"Sir Richard! You might be doing what you want, but I cannot have you not knowing when food is still fresh or not." Erica held her basket securely on the inside of her elbow. She had a stern look to her normal errand buddy when he was not busy doing the not-so-secret training. Since Vius seen Torbin and Richard sparring, it was known by quite a bit of the members of the followers of Akatosh in Wayrest that Richard was receiving secret training. Since then, more than a handful of other nosey members seen the two sparring. Despite it being widely known, Richard hasn't been approached by the Arms master of the Sanctuary. On the other hand, Torbin has thankfully not been penalized, either, despite Vius' best efforts to try and make it so. Vius seemed to have an unnecessary hostility towards Richard.
"I don't do this a lot, Erica. I figured it would be okay since it is being sold." Erica sighed at the response yet giving a smile.
"You have used that excuse so much, but I will eventually teach you the difference." Richard rolled his eyes at Erica's mix of a motherly and spouse-like attitude. The only ones who didn't see it at a daily basis were the newer members or unobservant members.
"I doubt that but good luck." Erica looked around her, observing the many shops present.
"How about…I have you pick something up that cannot spoil. We need to get some things for making new fabrics and the like. Take this list and gold. I'll meet you back here by the time you are done!" Erica pushed both items into Richard's hands, sending him off on his own. He knew better than to deny her, not that he minded doing tasks she asked of him most times.
"Fine, I will be back here soon." Richard wasn't new to the market area, both because of his experience as a follower of Akatosh, as well as his past as a less fortunate individual. He still vividly remembered his life before the gods themselves gave him the…blessing of this lifestyle. At least back to a point, which basically ran back to when he first was forced to beg on the streets.
"Some places are having trouble dealing with the threats coming from everywhere in Tamriel." A woman behind Richard spoke in a casual but whispered tone as he browsed. His attention was immediately taken away from the fetch errand he was asked to do by Erica to instead absorb what he was hearing. His years as a beggar drilled into him to eavesdrop when something caught his interest.
"I would think so. The Elves trying to get everything, and the Empire is basically gone. Who knows what will happen." Another voice added into the conversation, not as quiet as the other.
"Probably all kinds of evil things coming out to take what they can. I doubt we will get touched, though." A third voice chimed in. One female and two males, with at least two having a Breton origin. The third sounded like he came from a different province. Whether he was a different race or just raised elsewhere, Richard wouldn't know. He had to keep up the façade of not purposely listening in.
"Do you think the Dark Brotherhood will try to get revenge on any of us? If any of them are left, of course." The event that took a big hit on Wayrest itself, the eradication of the Dark Brotherhood from High Rock as a whole. It was impossible to tell whether they were all slaughtered, though it was widely accepted there was no one from that organization left.
"I don't know who is going to go after who at this point. Altmer running around on a path of carnage, Dark Brotherhood probably wanting a lot of people dead, and revenge by relatives of some who have died before. That's not counting outside of this province, as well." The female spoke without a hushed voice, speaking like her male friends.
"You make it sound so bad. All I must worry about is a few people that I care about. Everyone else takes care of themselves. I am no High King or Emperor." Richard listened on after, but the three went on a tangent of something else that didn't matter to Richard in any way. Most people were definitely desperate, but it got Richard thinking. Who did he fell like he needed to protect?
A while later after actually finding what was on the list, Richard returned to where he left. Erica dutifully stood where she said she would be, Richard approaching her with a leather sack of goods he had to pick up and the gold he had left.
"You should not keep a girl waiting so long, Sir Richard! It is good to see you have gotten what you needed to, at least." Erica had her basket of produce filled to the rim. For a girl with a small frame, she could hold a surprising amount of items nonetheless. It could have been a trick of the mind, but what she was carrying looked rather heavy. Maybe she was getting training in her free time as well.
