Civil War Aftermath Chapter 2: War of the Sundered Dragon

[The Good Doctor]

Tribune Titus Al-Nazzir Pale Pass, Dawn (5:30 am)

 

It wasn’t the most respected assignment, but he needed something to preoccupy his time (and coin purse) until Tribune Auxis arrived. The Tribune and his team were tasked with taking out the scattered bandits surrounding the camp. Now a group of bandits aren’t really a match for a standard legionnaire, let alone a sword master and his team of specialists. The pay wasn’t much but at least they were allowed to keep the “tipsâ€.

Early in the morning they would prepare themselves for the ambush. They surround the prospective bandit camp (usually a cave with a few tents built outside the entryway). The daggers would use invisibility to sneak inside the tents and discretely slay the underlings of the bandit chief. A typical bandit chief is more protected and vigilant than his or her teammates. The Tribune is tasked with taking him out on his own, but a few of the daggers back him up (though it usually isn’t necessary).

The most recent Bandit Chief he fought was an Orc. He was about 6’11†with a missing eye, a fairly long grey beard, and a permanent scowl on his face (even for an Orc). He wore a complete set of Orcish armor and wielded a steel great-sword.

When The Tribune entered the cave the Bandit chief was waiting for him, “Never should’ve come here.†the chief said as he raised his sword to attack. The Tribune unsheathed his scimitar and instinctively countered the blow. The Orc staggered backwards, yet apparently found his second wind as he motioned to attack a second time. With every blow the Orc attempted, the Tribune reflexively countered. The Chief felt more tired with each blow while the Tribune was only getting started.

“Getting too old for this, eh Orc?†the Tribune said mockingly to his opponent. The Orc growled in response to the quip.

The Orc attempted to attack one last time, “Time to finish this,†the Tribune said to himself. During the course of the fight the Tribune noticed an imperfection in the Orc’s armor. When he raised his arms his green Orcish flesh was exposed. Quite a shame actually, the Bandit chief’s armor still provided more protection than the standard imperial heavy armor he was wearing.

The Chief, tired and disoriented, would ordinarily be suspicious that the warrior he’s facing off against isn’t defending himself from this blow of his. He pulled back with all his might, almost like an acrobat nearly making a right angle with his body. As he pulled forward, he was stopped by a chill sent through his side. The Tribune was standing next to the Orc with his sword pushed through his body. The chief was too tired to react or even feel the pain; the stamina drain enchantment tends to work as an anesthetic. You can cut through someone and they don’t reel in pain, their too tired to do even that.

The Orc slumped over, sliding off of the Tribune’s sword and died with a sigh. The Tribune looted his body. Pulling off the Orcish armor set and collecting the equipment the chief was carrying. A health potion, a bottle of skooma (contraband but he could sell it to the Khajit merchants who pass through the camp), a coin purse of 53 gold pieces, and an ebony dagger (which he immediately placed inside of his sheath with his scimitar). He thought about taking the steel great-sword as well, but it wasn’t really his style. The camp also had a chest, where the bandits store the things they gather in their raids. The Tribune already knew what was inside the chest but he decided to look despite his prediction. As expected, the chest was all but empty, the only thing inside was a single gold piece and a note.

“Pleasure doing business with you, bossâ€

During the ambush of the bandit camps, the Daggers would take the majority of whatever booty they find. It was the only way to pay off the debt he owes them. After taking their pay, they returned to the imperial camp without him.

“I guess I’ll carry this stuff back on my own†Said the Tribune gathering the Orc chief’s equipment.

When he arrived at the imperial camp, tired from heaving his freight, he first went to the local blacksmith to drop off the armor.

“This stinks†said the blacksmith, “what did you do, pull this off of a dead Orc?†He said sarcastically.

“Yeah,†said the Tribune in an aloof ‘matter of fact’ kind of way, “I need you to mend this, let me know when you’re done.†“Yes Tribuneâ€, replied the Blacksmith obediently. While he wasn’t always treated as such, he still had a few of the benefits of a senior officer.

“I guess today could’ve been worse†he said as he activated a healing spell with respite to keep him from passing out. “Best pick up I’ve had all week.†He went to his Barracks to sleep for the rest of the day.

[The Good Doctor]

Boldir Iron-Brow
Just outside Pale Pass
Two days later, early morning

 

Boldir and Erik walked through the lightly wooded area outside the Pass. It was still early, and many troops were still sleeping. Without tents, they mostly huddled under trees to escape the rain from the night before. It had passed by now, and was replaced by the light fog that was so typical in Falkreath.

"You see that burning farm not far east of here?"

Boldir sighed. "I saw it."

"And? What do you make of it?"

"It doesn't matter what I think Corporal. It was necessary. Sacrifices must be made in war."

"I suppose so, but still, what will those people do now?"

"They're staying in Falkreath. They'll be reimbursed when the war is over."

"And that's that?"

"That's that." Boldir and Erik walked in silence for several minutes before Boldir spotted someone a woman smoking a cigarette. She was sitting on a large fallen log. "Hey Erik, I've got someone I need to talk to. Do you mind?"

"Not at all. I'll be back at that big tree." Erik walked back the way they came.

Boldir struggled to step over several sleeping Redguards as he made his way to Rebec.

"I'll be damned! No one told me you were back, Rebec. Mind if I take a seat?"

Rebec exhales her draw of elf ear and canis root, smiling up at him. "There you are, Blofur. I was beginning to think they were hiding you from me. Big man now, important things to do, I get it."

Boldir went ahead and sat down. "Heh, if only that were true. You know I've barely had a thing to do since we got here. I'd have sought you out sooner if I'd known you would be here. So what is it that brings you back to this fine corner of Skyrim anyway?"

The admiral's smile fades a little. "I made a promise. You remember what I was carrying the last time. I told Baldur I would make amends. More than that, I wanted to be in this fight with you all. My ship is gone, so it happens I've got some free time."

This was the first Boldir had heard of Rebec losing her ship. He knew how big a deal this must have been to her. "Shor's beard! Is your crew okay?"

"Most made it out this time." All trace of mirth is gone from her voice. "They had battlemages. Imperials, not Thalmor. Hit us with fireballs, too many for the wards to handle. Some of the men were trapped in the hold, others caught fire and jumped into the water. We had to leave them behind or the whole crew would have been lost."

Rebec waves the hand with the cigarette in it, trying to force the memory away. "I just don't understand all this. How many thousands of years did we fight alongside the imps and now they won't be satisfied until we kill every last one of them. You can bet your balls the whole blockade was a Thalmor idea. What could be better for them than to have Topal Bay empty while Nords and imperials sink each other's fleets?"

"Don't get me started. That's one of the biggest differences between us and the Empire. We fight them because they make us. They stand between us and the real enemy." The volume of Boldir's voice started to rise. "The Imperials? The only thing they're doing is protecting them! They-“

Boldir cut his own rant short. She knew all of this already. "I'm sorry about your crew Rebec, truly."

Rebec shrugs, trying to be hard about it all. She pauses, then gestures down toward the foothills. "We passed the farms burning on the way in. Civilians on the road headed toward Falkreath. The looks on their faces... Like they didn't know if we were friend or enemy."

Now it was Boldir's turn to shrug. He knew that the Stormcloaks needed to do whatever they could to win. But this truly felt wrong to him. It was betrayal. This land and these people are the very reason we're fighting. Why fight for them if we're just going to burn it ourselves? At least this is what Boldir wanted to say. Of course he wouldn't. Baldur has to know best, or they were doomed. "War is war. If the enemy manages to break through, these farms could have sustained them for months... Baldur made the right call."

Baldur had done it. Somehow that made the thing sadder. "If there's any justice, they'll never get that far. At any rate it's on their heads, not his." Rebec takes another draw on her cigarette, then brightens. "You know, a pretty lass in Whiterun asked me about you. Dark hair, had a little girl with her. Judging by the tone of her voice, you've been making friends."

This took Boldir completely off guard. His eyes widened and entire mood shifted as he turned to Rebec. “Really? Well what did she say?!"

Rebec lifts a brow at this reaction. "She just asked me if I knew you. I told her I did, she got all tongue-tied and said 'never mind,' then ran off. Did you part on bad terms?"

Boldir realized he'd reacted rather quickly. He regained his composure. His face went back to his typical frown. "Aye, I suppose we did." Boldir sighed. He knew there was no point in pretending like he didn't care. Rebec would easily see through the lie. "I asked that woman to marry me... It didn’t work out. Said she couldn't. After that, I skipped town. Her name’s Carlotta.”

Boldir couldn't believe the words coming from his own mouth. Not even Baldur, who he saw as a brother knew about this. Boldir hated talking about himself, so even mentioning Carlotta to another person, even a friend, felt very strange to him. It made him feel weak. "Gods, listen to me.”

Rebec is stunned at the sudden floodgates opening, too. Even when he was drunk Boldir hadn't talked this much. "Boldi my friend, you're looking at the worst spouse in the world, so don't talk to me about pathetic. My husband's been gone for two years and I haven't even tried to look for him. This war, it makes people cautious or crazy. Give her some time. I'd say that was a woman who's in knots about you."The sailor smiles mischievously and reaches over to pinch Boldir's cheek, patting it in turn. "Women like the quiet ones. Most women. I seem to go for the loud drunks, myself."

Boldir's frown turned up into a slight smkle. "Thank you, Rebec." He stood up, all serious again. "Now let's keep this conversation between ourselves, eh?"

"Captain,” a Stormcloaks approached. “The General wants to see you and the Admiral in the war tent."

"Alright soldier. You're dismissed." Boldir turned back to Rebec. "After you."

Rebec snuffs out her cigarette and stands. She takes a moment to gather her thoughts before accompanying the captain. It was time to talk about killing. There would be a lot of it. Kyne, goddess of warriors, don't let me have to see these friends die. Yet if the gods heard prayers, the sailor had learned by bitter experience, it was only as witness. They only looked to see how you did. For that reason it was good to have the fear, because the other side of it was a determination not to let the same friends down. Steeling herself on that thought, Rebec starts toward the tent. Boldir followed close behind. 

[The Good Doctor]

Lorgar Grim-Maw, Lorgar's tent, Night

Lorgar tossed and turned under the sheets of his bed, sweat was running down his anguished filled face, he would occasional scream "Boldir" or Baldur"...a nightmare.

Several months ago.

The pale moon shone brightly down upon Lorgar, who was laying prone with a bow and a quiver of steel arrows. He was told by that miserable farmer, that a convoy of troop carrying supplies to Fort Neurand was traveling down this road at midnight. Lorgar merley watched from the shadows, and lay silently in the tall vegetation.

There were four stormmcloak soldiers, one clad in nordic carved armor. He could hear there discussion.


"Hey Corporal, are you still going to be getting off at the camp on the way?"

"Yeah, but if you can wait an hour, I'll be back with some letters that I can take to Falkreath. A ride to Helgen would be a nice start."

Lorgar silently muttered something under his breath, before jumping out of his position in the tall grass and firing two arrows simultaneously at the first two stormcloaks he saw.

The two arrows landed in two of the soldier's necks, killing them both. He could hear the officer call out. 

"Everybody stay in the wagon" 

Lorgar fired another arrow, this time missing the officer, who swore.
The voice that erupted from Lorgar throat, was deep, akin to that of a wolf more then a man.

"BALDUR COME OUT AND FACE ME"

As Lorgar said those words, he fired two more arrows, both hitting the last stormcloak soldier in the throat and stomach.

"I SAID COME OUT YOU [censored]

Lorgar noticed the officer could see him, he had a look of familiarity on his face.

Lorgar's vision was starting to be painted with red. He noticed the stormcloak officer begin to charge him, the only thing that mattered to him was the nordic carved armor he was clad in. Lorgar snarled like a beast, before drawing his two daggers and counter charging,

"THERE YOU ARE!!!!"

[The Good Doctor]

Gracchus

Fort Pale Pass

Morning 

 

Gracchus woke up early, unable to sleep while the thought of the Stormcloaks and the Princess' arrival weighed on his mind. He set off towards the edge of the camp, and a deep fog had set in over the whole area, as was usual for Falkreath, and the dirt was replaced by a layer of soft mud, probably from rain, which was also common.

Once there, he asked the sentry, a young man appearing to be in his mid-twenties, with blond hair and no stubble, "Anything interesting happen last night?"

"Uh..no sir, I mean," he saluted, and then continued," no sir, we did see some smoke rising from beyond the pass early this morning, sir," he finished, after he had regained his composure.

"Thank you, that's all I needed. You may return to your duties," Gracchus commanded, and then left to the mess hall.

The mess hall was the main dining area of the fort itself, a large chamber with several tables. He grabbed some venison stew, a mug of ale, and found a quiet table to take a seat at.

The Stormcloaks are smarter than most of these fools give them credit for. If they are doing what I think they are, we'll be slowed down until our supply line can catch up with our advance. Those farms, if that's what they're burning, could have provided us food for at least a month, allowing us to advance even further. Damn, this is definitely an interesting development. 

With that, Gracchus dumped his bowl and mug off at the washers, and headed towards his quarters.

He entered, and hastily searched for the appropriate map. It was a small one, just of the hold itself, with all farms and villages marked on it. He grabbed it, and ran to the top of the main tower. Sure enough, the columns of smoke matched up almost exactly with the farms on the maps.

Those Stormcloaks are bright. I wonder if they used scouts to set the fires, or if their army is camped near the pass? We may need to send a scouting party to check on that, thought the old Legate.

Gracchus took his time, and marked a large "X" through each farm that appeared to be set on fire, with an ink quill he had brought up. When he finished, every farm south of Falkreath had been marked.

