This is the fourth and final member of the team of Avatars. This is his backstory and how he came to be who he is.
The young Argonian sat with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. He waited patiently for the elder to speak. The elder sat in front of the young Argonian rubbing his chin in thought. He was an old Argonian with sandy colored scales and eyes as dark as a crow. Their true color was brown but it was hard to tell sometimes. He was clad in old skins of animals and around his neck sat the remains of his spirit animal. A Skeever claw attached to string.
The elder knew the young Argonian showed promise. Ever since he hatched from his egg he was different. While most in the village had small horns and brightly colored scales, this boy was different.
Under the paint he wore for his trials he had dark black scales with gray lines in between the creases. His horns were longer and sharp to the point. Some Argonians had hair of sorts that looked like feathers. The common color for this was green or a dark brown. This boy had blue hair. His teeth sharper then most. Claws slightly longer than normal. He looked like an ancient creature from a millennia ago. Like the dragons. He had strange fins as well.
Around the end of each of the boys horns hung feathers of a white and black hawk. His spirit animal. In this village they had a tradition where when the child is born the father goes into the wild and kills the first animal he sees. It harvests the key features of this animal and uses them in a ritual to bless the child so the animal will guide them for the rest of their life. The elders was a Skeever and he was proud of it.
The base of the feathers were black and the tips were white. The boy had flown through the first two parts of the trial easily and showed just how strong he was. The first part was for the child to head into the wilderness with only the clothes on their back and one weapon. They had to survive on their own for three days and then return. If they did not then they were to weak to be in the clan. If they returned early then they were kicked out for being weak.
Weakness was something this clan of Argonians did not tolerate. The boy had left and returned on the third day with skins of dead animals over his shoulders. It was impressive to say the least. All he had brought was a sword to aid him. The boy had learned to fight with a sword and shield but was profficient with almost any fighting style there was. He prefered not to use a bow or magic though. They did not argue and watched him become a master in weapons combat.
The second part of the trial was to hunt their spirit animal as their father had done and then make an something that could be worn from their animal. The boy had grabbed a bow and went into the wilderness and returned a day later with the feathers tied to his horns and the dead hawk in his hands. Again, it was impressive. Black hawks were very rare in the Blackmarsh which is what made the elder believe the boy would be special when the father returned with the feathers of one.
The boy had worn the feathers proudly ever since that day. A week later and the boy had been prepped for the final challenge. He wore the paint and doned the ceremonial sword, as many before him had. The boy did not know what the challenge would be as they hadn't had children around the village for years so he was the first in a long time to go throgh the trials. He was the oldest child and the others looked up to him.
While not being too much older the elder was sure he would have his fair share of women looking to be courted by him. The boy stayed away from most everyone else and took to either practicing with his sword and shield, hunting, or playing the strange instrument he had found on one of his hunting trips.
It had been next to a group of dead travelers who were attacked by some animals and torn apart. The boy took some of their supplies and had found the strange intrument. It looked like a small lute but was much nicer and was played by using a rod with horse hair on it. The boy and the others knew not what it was or what it was called but didn't care.
The boy had practiced with it and learned to play it very well. When there were celebrations he would play the strange instrument and the members of the clan would dance and sing. They were joyous times that came far to few. Living in Blackmarsh was dangerous and if you were not careful then any day could be your last.
The elder rose and walked around the boy.
"Who are you, boy?" The boy bowed his head and spoke. His voice was not scratchy like most Argoninas but was rather clear and calm. The boy almost never lost his temper.
"Nobody Elder."
"Good. Stand." The boy stood but kept his eyes closed.
"Open your eyes." The boy opened them to reveal two silver eyes with black slits running down the middle. While most had brown or blue eyes that had normal round pupils the boy had eyes that looked like ingots of silver and slits like a beast. Unblinking and always at attention.
"How many summers are you?"
"Fifteen Elder." The boy never removed his silver eyes from the elders dark ones.
"Why are you here?"
"To be blessed with my name and find out who I am, Elder." The elder smiled and sat, gesturing the boy to sit on front of him. They stared at each other for a while before the elder started to speak again.
