Author's Note: I'm a huge fan of Skyrim and this is my first attempt at writing any Fan Fiction. Suggestions and reviews are welcome, just don't be too harsh. I hope you enjoy my story.
"What will we do now, master?" A small Wood Elf covered in blood asks.
"I, am not your master. I couldn't come up with a plan to save everyone back there... I am not worthy." A tall Dark Elf, who is wearing a withered set of custom steel armor, replies. He turns his back and stares at the moon looming overhead.
He hangs his head. I walk up to him and gently place my hand on his shoulder. "Anjuan, you were Leon's general, and a friend. If anyone deserves to take over the Mission, it's you." I say, my voice soft and filled with pain. I can tell that he feels guilty, it was his job to protect Leon at all costs. He was supposed to be the strongest warrior out of all of us, next to Leon.
Anjuan turns his head and glances at me over his shoulder. "Sidathe, you and I both lost someone today. Please, give me peace and understand my guilt." The grief in his voice is overwhelming.
I turn my attention to the group of 15 men standing behind us. 12 of them are Elves: Dunmer, Bosmer, and Altmer. Of the other three men, one is an Imperial and the other two are Nords. Each one of them is covered in blood, dirt and sweat from the fight. Many of them are injured. They look as if they had all the life sucked out of them.
"So, few survived…" I mutter to myself, while scanning over the diminished number of our forces.
"Alright men! Enough standing around, tend to your injuries and stay out of sight! Give Anjuan and me some privacy please." I order. After my words, the men quickly leave the hidden clearing and enter the forest that surrounded it.
"Anjuan… regardless of whether you like it or not, you are our leader now. This isn't the time for sulking. What's our next move?" I inquire.
"Disband…" His voice is barely audible.
"What? Did I hear you correctly?"
Anjuan turns around and looks me in the eyes. His red eyes burn right through me. He is serious. What is he thinking?
"Tell the men, Sidathe!" He commands. I stand still and stare at him. "No, I'm not going to do that, Anjuan. I'm not going to abandon the Mission. Do you even know what it means to these men?" I ask.
Anjuan forcefully places his hand on the hilt of his sword and walks towards me. "You think I don't? We've all been affected by the Thalmor and their fight for dominance." The large Dark Elf towers above me, his voice becomes threatening. "Now, that's an order! This was all just a stupid dream that Leon had, nothing more!" Anjuan's hot breath blows in my face and my anger intensifies.
How could he say something like that?
I look up at him and see that he is annoyed at my defiance. I raise my hand and slap him. My hand makes contact with his dark skin and the sound it creates is deafening. He stood just as he was before. There was no sign that he was in any pain.
"My brother died for that dream." I reply, turning on the balls of my feet. "I'll be sure to tell the men. Then I'm gone." My voice is dark and filled with anger. I walk towards the edge of the clearing, carrying the burden of the orders that we are to disband immediately.
"Sidathe… how will I find you?" I stop in my tracks and peer over my shoulder at hearing those words come from his mouth. "Why would you want to find me?" I ask, curious about the mixed signals he was sending. "Don't be stubborn Sid, just because we're disbanding doesn't mean that we can't stay in touch. That we can't stay together." Anjuan's voice becomes soft and gentle.
"Besides, I think both Leon and your brother would prefer it if I stayed with you for awhile. You aren't thinking clearly, I can see it in your eyes." I cringe, hearing these words from him after what he had just said.
"First you show complete disregard for the Mission and what it meant to Leon. Now you seem to be concerned about what my brother and him would think." I reply coldly and continue towards the woods.
"Finding the Kinsbane won't bring them back." He yells back.
As I continue walking, I mumble to myself, "No… but it'll give me a reason for revenge." With that, I disappear into the bushes, preparing to relay Anjuan's orders.
I remain silent and motionless. I wait for what seems to be days for the chaos just outside the cave to stop and for silence to return to my ringing ears.
The noise outside the frozen cave had finally dissipated. Screams no longer tainted the quiet ambience of the icy breeze blowing through the cavern. A final booming roar of the black beast echoes through my ears.
I get up off of the ice-covered ground of the desolate cave. I walk past the carcass of the wolf I ran into when I entered the cave. I pull out my Daedric dagger from the neck of the carcass and ready myself for what may lay outside the protected confines of the cave. I peer my head outside the crevasse, which is the entrance to the cave, and my eyes widen.
