A word from M'aiq: Hi, it's been a while. How are you? Married now? Kids, too? Fantastic. On with the story…
Part VI. 5E 344, 25th of Sun's Height
"Alexia!" her mother exclaimed. Her parents, accompanied by the man in the black robe, stood at the doorway. Alexia thrust herself into her parents' arms. She was lost for words as they squeezed her in a tight hug. She invited them into her room to have a seat. The man in black leaned in the doorway silently.
As Alexia opened her mouth to greet the man, her father exclaimed, "Oh, sweet Nine! It's such a relief to see you safe, Alexia!"
"After we saw you on the news," her mother said, "we were so worried, even though we knew you were with the Blades."
Alexia replied, "Well, I was worried about you. It must have been horrible to be in the city when the Daedra attacked."
Her father replied with a serious look in his eyes, "It was worse hearing a report stating that our little girl had just come out of Oblivion."
As Alexia opened her mouth to thank the man in black, her mother cut her off saying, "Why did you go to Kvatch in the first place?"
"I…had to make sure you were okay, and then, well, I ended up fleeing the house when the Daedra came around. I headed to Fort Kvatch, where you said you'd be," Alexia answered.
"What?" they both said curiously. An awkward pause followed as they looked at one another in confusion.
Finally, Alexia's mother stated, "We called you and left a message telling you that we would be in Anvil."
Alexia's mouth hung ajar as she shook her head. "What about the note Dad wrote?" Alexia asked. Her parents merely shook their heads. Alexia withdrew the note from the dusty lectern and handed it to them.
"Adam, did you write this?" her mother asked her father in an alarmed tone.
"No," he replied, "I didn't. I…"
"Well, it's your handwriting."
"I didn't write it."
Alexia interrupted, "Just forget about it now, at least—" Suddenly, she looked up at the doorway and saw that the man in black was gone. Alexia immediately left the room and hurried down the hall looking for him. She broke into a run as she started towards the elevator, hoping to catch him before he left. As she turned the corner, she abruptly ran into him.
"Oh, sorry!" she gasped. "I wanted to catch you before you left." The man quietly pulled his hood a bit lower, saying nothing. "I wanted to thank you…for saving my life. That was…just…beyond anything I could have ever…hoped for, back there, you know."
He replied quietly, "Sure."
"I understand if you want your identity secret. Well…I would like to know your name…or something I can call you," she said, feeling hopelessly inarticulate. She felt some kind of odd connection with him. Perhaps one naturally felt that way towards a savior. Still, she felt something strong between the two.
"Call me what you will."
Alexia chuckled a bit and said, "How about…my Hero of Kvatch?"
"I'm no hero," he answered laughing a bit. The laughter was deep and charming yet hauntingly familiar to her.
"You are to me."
"Just call me…Rex," the man said as he headed for the elevator.
She grabbed his shoulder and inquired hastily, "Are you leaving so soon?"
"I have much to do," he stated, as his gloved hand graced hers, which was still perched on his shoulder. He then moved away from her, saying, "Don't go running into anymore gates, you hear?"
Alexia giggled bashfully in reply, watching him until the elevator doors slid closed. Rex, she thought. He's the man of my dreams perhaps. She heaved a soft sigh as she headed back to her room. Alexia's girlish mind pondered all the possibilities. She wondered if he was handsome. He wasn't very tall, but she remembered him being strong and able to carry her. He also could do magic, something intriguing to her. Besides the fact that it was illegal, she was amazed that Rex could do it at all. As she headed back towards her room, her parents were seated in the main chamber with Corvin, who beckoned Alexia to join them, and she did.
"I have important news to disclose to you," stated Corvin to her parents, who were looking genuinely nervous.
"Alright," her mother said.
He nodded and said, "Well, your daughter is a very special girl."
"Of course," her parents said in unison.
Corvin continued, "Yes, our Blades have discovered something very important to the Empire concerning her. You see, she's so special that we must keep her here…with us…under tight watch. We are in fact expecting more soldiers to arrive here within twenty-four hours."
"You mean," said her mother in a disheartening tone, "she can't go home? Ever?"
"In a way, perhaps."
Her father then shifted in his seat and said, "Look, sir, I know who you are, but you can't possibly just take our girl away from us. We love her."
"We realize that, and we are not taking her away…we're simply keeping her here in a safe place…so they don't take her away…again."
"First they take her away, and now, she's being locked up in this…place. The Nine damn it, what next?" her father exclaimed, his tone growing harsh.
Alexia was quiet as she listened, trying to form her own opinion. Her parents didn't know yet about what the Blades believed. She was certainly affected by the things the Nerevarine had said to her. Otherwise, she'd have sided with her parents instantly.
"You must understand that Alexia is a special girl, and we are doing what is best for her."
Her father then asked, "Exactly how special is she? What's going on?"
"I'm afraid I cannot release that information to you at this time," said Corvin formally.
Alexia shot Corvin a reproachful stare and said, "What? You're not going to tell them?"
"No," he said.
"Then I will."
Corvin paused for a moment, blinking wordlessly before replying, "I strongly discourage that, ma'am. Please, if you will, say goodbye to your parents for now. They need to be going."
"Alexia?" her mother said inquisitively.
Alexia heaved a small sigh and said as she hugged her, "Mom, it's just crazy right now."
"I know, honey."
After a long silence, they finally said their goodbyes. Alexia had no idea when she'd be able to see her parents again, but at least she had the peace of mind knowing they were safe. Also, she met her rescuer, Rex, or so he called himself. She lay down on her bed and smiled to herself as she thought about the man.
-:-
Endar stepped from the elevator into the aged temple above ground. He could hear the man's footsteps quickly moving across the courtyard.
