And now we move on the Team 2's mission, what will they find once they reach the source of power?
Chapter 52
A Familiar Face...
With Reynold, at the Nutilus estate...
Once the holy knight duo of Rey and Marquel finally settled into the office, The head knight was relaying the struggles he was currently facing during his time before and after he took leadership of the Fort, some of which had the noble interested...
"And that's why we're here today, in hopes of that guidance," Rey finished off...
The old man thought for a moment before saying, "Restoring that fort isn't easy, only the price for the repairs will be high. As for furnishing the necessities... The only way for you to get it done is to join a great organization."
Rey nodded at that, "Well, do you have any recommendations on who we could cozy up with?"
"Have you heard of the treacherous group called the Birds of Prey?" Lorel Nutilus asked.
Rey took a deep sigh, "Yeah, I'm more than familiar with them...enough to know they've got a couple of recruits within their ranks now...what of them though, I pretty much cooked my chances them with that failed mission,"
The old noble frowned, "I take that you didn't know that they planned on reversing the power and marching against Celestine. Those traitors plan to end the Seven Kingdom Alliance for their plans."
Rey had a perplexed look on his face, "Huh, that would...explain some things, and why..."Certain" people ended up in positions, so it was just like she said..." slowly nodding to himself, remembering what the high inquisitor told him.
"I'm pretty sure that they orchestrated many events to make the Holy Knights look bad." Lorel added, "And they manipulated the mind of the population in believing that they could trust monsters."
Rey thought on it, "And not just that...But the mind of our goddess as well, for some reason, she's compelled to listen to most of them and I think, she might have a fancy for one of them..." narrowing his eyes on that...
Picking on the last part, the old man leaned forward, "Are you sure?"
"I said, she "Might" have a fancy, doesn't mean it's legit, although the energy I felt between her and the new sword defender when he was...Comforting her, was different...that's the best way I can put that," Rey sighed with a headshake.
The old noble took a deep breath, "I see... our goddess has been corrupted... Celestine is no longer the Goddess Reborn... the church must be aware of this fact." a sad tone as some tears began to fall, "This loss should be paid. We must search for a new Goddess Reborn to protect."
Rey and Marquel shared glances before the former returned his gaze to the tearing-up old man, the former slowly nodding...
"I don't know about outright corruption, we still have our blessings, but that's why we came seeking the help, before things end up that way...Permanently... and we lose our powers, which we'll need for the battle of Ur and beyond since Feoh fell to the monsters" The head knight explained.
"I can vouch for you to join the Obsidian Table." Lorel replied, "An alliance of nobles and military figures who fight the spread of the Birds of Prey under the guidance of the most esteemed High Inquisitor."
Reynold thought on that, "I met the high inquisitor a week before now..." He began with, "There's someone I have to present to her, but the problem with that, is that I've only met him once and I wasn't charged tracking him down then, now? we haven't even seen the old man on the roads,"
"If she asked you to deal with him, then there's a good reason for it." the old noble stated, "If you do present her his head, you may gain her favors."
Rey nodded at that, "I'll keep an eye out for him... if I see him again... he'll be good as gone," He assured, "but for now, until we manage to get that chance, do you know where we can go to get good weapons and supplies...? Vendors that are still loyal to the holy knights...?"
"There is someone in Ur that can get you some good weapons, good enough compared to the usual Knights." Lorel replied, "However, you'll need to pay him up front."
"That's alright, that I'll have no problem doing soon," the young lead smiled, "Who's the guy? Or what's the store?"
"A man known as Darsh the Old," the old lord replied, "A retired soldier who used to repair armor and weapons during his glory days."
He nodded at that, turning to Marquel who was pleased, before glancing back at the old noble...
"Okay~ I like the sound of that, we'll see what he has when we get the gold together," Rey grinned, standing up from the chair, "Thank you~ your insight's been helpful~ if I need advice, I know who to come to now," offering a handshake.
You're welcome at any time my boy." Lorel smiled as he shook Rey's hand before handing him a letter, "If you go to the Fort Blackstone and present this to the High Inquisitor, she might take you to the Obsidian Table."
He took the letter, "Very well~ I'll try to get both to her when we next meet, until then, I'll see you soon Lord Nutilis," with a bow.
"May the light guide your path, young knight." the old lord replied.
When they reached outside of the estate, Rey turned to Marquel...
"Well, Marquel, you were right...he did have good advice, great advice actually," The head knight smiled.
"Not only that, but he also gave you a golden opportunity to get with a group that's as powerful as the Birds of Prey," Maquel added.
"And place to get weapons to boot, in a moment...we won't have to worry about the sword-defender's lash, should he bring it to us..." Rey hummed, "This just depends if I meet the high inquisitor again or not, and we're still waiting for Lady Claudia to come through..." smiling at something, "However...I may have a way, to pay for those weapons, and the answer...lies in my old family's estate in Ken..."
Marquel looked conflicted as he said, "About that... the Musel house was seized and sold to Swain... from what I heard, he turned it into a hospital..."
He froze at that, closing his eyes as they shadowed over, the sounds of his childhood echoing in his head, sighing, "Some of my best memories were from that house...That's how little he thought of us...?" slowly nodding to himself, "Very well, I see how it is now...Luckily, I was smart and buried my saved away money under a rock, one that's marked, but knowing swain, Security is probably tight..." eyes coming back hard, "We'll need to scope it first and if we can't get in, well..." pausing at the next bit, "We may have to depend on a certain devil, but one we know to get that back..."
"Let's hope for the best." Marquel sighed.
On the main road, minutes after Traysek, Rela, and Recorder's departure...
Sylla was walking ahead of the group, heading toward the southeast.
Lucien frowned while holding a map, as he followed from behind, "You can feel it from this way? how dense is it?"
"It's hard to explain..." Sylla replied, "Being a member of the Night Cavalry got me to sharpen my senses to this kind of things to... an extreme way." she looked around, "I got to hunt enough prey that was assigned to me to kill."