Plumes of smoke mar the pale blue sky. The smell of burnt flesh rushes into my nose. No life is in sight. I carefully walk down the steps, with my dagger drawn, which led up to my safe cavern, and prepare for any enemies that may still be lingering. That is, if anything could have survived the destruction of the flying menace.
I trek down the side of the mountain and see a small shack, which is unharmed. As I approach the rickety the shack, a Nord woman runs out from behind it. I lower my dagger and place in into its sheath, that's latched idly onto my hip.
"Oh! Another survivor!" She yells and runs up to me. The woman turns her head over her shoulder, looking behind her, and yells, "Quick, over here!" A Nord man runs out from the shack and meets the woman at her side."Oh my," he says. "You survived the attack on Helgen!" The man exclaims, but it sounds more like he's asking if I am actually a survivor.
"Are you an Imperial?" The woman asks.
"No, she's clearly a daughter of Skyrim!" He argues. They begin bickering with each other on whether or not I was a Stormcloak or an Imperial.
"No… no… " Their arguing drains out my voice as I try to oppose their accusations. I sigh, irritated with the inability for the man and woman to pay attention. My patience begins to wear thin. I try again.
"I am…" I began, but this time the sight of a large brown bear, which stands looming behind the man and woman, cuts me off. I gesture for them to be quite, yet again, my efforts prove to be pointless.
The bear travels closer towards the man and the woman, stalking its prey, taking advantage of their backs being turned. I carefully reach for my dagger and ready myself to attack the feral beast.
The woman, who looks weary from the arguing, catches my movement. She turns her head and sees the bear, face to face. She lets out a piercing shriek. The man, who is all too unwary of what danger is behind him, is stunned by the terrifying noise.
The bear, which looks to be just as stunned as the man by this commotion, is forced to take lethal action. It jumps at the woman, pinning her to the ground. I hurl myself towards the mass of fur, and the unlucky woman, who lays beneath it. I hold onto the beast's back and steady myself.
The woman screams. Blood begins to stain the grass beneath us. It's metallic odor rushes into my nose. I wrinkle my nose in an attempt to rid the odor from torturing my nose any further.
This is a smell that I have not gotten used to. No man could bare the burden of forgetting the horrid smell of blood.
I decide to take action before it's too late for the poor woman. I take my dagger and stab it into the bear's shoulder. Blood spews from the wound and stains my clothes. The animal roars in pain and flings me off of its back.
I land with a thump on the ground. Pain shoots up my spine. I scurry to my feet, and see the stumbling beast charging towards me. Unfortunately, my dagger remains lodged in the bear's shoulder.
"Go help her! I'll get rid of this animal." I order the man, while keeping my eyes on the furious animal. The man snaps out of the shocked trance and rushes over to the woman, who appears to be barely breathing. As he tends to her, I bolt towards the forest with the ferocious animal behind me.
Just like the old days but… a little easier. Now, where shall I go?
I scan the scattered forest, searching for a tree, perfect for my specific needs. I spot a tree just up ahead, a little on the thin side, but tall as the White Gold Tower back in Cyrodiil.
"Perfect." I mutter to myself. I turn my head and grin at the animal, taunting it. The bear lets out an irritated growl and picks up speed. I sprint forward, leading the animal to my trap.
Once I reach the tree, I spot a sizeable, jagged rock near its base. I pick it up and put it in my pocket for later use. I quickly climb up the tree. I perch myself on a branch and watch the bear abruptly stop just below my feet. It stares up at me, with eyes as dark as dusk, and attempts to climb the tree. It slowly scales the tree; the adrenaline of the whole attack must be wearing off. The animal stops halfway up the tree.
"Aw, poor thing. Tired, are we?" I mock the bear. I feel some pity for the poor thing, making it fail repeatedly, only to have it ultimately die. "Well, Anjuan, I suppose I'll put you out of your misery." I say to the bear and it simply stares at me. "Don't act like the brainless animal, which you take the form of."
The bear smirks, although to anyone else, the beast is just displaying its deadly teeth. Then, it scrambles up the tree. I pull the rock out of my pocket and launch myself off of the branch, with my head spotting the ground.
I reach for my dagger, still in the animal's back, and yank it out of the shoulder of the bear. I take the rock, in hand, and smash it into the animal's skull. Droplets of ruby liquid spew everywhere. I flip, midair, and land gracefully on the ground, on my feet.
Perfection, good to see my training has not been forgotten.
The bear lands on the ground with a thud. Disoriented from the fall, the animal slowly stands up. Its fur is stained with dark red blood. Suddenly, the bear collapses, probably due to the loss of blood. I tentatively walk over to the bear, my dagger eagerly waiting to finish the job it had begun. I pet the dying animal's head.
