Dovahkiin POV:
I groan and roll onto my side, curling up and silently letting out a few sobs of pain. My nightgown is absolutely shredded, and my flaming skin slowly cools against the frozen stone that makes up the floor. I feel so many injuries all over my body. Fuck, how do I even begin to heal myself? The poison is still pulsing through my veins, so spells are out of the option. However, I know I'm badly beaten. Maybe even to the potion where I'll die if I don't get treatment soon. I bite my tongue and quickly formulate a plan. I force myself to roll onto my front, silently screaming as my broken body is forced to move. Slowly, I bring my hands up to rest underneath me.
Now all I need to do is push myself onto my elbows. The sound of fighting reaches me, but at the moment I can't be bothered enough to worry about who's winning or losing. All I can focus on is gathering whatever small amount of strength manages to remain in my body. I manage to begin pushing myself up, but it seems to take an eternity. Every second slowly drags on until it seems like weeks have taken place, and I'm still just lying on the floor. Finally, I feel my body begin to give in and move upwards. My chest only comes an inch or two off the ground, but it's enough. I slide my hands forward and my elbows connect with the ground, barely supporting me.
But it's enough, and now I'm able to crawl forward. The sounds of fighting are getting even worse, but nobody seems to be targeting me. At least I stand a chance of escaping now. Each inch I crawl stretches before me, taunting me as I continue to slowly slink towards the door. That's when the fighting finally catches up to me. A gigantic foot comes down on my back, cracking a good amount of my ribs. I scream and another clawed foot comes down on the back of my head, smashing my face into the ground and breaking my nose. A foot even heavier than the other two crashes down on my leg, and a snap tells me it's broken. The second foot comes down on my lower back.
Crunching and popping are my only sighs of damage, I've done too numb to feel anything now. All I do is lie in my pile of blood, too weak to even whimper. A sharp yowl reaches my ears, and four clawed feet go running off. I silently pray to every god I know that Aealynn was victorious in the battle. I feel someone grab me and gently flip me over. A face swims before my eyes, and I barely make out defining features. A gigantic face, snout, and clawed hands are my only clues. I suck in as much air as I can and let out a final scream. My 'scream' dies between my lips, turning into a sick croak of a dying toad. That's when everything goes black.
"Oh gods, everything's broken!". Mumbling. "By the eight, what in oblivion happened to her? Was she trampled by a pack of angry-". More mumbling, and I strain my ears to hear. "Come on, hand me the damned saw! We need to cut through the bone if we want to get to the organs.". I begin to panic and try to raise an arm. "Fuck, tie her down!". My limb is moving like a block of lead through molasses, but someone slams it back down against whatever I'm lying on top of. I attempt to open my eyes, but my eyelids are curtains made of iron. I hear ripping and someone mumbling. "So much blood. Someone get me a towel. Actually, make that ten towels.".
More ripping, and an odd squishing sound. I feel the weight slightly leave my eyelids, and I crack them open. I'm temporarily blinded by a light, but my sight quickly comes back to me. A grey ceiling. I attempt to life my head, but it's like someone's tied rocks to my ears. Someone's face swims into my vision, and I finally make out who it is. An Altmer who looks about ready to throw up. He raises his hand and snaps in front of my eyes. I cringe and he curses. "She's awake! Give me the potion!". A few mumbles before the man is handed a bottle of something blue and bubbling. He forces it to my lips and down my throat. Then, everything returns to blackness.
"Damn. Call it. What time?". Mumbles. "Three in the morning on the dot. Bag it or burn?". I flick one of my ears, and the mumbles stop. "Well, shit! Uncall it, uncall it!". More ripping and tearing. "Who in oblivion said this one went already?". More mumbles. "The nurse over there. Said she'd stopped breathing and the pulse was gone. Good thing you noticed the ear, this one's almost dead as it is.". Finally, everything stops. "Well, should we wake her?". Someone peels back my eyelid and I'm forced to look at a blinding light. "Nope, already there.". "Why in oblivion wasn't she screaming her head off? Half of her damned body is smashed in.". Someone mumbles something, then clearly says, "I think the spinal column isn't working right. Here, prop her up.".
Someone shoves something between my back and the table, and I find myself looking at an odd sight. My broken, naked, and bruised body lies before me, the occasional cut ripping apart my fur and revealing blood. My arms are stretched out to my sides, and my legs are twisted in odd positions. A young Bosmer healer is looking at me, and she's touching one of my legs. "Can you hear me?". I nod and she pulls a dagger from her belt. "I'm going to stab you very lightly up and down your body. Close your eyes, and tell me when you feel something. Can you do that for me?".
