A Tale of Dragons: Tanz do Iiz ahrk Yol
Chapter: 21
The final preparations
"So, will you tell me what it is you need yet?" Orgrim asked Serana as they walked through the Pine Forest. They had left the town of Falkreath for about twenty minutes ago. When he had received the letter from Serana he had left the stronghold in the second he was done reading it and sent a letter back. It had taken him little over a day to get here, but he made it nonetheless.
Serana looked at him and offered him a tightlipped smile. "It really would help if we waited until we arrive to the sanctuary." Serana turned her head to look on the path that they were following. "This whole situation is very delicate, to say the least. I don't think I could offer you the best explanation of it." Seeing the others and having them help explain the situation would definitely help make the whole thing more believable for the orc.
"Fair enough, but know that I still owe you and Khara everything. Without you two, I wouldn't have ever had the joy of seeing my kin again. Where ever your road takes you, if you wish it, I will follow." He looked at her and locked eyes. "I have to say though-" He said as he shrugged his shoulders. "I never thought that I would willingly walk into the lair of assassins." His own words caused him to chuckle.
Serana had to release a small laugh as well. "You'd be surprised over how different most of them are from what most expect, I was, Khara too. And thank you for keeping this to yourself, they are very secretive and protective over their home." Serana told him as they walked.
"Of course." He said with a kind smile and a small nod. "Just point me to their leader and I will shake on it. Tell me, did you and Khara find what you were looking for in that cave?" He asked as he remembered their last encounter, he was curious on how their task went.
Serana looked at him and smiled. "We did, and we got to the bottom of it too. Some other friends of ours are dealing with the remaining vampires as we speak." Serana said as she turned her head to look to the side of the road.
"Good, that's good. I've cleared out a few places myself that was crawling with some that was just…Feral." Orgrim explained as he slowly shook his head as he said that last word.
"Yes, many lose themselves to the bloodlust, especially newly turned ones." Serana answered with a nod as her eyes landed on a dear in the distance.
"Yeah? You know, I thought about becoming a Vigilant once, so that I could hunt vampires and other beasts who had lost their minds." Orgrim explained as he grabbed his axe from where it hanged from his belt.
"What stopped you?" Serana asked as her eyes left the dear in favor of looking at the orc.
"Oh, I don't know. My tribe, I guess? We weren't as strong back then, and needed warriors to protect our home. But now? Nothing's really stopping me, I just need to get to it." He said as he inspected his weapon, it would need to be sharpened again soon. He still helped his tribe whenever they needed it, but due to how well they were doing these days, Orgrim had more freedom than before and thus could spend days away from his home before he had to return.
"I might have something to offer you on that then." Serana said as she looked at his axe.
"Really now? What might that be?" He said as he gave Serana a quick look.
"My associates are reforming an old order of vampire hunters called the Dawnguard, they aren't up and running just yet, but will be soon, real soon." Serana explained.
Orgrim's eyes were filled with excitement. "I'm interested." He said eagerly.
Serana looked at him and smiled. "Okay-" She chuckled. "Once we're done with this, you could come with us to Riften? Their base is only a short walk from there. But there is one thing…" She trailed off.
"Which is?" He dragged out the words.
"They are all vampires." She told him.
"Vampires who hunts other vampires? That's-" He furrowed his brows for a moment as he waved a hand around. "What is that saying again…Fighting fire with fire?" He said with a small chuckle.
"Yeah, no that's right, but they're controlled and not like the feral ones. However, no one are supposed to know what they really are as that would probably not be taken to well by the public, at least not while the constant vampire attacks are still so fresh in mind." Serana explained to him.
"Well as long as they aren't like the ones I've met, then I'll have no problems." He answered with honesty.
"Truly?" Serana asked surprised.
Orgrim laughed at that. "I'm an orc, Serana. Most people look at me and see a beast, a wild savage. I've heard it all my life and will continue to do so till the end of my days. Plus, you are living proof that not all vampires are beasts." He said as he pointed to her with a small grin.
"I will take that compliment, thank you." Serana said with a playful smile.
Orgrim chuckled as he looked down on the road. "Good, now is it much further?" He asked her, they had been walking for a little while now and he was curious of what was to come.
"No, we're actually here." Serana said as she left the road and walked past some trees, Orgrim was quick to follow. They walked down the short, hidden path and stood before the Black Door.
"Woah." His eyes scanned the door, he had never seen anything like it, and he had seen his fair share of doors alright.
"What is the music of life?" The door whispered.
