A/N: This came out a bit longer than expected. I don't really have a set amount of words per chapter, I just decide what I want to cover and do it. I also edited this one myself, so hopefully it makes sense and there aren't too many errors. If there is, I'm sorry. Look at the avatar pic on my profile and you'll see why. :D
Thank you to alyssacousland for the review. Again, if you want some great Dragon Age fanfics, look her up!
BETHESDA!
Chapter 6: Loud and Clear
The following morning, Laryn returned to the Ragged Flagon, having retrieved all of the debts owed to the Guild. She found Brynjolf sitting at a table with Delvin. Plunking the coin purse on the table in front of him she said, "It's done. Keerava sends her apologies and will discount all Guild members' drinks and food."
Brynjolf smiled and pocketed the purse. "Very good, lass. I knew she wouldn't be a problem, she's a good woman. " He rose and motioned her to follow him down into the cistern.
They spoke again to Mercer, who still seemed to not like her. "You'd better not be wasting my time with this, Brynjolf. Maven wants it done now. If Vex and Delvin failed, this whelp won't do any better," he scowled.
"She's damn good, Mercer. She's not a green recruit. She can handle it," Brynjolf said, and clapped Laryn's shoulder in reassurance.
Mercer snorted and shook his head, but informed Laryn of the situation. Goldenglow Estate was a bee farm operation on an island in Lake Honrich that supplied the honey used in the Black-Briar Meadery's mead. The owner, Aringoth, had started to supply his honey to other meaderies, and Maven Black-Briar was not happy about it. Laryn was to make an example out of him by wrecking some of the beehives and raiding his safe, to try and find out where his uppity confidence was coming from.
"Don't worry about Mercer, lass. He doesn't like anyone anymore," Brynjolf said as they left the cistern. "If I were you, I'd talk to Vex and see if she's got any helpful tips about the Estate. You should also talk to Tonalia before you go. She'll be your fence down here to sell your stolen goods and as a new Guild member, she'll have something for you. By the way, normally we frown upon killing anyone while on a contract but…do what you have to. Maven won't care so long as it's done."
Laryn walked over to the haughty blond Nord standing at the bar. "Vex, Brynjolf said I should talk to you about Goldenglow Estate." The woman told her that there were hired mercenaries all over the grounds, but that they had found a sewer entrance on the side of the island that came out just by the estate's back door. She thanked Vex for the help and spoke with Tonalia, a dark skinned Redguard, sitting at a table. Tonalia gave her a set of the Thieves Guild armor; enchanted to help with sneaking, pickpocketing and would enable Laryn to carry more loot.
Leaving the Ragged Flagon, Laryn waved to Ralof at the smithy as she walked past and returned to the inn to change into her new armor. It was dark brown leather and though Laryn preferred her old black armor, it fit well and the enchantments would help immensely. She left the inn and walked out of the city gates, eyeing the guard and nodding at him as she trotted past.
Laryn took the path that ran around the side of the lake, wanting to take a look at the estate in the daylight before returning after the sun set. As she made her way around the side of the city, an orange form ran in front of her on the dirt track and slowed its pace to walk next to her. "Well, hello again. Didn't I ask you to stay back in Riverwood?" she asked the fox. It looked up at her and huffed, then kept walking. Laryn laughed. "Maybe you could help me," she wondered aloud. She knew she would not be able to get close to Goldenglow with the mercenaries wandering about the grounds. Laryn had never tried to command animals, but her mother had told her how when she was a child. It was a matter of meditation, letting your mind escape its physical bounds and enter a willing animal. If you were good at it you could force your way in to any animal's mind whether willing or not, but since the fox was so friendly with her it might work.
They came to the bridge leading to the estate and Laryn sat down behind a tree out of sight from Goldenglow, her friend sitting next to her. "I'd like you to help me look around over there," she told the fox as she pointed to the estate behind her. It followed her finger and looked at the building in the distance, then back at her and blinked. "I've never done this before, friend. I hope it works." She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the tree. Clearing her head, she relaxed her muscles. In her mind's eye, she saw herself as the fox walking through the woods, chasing after a rabbit, nipping playfully at the crabs on the shore of a stream.