He ran back down the stairs, and set his map down back on his table. There he picked up his journal, and wrote under his last entry,

Morning, Date unknown, Pale Pass

Stormcloaks burning farms. Advance will be slowed. Need to send a scouting party to check on where they are. Will talk to Marius about this. 

With that, he closed his books, and began setting up preparations for the princess's arrival.

[The Good Doctor]

Osgumund Kitaneth, Fort Pale Pass, afternoon

 

He then made his way to General Marius’ quarters.

 

**********

 

“I don’t care if you’ve come across any delays, we must finish all accommodations by this Loredas! The stupid princess needs her-“ General Marius was cut off by Osgumund, who had entered the room just in time to hear the general insult the princess.

“What’s this about the princess being stupid?†He asked calmly.

“I… Uh-“ Marius said awkwardly, while his face turned as red as a rose.

The general, thankful for the change of subject, replied, “Ah yes, I heard that you were a mage like no other, and I requested that you assist them with their training. But is a member of the Thalmor really fit to train the Imperial battle mages?â€

“Ha ha, you damn Thalmor can't scare me, and you can't order my men around.†the general said, obviously unafraid of Osgumund. Osgumund glared at him for a few seconds, and left.

"Watch your back, Thalmor." The general said as soon as he was out of earshot. He spit on the ground where Osgumund had been standing.

[The Good Doctor]

Velan Quintus- Fort Pale Pass, Morning

Ahh… this feels like a great morning. I’m gonna go grab me something to eat, Velan thought, as he planned his schedule for the day.

As he got some food, he noticed one of the men he met last night.

“Hey! How’s your morning treating you?†Velan asked.

“Pretty good. Gonna get some food for myself, then head off and talk to some of the guys. Wanna tag along?†the soldier replied.

“Sure, why not, friend? Someone has to supply the laughter in this fort!†Velan exclaimed, letting out some of his contagious laughter.

“That is true, my friend. Alright, once you finish eating, I want to hear another story of yours,†the soldier said, as he left Velan.

A good story, huh? I’ve got a good story for them, thought Velan. They’ll laugh all day, knowing them.

After he finished eating, he headed to meet the guys.

“The fun has officially arrived,†Velan said, laughing.

“It’s about time! What, did you eat an entire cow? No wonder you’re so damn big,†one of the soldiers answered, laughing as well. The guys liked to poke fun at the size of Velan, even though they were aware that it was mainly muscle.

“If I had a cow, you better believe I would eat the whole thing! Now I heard someone wanted to hear a story from yours truly!†exclaimed Velan.

“After last night, I think we all want to hear another story,†replied a different soldier, referencing the story about the two guys and the inn Velan told last night.

“I’ll second that!†said another, with a laugh.

“Alright, just remember, you guys asked for this!†Velan warned.

“Yeah yeah, get on with it,†one of the soldiers said.

“Alright, alright. Now, this was a couple years ago, when I was in the Imperial City,†said Velan, beginning one of his favorite stories. “I was in the marketplace, looking for some fresh food. When all of the sudden, I felt a hand on my coin purse. Now who would be brave enough to steal from a man such as myself! Now, I turned myself around, and there she stood. This potential thief was a girl, and a hot one at that. I told her to scram, and the rest of my day went without incident. That night, I went to the inn, and had myself quite a few drinks. I woke up the next morning with a beautiful lady in my bed, so I figured the night was a success. Upon a closer look though, I realized I knew this girl. It was the same beauty who had tried to take my gold yesterday! Imagine my surprise! And guess what, she had my coin purse in her jacket! Now that’s what I call a determined thief! So anyways, I ended up grabbing my coin purse, and leaving a note on the bed. I never heard from that girl again.â€

“No way! Hahahah, what’s with you and these random coincidences? Oh, by the way, what did the note say?†asked one of the men.

“Oh, I almost forgot that part,†Velan replied. “It said, ‘You can steal from me anytime, Velan’â€.

At that point, the entire room burst into laughter.

“You’re a clever man Velan,†one of the soldiers said, laughing.

You’ve done it again Velan, he thought, patting himself on the back.

[The Good Doctor]

Samuel, Baldur and Jodun
Morning
Strormcloak Pale Pass Encampment

Samuel and his companions walked the final stretch before the fort at Pale Pass, what he had been informed was the current residence for some of the tops in the Stormcloak army. Just another bend and down a very well-hidden passage, and they would be right outside the camp. Rorek had taken the lead, seeing as letting a Nord allear to be the leader, at least until they were inside, would be the most prudent move.

Before long, they had descended into to camp itself and Rorek kept asking the apparently deaf Nord with a fullhelm about seeing the commander of the fort.

"Olaf," Samuel said loudly, in the direction of a few other troops who passed them. "When the Imperial Maws, you shall now his fruits and take him to the Garden." A man looked scarred for a moment, but then he told the one bothering Rorek to let them in.

Jodun had passed by Boldir and Rebec whie they were conversing, and decided to head to the General as soon as possible. The camp itself wasn't much of a camp. There was only one tent for the war council, and a good deal of soldiers walking around everywhere. Because of that, it was easy to spot where Baldur was, so Jodun made his way to the General to discuss troop activity immediately. Before he could approach the General, whose back was showing to him while Baldur looked down at a table probably holding a map, Jodun noticed a group of men that stuck out like a sore thumb due to their attire.

Ah, these must be the men I am to speak to about the information. It may be best for me to take them aside before the General sees. He may not take kindly to this deal.

Jodun did not get too close to Baldur, so he was still able to walk around his tent without the General noticing him, or so he thought. As Jodun tried to hurry up and greet the men and pull them aside out of sight, he felt a hard heavy hand grab his shoulder from behind. Jodun instinctively made a grab for his swords when Baldur did this, resting his hands on his twin Ebony scimitar hilts on his back.

"Commander, I need to talk t-...what the hell are civilians doing in my camp?"

"General, they a-"

Baldur walked ahead not hearing Jodun's words and went to address the strangers in his camp.

"Hey! Get over to Falkreath or anywhere that's not in my camp! Civilians are not allowed here!" said Baldur to the group.

"Baldur, I recommend that you calm down and listen, rather than talk. Now, you were showing me to your quarters and inviting the next highest ranking officer here? And Jodun is to join us, he is the one I originally had this arranged with," The authority in Samuel's voice appeared to be quite the shocker for most people around them.

"You've got some stones to stroll into my camp as if you own the place and tell me what to do. I'm the General of the Stormcloak forces here in Falkreath! Now get your ass out of my c-"

Jodun cut Baldur off and whispered into his ear.

"Sir, this is a contact of mine. He may have information about the enemy. I took it upon myself to agree to a meeting with him. I think you should listen to what he has to say."

Baldur did not like the situation. He felt that a civilian offering information sounded shady. Especially since Jodun decided o do this behind his back.

"Jodun, this better be worth my time. You, the one with the giant stones. What is your name?"

"My name is Samuel. You need not bother yourself with my family name, it never ends well," Samuel just smiled with an arrogant look, but one thing stood out above all the others about this man; he was either the best liar in Tamriel or he really meant what he said. "And to answer your rhetorical question from before; no I don't have giant 'stones'. What I have is an arrangement with contacts all over Skyrim and in the Empire that if any harm befalls me that can be tied to the Stormcloaks, the Empire will get a continuously updating report on all political and military activities in this land. You wouldn't be able to move more than three troops without them hearing about it. Now, you were about to follow mt rhetorical order about a place to talk privately?" 

Baldur took a step forward to Samual so that he was close enough to feel his breath. As he spoke, he kept his face devoid of any anger.

"Let's get something straight right...now. Before this goes any further, you should know I don't take kindly to threats. Especially from little dandy imperials like you. Now, if we're done "clearing the air", follow me. Your men stay here."

Samuel didn't flinch in the least. "Your bravado doesn't impress me, and your ignorance of who you are talking to doesn't do you any favors. It wasn't a threat, it was business pleasantries. The same pleasantries I offered the General Marius when I spoke with him some time ago. But more on that conversation later. Rorek?"

"Yes, sir, we will stay here and take in the sights. Been a long time since I've seen Pale Pass."

"Good. Now, Baldur, please show me the way."

"You're lucky you're a civilian, because otherwise I'd show you just how much I care for your "business pleasantries". Jodun! Show your...guest to the war tent. I'll be waiting."

Baldur stormed off, bumping Jodun in his shoulder after he walked away, obviously irked. Even though he didn't show it in his face, his body language betrayed him.

"Well, that went better than I expected, personally. You ready to strike a deal Samuel?" asked Jodun.

"Then you have less accurate expectations of the man than I had. I knew he was hot blooded, and not one to take my talk, hence my reason to do it. I... enjoy testing limits, at times. He has some decent restraint, but his lack of knowledge of how the world works might just be his undoing."

Samuel continued to smile. "I am ready to meet with the others for this 'deal', yes. And I have a feeling our hot blooded friend will approve of me a bit more after this." 

Baldur was patiently, albeit agitatedly waiting for Jodun and Samuel to arrive. He was already nervous, since he would very soon issue his first real military order as general, and Samuel's pompous attitude agitated him enough to get under his skin. Besides that, it also reminded him all too much of the Thalmor.

"Lets get this over with. What information do you have, and how much do you expect to get from me?"

"I get the feeling that you don't like me, General," the Imperial said, with what would appear to be an understanding tone like that of a mentor asking their apprentice the same implied question.

"I get the feeling that you're a smart ass whose wasting my time. You said you were here for business, so start talking business."

"Yes, of course," like before the visitor had an arrogant expression. "I suppose my eccentrics have been sated for now. General Marius is about to acquire information about his camp and a secret entrance I used to get in without having to deal with your scouts. He should be here in the near future." 

Baldur couldn't possibly hold back the confusion and surprise in his voice.

"Say what now? The man I'm about to wage war with is coming here? Why?"

"Because I am going to tell him to come here. A comment that will require some explanation, based on your facial expression," Samuel drew breath and became more serious, more business-like."Some time ago I had a meeting with the General, after I had offered to sell some intriguing information about the General to your man, Jodun, through a third party."

"Your General Marius have more in common with you than you would probably expect, him being a worshiper of Talos and having a burning hatred for the leaders who are ruining his beloved Empire being the most important, after his hatred of the Thalmor of course. With the upcoming deal, and my previous friendship- or so I would dare to call it- with the General, I thought I could make the situation more advantageous for us all."

The Imperial leaned forward. "The General will abandon the Empire whenever I give him the order, and he will rally whatever Legionnaires he can to join you in your fight against the Empire. And don't worry, the location of yuor camp will not be shared with him until I know for certain he is not followed." 

Baldur whipped out his axe with alarming speed and slammed the axe on the map in between Samuel's hands that were supporting him as he leaned on the table.

"Baldur!"

Jodun was caught by surprise at this sudden action, although it appeared to him that Samuel was not.

"You let this be some kind of trap, and I'll find you. And I'll do worse than kill you. Otherwise I may owe you a dept of gratitude. But I'll save the congratulations AFTER I see for myself that your dog is securely tied."

Samuel instinctively leaned back, but not in any frightened or even surprised manner. It was clear he had expected it to happen, and Baldur's threats seemed to have the same effect as before; none.

"Now, what would I gain on this being a trap? All it would do is to needlessly antagonize the government of Skyrim, which is my primary reason for being here; building relations. You see, much of my influence was affected when the Stormcloak himself kicked out the Empire. Under normal circumstances I would have intervened to see if I couldn't assure an Imperial victory, but I knew that a Dragonborn walked the land. So I waited and saw what happened, and I was not disappointed. That is also why I go back on my offer to Jodun: I will not accept any payment for this. Take it as an action of goof faith. And to make it better, I will remain here until you decide that my gesture of good will is not a trap; as a prisoner or guest. Which makes no difference to me." 

Baldur's face lit up at that last sentence. 

"Oh really? Let's just see then, shall we? Jodun, have him tied up to that tree outside the tent. I want Mr. Moon Balls here right where I can see him. And then tell Boldir to get in here. We have a lot to talk about."

"Y-yes General."

Jodun reluctantly grabbed the rope that Baldur handed to him from out of a sack and gently put his hand on his shoulder.

"Sorry about this, Samuel."

"You never fail to act as predicted, General. The ropes is a nice touch," Samuel got back his smile from before and talked with a confident laugh. "And don't bother looking for my companions, they have their orders to take care of and have already left the camp. Right after we went here, in fact. Oh, and I like the nickname you gave me. Can I use that? You know, have a little Nordic touch over me, now that I live with you. Samuel Moon-Balls. A good sound to that one." 

"Hahahaha! You know, for a pompous ass, you're not too bad. I'm glad that I don't disappoint. Now, sit tight while my Captain gets here."

"Boldir, right? Yes, I can see why you want him. Though he is of diminished use to me, as I have already dealt with the General, of both armies." 

Baldur wiped a tear from his eye.

"Oh Talos, I'm still tickled from that Nordic name Moon-Balls comment, so you'll have to excuse me if I couldn't hear your know it all act. Now, I'll be in the tent, and you stay right there on that tree."

With that, Baldur walked back into the tent, and pulled the flap shut, leaving Samuel and Jodun together alone.

"That was pretty funny. Looks like you found a way to get along with him. Strangely enough that may be sharing insults and quips," said Jodun.

"You know it, Baldur. Kind hard to move around when tied up. Trust me, I know. Had an incident with a clingy tavern wench," he yelled jokingly after the General, before he turned to Jodun. "Indeed. He's a good man, and suits the role of General well. I still have to teach him a thing or two about people like me, who work with information, but he'll learn. Besides, it was refreshing to have someone talk back to me. People tend to stop doing that, after a while. How did you find Alef, by the way? I do want a second opinion on her performance in the field."

