A Doom Driven Hero: Chapter 25 – Hostage Negotiations

"How many Dragons have you fought?"

"I don't know. I don't keep track."

"Do you speak their tongue fluently?"

"No."

"How many shouts have you learned?"

"About 15? Not too sure. I tend to only remember them specifically when I need them."

Jordis frowned at Marcus. They were walking through Solitude back to Breezehome after a particular event concerning a talkative beacon and a temple full of shadowy wraiths. Jordis had been throwing questions at Marcus for the whole trip, and he'd been successfully failing to answer them in any satisfying manner.

Jordis placed a finger on her small chin in a thoughtful pose as they walked. "I would've thought you'd be more organized, in terms of your… Dragonborn-ness."

"What?" Marcus' faced scrunched up with confusion. "What kind of a statement is that? Do you keep tabs on everything you do that's related to being entirely human?"

"Umm..." Jordis didn't know how to answer. "I… no?"

Marcus nodded in satisfaction, "Exactly."

They walked in silence for a bit longer, Marcus clearly thinking about something. He didn't want to come off too crass or gruff to Jordis, so he decided to do a bit of self-deprecating defense.

"I mean," Marcus continued, "I've never been the most organized person. I'll be the first to admit that, it's just that at the moment, I have bigger things on my mind."

"Hmm..." Jordis nodded to herself. After another moment of walking in silence, she gasped in realization. "I've been asking way too many questions, haven't I?"

Marcus smiled, "It's ok. I don't mind too much. It's only natural." Marcus placed a hand on his chest, and got into an overly-heroic pose. "I am a one-of-a-kind hero of the world, after all."

Jordis smiled, and rolled her eyes, something she'd never have considered doing to her thane in the past. "Yeah, right."

Marcus said, "No, I'm being serious."

Jordis frowned, unsure whether to take Marcus at his word. "Are… are you actually not joking right now?"

Marcus raised an eyebrow at her. She honestly doesn't know? He thought in confusion, I suppose that makes sense, she hasn't seen Alduin's Wall…

Marcus looked at her, and recited the same words that had blown his life to pieces. "When the Snow Tower lies sundered, kingless, bleeding. The World Eater wakes, and the Wheel turns upon the Last Dragonborn."

Jordis blinked in confusion at the archaic language, before her mind caught up to the interpretation of the words. "You're… you're that same 'Last Dragonborn?"

"Yep."

Jordis looked a little stunned. She stopped walking and rested a hand on a nearby stone wall. "I mean..." she took a deep breath, "I knew you had something to do with the Dragons, their return coinciding with your… 'reveal'… but I didn't know it was so… serious."

"I thought the same thing," Marcus admitted, "I thought I was just meant to… assist the whole thing. I never would've thought I was entirely responsible."

"I can't imagine what that must be like…" Jordis shook her head in amazement, staring at the ground. "To know the whole world rests on your shoulders alone..."

Marcus stiffened slightly. He turned away suddenly and put his back to Jordis. "I… I'd rather if you didn't mention that." His tone was firmer, and less warm. "It makes me… It's not a thing I like to think about."

Jordis' face looked a bit surprised, and concerned, but she didn't bring it up further. She just closed her mouth, and they kept walking. They reached Proudspire Manor, and moved inside. Marcus went to go put Dawnbreaker in a secure location downstairs, before heading up onto the balcony for a bit of rest.

After about 10 minutes, Jordis came out.

"I… I want to apologize for what I said earlier," she began in a hesitant tone. "I didn't mean to remind you of anything you don't want to be reminded of."

Marcus sighed, "It's fine. It's the sort of thing I should get used to thinking about, don't feel bad."

Jordis attempted a reassuring smile, "Well, to make it up to you, I'll cook tonight."

Marcus shook his head, "You did that last night. I'll take care of it tonight."

"It's a housecarl's duty, Marcus." Jordis pouted. "You seem to be almost impossible to keep out of danger, so allow me to at least fulfill one of my obligations."

Marcus' tone got quieter, more desperate. "Please allow me to cook…"

Jordis took a step back, a confused frown on her face at Marcus' almost… guilty tone. Then, a dawning realization began to creep onto her features. "Are you… do you think my cooking is bad?"

Marcus couldn't meet her gaze. He looked at his feet. "Um… no! Of course not."