"I didn't keep you waiting, I took as long as I required. I don't have to meet Torbin today, I don't feel like straining myself." Richard held his arm out, the remaining gold in his palm. Erica took it, but Richard did not retract his arm. Erica tilted her head, smiling moments after.
"It is adorable you want to take the load off me, but I can handle this. You need to be rested for your session with Sir Torbin tomorrow." Richard didn't insist, giving a knowing 'hm' in response. With that, the two returned to their home.
Four months passed since the run in with Vius in the middle of Richard and Torbin's training session, meaning almost a year has passed in total of the two training together. In that time, Richard learned a lot, but Torbin still seemed to be leagues above the determined Breton. It might have been his innate strength as a Nord or his natural skill with weaponry or possibly some background with weapons. Richard was able to get something out of him of what he did before he started his pilgrimage. The Nord was still young, at least in his race's eyes, when he set out to go nowhere in particular in his path of purpose. He never felt fulfilled in what he was doing, which he said didn't have any combat aspects. He did get a lot of daily strength training, but it didn't consist of swinging a weapon or covering himself in heavy armor. He didn't have any real idea what he was going to do in his life, questioning where his life was going doing whatever he was doing before. When he left for his pilgrimage at the young age of 19, which was not unheard of at all for a Nord, he told Richard that the only path that was revealed was straight with no end in sight. It was hard to get any real personal information out of a person who chose not to disclose it. In fact, Richard only told Torbin himself the bare minimum of what he did before the two first saw each other at the Chapel of Akatosh. Torbin knew Richard was a beggar with not knowing what happened to his parents. It wasn't less information out of the Breton than the Nord in comparison.
"You are improving quickly, especially your form. I am thrilled to see you are taking my advice to heart." Torbin held his claymore in one hand, point towards Richard. Richard held his familiar longsword in both hands, breathing a little shallow but not nearly as bad as when he started. He still had yet to get the stamina his trainer possessed.
"I am using it, but I wouldn't say I am using everything you taught me. Some is not necessary for my type of fighting." Torbin fought with heavy, two-handed weapons. Although he could typically heft them around with one hand until he started losing his strength. Richard, meanwhile, kept his arsenal to longswords or lighter blades. He didn't use smaller weapons like daggers and disliked the blunt style like maces. He would use weapons similar to swords like axes or katanas if he was in a tight spot, but heavily favored the traditional light arms. It was clear how much natural talent Torbin possessed with being able to use most weapon types with relative ease, not excelling in any. Most warriors in training started with blades, either heavy or light.
"I do not expect you to use everything, especially not exactly how I show you. You need to make your own style over your training course. What do you say we stop a little early today? I feel like it would be best with how much I have worked you and you can not let yourself be strained over what you can handle." Richard was not one for agreeing to something as trivial as a short day, but he had to agree he was getting tired quicker every day. Torbin drilled into his head the basic practices all warriors should adopt. These weren't meant to be changed, as every fighter needed to watch specific things. One that was very important was knowing the limits of one's body. It was good to train a warrior's body over time, but it would be dangerous to overwork the body. Torbin made sure Richard knew that, specifically choosing time limits for their sessions and ending them when he could see certain signs in who he was helping.
"If you feel like it is best, I won't argue. When will we be meeting next, then?" Richard laxed his grip on the handle of his blade and his stance straightened to a normal standing position. Torbin barely moved, his normal stance not varying much from his fighting posture. Torbin chuckled at Richard's response.
"You are eager, aren't you? How about you just relax yourself until I can figure something out. I'll tell you when we next meet in a day or two, Sir Richard." Richard didn't argue once again, much like with Erica, but for different reasons.
"That sounds fine with me. I am not going to be sitting the whole time, though." Torbin stepped up to stand beside Richard, the two making a much more casual environment.
"That is good. Keep working your body out while waiting, of course. I don't want to see you get lazy. Come on, I'm starving, didn't eat enough this morning." Richard legitimately smiled at Torbin, getting more used to the Nord's sense of humor and his company.
