"There you are," a frustrated sigh rang out from the shadows, "I've been here for hours. Hayder hasn't shown up, no one has. I don't like this."
"What!" I blurted out, "we just walked past here an hour ago and you weren't here!"
"Well, maybe," Isabela rolled her eyes, "you weren't looking hard enough. It doesn't change the fact that I don't like this."
"I don't like this?" Varric asked, "That's right up there with, 'what could possibly go wrong?'"
"That's the wench we're looking for!" A woman's voice yelled as she ran up to us with other armed people in tow, "gut her!"
And of course a fight broke out, should I really be using magic in the streets of Kirkwall? I mean, sure it's dark, but spells kind of have this bizarre tendency to…oh…I don't know…glow? Father did teach me a bit of sword work before he passed on, maybe I should invest in one. Hm…decisions… Oh but then Carver would whine, bitch, and moan about how he wouldn't be able to get out of my shadow again.
Let's see, Carver's pride…or Gallows… I'll think about it later.
"Help me search the bodies," Isabela said as she knelt down over one of the corpses, "Hayder sent them, so there's a chance that there might be a clue somewhere."
"It looks like he's hiding in the chantry," I said after coming across a note stuffed into one of their pockets, "why does everyone meet in the Chantry at night?"
"Good question," Varric muttered, "yesterday it was mages and templars, and today it's Rivainis and Antivans."
"Coward," Isabela sneered, "He'll not get away with this. Come on."
And off we went towards the chantry, Carver and Varric in tow as we maneuvered through the dark Hightown Streets.
"Carver, eyes off her ass." I hissed at Carver as we stepped into the darkened Chantry.
"Isabela! Should've known you'd have found me here." a man, I presumed to be Hayder, said as he stepped out of the shadows.
"Tell your men to burn the letters next time." Isabela replied.
"Castillon was heartbroken when he heard about the shipwreck," he said with a scumbag smile, "you should've let him know you survived."
"It must have slipped my mind." Isabela said shrugging slightly.
"Where's the relic?" Hayder said fixing her with a hardened stare.
"I lost it," she replied simply, "Castillon's just going to have to do without."
"Lost it? Just like you 'lost' a ship full of valuable cargo?" Hayder asked glaring.
"They weren't cargo, Hayder," she retorted, "They were people!"
"Those slaves were worth a hundred sovereigns a head, and you let them scurry off into the wilds!" Hayder said pacing angrily, "and now the relic's gone too, Castillon won't be happy to hear that, I promise you."
"Castillon sounds like he needs to learn to relax a bit," I commented dryly, "I mean if you get angry every time a plan goes wrong then what's the point?"
"There's only one way to settle this." Isabela said narrowing her eyes.
And before I knew what was what a dagger had been thrown and we were fighting.
"Stab first, ask questions later?" I asked after the fighting was over, and the Chantry floor was once again covered in blood and gore.
"Trust me, its better this way." Isabela replied.
"I'm not accusing you of anything," I raised my hands in defense, "I merely approve of that method."
"Oh," Isabela said turning to look at me, "Castillon won't hear about me from Hayder, but he'll find me eventually. I just have to get him the relic, simple as that."
"Treasure hunting?" I asked with a bemused expression.
"It's the best kind of hunting," Isabela grinned, "well…one of the best kinds of hunting."
"Can I be counted in?" I asked, "I do love a good treasure hunt."
"Well, I still don't know where it is," she admitted sighing, "but, you'll be the first to know if I hear anything. Anyway, thanks for helping me out with Hayder. I think I'll tag along for a while, there might be something I could do for you."
"I'm sure there might be," I grinned.
"I suppose I'll see you in the Hanged Man later then, hm?" Isabela asked sliding her arm around my shoulders as we walked out of the Chantry.
"Of course," I said and bumped my hip into hers purposefully, "also, good work with setting the slaves free."
"Thank you for not asking about every detail of what happened." She replied.
New Best Friend: Acquired.
"Mind if I call you Izzy?" I asked.
"You can call me whatever you like, Sweet Thing." She grinned.
"Oh, Maker." I heard Carver practically rolling his eyes behind us as we strode out into the night an arm thrown over each other's shoulders as we talked on our way to the Hanged Man.
"Actually, since it's not that late yet, mind helping us out with a job really quick?" I asked looking up at the position of the moon.
"Lead the way." Isabela smirked and groped my ass.
"Are you Anso?" I asked a lone dwarf in the lowtown market place.
He practically jumped out of his skin, and I felt horrible.
"Sweet mother of partha!" he said turning towards me, "You can't just run up on someone like that!"
"I'm sorry; I didn't think I'd startle you that much." I said sympathetically.
"My apologies, human," Anso said rubbing the back of his neck, "I haven't been on the surface very long and I keep thinking I'll fall up into that sky any minute!"
This dwarf… is adorable. I want to hug him. I really really want to hug him. That would probably be rude though, so I shouldn't. But Maker, this dwarf is adorable.
"Bartrand used to be like that," Varric snorted turning to me, "got jumpy every time he stepped outside."
"I'd pay to see that." Carver and I chuckled in unison.
"Dwarves are funny." Isabela chimed in.
"Are you…the one that mercenary was talking about?" Anso asked, "The one looking for work?"
"I am," I nodded, "though don't you think it's a little dangerous for a solitary dwarf to be out alone in Lowtown at night?"
I was seriously concerned, what if something were to happen to this dwarf?! He was terrified enough as it is!
"I need some help, rather badly, in fact," Anso said sheepishly, "some product of mine has been…misplaced. The men who were supposed to deliver it decided not to. If you retrieve my property, I could reward you handsomely…?"
A question…?
"Just what did these men steal?" I asked squatting down so I could look him in the eye properly.
"Did I say steal?" he said awkwardly, "I don't know if I would go that far. They seemed like perfectly reasonable smugglers. They smiled and everything! The goods are valuable, however. And illegal and my client wants them very, very, badly. You know how those templars can be."
"You're smuggling lyrium to the templars?" I asked a brow quirked.
"Of course he is. That's just bloody great." Carver rolled his eyes.
"Shh! By the Paragons, not so loudly!" Anso said panicking, "my word! I'm not cut out for this, I should have taken that job sweeping stables like Mother insisted."
"I'll get it back for you." I said firmly with a nod.
"Oh, thank goodness!" Anso said straightening up, "The gentlemen conduct their business at night in a little hovel within the alienage. If you have to kill them, then I guess it can't be avoided, but I'll sure they'll be reasonable!"
"Well, let's go then." I said standing and turning to the others.
Once we ran past Gamlen's hovel to the steps of the alienage I stopped.
"Just so we're clear," I said, "I'm ninety percent sure, that we're being set up."
"Then why are we helping him?" Carver grumbled.
"For starters, I'm not certain," I said, "and also because I want to see who came up with this elaborate scheme."
"Are you sure you/re not being led into a trap by templars?" Carver asked rolling his eyes.
"Quite, judging by his body language and word choice, I highly doubt this has anything to do with either lyrium or templars," I replied, "it felt like he threw in those clues to either throw us off, or to fill in a blank. So I'm fairly certain, that we'll run into neither."
"I hope you know what you're doing, Hawke." Varric sighed.
"I never do." I grinned at him and continued forth into the Alienage.