The second chapter, and our second main character. We're still in Orzammar for the next few chapters, so here comes the Dwarven Noble.
"Greetings, my lord."
Daren Aeducan, the middle prince of Orzammar, nodded to his second. Gorim Saelac was a loyal man, and one who knew him well at this point.
"I'm afraid I couldn't find a matching dagger for your armor, but I scrounged up a rather fancy longsword." Gorim passed him the blade and sheath, and Daren took the time to properly attach them.
"Do you wish to wear your shield to the noble's feast?" Gorim continued.
"Yes," Daren responded. "Let them see me as a warrior. Is that not the purpose of today?"
Gorim chuckled in agreement. "Well said, my lord. Although if every other noble has a shield and three swords, you'll feel awfully underdressed."
"You, my friend, are ridiculous." Daren shook his head, but let a smile slip onto his face. His second shrugged.
"One can't take all this marching about and speech-making too seriously. Onto the business at hand, though. The king expects you to make an appearance at the feast, but there's no rush. The noble family heads will spend hours boring your father with petitions and petty grievances."
Daren tilted his head, and Gorim fell in step as they made their way through the palace halls.
"What of my brothers?"
"Out and about, my lord. On my here, I saw them browsing the wares of the merchants allowed into the Diamond Quarter for the day."
"Good." Gorim gave Daren a curious look, and the man elaborated. "If my brothers are out shopping, it means that we might be able to make our way to the Proving without being accosted by either of them."
Gorim laughed again. "With all luck, my lord."
They rounded a corner, and then came across an odd situation.
"My lord Bhe-! I… Oh no!" A woman had stepped out of a room, and then caught sight of Daren and his second. She immediately retreated back into the room, horror evident on her face.
Gorim frowned. "My lord, isn't that your brother's-?"
"Bhelen's room, yes," Daren responded. "Wait out here. I will discover the truth to this."
He walked into his brother's room to confront the woman. Once inside, he immediately noticed the brand on her face that signified her as a casteless, the lowest members of Orzammar's castes.
The woman immediately began apologizing. "I'm sorry, my lord. I thought you were Prince Bhelen coming down the hall. I… forgive me."
"I take it you are one of my brother's companions?"
"Yes, I… yes, my lord." Daren stared for a long moment. The woman shifted, uncomfortable with the attention.
"What is your name?" She started at the question.
"Rica, my lord. Rica Brosca. Again, I am sorry. It was presumptuous of me to think that he would return to- I am sorry."
Daren waved it off. "If Bhelen has no issue with you remaining here, I also find no issue. May the rest of your day be well."
Rica thanked him profusely, but Daren simply turned and walked out. Gorim fell into step behind him, and they returned to exiting the palace.
"She stays, my lord?"
"Aye." Daren's expression showed nothing. "As I said to her, I see no issue if Bhelen has allowed her to stay in his quarters."
"Very well. Are we off to the Proving, then?"
Daren hesitated. He should, at the very least, make sure that he wasn't needed at the feast. Gorim had been correct earlier when he said that it would be hours before the nobles finished bothering his father with their various problems. But the feast today was to honor him – should he not be there to help his father?
No, Daren was not the heir to the throne. There was no need for him to aid his father.
"We are, Gorim."
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Of course, things could not be simple, and Daren's trip to the Proving had multiple encounters along the way.
The first was an argument between Scholar Gertek and Bruntin Vollney. Apparently, Bruntin took issue with certain details that Gertek had published about the origins of House Vollney. Unfortunately for Bruntin, Gertek said that everything he published was recorded in the Shaperate, and Daren was not prone to disbelieve Gertek when his claims were so easily disproved.
Bruntin had stormed off, enraged by what he saw as baseless insults against his house. Gorim suggested 'eliminating' Bruntin, a suggestion that the scholar supported when Daren asked his advice.
He thought about it. The scholar did have more logic than simply to end the argument – better to eliminate a small threat before it becomes larger.
Instead, he had let the man live. Better that Orzammar have a foolish warrior in its ranks than be deprived an able body due to such a foolish disagreement.
Next had been the most… exciting of the encounters.
Both of Daren's brothers, the Princes Trian and Bhelen, had confronted him.
Bhelen had greeted him politely.