"Oh right, the Dunmer woman. She's professional and has patience. I questioned her more than once on the legitimacy of the deal, and she didn't get impatient with me at all. Perfectly understanding and reassuring. That's how I knew you weren't troll[censored]ting me. I've dealt with your kind before."

"One of my rivals, to be exact. Feran is the name he goes under. He is in Falkreath right now, actually. Probably looking into the rumors about me being here. He has a thing in for me, after I pretty much absorbed his whole network into mine. An amateur, but he has his uses. And I am glad Alef behaved as she is expected to. Would hate for her not to live up to expectations."

Samuel looked at Jodun for a little while, with his head leaned to his right. "You want to ask me how I know Marius will work for you, and why I didn't simply have him incapacitated." It was a statement, rather than a question.

Jodun was taken aback at the mention of Feren from Samuel, and it was his turn to look confused.

"Actually, I was wondering how in the hell you could have known I had dealings with Feren, but that is another good question." 

"Information is my trade, Jodun," Samuel laughed again. "I know a lot more than you probably imagine, especially about my rivals. As for Marius; he was a friend of mine and I'd hate to see him needlessly thrown into prison to be tortured. And what better way o make relations with Skyrim than to offer not only something that will slow the Empire down, but also offer insight to the current state of the Legion?"

"Do you know what the Thalmor do to high ranking officials who are caught breaking the White-Gold Concordat, with the help of the overzealous princess Mortierre? Not a pretty sight. That is what Marius has in store if he betrays you, after he betrayed the Legion. Betraying you will cause him all the pain of not joining you and more." 

Jodun was deeply disturbed that even a General was not too far out of reach for the Thalmor in the Empire. As he watched Rebec and Boldir approach the tent, Jodus said to Samuel, "How in Oblivion did it ever come to this? Tiber Septim's once proud Empire being held in a stranglehold by the elves."

"Well, my educated opinion is a collection of disasters, starting with Jagar Tharn and continuing into the 4th Era, combined with the lack of action on the Mede's part and a power hungry usurper taking the throne at the worst possible time," Samuel looked like he had some other words he wanted to let out, but he kept them in. "Safe to say, I don't think mere mortals are meant to rule Tamriel. That is left to those blessed by the Dragon." 

Jodun wanted to tell Samuel that it was a rhetorical question, but seeing as he stopped himself, he let it go.

"And we only have one of those. Yet, I don't see the current Empire bowing down to the Dragonborn's authority any time soon. In any case, I'll need to go with Admiral Red-Eye and the others. They'll likely have me untie you soon."

"Most likely scenario is that I spend a day or so here. Fine with me, I'll just go to the pantry if I get hungry in the night. And good luck, you will need it."

With a smile and nod, Samuel gesture, as best he could tied up, that Jodun should indeed leave.

[The Good Doctor]

General Marius, Legate Gracchus Ceno
Fort Pale Pass
Midday 

Marius stood beside his second in command, full uniform , along with all the other officers and NCO's. He could notice Lorgar also was amongst the assembled crowd, in his dark cloak brooding in silence. Marius turned to his second and whispered into his ear,

"Are all the preparations in order?"

Gracchus' recently polished armor shown bright, reflecting the sun's rays like a mirror. He had spent an hour polishing it, and was pleased with the result. In his right had, pressed against his hip, was his closed helm, equally polished, with the plume combed and straight.

He heard the General mention the preparations, and replied, "Yes sir. All rooms in the keep cleaned, with fresh linens and niceties. We managed to find some silver dishes and bowls, and those are there too. The latrines have also been move further away from camp, as with the stables and pens. The men are all groomed, and each one was ordered to bathe before today. All preparations are in order, with a cost of only 2,000 septims, sir."

"Okay...what 2000?! That's coming out of my pay check..." The general face palmed himself. Before even more quietly saying,

"Eh...Graccus, did you handle my "special" request?! All of the princess assigned servants are...girls correct?"

"Yes sir, I know 2,000 is a lot, but it was about 1,000 septims under budget. I managed to pull a few strings. And yes, the servants are all girls, just as was requested. Is the princess..." Gracchus let his sentence trail off, hoping the General would understand the question he was implying.

The general winked at Graccus, signalling a "yes", he also straightened out his helmet. He turned his head.

"Also, did you acquire the specified "Valenwood" wine-

Before the generally could finish his sentence, a carriage flanked by 3 dozen horse men came into view. The soldiers were clad in dark-grey plate armor, showing them to be members of the imperial watch.

"They're here..."

Gracchus noticed the wink, and was slightly unsettled by the wink, even though he knew it only to be "yes."

The General started on about some wine from Valenwood, but stopped because the princess' carriage had arrived.

Gracchus hastily answered, "Yes sir, it is in your, er I mean her, chambers."

The generally sarcastically said,

"Har Har har legate don't rub it in..."

The column of people had finally arrived, and as the carriage stopped, the doors opened.

Blonde curls, warm smiles, frilly white dress, small, cute, and happy was the only way to describe the princess as she strode forward to the assembled troops and out of the carriage, whom were all kneeling. She was flanked by two royal imperial guards, wearing there distinctive white-gold armor. As mentioned before, she wore a large, white frilly dress filled with lace. She had perfect pale skin, along with a smile that could warm the coldest of mens hearts. She stopped at the kneeling General's feet. She warmly said,

"General Marius Imperius."

Marius quickly and quite clearly said,

"Your highness, Princess Dales Moirtre, it is an honor to welcome you to this ancient akavari fort..."

Gracchus kneeled, and looked up to see a small, pale girl in an overly-lacy dress flanked by two gold-white armor wearing Imperial guards. The princess was young, white as the clouds above, and as happy as any egomaniacal, Thalmor loving, Talos hating young adult could be.

"Well Marius, shall you intruduce me to your Officer's and NCO's?"

The general's face was filled with surprise,

"You want to meet all of them milady?"

"Yes quite Marius!!!" She happily squealed like a child.

"Well then milady, this is my second in command, Legate Gracchus..."

"Pleased to you, madam. I am Legate Gracchus Quintus Ceno, second in commands to General Marius, Imperial Battlemage, Sinker of the Harpy . I oversaw your personal arrangements, so if anything is out of order, do not be afraid to come to me and I will offer you any assistance I can," said the Legate, as he graciously bowed for the princess.

She happily nodded her head,

"It's a pleasure Legate, and If I have any problems I will take it up with you..."

Marius then proceeded to introduce her to every officer, and every NCO he had . It took around 50 minutes, util they reached Prefect Lorgar, who got up from his keeled position and bowed to the princess.

"Prefect Lorgar Grim-Maw milady....you may have heard of me..."

The princess's smile twisted into a neutral expression.

"Your the officer that daddy had stripped of his rank correct? For cowardice?"

Lorgar while remaining completely calm and posed, changed his tone to his "darkened" voice (As his fellow soldiers called it)

"Yes ma'em, if you recall, I remember seeing you at the ceremony...."

Silence erupted from the assembled crowd, as both the princess and the prefect had a stare down. The atmosphere was icy to say the least. Until, of course, the princess's neutral face twisted into a warm smile, Graccus could practically feel the general sign in relief as the cold atmosphere melted away. The princess, spoke in her play-full child-like voice, and practically squealed

"Well it's an honor to meet the famed "darkened archer" !!!"

"I assure you milady, the honor is mine"

Lorgar closed in, and placed a kiss on the princess's raised hand. Before stepping back into position.

The stare down between Praefect Lorgar and the princess was like having the life sucked out of the entire camp. Thankfully, the princess was a "fan" of the "Darkened Archer." This intercut the stare down, and an in-audible sigh of relief could be felt among the crowd.

[The Good Doctor]

Eduard Laenius- Fort Pale Pass, Midday

After a decent nights sleep, and a little bit more, Eduard awoke to the memories of the previous night.

I still can't believe bandits would attack my sister,he thought. As he got up, he felt something in his back pocket. What is this? Hmm... a note? Wonder what it says. Eduard opened up the note and began to read.

Eduard,

I realize that during our meeting, I forgot some very important information. Probably because of all your talk of cannibalism. Anyways,the information I forgot to tell you regards the bandit leader who lead the attack on your sisters home. While we don't have too much information regarding who he is, we do know this. He seems to go by the nickname of 'Rex', and he yelled something to the effect of 'Eduard will know why I came!'. Yeah, I know. Pretty important information to just leave out. That's why I snuck this note into your pocket before you got back to the fort. So in a way, I didn't even forget. I just told you later than expected.

Also, our contact seems to have been able to locate 'Rex'. He is hiding out in a camp built by him and his clan. The interesting part here is that the camp isn't but 5 hours away from the fort on foot. Quite a long way to travel to your sisters home, no? Just thought you would want to know that.

You said that you wanted this man dead, but as you now know, that would pretty much be a huge waste of resources for you, your sister, and myself. So, we have decided to use our, well your, resources to fortify the defenses surrounding your sisters home. Don't worry, she hasn't been bothered by any of this. The reason I'm letting you know that we won't actively be pursuing the man is because of how adamant you were about having him killed. Now, we can't kill the man without putting your sister out of a home. Which I decided is probably unacceptable.

That leaves us, well you, with two choices. Choice 1: We have located a small group of mercenaries who would be willing to take the job. It would take quite a bit of money, but not as much as it would require for us to do it ourselves. However, I'm not entirely sure how capable they are. And I would hate to waste a ton of money just to have a bunch of inexperienced mercenaries be sent to their death. So that brings me to Choice number two: You could go do it yourself, or maybe with one of your Legion buddies. Like I said, the camp isn't all that far away from you, and you were pretty clear that you would kill the man if you found him. Well, all I will say is, you've found him.

Well, I should probably wrap up this little note. It seems you are done resting on that rock. You were writing a letter to your sister, I presume? Lucky me, I guess. I needed time to write a letter, and you supplied me with that time. Anyways, I hope to hear from you soon, with regards to your plans for this 'Rex'.

-Jon

Really, you couldn't have just stopped and talked to me again? You were always a mysterious one, Jon. Rex, I can't believe he would try something like this. Kidnapping was never his forte, well at least while I was there. That was six years ago, but I can't imagine he got too much better. It's too bad it's going to have to come to this, Eduard thought. I guess I should write Jon back. I'll make it short.

Jon,

Don't worry. 'Rex' is mine. Just protect my sister.
-Eduard

I'll leave that for a little while later. For now, I've yet to receive instruction from the General. I should probably hang around until I get those, at the least, he thought.

So that's exactly what he did. He grabbed something to eat, and waited to be called upon.

[The Good Doctor]

Valindil, Fort Pale Pass, Midday

“Hello, sir, may I ask where Lord Ramani is?†a flustered Finaavin asked one of the Thalmor Officers. 

“Ah yes, you must be the boy he has been waiting for. He just finished training the Thalmor Soldiers; he should be in his room.†The officer pointed to the nearest door leading to the main keep. “His room is in the first hall to the right, first door on the left.â€

“Thank you!†Finaavin replied as he hurried off.

**********

“Who is it?†Valindil asked to whoever was knocking on his door.

“My lord, it is I, Finaavin. I have come with news of the whereabouts of Elenwen and Northwatch Keep.â€

“Enter at once!†Valindil replied. “What have you got to tell me, boy? Take your time it’s alright.†He said once he realized how out of breath the Elf was. 

After he had recovered, he told Valindil what he had discovered. “When I arrived at the Embassy, I came across a disgusting discovery: there were Thalmor and Stormcloak bodies everywhere. The whole place smelled worse than anything you can even try to imagine. Death was everywhere! But I, sir, I did not give up. I searched the place high and low. Thankfully, my efforts were not in vain. As I approached Elenwen’s Solar I deduced that the most intense fighting took place there. The entire building was desecrated with blood and decaying bodies and disease. There were more and more bodies as I approached the prison. Inside the prison, there were surprisingly less bodies, but there was still evidence of intense conflict. 

“I eventually came across a hidden trapdoor, which I couldn’t help but investigate. Inside, I came across the serendipity of a lifetime: Elenwen and a few other members of the Embassy were hiding in the cave.â€

Valindil was shocked. So shocked, in fact that he had to sit down. 

“You are telling me that Elenwen survived? How can such a thing be true?â€

Finaavin nodded and continued with his story. “When the Stormcloak attackers started to push the Thalmor forces back, she ordered everyone to fall back into the main building, and cover the retreat. However, the Stormcloaks gained too much ground too quickly, and escape was no longer an option. When asked why they didn’t escape the cave she responded, ‘we can’t go too far from the cave entrance, or else the Stormcloak scouts will spot us, and kill us.’ I told them, ‘but there are no scouts outside! Believe me, I was just there.’

“Believing me, they ventured out into the open with me. We decided to make our way to Northwatch Keep to see what had become of them. We arrived in the vicinity late at night and approached cautiously, for we could see lights coming from the fort, but we could also see lights coming from a camp outside of the fort. We decided to enter through the hidden entrance, and we were stopped by the guard who immediately recognized Elenwen and her emissaries, and we were granted entrance. Their story is this: after the Battle for the Thalmor Embassy, the Stormcloaks planned an attack on Northwatch. However, some surviving Thalmor escaped the embassy and warned Northwatch. The fort’s defenses were reinforced and the food piles grew. They had been under siege by Stormcloak soldiers for two months when we arrived, and the next day the Stormcloaks planned their final assault. With the help of Elenwen, the ten others who were with us, and myself, we managed to defeat the attackers and defend the fort and Elenwen from danger. However, this very second they are planning to return to Alinor, and should be passing through here in a few days. I went on ahead to warn you of their arrival.â€

“Elenwen and the entire Northwatch garrison is coming HERE?†Valindil asked, astounded.

