Battlehorn Castle
The Adventures of Bob-shadow
Chapter 1: The New Master
From the view point of: Castellan Athon
My name is Athon. I am the castellan of Battlehorn castle. My men and I have been living here for a long time, and I feared that our time was coming to an end. Marauders descended from the mountains to attack the castle, from the west. Our master, Lord Kelvyn, gave us a speech before the attack that filled all of us with hope that we could destroy our enemy. We were all ready for this attack, and Kelvyn ordered the gateman to open the gate. The marauders ran in, and Kelvyn led the attack. Unfortunately, he was the first one of us to fall. Right in the gateway.
That put me in charge. I was to command the men until we found a new master. I quickly ordered the men to retreat as soon as I saw Kelvyn fall. Blood stained where he lay, and we retreated to the rooftops. A few of our men didn't make it back fast enough though. Eventually, the marauders took control of the gate and the courtyard, and we were restrained to the castle.
"Sir," one of my men said. "They're all moving to the gate, we can get to the courtyard, and take control of the rooftops again."
"Good." I replied. "That's a good advantage." We needed to move somewhere. We weren't doing anything. I looked around for one of my men I knew who would be able to do the job right. Sure enough, he was hiding. But right as I was about to call his name, the he was next to me.
He was Battlehorn's personal master assassin. He looked just like the rest of us, but he was a sneaky sort. Some say he snuck past an army in broad daylight. But that's only a rumor and I don't know if it's true.
"Can I be of assistance?" he asked in a low tone.
"Yea," I responded. "Can you clear out whoever is on the courtyard stairs to the rooftops so we can get there?"
"Yes, sir." He assured in a creepy tone. He opened the door silently, and he was gone. Our scout was peeping through the door to watch his progress.
Knowing this could take a few minutes, I sat down for a moment to rest. I looked over at the scout, who was sweating and trembling. He was still shaken from the attack, and awaiting the next move. He let a sign, and came over to give me a report.
"Sir," he began. He said that like he was bearing bad news. I figured he was dead, and we were out of luck.
"It's ok soldier," I began. "We can still charge right to the-"
"He's done. The passage is clear." He said. I was shocked, but rejuvenated at the same time. I stood up and called to the men our next orders.
"Alright men," I said sternly but quiet. "The passage is clear, and we need to sneak to the rooftops. From there, we can get what's left of the marauders with a sneak attack. Let's move out."
And with that, we all started to get to the rooftops. I saw the assassin up there, calling us with a signal. We finally made it up, and the men found a hiding place. Most of them took positions in the gate house.
"Sir!" one man said silently but frantic. "They've spotted us! They're making their way up now!"
"That's it!" I said. "We're all doomed!" I could hear marauder screams and I heard swords clashing with our men in the gate house.
"HA HAH! DIE! YOU'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!" I heard marauders yell.
"Sir! Look! Over there! Coming up the road!" I heard one of my men yell. I turned to look and expected more marauders, but it's not what I saw.
Coming up the road was just one person. I couldn't tell exact details, but he was wearing a hood, and some sort of armor. He held a longsword in his right hand, and approached the castle. I was hoping he was on our side.
The next thing I heard was a Khajiit voice. I couldn't tell if it was one of the marauders or not, but I was trying to listen.
"What's going on here?" the Khajiit voice said. I guessed it was the man.
"Oy, we're going in to rob this castle! It's far enough where the guards won't notice us!" another voice said.
"So, you guys are…what? Bandits?" the voice asked.
"Marauders." A different voice replied. I rushed over to the side of the north tower so I could get a better look.
"That's all I need to know." The Khajiit voice replied. Suddenly, he lunged his sword forward into a marauder, and killed him. He spun around and killed another one to his left. This guy must've been quite the swordsman!
He spun around and engaged a fight with another one. They locked swords, and they looked evenly matched, but then he ducked for a second, and an arrow flew into the marauder, and he fell. Apparently another marauder from the roof on the other side of the tower I was next to was trying to shoot the khajiit.
The khajiit pulled a bow from his back and grabbed an arrow and shot it to the archer. I saw a fiery explosion from the other side, and wondered what kind of magic it was. The archer fell and died from the fall.
I was so struck in amazement, I didn't see a marauder come from the tower next to me and pull his sword ready. I quickly turned to see him, and he looked ready to finish me off.
"GET DOWN!" the khajiit yelled. I did as he said, and an arrow flew into the marauder in front of me. Another explosion, and I was hit with a little of the flames. Nothing I couldn't handle though.
It seemed silence had finally fallen at Battlehorn Castle. All my men cheered and we went down to the courtyard. I saw bodies of all kinds. Redguard, Imperial, Dark Elf, and a few Khajiits and Argonians. Some were my men, and some were marauders, but the battle was over, and that's what mattered.
