Chapter 27

Unexpected, Unprepared and Unplanned.

XxXxXx

4E 201, 8th Hearthfire – Somewhere along the northwestern bay, Morrowind

It felt good to be on the road again, walking paths he hadn't tread in decades. It was nice to see that there was one thing that hadn't changed in his long life and that was Morrowind herself. The lives of elves might be long, the lifespan of empires and nations longer still, but the land itself was eternal. It refused to change for anyone. It would only change for itself. People had chopped down its trees, tilled its land and mined its ore before moving on but slowly the land reclaimed its own, regrowing its trees and swallowing up all traces of habitation. Occasionally, like with Red Mountain, the land would violently erase all traces of habitation, returning to its wild origins while ferociously protecting itself from further urban disturbance. The western mountain range of Morrowind wasn't quite so violent. It was ancient and wise and preferred to stand as a sentinel against the bitter cold of Skyrim than to do battle against the beings that called its rocky slopes home.

The road was a hard one, rocky and hilly as it wound around the foothills of the Veloth Mountain range, made even rougher as they avoided the main road, but Nevano enjoyed the challenge. Veleth was easily one of the most enjoyable travel companions he had ever had. He was used to navigating rough terrain and could easily match Nevano's pace. Then there was his tracking skill; he was the best tracker Nevano had ever seen. He had a natural gods given gift of being able to pick out the tiniest detail but added with his suspicious intuition nothing got past him. Nevano could easily get spoiled having him around. Though how he navigated so easily in that heavy armor would forever remain a mystery.

"I haven't really kept up with the past several decades. What can you tell me about the Ordinators?" Nevano asked when they took a quick break from the heat of the sun in the shade of a large boulder.

"Well, after Almalexia disappeared, her personal guards, the Hands of Almalexia, were replaced by the High Ordinators. Slowly they took over the watch as well until the whole city was pretty much run by Ordinators. As my father said, they found it far more difficult to let go of their past ties than the Armigers and stuck with their original capacity as Temple Guards." Veleth said. "When the Argonians invaded, the Ordinators were the only thing that kept the city from being completely wiped off the face of the map. Many were killed but they held their position until the last living person managed to escape before they retreated. They hated giving up the city and fought until they reclaimed the remains of it."

"I've got to give the Ordinators credit for that. We don't get along but I've always had to admire their tenacity. Kind of like an attack dog." Nevano said. For some reason Lady instantly came to mind. He swore that dog was going to kill him one day by licking him to death. Or smothering him while she sat on his chest. Stupid dog. "But more than that. Who leads the Ordinators? What are their numbers? Exactly WHAT are they devoted to now that the Tribunal is no more? I need a bit more so I know how to tailor our help to them to best gain their favor. Ordinators are one of those picky factions that you have to play it carefully. One wrong move and you've turned them off for good."

"They didn't really have rank before but they reorganized themselves. The head of the Ordinators calls himself the Autarch." Veleth said. "His name is….vith, what is his name…Andas, Autarch Andas. I can't remember his first name. As to what they've devoted themselves to, I have no idea. I think that's why there's such friction between them and everyone else. They keep their numbers fairly bolstered but that's mostly due to them being such a familiar face that they aren't concerned with recruit numbers."

"Anything to tell about this…Auatra…Autrad…forget it, Andas?" Nevano frowned as he tripped over the strange word.

"Nothing." Veleth said. "Thinking about it now, I don't know anyone that has seen the man in years."

"If that doesn't scream out something is wrong, I don't know what does." Nevano said dryly.

"I'm not certain I'm completely accurate on this but after Mournhold fell, Andas made sure the survivors were taken care of before mounting a counter-assault against the Argonians. It took a few years of intense fighting but they eventually drove the Argonians off and reclaimed the ruined remains of the city. They started to rebuild but as they got deeper in Andas was seen less and less until he withdrew from the public completely."

"Ok, that's not the few years you were indicating earlier." Nevano said. "That was before you were BORN. By a good handful of years, I might add. That is more a little concerning. The…whatever he calls himself has been missing for nearly a century and a half, the Ordinators themselves have suddenly holed up in the ruins of a city AND there's mysterious fighting going on that no one can explain." Nevano sighed. "Why do I get the feeling that we are walking into something far worse than anyone expected?"

"It's going to get strange…"

"What?"

"That was what my father said to me right before we left." Veleth said. "He told me to just accept anything strange because it was only going to get worse. Also that you had a tendency to sneak off once everyone else fell asleep. His stories weren't exaggerated, were they?"

"Not at all." Nevano smirked. "But yes, things will get strange. But all the good stories are strange with strange enemies who do strange things. So I have to resort to strange things to combat it. Just keep in mind that your father helped contribute to the strangeness on multiple occasions."

Veleth shook his head as he stood up. "I'm going to lose my sanity before this is over with and end up as strange as you both. Let's go. We still got a long way before we even get to Kogo."

"As Sheogorath would say: sanity is overrated." Nevano smirked as he got up and followed the taller mer. "Though something tells me that after all this, a dragon popping out of the time stream seeking to destroy the earth will seem normal in comparison."