"Silence, my brother." Serana responded with a quiet voice. The door opened and welcomed them into the sanctuary. They walked down all the stairs and was met with Droka'Ru.
The argonian reached out a hand for the orc to shake, and so he did. "Welcome to out humble home, Orgrim of Mor Khazgur." The argonian said in a mysterious voice as he lowered his head, eyes still locked with the orc's.
Orgrim's eyes went wide. "H-How do you know my name?" He stuttered.
"The Brotherhood knows all, Orgrim." Droka'Ru continued in his strange voice, that was until Serana released a small snort. Orgrim spun around to look at the woman with a confused look which only caused Serana to laugh more. When the laughter of Droka'Ru could be heard too, the orc figured out what was happening. "I am just joking my friend." The argonian chuckled. "Serana told me and my brothers of you, you see. So, don't worry."
"It's all good, the best greeting is one who leads to laughter after all." He chuckled, he never imagined that this is what an assassin was like. He already liked the argonian.
"Wise words, I take it you would like to be filled in on the details?" Droka'Ru looked at the orc.
"I would like that yes, this one-" He nodded to Serana. "Have been very secretive so far." He said as he offered Serana a grin.
"A request we all asked for and for good reason, come-" He gestured for the two to follow him. "The others are in this room and besides, you might want to sit down." Droka'Ru turned his head as he walked. "What we are about to tell you is not to be taken lightly." The argonian warned.
Orgrim cleared his throat and straightened his posture. "Alright." He said mainly to himself.
Orgrim leaned back in his seat. His mind was so full of words and information that he was sure that it was going to explode soon, leaving tiny pieces of him all over the floor. What they were asking him to do was something that one would need days on to decide, he would have to talk with others, get their opinions and their views on it. He needed fresh air, to take a walk, to clear his mind. That is what he should do, but the orc rarely listened to that voice of logic.
"So, you want me to disguise myself as this, this Gourmet. Act like him and enter the castle, make stew for the soldiers and put a potion in it, and then make it out alive without anyone being suspicious?" Orgrim said as his face supported a frown.
"That's right." Khara said as she looked at him with hopeful eyes, as did everyone in the room really.
"And you believe that I am the best person for this task?" He asked as he leaned closer to the table.
Gabriella was about to answer that, but unfortunately, Cicero beat her to it. "Now we didn't say that! You are the only person for the job." He said with a cheerful voice. When the others turned to look at him with serious faces he slid out of his seat. "Oh? Do you hear that?" He put a hand to his ear as he leaned to the side. "The ravens need watering, I will do it, don't worry!" He yelled as he ran out of the room.
"Yeah, don't erm, don't listen to him." Eryan said as he scratched the back of his head. "And to answer your question, yes, we think that you are our best shot at this, our only shot really."
"I have one problem with this task." He said as he eyed the others around the table. Oh, Khara should have known that he would find this difficult, he probably was a proud follower of the Imperial Legion. To ask him to help them kill the Emperor, it was but a foolish thought to think that he would betray his loyalty to the Empire. "I don't know how to make stew." Oh, okay then. Khara thought.
"So, you'll do it?" Nazir asked with big eyes.
"Yes, I will help you." Orgrim said with a firm nod.
Nazir laughed out in joy as he walked over to the orc and patted his shoulder. "Excellent! Just wonderful, you my friend, just made us all very happy." He said as he smiled down at the orc.
"Alright, listen. Orgrim, Nazir, Droka'Ru and Babette will work on the Gourmet disguise, you can head on out." Astrid told them, she then looked at the others at the table. "Now for the ones that will do the actual assassination. Eryan, Khara, Sapphire, Rune, Delvin and Veezara, you'll continue to go over the guard's schedules, memorize their routes and where they are stationed. You are the only ones that will be inside the city during the assassination itself, too many people would only do more harm than good."
"Agreed." Eryan said as the others nodded.
"Good. Gabriella-" Astrid looked over at the woman. "You will take S'aura, Cicero and Serana and work on that potion." Astrid told the dunmer woman as she looked at her.
"Will do." She said as she got up from her seat and left the room with the others who were assigned to her team.
"Ivara, Vah'Sur, Festus, Arnbjorn and I will work on the other contracts." She said as she nodded to the ones that were left in the room. "Let's do some fine work, people." And with that, Astrid and her team left the room.
"Right." Khara said after they had gotten the room to themselves. "Who will be the one to go in with me then?" It would probably be one of the Shadowscales or perhaps Eryan?
"That would be me." Eryan said as he walked over to Khara with the papers containing the information they needed. "Gather around people, we have a lot of work ahead of us." The others moved to sit closer, and then the real work began.