"So in a way, it works like the boss's sensory ability...?" Inigo asked, adding, "He's been able to feel out people, even in hidden places, and wonder if it's the same for you,"
"In a way," Sylla answered, "My senses are... too focused on a place rather than a person, that's why I was able to sense that mass of energy."
Yuriana nodded at that, gulping her canteen, "So there's an area radiating...whatever this energy is, I thought this would've been an actual person, still interesting,"
"Might be what's in it, it could be anything, a lost wizard, a forgotten valley, or even some cosmic horror..." Klein added in, sweating at the last bit, "Hoping it's not the last part..."
"It's close to the energy around Traysek, but at the same time different." Sylla stated before explaining further, "The source can be considered the same, but the way it has been used is way different than him. It's more like asking if all Tarnished are the same."
"Yeah, but I'm getting a feeling, Tarnished are more common than Dragonborn are..." Lucien pointed out, "From how you describe it, it's almost as common as a normal human or any mortal race...Meanwhile, The Dragonborn are born every millennium, and that's only if the gods like us that much, they normally don't..."
"I guess that we'd find out when we get there..." Sylla said, still looking around.
Yuriana narrowed her eyes on the road, "Even so...We'd still need to be cautious, just because they might have the same power, doesn't mean they'll have the same heart or intentions,"
Sylla nodded and said, "You couldn't have said it with more truth. Everything is different than it's identical, that's why you need to always be ready."
"Let's just hope it's a friend of ours out here and this just ends nicely, although I'm getting gut feeling, it's going be complicated..." Inigo slightly sweated.
"If it's that dangerous, I'll get serious in dealing with it." Sylla assured, "We're one team after all."
"True, we'll have the advantage in numbers, but that also depends on how much knowledge he or she's got," Lucien concurred, "There are certain shouts they know that can...bend and dominate a mind..."
"Same as the powers of Miquella the Kind, huh?" Sylla commented with a hint of disgust.
"In a way, but how does this "Muquella" do it?" Inigo asked with a frown.
"His name is 'Miquella'." Sylla corrected, "And honestly, the only thing that I know has the effect of controlling someone's mind related to his are these flowers that can be used on nearly any living being. However... I heard some rumors that Miquella stole their love." she then sighed, "But I'm not sure..."
Lucien winced, "That...sounds pretty terrifying on its own...Hope I don't run into that guy..." he shuddered, "But, the bend will technique they know... is to the point and instant...Body, mind, and soul are being controlled while under that shout, and from the boss told me...it feels like having a rope, pushed in and then pulled around in your brain,"
Sylla's sweat dropped, "That doesn't sound nice..."
"If it sounds bad, it feels even worse," Yuriana added, "Ours has that same technique too, but barely uses it, unless it's to purify and cure a mind, deems it too broken to use in combat," Narrowing her eyes again, "But I'm thinking pride's got something to do with that too..."
"I take that he doesn't like cheating..." Sylla wondered.
"Well, not necessarily that either, given we're a thieves guild currently, he'll take any opportunity he can get, trust us on that" The Redhead chuckled, "But even he knows there are limits to cheating, and depending on a shout like that...it's far too easy to go corrupt with power...you can even enchant objects with that mind technique and whoever touches it, suffers that fate..."
"That sounds exactly like Miquella," Sylla sighed, "The fact remains that this power is close to his... and that's a frightening thought, if I have to be honest..."
"The Thu'um is a frightening power... in the hands of a megalomanic it can be horrid..." Lucien nodded in agreement, "There's only two others that can contend with that, but the odds of finding those powers here, are very little to none... one of them has already died out three eras past, and the other, is a guarded secret by the Dwemer, an advanced race beyond, well, everyone here..."
"I take that this Thu'um power can't be replicated, huh?" Sylla asked.
"Not exactly...Some can learn how to control it, it just takes longer for them to understand the knowledge, but those that do...We call them "Tongues" " the imperial explained, "However, for most, it can take...gods, years to even get the first down, however, we have a tongue here now," nodding his head towards Yuri.
The Redhead slightly blushed, "I'm not THAT much of one, but I do have my own shout that can heal everyone around me,"
"I do have that Troll technique I got after killing one... but I don't know if it's near one of those 'Shouts' of yours," Sylla stated out loud.
Inigo frowned as they neared more signs, "Oh? and what does that do? it sounds strong on it's own,"
Sylla stopped and said, "I can show it to you right now if you want."
They all stopped and thought about it, the khajiit nodding...
"Sure, I don't think we'll mind, just as long as we remain in one piece," The Blue khajiit sweatdropped.
"Well, you need to give me some space." Sylla mentioned, "It's... it's quite powerful."
The rest of the group took a few steps back, giving her the room needed...
The Tarnished lifted her foot and stomped while unleashing a powerful roar that unrooted some trees around.
The group whistled at that, Klein applauding...
"Very nice, you took up few trees!" he complimented.
Lucien nodded impressed, "Okay, that's not bad, it's an effective roar, almost up there with unrelenting force, it's impressive,"
"That's a Troll Roar." Sylla pointed, "Some people can get their hands on the Ashe of War, but it's just a weak version."
Yuriana nodded, "I see, so there are weapons out there with that roar in them, I'll have to check if Iji has one later, he just might..."
"But if the ash of war's weak...then how did you use the original variant...?" Inigo asked with an eyebrow raised.
"It's because I'm not human." Sylla answered, "As a Nightfolk and a member of the Night Cavalry, I can copy and mimic the abilities of foes that I kill."
Yuri marveled at that, "Interesting, so you can take abilities from foes once they're slain...that's quite an ability, naturally at that..."
"I agree, it's awe-inspiring," Lucien complimented, "But can you mimic and use a language unknown to you? The Thu'um is a language, dragon-speak, unless you understand Dovahzul, good luck trying it on any Dragonborn,"
Sylla thought on it deeply, "Maybe... I mean, I can mimic anything in the Lands Between. And I haven't found something worth copying in this world..."
"Hmm, it's not like an ability like yours exists where we come from, we could be wrong in that regard, who knows?" Inigo shrugged, "But, once again, we're just hoping it's our friend Diyha out here messing around, and not some unknown playing with magic,"
"Let's see." and Sylla continued her way.
