Chapter 2 Time for Work
I do not own Skyrim or any of the Elder Scrolls series
"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail."
―Benjamin Franklin
Morthal was silent in the late spring night. The two full moons that hang low in the sky bathed the world in a pale ethereal glow, giving the city a hauntingly eerie appearance. The cobblestone roads were bare, not a single living soul would dare traverse the streets at such a late hour.
'Well if they valued their lives' a single cloaked figure mused as he walked though the dark city.
The only light were the filthy oil lamps lightly suspended above the various doors and windows of the humble homes of Morthal. The silence was only broken by the deafening wails of Skyrim's many creatures, and the clink of the Hjaalmarch guards weapons and armor as they mindlessly through their holds desolate streets.
Amongst the thatched roofed log huts that lined the fog covered swampland stood the only hotel in Morthal, the Moorside Inn. Probably his favorite inn outside of the Bannered Mare in Whiterun. the exterior consisted only of two flights of stairs leading up to the porch at the front of the inn.
The man walked through the front door and entered the main common room. There were five long wooden tables and benches against the walls, with the counter at the far end. There were no other patrons that he could see, the quiet and seclusion made this his favorite spot, east of Whiterun.
'I'm so glad I killed Larbuk.' the man thought, reminiscing on slaying the one element that made sleeping here unbearable.
He approached an older redguard woman sweeping the room.
"Hi, what can I help you with" the woman greeted him, he thinks her name is, Jonna sister to the wizard Fallion he believed?
'Oh well she doesn't really matter' he thought as he reached into his coin purse and pulled out ten septims "Would you happen to have a room available" he asked politely
Jonna perked up instantly. "Certainly its yours for the night" she collected the gold and lead him to the rooms.
There were three doorways leading to three bedrooms, two to the southeast and a larger room to the northwest.
Jonna showed him the larger bedroom which consisted of a large double bed in the middle of the northwest wall, with dressers on either side holding a bottle of wine, alto wine, two bottles of nord mead, a steel dagger, and six common books.
Along the northeast wall are a pile of food sacks and a long unlocked chest. To the right of the doorway a wooden table and chair holding a goblet and a bowl.
The man examined the room thoughtfully and smiled. "Thank you this will suit my purposes just fine."
Jonna smiled "Okay, well just let me know if you need something." she led herself from the room and closed the door behind her.
The man quickly unpacked when he was done several weapons and potions lie strewn across the bed. Swords, arrows, and daggers of the highest caliber in both craftsmanship and enchanting, almost all of which were smithed and enchanted by the man himself.
Among his favorite weapons were an ebony sword of legendary quality dual-enchanted to not only deal lightning damage to its victim but also to trap his soul upon death.
A small silver ax decorated with hawk feathers and light enough to be thrown in a pinch. It was enchanted to absorb both the stamina and health of the enemy and transfer them to the user, as far as he knew it was a one-of-a-kind artifact he received from the corpse of a random smith deep in the wilderness of the Pale.
The only thing he knew of the ax's origins was that it was crafted to be able to be used as both a hand-to-hand and stealth weapon with mid-ranged capabilities. Why it was named the Tomahawk like many things its wielder would never know.
The man smiled as his tested the draw strength og his favorite weapon. The Nightingale Bow, a gift from Karliah of the thieves guild, since coming into his possession this bow had seen more death than any of the daedric artifacts he had in his employ.
Taking stock of not only his weaponry but a host of potions ranging from increased stamina to skooma.
The single person in the room dressed himself in a set of red and black light armor, and prepared for his evening activities.
'Tonight is the night' the man contemplated as he examined his items making sure they were in peak condition. 'And its going to happen again and again.'
After inspecting all of his equipment, the figure packed his things, left a large bag of gold on the table (a tip for the innkeeper for her discretion) and left the inn.
'It has to happen' the figure thought plainly as he walked calmly through the streets of Morthal.
He observed his surroundings, enjoy the sounds of Skyrim at night, watching a guard shuffle about, gripping his torch tightly, hands going to his weapon at the slightest sound.
'Smart man' the dark armored figure silently praised the guard 'There is nothing wrong with a healthy sense of fear'.
As irrational as it may seem, it increased their awareness, and one could never be to careful on a night like this.
'You never knew what could be lurking in the shadows of Skyrim.' the man smiled at the thought.
'Nice night' contrary to popular opinion Morthal was one of his favorite places in all of Tamriel. He found the fog, and the ethereal glow the moons created quite beautiful. Nirnroot, nightshade, dragonflies, and other alchemical ingredients were plentiful, and the lack of industrialization like that of Solitude or Markarth left the town surrounded by the natural untamed beauty of the wilderness of Skyrim.
The people were quiet humble folk who mostly kept to themselves, and the lack of any true strategic points left the hold mostly untouched by the war.
'I love the food, mammoth steak sandwiches, my favorite' the man thought as he came to just outside of Morthal where admittedly probably his best-friend and weapon waited for him. 'But tonight I'm hungry for something different'
"Shadowmere." the man greeted the dark horse. Spawned from a pool of pure evil just outside of the Falkreath sanctuary, Shadowmere was without a doubt the mans greatest ally and savior.
The near immortal horse drew the attention of a host of enemies, ranging from bandit highwaymen, to bears, and even dragons. The man was a powerful warrior now yes, but in his early days he'd have surely perished without the dark steed's aid.
"Are you ready to work" Shadowmere neighed happily in response, deep red glowing eyes, shining with anticipation of the hunt.
The man smiled petting the horse gently to calm him. "Indeed my friend" the man said as he mounted the beast.
"Its time to feed the void another soul" the shrouded figure assured Shadowmere as they rode into the darkness of the woods of Hjaalmarch.
Well what do you think? Im still in the begining stages but i want this story to be an Epic as any siege on a major city deserves a great backstory