XxXxXx

4E 201, 12th Hearthfire – Safepoint Kogo, Morrowind

Nevano carefully considered the rather sizeable city below him. After several days of rough traveling through mountainous terrain they had finally come upon Safepoint Kogo, only Nevano didn't remember it quite the same. He remembered it as the tiny riverside town of Omaynin, a place that about as much significance as Riverwood in Skyrim or Border Watch in Cyrodiil. Originally it had nestled itself comfortably in the valley made by the river but over the years its population had dwindled to just a few stubborn old souls who refused to see the town wither and die. Then the Argonians had invaded and Omaynin was rediscovered as being the perfect gateway town to the western arm of Morrowind and the newly minted capital city. The last time Nevano had seen it the town had been a hodgepodge of haphazard buildings and a lot of irritable soldiers trying to find a decent place to sleep without a sharp rock driving into their backsides. Now it was far more permanent, a very proud city, with a mostly military population of course but there was a strong civilian population that was happy enough to work for the soldiers in exchange for the strong sense of security.

"Different?" Veleth brought him out of his musings.

"Very much so. It reminds me a lot of Balmora." Nevano sighed. "In more ways than one though the first thing that comes to mind is there's no way to pass by Balmora unseen without climbing a mountain and even then there was that Imperial fort sitting on one mountain. There's no way we can sneak around this place. We're going to have to go through."

"There's enough soldiers down there that no one is going to readily notice us." Veleth said. "Not to mention I can blend in as one of them."

"Let's get a story straight, just in case." Nevano winced, remembering their first night before he threw a Thalmor out of the window. "To make it easy on you, let's just reprise your role as commander being recalled to General Relas. I know we aren't following along with the rotations since that's not for another…what, three months? But it was for…here, you try. Why would an officer such as yourself be called around outside of the rotations?"

"That happens all the time." Veleth said. "Someone gets killed and needs to be replaced, a major mission is being mounted and more men are needed, the list goes on."

"Great. Pick one of those, stick with it." Nevano breathed a small sigh of relief. Maybe Veleth could learn to lie convincingly. "Think I can pass for a scout?"

"More or less." Veleth said after a moments consideration. "Scouts are generally considered a fairly odd bunch to begin with so, once again, no one should question you much. As long as no one sees Truefire and Hopesflame that is. Let's go before someone notices us up here. I'd rather not get turned into pincushion by over-cautious archers."

At first walking through the streets that were thick with soldiers made Nevano was a nervous wreck. There were too many people crowding around for Nevano to keep track of everyone, to see who was looking at them suspiciously, to see who might make their day difficult. He felt incredibly exposed and that sensation never sat well with him. In stark contrast, Veleth looked just as calm and in control as he had patrolling Raven Rock. Nevano couldn't help but admire his composure and tried to take a cue from him as he tried to force his rebellious mind to relax. Fortunately, the city was far longer east to west than it was north to south and within a few hours they came within sight of the southern gate. Nevano wanted to feel relieved but something was making him feel like he was about to throw up butterflies. In instances like this, he hated being proved right.

"Hey, you two. Aren't you two supposed to be patrolling the south wall?" Nevano twitched as a mer by the gate called out to them, a suspicious frown on his face. Nevano felt his heart skip a few beats as the soldier came over to them. He could tell he was an officer of some sort but he had never fully memorized the rank markings. He started to try to think of a story to spin that wouldn't land them in trouble if he got the ranking wrong but, to his great surprise, Veleth beat him to it.

"Excuse me?" Veleth growled, his voice hard. Nevano felt his blood turn to ice and it had nothing to do with the thought of Veleth taking over. He had irritated Veleth before, he had exasperated him, embarrassed him, annoyed him, bewildered him and otherwise harassed him but he had never before heard him turn on the raw anger and by Mephala's twisted webs it scared him to death. Like his father, the initial growl held the same ominous warning of the first roll of thunder from a storm. Everything after that was only going to increase in force. He took a small step back behind Veleth, not wanting to be in the line of fire.

"I uh…" That thunderbolt of anger certainly made the poor kid addressing them slam to a rough halt.

"Last I checked, a soldier as low in rank as you did NOT give orders to a commander!" Veleth barked. "Stand at attention. What's your name and your unit?"

Nevano kept his face blank but it was hard. He really wanted to laugh at the exaltation that Veleth was actually lying so convincingly and also at the horrified look on the poor soldier's face as he stammered out the required information. Veleth laid into him a bit more before finally, after thoroughly cowing the soldier, letting him off the hook.

"Consider this a warning and count yourself lucky I'm in a good enough mood to let this slide. Back to your post."

"Not bad, Bull." Nevano said, finally allowing himself to relax as the poor kid scuttled off as fast as he could. "You got even me to stand up straight on that one."

"That wasn't lying so much as repeating the same thing I've been barking for decades." Veleth said dismissively, resuming their earlier path out the gate.

"It was still a lie." Nevano pointed out, jogging a bit to keep up with Veleth's longer, irritated strides. "A lie on a subject you were familiar and comfortable with, but still a convincing lie nonetheless as you have no power of authority here."

Veleth sighed. "I just hate it. I can't stand the hiding and sneaking around. To me, it's cowardly."

"Yes, it can be." Nevano conceded. "It can be the most selfish thing ever. However, this time, we are using it to try to free Morrowind. Try to think of it as just another tool at our disposal."

"Tools are inanimate objects that are harmless until held otherwise." Veleth grunted. "But all this brings up something slightly off topic that I've been wondering about for a long time: how did the Argonians manage to catch everyone off guard? Mournhold was a major city, with some of the most important mer in our entire society living there. How did no one see it coming?"

