A week or so later the three members of the Inner Circle convened in the Harbinger's study. Aela, as usual, had her hip sticking out due to her standing in her typical 'attitude pose' while she gave Kodlak her cold hard stare due to her archery practice getting interrupted. Instead of focusing on her, Kodlak's eyes switched between Farkas and Vilkas who were far less bothered about the summons. Paying more attention to them than their shield sister, he relayed the information he had been given.
"We have been asked to remove a small group of bandits near Falkreath".
Aela jumped up at the thought excitedly, dominating the room.
"How many?"
The Harbinger wearily replied to the female Nord's question.
"Six maybe seven; but there's a catch". He fought back the urge to huff as an almost evil hunger glinted in the girl's eyes.
Instantly she cried out in despair. She hated catches. All she wanted to do was just go in, have some fun then come out. Simple and neat; job done.
The Harbinger ignored her response and carried on regardless.
"Sotek hasn't had his field run yet".
Dreading the answer she knew was coming, she had to ask the Harbinger exactly what he had meant.
"What's that got to do with it?"
"Well I think you and Farkas should take him. It would be a good experience for him. If you give him that chance, that is". He wearily explained as he watched the three Companions.
Vilkas smirked however Aela saw him and glared straight at his face. She then stated a fact she thought would end the matter.
"He can't go. He's not ready".
The Harbinger raised his eyebrows at her as he replied.
"But he must go sometime. Why not now?"
Now Aela was desperate… She hadn't been out of Jorrvaskr for nearly two weeks. The last thing she wanted was to ruin a bandit hunt with a pathetic lizard.
"At least let us give him the Trial. He won't have to beat us, just try to. That will be enough".
"The Trial? Aela is he really up for that?" Now it was the Harbinger's turn to be unhappy. The Trial wasn't to be taken lightly, members ended up getting hurt as it was a test for the Whelp's mettle against the outside world
"As long as he tries". Aela assured him as she gently tugged on his arm trying her best to manipulate him.
"Oh very well". With that the Harbinger gave a heavy sigh. He couldn't help but fear the worst for Sotek.
Then the three Companions left and headed down the corridor. When they neared Aela's room she suddenly stopped in her tracks forcing the other two to come to a dead stop. Without any warning she grabbed each of them by the collar even though they were several inches taller than her, and pulled them down to her face.
"We beat him, all of us… Smash him into the dust. He is not going!" Without another word she threw them backwards towards the wall then turned around and stormed off to her room. Before Vilkas or Farkas could say a single word to each other the loud banging of Aela's door resonated along the corridor.
The following morning Sotek was summoned to the courtyard. He stepped outside to find Aela waiting for him. The moment she clapped eyes on him, her hostility poured out of her mouth.
"This is your trial. If you pass this then work opportunities will open up. Fail and its back to training".
Before she walked off she whispered to him slyly so the Harbinger wouldn't hear her remark.
"And you will fail…" Without any other explanation or the slightest chance at the information sinking in, Aela started the trial.
"Farkas you're up". She yelled angrily. Without waiting for any other signal, Farkas swung his sword as he started to charge towards Sotek. He just managed to lift his shield to block the blow but due to the strength of Farkas's attack, Sotek got knocked backwards. Desperately trying to counter, he swung his axe in an arc. The axe clanged as it bounced off Farkas's armor. In retaliation, Farkas brought his full weight and strength in a crushing blow hitting Sotek's shield perfectly, bringing him to the ground. Giving Sotek no time to recover from the hammer blow, Aela shouted out triumphantly. "Strike one! Vilkas, you're up".
Vilkas came running like a wild animal towards Sotek who barely had enough time to get to his feet let alone defend himself. The Companion brandished his two handed sword high in the air as he approached rapidly. All Sotek could do was surrender ground and fall back while he tried his best to block the blows. Due to the ferocity and power of Vilkas's attacks, Sotek didn't even get one slightest chance to retaliate. Feeling pleased with Sotek's lack of progress, Aela intervened joyfully.
"Strike two!"
Inside, she felt ecstatic as she watched Sotek get so completely and utterly beaten by the other Companions. Now she was almost gloating. Now it was her turn… She grabbed her bow gleefully then walked to the far side of the yard and took her stance next to a training dummy, fully confident of her abilities to deal with the unwanted intruder to her world.
"Oi, Lizard… This target is me, that dummy is you. I'm the target and you're the dummy". As she explained she pointed to a dummy target near Sotek. "Are you ready?"
Sotek drew his bow then gave her a slight nod. The reality was that his arms ached but he refused to give her the satisfaction of knowing how he felt.
"Yes, I'm ready". He dryly replied.
Vilkas hollered out at them, starting the trial.
"Draw!"
Near instantly an arrow hit Sotek's dummy in the head. With complete victory on her side, Aela shouted out.
"Strike three!"