"Orgrim will be walking in through the main entrance. That however is not the case for us." Veezara placed a detailed map of the Emperor's Tower on the table. "Right here-" He pointed at the roof. "There is a window and our way inside. Khara and Eryan will use a rope to climb down into the Tower and do their business. Rune, Delvin-" He looked at the two men. "We need you two to manage the rope. There is one place where the window can be spotted from the wall-" Veezara pointed to the side on the castle. "Right here, so after Khara and Eryan is down, the rope needs to go as do you. You just need to move over to the left-" He pointed on the map again. "You can't be spotted from there. Me and Sapphire will stand down on the ground, by the windmill and signal you when there are no guards. You will then wait for Khara's signal, just a whistle, and then you get the rope back up and get them out of there as fast as possible." The argonian finished with a nod.
"How many guards are on the wall?" Rune asked.
"Twelve, however only four of those will be on the move, and they will move in pairs. We estimate a ten-minute window between each passing of the guards. Plenty of time to get you both down and up." Veezara said as he nodded to Khara and Eryan.
"How many guards are inside?" Sapphire asked as she leaned back in her seat.
"An impressive number of twenty." Khara said with a sigh as she raised her eyebrows. "Which is why Orgrim's part with getting the guards poisoned is vital for this to work."
"Damn, that's a lot of people in not too much space." Rune said as he leaned back. "You're probably better off leaving your blade with us on the roof." He said as he looked at Khara.
"Aye, good call." Khara agreed with a nod.
"Okey then, now let's run over the schedules a few more times and then the whole thing again. We need to remember this. Every part." Eryan said as he got comfortable in his seat, they were going to sit here for a while.
-One day later
Serana entered the alchemy lab and as she did she could see Cicero sitting on top of the table, his legs dangling from where they hang over the edge as the man was quietly humming to a tune, it was the most peaceful state that Serana had ever seen the man in. "How goes the brewing, Gabriella?" She asked.
"It's going well, we're just experimenting with how long it will take for it to take full effect and how long the effect will last." Gabriella said as she carefully dropped some powdered nightshade into a bottle.
Serana was about to speak again when suddenly Cicero made a weird sound and then went completely silent. She turned around to find the man frozen, she narrowed her eyes at the man. S'aura then quickly walked over to him and flipped over an hourglass as she picked up another to examine it.
"How long was that, S'aura?" Gabriella asked her student, her eyes still stuck on her bottle.
"One hour and forty-minutes." S'aura answered as she wrote it down.
"Good, we're closing in. Time for how long it lasts, will you dear?" Gabriella said as she got some white powder into the bottle.
"Already on it." S'aura answered with a smile as she moved back to a desk to work on some ingredients.
Serana then realized what they were doing. "You're using Cicero to find out how long it lasts?" She asked with an amused tone.
S'aura looked up at the vampire with a grin. "He doesn't really have anything else to offer on this and besides, it isn't the first time Cicero have volunteered to take potions, or poisons for that matter." The elf said amused as she moved over to Cicero.
Serana nodded as she turned to look at the man, she tilted her head and wondered. "How he is still alive is a mystery to me." She said in wonder as she shook her head, making the two elves chuckle.
-Three days later
"So, let's go over this again." Nazir said as he walked around the table.
Orgrim nodded and rose from his seat. "I walk up to the door as I pretend to have all the time in the world." He walked a line with his hands behind his back. "I greet the guards and show them the writ of passage."
"They question you on why you are here one day early." Nazir as asked as he looked at the orc.
"I want to try a new recipe that I think will surprise the Emperor, but I need other's opinions on it. So, how about I make you and your men some fine stew and not that boiled water the chef normally serves you." Orgrim was pretending that Nazir was a guard. The orc offered a friendly smile as he waited for the Redguard to speak.
"It's not against the rules and they accept. You're now inside, where do you go?" Nazir asked as he walked around the orc.
"I take the first to the left, then a right after that. The kitchen is then straight ahead. I walk with ease and enjoy the throne room as I pass." Orgrim said as he nodded to himself.
"Gianna is in the kitchen and is surprised that you're here already." Nazir told him.
"I calm her and let her in on my plan to test my new recipe." The orc answered.
"She wants to help you." Nazir said as he walked over to the table with all the ingredients on.
"And I gladly accept." Orgrim said as he walked over to the table.
"You're the head chef, what ingredients do you choose?" Nazir asked as he gestured for the chef to make the stew.