"I've been wondering that for a while too." Nevano frowned. "Mournhold had one of the most superb spy networks I had ever seen. They managed to lure me into the city without me ever once realizing it and then passing it off as an "oops, didn't mean it" once the truth came out. Helseth and Barenziah themselves were probably the most cunning and conniving Dunmer to ever grace Morrowind's history. I heard rumors that the Thalmor were key in encouraging the Argonians to invade but…"

"What are you thinking?"

"Well, Jorun is apparently the visible front of a spy network, THAT I didn't see coming by the way, that has gotten their fingers in everything but I'm thinking they are up against an enemy spy who is just as good, if not better, than they are, someone who is able to bypass even Jorun's paranoid gut." Nevano kicked a pebble and watched it bounce down the road. "Whatever the case is, we need to be extremely careful about what we say to who."

"More lies and hiding."

"If there's one thing the Tribunal taught me it's that even those closest to you can betray you." Nevano felt a pang coming from Nerevar. "I only trust four people explicitly. Never have more than five. "

Veleth gave him a strange look and he knew that his voice had deepened a note or two. That would be Nerevar's influence. Now that he thought on it, Veleth hadn't been properly introduced to Nerevar's presence in him. When Nerevar had helped get him back to Raven Rock, he had dropped Nevano outside the city and all his influence had bled out before anyone knew the difference. There was no time to conduct proper introductions just yet but he made a mental note that he needed to do that soon before something happened that would cause Nerevar to take over and catch Veleth off-guard. Or maybe he would just let Veleth find out the hilarious way. However, Veleth decided to drop the subject and they made it through Kogo without any further incidents.

"We can avoid the rest of the Safepoints easily enough." Veleth changed the subject as the city disappearing as the river valley made a sharp turn east. "This valley eventually climbs up into flatter terrain. If we can stay north of the river we can avoid Isra easily enough, they have very lax patrols to the north, then we can cut south before we get to Stros. I know how to avoid Stros easily enough, I know all the patrol routes. Then we head straight to Mournhold from there."

"You are the better tracker, Bull." Nevano said. "You lead, I'll follow."

"Even after all your years of traveling around?" There was a teasing note in Veleth's voice that made Nevano grin.

"My last wandering nearly got me beheaded before running from an angry dragon and Truefire and Hopesflame fell into Thalmor hands. I think I trust your nose better than mine at this point."

XxXxXx

4E 201, 16th Hearthfire – west of Mournhold, Morrowind

As they got closer to Mournhold and Adrusa, the sky became steadily darker. At first Nevano thought it was simply gearing up to rain but the smell on the wind wasn't quite right. Instead of the sweet scent of water on the wind, a heavier, sickly smell that he couldn't quite place made the hair on his neck stand on end. A quick glance at Veleth told him that he noticed as well; his jaw was clenched and one shoulder was dropped ever so slightly to give him faster access to his weapon. They trudged on, decidedly more cautious, the black clouds continuing to billow up overhead.

"Can't even blame this on Almalexia going insane this time." Nevano muttered an hour later as they got to the familiar lands around Mournhold, a cold wind hitting him in the face. This area of Morrowind was normally hot and humid, especially this time of year at the tail end of summer. Even during bad storms the wind wouldn't be this cold. Veleth's scowl deepened but he refrained from saying anything. He didn't need to though. That scowl said more than words could. Then, as they crested a hill, something above the trees caught Nevano's attention.

"You know, it's been a very long time since I've been to Mournhold." Nevano stopped abruptly, his eyes wide. "But even I know that THAT is not supposed to be there."

"That" was a column of sickly green light that swirled up into the sky like a beacon. Nevano couldn't be completely certain but it looked to be coming from the direction of Mournhold.

"What in Azura's name IS that?" Veleth gaped. "Nothing like this was in any report…"

"It could have just happened and we're ahead of any report." Nevano pointed out. "I mean, LOOK at that thing. I can tell you that my first thought on seeing that is not going to be 'Quick! Send a report!'. It's going to be 'Which daedra did I piss off?'."

"Should be the second thought then because this…" Veleth trailed off.

"Reminds me of the light you see from summonings but no summon is THAT big." Nevano chewed on a nail. "I hope not at least. If it is, I don't think we're going to have Martin around to turn into the avatar of Akatosh again."

"Did you see that?"

"No, I had left for Morrowind a week before the emperor was assassinated. I spent that period of time closing gates on mainland Morrowind. I never made it back to Vvardenfell like I wanted to." Nevano said. "However, I knew the Hero of Kvatch. She had been in the Fighters Guild. She was this tiny little scrappy fighter, smaller than me. Not sure how she ended up in jail. She would get mad every time I asked so I always figured she was falsely accused like I was. I miss her, she was pretty fun to go on contracts with."

"Hold that thought because I'm curious and I want to hear more but…something is out there."

"Where?" Nevano instantly went on high alert, pricking his ears. No matter how hard he tried, even his sharp ears couldn't pick up anything. Still, he trusted Veleth's instincts; if he said something was out there, then there was something there.

"It's coming towards us. In the trees, right in front of us." Veleth said. "Wait…are those Ordinators? High Ordinators?"

Nevano resisted the urge to jump when ghostly pale armor seemed to materialize from the trees. He felt Truefire and Hopesflame flare briefly at his hips and he whole-heartedly agreed with them. Something wasn't quite right with the five figures before them.

