The Iron Dragon

Chapter 44. A nocturnal camp

When I arrived at the camp, I was reassured that it was reasonably quiet. There were not many people in the camp, perhaps only a dozen, all of whom looked like they were very busy. Some pitched tents bearing the seal of the Inquisition, some collected wood from the surrounding area to keep the cozy campfire going, and others discussed plans of the Inquisition while the rest took care of other resources, weapons or potions that were indispensable for the Inquisitor's adventures. I could see that all the people present were except for one dwarf lady who seemed to be looking at some reports and apparently had more or less that to say here, as she was giving some orders to others, but they sounded more like friendly conversation.

Behind her I could see several crows whose red eyes looked just as if they were looking straight into your soul, which is why I turned to her. These beings were probably there for communication between the different camps or wherever else the Inquisition had its fingers in the pie. It wasn't long before the Dwarf turned to us and showed a nice smile as she walked towards us.

"Inquisitor it's good to see you again I got the message that the riots in the emerald graves have practically disappeared in no time. There didn't seem to be any complications, because this time you were particularly quick I-". I could see her stop as her gaze wandered to me, where she stopped. The others from the camp also seemed to have noticed the sudden calm and turned to us in astonishment.

"Harding this here is Orion, he is a dragon blood and will accompany us on our travels as an official member of the Inquisition". Freya mentioned it in the tone of voice that probably everyone in the camp had heard to make sure she would not have to repeat herself later. Harding was silent for a moment while she looked me more than directly in the eye and seemed to judge me. But then the smile returned to her face and this time I found it even more heartfelt.

"A dragon's blood but of course I shouldn't wonder who or what you always bring with you on your adventures, it is a great honor to meet you Orion I hope you will soon find yourself in the Inquisition and serve it well. I am Chief Scout Lace Harding by far the most indispensable member of the Inquisition but you can just call me Harding, everyone does. I would shake your hand, but I'm afraid you'll get a lumbago if you try to return it. I nodded to myself nicely and I couldn't help but bow my head with a smile. Whatever I had expected, it hadn't been that, anyway. She spoke to me as if my appearance had been the most normal thing in the world and as if she had been expecting me for many years. Although I had only just met her, I had to say This dwarf woman was simply great.

The first thing I had to say was that she looked really warm, if not honestly cute. I could see in her eyes that she had already seen a lot of things, both good and bad, but that she was not going to be held back. This woman would continue her work no matter what would happen, and she would not stop until she was completely satisfied. I could see ambition and a lot of dedication to her work. This woman served the Inquisition faithfully and she would probably continue to do so for a very long time. Her hair was of a rather lighter shade of brown and her eyes of a beautiful green. I hadn't found dwarves very attractive in my life and that was probably something that wouldn't change that quickly but there was something about her that I found refreshingly charming and made me feel even more sympathetic to her.

"Forgive me for asking, but are you from Ferelden? ". She seemed surprised for a split second before she smiled and then nodded.

"I was indeed born in Ferelden, but I didn't really know what to do with my time in my daily life there. My parents were shepherds, so I tried to help them in their everyday life wherever I could, but that wasn't really something for me in the long run.

"Did you have the feeling that you were destined for something else? ".

"That's how it is, I just wasn't made for this quiet life in the country, I wanted to do something for others, save lives and do my part when this hole in the sky suddenly appeared and so I finally joined the Inquisition. Lady Nightingale was very impressed with my scouting skills and after a while she made me chief scout and I have to say that I like this work very much. The Inquisition is the best thing that could have happened to me and with my work, here I have the feeling that I can really do something good. Besides, I can defend myself quite well on my own, if I have to, and so I can afford to work with the Inquisitor at close range in outer areas. My job is to locate campsites in all the countries visited by the Inquisitor, to observe, document and then pass on enemy activity and of course to locate the rifts in order to keep track of their locations. After that, everything is passed on to Inquisitor Lavellan and she can take care of the rest and do the big fighting or just do heroic deeds, which is what an Inquisitor does. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some other things to take care of, it was a pleasure to meet you. She bowed before Freya and the others and also before me before continuing her work. Yes, she was definitely great.