"Are you ready for the final step of your trial?" The boy gave his nod and the elder stood. He grabbed his walking stick and walked to the door of the small hut.
"Go out to the square then." The boy stood and walked to the center with the elder hobbling behind him. The smell of fire rang out from the village as it was becoming colder in Blackmarsh. Fire were set up around the village to keep people warm and free from sickness. They arrived in the center where a small crowd had gathered. The boys parent watched with smiles on their faces.
"Take the blade boy." He did as the elder asked and drew the blade.
"Bring her forward." Two Argonians in ancient Argonian scaled armor stepped forward with a women who's face was hidden under a bag. Her feline tail was not. Khajiit. They pushed her to her knees and removed the bag. She had fur that was a bright silver like the moon and golden eyes that shone. She had rings in her ears and her hair was tied down.
"Kill her." The boy looked at the elder confused.
"What?"
"Kill her and become one of us. Her life means nothing boy. Kill her." The Khajiit looked to be about his age if not younger and smiled at him.
"Just do it. My life matters not anymore." The boy walked forward and stared into her eyes. He raised the blade and brought it down.
The bindings fell off and everyone grew silent. He helped her up and motioned for her to leave. She ran off into the wilderness quickly and without a sound. The elder was furious and walked up to him.
"What did you do!?"
"I will not kill an innocent. It's wrong." The elder growled and pointed at him.
"Then you are not welcome here. Kell!" He practically spit the word out and the boy flinched. He knew that word and never thought he would be the one to get the name. There had never been a Kell before but people knew what a Kell was.
Traitor, weak-shell, backstabber. It could go on and on. People were staring at him in disbelief. The elder pointed to the gate and turned from the boy.
"Leave. Never come back, or we will kill you." The boy laid the blade on the ground and left silently. He didn't grab his gear, he didn't say goodby to his family, he didn't turn back. He walked into the darkness of the Blackmarsh with a bitter-sweet taste in his mouth.
He walked for a few minutes when he saw tracks. They belonged to the Khajiit girl he had to kill. He decided to follow them to see if she was ok. He followed them for a few minutes when he saw her. She was walking slowly through the marsh. he caught up to her and approached without her knowing. He tapped her shoulder and had his hand grabbed and then he was thrown over her shoulder. A dagger was placed to his throat.
"You?" She let him up and sheathed the dagger, never taking her eye off him.
"What are you doing here?"
"My village banished me so I was forced to leave. I saw your tracks and decided to see if you were ok. Where are you going? You could got lost in here without an escort." She stared at him through her golden eyes before sighing.
"Skyrim. That's where my family is. They run a caravan that travels everywhere. I'm hoping to get to Skyrim and find them. Can you help me?" The newly named Kell thought about it before nodding. This could be a chance for him to have a new life. One free from the ghosts that he knew would plague him.
"This way." They walked in silence before she spoke up.
"Thank you for not killing me back there. I'm sorry about your clan." He shrugged and sighed.
"I do not wish to be apart of a clan that kills innocents." The conversation ended before it could even start. He turned to the Khajiit girl and eyed her closely.
"How old are you?"
"Thirteen. What about you?"
"Fifteen summers which would be just fifteen. Your name would be much appreciated." She chuckled at his formality and smiled at him.
"Kim'bel. My father called me Kim for short." The boy thought about it and nodded.
"What's yours?"
"The ceremony was to get my name. They labeled me Kell so my new name is Kell." She seemed to be upset and slowly nodded while looking at the ground.
"So what does that mean? I've heard Argonians are given names that mean something."
"Weakling, soft-shell, backstabber, traitor. Things along that line." She felt bad now and just remained quiet.
"So because of me you don't have a proper name and your clan hates you." Kell turned to see she was upset and he just sighed.
"I don't care. You shouldn't either. Very soon you will be back with your family in Skyrim." Kim'bel turned to him and turned her head sideways.
"What about you? What will you do?" Kell looked at the sky and shook his head.
"Become a warrior maybe. Join the army." Kim'bel nodded sadly. She had lived and because of it she had ruined his life. She should have listened to her family and stayed on the trail. But because she didn't listen she was grabbed from behind and then next thing she knew this Argonian was being told to kill her.
