"Okay, so let me get this perfectly straight. You know the Thieves Guild because you were nearly recruited by them a couple of years ago, but you turned them down and have known about them ever since?"
Nero opened his mouth to speak, as if to correct something, but then, after what was consideration and analysis of everything Serana had just said, he nodded, and said,
"Yeah, that's pretty much it."
Serana knew Nero had done quite a bit in his life, both ever since he'd come to Skyrim and before. Still, it was quite a shock to learn that he nearly fell in with a group of thieves.
"So you nearly became a thief?" she asked seeking elaboration.
"Not exactly," Nero began explaining, "back when I was trying to find a way to defeat Alduin, I was working with a woman Delphine, the old grand master of the Blades, you remember?"
Serana cast her mind back to their visit to Sly Haven Temple.
"The woman who drew a sword on you?"
"Uh... yeah. Back then we were working together, and to defeat Alduin, we needed the help of an old man named Esbern, who was in hiding. We tracked him down to Riften, though I still couldn't be sure exactly where. So Delphine pointed me in the direction of a man named Brynjolf.
"So I travelled there and spoke to him. He knew where Esbern was, but would only tell me if I... if I helped out with a job."
Nero went on to explain about the job involving Madesi's ring and Brand Shei in the market in Riften.
"When we finished, Brynjolf liked my work, and offered me a place in the Guild. I turned him down."
Serana took everything in.
"And you've known about them ever since?"
Nero nodded.
"Well that's... quite a story."
"Honestly I didn't think I'd cross paths with them again after that."
Serana then returned her train of thought to the present day.
"Okay, so why do you think they're the ones who hired Asmund? Do they recruit that young?"
"No, they don't. If they did, I would've done a lot more about them."
"So why do you think it's them?"
"I don't know, but my gut tells me they're involved somehow, they've gotta be. And if they're not responsible, they should at least be able to point me in the direction of who is."
"Are they the type that would help us?"
Nero looked at the pouch of gold that sat on the table, nearly empty.
"They might need some convincing, but they're thieves, that's what they do."
Serana digested it all.
"Okay. When do we leave?"
Nero looked at Serana in a way that had become familiar to her, but she nonetheless detested.
"Serana, you ca-"
"Nero, before you say anything along the lines of I can't come with you because it'll be too dangerous, I'll stop you before you even catch the breath. I am not going to let you go alone to do something dangerous while I sit on my ass. In any case, this is not particularly dangerous. Unless the Guild have some kinda vendetta against you, I think the threat isn't exactly that high on the list, and even if it was, it would be a stupid idea to let you go alone. I don't want to have this conversation again, Nero."
"Neither do I, Serana. I don't want to leave you behind. But it's not just you now."
He was right about that. Serana was caring for two people now, which was still weird for her to get her mind around. She momentarily wondered if her mother ever felt that way when she was carrying Serana. Oh, I've got to tell my mother. This is turning out to be an eventful return.
"I know, Nero. I've been thinking about that a lot in the past hour since we found out. And let me tell you, as long as this baby is inside me, I will protect us both. I can and I will. I'm not going to sit on my ass knitting by the fire for the next eight months while you run around getting into danger."
Nero nodded, "alright. I don't want you to sit around Serana. Trust me, I know you can hold your own."
Serana smiled, and they leant in and kissed.
"You should know though, if you get a craving for a sweet roll, there's not so much I can do."
"We'll have to pack some, just in case" she said, smiling, and Nero laughed (slightly unsure if she was serious or not).
"So, we're headed to Riften tomorrow?" Serana asked, to which Nero nodded.
"That's a shame. I was looking forward to sending a few days in bed" she said with a playful smile.
"Iona and Lydia will come with us. When we get there, I'll resupply from the house there, and then we'll head down into the Ratway."
"Can I come?"
They were both startled to see Asmund standing in the doorway. Nero and Serana exchanged a look before turning back to him.
"Asmund, after what you told me about the man there, I'm not sure it's wise that you come with us" explained Nero.
"I just... I wanted to see my friends again, make sure they're alright."
Serana looked at Nero, before turning to the kid, "you can come. We have a house in the city. You can saty there with the Housecarls. Don't worry, they'll be nice."
Nero looked over at Serana, but then, seeing her face, nodded.
"Well then you better get some sleep, we leave early tomorrow and Riften's a long way."
Asmund smiled, and turned to leave, before stopping just as he left.
"Thank you" he said and went off to bed.
"Sneaky kid" said Nero, "I didn't even hear him."
"Can see why that man thought he'd make a good thief."
"Cat burglar maybe. Though he can throw a punch" said Nero, before he went to Serana and put his arms around her, "it's a shame our evening didn't go quite as expected."
Serana smiled, "and how exactly did you expect it to go?"
"Well, after the pregnant thing, cheer and tell everyone, be happy, then go and celebrate."
"Well you can probably have a drink, afraid I've gotta be off the booze now."
"Not that kind of celebration."
Serana smiled.
