Dear reader,
Our next chapter contains some crude, but necessary, language. Please ensure you're of the appropriate age and/or disposition to see such words… On we go, then, to a harrowing moment for Bynjolf and the Dragonborn…
Stolen Heart
By: Anonymous
- Chapter 3: Entombed -
A few days later, Brynjolf was reclining on one of the Ragged Flagon's chairs. The chair was precariously balanced on a single leg as he leaned back. A dagger twirled lazily between his fingers and he watched as dingy light bounced back and forth over the smooth ebony edge.
This was his favourite blade, his "Bonnie Lass". It was the first thing he had ever stolen and he had taken great lengths, and spent a great deal of coin, to have it enchanted by the best enchanters and refined by the greatest blacksmiths.
He had even visited the great Eorlund Grey-Mane who honed the dagger to legendary quality.
Something caught his eye in the reflection that gleamed off his blade's edge.
Catheryn walked over "Byrn…"
He looked up at her, eyes glittering "Is it time lass? Are you itching to travel?"
"Yes." She smiled "Let's go wandering."
"Aye. Let's go, then." He got up and looked to Vekel "I'm going out on a quick job with this one. Be back later."
"Alright Bryn." Vekel nodded, and resumed his sweeping of the Flagon's floor.
That evening, under a cloudy sky, they snuck away from the guild and out of Riften. For a while they wandered the vast, woody surroundings of the town before pressing on in a northerly direction towards the more open plains. Cathryne looked around, beaming happily as they travelled.
Brynjolf chuckled "Look at you lass. Looking as bonnie as a wee bairn with a sweetroll."
She looked at him and giggled "Really? Is it that obvious that I'm enjoying myself?"
"Aye. Plain as day." He stretched slightly "Still, I must admit this wild outdoors thing is quite liberating… and the company is… breathtaking."
Glancing back at him, she offered him a grin "Charmer."
"In my line of work it helps."
"I suppose it does." She nodded.
The forest began to thin, and they soon found that they had wandered off the cobblestone path, not that it mattered. They pressed on further until their stroll was disturbed by an unexpected blast of flame. Both of them looked sharply upwards and saw a conjurer stood there with her hands aglow.
"Back off!" She snarled, bearing her teeth and looking more like a wild beast than a woman.
"Woah…" Cathryne frowned "What's going on?"
"It seems we're unwanted, lass. I wonder why? What's this mage hiding? Something valuable, or maybe something dangerous. Either way, it might be good for the guild if we find out…"
"Hmmm." Cathryne drew her Ebony bow and reached for a few steel arrows "Fine. Let's sort her out before she burns us to a crisp. Then we can have a look at what's going on around here."
"Agreed." Brynjolf unsheathed his dagger and swiftly dashed forward. He caught the mage by surprise and drove his dagger in to her gut. She began healing the wound desperately, but an arrow to her neck caused her body to convulse before collapsing. "Your aim is deadly…" Brynjolf mused as Cathryne approached "Now I'm worried the Dark Brotherhood might steal you away."
"Ha! Don't I have to agree to join them?" she asked.
"I suppose so. I can't say I really know." Brynjolf replied.
"Well. I have no intention of leaving the Thieves Guild. I happen to like it very much, thank you! There's plenty of reasons to stick around." Her eyes glittered mischievously as she looked at him.
"Good. Let's hope it stays that way and you never get bored of us." Brynjolf put his dagger away and crouched down beside the fallen mage "Hmm. Not a lot on her…"
Cathryne looked around "I've got a feeling."
"A feeling?" He looked up at her "What?"
Cathryne looked intently at a cluster of rocks "A feeling that this isn't what it seems to be… I think there may be something behind there."
"It's the side of a mountain, lass." Brynjolf walked over and tapped it. A hollow sound echoed back "Well strike me down." He muttered "You've got a keen eye."
"It looks similar to some fake walls I've seen in Nordic tombs. There must be a switch around here somewhere."
"Aye. Let's seek it out."
The two began to search for a switch to open the faux stone wall, however it was surprisingly well concealed. Brynyolf sighed deeply and leaned against the rocky wall, despite looking for a switch or button, there was no sign of any such mechanism. He watched as Cathryne continued to search eagerly.
Finally she let out an "Ah ha!" which was promptly followed by a rather loud "click".
Brynjolf blinked as the wall behind him jerked and moved, moments later he fell back in to a gaping tunnel "Woah!" Luckily his swift reflexes stopped him from falling flat on his arse, but it had been a fairly close call.
Cathryne trotted over "Sorry!" she called out.
"No harm done, lass. Now it would seem that we have a tomb to explore, don't we?"
"Yes we do!" She stalked ahead, drawing her ebony bow "Come on Bryn, let's find some treasure."
"Now you're speaking my language."
They stealthily swept down in to the inner bowels of the Nordic tomb, passing through tight, claustrophobic caverns and vast subterranean chambers. At first Brynjolf was awed by the sheer size of the crypt, it did not look so vast from the outside. Then, he noticed the more intricate little details such as the ornately carved stonework and finely crafted tools.
