AN: Sorry this took me forever, I've been extremely busy with school life and friends. You know, life can be a time killer. Btw, I changed the way Sabertooth and a few people are a little bit. I hope you can spot the differences. :D
The horseless carriage twists and turns as it travels down the road. The darkness of the carriage of the inside hides the dragonslayers as if a looming shadow is protecting them. The elder is sitting seemingly comfortably in the front, and his intimidating aura is gone. After hours of thinking, Tatehwa adopts a gentle smile, a genuine smile for the old man in front of her. It's a change for a start, maybe a necessary one if she's being honest with herself. Skyrim and High Rock left their marks on her; however, here it's, "A whole new wor-"
"Hugh!" Saber groans as the carriage stumbles. He fumbles around on the carriage's seats like how one would toss around on an inn's bed. Tatehwa twists her head in annoyance. People are loud, unnecessarily loud. At least it's not his own conscious fault and if anything it was hers. Saber groans and fumbles again for the hundredth time, making the carriage rock again.
Tatehwa says, "You poor, poor creature. I don't think a cure potion could fix what you have." She rolls her eyes and leans over to the window. "I guess what goes around, comes around." The dark dunes of sand and rock come into eyesight despite it being night. They stretch for miles and miles, as far as her eyes could see. It appears as if the same thing over and over, a great thing that she loves yet despises. Do something enough and it gets boring, but then again, there are always greater horizons to reach that come with doing something over and over. Skyrim taught her that. Reality snaps back into her eyes as her daydream ends as she casts another heat spell to stave off the creeping cold of the night.
Her attitude grows sour as the memories of her adventures resurface. Bigger groups always did attract more attention. At least one person could ruin an entire operation or make the operation successful beyond measure. Assassins, hitmen, or a random beast/contraption always did come for her and her friends' lives. The sourness drops from her face as she wonders. "Perhaps it might be different here?"
Sting shifts around again. A quiet whisper escapes his mouth. Not loud enough to be heard well, but quiet enough to get Tatehwa to notice, and she leans closer to Sting. She closes her eyes and stops to listen.
A faint name escapes his mouth with pain, "Lector." Even in the darkness of night and the cast of moonlight, Tatehwa could still see the look of genuine sorrow in vivid detail. His clawing of the seats, his heavy gasps, and his constant shuffling. Oh, how she wishes she could ward off his agony, but she could only stare. Stare at the nightmare she caused for this young man. Maybe he never had the chance to face his fears until now, or maybe this was something greater than she knew?
Tatehwa places her hand on top of Saber's forehead. A wet and cold sensation overtakes her hand. She could feel his anguish coursing through her! Mental images flash through her mind. An orange khajiit-looking creature leaving him, a dark friend delving into the shadows, a salamander with searing flames, and a guild hall that no longer feels like home. Why?
Despite this, there is something lurking in the dark here. A powerful presence lay at the back of everything coursing through her. It's an enlightening yet dark presence now lurking in the back of her mind as well.
Tatehwa could see it now. A white dragon in an open field of grass, staring her right in the face as if they are equal. It takes a step closer. Then another. Then the steps kick up into a slow walk, and the walk turns into a run! The booming footsteps of the dragon drive her mad as they get closer and closer, louder and louder. Her instincts beg for her to get out of the way, but she refuses. She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. A deafening roar pierces her ears. However, she takes another breath and the noise of the carriage drowns out the roar until it's no more than a memory.
Tatehwa's eyes snap open and she sees that Saber's eyes are wide open too. She looks directly into his eyes. They took the shape of a dragon's. A moment of silence takes place between the two before Tatehwa rears back, leaving Sting in confusion.
The carriage stops and a voice calls from the front of the carriage, "We're here." The carriage shakes and groans as he lifts himself off.
"Would you be so kind as to give me a tour of your guild?" Tatehwa asks with a kind tone.
"Uh yeah, sure," he responds with uncertainty.
They both get out of the carriage. The first thing she sees is a large flight of stairs. She brings her gaze up and she gasps in amazement at the massive structure before her, assessing it from top to bottom.
Sabertooth's headquarters itself appears to be a massive complex of several structures joined together, with some of them even sitting on top of the others. The building's appearance imposes power while being similar to a pyramid with a seemingly infinite number of facades, windows, pillars, and pointed towers protruding upwards from its upper half. A massive stone-carved sabercat lies on the tip of the tower, hence the name Sabertooth. The structure looks like it could collapse at any second yet it looks like it's been there for a long time, maybe even centuries. An architectural wonder this place truly is! The magical density is so rich! It almost feels like the magical College of Winterhold yet more destructive.