"Six carrots…-" Orgrim cuts the carrots up in the desired size of pieces. He then grabs some meat. "Two big chunks of horker meat." He cut slice after slice and added it to the stew. "Two cabbages, five potatoes, two garlics." He cut the ingredients. "The smallest amount of lavender." He said as he bent down a little to make sure he dropped the right amount into the stew.
"How long does it cook?" The Redguard asks him.
"Fifteen-minutes. That is when I add the tomatoes, the extra butter, pepper and salt and some apple juice and let it cook for another five-minutes." Orgrim said with a proud nod as he looked at his fine work. "I then ask Gianna to fetch some wine for the stew to give it that perfect taste. When she is out of the kitchen I add the potion."
"There is someone else in the kitchen and they see you pour it in." Nazir said as he looked at Orgrim.
"I tell them it's my secret ingredient as I send them a charming wink." The orc chuckled.
"You finish up and leave the Tower." The Redguard said.
"I thank the guard and remind him that I will expect a full report of the stew in the morning. Then I leave." Orgrim said as he looked at Nazir.
"Perfect, Orgrim. Just perfect." Nazir praised as he clapped his hands at the orc.
Eryan walked over to the stew and tasted it, he then nodded. "This is good." He said.
Nazir looked at the orc, his clothes, his pose, the way he moved and talked. "I dare say that we are looking at the perfect copy of the Gourmet." Nazir said pleased as he inspected the orc.
Arnbjorn then entered the room. "Listen." He said and grabbed everyone's attention. "The Emperor will be in Skyrim in six days." He informed them. "Report back to Astrid at the end of the day."
"Will do, Brother." Droka'Ru said to the werewolf. Arnbjorn nodded as he left the room.
Babette looked over at Orgrim and spoke. "Shall we do it again? Practice makes perfect after all." She said with a clever smile.
"Yes, let's do it a few more times." Orgrim agreed as he looked over at all the other stews that they had already made and chuckled. "At least we will be well-fed over the next days."
-Three days later
Khara and Eryan's breathing was heavy as they practiced with their daggers. "They will come at us like this." Eryan explained as he took one foot closer to Khara and used his free arm to grab her wrist.
Khara nodded as she threw her dagger to her free hand and blocked Eryan's attack. She then pulled her other hand closer, taking Eryan by surprise and making him lose his balance. She placed a foot in his path and the vampire fell to the ground. Khara quickly followed him and placed her dagger right over the man's throat.
"That's it." He said as he patted her knee that was currently digging into his chest. Khara got up and offered him a hand and pulled him up. "Thanks, let's take a break, yeah?" He asked in a tired voice.
"Please, I'm about to faint from exhaustion." She let out in a shaky chuckle as she sat down in a chair. Eryan joined her and her some water as he got a blood potion out for himself. "Cheers." She said as she raised into the air before bringing it to her lips. She took a few sips before placing the cup back at the table and closing her eyes as she leaned back.
"I'm glad that I'm going to have you with me in there, you're a beast with that dagger." Eryan said as he looked at her.
Khara opened her eyes and looked at the man. "You're not so bad yourself." She said with a grin.
He smiled at her. "Can I ask a favor?" Both were still breathing heavily.
She looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "That depends, what is it?"
"When we're with the Emperor, can we use my dagger?" He asked as he showed her his elven dagger.
"Yeah, sure, but why?" She asked with curious eyes.
He shrugged his shoulder as he inspected the weapon. "To own the dagger that killed an Emperor would make a good story, don't you think?"
"I guess." Khara said. "It's no problem for me, as long as we don't play games with him." Khara said as she moved he eyes to her cup.
"No, of course. We go in, kill him and go out. That simple." Eryan said before drinking his blood potion.
Khara nodded. "That simple." She got up from her seat and nudged him with her hand. "Come now, I'll attack this time." She told him. He sighed as he got up from his seat and took a defensive stance.
-One day later
"Oi, boss." Delvin said as he entered the room. "Got a letter from Bryn, The Goldenclaw Company is up and running." He said as he handed his Guild Master the letter and sitting down next to her.
Her eyes scanned the letter. "He had Thrynn help set it up, yeah?"
"Aye." Delvin said as he grabbed a cup and poured some mead in it. He took a sip before quickly adding something a little stronger to it.
"What's your thoughts of the man, Delvin?" Khara asked amused as she looked at the man.
"Thrynn?" He asked and when Khara hummed he continued. "Strong, sharp, loyal, a man you can count on." He took a sip and hummed, pleased with the taste this time.
"You know what I'm about to say, aren't you?" Khara said with a small grin.
