Cearbhail: I'm back with a new chapter. Of course, every time I write this, it's always new. And then when you read it again, it's old. But, it's a good one, I swear. You'll see why. This whole story is becoming so annoyingly good now. What I thought was going to be a short tale might not be so short now. Anyway, you'll enjoy it.

[Ja'Daan]

Mission log,

We have made it to Rimmen. The Mane has tasked us with finding the ruin that contains the supposed device that will destroy the Aedra. It's in the badlands; a hot sandy desert that is famous for bandit raids and dangerous poisonous snakes. But, we were first told to follow up on a lead that Rimmen was in danger of becoming a sovereign state. There was a statement that the Ya'Tirrje is here in Rimmen, running things from the shadows. It should be easy enough to find him once I find out where all the skooma dens are. We are the elite scouts of the Mane; we do this sort of stuff all the time.

Ok, I guess I can say this is only my second mission. And it's the first time for Ma'Trinjje. Out of all of us, she's what we call a 'Purr'. She's a super hyperactive personality type that is always bouncing off the walls. I think that will fade away once she gets used to the melodrama that these missions bring. I think J'Rinma has been around for a couple other missions. She seems more like a calm, collected, person. That being said, she's a little twisted. We call people like her a 'Hardere.' The official definition is: a person with a serious quiet demeanor but is really psychotic underneath.

At any point, if we don't find a way to kill the Ya'Tirrje, I guess this city really will become its own state. We're on our way to meet up with the Councilor, right after we find ourselves some lodging. We're going into the bad part of town to find a nice place to stay, since we're refugees. It appears that refugees have no choice but to live in the poor quarter, which is owned by the Crushers, no doubt.

Ja'Daan…

…

"Hey, you. Yeah, big boy! How about you come and help us with this crate of valuable objects?"

I released a suppressed sigh as I turned around. I had tried to ignore what was going on in the apartment building, but I guess I had to take some action now. I cast a quick look over to Dro'Indra, who only leaned heavily on his cane, shrugging at me. I knew what he was saying, 'If you are going to do something, do it discreetly.'

So, when I turned to face the person calling out for me, my tail flicked a little. They were Imperials, but not the kind I'm used to. These Imperials looked weathered, sickly, like they hadn't seen any bath water in years. They were carrying out large crates of valuable possessions. An imposing Redguard with a scimitar stood by the entrance to the apartment complex, his arms crossed. He stood there like a giant among the smaller people. I knew what was going on here. This was a gang shakedown. I looked as I saw people trying not look out their windows. They wanted to disappear as much as I wanted to go unnoticed.

"Hey, moon watcher! Do you understand me, or are you moon-staring?" An Imperial said as he walked up to me, waving his hand in front of my eyes like I was blind. I found it very…unwelcomed. I released my growing anger with a flick of my tail. No, I wouldn't let them get to me. I'd handle this my way. He finally looked back at his friend. "I think we have a moon watcher here! Think we should show him our goods? A big boy like this has got to consume a lot of skooma to see the moon dust."

His buddy smiled as he dug into his pockets. I could see that he had barely any teeth left. Was this a common sight in this town? Man, it made me sick. I looked over to Dro'Indra, who shrugged in return. "Dear nephew…please hurry this along. I wish to see our apartment before the end of the day."

So, I looked back at the Imperial. He was now holding the bottle of skooma. He waved it in front of my eyes like it was a miracle potion. "See this…it's skooma. Your kind loves this stuff. This isn't your normal fix, either. We've made it stronger. You'll be seeing three moons in just two sips. Guaranteed."

"Guaranteed?" I asked.

He nodded. "Ah, so now he can speak." He turned to laugh at his friends. "See…all Khajiits understand the language of skooma." His first mistake was leaving his arm unattended. His second mistake was letting me grab onto his arm. I snaked his elbow around as I pulled him in. He cried out in alarm, screaming, "Hey, sugar-tooth! You have to pay first!"

