Story: The Pink Haired Pirate: An Old Norse Saying

Rated: M for language, future mature themes, violence, gore

Warnings: Spoiler alert for Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

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"~ The following account is true. May it serve as a warning to those with ears to hear and hearts to know. ~"

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Learning to speak Tamrielic was hard. Unbelievably complicated, with an even more complicated alphabet to retain, study and then try to get the right pronunciation as well. And not only it was hard. It was also strange, but at least Sakura was left to study at her own pace.

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"On a certain day, at a certain time, the faithful gathered to perform certain rituals, hoping to gain a glimpse of their master. The day was correct, the summoning was true."

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The eyes of the old mage softened, even if they were well hidden by the current sentiment of irritation. The pink-haired young woman was unable to let her guard down and drop the pellicular shaped dagger. Sakura was also unable to grasp his unwillingness to fight, watching the spark of bright blue orbs which threatened to form in his hands. Sakura has recognized those orbs. They shot ice, just like one of the bandits whose head she had to crack open.

"I'm not going to hurt you, child." Septimus Signus lowered his hands and took a step closer before stopping. Sakura raised an uncertain eyebrow and lowered her kunai. "Hurt." The old mage mimicked a slit to his throat, before waving his hands in a negative matter.

"Hurt." Sakura tried, encouraged by the old mage. Until now, Sakura has heard bandits screaming profanities in the foreign language, profanities she was unable to decipher. But the old man seemed to take his time in letting her adjust her speech. She visibly relaxed, and the old man seemed visibly pleased the child was able to comprehend what was he trying to say.

"Good. I, " The mage gestured to himself. "Septimus Signus." Sakura nodded. That must have been his name. "You?" Septimus pointed at Sakura, waiting for something in return for his introduction; her introduction as well. Sakura stumbled a little in her words.

"I, Uchiha D. Sakura."

The old mage raised an eyebrow. "Uchiha?" Sakura's pink head shook negatively. "Sakura."

"So your name is Sakura." Sakura raised an eyebrow. 'Name'? As in that's how she was called. She supposed they put their birth name first in introductions. Sakura nodded, approvingly. "Sakura." It was a truly foreign name, as foreign as her strange hair coloring.

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"Slashing a smoking tear through the Veil, She, her-very-self, appeared before them, terrible and resplendent. She came arrayed in ebony darker than a moonless night, wielding a blade burning hotter than the surface of the sun. And though she wore the guise of a Dunmer warrior-queen, she towered above them like a statue carved from the Red Mountain itself.

'Why have you disturbed me?'"

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The old man needed help, she has been told. After a few weeks of being cooped up in the icy cave, she has managed to grasp the basics of the language. Tamrielic they called it. The small bedroll tucked in the corner of the cave has become her home for the last few weeks. Sakura would meditate often for hours, and the old man, Septimus Signus, paid no mind, as he was left to conduct his research quietly. He'd talk to her, or talk alone, revealing tiny grasp and details even without his will. Sakura has gotten to the point she was able to understand what she has been told but tortured by the unbearing feeling of being unable to respond. So her mind has been occupied by a few books which were thrown on the shelves above the cupboard. She was slowly starting to read books on her own. And to help with her studying, she has been given a quill, an inkwell, and a journal to write both in her native tongue and Tamrielic.

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"Surprised, the first among them prayed:

'O, Boethiah, Prince of Plots, Deceiver of Nations, Queen of Shadows, Goddess of Destruction, we come to worship thee!'"

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A few days a week, Sakura would go outside and catch her dinner. The old man was too engrossed in his work to stop, so she had to confront the harsh winds outside. She'd catch enough to last a few days if she was careful, then go out fishing, or hunting again. She couldn't risk using any techniques. She didn't trust the old man just yet, to show off her clan techniques and her secrets.

Once a week, she'd been given a new book to read. First, a small thinner one. Then, the number of pages and the complexity of the words would increase. And that fed Sakura's hunger for knowledge.

