The Dark Brotherhood sanctuary was alive with candles, campfires and lanterns just a week later. Although, not too bright. It was a place of death, after all. The damp cave rooms were furnished, Liss bedroom as well, and the living quarters, the main room, the "Dining hall" and the shrine of the Night Mother. It was stylish and pretty in an absurd, dark way. It was perfect.
Three members had been added to the Brotherhood as well; Hilde, a young Nord woman with long brown hair and charming red eyes, the trademark of a Vampire, and a middle-aged Argonian man named Daza, a shadowscale from the deepest swamps of Black Marsh, his body filled with countless scars from battles of survival with his own kin. There was also Carin, a Breton woman. She was around thirty, Liss guessed. Carin was a cheery and very thorough woman, whose great passion in life was cooking. Food, the most lovely food, would she cook for the Brotherhood, and she would also brew potions and poisons. Carin had long auburn hair in several braids, a round face with a slightly pig-like nose and blue happy eyes.
Liss felt happy. Cheerful. Proud. She was the Listener. The other members of the Brotherhood revered her, feared her and looked up to her; Liss, the young but very professional killer and Listener of a Brotherhood reborn. A dark happines burned in her chest – it was her will to kill. The missions would come, now, one after the other, and the brotherhood would once again be busy. Liss would not only, however, be a Listener who just gave out contracts and ruled the sanctuary, she would, but she would also take contracts herself. The specially thrilling ones, like taking out several targets at once or slaying someone in a specific manner. She liked those kinds of contracts.
And Valyrios seemed to like this life as well. Liss could often hear him practise down in the training room, punching dolls and strengthening his arms and legs and improving his stamina. She liked him, perhaps a little more than she would actually prefer to admit. He was rather good looking, the Imperial man. She usually despised imperials but Valyrios was something else. He was nice. He was trustworthy. He was... attractive.
…...
Just like Liss had foreseen, the contracts began dropping in. The Night Mother spoke to Liss whenever she visited her shrine, and informed her of people who had done the Black Sacrament. Elissa, as Listener of the Dark Brotherhood would then proceed to announce the contracts to the other four assassins. She hoped – and knew – that soon, more people would join. She would just have to test them before they could truly be part of the Brotherhood.
"Brothers and sisters," Liss said, when she had gathered the little crowd of killers in the main hall. We have our first list of targets. The assassins looked at each other, with enthusiasm burning in their eyes.
"I will count them up, we have three right now. So listen closely. To get the first target, we have to seek out a broke gambler. He's always at the Frostfruit inn, located in Rorikstead. he'll have more information about the kill. Next, we have a simple task: find and kill the one-legged farmer in Falkreath. Third mission wil be handed out by a villager in Riverwood. She can be found smoking fish outside her house. Questions?" Liss said. She crossed her arms and let her eyes wander over all the assassins in the room.
"My lady," Daza the Shadowscale said in his lizardlike voice, his tongue slithering and dancing on each word. "I would like to take the third mission."
"Very well, Daza, you may take that mission. I suggest you prepare yourself as soon as possible, we don't want to keep our customers waiting, right?" Liss said with a malicious smile.
"My Listener, I kindly ask to take the second mission," said Hilde.
"Then do so." said Liss. "But remember to be careful at all times, some missions might be more dangerous than they seem."
"Thank you, Listener." Hilde smiled a deadly beautiful smile, as she bowed slightly.
"So," Liss said and smiled back at Hilde. "Would you like to take the first mission, Valyrios?"
"I was just about to ask permission for that, m'lady." Valyrios said.
"It's yours." Liss said with a smile. "Very well then, please proceed to your missions as soon as possible. If you need more information, come to me."
"Thank you, Listener." The other members gave a nod. Liss felt honored. She smiled a little, but not too much. She could not be too soft on the other assassins. She was her leader and she had to be feared as well as respected.
Liss suddenly caught the scent of spices in the cold damp air.
"Well, well well, It seems like dinner will be served shortly." She smiled again. "And we wouldn't want to miss that, would we?"
That evening, Liss did not go to bed early. Instead she sat in her bedroom, on the hard wooden chair, thinking. The sanctuary. It had just been a dream of hers once, but now it was true. And Liss, only fifteen years old, was the Listener. It was almost to good to be true. The business was flowing again, her assassins were already out killing. But there were many dangers with this as well. If the Imperial army found out about the sanctuary, it was probably impossible for the five assassins in there to stop them. Liss shook the thought away. She smiled to herself. But we will grow. Not even the Imperials will be able to stop us one day.
They were a Brotherhood Reborn. People prayed to the unholy deity – the Night Mother – and asked her to kill someone. The Night Mother, or The Unholy Matron as she was also called, then informed the Listener, in this case Liss, about those who had prayed to her. She gave Liss names on people to seek out. When the assassin found the one who had prayed, done the Black Sacrament, to catch the interest of the Dark Brotherhood, the client would then provide payment in exchange for a kill. An elimination. A new soul for Sithis in the Void.
Eventually, Liss became so full in thought that it began to tire her. Her eyelids grew heavy and her thoughts even heavier. Soon she could not resist sleep anymore, so she stripped and changed into a simple sleep gown and tucked herself in on the wool matress and drew the heavy fur blanket over her slim body. She felt the warmth on her pale skin and almost immediately fell asleep.
