So I just decided to write this on a whim one day. I hope that people enjoy it and feed my cripplingly low self worth!
Disclaimer: I do not own Oblivion. If I did then I would have punched Sheogorath in the face!
Quest I
The buck stops here!
The deer lowered his head to taste the cool, rippling waters which flowed clear and fast. His tongue lapped at the river, doing nothing to calm his alertness. The forest, alive with the sounds of birds and animals, created a natural symphony which, as he and all creatures knew, was only ever silent in the presence of danger.
As the buck took to quenching his thirst a robin descended onto a low hanging branch, ruffling its feathers noisily. Noticing the bird, the buck, with his magnificent antlers, gave his feathered friend a bow which it returned.
"What news have you brought from the south?" asked the deer in a strong, commanding voice. His eyes pierced through the robin as it relayed its message.
"My lord, there have been sightings of a lone man doe near the edges of your domain. Shall I send in the scouts to take care of it?" the robin replied, his voice showing the age and wisdom under his breast. He had been in the service of the prince's family for many generations and was damn well proud of it. He shuffled slightly on the branch, relieving his aching legs somewhat.
The prince thought about the information he had received. A lone man doe would be no problem against his wolves; they were fast, strong and loyal to the prince alone. They could be ruthless though, as they enjoyed toying with their prey and they relished the hunt more than anything.
He thought on this.
The man doe was in an area that he was close to. The wolves, if he remembered correctly, were out patrolling the north. Even with their speed, by the time they find it, who knows how much damage the man doe could cause.
"No," the prince finally said, his voice harsher than he intended, "I will take care of this man doe myself. Clear the area, make sure that everyone is well away from it"
"By your will shall it be done." With that, the robin flew off, his whistles of an alarm warning all nearby creatures of the danger. Watching the small bird depart, the prince's eyes narrowed as he darted south with all his speed, the leaves which decorated the forest floor crunching under his strong hooves.
Within the hour he had finally found the fiend, following the man doe's tracks to its current location. The prince circled slowly around as he watched it destroy the plants beneath it, eyeing them strangely, its snout curling horrifically, before putting what it had collected in a strange compartment.
The prince would not stand for this! How dare it destroy his home, steal the source of sustenance that all animals relied on? He approached the sick creature, making no secret of his presence and adopting a proud stance.
The man doe turned towards him suddenly, its short head-fur trailing behind it. Once it saw him, its snout curled upwards in that same unnatural way. It reached into a strange compartment bringing out a cluster of nuts and berries, placing them on the ground in front of him.
Seeing this, the prince became immediately incensed, "How dare you destroy my home and then try to offer me your unholy pickings! THIS, YOU FOUL CREATURE, IS THE GRAVEST OF ALL INSULTS!" he shouted, his outrage made manifest. He prepared to charge at the man doe, his mighty antlers lowered to gore it. The man doe's eyes widened in surprise. He would make sure it would pay for what it had done, for it would feel his wrath fir-SHUCK!
The prince hit the floor hard as the arrow had penetrated his neck, the surprise of the attack alleviating any pain he should have been feeling. He looked upwards towards the treetops, the emerald leaves falling as if in testament to the inevitable demise of royalty, to the last prince of the forest. With his dying breath the prince was only able to speak one word before passing on to the afterlife.
"Mother…"
And all went black.
Coryn stared at the now dead deer, the once beautiful creature now only an empty shell. Once over the initial shock of the ordeal, she collected her nuts and berries as she heard the crunching of leaves as a Khajiit dropped down from the trees. He approached the dead animal and felt against its neck for a pulse. Once he had determined that it was dead, he gave s soft congratulatory chuckle, cut short by a nut which had collided with his head.
"Why did you do that?" chastised the young woman as she pelted her companion with the remainder of her small harvest, "I can't believe you just shot it like that. Didn't you see I had it under control?"
The Khajiit tried to protect his face from the onset of 'nature's brew', "What I saw was you giving our breakfast to a wild, flea infested animal as a peace offering," he tried to explain himself under the hail of nuts, "It was about to attack so I took a chance and WILL YOU STOP THROWING STUFF AT ME!"
Coryn stopped her assault – more because she ran out of berries than because she was told to stop – and crossed her arms indignantly, "Okay, for your information my peace offering was working. Did you see it bowing? That was a sign of respect," she started to ramble, leaving to her companion to inspect the body, "Just think of it, Kei'Rassa. I could have kept it as a pet, named it Panky and taught it the ways of the arcane and witty conversation. It would have made a fine mount too."
"Well, now it should make a fine lunch if I do say so myself and the pelt and antlers should fetch a fine price in the Imperial city," Kei'Rassa continued to inspect the corpse, slicing open its stomach with his carving knife. Coryn winced at the sight of fresh deer belly as the Khajiit plunged his hand inside, "By S'rendarr, what are these animals eating nowadays? Two septims, a pelvic bone, leather boots and … The lusty Argonian maid. Real classy."
"When you're done with that, can I read it?" Coryn asked hopefully. Kei'Rassa looked at her in disbelief, an eyebrow raised, before shrugging and throwing her the book. Though still slimy – stuff just doesn't come out of a deer's stomach without needing a good cleaning – the Breton didn't hesitate to grab the book and thumb through it.
Kei'Rassa picked up the deer and slung it over his shoulder, "Come on let's get out of here. This forest is way too quiet for my liking." He signaled to his female friend who noticed even with her face buried in the book.
As they walked beyond the edges of the forest toward the Imperial city, a small creature was chuckling maniacally to itself, deep within the shadows, "Now that the forest prince is dead, I can finally make my move and conquer this dump." This creature spoke as if with twenty or so voices. A group of twenty rats emerged from the darkness all connected together by the fleshy, pulsing knot of their tails, a crown resting on top.
"Soon, the day of the Rat King shall be upon all denizens of the forest!"