A Note to all the Oblivion Players Who Will Notice This: I DO have Oblivion, but my computer cannot run it. So, the information I provide about town layouts and such, I'm getting straight from the Strategy Guide, so needless-to-say, I'm bound to get SOMETHING wrong. So, in advance, I apologize, and I'm busy upgrading my computer as we speak.
One: Layewiin
The group stepped out of Blackwood and into a clearing several hundred meters away from Layewiin, their first stop on their jouryney. Xenobia had never been in Cyrodiil herself...just once. An interim period she spent inside the Imperial Prison System, incarcerated for something she didn't do.
The four-group was lead by Clavicus. He forged ahead as point-man, making sure nothing bad became of Xenobia. Behind him not four feet was Xenobia and Juib, who were making their earnings by watching the sides of the group. And bringing up the rear was Kurgraz gra-bunguk, an Orc who had spent his entire life in the service of the Emperor. He was decked head-to-toe in complete Orcish armor, a large Daedric Battle-Axe slung on his back. Xenobia counted her lucky stars he was on their side.
"Alright, everyone. We made it out of the Blackwood with no trouble. But, that was the easy part. We still have to make it to Layewiin, and find a Mercenary group we can hitch a ride with. It's getting dark, so we should probably find a place to camp for the night. Southern Cyrodiil becomes very dangerous at night, and I don't want to get ambushed by raiders." Clavicus spoke to the group.
"What about there?" Xenobia said, pointing to a decrepit temple with a large rusting door as an entrance. "If it stayed in that good condition for so long, I think it'll hold up for one more night."
"Grand idea. We'll need to clear it out, first. Raiders, Undead, and other nasties make their homes in those kind of places. Who wants to clear it?"
"I shall do it, sir." Kurgraz spoke in his deep, throaty voice, reaching for his axe.
"Excellent. Xenobia, go with him. And if either of you find anything we can salvage and use, great, grab it and bring it outside. Jiub and I'll hold off anyone who shows up. Good luck." Clavicus nodded as the Orc and White Tiger entered the old temple.
The smell of death and decay was saturating the air. Xenobia about gagged at the sudden stench. Kurgraz was unaffected by it, however he did smell it, and something else.
"Smell that?" He asked, sniffing the air.
"What? That rancid, decaying stench? Hell yes I smell it!" Kurgraz didn't reply to Xenobia's sarcasm, just continued to sniff the air. He hunched farther down, his grip tightening on his axe. "Oh, are you serious? What is it?"
"I don't know as of yet...We must advance with caution, however...the unknown should always be taken slowly...yet hard." he crept forward, keeping as low to the ground as possible. Xenobia tried to repell the stink as best as she could, and draw Keening with right hand, and pulling one of her Katanas out of it's slot. Keening's blade faced the ground, while the katana stood erect in her left hand. She followed Kurgraz deeper into the cave.
As the crept, they could begin to hear voices echoing off the walls. By the sound of them, it was either a Necromancer, or Enchanter casting some kind of spell. Kurgraz went prone to the ground and crawled forward. He spied five Dunmer standing around a statue of Molag Bal, all chanting in unison. Xenobia couldn't see past the Orc's gigantic pauldrons. She tapped him twice on the back.
"What is it?" She whispered.
"Daedric worshippers. They're followers of Molag Bal." He replied, crawling back a ways to avoid detection.
"How many?"
"Five. Too many." Kurgraz shook his head defeated. "I'll have to get Clavicus for help."
"Don't bother. I can take them. How much can you lift?"
"What? Why?" He had a hint of confusion in his gruff voice.
"Can you hurl me in the middle of them?" She finished, looking over her odds.
"I think...But that's suicide!"
"For a man, yes. But I'm the Nereverine. I'm almost god. Just toss me in the middle." She got up into a kneel. Kurgraz cupped both hands under her foot and awaited her signal. "Just...don't miss, okay?" She muttered back. The Orc chuckled and with a great heave, hurled the White Tiger into the air. She flipped twice while flying and landed right in the middle of the circle. The Dunmer's chanting stopped. "Hello, boys." She smiled, standing, Keening and one Daedric Katana in her hands.
"Kill her, who interferes with out ritual!" One shouted.
"Yea, she's dead..." Kurgraz thought to himself, preparing to stand. Just as he got to a knee, he looked up in time to see Xenobia start spinning on one heel, her hair twirling frantically. She held both weapons out and slit four of the Dunmer's throats. The fifth backed off, his hand burning with magical fire. He hollered and launched a fireball at Xenobia. The Nereverine caught the blast in her right hand and threw it away. He tried several more times to burn her, all attempts met with the same fate. He eventually backed himself into a corner and, being trapped and tapped, had nothing to do, save draw his steel short sword.
