"You've returned! And we were so worried you'd struggle to murder a murderer." Nazir's silky baritones greeted them at the foot of the stairs. He was from Hammerfell and dressed as such despite no longer needing to be equipped for the deserts of his homeland. "Uh… Who is this?" His dark eyes studied Nock warily as she stood motionless next to Kedi.
"This is Nock. She saved me after I made the kill, and… Apparently, she needs to accompany me on some journey that has yet to reveal itself." Kedi smiled and raised an eyebrow, after slipping off her blindfold.
"I am not a danger to you or your Sanctuary, Redguard."
"Hmm, we'll see." Nazir chuckled. "Astrid is not going to like this, Kedi."
"I'll make her understand. She can sleep in my room – I'm sure I have a bedroll stowed away somewhere. It's around noon, right? Is everyone still eating?"
Nazir nodded and began to lead them through the cave network that was the Sanctuary.
"We weren't expecting your return for another few days. Your last letter to Veezara didn't seem to hold much promise."
"I know. It started off pretty slow, but picked up speed incredibly quickly. If I could have been more precise, I would have."
"You don't need to explain yourself to me, Kedi, but if Veezara had any hair, he would have tugged it all out already." He chuckled. "Gabriella and Babette have been bored without you. Arnbjorn and Festus barely noticed, as you can imagine. And, for me, of course, your absence was like losing my own limb!" He winked at her and Kedi smiled.
"Of course, Nazir, I wouldn't have expected any less. I know I'm your favourite!"
Eventually, they entered the large space where Arnbjorn kept his smithing equipment, as well as the training dummies everyone used to hone their individual talents. Various plants grew on the right side of the cavern, and there was a small pool of clean, sparkling water, flanked by two stairways. Above the pond, a large circle of stained-glass illustrating the Father, Sithis, was set into the wall.
The left staircase led to the smaller room where Babette and Festus kept their equipment and ingredients for alchemy and magic. There was also a small cave branching off that room in which Babette's large pet spider, Lis, resided. Proceeding through that room, the trio found the dining room.
A large wooden table dominated the space, laden with fruits, meats and vegetables, with numerous wooden chairs scattered around the table. Behind that, there was another staircase that led up to a cavern the same size as the dining room. This space held a great number of bookcases, and a reading nook in which Kedi had conversed with Veezara and Astrid before leaving.
Outside that room was a hall leading even further into the Sanctuary, where you'd find the bedrooms belonging to each member of the Brotherhood, as well as a few more caverns that held various different things, and another tunnel leading you back to the other staircase in the largest room. There's also a relatively empty room that sat on the other side of the stained-glass that depicted Sithis –it was even more dimly lit than the rest of the Sanctuary and was bathed in an orange-red glow from the glass. Veezara liked to use the room for meditation purposes, though it had once been used for debriefing in times when the Brotherhood had been more formal. The bathing cavern was located beneath that room.
The trio journeyed no further than the dining room, however, and Kedi only pictured the rest of the Haven, wistfully in her own mind. After being away for days, she wanted nothing more than to seek lonely solace in the reading nook, a solitary candle lighting her favourite book laid open in her lap.
Veezara was sat in silence, picking at the food he'd collected on his plate. The big Nord werewolf, Arnbjorn, was also silent, but raised a huge jug of ale and grunted loudly in recognition when he saw them enter. The old wizard from Cyrodiil, Festus, cackled in the corner and raised a drink that seemed to bubble and pop within the cup. The Dunmer mage, Gabriella, and the child vampire, Babette cheered Kedi's name in chorus, and Astrid halted her whispering to Arnbjorn to nod her head at Kedi and eye the strange Bosmer with suspicion. At the others' outbursts, Veezara's head had snapped up and he leapt to his feet as Nazir joined the others at the table. The Night Mother and her Keeper were nowhere to be seen.
"Kedi. You're back." He hesitated, as though a hundred things flew through his mind at one time and he had trouble holding on to any one of them, but after a moment, he raced forward and embraced his Breton lover.
"It's good to see you again, Veezara." She nestled her face in the crook between his shoulder and neck and inhaled his familiar smell for a moment. He squeezed her lightly before releasing her and stepping back with a grin. It was always hard being apart, especially since the contracts put them in so much danger. One slip, one mistake, could mean never returning home.
