A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed, and thanks to my Beta, TimexHasxGone! Try to guess who Lauraine and Azura are talking about at the end, and find the Shakespeare reference! Also, The events that happen in the Oblivion book :Azura and the box, I am bringing forward to happening during this story :)
Lauraine stumbled forwards, loosing her footing and collapsing ungraciously on the floor at the feet of Azura. The portal closed loudly behind her the exact moment that Lauraine collided with the floor.
"Ow, I have got to learn how to come out of there properly." Standing up, Lauraine dusted herself off, only to be thrown back by the look of rage on Azura's face.
Her pale face, normally tinted pink from the moons colour, was bright red, anger flushing her cheeks. Teeth gritting, Azura's jaw was clenched, her left eye twitching every few seconds. Eyes blazing in fury, Lauraine was certain that the bloodshot irises were on the verge of popping out. Azura looked positively murderous.
"What happened to you?"
"Shut up, child."
Lauraine raised an eyebrow, Azura's snappy tone, and her own anger, fuelling her onwards.
"Who shoved the stick up your backside this time?" Lauraines smirk left her lips the second Azura's murderous gaze was cast towards her.
"How dare you speak to me like that! How dare you!" A well aimed hand was flung through the air towards Lauraines cheek, however, her reflexes enabled her to dodge it quite quickly.
"How dare I? I'll tell you how I dare..." Azura glared towards her, retracting her hand and watching as Lauraine stood up from the floor. Pacing slowly, Lauraine stared over at one of the Palace guards, noting how many were standing around.
"Get on with it, child."
"Why in the name of Akatosh, did you lie?! Why did you tell me I wasn't going to be sent to Tamriel, when I had lived a life there?! You made me forget about my husband! And didn't even tell me about anything! Why?!"
Freezing on the spot, Azura slowly locked eyes with Lauraine, a sincere look of guilt washing over her delicate face. After a short, tedious awkward silence, Azura started to speak.
"My child, had you seen what I had seen when you came back, had you witnessed how much pain you were in, you will understand. You could not bear to open your eyes and face a world where you could not see his face. You were adamant to never open them again, as he would therefore still be with you. Your body was convulsing, twitching erratically and shaking terribly. It was the only way to help you."
"But why didn't you tell me? You're not understanding what I'm saying. I do not care why you did it, I care about why you didn't tell me!"
Fuming, Lauraine immaturely kicked a large box in the middle of the hall, stubbing her toe and cursing loudly.
"I did not have the chance! You requested to be sent to Tamriel days after you came back! And for goodness sake, stop cursing!" Snapping, Azura stared over at Lauraine, knowing the answer was wrong. She still sat dominantly on the throne, her only concern being that of her 'daughters' hatred being cast upon her.
"I came here every two days! I still do! All it takes is a spell, and I'm here! And Uriels ghost, who put that bloody box there?!"
"Glad you mention the box, actually."
"You're drifting from the subject..."
"I do not care. I am more concerned about a little 'situation'. You see the box you have so graciously just met?" Azura sent a glare towards it, making Lauraine assume it had done some personal harm to the Prince.
"Evidently, it's not the nicest box in the world."
"True. A few minutes before you arrived, a Dwemer by the name of Nchylbar arrived in the gardens outside the palace accompanied by a priest and a few scholars. The priest explained to me that the scientist only wished for me to demonstrate my knowledge. I was to explain what was in the box he was carrying. The same box you just kicked. I assume you can see the small hole in the bottom of the box?"
"Yes, I see it Azura. I am confused as to wonder why the box has angered you so. What did the scientist do?" Lauraine glanced at the box, noting that the hole itself had a latch attatched to it, enabling the holder to place objects in the box secretly by placing their hand underneath the wood.
"I growled towards the scientist, daring him to fool me. He evidently did not realize who he was dealing with. I told him that their was a red-petalled flower in the box. He did not smile, nor did he frown. I should have see it sooner. Using that hole, he took out the flower, and revealed to everyone that it was empty. He had assumed I would realize the trick."
"I'm guessing you didn't..."
"Obviously..."
"And now you want me to go back to Tamriel, and kill this man?" Lauraine let a bored expression waver onto her face. As normal, when one would piss Azura off, one would not be alive twenty-four hours later. That was the rule, and there was never any exceptions. Except Lauraine.
