This alone, you're in time for the show
You're the one that I need
I'm the one that you loathe

I took slow, deep breaths as I made my way through the Sanctum. I was very confident in my ability to remain undetected, but that didn't lessen my anxiety. Coming back to this place, of all places. . .where it all began, with the Emperor.

Finally, after many nerve wracking minutes, I found myself back in the cell I had been kept in. I swallowed a lump. I hated this place, and I really had no idea why I had been locked up in the first place. Mostly likely a case of being in the wrong place and the wrong time. At any rate, it didn't matter now. I was here for my own reasons this time, and now that the hard part was over, I would get to have my fun.

I could hear the guard talking to him, and by Sithis, he sounded as insane as ever. I lurked in the shadows of the cell until the guard finally left. I came into the light, surveying the area, and saw some keys sitting on the guard's table. Didn't even need to pick the lock!

"You've got to get me out of here!" the Dark Elf begged as I turned to his cell.

I smiled and held up the key before I unlocked and opened the cell door.

"Wait, I know you. . .you. . ." he scratched his head. "You're the one! That day the Emperor was killed!"

My smile broadened.

"They went through your cell! You lucky bastard!"

My hand went to my hammer.

"But. . .you came back? Come on, you've got to help me out!"

I tilted my head as I pulled my hammer free from my shoulders. "Why should I?"

"You've got your freedom, now give me mine! What do you say, huh?"

I narrowed my eyes.

"Come on, friend."

And then I laughed. "I am not your friend." I bounced the weight of the hammer's head in my hand and looked him in the eye. "The Night Mother says 'Goodbye.'"

"The Nigh Mo. . .No! No! Guar. . ."

The hammer crashed into his chest, and I heard his ribcage snap as he flew back. "That was for before," I said, stepping into his cell. "And this is for the Night Mother." I swung, letting gravity do its work as the hammer head smashed his head in.

I didn't even bother to wipe his blood from my hammer. I wanted to savor his death. He had taunted me the entire time I was locked up. A person of less confidence might have called it "torment" but all it was was rude and annoying and hateful. I had seethed in my cell while he went on and on. . .

I sheathed my hammer and made my way to the door. There was no way I was going back the way I came – too long, too dark, and I didn't want to deal with giant rats and goblins. It was night out, so duty roster was light, which made sneaking past the guards fairly easy.

Once I slipped out of the city, I took the road to Cheydinhal for some rest and relaxation in the Sanctuary before my next contract. It was pretty late in the afternoon, but I knew I could make it there in a few hours, if I moved fast enough. Like a fool, though, I was in such a hurry that I didn't pay as much attention to my surroundings. It's really the only instance I can think of where I've been taken by surprise. I didn't even hear them coming, let alone see them.

Three figures jumped out at me, probably hiding behind bushes. I was hit with a paralyzing spell; I didn't see where it came from. Then they were on me, rifling through my things. I felt a sudden weight on my stomach and shifted my eyes to see one of them sitting on me.

"Well, ain't you a pretty one?" He reached out and pulled my hammer out, disarming me. "And the girl ain't bad, either," he laughed.

I bared my teeth at him and growled.

"Oho, and full of spirit!" he tossed my hammer to one of his companions, who caught it and stuffed it in a bag. "Shall we have a bit of fun with her, mates?"

"Sure, but only if you share her," one of them said.

"Of course," he replied magnanimously.

I snarled and jerked, the paralyzing spell beginning to wear off.

The man sitting on me slapped my face and laughed.

The man carrying the loot walked over and into my vision. "Well, we can't do this here, out in the open. Not unless we want to get caught by the Legion," he pointed out. He seemed to be the smartest one in the group.

"I think I saw an old fort northwest of Cheydinhal, a while back," the one sitting on me replied.

"Good, we'll head there. I'll keep the pretty thing paralyzed until we get there, but one of you will have to carry her."

The smart one grinned down at me and struck me with a spell, and once again, I lost the ability to move. I glared at all of them as the dumb one lifted me from the ground and tossed me over his shoulder.