"I do and I'm right there with you, I think a promotion is in place." Delvin said with a smirk
"That it is, we'll get the others in the meeting room once we get back and do a vote." Khara said as she placed the letter on the table.
"What's this now? We're getting a new face to sit by our table?" Rune asked as he, Sapphire and Serana entered the room.
"No one ever told you that it's rude to eavesdrop, Rune?" Khara asked the man as she looked at her friends.
He only shrugged his shoulders as he sat down. "Must have missed it, sorry boss." He said with a grin. Khara only shook her head at the man with a smile on her lips.
"Orgrim is ready, the potion is ready, we know where to stand and where to move, where to look and where to enter." Sapphire told them as she sat down. "Sounds like we're ready."
Khara hummed as she played with her cup with a telekinesis spell. She then stopped what she was doing and looked at the other faces around the table. They were all looking at her, waiting for her to speak. "Two days." She told them. "In two days we will attempt an assassination on the Emperor." She nodded to herself. "Going to be dangerous, difficult, it might go without problems, might not." Her eyes roamed their faces. "Last chance to get off the wagon, people." She looked at them, waited for their response.
They were going to stand against the Emperor's bodyguards, elite soldiers that can easily end one of their lives if they make one wrong move. It wasn't guarantied that all the guards inside the Tower would eat Orgrim's stew, and they needed to be prepared for that.
"Not a chance." Sapphire said quickly.
"Same here, we're seeing this through." Rune added.
Khara nodded to them and looked over at Delvin. The man met her eyes and nodded. "With you till the end, Khara. Always have, always will." He said with a confident voice as he raised his cup to the woman.
Khara then found soft-glowing, orange eyes. Serana smiled at her and it made the wolf mirror the smile on her own lips. "We're doing this." She told her wolf.
Khara nodded as a bigger smile crept up on her. "So bloody loyal, all of you." She said with a chuckle as she shook her head. "Couldn't have asked for a better crew. When we're done and back in Riften, I'm going to drown you three in coins." She said as she pointed to the three thieves who all had smiles on their faces. She then shared a quick look with Serana and sent the woman a wink.
-One day later
Most of the people were sitting in the dining hall. There was some small talking going around the table while they ate, but expect that is was mostly quiet. One day remained now, one day until all their planning would be put to the test. They were excited, worried, hopeful, doubtful, no one knew how this would end, they only knew how they hoped it would end.
There will be more guards in the city than before, more people watching out for threats and suspicious behavior. Luckily for them however, the guards would eat as the sun sets. When the potion would be in full effect it would already be dark outside, they would at least have the cover of darkness to help them on this difficult, challenging task.
Khara finished her stew rather fast and after she had cleaned up after herself, she left the room. She walked through the stone corridors and entered the main room where she sat down by the water. Her knee was bouncing as she lost herself while wandering in her mind. She didn't even realize that someone had gone up to her and was now sitting next to her. The wolf turned her head and saw the tiny form that is Babette sitting next to her.
"I met Eryan when he was twenty years old." The little vampire said in a quiet voice. "He didn't try to kill me when he saw my eyes or my fangs, instead he offered me his friendship, a roof over my head, and good company." She said as she threw a little rock into the water and saw how it created the smallest waves.
Khara turned a little so that one of her legs were lying on the fallen pillar as her other leg was hanging off it. She placed her hand in her lap as she listened closely to what the girl had to say.
"We traveled all over Cyrodiil for years, exploring and meeting all kinds of people. One day he was going to sell some items we had gotten at the market. He would only be gone for an hour or so, but when he wasn't back after two hours I went out looking for him. And I found him, in an alley, gagging on his own blood as he tried to stop the blood from flowing out of his throat. And I was so scared at that moment, for he was the only thing of value in my life and he was dying." Babette said as she inhaled deeply.
Khara looked at her with sad eyes. She wondered over how Babette was before she was turned, how did she even get turned? What happened to her parents? Khara continued to look at the girl, waiting for Babette to speak and continue her story.
"I sat down with him and he pointed to my teeth. I knew right away what he was asking for and I gladly gave it to him. It took some years before he was comfortable as a vampire, but when he first got the hang of it, he was happy and even proud of what he was. He still thanks me for what I did that night, he says it at every morning of every day." Babette then turned to look at Khara. The wolf mirrored her sitting position and crossed her legs as she looked at the girl. "He is the best thing about every single day for me, please, don't let him get himself killed?" Babette asked Khara.
Khara's eyes looked deeply into Babette's orange ones as she grabbed the un-child's hand and shook it. "Promise." Khara whispered. "You have to promise me something too." She said in a gentle voice.