"Precisely. I will see you again soon, my child."
Rolling her eyes, Lauraine held her arm out, muttering a spell under her breath quietly. Turning bright pink, the dark wooden door that served as the entrance to the palace turned clear, a white mist surrounding it. The pink archways shot up, twisting around the woodwork and completing the portal to Tamriel.
Taking a red-petalled flower from Azura's outstretched hand, Lauraine ran at full speed from the throne to the portal. Skidding through it -and careful not to run into any of the Moonguards-, she landed with a 'thump' in the middle of the Dwemer Nchylbar's attic.
Martin stepped up towards the woman, his footfalls so quiet that not even she could hear him. Controlling his breathing, he slowly sat himself down on the snow next to her, letting his eyes drift over to her sun-kissed hair. It shimmered in the dim sun, draped over her shoulders and down her back. Her eyes, the old dark blue and still capivating were fixed on the gravestone in front of her. Her sword lay next to the concrete slab, a aura of sadness and grief radiating from her.
"You know, I remember it all now. The lights, the parties, the gowns. All of it. Our waltz, perfected and then ruined from a short dance in the rain. My fathers warnings, my daughters shame. My time in the temple, and my time in Kvatch. Even our wedding to my funeral." Her voice startled Martin, as he was convinced she was unaware of his presence. "You should practice slowing down your heavy breathing. You were not doing it as effectively as you should. Why are you here?" Eyes still fixed on the gravestone, Lauraine made no move to look towards Martin, only pricking her ears as to hear his reply.
"I needed to see you again, to know that the events in the sanctum were real. H-how did you get away so quickly?"
"I am tied to Azura tighter and stronger than I once was. She now has the power to pull me from anywhere I stand and make me appear right in front of her. I am able to procure a portal anywhere I like, to be able to go back and forth from Tamriel and Moonshadow. I am... skilled in more arts of magicka than I used to be. It's... strange."
Finally, her eyes flickered away from the gravestone, her sword sheathed and her lithe body picked itself up from the ground. Standing over him, Lauraine locked eyes with him, letting him know he could ask another question.
"Why did you rejoin the Dark Brotherhood?"
"It was not my choice. I did not remember ever being in the Brotherhood, but when I accidentally killed a man in anger, I was approached by a woman named Teresa. She sent me there, and I was confronted by two vampires who assured me that they knew me, and would help me. Of course, I thought I had never left Moonshadow, so I had no idea what they were talking about. Those two vampires, are now the only members of the Brotherhood who do not wish me dead at this moment in time." A bout of fear flashed behind her eyes, doubt seeping in through her solid walls.
"What? Why?!"
"I did not complete my contract..."
"Oh, you fail a contract, so they attempt to kill you? That must be one big happy family!" Throwing his hands up in the air, Martin let his sarcastic tone lace his voice. Lauraine didn't seem fazed, much to his dissapointment.
"That is not why I am hunted. It is because I refused to carry it out. Tenet number three: Never disobey or refuse to carry out an order from a Dark Brotherhood Superior. To do so is to invoke the Wrath of Sithis. I disobeyed my orders. I refused to kill, or attempt to kill, my target."
Shaking her head, Lauraine looked upwards towards the sky, taking note of the grey coloured clouds.
"So you are on the run?"
"Just like you."
"H-how did you know?!"
"I was quizzed by a woman when I entered the city yesterday. She asked me if I had seen a man of your description. I told her yes, but I would need to know why she wanted to know before I told her. You failed to kill me and take back my body to Marcielle. I told her I had seen you in Skingrad."
Martin fell backwards onto the snow, willing to hurt himself dearly for his stupidity. He had assumed Marcielle would not go looking for him in the City, only searching Cheydinhal for his sorry ass, before giving up. It appeared he was severely wrong.
"Hey! Hey you!" The voice, gruff and deep, was aimed for the two of them. Yanking Martin up from the floor, Lauraine passed him a sword and unsheathed her Ebony Katana. Standing back to back, they both stared at the men who blocked both exits to the graveyard. Whistling past her face, the cold wind chilled her body, her blood running cold.
"Okay... Are they here for me, or you?" Voice iron clad and still, the question hit his ears through the blowing wind.
"I think... The ones in blue are here for me..."
"And the black ones for me. Typical. I get the bastards with the claymores and katanas. And you get the daggers."