"Hai, Ordinators." Veleth greeted them, crossing his empty fists over his chest in a gesture of neutrality. "We are making our way to Mournhold when we saw that light coming from the city. Is everything ok?"

None of the Ordinators answered. A prickle of alarm tickled the back of his mind from Nerevar's corner. While Nevano appreciated the concern, he didn't need Nerevar to tell him something wasn't right. It was pretty obvious on its own. The grim iconic masks made it impossible to see the Ordinators' facial expressions but what Nevano could see of their eyes through the slits in their mask were just as devoid of any expression as the mask itself.

"Veleth…" He said slowly, his hands tightening on the hilts of his swords. A flicker of flame ran along both blades.

"You will not approach the city of Mournhold." One of the Ordinators finally said. His voice wasn't quite right. It was forced and airy, as if he was trying to shout through a rough wind. Nevano recognized it instantly. He heard it often when Nerevar decided to speak through him. It was a voice trying to force its way from one plane of existence to another. "The King of Morrowind shall rein eternal!"

"Veleth, these Ordinators aren't alive anymore!" Nevano snapped out his already blazing swords.

"None shall challenge the king and live!" Then all hell broke loose as the Ordinators charged in.

Nevano was at a distinct disadvantage in this fight, other than being a living, breathing creature against several undead. Besides being heavily armored, Ordinators were heavily armed with some of the nastiest weapons in Tamriel. In this case, all of them were equipped with polearms, designed to slash as well as stab while keeping an opponent at a fair distance. For Nevano, who had to get close, it was a big problem. Compounding the problem was these were High Ordinators. They made the regular Ordinators look like kittens and any regular Ordinator could make anyone's day go real bad, real quick.

"Vith!" Nevano cursed as he barely managed to deflect a polearm. He wouldn't be able to stop many more these blows. Even throwing his whole weight behind Truefire and Hopesflame crossed in an X he was still pushed back several inches before the polearm came to stop. He was either going to have to get creative or get sliced in half by a powerful strike.

Shifting his feet slightly, Nevano waited for the next swing. When it came, he jumped up and landed on top of the blade. It was a stupid move, one that left a thousand admonishments ringing in his mind. He could even hear Nerevar tsk'ing at him.

"Shut UP!" he roared mentally. "If you never made a stupid move, you wouldn't have ended up getting killed on the side of a mountain!"

That instantly silenced all noise in his head.

Meanwhile, he found that his risky move had paid off. His weight had effectively stopped the polearm, burying the blade in dirt, buying him a few precious seconds to allow him to rush in for the one weak point in that armor: the gap at the neck between the helmet and the cuirass. Truefire hissed and burned as congealed ichor bubbled out of the furious wound. The pole weapon Nevano was balancing on wavered and dropped to the ground, Nevano's weight causing it to dig it's own grave in the soft dirt. Slowly the Ordinator sank to the ground.

Nevano couldn't pat himself on the back just yet. He had managed to kill only one Ordinator. Veleth had already downed two in the meantime, heavy weapons colliding in an titanic battle where Nevano would swear that every weapon clash made his teeth rattle. Currently he was engaged with a third and was holding his own. The final Ordinator was coming at Nevano. As he prepared himself to take care of this final foe, more pale forms in the trees caught his eye. His heart stopped. It wasn't another group of five. It was TEN. There was no way they could survive this. It didn't matter how good they both were, they simply couldn't take on thirteen foes as powerful as these undead were at once, especially with only one of them being able to face these Ordinators on even ground.

Nevano opened his mouth to call out a warning to Veleth, to tell him to just drop and run because that was the only way they had even a sliver of a chance of survival, but the flat side of polearm caught him in the side and knocked him sideways into a tree.

"Nevano!" Veleth shouted, moving so he could keep them at bay while Nevano struggled to his feet.

"Run, kid." Nevano sputtered, trying to regain his breath. "Just run!"

"In case you haven't noticed, there's too many." Veleth tightened his grip on his weapon. "Running isn't an option anymore."

"Vith…" Nevano breathed, realizing that a solid ring of pale armor holding a forest of bristling weapons surrounded them. Well, he knew one day his luck would come to a horrific and jarring end but his biggest regret was that it happened with Veleth there. He had come along to keep the kid safe…and now they both were going die. Rather messily too. Hopefully Jorun and Drelasa would forgive him. He glanced over at Veleth. The Bull was glaring at the undead around him, defiant to the end. Nevano didn't know which deity he favored, but he could see Boethia approving of his actions. Good thing too, since Mephala had obviously rejected this mer completely. Then Nevano blinked. Veleth's amulet had fallen out from beneath his cuirass…and it was glowing.

"What...is…?"

Nevano couldn't tell if Veleth had sputtered that out or if he had. It didn't matter really. They were both thinking it. If the Ordinators had been alive, they would have been thinking that as well. The glow was growing into a bright light, so intense that Nevano wanted to close his eyes and look away but he couldn't. Finally the glowing ball exploded outwards, light flying everywhere as if a thousand lit fire arrows had been fired off at once. Veleth fell back from the force and Nevano found himself pinned by heavy armor to the ground. That actually proved to be beneficial as magic energy flew all around him. Veleth, as the unwitting caster and wearing heavy armor, was protected from the wild barrage. Nevano curled into a ball, using the much larger mer as a shield. The howling went on for an interminable time until sudden silence reigned through the woods.