I didn't answer him. I grabbed onto his hand, popping the top with my claw. I kneed him in the stomach. He cried out in pain. While his mouth was open, I shoved the bottle down his throat, kicking him in the balls while he tried to spit the bottle out of his mouth. He was so shocked that he downed the whole bottle without thinking. I finished by snapping his elbow and then I let him fall to the ground.

His buddies all cursed to themselves as they started charging up to me. I turned to face them. "Hold on, I wish to see this." I don't know why, but they actually stopped. So, I carefully turned away from them to look down at the Imperial who was moon-staring. He lied on the ground, curled up into a ball, hugging his knees to his chest. He whimpered to himself, his body convulsing. He looked like he was completely moony. I looked up at the others, nodding. "And you sell this trash? Look what it's done to him."

They looked down at him with intense eyes. The Redguard that never moved finally cracked a smile. "It is some of the best batch we've ever made. You got some real muscle, some real moves. I like it." He walked up from the stairs, keeping his hand on his sword. "You're new here, so I'll let you in a little secret. I'm Zap. And this…" He gestured to the entire part of the town around us. "is Crusher turf. You just attacked one of my subordinates; and normally that would be treated as a criminal offense." He walked up to me, keeping away from my striking distance. Smart man. "You see…in this part of the neighborhood; the Crushers are the peace keepers. Just like government officials, we collect taxes for our protection. You just assaulted my tax collector. That's a federal offense; punishable by death. Not just your death, but death of your entire family."

I growled. "You threatening me?" I started looking around. More people dressed in similar armor had started coming out of the buildings, all with swords and daggers. Crap. I did not expect this town to be so…well…Mane's attention worthy.

The Redguard laughed. "You misunderstand me. If I wanted you dead…we wouldn't be talking. I'd be sending in a cleaning service to pick up the body right about now." He looked down at his convulsing buddy. "My tax collector will be in a coma for the rest of his life; thanks to you. So…I have a new position in my cell. Not as a tax collector, but as an enforcer. It will clear your name with us, and it will be one of the best paying jobs in this rat hole. Not to mention the Crushers have excellent health insurance. The dental's not bad either."

I looked over to Dro'Indra. He smiled faintly to me. Somehow, I had done something right. I had to think about this. Why would Dro'Indra be excited about this? And it finally clicked in my mind. The Crushers were the official gang of this town, not to mention the skooma trade. If I got inside the gang, I could find out where the big deals were going down. Our team could easily slip in and get rid of it all. We might even find the location of the Ya'Tirrje.

So, I stuck out my hand for Zap to take it. "I guess I have no choice. Not if I want to walk away."

Zap frowned at my statement. "Jeez, don't get too excited or nothing." He stepped away from me, nodding to his friend that I had drugged. "First order as my enforcer; kill him. He's no longer of any use to us and he'll only suffer from here on out."

I looked down at the convulsing Imperial. He looked so pathetic, so drugged, that I wasn't sure he had heard the kill order. And he wanted to me to take that osik. I didn't feel any remorse as I bent down and draw my claw across his throat. As soon as I drew a line from one artery to the next, I stood up and walked away. I didn't need to watch him die, but there was no way he'd live. He'll bleed out shortly.

I walked up to my uncle, trying to keep myself calm over what had happened. He waited patiently for me, but even I could see the glint in his eyes. He tried to look upset and possibly frightened from what had happened, and he even showed it in his voice as I walked up to him. "J'Erian…you killed him. You killed that man!"

"We would have been killed if he wasn't." I replied. "I have to protect you and my cousins! I couldn't put them in danger either. I can't watch anyone else from our family get slaughtered, like the rest of us did at the farm!" I screamed loud enough that everyone around us heard our cover story. I walked up to him, bringing my arms out for a hug. He played the dreary old man, finally hunching his shoulders and nodding.