"You could join the caravan with us." Kell looked at her and sighed.
"With all due respect, once I get you back to your family I pray to the Hist that we never see each other again." His bluntness caught her off guard and she stumbled a little.
"Why? Was it because I caused you to get kicked out?" His gaze turned to sorrow.
"No, it is because you will remind me of my clan. While I do not approve of them killing innocents, they were my clan and family. I'm sure you understand. It would just bring up painful memories." She knew what he meant but she still frowned.
"Ok. How much longer till we get to Skyrim?"
"Two days until we reach the border. Where does your family stay usually?" She rubbed her head in though and then a light went on.
"Whiterun. That's where they were heading." Kell nodded and they continued their journey. It wasn't going to be too long but Kell wanted it to be over quickly.
They reached the border and Kim'bel started laughing with happiness.
"We made it. Thanks Kell." To Kell it was boring. They had arrived at another village shortly after they had left and Kell told Kim to wait outside while he went in and got supplies. He came out a few minutes later with a bow, sword, shield, strange armor that looked like it was made out of Argonian scales and a backpack with food.
"How did you get that?" They resumed walking and Kell gave her an apple.
"The villages have a pact that all marsh walkers are helped. I asked for supplies, weapons, and armor and they supplied it." Kim'bel was impressed but turned her attention to the apple and ate it.
They walked south east and passed Solitude. They had never seen the city but had heard about it.
"It's so big. Look at all the boats." Kell rolled his eyes at the carefree nature of the young Khajiit girl and walked down to the water. She wanted to see the boats and Kell wanted to wash the paint off his face. He may have left his village but believed in their traditions. After the trials they were supposed to keep the paint on until it started to itch the scales. Kell had been having a hard time ignoring the tingling that came from his mask of paint and needed it off.
He reached the wated and plunged his head in. he could breathe under water because of his gills and held his head there. He started to wipe the paint off causing the nearby water to change to a pale color from the paint. Kell got all the paint off and pulled his head out of the water. He shook his head and looked around. Kim was watching him with a hand on her chest in worry.
"I thought you were drowning." Kell raised his chin up and flexed his gills. When out of the water the gills would fold up to allow him to breath in air. When in the water they opened up.
"I am an Argonian. We can breathe under the water." Kim'bel smiled and seemed impressed. Kell went to nearby guard and asked for a map. The guard gave him one and showed him the safest path to Whiterun.
"Be careful out there. Bandits have been becoming a real problem as of late." Kell thanked him and told Kim they were leaving. Kim looked at his, now free of paint, face and smiled.
"You look a lot better without the paint." Kell smiled at her and turned his attention back to the road. She wasn't as bad as she seemed. Neither heard the guard as he raised his helmet and scratched his head.
"Never seen that before. Argonian and Khajiit. Weird. What's next, dragons?"
"Are we there yet? We've been walking for daaaays." Kell chuckled and looked at the map.
"Almost. It's been a day and a half." Kim hmphed and continued walking. They were in a wooded area that was just outside of the open fields that were around Whiterun. They enjoyed the noise of the wild when birds called out and took off in a hurry.
"Kim...get behind me." She was confused but did as he said. Kell drew his sword and waited. There was a whistling and Kell raised his shield and stopped the arrow coming at his head. Three bandits came rushing out of the treeline. One had his bow and was nocking another arrow while one had two swords and the last one had a battle axe.
"Kim. Hide." She ran behind a tree and turned to watch.
"Aren't you a brave lizard." They taunted him but he remained calm and waited. Another arrow was shot at him and he dodged it easily. The bandits were all nord and had iron armor. The one with the battle axe charged him and raised up his axe to bring it down on Kell. Kell moved to the side so it crashed harmlessly next to him. He jammed his sword into the mans chest and quickly pulled out with the help of his shield.
The one with two swords charged and swung with the left one. Kell stopped it with his sword and slammed his shield into the mans chest. The man stumbled but came back swinging both at Kell. Kell stopped both blows and saw he couldn't move. He saw the archer to his left and spun the man to his front. When the archer shot it hit his ally and not Kell. Kell pulled back and stabbed the man's neck. He pulled out and turned to the archer.
