4E 203, 4th of Second Seed

I had left Dead Man's Drink after spending what seemed like hours drinking and singing songs along with the Bard and company; once I realized that I may have had a bit too much to drink, I decided that it was time to go back home to my family. I had promised Camilla that I would make it home in time for dinner and I did not wish to disappoint her; I had received a bounty from Valga that came from the Jarl's men to slay a Giant at Secunda's Kiss, one of the many camp grounds they use while herding their Mammoth around Skyrim. I personally do not take much pleasure in killing Giants, not just because of the fact that they are generally peaceful, but also because when they are enraged they can become formidable enemies. Nevertheless, I am far from the point in my life where I am ready to settle down and open a shop in one of the towns, or even become a member of the guard. I have achieved so many positions within various organizations, there's enough work and adventures available to me to last a lifetime; I only hope that my children inherit my sense of adventure. Aeola and I left Falkreath to head back to Lakeview Manor, walking back on the same path from which we came. As we walked, Aeola had a fit of coughs; perhaps she is ill or has taken more damage in one of our adventures than she was willing to let on, either way it may be time to give her a break from our travels so she can get some much needed recovery and tend to her own affairs. As we made our way down the road, we passed a Vigilant of Stendarr, who had apparently just finished a battle with a Flame Atronach, as when we were able to see a burst of flames rise from the battle site before we arrived. He seemed pleasant enough, and didn't appear to be critically wounded, but I'm sure that if he knew that Aeola and I were both Werewolves, perhaps he would've tried his luck with us, and met his end right next to the Flame Atronach he had just slain. I harvested some of the fire salts from its body to use in alchemy and made my way home, where my family was inside waiting for me. After supper, I felt the mead I had drank earlier take its effect, so I decided that I would retire for the evening rather early, as Aeola and I had a long journey ahead of us to Secunda's Kiss the next day. I had awakened early this morning to find my family in deep sleep, I dare not disturb them even though as with any journey, I never know which one will be my last. I left the bedroom to find that while I was asleep, Camilla had packed some provisions for us to take on the journey ahead. Aeola and I gathered our things and made off to slay the Giant. Since we left before sunrise, we made great time and arrived just a few hours after the sun came up, and were able to scout around the area to see what would be the best means of attacking him. It appeared that the Giant was alone, so the best way to take him down would be from a distance, as fighting a Giant within its striking range could prove to be a fatal mistake.

As Aeola and I readied our arrows to fire upon the Giant, I felt a large gust of wind blow from behind me, so much so that it appeared that even the Giant had felt it. I had turned around in time to see a blue scaled Dragon fly overhead; the last thing we needed right now, however it appeared that it had little interest in us. The Dragon roared as it circled over Secunda's Kiss, alerting the Giant to its presence, even though the Giant was still not aware of us. Aeola had aimed at the Dragon, ready to fire her arrow when I stayed her hand; perhaps this would be advantageous to us if they were to fight each other I said. If one were to kill the other, then we would have to do nothing more than to finish the survivor off rather than risk having to engage them both; a brilliant strategy, but only in theory. Aeola lowered her bow and we watched the battle between the Giant and the Dragon wage on; for an average person such a scene would be grounds to run for safety, but after everything I've seen and experienced since in this land of Skyrim, I've learned that there are greater things to fear than death so we may as well enjoy the show. While the Dragon had the advantage of flight, its attacks had limited range and it had to come in somewhat close to attack; this is where the Giant has the advantage due to it being as tall as four men, and a club that is as long as two. The Dragon managed to hit the Giant with its ice breath as it flew in close, but was almost swatted away by the Giant's club.

