A/N: The concept for this story was inspired by maximsk's "The Nine Hundred and Ninety-Nine," featuring a different character from the game in each chapter. His story is originally about Skyrim. I decided to adapt the idea for the characters of Oblivion. Enjoy!
27 Last Seed, 3E 433
4:55 AM
Imperial City, Imperial Prison.
Even though Captain Renault could hear His Majesty panting breathlessly behind her, struggling to keep up with their relentless pace, she kept looking back just to make sure that he was still there.
As Renault led the formation, Baurus protected Uriel Septim's rear, while Glenroy and Haydée flanked the Emperor's sides. This was the largest detail the Blades could afford at this crucial hour, as it was also vital that Cloud Ruler Temple remain secure for their arrival.
Her heart was beating in time to their hurried footsteps pounding the stone floor. Four pairs of sabatons clunked noisily down the labyrinthine corridors of the Imperial Prison, drowning out the Emperor's light shuffling suede boots and the rustling regal finery. Renault herself had pleaded he wear something less conspicuous when she went to pick him up in his chambers, but he had only smiled joylessly and said "If I am to die tonight, I will die like an Emperor."
As the Captain of his personal guard, she wanted to mention how much of a walking target he appeared in his dark velvet fur-trimmed robes with the Amulet of Kings displayed ostentatiously around his neck, but the Emperor did not need her to tell him this; he was no fool.
Uriel Septim knew something that they all did not. His somber gray eyes were seeing further than any of them could. Renault tried to spare him the full truth about his sons in the hopes that he would not be weighed down by his own despair until they arrived safely at Cloud Ruler Temple, but he already knew. Perhaps he had known weeks before it even happened. This was a man with a tranquil resignation, accepting whatever fate he already assumed would befall him. Renault was frightened of whatever truths he might know. Perhaps she wanted him to confide his dreams to her, so that there would be a chance to change this bittersweet fate, but destiny was such a delicate matter. To tug at one thread was to unravel the entire tapestry, unmake the Divine plan. All Renault could do was continue trusting the Emperor she had sworn to protect the past twenty odd years.
All she had to do was get the Emperor to safety. At Cloud Ruler Temple, they all would be safe.
Safe. Could they even use that word to describe their situation anymore? All three of the Emperor's sons were dead, assassinated unseen in one night, and a crushing doom of blood and fire hung imminent over all of them. By 'all of them' she did not merely mean the Empire, no. The fate of Tamriel, nay, the stability of the entire Aurbis hinged on the continuation of the Septim line. And Uriel was the last living Septim, as far as anyone knew.
"We're nearly to the passage, sire. As soon as we are out of here we will regroup with the others at Fort Chalman nearby. They'll have horses shoed and saddled for us, ready to go. From there, we-"
Renault came to an abrupt halt.
Not even waiting a second, Glenroy let out an impatient sigh.
"Captain, with all due respect-"
The Captain silenced him with one raised index finger. Something wasn't right. She had heard something over the noisy footsteps, a sixth set of unfamiliar feet. Light boots, leather perhaps. Not the soft patter of the Emperor's suede shoes, or the distinctive thunk of the Blades' Akaviri steel against stone.
Several agonizing seconds passed. All of them had their hands on the hilts of their swords.
Haydée removed her hand from her weapon, perhaps hoping to cast Dispel to reveal any invisible lurkers. The pale magic coiled around her arm halfway, but before she could complete the spell she shrieked. The wisps of light faded into nothingness. Everything was happening so fast. A hooded monster obscured by evil obsidian-black armor revealed itself, hand still clutching the blade stuck into Haydée's right underarm. They forced her to the ground with great brutish strength.