“Why yes, it is the shortest way to the Imperial City, and in turn to Alinor.â€

“Well, I must inform Osgumund! Please, inform the other Thalmor Officers of their arrival, I must be off with no delay!†With that, Valindil hurried off to find Osgumund and the High-Inquisitor.

[The Good Doctor]

Baldur, Rebec, Boldir and Jodun
Morning
Stormcloak War Tent

Boldir saw a man tied to a tree as he followed Rebec into the war tent. Wonder what he did. The first thing Boldir noticed as he entered was one of Baldur's axes sticking out of the top of the table, which Baldur and Jodun were standing to the sides of.

"You called?"

"Yes, it's.."

Baldur stopped in his speech when he realized who the woman was that Boldir followed in with.
"Boldir, where'd you find her from?"

Boldir found that to be an odd question.
"Rebec? she was down closer to the Pass."

Baldur was quite confused’ as to why Rebec would be here of all places when she's the Admiral of the entire Nordic fleet. He was glad to see her, but he didn't like having the distraction, as he felt he already had quite a bit on his mind already. For him, the situation was more than awkward, as he never told Boldir about the night at the fort after the drinking contest, not that it actually meant anything since neither of them agreed to any sort of relationship, and neither did either of them bring it up.

And nor will I in the middle of this war, hopefully. Can't afford to get soft.

"High Admiral Red-Eye, why are you here? Shouldn't you be making splinters out of the Imperial fleet?"

“Stringing up spies before breakfast, General? Good work, bravo,” Rebec says as she steps through the tent. “Though I can see you need me, since you’ve got the rope too low. It’s supposed to be up here.” She points at her neck, then claps Baldur collegially on the arm and gives him a little wink. “The Imperial Navy is currently shivering their skinny asses off and whimpering that we’ve stolen all their brandy, so I thought I’d give them a break. Besides, they got in a lucky shot and sunk my ship. Ulfric sent me back to this shithole as punishment.”

"Seems like an odd assignment for an Admiral, even as a punishment. Did he say why he decided to send you here? His reasoning puzzles me. And I heard you were kicking their asses up and down the Sea of Ghosts. Why'd he punish you for one loss?"

"Fine, fine, Ulfric would never do anything that stupid. I asked to come. I told you I'd make amends and here I am, with a few hundred of my best friends from Hammerfell. By the look of things, we got here none too soon." She reaches into her cloak pocket and pulls out a diplomatic pouch, tossing it onto his table. "Some dispatches for you from the king."

Baldur looked down at the dispatches, but ignored them.

"I don't need to see them, I believe your story. You wouldn't come here of all places if you were looking to defect. Plus I remembered you said you'd get us Hammerfell assistance, and Jodun mentioned it too. He just forgot to mention you'd be coming. Either way, lets get down to business. You both obviously saw the man I have tied up outside. Well, because of him we may not be fighting the Imperials back there afterall."

Rebec and Boldir's heads both swivel as if in one motion. The admiral stares at Baldur, absorbing what the story the man tied up outside must have been telling, then chuckles grimly. "I'm going to enjoy watching this imperial die. We should hang him twice. Once for being a spy and the second time for thinking we've got cheese for brains."

Baldur took a deep breath before he began to explain, as he knew it'd be hard to believe. He still didn't believe it himself.

"Okay, well that civilian out there goes by the name of Samuel Moon-Balls, long story. He claims that he has the General Marius on a leash and that he'll actually side with us. That means that if this isn't a trap, which I still have my doubts, we'll have the sixth legion siding with us. Now, before you even say anything, I don't plan on letting them into our borders as of yet. They'll stay in Pale Pass for a while until I'm sure they're with us. Also this talk is very premature, since this all depends on if the General actually has enough pull to make his men abandon their posts. I mean, that'd be like me trying to make us fight Ulfric in the name of the Empire."

"I don’t like this,” Boldir said. “Why in Oblivion would Marius suddenly want to help us? His Imperials are as much the enemy as the Thalmor. They've taken as many lives. Rember your crew Rebec, or Reval. That wasn't the Thalmor, it was the Imperials. I strongly advise you not to trust this man Baldur."

"You don't need to tell me, I remember quite well," Rebec answers, voice low. The flames had burned more than her ship. They burned the memory of the battlemages' faces in her mind, as well. "I don't believe this fairy story for a minute. I saw the imperials in Camp Rommulas. When I tried to get them to turn on the Thalmor in camp, they all stood around slack-jawed like the idea had never occurred to them. They'll never turn on their own. Never."

Baldur gave a sigh once again. He knew what they were saying was true, but the weight of the position of General required that he explore all avenues of success.

"I know you two. Don't forget I had to fight my father to the death over this. But if there's even a small chance that this deal is successful, I need to give it a try. But, I won't blindly accept this. For that reason, Boldir, I need you to listen up. We're going over war plans now, and this recent news will alter the plans a bit."

Baldur took some ink and a quill, and began to draw on the map after he pulled his axe off of it.

"Okay, Jodun, you're going to take about a thousand of our Stormcloak men into the forest with arrows, and another thousand of the Hammerfell soldiers in with you as well for melee ambushes. Stay hidden in the forests, and far enough from the enemy so they won't accidentally find you. Boldir and the General will go to their fort in plain sight. I'll send Boldir in with the General disguised as his legion escort. Boldir will report what happens. If he succeeds, then there's nothing left for you to do but head back and tell me the news. If the General fails, then we attack. If he fails, he'll likely be charged with treason, and be arrested, so Boldir will attempt to rescue him and sneak him out. Your men Jodun will cover his escape with arrows and sneak ambushes. The law of engagement is simple. Don't stay in the same location for too long, engage, them fall back. Then rinse and repeat.

The stormcloaks will pepper them with arrows while they're distracted with the Hammerfell men. After they advance far enough, run back, and my Grim ones will take point to block them from advancing with our shield walls while the rest of you shoot more arrows from the back in arcs. This is only to cover Boldir and the General if they need cover, and only if the enemy marches in this direction. Hopefully none of this will be necessary. But if it is, the primary goal is to make the advancement as bloody and costly for them as possible, not to stop them from advancing. They outnumber us, so in a straight forward fight, they will win. That's why we won't even try for right now to stop their movement. After I'm well and satisfied with their casualty count, the Grim ones will fall back, and we'll set up a parimeter to keep them boxed into this territory with all the burned farms and homes, and we'll harass them the entire way. They'll pay in blood for every piece of land they step on."

Boldir sighed. Baldur was right. If there was any chance that this news was true, it would be of great benefit to take advantage of it. He didn't like the plan. More specifically, he didn't like his role in it. If he were to run into Lorgar, or the General were to betray him, then there would be virtually no chance in getting out of Pale Pass alive. "I'll do it, but I better get a raise when I get back."

Rebec listens to all these plans, then sighs. "Normally I'd say that numbers don't mean anything in territory like this, but I'm not sure who we've got ahead of us. That would be the first bit of information the rat on the tree should be coughing up, by the way. With legion you have to count that at least one of them will accidentally do something right on occasion."

She looks across to Boldir. "You know this is crazy, don't you. More like suicide." Before the day is out they'll be torturing him for information on our numbers and formation. The thought makes her sick. She had adopted these Grim Ones as part of her crew, and that fold was dwindling.

"Rebec, Boldir is my best friend. Besides you, he's really my only true friend. I'd never ask him to risk his life if it wasn't absolutely necessary. I'd do this myself, but with my new rank, I can't do it. I didn't ask for this position, but I have it. As long as I do, I can't play favorites. Boldir's the best warrior I have in the Grim Ones. If anyone can accomplish this, it's him."

Rebec lets her eyes linger on Baldur's a moment. There is too much here, and it's not for now. I'm getting soft, and they'll think it's because I'm a woman. "I know," she replies finally. "I'm not questioning your plan, or Boldir's skill. Gods know I've seen what you all can do. I'm a grunt here, General, so I'll go where you send me, but if I may. There's not much use for a shield wall on a ship, but I've practiced it as all Nord warriors have, and heart means as much as brawn up there if things go bad. You'll put your strongest warriors in front, but I'll be useful as a field officer in the reserve, to watch the flanks and such. I've got some practice with a crossbow now, too, so I can keep myself busy while the wall holds."

Baldur didn't like the idea, but he couldn't be a hypocrite after he just said he wouldn't play favorites.

"Okay, it sounds like a plan. Don't get yourself killed. I, uh..Ulfric would kick my ass if I got our High Admiral killed or captured."

The admiral grins. "You didn't think I came all this way to win your men's gold at cards? Well, not only for that. And Bilfrag over there shouldn't get all the fun." She looks across to Jodun. "You men mind your arrows. It was a friendly that shot me in our last little dust-up. And if you see that crazy bastard of a legate, aim for his ugly head. From the talk around Helgen, he's picked off one too many of our men while hiding in the shadows."

Jodun gave her a nod.

"Do not worry. I will make sure both of you are safe. My men have your back."

Boldir let his smile linger a bit. "First thing's first, eh Baldur? I've gotta get some Imperial armor. So how long until General Marius arrives?"

"He should be here any minute now, I guess. As for the armor, I always keep an issue in case of situations like this. It's in the pack on my horse. Now, you guys go prepare the men to move. I'll wait for the General to arrive. Dismissed".

[The Good Doctor]

General Marius Imperius, Tent, Night

I need some wine...

Marius entered his makeshift tent, with the intention of getting piss drunk, only to be surprised by a unexpected visator.

"Greetings, General," a young looking Dunmer woman of short stature sat on the foot of his bed as he entered.

The general, seemingly unsuprised, went to his arm chair, and took out a bottle of wine.

"You one of Samuel's people lass?"

"Aye, that I am," she replied. Unlike Samuel, she seemed polite and showed no interest in showing off her knowledge. "I assume you know why I am here?"

"Yes..." Marius had a sad look on his face.

Yes," Alef repeated after him. "It is time for you to leave the Legion. For good. After you leave, our agents will start a rumor that will lead the Thalmor to find an Amulet of Talos in a hidden room in your quarters. Returning to the Legion as long as the Thalmor have an influence in the Empire will be impossible. Samuel told me to re-affirm that point for you. Is this thing with him why you are drinking so much?"

“Both yes and no…I…miss him.... But that’s not the only thing…you have to understand that I’m betraying the thing I hold dear most in this world…the thing I have fought for my entire life…I love the empire…†Marius took a chug from the wine bottle….

"I am sorry, sir, but I am not sure I understand what you are saying, which is a large negative in my work," Alef looked a bit for a moment. "You answered my question about Samuel doing this to you, forcing you to betray the Empire, was the reason for your drinking, but I am not sure what you mean by the rest of your statement. I think any comments about Samuel's private life will have to be excluded from your conversations with me, I am not aware of any of it."

Marius winked in her direction with a sly smile,

"If you insist...Why did Samuel send you?"

She raised an eyebrow at his wink, slightly disapprovingly. "To give you the directions to where you will get your directions. And to make sure you are not going back on your end of the deal, much to your own disadvantage."

"Go on then..."

Marius appearance changed dramatically, he was now dead serious and intently watched the dumner, waiting for her answer.

"A hours walk north of the northernmost Imperial position you will be ambushed, and subsequently either knocked out cold or be given a hood to make sure you don't know where we are going. Resistance will be met with being left alone at the mercy of the Thalmor and the Imperial Inquisition. Stand down without a fight, and Samuel's men will take you to a location to make sure that those with you are to be trusted."

Alef got to her feet, but had gotten a strange look in her eyes. "Just between us, what was that about you missing him?"

"Understood...and...me and Samuel had a "relationship" a very long time ago...."

Marius got up from his position before putting on a dark cloak along with a pair of leather gloves.

"I'll head out right away..."

"No attempt to make others join in?" she seemed surprised, but not at his decision to leave right away. Her expression had changed a bit when the relationship came up, but she tried not to mention more about it.

Marius’s face instantly filled with rage, and his voice was farcry from his regular deadpan tone.

“I am not…going…to drag others into this, and risk the lives of my officers….â€

"I am not criticizing your choice, General, merely asking the question. It is my job to clarify such details before any major action is taken," Alef said in a somewhat apologetic tone, but it was clear she was disappointed in his reaction. "You are doing the most safe course of action for yourself, which is also the most effective on our part."

"Fine...then..."

Marius didn't even bother to say good-bye. As he left his tent, and soon the camp, hooded and cloaked.

Marius walked for about forty minutes, before arriving at the destination.

"General," a Nord's voice came from behind. A man with long blond hair, long beard and wearing the finest Nord plate armor approached him. Behind him Marius could see the form of two others."I was told you would be coming alone, so I didn't bother with the ambush. I expect we could easily handle one aging soldier, if you resist."

Marius, chuckled darkly,

"I would teach you kids some manners, if this mission wasn't absolutely vital...do it..."

If you say so," the Nord laughed and signaled for an Orc to approach him. She had a black hood with her and placed it over Marius' head.

"Next stop," the Nord continued. "Samuel's current position."

“No…take me to general Red-Snow beforehand…:â€

[The Good Doctor]

Witch-king (aka Witchie)
Pale Pass, Stormcloak camp
Late evening

The Thalmor had been very strict about sticking together and to keep a good haste when they set out. Unfortunately their trail lead to the imperial camp, somewhere he could not follow. Afterwards he had instead found a Stormcloak camp in the Pale Pass. After dismounting at the edge of the camp before entering the camp he couldn't help but to notice a imperial man tied up to a tree. Witchie walked up to the man and asked:

"Who are you?"

"A man of information," the Imperial tied up to the tree answered calmly. "And a temporary prisoner, of my own choosing mind you, in the care of the General. If you need a name, you may call me Samuel. And yourself? You seem to stand out, both in appearance and rumor around here."

"They call me Witchie. Why are you tied to a tree? And what kind of information are we talking about?"

