Cearbhail:

And now, Chapter 6. So... any mistakes I post up here in the comments... remember, today is April Fools. Maybe I'm purposefully saying things too early? Or... perhaps I'm stupid and I get things wrong? You'll never know... ah, who am I kidding? Of course everyone knows I'm doing it on purpose.

Anyway...

=^^= Enjoy...

Immediately after I heard Erandur passed, I left for my Restoration class. I'm sure I'll run into those two again and when I do, we'll party. I'm not sure if we're friends yet, but I don't hate them and I think they don't hate me. Davilia seems nice if not a bit shy and reclusive and Erandur isn't the asshole Altmer that I expected him to be. As far as Altmer went, he seemed down to Nirn. It wasn't every day you see an Altmer who talks to Khajiits and Dunmer like we were equals but Erandur talked to both Davilia and I like we were the experts. As long as I've known Altmer, even if they know nothing about the craft in front of them, they still act like the superiors.

Honestly…I wouldn't surprise if Altmer started wearing black robes and tried to take over the other races. They believe themselves better than everyone else already so…what could possible possess them to make them think that they were good enough to take over? I wouldn't be surprised if they took advantage of the ruined Empire and started controlling Cyrodiil. Jurard mentioned a Dominion in Summerset Isles. A group of battlemages. I wonder if they'll somehow protect us from the eventual Altmer uprising. After all… they're battlemages like us. They can't be all bad. And if the worst comes to pass and Cyrodiil falls to some kind of Altmer supremacy, I wouldn't be surprised if Elsweyr and Skyrim became the last refuge places for the other races. Or even Hammerfell. Or High Rock. Or Black Marsh, Morrowind. I don't know why I'm even worrying; no matter how strong the Altmer think they are, they simply can't just take over so many nations with a small group of mages. Not where there are so many battlemages and soldiers. Especially Witchhunters… if they're good at killing mages anyway.

Anyway, I was sitting in my chair; waiting for the Restoration class to begin. I haven't seen Davilia or Erandur come in yet, maybe they aren't taking Restoration this season. Just as I thought, Crassi and Clemens were in this class as was Pra'ja and that witchhunter girl Calfire. I was sitting at a table with Pra'ja. These tables were only long enough for two people. Crassi and Clemens were sitting at the table next to us. There were other people coming into the room and our instructor waited patiently behind her desk. As far as I could tell, our instructor was a Breton and a healer. She just seemed to have a smile that warmed me up, but there was something in her eyes that just made my fur rise coldly. I could tell everyone was falling for her angelic smile. Everyone but Pra'ja and me. She seemed to have the same apprehension I did. The other students were smiling and relaxing in their seats while Pra'ja and I sat there uncomfortably. Looking around, I could see someone else was not falling for her smile; an Argonian.

This Argonian had deep forest green scales with purple neck skin, and lavender feathers that fell down around her right shoulder. She was sitting in the farthest corner to the room, where it was darkest. She didn't wear any robes that were of our mage program. She was not a battlemage. Her program patch just showed a six-star diagram with every magick discipline in a corner of the star. I'm guessing she was a General Studies degree then. She had this look in her eyes as she scanned our teacher, a certain distrust of her… one I shared when I looked back at her. Everything about her spoke about just how disciplined she was. A lot of mages seem to slack, even move at a slow and patient pace. I could see from this Argonian that she would likely run from class to class. And the look in her eyes as she scanned the room. It was like she was scanning the room for a quick exit, and even judging everyone for some sort of weakness to exploit. She looked just as cautious as I felt when her eyes settled on our professor.

The Argonian caught me looking at her. She held a stare with me for a full second before blinking and holding up her hand. She flipped me off, glaring at me, even showing her teeth. I quickly turned myself away. Wow… never had anyone give me the middle finger before. That's a first.

Our instructor glanced at the clock and stood up. As soon as it clicked to start the new hour, our professor rose from her seat. "Welcome to Restoration 101. Here you will learn the basics of healing yourself and others. If you already know how to do both; please forgive me. You can test out of this class anytime you wish; but you must demonstrate your healing abilities through a series of tests that will not only test your magical ability to heal, but your ability to shut out pain while healing yourself."