Renault moved quickly to engage the assassin, who immediately faced her, brandishing a terrible flanged mace that appeared Daedric in make. But their movements were surprisingly slow and clumsy, much like some inexperienced farmboy newly recruited in the Legion. At least she wasn't facing off against a Dremora. If that were the case, she may have had slightly more trouble blocking their slow, obvious attacks. Renault bashed them in their masked face with her shield. The assailant let out a decidedly male-sounding grunt and stumbled backwards. Something else was happening. Another dark figure appeared. Where were they all coming from? Renault was locked into combat and could not intervene. She could only watch as the figure lunged towards the Emperor. Baurus instantly stepped in the way, and Captain Renault cringed, thinking for a split second the Redguard was about to take the blow. Instead, Baurus grabbed the figure's armored wrist mid-lunge. He'd just stopped the knife mere inches from the Emperor's ribcage.
Glenroy was already closing in for the kill. Renault knew they would be able to handle that one themselves. Two elite Blades against one of the expendable acolytes the enemy had sent.
Her own suicidal opponent managed to surprise her with a fast shock spell in her face as she blocked yet another heavy attack from his weapon. Electricity seized her brain and tingled down her spine and she couldn't breathe for several seconds, seeing nothing but white light.
"Paradise awaits!" a distant-sounding voice called out through the ringing in her ears. The assassin had the accent of a Nord.
Renault blinked twice and she realized she was on the floor. She raised her shield and her opponent's mace bounced off against it yet again. In the distance she heard Haydée crying out in pain, something about not being able to use her magicka. At first everything seemed to be in slow motion, but time resumed to its normal pace. Time... how much time had she lost? She was still alive, so likely mere seconds. She would thank Akatosh later.
The Breton thought she might throw up. That was a direct shock spell. It was worse than a concussive blow to her head. But she sent a kick to the dark stranger's groin and relied heavily on the wall for support as she dragged herself back on her feet. One more deflection, and she immediately reached for her steel shortsword, thrusting it upwards through the area exposed by his raised chin.
The black armor vanished into noxious smoky wisps. Bound armor. The Nord's neck sprayed a fountain of blood all over the rest of him, but it didn't do much to stain his robes which were already a vivid crimson. He had a boyish face – not even mature enough for a beard, and shaggy dirty blonde hair. The nausea hit her again and her eyes began to water. Renault didn't know if she was merely disgusted at the sight of a boy no older than sixteen recruited to martyr himself for this vile task, or if she was still ill from the shock spell, but she turned around and retched, heaving up what was left in her stomach. The other assailant – an Imperial woman – was also dead by now, wearing the same robes of brilliant scarlet as the Nord boy.
No time. No time. Captain Renault helped the Emperor to his feet, though she could hardly stand on her own.
"Are you alright, sire?" she asked. His old frame suddenly felt so frail and vulnerable as she supported him.
"I am unhurt. Knight Haydée... she has been wounded with a poisoned blade. It is a toxin most grievous - even the magicka has been drained from her body. But perhaps if we-" he stopped himself, then shook his head helplessly, with that same sad smile of a man who knew too much about a fate that he could not change. Did he know who had attacked them? If he did, Renault would have appreciated any insight.
It looked to be the work of a Daedric cult, but there was no use wasting energy thinking about who they were, when all she needed to focus on how to get the Emperor away from them.
"Let's keep moving," she commanded, her vision still a nauseating double-image.
"But – Captain – Haydée-" Baurus started. He and Glenroy were hovering over the unconscious Breton's body, as if prepared to lift her. That may have been standard procedure, if saving Haydée did not interfere with the immediate safety of Emperor Uriel Septim. But right now they had no time.
"Do not burden yourselves with dead weight. Fall back into your positions. There's no time. Let's move!" the Captain barked. Shouting made her head throb even more. She had to stop doing that.
As soon as Renault started marching the others shuffled into formation. She was aware that she could not quite walk in a straight line. Ugh, she felt so sick... If they were ambushed again, she would not be able to fight to the best of her ability...
"If I might stay behind to see what I may do for her with a potion.." the young Redguard blustered as they ran. Though a frighteningly competent fighter, Baurus was still green as grass. Empathy was a pesky thing for a Blade to hold on to. Baurus needed to learn this.
"Don't be ridiculous. I need you, Baurus. The Emperor needs you."
Baurus did not dare question her order again, but she could feel him staring with silent resentment boring into her back. He knew his duty. It didn't mean he had to like it. Renault didn't like it, either. But she would have expected them to leave her behind too. Oh, by the Divines, she would give her life willingly right now if it would guarantee the others safe passage to Cloud Ruler Temple.
