A Place Out of Time, Pt1

E4 202 First Seed

When Sasuke awoke the next morning, it was with stiff and aching joints. Of course the floor had been hard, and a deep, bone chilling cold made itself his new close friend.

"Good morning," Came a voice from the bed that even at this early hour filled him with irritation.

He looked up to see Naruto awake, lying casually on the bed, eating a morning roll.

"How'd ya sleep?"

Sasuke said nothing, rising and beginning to roll the blanket he'd spent a fitful night on.

Apparently, lack of response wasn't enough to deter conversation. Naruto continued. "Are you sore?"

"Hn. A good assassin doesn't fatigue so easily."

Naruto snorted. "I don't know how your faction ran things in the Imperial City, but that was the first time I've ever had to escape a dragon." He rolled his shoulder, rubbing absently at the muscle. "My body isn't used to this kind of stress. And with whatever happened in that cavern…"

Sasuke watched as the Nord slowed his movements at the recollection of the day before, his face pulling into a small frown.

It bothered him. Those in the Dark Brotherhood were not flappable beings. And if something could throw one off their game in their own native land, things did not bode well.

This was a problem double for Sasuke, who was equally confused to have woken in a feild adorned with dismembered bodies.

He grunted. "Why do you care if I'm sore?"

Naruto picked up the bag of coin left by Tsunade the night before and dropped it again, his eyes regaining some focus. "I can't have someone I'm traveling with be weak. But, I'm not sure how much we can spend on potions."

"We may not need to buy a potion. The trader might have an ingredient list." Sasuke was, in fact, very sore, though he refused to believe it was pride or competition that kept him from confiding that in his companion; it was a weakness to reveal your weakness, and while Naruto hadn't knifed him in his sleep, it was to be determined whether he was truly friend or foe. Creating their own potions would give him the excuse to test one and heal.

Sasuke hadn't noticed Naruto's focused excitement shift to him. "Really? You know how to make potions?"

Sasuke gave him a reproachful look. "Of course I do. You've never used poison before?"

"Sure I have, but I've only ever bought them."

"Hn. Figures."

It was Naruto's turn to glare. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Only fools buy poison from someone else. There is no way to assure its effectiveness if you didn't craft it yourself."

To his surprise, Naruto didn't get angry. He laughed. "Well excuse me for trusting the Dark Brotherhood's own Alchemist. But, I guess I won't be able to get back to her for a while."

Naruto's eyes once again went dull. Unable to handle the range of emotions he was seeing, Sasuke left to relieve himself for the morning. As he moved, he was careful not to show just how stiff he was.

In the communal washroom, he braced one foot on the side of a wooden tub to help stretch his aching legs. The room was humid from the hot spring water flowing through the wood tunnels, trickling here and there onto the floor. The room was empty, the water flowed through and out the passage. It's steam lingered heavily.

As he relieved himself, he found a burn on his shoulder that had gone unnoticed the day before. When he examined it he was able to determine it had come from one of the rocks lit with dragon flame. Sasuke counted himself extremely lucky the flame had not directly stuck him: The unwanted visual of the Dark Elf from yesterday's armor melting into her burning flesh came into his mind. He shuddered. At the time her death hadn't even registered to him, but the longer he closed his eyes the more he saw. Glistening black eyes, that evil maw full of teeth as long as his arm, the claws that crushed men, the blood that shone on the scales there.

His body wanted to flood with panic and nausea, but his training did not allow this. Sasuke opened his eyes and stared intently at his reflection, slowing his heartbeat, steeling his nerves.

As much as his traveling companion irritated him, there felt a weight lifted from his chest at the sight of him, talking casually with the woman from the night before.

Naruto's stance was open, a sly smile on his face. Tsunade was listening, eventually laughing loudly at whatever he was saying. At this, Sasuke frowned. People like Naruto were always trouble. Fast talking, charm-you-out-of-your-own-shoes types, nearly always had a bounty on them. Then why was there this tilt in his emotion, why would Naruto's presence cause him anything but annoyance?

He caught Sasuke's gaze, Tsunade shouting something grossly inappropriate for the setting after him, and he decided it must be the companionship of a another Dark Brotherhood member that eased his mind. Even if everyone else was fooled by Naruto, Sasuke was not.

"Ready to go, princess? I've gathered our things."

Sasuke glared deeply. "You have the gold?"

Naruto pulled open a pouch on his hip, revealing the sack of coin to Sasuke while keeping it out of the eyes of the other patrons. "Of course. Let's go."

"Hn."