"Sera," called he, "pause a moment for an old Dunmer." Endar was glad he'd hurried to the elevator as fast as he did. He had wanted to speak with the stranger who'd brought the heir back alive.
"Lord Indoril," replied the man. "What may I do for you?"
The Nerevarine moved outside into the cold, carefully stepping into the courtyard. He slipped a hand into his pocket and withdrew his own pair of Blades glasses.
"Take these, won't you?" said the Dunmer.
"My lord, those are only for the Blades, are they not?"
"Yes," he answered, "and I present them to you with hopes that you will fall into my ranks as a Blade; I would be honored if you accepted." A small silence followed his words. Endar added, "I realize it is not an offer taken lightly, for it comes with severe responsibility. Take my glasses anyway, as a small token of gratitude and a reminder of a place where you belong."
The man replied, "Thank you, my lord. I will consider your offer thoroughly." The man accepted the glasses from Endar and commented, "They are very nice."
Endar nodded and asked, "May I ask what possessed you to do what you did for Alexia or how you even knew?"
"You certainly could ask," said he, "though there's no real answer; I simply felt it."
"That is an interesting answer actually. May I have a name by which to call you, stranger?"
"…Rex, and really, I didn't even realize Alexia was…who she was…at the time."
"Yes, the reincarnate of Alessia. How wonderful for Cyrodiil," said the Nerevarine with an uncharacteristically flat tone of voice.
"Alessia, huh? The saint or the heroine?" asked Rex.
Endar's brows arched upwards sharply as he stated, "You are a well educated person."
"I like to think I am," said he.
"As for the answer to your question, I'm still not sure. My Blades think Saint Alessia, though I…I'm holding onto the hope that perhaps Alexia just might be the reincarnation of Cyrodiil's favorite Champion."
"Well," Rex said, "either way, she's certainly important. I'd lay my life down for her without a second thought."
Endar then asked, "You say that with such a tone of heroism; it reminds me of myself long ago. I ask, is your loyalty with her or with Cyrodiil?"
"What do you think?" was the last thing the man said before walking away.
-:-
Night fell eventually for Alexia. Time moved slowly since her parents had left. She'd sat alone in her room for a long time, drifting in and out of sleep. The very distinct sound of Endar's boots coming down the hall brought Alexia into a fully conscious state. She stirred in her bed, sitting upright and groaning tiredly. Her time in bed hadn't been restful. Worried thoughts had plagued her mind, causing her to toss and turn.
At her doorway, the Dunmer called in a soft tone, "Lady Alexia, may I enter your chamber?"
Alexia let an unwilling smile form as she replied, "Well, since it's up to me, I don't know…" Her smile grew as she heard Endar's laughing. Finally, she said, "Please, come in Lord Indoril." She was glad he had a sense of humor.
He entered the room and seated himself on the chair near the end of her bed. He leaned forward resting his head on his hands, looking as if thinking.
"Ah, Lady Alexia," he said suddenly, "would it disturb or offend you if I were to remove my boots here?"
"Go ahead, milord," said she.
"Thank you, Empress," he replied. His polite tone towards her made her feel awkward.
Alexia then stated, "I wonder if we could just leave out the formalities, at least right now…"
"A fine notion. Let's speak to one another as…companions then, shall we?"
Alexia brushed a few strands of hair from her eyes, laughing a bit as she said, "Oh, you make things so complicated."
"Complicated?"
"Your usage of the old tongue with eloquence put forth into every word for the listener's extraction is a challenge to decipher for such of my youth and recent era-type upbringing," said she in a mocking, overly dramatic manner.
Endar laughed and said with a nod, "I do understand. I am somewhat able to speak with the newer dialects, the shorter versions of things, but as they do say, it is hard to teach an old guar new things."
Alexia smiled, though uselessly so. Endar wasn't able to see it. She began to realize how hard communication with the blind Dunmer would be on a daily basis. She hadn't been around him long enough to have a conversation, but now that she was alone with him, she didn't know exactly how to behave or what to say. He was easy to talk to though. Despite how shy she'd felt around him before, she felt like she could tell him any number of her concerns without fear. His language was also hard to comprehend. Endar, at times, would say such long-winded sentences or out-dated expressions that she simply couldn't understand. Perhaps it was something she'd get used to. Her thoughts then turned to the future and how uncertain it was. Her stomach felt a sudden pang of fear as she realized how uncertain things were; it was scary, gut-clenchingly scary. She then turned back to Endar, who was sliding his boots under his chair.
"Uh, may I ask why you came here to see—I mean, um, not see, s-speak with me?" She bit her lip, feeling bad for having brought up sight to the blind mer. She rolled her eyes and chastised herself for having been so stupid. That was a positive side of him being blind at least. He wouldn't be able to see the reddened shame and embarrassment in her face when she messed up.
The Dunmer smiled warmly and said, "It is no offense to me to mention sight, Alexia. Now, to answer your question…I simply wanted to speak with you."
"About…?" inquired Alexia, perking a brow. She was growing frustrated with her use of facial expressions. She knew she had to portray her feelings through her tone rather than her face or body language; it was useless otherwise.
"Well, any topic that our talking leads us to. I'm no picky conversationalist," said he.
"Sure, okay," said Alexia, running a hand through her hair then twirling a lock of it between her fingertips.
The two spoke for a very long time. They talked a lot about Ariana's life and her friends back in Chorrol. She spent a lot of the time explaining some things to Endar that he didn't understand. Finally, she grew tired enough to fall asleep. Endar left her, happy to see her resting. He left her room and walked into the main chamber of the ruin, where he drank in silence as he thought about exactly who Alexia was and who she could be.