"Witchie... Yes, I have heard the name and you fit the description. Heard you had some fun in the woods not too long ago. Doing a little 'hunt'. I deal in information about people, and other things," Samuel put some almost unnoticeable emphasis on the last word. "As for the tree, that is just a gesture of humor from your general. Say, do you mind getting me a glass of water? I admit, I am getting a little thirsty."

"If you can know what I did yesterday, then I wonder if you have ever heard of me in my full name; Witch-king. If you know where I've been king, I will give a glass of water." Witchie didn't expect a real answer as he had gone through the entire imperial library and every library in Skyrim without even finding as much as a footnote of himself.

"No, I wouldn't presume to know such a thing. I can hardly be expected to know much from the time before recorded history, now can I?" the Imperial smiled his confident smile. "If I had to guess I would say Atmora, or in Skyrim before the Nords left. But that is mere conjecture on my part."

"Let me guess, Baldur's been talking."

"No, actually not. I only talked to him about the Imperial General, Marius. No, rumors have a way to spread fast and even here the walls have ears. My ears, for the most part."

"What about this Imperial General?"

"Marius? Traitor to be, that one. He'll join your fight against the Empire, as soon as I give the order. As I said, I control information and information controls the Empire."

"How and why would he join 'us'"

"I am afraid that is a matter I cannot share with anyone, except the General Baldur himself. But have no fear, I am going to stay here until the General Baldur decides I am free to go, so if I set you up I have very little room to escape. None in fact, as I am tied up." The ropes suddenly fell to the ground and Witchie could see Samuel stand there with a knife in his hand, which he then held out so Witchie could take it from him if he wanted. "Don't worry, I don't intend to escape or attack, I just needed to stretch a bit. Standing still can be so uncomfortable over long periods of time."

"Just keep in mind that I am not exactly bound by your information. And one more thing; who knew what I did deep in the forest?"

"Of course not, I am well aware. Hence why I haven't attempted to make a deal with you, even with your special talents. As for how I know, let me just say that you were not the only one hunting in the forest that night. Though you can be assured that I got to hear about it was a coincidence; I had hoped for some information about the Thalmor rather than you."

"Good, if I find someone of your contacts following me, they will end up in the Soul Cairn. I hope you know about that place." Witchie turned around and started walking the general's tent. After a few steps he conjured up an ice cube and lobbed it at the imperial to catch. "Something for your throat."

Samuel easily caught the ice, but almost instantly dropped it to the ground. Without the blood of a Nord, it was a little too cold for him to hold on to for long.
"You take care, Your Highness."

Witchie didn't pay any attention to what he said and continued walking to the only tent in the camp. In there he found Baldur besides a table.

"Witchie? Where have you been all this time?" Baldur said.

"Hunting Thalmor. Only got lucky these last days as Thalmor unit came from the north into Falkreath forest. Managed to kill lure and kill four of them before the rest of them decided it was time to hurry up and get to the imperial camp."

"So, looks like you've been keeping busy. Actually you came at the perfect time. I have news for you. News that I'm sure you'd love to hear, and it involves the Thalmor."

"Let me hear it then."

"Boldir did some scouting on the enemy earlier, and I'm sure you're not surprised to hear that they have some Thalmor there. I have a mission coming up soon where their General will be attempting to get his Legion to side with us. Boldir will be wearing imperial armor as a disguise and accompany him, but there's a chance the Legate whose now a Praefect will recognize him. So, you go with him, disguise the both of you, and if things go south, you can stay behind and hunt the Thalmor to your heart's content. Maybe even send me information while you're there. What do you think?"

"Sounds good. Though I'll stay in the forests around the camp then."

Baldur thought about the plan for a second, and then he remembered the last time he left Witchie with a friend of his.
"Good. But one thing before you leave. Guard your brother's back with your life, as he would for you. Don't run off and abandon him to kill the elves. You'll get your chance whether this goes south or not. Understood?"

"Just as long he doesn't do anything foolish."

Baldur didn't like that last comment from him, as it sounded to him like a way to weasel his way out of what he said.
"That goes double for you. Don't do anything foolish. You can go now. You'll be leaving once the General is here. Oh, and let my guest go from those restraints, if he hasn't done so himself already. He probably already had a plan to let himself go. Can never tell with people like him."

"I spoke with him. He cut himself loose while I did. What's his connection with the Imperial General?"

"He seems to be an acquaintance of his, and he has some dirt on him that proves he's a Talos worshiper. He apparently already has growing hate for those in charge and their ties to the Thalmor, so he's using that to make him work with us. I have my doubts that this plan will work, mainly if he can get his Legion to betray the Empire, but at the very least, we get an Imperial General with a wealth of information on our side. Any more questions you have you can ask Samuel."

"How many people have you spoken with about my age? Samuel apparently knows about it."

Baldur was puzzled, as he found the question to be strange and irrelevant, but he humored the Witch King none the less.
"*Sigh*, I haven't even told Boldir about that, as it never came up. I have no idea how he could've known about that. You told this to Do'jhul, and he's long since escaped. Maybe he came into contact with him?"

"Maybe. But this should be kept quiet about, I don't want people looking into it."

"Why? What could he do with that information if others found out?"

"Let's just say that I have a place from that time. Where I don't want any uninvited visitors."
Even if would take an army to breach it, it would be best if no one found it.

And with that said, Witchie left the tent to find Boldir.

[The Good Doctor]

Rebec and Samuel
Stormcloak camp, Pale Pass
evening

After departing the meeting with the Stormcloak leaders, Rebec had had to find a quiet corner to compose herself. It's just nerves about the battle, she tells herself. Being on land has me jumpy as a cat.  There is no time for nerves, however. She spends the afternoon planning and training with the men who would be in the shield wall. There's still no sign of this imperial general, as she knew there wouldn't be.

Evening draws in. After eating supper with her niece, the admiral throws her seacloak over her shoulders and walks through the camp, hoping for a familiar face to lighten her mood. Out of the corner of her eye, she notices movement near the tree where the imperial spy had been bound. A moment later Rebec approaches, her crossbow drawn and loaded.


"Ah, you must be the admiral, Rebec. I am pleased to meet you," Samuel sat by the foot of the tree and smiled, talking with a chuckle in his voice. "I am sorry that I cut the ropes, if that is why you have that thing aimed at me. I simply couldn't stand not being able to move my arms around, so I cut them. But I am not going to object if you want to tie me up again."


The man knows her name and is sitting here like he's got nothing better to do. What is it with these imperials? Are they eating moon sugar on their crumpets these days?

"I'd say you haven't got a choice whether to object or not," Rebec answers him coldly. She calls over some Stormcloak regulars, berates them for slackness and for having elves for mothers, and orders them to tie Samuel back up again. They start to protest that General Red-Snow had ordered him to be released, but a glare from Rebec cuts off their protests.  After Samuel is once more lashed to the tree, she lowers the crossbow, but keeps the quarrel in it. The guards slink off again.

Regarding Samuel levelly, Rebec says, "You don't think any of us believe your tall tale, do you, imperial? And you ponces give off that you're smarter than us."


"What I know, Rebec, is that I can track down every shipment you have made with your friends in Hammerfell, down to the fence who took care of it. What I know is that you recently lost the Harpy to the Legate second in command to General Marius. What I know is that you ran supplies for the Imperials during the war, and I know that your husband went missing a bit over two years ago and you never looked for him."

Samuel didn't seem bothered by the ties; rather he seemed to find them amusing. The same appeared to be true for her comments on his 'tall tale'.

"And I don't expect you to believe me. Once Marius is here, brought in as a prisoner by my orders, you are free to do with him as you wish, though I suspect you have reason to trust him. At least until the Thalmor no longer controls the belief of the Empiire. He will be known as a Talos worshiper to both the Thalmor and the Inquisition by the time he arrives here, which should be a matter of days. I ruined him, I admit, but he was at the short end of a gesture of good faith to the Stormcloaks."

Rebec lowers the crossbow further, and comes around to face Samuel squarely. In the spare light of a foggy night and the few torches propped up nearby, the paleness in her face is evident, as is the flash of fury in her eyes. She stares at the man for a long moment, then some of the tension goes out of her and her head rests back. A little smile plays at her lips. "I know who you are, too. Not by name, maybe, but I know your sort. You like to think you're gods, playing with others' lives and fortunes like a child plays with bone tokens. Beware, imperial. Even the gods can die. Worse for them, they can be forgotten. People can tire of their games and decide to ignore them. You think there aren't dozens in Tamriel who would take your place if I put this bolt in your neck?"

"I am counting on that fact," he replied, calm as ever. "Though I would hardly call myself a God; I am merely a businessman. A good one, but still limited to that. For your own sake, I wouldn't kill me though. For the last of the traces of your husband to grow cold would be a shame. I am still in business after all these years because people have something to gain by ally with me and because I rarely use blackmail as my primary leverage. The information about your husbands latest whereabouts is such a reason. And the convenient disappearance of the evidence that you worked for the Imperials in the war. The later is probably more of a 'saving face'-deal with that lover of yours, since you have been given a full pardon and all. Well, maybe not for that, but I know Ulfric well enough to know he won't waste your talents for working for the Empire and later betray them. But go ahead, kill me. Let the one person who has held the track warm in your lack of searching, knowing that you wanted to find out the truth."

Rebec's teeth are set so hard on edge that she shakes with it. He had hit deep, and all at once. A crossbow bolt was too clean for this one. "This is what you call friendship," she answers, seething. "Yes, that is your empire's way. Very fitting." Casting desperately for a defense against the personal wounds he had opened, she remembers what she had said in the Stormcloak council. "Prove your friendship, then, with something more useful than who's [censored] whom. What legion is up there in the fort? How many, and how many Thalmor do they have with them?" She realizes, suddenly, something else the man had said, adding, "And who is this legate you say sunk my ship? Give me a name."

"For the numbers, you have to forgive me. I have not offered those for sale," he didn't appear aware of the distress he had caused her, or maybe he pretended not to be aware. He didn't appear impressed with her outbursts either, being colder than the ice of the Sea of Ghosts. "And I never said something about friendship. I am a businessman, not a priest of Dibella. But I might be willing to part with the Legate's name. First, however, answer me why I should give up this information for free? Personal revenge motive, with an unknown assailant. That is not a highly prized secret, I am aware, but you are giving me the short end of the stick here. And you conveniently ignore, or maybe you didn't catch, the offer I made you for safety from the last and the past trace of your husband's trail. And what do you mean by 'your Empire's way'? I am not affiliated with the Imperial government, nor do I have any particular interest in having their control return to Skyrim. For me it really doesn't matter."


Rebec gives a snort of laughter. "I'm supposed to believe that a... a 'businessman' like you would care about a dirt poor Nord tinker? What makes you think that I care about him? You said yourself, I haven't looked for him. As for the battlemage, it doesn't matter. I remember his face, and now I know his rank. I'll find him if he's up there. And whether you're what you say you are or just a Thalmor lackey with a good ear for gossip, that remains to be seen, doesn't it."


"You care, we both know that. Husband simply disappearing, it isn't right and you want to know why. It is natural and expected. As for why I care; I don't. I only care because I know you care and I know you can be a useful person to work with. Tell you what, his name is Gracchus Ceno."


"More twisted truth, I imagine," Rebec says bitterly.  But still, she files the name away. Then her Nord blood eases its fire and her business sense asserts itself, a little. "I don't like you, imperial. I don't like your face. I don't like your smell. I don't like the [censored] who bore you. But if there's a chance this story of yours is true, we have to take it. And then... then maybe we can talk about my husband and that one time I ran supplies for Rikke."


"I don't care that you don't like me, Rebec, I only care that you see reason and the benefits of working with me. But all of that in due time. Depending on how many people Marius want to involve in his treason, it shouldn't take too long before they are here. Daybreak, I'd say. Maybe next afternoon, if he has a larger following."


Rebec gives a skeptical snort and turns to walk away. "I'll see about getting you a bedroll. Wouldn't want you complaining about Stormcloak hospitality when this vast army of legion turncoats shows up."


"I wouldn't expect and army, Rebec," suddenly she fond his hand on her shoulder and him standing behind her with a friendly smile. "Marius is not going to risk that many people. Might not even risk anyone 'cept himself, but that is something I cannot say for certain right now."

He quickly backed away and held out his knife, the one he had cut the ropes with, so Rebec could take it from him if she wanted.


Rebec spins away from Samuel and brings the crossbow back up in one motion, backing up a few paces with it trained on him. While doing so she mutters a string of sailor curses. Under her fury she has to grudgingly admire the man's skill. What had Baldur called him? Moon Balls. She was beginning to see why. "We've got a lot of rope in this camp. I'll personally walk to Falkreath to get more. Only if I do that, you'll be hanging from that tree, not lashed to it."

Since the imperial wasn't going to stay tied up anyway and the guards had said something about Baldur ordering his release, Rebec gives up. "Don't burn anything," she calls over her shoulder as she walks away- referring to her own escapades as prisoner in the imperial camp. She ponders going to ask Baldur just what he was playing at letting the imperial wander free, but that would mean talking to Baldur. Instead Rebec finds the campfire where her crewmates are lounging, and joins in their rowdy circle. Her mood is still tense, however, and occasionally she casts a glance back to the tree.

[The Good Doctor]

Eduard Laenius, Alef- Just outside Fort Pale Pass, Late Night/Early Morning

I haven't heard from the General all day, thought Eduard. You know what, I think I'm going to go have a look at Rex's camp, see what he is made of.

As Eduard quietly made his way out of the fort, he saw a female Dunmer, looking directly at him.

"Eduard, I presume?" she said in a friendly tone, but didn't move. "Should we go further from the camp, so no one sees that you are gone?"

