Things had been pleasant here at the sanctuary since I joined. At least as pleasant as it can be for assassins. Everyone had been nice, or at least as decent as they could have been bothered too. So far the assignments had been varied, from taking out a few beggars to taking out a fully fledged vampire. Unfortunately I had to tangle with both the vampire and its fledgling. That damn woman hadn't left the vampires side in the week I spent stalking them. It was infuriating that a job had to be more messy than usual. After all the contract was to take out the vampire male, not his companion. Not that I minded the extra bloodshed, I was just pretty sure I'm wasn't going to get any extra coin.
The fact was I had finally finished this set of contracts, the trip back being long and tiring. The first thing I'm doing when I have enough coin is getting a horse. All the time wasted by traveling on foot is starting to take its toll. Targets don't often leave where the contract says they live. Still, I'd like the ability to rest my feet without stopping. My future plans were coming to a halt as the entrance to the sanctuary became visible. The door loomed out of the cliff side, the skull grinning down at me. It opened, grinding against the cobble flooring. and the wind whipped around me as I walked past.
I could hear the commotion before I could see it, a high pitched voice unknown to me stood out the most. My hackles rose and my ears pinned beneath my hood. Whoever this was I didn't know them, nor did I know what was going on with the other members. As I grew near words began to form out of the incoherent mumbling.
"But the Night Mother is mother to all! It is her voice we follow! Her will! Would you dare risk disobedience? And surely" There was a slight pause in the high pitched speech, as if the person was questioning their own words. "Punishment?"
What about the Night Mother? What did this new person know? As far as I knew the only ones left of the Dark Brotherhood was everyone I had already met.
Arnbjorn's voice cut through the air. "Keep talking, little man, and we'll see who gets "punished.""
"Oh, be quiet you great lumbering lapdog. The man has had a long journey. You can at least be civil. Mister Cicero, I for one am delighted you and the Night Mother have arrived. Your presence here signals a welcome return to tradition." That had to be Festus's voice, the old croak being the tell tale sign. It appeared as though this newcomer's name was Cicero. Someone who hadn't been here before, but knew about us and about our traditions.
"Oh, what a kind and wise wizard you are. Sure to earn our Lady's favor." Bit of a suck up this Cicero. I rounded the corner, masked by a large pillar of stone. I could make out Babette as well as a large shipping crate as I peered out around the corner, but nothing else.
"You and the Night Mother are of course welcome here, Cicero. And you will be afforded the respect deserving of your position as Keeper. Understood husband?" That was Astrid, and she seemed to know who this person is. My tail flicked, and Arnbjorn grumbled in agreement with his wife.
All of a sudden the person they've been calling Cicero started babbling. "Oh, yes yes yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Astrid was quick to cut in, "But make no mistake. I am the leader of this Sanctuary. My word is law. Are we clear on that point?" She was sharp as a blade, but I'm still not sure why she's allowing such a strange sounding person in the sanctuary.
"Oh yes, mistress. Perfectly! You're the boss." I resisted the urge to make a face, Astrid was a leader. Her word I respected but she was not a mistress to me, she and Nazir gave me my contracts and I carried them out. I wasn't going to start babbling on about Sithis and act as a devote follower. I finally stepped out from behind the pillar, noticing the new character to our house of murder. He was a short man of a slim build, had fiery red hair and was dressed like a jester. It was a strange appearance even for a place like this.
Astrid caught my attention before I could speak to him, telling me exactly who he was. He was the Keeper of the Night Mother and would be staying here for the time being. So he wasn't a threat, and was actually one of us. That made more sense than some enemy winding their way into our midst. I looked over to him, eyes wandering over his appearance once more. I figured what the hell, I might as well make myself acquainted with the man. The jester turned around as I neared, his expression brightening when he saw me.
"Another member of the Family! Hello, hello. So very good to meet you." His wording was strange alright. I smiled kindly to him, liking his polite greeting despite his erratic speech.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Cicero, welcome to the sanctuary." My ears had pricked forward again, the hood I wore ruffling with the movement.
"So polite! So nice! Cicero likes you. The Night Mother is sure to like you too. Oh, we're going to be fast friends. Fast friends." His speedy, erratic speech patterns had resumed. I couldn't help it, I started finding it quite endearing. It was a nice change of pace to the serious vibe of the rest of my family. They were kind and all, for assassins, but they still had the air of kill or be killed about them. It certainly felt as though they didn't mind the thought of slitting your throat open.
I stopped that happy train of thought right there, and instead I figured there had to be more to this man. "So, who are you exactly Cicero?"
"Me? Oh, Cicero is just the Keeper! I..." Another pause, he seemed to be trying to find another word to describe what he does. "Keep! I look after our matron, you see. The Night Mother. I keep her clean, and protected, and happy" My eyes narrow as a look of dissatisfaction comes over his face. The expression is short lived and he brightens once more. "But I am not the Listener. Oh no. There is no Listener. Not yet! But some day, some day, some day I pray, that one will come to hear her say" He pauses for what seems to be dramatic effect. "The words."
Well, that was something. The man is strange, I'll give him that, but he still has an odd charm about him. Again, maybe its nothing more than a simple change of attitude that I've been craving. Or I've gone mad as well, although I'd like to think its the first one.