"Here, have this book, child." Septimus never addressed Sakura by her name. Just as by 'child'. Elders usually happened to have that habit. Sakura was handed a book, with illustrated covers, picturing a statue engulfed in flames. Boethiah's Proving was it called.

"Boethiah's Proving?"

"I found this book while looking for a bottle. I have no idea how it even got there; I have not packed anything like this. But you can have it, I'm too busy to look through it, but I'm running thin on books you could study so get this one done as well." Septimus commented before inspecting the machinery indented in the side of the cave. He has been working on it since Sakura has first stepped in the outpost, but she suspected the old man worked on it for even longer. A Dwarven Oculary was it called. A glorified container sealed so well that even a genius mage as Septimus had trouble with it. He had trouble with a piece of machinery built at least a thousand years ago, and that was pretty impressive.

But Sakura was focused on the book. Boethiah. Something more than a divinity. She could bet that Septimus didn't even look at the title before handing Sakura that forsaken book.

'Maybe...I bet it's fiction. I bet it's just fiction. But at the same time...it could be true. If it is, this Boethiah person must be a truly horrible deity.' Sakura mumbled, flipping through the pages.

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"She looked down upon her followers, gathered to bear witness. Frowning, she asked the first:

'Tell me, who you profess to know me, how shall I know you?'"

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These deities were called Daedra. They would usually represent the worse in any mortals. They were tricksters, exploiting the mortals' blind dedication. It's like they never cared they were messed with in the first place. They never hesitated to kill their kind in favor of these vile creatures. Sakura was no saint. She had driven her sword against the heart of her mother, and no matter how much she cried and how much she washed her hands to get rid of the blood, it never went away. But that was the difference. She felt remorse when she couldn't save someone close to her, while people would say she easily killed whoever stood in her path. The truth was that it became easier to put to rest, but never easier to feel.

Sakura flipped another page. Whoever has written this book, it was stained with blood. Unless more copies were printed or handwritten, that's it. However, the dedication was impressive. Highly disturbing but impressive.

Boethiah, just like she..or he was called in the book, was representing battle, conflict, treason, and was often using their followers for bloodsport. The followers, just like in the book, would fight each other until the last man standing was deemed worthy of Boethiah's approval.

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"Afeared, he exclaimed:

'Each night I pray to thee, I call out thy wondrous names. Surely thou must recognize the sound of my voice? The most devoted of believers?'

She frowned and let out a long sigh, and then of a sudden he was gone, the air from her lungs dispersing him."

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Boethiah was also supposed to be one of the three Daedra who was directly responsible for the Dunmer race. From what she has been told, they were elves with grayish skin. They could also be easily recognized by the glowing red eyes. The old man was studying the Dwarves or the Dwemer. He had been muttering something about the need for blood, and while researching and frenetically flipping through books, he had revealed much more than he intended to. Sakura held the journal and started drawing the rough lines of the statue of Boethiah. She had already started scribbling down a few locations for her to visit when she would have paid her debt to the old man.

Sakura held the tip of her feather between her lips. '2nd of Sun's Dusk, on Gauntlet Holiday. What the hell is the Gauntlet Holiday?'

"Hey, umm...Signus-san? Could you please tell me, what is the Gauntlet Holiday?" Sakura raised her quill. She heard the old mage sigh and look over his shoulder. He seemed a little annoyed, and Sakura was afraid she had interrupted something important.

"It's the day when the Dunmer, commonly known as Dark Elves summon Boethiah, their Daedric deity. Any more questions?" Sakura shook her head, allowing him to work.

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"Turning to the second, she asked:

'And you? How shall I measure the worth of your existence?'

Stunned by the power of her voice, he bowed before her darkening visage.

She clapped her hands, and he too was gone."