Of course, I can't even get out of this fort without having to chit-chat, Eduard thought to himself. At least it's a lady.

"You seem to know things about me," replied Eduard, with an ice cold stare. "Sure, why don't we get away from here, miss...?"

"You can call me Alef," she smiled back and gestured for him to follow her. "I have a proposition, but I think we better take it somewhere more private."

This better not be a waste of time, Eduard thought, remembering what he came out to do in the first place.

"Alright, sure why not, I've got a bit of time to spare," he replied. He made a virtually unseeable adjustment to the dagger on his belt, to make sure if he was ambushed, that he was prepared. All while keeping the ice cold look on his face.

If she leads me into a trap, she'll be the first to die, he decided.

"You try to be quite stoic, don't you?" with the same friendly tone as before, Alef asked after they had walked for a little while. They should be out of the hearing range of the camp by then, so she stopped.

"It's not something I really try to do, anymore at least," Eduard answered, stopping with the lady.

Not a bad read, Alef. By the looks of things, she is probably actually telling the truth about this proposition, he observed.

"Right, of course," Alef let out a small laughter, still very friendly. "Well, let me get down to business: We, my associates and I, are aware of your need for money, and we are offering you a well-paying contract, if you are interested."

"Alright then, business it is," Eduard replied. "Now, I'm just going to assume you and your... associates, are aware of why I am in need of money. I also think it's fair to assume that you had a slight idea that I would be out here tonight. To know so much, would either take divine power, or research and gold. And you don't seem to be a divine. So I am going to trust that you have money. Now, what is this proposition?"

"You see," Alef smiled and took a few steps closer. "There is a man named Feren in Falkreath. He is a nuisance in his hunt for my employer. Nothing we really think of as dangerous, or even threatening, but it presents an opportunity for you and your sister. If you perform this contract well, we are willing to not only pay you money, but continued service will be rewarded in other ways."

"Now you didn't know any better, but I will give you this warning only once," Eduard answered. "I don't care if it's in a positive or negative light, whether we are talking benefits or detriments, the only person who will bring my sister into a discussion is me. Will my sister benefit? Yes. Is she part of the deal? No. I don't mean to be rude, but as you probably know, I am... a little protective of her. If you can respect this one rule, then I'm willing to listen to the details on this contract. So anyways, tell me more about what you wish done with this Feren."

"As you wish, I can omit the mention of her in the future, but I will return the warning. If you accept the first contract and perform as we expect, you might be afforded to meet my superior. He is... a bit eccentric and might not accept that rule. However, he is also in a position- and I apologize for mentioning her, but this is important for you to know- to make sure that she can hide openly without fear of being hurt."

Alef quickly changed the subject. Dealing with people like this would be more challenging than she had originally thought. Unlike Samuel, she didn't have the advantage of a memory that could keep track of almost everything in perfect order, nor did she have his authority. The best way to act would be through caution and patience.

"The business at hand is a simple assassination. The bounties will be taken care of, should any ensue and you will not suffer any other backlashes either. So, name your price."

"I'll cross that bridge with your superior when I get to it, I suppose," he replied. "I see that you are getting a bit tense. Please, don't be afraid. I am not mad; I just wanted you to know what you should and shouldn't bring up with me. Depending on my rewards, the rule may change, especially for your superior. Friends of mine have more freedom with what they say."

I don't want to scare the lady, he reminded himself. He then in full view put his dagger in a less hostile position, hoping that would relieve the tension the lady felt.

"As for pay, I don't have a specific price," said Eduard, as he began to explain his terms. "I have a specific need, and the reward will fill that need. The reward I ask is that you supply my security team with whatever they want, within reason. You will be visited by a man named Jon once the contract is completed, who you may have heard of. Don't let him scare you, he just enjoys slipping through the shadows. He means no harm, so as long as you mean none as well. Now, as for your bland details, I knew it was an assassination. What I wanted to know is who this man is, not why you want him dead. What is his occupation? That is all I ask."

"We know Jon, he worked with someone who worked for us some time back. Still keeps in touch from time to time- with the agent, I mean-, but he is not an active agent anymore," Alef seemed to relax a little at his words, but she still seemed cautious. Or maybe it was just nerves? Hard to say. "We will supply you with 1,500 septims worth of equipment for the contract, on completion."

"Feren is an information broker like myself, but he lost most of his network some time ago. And you can guess who was behind that and why we decided to take him out."

She better hope she isn't telling the truth about Jon, Eduard thought. If Jon was with this group, that means I could get more information on them. Could be helpful. Most likely not enough to do anything, but enough to impress.

"Know him or not, Jon can manage to be creepy sometimes," he said, with a light laugh. He was trying everything to make sure she regained her nerves. "1,500? How about if I complete it without a bounty, we do 2,000?"

"Now, I believe you know how dangerous it could be for an Imperial such as myself to go into Skyrim alone. Will you be able to ensure my safety while crossing the border, or is that my job? Either way is fine by me. I just want to know how hospitable you guys are," he said, seeing how much they would help him along in the job.

"2,000? Deal. This is not about money, not for us anyway. However, we expect a perfect performance at this price. Most professional assassins," she put extra emphasis on the phrase. "Do the job for 1,200. As for the border, we have a map of several safe routes for single personnel though larger groups will move too slowly for it to be effective in the war. Take it, as a part of the payment."

"Finding out who Feren is is up to you. He is an amateur and will most likely be found in a tavern trying to sell his information in trade for something on Samuel. Tell him that you know where to find Alef to get his attention."

With that she took up a small bottle from her belt, drank it and disappeared.

Once the lady disappeared, Eduard was left standing by himself.

Professional Assassins do it for 1,200? Then you probably should have found an assassin. You hired an Imperial Specialist with a need for gold, he said to himself.

After that, he decided against going out to scout the camp. He chose to go back inside and strategize how he would get the contract done.

As Eduard got back into the fort, he began to reflect.

Well, that was certainly an interesting development. What to do, what to do. I guess I'll get Jon to see if he can't gather anything, and then I'll make for Falkreath at the next opportunity. Rex can wait. Feren is the new man on my mind. Along with the girl, Alef, wasn't it? And her superior, who apparently is more knowledgeable than her. I look forward to meeting him, with caution of course. The rookie in the girl certainly did show in that meeting, but she isn't too bad a business lady. I'll figure out more when I wake up, when I'm less tired.

With that, Eduard got some much needed rest.

[The Good Doctor]

Baldur, Boldir, Marius, Rebec, Samuel
Early Morning just before daybreak
Pale Pass Camp

Baldur was currently in the command tent looking over some charts, and worrying over this "operation". When a stormcloak soldier came in and interrupted.

"Sir, Four Armour civilians came in holding a hooded man, they said you would understand, "Leader of the sundered six-tailed dragon....they told us to bring him to you. We have him bound and hooded."

"Have the man brought to me immediately please."

Baldur gave a heavy heave of breath, as it was finally time to get this operation underway. He couldn't help but feel that all he was doing was endangering Boldir for no reason, but he knew there was nothing he could do about it at the moment.

Two stormcloak soldiers came into the command tent, dragging in a man with a tied hood who's arms were bound, he wore a dark cloak and had leather gloves. The soldiers put him into a position were he was on both his knees, before leaving the tent.

Baldur stepped forward from behind his table, and pulled the hood from off of the man's head.

"Well I'll be. The General of the Sixth Legion in the flesh. I honestly can't believe it."

"General Baldur Blood-Snow I take it?" The general's face looked surprisingly calm, especially for the situation he was in.

"It's Red-Snow," said Baldur agitatedly. "Let's skip the small talk. Do you really think your men will join us?"

"I think...I could could convince a good deal..."

The general, whom started to look around his surroundings, half-jokingly asked Baldur, "Care to untie me, Blood-snow?"

"Perhaps I'll untie you, when you get my name correct," said Baldur.

"Red-snow...fits well Baldur...now please untie me..."

Baldur reluctantly cut his bonds with his axe by sawing of the bindings.

"I still don't trust you, or this arrangement, so keep that in mind before you make any sudden movements."

Baldur patted the General down to make sure that he didn't have any concealed weapons.

Marius, quite calmly, told Baldur as he patted Marius down

"Hmmmm, surprising, your showing me much more hospitality then you did to Prefect Lorgar, general..."

"That's because unlike you, Lorgar wasn't someone that could be blackmailed into submission. That, and the man would have taken my head off if I let him. I could tell from his eyes. You? I knew you were broken the moment I looked at yours. I wondered if this whole Talos worshipping thing about you was true, and if Samuel was simpy helping the Imperials pull a fast one, but...lets just say if someone asked me what a man forced to betray someone looked like, it'd be you."

That, and I know what it feels like. Having to kill my father and all.

"How sweet Baldur, but if you think i'm broken and submitting to you, then you must have misunderstood, iv'e already acknowledged to myself that what i'm doing is necessary for the overall survival of the empire, who is the truly broken one here? I can see what a broken man is...Baldur what made you so broken?, what made you willingly to use a mans kindness and twist it around by pretending you were going to rape a girl...Oh...one more thing..." Marius's face twisted into a dark smile. "How's your father doing...oh wait..."

Baldur was caught off guard a little from that last response.

"My father? So, you know about that. If you're looking for a way to hurt my feelings, you won't find it there. Sure, I felt like I betrayed my father when I killed him. But when I went to kill him, I didn't know it was him. But he knew it was me when he made a move on my life. And he was a prick of a father anyway. So, I at first felt like I betrayed him, but I got over it. He was the Imperial soldier. He betrayed his people first. To your other comments, how does that make me broken? I killed no one, and I didn't even lay a finger on your Lorgar. So...care to try again?"

That's when Marius's composure finally snapped. He angrily glared at Baldur

"Touched him...You didn't fucking touch him?! It WAS real to him...ALL OF IT, you killing his soldiers infront of his face, you pretending you were going to rape that girl . Don't you feel a tad guilty for what you did to that man you fucker?! You know he has nightmares's all the time now?, I've heard him call out your name in his dreams. Do you have any fucking idea how bad condition that man is in? Did you came to realize that the people who love him suffer as well?! I tried to get him help...but he refused. That's why I hate you stormcloaks, you think that the imperial you kill are monsters, we're people too...What about the people of Falkreath? I thought you stormcloaks lived to "protect" the nordic people, you're burning there property leaving them homeless, "scorched earth tactics"?! Don't tell me, it's our fault, the "imperials" are to blame for "forcing" us?"

Baldur was now starting to get angry. The audacity of the Imperial talking about hurting others really hit his nerves, and it showed.

"Oh please, you bastards allow far worse from the Thalmor. If Lorgar can't handle some nightmares, maybe you can give him a dolly and tuck him in perhaps? As for my tactics, I guess you'd prefer I let the Legion grow fat for months on end off of our land? I'm not stupid. I'll personally make sure my people get paid for the property that was destroyed, don't you worry. I don't apologize for anything I've done. None of it would've happened if you just accepted our independence."

Marius smirked,
"Oh I thought Ulfric was almost in-debt? How is he suppose to "pay" these people back? You don't know the monster you've unleashed Baldur...Lorgar is different... and eventually you'll know the meaning of "Arrow to the heart..."

"We have ties with Hammerfell, remember? Trade can proceed once more through their borders. We will be prosperous once more, and Ulfric's money issues are solving themselves thanks to the silver from our minds that no longer go to you. Where do you think we got the coin to make all this armor? As for Lorgar, he's the least of my worries. If we ever do meet in combat, I won't be so kind next time...And another thing. I..."

Baldur noticed someone was at the tent. tapping on the flap, when he was about to speak

An axe taps on the tent flap, someone seeking entry. Rebec stands outside. At the campfire, she had decided that she was being an idiot for avoiding Baldur, and she did want to talk about Samuel. There are voices inside, but she assumes it's a captain getting orders. When Baldur calls for her to enter, she lifts the tent flap, steps through, then stops short, looking from one man to the other. "Am I disturbing you, General? I can come back."

"No, please. We were just finishing up. Did you wish to discuss something?"

Rebec looks at Marius again before she answers, then makes the connection. "So this is the person we're supposed to believe is General Marius? I'm sorry, I don't recognize you. I wasn't at the last tea party at White Gold Tower." She turns to Baldur. "Is there any way we can know he is who he says he is? The stories Moon Balls is spinning out there about him, I can't keep it all straight."

"Yes, I recognize his description from Ulfric. He's the one who came storming in the palace."

Rebec is amazed by this, shaking her head. "Well. We can forget our own plans with Boldir, then. Moon Balls told me that they've planted a Talos amulet in his quarters and he's going to be denounced to those Thalmor they've got with them." She can't resist a smirk at Marius. "Welcome to Skyrim, General. Hail Talos."

She turns to leave again, seeing that Baldur has a lot in his hands. "Let me know if you need anything else, General." Like a headsman, her expression reads.

"Well...that pretty much ruins that plan. If you will excuse me, General, I need to speak to Samuel. MEN!"

Two Grim Ones came into the tent after he called.

"Have a team of guards watch over our guest while he stays here, and have Samuel meet me in here."

"No need, General, I have been eavesdropping on you ever since Marius arrived," Samuel came in just as the Grim Ones were about to go out. "Greeting Marius, I did not expect to see you just yet."

"Samuel..." Marius was smirking. "How are you doing?"

"Better than you, though that doesn't require much effort these days," Samuel surprisingly didn't return the smirk, but rather gave him his arrogant smile. "It seems I gave you the short end of the stick of a business deal that was cancelled and turned into a getrue of good faith, on my part, towards the Stormcloaks. Baldur, who was it in here that wanted to talk to me? I didn't quite catch that part."

"It was myself. Apparently you took it upon yourself to let the Thalmor know he worships Talos? Kinda ruins any chance of using him to get soldiers don't you think?"