He followed the other man out into the bitterly cold morning. A wind wound through the small town, making Sasuke's eyes water. The Nord shot him a crooked smile.

"The armors good, but not that good. We can pick up some more gear. Look, it's just over there." Naruto pointed to the weather worn sign, still swinging from the chilly breeze. Their pace picked up the slightest, and the warm was welcome.

"Hello, boys," a Imperial with a deep, cheery voice greeted. "You're here to stay, or just traveling through?"

"Tsunade sent us," Naruto replied with exuberant energy, dropping the coin pouch onto the counter. "We're traveling to Whiterun, she told us you'd have everything we need."

A woman, another Imperial, rose quickly from her seated position behind the shop owner. "Lucan, they're travelers! They look like they are strong enough to help us."

The man's face became embarrassed, "Camilla, no, see these are soldiers. They're on orders, they don't have time to help us."

"But Brother," The woman said, sadness in her eyes. "I know what it meant to you."

"Have you lost something?" Sasuke inquired.

The family turned to him, one hopeful and one stricken.

"Ah, yes...I have. But we won't trouble you!" The owner quickly covered. "I will warn you though, there is a bloody thief on the road...probably high tailing it to Whiterun to hawk it."

"What did you loose, sir? My companion and I can keep our eye out for any stolen wears. Maybe we could buy it back for you." Naruto gave a disarming smile.

The Imperial tentatively returned it. "I'm no 'sir', boy. Call me Lucan, and, this is my sister Camilla. They stole my Golden Claw, a golden dragon's claw. It was the pride of my shop.

Sasuke watched Naruto carefully. Strange coincidence that a dragon's claw ornament goes missing around the same time as a dragon sighting. Any surprise Naruto felt was not betrayed in his features as he replied. "Wow, what a shame! I bet it was worth a fortune!"

"Sure was," The man grimaced. "Worth so much I couldn't possibly buy it back. There is really nothing I can do, my days of adventuring are long over." There was a sad sigh, but a scoff from his sister.

"Like you ever did any adventuring."

"Just how do you think I got that claw?"

She huffed, drawing a laugh from both Lucan and Naruto.

"Well boys, I think it's about time we sent you on your way with what you came for, eh?"

Naruto's personality, though grating on Sasuke, proved useful when the merchant gave them the ingredient list for free, sold them the wheat and imp stool, and told them where to find a free alchemy table in Whiterun. With the gold Tsunade had given them they were able to upgrade weapons (though only to a fraction of the quality Sasuke was accustomed to) and pick up extra gear to keep out the cold as well as the map they had originally been sent for. Sasuke hadn't commented, but he did think it odd to buy a map when Naruto had boasted his knowledge of the land the night before.

Walking out of the shop, Sasuke was jostled when Naruto knocked into his shoulder in a friendly manner. He had practically fallen out of the shop, sharing last laughs with the family inside. Sasuke didn't say it, but it made him wonder how life would have been had Sasuke and Itachi's parents been around for much longer than they had. Such a stupid, sentimental thought grated on his agitation, and he couldn't resist the temptation to lash out.

Sasuke leaned into Naruto's side and said in a low voice, "You're quite friendly for a murderer."

Naruto's smile didn't falter as he replied just as softly, "You're kinda acting like one, maybe you should tone it down a bit."

His lack of reaction at the jab only made Sasuke's mood worse and he glared at the smiling man.

The path was clear and well marked, after Naruto had inspected the map they traveled in uneasy quiet.

After a long while, Sasuke couldn't refrain from a glance over at Naruto, agitation continuing to make him restless. He wanted to get a solid reading on the other man. He was an extremely typical Nord; Bright, friendly and energized but quick to fight or brawl, and very blue of the Stormcloak uniform make Naruto's eyes stand out even more, another strongly Nordic trait. He had come off dim-witted to Sasuke, and seemed to present himself that way to the world. Never in a hundred Era's would he have guessed Naruto to be member of the Dark Brotherhood, and it that manipulation of how he is perceived was likely part of how he earned a place among their ranks. Naruto had already shown skills in planning and calculation; combine with his ability to use his personality as an absolute weapon with what Sasuke had witnessed of Naruto's ruthless fighting...it made for quite a murderer.

Sasuke already hated to meet new Dark Brotherhood members back in his own guild as it was, and Naruto was no exception. There were many complex layers to his guildmates, and one easily grew tired of predicting what was happening underneath the underneath.

Though tired, all of the experience proved helpful. Play it off as well as he might, Sasuke could tell that Naruto was unnerved by something. It was obvious to both of them that they were shocked by the dragons, this was true, but Sasuke couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more.