But Jordis' feminine intuition couldn't be led astray. She leaned forward and poked him on the arm. "You do! That's why you wanted to cook tonight!"

Marcus pointed behind her in alarm. "Look! The Lighthouse has gone out!"

"Oh no," Jordis shook her head, "You can't dodge the situation like that." She wouldn't normally speak want to speak to her thane like this, but her nordic pride had been insulted.

"I'm being serious!" Marcus exclaimed. "Look behind you for a second, the Lighthouse isn't burning."

Jordis turned around, risking a short glance. Marcus was right. The bonfire at the top of the Lighthouse wasn't burning.

"That's odd," Jordis frowned, temporarily forgetting about Marcus' insult. "It's always supposed to be burning..."

"Let's go investigate it!" Marcus said suddenly, brushing past Jordis and hurrying into the house to retrieve his weapons. Rest could wait.

Jordis turned, and frowned at the space Marcus had last been seen in. The Lighthouse fire being unlit was an issue worth investigating, but she was certain that wasn't why Marcus was so eager to head down there.

The conversation about cooking would have to continue at another time.

"Why is it always lit, anyway?" Marcus asked. "That doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Shouldn't you only need it like that at night?"

"It's easier to maintain a fire than continuously keep lighting one." Jordis said, shrugging. "It consumes more wood, but we're guaranteed that it keeps burning."

"Well, that guarantee hasn't worked, evidently."

"Hmm..."

They approached the structure. There didn't seem to be anyone around. Marcus looked up at the large stone tower. He could just see the tip of the wood stack at the top.

He said, "Why don't you use a magical fire?"

"A what?" Jordis didn't understand.
"You know," Marcus scratched his head, "Use an enchantment, or an alteration spell to create light at the top, rather than burning wood."

Jordis blinked, face blank. "I… I don't know. I wasn't aware that kind of magic existed?"

"Every kind of magic exists," Marcus stated, walking up the first set of stairs. "If there's any theoretical application, magic can do it. It's just that more often than not, that kind of magic hasn't been discovered yet."

Jordis followed him up the stairs, twisting around and around as they continued up. "Do you know that sort of magic?"

"You mean chromatic magic? Kinda. It's fairly basic alteration magic, but it wouldn't be enough to stick on top of a lighthouse. I'm pretty good, but I'm not that good"

They walked up in silence, until they reached the top. Marcus approached the stack of wood, examining it closely.

"It hasn't gone out naturally," he mused.

Jordis walked up and looked at it closely. Surprise and confusion in her eyes, "It's been doused. Why has it been doused?"

The wood was soaked in water. Someone had made a lot of trips up and down the stairs with a bucket of water, and had poured it over the wood.

Marcus looked away from the wood, and out to the ocean. His brow furrowed in concentration. "Do you know if any ships are due to dock at Solitude tonight?"

"No," she shook her head, "But I wouldn't be surprised, they do come in fairly regularly."

"I think it was pirates." Marcus stated plainly. "They're trying to get a ship to run aground on the rocks east of Morthal, on the other side of the channel."

"Why?"

"Why do you think? They're going to kill everyone aboard, and claim the cargo themselves, away from the authorities and without the need for a ship of their own."

Jordis's face went from shock, to anger, to determination. Eventually she glanced out to the ocean, then back at Marcus.

"We need to stop them."

Marcus nodded, "Yes." He walked over to the edge of the Lighthouse, already scanning the horizon for ships. "How fast can you swim?"

The answer was not fast enough. For either of them. By the time they'd got to the other side of the channel, a ship had already fallen victim to the pirate's scheme. It must've entered the channel before they even started swimming, because by the time they'd reached the other side in the late evening, a medium sized vessel had hit the shore.

Marcus and Jordis, shivering from the cold water, and quickly crept up to the ship. There were a lot of footprints in the mud and sand, Marcus noticed. A lot of people had been moving around. He had the feeling they'd gotten here too late.

There was a large ramp leading up onto the deck. As they crept up it, Marcus overheard voices.

He whispered to Jordis. "Stay here."

She went to protest, but a look from Marcus silenced the words before they were voiced. Slowly, Marcus crept over the railing, and onto the deck. There was a small… shack, of sorts, protruding from the deck of the ship, covering the stairs that led down into the rest of the ship. Marcus could hear two voices coming from inside the little structure.