Slowly the heavy weight above Nevano lifted as Veleth was able to sit up. Nevano uncurled when he could finally move again and looked up. "You ok, Bull?"

"Yeah."

Nevano looked around. There was no trace of the Ordinators, aside from the ones that they had already killed. He glanced over at Veleth. "Didn't realize you had a turn undead enchantment on that necklace."

"Neither did I." Veleth said, slowly getting to his feet. "I've had this necklace for seventy years and it has never once given any indication it had an enchantment on it."

"You know what, don't question it." Nevano shook his head. "If it chose now to reveal that it can turn the undead, I'm not going to complain. Great timing on the grand reveal. Waiting seventy years to drive off thirteen undead Ordinators is just fine in my book."

As he lay there trying to recover a bit, Nevano felt a sullen corner of his mind. Was…was Nerevar pouting? He frowned, probing at it but wince when he got the equivalent of a door slammed in his face. He sighed as he remembered his earlier words. He had some apologizing to do.

"Everything alright?"

"I said a few nasty things earlier and now Nerevar is upset." Nevano sighed. "Do you know how weird it is to have one part of your mind pouting while the rest is still trying to make sense of what just happened? Not a comfortable situation."

"I've heard you mention him more than once but…" Veleth stared. "Wait. Nerevar…is in your head?"

"Yes. I AM Nerevar reincarnated, remember? That part wasn't just make the story more interesting." Nevano explained. "I'm still Nevano, but I'm also Nerevar. More Nevano than Nerevar because this is MY time and not Nerevar's, he IS dead after all, but he still makes his presence known every now and then. Two beings in one: Nerevarine. Huh, I just realized my name sounds like Nerevar. Maybe that was what caught the emperor's attention in the first place and made him decide to toss me off to Morrowind in the first place…"

"That's…" Veleth stopped and made a face that was a combination of incredulous and impressed. "You have a dead Chimeri general living in your head…"

"Jorun told you this would get strange, yes?" Nevano smiled. "Welcome to it. Sheogorath would be proud." Then he turned inward again, focusing on the negative energy in the far corner of his mind. "I'm sorry, Nerevar. You were trying to help and we both know that I don't think what happened to you was because of anything stupid on your part. Betrayal is one of the hardest things to happen, especially from those so close…and often it's found far too late." He felt Nerevar ease up on the pout, slightly mollified. "Besides, you'll forgive me. You haven't had this much fun in millennia." Nevano snickered as he received the mental equivalent of a slap upside the head. "He forgave me." He explained to his bewildered friend.

"Your strange mental roommate situation aside." Veleth rubbed at his forehead. "Care to take a guess why we were just attacked by a group of UNDEAD Ordinators blathering on about the king?"

"Your guess is as good as mine." Nevano shrugged.

Veleth took a look at the pile of bodies and shuddered.

"Relax, I don't think they're going to get up again…I hope."

"They better stay down…" Veleth muttered, giving the bodies a look like he wanted to cut the heads off JUST to be sure they were dead.

"I don't think I've ever seen you flinch at anything before." Nevano remarked. "A damn snake dragon landed in front of you and you didn't flinch, you didn't hesitate in the slightest about running into a tower full of Morag Tong assassins and you got run through the kidney and brushed it off but a few fully dead undead are making you wince?"

"Shut up." Veleth groused. "I just happen to agree with Meridia's philosophies."

"No wonder you got your arse kicked by those ash spawn." Nevano snickered.

"Keep it up and I'll put a rat in your bedroll."

"You wouldn't DARE."

"To take a page from your book…I gave up my entire career to go play hero with the Nerevarine. There's not much I won't dare do at this point."

"You…I'm not sure if I'm proud that you're sassing me back or if I'm annoyed that you're using my own words against me!"

"You forget that JORUN is my father." Veleth grumbled. "I know how to sass back. But for gods' sake quit getting off topic! We were attacked by undead Ordinators. Undead. Ordinators. Ordinators don't just rise from the dead on a whim, SOMEONE raised them up. And another thing, it takes a LOT to kill ONE Ordinator. Who killed this many and then RAISED THEM UP AGAIN?"

Nevano went over and nudged one of them until his helmet finally rolled off. Veleth winced and took a step back. Nevano didn't blame him one bit. The Ordinator's skin was mottled from the blood congealing in his veins and blackened, rotting flesh pulled away from bone by the force of the helmet pulling on it. The smell alone was enough to make a dragon whimper.

"We need to hurry." Nevano looked back up at the eerie green light. "This Ordinator has been dead a long time before someone raised him up again. I have no idea why we were attacked and I have no idea WHY there was a group of very dead undead Ordinators running around but the reason can't be good. I think instead of Mournhold, we should go to Adrusa first. Something is obviously going on with the Ordinators and this was too close a call for us to risk again. Maybe the Redoran soldiers can shed some light on this situation…and not that awful green light."

Veleth gave him a pained look at the bad pun.

Nevano laughed. It was his birthday. He was allowed to make horrible jokes and get away with it.

XxXxXx

4E 201, 17th Hearthfire – Safepoint Adrusa, Morrowind

It really wasn't that far from Mournhold to Safepoint Adrusa but after that attack, the two mer had slowed down, moving with far more caution than speed. The perpetual dark clouds overhead made for horrible visibility in the woods, not allowing them to see farther than a few trees ahead. It made both of them tense, fully expecting pale armor to suddenly materialize like it had before. It was one of the most nerve-wracking journeys Nevano could remember, ranking up near trekking around Red Mountain. Finally the lights of Safepoint Adrusa came into sight…along with sounds of a fight. Nevano exchanged a look with Veleth and they broke into a run.