"I understand, J'Erian, I understand." He limped up to me, wrapping us up in a hug. He pulled me close and started hissing at me in an old version of Ta'agra called Dri'angra. "Good job. Ask about living quarters. If we can live with the gang, we'll be able to do recon from inside their base. I'll send a message to J'Ariana and Ja'Pran telling them to finish up their date and join us. Once I see our living situation, I'll meet up with the Councilor and we'll see about setting up sting operations with the town guard once we find some dens to bust." He patted me on the shoulder, pushing me forward. "Get going."

So, I turned around and started racing up to Zap, who was waiting for me by the building he was shaking down. He looked at me, nodding. "That kill you made was messy, so you know. Next time, just snap his neck. It's a lot less blood we have to wash off the road than cutting the neck open." Huh…you think I would have thought of that, oh well. Zap pushed off the wall, walking up to me. He pulled out a clear bag of moon sugar, waving it in the air. "Your payment." He said as he walked up to me. I held out my hand and he slapped the bag in my hand. "For killing Giggles."

I looked down at the bag of moon sugar. I suddenly got very hungry. Imagine all the moon sugar-based brownies and cupcakes I could make with this. I could make my mother's signature cake frosting and share the cake with the rest of my squad. They'd love it. Don't get me wrong, I hate stereotypes and I hate moon-gazers, but I still love moon sugar. We're bred to love it, but I still believe in being responsible with it, not getting too lost in using. If you took a small enough dose of it, you'd be ok, not affected at all. So, I was ok with getting a bag of moon sugar. I looked up at Zap, truly smiling at him. "Thank you. In my gratitude, it would be my pleasure to make you one of my famous moon cupcakes."

Zap stood there for a second before busting out laughing. He grabbed onto my shoulder, shaking his head like I had brought up an old joke. "You'll fit right in." He nudged me with his head. "Come with me. I'll show you where we live." He started walking away. I looked back at my uncle, saying, "What about my family?"

Zap held back a laugh. "They're our family now. We take care of our own. They come too." He turned to face me, nodding to the old man. "Oy! How many of you are there?'

I waited as Dro'Indra limped up to us. I turned to face Zap. "Just me, my uncle Dro'Indra, and my two cousins: J'Ariana and Ja'Pran."

An Argonian that had been hanging around shrugged his shoulders, scoffing under his breath. "Great, now we have more fur-lickers in the gang."

Zap turned around and rushed up to the Argonian, slamming his body against the Argonians. "You got a problem with my new enforcer, Two-Tongues?"

Two-Tongues seemed persistent, pushing back against Zap. I had heard about this. These two were fighting a battle of respect and authority. I had never seen one in person. Two-Tongues nodded, pushing back against Zap. "I think we're letting too many of them in. If we pity these pathetic cats, they'll take over our gang."

Zap laughed. "You forget our leader is a Khajiit. Ya'Tirrje is the name, if you had forgotten."

Two-Tongues scoffed. "Exactly my point. Ya'Tirrje is a Khajiit, thinks like a Khajiit too. If we recruit more Khajiits…who do you think will get our promotions? I bet that enforcer of yours will get your post in less than a moon's full phasing. Just watch."

Zap nodded. "At least I'll accept it. Our lives belong to Ya'Tirrje. Ya'Tirrje took us in, saved our lives when we had nothing. She gave us a reason to live, a way to make a living. Look around." He gestured to the destroyed buildings. "You think any of us could survive if it weren't for her influence, her resources, her managing skills? She has brought us something we didn't have two years ago…we have hope." He turned to face me. "And you have nowhere to go, no home to call your own. Your family was killed at your farm, so I heard. Now you have a new family, a new life. I am honored to be able to do that for you." He turned to face Two-Tongues. "You cold-hearted lizards need to learn that concept; taking care of your own."

Two-Tongues looked over at me, his eyes sharpening. "We know all too well what Khajiits are. If I do wish to protect my own…every Khajiit should be thrown into a deep pit and filled with arrows." Two-Tongues said, turning around. "But, you are the boss, Zap. I'll step down now."

