Back up at the gates of Orzammar, Wynne set up camp near one of the dwarrowdam merchants. She had no idea how long it would take Leliana to reach her, so she thought it best to prepare for a possibly lengthy stay.
She would wait until Kitranna and the others were finished with their business in Orzammar, or until Leliana got here. She hoped bad luck had not befallen Leliana, but one needed to be prepared for the worst.
Loghain's messenger was still lingering around, periodically bothering the guards at the gate. They still refused to let him inside.
Wynne stayed out of his way, and the messenger hardly noticed her. She had been on the mountain for two days, the cold seeping into her bones, when Leliana finally arrived, galloping into the encampment on an exhausted horse.
Wynne went up to her.
“Wynne!” Leliana exclaimed, beaming as she saw her.
“Leliana,” Wynne smiled. “I am glad you arrived her safely.”
“Where is everyone else?” Leliana asked.
“They went on ahead to Orzammar,” Wynne explained. “I volunteered to wait here for you.”
“They are in Orzammar already?”
Wynne inclined her head, and glanced at the gate. “Hopefully the guards will let us in,” she said. “We don't have a Warden with us, which may give us trouble. They do know us, however.”
“How long have you been here by yourself?”
“I am hardly by myself,” Wynne chuckled. “And only a day or so.”
Leliana pursed her lips. “It's so cold here—are you sure you are all right?”
"I am perfectly fine, my dear—come, we need to meet with Surana.”
They went to the gate, and after some deliberation, the guards allowed them inside, sending word ahead first.
The city was larger than either of them had anticipated, and hotter, too.
“It's a good thing Surana's tall,” Leliana pointed out.
“They have Shale with them, as well,” Wynne said. “We should find them soon.”
They asked a nearby guard, and apparently the Wardens were last spotted in the Diamond Quarter, presumably to go to the Assembly. They went there (getting curious looks from passerby as they did so), and after a few hours, they did spot Shale and the others in the crowd.
“Surana!” Leliana stood on her tiptoes and waved. She hardly needed to, as she was much taller than the dwarves, but she did so out of habit.
Kitranna looked up, and smiled when she saw them. They met each other in the street, then moved to a small tavern, to get out of the flow of traffic and somewhere with a bit more privacy.
“Did you have any trouble getting back?” Kitranna asked.
Leliana shook her head. “No—what about you? How have you been here?” she looked over the group. “Where is Zevran?”
“He's on an errand,” Fiona said.
“On his own?” Leliana looked dubious.
“Yeah,” Kitranna said, waving away Leliana's concerns. “It doesn't matter right this second. What did you find?”
Leliana brushed a strand of red hair out of her eyes. Out of her pack she pulled a sheaf of battered parchment. “The Urn is real enough that someone was killing people who searched for it,” she said, handing the parchment to Kitranna. “I do not know if Brother Genitivi is dead or alive, but someone was at his house, warning other searchers away.”
“That doesn't sound good,” Alistair said, peering over Kitranna's shoulder to look at the parchment.
“Doesn't that mean that there's some truth to the myth?” Jowan said. “If people are willing to kill to keep others off the trail—”
Fiona nodded. “That is almost certainly what it means,” she said, mouth pressed into a hard line.
“While we have been here, surely the people who wish to defend the Urn will have gathered their strength,” Leliana said. “Is there no way we can move now...?”
Kitranna shook her head. “No, we've got to resolve this problem with the throne,” she said. “Orzammar can't give us any allies until they have a monarch, and they're split over who gets to be King.”
“We're trying to fix that problem now,” Alistair said. “That's what Zevran's doing, actually.”
“My errand is finished, as a matter of fact,” Zevran interjected suddenly and they all looked up at him, startled. No one had heard him come up behind them. “I see two of the members of our fair party have returned,” he said. “Your own errand went well, Leliana?”
“Did you give those documents to Lady Dace and Lord Helmi?” Kitranna asked.
Zevran inclined his head. “And they were either accurate or very good forgeries. The Lord and Lady accepted them—Lady Dace was quite upset, but Lord Helmi appears to have grown tired of political games. Nevertheless, the goal is accomplished.”
“Well, there's that done,” Kitranna said. “So...I suppose we go back to Vartag and then see Bhelen, right?”
Fiona rubbed her forehead. “Yes, and then we need to perform some more political maneuvering in order to put him as King.”
Leliana sighed. “Reminds me of Orlais—are you certain this is the only way to get an Orzammar alliance?”