"Your plan would have failed, and miserably so," Samuel didn't seem bothered. "The General has been acting strange ever since my visit, and I can confirm that certain members of the Inquisition have become suspicious. Not to mention that his disappearance is likely to be discovered before you arrive. To top it off, the Princess Mortierre is in his camp. She made sure she was introduced with all the officers in person. You wouldn't have gotten far before your men were in a Thalmor cell, singing like birds. And that last part is not meant as an insult, but a fact we all know to be true."

"I had a plan to keep that from happening, Samuel. I'm no fool. But now that you took it upon yourself to spill the beans, the General is no longer of any immediate use to me besides information you'd likely have been able to gain yourself. So...now what?"

"Of course," the sarcasm hang heavily in the air and he rolled his eyes. "His information is still useful to you, because the gesture of good will started and ended with stopping Marius from helping the Empire and slowing them down. He knows little I don't. but I doubt you are willing to pay my prices when he can tell you. And just so you know, Baldur, talking to the Imperial soldiers, even for Marius here, would be more risky than you believed. With the Princess present, there are security checks at any suspicious activity, below the rank of General who get a tiny bit of wiggle room."

"Great, back to square one then. Was this a recent development with the Princess? You seemed very sure that he'd be getting us Imperial soldiers."

"No, I did not. All I said that there might be some who joined that were loyal to Marius, rather than the Empire. You jumped to the conclusion that I promised you a large part of the 6th Legion, when all I offered was one of its heads on a silver plate."

Samuel sounded a tad annoyed and had let his arrogant tone go down a notch or two. "There is still the matter of me; I promised to remain a captive as long as you desired, so when will you let me go? Or am I to spend more time with you Nords and the General?" he nodded to Marius.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I assumed that since you know everything, you knew that you were free to go. My bad. Anyway, don't think that I don't appreciate this. I just had to remain suspicious. You understand. At any rate, we have the General with us, and we can continue with our little affair. Thank you kindly, Samuel."

"A... thanks? From you? You do know I am of Cyrod blood, right?" The Imperial seemed surprised, for the first time, as well as humored "Well, that was an unexpected turn of events, to say the least. Take it as a compliment," he added, with a wink to Baldur. "Few people surprise me and even fewer positively."

Samuel turned around and opened the tent, but stopped and quickly looked back at them. "And General Red-Snow: I wish you luck. You will need it."

Don't I know it.

****
A few hours after his talk with Samuel, Baldur had his men up and ready to shed blood in the name of Skyrim. Baldur breathed in and sighed heavily as he began to explain to Boldir the recent changes.

"Okay Boldir, I have the men waiting for your orders. There's a change of plans. The General came in not to long ago, but the Emperor deemed it necessary to send his little girl in with the big boys, so because of this, the plan with the General isn't going to work. Samuel already spilled the beans that he's a Talos worshiper anyway, so the plan was doomed to fail regardless, which honestly I'm glad. I prefer a straight up fight anyway compared to wondering if they were going to attack us in our sleep. Bright side is we have their General now as either a prisoner or an ally, still not sure on that."

Baldur gave yet another sigh that was starting to be a characteristic of him now that his job required him to explain so much to so many.

"So, anyway you're going in with the Stormcloak archers and Hammerfell skirmishers. As before, you'll wait for them to advance, then dog their advance all the way back. When they get close to the entrance, retreat back, and our Grim Ones will form a shield wall and block their way while your archers from behind the shield wall lob arrows over my men into the imperials. After that, we simply retreat, and set up a perimeter boxing them in this area restricting them to the burned farmland and houses. Jodun will be leaving with you. Got the plan?

Boldir breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't been excited at the prospect walking into the Imperial camp, disguised or not.

"I've got it. I'm looking forward to seeing how Jodun handled himself... I’m relieved to hear this. I did not want to place faith in the General. Speaking of, what's your take on him?" 

Baldur was also strangely relieved that his task no longer required the General directly. At least now he knew what to expect.

"You see that I have him on guard constantly, right? I think that about covers my feelings of him, don't you? Talos worshiper or not, we're about to start killing his men. Until this is over, he's a POW until I think otherwise of him. Samuel gave us quite the boon."

"Samuel? You mean that civilian you had tied to a tree earlier? I figured him for a spy, not an informant... I still don't know why the General has had so sudden a change of heart. If he's anything like every other Imperial we've encountered, he wouldn't just abandon his Legion like that. What's his angle in all this Baldur?" 

Baldur began to chuckle when he realized his mistake.

"I could have sworn I told you this already. I must have missed that detail. Anyway, he's not exactly with us. He's blackmailed. Samuel exposed his Talos worship, so he has nowhere else to go. So even though we can't use him to get more soldiers, we at least have their General out of play, and he can give us information later about them. Things like how they think, and tenancies of the particular Legion here in battle. Whether he does so willingly or not is up to him, but it seems clear from my talk with him he will, albeit reluctantly. He knows the ones in charge of the Empire are under the Thalmor's thumb."

"That's right, you have already told me he was being blackmailed. I guess I just figured he'd have an actual reason of his own to want to be here. A powerful man doesn't often join his enemies without motive. And then there's that Samuel. This whole situation confuses me friend, and I feel that there's much I still don't know, so forgive my edginess."

Boldir put a hand on Baldur's shoulder.

"But as long as you're the one leading us brother, I have no doubt in my mind that it will all be for the best." 

"Well. I'm glad you have more confidence in me than I do, friend. I have a bad feeling that after this war is over, you may not feel the same way about me ever again."

Baldur let that sentence linger, while he contemplated. Baldur had been thinking about a past meeting with Galmar and Ulfric on battle tactics, where Ulfric asked for ideas on what they could do on worst case scenarios. Baldur gave out some ideas that he mainly just threw out but didn't actually think either of the two would take seriously. Ulfric approved them, however to Baldur's surprise and told him that they needed to win this war at any and all costs. If they didn't do everything at their disposal to win this war, then they failed as leaders. Baldur agreed, but he didn't like the thought of actually carrying out his ideas. The problem with one particular strategy is that although it was a smart move, it required some convincing to pull off, but even if it's primary goal failed, it could cause a great outcry across Tamriel against the Empire.

"At any rate, the General feels that what he's doing will be for the Empire's benefit in the long run. I guess it's either this or be forced to watch while the Thalmor corrupt everything. Now, go in there and do the Necro Nords proud. The Grim Ones await your return. When you come back, be sure to sound your battlehorn so we know the enemy is approaching. Talos guide you."

"Talos guide us both."

[The Good Doctor]

Pale Pass Camp,
Samuel and Marius
Shortly after the meeting with Baldur

Marius stood in the stormcloak camp. Though he was required to have a escort at all times, Baldur gave him the freedom to walk around the camp. Marius was hunting for one target, the man which brought out unbridled fury in him, the man whom he thought he loved, but now realized he hated, and was disgusted by him. 

Where is that gutless [censored]...

Samuel stood in the outskirts of the Stormcloak camp, slowly looking around, surrounded by his companions from before.

Rebec, you are talking longer than expected, now that I have shown to get things done.

In the distance he could see Marius and had to chuckle to himself.

"Is something funny?" Rorek asked him. "Or is there a piece of information you just realized you could sell for a high price?"

"No, Rorek; neither," the Cyrod just shook his head. "I just expect there to be a great deal of drama with the General over there. He seems a bit less predictable than usual, so I advice you to stand ready in case he tries anything."

There he is ...

Marius strode forward, fury evident in his eyes, as he appraoched Samuel, pure venom dripped from Marius's voice,

"You sick twisted [censored]..."Silver platter" that's all I am? A [censored] gift?!"

"Oh, get over yourself," Samuel scoffed. "You really need to understand what the hell is actually going on here. I am in this camp on business and you happened to be included in that business. You know, you have no right to be angry with what I said in there. None. I gave you a much better deal than what would have happened if I didn't force your hand like this."

"Business?! [censored] Business? Do you have any [censored] idea of the consqeucnes of your [censored] actions?! Do you think that this would affect my men at all?! Once the Thalmor find that Talos amulet in my room, there going to order the inquisition to engage in a "cleaning"? That means there going to investigate ALL of my soldiers? Meaning my soldiers are going to suffer for your own greed..."

"And how is that different from the surprise investigation of your men the princess had already planned?" Samuel shook his head. "But tell me, you knew about all of this by the end of the conversation we had in your quarters, so why now? Why not confront me about that then? What triggered your anger towards me?"

"That was only for the officers...now you've dragged my entire legion into this..."

Marius looked away,

"I thought I meant something to you...that I was more then a puppet to you..."

"Meant something to me?" Samuel seemed honestly amused by this. "Love. So that is what this is about. Your sentiment for a past that was over ten years ago."

He took a step closer to Marius, almost so close that he could feel his breath. "You are a broken old man, nostalgic about a past that can never come again. Your confused, alcohol addled mind has convinced you that there ever was a time that I cared about you. Guess what, General? You don't know me, and you never did. You are, and always were, a puppet. For me and for the Empire. But you are right about one thing: I cared enough to give you a second chance, with a chance to break your shackles."

"Oh a puppet?"

General Marius's fist connected into the right side of Samuel's jaws, with force that send Samuel sprawling onto the ground. Before Marius could react properly, Rorek landed his steel plate gauntlet into Marius's rib, casuing Marius to be pushed back, but not before Marius managed to side step and trip Rorek to the ground. Marius coughed up a good deal of blood.

The Orc, Bahgras, hit the General in the back with her shield, forcing him to his knees. He could hear that she loosened her axe from her belt and the touch of cold metal found his neck shortly after.

"You make one sudden move, General," the Orc said, and a fist in the side is the least of your problems.

The Grim ones were about to act to protect the General, but before they could draw their weapons, they simply stopped moving. Bill stood behind them; his spells had paralyzed them.

Marius got up from his downed position ignoring the metal axe, before the simply coughs become violent. Despite the trauma, Marius smiled.

"One day...One day Samuel, everything that you did will bite you in the ass. All the lives your ruined, all the people you've hurt, all the innocents you made suffer, EVERYTHING. Your worse then Baldur and Lorgar combined...You disgust me." Marius face was now twisted, "When everyone around forsakes and betrays you, i'll be there...when all the people get sick of you, i'll be there...i'll laugh as you become weaker and weaker, and when your god-like ego is finally humbled...i'll be there to finally gut you like the pig you actually are..."

"Whatever you say, General," Samuel had gotten back to his feet, but didn't seem very bothered by being hit square in the jaw, othe than the expected pain. "I have more important business here than talking to a broken General. Bahgras?"

"Yes, sir," Marius felt the pummel of the Orc's axe meet the back of his head, before he fell to the ground; unconscious.

"Now," Samuel continued. "Release the Grim Ones from the spell, Bill, so they can bring the General to somewhere he is not bothering me."

The General fell to the ground with a large thump. Rorek, slightly worried from the looks of it, looked over at Samuel as Bill released the Grim Ones from their spell.

"Sir, I think we shouldn't linger, considering what just happened. Baldur has limits."

"Doesn't matter," Samuel replied calmly. "The General Marius brought it upon himself and I don't think Baldur will mind much. If he has a problem with it he can take it up with me personally."

The two grim ones looked really pissed, as the went over to Marius's downed body, the first one angrily told Samuel

"Get out...NOW before I decide to have you people arrested, Wulf get the general, I'll take care of General Marius." 

Wulf nodded, before turning away to retrieve Baldur, while the other picked up Marius and put him over his shoulder.

"No can do," Samuel said. "I still have an appointment with the Admiral, Rebec. I am not leaving until then. And if you want to have me arrested for this, I think your General will disagree with you. Marius let his emotions rule his actions and I had him put out cold for it. If you hadn't tried to intervene, you wouldn't have been affected."

The Grim one, addressed Samuel angrily,

"I intervened because Baldur told us to watch, AS WELL as protect Marius. At least he had the balls to do what he thought was right, you relied on a bunch of lame brained sell-swords...Stay as long as you wish, but as soon as your business is done, you will leave, understood?" 

The grimm one then turned around and carried Marius to the infirmary.

Samuel just shook his head. No point in arguing with someone whose job was to soldier and not think.

[The Good Doctor]

Rebec and Samuel
Stormcloak Pale Pass camp
pre-dawn

The admiral passes a restless night and woke long before dawn. Moving quietly among the sleeping soldiers, she goes to the tree where she had last seen the mysterious Samuel. He is gone. Rebec stares at the tree for a while, refusing to believe that she had let slip a chance to find her husband.

So be it, she decides finally.  There are far more immediate concerns.  The man had spoken the truth about General Marius, and the rogue imperial general was already in their camp, but Rebec doesn't think that this means they will not have to fight. The smell of war is all about them. Sometimes the gods want blood, and will have it no other way. So be it, then.

Making a small fire away from the others, Rebec sets up a little mirror on her pack. She combs her hair and puts in wind braids at the sides. Then she does what is a rare thing for her: Taking out a pot of dark blue paint, she begins to mark her face.

Her fingers shake at first.  Rebec slows the movements, making them a meditation. Dark blue for the sea and the cover of night. A ring around the eyes, with points going downward. Clear sight. Sailors said of her that at least in the water she has the second sight, which is how she can maneuver in darkness. Rebec had begun to believe it, then the gods had shown her her folly. You had to look to see, whether by first sight or second. One upward curved line on each cheek. The wings of Kyne. Speed and ferocity. An enemy cannot hit the wind. One vertical line down the chin. Strike straight and true. Today Rebec thinks also of the shield wall, the line that must hold or the Thalmor would pour into Falkreath and a few burned farms wouldn't matter.