"You never eat enough unless you have twice as much as everybody else."
"I am a big man, can't help it. Maybe you will understand what it is like to have to supply a big body at some point." It was a witty retort by a Nord, his time on is pilgrimage seeming to soften him out of his straight-faced Nord ways some.
"I think I am good with not eating as much as you. I doubt I could pay for all the food I'd need at that point." Torbin huffed and the two walked back to the building of Akatosh.
The two hadn't quite arrived at their home when a small commotion could be heard in the direction. Torbin and Richard exchanged confused looks, speeding up their speed to get back. It was not long ago that a tragedy almost befell Wayrest, taking some innocent lives but that seemed to raise more concern. Instead, this seemed to be focused in one place.
"Where in Oblivion have you two been?!" A loud woman spoke from the front of the large building that housed the followers of Akatosh. It was the woman who commonly got on Richard's back about everything from the day he was accepted into the ranks of one of the Nine Divines.
"We've been out. What is going on?" The woman wasn't looking at Richard initially, shooting him a glare towards him since he answered.
"You should know! It's your fault!" Torbin instead came up first to respond with a surprisingly commanding voice to someone like the woman who was in front of them.
"Whatever is going on, I doubt it is the fault of Sir Richard's. I would like to know what is going on, Miss." The woman cringed, moving aside as she explained everything they knew so far.
The two were told there was a Master Vampire in the training area in the exterior back of the building. He wanted to see Richard and had a hostage, ready to kill them any second. That was all the monster was willing to say, most people taking shelter in the building but still staying close to the door. Richard and Torbin came into the scene that was described, but there was one difference. It was a huge difference to the two men.
"Another two pests? You came just in time to watch this little girl lose her life. It won't go to waste, of course." The vampire had Erica held hard in his grip, almost strangling her with one hand and the other seemingly against her back with a prepared spell or just ready to impale her. Vampires were not strangers to using their innate claws to kill their prey if spells or weapons were a hassle. The vampires glowing, red eyes of the attacker were clear in its intent in most cases. Erica was fidgeting in the vampire's grasp, not enough to get self-harmed but enough to keep the vampire from letting her get a full breath. The vampire had a very ornate outfit on, dark in color and close to the vampire's form. Both the coat on the top and the pants below with a pointed coattail that still stayed close to the vampire's body.
"Sir Richard…what is the plan?" Torbin didn't make a move for his weapon, instead staring the opponent down. Richard, on the other hand, had his weapon raised and dangerously focused. Despite that, the vampire didn't look to feel threatened in the slightest.
"He dies." Richard gripped his weapon tightly, but Torbin walked in front of him before he could try anything rash.
"Sir Richard don't be an idiot! You are already forgetting everything I taught you and you should know that even then, normal weapons can barely scratch a creature like that." The onlookers that were watching since the start had a large distance between themselves and the vampire. Even the fighters that trained daily looked to have done nothing.
"If I am hearing correctly, you are all I am here for. Not that this little tramp will get out alive, still." Torbin turned and Richard pushed past the overshadowing Nord.
"What are you talking about now?!" Richard screamed at the interruption. Maybe that woman outside got told something in truth.
"I need you dead and then there will be nothing left to worry about. Simple enough. Now, come on over quickly." Erica suddenly started screaming in pain, her torso being pushed forward but the vampires grip looked to be getting tighter. Richard lowered his stance, ready to charge the creature, still being held back by Torbin, though.
"Don't do anything stupid, Richard!" Torbin nearly threw Richard back when the disturbed Breton tried to push forward. It was also the first time he was not called 'Sir' by a respectable member.
"What do you mean you want me dead?!" Nonetheless, Richard disregarded Torbin's attempts to keep him away from the threat. Unfortunately, Torbin was still physically stronger, able to keep Richard from moving forward. All the while, Erica continued to scream in pain. Her neck had had a few drips of red originating from underneath the vampire's hand. Torbin had a grimace of emotional pain at holding Richard back but not budging an inch in his actions.