The wind whipped bits of snow into his eyes, forcing him to turn and face the man he walked with. Sasuke decided it was time to probe. With the right line of questioning, he should be able to discern where the problem lie as well as gain some useful information. Naruto seemed to be bent on some sort of comradery, he may as well use it to his advantage.

"Naruto, what do you know about the Stormcloaks? I didn't know that Skyrim had a rebellion."

Unexpectedly, this stopped Naruto in his tracks, but he didn't turn to Sasuke. For him, this clinched it. Naruto stared with calculating eyes at the landscape. The path they traveled had led them to a waterfall, the river cutting the mountains in half and winding its way down into grassy plains. In the distance, men and women bundled in furs worked the fields.

Sasuke reached for Naruto, taking his arm and applying enough pressure to get his attention. "What are you keeping from me."

Naruto frowned at the other man as if in deep conflict with himself. There was another silence, Naruto staring hard into Sasuke's unyielding gaze, before seeming to make up his mind.

"Something is different here. You had never been to Skyrim before, right?"

He shook his head. This had been his first time, missions didn't usually take him out of Cyrodiil.

"This is my home. I keep an ear to the ground here, and as of yesterday, there was no rebellion. These Stormcloaks, they've got royalty. They've got a regime. They're taking over towns, and I never heard of them? That's just not possible. That sounds like full blown war."

Sasuke refused to become unnerved, but he couldn't help the gnawing feeling in his gut. "You may listen well but a single town being taken by a rebellion has happened before, and it can happen quickly. I hardly see it fit to worry Skyrim has changed. That man's finery meant nothing."

To his surprise, Naruto didn't react. His shoulders sagged almost imperceptibly but he pressed on, shaking his head. "Even the trees, the towns, the paths, they're all different. Since when do ice wolves live between Whiterun and Riverwood? I knew no one back in that town, these trails are not my trails. And dragons? Ha, don't even get me started."

"What are you saying, Naruto?"

"This isn't Skyrim, Sasuke. I don't know where we are, but this is not the place I left when I went into that cave."

The way that Naruto spoke left no room for doubt, he was convinced something was wrong with his homeland. Sasuke took a deep breath, thinking of his own home. He knew it was going to take him a long while to procure enough provisions to make it back to the Imperial City, and several more moons after that to make the journey. He needed to return to his brother, and report back to his guild.

Whether or not Naruto was correct in the fear that Skyrim had somehow changed in his absence, the presence of dragons was certainly a sign to Sasuke. Animals that have been vanquished for hundreds of years do not suddenly reappear to wreak havoc. He would need to leave, and soon. Hopefully while the dragons remained out of Cyrodiil.

"Naruto," Sasuke called the other man out of his reverie. "This might not be your home, though I don't know how it could be anything else, but it is not mine either. After we report to the Jarl, we will be parting ways."

Naruto made a sound at him, but continued walking. There was some sarcasm to his voice. "You're going to leave Skyrim after you discover dragons? They haven't existed for thousands of years and you're going to walk away from that, no questions asked?"

Sasuke's brow furrowed. "After what we both saw, I don't believe you blame me."

Naruto made another sound.

"Why are you doing that?" He glared.

"No reason..I just didn't know the Dark Brotherhood where you're from is full of milk-drinkers."

Sasuke frowned. "Only a fool would rise to that challenge. We are no milk-drinkers, we are survivors above all else."

"So you're close with your guildmates, then?"

"Why would I tell you?" He sneered.

Naruto glared at him, brows drawn tight and his eyes tired. He said nothing.

It was the second time Sasuke felt he was seeing beneath Naruto's mask, the first being the dragon attack. Then he had been too overwhelmed himself to know it for what it was.

Sasuke felt satisfied. Naruto might be able to manipulate everyone else into doing what he wanted, but Sasuke would not show such weak will. Perhaps he could continue pushing Naruto beyond the facade.


The chapter was just getting too long, so I cut off the opening portion to serve up to you on a golden platter as a reminder that I am still actually writing things story.

To tease you even further I will drop that there are already 10 more pages of this chapter, and I am about halfway done...this was just the best place to stop what I had going so far. I will finish it by Feb 28th.

I apologize for not having updated in over a year. Fanfiction has come back to me as a way to de-stress and unwind, and I am hoping to write chunk after chunk of this and Aftermath until they're both complete. If you notice any errors involving the absence of the letter 'd', please let me know. I had to replace my keyboard, and the new one seems to occasionally reject it.

Thank you for all of the favorites, follows, and reviews! Each one is motivating to me! You are all very, very wonderful.