Caelyra and her companions crept through the dark tunnels that seemed to web and weave around the entirety of Orzammar city. The carta's reach was astonishing. No wonder Bhelen seemed to be having an issue with these criminals.
They had doors and exits and passages everywhere. Everywhere.
Entering through one of the main doors of the hideout, the group was suddenly set upon by a group of dwarves. "What's the password?" one of them demanded.
They weren't there to chat. Caelyra motioned for her people to attack and they slew the dwarves and all that were behind them. Rooms upon rooms were filled with more and more carta members and they all fell too.
The carta hideout was as an entire city hidden behind the walls of the actual city. They even had their own jail and dungeon. Caelyra freed the prisoners, certain that they had done nothing wrong except cross the carta, and continued onward, hoping to find Jarvia soon.
After exploring every tunnel and sideroom, Caelyra and her companions came out to a main area. Jarvia stood in the centre, flanked by her most trusted guards.
She didn't care that Caelyra was trying to clean the criminal activity from the city in the name of a possible new king, no. She was out to take over the city herself. She wanted to be queen.
Jarvia signalled her men to attack and then leapt for Caelyra, determined to take her down herself.
While her companions battled the guards and enforcers, Caelyra focused on Jarvia. They had both mastered the rogue-ish arts so the room was soon covered in smoke and ash from the constant stealth attacks being used, but finally Jarvia fell.
The criminal carta was gone. They could report to Bhelen and hope that was enough to swing the Assembly's favour so that Orzammar at last had a king again. Then they could get back to the business of defeating the blight.
Caelyra and her companions returned to the Diamond Quarter to announce their success to Bhelen. The criminal carta was dismantled and Jarvia lay dead in her secret tunnels.
Bhelen was pleased, of course, but unfortunately this wasn't enough to swing the vote in his favour. The Assembly was still tied. There was one thing, however, Caelyra could do to make the Assembly unanimously agree upon his ascension. Gaining the word of a Paragon.
Paragon Branka had gone into the deep roads several years ago. Bhelen was certain she was still alive; she had her entire house with her. If they could find Branka and return her to Orzammar, and convince her to speak for him in the Assembly, he would be king and she would have her dwarven army for the blight.
There was so much running around! Dwarven politics truly matched the disheveled state of their own. It was so unpalatable.
Caelyra sighed, and agreed to find Paragon Branka in the deep roads. Hopefully the woman was still even alive.
As they took their leave of Bhelen and headed to the deep roads entrance, they were stopped by the drunk they had seen arguing with a guard — Oghren. He was Branka's husband before she had left for the deep roads and had been petitioning for people to save her for years now. If some Warden was going into the deep roads to look for her, then he was coming too! They wouldn't be able to find her anyway; not without his knowledge of what she was looking for — the Anvil of the Void.
Caelyra allowed him to come with them, as long as he minded himself and didn't get too drunk in the tunnels.
Within moments of entering the deep roads, they were set upon by a bunch of goons.
And then the darkspawn — so many darkspawn!
Of course the deep roads was home to the darkspawn so they'd inevitably come across pockets of them, but Caelyra wasn't expecting quite this many. Not so close to Orzammar anyway.
They explored every inch of the area Bhelen had sent them to — Caradin's Crossing — and then Oghren must've seen something familiar for he waved them over to one of the exits.
After killing the great ogre that guarded it, they left Caradin's Crossing and found themselves in Ortan Thaig... it sounded familiar. There was a girl researching the Ortan Thaig in the noble district of Orzammar. Her name was Orta, named after the Ortan family, and she was trying to prove that they had once been noble. Maybe Caelyra could find something of use to the girl while she was down here.
While travelling through the tunnels before the Thaig ruins, they came across several darkspawn bodies. Something was very adequately killing them, perhaps there was a dwarven patrol down here.
Caelyra was wrong. Turning the next corner, she witnessed as a group of giant spiders descended from the ceiling and tore apart an ogre and then an entire group of darkspawn.
It was a pity the spiders then turned on them. It was also a pity it was unlikely they could train them. They would make a formidable foe against the darkspawn and the blight.
Further investigating the tunnels around the Thaig ruins, Caelyra stumbled upon a crazed dwarf. After speaking with him for a bit, she discovered that his name was Ruck. He was the lost son that a mother had been praying for back in Orzammar.
Ruck didn't want to return — couldn't. He was crazed and warped by darkspawn flesh, having survived on it for so long. Caelyra instead promised to tell his mother that he had died in battle, bravely.