"Atrast vala, big brother! How surprising to run into you out among the common folk." Before Daren could respond, his older brother spoke.
"Especially since duty requires that you attend our king father at the feast today," he growled. "Have you so little respect for him to disregard his wishes on a day set aside for you?"
Gorim began to speak up, but Daren signaled him to stand down. He knew Trian. Being responded to by Daren's second would only make things worse.
"Lord Harrowmont made it clear that there would be a considerable amount of time before I was required to make an appearance." Trian glared at Daren.
"Simply because you are not required to show up until later does not excuse you from your duties! You abandon our king father to deal with the court, when this day's celebrations are to honor you." Daren narrowed his eyes at the disdain with which Trian spoke. His older brother was the heir to the throne, and therefore above him, but this would not be forgotten.
"Our king father is more than enough to deal with the court. If he has need of me, I have made no secret of my movements."
"Your lack of a sense of duty to our house is appalling. I expect that I'll spend much time apologizing to heads of noble houses for the deaths of their children under your incompetent command."
The words were meant to get under his skin, Daren knew that. He forced down his anger before it caused him to respond in kind.
Bhelen attempted to defuse the situation, but Trian responded with some tripe about "imparting wisdom and judgement upon those who need it" and once again commanded Daren to make his way to the feast.
"Father will send for me if I am needed. Until then, I will do as I wish, brother."
Trian snorted. "I'd advise you to rethink that attitude, dear sibling. Father will not live forever." With those chilling final words, he beckoned Bhelen and continued on towards the palace.
Gorim expressed his displeasure afterwards, and Daren couldn't help but inwardly agree. Trian was stepping beyond acceptable bounds, and if he wasn't careful, he would end up going too far one day and pushing someone too far.
And then Daren would be the heir apparent, and he did not need the headache that would result from that.
After the tense run-in with his siblings, the next exchange he found himself in was surprisingly pleasant. A nervous weapons merchant wished to gift him a dagger, but the messenger responsible had been thrown out of the palace by Trian. Despite Gorim's misgivings, and the merchant's foolish belief that Daren might be made king, Daren accepted the blade. It was a fine dagger, and Daren would simply take care to keep it out of sight when not in use.
Thankfully, the rest of their journey through the Diamond Quarter was uneventful. At the exit, they met a contingent of guards. The leader stepped up.
"My lord." He bowed. "Are you heading to the Proving Arena?"
Gorim, as Daren's second, responded. "My lord intends to, yes." The guard nodded.
"We have been charge with the task of escorting you to the Proving grounds. The king worried about you going through the commons unguarded. The merchants who didn't get passes to sell their wares in the Diamond Quarter…. Well, it isn't impossible that they might harass you if you went alone." Daren and Gorim exchanged a look. If there were guards set aside specifically to escort Daren to the Proving, why was Trian so insistent that he go to the Palace and aid their king father?
"Very well," Daren accepted. "We shall go immediately."
"Excuse me, but do you mind if I accompany you?" An unknown voice came from behind them. Daren turned to see a very tall man – a human – standing politely, hands clasped behind his back. A clever stance – it showed that the human had no intentions of drawing a weapon by purposefully making it more difficult for him to do so.
"And just who are you?" Gorim immediately stepped between Daren and the new arrival. His hand drifted towards the hilt of his sword.
Daren interrupted him. "Peace, Gorim. This is Duncan, Commander of the Grey Wardens in Ferelden. Given where we are headed, it is only natural he come along." His second backed down, but the tension in his stance stayed.
If the Grey Warden noticed, he said nothing of it. Instead, all Duncan said was, "I look forward to seeing the skill of your warriors. Shall we?"
"We shall." Daren nodded at the guards assigned to him, and they fell into formation around the three. The noble, his second, and the Grey Warden made their way to the Proving.
As they walked, Duncan struck up a conversation. "I must thank you for allowing this Proving to be held for our recruitment efforts. I have been told that today's Proving should have been in your honor instead of for the Wardens."
Daren smiled politely. "It is no trouble, Warden Commander. The Grey Wardens have always been welcomed in Orzammar, and to aid you in finding the best for your ranks is no sacrifice to my mind."