“They refuse to ally unless there's a monarch present,” Fiona said.
“Doesn't seem like a really effective system,” Jowan pointed out. “Couldn't they just put the Assembly in charge?”
“Wouldn't that just end up having the same problem as this, just all the time?” Alistair said as they all got up and left the tavern to head to the Assembly.
“I suppose...” Jowan said. “But It just seems like there's a better way we could be doing this, especially with the darkspawn and everything.”
“There probably is,” Kitranna said. “But we don't exactly have the time to work it out.”
They located Vartag in the Assembly, and he was surprised that they had accomplished what he had set out for them.
“You certainly come through with promises,” Vartag said with a smirk. “Lady Dace is on a tear. She's been telling everyone what a leech and a liar Harrowmont is.”
“Can we meet with Bhelen now?” Kitranna asked. “We still need to deal with this Blight problem, and none of this is getting it done any faster.”
Bhelen resided in the Royal palace, behind several layers of guards and heavily locked doors. Despite the protection of the building, he wore full armor and had a sword and shield slung over his back. He was blond and young, his beard tied in several intricate braids.
“I am impressed, Warden,” he said, looking over Kitranna and her group. “Not many outsiders so quickly grasp Orzammar's rather...convoluted politics.”
Zevran and Leliana exchanged a sidelong glance, but both bore an expression of polite interest, unlike Morrigan, who couldn't stop herself from smirking.
“I am Prince Bhelen. Vartag told me of your efforts against the usurper who tried to claim my father's throne.”
“We want this political crisis dealt with as quickly as possible,” Kitranna said. “And getting you on the throne seems like the way to do that.”
Bhelen nodded. “You need help from Orzammar.”
“We really do. You'd keep your treaty with the Wardens?”
“Absolutely. I swear on the mail of my ancestors, as soon as Orzammar is united under my rule. Unfortunately, while this debate rages, I have no power to send the troops you need.”
Kitranna restrained herself from rolling her eyes. “What can we do to get you on the throne?”
Bhelen began to pace. “You have struck a blow against Harrowmont, true, but there is another faction at play here. Have you heard of a woman named Jarvia and the cartel of criminals she runs?”
“No. What about her?”
“She takes advantage of the current chaos to further her criminal power. She is secretive, and only the most current leader of a group that has plagued Orzammar for years. The guards have no time for them, and it has made them bold. If I show the city I can eliminate such a threat, well...let's just say my position would be stronger.”
“So you want us to take care of her?” Kitranna glanced at her companions. Fiona was frowning, and Jowan looked pale. Wynne radiated disapproval. “Why us?”
“She stays mostly in Dust Town, below the city, in some sort of hideout we haven't located yet. Only Casteless live in Dust Town, and they are too scared to cooperate with the guard—if things were different, perhaps it would have been easier to deal with her. As it is, with the way things are now, her own position is strong. However, if you were to go to Dust Town, the Casteless wouldn't be afraid of you, and you may have better luck finding her.”
Kitranna folded her arms. “If I do this for you, you need to hold up your end.”
“If you do this for me, I promise, I will send as many troops as you need to fight the Darkspawn.”
“Hang on a moment,” Kitranna said. “We need to talk this over.” she jerked her head towards her companions.
“Are you certain this is the candidate we should be supporting?” Wynne said, the moment Bhelen was out of earshot.
“We don't have much of a choice,” Kitranna said. “Not at this point, anyway.”
“This takes far too long,” Morrigan said. “We cannot waste time here.”
“I agree,” Fiona said. “But we also can't possibly fight a Blight without Orzammar. As it is, we have the Dalish, a Circle at half strength, and all the nobles Bann Teagan can muster—which isn't many, after Ostagar. Orzammar is the only place that still has any troops left.”
“Are you certain you could not call upon Orlais?” Leliana asked. “There are Wardens there--”
“Bann Teagan would never agree to that,” Alistair said. “And even if he would, half the nobles in Denerim wouldn't—it would just give Loghain more fodder for his side.”
“Anyway, do you really think we could not only get a messenger to Orlais, but have enough troops to come in through the mountains to be of any real use?” Fiona asked. “You have been through the mountains—and this time of year, it will be even worse. That is unless they wanted to go through the Deep Roads, which would be an even worse idea. Any other country is out of the question—Antiva, the Marches and Rivain are across oceans, and Weisshaupt is months away. It has to be Orzammar.”