He slowly drew his dagger, keeping it in his right hand, and took a quick breath. Then he jumped up and ran forward in a brief burst of speed. Entering the structure at a sprint, Marcus saw two men with their backs to him, chatting atop the stairs leading into the insides of the ship.

They heard his footsteps, and began to turn, but Marcus was already upon them. He grabbed one of them by the back of their shirt, and buried his dagger into the side of their neck. The wide-bladed glass weapon opened up a vicious cut in the flesh, and blood practically sprayed out. The other man let out a surprised scream, reaching for his mace at his belt.

Marcus finished him off with a quick slash to the throat. Both men crumpled to the ground, dead. Marcus walked back out onto the deck, and beckoned to Jordis to come aboard. She followed him down below deck, Marcus in front.

As Marcus slowly walked through the various rooms and hallways, something became apparent rather quickly.

"This isn't a cargo ship," Marcus noted, peeking into the side-rooms and seeing nothing but beds and dressers. "This is… or was, rather, a passenger ship."

Jordis frowned, "So where are the passengers?"

Marcus chewed his lip, as they moved down another set of stairs. "I have a feeling, before this is over, you'll regret you asked."

They moved down to the bilge of the ship, where they could see a few barrels and crates with provisions inside. They still hadn't come across anyone else. No bodies, apart from the two Marcus created.

"The hell happened to the crew? Or the passengers? Or the boarders?" Jordis frowned in confusion.

Marcus said, "I've got a bit of an idea, but I'm not too sure..."

They were silent for a moment, and the silence allowed them to hear a brief 'squeak' as the floorboards above them moved under the weight of someone's footsteps. They each glanced at each other, before turning and running back up the stairs toward the source of the noise.

They burst into a bedroom, the Captain's quarters by the look of it, to catch a third pirate rifling through a drawer. An argonian female, who promptly looked up, stunned as to the two armed people rushing into the same room.

The three people stood still for a moment, each one taking the situation in at their own pace. Marcus was the first to recover, darting forward and smashing his elbow on the jaw of the pirate. The pirate collapsed, eyes rolling into the back of her head.

Jordis moved forward, drawing her sword. Marcus reached out sideways and stopped her, his left arm pressing against her chest in a… semi compromising location. Marcus moved his arm away quick enough to not make a point of it.

"Leave him. We'll want to know where they took the rest."

"The rest?" Jordis tilted her head quizzically, as Marcus picked up the unconscious argonian and slung her over his shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"Think about it," Marcus said as he began to walk back up to the deck, carrying the pirate. "Pirates douse the Lighthouse, in the hopes of running a ship aground. When they get on the ship, they find it full of nothing but people. Travelers, nobles, families, whatever. No actual loot. They could massacre everyone, and leave, but then they'd gain nothing from the whole thing. Instead, they decide to capture all of the passengers, take them somewhere, and then ransom the whole lot to Solitude."

Jordis' face fell. Secretly she'd been hoping the ship was empty, or there was some other explanation. But what Marcus was saying made sense. Pirates like this didn't have morals, nor did they care about how they obtained what they wanted. If ransoming a boatload of innocent people was the only current way they could make the money they wanted, why wouldn't they take that chance?

"You're sure about this?" Jordis asked, a fearful expression growing on her face.

Marcus answered, "I'm 95 percent sure. Did you see all those footprints in the mud outside? That must have been from all the foot traffic that moving a bunch of presumably tied together prisoners would generate."

Jordis nodded in understanding, as they emerged into the sunlight once more. Marcus dropped the pirate, found some rope to tie her up, and then kicked her in the leg a few times to wake her.

"What if she doesn't tell you anything?" Jordis looked worried.

Marcus glanced briefly at her. "She will."

The woman mumbled something, and slowly came to. She glanced up, and saw the two figures standing over him.

"You're too late, and you'll get nothing from Deeja." She spat.

Marcus sighed, rubbing his head. He'd expected such a response, but deep down, a piece of him was still disappointed.

Jordis glanced at him, unsure as to how they should proceed. She wouldn't stand for torture, she considered it barbaric, but there didn't seem to be any other way of making the this 'Deeja' talk.

"Jordis," Marcus said simply, "please cover your ears."

"What?"

Marcus looked at her, "please cover your ears. This'll only take a second."

Jordis didn't know what to say, but complied anyway, cupping her hands over her ears, watching Marcus with a confused expression.

