faderift | OPEN LOG: Establishing a Base in Kirkwall

OPEN LOG: Establishing a Base in Kirkwall

WHO: Many People
WHAT: Cleaning up Kirkwall
WHEN: Cloudreach 1-21
WHERE: Kirkwall
NOTES: This log post is for characters who go early to Kirkwall to assist in preparing it for the rest of those assigned there. We strongly encourage IC discussion of things left to character discretion—someone should definitely do a crystal post to discuss what to do with the personal belongings left behind in the Gallows or what new form the statues should take!

Kirkwall once lived on the edge of the Tevinter Imperium and was home to nearly a million slaves. Stolen from elven lands or shipped from across the sea, all slaves fed the Imperium's unquenchable thirst for expansion. They worked in massive quarries and sweltering foundries that produced stone and steel for the Empire.

The city's complicated past is not easy to forget, history having earmarked many corners of the stone city. A ship approaching the harbor spots the city's namesake: an imposing black wall. It is visible for miles, and carved into the cliff side are a pantheon of vile guardians representing the Old Gods. Over the years, the Chantry has effaced many of these profane sentinels, but it will take many more years to erase them all.

Also carved into the cliff is a channel that permits ships into the city's interior. Flanking the channel are two massive bronze statues—the Twins of Kirkwall. The statues have a practical use. Kirkwall sits next to the narrowest point of the Waking Sea, and a massive chain net can be erected between the statues and the lighthouse, closing off the only narrow navigable lane. This stranglehold on sea traffic is jealously guarded by the ever-changing rulers of the city as the net trolls taxes, tolls, and extortions in from the sea.

—From In Pursuit of Knowledge: The Travels of a Chantry Scholar, by Brother Genitivi

Establishing a presence in Kirkwall is a delicate matter. First, there's Provisional Viscount Bran Cavin—a man so used to batting back friendly offers of entirely harmless occupation of the battered city-state that his first three responses to the Inquisition's leadership appeared to be slightly personalized form letters. Proving that the Inquisition is here to work and not to conquer will be a process. The first step in that process is the second reason the move is delicate: the only building the Provisional Viscount is willing to part with is the Gallows, left quarantined and unoccupied since Knight-Commander Meredith Stannard's famous crystallization into red lyrium in the courtyard. The Gallows have since overgrown with red lyrium. If anyone is going to live and work there, there's a lot of work to do.

↠ Cloudreach 1-3: The Journey There
↠ Cloudreach 3-4: Arrival
↠ Cloudreach 4-14: Haunted
↠ Cloudreach 14-21: Spring Cleaning

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Kirk nodded, checking his own belt and what he had on him. It should be enough to get what they wanted done today, at least in terms of downpayments assuming the good people of Kirkwall took such things. It was going to be an adventure, that was for sure. He moved to the place Anders indicated to meet, finding a crate to settle himself on and watch the other people meander by.

He had seen few sadder places, was the conclusion he came to. The whole place weighed heavy on his shoulders, gave him a pounding headache of despair. He shook it off as Anders arrived, moving to take up a position with his friend as they made their way down.

"Have you been all right?" Kirk asked as they walked.

For several steps he was quiet, turning the question over. Generally he preferred deflection over honesty. This city has a near-tangible weight with its sorrows, and his don't help.

"I lost the first person I loved here, betrayed the second, and created devastation that was large enough to go in the history books of a world that seems fixated on starting new wars," he finally answered. Honesty was supposed to be the best policy, right? "I'm as well as anyone can be expected when surrounded by their own failure and reasons for guilt."

He kept his voice low as they walked, and his head a little bowed. It was better to be a little on the safer side. Guilt and regret didn't mean he felt like dying.

"The city took everything from me, and I took too much from it. And now we're here for who knows how long, and it's only a matter of time before word slips out about who all came with the Inquisition. I hate Kirkwall."

Anders glanced over at Kirk, and his expression became wry. "And how are you finding the city of chains?"

He listened quietly, letting him speak at his own pace as they made their way through the streets - streets that lacked the cheer of Skyhold or Orlais, even with the threats that had been hanging over both. Taken much from the city? Yes, Kirk could see that. He could see the fear and the distrust in the eyes of the people at these outsiders, could feel the tensions boiling in the air. All of it entirely reasonable too, he thought, even if the cause had been a complicated mess and neither side was entirely right or wrong (though he found that Anders was more right than the other in his estimation).

"I can't say I hate it, but it's definitely not my first choice for a vacation destination," he said as they made their way into the market center. "Honestly, I want to find a way to help the people here. I don't know precisely what I can do, but there has to be something, right?"

"There's always something."