~ The next day ~
Nero grabbed a Dragonbone sword from the rack. A mannequin that bore his armour stood nearby, though it would weigh him down and he didn't yet need it. Besides, he had a set at Honeyside, albeit quite old now but still just as efficient. Nero was aware of the few supplies he had at Honeyside, though there weren't many, since it wasn't a house he visited too often. He grabbed some potions, lockpicks and a few other handy tools and threw them in a knapsack before heading upstairs from the armoury.
Asmund's eyes woke up to the light of the morning sun flooding in from the window. That was the single most peaceful night he'd had in a long time. It all came back to him after a moment, and he had the realisation that he was literally sleeping in the guest bedroom of the Dragonborn, a man who had slain dragons, vampires, monsters, giants, spiders, bandits. All sorts of evil creatures. The legendary Dovahkiin. Nero Dragons-bane.
Asmund was stuck in his silent awe when he heard a knock at the door.
"May I come in? Are you decent?"
Asmund sat up, "uh yeah."
Serana came in holding some folded clothes.
"Morning", she said.
"Good morning", Asmund replied.
"We've got some food downstairs, you're gonna wanna eat, it's a long ride, and we'll need to stop halfway", she said to which Asmund nodded.
"Oh and uh..."
She placed the bundle of folded clothes on a chair, "went to Radiant Raiment and picked you up some clothes, so you can change out of those... 'thief' garbs."
"I... thanks" said Asmund, that was really kind of her, "thank you Mrs Dragons-bane."
"Serana", she said, "you can call me Serana."
Asmund smiled.
"Now don't be too long or the food will be cold."
Downstairs, Serana joined the three Housecarls breaking their fast at the table full of food. Nero came up wearing what appeared to be travel clothes, with a knapsack thrown over his back and a Dragonbone sword strapped to his belt.
"Is he awake?" asked Nero, sitting down to some food.
"Yeah, surprisingly. Thought I'd have to wake him, which would've been... fun."
Serana joined them at the table, "so you gonna keep the place safe while w're gone, again?" she asked Jordis.
Jordis looked up at her, "of course, I'll make sure that hole is filled by the time you get back, whenever you do."
Nero nodded, "thanks, would save nearly having a very hard wake up call next time I go to the bathroom."
The Housecarls laughed with Serana, when Asmund entered the room, wearing the clothes Serana had got for him.
"Morning" said Nero, and Asmund returned the courtesy.
"Come" said Serana, motioning a seat. Asmund followed her directive and took a seat.
"What should I eat?" he asked.
Serana looked at Nero, who looked back at her, and then at Asmund, "whatever you want that's on the table, really."
"Really?"
Nero nodded.
And then a large smile formed on his face before he began grabbing things everywhere. He filled his plate with bacon and eggs and bread and began wolfing it all down, which earned him increasingly surprised looks by everyone around him. He finished his plate before Nero had even touched his egg.
"Before that soup you had, when was the last time you ate?" asked Nero.
Asmund looked up at him, and then down at his hand as he began counting fingers. One. Two. Three...
"I'll go make some more eggs" said Lydia, and she rose from her seat.
A bit later, after they were all well fed, they bid farewell to Jordis and set off for the Solitude stables. There, they mounted their horses. Asmund went onto a horse with Serana who had the strength to catch him and pull him back on at any time in case he ever fell, and she was the lightest of them all for the benefit of the horse. They set off on their way to Riften.
The group reached Dragonbridge not too long after, and Nero saw the town normal as ever. He noticed though something off about it. As they passed the Penitus Oculatus outpost, he saw a woman, near labour, was standing outside the outpost, sobbing, in the arms of an older man, whose eyes were red with anguish and despair. It was Commander Maro, a man Nero had met before, back when he'd destroyed the Dark Brotherhood. They were mourning.
Nero wondered sympathetically who it was they'd lost. A son? A husband? A brother? Whoever it was, they had clearly loved him. The Commander never saw him as they passed through; he was too concerned with being the shoulder to cry on for the woman.
It lingered in Nero's mind as they rode on and the day passed. When the sun was low, they came to a place just north of the throat of the world, called Valtheim Towers.
"We'll stay here for the night" said Nero.
They set up shop in the abandoned towers that were linked by a straight and narrow bridge over the running river. When the sun fell beneath the horizon, Nero was near sound asleep with Serana when he heard something. A movement of foot on stone. He sat up, and looked around, before throwing on a tunic, pants, and grabbing his sword. He descended the tower, before he saw a young teenager, sitting down in the middle of the bridge, his feet dangling freely from the ledge.
Nero watched from behind the arch of a doorway as the boy took off a necklace he was wearing. He fondled it in his hand whilst looking across at the still light of the moons in the moving restless water. No matter how strong the current, the reflection remained, unyielding.
Asmund didn't hear Nero approach until he was a few feet away.
"You're not much of a fan of sleeping, huh?"
Asmund said nothing, even as Nero took a seat next to him, his legs hanging freely over the edge.