"One more chance before this sheep gets a hole in her chest. I doubt it will live through that. Come here and maybe I'll let it go with most of its body together after I rip yours apart." The vampire had the upper hand by far. The only option was to try to trick him to let Erica free before she was hurt more.
"Remember, use whatever element you feel first. Focus it to your hands, Miss Erica." Miss Alvechi strolled calmly through the crowd, no one stopping her. Richard broke his attention from his captive closest friend to glare at the older woman. Miss Alvechi didn't bother to notice Richards look, her eyes watching Erica, but doing nothing.
"What are you prattling on about?!" Richard growled, his eyes trying to intimidate the reason from the elder. Before he could continue his useless attempts, a loud screech could be heard from the direction of Erica and the vampire. All eyes were glued on the situation there once again.
"Ahh, you disposable cattle bitch!" The master vampire was being damaged by a huge wave of fire being sent against the vampire's waist by Erica's hands. It was spreading fast and the both clothing and skin underneath was being visibly charred. The vampire reacted quickly, throwing Erica away but not in a gentle way. She continued to assault the vampire with her fire, moving up the body of the being even as her damaged body hit against the ground.
"Remember the advice I've been giving you, Sir Richard!" Torbin finally let Richard go, Richard lurching forward at the sudden freedom. Seeing as Erica was free, Richard's adrenaline seemed to dissipate very quickly now. The only situation still around was the vampire who Torbin seemed to fixate on now.
"No more playing around, I'm shredding everyone here! The inadequate Cumberland's will be eradicated today!" The vampire was healing slightly, but not fast enough to successfully negate Erica's fire damage. Her flames were getting visibly weaker, though.
"Cumberland's? They are all dead already…" Richard was losing his motivation to fight, stance getting laxer. He has not yet fought a real enemy, only Torbin. As expected, Torbin wasn't trying to physically damage and Richard was doing the same towards Torbin. This undead being was the opposite of a passive opponent.
"Spout whatever you want. I'll keep your mouth shut permanently." Torbin lifted his claymore in one hand, impressively sprinting to close the distance between the vampire and himself. Erica finally stopped with her assault with the elements, leaving Torbin to meet the undead head on. He wasn't going to fall in one swing but he at least it kept his hands busy. The vampires flesh sizzled as Torbin swung sideways and his free hand grabbed for the body of the being. It wasn't a tactical move, rather one that was meant to be predictable. Taking on a vampire, no matter the rank or skill, was much more powerful than a human in just about every way. The vampire hastily caught both the heavy blade and Torbin's own fist. Unlike Erica, Torbin was more than able to hold his own without being easily beaten. The blade didn't damage the vampire's body right away, as it was not silver or a more advanced metal. The vampire's body would be penetrated eventually if more than one person would help. The numbers and odds were heavily against whatever was against a vampire, within reason.
"You can't harm me, Nord cattle! I'll be sure to keep you alive to feed on, you'll last for a long time." The vampire was enhanced by his curse was stronger than Torbin's natural strength, but the two weren't far apart in their differences.
"I am not trying to." Torbin pushed back harder, not giving or a second.
'Richard, you will strike the enemy down or lose your friends…' A voice soft voice spoke, one like he heard quite long ago. It was quiet, which would be impossible for him to hear if it were human and said by someone in the crowd watching. It was the Aedra who spoke to him before, only letting Richard himself hear her.
'I can't do a thing against a vampire. If Torbin and Erica can do nothing more than make him stumble, I can do nothing than hold him off for more than another few moments.' Richard spoke back, thinking in his head rather than speaking out loud. The only other time he was spoken to by Akatosh, she was gone before he could say anything back. At the very least, he wouldn't look like a crazed fool if he didn't get a response this time.