Babette smiled as she tilted her head to the side. "What?"
"Remember to tell Eryan what you just told me before we leave tomorrow. Words like that can give a man more strength than any potion ever could." Khara said as she pointed to Babette with a smile.
"Deal." The vampire girl said happily. "I better get back, I think I saw Cicero playing with a torch near the ravens." The girl said with a frown. Khara chuckled as she nodded for Babette to go.
Khara then left the room too and walked into the room with the beds and sat down in one. Her Guild members had already told her to get some rest and Khara guessed that it could be smart due to how much she had trained with Eryan in the past few days. She sat down in one bed and leaned back against the wall, she brought one leg up and rested one arm against it. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes. The wolf then heard another pair of footsteps approach after some time, but this time however, she could already tell who it was without the need of opening her eyes.
The bed moved a little as the person sat right next to her on it. She felt them press their side into hers and rest their head on her shoulder. Khara smiled as she searched for their hand and when she found it she lifted it to her mouth where she placed a kiss on it before she lowered it to her own lap, fingers intertwined.
"What if I had been someone else?" Serana asked in a low voice, the smile she had on her lips could be heard.
"Would have been a little odd if anyone else sat this close to me, wouldn't it?" Khara challenged with a grin.
"I don't know, Cicero would probably do something like this." Serana told her wolf while chuckling.
Khara released a small laugh. "Yeah, he probably would." Khara ran her thumb over smooth skin. "So, I've been thinking." Khara said and Serana hummed in response. "After this we go to Riften, we stay there for a day. Celebrate with the crew, see how Goldenclaw is doing, see what we can offer the Dawnguard." Khara then looked down at their hands. "We could go and visit them too, see how things are and all." She felt Serana nod against her, so she continued. "Then we can go back to Solitude, or anywhere really, and relax for some days and then we can finally go to the Throat of the World and I can finally show you that thing I've wanted to show you for a while now." Khara gave Serana's hand a small squeeze. "How does that sound?" She asked.
"Really good." Serana said in a sleepy voice.
Khara let out a silent chuckle as she slowly moved away from the woman, she guided Serana's body down on the bed and placed the woman's head in her lap. She ran her fingers through black hair and saw how Serana fell asleep within seconds. Her eyes followed the movements of her fingers as she moved them down the jawline, then back up where they disappeared between dark hair.
Khara found out that she could do this for hours without knowing how much time that had passed. She probably should get some sleep herself, but just by having Serana close like this gave the wolf all the energy she would ever need.
She was glad that they could soon leave this place. She was tired of having to keep her guard up all the time, it probably wasn't necessary, but just knowing that Astrid was close by made the wolf tense and stressed.
They had gone over the different parts on the plan so many times now that Khara was sure that she would remember it for the rest of her life, it was embedded in her mind, that was how much they had practiced over the last few days. Serana, Festus, Ivara and Droka'Ru would wait for them at the Solitude stables while she, Eryan, Veezara and the Guild members were in the city. Khara guessed that it was good to have a few more people close by if something were to go wrong. If they needed to make a quick escape, then the others would wait for a signal and get the horses ready.
Khara kept her eyes on Serana for a little while longer before she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. With the light sound of Serana's breathing, her scent and the feeling of having her close, Khara found sleep quickly.
Serana was the first of the two to wake. She kept her eyes closed as she could only hear one heartbeat close by, meaning that they still had the room to themselves, it made her smile. Her hand rested over her wolf's heart and she loved how it felt, she loved it even more when she realized that Khara had her own hand over hers. She opened her eyes and saw that Khara had moved them during the night. They were both laying now, Khara on her back and then Serana laid halfway over the wolf.
She was currently enjoying the warm skin that was Khara's neck, she moved back a little so that she could see the wolf's face. Serana's eyes roamed the side of the woman's face, there was something about seeing the wolf's face in this state, so calm, so relaxed. Serana knew that Khara was stressed and tense most of the time, she knew that her wolf didn't enjoy staying here even though the wolf tried to hide it.
Serana spread out her fingers before slowly running her hand over to the side of Khara's neck. She moved her head a little closer to Khara's as she moved her hand up along Khara's neck before cupping the wolf's cheek. She then moved closer and ran her lips against the wolf's other cheek before placing a long, light kiss on it.
"Falling…" The wolf mumbled quietly in a voice dripping with sleep.
Serana moved back the tiniest bit, her nose still touching warm skin. "What was that?" She whispered gently to the wolf.