Thinking it wasn't working, she opened her eyes and found she was closer to the ground, staring at herself with her head back against the tree. She looked down at her feet which were little black paws. It actually worked! She stood and after becoming accustomed to having four legs, trotted down the bridge hoping the mercenaries wouldn't feel the need for a fox pelt. As the fox, she felt the need to mark a nearby tree as her territory. I was right, he is a he, she thought absurdly. She slowed as she drew nearer to the estate and started to see some of the mercenaries keeping watch. One of them noticed her and pointed her out to the bandit next to him then turned away, ignoring her. Good. No fox-lined gloves today.
Entering the grounds, she looked around and noted the positions of the guards as she turned towards the beehives. There were five of them at the crest of a hill, bees buzzing around them and the flowers dotting the hill. To one side of the hill was a wooden shack with an unlit torch in a sconce next to the door. Making a mental note of the torch, she hopped down into the water to try to find the sewer entrance. She paddled around the island, finding a ship moored to a small dock and continued around it. She found what she was looking for on the other side and climbed up onto the rocky shore next to the sewer grate.
Fox-Laryn looked around at the shore across the lake for landmarks so she knew where to come tonight, then flopped into the water again and swam back to the shore where her body was waiting. She sat down next to herself and concentrated as she had before; this time thinking of herself sneaking along the stall in the marketplace, laughing and clapping with the music as she and Ralof had attempted a silly local dance at the inn the night before and failing miserably.
She opened her eyes and looked down at the scrawny wet fox. "That was amazing, my friend. Thank you," she told him as she dug around in her pack. She took out a chunk of venison and a towel, tossing the meat to the ground for the fox. He ate it greedily, and she dried him off as best she could. She rose and her friend followed suit, trotting alongside her as she returned to the city. As they reached the gates, she told him, "I'll be back after dark."
ooooo
Laryn crouched outside the back door of the estate, working on the lock. Even though her armor was brown, she blended in with the inky darkness. She had waited until after midnight hoping to catch Aringoth asleep as she was sure he would have the safe's key on him at all times. Earlier, as they chatted over supper at the inn while she waited, she had told Ralof of her experience with the fox and he had been proud of her for embracing her heritage as he did. On her way out of town the fox found her. She had given him some more venison she had purchased for him, bidding the fox to stay around the town as what she was doing would be dangerous for him and he had listened, scampering off into the dark with his treat.
This lock was more intricate than most but Laryn was practiced and patient. After a few minutes of probing around and finding the right angle to twist her lockpick, it clicked open. She opened it slightly and poked her hooded head into the building. She didn't see a soul so she slinked into the room and closed the door lightly behind her. Staying low and flush against the wall, she followed the hallway until it turned, opening into a large dining room which was devoid of people. She crossed the room and found a staircase leading up to the second floor.
At the top of the steps, she could hear voices at the end of the hallway. Ahead of her, where the hallway made an L, were three mercenaries who seemed quite drunk. Surveying the hall leading up to them, she found a door which she opened, looking around. It was an empty bedroom with another doorway in the opposite corner. That should bypass those drunkards. Crossing the room quickly, she pulled her dagger out of its sheath on her hip, holding it with the flat of the blade against the back of her forearm. She opened the door an inch and leaned her head back against the wall trying to see if her hunch had been right. She heard more than saw them down the hallway as she slipped out the door leaving it slightly ajar.
Laryn stayed flat against the wall as she prowled down the hallway. It made another turn which ended in a door. Opening it slowly and quietly, she found the master bedroom with who she assumed was Aringoth sleeping in the bed. Slipping silently across the room, she slithered her hand into the pocket of his sleeping robe and felt around carefully. Her hand touched metal and she smiled. She pulled the key out of his pocket and he grumbled in his sleep but continued snoring. As she turned, a shiny gold statue on a nearby shelf caught her eye. She picked it up and examined it. In the shape of a large bee on a piece of honeycomb, it was heavy enough to be solid gold so she slipped it in her pack. She looted the chest at the foot of the bed, finding a large amount of gold and pocketed that as well before leaving the room.