'You will not strike alone. If your conviction is strong enough, I will allow you to use a fraction of the power I possess. You will make your first attack the only one.' Akatosh spoke back this time, although Richard didn't know if it was the only way he could talk to her. Either way, she was not wanting to waste any time. It was not surprising, since Torbin was only barely holding the vampire back for seconds longer.
"My conviction only extends to the few I hold close to me. If that is not enough, then I will die alongside them!" Richard held his sword firmly in his hands, gripping the handle until his knuckles were white. He wasn't sure what would show if Akatosh truly held her word, but it could be anything from flashy to instant. Either way, Richard remembered what he could from Torbin's training in the moment. He moved his sword to only his dominant hand, his right, and got a running start towards his first true opponent.
'Hold that belief in your heart and you will not fail, Sir Richard of Cumberland.' Richard was a few large strides from the vampire when he extended his weapon to his right and it showed the results of his unbreakable motivation. The blade, despite being made of iron only, showed completely different in the high sun of High Rock. The blade seemed to grow to the size of a broadsword and had the sheen of the very sun itself. It looked to be emitting a bright glow, much brighter than even the most polished of blades could reach. The hilt and handle matched the proportions and had red detailing. Unfortunately, nothing specific could be taken from it seeing as everything about the weapon looked to be made of light itself. Torbin looked back just enough to see Richard approach with the mystical weapon in his hand. One final push against the vampire was all it took to set it up for death. The vampire itself reeled back when he was pushed, putting his arms up to protect himself. By the time he was thinking he would live, Richard had his mysterious blade of light coming down on the vampire's body. One attack was all it took as Akatosh said, the blade cutting through the vampire's body diagonally starting from the right like butter. Richard felt no resistance in his arm as he finished his swing until the ground stopped the weapon. It was silent as the battle sounds died down, the adrenaline not receding yet. Richard stood tall immediately, looking at the unmoving body in front of him. The vampire had an expression of pain on his face, yet no sound was coming from him. He stood with a glowing line directly through him where the blade of light cut. A special detail was that the vampires clothing was completely untouched, not damaged by the sword, but the flesh was the opposite. The tense feeling only lasted for a few seconds before the vampire's body got quickly covered in the light that permeated the cut line, the flesh turning to dust. Only the clothing and whatever else the vampire was carrying fell to the ground in front of Richard on top of the vampire's ashes. The adrenaline didn't dissipate from Richard's body late until Torbin approached alongside the victorious warrior.
"I don't know what you did, Sir Richard, but that was not an illusion spell." Torbin kicked the clothes off the ashes slightly to make sure there was nothing but remains from the undead.
"I only wanted to keep you and Erica alive." Richard jumped suddenly, dropping his weapon and turning to see Erica was motionless. The onlookers were unmoving and staring, but not making a move to give any assistance. Richard closed the distance between himself and his friend within a small number of large steps. He didn't want to move Erica right away, inspecting her to see if she had any major injuries. He had to idea what it looked like when someone was truly injured, and every stain of blood got him more and more worried. The girl had a large spot in the middle of her back from where the monster had one of his hands. He wasn't going to strip the girl to see the full extent of her injury, he could see she had a hole in her robe. The vampire had begun to penetrate her skin with his hand. It looked to be a couple inches deep, at least. Quickly and clumsily, he scanned the rest of her body. Her robe was uncharacteristically ragged from being thrown around, ripped in places like where she had been held. Richard and Torbin had not been at the building right when the vampire had first arrived, meaning there could be damage that he was not seeing. The biggest problems came when Erica was faced with her closed eyes and flushed face generally looking his way. The arms on her robes were ripped and blood made it clear it wasn't by accident or done gently. The worst came when Erica's face fell backwards. A quick reaction to catch it revealed the damage was already done. Where she was being held and threatened with being killed was a show of great distress. Her neck had a good number of deep scratches going the length of the front and into the side. Down her neck towards her chest was caked with a large amount of blood.