Khara's breathing then changed. "Huh?" She mumbled sleepily while still keeping her eyes closed.
Serana smiled as she realized that Khara had talked in her sleep. "You said something about falling." Serana saw how Khara's lips formed into a grin.
"Oh yeah, I'm still falling." She said a bit more awake this time. She then moved her head to the side so that she could look at Serana, the move made it so that their noses touched.
"Still falling?" Serana asked with a soft voice as she looked into those blue eyes. She saw how the last glow of the wolf's eyes faded before the wolf spoke.
"Still falling for you." Khara whispered with a soft smile at the same time as she nudged her nose against Serana's. She felt a thumb caress her cheek while the woman who owned the hand smiled back at her.
Serana moved her hand and thumb over Khara's bottom lip, she then moved the little distance between the two and connected their lips, the kiss was slow due to the fact that they had both just woken up, but for each passing second both became more aware, more awake. Both closed their eyes at the contact, and both smiled into it. "Are you hungry?" Serana whispered once they pulled back. Khara sucked in her lips and nodded as her eyes changed, turning a little darker. "Do you want to get up and get some stew?" She asked the wolf, but she already knew what Khara wanted.
The wolf wrinkled her nose and spoke. "I've eaten so much stew over the last few days, I think I've lost my appetite for it."
Serana smiled as she placed a quick kiss on the wolf's nose before she rolled onto her back. "Have at it then." She said amused.
Her words were rewarded with a snort from Khara. "Such gracefulness." Khara said through a chuckle as she moved to hover over the woman. Khara slowly lowered her body down onto Serana's, the wolf really missed having Serana underneath her, or above her, both were fine really.
Serana's hand automatically went to the wolf's hips as she felt warm lips place loving kisses along her jaw, then down her neck. She inhaled deeply when she felt the wolf's fangs sink into her. Serana really understood why Khara had a thing for her fangs, because this felt so incredibly good. Both Serana and Khara reminded themselves to let the wolf feed more often.
Khara took what she needed to satisfy her hunger and removed her fangs, but she didn't move. She nuzzled her nose against the crook of Serana's neck in inhaled deeply, she loved Serana's scent. Serana chuckled as she got what Khara was doing. "Enjoying yourself, wolf?" Khara only hummed in response as she moved to look at Serana. A cool hand cupped her cheek and Khara moved her head a little so that she could kiss it, all while keeping their eyes locked. "Be careful today." Serana whispered.
Khara nodded as she placed one last kiss on cool lips. "Come, we should get ready, it won't be long before we leave." Khara said as she grabbed Serana's hands and helped the woman out of bed.
They moved over to their armors and got them on. Serana helped Khara with her war paint and then they got out of the bedchambers and joined the others in the dining hall. They were met with tired faces as it was still early in the morning, the sun wasn't probably even up yet.
They sat for a while, talking and making sure everyone knew what they had to do. Once that was done, they left the sanctuary. Since Khara and Serana's horses were still in Markarth, they had to share one, but that was no problem for neither women or horse. The horses of Skyrim were strong and had incredibly endurance, having two women on in full armor with weapons were no problem at all. Khara had always wanted to have a horse, a mighty steed to truly care for and such, but the ones she had bought never really stayed alive for long. Throughout her adventurous life here in Skyrim, Khara have owned an impressive number of sixteen horses.
They had all managed to die rather quickly while under the wolf's ownership. Khara remembered how they all had perished too. Four have been killed by dragons, two by giants, one drowned, one got killed by arrows as Khara did a tactical retreat, two lost their lives to wolves and bears, three killed by bandits because for some odd reason the horses keep charging them, two died by falling down mountains. And then we have Khara's favorite and she still doesn't know how it happened, but she had left it in the woods while she went to clear out an old Nordic ruin and when she had returned it lied dead on the ground with a beehive on it's head. She was sure that she had some kind of horse-curse on her or something, there are even some horse breeders that refuse to sell to her.
Khara took a moment to look at their group, it was quite the sight. All were armored, except for Orgrim, with all kinds of swords and daggers on them. She saw how the Shadowscales had dual daggers on the back of their belts. Khara had to admit that was an impressive and bold fighting style as they would need to get very up close and personal with whoever were unfortunate enough to cross paths with them. Her eyes fell to Festus and his robes, she saw a few books hanging by his belt along with some potions, you could easily see that the man favored magic over physical weapons. She then looked over at Eryan who had a dagger and a sword, and it made her wonder, did the man wield both while fighting or just one? She didn't ask as she was sure she would find out by the end of the day.