The Warden nodded back with a smile. "And we are grateful. There are dark times ahead of us, and the strength of the dwarves is well-known." Daren responded with his own smile, but the conversation faded out until they reached the Proving Grounds.
"An impressive building, and I look forward to seeing equally impressive fights take place within." Daren suppressed a smirk at the human's words. Duncan knew exactly how to appeal to dwarven superiority – all of the guards accompanying them had puffed up in pride at hearing a human acknowledge the greatness of their architecture and their fighters.
Out loud, Daren responded, "Indeed. There is a balcony set aside for important viewers. Shall we make our way there?" Surprisingly, Duncan frowned.
"Ah, actually, if it is no trouble, I believe I would like to spend some time in the main hall. Observing the fighters before the Proving begins may help in discovering a potential recruit."
Daren glanced at Gorim, who seemed just as confused at the man's reasoning. Was it not battle prowess that the Grey Warden was looking for? What could Duncan be looking for that would not be found in the Proving matches?
Despite this, Daren gave a wave of approval, left the Grey Warden behind, and climbed to the viewing balcony with Gorim.
"Prince Daren!" The Proving Master rose from his seat and bowed.
"Proving Master," Daren nodded back. "I look forward to today's Proving. What warriors are participating today?"
The man was surprised, but only hesitated a brief moment before reciting the names of those who were to fight in the Proving. As he heard the list, Daren frowned. There were skilled warriors in the line-up, yes, but some names he knew to be more popular than truly effective fighters. The true warriors would win those matches too easily, and the intent of the tournament was to find potential Wardens.
"Add my name to the list." Daren cut the Proving Master off abruptly.
"P-Prince Daren?" Before he could protest further, Gorim affixed the man with a glare.
"Your prince has given you an order, Proving Master. It would be in your best interest to follow that order."
Apologizing profusely, the man agreed. "Of course, my lord. I will place you into the Proving immediately. Ah, the matches will begin soon. Will you wait up here, or should I have a room cleared for you?"
"Here is fine. All I will need is water brought up here, for between matches."
"Yes, of course my lord."
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"Well fought, my lord."
Daren smiled at Gorim. "It wasn't much of a battle. I worry for Orzammar's future, if a warrior like that made his way into this tournament."
"Nonetheless, your fighting was very impressive, Prince Daren." Daren gave a bark of laughter at Duncan's words.
"If you thought that fight was impressive, Warden Commander, I might start worrying over the quality of your Wardens."
The polite smile on Duncan's face faded. "I assure you," he spoke with a sudden seriousness, "the Grey Warden order is as strong as ever, even if our numbers in Ferelden are low." The man's smile returned quickly. "I was simply complementing your abilities. Even with a lesser opponent, it is easy to see your prowess."
Daren nodded as acknowledgement, and the balcony's occupants fell silent as the next bout was announced.
"The next match is Everd versus Mainar!" The two warriors entered the arena and faced each other.
Daren rose from his seat, staring hard at the figures about to fight.
"My lord? Is something wrong" His second asked, brow furrowed.
Daren didn't respond at first. Then he lowered back into his seat, but continued to stare at the two combatants even as the fight began.
"I know Everd." Both Gorim and Duncan turned to stare at Daren. "Everd is young, a glory-seeker and an attention hound. A good fighter, but egotistical about it.
"Everd has his helmet on. He's using a long dagger instead of a sword. And he hasn't said a word." Duncan gasped as he realized what Daren was implying, while Gorim continued to stare in confusion until his prince's next words, spoken quietly but surely.
"Whoever that is, that's not Everd."
Gorim's hand fell to the hilt of his sword. "We cannot let this lie!"
"Wait." Gorim's eyes widened in surprise.
"My lord?"
Daren, who had kept his gaze fixed on the fighter impersonating Everd without fail, simply smiled. "Wherever Everd is, I doubt he will fall into more danger than he is in now. I wish to see what this imposter plans to do…
"And how far they will go."
Surprise!
Yeah, I decided to make the two Origins happen at the same time (for the most part). It seemed a better idea than just doing both separately, and allows for me to get through Orzammar a little bit faster.
Hopefully Daren's chapter reads differently than Mora's in a good way - the plan is to write in a different 'voice' for each main character, although who knows how separate I'll manage to keep them all.
Thanks for reading!