"Is everyone going to just stand there while Erica is possibly bleeding to death?!" The onlookers exchanged glances, but seemingly had no intention of stepping up. Richard was furious, thinking they were holding some type of grudge. Miss Alvechi was the one to step up after a moment, getting to her knees in front of Richard and the unconscious, or worse, Erica.
"Not everyone here has a way to do anything, Sir Richard. In fact, most members here only carry novice level magic abilities and we do not stockpile potions. Hold her while I do my job." Richard gripped her arms, holding her in place while Miss Alvechi simply closed her eyes. Still, Richard was getting angrier until out of nowhere, a ball of softly shimmering light flowed out of both hands of the older woman. With one smooth movement, Miss Alvechi's hands laid above the unconscious Erica. She was being progressively bathed in the bright energy. It was clearly restoration magic and, despite Richard not being injured, he felt a tingle from being the area of the spell. It was a high-level ability and it took a skilled user to utilize it. The marks from the previous fight were closing rather slowly, especially the ones on her neck. It was no doubt taking a lot to provide this level of healing, proven when Miss Alvechi's hands stopped supplying the healing wave. She pulled her hands back to Richard's dismay. The marks from her injuries were lessened, but not gone by a long shot.
"Is she alright? Will she be okay? How much longer until she is completely healed? Why did you stop?" Richard bombarded the elder member with questions, silenced by a look from the woman.
"She is fine. Unsurprisingly, unconscious and very hurt, but not gone. It will take a couple days for me to finish healing her wounds. It takes a lot of magicka and energy to keep up a master level spell, Sir Richard." Richard swallowed and looked down. He didn't completely comprehend the concept of magic. He didn't use it, but knew it existed. He might have used something like it when he attacked the vampire, but he couldn't be sure. In fact, he only felt rage flaring up in him during that moment.
"Then that's okay. Thank you, Miss Alvechi." It was a rare thing to hear Richard actually thank somebody, only a couple others hearing it about them.
"I am thankful someone made a motion to help her, Sir Richard. I would ask you one more thing: If you can take her to her room? I assume you know where it is?" Richard felt a slightly burning in his body, embarrassment rising in him a little. He did know where she slept and knew her room more than well enough. It wasn't because he peeked, but rather Erica was not timid to let him into her personal space. She was a friendly person, but only a select dozen got to willingly enter her room. Richard certainly wasn't the first and he certainly wouldn't be the last.
"Of course, but please don't let anyone know. I don't want her to get in trouble after this crisis." Miss Alvechi nodded, standing up and going back into the building. Some of the onlookers were not paying attention to Richard anymore, but a heavy amount of whispering was going around between the groups that had formed. Richard silently lifted Erica, surprisingly carefully taking the still unconscious girl to her bed.
The walk to Erica's room was thankfully quiet, as only a few people were walking around the building. They might have been looking to see if there were any stragglers or if the vampire had brought any friends. It would be quite a disaster if more than one had come, especially since Richard couldn't feel the energy to make the ability come again.
"That was a special thing you did, and I am proud, Sir Richard." Torbin had followed Richard after he had successfully scouted the rest of the grounds and the inside with the few others who didn't feel completely frozen by intimidation or worry. He didn't need to be told where Richard was, as he saw the previously unknown Breton take Erica.
"I don't know what I did. I only did it because no one else was going to help you or Erica." Richard had set Erica in her bed without knowing what else he should have done. He wasn't going to unclothe and clean her, not wanting to disrespect her or get her to completely disgusted with him.
"I figured that, but that doesn't change the fact you did something spectacular. I have never seen that before, not even from my trainer. You used an enchanted iron weapon to kill a vampire with no more than one slice." If anyone were to be able to make sense with what happened before and after, no one would be more trusted than Torbin in Richard's eyes.
"You said you heard Akatosh before. She…sort of motivated me before I attacked. I don't know for sure, but maybe…she had something to do with it?" Richard was expecting a response from the Nord calling him crazy. Getting help from the Aedra was not possible, nor was it sane. There was such a thing of a blessing, but not a weapon. The only weapons possibly from a God were the Deadra or Auriel.