"What about draining life?" I looked over my shoulder to see the Argonian with an attitude problem sitting there with her hand raised up. Of course she would ask about Drain Life. It's a powerful spell, no doubt. The power to steal life energy from someone else and use it to heal your own wounds. I couldn't think of a reason to not know a spell like that. I turned around again to see what the professor had to say about it.

Our instructor pursed her lips and shook her head. I could just barely see a small twitch in her left eye. Jeez… I do not want to get on her bad side anytime soon. There's just… something wrong with her. "Sorry, but I don't dabble in darker side of Restoration. I am Sister Marie Palielle. I was the healer at the Chapel of Julianos in Skingrad, and I have sworn off violent means of using my holy energy given to me by Julianos. If you wish to learn how to hurt and maim others by using our most-blessed righteous Restoration blessing, I suggest you wait until next season where you can be taught the use of such barbaric means of our blessed magic from a better-suited barbarian. The class is called 'Combative Restoration'. You can sign up for that next season if you pass my class."

The Argonian raised her hand and said, "I'm ready to test out."

Sister Marie nodded and pulled out a silver knife. She half-smiled as she turned around gingerly. The small glazed-over look in her eyes spoke volumes to me about her current mood. There was a slight pause as the professor gently rocked on her heels, brushing her robes flat as she looked up at the Argonian girl. "Come over here, then."

I glanced back at the Argonian. There was an edge in her stance now. She looked ready for a fight, and her eyes squinted as she addressed her next question. "Wait…what's the knife for?"

Sister Marie smiled. It was a shaky smile, one that flicked in-between a frown and a smile while thinking of her response. It didn't take long before she said, "Well, I have to stab you… a lot. Remember, I not only have to test your ability to heal, I also have to test your ability to shut out a lot of pain while you try to heal yourself. I must make sure you can heal your wounds. Stabbing you in the hand is the most painful and acceptable of tests to see if you can handle healing yourself while you're in pain and under stress. If I do it a couple hundred times, I can fairly assess if you can handle healing yourself. The real question is…can you heal someone else as well?"

Sister Marie looked at me. "You, Khajiit. You will be her test partner. I will stab you in the arm. Her goal will be to heal you before the allotted time is up. Come up here." She waved me forward.

I looked back at the Argonian. Was this really happening? I didn't want to walk up and get stabbed for some test! The Argonian glared at me as I looked back at her. She seemed to share my sentiments about me not getting stabbed. Her eyes hardened and she looked over to our professor. "Hey! He's not the one testing out! Why not volunteer yourself as my test partner? I'll be glad to stab you if it means having a healing partner."

Marie smiled through her teeth. Her eyes were glazing over again. Jeez… this woman scares my fur straight up. "I need to be coherent enough to assess your healing ability. I cannot do that if I'm dying on the floor. The Khajiit student will be sufficient."

Pra'ja bumped her arm against mine. When I glanced at her, she was shuffling a small note in her hand. She slid the note to me, and I took it from her. The note was already open, so I just looked down at it. Dude… I think we need to suggest a new teacher for this class. I actually want to be alive long enough to graduate.

I couldn't stop myself from chuckling, but luckily our teacher was still focused on the Argonian sitting on the other side of the room.

The Argonian growled before slamming herself back down into her seat. "Then forget it! I'm not letting you stab someone else just to see if I can heal an open wound."

Sister Marie gently put down her knife, clearing her throat. She smiled as she addressed the rest of the class. "Well…if any of you wish to test out, please let me know. Otherwise, you will pass this class when I say you do." She smiled at all of us. It was like she had forgotten that she just almost got away with having two of her students stabbed to almost near death. What type of healer was this? Who on mundus decided she was the type of person that needed to be in charge of this class? I can't see Arch Mage Ernard approving her as an instructor. Well… she's my foster mother so… I should talk to her about this when she gets back from her mission. I think I can do something about this. Get this looney out of here before she hurts me… or my sister. Oh my gods… I really have to get rid of her now.

