Author's Note: Never really thought I'd rewrite this fail-of-a-fanfiction again. After all, we did have an updated None of Your Business (once) and then the monstrosity which is Blood of the Septim Version One.
So why revise it? Well... when I first wrote the chapters for Blood of the Septim, it just seemed and felt like it was so different than None of Your Business. So different that I thought it needed to be a stand-alone and it needed to be brought to justice, a.k.a a hopefully better, more correct and less-horrible version. Which is this. I'd love to read what you think about it and if there are any mistakes, please tell me so I could fix it. I hope you enjoy this story!
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Prologue: Grim News
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"We have a traitor in our midst," the Bosmer said, his face betraying no emotions kept under his face. Yet his actions signify the unease that spread through his mind; he fidgeted with his hands, put them on the table in front of him, and tapped his fingers on the wooden surface. It was only because of the constant reminder that the four Speakers in front of him were watching his every move that he stopped, and took the part of the staunch Listener to be the perfect epitome of calmness.
His Speakers looked at him with different reactions. Attentive, surprised, sad, indifferent. All those emotions that competed to be the most seen by the Listener, to be trusted, to be eliminated of the threat of suspicion. But those expressions before him? It won't convince him. Ungolim was Listener for a reason. His voice was the Night Mother's, and his orders were from the Unholy Matron Herself and the Dread Father, Sithis. And nothing was hidden from Them.
The Surprised Speaker spoke first. "Who could it be, dear Listener?" Arquen asked, in her rich Altmer voice. Her brows were knitted together in concern, and her mouth twisted in a frown. Ungolim let the silence that followed grow before finally looking up from staring at the battered table so common to be seen in Bravil.
"We don't know. Yet," he answered in what he hoped was a stern tone. He could not show a single sign of distress. Not in front of them, he thought, before continuing, "But the Night Mother has spoken, and order me to invoke a rite that regretfully exists."
It took a moment for the Speakers to understand. The Sad Speaker voiced his thoughts, "The Purification? Surely this is madness. The Night Mother wouldn't—"
"But she did!" Ungolim snapped at Mathieu Bellamont, therefore breaking his structure of complete control over his emotions. Mathieu more or less winced and kept his silence. Ungolim sighed before looking down at the table again. It was depressing enough to know that there was a traitor in the Dark Brotherhood, but to kill the rest of the family, even when they are innocent...
Well, innocent would not describe their strange family correctly. But they all the same didn't deserve the fate of being killed just for the sake of ridding one traitor. Or traitors, now that Ungolim thought of it. The Night Mother said that there was only one traitor behind the recent killings of the Dark Brotherhood's members, but that didn't mean that he was working alone...
Which did not make matters any better.
His reverie was cut off when finally the silent, indifferent Lucien Lachance spoke, "I suggest starting with my Sanctuary first; I have a devoted member that will no doubt see to this task as soon as possible." His tone was casual, his hands on his sides; he was the epitome of calmness that Ungolim failed to portray. "I will inform her and raise her to the rank of my Silencer only with your agreement, Listener."
Ungolim had glanced only once at the Speaker, and already a shiver went up his spine. Lucien only stood there, watching him, waiting patiently for his response. He was a funny one; strange, quiet, and unnerving. Qualities of an assassin… and a traitor.
He'd gone as far as mad to even mistrust his Speakers. But it was a necessity that Ungolim must take. There was no telling who could be plotting to finally kill him in the end. Was it the one acting to be surprised, namely Arquen? Was she just trying to throw the threat away?
Another silence grew amongst the small council of the Black Hand. Ungolim felt the dread that was shared by the other Speakers, and could not even say anything if it weren't for Arquen who broke the silence. "But there would be no use in the Purification, anyways, Listener, since the traitor would kill us all in the end," she pointed out, her hands restless and fidgeting with the hilt of her blade.
"No, there wouldn't be. But you forget that I do not speak for my importance; I speak because the Night Mother tells me so, and it is Sithis' willing. Who am I to object?" he looked up again at the four faces staring at him. "Who are we to question the will of our Dread Father?"
The Attentive Speaker finally asked, "And what if the traitor is not a traitor of the brotherhood, but some assassin of another group competing with us? There was a band of assassins from Morrowind, the Morag Tong they call themselves. They're bitter rivals with the Dark Brotherhood, are they not?"