He sprinted forward and ducked under another arrow. He swung up and caused a large slash in the mans chest. The man drew a dagger and stabbed quickly. Kell felt pain in his sword arm and responed with a bash from his shield. The man landed on his back and Kell walked forward and stomped on his face. There was a crack and it was over. Kell looked around and smiled when Kim came from around the corner.
"You ok?" She nodded but gasped when she saw the dead bodies. Kell put his weapons away and hugged Kim close and turned her so she couldn't see the bodies.
"Don't look at them it's ok." Kim had never seen a dead person and she wasn't taking it very well. She started to cry and Kell held her close.
"Shh. It's alright. Let's get you back to you family." She nodded and saw the dagger still in Kell's shoulder.
"You're hurt." Kell pulled the dagger out with a gasp of pain and threw it away.
"I'll be fine. Come on." She followed him but took his hand. She stayed close to him and remained quiet. Kell was upset that she had to see that. Kell had killed before. animals, those were the first people he killed though. He didn't let it eat at him too much. He knew it was kill or be killed in this world.
They reached the end of the forest and saw the silhouette of Whiterun in the distance. Kell pointed at it and smiled.
"There it is. Almost there. Come on." Kim'bel nodded and followed him. It was short and they were almost there. Then they heard the growl. Kell drew his sword and raised his shield. He saw nothing but knew he heard a growl. They were so close to the city that maybe they could run there and call for help.
"Slowly make your way to the city with me. Stay quiet and stay behind me." Kim nodded, fear present in her eyes. They slowly mad their way closer to Whiterun. Then Kell saw it. A large bundle of brown fur. It moved quickly but he knew it was there.
"Don't move." He whispered to her. She froze and looked around. They were a couple hundred yards from Whiterun now. There was a growl and Kell turned to see a Saber Tooth Tiger on a rock. It eyes them with hunger and hopped off the rock and stalked towards them. Kell raised his shield and smacked his sword against it in hopes of making it run away. It must have smelled the blood from his stab wound and came in hopes of finding food.
It growled and charged. Kell ran forward and slammed his shield into it. The force behind the cat knocked him on his back. It started to claw at him but Kell used his shield to keep most of the damage away from him. A couple strikes from the paw were getting through and hitting him. He raised his sword but it was swiped out of his hand. He reached for it but only managed to open up a spot for the cat to sink its jaws into.
Kell shouted in pain as the big cat bit down hard. Then a rock hit it in the face. It let go and looked up at Kim. She back away and the big cat stalked towards its new target. Kell had a hard time seeing straight. He had taken a couple blows to the head from the paws and was bleeding large amounts of blood from his arm. Kim screamed and he snapped to attention. She was backed against a rock with her dagger out, with the cat closing in.
Kell stood slowly and grabbed the sword. He charged and stabbed the beast in the side. It rolled from the force and took Kell with it. They rolled along the floor before it landed on top of him. He had lost his shield and sword in the process and saw he was about to be bitten. He raised his injured arm and felt the pain as the cat clamped it large mouth into his arm and sunk it's teeth into his Argonian flesh. Kell saw his sword nearby and reached for it.
The cat started to drag him away from the sword so Kell punched it in the face. It seemed to be barely fazed so Kell dug one of his clawed fingers into an eye and the cat released him. Kell crawled towards the sword and wrapped his uninjured hand around the handle. The cat came back and wrapped its jaws around his leg and started to drag him again. Kell spun and slashed it in the face. It released him only to rear up to land on him.
Kim'bel screamed when it came down on top of Kell. Everything went silent. Nothing moved. She went to the cat and saw it was dead. She pushed it off Kell and saw his sword was imbedded in the large cat. Kell was barely alive and she knew it.
"Kell! What do I do!?" She was crying by this point and was panicking. He put a bloody hand on her shoulder and looked at her with his silver eyes.