The Harbinger sadly shook his head as he frowned at Aela. She just couldn't help herself and shrugged her shoulders in response. The Harbinger stood up causing everyone to freeze where they were as his voice radiated around the yard.
"Again".
With that Aela instantly protested with open defiance.
"No! He failed, he didn't…"
The Harbinger held his hand up, cutting her off.
"Aela… I said again". She stopped and just looked at the Harbinger then stormed off to the side.
Vilkas charged once more swinging his blade as he ran. The two handed sword crashed into Sotek's shield so hard it hurt his arm. He fell from the single blow.
"Strike one!" Aela shrieked with glee while the Harbinger shook his head at her. However she didn't notice as she had deliberately moved across the yard away from him.
Farkas attacked with his shield. He slammed into Sotek with all his strength, knocking him back four feet. Sotek lost his footing and found himself lying in the dust while his own axe and shield rested several feet away. At this point the Harbinger had enough. He called out across the training yard bringing the fight to an end.
"Enough! This is over".
Aela was too fired up to stop and ignored him. Totally unwilling to let her prey escape, she positioned herself alongside a target dummy. Sotek stared at her intently before moving towards his own target while his bow dangled loosely in his hand. With no warning, Aela fired and an arrow slammed into the head of Sotek's dummy.
"Back off!" She shouted out at him, trying to force the Argonian away from the target.
Sotek stood there defiantly. He didn't even bother readying an arrow. Instead he looked at her straight in the face and calmly replied with a single word.
"No".
With all the speed she could muster, Aela fired off another arrow. It shot across the yard and slammed into the dirt by Sotek's feet. Aela glared at him while her words dripped with hostility.
"Back off. Now!"
Instead of moving off as Aela had demanded, Sotek dropped his bow but he still stood his ground. His eyes blazed with resolve and defiance.
She fired again but still he stood there, staring back at her. He didn't even flinch as an arrow whizzed past his head with barely two inches to spare. For Aela, that was the final straw. With blinding speed she notched an arrow then fired. The arrow shot through the air striking Sotek in the arm. The full force of the impact spun him around. Completely unbalanced, Sotek crashed into the ground. Only then did Aela realize what she had done but it was too late. She stood there in shock knowing she had gone way over the line while her eyes fixed on the Harbinger who was now striding towards her.
Sotek got up and grabbed a bit of leather. His teeth clenched down on it as he broke the arrowhead off the shaft before pulling the remnants of the arrow out. Using his restoration spell, he slowly healed his arm. During all this time the only sounds he made were of slight murmurs. All the while all Aela could do was stand there frozen. Farkas knew they were in trouble; he turned around and started to head inside.
For the first time since he had joined the Companions, Sotek shouted out as he walked to the middle of the courtyard.
"Stop where you are Farkas!" With that even the Harbinger froze. Sotek walked up to Aela who was rooted to the spot and slowly moved around her like a predator encircling its prey. He stood behind her for a few seconds then went to Vilkas and repeated the same slow deliberate circle. Finally he silently walked towards Farkas and yet again went through the same motions as he moved slowly around him.
He then went to the middle of the training area and shouted out a second time.
"Again!" Vilkas starred at him with utter disbelief. Sotek just smiled at him and spoke in a calm voice. "When you're ready Vilkass... again if you pleasse".
Vilkas drew his sword and came charging at him but then out of nowhere a fireball shot out and hit him in the face. Then a second fireball knocked his sword out of his hands. A third ball of fire flew towards him hitting the sword and sent the weapon sliding along the path. Finally a fourth fireball struck his sword, this time it spun wildly into the undergrowth. Sotek's eyes locked onto Aela, as he hissed at her.
"Sstrike one. Farkass, you're up".
As soon as Farkas started to charge, an arrow shot past Aela hitting the dummy in the stomach. Then another flew past her and hit the target's chest. Farkas still had six feet to go when he looked up straight at Sotek and was greeted by an arrow pointing straight at him. Having found that he had no other choice, he stopped and lowered his sword. Once again Sotek turned to Aela sneering at her.
"Sstrike two. When you're ready… Aela".
Sotek walked to his dummy target, but the next moment he surprised everyone. He got out his axe and dropped his bow leaving Aela very confused. He glared at her as he blatantly called out his commands.
"When you're ready let them know, then someone say draw". He then sidestepped so he was standing right in front of her target. The Harbinger went to intervene but Sotek raised his hand to stop him.
The Harbinger glanced at Aela who was drawing her bow, then looked at Sotek who was just holding his axe handle in one hand while the axe drew across him. The head of the axe lay flat against his chest as it rested in his other hand.
Farkas moved to the edge of the wooden platform before shouting out to both Aela and Sotek.
"Draw".
With speed rarely seen Aela grabbed an arrow but before she could even aim a single voice shouted out across the yard.
"WULD".