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'Sun's Dusk...that's how the months are named here...' Sakura turned a page in her journal and started writing down the list of months. When Sakura left home, it was on the 8th of August. According to the calendar here, it should be the 8th of Last Seed.

"Signus-san? What date is it today?"

Sakura was answered by a mutter and a flutter of pages. "3rd of Hearthfire." Sakura gave a nod and scribbled something down. '3rd of September then.'

She made a little calendar in her journal, so she could track down the time while she was in a foreign country. Even if she had to eventually pay Signus' rent, she didn't mind. She planned to travel all across Skyrim. And buy birthday gifts. As soon as she found a method to earn septims, Skyrim's currency which implied gold coins, as there was no exchange point where she could convert the berri or ryo she currently possessed, she had to start from the bottom.

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"To the third:

'And you tell me, how shall I know you apart from such as were they, of whom there is no trace?'

Shaken and speechless from the nullifications of his brethren, he whispered:

'Have mercy upon us!'

She blinked twice. Once, he was in agony. Twice, he was destroyed.

She cast a withering glance across those remaining and said:

'I do not grant mercy.'

And so it was with the others. She put them to proof, they offering none."

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"I think I have found the way to open the Oculory, child. It's time for you to pay your rent." The old man finally pulled away and dragged a chair to sat down. Sakura put down her book, folding the corner of her current page.

"What's supposed to find in it though, Signus-san?" she asked curiously. It seemed like a very complex mechanism. The prize inside could be an invaluable treasure.

"The Heart of Lorkhan, child. It's a powerful Aedric artifact." Noticing the puzzled look on Sakura's face, he decided to continue to explain. "The Aedra are the opposite from Daedra, the deities you've been reading about lately. This artifact is very powerful. And know I finally found the solution to the key but..." Septimus sighed and wiped his weary forehead. "You see, to open the Oculory I need Dwemer blood. But the Dwemer have gone extinct at least a thousand years ago!"

Sakura eyed him and thought for a bit.

"Does it have to be Dwarf blood? All elves are related in a way or another." She suggested, receiving a look from the old mage.

"Don't be ridiculous, otherwise anyone could have opened the Oculory." he stopped. "Your stupid idea could turn into something which could work! Don't give me that look, it's not like you're supposed to know how the Dwemer mechanisms work." He chastised.

Fair point.

"Maybe if we gather the blood of the existent races of Mer, we could approximate the Dwemer blood and open the mechanism. That could work." It made sense.

"And when you say that we have to collect the blood, you mean me," Sakura stated, earning a nod.

"I can't afford to leave the Outpost, not when I'm so close to finding the key! I'm an old man, my bones don't bear me to go deep inside the Dwarven ruins for blood. But I brought you here and taught you about our world so you can help me with the key. I was certain the Dwemer would task the finder of the Oculory with hard labor. You're a fierce fighter, I can trust you will retrieve the blood without casualties." He looked serious.

Sakura nodded. "Just tell me what do I need to do. In detail. I'm still a stranger in Skyrim."

"The living Mer who roam Skyrim are the Altmer, also known as the High Elves; the Dunmer known as the Dark Elves; the Bosmer known as the Wood Elves, the Falmer and the Orsimer known as the Orcs. A sample of blood from each shall suffice. All Mer except the Falmer roam the forests and the cities freely; however, the Falmer live only in the depths of the Dwarven ruins. They're savage, they're blind, and have monstrous hate for all races except their kind. They're ruthless and attack in high numbers, so you may have to be careful." The old mage patiently instructed, as Sakura opened her ears and listened to every ounce of information which might be crucial.

"I'm giving enough time for you to gather the blood for me, but at the same time, don't waste time, so try to hurry up. Bear you hence this extractor, it will drink the fresh blood of the elves. Do not return until the set is complete. I have devoted my life to the Elder Scrolls, but their knowledge is passing awareness compared to the encompassing mind of the divinity. The Dwemer were the last to keep hold of this, it was thought to be destroyed by the Nerevarine, but my lord has told me otherwise."