Deep in a forest...
Unknown camp...
The group arrived in an abandoned camp that seemed to have hosted a party of three people.
"Well, that's the origin of the power..." Sylla pointed.
Inigo frowned at the trio ahead of them, "Okay...Looks like no one we know, but some of those weapons and armor, look familiar..."
"Strange, would that mean one of these people is Dragonborn?" Yuri also frowned...
"Possibly, but it could be one or all three of them, we won't know from here..." Lucien added in.
Klein nodded slowly, "Either way, we're supposed to be finding them..." Turning to Sylla, "Now what...? Do we go say "Hi?""
Sylla looked around before saying, "It would seem that they're heading south. Anyone knows what's south?"
Klein hummed, rubbing his chin, "I may...one second..." reaching into his pack and coming out with an old map, "Glad I never threw this away, figured I needed it...let's see..." narrowing his eyes on the roads, before widening them when he found where they were going, "Um...There's a village south of here, but..." sighing, "It's not good like you think, I've been there, a couple of times during my career as a holy knight...They cater to the nobles of ken there,"
"I see..." Sylla nodded, "We'll go there, and see if we find those people. If we're attacked, we defend ourselves; no warning shots on someone, no aggravation of a situation, and no weapon pulling until we feel danger."
"We got it, made that mistake once already, there will be no engagement like that this time," Yuriana assured, "That and, I'm sure the boss isn't going to forgive us if we do something like that again,"
Inigo nodded in agreement, "That said, do you know the name of this village?"
"Indeed, it's called: Crystalgold... not sure what they were thinking when they came up with the name, because those nobles have anything but gold hearts..." Klein pointed, putting the map away, "Luckily for us, I know a few knights there, so might be fine, just stay frosty and let me do the talking..."
"Of course," Lucien agreed as the others nodded, "How much further to it...?"
"Not that much that further, a few miles and we'll be there," The former knight answered, "But be warned, the slave trade is alive and well out here as well, even more so there...I know what you just said about collateral but..."
"Like I said, if they take the first step, then we pull out our weapons." Sylla confirmed, "Unless you want to-" She then cut herself after remembering something, "Do you guys have bounties on your heads?"
Inigo thought about it, "We did...all of us, but I think that's been cleared away since the ceremony,"
"We hope so anyway, we don't exactly know if the boss becoming Sword-defender, really got that off our heads or not," Lucien pointed out...
Klein slightly sweated, "Well, in a way...it does and yet it doesn't..." he began with, "On one hand, they can't just arrest you, but that doesn't mean the bounties have died off, it just means that they'll need an excuse to act on it...and there's the fact, that you guys don't have duelist to contend with that..."
"So, as long as we keep cool, they can't act on it...Gotcha," Yuriana nodded, "And you said we needed a "Duelist?" what's with that?"
"Because having one, can keep you guys out of legal troubles... For example, if Paladin Claudia came for you all and was ready to arrest you...by you all having one, she would HAVE to honor and respect that tradition, and should ours win...they can't do anything further, even the high inquisitor doesn't break this rule..." The former knight explained.
"That seems handy." Sylla nodded, "But where to find one?"
"Ah, that's the question, isn't it...? The thing is, acquiring a Duelist isn't as easy as you'd think," Klein pointed out, "Sure you could check the academies, but those are funded by the alliance... We'd get nowhere there...Especially when they're going to the next noble to serve... However, I'm sure Lord Swain might know someone willing..."
"The only Duelists that I know are ruthless gladiators that were banned from the arenas in the Lands Between." Sylla stated before looking away with a blush, "But they were big, that's a fact..."
The rest of the group glanced at each other, frowning hard...
"Right...I'm scared to ask in what way," Klein sweatdropped, "But the kind of Dueling I'm talking about, is more high class, it has a lot more rules and regulations to it, duelists usually start at ten paces with fencing blades, however, some of those duels aren't fought with swords at all, but with Flintlocks with one shot in them,"
When they arrived at the village, they found a lot of knights dead and some pierced with arrows that were familiar to Inigo.
"By the nine, what in the world happened here?" Lucien asked looking around, "It's like an army came through..."
Inigo walked over to a corpse, inspecting it, finding half its head blown off, "I am not sure, but I recognize familiar arrows when I see them...those are the same as the ones Diyha gave me," inspecting the massive damage the arrows had done, "There can be no mistaking it, the damage these can do I know all too well... guess that answers the question on what that bowman was packing,"
"Or her...But the main question is, why? why decimate an entire village like this?" Yuriana asked with her eyes narrowed.
Klein looked around with a worried look, sighing, "No idea...but we should check for any survivors, they might know what happened here..."
Sylla went to check the arrows, "Those are well made, a true work of art." she then looked behind, "To pierce so many trees... it's frightening."
"Yeah, tell me about, divine flame, and the components to make them are extremely rare," The khajiit answered, checking around the scene more...
As the group continued the search, Klein heard a weak cough nearby, widening his eyes...
"Hey guys! we've got a live one over here!" he called out, getting their attention.
"We're deviating from the mission..." Sylla mumbled as she got to the others.
When they got to the guy, it was an older noble, who was underneath a couple of dead horses...
"H-help...can't breathe..." the old noble croaked out...
"Inigo, help me get these horses off of them," Klein ordered, as the khajiit moved to do as such...
Once the horses were off, they found him covered in slashes...the former knight going up to him first...
"What happened here?" he asked the old man.
"I...was just...passing through...when...the village...was visited...by three strangers..." The old noble croaked out, "They were...hassled...by the guards here...for being new...I couldn't hear...what it was about...but one of the three...started opening fire on them and then...chaos broke out...most of the town got away...I...wasn't so lucky..."
Lucien nodded, "Okay, but what happened to the trio...?"
"I...think...I saw them...go into...the large storehouse over...there..." he weakly pointed at the nearly wrecked building.
"They were there, but not any longer..." Sylla said as she went to inspect the storehouse.
