived with their mum and some red head, but. . . the lot of them is all Ferelden though."
"...and Athrenil hired them because?"
"Noisy little shit, aren't you?" he elbows Maxamius again. "Remember, Gamlen. The old wanker went on and on and on about
them and wouldn't shut up. So Athrenil gave them a test; they passed. In return, she payed for all four them to get
in the city. In return, the siblings work off the debt."
"Didn't think Athrenil did charity work?"
"That's because you haven't asked her, Max." Bosley gives him a wink.
"Oh, shut up."
They both laugh and proceed to finish their walk to the docks.
Elegant yet clever, underhanded yet fair, a smuggler and a savior. These are some ways people can describe
the elvish woman name Athrenil. Wearing two custom short swords between her shoulder blades, an elvish dagger
attached on her hip, complete with a Ferelden boot knife, Athrenil stands as a striking and compelling figure.
Her short dirt red hair, and rugged demeanor says she has seen more then most in her lifetime. Her leather armor, is a custom piece of Dalish work's, allowing her free movement and protection while giving off an air of authority.
Athrenil taps the hilt of her dagger while looking at clipboard as she slowly paces back and forth.
"So lt me get this straight; you had one simple task of bringing me a box from one of my bagmen and you lost it." She looks over her clipboard to see a gulping thug nervously twisting his hat.
"I swear it got picked from me, Athrenil.. I promise it won't happen again." Athrenil's gaze sharpens, gripping her dagger
tightly.
Athrenil is tempted to strike down the useless man before Bosley and Maxamius step into view. "Leave and count yourself
lucky. Next time you won't be."
The thug quickly bows and runs off as Maxamius and Bosely approach while Athrenil speaks up. "You two are late! I already sent Hawke and her brother ahead of you."
Maxamius adjusts his belt and quiver "Hawke? Is that the name of the mage helping us, boss?"
Athrenil sighs and gently rubs her the temples of her forehead. "Max, how many times have I told you to just call me Athrenil. You're more then just a hireling at this point."
Bosely gives a wide and elbows Maxamius. "And, yes, her name is Hawke. Meet her and Carver, her brother, at Clifftop Pass. I sent them to our little hidey hole up there. They should be up there getting ready waiting on you two. You will be calling the shots Max; Hawke has been informed."
Athrenil inwardly smiles but retains her normal demeanor, and waving them off. "Now hurry off and bring back all those goods. I got clients to take care of and no time for you two to dilly about."
Both Maxamius and Bosely nod to Athrenil before walking off, as Athrenil smirks watching the two of them leave "Ahhh one day...one day"
After a few hours of hiking Bosely And Maxamius come up to their hideout in clifftop pass. A well traversed mountain path for merchants to get in and out of the City of Kirkwall and into the rest of the City-States that make up the Free Marches. Including places like Starkhaven and Ostwick. And like any road, it still has its own dangers, such as wild beast, giant spiders, common bandits, and even the vile, dark, and almost mindless blighted creatures known as darkspawn. looking up the path Maxamius motions for Bosely to stop walking.
"Bosely!"
"What now Maxy we are almost there?" he says stopping and sighing resting one hand on his greatsword while looking down at his Friend "can't we just move this along before Athrenil gets mad at us for being slow"
"She said to meet Hawke and her brother yes?"
"Lossing your marbles again? Yea that's what she said. Why you asking"
Maxamius pulls out his bow and points up to their cave "Then why is their three people waiting outside the cave"
Bosley turns and looks up squinting his eyes till he sees three figures in the distance " You think we being set up. or something bad happened?"
"Don't know just be ready" Maxamius whispers as he knocks an arrow slowly walking up to get a better view.
"Never an easy day with you is it Max"
Bosely smirks as he starts a small jog up the path to get ahead and cover Maxamius. The two of them slowly approach the cave as they stay on edge for an assumed danger. It doesn't take long for them to get noticed as three figures line them selfs up with hands on their weapons. From what Maxamius can see, Two women one with a staff , greaves and wrist guards and some rather baggy and ragged looking clothing, with black hair down to her shoulder, and a scar across her right eye. The other short red hair with some braids on it, what looks like standard military gear and armor for a soldier, as well a long sword and kite shield with the Templar symbol on it.
Hmm a Templar with a mage? no the shield was probably from a fallen Templar this group killed. An item of convince at best.
After that quick thought Maxamius quickly looks over to the last of the trio, a young man with wrist guards, very short black hair, a greatsword on his back, and some rugged looking clothes a boots. Looks like he is on edge and right to fight. Mostly likely the novice of this group. before he can continue his train of that the woman with the staff walks forward and speaks up.
" I imagine if your here and you haven't already attacked us that your the people we are expecting. To be honest I was hoping for more than just two of you."
Maxamius looks up and stares into her eyes not letting go of his bow and arrow.
"Funny cause I was told to only expect two others waiting for me. And here we are and there is three of you. So maybe you're not who I am looking for and I am not who you're looking for, which means" Maxamius pulls back on his bow as Bosely steps up and postions himself in front of max to fight "That you're in the wrong place friends"
Within a moment of that sentence the man and the red-head draw the blades and prepare to defend the woman with the staff as she's raises it in a defenses stance to defend herself.
"Wait wait don't fight. this is a simple misunderstanding that can be explained. Just lower your weapons and we can talk this out"
Bosley swings his sword and becomes blocked by both sword fighters in the front halting his attack while Maxamius looks onto the staff wielder with his bow still on full draw, ready to let loose his arrow "talk fast!"
"My name is Karla Hawke, that is my brother Carver and my friend Aveline, we were sent by Athrenil to wait for help before doing a job" she points overtly as the two now identified as Carver and Aveline who were pushing onto Bosley's sword making him step back and turn into a great upward swing which is blocked by Carver as Aveline swings her blade downward onto Bosley which he blocks with his wristguards.
"Gonna have to do better than that, lass" Bosley smirks to continue the fight until told otherwise while Karla and Maxamius continue their standoff with Maxamius being the first to speak and move on this exchange slowly stepping in a counter clockwise pattern before speaking while Karla mimics his footwork.
"Aye, that could be true. How do I know your telling the truth?" he raises an eye brow and smirks at Karla as Bosley twirls his sword in a circular pattern to get Carver off-balance and off his footing so he can shift his own body to kick Aveline back with a big boot into the gut, all to re position his self for another round with the two
"Whats wrong you two? Never had a real man to fight before? "
Karla slowly moves in sync with Maxamius neither one of them taking their eyes off the other, waiting for the other to strike first. "Jahunni's locket!"
Both Maxamius and Bosley take a step back as Maxamius lowers his bow and frown forms onto his face as Bosley steps in front of him and keeps his guard up
"Well...shit"