STELM: Ok gals, I'm trying to get more chapters out of this thing, hopefully reaching this part's end by the summer, which involves a lot more inspiration. Need some new ideas and all that haven't seen too much (any) of that so you know… help a starving artist.

I will type for reviews


Shedding Some Light

Times were slow, and that wasn't just a pun on my ability to slow time via Thu'um. Last time I used that shout was to boost my skooma high three weeks ago. Other than that I had no use for any of my magical abilities except for in class use.

Like most of my fellow 3rd years all I could do was wait for Jarod to come back and turn himself in or something of that nature. They all checked on me as soon as I got back to see if I had heard of him. I told them about the conversation we had and they all thought I was a jackass for getting him into a situation like that. But I didn't give a skeever's tail, playing the blame game wasn't going to bring Jarod back.

If I knew my friend I would bet that he was somewhere out in the forest now, challenging bears with his bare hands and knocking back spirits like healing potions. If only I knew where he was I would probably join him in his seclusion. Being around people was tough; I'd understand him trying it out on his own.

On the other hand I had my family back home. Before I left Argonia they told me, "be safe" and it almost made me lose my sarcastic wall of communication. I mean I was out here killing assassins and they were only worried about my safety. Not my actions or my sins, just my well being.

The life of an up and coming mage who's parents didn't die in some overly tragic moment very young in life.

-Durabo-

"Gota see this guy." I said as read the letter by Shade saying that Zuve had came back. I wrote for him to meet my house at sun down. Ever since I'd dropped out the college had suspended my rings. Forcing me to limit my communication abilities to writing letters to my friends on the inside of the colleges high standing walls. Plus I didn't have the gold to spend on buying myself my own, finding a dealer was hard enough.

Since I left the school I decided to lodge at the house Z and me had cleared of a lucky fisherman. The woman who lived with the fisherman had became my girl, and by girl I mean my whore.

Once or twice or day she'd walk out to the road and show off her "wares". The method of payment could come from a lot of things. If the traveler didn't have any money I would use my weak yet effective mind control magic to make the poor man either work my garden or kill somebody who was against my Jummeja family. I'd release my mind control as soon as the deed was done to let the cheap fucker deal with his problems himself. It was a nice game and it all worked for my profit. Every once and a while she'd bring around a rich man and we'd always rob him blind before he knew the time of day. Then Durabo would erase his memory to think he was a peasant and that he never had any money.

I swore this mind control magic was pure gold.

"Where you going D?" My whore, Ellisa, asked holding my left arm. She knew holding my right arm cause an almost immediate violent reaction. My left arm however was a little bit less reactive.

"Going to Whiterun for some business. Before I come back I want those slaves up and taking care of business. Take one of them with you to carry this letter to the college. Lock all the doors. And bar the windows like I showed you, don't let any of these guys get the upper hand on you." I said giving her the letter, while putting on a coat, it was still a little cold outside and I didn't want to catch something and be locked up at the house for a week.

"Don't worry they won't be trying anything." Ellisa said brandishing her twin daggers, twisting them in the air fashionably.

"If you say so." I said as I opened my door, letting the morning time air fill my nostrils. Time to get this day started.

-Serah-

"I'm sorry Serah, you know just as much as we do. This case is far from closed but we can say that Jarod had something to do with those dead scientist. Not saying he killed him, but he did have something to do with and we are doing our best…" One of the College's brainier researchers, Dr. Kennel, a wood elf who studied the mind of a mage more than anything explained before Kobin cut him off. The burly nord getting a little bit too close for any and everybody's comfort.

"You're not doing enough! He could be starving to death trying to run back here and you're fucking waiting to see! I want answers! AHHHH!" Kobin said punching a stone wall and leaving more than a little dent before he started to leave the crime scene.

"Don't go. I got an Idea." I said running towards him and grabbing his shoulder so that he would be facing me, I could feel his anger reverberating off his warm skin.

"You gonna spit it out or what?" Kobin said his deep voice sending chills down my back.

"We need to team up. Me, you, Shade, Z, Ennis, and even though it pains me to consider it maybe Canila could work together and try to find him." I said in a caring and light tone, trying my best to get on Kobin's caring side.

"How are we gonna get Canila to even consider working with us?" Kobin asked understandably skeptical.

"Don't worry I'll find a way." I said reassuring the heated goliath, even though I had no way to know for sure.