Several dozen Ordinators were fighting with Redoran soldiers at the gates of Adrusa and, judging by the smell of rotting flesh, they were just as undead as the ones Nevano and Veleth had run across the day before.

"Think you can get that amulet to work again?" Nevano asked as he pulled Bonebiter free. He wasn't about to try with cross weapons with those Ordinators again. In this case, he was perfectly happy letting his much bigger friend in the heavy armor and big weapon run in first while he kept his distance. Bonebiter was more than up for the job and this time he had a clear line of sight without trees in his way.

"I'm still not sure how I got it to work the first time!" Veleth grunted. "But I can try."

Nevano pulled out an arrow and jumped up on a log and fired it off, grinning in satisfaction as it punched clean through the Indoril armor and knocked the Ordinator clean off his feet. The undead mer didn't get back up again. Finally Nevano felt like he was back in his element. In front of him, Veleth tore into the undead ranks with a ferocity that only came from someone determined to overcome a deep-rooted fear. In this case, it was an undead phobia. Nevano sent an arrow over Veleth's shoulder, nailing his current target in the face.

"Get your own mark!" Veleth bellowed. Nevano smirked.

The soldiers, the living ones, were greatly relieved for the help once they realized that Nevano and Veleth weren't dead. One fighter in particular caught Nevano's attention. In stark contrast to the strict fighting style of the other Redoran soldiers, he was….brutal. There was no other way to put it. His style was undeniably Ashlander: fast, hard and to the point. He carried a short sword in one hand and a hand axe in the other. Nevano watched with great interest as he used the axe to wrench the head of an Ordinator to one side and slice open the jugular vein in the neck and left his foe to slump to the ground, the blood draining from the nearly decapitated body. It was a move heavily favored by Ashlander hunters to show off their stealth and efficiency in taking down prey. Yet however brutal he was, there was a certain grace to it that made so that Nevano wanted to keep watching him like someone would want to watch a dancer. However he didn't have that luxury; more Ordinators were joining the fight. Judging by the look of despair on some of the soldiers' faces, it was time to end this fight.

"Veleth, use the amulet!" Nevano shouted. "These soldiers are getting tired. And I'm running out of arrows!"

Veleth nodded and stepped back, allowing Nevano a clearer line of sight to keep the Ordinators back while he activated his amulet. It wasn't long before tendrils of light shot out and wove through the Ordinator ranks. The Ordinators flinched back and dropped their weapons. The ones in the back fled back into the woods but the Redoran soldiers, newly invigorated at the sight of their opponents finally wavering, cut down the rest in short order.

"Ok, so, we're stocking up on soul gems to keep that necklace of yours charged up." Nevano raised an eyebrow at Veleth. "That's about the only thing that works. But really, more undead Ordinator attacks?"

"This is the fourth time in as many days." Nevano looked up to see the gruffest looking mer he had ever seen striding towards them, looking very much like he needed to kill another dozen opponents before his mood settled into something approachable. He even made Veleth look like a puppy in comparison. An eye patch covered his left eye and his left hand was missing a few fingers. "Huh, Veleth, right? Didn't know you finally got reassigned. Relas sent you?"

Nevano sent a swift kick to Veleth's ankle to remind him to say something convincing.

"General Garil, General Relas sends his regards." Veleth said, shooting Nevano a look that promised a swift punch to the jaw if he tried to kick him again. "We have news we need to discuss."

"Right. Relas always loved the secrety stuff. Surprised he sent you though." Garil turned to address his men. "Toss the bodies with the others. Churl! Grab a group and make sure there isn't another wave rising up from the ground. Set fire to the whole damn forest if you have to. The rest of you, normal patrol routine but keep on alert. Those numbers are growing and I don't want today to be the day we're caught unprepared by a second wave. You two follow me."

They both followed him through the Safepoint. As they went further in, Nevano was struck by the noticeable absence of civilians. All the Safepoints had grown into full-fledged towns, most of the civilian population made up of those who had fled the southern portion of the province, but none of them were out and about right now. Instead, tense and suspicious soldiers were hurrying about, many with weapons bared. Nevano could see the fatigue on the faces of every soldier that ran by, evidence of a prolonged battle and fear that refused no matter how many foes they killed. Finally Garil led them into a building that Nevano recognized as a war room, a massive map pinned to table in the center of the room by daggers in each corner. Various other small maps littered the walls and shelves but Nevano didn't pay attention to those. He was most concerned with the big red X that had been crossed through Mournhold.

"Alright so what is this about?" Garil said, his one eye pinning them down with a red glare.

Without preamble, Nevano pulled off his lenses.

"Well I'll be the bastard son of Malacath." Garil crossed his arms. "Thought you were long gone."

"I have several sarcastic remarks I can make in response to that but I'm going to hold on to those because I don't have many in reserve." Nevano said. "Besides, we don't have time for that. So I'm going to take a cue from Bull here and be blunt as a brick. I might have been gone but now I'm back. I'm going to drive out the Thalmor and I'm here to get the Ordinators in on it but that might be a little hard seeing as how every one I've met so far is no longer ALIVE. Tell me what's going on and we might be able to help each other out."