I couldn't help but feel just a little…scared by her complete innocence. She couldn't have been serious about stabbing her in the hand or me in the arm. That must have been a test itself. The fact that she only looked over at me and the Argonians also scared me. Was she prejudice or something? That made my tail flick in anger. I could forgive the stupid Khajiit-only bathing pools. That made sense to me. It's not right… but it made sense. But this… this kind of shit ruffles my fur. And looking over at Pra'ja, I could see it upset her too. I couldn't stand for this. Adam was going to hear about this when class was over tonight. I took Pra'ja's note, writing down, I'll make sure Adam knows about this. She won't be here long.

Pra'ja smirked at reading the comment. A flick of her finger and the message changed. Jeez, at least learn how to do Illusion-based messaging. She might be a racist bigoted idiot, but even she can see you writing with a quill. When I glanced up, I could see that the teacher wasn't even looking at me. She was too busy pulling out a book for her to read from.

"Open your annauds to Chapter 1. In the beginning, there was only Anu and Padomay…"

And so…. That was our Restoration class for the next two hours. Sister Marie spoke of the gods and whatnot, teaching the class as if nothing was wrong and especially like she didn't know that everyone on this ship was no dead afraid of her. After that exchange between her, me, and the Argonian girl, even Crassi and Clemens saw through her fake smile. I was glad to hear it too; it meant more witnesses for Adam to hear from.

The restoration asshole started explaining exactly how the Nine Divines guided and protected us all and how they taught the first Altmers the power of Restoration. These first priests were the ones who started using Restoration to heal any travelers who were ill or wounded to the point of death. Travelers would travel the whole world just to come and learn this new art or to receive healing themselves. I actually found it interesting to listen to. However… that was the class. No practicing Restoration, no discussion of how to actually heal any part of the body. I guess that part will come later though. We have almost two months to practice healing magicka. Was it really just as easy as asking for a blessing from the gods? Somehow… I doubted that. I prayed to Alkosh all day long when we were in the wilds. And although that led us to becoming mages… we could have just as easily not been in the situation to get zapped by a dark welkynd stone.

The class finished up after the longest three hours I had to sit through all day. Three hours of listening to a sister gospel about the glory of the gods. And not just any gods… the elven gods. The Nine gods. NO mention of any Khajiit gods, Argonian, or otherwise. Just the nine accepted elven gods, and the One Talos. I felt like smashing my head on the table, and I really wanted to raise my hand and ask her about Alkosh. I might do that tomorrow if I get bored. Just to change things up. Maybe I can get Pra'ja to advocate for her Argonian gods too. The two of us could stir up a lot of trouble in the class, I'm already sure of it.

Somehow… I think this was a balancing act for my karma. My other two classes were wonderful, and I loved my instructors. I have the best battlemage as a teacher, and my Destruction class is begin headed up by newly discovered uncle. So it was only natural that this class would be the one to have a racist boring priestess that scares the crap out of me. Destruction…safe, fun. Possible loving parental figure. Enchanting, well it's enchanting…ha. That's always funny in my book. Seriously… it's a joke in the book. Right in chapter one. Restoration…scared the crap out of me. I don't know even where to begin with this shit. How can Restoration be the scary class? Shouldn't Destruction be scary? However, if this teacher can be dealt with… that will fix this whole thing altogether. And I will be telling Adam about her. She needs to go.

As soon as the small bell chimed on the clock, Sister Marie paused in her telling of Akatosh's glorious reign over the Akaviri. She looked up at the clock, smiling with her shaky smile. "Well… I guess that will be enough for today. Tomorrow we'll start where we left off."

Crassi held up her hand. "Ma'am… when do we practice Restoration?"

She looked up at Crassi like a crazy person. Her eyes were wide, threatened by the very question. "Dear… to truly understand Restoration, one must first understand the gods' wills. With Faith comes practice. If you don't understand this… you will never learn Restoration." She slammed the book in her hand, shakily setting it down on the table. She turned to address the rest of us. "I will see you all tomorrow. And don't forget to read ahead. The further ahead you read… the stronger your Restoration will become. Have a blessed day."

