The Contract

I awoke with my hands tied behind my back, sitting in an old wooden chair. I appeared to be in some abandoned and partially run-down shack. It appeared to still be night time, though if it were the same night I'd been shot I couldn't tell. Directly in front of me not five feet away, Vilkas was slumped over in a chair held by chains made of silver. He was facing me, his head resting on his chest. The dim light burning overhead casting shadows over his face, his dark hair draped around him.

"Well, here we are again," said a voice I found unpleasantly familiar.

The Dark Brotherhood – in particular – the Breton woman who I had punched in the face. She appeared at Vilkas's side, standing inches from his chair. Her dark outfit, molded to her every curve, revealed nothing save her eyes today. Subtly I tested the knots and rope strength, my daggers already having been removed. Unfortunately, it seemed that the woman had done a good job disabling me and I was unable to escape.

"What do you want?" I asked angrily. "Is he -"

"He's alive, for now. I dosed him higher to account for his condition. I may have also added silver to it so he shouldn't wake up for the time being."

"Why are you doing this?" I asked. "I told you already I don't want to join the Dark Brotherhood."

"That's too bad," she said.

Suddenly she was behind Vilkas's chair, her fingers in his dark hair, lifting his face up. In her other hand she held a short, curved blade to my shield-brother's neck.

"Stop!" I screamed. I pulled against the ropes holding me as I desperately wished Vilkas would wake up, that he'd find a way to escape.

"I can't. You see, there's contract on his head, I have to kill him," she said.

"So what? You want me to join or you kill him?" I asked, hating the fear in my voice.

"Not just him," she said. "We will kill each of them, one by one."

"Why?" I asked.

The woman put down her blade and let go of Vilkas. His head fell down heavily onto his chest but he didn't stir. She grabbed something in the twin's lap that I hadn't noticed before, a piece of parchment.

"This," she said, bringing it up to me so I could read it.

On the paper was a list of every Companion at Jorrvaskr as well as the servants and those who worked there. Vilkas's name was the top of the list along with Skjor and Aela. My name was last.

"This is the list provided to us by the Silver Hand. They did the Black Sacrament for each one of them, and promised a hefty price if we would take the contract. It seems that your wolf friend here and two of his buddies have been busy taking out some of their bases the last couple of weeks and they aren't too happy about that."

"You can't do that, it would – you'd start a war. They wouldn't let that stand," I said.

"You assume we couldn't kill them all in one move? That's possible. It's possible we would never catch all of you at a feast and happen to slip poison into your drink or food. It's possible one or more of you would discover us and come after our family. But the thing is, we wouldn't be the ones starting war," she said. "It would be the Silver Hand who started it, or your friend here. And who knows, by the end of it maybe we would all be dead and that guild of weak Vampire mercenaries and their underlings would sweep in. But we're still under contract."

"There has to be a way to stop this. Don't take the contract," I said.

"There is a way to stop it. Join us, we give you the Contract, and you decide what to do with it."

"I can't do that," I said. "You want me to be a murderer, to just kill without question?"

"You enjoy killing, a good fight, a stealthy and lethal blow. Do not deny it. I've watched you over the last few weeks. But you continue to deny your gifts," she said. She slowly made her way back around behind Vilkas, lifting his head slowly and placing the blade at his throat. "But you still resist. So do the noble thing, save your wolves, stop a war, and join us."

"Why? Why go through all this to recruit me?"

"You also owe the Dark Brotherhood for Grelod. You stole our contract. You join us and we can rightfully claim a member of ours completed it."

"That's it?" I asked. "You're willing to risk a war so that you can claim you murdered one old woman? Just claim it! You don't need me to join for that."

"It's a matter of pride, and it isn't just that."

"What is it then? Why won't you leave me alone?"

"Because you're all that's left of Amalia, and I don't plan on losing you again," she said.

"Amalia?"

"Your mother, my sister. She was one of best leaders the Dark Brotherhood as seen, and still so young. But fate took her from me, took you both from me. My poor baby sister died without ever getting to hold you."

I shut my eyes, painfully. I wanted to deny it, deny that my mother was a member of the order of assassins, that she not only killed for money, she did so for the enjoyment of watching her victims die. Maybe there was more to her than that, but I would never know her now. All I had was the word of her "sister," a woman who would ask me to murder innocents so I wouldn't be forced to watch her kill every last one of my friends.

"So you're my aunt?" I said, my voice sounding small, opening my eyes once more. "An assassin?"

"Yes, just like you. You may call me Nadine," she said.

I shook my head. "I'm not an assassin."

"You have your mother's skills."

"I'm nothing like you think I am."

Nadine shrugged. "It doesn't matter. All that matters is that you come home to where you belong. It will all fall into place after that. Or I can take the contract myself and slit this wolf's neck. Which is it?"

I watched her slide the blade lightly across his neck, just a few drops of blood trickling from where it touched. I had been forced to join the Companions to help keep a promise to Jared. I had been forced to join the Thieves Guild to avoid death and to help save Brynjolf and his guild. And now, to save the Companions who had come to be my new family, I would have to become a murderer. Or I could let them the die, starting with Vilkas.

It wasn't really a choice.

"I'll join you."

The woman, Nadine, removed the blade from Vilkas's neck. Though I couldn't see it because of her mask, I could tell that she was smiling.

"Good. We'll be in touch."

Then, a hand clamped over my mouth from behind me and I screamed, looking at my aunt who stood in front of me, arms at her side, as my vision slowly faded.

I awoke on a bed, groaning as I rolled over. My eyes opened to see Farkas staring at me with wide, concerned eyes. Quickly I sat up, taking in the room around me to realize that I was lying on his bed. I tried to remember how I had arrived here, but all I could recall was the shack, a blade to Vilkas's neck. Had that all been a dream? Had the entire mission been a figment of my imagination?

"Vilkas? Where is he?" I asked. "Is he alright?"

"He is still resting. Whoever took you must have wrapped him in silver which has made the poison slow to leave his system," Farkas replied. "He will be fine in a few hours."

I took a deep, shaky breath, realizing that everything, including my joining the Dark Brotherhood, was real. I sat up, burying my face in the palms of my hands as I felt the first few tears of anger and pain hit. I had almost gotten him killed. No matter how far I ran from my past, it was determined to catch up to me.

"It's alright," Farkas said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Do you remember anything?"

"I – I remember jumping in front of a dart aimed at Vilkas and then waking up here," I said. "I don't know what happened." The lie came too easily. "How did we get here?"

"Whoever kidnapped you left you outside Whiterun's gate, or whoever saved you from them," Farkas said. "The guards found you this morning."

I attempted to stand. I needed to see Vilkas, to make sure he was alright for myself. But my legs quickly folded under me and I fell back onto the bed. Farkas stood quickly, gently pushing me back down and pulling the blanket over me.

"You need to rest, the poison is still affecting you. I'll let you know if Vilkas remembers anything when he wakes up," Farkas said, rubbing my forehead before leaning down to kiss it. "Get better, Everlee."

Farkas stood, shutting the door behind him and I knew there was no use in trying to leave alone. I would simply collapse back on the floor. So I turned over in the bed, which caused a ruffling sound within my shirt. I looked within an inner pocket to see a folded piece of parchment within. It was dark brown, and once I had opened it I saw a black hand in the center of it. At the top it read, 'Welcome Sister' and at the bottom 'soon.'

I closed my eyes, crumpling the paper up, wishing it had all been a nightmare.