That's a far easier topic. There are a million ways to help out in Kirkwall, and Anders has personal knowledge of several of them.

"You'll find plenty of people in lowtown, the alienage, and Darktown who could use an extra pair of hands with extra chores, from repairing what structure they live in to watching a dozen children, mending socks to catching a few fish for the evening meal. If you've skills with anything along those lines, you'll be invaluable. I'll be," he looks around and lowers his voice, "reopening my clinic, and I could use hands there as well in the future if you're interested in that. Muscle, to move the gear from place to place, hands to roll bandages and bring needed equipment or support injured people to the beds, and so on. If you look for it, you will never be short of work."

They're at the market now, and Anders keeps his head down as he leads them in the general direction of where the craftsmen tended to linger.

"All right. Let's see what we can find here."

Kirk nodded, taking in his ideas and making special note of them. He was fairly good with building things, so he could help there, he was sure, and he could do the basic things around the clinic (as well as serve as guard for Anders if something should happen). It was quite a lot to think on, far to many problems for him to solve alone and that was the problem, wasn't it? He wanted to help, do to much as per usual.

"I had thought about maybe helping the kids, teaching them some reading and basic math," he thought aloud. "It would be a good way to "watch" them as you said. Might as well kill two birds with one stone, right?" he smiled a bit to himself, but let it clear as they entered the market in full swing.

"Do you want me to do most of the talking? Just in case?" he asked, looking slightly left and right for the materials they would need.

"If you didn't mind doing the talking, please. I'd like to keep my voice heard less. But I'll help if you need it."

And sure enough, his voice is pitched low enough to just reach Kirk's ears. There's no telling who might recognize him by voice when he's changed enough visually to pass.

"And let's talk about teaching after. I'm going to be setting up a school, a set, permanent location, for teaching reading, writing, math, and magic all in one place. To make it a natural thing that everyone can grow used to seeing, where those who are tolerant profit." And learning how to read and figure could profit them greatly.

"An educated populace helps a country succeed," Kirk grunted, but he wasn't going to press that point for now. Anders was right in that it was a topic for later while they roamed the market, looking for their materials. Besides, it was a rather complex thing to try and put into place, so better to discuss it when not in danger of a potential mob.

"Ah, here we are," he nodded to a stall they were coming to. "Advice?" he glanced at Anders while they were still far enough off to not be immediately overheard.

"They're not Fereldan, so you could always flirt with them." For a moment, Anders smiled. "More seriously, they're definitely going to open high because you're not known to them. Have you ever haggled before? Counter with half of what they start with, but make sure it's a friendly counter, not angry."

People might feel threatened or get stubborn if Kirk is aggressive to start, though Anders doesn't think that likely. He glanced at the shopkeepers, considering.

"The one with the scar by his eye tends to be friendlier, though he doesn't look it. I knew of him, saw him once or twice, and by reputation Taylon prefers to move more product at slightly poorer prices than less at higher."

He nodded quietly. "I've dealt a bit with it before. I have been here a year, you know," he reminded him, which was always a shock just to himself to hear it aloud, but it was the truth. Still, he kept in mind to keep it civil and to not argue to much. He didn't have a lot of cash to spare, but he didn't want to cheat the man either - or be cheated.

Glancing at the man with the scar he nodded quietly to Anders and made for him, raising his hand slightly in friendly greeting. "Well met," he said by way of introduction and began his haggling, hoping he was getting a good deal. If Anders said the man was fairly honest and preferred quantity sold, he hoped it would work in his favor.

"In Skyhold. Kirkwall is a different entity entirely," he replied.

All the same, Kirk was doing a fairly good job with Taylon. The second man at the table looked more upset as the haggling went on, but Taylon seemed fine and after a few minutes of conversation Taylon held his hand out to shake on the deal.

It might not be the best Kirk could possibly have gotten, but he'd done better than many Anders had seen so he gets a nod.

Kirk nodded, at least feeling like he hadn't been taken to much advantage of, which was something. He turned back to Anders and moved away with him before speaking, not wanting to call unwanted attention. Not that to men speaking would do that, but one never knew and he would rather hedge his bets than start a potential riot and lose the deal he'd just made.

"Right, so what next? Or should we quite while we're ahead for the day and get some beer?"

He chuckled at the question.

"Let's quit while we're ahead and have a beer. It will take time for the materials to be delivered, after all, and I'm assuming you don't want to carry its full weight to the docks. They've employees just for that."

Anders tilted his head in the direction of a tavern nearby. It wasn't the Hanged Man, but it would do.

"We can work again when he's been delivered."

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OPEN LOG: Establishing a Base in Kirkwall

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Maybe wraps?