"What about the administration, to take a voyage trip we need recommendation from a higher up and an older escort." Kobin said still finding holes in the system.

"I'm free." the researcher said from behind us, his face was almost naturally blank. I couldn't tell if he was eager or if someone was forcing him into this.

"Wait, are you sure? I mean you don't have to, we can find some other chaperone or…" I began not trying to forge up something that would not make him feel forced into this.

"Fuggedaboutit."

-Jarod-

"Keep it moving!" One of the guards said from behind. Even if I dared to look back I doubted I'd be able to see the man's face. The snow was thick where we were. My sense of direction had been lost miles back.

I had walked in this chain gang for a whole two days now, and had learned little about my fellow prisoners. I really didn't want to know too much. All I knew is that there were more men than women and there were more nords than anybody else. I'd guess there were about 20 to 30 of us. The chains that were shackled on us tight and the meager rags we got might as well of been nonexistent. The mountain wind pierced the clothes with ease. Burning my skin with a fire that could only mean that my body wasn't far from shutting down. The random stops we took and the mush they served us were the only thing keeping me kicking.

"Hey Redgaurd." An almost indistinguishable female voice said from directly behind me.

"Yeah?"

"How'd you end up here?" She sounded genuine enough but I couldn't judge a book that was directly behind me.

"Love of my country. I went to a secret meeting for the Stormcloaks when they stormed the place. A lot of my fellow brothers were killed, I was fighting to my bitter end when one of these cowards poisoned me with a knock out regent." she explained and I could practically feel the anger in her voice.

"So you were part of the Skyrim struggle way back?" I asked trying to probe the situation; I didn't know who this woman was. Why would I give her my information?

"No I'm not that old, my father before me flew the flag of the Stormcloaks before he was cut down by a sly imperial archer." The woman explained with a faint laugh as we trudged through the snow. I could only hope that we'd break for a while and set up camp.

"Interesting."

"So what's your story?" She asked and I was just about to let the lies spill out my mouth at will when I was saved by the assholes.

"Shut up slaves!" a Dunmer sentinel shouted no more than six inches from my left earlobe before using the blunt end of his spear to jab at my numb legs. I could feel the warmth of the instant pain but the warmth was soon replace by the bone shilling cold snow. That my face had become buried in as I laid there on the ground. As a kinetic reaction the rest of the member's of the chain gang fell along with me, to the amusment of our overseers. Damn I hated this shit.

-Zuvejjet-

"So…this is it. We're going to get our boy back? Officially?" I asked Shade who had just explained the incident at the crime scene for me. Serah and Shade had done me a favor. A big one. They've been doing a lot lately now that I think on it.

"Yes Serah told me before I got here that Dr. Kennel is talking to the big wigs now. It's looking good." Shade explained, almost jumping out of her own skin in excitement. She was shaking with anticipation and if I wasn't as jumpy and all I would be jumping off the walls too.

"So that leaves one thing."

"What?"

"Get packing! We've got a hell of an adventure." I said letting of a spark of positive energy. I ran up to her and hugged her, keeping her body close to mine. I wasn't feeling too amorous right now but I needed to let off some steam. So in my small stony dorm I undressed my college sweetheart.

2 hours later…

"What the fuck are you doing?" Ennis, my stubby little dorm mate said as he walked in on my spooning session with Shade.

"Ahh… just getting ready to get packing, you know how it is right?" I said whilst rolling out the bed and putting on some trousers. Shade put her mage's robe back on.

"This letter came in for you." Ennis said holding out a sealed letter, while at the same time not trying to touch any part of my body.

I quickly grabbed the letter from my virgin friend and opened the letter with aid of a quick fire-breathing spell that only slightly burnt the top of the letter. I cut the rest with my claws. The enveloped opened up with more style than function but hey, I was a known show off.

"Meet me at sun down, my place."

-Durabo

"Ok great. Listen Ennis just get packed and I'll start with my stuff when I get back." I said throwing the letter to the side of my dorm room, putting on a robe and some leather boots afterwards.

I hear an audible sigh from Ennis as I passed him and went into the hallway. I got some queer looks from some of the guys in the hall. It seemed my performance was highly acclaimed across the male dorm populous.

The school day had ended so as I walked to stone streets of the college I saw multiple students sitting idly by, doing schoolwork, practicing spells, some cuddling amorously, a selected few just catching Zs before they could get to their dorms. Just a normal day at the Dragonborn College of Magicka.