"Damn, gone that quickly? they move pretty fast," Yuriana whistled.
Klein clicked his teeth, "What else did you see? did anything stand out besides your..."Visitors?" "
"N-Not...that...I can...recall...they...were two young women... and a masked man...that's...all...I remember...I'm sorry..." The old man huffed, taking his last breath...
The former knight sighed, closing the old man's eyes with his hand, "He's gone...Bloody shame that..." standing back up...
"Well? Now what?" Inigo asked, "If we need to, I can get started tracking them from that storehouse, it won't be hard to get their scent,"
Lucien thought about it, "But should we do that? I remember we were told to track down the source, but no one said anything about interacting with them,"
Sylla returned, looking disgusted and angry, "I hope that every last one of them is dead."
Yuri frowned hard, "Why? What'd you see in there...?" raising an eyebrow.
"The actual reason why I think this happened..." Sylla replied, "That storehouse is full of cages and chains... all bloody. I didn't find bodies of those poor women, but what's left says all that happened to them..."
When they got to the storehouse, they found what she meant, their blood going cold at the sight...
Lucien gulped with a slight sweat, "W-well, I can see why this happened...By the nine..."
"Eh, it's starting to surprise me less, to be honest, I've seen enough of these," Inigo shrugged, "Still gross to find though..."
Meanwhile, Klein had a hard scowl at the sight, "So this is where they kept their slaves...This is beyond disgusting, no one deserved this...Human or Elf..." clenching his fist, anger burning in his chest.
Sylla shook her head, "Let's get moving. We should be able to catch up to them if we move quicker."
The former knight nodded, closing his eyes and calming himself, "Agreed, besides, if what that noble said held a weight, if the locals got away, they've most likely called for reinforcements, we don't need to be here when they are," turning to Inigo, "Can you trace a trail from here as you said?"
"It won't be easy, not with all this blood and... fluids hanging around, it's heavy in the air, but," The khajiit paused, "I can try, but don't expect me to put my mouth on anything...Wet in here..." gagging on that last bit, before kneeling down and going to work.
"No need. I know where they headed." interrupted Sylla, looking west, "Follow me."
"That's right, you're tracing their power, okay then, lead the way," Klein nodded as the others followed her...
As they were heading west, the image of the storehouse was still lingering in Klein's mind.
"Something on your mind?" Sylla asked, "I can feel your emotions from afar."
The former knight sighed deeply, "Yeah...It's just... hard to put that out of my mind..." giving a bitter chuckle, " To be honest with you all...I'm...Disgusted, angry, and confused..." he admitted, "The only reason I even knew of the slave trades that took place here was because I had heard it through the grapevine...But to actually see it for myself, to be in there...Gods...and that was just the aftermath..." Shaking his head with cold eyes "I don't think I can look at my former comrades the same... Knowing I held out for torture because I thought myself loyal...makes this feeling even worse...Was my sister going to up in one of those or worse if I remained...?"
Sylla stayed silent for a moment before saying, "You feel conflicted and betrayed... something a lot of people would understand. However, you shouldn't look at that as an ugly truth, even if it is one, but as an eye opener to help you make better choices."
Klein slowly nodded, feeling a small smile appear, as Inigo walked up and gently placed a hand on his shoulder...
"We've seen enough to know we can't blame only one person, my friend, We don't hold you at fault for any of it, you are okay with us," The khajiit assured with a smile.
Lucien nodded, "I agree, you're already on a better path, and sure you can't do it in holy armor anymore, but I still see a knight, and that's enough for me,"
Yuriana said nothing for a minute, sighing, "The fact that you feel something about what's happened here, shows you weren't with any of it...even if you served them...you never took pleasure there, I have no reason to worry...and I don't think the rest are either..."
"The past may be settled in stones, but that doesn't mean that it will still be written." Sylla added, "As long as you have the ability and will to atone for any sin that you committed, nothing's lost.
"Klein had a look of shock, nodding at that, "I- No...you're right, all of you...I let that get to me, I shouldn't...But..." staring ahead with hardened eyes, "I have the incentive now not to hold back...especially if I catch them that dirty..."
"You'd better get ready, 'cause we're near the source," Sylla stated, narrowing her eyes.
Near Erdora...
The group continued to track the other three adventurers, coming to an all too familiar village, making the former knight frown...
"Wait...is this Erdora...? We just came from opposite direction didn't we?" squinting his eyes on the village.
They spotted the trio nearby, heading towards the village with a large group of women, all of which had tattered and ruined clothing, even a few kids amongst them...
Inigo narrowed his eyes on the masked man, recognizing him immediately, eyes going wide..
"I know him...that's Miraak, the first Dragonborn..." He uttered in a shaken tone...
Lucien blinked twice, "But how...? Didn't the boss kill him? I was certain he did..."
"But the bigger question is why does he have those women with him...?" Yuriana asked with a frown, "Has he brainwashed them already...?"
"I don't think so..." Sylla narrowed her eyes, "I suggest that we approach with caution and only attack if he attacks first."
"Agreed, it won't go well getting on his bad side," Yuriana nodded, watching them with caution, "We should first see where they're going and then talk to them, might pan out better,"
Meanwhile, in the group...
"Another village, maybe that it'll be different than the last one we were in," Miraak stated.
"I sure hope so." one of the young women, light brown hair tied in a ponytail, yellow eyes, and wearing armor over a scaled mail, "I wish we could get the others too."
"That wouldn't be fun to leave no one alive." the second young woman said with a giggle, Long blonde hair, blue eyes, and wearing some sort of blue tunic that has white fur on some places, "Besides, they aren't a threat to us."
"Still, we shouldn't underestimate them." the first Dragonborn warned, "Sophie, you are too bloodthirsty, you need to learn how to control yourself." he then turned to the blond one, "And you, Lucia, you should take things a bit more seriously." he sighed before adding, "We're here to find the Dragonborn, not create distress that might end up against us." and he continued scolding the two while the women who were imprisoned were enjoying the meat of a boar.
From afar, the other group watched as the women ate the boar, the khajiit rubbing his chin while he listened in, ears up like antennae...
