Chapter 1: The Caravan
It was a clear, starry night. The twin moons Masser and Secunda glimmered faintly over the horizon, and it offered the caravan a little comfort in the face of their arduous quest. The carriage drove through the bumpy terrain like a boat on the sea, swaying and weaving over the uneven ground that was so different from the smooth sands of Elsweyr.
Holding the reins in front was a solid grey Khajiit. He had a muscular body and a flat face, with a determined look in those golden eyes. Long fur sprouted from all around his face, and three rings hung from his tall ears. The Khajiit was shivering and cold, but took it in stride and pushed onward against a blizzard of snow.
"Ja'rahzdo!" called a rough voice from the carriage. "The sun is beginning to shine. Ma'dhana will take over for now." Ja'rahzdo, the large grey one, turned around and smiled.
"Thank you, Ma'dhana. Be careful; the horses are nervous and the blizzard is strong." Ma'dhana, a young dark tabby with bright green eyes, nodded and took the reins. Ja'rahzdo walked over to the back of the carriage and began clapping his furry hands.
"Up, sisters, up! It's a new day!" Sure enough, the sun could now be seen slowly climbing up the sky. The two Khajiit women in fur sleeping bags shook their heads and blinked, rubbing their faces.
"Antbah needs five more minutes." said the smaller one groggily, and she pulled the sleeping bag over her head. The other groaned and pushed herself out of bed, slipping on some hide armor and grabbing a steel dagger that lay next to her.
She was a dark orange tabby with a long nose and large, ice blue eyes. Her body was bulky and strong for a female Khajiit, and you could see a curiosity and playfulness in her face. A long, prominent scar ran down her nose. Slipping the dagger into her belt, she went to the edge of the carriage and hung there, looking out to the mountains in awe. The cold air whipped against her face and she smiled.
"Quite a sight, huh, Ja'rahzdo?" she said in the rough voice common to female Khajiiti.
"Too cold for my taste, Zhavanji. Cold and difficult to traverse. But I'm glad you're in such high spirits; you'll need it when we get to Falkreath. I hear the Nords are most unwelcoming to visitors," replied Ja'rahzdo, pouring himself some rabbit stew.
"Oh, come now, Ja'rahzdo. Skyrim is more than just harsh, and you know that. We came here for a reason, and that reason was coin. And this land is drowning in coin," said Zhavanji. Ja'rahzdo smirked.
"While those fool Nords spend their time killing each other, they don't realize that Khajiiti are the only ones actually profiting from this silly conflict! Ah, speaking of which, what cities do we visit again?" Zhavanji fumbled around in her knapsack and pulled out a tattered map. She opened it and began to read.
"We'll be visiting some small towns in the west, Falkreath and Morthal, as well as an old city called Winterhold way up north. I say we don't go to Winterhold until we get used to the cold weather," said Zhavanji, and she rolled up the map and put it back in her knapsack.
"Sounds easy enough," replied Ja'rahzdo, and he shook Antbah's sleeping bag roughly.
"Come on, you lazy housecat! Ja'rahzdo wants some fresh meat," he joked, and Antbah sat up.
"All right, Antbah is awake! Just let me get my bow and armor," the dark brown Khajiit retorted, and started to put on her leather armor. She grabbed a long bow and some steel arrows from the side table and practiced shooting them, tugging the string back and releasing it with a loud vssh!
"Zhavanji, want to go hunting with Antbah today? You could learn a few things about wielding a bow," she said, and Zhavanji nodded. While Antbah could top even a Bosmer with her incredible marksmanship, Zhavanji's skill with a bow left something to be desired. She recalled her first lessons, constantly fumbling with the grip of the bow as the chord smacked her face when she tried to shoot an arrow. She grabbed her hunting bow, ready for a full day of lessons.