Zap snapped his fingers. Two other enforcers walked up to Two-Tongues, slamming him in the stomach. "Show him that I don't take shit from no one." He said, as he started kicking Two-Tongues. After he got a few good hits in, he turned to one of his enforces. "I want you to change his name to One-Tongue. Understand?" The enforcer nodded, dragging the unconscious body of Two-Tongues away. Zap turned to face us. "Sorry about that little show, guys. Follow me. I'll show you to your apartment."

…

[Ma'Trinjje]

I fidgeted in my seat. I didn't like this place. I mean, it was a bar/dancing club/restaurant. It was loud, it was crazy, it was my sort of thing. I'd normally be up and dancing on the floor, being very loud, very energetic, very…well 'Purr'. But…it's just… it seemed wrong. All these guys wouldn't leave me alone; it made me feel very unprotected, like if I stepped wrong someone would take me. So, I looked over at Ja'Pran. I pleaded to her with my eyes. "Ja'Pran, don't you think we should get back to father now? I'm sure he misses us."

Ja'Pran didn't even hear me. She was too busy stuffing her face with mashed potatoes to hear me. So, I sighed and looked around. Zetta, our new wood elf buddy, was currently sitting next to me, snoring lightly. He had passed out like ten minutes ago. He took us all around the town. We got to see several bars, some clubs, and some stripper joints. Ja'Pran was offended that I got all the job opportunities everywhere we went. I mean…I am an albino Khajiit with blue eyes and blue tribal stripes all throughout my fur. I'm a rarity. That being said, I still look like a normal Khajiit teen. I think Ja'Pran was more beautiful than I was. According to our standards, she was a model, I'm a bookworm…a very hyperactive bookworm. You see…there is a reason I'm still a virgin. Albino Khajiits…are a bad omen in our culture. No male Khajiit would come within ten feet of me. However…the other species found me to be a very rich commodity.

I looked over at Ja'Pran, who was still shoving food in her face. She was probably one of the prettiest Khajiits that I have seen, according to our standards. She was the one that always got the boys, not me. I think it was kind of funny how I was the one getting all the attention for once, even though it infuriated her. "Ja'Pran! Come on, I want to go now."

She scoffed at me, taking a bite out of a loaf of bread. "Come on, J'Ariana. I haven't eaten in…days. Just a little longer." She turned and smiled at me. "So, M'Ariana, how's your food?"

I looked down at my plate. I had barely touched it. A nicely cooked steak with rice. My stake was coated with a light moon glaze. I wanted to eat it, but I couldn't focus because I had every guy in the place watching me. I didn't like it; it was making me lose my appetite. "I wish I knew."

"Did she say 'M'Ariana?" Some random Altmer asked.

"Doesn't that mean she's a virgin?" Someone else asked.

Ja'Pran laughed as she covered her mouth. "Oops…did I let that slip? And to think, we were trying so hard to keep that a secret." She looked over at me, smirking before she went back to eating her potatoes. Damn you, Ja'Pran.

I sighed as I nudged Zetta. "Hey, come on…wake up. We're on a date, remember?" He barely moved from his spot. "Wake up and defend me." Come on! I thought as I pulled on his arm. I looked over the males who were beginning to take more interest in me than I was ready for. I really didn't want to use my naginata here. I didn't like killing people unless I had to. Ja'Pran knew I wouldn't since we were under cover. We were nothing more than Khajiit teens here. I hated that feeling.

Ja'Pran laughed as she sat back, slapping her happy belly. "Ok, I'm full." She looked over at Zetta. "Oh…I dosed him with Sleepers. He looked like he was going to use Sleepers on us so I got him first." She stood up, brushing off her rabi blouse and her verri skirt. She turned to face me, looking down at my steak. "Do you want to take that to go?"