Running forwards, Lauraine attacked the group of three assassins, her katana being blocked everytime by the thick metal of their claymores. Sweat lined her forehead, her arms aching from the force of her blows. Finally, after minutes of attacking with no results, she saw a flaw in one of the assassins movements. His body, every so often, would move slightly to the left, leaving him in a side position.
Using this to an advantage, she slipped under their shields, plunging her Katana into the exposed flesh. Blood spattered her face as she ran the Katana up his body, before twisting it sharply under his ribcage. Using his body as a stand, Lauraine jumped up quickly, stepping on his head and lodging her Katana into the next assassins body, raking it up through his skull and down his back. Quickly, in less than a second, the Katana had moved, blocking another attack from the final assassin before it was dragged across his throat. Wincing as the cut tendons burst, Lauraine watched as the blood sprayed out violently, staining the once white snow to a sickening pink colour.
"I don't get one hit in ten minutes, and then I kill them all in six seconds. Typical." Turning, she wandered her eyes over to Martins fight, seeing that he was still fighting with a final assassin. One lay on the floor in agony, his body twisting and convulsing every few seconds. Deciding to put him out of his misery, she brought her Katana down on his neck, beheading him in seconds.
Martin finished off his fight with the final assassin, hundreds of tiny cuts littering his arms and face, with one large gash across his stomach, which was flowing out blood.
"Bloody hell Martin! How did you get all those cuts?"
"Dagger hilts. I need to get to a healer before they get infected."
"There should be one in the Temple. We'll have to show our faces."
"Are you insane?! Our son is in that temple! Can you imagine his face when in walk his dead parents?!"
"Yes, now move!"
Lauraine dragged Martin up the rest of the mountain, ignoring his whining and chuntering. As she reached the doors to Cloud Ruler Temple, she vaguely remembered all the events that had happened here. Having being let in because of Martins injuries, Lauraine was guided towards the main hall. Coming face to face with Corbyn.
The man had stared in shock at her, his knees buckling and forcing him down onto one of the chairs. After all, it wasn't everyday that the boy meets his dead mother.
"H-how? You're dead!"
"Well, your mother is dead. I'm technically not your mother, son. I'm the 'reincarnation', if that is how you wish to put it."
"This is so strange. My mother died twenty five years ago. And yet, here you stand, younger than me, yet still the same face and eyes."
Corbyn shook his head, an odd feeling of loneliness washing over him. His children both hid behind one of the pillars, invisible to all but Lauraine.
"Why are you here, Corbyn? Should you not be in the Palace?" Lauraine paced the room, curiosity sinking into her brain and willing her to stay.
"There is a danger. It lies in the distance, waiting to strike. Like a lion, waiting to pounce upon its prey. It threatens Tamriel, yet we can do nothing to stop it."
Lauraine felt the ground shake lightly, closing her eyes tightly as Azura's past words echoing inside her head.
The lion refuses to roar until the moment it perfect. The wolf refuses to stare towards the moon, his master forcing him to stay put until he says otherwise. The dead will rise, and the owl shall screech in pain. A nightmare will encase the land, it's victims willing death over the pain they will have to endure. The hunt will start, and the chase will end. Only you and he have the power to stop the coming darkness.
Lauraine stared over towards Corbyn in shock, before she was dragged backwards into thin air, her body landing painfully on the marble floor in front of Azura.
Her face paler than usual, and a low growl escaped her lips as she stared towards the table. The table, mahogany in colour and powerfuly enchanted, allowed the viewer to see anything and anyone they wanted to. The vision was set on a large, open field, werewolves and viscious creatures alike all stood stock still, transfixed at something in the distance.
"He has started it. He will not rest until he has become the victor. That is the way in his games. Mehrunes Dagon shall pay for what he has forced his fellow Prince to do..." Azura turned from the table, her words striking fear into Lauraines heart.
Lauraine, paleing a few shades also, groaned lightly, now knowing exactly what the threat upon Tamriel was.
"And now the hungry lion roars, and the wolf behowls the moon; whilst the heavy farmer snores, all with weary task fordone..."
"The danger. It's already started." Azura's voice was shaking, something that either happened when the Prince was scared shitless, or extremely angry. Lauraine looked towards the table once more, wondering how the hell she was supposed to get Tamriel out of this one.