House Cadash
Highever was a bustling port city but Hawke wasn't looking for another score. She had heard there was a group of dwarves looking to head into the Deep Roads and she wanted in on it. They were easy enough to find, a fiery redhead swinging a warhammer while yelling at her brother was hard to miss. “Are you the Cadash expedition?”
She paused her tirade and leaned on her warhammer. “What’s it to you?”
Hawke laughed. “Dawn sent me, a Lady Cadash was looking for thieves and mercenaries for her expedition.”
She scowled. “Ugh, Nana.” She stuck her hand out. “I’m Val, Valkyrie Cadash. This nug humper is my brother Orn. If Nana hired you out, then welcome aboard.”
Orn sighed, tugging on his beard. “Have you been to the Deep Roads?”
“Have you?” She cocked a hip to one side as she tossed her braid behind her.
Val laughed. “Oh, you will do fine with us.” She turned to the other hirelings. “Come on, you dainty things, let’s go!”
Val and Orn were leaned against each other panting. “Hawke?”
“I’m here.” She groaned. The cave in had barely missed her, but a couple of rocks had still rung her bell. She touched her head and felt a warm wetness against her fingers and grimaced. “You two okay?”
“Orn is hurt.” Her voice cracked as she helped her brother to the floor. “Do you have anything on you?”
Hawke fumbled with the bottles on her belt and hobbled over to hand her a healing potion. “Did anyone else?” Val shook her head in the dim light and tipped the bottle into his mouth. He swallowed most of it down and his eyes fluttered shut. Hawke looked around before swinging her pack off her shoulders. “I have some food and I think I see some wood. I’ll get a fire going and we will rest until, for a while.” Her voice stuttered. Val had quickly become her friend, the dwarven woman was spirited and driven and now she looked so broken and dull. Hawke reached out and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
“By the stone, you are short.” She wiped at her eyes.
“All the better for thieving.” Hawke gave her a grin. “And other things.”
She chuckled. “Once we are out of this, I want a demonstration.” Hawke arched an eyebrow and she shrugged. “I can’t think of a better way to celebrate living.” Hawke’s laugh echoed off the walls.
Orn never woke up. They piled stones over his body as they silently cried. When they were finished, Val stood over him and performed the dwarven funeral rights that she could remember. “I promise when we get back to surface you will be remembered, my brother.”
She led them for days through passage after passage. Spiders and worse lurked in the dark. The food ran out and when Hawke saw a nug in passing she sent a dagger screaming through it. “This tastes like mud.”
Val chuckled darkly. “They call them mud splashers for a reason.”
Another few days passed, the water had run out. Hawke’s eyes were dry and itchy. She kept seeing a light spot, but dismissed it until she stuck her hand in the sunlight. She stared up the tumbled rock slide. “Do you think we can climb it?”
Val was grey, even her brilliant hair was hanging lack luster behind her. “Unless you can fly us up.” Hawke snorted as they started to climb.