Chapter One
Sindrel watched the fresh powder fall about from the steel grey clouds from the sky as the shaman Korst Wind-Eye spoke before her.
"Bloodmoon Prophecy, eh?" the fair skinned girl repeated. She shifted her woolen shawl over her brow to help protect against the snow, tucking back strands of her short red hair.
"I encourage you to take great care when you do your wanderings here, child. We've seen the carnage left behind when werewolves make ribbons out of seasoned warriors these past few weeks," Korst Wind-Eye told her before turning to trudge through the snow back into the heart of the village. She nodded to him when he glanced over his shoulder. "Farewell and keep to the roads if you travel out tonight."
Sindrel would have scoffed the whole prophecy and the possibility a Daedric prince could show face on Nirn, if not for having seen Azura herself just weeks ago in Morrowind. She knew better to assume what was and wasn't possible now. Rumors of the prophecy had piqued her interest since she arrived. Hushed voices of werebeasts, heaps of dead horkers, and the coming of the crimson moon traveled on the wind about her on the island of Solstheim. But what really sparked the quest was the werewolf attack on Fort Frostmoth while she was there. The young Neverine's curiosity eventually led her to the village of the Skaal, a tribe of Nords that still clung to their ancient customs despite all change in the world around them. After performing their rituals, she was finally accepted and able to learn what was need from them. Her adventures back in Morrowind left her with the taste for more action. Sindrel sensed she was close to getting her fill.
The sky dimmered in the twilight hour, yet the snow continued. Sindrel peered out the thick paned rippled glass of her cabin's window. She could feel the subtle change in the air. Breathing steadily, the Breton attempted to calm her nerves while she stoked the fire now dying a slow death in its pit. It crackled in submission, lingering a bit longer on its coals than before. Sindrel, forgetting then to breath, sat staring at the orange embers living on. She almost forgot how freezing it was just sitting there in her nightgown.
It won't be long now, she thought.
Another deep breath and a shiver.
Fretting about it will do me no good.
Sitting upon her cot, she pulled the course haired animal pelts over her limbs, nestling under the pile. Sindrel would sleep with her enchanted dagger on.
A shrill howl awoke her with a start. Sindrel leapt from her cot, shoving her feet into her boots with dire swiftness as she peered about her. It was pitch black aside from the faint red glow of the blood moon reflecting in off of the snow through the lone window. The fire had died sometime in the night. However, she did not need her vision to know that she was not alone. Her heart raced so hard that she could hear it in her head.
Growls echoed from all sides of her. Not hesitating a second after she heard them, her dagger was out and she held in her fist a magelight spell to illuminate the room. In utter terror, she nearly dropped her dagger when she saw surrounding her were several werewolves. Their hot breath wisps of fog whirling out between the razor sharp fangs. Even in the magelight, the oozing saliva looked as if it could have been blood. Their claws were extended and quivering in anticipation to tear her to ribbons. Though she had fumbled with her dagger, she regained firm grasp of it despite the terror she was experiencing. Her magelight spell, however, did falter. Right as the light of her spell dimmed to nothing, she screamed in horror as they launched at her.
Everything was black and numb.
The darkness shattered around Sindrel and pain reared its ugly head. She felt bitter freezing ice beneath her. Her cheek pressed against it. The ice burned like fire against her warm flesh. Weakly, she pushed against it. Her eyes peeled open, ignoring the throbbing pain she was feeling after having been thrown to the ground. At least, that's what she assumed happened.
It was bright. Her fingers shielded her eyes. They adjusted slowly, and coming into focus before her was a tall figure standing before a brazier of dancing flames. Though fuzzy at first, she could make out he was male and wore a mask that sprouted great antlers above his head. The being pulled down the mask, concealing his features right before her eyes were in focus. Sindrel's eyes widened and her body tensed.
Sindrel sat staring up at the Daedric Prince of the Hunt, Hircine.
Blinking, she marveled at the Prince. He wore nothing but his great elk mask, a cerulean silk sarong draped about his lower body, and leather wrapped boots. His exposed chest was sculpted muscle. Upon his tanned skin, however, was the complexion not unlike the fur pattern one would find upon a young deer. Tufts of white fur lightly adorned his forearms and shoulders, as well as a patch upon his broad chest. Hircine stood as a god before the girl, grasping in one clawed hand a mighty spear that boasted as much wild ferocity as its wielder.
"Ah, you have arrived…" His dark velvet words filled her ears, full of presence and power. Sindrel was speechless, still gaping up at the entity before her. The Daedric prince paid her no mind. With ease, Hircine twirled his spear about him "The others have been here for days now, and you are the last. It is time for my hunt and you are to take part. I have chosen only the most worthy to take part in the hunt… Carius of the Imperials, Heart-Fang of the Skaal, the frost giant Karstaag, and you... You have proven yourself a worthy hunter and so you have been given this honor. You and the others are to find your way to my hunting grounds. Take great care, for only one of you will earn the glory of facing the Hunter himself in battle while the Bloodmoon lights the sky. The others have gone ahead so only you remain here, mortal. My hounds are about and they hunger for blood. Perhaps I will see you soon. Now go."
With one swift jab to the ground with the butt end of his spear, he was gone.
Sindrel took a second to collect her wits. Noticing she still clenched in her hand her enchanted dagger, she thanked the nine, as well as Azura, for her luck in not dropping it. She would have to rely upon the little magic trinkets she had, her stealth, and her magic since she lacked her armor. A curse fell from her lips for not having the foresight to have her armor on. At least her boots were imbued with stealth enchantments. It still was freezing and the only thing keeping her from becoming an icicle was her ice resistant ring. Still, she would need to find something else to warm her if she didn't want to have her stamina drained constantly from the ice.
