Hey guys, I promise I didn't die. Hope you enjoy and I'll be working on the other stories.

-JazzyKat

Once inside the house, the mage light glittered over thick cobwebs and dusty floors. The furniture had been stacked up in a corner and a path of footprints stood out starkly in the light. Inside the house, the air was musky and thick, overlaid with the cloying scent of human decay and something darker, calling to Ter'im's mind Markarth and the horrors he thought he'd escaped.

Ter'im shook himself out of the spiral of memories, swinging the light across the room, catching the ruby trail. The blood trail continued on into the back of the house and Ter'im followed it to the back corner, where a wardrobe was propped rather oddly against the wall.

Vilkas hummed suspiciously and pulled at the wardrobe doors, revealing a false back and gaping blackness of another room. Ter'im strengthened his resolve and waited until Vilkas unsheathed his sword before he leaned forward and cast his light spell into the center of the room. Vilkas dropped his sword and cursed lowly under his breath, and cringed with what they saw inside.

A makeshift altar took up the majority of the room, with countless bones strewn about the bloody floor. Bloody symbols decorated the walls and stacks upon stacks of candles lay cold, their wax untrimmed and messy. On top of the altar, bones had been arranged into a human shape and Ter'im set about looking through the remains. He found an unusual amulet and tucked it into his armor as Vilkas nudged him, "I think whomever did this was looking to bring back the dead."

Vilkas handed him a scraggly note, scrawled in charcoal and smudged very badly. Ter'im read out the only legible part left.

"She hasn't left me, not yet. I can fix her yes, I can. No one cares about those other girls. I can use as many as I need."

Ter'im shook his head in disgust as he read over the diary scrap of a madman. "This is not how you go about resurrecting the dead. I don't suppose they would have left their name laying around anywhere. Let us go to Calixto and see what he says about the wine bottle."

Ter'im and Vilkas let themselves out into the cold, fresh air and headed off to Calixto's shop. Ter'im noted the faint scent of nightshade and dust and suspicions started forming in his head. Ter'im opened the door to the shop and his suspicions were further strengthened when he saw Calixto's leg bandaged and bloody. He motioned for Vilkas to stand behind him and kept a calm face as he fished for answers.

"Ter'im is curious about a wine bottle he found in his journeys. Perhaps the shop keeper could identify it for Ter'im yes?"

Calixto leaned forward and grasped the bottle gingerly turning it over in his hands nervously. "You say you found this in your travels did you?" Ter'im could see and smell the sweat bead across Calixto's body.

He decided to play with Calixto, dragging out the silence before answering slowly, "Yes, yes, this one did, along with this pendent. Would you be willing to buy them?"

Calixto's scent changed to relief so quickly Ter'im's head spun. He sat forward and grabbed for the amulet desperately, "Yes, yes, I'll give you 500 gold for the pair."

"Before we do that, this one is wondering, your leg is wounded. What happened?"

Calixto stuttered, "M-my line of business is qui-quite dangerous you know. Perils of making a living in this cold land."

Ter'im couldn't get any more out of Calixto without raising suspicion and cut his visit short, feeling his eye twitch under his mask at the weak excuses. He had half a mind to shout accusations at him, but he sold both of the items to Calixto and exited the shop, quickly ducking around the corner and waiting until the creepy man bustled off away from his shop.

"Keep watch for me love," Ter'im purred, flipping the lock on the door and easing back into the shadows, following the scent of blood to an upstairs chest. Ter'im pulled the chest open easily, revealing a bloodstained diary that detailed Calixto's unbelievable plan.

Ter'im scanned over the diary, piecing together Calixto's deranged plan as he ran, tucking the diary into his pack and hurried out of the house, grabbing Vilkas as he ran past.

"The fool's headed to the Stone Quarter to finish his plans! We have to find him before he does." Vilkas motioned to the guards standing at the gate who fell in line behind the two of them.

As they thundered into the Stone Quarter, nothing looked out of place, but Ter'im caught a whiff of the nightshade smell and ducked sideways at the last minute as Calixto's blade clanged against one of the wooden stalls above his head. Calixto snarled and flung lightning at Ter'im who cursed and took the spell full force, relieved to find it didn't hurt nearly as bad as he was expecting.

Ter'im managed to shake the numbness out of his hand long enough to send a fireball of his own careening into Calixto's chest. The rest of the guards took a step back in in fear, pushing the townspeople farther back from the literal firefight.

Ter'im was loath to show his magic prowess off in a population of magic haters, but Vilkas's pleading eyes told Ter'im to get the slaughter over with before Calixto could hurt any more women. Ter'im saw Ulfric standing in the crowd of spectators, and saw the golden man nod in approval. Ter'im gritted his teeth and threw his strength behind the spells, trying his hardest to reduce Calixto to cinders.

Calixto flung lightning out at Ter'im catching his a couple more times, making it hard for Ter'im to breath and the channel the magicka through his fingers. He steeled his resolve and pushed with the last strength he had, flinging the largest fireball he ever had before at Calixto, producing a small pile of ashes in the middle of the square.

Ter'im heaved out, adrenaline coursing through his body still, starting when Ulfric swept up to him, clapping an arm over his and Vilkas's shoulders and steering them toward the castle. Ter'im wobbled as the adrenaline in his body wore off and exhaustion took its place. Ulfirc and Vilkas helped him up the steps to King's chambers.