Pra'ja stood up from her seat, screaming, "FREEDOM!" And with a snap of her fingers, she vanished in a puff of dark purple smoke. Kind of like an assassin. I couldn't stop myself from laughing at the look in our professor's face at seeing Pra'ja vanish like that.

I stood up to leave but I found myself looking back at the Argonian girl sitting in the corner of the room. She was just sitting there, her arms crossed. She was glaring at the professor, giving her a warning glare. She caught my eye for a second, giving me a warning glare as well. We held a staring contest for a few seconds before she flipped me off again. I decided to get back to getting myself ready to go.

Crassi stopped by me before walking out of the room. "Vatu. I just want to let you know how this goes. At 1800, we meet up outside the mage quarters. I'm sure you've already heard… you did have a class with our program supervisor earlier today. Anyway, you probably don't want to eat anything too heavy. We always suggest something like soup, water, oatmeal. But not a lot of oatmeal. Just something to give you some energy. After our evening class is over, we all like to meet up and go to this place in town. I'll show you. We battlemages like to be like a family. After all… we kind of are. Anyway…" She slapped me on the arm. "See you tonight." With that, she left the room with Clemens right beside her.

I looked back at the Argonian girl with the long purple feathers. She was still just sitting there, but now she was slowly starting to put her book away in her satchel. I had this bad feeling that if I were to leave the room… something bad was going to happen. With what happened between the Argonian girl, me, and this professor… I had this foreboding feeling that if I were to leave just now… someone would end up bleeding on the floor. And everyone else was quickly clearing out of the room. It was just me… the teacher… and the Argonian girl. And I'm just standing here, looking like an idiot. I wasn't even packed up yet.

I locked eyes with the deranged Sister Marie. She was at her table, but she leaned forward, her hand landing right on top of her dagger she wanted to stab me with earlier. She gave me her twisted smile as she batted her eyes at me. "Is there something you wish to discuss, Khajiit?" Oh my gods… I really needed to change my loincloth right now.

I started to stammer, but the Argonian walked up. "No, he is just waiting for me. Come, friend." She grabbed me by the arm and started to pull me out of the classroom. It was a very fast, forceful tug as she yanked me out of the room. "Wait… my stuff." I didn't get the chance to grab my Restoration book, but then again… it's an annuad. I just buy another one. Not like I want to go back in with that crazy woman standing over her knife. Once we cleared the doorway, the girl tailed around the edge of the building and started to pull me into an alley. I was suddenly even more scared of this moment all on its own. She was pulling me into the alleyway which was quickly becoming darker, almost as if she were using Shadow to make it darker.

The girl released me from her hold and spun to face me. I was ready for whatever she had to say. She sighed as she dipped down into a slight bow. "I am sorry for almost getting you involved in that…test. If she hadn't turned her hand towards you…I would have tested out. Being stabbed holds no power on me and she knew it so she wanted to test my resolve on someone else." She shook her head. "Only cowards use hostages like that."

I smiled. Ok… so, she wasn't some bad person. I half expected to hear her tear me a new one for some reason or another. "That's ok. Being stabbed…hopefully won't have a hold on me either." That was a thing I never expected to hear myself admit before. I don't know why I even said it.

She rose up from her bow, crossed her arms, and blew a strand feather in front of her face away as her eyes started to harden again. "And now… the real reason I brought you back here. You waited for me to leave. Why?"

I stepped back. Her eyes were starting to grow sharp again. She was giving me that glare that told me that I was about to be stabbed by her if I didn't tell her the right answer. I might find out after all if getting stabbed will have any power over me. Who am I kidding? Of course, it will! Getting stabbed leads to death, in case I had forgotten. It holds power over everyone… except liches. Unless you find their heart and stab the heart. Then… and only then, can one truly fly the Dutchman. Ha… small joke. It's an old rumor about a lich captain that sails around the Yokuda seas. He collects the souls of the dead and dying. Oh right, I was having a conversation with this girl. "I was just making sure you were safe. You were the last one in the class, and honestly, I don't trust our instructor enough to leave you alone with her."

She scoffed at the comment, shaking her head with a small smile on her face. "Thanks for the thought but I wanted to be alone with her. I wanted her to stab me. I wanted a reason to kill her."