They stopped in front of an iron grate, barring them entry to Cell Block West One. They were so close...
"Allow me, Captain."
Glenroy was already heading straight for the crank wheel that lifted the door.
Renault rather liked it when they did things without her having to tell them.
An iron chain rattled and the grate slowly crawled upwards.
Baurus, staring at the floor, began to utter a prayer, softly.
"Divine Arkay, thou who maintains balance in the cycles of nature, who oversees all births and deaths, we seek thy blessing, for the departure of Haydée from this mortal plane is nigh upon us. Let not her mortal vessel- fall- fall-"
The Redguard choked on his words, his normally even demeanor chipping away, but the somber baritone of Uriel Septim joined the prayer. Renault felt the hairs on her arm stand up at the Emperor's capacity for compassion. When had he been able to speak a prayer for his own sons?
"Let not her mortal vessel fall to the hands of vile creatures who would profane it with unspeakable abominations. We pray thee, put behind thee her faults. Protect her with thy blessing and lay open the path upon the commencement of her voyage to the afterlife, wherever it may be."
"Gate's up, let's move," Renault said, abruptly interrupting their profound moment as she led them onwards. They would have time later for this.
"Baurus! Lock that door behind us!" Renault ordered once all of them were through yet another door right after the grate.
"My sons..."
Captain Renault stopped, turned about face. Uriel Septim was speaking to her.
"They're dead, aren't they?"
His words were blunt, but they felt sharper than any knife in her chest. She swallowed, fishing for the proper words to say to him. Her mouth suddenly felt dry. She desperately wanted to assuage him, to give him enough hope to at least make it to Cloud Ruler Temple.
"We don't know that, Sire. The messenger only said they were attacked," she repeated uselessly for perhaps the third time tonight.
Renault was trying to avoid eye contact, but the Emperor's solemn gaze did not falter. His eyes were shimmering as the wrinkles around them creased.
"No. They're dead. I know it."
The Breton turned around again, trying her best to ignore him.
"Right now, my job is to get you to safety. We're headed for a secret passage known only to the Blades. No one can follow us through here."
She wasn't entirely sure about that last part.
As she led along the rows of cells, she wondered how many prisoners were watching. Most were asleep in their bedrolls, but some were still up and about. Imperial prisons made Renault feel uneasy. Perhaps only the guilty-hearted had something to fear, but she could not deny the crushing feeling of hopelessness and despair she felt every time she walked in here and saw them staring into emptiness with dead eyes.
Finally, she stopped in front of the cell marked W1-11. This was it. This was the cell with a hidden passage that led to the sewers, the one the guards were ordered to keep vacant at all times.
And some prisoner in sackcloth rags was occupying it.
A dark-skinned female – Redguard, most likely – sat on the stone floor, leaning her back against the wall, long legs splayed out in front of her in a bored, lackadaisical manner. With an index finger she idly drew swirling patterns in the dust on the ground. Her body was well-toned, muscular, but her athletic build was a good enough indicator to Renault that this person had not been imprisoned for very long. If she'd been here longer her thick, wiry hair wouldn't be cropped so close to her head, either. Renault wondered what she had done to get herself locked up in here. This person didn't look like an underfed bandit or a petty thief. Something was very strange about all of this...
The Redguard woman eventually noticed she had company, and tilted her head in Renault's direction, eyebrows raising. Her dark eyes were not yet dead. Maybe this person was planted here by the enemy. That was a possibility. Renault hoped it was merely a result of the usual incompetence of the City Watch. It would make a lot of sense to kill her just in case, but somehow that didn't feel right, either. This woman obviously looked like she could handle herself in a fight. It may even be useful to take her along with them... if they could trust her.
With all of this uncertainty on what to do with the prisoner, the Captain's frustration was mounting at an alarming rate. This – this was not part of her plan. She couldn't help but demand answers from the others.
"What's this prisoner doing here? This cell is supposed to be off-limits!"