With such speed reserved only for Daedra and the Divines, Sotek shot across the yard straight into Aela. The flat side of the axe and Sotek's weight knocked her backwards over ten feet in the air while at the same time a sickening crunch of ribs sounded out. Aela landed heavily on her back spurting blood as she hit the ground. Already knowing just how serious the wound was, Sotek ran towards her. He dived onto his knees where she fell and saw firsthand the damage he had done.
Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth as he ripped off her chest armor. He started using the healing spell with both hands but her torso was already turning black from the bruising. Across the chest he could clearly see the mark where he had struck her with such colossal force. All around the impact area Aela's ribs lay broken in multiple places disfiguring her chest as her breathing started to slow within seconds. Her eyes were wide open full of fear as she gasped for breath. With every passing second blood more and more blood poured from her mouth while her chest dropped lower and lower as her lungs gave in. Sotek's healing spell was just marginally slowing it down; Aela was dying with just moments to live. Sotek had caused it and despite his best efforts he could do nothing to prevent it.
A feminine hand grabbed him on the shoulder, pulling him out of the way.
"Stand aside child".
Half stunned and shocked, Sotek turned to see the priestess, Danica Pure-Spring from the temple. She knelt down and started to cast a healing spell which was way more advanced than his own spell. Golden light flooded Aela's body as her torso started to regain its shape. Her ribs started to bond back together allowing her to breathe easier then she mercifully passed out. After a few more seconds the priestess stood up and beckoned Farkas with her finger.
"Farkas, take her to the temple". Without a word Farkas picked Aela up gently and followed the priestess away from Jorrvaskr with the Harbinger walking beside him.
Sotek just fell to his knees where Aela had fallen. All around him the ground was red, covered in her blood. In the dirt there lay a small part of her armor. A part of the golden fitting which had broken off, glistened in the sunlight. Sotek recognized it as a part of her frontal chest piece, despite it being caked in blood.
Farkas returned to Jorrvaskr a short while later but just headed straight inside the hall. All he could tell them was she was still out cold but alive. That night there was no laughing or drinking in the hall of Jorrvaskr.
The darkest night in Jorrvaskr for a very long time.
That night Sotek awoke with a start. His entire body was soaked in sweat while his hands shook uncontrollably. The dream was so vivid, except it wasn't a dream, more like a nightmare. He dreamt he could see Aela standing there, facing him. He shot towards her, slamming into her chest. He could hear bones breaking as if it were in slow motion. Then as he looked down all he could see was Aela's corpse sprawled out in front of him. Blood was everywhere. He himself was covered in her blood from his head to his feet. Even the walls of Jorrvaskr were dripping with blood.
He just lay there next to the Skyforge for warmth, trying to compose himself. Vainly trying to settle his nerves. Eventually he got too tired to stay awake and slowly settled into a troubled sleep.
In the morning the Harbinger returned, calling everyone into the hall.
"She is awake, and she is going to be ok. They are keeping her at the temple for a few days. Please don't visit her today she needs rest". He then looked around for the Argonian. "Where's Sotek?"
The Whelp who had brought Sotek some food when he first arrived searched downstairs in his room before solemnly reporting back. As the Whelp approached the Harbinger, she felt conscious of herself as all the eyes in the room were fixed on her. Everyone watched her with an intense stare.
"He hasn't been in his room".
On receiving the news, Kodlak glanced towards the stairway, his entire face expressing concern.
"What! What about his gear?"
The Whelp who was always nervous around the Harbinger stammered her reply.
"Th…that's still th...there".
With that Farkas entered from the courtyard. He cleared his throat gathering everyone's attention.
"Ahem… He's outside! It looks like he's been out there all night".
Kodlak breathed a slight sigh of relief then he barked out his orders.
"Bring him in".
Farkas's reply was a simple shaking of his head.
"I tried but he won't come in. He refuses to enter"
Initially Kodlak was stunned but after a few seconds he quickly recovered and demanded an explanation.
"What do you mean he refuses to enter?"
"What I mean is, in his words". Then he looked straight at the Harbinger. "I'm not going in, not until she's back". With that Farkas shrugged his shoulders. "Like I said he won't come in".
Huffing quietly to himself the Harbinger headed outside to the courtyard. Sure enough Sotek was sitting at an empty table. All the crockery from the table had been thrown around the yard the night before. As soon as Kodlak saw the state Sotek was in, he couldn't help but feel some sympathy towards him. He moved towards Sotek and gently rested his hand on Sotek's shoulder, giving it a slight reassuring squeeze.
"Sotek, she's ok". He said in a soft voice. The truth was Kodlak blamed himself for letting things get this far. "She's staying at the temple for a few days".
Sotek showed no sign of responding to the Harbinger what so ever, but Kodlak noticed he looked withdrawn. Even his scales seemed to be pale, having lost their deep green tint. Without a word Sotek got up, walked up to the Skyforge past the blacksmith, paused there for the briefest of moments then headed down the steps away from the Jorrvaskr grounds. From the moment he stood up from the chair, Sotek never uttered a single word.