Sun's Height 10, 4E1

(Fights-up-close): Imperial City, Talos Plaza District

Even if the awe of Cyrodiil had warn off, I still had to admit the Imperial City daunted me. It was a stone maze, its floor bathed in an ominous dark-orange. So much was hidden and entangled in it. Once so many places to go and things to see packed so tightly together would have given this evening the potential to be interesting, but when my thoughts were drenches in uncertainty and grief, such petty things did seemed to matter. I was here to find one man: Mathias.

I uncomfortably looked back down at the gift list to see if I could absorb some kind of clue this time. As soon as I did, the kind old woman's last moments came back to me. I knew I must have looked like such a monster killing her there. I didn't feel any satisfaction for having her gift list and coin in my possession. The memory ensnared me, pulling me into its depths. The stabs, the blood, the screams. I had to yank myself back to real life:

Matthias -- Talos Plaza District, Imperial City (he has a home there): Matthias always was a rough and tumble lad. The last I'd heard, he'd fallen in with some pretty tough characters there in the Imperial City. I'd feel so much better if I knew he was well protected, so I'd like for you to find him a nice cuirass. Nothing too light -- iron or steel should be fine. And, if possible, I'd like it engraved with "To my Dear Matty, I'll always be here to protect you, love Mum."

It was a struggle to read, but I'd already pledged to carry out this contract. Though I shuddered at the memories of all my recent kills, now was the time to think about the assignment.

If his mother intended to get him a new cuirass, he was some kind guardsman. However, he didn't require a uniform. That ruled out the Legion. It sounded like he had a career in private security.

I decided to head up the steps towards the Talos Statue. The symbol of the Cyrodillic religion made me feel lonely again. Every follower of Sithis I'd known was now dead, or bitterly disconnected from me.

I sat down on the stone circle. The precision with which it was carved made me nearly forget it was stone, it seem like some kind of otherworldly element.

I tried to imagine where Mathias might be as I watched people go about their tranquil and simple minded lives. My throat ached as I thought of all the potential my transfer to Cyrodiil could have had, that instead turned into such a tragedy. I became extra conscious of my blinking as I could tell I was on the verge of tears. But I had to hold it together, I couldn't draw too much attention to myself.

Then I noticed an Orcish woman in a chain mail cuirass ascending the steps I had just walked. It was certainly odd to see someone wearing a cuirass in the city, and there could only be so many people hiring private security in a district like this. It occurred to me she might know something about Mathias.

I got up and immediately started walking towards her. I was slightly afraid to speak to her after days of silence, fearing I might slur my words or something, but I knew I had to seize the opportunity immediately.

"Hey, you're a guard...is anyone hiring?" I said as soon as I was in range. I'd managed to get the words out just fine, but my voice sounded odd after all the time I'd spent in silence.

"Umbacano you mean? I doubt it. He already has more of us than he needs." She replied. Maybe Mathias was one of them, but before I could ask she was talking again "I keep an eye on his place. Stuffed full of treasure, you know. But no dirty thieves getting in while I'm on duty." She was already starting to sound friendly and conversational, but I knew there were at least two ways I could take that last line.

"I'm willing to work cheaply. Where is Umbacano?" I asked.

"Right through this door, actually." Gesturing to a door right by the steps both of us had ascended. Then, in a half-joking kind of tone "You'll just have to deal with Jollring first." She headed through the door she mentioned. I only got a brief glimpse of the interior, but I didn't see enough to draw any significant conclusions about this Umbacano character.

I stared at the door, wondering if I should enter, when I noticed two more armored guards exit. One, a finned man, who probably wasn't Mathias. The other looked like he might hold some promise. The two men parted ways, the Argonian heading in the direction of the Imperial Palace, and the human guard heading towards the stairs.

I watched him. First I just moved my eyes, then my entire head, then, when I could tell he was about to get out of range, got up to follow him. I kept my stride casual, like a normal citizen of the Imperial citizen would when they went about whatever various tasks you could embark on in a city this big.

I knew I was going to have to confirm he was the target before killing him, but as of now I didn't have any way to do that in mind. He was half way down the stairs when he finally turned to face me.

"Yeah?" He asked brazenly "What're you lookin' at?" Blood rushed to my head with embarrassment as I realized he knew I was watching him this whole time. Then I couldn't help but feel slightly irritated at him for making me feel that way.

"You're Mathias Draconis...right? You work for Umbacano?"

"Yeah, what's it to you?" He asked. He was trying to come off as tough, which was starting to get annoying. Maybe there was a reason at least one of the Draconis's was being targeted. I realized I wouldn't have to explain myself to him if I was indeed going to kill him. I just wanted to end this conversation so we wouldn't be seen talking together right before his murder.

"Carry on." I replied. He gave me a puzzled look while I continued to stare, shrugging, and then continuing to stare like there was no tomorrow, which was true enough.

"Oh-kaaay then." He replied, his eyes darting around a bit "I guess I'll be going back about my business. And please stop staring at me. You're giving me the creeps." He finished his descent and took a left.

I looked over my shoulders, realizing, as I turned my head, that I might still look suspicious to any bystanders. To my relief, no eyes were upon me. They were all oblivious to the fact that the Dark Brotherhood was walking the sunlit streets in the fortified center of the Empire.

I pushed the Shadow energy to the surface of my skin, and began walking softly down the steps to see where he would go. A second ago I was just another citizen of the Imperial City, but now, invisible and careful with every step, I was a covert assassin.