Marcus looked back at Deeja. He took a step closer to her, and seemed to say something. A red wispy energy burst from his mouth and seemed to enter the pirate's body. A half-second later, the pirate opened her mouth and her eyes widened in sheer terror.

Jordis uncovered her ears, to hear the sound of the pirate screaming her head off. She looked so scared she was almost manic, desperately trying to crawl away from Marcus but not having much success because she was bound.

Marcus walked up to Jordis and said quietly, "She'll be much more compliant now, just ask her where the others are quickly, the shout only lasts a minute."

"I… what did..." Jordis looked somewhat stunned, but started nodding after a few seconds. "Ok… I'll go do that, I guess."

Marcus smiled reassuringly at her, and patted her shoulder before walking off down to the shore. Jordis asked the pirate a few questions, to which she answered with such eagerness and desperation she wondered whether Marcus had literally turned her into a different person.

What Marcus had assumed was correct. The pirates had been surprised to find a passenger ship instead of a cargo ship. Not wanting go back home empty handed, they decided to capture the occupants, many of which were fairly wealthy nobles, and send a ransom letter to Solitude a day later. The location they had taken the captives to, was Broken Oar Grotto, a large underground watery cave system to the north easy of Solitude. It contained roughly 30 men, and the 20 odd captives.

Jordis had gotten all the answers she needed after about 50 seconds had passed. After a minute, the female blinked, and shook her head slightly to clear it. Then she looked up at Jordis with a sour, hate-filled expression.

"You bastards!" she shouted, "You'll never win anyway! We're too many for two people."

"Hmmm..." Jordis smiled slyly, "more like one and a half."

Then she left her there, tied up on the deck of the ship. No doubt the Solitude guards would be over later on that day, or maybe the day after. They'd be able to deal with the pirate easy enough.

Marcus was waiting down on the shore, sitting on a rock and fiddling with his dagger. He looked up as Jordis approached.

"Did we get what we needed?"

Jordis nodded, "Broken Oar Grotto, northeast of Solitude. That's where they are at."

"Right," Marcus stood up and brushed his hands. "I guess it's a rescue mission."

"Hold up," Jordis grabbed Marcus' arm. "We need to talk about what you did there."

"What, the thing I said?" Marcus looked surprised. "It's called 'Dismay', it's a Thu'um. I normally use it in combat to make opponents run off. It just makes them really, really scared."

"So that's it?" Jordis asked, "It just makes them terrified of you for a minute then wears off? It doesn't damage them or anything?"

"No, Jordis," Marcus shook his head, "Although I'm not sure whether these pirates are undeserving of torture, I'm not the kind of person to use it."

"Ok," Jordis nodded to herself, "thank you. I'm sorry… I – I just wanted to be sure."

Marcus patted her on the shoulder friendly-like, "Don't apologize, you did nothing wrong."

Then the two walked off, seeking the entrance to the Grotto.

Broken Oar Grotto had an unassuming entrance, but was absolutely gigantic on the inside. Marcus was stunned as to how large the cavern truly was. You could sail an entire ship inside here, with room to spare.

They moved through the first part of the cavern, coming across random pairs of pirates, guarding piles of goods or bridges. The pair moved through the cavern with minimal difficulty. They weren't expecting anyone, and most were tired after a long day of moving prisoners about.

Marcus surprised Jordis with his ability to move quickly and quietly. Despite the various metals attached to his armour, it didn't make a whole lot of noise when he moved. After an instance where he managed to sneak up behind two pirates and eliminate them silently, she asked how he was able to do it.

"Three things," he answered. "First, a magic spell that muffles movement. Second, practice. Third, well-crafted armour."

Jordis ran her eyes over Marcus' armour once again. It didn't look like anything she'd seen before. "Who crafted it?"

Marcus said, "I did, for the most part."

Jordis blinked in surprise. Marcus was turning out to be quite the jack of all trades, in her eyes.

They fought through the majority of the cavern without gaining any serious wounds, Marcus using his healing magic to get rid of any scratches that the pair accumulated.

Then they saw the end of the cavern. It culminated in a huge open underground lake, with a rocky pathway and bridge stretching from one side to the other, where a large wooden structure was built into the side of the rock wall. At the bottom of this structure was a large ship, easily the size of the ship they'd seen run aground on the shore.

"How the hell did they get the ship in here?" Marcus wondered aloud, staring at the space. "The entrance was only a few metres tall."