In a broken chest further into the Thaig lay some very interesting, ancient documents. They were the Ortan family records and would surely prove useful for the young girl trying to discover information about her family. Caelyra tucked it into her pocket to keep it safe.
Just when they had explored almost the entirety of the Thaig ruins, Caelyra stumbled upon an old campsite overrun by more giant spiders. After eradicating the beasts, she discovered a journal had been left upon an old table.
It was Branka's.
Apparently what they were searching for was not in Ortan Thaig so they moved onwards towards the Dead Trenches. It was an area known for heavy darkspawn activity and on the off-chance that she failed on her quest to find the Anvil of the Void, she left this journal for whoever came looking to follow in her footsteps and find it. It was of the utmost importance.
They couldn't stop now. They would have to go onward to the Dead Trenches and continue the search for Branka.
It was rather timely that they did as well, for as they came upon the Trenches they saw the extent of the darkspawn they'd have to face on the surface if the blight was to come to pass. Millions of the creatures lurked in the canyon below, and... there it was... the archdemon. This was bad. Very bad. They needed to get the dwarves onboard with the fight, now, and then hurry to the elves and get them too.
They were running out of time.
Looking for a way to cross over to the other side of the Dead Trenches, they at last found a bridge. On the bridge were a group of dwarves fighting the darkspawn. Caelyra and her companions leapt into the fray, killed all the darkspawn currently on approach, and gave the dwarves some breathing room so they could talk.
These dwarves were of the Legion of the Dead. The deadliest fighting force of Orzammar, they considered themselves already dead and that enabled them to fight better. They held the line against the darkspawn here and would stay there until orders came through.
It was clear to them that a blight was coming and they weren't surprised that Caelyra, a Grey Warden, was down here. What was surprising to them, though, was that they came in such few numbers.
Caelyra explained that they were searching for Paragon Branka and they would be crossing that bridge.
The dwarf called them insane. Maybe they were. Regardless, they crossed the bridge and fought off every darkspawn that tried to cross it, then killed a great ogre at the back of the horde. The bridge had been cleared.
The Legion ran across the bridge, mouths agape. Caelyra and her companions had moved their line of defence. They still thought she was crazy, but were impressed with the group's skills.
Now that they had crossed to the other side of the Dead Trenches, they could resume their search for the Paragon.
The tunnels back here were covered in blood and filth. Bulbous, fleshy sacks grew out from the floor and covered everything in entrails, and the stench was near the foulest thing Caelyra had ever smelt.
They came across a dwarven woman, picking through the bulbous flesh. She looked corrupted, and she didn't know they were there. She thought they were dream-people.
When questioned about Branka, the woman ran. She didn't want to hear Branka's name! She didn't want think about Branka! All of this was Branka's fault.
The dwarven woman ran and ran, leading Caelyra further through the tunnels, and her voice echoed all about them as she sang riddles. Riddles that spoke of guilt and feeding on blood and dark transformations. Then she whispered a chilling, "Broodmother."
Chasing after the dwarf, they rounded a corner and stumbled to a stop, horrified at what lay before them.
A very large creature made of breasts and tentacles loomed before them. Was this what the dwarf had been referring to? Had one of the women from Branka's house turned into this creature? Were all the women of Branka's house turned into creatures like this?
It was horrifying. Disgusting. The darkspawn flesh this woman had eaten had twisted her and twisted her until she became a creature that could birth more darkspawn. This was how darkspawn "reproduced."
Killing a broodmother would be a blow to the darkspawn, though presumably they had many of these creatures down here in the depths. Either way, it had seen them, it knew they were there, and they had to kill it.
It was a huge fight with dozens of tentacles swatting them about. The broodmother itself grabbed Caelyra with its tentacles and threw her about, vomited on her, tried to turn her into a being like it. Thankfully her tainted blood made her less susceptible.
The creature called for more darkspawn to come and assist and soon they were fighting the broodmother and dozens of its kin. Until finally, it had died.
Caelyra never wanted to see one of those ever again. She shook off the vomit that coated her armour and grimaced. That was disgusting.
There was another tunnel behind the dead monstrosity. A tunnel that should lead them to the Anvil of the Void, and hopefully Branka... though from what the dwarven woman was saying, perhaps it'd be better Branka was dead and not another of these foul creatures.
Preparing herself for what may lie beyond the next tunnel, Caelyra took a deep breath, and led her companions onward.
Until next time! ⚔️🐲
All screenshots in this post are courtesy of me, 