"You're home, but you're not alone." Astrid murmured, before raising her voice. "Who is your new friend?"
Everyone turned to study Nock, but Kedi noticed that she was as still as ever, and seemed unaffected by the group scrutinising her. Kedi glanced at Veezara worried expression. "Can I speak to you in private, Matron?"
Astrid frowned but nodded as the other started muttering amongst themselves. Veezara's bright green eyes searched Kedi's, but she smiled as reassuringly as she could and touched his arm before following Astrid through the main chamber and up the staircase into the first small cavern. Once there, the Brotherhood Matron leant herself against the table that held the large map of Skyrim, and crossed her arms across her chest. Kedi frowned at the location and Astrid's demeanour, but stayed quiet. She also noticed Nock had not followed them.
After a moment, she waved a hand in front of her. "The usual room is currently occupied by the Night Mother and her half-wit Keeper. Now, explain."
"I had some trouble fulfilling the contract."
"That much is obvious; you've been away for days."
"After discovering who he was, I caught him just after he committed another murder. I chased him, but he was smart and led me down to the docks. He was skilled in fire magic, so he dived into the waters, knowing he could warm himself afterwards and survive. I knew he'd escape if I didn't give chase, so I dived in after him. I killed him on the opposite shore, but collapsed soon after. When I awoke, I was being warmed by the Bosmer's campfire. She saved me, and also claims that the Gods helped her find me, and wish for her to accompany me."
"Accompany you where?"
"I don't know, she only said I had a journey ahead and a duty to fulfil. She refused to tell me anything else, claiming it was not for me to know yet."
"Hmm… I don't like this. You can't just bring strangers back to the Haven, what if we're discovered?"
"Nock lives in the forest, she's a true Bosmer. She adheres to her race's traditions, and never ventures into the towns or converses with anyone. She has no interest in bringing about our downfall, and nothing to gain from it. We can trust her."
Astrid studied Kedi's face for a long moment, remaining silent as she considered her words. "Fine. But I don't like it. She'll share your room, and you will remain responsible for her as long as she remains here. If anything goes wrong, if she does anything to harm us, it's your neck on the line."
Kedi nodded and Astrid spun on her heel and entered her room, shutting the door behind her. After breathing out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, Kedi returned to the dining room. When she entered, Arnbjorn saw she was alone and left to find his wife. Nock, who hadn't moved an inch since Kedi left, now joined her at the table, though she remained silent for the afternoon and into the evening, and Kedi suspected that was the lone sign that she was uncomfortable in the company of this many people. Veezara and Gabriella quickly drew the story of her contract out of her, to Babette and Nazir's joy. Festus was disappointed in the story's lack of insanity, but listened nonetheless and delighted in telling Kedi what she should have done.
Eventually, the crowd began to disperse and Kedi decided it was time to introduce Nock to their room. The Bosmer remained as emotionless as ever, but there was a sparkle to her strange eyes that told Kedi she was also eager for some solitude.
Veezara moved as though to follow them, but Kedi stopped him. "I'm sharing my room with Nock, and I think she'd like to familiarise herself with it beforehand."
"Oh. Alright, I'll stay in my room tonight." He smiled, but Kedi could see the burning in his eyes.
"If Nock is alright to be left alone, I'll come see you later." She pulled his head down and laid their foreheads together before kissing his nose. He stroked her cheek and then turned away and headed to his room.
Nock was standing patiently but expectantly behind Kedi, and she seemed more at ease now that they were alone.
"How are you feeling?" Kedi asked, gesturing for the elf to follow her as she led her to their bedroom.
"I am… I am fine, but this place, it is strange. I can feel death in the air, but it is not as oppressive as I had thought it would be. There is the sense of love and family, but there is also a lingering fear. I can also feel my trees, but the connection is weaker now that I am so far beneath them. I think my beasts are lost to me, for now."
"Can the trees still sustain you as they did?"
"I imagine so, though any healing may take longer than necessary. Everything should return to normality when I come back to them."
"That's good to hear."
"Why?"
Kedi blinked. "Because… I wouldn't want to affect this relationship you've had for… How long has it been?"
