The Dance from Falinesti to Orsinium
Chapter 1 - The Beginnings
My name is Tanis, a Bosmer born in the once-moving city of Falinesti. For many years now, I have been fleeing from my former capturers with my partner through lands that are not familiar to either of us. It has been a long time since we've had a place we called home, almost twenty years. It had not always been this way. There had been a time in both our lives we could call peaceful, at least compared to now.
My early years were spent traversing the forests of Valenwood much like any other young elf would. My father would always warn me about the dangerous beasts that lurked in the shadows and scold me when I disregarded him, it still did not sway my enthusiasm. I believe it was that unwavering spirit that made him teach me how to hunt when I just seven years old. As was traditional of my people, I was taught in the ways of the bow. He taught me how stalk my prey, remain unnoticed even in the most open of surroundings and where to aim to strike the quickest kill I could. I held a saying of his close to my chest whenever I would hunt; "Strike down your prey quickly for they need not suffer a lingering death". I feel that in my later years I have realised my mother probably did not share the same sentiment as she would teach me the art of alchemy with a particular interest to poison crafting. In my young naïve mind, I mistook this for simply more effective methods of hunting but later events would make me reconsider my view on this. Father would not let me use poisons on the animals; he claimed it soured the meat.
Even during my childhood though, I do remember a sense of something large about to happen. I had never seen my homeland under the rule of the Empire so it was odd to me to find Legion armour in my father's belongings. I asked him once why he had it but was quickly silenced. My parents told me that I would learn when I was older but that I shouldn't tell anybody about it. It would be a few years later when circumstance forced my mother to tell me.
It was early 4E 171, I don't remember the exact date, when during the evening, an Imperial man entered my home wishing to talk to my parents. I did not find this strange as I knew them to have friends of my many people who travelled into the city but this man was not a face I was familiar with. As he entered, I was quickly sent to my room for the night, being told that these were adult matters. I felt annoyed with them both, protesting that I was thirteen years old. They did not fold however and I was dismissed for the night. It did not mean I would go to sleep though; I attempted to eavesdrop on their conversation but the walls were too thick for me to clearly hear much. I could not make out what they were talking about but it did not seem like the usual friendly banter I would hear them making with their other friends. Instead there were hushed tones and an overbearing sense of dread. After about an hour, I heard footsteps approaching my parent's room and the chest pressed up against the wall being opened. For the next couple of minutes, I heard frequent amounts of clattering metal against the stone floor. It was then that my door was opened and my father entered my room with a sack draped over his shoulder. He sat me down on my bed and told me that he was going travelling with his old friend for a while and that I shouldn't worry about him. I asked him where but he wouldn't give me a straight answer. To him, I was still his baby boy that he dodge questions and believe I wouldn't notice. As I went to sleep, I could hear the door opening and closing again as he and the Imperial left.
The next morning, I awoke early and found my mother sobbing at the kitchen table. I had never seen her cry before, the image of this unbreakable woman suddenly shattered as I saw she was as vulnerable as the rest of the world. I asked her what was wrong, startling her and making her hastily wipe her eyes.
"Tanis, I didn't hear you come in," she said with a trembling in her throat "You truly have your father's feet."
"Where's father gone?" I asked. It couldn't have been coincidence that the day after my father left that my mother was crying. I knew then by the way she looked at me that she accepting a hard truth for any parent; that their child was no longer a child anymore. Whilst my father did not wish to view me as anything but his son, my mother knew that I was now also old enough to understand the complex nature of the world around me.
"Please, sit down." she said, gesturing a seat to me. I pulled the chair out from under the table and sat next to her. "Your father has gone to Cyrodiil… and he may not return."
"Wha- why?! What's happened?!"
"Your father and I, we've never lied to you, don't think that for a second. It's true that you are native to Valenwood but we are not. Our families came from Cyrodiil; we met in the Imperial Legion. For years now, we've been the Legion's operatives in Falinesti to report on the Dominion's politics and armies.
"The man who came here last night was an old Legion friend, Legate Baenius. The Legion operatives who can are being asked to leave for Cyrodiil immediately and I was asked to go. Your father offered to go in my place, saying you needed me more than him. I just- whatever happens to him, you must never believe he did not love you." By the time she had finished, she had her arms wrapped around, hugging me tightly. I returned the gesture but gently pushed myself away from her.
"I want to go too." I said to her. A second first was also seen that day when I saw a look of horror in my mother's face as I told her my intentions.
"No! Absolutely not!"
"But I must! I could be of use to them against the Thal-"
"Tanis! I may have already have already lost your father, do not make me give you up too!"
I could not argue with her for I knew neither of us would back down easily. I did not wish to upset her further but at the same time, I still yearned to be at my father's side and help him fight. It was that passion that made me plan my next steps.
The very same night, I waited for my mother to go to sleep. She checked on me before she went to her room, I pretended to be sleeping as she peered through the door. I waited for what felt like an eternity but was probably only about half an hour and then proceeded to light the candle on the nightstand next to me. I slipped out from between my sheets in my hunting gear and reached under the bed to retrieve my bow, quiver and satchel. I held my boots in one hand as I slipped out of the room as not to make footsteps that would echo. I entered into the kitchen, searching the cupboard for food that I could take with me. There would be no point in being subtle about what I was taking for it would be obvious the next morning where I had gone when mother awoke the next morning to find my empty bed. I still needed to be quick; each minute that passed was an extra minute father had ahead of me. My take consisted mostly of game I had caught with father a couple of days before such as rabbits, pheasants and a small amount of roasted venison left over from supper the night before. I also took a loaf of the bread imported from the Gold Coast that my mother loved. As much as I sometimes miss Valenwood now, I do not miss the Green Pact that prevented me from using the vegetation of the vast forests.
I quietly slid my key into the front door and turned until I heard the lock click. I will always remember the rush of cold night air as I opened the door, quietly but as quick as I could. Exiting my house, I locked the door again, the click this time seeming louder somehow, causing my heart to jump. I started walking down the path north towards the outskirts of town. I could not believe what I had done. Each step made me want to turn back but the further I walked, the harder it got do so. By the time I had decided that I should just keep going, I was already walking down the large branches onto the earth. I turned back around and gave one last look to Falinesti. I knew that it was birthplace but I could not say at that moment I would miss it. For all the place had given me, I always felt like I was missing something from it. There was no longing to ever be there like there should be with a home. I would of course miss my family but that was the very reason that I could not stay there.
Walking through the breezy forest, it dawned upon me quickly that I did not have a solid plan. I had gotten caught up in the heat of the moment and not asked myself where I should go or where my father would likely to be nor could I ask anyone as I had no clue how many of them were travelling together. It would be dangerous as well to inquire; asking the whereabouts of an Imperial man was the sort of thing that would quickly catch the attention of the Thalmor if I was not careful. I did not fancy my chances of surviving in the wilderness for too long either. Though I was fairly well equipped, I would not survive more than a few nights without somebody to watch over me and keep an eye of for possible predators. It dawned upon me a couple of hours later as I stopped to rest and eat some of the bread loaf that it would be entirely possible for me to get to Anvil by means of a ship from the port town to the north west. I climbed the trees to get a clear view of the night's sky. Though there was a bit of cloud, I could still make out some of the familiar stars that would be me guide my way.
Gathering my bearings, I descended the tree and travelled North West where I hoped I could catch a ship. My heart told me that as soon as I reached Anvil, all would be okay. I can most certainly tell you that it would not be okay as what happened in Cyrodiil would change me. I believed myself to already be man but I would later learn that not to be true at all. My journey towards maturity would be a gruelling one.