Banus Alor was a Dunmer from Morrowind, so it was clear that he knew what he was speaking of. Ungolim himself was not a stranger to the Morag Tong, but it was unlikely that they would bother to murder Brotherhood members whose corpses were all found in Cyrodiil, and no one could possibly find a Dark Brotherhood member even if they were staring at that person. The offender was most definitely a traitor from their own family. It could not have been the Morag Tong. They were the last of Ungolim's concern.
Lachance appeared to have the same chain of thoughts as the Listener did. As if he read his mind. "Our members were murdered in such ways and times that seemed impossible if this traitor is not from the Brotherhood itself, a family member that knows when and where they would be." He paused to watch the Dunmer tighten his lip in thought, considering the explanation, before continuing, "And a stalker from outside would have raised our suspicions already. I say this is a necessary action to take. The Night Mother Herself has told us to do the Rite of Purification. If She Herself has spoken of such things, then imagine: could you possibly deny something the Unholy Matron says?"
For a few moments, Ungolim was too astonished at Lucien's explanation that he did not notice that Arquen and Mathieu stared at their Listener intently. Ungolim cleared his throat and tried to keep his composure, "What Lachance said was correct. The Night Mother told me, the Listener, that the traitor is our own family member, but did not tell who."
"That sounds queer," Banus chirped, completely ignoring the decorum required when speaking about the Night Mother, "I don't think the Night Mother would hide us something important, do you?"
Ungolim scowled. "What She tells us is not for us to judge, but to follow willingly."
The Dunmer once again tightened his lip as his argument died down. The two remaining Speakers, Arquen and Mathieu, whispered a few words to each other before finally looking back at Ungolim. Lachance was still as always.
Another silence. Another reminder that silence is what the Dark Brotherhood will be when the Purification is through; until they rebuild the family they lost. In his mind, Ungolim's composure broke as he considered what Banus said. Why not tell us who it is, Mother? To save the lives of Your children?
He closed his eyes and turned away from the faces watching him, to hide from them the true face he wore. The sorrow of soon losing so many members. The regret that this must be done. The shame that he once doubted the Night Mother's words. "As to what you suggested, Lachance, I give you my leave to appoint yourself a Silencer you deem worthy, and to start the Purification in the Cheydinhal sanctuary."
"As you say, Listener," Lachance responded coolly.
Ungolim turned his head around to regard the rest of the Speakers, his hand holding each other on the small of his back, "Your task shall be the same. I want Mathieu to pen a letter to the other Speakers who could not arrive today, and should there be any more murders of our members... then Sithis guide us."
"Then let us hope this matter would end soon," Mathieu nodded, though he frowned. He looked as if he wanted to say something, Ungolim thought.
"Let us all hope this matter would end soon," Ungolim echoed, "and with that, I announce the end of this meeting."
As the Speakers of the Black Hand left wordlessly, Ungolim was looking out the muck tinted window that showed him the quiet night outside. Only a few torches lit the road, and after a time just staring at the ground, Ungolim grabbed the cloak that was laid carelessly on a chair by his right, and went outside.
The Speakers must have left hurriedly, because they were not outside when Ungolim appeared through the door. He took a torch from one of the sconces by the walls, and by memory took the cold walk to his destination. It was no time that he stopped in front of the Lucky Old Lady, so beautiful in her frozen state, and yet so dark and horrifying. He glanced once at the figure depicting Her children before he looked up, not wanting to think that it was exactly what the Night Mother wanted all along; for all her children to be killed and join Her and Sithis in the Void.
Ungolim just stared at the face of the Night Mother, not saying a word, not even praying to her. Still, a whisper so familiar to him sounded from the statue, so quiet that even his Bosmer ears barely heard it. "Things will unravel when they must, my child. What has been done cannot be undone."
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Alright, so a few things I think should be said:
One, I will update at least once a week; the fastest I could manage is once every three days. I have another chapter already done, but haven't spell-checked it that much, so it'll be up tomorrow or so.
Two, this story is not beta'd, but I do have the time to correct most mistakes, so as I have said, please tell me if there are any more mistakes that I should correct.
Three, some things from Blood of the Septim might be altered slightly or not there at all. I copied a few paragraphs from the original in this one because it made the cut, which is an example that the prologue is altered a bit, but still has a few stuff from the original.
Please review and tell me what you think!