When I turned the corner Mathias was already looking over his shoulder, but his eyes beheld nothing, and he continued down the road almost immediately after I had truly arrived. It was certainly nice to know I could pull of such effective stealth even in a place like the Imperial City. Even to the carriages rolling down the roads I wasn't there. I was spying on all of them. Deceiving all of them.

Mathias turned towards one of the many doors lining the Imperial City side-walk and looked in my direction one last time, his eyes still capturing nothing of me. It was one thing to be so subtle the enemy never looked for you, but it was even more thrilling when they searched for you and missed you entirely.

He unlocked his door, stepping into one the rooms hollowed out from the gigantic stone structure that was the Imperial City. I was out of his thoughts by now, most likely. He was back to concentrating on something casual and insignificant, no doubt. The same was not true of me.

I headed for the door he entered. The Shadow energy was still sticking. Two instincts were now battling with in me. One wanted to move forward faster, so I could get into his house before time itself dissipated the energy, the other held me back, telling me to move cautiously to avoid the risk of the Shadow energy disappearing immediately from abrupt movements. The trick was finding the golden middle, but that seemed to be a matter of intuition.

When I made it to the door, combining caution and speed, I decided to pick the lock immediately. Though it was somewhat of an impulsive decision, without stepping back to check its logic, it seemed to fit in with the rest of the plan. A small spurt of satisfaction came with this demonstration of skill, but it was quickly drowned out by the bigger picture of my life.

I gently, careful not disrupt the Shadow energy clinging to me, took out a lock pick and, clutching it with my fist to encase it all with Shadow energy, brought it towards the door. I extended it only briefly before inserting it into the lock, then began intuitively manipulating the tumblers. I could do the vast majority this subtle craft without really thinking about it. I tried to remind myself of what I was doing to get the usual pleasure from it. The way dexterity flowed into the subtle little tumblers, and how that subtlety caused such a massive result. But it seemed pointless. I just couldn't sap any pleasure out of this.

Success.

I opened to door, though I realized my connection with the Shadow energy was getting less and less fresh, to a point where it could dissipate at any second. Pushing myself to get in and close the door as quickly as possible, but also trying to refrain from moving abruptly, my muscles seemed to be moving me both ways at once. Luckily, I managed to find safety in the house, just as soon as the Shadow energy dissipated.

The house wasn't anything spectacular. In fact, the stairs took up almost half of the room on my current floor. Furniture was packed tightly, giving little comfortable room to move around.

Upstairs, I thought I could hear something, some kind of shuffling and something heavy hitting the upstairs floor.

There were stone steps to the top floor. That was good. Stone didn't creak.

I unsheated my dagger. It brought back the memory of the Purification. I was stalled briefly by the sharp pain the guilt carried. For a brief second, I felt an odd urge to stab myself. I clenched the dagger tightly as more painful memories washed over me. The Purification. Images of their last moments flashed before me. Telandril's last fall. Ocheeva's slit throat. Tienaava's staggering.

I almost forgot what I was doing when my mind finally got back to normal. I looked down at the dagger. It was new, an enchanted dagger given to me by Lucien. The enchantments were subtle, but from what I'd heard the boost of effectiveness was guaranteed to last for quite some time. I'd left my Shadowscale dagger behind and, at this point, didn't even care.

I began walking up the stairs, carefully placing each step, listening to the very rubbing of the cloth of my clothes and cracking of my joints. Distributing my weight was not an issue, because there was no danger of "creaking" on this set of steps.

Then, when I was only a few steps from the top, the door opened. It was Mathias, as I suspected, but now his cuirass and weapon were gone. We both jerked at the encounter.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing in here?" He asked, his face slowly changing from surprise to anger. I actually noticed similarities between his face and his mothers'. It took a long time living with Cyrodiils to notice those kinds of things.

I was lost for words. We stared at each, the silence now truly perfect.

"Oh, alright then. You're some kind of crazy, is that it? C'mere and show me what you've got." He was quick to get aggressive. Rough and tumble lad indeed.

I complied, figuring it would be an easy win considering I had the dagger. I quickly made my way up the remainder of the stairs. I went to stab but he intercepted my hands. He was stronger than me, no doubt. The iron-strength incapacitated my hands.

I immediately delivered a well-aimed kick fueled by frustration at my initial failure to reverse the gender advantage. He released my arms and doubled over. I quickly stepped to the side, then grabbed him by the ears and threw him down his own steps.

He began to down tumble wildly. Loud noise, ruckus, and a series of blatantly painful smacks against the stone steps until his head wacked against the stone wall with a merciless crack. His body was completely still now.

It was fluent win. Now it would look like an accident. I'd all executed this within a minute of locating the target. Maybe this pain and sense of duty shaved off some excess thoughts. I wasn't sure, but that was certainly the finest kill I'd ever carried out, even when my life weighed me down so.

Perfect silence. Just to be sure he was dead I decided it would be a good idea to head down the steps and make sure he wasn't feigning.

With my dagger still unsheathed and ready to deliver another blow, I stepped down the stairs. My soft foot falls were the loudest thing in the house at that moment.

As I neared the bottom of the steps, I felt slightly apprehensive. Slightly. But if he was still alive, my biggest fear was fear itself. The unpleasant startle. Taking him down perminately would be easy.

I finally made it the ground level. I bent over his awkwardly positioned body and felt for a pulse. The second my fingers contacted his flesh I felt myself abruptly brace for a surprise, but none came.

He was clearly dead. Maybe this Draconis contract would be over sooner than I'd predicted. Then I could decide my loyalties once and for all.