"Looks like they're stopped there for now, Miraak seems to be in the middle of scolding the two warriors with him," Inigo informed them.
Lucien nodded, "Then now's the time for a chat? but maybe three at a time, We don't want to give the impression we're bandits,"
Sylla thought on that, "I'll go..." She then turned to Inigo, " You stay here, in case things get ugly. But only shoot those three, not the women." she then turned to Klein, "Go around and ask for someone to come here to help, I feel like he's far stronger than all of us combined..." she then looked at the remaining two, "You'll come with me as Lucian will be the one who'll do the talking."
Lucien nodded, "I'll do my best in that regard, hopefully, they're in a better mood after all that carnage,"
"I can hear plenty from even here, I'll keep you covered and arrows off the rest," The khajiit agreed, heading to the nearest tree and climbing to a branch, perching himself.
Klein thought on it, "I know someone, that runs a missionary here, I'll speak to the head priest, if not, I can get Guard captain here, he should be there too," heading towards the village.
"I'm ready when you two are," Yuri said, with a smile, "Just expect anything..."
"Let's go..." Sylla sighed as the three walked up to the group.
When they got close, Miraak and the other two adventurers turned in their direction...
"Excuse us?" Lucien greeted, "Hello there~ I'm Lucien Flavius, an imperial from Skyrim, and these two with me are Sylla and Yuriana," motioning to the two women, "Might we have a moment of your time?"
The blonde one smiled and said, "How can we help you?"
The imperial took a sigh of relief, "Glad to hear it..." he began with, "I'll cut to the chase, we're out here to investigate a string of disturbances, and trail of magic led to you three, we've followed your trail from the last village you came from, to here...Since we know you come from the same world as we do, what are your intentions here in this one?"
The trio stayed silent before the other young woman replied, "It's none of your business." as she crossed her arms.
The imperial gently threw his hands up, "Now hold on, there's no reason to take unfriendly tones here, we're not with the nobles or the holy knights you fought previously, far from it actually," he calmly defended, "Much like your taciturn friend over there, our boss is also a Dragonborn...Quite a powerful one at that... he's the one who sent us out here and from the looks of things, you all seem to be on an expedition of some kind, despite your rescue earlier," nodding towards the eating women, "Depending on what or who you're seeking, we may be able to help in that regard,"
Both women looked at Miraak who shook his head before saying, "Mortals are greedy, so you'd better say why you're here."
"If you want to an answer on the fact if we're a threat, rest assured that we aren't..." Lucia pointed with a smile, "As long as we aren't targeted."
"Okay, well, there's good news there, we don't consider you a threat," Lucien smiled, "Nor are we targeting you to harm or arrest any of you," before directing his attention to Miraak, "As for what we're doing here, as I said before our Guildmaster sent us out to investigate the ripples of power that I'm guessing you were causing, it was enough for his benefactor to order as such... And thus here we are, " he shrugged.
"Guildmaster?" Sophie raised an eyebrow.
Lucien nodded, "Yes, although not quite the same as the one of the guilds back home or...one you're familiar with, assuming we're from the same timeline and all, I know there are others out there," he nodded, "Like for example, this Diyha woman our boss met, apparently she's Dragonborn too, got our weapons from her at one point,"
"Wait, you met mom?" Lucia asked raising an eyebrow.
The imperial nodded, "A while back, yes... She helped us escape from the alliance's clutches in Ken, I still have yet to thank her for it though, but she's considered our ally and friend, that's for sure,"
Miraak sighed, "At the end of the day, what do you really want?"
Lucien paused, glancing at the two companions with him, before sighing, "I was pretty clear on my intentions, Lord Miraak...Our mission was to confirm if the spike of power our benefactors felt was a threat, but seeing as you're not, our job is pretty much done here..." he pointed out, "I can understand if your trust into people has been shaken since being here, believe me, ours has for certain...but, we truly desire nothing else from you or your companions here..."
"As long as you're not affiliated with the remains of the Dark Brotherhood or the bandits of the Thieves Guild that survived the eradication, we can trust you... for now." Miraak stated, his arms crossed.
Lucien nodded, "Marvelous~ And you don't have to worry about that, we have no connection to that version of the thieves guild or to that dark brotherhood... Our timeline's guilds have been reformed... Our leader wasn't exactly nice about how he did either, but Skyrim's been better for it, I can't complain," he shrugged.
Sophie's expression hardened, "Members of a Thieves Guild, huh? And if I had to guess, you're also members of the Dark Brotherhood..."
Lucien narrowed his eyes, but remained calm, "No. not the Dark Brotherhood, not to mention... they scare me..." he admitted "But as I said before, different universes...Whatever happened with yours, we're not connected to it or them... Especially here..." motioning around them all.
"Having a silver tongue won't help you with us, you know?" Lucia pointed with a smile, "We are expert hunters of both thieves and members of the Dark Brotherhood."
Yuriana sighed, "Imagine that, so are we..." she smiled also. Still, her left eye went aglow, "But, as my well-spoken friend here says, you have nothing to fear from us, such as long as you keep your blades at bay," the glow going out, "We won't have any issues, besides we only go after those who've got it coming, I trust you've met them, yeah?" motioning her head towards the women.
"We did meet some of them." Lucia replied, "A few heads to add to our notches."
"A bunch of nothing who tasted our steel," Sophie added.
The guild members look amongst themselves...
"I wouldn't underestimate this world's dangers if I were you..." Lucien warned, "We thought the same as you did until they revealed tricks of their own, one of which can turn the magic of any user against them...Nasty business there," with a sweatdrop.
"It's not underestimating, but hating how some men of this world think." Sophie corrected.
Yuriana nodded in agreement, "Disgusting right?, Yeah, we're no fans of that either, but...We also know where it ALL of that stems from..." sighing after, "Let's just say, some of the women in this world, aren't exactly right in the head either... To the point that the heads of the alliance wanted to convince us to betray our own...Not to mention that they also benefit from the slave trades as well...Trust me, they wouldn't have all the..." she paused, gulping something down, "Types of "legal" brothels they have now..." gagging at the last bit.