Sindrel stood, brushing off ice from her nightgown, and continued on.
A maze stood before the young woman, its entrance only a split in the ice shafts that made up the sheer walls. Shivering, she trudged on through the snow. The lacey white flakes ceased their needle like biting on her skin as she entered into the cave-like maze. Howls and snarls bounced off of the ice walls, alerting her of what lie within.
Hircine's children. How lovely.
Sindrel would stand no chance as she was against a werebeast, so she replaced her dagger into its hilt. Rubbing her hands for a bit more circulation, she readied her invisibility spell.
Only around the first corner did she find herself standing before the Imperial captain, Falx Carius. He was leaning against the icy wall, sword out and at the ready, looking as if he was trying to make up his mind to charge in and slay the beasts. He noticed her approach from the chilly entrance. A nervous smile crossed his face when he recognized her.
"Sindrel, it is you! I am sorry you, too, have been brought to play in this nefarious game. Since the werewolves captured me at the fort, I have been held here by this demon Hircine." He glanced about as he mentioned the Daedric prince. "Soon, others joined me; one of the Nords, named Heart-Fang, along with a beast named Karstaag. I believe the only hope for escape is to find our way through this maze…"
"Find our way to his hunting grounds, you mean?" Sindrel asked meekly after she heard a howl nearby. They both crouched behind a slab of ice.
"That's what the demon told me. We are to fight our way through this maze, which is hunted by the werewolves the demon calls his Hounds. I am weak, child, and have been here for too long," Carius told her sullenly, looking down at this sword as if it weighed far too much. Sindrel's brow knitted together in pity. He managed a feeble smile, glancing back at her. "Perhaps together, we can find our way to safety. We must find the key to allow us through the gate in the center of this maze."
"Then let us work together," Sindrel told him, placing her hand on his shoulder and giving the old man a comforting smile of confidence.
"I'm glad for your companionship. Together we can fight our way through these demon hordes and escape this evil prison." Carius' spirit rose and together they stood up and faced the corridor further in. He looked back at her before they stepped forward. "There is a door in the center of this maze, but we will need a key to enter. Let us go find this key and leave this place."
With that, they went forward. Sindrel told him to allow her to scout ahead with invisibility before he follows, keeping him from harm if possible. Soon, she found where the first of the werewolves were and so she retraced her steps to Carius. With a bit of concentration, she was able to cast levitation on him, allow him to follow her from above. At first he was clumsy with his airwalking and she was afraid it wouldn't work, but soon enough he was gliding quietly through the air to her relief. When they came to the hall the first beast stalked, they held their breath. Sindrel squeezed by unnoticed and invisible on the ground as Carius glided cautiously above. The beast turned about, growling as if it sensed or smelt them about, but it made no other moves to chase them. She was happy the werewolf didn't think to look up.
As she tiptoed through the caverns, she silently casted each time she heard a nearby tell-tale sound from a werewolf, signaling to Carius when to be as silent as possible. The icy walls made it difficult to both navigate as well as predict the location of the creatures, but they managed to creep through.
Along the way, she happened upon a torn leather jerkin with a belt at the waist, enchanted both with magic regeneration, to Sindrel's thankful surprise. It was a bit large for her, but with the belt, she made due. She ignored the stripped side from what looked like claw marks, as well as the blood that stained the side of it.
An hour passed of repeating their stretched luck with four other werewolves until they came to a dead end with a stone slab before them. On it laid a crimson glowing key. The two hunted beamed with the thought of now escaping the wretched caverns. Their spells wore off and they took a moment to rest.
"How far do you think the center is?" Sindrel asked, pocketing the glowing key.
"I would think it would be only a little further now that we've found the key," Carius replied. Sindrel smiled, pushing herself off the rock and readying herself to go on ahead.
Before they could even turn back to where they came from, a werewolf that had stalked them to their corner launched itself at the nearest of the two. Carius shouted out in dread and agony as the beast tore into his shoulder. Sindrel cried out in shock, pulling out her dagger in hopes to cut the dire hound off of her companion.
"Sindrel, RUN!" Carius shouted in between screams.
The girl stared only for a second in shock with her dagger clutched tightly in her grasp before doing as she was told. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes as yet another person died because she was unable to save them. Of course, she knew that she couldn't save everyone. She was quick to cast invisibility again and continued on to the heart of the maze.
At several points, the stalking beasts would roar in a blood frenzy, having been riled up from the smell of Carius' blood. They could smell her as well but were unable to see her. She was thankful for the trampled snow of the maze floor covered her scent enough for her to slip by.
A draft of freezing air, stronger than the air currents of the cave, told Sindrel she neared the exit. Cautiously, she peered about the exit. Not a beast in sight. Relief washed over her, thinking she was out of danger. Allowing her spell to wear off, she placed the key into its hole, activating the portal door.
The roar of a wolf caught her off guard from behind. Sindrel gasped, launching herself through the portal. She didn't have to turn around to know the beast was right behind her.
Landing hard onto icy rock, she made no time to lament the bruises she would soon get and rolled away from the portal door.
"Lady Sindrel?"
Author's Notes: ACTIONY! YEA! FIGHTS AND SHIT! More to come. PLEASE review and let me know how I am doing with the story. I love to hear feedback, it's what I live for, man!