She was brought back from her thoughts when Orgrim maneuvered his horse to walk next to Khara's. His eyes scanned over her face before he spoke. "War paint looks good on you, you look fierce." He pointed out. Everyone that was going to enter the city, all except from Orgrim, was wearing the same war paint as it would help with their disguise. It was extremely important that Khara especially was not to be recognized by anyone while they were in the city. No one could ever know of what the Dragonborn was about to do as many would not understand or see the reason behind it.
"Yeah? Good thing war paint is normal to wear in Skyrim or else this would look rather suspicious." She said with a smile. "I mean look at us." She said as she gestured to the others. "Dark matching armor and war paint. We don't look like a group you'd mess with." She said with a chuckle.
Orgrim agreed with a laugh of his own. "Me on the other hand…" He said as he gestured to the noble clothes he was wearing. "I look ridiculous in this."
"You are wearing the finest clothes money can buy, Orgrim. You should be proud do wear such fine clothes." Rune said with a grin.
The orc only groaned at that. "At least it's comfortable to wear." He mumbled.
"So, you are ready?" Droka'Ru asked the orc.
"Yes, I am." Orgrim said with a nod as he looked up at Solitude.
"Got the writ of passage on you?" Delvin asked.
Orgrim patted over his pocked and nodded. "All good."
"Alright then, good luck and remember, take your time, go at your own pace and everything will be fine." Eryan said as he patted the orc on his shoulder. "You got this."
"I got this." Orgrim repeated before he started walking up to the city. Khara's eyes followed the orc for as long as they were able to, all they could do now was wait.
Khara's thoughts reminded her of where the guards would stand and where they would patrol, how many was to be inside the Tower and outside. She replayed the practice fights she had with Eryan back at the sanctuary and how the Penitus Oculatus fought their fights. If the information they had gathered from Commander Maro was right, then there would be a lot of soldiers inside the Tower, way too many for Khara and Eryan alone. Khara was sure that if she was to meet them on an open field and was allowed to use all of her powers, then she could probably defeat them without too many problems, but inside such a small place, not a chance. They needed Orgrim to get the potion to the soldiers, without that the whole idea of entering the Tower would be a death sentence.
The hours dragged out and the whole group were starting to worry, that was until they could see an orc walking towards them with a very big smile on his face. He joined them on the few benches and rocks they were sitting at and shared the news. "I got the potion in the stew, no problem, but I got even better news."
"Which is?" Droka'Ru asked with a curious voice.
"I asked the guard at the entrance how many were on duty so that I knew how much stew to make for them, and he told me they were only twelve inside." Orgrim informed them.
Khara and Veezara shared a look. "Could he be lying?" Ivara asked.
"Maybe, but why would he? It's possible that Commander Maro have messed up some of the guard's schedules due to him being distracted and all." Festus told the group.
"Yeah, I'm with Festus on that one." Serana agreed. "It makes sense." She said as she shrugged her shoulders.
"In that case, our job just got a little easier. I'll still throw a detect life spell before we enter though." Khara said.
"Aye, better safe than sorry." Rune agreed.
"So, we got two hours before the effect kicks in." Sapphire told them. "How long did we manage to keep it going?" She asked.
"One hour and forty minutes." Droka'Ru reminded her. "Plenty of time to kill an old man."
"Yeah, alright. Ready to head into town?" Eryan asked.
"We are. Veezara, Sapphire, go into the Winking Skeever and buy a couple of bottles of wine or mead then walk over to the market stalls and sit down against the wall. The guards won't give it a second thought, you should be able to see both the roof and the wall from there." Khara said as she looked at the two. She then turned to look at Festus and the others. "If things go bad and we need your help, I'll use a light candle spell and send it into the air, should be easy to spot."
"Alright, we'll keep our eyes open." Ivara told her. "Go now, and finish this."
"With pleasure." Eryan told his sister. He, Khara, Delvin, Sapphire, Rune and Veezara then walked up to the city. Just as expected they were stopped by the guards watching the main gate.
"Business?" The guard asked as he looked at the group.
"Looking for bounties, we're mercenaries." Eryan told the man. "Could you point us in the right direction?" He asked as he placed his hand on his belt.
"Sure thing, there is a board at the Winking Skeever, should be plenty of work for you there." The guard said as he opened the gate for them. "Stay out of trouble."
They walked through the entrance. "Will do." Eryan said with a smirk.
My opinion on the Chapter and info:
Lots of time passed, lots of stew, Cicero and ravens! Don't have time to write more, I'm way too excited for the next chapter, bye!
-Zep