The icy wind of the Reach bit harshly at Armani's back through the gaps in her heavy Imperial armor. Despite the thick metal carapace weighing her down, she moved quickly and quietly amongst the rocky outcropping above the Stormcloak camp. Her crossbow was loaded and held to her shoulder, ready to fire in the event she was forced to dispatch a patrolling Stormcloak. She scanned the camp, taking note of the patrolling guards and there, at the center, Stormblade.
Stories of the Stormblade had circulated among the Imperial ranks. He had been at the vanguard of the Stormcloak line at the siege of Whiterun; Armani had seen him carve a bloody swath through her soldiers with the hellish axe that hung loosely from his belt. Every arrow she had fired at him was reflected by the massive shield he wielded; the same one slung over his shoulder now, carved from the bones of a dragon. She shuddered to think of facing someone that could kill a dragon without the gift of the Voice. Suddenly realizing the breath she had been holding in the whole time, Armani exhaled, slightly embarrassed.
Come on girl, you've been trained by the Dark Brotherhood for this. Now get a grip! Exhaling again, she shouldered the crossbow and took aim at the lightly armored shape of the Stormblade hunched over the smithing table and fired. While the projectile was in midflight, Stormblade turned to face the oncoming bolt, pulling his shield free at the same time. The bone surface swung in front of his exposed chest just in time, sending it rebounding into a nearby Stormcloak soldier.
Before Armani could even think about what happened, a bolt of fire flew past her head, exploding on the cliff face behind her. The force of the explosion sent her tumbling from her hiding place and down the hill, head over heel until she stopped at the bottom. Stormcloaks surrounded her in moments, axes lifted and arrows trained on her as she lifted herself from the dirt. As Stormblade stepped forward, she sent a burst of magic from the palm of her hand and shivered as the Dragonskin spell covered her with its cool aura. With lightning speed, she unsheathed the Akaviri katana at her hip and swung in a wide arc, the enchanted blade cut through the leather armor of the Stormcloaks like a hot knife through butter and they fell to the ground dead. Four bowstrings fired at once, but the spell shrugged them off as easily as a stone wall would have. As they struggled to reload the bows, Armani slew three of them in moments, but the fourth managed to get off another shot. This one was slowed by the spell but still bit at her exposed side, causing a bead of blood to form. She advanced on the archer and cleaved his head from his shoulders. As his lifeless body fell to the ground, Armani turned to face Stormblade, only to find he was nowhere to be seen.
Suddenly a burst of warmth spread up from the small of her back and she fell to the ground, motionless but very much alive as Stormblade stepped over her body, the Invisibility potion wearing off. Soft barks of laughter echoed from within his winged helmet as he removed the helm, shaking his greying hair loose as the steel slid over his head. He sheathed the axe and extended a hand as the Paralyzing spell wore off.
"It seems you and I got off on the wrong foot. Or not at all." Armani answered his joking comment with a repulsed glare. "Come on now! Give me a chance," he said, looking hurt. Armani stayed silent as she pulled herself from the ground and went to retrieve her misplaced katana. Before she had taken three steps, Stormblade stooped down and lifted the delicate looking blade, twirling it in his fingers. "Really, madam? So eager to kill me, miss…?" he let the words trail off, expecting a response.
"Armani." Stormblade chuckled, still lazily twirling the katana.
"Armani?" he asked incredulously. "Sounds like a bloody Redguard name." Not sure how to respond, Armani decided to be truthful. Looking at the blood-stained ground, she spoke.
"Aye, it is. The name given to me by my mother; she was a Redguard and my father was a Nord, like you." She looked up again; Stormblade had stopped twirling the sword and his eyes were focused keenly on her.