Though macabre, he also noted how well preserved the ancient Nords were – albeit smelly and foul-looking. Their skin was pale as snow, tinted with a distinct blue tone and a network of veins. He could see every bone in their body, even their teeth, all barely concealed by the thin sheet of skin that enfolded each cadaver.
As they entered yet another generously sized room, their progress was halted by an ancient Nordic puzzle. Brynjolf had a hard time understanding what a Whale, Eagle or Snake had to do with anything but he noticed that Cathryne seemed unperturbed by the glyphs and was looking around the room.
"Any ideas, lass?" he called over.
"Yes. This is a door puzzle. I've seen a couple. We need to look around for clues."
"Clues?" he folded his arms "It's not like they're going to just give us the answer, is it?"
Cathryne pointed above his head "They do."
Brynjolf turned and saw that there was a carved face of a bearded Nordic male behind him, with an exaggerated mouth. Within the mouth was a glyph; an eagle. Then to the left of that, another carving and another glyph – this time a snake.
"I see…" he said "So these are our clues."
"That's right. So it's Eagle then Snake." Cathryne twirled the two obelisks then pulled the lever. The heavy iron portcullis opened and they resumed their descent in to the crypt.
The vast, impressive chambers mutated in to tightly packed necropolises. Shelves upon Shelves of Draugr like books stacked in an overfilled bookcase. Occasionally Cathryne shot arrows in to the sleeping dead, which initially Brynjolf found perverse, until one of the buggers slid out from its resting place and attempted to behead him with a rusty axe. From that point onwards shooting the dead seemed completely reasonable.
The packed corridors gave way to a vast central tomb – the most decorative and impressive room in the entire crypt. For a few moments they both stood quietly and admired the decorative space.
"It's the most well preserved tomb I've seen." Cathryne said, quietly.
"It's amazing. To think our ancestors had this much ability… how breathtaking" Brynjolf replied.
"Well… This is a tomb for one who loyally served the dragons, I suppose they would be well rewarded with a fine resting place in exchange for enslaving their own people."
Brynjolf scoffed and looked at her "Dragons huh… Do you really believe in them?"
"Yes. I do." Cathryne replied.
"You sound pretty certain, lass. How comes?"
Cathryne pulled something from a pouch on her hip, she held it out to him "Here. A little evidence for you."
Byrnjolf plucked it from her hand "What is this?" he held it up to the light that poured in to the tomb from a hole overhead. The object looked like some sort of scale but it glistened with the same lustre as a gemstone.
"It's a dragon's scale." Cathryne replied, her tone serious.
Brynjolf wanted to laugh and ask her if she was joking, but the look in her eyes and her voice told him that this was no ruse. He blinked "So this… is a dragon's scale? And tell me, lass, how does one come across such a beautiful object?"
"By slaying a dragon." Another serious answer.
This time Brynjolf let out a little spluttering choke and gave her a hard look – he still couldn't see even a glint of a lie in her eyes "Slaying…? You mean to tell me you've fought with a dragon, and lived?"
"Yes. I… am Dragonborn." She said, turning away from him.
"What…?" Brynjolf may have been a master of deceit and scheming, but he was unable to disguise his complete and utter shock as he stared at her.
"I can claim the souls of dragons after defeating them. I can use their language, and the Thu'um, Shouts, to defeat my enemies." She sat down on a lump of stone "I can say with certainty that dragons are real and they exist, because I've killed a few of them now."
"My my lass… this is quite a development!" Brynjolf exclaimed, joining her on the stone. He patted her head fondly "But. It changes absolutely nothing."
She looked at him "Huh?"
"Whether you can kill dragons or not, it wouldn't change the fact that you're a first class thief and whether dragons are real or not, won't stop us from doing right by the guild."
She smiled at him "Bryn… Thank you!"
"Ha. Never you mind, lass. I told you that I like listening to you." He returned her smile "So, it seems I know a little bit more about our mysterious new member… Aren't I privileged."
"Oh shush." She grumbled "I'm not that mysterious. Just another Nord woman."
"Ha, now I already knew that was a bare faced lie but now I know for sure that's a load of horker shit!"
"Hey!" She slapped his shoulder "What have I told you about swearing?"
"Don't." he smirked.
"You're impossible, Bryn!"
"That's what all the ladies tell me." He pushed himself up off the stone and turned to look at her "Well. Let's find us some loot, eh?"
"Alright." She stood up too.
It was then, that a sickening sound filled the air; the sound of some sort of seal breaking, the sound of stone scraping against stone followed by the heavy clunk of a coffin lid hitting the floor.
The central grave, the most ornate and grandeur of all, was opening…
~End of Chapter 3~
Please steel yourselves, in the next chapter I butcher the Dragon Language... ^^;
(Still highly flammable! 3)