Laryn returned the way she had come, the drunken men in the hallway still oblivious to her presence. Tracing her steps through the estate, she looked around for the basement door where she knew the safe was kept. She found it close to where she had entered and descended the stairs, slowing when she heard voices. At the base of the steps was a large room with big storing vats along one wall and men sitting at a table in front of them. Looking around, Laryn found a hallway leading away from the room and pressed herself against the wall, inching slowly until she reached it. This hallway turned back and forth leading farther beneath the estate. At the end of the hallway she heard the rasp of metal on wood. Peeking around the corner, she saw a man whittling away on a stick, sitting in a chair directly across from the only other way leading out of the room.
Reaching a hand into her breast pocket, Laryn retrieved one of the pebbles she kept there. She tossed it across the room and down the other hall, hearing it bounce around on the stone walls. The mercenary heard it as well and swore before jumping up and jogging down the hall to investigate the noise. Laryn quickly crossed the room and crouched against the wall right next to the hallway's entrance, listening to the man grumble as he walked back towards the room.
Laryn gripped the dagger in her fist and waited. As soon as the mercenary entered the room, she slipped behind him and down the hall into a patch of shadow, watching the man return to his chair before continuing.
At the end of the hallway sat a large metal safe and she put the key into the lock. The door opened, revealing more gold and some papers which she tucked away before closing the safe, relocking it, and sitting the key on top. How's that for a message? She smirked and turned towards the door on the other side of the room.
The door opened to the outside of the estate and Laryn crouched behind a nearby barrel. She watched a mercenary walk out of the darkness, look around and walk back the way he came. She counted in her head as she waited, knowing that he was patrolling and would be back. The man returned at the count of twenty. He turned around and she slipped behind him, counting as she rushed towards the beehives. The unlit torch on the shack from earlier was now lit. At twenty, she removed it and lit three of the beehives before dropping the torch and running to the nearby rocks, sliding silently into the lake.
Laryn swam around the edge of the island, coming to the bridge. She floated in the frigid water under the concealment of the bridge for a few moments before hearing shouts of alarm coming from the island. She smiled and swam to shore.
ooooo
Laryn returned to the Ragged Flagon still dripping and shivering. Delvin was still awake drinking with Dirge, an extremely unfriendly man whom she met the day before.
"Sit down before you fall over, girl!" Delvin exclaimed when he saw her. Instead, she pulled the papers she had found at the estate from under her armor where they had miraculously stayed dry and slapped them on the table in front of him. "You did it? Well, well. Brynjolf was right about you." She stood there shifting her weight from foot to foot, making squishing noises in her boots as she waited for him to read it. Dirge gave her a dirty look but said nothing.
Brynjolf emerged from the cistern just as Delvin finished reading. He handed Brynjolf the paper, who in turn read it as well. "I think you'd best take this to Maven Black-Briar, lass," he said when he lowered the note. "She will not be happy, that's for sure. You can find her over at the Bee and Barb on the second floor. I'll inform Mercer." He dug a coin purse out of his pocket and tossed it to her before leaving. "I knew you could handle it."
As she was turning to go, Laryn remembered the bee statue. She dug it out of her pack and set it gently on the table. "I found this at Goldenglow. How much do you think it's worth?"
Delvin whistled through his teeth. "Aye now, this is a beauty. I'll give you 300 gold for it." Laryn nodded and Delvin set about counting out coins. "If you find anything else unique like this while you're out burgling, bring it to me and I'll see what I can do."
ooooo
The following morning, Laryn found Maven sitting in the hallway of the inn as she was leaving her room for breakfast. She was an attractive, well-dressed woman with an air of cold dignity about her. Laryn showed her what she had found at the estate and as Brynjolf predicted, she was not happy at what she read.
"Nobody just magically gets the coin to open a meadery to compete with me! I make the absolute BEST mead in Skyrim, no-in all of Tamriel! I will not sit idly by while someone tries to usurp my power." She thought for a moment and smiled. "Go to Whiterun and find Mallus Maccius. Explain the problem and tell him it must be eradicated. Burn the bloody place down if you have to but find out who is funding it first and foremost."
Laryn didn't let the woman's icy disposition get to her and skipped down the steps, finding Ralof poking some ham and eggs around his plate at a table in the corner. Laryn got a plate of the same from Keerava and joined him. He looked up at her and smiled.
"When did you get in last night?" he asked, finally taking a bite of his breakfast. "I waited around for you for a bit but had a few too many ales and went to bed. I knocked on your door earlier and you didn't answer."