I told my men to come back to the castle, but they all stood at the gate, looking to the outside. I wondered why for a moment, and then I remembered the khajiit! I was so thankful for the now ended battle, now I forgot about HIM. I rushed over to the gate and heard my men talking to him.
"So what kind of arrows are those?" One of my men asked.
"Arrows of Immolation," the khajiit answered. "They do a lot of fire damage for a small distance too. They come in handy."
"All right, stand aside men." I ordered, thinking the men were causing him trouble. "Sir, thank you very much for all the help. And I hope my men didn't disturb you any."
"Oh, no trouble at all." He replied in a raspy voice. "And I'm just glad the marauders are gone."
"Please, would you join us for dinner?" I asked him. I didn't know if it would be alright with him, but he looked as if he would work up an apatite.
"Actually, that would be very nice," he responded. "May I?"
"You heard him men," I barked. "Open the gates and let our guest in!"
"YES SIR!" my men replied, and the gate was open in no time at all.
I showed him the way into the east wing of the castle, and we all sat down for a feast. The cook brought in breads, tomatoes, grapes, wines, and all sorts of meats. We all had a seat and away we went. I looked up at the khajiit; he kept his hood on, and seemed like a sneaky kind of person.
But this was the first time I actually got a look at him. He had a black hood, hiding his khajiit fur, and had bright yellow eyes that glowed in the darkness that his hood cast. Another thing that surprised me was his armor. It was armor I had never seen before. It was a rust-like color, with what I could make out as faces all over it. It had spikes too. Lots of spikes.
He began to pick up an apple, but began cutting it with a knife. Then examining each piece. He looked very closely, and finally began eating it. He looked as if he was enjoying it quite well.
"What was that?" one of my men asked.
"I was examining for poison." He said. He frantically went to another sentence right after that. "It's not that I think you would poison me or anything! It's just a habit of mine, sorry."
"Wow, you must be a real adventurer, huh?" someone asked.
"You could say that, yes. It would explain a lot of the things I've done." The khajiit replied with a smile.
"Tell us about your armor!" Someone said with excitement. "How'd you get that?"
"Oh, well you are all aware of the Daedric Prince of Madness, Sheogorath?" he asked. A lot of them nodded in agreement, and that sentence caught my attention and I looked up. "This is custom made, from his very realm."
Several of my men gasped in astonishment, and clapped in excitement. I dropped my fork and the meat in my mouth. He was in the realm of a Daedric Prince! The Khajiit reached over to grab some rat meat like he didn't say anything too important.
"By the way, what's your name, sir?" I asked him. His yellow eyes looked over at me from the other side of the table. I saw his mouth move and heard the name 'Bob-shadow'. A silence fell after he said that, and I waited for someone to ask the question on my mind.
"How'd you get that name?" someone asked and broke the silence. That WAS what I was wondering at the same time.
"It was the name I was given from birth," he replied. "A lot of people say it fits me a little. But that's when they get to know me." He did seem like kind of a shadow, or an outcast. But he was brave and adventurous in my eyes still from the battle. The attention changed from our newcomer to a new topic I had almost forgotten.
"So who's going to be our new master, Athon?" someone asked. Everyone began to agree, curious to who would fill the position. I shifted my eyes at Bob-shadow, who was simply eating as if nothing was being said, while all the men sat on the edge of their seat waiting for my answer.
"Why not Bob-shadow?" I heard someone ask. "He saved the castle, and flew off the hoard of marauders. He's an adventurer type, he's cunning-."
"Quiet." I said, cutting off his rambling. Everyone looked like they agreed to that idea. But why did it only seem strange to ME? Khajiits and Argonians are the 'Beasts of Cyrodiil'. I could never see one of as a count, or a king, or much less as emperor! The idea never really occurred to me.
"Come on, Athon!" one of the men said. "Why can't he be the new master?"
The idea still fresh and strange in my mind, I blurted out the next thing in my mind to keep them quiet a little longer. It didn't help much.
"I-Is that all right with you, sir Bob?" I stuttered.
"It would be my absolute honor if I could, sir Athon." The khajiit bowed his head and replied.
I couldn't think of what to do. He still seemed very shifty to me. Could this cat really be our new master? Would he be able to bring Battlehorn Castle back to its former glory?
"Then men," I began. "I think we've found our new master." I smiled at the khajiit and he smiled back while the men stood and cheered. They clanged their mugs and drank till the night ended. I felt in my mind I finally made the right choice. I felt the beginning of a new era for Battlehorn Castle ready to begin.