Nock shrugged. "A few thousand seasons or so. I do not keep track."
"You mean you don't know how old you are?"
"I have no need to know."
They reached Kedi's bedroom door and she pushed it open. Her status in the Brotherhood meant that she had one of the bigger bedrooms, though it was still rather small and longer than it was wide. The large wooden bed took up the right end of the room, with the other end taken up by a large desk with a chair sat in front of it. Shelves were carved into the stone walls and held the few books and trinkets she'd salvaged from her old home, along with a few newer things she'd been given from Veezara. Kedi knelt beside the bed and retrieved a bedroll from underneath it.
"You can have the bed, and I'll take this on the floor." She explained, but the elf made no movement towards the bed. "Is… that okay?"
"I have never slept on a bed." The elf looked almost frightened of the piece of furniture.
"Oh… Well, they're much more comfortable than the ground. Give it a try." Kedi gestured towards it, but when the elf still didn't move, she pulled the fur blankets back and patted the straw piled on the wooden frame. Nock stiffly lowered herself down until she was lying flat, and then Kedi lifted the blankets over her. She was settled, but she didn't look comfortable.
"Are you never concerned about it breaking?"
Kedi smiled. "No, not really. Beds are built to be sturdy, and it isn't very high off the floor."
"Even so… It is very… unsettling."
"If you really don't like it, you can have the floor? I only offered out of politeness." Kedi laughed as the Bosmer leapt off the bed and grabbed the bedroll.
"How did you come to be here?" Nock asked as she began unrolling her bed.
"A member of the Brotherhood?" The elf nodded and Kedi blew out a long breath and sat herself on the bed. "It's a long story. A long, foolish story."
"Nevertheless, I would like to know. I know you were not bred for it, like Veezara. You are different to the others. The feeling is subtle, but it is there."
Her strange eyes were fixed on Kedi's face, but instead of feeling unnerved, she felt ready to lift the weight off her shoulders, finally.
"I lived on a small farm, with my mother, father, my brother and little sister. My brother was just old enough to start chopping wood and hunting with my father, but my sister still had a few years before she'd start helping mother and I with chores. It was a simple life, but we were happy." Kedi smiled and ran her hand over the fur blanket, lost in her thoughts as she remembered the sound of her siblings laughing and the bubble of the nearby creek, and the thudding of her father's axe against the wood block. "But, then a small group of bandits came and… ruined it all. My mother had seen them coming a moment before, so my siblings and I were hidden in the house, under the bed, and in the closet. They killed my parents, and then came in to loot our home. My brother came out of hiding to try and fight them… Stupid male pride. They found my sister under the bed, and took her and my brother. They kicked up enough fuss that they didn't find me."
"They saved you."
"They shouldn't have." Kedi stared at the ground for a moment, trying to shake off the pain that the memories brought her. She knew her siblings were dead, and it was because of her. "My father had said that a woman, more than anyone, should know how to defend herself, so he had taught me and my sister how to fight. His father had been a mage, as well, so he taught us a few things. It might seem foolish now, but I hunted those bandits down. I killed them all, from the shadows. I didn't see my brother or sister."
"Not even their bodies?" Kedi shook her head. "Perhaps they escaped."
"I doubt it. But anyway, it turned out someone had already taken a contract out on one of the bandits. I collapsed and fell unconscious amongst the bodies and blood of the bandits, and when I awoke, Astrid was there. I was only thirteen, but Astrid saw the potential in me, and I needed a family. I joined them, and with each hired kill, I avenged my family. With each hired kill, the rage and loss seeped out of me. Astrid watched, and when I had finally emptied myself, she came to me and held me like a mother would. After that, this was my family."
They were both silent for a moment; Nock absorbing the story, and Kedi revelling as the weight of her past was lifted after keeping it to herself for so long.
"Thank you for telling me. You should not feel guilty; you did the best you could, given the circumstances." And with those words, the elf lay down and went to sleep, covered in her blankets since she was obviously feeling the chill being underground.
Kedi smiled. She knew the Bosmer only said things she meant – white lies and words of comfort seemed alien to her – and it felt good to hear it and know it to be true. She left the blankets on the bed and went to see Veezara before bed.
