Song inspiration: Capcricorn (A Brand New Name) by 30 Seconds to Mars
Tried to make it sort of an introduction to my main character, as well as to show a transition from her beginning of the adventure to later on, where she comes across someone in a situation all too familiar.
Thick snowfall covered the perpetually barren landscape, the only signs of life the hoof prints left behind by her stolen horse and the sparse foliage that dotted the white ground. The Imperial tugged her cloak tighter against the biting winds, face hidden in the shadow of her hood. The beast below her shuddered against the chill, form skeletal, the thing hardly a prize.
Though it was of a stocky breed, it had obviously been neglected for whatever reason. Due to her inability to procure reins before her quick departure, she buried her fingers into its knotted mane, both for control and a small pocket of warmth to protect her pale, numbing hands. The woman absently tried to remember how many days it had been since she had last rested, truly rested, and found she couldn't. Too many damn events all clustered together, she hadn't had much time to sleep, and she often found herself falling asleep as she rode.
The further they trudged, the greater the icy gusts sliced through both mount and rider. The freezing temperature only made her fatigue worse. Idly, she wondered about turning back and heading to the village as the recently freed Ulfric loyalist had suggested, but she buried the thought. Surely she was close to the border by now… Her horse stopped and paced in place as it looked around anxiously, and she tilted her head, petting the animal's dull hide in an attempt to make it move – BAM!
With a quiet, surprised cough, she realized she was suddenly on her back in the snow, her weapon a few feet to her left. In front of her, the usually placid mount reared back from her with wild eyes and flaring nostrils. Something had spooked it? Probably a rabbit…The Imperial jumped up, ignoring a slight dizziness as she attempted to calm the horse. The last thing she needed was to be without transport, however lowly, in this godforsaken land. The horse only dropped back to all fours, backing away and tossing its head with what little strength it could. Just as her lethargic mind comprehended a threat, she felt large, ice-cold claws dig into her pathetic excuse for light armor and she half-turned only to see three coal black eyes, pupil-less and inhuman. The next thing she knew, she was against a rock wall, blinking dazedly as her now-blurry vision tried to focus on a strange creature almost blending in with the landscape as it charged for her horse…before everything went black.
Green eyes snapped open to take in the partial gloom of the cave, moss and lichens blooming among the rocks, the packed dirt of the floor stained with blood, both old and new, though still smelling distinctly of earth. A small waterfall gurgled before her, a pool of dark water having formed beneath it. Unfocused, her sight fell on something white upon the bank, nestled between two small rocks, emitting a faint whitish glow. The woman ran a hand into her hood, through her hair. It returned with blood and she cursed quietly, sighing and studying the plant.
It wasn't a flower, no…not exactly 'pretty', but the light it emitted was strange and she most closely identified it with a weed…not much else besides moss and lichens prospered in the under earth. If possible, it looked…ghostly…slightly translucent, its leaves average but distinct, and she realized the plant itself was a light green, the glow making it near white. Even staring at it, it almost seemed to disappear. Then again, that could have also just been from the hit to her head.
She went to inspect her surroundings more thoroughly, turning slightly to find a large pile of broken bones and forgotten weapons, no doubt leftovers from the owner's meals. A bow near the bottom held her eye as she realized her former one was absent, though her quiver and some of her arrows remained. Her attention was drawn to the only passage, which presumably led to the entrance of the cave, heavy footfalls and the dragging of a limp body announcing the arrival of her attacker, now recognized in her alert state as a troll. Its obsidian orbs immediately fell upon her, and she was quick to move despite her injuries.
The troll dropped the man he had been dragging, readying to charge, and the woman rolled to the pile, grabbing the bow she had seen and quickly stringing an arrow, aiming as it rushed her. She let it fly, and it stuck in the beast's shoulder. It staggered to a halt from the sudden pain, giving her enough time to launch a second and third, one of which buried in his torso and the other in one of its eyes.
The creature howled, grasping for the arrow embedded in his eye and ripping it out with a roar of anger, but she quickly peppered it with more, dodging a downward slash and jumping a good distance away. It fell easily enough, and she growled at herself for her folly. The damn thing wasn't even full-grown and it had gotten the upper hand. There was a groan, and the young man the troll had been moving to storage sat up, rubbing his head. After a moment, he blinked and looked from the troll to the minutely injured Imperial.
He expressed his gratitude multiple times, but she brushed him off, already thinking of the near future, such as whether to continue to the border or double back…not to mention training. Lots and lots of training. She would not let something this trivial trip her up again. She tuned back in just in time to hear him ask, "I…I wish to thank you properly. Please, what's your name?"
