Hello everyone! Here's another chapter, hope you enjoy it! I have a slight case ofwriters block but never fear, I will finish the story if it takes me my whole life (most likley it won't so don't worry), and hopefully after there will be a sequel, ya never know! Anyway, enjoy and review please.
Chapter 11
Another month passed with no more major incidents. A few tribes people caught Blight and because Larka was the fastest warrior in the tribe with connections to the outside world, she was sent to Molag Mar to get some Cure Blight potions. Her journey was uneventful, with only minor incidents with regular, un-Daedric creatures. Larka still carried a scar across her cheek from the Clannfear. She bore it proudly though, as well as the scars she had sustained from her other various fights. When she went into the fortress she wore a sheer black shirt with her black leather bodice on the outside, revealing her Ashlander markings to all. With that she wore her customary black fitted pants and knee high boots. Her wakazashi and tanto strapped to her side.
Going into the Trader's Tavern she drew many stares and whispers, Larka bore them as gracefully as she could, having no veil or cloak as it was spring on the island and pleasantly warm. Her frosty glare made most back down. One group of men, Imperials, in the corner still kept talking, for her to hear.
"No self respecting Dunmer should be associating with those barbaric Ashlanders, unclean and un-religious they are." One man scoffed.
"Probably a whore, looking for new men to lay." One man snickered.
"Well, let's hope the bastards kill each other off so we don't have to do the dirty work." Another said.
Larka turned around slowly, her eyes flashing dangerously, facing the group of men. Walking up to them she looked down regally. "I can, and have, tolerated remarks about my profession and my sexual life. But I will not permit you to speak that way about my tribe."
"And just what, are You gonna do about it honey?" One man asked standing up arrogantly. Larka smiled sweetly and with a wink she grabbed his head and smashed it against hers, of course, this hurt him much, much more than it hurt her. The man staggered back and Larka did a swift jump kick knocking him backward onto the table the men were sitting at. The rest of the tavern was silent, waiting for the other men to react. They moved as one, jumping up and rushing at Larka. Larka was quick though, kicking two men in the side of the head with a spinning kick and kicking one man in the stomach and jaw. Another grabbed her arms and pulled them over her head, one man ran at her. Larka kicked him in the face and used him as a support to run up, flipping herself over the man holding her. He let go and she kicked him in the spine, making him howl with pain and fall to the ground.
"Bartender!" Larka cried as a man came at her, a cut on his cheek from where Larka had kicked him previously. "Five Cure Blight Disease potions please!" she asked as she turned and flipped the man over her back. It seems I never have any luck in this tavern, she thought as she jumped up grabbing a beam going across the ceiling and swinging at a man, kicking him with both feet in the chest. One man however, got her from behind and threw her to the ground, kicking her in the side and another lifted her up and the man punched her in the stomach. Larka was winded, but years of training kicked in and she twisted to the side as the next punch came her way, the intended hit for her hitting the other man in the stomach. One man hit her across the face, but she turned and struck his windpipe, making him fall to the floor gagging. The first Imperial drew a dagger and swung at her, eyes glittering with fury. Larka twisted, dodging the attack and grabbing his arm kneed him in the stomach, making him drop the dagger in pain. I've had enough, she thought, seeing that her potions were ready and that most of her adversaries looked worse off than she did. "Next time you insult a Clan Friend of the Ashlanders make sure they don't know how to fight." She said, her voice ringing through the tavern. Paying the dumbstruck bartender she took the sack and walked out into the night, to whispers of, "Who was that woman?"
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When she returned to the tribe she went straight to WhisperWing with the potions, then to Liam who fussed over her sustained injuries. "Liam, it was only a bar fight. I'm fine." She protested.
"How is it trouble seems to find you wherever you go?" Liam asked incredulously as he sat down beside her, blue healing magic sparkling at the tips of his fingers.
"How do you know I don't go looking for it?" Larka asked with a sly grin turning to his outstretched hands. "Will you just heal the bruise on my cheek and my side,they hurt the most." She said. He nodded, his hand going to her cheek where the cool, soothing magic flowed over the bruise, mending it. His other hand went to her side where he healed her bruise there. Larka shivered, liking his touch, she looked up and saw he was staring at her with an intense look of longing. Larka quickly jumped up from her seat and rushed out of the tent with a quick goodbye to a disgruntled Liam, whose hands still sparkled with residual magic.
Liam and Larka had indeed become good friends, though Larka knew he wanted much more. He had in fact, broken it off with Jey, Jey took it as well as she could, redoubling her glares towards Larka though everyone could tell that she was resisting the young chief's advances.
Once Larka left the hut she went to see Krillan, who was one of the people who had caught the disease. "How are you feeling?" she asked kneeling beside his bed.