"Kill her?" That was different. Never heard that from someone's mouth before.

"Yes, kill her. She hides torture by naming it testing resolve. She threatens others instead of the target. She's evil as far as I'm concerned and evil…needs punished. And as a Shadowblade… I would be honored to put her down myself. I wanted to see just how evil she was. If she tried to kill me, it solidifies my resolve to end her." Shadowblade? That Argonian I met in Bruma Mages Guild called himself that too. He pretty much explained that they are the battlemages of Black Marsh. So, was she saying she's a battlemage from Black Marsh?

I never had someone talk about killing in such a simplistic way though. This girl… what kind of monster was she? Then again… I never had to fight bandits or whatnot, but I did have to kill countless deer, fish, and whatnot to survive. And as a battlemage, I will be called to kill necromancers that need to be taken out. And our new professor… she was a murderer in the making. She was like what I imagined necromancers will be like. She's my real-life example of the evil I'll be training to fight one day. This girl is just one step ahead of me on the resolve of doing it. She was a better battlemage when it came to practice.

The girl noticed my shift in my eyes. She stuck out her hand, nodding to me. "But… you already knew this. I saw the way you were uncomfortable in that room. You wanted to leave… but you didn't. All because you were worried for me? I'm honored by your own resolve. You didn't know me… you didn't owe me anything, but… still you cared enough to place my wellbeing over your own. I could have easily shadowported away, like your friend, leaving you completely at the mercy of our racist teacher. And still… you risked your own life to keep me safe." Well… when you state it like that, I had no idea I was that position to begin with. She could have just… vanished in a puff of smoke like Pra'ja? Oh man… I would have shit my loincloth if she had done that in the class room. "And there's always the alternative fact that I could have just as easily teamed up with her and helped her kill you." Well… there goes my loincloth.

The Argonian girl broke into a smile as she glared at my terrified face. She shook her head, laughing as she said, "You poor boy. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, but you look so cute when your fur is fluffed up." She reached out, pulling on my facial fur. She stuck out her hand for a handshake. "I'm Nexa. You?"

I took her hand, shaking it. "Vatu. Nice to meet you." She had a tight grip, one that she didn't feel like loosening anytime soon. "So, what program are you in?" I noticed that her patch was something entirely different than anything I've seen since I got here. No one at all seemed to have one like it.

"I'm in the General Studies program. And you're a Battlemage; I can see it on your patch. I'm here studying regular magicka before heading back home to Argonia. It's… harder than I imagined. I'm programmed with Shadow, and learning traditional magicka… it's difficult. But… it's not impossible. Our Shadowwraiths can do it."

"Shadowwraith?" What's that?

Nexa sighed. "It's Argonia's version of a mage. Our magicka is… different, I'm sure you're aware. You were quite chummy with that blue-scale sitting next to you." If Nexa had an eyebrow, it would have cocked just then. "Anyway, it takes a lot of dedication and practice, but in time… and with plenty of juice, any Argonian born under the Apprentice, Mage, Ritual, or Atronach sign can learn magicka. We are born with our Shadow, but we can learn how to form our Shadow into more. A fire will look dark purple, dark blue, or even jet black… but it will still burn. Our Shadow is very versatile… and our White Robes use a white Light… the opposite of Shadow. They are our healers. So… Shadow cannot heal… only Light can. I'm trying to get in touch with my Light. My uncle Julanza seems to think that getting in touch with my Light will bring balance to my life. So far… it's not working too well. I'm getting frustrated." Nexa let out a groan and a sigh. "I might just pack up my bags and go back home to Argonia."

"Argonia? Don't you mean Black Marsh?" I've never heard it called that before.

"No…shadowscales don't call it by the Empire given name 'Black Marsh'. We still have pride in our Queen. We are Argonians and we live in Argonia: our own country, not some province ruled by some dead ruler who was replaced by the next royal person who is not born of dragon blood, who bought their way onto the throne." She finally released my hand.

I nodded. "Khajiits feel the same way. We own our land, not the Imperials."