The woman regarded him a second before noticing her hood had fallen from her face in the skirmish, and a distinct bitter taste settled on her tongue, as did a frown on her ivory face. She jerked her cloak up, entertaining the thought of offing him for having seen her…but…the whelp was barely even a man at his age. No…she wouldn't kill him. But that didn't mean she would help him anymore, either. Instead, she glanced at the odd plant before the waterfall, then went to carefully collect a sample. The boy watched her with interest, waiting for her response. "Ma'am…your name?" She merely pushed past him.
"…Does it really matter?"
The sun hung low in the sky, shadows growing longer and foretelling of the approaching night. As residents and travelers made their way to their homes or one of the inns, a little girl sat alone in the shadow of Windhelm's New Gnisis Cornerclub, her sparse flower basket at her feet. She was tired, cold, and hungry, not having sold enough to buy food for about two days. At the moment, though, she was more anxious for the morning, and she leaned against a barrel, closing her eyes.
"Hey, little girl, what are ya doin' out here?" She looked up to see an unknown older man, though she was unsure if he was Imperial, Breton, or…
"Oh, n-nothing sir…I was just looking for my…dog…" She wasn't sure why, but this man made her uncomfortable. An odd sharp scent clung to him, similar to the smell around the Cornerclub and other such places, and his smile seemed a little too friendly.
"A dog, eh? I haven't sheen a dog, and besides, ish gettin' pretty late… I know, why don't ya let me walk ya home?" He leered at her, and she bit her lip as she recalled something her father had said about strange men…
"Oh, no thanks…I'm fine…" He attempted to change her mind a few more times, soon growing impatient in his drunken stupor, and grabbed her by the arm none-too-gently, shaking her until she let out a cry. After a moment, she felt the man freeze and she looked up, tears forming in her eyes, to see a blade pressed tight against his neck, a black form melded to his back.
"I suggest you release the girl." The voice was cold, angry, threatening… "Or would you prefer to paint the cobblestones with your blood?" He muttered something that sounded like, "None of your business," but it was slurred. The girl heard him hiss and saw a few crimson drops hit the ground. After this, he seemed to agree to whatever the person said to him and they shoved him away and watched him stagger off, throwing curses. The girl quickly looked at the ground, blood welling up from her lip from where she had continued to bite it.
A gloved hand gently took her chin and lifted it up, and she saw nothing but an ebony hood and mask. A finger wiped her blood away before the person's free hand hesitantly pulled down the cowl.
"…Are you injured?" Her hair was short and strangely white, skin pale and marred only by a scar under her left eye, which failed to distract from the intensity of her emerald gaze. Her expression was hard to decipher.
"N-no…" She shook her head, and the woman slowly blinked, releasing her. The girl muttered a thank you and went to get her flower basket, feeling a burning stare.
"What is the basket for?"
"Oh…I sell flowers."
"Flowers? Why?"
"I sell these so I can buy food,"
"Where are your parents?"
"Oh…they…they're dead. My mama, she died when I was little, and my father… He was a Stormcloak soldier. He left one day…I haven't seen him since." There was silence between them, and the girl refused to look the woman in the eye.
"What is your name?"
"Sofie,"
"Sofie. …Why don't you come with me for awhile? I'll take you to an inn, give you your own room for the night." She perked up at this, considering she had saved her from that strange man.
"Really? I can sleep in a bed tonight?"
"Of course. Then tomorrow, perhaps…you'd like to see Falkreath. I have a house down there with a spare bedroom."
"Are you…adopting me?" Her innocent eyes grew wide, and the Imperial thought for a moment, seeming slightly surprised.
"…We'll see how well you do first." She tilted her head at Sofie, eyes slightly narrowing. "I don't have all night. What's your answer?"
"Oh…yes, thank you! Very much!" Sofie grinned, wanting to hug her, but she restrained herself and instead gathered her basket.
"You won't need that anymore…" She looked up, a bit confused.
"Oh…right…" The woman took the basket, offered it a meager glance, and tossed it aside distastefully.
"Come." She pulled went to pull up her hood, but Sofie stopped her.
"Wait…you know my name…can't you tell me yours?" The little girl looked up at the woman. She at least wanted to thank her properly…
"…My name…" The dark-clad woman was thinking, but Sofie didn't understand why. Didn't she have a name…? "…Casper. My name is Casper." Without another word, she strode off, and Sofie took that as her cue to follow, having to jog to keep up.