"Please!" Xenobia shouted, throwing Keening into the air, drawing her other katana from her back, stabbing her left hand katana into his left side, cross stabbing her right hand katana into his right side, and with an emphatic "Stay down!" pulled both of them out by slashing out from his sides. Blood splattered on the walls and the Daedric worshipper dropped dead. She sheathed the freshly drawn katana and caught Keening on it's way down. The other katana found it's way back into her back sheathes, and Keening back into her sock. "Done and done!" She shouted up to Kurgraz, who decended from the place he was.
"Holy shit! You went fucking Mehrunes Dagon on their asses!" The Orc said in surprise. Xenobia ginned and knelt beside one of the dead worshippers. "Anything useful?"
"Couple of gold...the gauntlet he was wearing and...oh now this is interesting..." She reached down the side of his pant leg and pulled out a Daedric Shortsword, and an Ebony Dagger. "Bitch came packing. The Daedric Shortsword is totally mine." She slipped the weapon into her other sock and started rummaging through the other bodies. "Fuckin' hell! All these bitches were packin'! This ass has a freakin' Daedric Longsword!" Xenobia continued to look through the bodies of the slain Dunmer, looking for anything useful. After being satisfied she got everything, she and Kurgraz walked back the way they came and met with Clavicus at the exit.
"Ah! Xenobia! Kurgraz! You still live! Glad to see it. How did everything go?"
"All I saw was a flurry of Daedric weaponry and it was all over. Five on one." Kurgraz muttered. "They never stood a chance."
"Found some interesting stuff, though. Mostly Ebony, but there was the occasional Daedric weapon. Here." She dropped the weapons onto a pile in front of her. "Anything ya'll can use?"
"Definitly. Alright, Jiub. Load up and let's camp out."
The night passed without incident, however Xenobia didn't sleep. Something kept her mind preoccupied from it's nightly process. Dreams. Dreams reminiscent of the ones she had when her role in Morrowind's history was nothing but legend. None of the dreams stuck in her mind as either important, or even noteworthy; except one.
In her dream, she stood before a group of ten men dressed in dark outfits vaguly similar to the Daedric Armor pieces she had encountered on Morrowind, however pure black, like midnight. On the Curiass read in fine, Daedric rune print: "Glory to Mehrunes Dagon, who holds the fate of Nirn in the hands of his Daggers." The lead man, an Altmer of considerable hight, spoke to her.
"Xenobia of Skyrim. You stand trial before His Almighty Powers, the Mehrunes Daggers, under the charge of high treason against Lord Mehrunes Dagon. You have aided the inferieor races to escape, and their emperor to live. The penalty for such a transgression is death. There will be no bargains, no deals. Your execution shall commence at dawn's first light tomorrow. May the Daedra Gods have mercy upon your soul..." Just as two of the 'Mehrunes Daggers' grabbed Xenobia's arms, she sprung awake, sweat pouring down her face. The wind pierced her blanket and chilled her skin. She shuddered for the first time in months. Just as she put her head back down on the pillow, she heard a voice whisper to her.
"Nerevar..." It echoed in the darkness. Her right eye, the blue one, opened and began scanning the area. "Nerevar Incarnate! Here my voice!" The echo came again. She sat up on her arm and scoured the room, her natural night vision piercing most of the darkness.
"I'm listening..." She whispered back.
"What I have to say is for you only. Follow my voice deeper...deeper..." The voice began to fade away, and, not wanting to loose it, Xenobia stood and chased after it, the only audible sound was that of her bare feet slapping the cold stone. She went farther in without any direction until she was stopped. The figure of the Daedra Azura appeared before her, the Goddess' long flowing dress dragging across the stone as she stepped towards the Nereverine. "Nerevar Incarnate. Savior of Morrowind, why have you left your people to the East?"
"I came under the request of the Emperor to aid the people of Cyrodiil. My job was to protect people, and that is what I am doing." Xenobia answered, putting her right arm across her breasts, gripping her left upper arm. "Is that wrong?"
"No, Nerevar...however I must warn you that not everyone is as they appear."
"You may not survive this visit, Nerevar." A gruff voice faded from the darkness. The White Tiger turned her head right to see a very bulk, four-armed man step out. "There is a cult here in Cyrodiil...They claim to be called..."
"The Mehrunes Daggers." Xenobia answered. She recognized the person she was speaking to as Mehrunes Dagon. "Ya' know, Mehrunes? You're statues don't do you justice."
"Flattery will get you nowhere, Nerevar. About the Daggers. They are evil. They claim to do my bidding, however they do everything but. Do not trust anyone you do not know. And that includes your Imperial friend."
"So, is this why you woke me up from my otherwise undisturbed sleep?" She asked. "Tell me something I already know?" Another voice laughed. Xenobia looked left to see another Daedric god, this one Sheogorad, stepped out.
"I see that the mask you wear now is the same as the one you donned when first we met, One of Many Names." Sheogorad muttered, circling Xenobia.
"And I see you're still madder then a hatter, Sheogorad. People change, but gods never do, hum?" She smirked.
"You have changed much, Nerevar. You have grown arrogant, foolish." Azura told her.