1 hour later…

-Zuvejjet-

"Long time no see!" I said as I saw Durabo sitting on the front of his property, perched on a wooden fence he made himself. His initial face more than sad, he looked quite depressed.

"It's been a time." Durabo said coming up and grasping me in a hug that was tight but firm, this confirmed the thought that something was wrong.

"What's wrong brother. You looked like your stressed over something."

"I'm just tired of this place. Owning land isn't exactly my forte. I just want to go leave and go somewhere. Just explore. Maybe rob a drunk or two. Anything." Durabo said jumping off his wooden fence to begin walking in a circle.

I thought about what their was to do. Business was never slow in robbery and all but it was Turdas and I had classes tomorrow if we didn't get things didn't get finalized by tomorrow. We just needed to do something quick so I could get back and pack. Then it hit me, Durabo would be the perfect addition to our search team.

"I got it!" I said clenching my fist up in the air pumping it in the air. The Orc just looked at me confused and bewildered.

"What?"

"Some of us were planning to search for Jarod. We're about to get official recommendation and we could always use some muscle." I said looking at the burly orc with eyes filled with hope.

"So you're going on a wild goose chase for good ole Jarod who hasn't left any evidence to where he is and you want me to tag along?" The landowning drop out asked doing some arm stretches as if he hadn't held a sword in three years.

"That's what I was thinking." I stated, wishing I had the face of a human; they'd always kill me with that pouty lip.

"I'm down."

"Good just stand by for a message from me or Shade and we'll be in good step." I said shaking my head in the collection of good things that were happening.

That was when my ring started ringing. Durabo gave me a nod that he'd watch out for me while I went into conversation. It was always a college prank to do something obscene to someone who was in deep conversation with someone over ring chat. That's why most calls were made in private places.

"Yah."

"Jet?" a light and almost creepily feminine voice that could only belong to Serah.

"Tis me."

"You need to come to the Health House as soon as possible just ask for me. This is big."

Minutes later in the Health House's blood sampling room…

"See this? This is Jarod's blood and that orange liquid is the solution that sedated Jarod. This not only proves that Jarod didn't kill the scientist identified at the crime scene, but it also proves who the killers were." Serah said explaining her discovery to a coalition of her concerned peers who were going with her to find Jarod.

"How does a bit of blood and that bit of poison prove all of that?" Kobin asked, skeptical of the scientific side of the case. He wasn't the only one who had a question, I just didn't want to say anything that would make me look stupid.

"Well first we searched the scene thoroughly and after only a few hours of fine combing did our official chaperone, Dr. Kennel, find a minuscule but recognizable trace of blood. He collected a sample and after running a few test here, he found the poison. I was here and ran some more tests to find that it was a very selective regent almost exclusively used by the infamous Morag Tong. A secret organization of ruthless vigilante that went into more or less into silent disuse soon after Morrowind fell to the Argonian Empire." Serah said, explaining her studious research, it made a lot of sense. They had done a lot for one day.

"So where's the good doctor? This should be a celebration! A feast is in order!" Kobin said boasting a strong and deep voice. The werewolf's words getting the attention of not only our group but the researchers around us.

"He had to go to his home in Whiterun to say goodbye to his family and to pack his bags." Serah said in a largely silenced voice as to lower Kobin's volume by lowering her own.

"But wait if they went into disuse who is using their poison?" Ennis asked looking at Serah's written side notes as he spook.

"That's the drama in this," Serah started and I could only moan in grim anticipation on how this was going to get a lot more complicated than it already was, "Recent reports say that heavily armed travelers wearing chitin armor sighted in large amounts, trading scarcely and saying nothing as if they were mute. I'd be being graceful by saying they aren't exactly loved walking the Alik'r sands and the high moutains of dragontail. They'd probably stand out seeing as you don't see too many chitin covered warriors just minding their own business."

"So you're telling me we have to find these guys while they're on the move. Rumors being our only sense of direction?" Canila, who was informed of the current state of affairs soon after I was, asked dumbfounded at the odds they face. I could already see Ennis listing what all could go wrong. From getting eaten up by giant sand slugs to getting raped and killed by a roving band of raider, hell we could end up finding the moving band of heavily armored warriors just to get our asses handed right back to us. Oh and not to forget how we could die of thirst or of a violent sandstorm.

"That's exactly what I'm telling you." Serah announced and I shook my scaly old head.

"Guess it's for me to start packing."