"I only got in a few hours ago," she replied, digging in to her food. "I took a swim in Lake Honrich and I was dead tired. I'm sorry I worried you. I looked like a drowned skeever when I got in."
"I'm sure it wasn't that bad, Elfy," he said, smiling. "How did it go?"
"I got the job done, of course. Riften's best couldn't do it," she grinned as she cut into her ham. "I have another already, back in Whiterun. Would you like to come with me?"
Ralof nodded, finishing his food. "My armor is done and I helped the smithy catch up on all of his orders. He did ask if I could find fire salts for the forge though. I told him I would try, but no guarantees," he said as he stood. "I'll go change and pack. Could we just walk this time? I'd really rather not listen to that man jabber the whole way there."
"I've got a better idea," she replied, shoveling the last of her breakfast into her mouth. "I've already got quite a bit of gold. We could just ride ourselves."
ooooo
After washing up and dressing in her new armor, Laryn returned to the common room and bought some supplies from Keerava, insisting on paying her full price. Ralof soon followed and she commented on his new armor; dark gray steel breastplate, gauntlets, greaves and boots with bear fur trimming. "Oh, don't you look ravishing!" Laryn said.
Ralof blushed. "Are we ready to go, then?" he asked as he studied the bar.
"Yes we are. Why won't you lighten up? Your hind end looks wonderful in your new armor," she told him and winked. Ralof looked mortified as they left the inn, making Laryn laugh. They went out to the stables, where Laryn bought them each a dappled gray and white horse.
Making their way quickly across the terrain with an orange shadow trailing them, they ate their lunch in the saddle and only stopped as night started to fall. They found a clearing off the road surrounded on three sides by tall pine trees and made camp. Ralof unfastened a wood axe from his saddle and walked off into the trees as Laryn pitched the large newly purchased tent, big enough for both of them and new bedrolls as well.
When Ralof returned, he started the fire as Laryn prepared a stew for their dinner, chopping up part of a leg of venison along with carrots and an onion. When she was finished, she hung the pot over the fire just as Ralof finished stoking it. They stood side by side as they curried and hobbled their horses and when they were done, so was their meal.
As they sat down to eat, Laryn asked, "Have you named your horse yet? I think I'll call mine Bela. My da had a horse named Bela, just as docile as this one seems to be."
Ralof replied, "I thought about it as we rode. He pulls and seems to want to gallop away all the time so I thought I'd name him Swift." Laryn burst out laughing and almost spilled her stew. "What's so funny about that?"
"I'm sorry, Ralof," she said, trying to stifle her giggles. "The horse I rode to Skyrim on was named Swift. I had to eat him!"
"Well, if it comes to that, we're eating Bela first!" They finished their meal and Laryn wiped out their dishes, leaving the remainder of the stew for morning. She fed the fox some leftover meat and told Ralof she was going to retire for the night.
"Wait," Ralof said, turning to his pack. "I have something for you." Laryn sat down beside him with a quizzical look on her face. He turned to her and said, "I hope you don't find this strange. Here in Skyrim, we Nords believe that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger." He took a deep breath and held out an ornate black and silver dagger. The blade was slightly curved with long pointy notches along the blade and hand guard, the pommel wrapped in black leather. "I took the arrowheads from the other night and melted them down, then combined it with ebony. I used some of the smithing knowledge I've learned here and there to make a kind of…bastard Daedric dagger."
Laryn looked into Ralof's blue eyes, incredulous. "It's beautiful," she whispered as she took the exquisite dagger in her hands. "You made this…for me?"
Ralof nodded. "I know that I cannot be privy to many of the things that you do," he said softly, looking at the ground in front of him and then back at her. "I just hope that this protects you as well as I would." He saw that her bright yellow-green eyes were glassy, a tear trailing slowly down her cheek. He frowned and brushed it away with his thumb.
"No one has ever cared enough to…" Laryn's face scrunched, trying to hold back more tears. Looking away, she took control of herself and wiped the tears from her face. She turned back to Ralof and cupped his cheek in her palm. "You have no idea what this means to me."
Laryn lifted her face to brush her lips across Ralof's scruffy cheek. She looked up at him, blushing as she smiled. "Thank you."