"I take that it's the unusual kind," Miraak stated, not knowing how to react.
Lucien grimaced with a cringe, "That's...one way to put that...from what she and another told me, some of those boys didn't even have hair to their chin...so yeah...it's from all kinds of gross things going on in the seven kingdoms..."
"There's one city, it doesn't take any presence in, but sadly we can't disclose that location, we'll get into plenty of trouble if we do," Yuriana informed with a sad smile, "Even to other kinsmen...apologies,"
"I don't have a problem with hugging and snuggling a cute kid." Lucia nodded, "But beyond that... I can't stomach it..."
"Then we're at an agreement there," The Redhead chuckled, before nodding at Lucien.
The imperial smiled, "That said, we would hate to keep you guys all day, I'm sure you're all busy," nodding his head towards the village, "The village that you're standing in front of, has people there that can look after these women, they're healers and doctors, so they'll be taken care, we sent one of ours to get them here,"
"I take that you're familiar with this village," Miraak remarked.
"Quite familiar, this is the village: Erdora," Lucien nodded, "It used to be smaller than this...much, but we also live nearby here but the opposite way...hard to explain,"
Moments After Klein returned with a group of Healers...
"Sorry that took a while, they were tending to plenty already," The dark knight apologized.
"Former Slaves from Ken?" Sylla asked
"That and a bit more, apparently there a few others that were recently rescued from other territories by the missionaries here," Klein answered, noticing the other three, giving a bow, "Ahh, hello there~ pardon my manners, I'm Klein, former holy knight and now current dark knight, nice to meet you all!" he introduced himself.
"Same here," Lucia replied.
He then turned to his group, "Hey, how are things going? we good?"
"Yeah, we're about to head home, nothing to fear here, they're looking for someone we know, but they're no threat," Lucien relayed.
The dark knight nodded, "That's good, well then," turning back to the other group, "I wish you luck on your quest, I hope you find who you're looking for...be lucky to be in these kingdoms," with a sigh.
Yuriana turned to the tree Inigo was in, "Hey Ini! You can come down now, it went well!" she called out.
"I heard!" he shouted back, jumping down and landing, walking up to the rest of the group, "Helloooo~ the name's Inigo~ I was just keeping an eye on things, I heard everything too, I hope you guys find her, I'm sure she'll be fine though, Diyha's quite powerful,"
"You don't say..." Sophie replied.
"Let us be on the move." Miraak sighed, "The faster we can find her, the faster we can contact Sissel to give her the summary of what's happening."
"Right." both young women nodded and the trio left the women with the healers.
Sylla's team watched them disappear into the village, the Imperial smiling and waving at their departure...
"I think that ended pretty well," Lucien commented, "This...is going to be an interesting report to write, that's for sure..."
"Mine's already written," Sylla smirked, showing Lucian a bunch of papers that were full, top to bottom with no interlines.
He blinked at her twice in shock, "How...? and when did you get the time...?"
"I have my ways~" Sylla chuckled, "And~ I have a neat little thing that helped me with it~" she then showed him a black butterfly that appeared in her hand.
The others nodded in approval, watching it float...
"Lucky, wish I had a helper like that...but I could see how you got it done," The imperial complimented, "And if you've got a report like that already, I don't think I need to add mine, it'll keep things simple,"
Inigo nodded, "So? back to the house then?"
"Yeah, unless you wanna pick up a few things while out here," Yuriana added, "It's good and early enough to make it back for their tea, I say we go back for now,"
"I think it's safe to add 'Lucian refused to do his job by writing a report', right?" she suggested.
He narrowed his eyes, with a smug smirk, "Well...we all can't have a magic butterfly to do it for us, can we...?"
"I'll let it slide just this one." Sylla smiled, "But there's no next time~"
He waved off with a nod, still wearing the smirk, "Yeah yeah, I still promised one anyway, I'll give him a two-pager,"
"So with that settled, let's head back," Inigo said with a grin.
"First thing after getting back is a hot bath!" Sylla proclaimed with a cheerful smile.
Somewhere else...
Marpesia was sitting on a balcony, overlooking men training.
"A wolf must never let his fangs dull, or he'll become prey." she chuckled as a knight of the inquisition entered.
"My lady, Volt is here with the sorcerer Kin and the scout Hicks," he said.
"Good," Marpesia smirked, not looking back, "Bring them in."
Moments after, Volt, Kin, and hicks walked onto the balcony, the former's head covered in bandages, with a new metal hand while the other was still wrapped up.
The black dog leader stepped forward, "You wanted to see me?"
"Have you ever seen a wolf who lost his fangs?" the Grand Inquisitor asked.
Volt frowned at that, going into a thought, "If you mean a warrior who's lost their fire, then yeah, I've seen it..." thinking back.
"I was talking about those who lost their touch..." Marpesia corrected, "Those that I can get rid of without worrying of repercussions... what you mentioned was a wolf who lost his will to hunt."
Volt raised an eyebrow at that, "I see...then no, unless you mean someone here currently..."
"Do you know... how much it was to lend you that fort, well placed and free of charge?" Marpesia asked, "You assured victory, didn't you?"
The Black dog leader sighed, "I know, I remember everything you went through to get that done...Everything was going to plan, we had victory a grab away...and then..." gritting his teeth, "The monster army shows up, along with the Red dragon jackasses...went to shit after that,"
"Well, unlike a certain someone... you didn't make a false promise." Marpesia chuckled, "After all, I hate those who make false promises. And I don't need to tell you what I do to them, right?" looking at the decomposing body of the former Inquisitor Horak, attached to a wooden pole.
The trio of dogs looked at the rotting body and gulped...
"So that's what happened to him, it's a shame..." Kin commented.
Volt nodded, regaining his composure, "That said, I made sure Beasley had gotten away, currently he's hiding out in Ur with a few of our allies there, including the arch-bishop..."
"Now, why don't you let me ask you this?" she turned to them, smiling, "Are you in need of muscles that can destroy mountains and blades that can strike from shadows?"