Leliana sighed and closed her eyes. “It is simply—the darkspawn are already coming up from the Wilds. They are spreading faster than we are prepared for. Even with the history between Ferelden and Orlais, Orlais would be willing to send troops and mages to help.”
“We'll be more prepared once we have Orzammar troops,” Kitranna insisted. “And this is the best way to do it.”
“At the moment, yes,” Zevran interjected. “Unless another opportunity presents itself, this is the best way to go about things.”
“So we must do this,” Leliana said.
“Do we really have to go and take down a crime boss?” Jowan said with a grimace. “I mean—this isn't a little thing he's asking us to do, is it?”
They all looked at him. He looked back.
“Well, it isn't, is it?” he folded his arms.
“We are already attempting the impossible, what is a bit more on top of everything?' Zevran said with an airy wave of his hand.
Kitranna nodded. “We'll do it,” she said firmly, and she looked back at Bhelen. “Where is the woman's base?” she asked. “We'll find her and fix your problem.”
Bhelen smiled. He informed them where the guards thought her hideout was, in Dust Town, but sadly they didn't know anything specific. They left the Royal Palace to head to an inn, to regroup and figure out their plan.
They didn't know anything about Dust Town, only that it was where the Casteless lived. Vartag gave them the maps he had of the place and where they suspected Jarvia's hideout to be, and they planned accordingly. They couldn't take everyone—it would look far too suspicious for their entire group to be there. In any case, Jowan wasn't the best of fighters and Shale was too conspicuous.
Kitranna settled on taking Leliana, Zevran, Alistair and Morrigan with her, leaving Jowan, Fiona, Wynne and Shale behind. Leliana and Zevran were the best at subterfuge, Morrigan was the most destructive mage, and Alistair was a warrior, like Shale, but unlike Shale, he wouldn't draw too much undue attention.
So, they set off for Dust Town.
It was in the lower parts of the city, on the way to Dust Town, where they were waylaid by a redheaded dwarrowdam who flagged them down in the street.
“What's the problem?” Kitranna asked. The woman had sounded urgent enough that they had stopped.
“You're the Warden, right?” she said. “Are you a mage?” she eyed the staff on Kitranna's back.
“...yeah...” Kitranna said. “Why?”
“I've never met an actual mage!” the dwarrowdam bounced on the balls of her feet. “I'd been hoping you knew about the Circle of Magi, but--”
“Why do you want to know about that place?” Kitranna asked, blinking. “You're a dwarf.”
“I've been trying to reach someone there for years,” she said. “I want to see if they would accept me for spells—I can't do magic, of course, but I don't see why I shouldn't study it!”
“If you wish to study magic, you would hardly be able to do that in the Circle,” Morrigan drawled.
“That's actually true,” Kitranna said, nodding.
“What?” the dwarrowdam sounded stricken.
“I mean—the Circle isn't actually a great place to learn magic, if you're not a mage,” Kitranna admitted, rubbing the back of her head. “I've never met a non-mage who was there to study magical theory.”
“I am certain many scholars would study it if they could,” Morrigan said. “But the Circle and the Chantry both discourage such learning.”
Alistair nodded. “They do, actually—I remember, in the Templars, it was all 'here's how to stop any and all magic,' and less knowing how it actually worked.”
The dwarrowdam looked crestfallen, her enthusiastic posture wilting.
“Maybe the Dalish or the Chasind could help you,” Kitranna said hastily.
“Oh—Orzammar's had some relations with the Dalish!” the redhead's eyes lit up. “Hundreds of years ago, sure but—well, I don't know. Do you know them?”
“This is not exactly the most opportune time for this conversation,” Zevran said. “Do we not have a task to accomplish...?”
“Oh, right,” Kitranna said.
“Oh, I'm sorry—I didn't mean to interrupt!” the dwarf exclaimed, worried.
“It's fine,” Kitranna said. “Listen—tell me your name, and I can find you again when I'm not so busy.”
“You'd do that?”
“Sure.”
“I'm Dagna—Dagna of the Smith Caste.”
“Alright. I'm Warden Kitranna Surana.” she informed Dagna the name of the inn she was staying at, and they agreed to try and meet again in a day or two, provided things did not become too hectic.
“It seems you acquire allies simply by walking about,” Morrigan pointed out as they walked away.
Kitranna shrugged. “I suppose I just have one of those friendly faces.”