Sakura made the mental note to scribble down 'Elder Scrolls' and 'Nerevarine' in her journal, for later research. The definition was her stranger.

"Wait. Who's your lord?"

"The Daedric Prince of the Unknown, Hermaeus Mora. I thought there were no secrets left to know. Until I first spoke to him. He asks for a price - to work his will. A few murders, some dissent spread, a plague or two. For the secrets, I can endure. In time, he brought me here. To the box. But he won't reveal how to open it. Maddening." Sakura's eyes widened slightly, but she didn't let it show. It was madness. The weeks and weeks of observing Septimus Signus' work revealed how dedicated was he to his research. But to find out he was so deep in shit with a Daedric Lord? She'd have to look more into this Prince. And that's how she added 'Hermaeus Mora' to 'Sakura's Index of Skyrim terms'.

"I will bring you the blood, Signus-san." She nodded solemnly. She had to keep the end of her bargain after all. But if something happened to the old man because of his foolishness of associating with the devil just for the sake of knowledge...he'd have to deal with his insanity.

"Very good, very good. Pack what you need and I'll see you once the set is complete." The old mage dismissed Sakura and she did nothing but grab the empty backpack from the floor. He didn't need it anymore anyway. She stuffed in something edible, a few books and her journal, also her quill and inkwell after sealing it tightly. And when Sakura finally climbed her way outside the cave, she dropped one of her special sealed senbon in the snow and walked away, Boethiah's Proving still open in her hands. She was almost close to finishing it anyways.

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"Finally she came to me, eyes aglow with anger, tongue wet with hate, and said:

'Of all my believers, but two remain. Tell me, second-to-last, with what shall you prove your existence?'

Without hesitation, I drew forth my blade and buried it in the chest of the other who stood beside me, and without fear I replied:

'Ask him, whose blood now sprouts from my blade if I exist.'

She smiled. And the gates of the Oblivion opened between her teeth. Then she said:

'Tell me, now-last of my followers, wherefore do you remain where the others do not?'

I retrieved my blade, and offered it up saying:

'I am alive because that one is dead. I exist because I have the will to do so. And shall I remain as long as there are signs of my handwork, such as the blood dripping from this blade.'

Accepting my gift, she nodded and said:

'Indeed.'

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Sakura sighed and closed the book disgusted. She has stopped under a tree void of leaves or flowers to close the book and grab out her journal and writing instruments. She dipped the tip of the quill in ink and scribbled down the last few lines, under the rough drawing of the Shrine, before storing everything away in her knapsack and go on her way once again.

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"If in reading, your blood boils in your veins and your mind blazon with fire, then Boethiah calls you. It is then most wise to heed her call. Find her on the mount which overlooks Windhelm. Meet us there and tested." - Boethiah's Proving, Anonymous Author

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A/N: I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. I put a lot of work into this one if I'm not mistaken it took me all day. I started writing it, it was like 1 PM. Now it's almost 9 PM and my back hurts. If you have any questions, I will make sure to answer them. If they're related to future content, you should also mention you're up for spoilers and don't mind them. I tend to rant a lot. I decided to use quotes from actual Skyrim books because they're a good break line. Looking stylish. And you have an idea what Sakura has been reading this whole time in this chapter.

Sakura had no choice but to be in contact constantly with the Norse language and all those books. She is a smart lass, she picked it up pretty fast, but since she had nothing else to do but read, hence why in just a little less than a month was able to speak it. She wouldn't be fluent, I'm just not sure how broken her speech should be. Help me with an example maybe?

Also if you have ideas concerning adventures, maybe you want an OC of yours to be added as a follower in an adventure of your choice or a misc quest, feel free to do that too. Just describe your character thoroughly. A review is fine, just try to give me some feedback on the story too, okay? So it won't be flooded strictly with OCs. ^^ Well that's all.

Bye-bye til later!