"Truly spectacular this place is!" Tatehwa says in astonishment. "Whoever is the mastermind behind this, I simply must meet them," Tatehwa says as she continues to walk up the stairs, and into the guild hall with the elder and Sting. The elder cracks open the door to the sounds of civilization. Distinct smells of food and spices grace her nose, the sound of laughter and playful yells fill her ears, and the air feels so refreshing and light. She takes her first step into the guild hall. The moment she does so, the guild members freeze to look at her.
"Hello everyone. My name is Tatehwa Horondo. I can be a powerful ally or a deadly foe, so don't get in my way," she warns. The crowd remains silent, "but together, Sabertooth shall remain the strongest guild in Fiore!" The crowd goes wild at the last part and merrily resume what they're activities. First Impressions are half the battle after all.
"Jura, come over here and give this woman our mark," the elder calls out. He proceeds to walk past the crowd and up some stairs into the depths of the building. Sting proceeds past her and proceeds to walk over to a table with a person dressed in all black, a short orange khajiit looking thing, and a… toad?
"As you wish, Guild Master Jiemma," a man responds from behind the bar on the right side of the hall. He pulls a stamper from under the counter and raises his hand to call her over. She approaches and observes the Jura. He has short dark blue hair, soft brown eyes, and a heavy scar underneath his right eye. He has a strict yet loose posture, some toned muscles, and the Sabertooth mark on his left forearm. She takes a seat near Jura and asks, "What happens now?"
Jura happily responds, "You, Ms. Rich and Beautiful, tell me where you want this little badge of honor and then you're an official guild member. It's painless, quick, and durable enough to last a lifetime. So, where do you want it?"
Where do I want it? Hand? No. Forehead? No. Heart? No. Her face explodes with realization as the perfect idea pops into her head. "Can I get a small mark underneath my throat but slightly above the center of my collar bone?" It's location set between the heart, the mind, and her vocal cords being a perfect position.
"Sure, but you may want to change into something that'll give me more open access to that area. It'll be easier that way." Jura says with a wink.
Tatehwa brightly fazes away her Equilibrium set in favor of a set of somewhat common clothes from her land. A baggy long-sleeve white dress acts as the main piece while a dark yet soft red corset covers a part of the torso and ties the look together with brown laces on the stomach area and shoulder-to-back straps. A multicolored flash emits from her new appearance for a split second after. "Let's begin."
Tatehwa resists pulling away as the cold steel presses upon her lower neck. A tingling sensation takes its place and Jura places it beneath the counter.
Jura formally begins, "You are now, officially, a member of the guild. As a member of our guild, you can accept quests from the quest board. Quests are ranked from rank D to rank S and vary in difficulty. Many of these quests will be extremely dangerous and will often require you to travel far. You will receive pay, recognition, and a warm welcome to your new home as you complete and return from your quests." Jura releases a sigh as he finishes his mantra and turns. But right before he goes to grab a drink from the shelf behind him, he says, "Oh, I almost forgot," he reaches underneath the counter again, "to give you your standard issue map of Fiore."
Tatehwa nods as she absorbs the information and graciously grabs the map. "Thank you, Jura." She turns and walks away. She sees the other members. They are acting as a guild should, and it reminds her of her time with the Companions: battle-hardened and honor bound warriors that fight for the common good and a bit of coin.
She walks past the arm wrestling men and women and the tables full of members discussing various things with a quest in mind. However, a familiar voice perks her interest and she moves to it. She blocks out all sound and focuses on her target. Sting, a dark figure, and two small pets come into view.
"I don't understand! How could I, a third-generation Dragonslayer, lose!" Sting growls. "I swear, she was toying with me, but next time I'll use everything I got." Sting slams his hand on the table with holy fire in his eyes. So he is a dragonslayer. Interesting.
The dark figure calmly speaks, "Sting, let's do a quest, and get your mind off things." He turns to the small orange khajit. "Wouldn't you agree, Lector?"
"Yeah, Rogue." He turns to Sting. "Even though you lost Sting, I'm sure you learned a lot from that battle and you'll do better next time."
"Frosch thinks the same," the other small khajit in a suit says.
Sting replies, "Thanks, guys." He smiles and says, "Now let's do a quest!" They get up and arrive at the quest board. Tatehwa follows and takes an empty seat nearby. "Let's go for the most dangerous one. Wait a second," he grabs a piece of paper from the board and turns to his allies, "there has been incoming reports of a dragon wrecking havoc near Magnolia. We've dealt with dragons before so we should be the perfect group!" Sting grabs the piece of paper and turns. He looks right at Tatehwa. "Perhaps you would like to join us?"
Tatehwa appears shocked for once, but quickly recovers, "Very well. I would be honored to join you four."