Dust Town was old. They descended down into it, and the streets grew narrower, the buildings older and more broken. There were no guards here, nor any merchants. The dwarves here had brands on their faces and averted their eyes when looked at. Most people were armed, even the beggars with a crude truncheon or knife at their side.
Bhelen may have thought Kitranna and her group would have an easier time of talking to the Casteless, but he'd been wrong. The dwarves here were just about as tight-lipped to Kitranna and her companions as they would be to guards. After over an hour of fruitless questioning—even money didn't get them very far—they stopped in an area that could be considered a sort of town square.
Dust Town had its own shops and merchants, and one or two of them had set up shop in this square, amid the beggars and thugs. They stopped by a firepit burning in the middle of the square, beside which a beggar or two lurked.
“Is there a better way to do this?” Kitranna asked, running a hand over her head.
“They do not trust outsiders any more than they trust the guards,” Leliana said, looking over the square with a sad expression. “It is like this in Alienages, also.”
“Alienages are unpleasant, but not so bad as this,” Zevran corrected. “At least in an Alienage, Surana or I would have better luck. Or Morrigan, even.”
They did, however, eventually find someone who told them what they needed to know. A dwarrodam who had been in Jarvia's gang until a fight had ruined one of her legs, she had no love or fear for the gang leader. Provided some coin, she pointed them in the right direction.
They spent some more time in Dust Town searching, as per the woman's instructions, but eventually, what they needed came to them. Apparently some Carta thugs didn't take very kindly to them asking questions, and there was a brief skirmish in a forgotten corner of the town.
The Carta was quickly dealt with, and one of them remained alive, whole enough to surrender. He gave them a token to Jarvia's place, and told them where to find a door. They did so, and entered the tunnels.
Jarvia's hideout was a massive system of ancient caves and underground ruins, looking even older than Dust Town. The whole of Orzammar must have been built on the bones of the cities that came before it. There was no way past the Carta members; some of them surrendered, but most of them were dispatched via blade or spell.
“This Jarvia inspires such loyalty,” Zevran said at one point, tugging his blade out of the chest of a fallen dwarf.
“I do not think it is loyalty,” Leliana said quietly. “I think they simply have no where else to turn.”
“Also entirely possible.”
Jarvia's hideout had many items that were of use to them—supplies, armor, weapons, potions. Kitranna supposed that if one were in charge of the black market, one could get many things.
Eventually, they came to a makeshift prison. After dispatching the guards, Kitranna turned her attention to the two prisoners in the cells, one a dwarf man with long hair, and the other a dwarrowdam whose face was turned away so they couldn't see her.
“Please, stranger, let us out,” said one of the prisoners, leaning up against the bars of his cell. “I see you have no love for Jarvia, so help us. You see my friend...” he glanced over to the other cell, where the other prisoner was slumped against the wall, her back to them.
“Sure,” Kitranna said, fetching the jail key off the body of one of the guards and unlocking the doors.
The livelier of the two dwarves immediately hurried out of his cell. “Thank you,” he said, and went over to the other dwarf. “Come on,” he said, taking her hands and trying to pull her to her feet. “You idiot, I told you not to piss her off--”
Now that she looked, Kitranna could see that the dwarrowdam's face was badly bruised, and she was unsteady on her feet.
“I'm fine, I'm fine,” the dwarrowdam leaned heavily on the other dwarf. She attempted a smile, though it looked painful. She looked at Kitranna. “Thank you,” she said. “I'm Raen Brosca, and this is Leske.”
“Raen--!” Leske protested.
“She just saved us,” Raen said. “She ought to know our names.”
“Oh—well, I'm Kitranna Surana,” Kitranna said. “This is Alistair Theirin, Leliana, Zevran Arainai, and Morrigan.” she gestured at her companions.
“Don't see many of—well, any of you down here,” Raen said. “What are you doing here?”
“We don't really like Jarvia very much,” Kitranna said with a shrug.
Raen laughed, then winced and held her side.
“We need to get out of here,” Leske said, looking worriedly at his friend.
“I have a poultice I can spare,” Leliana said, moving forward with an elfroot poultice. “It should help--”
Raen waved her off. “No—no, thank you, salroka,” she said with another half-smile. “I'm just fine.”
“Stubborn woman...” Leske muttered, accepting the poultice from Leliana himself.
“We need to move on,” Morrigan siad.
Kitranna nodded. “Could either of you point us to where Jarvia is?” she asked the pair. “We really are here to get rid of her.”
