Chapter 3: On the edge of a blade.
The cart jolted up in the air rolling over the rocky surfaces, waking up Tsavani in an instant. Her eyes opened to a path disappearing into the fog behind her as the cart rolled onward. "Ah well, it's almost sunrise anyway, not much purpose looking for another wink of sleep." Said Murzush sitting behind her with a sly smile on her face. "I just remembered it's around about time you should have this." She says handing Tsavani an iron dagger.
"Why are you giving me this?" Tsavani replied taking the dagger.
"Just in case you'll need to defend yourself from what could lie ahead."
"You said there'd be nothing but skeevers along the road."
"I needed to feed a few lies to scoop you up with us."
"Scoop me up?" Tsavani responded worryingly.
"You city folk know very little of the outside world so sugar coating the details was too easy. Skeevers hide down in caves and don't come out often so I doubt we'll ever see one on this journey."
"Then...what's really going to lie ahead?"
"Bandits, giant spiders, wolves, bears, hell we may even see a dragon if we're lucky."
"Dragons!? You expect me to take on a dragon with this rusty letter opener?"
"If you aim for the eyes. Just stick behind the rest of us and you'll likely never have to raise your blade anyway."
"And I guess you told me this while the fog was up so I wouldn't go running off."
"Precisely."
"I should have never gotten on this cart with you scoundrels. I should just slit your throat right now along with-" Tsavani said before Murzush reached into her satchel and in the blink of an eye, Tsavani felt the tip of a sword poking her neck.
"I'm no swordsman but I have no problem skinning you alive right now. A new fur coat is just as much use to me as another amateur cook." Tsavani dropped her dagger and slowly raised her hands. "Know also that the others weren't insisting on bringing you along, they're either far too humble, stubborn or uptight to ask you to come with us. They were all as susceptible to my persuasion are you were, so don't take your anger out on them okay?" Murzush re-assured slowly lowering her blade.
"Hold it!" Shouted an unfamiliar Nordic voice from the front of the cart. Anjaya pulled back on the horses' reigns forcing the cart to a halt.
"Finally some excitement. Wake up skink!" Murzush exclaimed to Tun-lei bonking him on the head with the end of her sword handle. Tun-lei awoke shaking himself to his feet angrily asking: "Grarr, what is it?"
"We'll take your treasures or we'll take your heads!" The voice out front shouted.
"Sounds like another bandit raid. It's your time to shine."
"Alright fine." He grumbled grabbing his satchel and sword holster. Tsavani grabbed her dagger and they all stepped down from the back of the cart and walked to the front facing a group of 4 bandits wearing fur armor and wielding swords and maces.
"You'll be getting nothing from us." Tun-lei threatened.
"You're sending a cripple to deal with us? How pathetic." The lead bandit said to Anjaya.
"Scared to take me on huh? Then how about I take all your treasures." He gloated.
"Alright then big shot. Callus, fetch me his other arm." The lead bandit said beckoning to another. The other bandit charged at Tun-lei, mace raised and ready to strike. Tun lei unsheathed a rapier, and as the bandit swung downward at his head Tun-lei simply swerved to his left, swept the bandit's foot tripping him, stood on his back and plunged his blade into the back of his skull, twisting, then pulling it out leaving the body limp, twitching and bleeding for a few seconds before shutting down completely.
Tun-lei flicked the blood and hair off his sword to then point it along with his menacing gaze to the eyes of the bandits. "You're going to pay for that you Argonian filth! Kill em all lads!" The bandit yelled at them as the other two sprinted forwards. Tsavani worryingly held up her dagger in a defensive stance. Murzush also drew her sword but just stood there observing as the bandits all went to attack Tun-lei.
The first bandit swung their mace horizontally followed with an underarm swing from the second bandit's sword. Tun-lei ducked backwards and raised his rapier in front to block the under arm swing. He then shoved the second bandit back and swiped at his neck, making a large cut below his ear. As the bandit clutched the wound walking back Tun-lei dashed and kicked the bandit to the ground. As he was about to jab his blade through his chest, he had to swerve out of the way from the first bandit who swung for his head. As the first bandit tried to help the second up Tun-lei leapt forward and plunged his rapier into the bandit's head. He pulled his blade out and shoved the bandit out of the way. but as he was just about to finish off the other, the lead bandit charged towards him dual wielding maces.
The leader was ruthless in his attacks, with one swing coming after another barely leaving enough time for Tun-lei to move out of the way. He wanted to make a move, but any attempt would leave him open to a deadly strike and any attempt to block an attack would shatter his rapier. Then the bandit swung at his ribs and hit, sending Tun-lei tumbling to the ground. The bandit swung his left mace down at Tun-lei. He let go of his rapier to grab hold of the mace. The bandit swung his right mace down hitting him in the stomach making him let go and clutch his chest. The bandit held his maces above his head ready to swing down, but was stopped by Murzush's sword stabbing him through his back. The bandit dropped the maces and collapsed to the ground. The last bandit pulled himself up wrapping a piece of his armour around his neck and ran off into the fog.
Tsavani rushed over to help Murzush lift Tun-lei to his feet. They carried him back to the cart and lay him on the stiff, yet soft folded tent. Tsavani grabbed a rag to press against his wound but was stopped by Anjaya. "Not to worry, I can heal him, just go and help the others."
"What? H-help with what? Where did Muszush go?" Tsavani responded as she turned around to see nobody beside her. "Go and help her and my brother. Tun-lei will be alright." She said to her as a warm golden light radiated from the tips of the claws. As she lay them on Tun-lei's ribs, they seemed to move and contort and into a less broken form. Tsavani climbed down from the cart and walked out the front to find Murzush and Za'sien stripping the armour and clothes off of the bandits.
"What are you doing?"
"Come on now, help me get the boots off this man!" Za'sien beckoned to her. She walked towards him with a disgustful frown on her face.
"It's not enough for them to be killed, but you also have to defile their bodies?" She scolded.
"Waste not want not my dear, besides, where did you think we got our merchandise? You'd have a better chance at finding a flying horse than a nord willing to teach armour smiting to our kind, never the less an argonian or an orc."
"I-I wont defile their corpses. I wont!"
"Then at least carry their armour back to the cart." He said handing Tsavani the folded pieces of fur. She begrudgingly held out her arms for Za'sien to drop them on her. "And in the morning you wash wash the dust and blood out of them." Za'sien taunted as he pat her on the back with a smug smirk stretching across his jaw. Tsavani walked back to the cart with a look of shock and disbelief on her face. She had never seen a dead body before, nor had been taking apart of robbing it, and just moments after they had been killed! How could she even try to take this lightly? She couldn't.
After the corpses had been stripped of all but their loincloths, then had been pushed off the path, with their belonging in the back of the cart, Anjaya whipped the reigns on the horse and they moved onward.
Tun-lei was asleep as was Za'sien, Anjaya was focused on the road, and Murzush seemed to be distracted looking back on the road fading behind them in the fog. Tsavani could barely bring herself to sleep. She felt If she couldn't sleep through the rest of this night, she could do her best to stay awake 'til tomorrow night. Tsavani pulled out a moss coloured vile, opened it up and drank the skooma inside in one swig. Almost immediately her mind felt like it had been struck by lightning, almost as if if she was leaping across a storm, but she kept her legs in that cart as best she could as she stared blankly at the inside of the cart her eyes darting around the interior like flies whizzing around the air. This feeling inside of her was burning up, but she held onto it as if this feeling was better than anything else in the world.