"Refreshingly blunt. I like that." Garil gave a grim smile. "So you came back from the great beyond to take care of our Thalmor problem, eh? Now THAT is something I can get behind instead of chasing after ghosts at the behest of some councilor with a finger up their arse! Did Relas send you two or are you doing this on your own."

"For right now, let's just say we're working on our own." Nevano said. "General Relas has no idea Veleth is even back on the mainland and we need it to stay that way."

"Alright, alright, keep your secrety stuff. I don't get paid to play spy, I get paid to put bodies in the ground, though I prefer them alive first rather than my job already done halfway for me!" The gruff general said. "As to the Ordinators…that might be far easier said than done."

"What do you mean by 'easier said than done'?" Nevano asked. "It gets worse than an undead horde of Ordinators?"

"Look, I've been general of this place since it's founding." Garil said. "I knew Andas, knew him very well. He was an honorable mer, absolutely. After he reclaimed Mournhold, we worked together to help rebuild the city. The Argonians absolutely trashed the place. Every building was ruined, every wall had holes in it…it was like they were trying to erase us from the face of the planet brick by brick and they almost succeeded. Still, things were going fine for the first year or so. We got a lot cleared out and had finally gotten to the palace in the center of the city. That's when things got…weird."

"Weird?"

"Quit interrupting." Nevano held up his hands and shot a swift kick in Veleth's direction when he smirked at him. "Yes, weird. Andas refused to let any of my soldiers into the palace and he never told me why. At first I just figured it was some sort of hallowed ground to them, much like how they got a little weird over Almalexia's old temple in the north of the city, so I just told my men to stick to clearing out Godsreach, the bazaar and Brindisi Dorom and leave the Ordinators to whatever sacred hocus-pocus ceremony they wanted to hold. I just wanted to get the city cleared because having Mournhold up and standing again along with Adrusa could very well mean we could start to build up the strength needed to finally push those scaly n'wahs back across the border where they belong once and for all. Obviously, that still hasn't happened."

Nevano frowned but after his last warning he held his tongue.

"That was when Andas just up and disappeared." Garil continued, stabbing at Mournhold on the map with his remaining left fingers. "All my inquiries to his whereabouts were completely stonewalled and we still weren't allowed near the palace. I sent multiple reports on that and was told each time to stand down so my hands were tied. I had to let the whole thing drop. Wasn't happy about it but orders are orders. Things continued in that vein, a little strained, until, out of the blue, we were completely ejected out of the city and the next thing I know, there's that stupid light reaching up into the sky, a barrier around the whole damn city and we're being besieged by a bunch of damn Ordinator zombies!"

"You're right." Nevano murmured. "Easier said than done."

"I don't even know where to start to help you out with this." The irritated general threw his hands up.

Nevano twisted his jaw as he pondered over what the general said. So the problems started when they started to uncover the palace BUT all the Ordinators had been alive then. Still, it didn't make sense. Many of the Ordinators Nevano had seen at the gate were…a little ripe, much like the ones he and Veleth had encountered in the woods outside Mournhold. And a barrier around the city? Dead mer don't raise barriers. What could be so powerful as to not only kill and raise Ordinators but also raise a barrier a whole city as large as that?

"If I can get that barrier down, can I count on your help in keeping whatever comes out of that city distracted while I try to get into the city to see what's going on?" Nevano asked, not fully expecting a positive reply but he wanted to know what to expect.

"I'm not going to sacrifice every man here." Garil said flatly.

"I didn't ask that."

Garil sighed. "If it's something we can actually attack…yes. But you need to be completely certain what's going to happen AND have a decent enough plan or else you're on your own."

"Fair enough."

"You'll want to talk to the Churl. I just sent him to make sure we don't have any more surprises coming from the woods but I'll send him in once he gets back. He's my right hand man and has more of an idea what's going on out there than I do." Garil sighed in frustration as he stood up. "I got a Safepoint to run. Good luck to you both."

Nevano watched the aggravated general leave and raised an eyebrow at Veleth "The Churl?"

"Heard of him, never met him personally." Veleth shrugged. "Remember that warrior we saw earlier? The one with the axe and dagger? That was him."

"What kind of nickname is Churl?" Nevano wondered out loud. "I mean, you're Bull because you are as stubborn as one and Azura knows I live up to just about every nickname ever given to me but Churl?"

"Because he fights like a daedra from Oblivion." Veleth said as he looked over a map of the surrounding area on the table. "He's supposed to be a shoe-in for the next general of Adrusa should Garil ever step down or get killed…except no one has ever seen his face. Tends to breed distrust."

"Mystery mask, eh? Why didn't I ever think of that?"

"Because you open your mouth too much." Veleth said dryly. "Renders it a moot point."

"Careful there, Bull, you are toeing the line of developing an actual sense of humor."

"It's an occupational hazard at this point." Veleth shook his head. "I'm glad I've had years of dealing with the twins before dealing with you or I would have lost my mind by now."

Before Nevano could reply the door opened and the warrior in question walked in, still splattered with the dark, congealed ichor of the undead.