I assumed it decided that once was enough, as the Dragon now circling above us decided that it would go after a smaller target...us. The Dragon roared as flew towards us; As it was within range, it fired its ice breath at us, forcing us to dive in different directions to evade the attack. I have found that I have an affinity for the bow and arrow, the very reason why I enlisted the help of Aeola as my companion as she being a Huntress is naturally talented with its use as well; but few archers can match their arrows to a flying Dragon with much success. The Giant now aware that he was not alone looked in our direction; while it didn't seem like he was coming to attack us as well, it didn't seem like he was looking to help us either. I cant say that I blame him much, it's not like we were planning to help him either, in fact I came to capitalize on his death. Before the Dragon could make another pass at us, Aeola put away her bow and grabbed her staff of chain lightning, firing a massive lightning blot that made the Dragon change direction to evade it. "KEEP FIRING!" I told her as I began to fire off arrows, trying to anticipate the Dragons course so I could fire my arrows in front of it, causing it to fly into them. While I wasn't meeting much success hitting the Dragon, Aeola and I's combined efforts allowed us to box the Dragon in, which meant we were able to direct its path. I told Aeola to fire the lightening slightly above it, forcing it to fly down; she did it and it worked as expected as the Dragon dove down and below her fire, but between us and the Giant. Almost as if on cue, the Giant charged forward towards the Dragon; I fired my arrows at its wings, tearing the thin skin that gave it flight and forced it to land. As it crash landed, the ground shook from the impact, causing Aeola and I to stumble back. As we regained our footing, the Dragon opened its mouth in preparation to fire its ice breath at us when the Giant came from behind and clubbed the Dragon in the back of its head; the Dragon slammed its head into the nearby rocks from the impact, only increasing its effectiveness. Seizing the moment, Aeola and I concentrated our fire on the Dragon, putting it down for good. The Giant, seeming satisfied with the results grunted as it scratched its beard; after a moment, the Giant turned back in our direction as is deciding on what to do about us. There was this awkward moment of pause where neither of us made a move, when out of no where another Giant came from somewhere where we initially saw the first; this one seemed rather annoyed, and sure of what it wanted to do. As the first Giant turned its head to the second, the second slammed its club in the ground sending dirt flying; he then raised his club up over his head as if he were making a taunt, or a threat. I decided that I would take no chances and kill them both; the Dragon aside, this is what we were here for. One would think that after having possibly being saved by the Giant, I would just forgo the bounty and go on another adventure right? Perhaps so, but such logic would only apply if you've never lived in a harsh environment such as Skyrim, or even Hammerfell for that matter; I have both the pleasure and displeasure of having lived in both, where there is no cooperation here between man and wild, only survival. For both us and the Giant, there was no question as to whether or not we assisted each other; we both ensured our own survivals, and it so happened that in the process we had to direct our efforts towards the same end. Now that that matter of business is aside, the Giant must be finished off; it is not so much that fact that bothers me, but more the fact that I have kill two, and a Dragon in the process, only to be compensated for the one.

I readied my conjured bound bow and fired a shot at the second Giant, hitting him in the thigh, just above the knee. He roared in pain, causing the first Giant to now spring into action and charge towards us. Aeola took out her staff of frost storms, and holding it in one hand, and her staff of chain lighting, she charged forward towards the Giants to meet them head on. Our attacks were focused on taking down the Giant running towards us, and they indeed halted his advance, but we did not give much attention to the second Giant. He too now ran towards Aeola who still did not see him coming as she was taking pleasure is seeing the Giant helplessly try to block her attacks. I tried to call out to her but there was too much noise and I was too far; I fired a volley of arrows at the second Giant but aside from a few, he managed to swat most of them away with his club. As he now towered over Aeola she turned her head up to him just in time to see him stomp his foot down, knocking her back in a cloud of dust and debris. The attack left her stunned for a moment, so I now ran towards her and conjured my wolf familiar to give me an opportunity to come to her aid. My familiar lunged at the second Giant but was quickly sent back to Oblivion, as the Giant swept it away with its club. While it didn't buy me enough time to make it to Aeola, it did give her enough time to get back on her feet. She began attacking the Giants again, this time with a staff trained on each one; I made it within several feet of her when the first Giant raised up his club and swung it down at Aeola. The force of the impact sent her flying in the air, my eyes could hardly keep up with the speed. "AEOLA NO!" I shouted as my companion was likely dead, and if not would most likely be when she hit the Giant swung his club at me, narrowly missing his target as I ran backwards, trying to fire arrows at him in the process. While running backwards, I had forgot about the Dragon corpse and tripped over its tail, causing me to fire an arrow straight into the air as I fell. The Giants rushed to me as I was scrambling to get back on my feet, and I just missed getting launched into the air like Aeola by a hair. I turned around to sprint away from them, as each one of their steps were equal to about six of mine, and they sparing no stamina chasing me down. I ran towards a cliff and jumped over the edge, briefly rolling down to the ground below; when the Giants stood over the edge, I fired my arrows at them, each one hitting their target as the Giants were completely exposed. Deciding not to jump down, the doubled back and went around the cliff to once again resume chase, giving me an opportunity to create more distance between us. Now on the plains below, I ran further away from Secunda's Kiss towards Western Watchtower in the distance; getting them to open ground would give me an advantage over them so long as I maintain my distance. The Giants gave chase, but were critically wounded as I hit them with my arrows, aiming for their knees and shoulders in order to incapacitate them. The second Giant having taken the most damage, knelt down on the ground as his injuries would no longer allow him to give chase. The first Giant stopped his pursuit to turn and see his companion down; as he watched, I fired an arrow that hit him in the chest, finally killing him.