I nod and the woman commands, "Close 'em.". I allow my eyes to shut, and feel a slight pinch above my collarbone. "Yes.". Another pinch between my breasts. "Yes.". One right above my rib-cage. "Got it.". That area between my breasts and stomach. "I feel it.". The area above my bellybutton. "Feel it.". Below my bellybutton. "I still feel it.". Nothing. I wait. And I wait. And I wait. "Are you going to stab me again, or are we done here?". A hard swallow and a whispered, "I am.". I crack open my eyes and see the woman's dagger sticking out right above the mound on my cunt. Right on my pelvis. "Okay sweetie, I need you to do something else for me. Close your eyes again, and try to do the commands I tell you. Are you willing to do that?".
I nod and close my eyes once again. "Raise your left hand.". I do as I'm told. "Good. Now, your right hand.". Once I do it she tells me, "Very good. Stick your tongue out.". I feel stupid, but I don't question the healer. "Thank you. Now, wiggle your left foot.". A small pause. Another hard swallow. "Okay, open your eyes. I have some good news, and some bad news.". I open my eyes and see the woman down by my left foot, a concerned look on her face. "The good news is that you can wiggle your foot a little, so your spine isn't snapped or broken in any way.".
"The bad news is that your foot is only moving a little. That means there's definitely something wrong with your spine. Probably some broken bones pinching down on it, or it might just have gotten knocked around a little. Either way, it's not broken. You should count yourself lucky for that. We might have been forced to take both your legs otherwise. Now, onto the important part. Spinal injuries are hard to treat, but we can give you some therapy. Magic to treat the wound itself, and exercises to assist you in regaining the motion skills. Don't worry, you'll be up in a few weeks. Everything will be fine, and there won't be any major damage. This is just a small setback.".
I shake my head and begin pushing myself up. "No! You don't understand, there's a killer on the loose! Only I know how to stop her, and I can't do that if I'm forced to lie down and do some stupid exercises!". I begin trying to get up, but a gentle hand stops and shocks me. I look over and see Aealynn standing right beside me, a serious look on her face. I swallow and question, "How much of that did you hear?". She whispers, "All of it.". I turn to the healers and question, "Can we have a moment alone?". They all nod and begin walking away, taking their supplies with them so. Now it's just me and Aealynn in the gigantic room.
"What happened while I was down?". The Breton slides onto the table by my feet and begins her tale. "When Kaie began ripping your nightgown off I went berserk and lost control of myself. I was able to...". She pauses. "Change. Change back into my gargoyle form.". I begin to say something, but she hols a hand up and begs, "Please, let me finish.". When I go silent she continues, "I attempted to fight Kaie. While we were battling you attempted to crawl away, and unknowingly got right in the line of fire. We trampled you quite a few times, and at the time neither of us cared much. I finally managed to get a hold of the werewolf's stupid tail. I ripped half of it off, but she escaped before I could do any real damage.".
"I was faced with two options. Follow Kaie and leave you to what most likely would have been your death, or assist you and let the woman escape. For a while it appears my choice was the wrong one, what with you looking about ready to die and all that. But in the end I know I've made the right one.". She swallows a lump in her throat as she finishes, "I think you might already know this, but I feel the need to tell you. Just in case you're unaware. Kaie killed Ondolemar.". I wasn't aware of that, and I feel like someone's grabbed my chest and started pounding on it. "How did he die?".
The woman doesn't meet my eyes as she whispers, "Disembowelment.". We both fall silent for a little bit, then I tell her, "I guess the investigation falls on us then, huh?". She nods and confirms, "It looks like it. What do you want to do?". I think for a moment before answering her. "I need to speak to the Jarl. It's about time we talk about what's going on, and precautions that need to be made now that we know who the killer is. But first I need to go to my room and get dressed.". Aealynn nods and continues asking me questions. "When?". I shrug and answer, "Now's as good a time as any.". I grab onto the edges of the table I'm lying on, flip myself around, and push off so my feet are touching the floor.
My face meets the stone and Aealynn slides off from the table. I feel her hand on the back of my shirt, but I flail about and demand, "Don't help me! I can do this!". The Breton backs off, but I can tell she doesn't believe me. I struggle for a few moments before I finally manage to stand up (leaning on the table). I release my grip and once again find myself on the floor. I begin trying again, but the Breton above me does something completely unexpected that successfully stops me. She heaves me up, secures me in her arms, and walks away (mumbling about finding my room). As she walks I take the opportunity to lean against her chest, listening to her heartbeat as we go.
My other story 'A New Order' is done. It's only temporary, but it's still shut down for now. I have no idea what story I'll make next, but be on the lookout. Now, as soon as 'A Life Across the Ages' comes to an end I'll reopen 'A New Order', and launch right into the story of 'Dragonborn'. After 'Dragonborn' is over I have no idea what I'll do. A while back I swore I'd never go into the Dark Brotherhood, Companions, Winterhold, Thieves Guild, or anything else. But now I'm reconsidering. Ah, I'm getting ahead of myself. Zu'u lokaal hi pah. Hi seik ful pogaas zuk fein hi lorot.