She walked past me, heading even further into the alleyway. "Every country feels that way. Only the Bretons, Nords, and the Redguards accepted the Empire into their lands. The Orcs lost their land in battle and the High Elves wish to own it themselves. Every other nation just smiles and bears their little game of 'we're here to protect you'. Yeah, right. You can bet that one day someone is going to stand up to them and push them out of their country. I wouldn't be surprised if it were Elsweyr or even Valenwood. I would say Argonia would be the first to fight…but the Empire already has no hold on us. We own our land but we allow them to think they own it by calling it Black Marsh. Bah, idiots." She dismissed the thought with a wave of her hand.

Well, this was a very informative conversation I never thought I would have with an Argonian girl who gave me the middle finger the first time we locked eyes. And that's when it hit me. She didn't like me when we first locked eyes. She knew I was a battlemage… and she's Shadowblade, which is like a battlemage. I think I knew why she didn't like me. "So… are we rivals?"

"What?" She spun to look at me. She looked as confused as I felt.

"You're a Shadowblade… Black Marsh's version of a battlemage. So… if our two nations ever went to war…"

I could see her grin form. "And here I thought you were an idiot. You're starting to sound like a proper soldier, preparing for a war not yet in the making. You are correct. We are the same… just for different empires. And one day, we might end up fighting against each other. And when that day comes, just know that I will honorably shame you in front of your commanding officer, cut off your head, and present it to my Queen to be stuffed and mantled over my bed. I wish to admire your pretty face for all eternity." She placed a hand on my cheek, rubbing my fur. Well… I can't think of a better way to flirt with me.

"Are you calling me pretty?" That's… unexpected.

She nodded. "I am. Why? You going to do something about it?" She started cornering me against the wall. How did we get here exactly? We went from talking about killing each other to having her pressing me against a wall in a dark alley where no one could see us. I have no idea how our conversation switched over like this.

"Um…" I tried to find a way to escape. I'm not ready for this! I'm not ready for this! "I'm not ready for this…" I found myself muttering.

And that's all it took. Her arm slackened and she stepped back. "Sorry, I thought we… well… this has become awkward." She bowed to me. "Perhaps we'll talk again later. I hear you battlemages have your training in a couple hours. You should take this time to eat lightly and relax. And… if you ever need a sparring partner… or… if you want to try this again… let me know."

I bowed back. "Thanks, Nexa. Maybe I'll see you later?" I wouldn't mind a sparring partner. And… well, I guess I could try dating. I don't know though. It's not exactly the first thing on my mind. But still… Nexa's cute. She's got a bit of an edge to her though. I get the feeling that dating her would be a lot like having my whiskers pulled. Painful and full of crying.

Nexa smiled at the possible invitation. "I'm a shadowblade…you won't see me, but I will see you. And if you do see me… it will already be too late. Or… if you feel like sparring or kissing… then it won't be too late." She said as she backed further into the alley. Almost instantly, she just morphed into the shadows. I was left completely alone in the dark alley. And I never felt more confused in my life. I thought being approached by a girl like that would excite me. It terrified me. Maybe it was just because Nexa's… special. I'm going with special. Not homicidal… not yandere… just special. Ok… she's clearly yandere. No doubt about it. Every manga I ever read has prepared me for this day. I just have to stay far away from her and not show any signs of affection. Or run. Run far far away. And never see her ever again. We're in the same class though. and I bet… tomorrow she'll be fighting with Pra'ja for the rights to sit next to me. Oh gods… two Shadow users might fight over me. Dammit. I hate my life. Or maybe I'm just overthinking things. I doubt it could get that bad. Yeah… I'm just overthinking things.

Cearbhail:

So, new characters: Nexa: occupation: Kick-ass Shadowblade. What's a Shadowblade for any of my new readers? Well, a Shadowblade is Black Marsh's version of a battlemage. They train as shadowscales in the art of assassination, but also study the soulic art of Shadows. They are like the special forces of Black Marsh's infiltration squads. And a shadowwraith is the basic mage of Black Marsh. They are made up of Mage, Atronach, and Ritual birthsigns. All of Black Marsh's occupational system is based upon birthsigns in this universe. Just a little FYI on how my fanfiction universe differs from true lore.