The first Giant once again turned back to me with a curious expression on his face, a mix of both sorrow and rage; perhaps I had just slain his kin. The Giant was breathing heavy as his own injuries were wearing him down, but as if he knew it was his final act, the Giant slammed his club into the ground before raising it up over his head in defiance. I admired the Giant for this; he knew he was going to die, but rather than try to turn and run he stood his ground. I figured he had suffered enough and it was time to end this; I fired two arrows in rapid succession, both hitting him below his ribs and pointed up towards his heart. The Giant knelt down on one knee, took two more deep breaths as he looked at me and died. While I was checking the bodies, I heard shuffling in the grass behind me. I turned around with an arrow ready to fire to find that it was pointed at Aeola, who somehow had managed to survive a strike that would've more than likely killed anyone else. I shouldn't be surprised; she is a first class warrior, and I suppose that the glass armor she was wearing shielded her from the brunt of the damage, but still... I lowered my bow as Aeola came up to me, she seemed to be fine but clearly hasn't quite caught her breath as the club hit her directly in her chest; "are we going?" she said in between breaths, I nodded my head and smiled, happy that she was even able to speak at though it was still well before midday, I decided that it was likely unwise for Aeola to travel after such a blow, and that we should at least get a meal and some rest before we set off. We walked to the remains of what used to be a house that lies somewhere between Western Watchtower and Fort Greymoor; there was no roof, but at least there was a bed, and since the weather was clear today, not having cover was not an issue. While Aeola laid down to get some rest, I went out into the plains to find us some food; we still had provisions, but it's always better to gather food locally sourced, as you never know when you'll need those provisions again and not have them. I found a large deer that would provide us with the venison we would be eating; after killing and dressing the meat, I made my way back to the house where I had made a fire pit outside to cook on. I placed the venison on the spit and then went back inside to check on Aeola when I saw that she was no longer in the bed. I heard soft footsteps behind me which I had at first assumed to be her when I sensed a murderous aura; it wasn't her. "Don't move, give me all of your valuables before I cut you down" said the Khajiit behind me with its distinct accent. I slowly turned around to see him with a dagger pointed at me wearing glass armor similar to Aeola's, only he wore a hood while she wears a helm.

"If you value you your life, you will do as I say and hand over your treasures: the Khajiit hissed. "Where's Aeola" I asked him, but when I did it seemed that my response confused him. "Who is Aeola? Did you not hear me? Give me your valuables before I take your life" he said more firmly and likely annoyed. "I cant be bothered with this" I said as I turned away from him deciding he wasn't worth my time and walked out the side of the house to look for Aeola. "Don't you DARE disregard me! I will take your LIFE! And who the hell is AEOLA!?" yelled the now furious Khajiit from inside the house; "I'm right here". He turned around to see Aeola standing behind him, right before she bashed her shield into him knocking him back into a wall. He sprang to his feet and lunged at Aeola with his dagger, but fell short as I had fired an arrow into his calf, causing him to stumble in front of Aeola who once again bashed him with her shield, causing him to fall to his side. Aeola swung her Daedric Axe at him; he managed to roll away and avoid being killed by it, but he could not save his tail, which now lies separated from his body. As he rolled, he did so in such a way that he ended up facing me, and as he set his eyes on me I fired three arrows at him, all three hitting him in the gut; the Khajiit was no more. It's rather unfortunate really that this was to be his fate. the Cat-folk from the land of Elsweyr are more often than not met with hostility here in Skyrim; such is the case for pretty much everyone who isn't a Nord. But with the Khajiit, they aren't even allowed into most towns, and are generally forced to either work in trade caravans, as a bandit, or a thief. Empathy aside, he still attacked us, and we do have a good amount of valuables on us; I stripped him of his armor and anything else he had of value and dumped his body outside. Aeola once again laid down to rest as I went to check on the venison. So here I am, sitting outside by this fire, writing this down as I listen to the crackle of the fire, and the scent of roast venison fills my nostrils.