"Perhaps it used to be bigger?" Jordis mused, "then a cave-in trapped the ship inside?"

"Mmm," Marcus nodded, "Maybe."

Jordis tapped him on the shoulder and pointed. "See there? The people tied up?"

Marcus followed the direction she was pointing, and saw that on the deck of the ship, tied around the mast and to the rowing tables, were the people from the passenger boat. There was no mistaking them, their bright, noble clothes and general despairing stature left no room for misinterpretation.

Jordis and Marcus crept up the rock bridge that arched over the cavern. At it's highest point, it was just above the bow of the ship down below. With a good run and jump, someone could make their way down to the boat, provided they survived the fall.

"Hmm..." Marcus judged the distances, and examined the wooden structure. He could see plenty of pirates and marauders milling about inside it. Probably around 6 or 7, with about 5 on the ship itself. There may have been more. It was hard to tell at this distance.

If he and Jordis tried to fight their way down through the structure, as the stone path they were currently on led to its top, odds were the captives might end up getting hurt, or used as human shields. Securing the boat would be the ideal first action.

"What's the plan?" Jordis asked. She really hoped Marcus had an idea. He chewed his lip again, kneeling down and examining the area closely. After a few more seconds, he nodded.

"Ok," he began, "I'll need you to head across and deal with as many of the bad guys on the wooden structure as possible. Don't worry about keeping quiet, their attention won't be directed on the path. Odds are, you won't face too much resistance anyway."

Jordis' face slowly began to crease, and she looked at Marcus from under a furrowed, cautious brow. "W… What are you planning?"

Despite the situation he was in, Marcus couldn't help but grin guiltily. "Something that you'll no doubt chastise me for later on."

Then Marcus walked over to the edge of the stone, took a quick deep breath, and leapt off.

Now, Jordis had never seen Marcus use the 'Become Ethereal' shout. Even if he had, Jordis wouldn't have known it negated a long fall. Marcus hadn't been in a situation with her where it was necessary to use it, and he hadn't really told her about any of his shouts, except the ones that he'd used in her presence. In hindsight, Marcus probably should've given her a brief run-down of what he had planned, but he just didn't think of it, at the time. A regrettable decision.

Thus, in Jordis' eyes, what Marcus did was basically jump off a bridge to his death.

"Marcus!" she screamed, dashing forward in an attempt to catch him, but was too slow. She stared down at what she could only assume was an insane man, as he plummeted toward the bow of the ship below.

Then, a shout rang out, and Marcus' falling body turned blue and transparent, right before smashing into the deck. When she saw him stand up, ethereal but otherwise unharmed, she felt immense relief. She hadn't failed her duty, yet. Even so, she made a promise to herself to grill him very hard for pulling such a stunt later on.

Marcus, himself, had no time to think upon what he'd just did. He'd landed in the middle of the 5 guards, who were staring at him in complete confusion, as were the prisoners. Marcus smiled at them, then frowned.

"Wait," he said, thinking hard, "I had something for this..."

The pirates didn't give him a chance to think of it, and charged immediately. Marcus took down the two furthest from the prisoners with a chain lightning bolt, before ducking under the axe swipe of a third. He drew his sword in his right hand while simultaneously punching the third pirate with his left hand, before parrying away a sword thrust from a fourth pirate and headbutting him in the centre of his unprotected face. Marcus hadn't mastered the technique entirely, and it ended up hurting his face a little. Farkas made it look easy.

The fifth pirate scored a lucky hit on Marcus' arm, but the armour plating reduced it to little more than a cut. Marcus promptly spun around and slashed him across the throat, before diving forward and rolling to get away from the other three who were surrounding him. He kept his momentum, rising from the roll and getting back onto his feet. Spinning around, Marcus saw the three pirates running toward him. Instead of letting them come to him, Marcus took a long step forward and met the pirates head-on, a metre before they anticipated to get into sword's reach.

He cut them down fairly easily, they only managed another small cut on his thigh. As their bodies hit the deck, something in Marcus' mind clicked, and he stamped his foot in frustration.

"Damn it! 'Dropping in' That's what I was thinking of..."

The prisoners tied up around the ship looked at him with wide eyes, some were hopeful at the prospect of being rescued, others were amazed at how someone could be so nonchalant after killing 5 men.

"Uh..." Marcus tried to flash them a reassuring smile. "Be with you in a minute."