Before any sort of greeting could pass between then, the Churl nodded at the two soldiers who stood at attention at the doorway. "Leave us." Nevano frowned. The words were muffled, making it impossible to tell anything about the mer. Actually, everything about him was muffled and hidden. Unlike other Redoran soldiers, the Churl wore light armor, which made sense seeing as how he fought with a hand axe and a dagger, but the armor was strangely bulky, once again muffling every defining feature on him until he was just barely humanoid shaped. It just struck Nevano was extremely strange. Even with heavy armor sets there was a certain distinction between male and female wearers but in this instance there were more defining features on a mannequin. He could see what Veleth had meant about breeding distrust.

"I have been eagerly awaiting the day I could meet you both for a very long time. I just didn't expect it to be at the same time." The Churl said in that garbled monotone voice, "The stubborn Bull of Stros and the legendary Nerevarine. Not a combination anyone expected…but undeniably an effective one."

"The unexpected often produces the biggest results." Nevano responded slowly, having a hard time settling the uneasy pit in his stomach. It wasn't a bad feeling necessarily, nothing to make the swords at his hips flare up, but more like he was waiting for the plot twist. Except he had a feeling that that twist wasn't going to be nearly as impressive for him as it would be for everyone else.

"The biggest, yes, but the best?"

"You said it so yourself; stubborn and legendary. Too stubborn to quit and too legendary to fail." Nevano said a little more sarcastic than absolutely necessary. "It's working so well I can see the council forging medals for us already."

"From sarcastic to cynical in a few short words."

"I personally don't care what the council does. I have a goal and I need the Ordinators to help achieve that goal." Nevano said flatly. "Can you help us or not?"

The Churl didn't reply right away. Instead, he began to unbuckle his armor, starting with the weapons belt, placing each piece with deliberate precision on the table between them. Nevano and Veleth exchanged a slightly uncomfortable look but before they could do anything else, the Churl began to speak. "A long time ago, I defied my father's wishes and joined the Redoran Militia. My mother, Azura bless her, was rather unsurprised and aided in my endeavors, even convincing my father to support me as well. She knew that I needed to do this, for more than one reason." Gauntlets joined the weapon belt. Nevano noted the calluses on the fingers as something began to ring discordantly in his mind. He…recognized those fingers, as weird as that seemed. It did nothing to ease the discomfort in his belly. If anything, it grew worse. "The life they led was not the life I was suited for, despite my father's many efforts to groom me otherwise. I had other objectives in mind and I was determined to accomplish them. Now here we are. I never expected to actually meet you. I thought that the opportunity was gone forever with the rumors of you going to Akavir. I must admit this is a pleasant surprise."

"A lot of people thought that." Nevano couldn't help himself. He had to say something, anything, to break up the awkwardness that was building. By the way Veleth had picked up a glass jar on a shelf and was idly passing it between his hands, he was feeling the same thing. "The whole Akavir expedition was not true. It was a very well told rumor and it had the desired effect but it wasn't true. I don't like that kind of attention, never have."

"I know." Came the strange answer. "I know quite a bit about you."

"Ok…" Nevano said slowly, feeling thoroughly uncomfortable by now and almost wishing that the Churl would just attack them already so he could have an excuse to out a stop this whole strange situation.

Then the Churl removed his helmet and they got their first look at his true face.

Glass shattered all over the floor.

HE was actually a SHE.

That was actually the second thing Nevano noticed. That in and of itself was a bit of a shock but not overly so. It wasn't uncommon at all for women to be in the military so why she had chosen to hide that aspect of her identity was a bit of a curiosity. However, that was not what caused Nevano to feel his mind grind to a halt and his stomach feel like it had turned to ice. He could see why she chose to hide her face. It was so glaringly obvious and Nevano just couldn't stop staring, mentally begging whatever power out there MIGHT take pity on him that it wasn't true. He KNEW he recognized those fingers and now it was all so achingly clear WHY.

"Nevano…" she started to say, her voice far more melodious and delicate now that the mask wasn't there to muffle it. Nevano's internal begging intensified as a rushing noise echoed deep within his ears. No, it wasn't true. Azura, Mephala, Boethia, Dibella, Akatosh, Sheogorath, Sanguine, actually Sanguine most of all because he desperately needed a drink, SOME GOD stop her from saying the words he knew was coming. "My name is…"

He didn't catch the rest of what she said. The rushing had intensified to a roar and the ice in his stomach had traveled up to his head, encasing his entire being in a cold black prison. Darkness tugged at the edges of his vision and slowly misted over his eyes.

He thudded to the floor, completely unconscious before he ever hit the ground.

XxXxXx

A/N: First off, thank you all for all the kind words. It really means a lot. Y'all are simply amazing. It's been…difficult. There's nothing like a medical emergency that really shows the true nature of the people around you, how much mental, physical and emotional stress you can actually take without imploding and just how long the list of instructions are for your animals when you ask someone to watch them for a few days. Normally I love roller coasters but the emotional roller coaster is one ride I would give anything to get off of.

I re-wrote King's outline. Granted I make changes as I write as new ideas come to me and as I find new information when I dig through websites and the games themselves but I thought it was too simple, too cheesy, and would end far too quickly. That's no longer a concern. At all. I have allowed all those little ideas I once thought were too outrageous to go free. Turns out, they aren't too outrageous after all. Gunjar DID say he wanted Nevano to cause mayhem. Nevano will be able to fulfill that promise.

Oh, ah, and I wrestled with the idea of just blurting out the secret to my newest character buuuuut what's a good story without someone screaming in outrage as I make you wait the week or so it'll take me to write out the next chapter? Love you dears!