"I've definitely been better. But thanks to you I'll live." He said smiling.
"You always did have a knack for catching whatever disease went around. I trust you drank the potion?" she asked. Krillan nodded.
"You look a bit worse for wear, did you get into a fight?" he asked.
"Yes, how did you know?" she asked.
"Well, you still have a faint bruise on your cheek and I saw you when you came to give the potions to WhisperWing, you looked a bit tousled." He said. Larka laughed, nothing could get by him. "You've been happy latley, haven't you?" Krillan asked.
"I suppose I have been, it's nice to have a real home." Larka said with a smile, taking her friend's hand.
"I can't believe I'm saying this but I'm glad you dragged me along on your silly quest. It changed our futures." He said weakly.
"I'll let you get some sleep." Larka said, leaving him and walking out into the camp. She smiled faintly, she was happy here, of all places. Hearing a commotion to her left she looked and saw a group of four Imperial soldiers. They were shoving a young Ashlander boy around and laughing. Rage boiled in Larka and she ran forward and pulled a soldier away from the boy. "What the bloody hell is going on?" she yelled in the language of the empire, she spoke Ashlander often when with the tribe but these guards wouldn't know it.
"We caught this boy trying to pick our pockets. We're just teaching him a lesson. If I were you I'd go back to your own business." The soldier said warningly. Larka noticed that the boy in the dirt was Marren, a good boy who had a rather bad case of sticky fingers. Larka scoffed at the soldiers.
"Leave him alone." She said, glaring fiercely.
"Step away Miss." One soldier said, shoving her backwards. Larka stumbled but righted herself, her body shaking with suppressed rage.
"This is not your territory. Get out!" she said dangerously. The soldiers paled at her tone but stood firm.
"Well, soon it will be. When the new law is passed we're comin' to take your precious land away and you won't be able to do a thing about it." One guard said pompously.
"You lie!" Larka spat.
"Just wait and see, you'll…wait, you're the woman who stirred up all that trouble in Molag Mar." One man said.
"I rose to the occasion if that's what you mean." Larka said.
"We can't arrest you…here, yet. But we're warnin' you, ever come into Molag Mar again and you'll have a surprise waiting for you." One soldier said, grinning.
"Well, thank you gentlemen for the warning. Now, if you'll be so kind as to let me teach this lad a lesson and you can carry on about your business." Larka said as sweetly as she could manage.
"Very well." One of the soldiers said, motioning for the rest to follow him to the chief's hut.
Could that be true? Larka thought, they really are trying to take our home away? She'd ask Liam later. Turning to Marren, who was still on the ground, Larka picked him up by the back of his shirt and once he stood she gave him a hard, backhand slap to the face, sending him sprawling once more. "Next time you try and pick someone's pocket, do it right and don't get caught." She said coldly to Marren who was somewhat surprised with her reprimand. "Get up and go home." She said turning away as the young boy scrambled off.
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When Larka returned to the chief's hut the soldiers were just leaving. When she entered she found Liam sitting with his head in his hands. "Liam?" she asked softly. He looked up and stood. Larka walked to him and he fell into her arms, shaking with suppressed sobs. Larka held him, rather uncomfortably, until he stopped and then moved away. "What happened?" she asked sitting down next to him.
"They come often now, wanting me to sign documents for resettlement of our tribe. It'll protect us from any other laws passed in the future, but I have little faith in their promises, it is clear they regard us as filthy savages." He said wearily.
"Resettlement?" Larka echoed. "They want to move our home?"
"Yes, they want to build a fort, near to the mountains to protect the Temple pilgrims, and we're in their area. I have refused the signature many times; their paper will not protect us for long. As soon as they decide we can be done away with they'll find a way. But they have thinly veiled threats as to what happens if I keep refusing." He said.
"We'll just have to resist. They won't take my homeland away from me!" Larka said viciously. Liam looked at her.
"In my dream you asked what would be done about our people. I know now you've come to us to keep us strong. We will resist, come what may." He smiled weakly, his gaze holding her own.
"Taka and Krillan will stand by your decision. We'll resist with you. I'm sure the tribe will not want our homeland taken away, we know the ties that you have to this land and the ancestral spirits that dwell here, ties that I now have as well. I will stay here till they physically remove me, and even then it'll be a struggle." Larka said softly with a smile. She was entranced by his eyes, his crystal clear blue eyes. What am I doing? She thought frantically as Liam leaned in. Is he going to kiss me? Gods I don't care! She thought as their lips touched briefly.
"I'm sorry." Liam said flustered, backing away. Larka grinned wickedly and wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in once more. I vowed never to love, but no one said it would be this fun! She thought, just as the sun set, closing yet another chapter in Larka's life, and with the sunrise opening unto a new one that would make her, and her companions the stuff of legend.