“Down the tunnel,” Raen said, pointing. “She might come to you, actually—I mean it looks like you've definitely taken out enough of her men that she'd be mad about it.”
“Probably,” Kitranna said. “But we still need to find her.”
“Will you two be alright?” Leliana asked.
“Where did you come in from?” Raen asked, and Leliana gestured in the correct direction. “And everyone down that way is already taken care of?”
“They are.”
“Then yes, if we go that way, we'll be fine.”
“Are you sure?” Leliana pursed her lips, eying Raen and Leske's hollow cheeks and the bruise on Raen's face.
Raen smiled. “Yes, I'm sure. Thank you again.”
“Come on,” Kitranna said. They left Raen and Leske to return to Dust Town, and pushed forward.
They found Jarvia deep in the pits of her lair, beyond many traps and guards and even more twisting tunnels. She tossed her head when she saw them, her expression contemptuous.
“So, Bhelen finally realized we're taking the city, yet he still can't be bothered to send his own men.”
“I like to think we're performing a valuable service,” Kitranna said.
“Hm. Well, you picked the wrong side, stranger.” she drew her weapons. “It doesn't matter who's king, as long as there's a queen!”
“Well, conceivably, there could be both a king and a queen,” Zevran said conversationally.
“Or just a queen,” Alistair pointed out.
“We do not have to fight,” Leliana said.
“Sure we do,” Kitranna said, drawing her staff. “Unless she—I don't know—pledges her loyalty to the Gray Wardens?”
Jarvia narrowed her eyes. “Why would I do that?”
“See?”
“Wait--” Leliana said, putting her hand on Kitranna's arm. “Perhaps they could help us, instead of us combating each other.”
“You'd have to have a lot of coin for that to work out, stranger,” Jarvia said. “And last I checked, Wardens were just above Legion of the Dead in terms of coin. That is to say, not much.”
“Don't you care that an Archdemon has risen?” Leliana asked.
Jarvia shrugged. “Surfacer problems.”
“Always knew you were stupid, Jarvia,” came a new voice, and they looked round to see Raen and Leske in the doorway. “But this really goes beyond just stupid, doesn't it?” Raen held a pair of stolen shortswords in her hands.
“What are you doing here?” Jarvia snapped. “Never mind—kill them,” she snapped at her subordinates. “Should have killed those two ages ago...”
“Wait!” Leliana insisted again, but no one waited. The fight began in earnest. Raen and Leske, though wounded and starving, weren't half bad with their weapons, which was good because Morrigan and Kitranna's spells weren't as effective against Jarvia and the other dwarves as they were against surfacers.
Jarvia's guard was down and the woman herself was on one knee, when Raen approached her and stabbed her in the chest with her blade.
Jarvia fell, quite dead, and Raen nodded, satisfied.
“Well,” Raen said. “There's that taken care of.” she pulled her sword out of Jarvia's body and turned to Kitranna. “What was that about an Archdemon?”
“...what are you doing here?” Kitranna asked, glancing at her, then at Jarvia's body on the ground.
Raen shrugged. “You helped us. I thought we should help you. Ooh...” she leaned heavily against a nearby stone pillar. “Bad idea. But you got Jarvia, yes?” with her sword, she gestured at Jarvia's body. “Got what you came here for.”
Leske came to try and give Raen some support, but he was shaking so badly he wasn't much help. Leliana walked over and handed them an elfroot potion to share.
“We did...” Kitranna said slowly, turning Jarvia's body over so she could get a good look at her face.
“I assume we are to return to Bhelen and inform him of what we have accomplished,” Morrigan said.
Kitranna nodded.
“Do either of you wish to come with us?” Leliana asked Raen and Leske.
Raen shook her head. “I need to see my sister,” she said. “Make sure she's alright...” she bit her lip.
“I will go with you,” Leliana determined.
“Leliana!” Kitranna said. “We have somewhere else to be...?”
“Sounds important,” Raen agreed.
“I can hardly let you both go alone in this state,” Leliana said. “It will take no time at all,” she assured Kitranna. “I will meet you back at the Palace.”
Kitranna sighed. “If you're sure...”
“I am quite certain.”
“You really don't have to--” Raen protested.
“But I should,” Leliana told her.
So, they left the tunnels (emerging through a secret door in a shopkeeper's store, much to the poor man's horror), and Leliana, Raen and Leske went to Dust Town to see Raen's sister. Kitranna, Morrigan, Alistair and Zevran went to meet up with the rest of their party, then go back to the Palace.