A horrible clamor from the stairs distracted Dorian from paging through a treatise on the magisters of ancient Tevinter. From the crashing and clattering, it sounded like Cullen's entire army was on their way up to his floor of the tower. He set down the book - it didn't seem to contain any scraps of information that might relate to Corypheus, anyway - and rose from his chair, muttering, "As if the birds weren't bad enough."

He stepped to the railing and looked down. He couldn't see the stairs from his vantage point, but he could see Solas continuing to work on his painting. That was a reassuring sign. If the noise on the stairs had heralded an invasion, Dorian was reasonably sure that Solas would have both noticed it and raised the alarm. As sure as he could ever be of what Solas would do.

He looked back up and noticed that both Helisma and Leliana had likewise been distracted from their work and were looking over the railing. Dorian turned toward the stairs as the clamor reached their top. Its source proved to be but a single dwarf, albeit one covered in enough metal armor to credibly protect a giant. The dwarf's head alone was uncovered, and Dorian could see the tattoos marked on his face. He couldn't recall their significance. Dwarven culture was not one of his areas of expertise.

The dwarf smiled as he saw Dorian. "Greetings to you! My name's Korbin. Sorry for the commotion, but getting a dwarf up stairs sized for surfacers took some doing."

Dorian nodded in greeting. "I'm Dorian Pavus. You must be one of Commander Cullen's recruits?"

"Yes. I'm here on loan, you might say, from the Legion of the Dead."

Ah, that explained the tattoos. Dorian had heard a few stories of the dwarven Legion - dwarves who dedicated themselves to fighting darkspawn, cutting all ties to their previous lives. He had never particularly thought he'd meet one. "What brought you to the Inquisition? I had the impression that one doesn't simply retire from the Legion of the Dead."

"Indeed," Korbin said. "Thus, 'on loan,' in token of your alliance with Orzammar. I only know of one dwarf who left the Legion, and she became a Grey Warden."

"That seems an even trade," Dorian said drily. "Either way, her eventual fate was fighting darkspawn in the Deep Roads."

"True, but Wardens usually have the chance to see more than darkspawn," Korbin said. He looked past Dorian, and his eyes widened at the shelves full of books. "I came up here hoping to find something to help me fight darkspawn, in fact. Could you help me?"

Dorian was quite sure none of the stories he'd heard of the Legion of the Dead had stressed their scholarly tradition. Did the dwarf think that the books were some sort of exotic surfacer weapon? "I'm afraid the armory is over at the other end of Skyhold," he said.

Korbin barked a quick laugh. "Armor and weapons I am well supplied with. Knowledge is the advantage I seek."

"In the case, you've come to the right part of Skyhold. Though I fear our collection would be overshadowed by any Tevinter Circle's library. Hmm." Dorian turned and gently ran his fingers over the spines of the books, thinking back on what he'd seen. He doubted the dwarf was interested in obscure philosophical debates about the nature and origin of darkspawn, but he was fairly sure he'd seen something more practical.

He couldn't remember where on the shelves it was, though, so he kept searching. Thinking that he should let the dwarf know that he hadn't forgotten him, he asked, "What do you think of the surface world?"

"There's so much here that I'd never even dreamed of," Korbin said wistfully. "There are the big things - the sky, the sun, the stars - but at least I'd heard tales of those, though they couldn't prepare me for the reality. But the things the tales never mentioned are the ones that take me by surprise. Do you ever think about how remarkable trees are?"

Dorian couldn't say that he ever had. He tried to imagine what it would be like, living underground and never seeing the sun. It sounded unbearably dreary.

"And there are so many kinds of life," Korbin continued. "Birds! We don't have those. Last week I saw a high dragon in flight. It was… remarkable. And here in Skyhold, you have humans, dwarves, elves, Qunari, all working side by side. You'd never see that in Orzammar."

Dorian found the tome he'd been thinking of and pulled it from the shelf. "Here. It's a study of darkspawn anatomy, written by a Mortalitasi after the Fourth Blight. He was understandably reluctant to risk much contact with his specimens, but his observations were otherwise quite thorough. It may give you some information ."

Korbin took the book and gave Dorian a respectful nod. "I thank you. I will treat it with respect and return it to your hands."

"I should make that an oath," Dorian said archly. "Some people seem unclear on the proper treatment of books."

"Thank you for the book, Ser Pavus," Korbin said.

Dorian found himself reluctant to bid the dwarf farewell. Clearly he had been spending too much time immersed in books, if a chat with a laconic dwarf was sounding more appealing. And, he realized, he was curious why Korbin wanted the book. "Is the Commander sending you out against darkspawn? I had not heard of sightings on the surface. Or is this for your return to the Deep Roads?"

"A few darkspawn have been seen on the Sword Coast, but this is for the Roads," Korbin said grimly. "My people need anything that can give us an edge."

"You're planning on going back? You seemed quite taken with the surface world."

Korbin hesitated a moment. "You, too? Everyone seems to think that I shouldn't. Belinda encourages me to stay here. Luka called me crazy for even considering going back, and she's one to talk. But it's not a duty I can set aside lightly."

"I'm sure Orzammar has its pleasures," Dorian said, trying to keep the skepticism out of his voice. He had heard of the splendour of the dwarven city, but it was hardly a place he was longing to visit.

Korbin grunted. "Those pleasures are barred to a member of the Legion. It's bad food, worse mead, and death around every corner that awaits me. But against that, there's good company, tales around a fire, bravery, and honor. And it would pain me to lose my stone sense to the surface."

Dorian felt a surge of emotion, from what source he wasn't sure. The words rushed out of him: "It still seems a poor tradeoff when you can find company, tales, and honor up here. Why go back to a place that has so little to offer you, that cast you into exile? If your role here suits you better, why would you turn your back on it? Who do you owe this to?"

Am I arguing with him or with myself?

Korbin blinked, seemingly taken aback by the passion in Dorian's voice. "I should say to the Stone, or to the Paragons. But really… to myself, I suppose," he said slowly. "Thank you again for the book."

Dorian nodded absently, the question of duty occupying his thoughts, as the dwarf loudly clanked his way back down the stairs.