"Sometimes, in order to become better, it is nessecary for one to shed their skin. To evolve, to become different...Better..." Sheogorad told Azura. "However, One of Many Names...Dusk is correct. You have evolved into an arrogant fool. Before we depart...I shall drop these words into your ear. Perhaps it would be in your best interest to digest them well."
"Alright. Hit me with them." Xenobia responded.
"Oblivion is Nigh." And with that, Mehrunes Dagon, Azura, and Sheogorad dissappeared. Xenobia found herself standing in the cavern staring into the darkness, cold wind licking her flesh.
"Fuckin' Daedra." The Nereverine breathed, returning to camp.
"That must have been one important call you had to take, Xenobia." Jiub muttered, his eyes closed.
"What makes you say that?" She responded, slipping back under the covers and curling up trying to get warm.
"You just walk off into the cave stark naked. That was important. What or who was it?"
"Just...just..." She began, the time great between the two 'just's. "Daedra crap. That's all." Jiub muttered an 'ah' and went back to sleep.
"Well, boys and girl. Here we are. Layewiin. Next stop, the local tavern. Mercenaries tend to meet there to find work." Kurgraz spoke, looking over the city of Layewiin. It was about the size of Sadrith Mora, however less...Telvanni-like. The buildings were Imperial in design. The entire city was encompassed by a high wall, one separating the castle from the rest of the town.
"The local tavern would have to be the Three Sisters Inn. Shamada, and Shomara are friends of mine. Let's try to stay away from Shuravi, though. We...eh...don't get along to well..." Clavicus muttered, ushering the group forward. Xenobia caught up with Clavicus.
"Why don't you and Shuravi get along? Did she catch you in bed with her sisters?" She smiled in jest. Clavicus grinned uneasily.
"Eh...she'd think so." He replied. "We'll have to head up to the west gate. The Northeast gate tends to have too many question-laden guards."
The group came to the gate in record time. It was guarded by only two Imperial men. As Xenobia expected, the men blocked their path.
"Halt. Who goes there?" The man on the right asked.
"My name is Clavicus Varrius, Knight Errant of the Imperial Legion. I have returned from Morrowind bringing Nereverine Xenobia. Please, allow us to pass." Clavicus told them, taking his helmet.
"Sorry, sir, but our orders are clear. We're not allowed to let anyone in or out." The left guard replied, slauting his superior. Suddenly a building burst into flames behind them. "Holy Divines!" He shouted, rushing to the building's rescue.
"Damn them to Oblivion! They hit the Five Claws again! That's the third time this week!" The second guard muttered, keeping his place.
" 'They'?" Xenobia asked, stepping up.
"Yea, the Mythic Dawn. Buncha thugs preaching End-of-the-World rhetoric. Have you heard of them?" He asked, watching his friend cast an Ice spell on the blaze.
"No, sorry. Can't say I have. Where is their base?" Xenobia pipped up, itching to kill someone.
"Uh...I believe they're holed up in Madam Margarte's Home." Xenobia opened her mouth to speak again, but she was stopped. "Walk past the Chapel of Zenithar here, take the next left, and it'll be the house to your immediate right. Just don't kill Margarte. She's a friend of Gravionous there." He threw his head towards the man who was busy putting the fire out in the Five Claws Lodge.
"Thank you. One last question. How many are there?" She asked taking Keening from her sock.
"Oh, I'd say about...what...twenty or so. Yea, that sounds about right. Around twenty." He finished. Xenobia smiled a malicious, almost bloodthirsty grin.
"Perfect. My kinda odds." She dashed down the street and disappeared around the corner of the temple.
"Does she do that often? You've got to stop her! Those thugs'll gut her like a fish!" The first guard spoke. Clavicus smiled and dismissed the whole thing with a wave of his hand.
"If I'm going to lend any kind of support, it would be to the Mythic Dawn. They'll need all the help they can get from Xenobia." Clavicus started to walk away, but then added "With her being the Nereverine and all."
Xenobia approached to door and knocked twice. The door swung open and a young Breton woman appeared in the jam.
"Hello?" The Breton asked. Xenobia smiled and bowed slightly.
"Please excuse my interruption, ma'am, but you wouldn't happen to be Madam Margarte, would you?" She questioned.
"Y-yes...why?" She replied. Xenobia took one of the katana's from her back and looked at it.
"I was told you have certain...undesirable people occupying your home...Correct?" She drew her thumb across the blade and looked at the Breton.
"Are you hear to...get rid of them?" She whispered.
"Yes ma'am. Where can I find them?" The woman didn't answer, just rushed Xenobia inside.
"Here..." The woman spoke after closing the door. She drew the rug up from the floor revealing a trap door. "They're down here." Xenobia grasped the ring on top and pulled. "Oh, but you can't do down there alone! They'll kill you!"
"Once I'm down, I want you to pile everything you have that's heavy on top of the door, and don't let anyone that doesn't have to say 'the sun has set' out, right? I'll be up in like, ten minutes." Without another word, Xenobia dropped down.