Then he drew his dagger in his left hand, before running up onto the small makeshift dock that was at the bottom of the wooden structure, sprinting upward to fight through the rest of the pirates, and give Jordis a hand.

The pirates were divided, with three heading down to deal with Marcus, and the rest heading up to deal with Jordis. Marcus worried in the back of his mind whether or not she could handle the pirates, but Jordis had proved to be very competent in Kilkreath and against wild animals, so he had faith.

After cutting through three pirates, Marcus ran up a walkway into the largest of the rooms in the wooden structure. He looked into the room briefly, not seeing anyone immediately. As he took another step into the room, he felt a sharp, searing pain in his lower back, and a severe magicka drain headache immediately took root in his brain.

Marcus threw himself forward onto the floor, desperate to get away from whatever attacked him. As he rolled onto his back, he could see an Argonian standing there, an orcish dagger in his hand, blue magic and Marcus' blood dancing together on the blade.

Enchanted dagger… Marcus thought, his mind blaring with pain from his back and from the headache, a strong magicka damage enchantment…

The argonian sneered at Marcus, taking a few steps forward. "Jaree-Ra hates heroes. You shouldn't try to be one, it's bad for your health..."

"No shit." Marcus spat, before taking a deep breath and shouting. "Fus, Ro Dah!"

The argonian wasn't anticipating the Thu'um, and caught the blue circle of energy full in the chest. It picked the lizard up and launched him backwards, through the wooden wall and outwards, before letting him fall the 20 metres or so onto the boat. Glancing out the hole in the wall, Marcus made note that the argonian didn't get up.

Marcus then turned, and staggered through the room to the other side, where another slanted walkway was. He half-staggered, half-crawled up the stairs. If he could get to Jordis, he could get a healing potion from her. He hadn't had the foresight to bring one with him, but insisted that Jordis should always carry one. His magicka was basically gone, and he wanted to heal the wound in his back before he lost too much blood. The wound in his back wasn't severe, but it wasn't exactly a scratch either. He silently prayed Jordis hadn't run into any problems.

Such hopes were dashed, when Marcus got up to the top of the wooden structure. Outside, next to a forge was a man in steel armour. He was standing over Jordis, about to strike her down with a large one-handed sword. He heard Marcus approach, as the young man wasn't in any shape to quieten his movement, and turned.

Seeing Marcus, the pirate reached down and grabbed Jordis by the collar of her armour, then twisted her around so he was using the young woman as a shield in front of him, holding a sword to her throat. Strewn around the area, were the bodies of four other pirates. She'd put up a fight, but it hadn't been enough.

The man looked like the leader, he had the facial scars and stature.

"Stop where you are..." he said in a dangerous, low voice, fixing his eyes on Marcus and tightening his grip on the sword. "Or the bitch gets it."

Marcus froze. He found himself in a difficult position. He had no shouts that would be helpful, and no magicka left after the Argonian attacked him. He had no attacks that might be able to help.

"Here's what's going to happen..." the pirate leader began, "I'm going to walk out of here, with this here lady. You're not going to follow me. If I even feel as if I'm being tailed, I'll cut her pretty head off."

Marcus said nothing. His eyes showed a dozen racing ideas, none of which seemed enough to get them both out of this situation.

"Are you listening to me?" the brute growled.

Marcus said nothing, finally deciding on a plan of action. It could kill him, but then, most of the things he did could end up killing him, so he didn't sweat it.

Marcus dropped his sword, and held both hands by his side. He made sure the backs of his hands were facing forward.

"Good..." the man nodded. "Glad you could see reason."

"Just kill him Marcus!" shouted Jordis, earning her a tightened grip on her throat and the blade pressed closer against her pale neck. The blade nicked her skin, drawing a single drop of blood.

"Shut up." Growled the man.

Marcus took a step forward. Slowly, a unique red magic blossomed in his left hand, concealed from the front.

"Wait," Marcus said, "Give me your name."

"What?" the man sneered, "Why?"

Marcus tilted his head, "professional curiosity."

It actually wasn't, but Marcus just wanted to keep the guy within at least 10 metres distance. His plan wouldn't work, if he couldn't.

The red energy curled in his hand, and Marcus felt himself slowly grow weaker. Pain blossomed and grew in his chest. His heart starting skipping beats. His mouth began to slowly fill with trickles of blood.