I nodded, looking at the guys eyeing me like a shiny Pokémon. "Yes, just please…let's go." As said as I grabbed the plate and stood up. I dipped my hands in Zetta's pocket, pulling out his money. I found out he had none, so I sighed. "Great, now what?"

Ja'Pran smiled as she approached someone. She picked one of the biggest Nords I had ever seen. Then again…I've never seen many Nords before. Hell, I've barely seen anything other than Khajiits. This Nord was almost as big as a Cathay-rant, which were giants in our society. "Can you pay for our meal? We don't have any money of our own."

The guy looked at her and then looked over at me. "I don't mind that." He replied, throwing some septims on the table. "Mind if I see you two out?"

Ja'Pran smiled as she looked over at me. "Oh, I'm sure my lovely sister is more than happy to repay you for your kindness." Her eyes showed her darker, sicker side. I knew that Ja'Pran didn't like me that much, but I never knew she would do something like this to me. I sighed as I looked over at the Nord paying for our meal. Dammit…I really didn't want to do this.

…

[Zetta]

My head felt really heavy and my body felt like it got its first sleep in two years. I opened my eyes to find myself sitting in a booth with an empty plate filled with steak fat. I stretched my arms out, relieved that I didn't have the shakes for once in my life. I never slept anymore. Too many Crushers in this town that wanted me dead. I tried to leave but we're surrounded by badlands. If I tried to leave, I'd just be taken by one of the cannibalistic Khajiit bandit clans. They'd probably kill me, or eat me. Gods…I really didn't want to be eaten. You'd think that because I'm a Bosmer that I'd probably feel okay with it…but I'm not, I'm really not.

So, I looked around. My two companions had left me. Why? Why did I fall asleep? I looked at my glass to see the shine of a Sleeper's powder residue on my glass. I thought back. I was getting ready to spike their drinks with some moon sugar to loosen them up. They seemed too uptight, especially J'Ariana. The way everyone looked at her, I think it was scaring her. So I thought if I gave her some of my moon sugar, she'd feel more relaxed and enjoy the rest of the date. I guess Ja'Pran noticed me getting ready to spike their drinks and decided to hit me with a Sleeper. So, they left me here? Well, I guess it's only natural. I don't get many offers anymore. Not since the Crushers kicked me out and labeled me an outcast. Now the entire city hated me. I thought I'd have a chance to make some friends with someone new. And they were Khajiits. So, I thought some moon sugar would be a nice welcoming gift. I saw how well that went down with the big one. He almost killed me. But then his two friends more than welcomed me. The first friends I had in a while. I really wanted them to have a good time so that they'd like having me around. Oh well.

I climbed out of my seat, seeing that they already paid for the meal. I reached for my pouch in my back pocket. I pulled out some septims and left a nice tip for sleeping in their booth for as long as I did. I started to walk out of the club, keeping my eyes to myself. I could see a collection of people near the entrance. They were hooting about something. I didn't want to get involved in another Crusher example so I tried to get around the crowd without getting noticed.

"Let go of me!" I heard J'Ariana scream.

"Just come here and give me a kiss." I heard the voice of Joahn the Burly. He was an enforcer of the Crushers. Oh no! If J'Ariana got involved with the Crushers and turned down a request, she was as good as dead.

So, I pushed through the crowd to see what was going on. And once I broke through the crowd, I could see it. Ja'Pran was being held back by several Crushers. She was struggling to get free, but they had her pinned to the floor. "Release me or I'll carve out your eyeballs and shove them up your shebs!" She cried as she struggled against them.

I looked from her up to J'Ariana. She was trying to pull her arm out of Joahn's hand. It was getting her nowhere. "Let me go. I said, 'No!' What didn't you understand?"

"You understand who you're talking to, little thing?" Joahn asked. "You just used Crusher money to pay for your food. I believe you own me a favor now. And I'm offering you a chance to pay it off. It's just how we do business here."

