Kasumi listened to Wynne's tale with great interest. At the end of the story, she was the first to ask a question, "Where can I get this Chant of Light? It's a book right?"
Wynne's eyes widened with surprise, but she didn't voice it. "I believe you can ask one of the Chantry sisters for one. I'm sure they would be happy to give you a copy."
"Oh, that easy? Off I go then. See you, Shep. Give me a call if you need me." Kasumi walked giddily away and towards Jacob and Miranda. She stopped next to them and followed their gaze. "She's a priest right?"
Jacob shrugged. "That's our best guess. Why? Need something from her?"
Kasumi nodded. "I want to get a book from her. A Chant of Light. I think it's their Bible."
"Why do you want that?" Miranda asked, looking askance at Kasumi.
"I want to read it, "the master thief stated simply. With that, she walked up onto the platform. "Um, excuse me?" she called, trying to be polite but also wanting to be heard.
The woman stopped her sermon and turned to Kasumi. "Yes?"
"Do you have a Chant of Light that I can um…" Kasumi coughed delicately. "borrow, maybe?"
"Oh, here." The woman rummaged quickly through her small pack and handed Kasumi the book. "You can have it. I can get another one when I return to the Chantry."
Kasumi expressed her thanks, hugging the book close to her. As she walked down the stairs of the platform, she opened the book, enjoying the crackling of the binding. She inhaled deeply. The smell of the book wafted up her nose and made her feel excitement at what the pages could possible hold. The surprises would have to wait till later. Grinning like a child, Kasumi gently closed the book and stowed it away.
She turned to see Shepard, Samara, and Garrus going up a ramp. Where had Grunt gone? She'd seen the others leave in her peripheral vision. Kasumi frowned then shrugged. He probably wandered off to pick a fight. As she hurried to catch up with Shepard, her peripheral vision helped her catch the sight of the quartermaster selling weapons. She stopped midstride to size up the joint. There was only one person manning it, the quartermaster. A mischievous smile tugged at Kasumi's lips. Like candy from a baby.
Cloaking, she padded quietly over to the quartermaster, carefully avoiding all the soldiers milling around. He seemed to be anxiously waiting for someone and not really paying attention to his wares. His loss. Kasumi inspected his weapons. Maybe she could pawn these off to an asari. One never knew what they'd go crazy for. Humans would also be a sure bet. Or maybe she could just take some souvenirs for herself instead. She plucked a dagger from the display and hid it so her cloak would include it as well. As she was leaving, a flask of blue liquid caught her eye. Her eyes lit up and she hurried over to it. The liquid glowed inside the flask, making it all the more mysterious.
"One lyrium potion? Let me get it for you." The quartermaster walked over to where Kasumi was. She easily sidestepped him and let him take the flask. There was another one next to it so it wasn't a loss. At least she knew what it was now: a lyrium potion. The moment the quartermaster turned away to give the potion to the mage, Kasumi swiped the other. She walked a safe distance away before de-cloaking. No one noticed. They were too keyed up for the battle ahead or simply weren't paying attention. Satisfied with her souvenirs, Kasumi finished catching up with Shepard.
"Hey, Shep! What did I miss?" Kasumi asked as she neared Shepard, Garrus, and Samara.
"Oh, hello, Kasumi. Alistair, this is another colleague—" Shepard was cut off by Kasumi's loud, indignant cough. "I mean, very good friend of mine."
Kasumi smiled approvingly. "How do you do, Alistair?"
The Grey Warden shrugged. "Not bad, considering the circumstances we're meeting under. I'm glad we've got your extra muscle. Twelve people won't exactly make much of a difference, but hey, at least the Blight is doing its job and bringing us together! I should go get the other recruits. It was a pleasure to meet you all."
"Shepard!"
Shepard turned at the sound of her name. She saw Jack stomping up the ramp, her face contorted with anger. Thankfully, Alistair was quick enough to get out of her way as Jack made her way to her commander.
"Something on your mind, Jack?" Shepard asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Yeah…" Jack looked away for a moment. "I want to go out into the Korcari Wilds. But the guard told me I can only go with the Grey Wardens. I want to blast my way out, just thought I should let you know," Jack said.
Shepard narrowed her eyes. "Why do you want to go into the Korcari Wilds?"
Again, Jack paused. "There's a mabari, a dog, that's injured. There's a flower in the Wilds that'll cure it."Shepard raised a disbelieving eyebrow. Jack rolled her eyes and snapped. "So can I go or not?"
"I'll let you go, but you'll have to ask Alistair and Duncan if you can go with them."
Jack turned to Alistair. To his credit, he didn't flinch when Jack glared at him. "Uh… I don't think it'll be a problem. Besides, sounds like a good cause." He tried to offer Jack a placating smile.
"All right then, I'll see you later to prep for the battle, Jack. Want any help?" Shepard smiled, knowing Jack wouldn't like it.
"Ha ha, Shepard. Very funny. I'm busting my sides from your comedy gold," Jack said, her voice almost monotone. She addressed Alistair next. "What are you waiting for? Let's go!"
"Actually, hold on Jack," Shepard said. "Alistair, do you have a bow and arrows on you?"
"Yes, why?"
Shepard nodded to Garrus who brought his omni-tool online. "We um…need to adjust our magic to make sure we can deflect arrows. I need you to shoot me right here." She pointed to her sternum.
"What? That's fatal!"
"Don't worry," Shepard soothed, "if my magic fails, my armor should be able to take it."
Kasumi chuckled to herself. She was really starting to like this place. They accepted the flimsy excuse of "it's magic" without question. She could only start to imagine what she could get away with.
Grudginly, Alistair notched an arrow and shot Shepard. The arrow seemed to hit an invisible wall before dropping to the ground. "Seems like your magic is working well enough," Alistair commented as Garrus made the necessary adjustments to Shepard's armor.
"It's good to double check." Shepard shrugged and gave Alistair a small smile. "Jack, you can leave with Alistair as soon as Garrus finishes his calibrations."
Jack rolled her shoulders experimentally after Garrus finished. "Doesn't feel any different…" she muttered.
"Shall we?" Alistair asked.
"Yeah, lead the way."