"I wouldn't doubt it. That wasn't something a mortal could make, not even the elves with their style of smithing." Torbin could have been playing along or believed that Akatosh had a hand in the previous battle, but it made Richard feel a little better. "I told you before, I heard Lord Akatosh before. You are just blessed for a specific reason, Richard Cumberland." A tingle went down Richard's spine at the reference of what the vampire had mentioned before as well.
"It is not a long shot to assume you know about the previous High King Emeric Cumberland. No one really knows what happened to him, but he ruled in the second Era. That was almost 1,000 years ago. How can I be a descendant from that long and be in this position?" It was the one reason Richard could think of quickly why he wasn't related to the previous High King's legacy. He wasn't born into a loving and rich family, he was born into normality at the most and was reduced to begging after something happened to his parents. The vampire had said something about eradicating the Cumberland Family, in fact. Although if he is a member of that lineage, maybe that meant something to his past. The thing that was casted in shadow in his memory was what happened before he started really begging.
"Not everyone is born into luxury that gets there in the end, Sir Richard. I have no doubts that the vampire is telling the truth. I assume Lord Akatosh believes the same, at least I hope that is true." Richard sighed. He had to think more, a lot more before making any kind of decision on anything that came after this.
"Torbin, can I take a few days off of the training to get some things straight?" It seemed reasonable to ask of that after fighting a vampire and witnessing the closest person to him almost dying.
"You have one day, Sir Richard. I would like to give you more, but if you want to think, do it while you are practicing. I will tell you why the day after tomorrow and I expect you to be at the location like always." Torbin left, with a confused face of Richard being the last thing that he saw in Erica's room. With him gone, he was left to ponder a bit before having to leave. How not thinking about fighting while fighting was a good idea escaped him.
The next days were long, much longer than any others. Everyday, Richard checked up on Erica's progress. Someone had replaced her clothing and whatever else had blood stains. Unsurprisingly, the articles were not cleaned but rather burnt right away. The blood of a vampire held the vampirism disease. The vampire itself didn't bleed in the fight, but a person could get a disease just from contact with a vampire of any level. The best option was to get rid of any traces of blood after encountering any strain of vampirism infected being. It took but a day for Miss Alvechi to finish completely healing Erica of her wounds, but there was a few that persisted as scars afterwards. Most noticeably, the ones that lined her neck had a scar on them. Erica was forced to keep herself in bed after the ordeal for a day to ensure she was in good health. When it was proven she was okay, her cheerful self was thankfully unchanged.
That was not the only thing Richard pondered over. He thought about the vampire's claim of the lineage of the young Breton. If there was even the smallest chance he was related to the one of the few High King's who seemed to be chosen despite not being born into the position and some say was chosen by Godly influence. High King Emeric was trained in his younger years in just about every trade necessary to be a great figure. His deeds were not to be understates in any way, ranging from fending off an army at the gates of Wayrest, with help, and forming the Daggerfall Covenant. A man of high stature, respect, strength, and so many other things. It was quite a claim, by himself or someone else, if he were to be told to be related to a house like that.
"Sir Richard, we are finished for the day. Have you been here or elsewhere?" Richard snapped back to reality, his weapon at the ready and Torbin as well.
"I was thinking about other things. The last couple of days haven't been easy." It was obvious to everyone. The building was much more silent when Richard walked, whether the groups of people were whispering or not.
"I can imagine. Let us return, there is no telling what will be there when we return at this point." Torbin and Richard did that very thing, walking back quickly. Torbin did do what he could to keep the silence in small portions, not wanting to show that it was a good thing to keep your questions or feelings inside. Torbin didn't bring up the subject to the vampire, rather talking about other things that were much less important as well as much less focused on a single topic. Being around Erica might have influenced that in him.