I couldn't stand by and watch her be used like this. So, I looked around for something. I found a dagger strapped to the belt of an Altmer. I reached in, grabbed his dagger, and ran up to Joahn. "Let her go!" I screamed as I walked up to him. Both of them looked over to me with a look of complete surprise.

"Zetta?" J'Ariana asked as I ran up to Joahn. He didn't have time to respond as I threw the knife. It landed in his arm. It was enough that he let go of J'Ariana's arm. She pushed back, getting ready to run away. She paused to look over to me.

Joahn pulled out the knife and threw it back to me. I tried to jump out of the way, but the knife caught me in my leg. I jumped to the side, losing my balance and fell to the ground. As I tried to push myself up, Joahn ran up to me, stomping down on my throat. "I'm going to enjoy killing you, Zetta. Zap sends his regards."

"That double crosser will betray you too, Joahn. Just wait. He's a power hungry fox that will try to take over the Crushers. And when he does, it will be his enforcers that will take control of your cell. Think about that. And you'll either be dead or an outcast like me." I screamed up to him. "Remember when the Crushers used to stand for something? Remember when we were a militia…not a fucking skooma den? We used to protect the city…now we're just destroying it."

Joahn smiled as he pushed down on my throat. "I will shut you up forever, you fucking piece of shit." I felt my throat crush underneath his boot.

"Let him go." J'Ariana screamed from behind Joahn.

Joahn scoffed. "I'll deal with you once I'm done with this bloodstain. You'll have to pay for my bleeding arm. I'll expect your best from your first."

That's when a nice line drew across Joahn's throat. His foot released all the weight off my neck as the body fell backwards. When his body hit the floor, I could see J'Ariana standing there with a naginata that was taller than her, with a blade almost the size of a full sword. She was covered in blood. She walked up to me, stretching out her hand. She smiled as she bent down to help me up. "You ok?"

I took her blood soaked hand. This…was…the weirdest day of my life. She pulled on my hand, yanking me up. I looked around for the other Crushers. I found them lying in pieces all around the street. Ja'Pran was standing around a circle of corpses that had their eyes all torn out. Their pants were pulled down and I could see that she had actually shoved their eyeballs in their butts.

I looked from Ja'Pran to J'Ariana. Oh shab…what types of friends had I been trying to make? I wonder if they'd let me leave now. I had probably seen too much. In the new Crushers, I would have been killed so that no one could hear my story. I was suddenly more afraid of these two than I was of their older brother, or the Crushers.

Ja'Pran walked up to me, crossing her arms. Her white rabi was stained with blood. "So, what are we going to do now? We have witnesses. If they report what we did, we'll paint a target on our backs."

J'Ariana held even tighter on my arm, locking me in. I couldn't run away now. "I already took care of it." I looked around. Everyone that had been watching this growing fight was out cold. "I casted an Illusion spell. When they wake up, they'll think it was a dragon or something."

"A dragon?" Ja'Pran said. "Those things are just a myth."

J'Ariana shrugged. "I liked it. It would help explain all this carnage." She turned to face me. "Now…what to do with my savior?" She looked into my eyes and then thrust her claw at me. I couldn't react fast enough. Once she hit me across my neck, I felt the world go cold and dark. I think she just killed me.

Cearbhail: I had a lot of fun with Ma'Trinjje. I originally was going to make J'Rinma the albino Khajiit, and use that as her defining beauty with all the local boys, since she's one of those 'always with a boy' type. But then I thought it would be funnier if I made Trinjje the albino and use that as a reason she was a virgin still, since albinos are bad luck, I guess. Well, now they are. and I thought it would be funny if the 'Purr' or as we call them 'Genki' was actually not 'genki' now that she was the attraction.

Oh and Rinma's whole setting Trinjje up thing. You see, Trinjje often puts Rinma in those same situations with boys, so she thought it was time that Trinjje deserved some of the same treatment for once. That and she was actually jealous.