They thought on that for a moment, the black dog leader nodding at the idea...
"Okay...I might be interested," He admitted, "We already have the lone shadows for the blades in the dark, but what's this about muscles that can destroy mountains...?" with an eyebrow raise and smirk.
"Let's just say that sometimes, some people are born with what others consider as curses." Marpesia began to look toward an approaching rock, "However, I see those curses as benedictions."
They watched the rock approach, only to change direction, a strange warrior lifting it with one hand...
"Is that who you're talking about down there?" Kin asked with a hard frown, "He doesn't strike me as the...type to work with us,"
Volt nodded with an impressed grin, "Hoo~ he seems pretty strong, what do you have him doing down there? Training?"
"Indeed," Marpesia nodded, "Because of his curse, he can't stand long in fights. But he has increased the time from 5 minutes to 8 minutes."
"Interesting, even with a curse like that, it's impressive he's gotten that far," Kin nodded in approval.
Volt's grin widened, "Even more than that, assuming the General and Captain Jackass can last that long, he'll do nicely against them,"
"Now, I do hope that you won't fail again," Marpesia stated with a smirk.
The black dog leader nodded, "With this and what Beasley is cooking up, we shouldn't this time...although, in the case of," glancing at something on his belt, "I had...Gideon hooked me up with a new contingency, while he perfects the god-slaying weapon he lent me last time... we should be able to pull through this time, although in the case of our favorite meddlers, I'm willing to see what your man can do,"
"As long as you bring him home alive." Marpesia turned, looking at her knights, training, 'After all, he still has something to do, and being close to Volt would help in that regard.'
"Of course," Volt nodded, "When I get things prepared, I'll be back for him, he can stay and train for now...He'll need it for this," turning around, "For now, I'm gonna check on Gideon, see how far's he's come, I'll let you know what happens there, men, let's go," heading out.
Kin gave her a bow, "We'll speak again soon Grand Inquisitor," following his boss out with Hicks.
'He will fail again, and causing more friction between the forces.' Marpesia smirked, 'If the info that Deianeira brought me showed me that the Alliance will fall apart thanks to that stupid goddess.' she walked and sat on a chair, 'The era of war is near, and that so-called Sword-Defender is the one who'll unleash it.'
Later...
At Blackfeather manor
Sylla and the others walked back into the main house, happy with how things went...
"You know, going through there the second time, it's not so bad, it was soothing this time," Lucien complimented, "Even with those frightening creatures around,"
"That's still taking some getting used to from me, speak for yourself there, Lucien," Klein nervously chuckled.
"Heh, I've seen worse," Sylla smirked.
Inigo shivered at the thought, "Considering that we've all contracted Scarlet rot before, I dread the day we have to face any more of your world's dangers..."
"Don't remind me, my lungs burned so much during that point, not fun at all..." Yuriana sighed, looking around, "Well, since I don't see the boss, must still be out,"
Lucien nodded, "That...gives me a bit of time to work up my version of the report, I'll see if Omnico is willing to lend a hand there," with a chuckle, heading to his room.
"For my part, I'll head to the baths to take a long and relaxing bath." Sylla stated before adding with a sweet smile, "And, if any of you boys dare to take a peek, I'll show you why it took nine Night Cavalry members to take me down..."
The khajiit frowned at her, "What are we? Teenagers? You don't have to worry about us peeking, gods, I'm going to target practice, I'll catch you guys later" heading to the backyard.
"I need to get out of this armor, when you're done let me know, alright?" Klein said, heading to his room.
Yuriana sighed shaking her head, "Well then, that didn't take long...I'll drop this hammer off and then I'm heading to the bath as well," heading to her room finally.
"After that, I'll go visit Erdora." Sylla said, stretching her arms, "Kinda wish to see how good it is."
"You mean after you give him your report?" Yuri smirked at her, "He's still looking for that, and I did hear the wyvern out there"
"I was planning on leaving it on the desk for him to read." Sylla replied, "I'm not someone who doesn't do his duties, y'know?"
Yuriana nodded at that, "Very well then, I'll catch you later Sylla," heading off to her room last...
The Main office...
Traysek was at the desk, rolling a large blunt with the Jarl Herer strain when a knock sounded at his door.
"Come in!" he called back, finishing the rolling.
Sylla walked in with her long hair untied and still wet as she was wearing a black vest over a purple shirt and a long black skirt.
"How did you do?" she asked.
"I could ask the same~" He chuckled, "It went pretty well, I saw the largest bear I've ever seen in my life, if those are those "Rune-bears" you were talking about...That's frightening..." shivering at the thought.
"Big and looks like it can destroy a city wall with ease?" the Tarnished asked with a nervous smile.
"Larger than a house, has a roar that can shred men with ease, yeah, that sounds about right..." The Dragonborn sweated.
"Be thankful that it was just one..." Sylla sighed, "They sometimes stay in groups of 2 or 3..."
Traysek slowly nodded, "Noted...good thing I didn't actually have to fight it, we were watching their mission from a viewpoint, Recorder and her team sprayed some kind of lure that brought it and many other creatures there," shaking his head chuckle, "That garrison was torn apart when they were done,"
"I take that everything went well for them." Sylla took a small bottle filled with a red liquid from her magical storage space.
"it did, they got out with a portal," He informed, "That said, do you have the report? I half expected Lucien to show up first but, he's got a tendency to do the work at home,"
A pile of papers appeared on her hand with a golden dust, "Here it is." with a smirk.
He nodded in approval, looking them over, "Very nice~ detailed too...I like that," with a smile, scanning it more, "Hmm...So that's what it was, It was Miraak causing those ripples, but according to this, they're from Diyha's world they've come searching for her..." he commented while reading it, "She also had other daughters huh? ... Interesting..." glancing back up at her, "Okay, all I think I get the gist, once Lucien gets here with his, I'll turn them in"
"Need something else?" Sylla asked, "I'm going to visit the village nearby."