"Couldn't sleep" admitted Asmund, still fondling the object in his hands. Nero nodded in understanding, looking across the water.
"Worried about getting back to Riften?"
"I'm excited to see my friends again..."
"... but?"
"... yeah I'm a little worried. I hope they're all alright, I don't know if that man... if he..."
Nero put a hand on Asmund's shoulder, "your friends will be alright, Asmund. That man won't lay a finger on them."
Asmund continued to fondle the object.
Nero turned to it, "what is that you're holding?"
Asmund held it up for Nero to see, "it's a talisman."
It appeared to be a small black rock or stone of some kind, with some markings etched into it.
"My mother gave it to me, before she... before I... before I was sent to the orphanage."
Nero understood; it was painful for him to talk about. He tried to change the subject.
"So who taught you magic?"
Asmund looked up at Nero, "a girl from my village, she'd just returned from the College of Winterhold. I asked if she could teach me, and she said yes. She was very nice..."
Nero could see Asmund smiling, thinking about her.
"Very nice?" asked Asmund with a knowing smile, to which Asmund went red.
"So she taught you magic?"
"Yeah. Basic spells though, like flames, healing, and few other things, like-"
"Runes?"
Asmund went red again.
"I always needed a bit more practice with them, but I was sent away before she could teach me any more."
"Where was your village?" asked Nero.
"A small town near Falkreathe" said Asmund, "close to Whiterun hold."
"Well, when this is over, I can take you for a visit back there, and you can get some more lessons."
The kid looked up at the Dragonborn, "really?"
Nero nodded.
"Thanks" Asmund smiled.
Serana, who'd awoken a little bit after Nero and wondered after him, now stood some way away, leaning on a door frame, seeing the pair of them on the bridge.
"Mr Dragons-bane, can I ask you something?"
Nero turned to Asmund, "yeah sure."
"Were you going to let the guards take me away, to throw me in the dungeon?"
"No. I wasn't ever going to let them lock you up."
Asmund smiled.
"You know", began Nero, "I once placed a rune straight on the floor where I was standing."
"No way, seriously?"
"True story."
"How did you not blow your legs off?"
I've been wondering the same thing ever since."
Asmund laughed, and in the distance Serana smiled, seeing Nero get on so well with him. She held her stomach at the same time. She caught Nero's gaze, and he smiled to see her.
~ Morning ~
The group were getting their things ready for the rest of the journey. Nero dressed with Serana before they both headed to see the Housecarls and Asmund, where they then broke their fast, and then began heading out to get their horses.
As they went out onto the road though, they came face to face with a group of people, clad in armour and weapons drawn, standing some distance away and looking at them.
Nero looked around. Ten of them in total. Standard steel and iron weapons, and armour. They formed a line that curved around the entrance, to prevent any of them from going anywhere. The Housecarls out hands on their weapons.
"Ah ah ah!" said a redguard woman who stood central in the line of bandits.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you", she continued, "or my archers here will pump you full of arrows. And last I checked, that causes a pretty bad case of death."
Nero looked back to see Serana pulling Asmund behind her. He then turned to face the redguard, where either side of her stood the archers, arrows nocked and bowstrings pulled back, their eyes focused on the Housecarls.
"What do you want?" asked Nero.
"You appear to be in our home" replied the redguard, now facing him and only him.
The Housecarls laid hands on their weapons, and Serana held Asmund behind her with one hand whilst summoning an ice spike to her other. The bandits approached slowly.
"Now, we can either do this the easy way, where you hand over all your valuables and your horses and you walk, or the we kill all of you, take your valuables, and dump you in the river way", threatened the redguard, until she laid eyes on Serana, "well, maybe not all of you."
Serana then bared her fangs, "oh, give me a chance, bitch."
Nero looked over his shoulder at his wife, "missed this huh?" he sighed.
"Okay," he then faced the redguard, "listen, all of you. You're right, we can do this the easy way, which is we go our own way without any violence and no one having to die. Or, we do this the we kill every last one of you way. Personally, I prefer option A."
The redguard laughed, "I guess you don't completely understand. We have you outnumbered, and I was going to let you go leave. But now, I've ran out of patience."
The bandits continued approaching.
"Hold on, don't we get last words?" asked Nero.
The redguard sighed, "oh alright."
"Just three from me" said Nero.
"Go ahead."
Nero took a deep breath, and almost instantly, the Housecarls drew their weapons, and Serana and Asmund got down, as he spoke.
"FUS RO DAH!"
Author's Notes:
My god, apologies for the delay. As you can see, I'm pretty sure this is the longest chapter so far, because there's a point I really want to get to!
Anyway, thanks for the patience, I don't know if the coming chapters will come soon or not, because I'm going to University next week so I'm going to be a very busy boy! But when I get five minutes, I'll continue writing.
Characters:
The Redguard: just a redguard bandit. She's what I imagined at this point.
Dragon Language:
Fus Ro Dah : Force Balance Push
Thanks for reading, and as usual please leave a review!