"Anjuan, you disappoint me." I whisper softly into the bear's ear. "I thought you wouldn't go back to her. Afterall, she betrayed you. You hated her with a passion."
I take my dagger and pierce the beast's heart. The bear let's out a quiet whimper. "Leon would pity you, I, on the other hand, find this terribly upsetting," I say, twisting the dagger. I feel the bear's breathing slow, until it completely stops. "You… were family." I mutter to the corpse.
I rip my dagger out of the bear's body. It's jagged edges tear through its flesh and emerges, dripping with the animal's blood. I wipe it off on the grass and return it to its sheath.
Slowly, the remains of the bear shifts into that of a Dark Elf's. He wears some ragged cloth clothing, dirtied with blood, and has dark hair, which is braided. I stared at the body.
Anjuan, how did she get to you?
"Hey, there you are!" A man's voice yells from behind me. I turn around and see the Nord man with the woman slouched at his side, her pale arm slung around his neck. A piece of cloth, covered with dots of red, wraps around her neck. She lifts up her head and smiles.
I run up to the man. "Are you alright?" I ask the woman, feeling guilty that she got inured at all.
"I'm fine," she begins, "I'm trained in basic Restoration. I should be fine in a few days." She explains and I smile, relieved that she was going to be fine.
The man curiously looks over my shoulder. "Who's that?" He asks, pointing behind me. "And where's the bear?"
I turn my head and look at Anjuan's lifeless body lying on the ground beside the tree. I replay what happened, what events lead up to his death.
"He must have been the bear's original victim." I reply, my voice flat, lacking sympathy. "There was nothing anyone could do." I quickly add, hoping that the man wouldn't notice my lack of compassion for the corpse.
Need to work on cover stories, no one can know. If they did, they would soon be joining him. I can't let anyone else get hurt.
"I'm glad that you are alright." I redirect the conversation. "I'm terribly sorry that I didn't do anything earlier." I know that I could have stopped her from getting injured at all. I should have killed the bear when I first spotted it.
The woman hugs me. I'm a bit taken back by this. "No need to apologize, you saved me, while my 'man' of a husband couldn't." She remarks. The man's face reddens with anger.
"Well excuse me. Your shriek could wake the dead. I'm surprised I'm not deaf." He replies with frustration in his deep voice. I manage to laugh. The couple looks at me.
"Oh, I'm sorry. It's just…" I pause. "It's just that you two remind me of some good friends of mine. They argued just about every time they spoke."
The man turns to the woman and they both smile. They grab the other's hand. "No one's perfect, but to me, this man is as wonderful as they come." The woman says lovingly.
I see the love they share. It's nice to know that even after such a time of uncertainty and death, they still find happiness. It reminds me of my life back in Cyrodiil, when I was happy and going on adventures with my brother and the people of the Mission.
"So," The man says, "Where are you headin' now?"
I think for a second about how I am going to answer his question. I can't tell the truth, so what will I tell him?
"Originally, my plan was to find some work in Helgen but…" I say before staring at the burning town behind the husband and wife.
"Well, do you have any family here?" The woman asks with a sincere expression on her face. I shake my head 'no.' "I'd offer to have you stay here with us, but our shack can barely hold the two of us." She explains.
"Oh no, I wouldn't impose on you two like that anyways." I say, grateful for knowing that they would offer if they could. "I suppose I'll have find another town. What is near here?" I ask the couple.
The woman puts her finger to her lip. She appears to be thinking about this quiet intently. The man answers before she has the chance. "Riverwood is the nearest town, but the Falkreath is the nearest city. I suggest headin' there before Riverwood, looks like you need supplies." The man says while looking me over with his eyes.
I restlessly adjust the large sack I was carrying on my back. "You see I don't do well in cities. I'm used to living in the country." I reply. "Crowded cities make me anxious."
Better get a move on. Who knows when someone will come to investigate.
"Well, you best get a move on. When night falls on Skyrim, it becomes dangerous for travellers." The man says, placing a worn map in my hand. His voice is unnerving, almost as if he was threatening me. Yet again, the gesture of giving me the map… this man was truly intriguing.
I nod and thank him for the map. The woman gives me a quick embrace. "Good luck, dear. I hope you find what you come here for." She whispers in my ear. A smile crawls across my face.
"I hope I do." With that, I set off, heading westward, to Riverwood.