"Fine, my name is Hargar." the pirate said said, "Satisfied?"

Marcus couldn't answer. His mouth was half-full of his own blood. He stumbled a bit, visibly unsteady on his feet, but he was close. He just had to make sure his hands stayed where they were, facing away from the pair.

"What the hell?" Hargar frowned, taking a step back, "The hell is wrong with you? The notion of losing your girlfriend for an hour taking a toll?"

Marcus didn't answer. He closed his eyes, seeing colours burst in the blackness of his vision. In his right hand, a certain purple magic slowly grew and swirled...

Hargar grinned, taking his eyes off Marcus to glance downward at Jordis. "If you're so attached, maybe I should keep her for a while longer… she'd make a fine -"

Hargar never finshed. A large branch-sized spear of ice burst through his chest, and the ice atronach behind him that the said spear of ice was attached to lifted the man up through the hole in his sternum until he was suspended a half-metre above the ground. The whole event took about a second. Hargar's sword-arm was raised into the air so quickly he only managed to cut a strand or two of Jordis' hair.

Hargar dropped his sword and grasped limply at the block of ice protruding through his chest. A second later, his eyes rolled into his head, and he slumped forward, dead.

Jordis gazed upward at the icy behemoth. It seemed uninterested in her, and proceeded to smash Hargar's body into the ground. She whirled around, to see Marcus collapse to his knees, blood trickling from his half-open mouth.

"Oh my Gods..." she breathed, "Marcus!"

She ran over, pulling her healing potion from her belt and forcing it down his throat in an instant. Marcus' skin took on a golden tinge, and a little colour returned to his cheeks.

"Ismir…" Marcus mumbled, turning away from Jordis and spitting out blood, before sitting on his haunches and rubbing his eyes, "that really hurt..."

"You crazy fool," Jordis clutched Marcus' face in her hands, wiping some of the blood off his lip, "what on earth was that?"

"A counter-intuitive restoration spell, mixed with a conjured frost atronach," Marcus said weakly. "I'm glad it worked. I felt like I was going to black out there..."

"You still might," Jordis mumbled, slinging one of Marcus' arms over her shoulder and pulling him to his feet. "You know, I'm the one who's supposed to risk my life to save you."

"Yeah well," Marcus smiled, "I'm not exactly an easy person to protect."

"That's putting it lightly."

Marcus chuckled, before clutching his chest from the pain such an action brought him. "You sound like my other housecarl."

Jordis stopped walking, and blinked. "You have another housecarl?"

Marcus asked, "Is that a problem?"

"No, it's just… nothing."

Jordis led Marcus to a seat, and let him down gently. "Stay here," she said, "I'll go secure the captives."

Marcus just nodded weakly, waving a hand in acknowledgement. He felt he'd done enough for at least an hour or so. Let Jordis deal with the worried nobles and travelers.

"I'm surprised you're able to walk by yourself." Jordis remarked, as they made their way up to the Solitude gate.

Marcus smiled, "I've always been a fast healer, and my own restoration magic is enough to get me on my feet most days anyway. All I really needed was a quick rest. Plus, I've been told I'm pretty stubborn.

Jordis smiled to herself, looking down at the paved stones underneath her feet. They'd dropped the ex-captives off at the dock, seeing as that would've been the place they'd have turned up at originally.

"I wonder how many of them will want to get on the first ship out of Skyrim," Jordis mused. Most of the people they'd rescued had had a few things to say about the safety of Skyrim's borders.

Marcus said, "At least half, I reckon."

Jordis nodded. "Yeah, shame. I can't think of a worse thing to happen directly after entering a province."

Marcus gazed blankly into the sky, a particular event in his semi-recent history popping up into his brain.

"I can."

Author's Notes: A late chapter, I know. I've been very busy this past week. Only really got a chance to write in the late evenings, when I'm already rather tired. As such, there might be a few more grammar mistakes or whichever. I feel like making this story 1.5 weeks a chapter might be better. Not sure.

On a more positive note, this story has officially hit 100 followers. Woohoo! I'll be sure to give Marcus a sweetroll next chapter in celebration. I sort of started writing this with the goal of making at least one person a bit happier, and it's gone well beyond that. So thank you, all of you.

Next chapter is something I've been thinking about for a while. I think you'll all enjoy it. It involves a certain Daedric God we all know and love.

Thank you for reading.