"Get...h-help." He let go and went still. His chest was still moving meaning he was breathing. Kim stood and sprinted faster then she had ever ran before to the gates. The guards started to draw their swords until they saw it was a young girl. They ran to her when they saw blood on her.
"What happened?" She pointed to where Kell had fallen and was crying hysterically.
"He...he saved me! Cat! Help him! Please!" She broke down and one of the guards ran towards where she had pointed.
"Stay with her. I'll check it out." The man ran to the field and saw a dead Saber Cat. He ran forward and saw the barely alive, blood cover Argonian boy.
"By the Divines." He scooped Kell up and sprinted back to Whiterun. He dashed into the city and everyone looked at him.
"I need a healer! Quickly!" A women in a yellow cloak came running towards him and started to cast a spell on Kell. His wounds started to seal and after a couple seconds she finished.
"He's ok. Thank Mara. Send him to the temple where I can keep an eye on him." The guard nodded and slowly walked the short distance to the temple. He opened the door and set him down on a bed. He sat in a chair beside the boy and sighed.
"Poor kid."
Kell slept. He awoke a few days later to see a women above him.
"You are ok. Thank that young girl for getting us or you would have bleed to death for sure." Kell sat up and rubbed his aching head.
"Is Kim ok?" His question was answered when Kim entered and hugged Kell. She was crying again and didn't want to let go.
"I...I though you w-were gonna die." She broke down in his arms and Kell hugged her close and chuckled.
"I'm ok now. It's ok." She cried in his arms for a few seconds before stopping and looking up at him.
"Thank you." Kell smiled and looked around.
"Did you find your parents?" Kim nodded happily and she stood.
"They want to see you but have been working so I watched after you." Kell nodded and stood. He was sore but fought through the pain. He was in a cloth shirt and pants that looked old and worn. He walked to the door and stepped outside. He covered his eyes when the bright sunlight hit them. He got used to it and looked around. Whiterun was a bustling city for sure.
"Mom and dad are this way." Kim took his hand and led him to the center market. There was a group of Khajiit talking to a man at a stand. They seemed to be making a deal of sorts. Two Khajiit, one female, and one male looked back.
"Kim. Is this your friend you told us about?" They motioned towards Kell who just stood silently.
"Thank you so much. We thought our daughter was lost." Kell nodded to them and gave them a smile. Kim tugged on her dads sleeve to get his attention.
"He doesn't have a home." The father looked at Kell who shook his head.
"It's ok. You don't have to shelter me. I was going to find work and start a new life anyways." The man nodded but pulled out a pouch of coins.
"It's not much but it should help you. I know about your people and that when they set their mind to something they do it. This is just my way of saying thanks." Kell smiled at him and took the pouch.
"Thank you sir." Kell walked away and went to the blacksmith. She smiled at him and asked what he needed.
"I would like a simple set of armor. But I would like to work for it please. I want to save my money." The women thought about it before throwing him a sword.
"Sharpen that please." Kell smiled and got to work.
By the end of the day he had paid off his set of armor and weapons and smiled to her.
"Thank you." He went to the Bannered Mare and bought a room. He went to sleep and had no dreams.
The next morning he woke up early and went to the gate. He opened it and left. It was still fairly dark but he didn't care. He was going to see if he could get work in Solitude. He passed by a couple of tents and saw sleeping Khajiits inside. He heard a rustle and turned to see Kim looking at him, her golden eyes glowing in the dark.
"Where are you going?"
"Solitude. Going to see if I can find any work there." Kim nodded sadly and hugged him close.
"Will I ever see you again?" Kell knew he said he didn't want to see her again but now he didn't want to leave her. But he knew it was for the best.
"If the Hist allows it. Until then, take care." He broke off the hug and walked away into the early morning. Kim watched him sadly as he went.
"I hope to see you again." She went back to her tent.
Boom shakalaka! There's the prologue for this story. I am going to love writting this thing. I am planning on having Kell get a companion on his journey who is awesome. Kim'bel will make a return though. She has to. The plot demands it. Kell isn't going to join the Dark Brotherhood or anything like that. He will join the companions and eventually the imperial legion. So stay tuned my frieds. Keep calm and may the Aura be with you all.