The Redguard shook his head, "Not for now, no," noticing her outfit, "But it does explain that attire...I like it~"
"Got it from a traveling merchant elf when I was in Feoh." she replied, "Didn't ask for much if we consider the quality of the materials used to make it."
"I see, alright then, have fun~" He grinned, "I'll probably head back out after I give these reports in, hopefully, I'll be back for dinner, I'll need to meet the Masson Guild tomorrow,"
Another knock rang at the door, startling them..
"Hey Boss? Are you guys in there? it's Lucien and I've got the report!" The imperial announced from the door.
"Enter!"
The door opened with Lucien holding a few pages, going up to the desk and dropping them off, "Sorry mine took a minute to get done, I had to depend on Omnico for this one,"
"I see," The Redguard noted picking up and reading over the reports, nodding with an approved expression, "Okay, they both match up, visitors from a different timeline, a village that was purged with rescued prisoners, alrighty~ good work, I'll get these in, enjoy your time off,"
"Thank you, boss, if you need me, I'll be in my room," Lucien smiled, leaving the office.
"As for my part, I'm heading out," Sylla added, also leaving the office.
Once they were gone, he pulled out the badge and gave it a rub...
"Lord Swain...? You there?" He asked.
"Yes, I'm here." Swain sighed, "And please, stop rubbing it, just take it and think about talking with me. You have no idea the kind of sound it makes in my ears..."
Traysek winced, "Apologies, I had no idea it was giving that off...I'll keep that noted," he apologized, "Anyway, their mission turned out successful, I have stacks of the report you've been looking for and it's quite interesting to say the least,"
"I see..." Swain went into deep thought before replying, "Hand them over to the head maid and tell her to put them on the desk in my room. I'll collect them later."
"You got it, when she gets here, I'll let her know," The Redguard informed, "Since I have something to do myself, I'll go ahead and let you go, you already seem perplexed about something when I contacted you, if anything else comes up, keep me posted,"
"Hmph, I do plan to work you to the bone." a smirk could be felt.
"And I expect as such," The Redguard grinned, "Especially once things take off after the deal with the Masson Guild goes through, which is tomorrow...I'll be in touch~"
"Well then, let's hope that they don't plan something compromising." Swain sighed before cutting off the communication.
Traysek frowned at that last statement, 'Hmm...wonder what that was about...oh well, I'll have to ask the next time...for now,' glancing at the calling stone, picking it up and activating it, "Oi, Klein? I need you at the main office," the glow going out, putting it away, before lighting the blunt, taking a pull.
A few minutes later, another knock sounded at the door...
"Come in!" The Redguard beckoned.
The dark knight, now in casual clothing, walks in, goes up to the desk...
"You needed something?" he asked, getting a nod.
"Yeah..." Traysek smiled, "That "Friend" you were talking about...the one at Luvenlis household,"
Klein went wide-eyed at the realization, "Oh! you mean Hildy...? Sure, what about her though?"
"I'm thinking it's time we got acquainted, I've had my interest in that place ever since I heard a certain holy knight nearly perished there, and going by what I've heard about her from Sylla, she's quite powerful... it would help to have a friend like that out there,"
The dark knight hummed at that, "I agree, and luckily for us, there's plenty of time for that meeting...very well, I'll fetch my coat and we'll be good to go," before going into thought, "From the time it is now, they're most likely having tea, Hildgarde and her mistress, so now would be a good time to tell, I'll make sure to call first before showing up," with a grin, before leaving the room.
"You do that, come get me when you're ready," Traysek grinned back.
At that moment, someone knocked on the door.
He frowned hard, knowing that Klein just left from there, "Um...who is it?"
"I got you the coffee you asked me." it was Rela's voice.
The Redguard smiled, "Ah Rela~ good~ come in! I was wondering when I'd get that," as the door opened.
She walked to him and put the cup on the desk with a small spoon next to it.
He looked at the uniquely made coffee, noting the toppings and what looked like chocolate on the edge, "Oh wow~ this looks promising..." taking the spoon, scooping a bit, and tasting it, eyes going wide...
In his mindscape, he had imagined himself yelling as when he down a slide of ice cream, straight into the pool coffee, before rising back up satisfied...
He blinked twice, coming out, "Godsdamn that's good, too damn good... had me in trance for a second, Well done on this~" taking another spoonful with a smile.
"Glad to hear it." Rela nodded.
After eating a few spoons, he nodded in approval, "You know...I wouldn't mind having this with breakfast often, it's that good... What do you call this?" with a smile.
"I haven't given it a name yet," Rela replied with a shrug.
The Redguard frowned at her, "Really now? A drink like this and it's unnamed? That's almost a crime," he chuckled, "Eh, we'll have to come up with one sometime...other than that, thank you Rela~"
"A pleasure." Rela nodded.
"That said, I'll be back later tonight, going on a bit of a personal venture with Klein," The Redguard informed, "Since I've heard too much about this Hildegard, it's time we met, and who knows? if she has connections to any scarlet rot weapons, since she's a user of it according to Sylla and Rey, we'll need those later, especially if our enemies are using things like demigod shackles,"
"Are you sure that she's going to help?" Rela asked, "She can say no."
He shrugged, "I'm not sure of anything yet, we have yet to meet after all... The only thing I can do is hope that this meeting goes well, that's my best bet,"
"Need any backup?" Rela asked.
"Considering that we'll be in some unknown territory, you're more than welcome to tag along," Traysek nodded, "But after I finish this, there's no way I'm leaving this unfinished," eating another spoonful.
"That means that you want a second one?" Rela tilted her head.
He thought on that for a moment, "Possibly...depends on how long Klein takes on getting here," with a smirk.
"I'll go make you a second one." Rela walked outside.
Traysek watched her leave, his only response being a chuckle as he continued to eat the rest of his coffee, the door closing...
End chapter...
And that concludes this chapter... I apologize for getting this in late, things have been a bit busy IRL lately...We'll try to speed things up on our end, No Omake this time, don't have any ideas on that since the last one... But if you've got ideas on one, I'm willing to hear anything from you, dear viewer, Stay tuned everyone :) and may the gods...Eh, you already know :)