When she's finished, she pulls her chainmail tunic over her head and then a Stormcloak surcoat, affixes her baldric and belts and her weapons. The morning fog is still heavy over the camp. The admiral walks back to the edge of the camp and stands like that a while, watching the sleeping forms, trying not to imagine that they are corpses littering the ground.


"You took longer than expected, Admiral," Samuel, as well as three others, stood in the very outskirts of the camp. "I had expected you to seek me out much earlier."


Rebec starts at Samuel's voice. Glancing at the other three figures, she approaches and faces him. Despite her armor and war paint, her expression is far more subdued than when they had spoken the evening before, and so is her tone of voice. "Where is he?"

"Your husband? Within your reach," Samuel said. He didn't appear as arrogant as before, but still had an air of superiority about him. He didn't seem too pleased with her more subdued attitude, with a slightly disappointed look on his face. "The real question is what are you offering for the information? Everything has its price."

Her eyes widen. She had expected news that Toki was dead. Quickly forcing herself to calm, she says, "So I give you something that you can sell about me and someday down the line you ruin me like you've done to Marius, is that how this works?"

"Not at all, I don't need more of your secrets. I have enough to do considerable harm already, but you'll have to forgive my treatment of the General. It is an unusual situation and not one I like to repeat often. Costly, in my line of work. No, I am happy enough with money, which os the best you can offer me in the current situation."

Money would be a problem. Rebec thinks about the gems she had given the redguard commander, and wonders if she can beg them back.  The idea makes her ill. "How much money? Ulfric pays whale dung for hiring fees and I only get to keep so much imperial booty before the quartermasters start waving their paperwork at me. And my ship is at the bottom of the Sea of Ghosts."

"Nothing, for now," he smiled. "You have a few options. Either pay me at a later date, or let me call upon a favor when I need one. Nothing that will have you accused of treason, of course, but as Admiral you have some useful influence I can draw benefit from in the future."

"Done." This was how Rebec had lived her entire life, and knowing for sure now that Samuel is a real businessman and not an imperial spy had put her back on familiar ground. The death grip she has on her axe handle is the only sign of her tension about the prospect of learning what had happened to her husband. "So where is Toki? Taken up with one of those lonely farm widows, I expect. He can just stay there and pluck her chickens."

"Well, not exactly.  I don't know if he cheated, but none of the reports on him mention anything about it.  He was involved in something much more serious than that, something that had to do with Igmund when he was still the Jarl of your, as in the Stormcloaks, Reach."

Blinking, Rebec stammers, "Involved... involved in what? He fixes pots and mends ploughs. What would a jarl want with him?"

Samuel waved for her to follow him and started to walk a bit away from his companions. With a small, almost unnoticeable sigh he continued.

"You asked me why I would care to keep track of your husband. The real answer is that he learned something very interesting while traveling the Reach. Something that brought him the ire of the Jarl, who ambushed him. You see, Igmund poisoned wells in hope to kill the Forsworn, but many Nords died as well. Your husband Toki saw the patterns and told a few too many people about it."

The admiral is silent for a long time, though her heart is thumping like a drum in her own ears. She pictures her ratty husband, clanking with tools as he walks, his shoulders hunched from years of bending over a workbench. His routes took him to places where few others walked, even fewer of the sort who would notice or care about some dead bodies. But Toki wouldn't have been able to let something like that go. For that, they had hunted him down like an animal.

Rebec had learned enough about Samuel not to question the surety of his information. Tears blink in her eyes, but she won't grieve in front of a stranger. "Do you know where he... where they..."

"Last report of him said he headed east, from the Orcish stronghold of Dushnikh Yal. I haven't located him, as there was no need, but my educated guess is that he tried to find shelter in a cave."

For a moment he looked at her and she thought she could see... was it empathy? Before she could be sure, the expression from before returned.

"Thank you." Rebec swallows once, then says in businesslike tone, "We'll be seeing more of each other, I assume. I pay my debts, but don't ask me to do anything for the Thalmor or the imperials. I might have run those supplies for Rikke back during the war, but that was before the empire parked its navy in my sea. And you'll have heard about what happened when Erikur tried to get me to do Thalmor business."

"Speaking of which," Samuel said, with a satisfied smile. "We should also discuss the fact of you working for Rikke in the war, now or in the near future. I am willing to make sure that any such claims against you will be without basis and contradicted by the evidence, which naturally will be altered to refer to a recently deceased smuggler that is very much alike you in appearance."

The admiral glances sideways at him, admiring his efficiency. "Very well. I don't want that to come to light, and it's not for the reason you think. I did sleep with General Red-Snow. You don't really suppose that just because he boarded me once that we're lovers or whatever it is you called it? Still, the war is fiercer now than I ever expected it to get, and I need my men to respect my orders or people will die. So add that to my bill, please."

"You seem to think that my jab at you earlier to ensure I had your attention was meant as something more than that," he couldn't help but let out a laugh. Confident and arrogant, but not mocking. "Good, that just confirms my suspicion. No, that is not for sale in of itself- the covering up of evidence, I mean-, but think of it as a possible reward for a job well done, when the time for returning the favor for helping you locate your husband. Until then, have no fear, I will make sure no one finds out."

He turned around and started to walk in the direction of his companions again, but then he stopped and said without turning back to her: "And don't worry, I have no intention of using this in a blackmail against you. I think you deserve better than that."

And with that he left her alone at the outskirts of the camp in Pale Pass.

Out of habit Rebec grumbles about greedy imperials, a problem she'd had long before the war, but as she turns back to the now wakening camp, recalls what he had just told her. Her marriage had not been much, and to others it would have hardly seemed a marriage at all, but she had been with Toki since she was sixteen and loved him in her own way. For a moment Rebec toys with the idea that he could have survived the ambush, but dismisses that idea out of hand. If he were alive, he would have sent word. He was gone.

There is no more time to ponder it, however. She hears Baldur's voice calling the camp to war. Taking a deep breath and assuming the demeanor called for by her war paint, Rebec walks through the redguard and Stormcloak ranks echoing the general's shouts. "Come on, ladies, enough beauty sleep! Can't keep the Thalmor waiting. It's a fine day to die."

[The Good Doctor]

Samuel,
Falkreath City
Late evening



Samuel and Rorek stood near the entrance to the city. The carriage should arrive soon, or so Samuel thought. While he waited, he couldn't help but to look back at what had happened only hours earlier, the some hours before his meeting with Rebec.

**

Baldur walked into his own quarters to get a short nights rest. When he opened the door, he didn't look surprised to see Moon-Balls sitting in his room. That Cyrod turned up everywhere.

“Ah, Baldur… I am glad you could come,†Baldur’s jaw almost dropped when he spoke: It didn’t sound like Samuel in the least. There was no arrogance or sense of superiority to be detected at all, but rather a genuine comment delivered with an undertone of something he couldn’t quite place. “Please…please take a seat and have a drink... I brought some."

He smiled a smile so different from what the Nordic General had gotten used to. It seemed almost… sad?

“No business pleasantries today, Samuel Moon-Balls?†Baldur asked, almost in a harshly humorous tone.

“No, it is just me and my br… me and my bottles,†Samuel continued and pointed to the tree bottles in front of him. Two of them were empty. “Flin. He always liked the name the Dunmer gave Cyrodilic whiskey. He thought it funny, and fitting. It was his favorite drink.â€

“Who?†Baldur asked, now a bit confused, but Samuel didn’t even appear to hear that he spoke.

“He also loved places like this; old, sturdy, meant for war. A place for those who want to serve. Strangely, even as a captive of sorts, I came to enjoy being here. He said I would."

“I never tried flin before,†Samuel didn’t allow Baldur much time to make any sort of response to whatever he was saying. Was it a tear that appeared in his eye? Couldn’t be, right? “Even though he said I would love it. Even after all these years, I first tried it tonight. And he was right about that too. He was always right. He was a great man and warrior. No one, and I mean no one, could face him in a fair fight and win.â€

“I… I am glad you didn't interupt me, I... It really… It really means a lot to… I should go,†Samuel put a leather purse on the table; the sound of hard coin echoed. Before Baldur could react, the Imperial had gotten to his feet and simply disappeared.

The General turned to the table when he saw that he had to chance to find him again, and saw that a note was partially covered by the purse. It was worn, most likely very old. And it carried the seal of the Imperial Legion; it was broken.

Baldur would have opened the note that read:

Imperial Citizen Flin Caven,

It is with the deepest regret that I must inform you about the death of your brother, Samuel Caven.
He gave his life to cover the retreat of his men when the Aldmeri Dominion first pushed into Cyrodiil in the event that is known as the Great War. He is held up as an example of selflessness and what the Legion should be to this day.
/
Yours sincerely, Imperial Praefect Pius Bruccius

**

"Rorek?" Samuel broke free of the memory and looked at the one remaining companion he had with him. Bahgras and Bill had been sent to give Alef further orders and protection.

"Yes, sir?"

Samuel gave himself a quick smile. "Make sure I am kept informed on the General Marius' location at all times. I want him to think I vanished of the surface of Tamriel."

[The Good Doctor]

Boldir, Witchie

 

Witchie had just listened to Boldir tell him about the change of plans.

"I knew the plan wasn't going to work. But that was going to be the fun part, wasn't it?"

Boldir grimaced. He wasn't happy that he was still assigned to work with Witchie.
"Maybe for you. You'd have magicked back to camp when things went bad.”

"If you had sticked close I would have taken you with me back to camp."

"And Marius? Could you really have moved all three of us?"

"Depends on how much any of you would have resisted. It's harder to drag someone with you if they resist."

Boldir paused for a minute. He knew he wouldn't resist, Marius may have given the circumstances.

"Never knew much about magic myself. Never cared to. But I've fought against and beside my share of spell casters. You're the only one I've met who hides his face from the world. I don't care what your reason for this is, but I can't trust a man who hides his face from me."

"Baldur said the same thing when I first met him. And I can not afford too much distrust." Witchie let the hadowy veil fall.

Boldir was suprised. He didn't actually expect the Witch King to show his face. What he saw was a young looking man that appeared to be in his mid-twenties. He had a scar on his right cheek, and long black hair with a beard. Boldir realized that this man must've been like his mother, using magic to maintain a young appearance.

"Hm. Well, I don’t have much choice but to trust you for now. Not if we're going to work together. Just please don't make me regret it."

"As long as you don't do anything too foolish, like running into middle of the Thalmor's section of the camp and yelling 'Hail Talos', I doubt you will regret it." with that sentence said he put the veil back as he didn't want to linger too long without it.

Boldir chuckled. So this one has a sense of humor.

"Captain Boldir?"

Boldir turned to find Commander Jodun behind him.

"Commander. Are your men ready?"

"Yes. They await your arrival at the pass."

"We're waiting until an hour before dawn to move out. Tell your men to get some rest in the meantime."

"Will do."

Boldir turned back to Witchie. "You know, I'm gonna go get some of that rest too. It's gonna be a big morning."

But Witchie could only nod as he hated the very thought of sleeping. But Boldir was right, he would need the rest.

[The Good Doctor]

Boldir, Witchie and Jodun
Pale Pass
Just before dawn

Boldir watched as an arrow took out the Imperial sentry, who slumped to the ground without making a sound. The muffle spell Witchie had cast ensured that.

"Move up."

Boldir, Witchie, Jodun, five of Jodun's top skrimishers, and five Stormcloak marksmen snuck past the dead man. Boldir spoke with a whisper.

"Alright listen up. The Fort and camp will be around this bend. Most of the men should still be asleep apart from a few sentries. Witchie, I want you to remain behind with the marksmen. You'll cover our retreat. Jodun, his skirmishers, and I are found to sneak in and take out several sleepers at the edge of camp. This is just for show. I'll sound my horn and we'll high tail it back here. Witchie, you and the archers have to cover us. Don't let me down. When we're back, you need to draw as much attention our way as you can. These guys don't have a leader, if you can get even a few to chase us, it will cause more to follow, and we'll end up with an army after us. That's what we want. Any questions?"

Witchie responded.
"If I'm to get their attention I better make sure they know which side I'm on." as he finished the last of that sentence he formed an illusion disguising himself in the regular Stormcloak garb, with the full covering helmet. "Do you want fireworks or something a bit more subtle?"

"I need them to see that it's Stormcloaks they're chasing. Make it flashy enough to get everyone to see it, but don't scare them away. I'll leave the method up to you."

Boldir turned to Jodun. "Alright, let's go."

Boldir, Jodun and the five scrimishers turned the bend to find another sentry leaning on a tree, before the man could open his mouth to scream, Jodun lopped his head clean off.
"Nice one." Boldir whispered.

The seven men snuck towards the nearest gathering of tents, there were two men patrolling, but Boldir knew that the light of the campfire between them would prevent the men from spotting them in this darkness. They stood crouched for a moment, then Boldir signaled for a skirmisher to sneak to the right around the fire and take out the closest sentry. Boldir stood up and moved to the left, as the man saw him, a scimitar crept behind his neck and sliced it. The scrimisher gently lowered the body to the ground. Boldir saw the further sentry walk toward another gathering of tents.
"Leave him. He doesn't know we're here."

He gestured to the circle of tents they now stood crouched among. "Have at it boys."

Boldir and the Redguards each snuck into the tents and one-by-one slit the throats of the sleeping men. They killed fourteen in all.

"That'll do just fine. Now we draw them to us so they can see what happened."

Boldir raised his horn to his lips and blew. The sound echoed across Pale Pass. Boldir hollered.

"Let's go! Let's go!"

As the nearest sentry ran after them, an arrow pierced his throat. Boldir and the Redguards made for the bend, he could hear the feet clambering after them.

"Now Witchie!"

A volley of arrows flew through the air, all of them ignited when they left the bows. A few of the legionaries even cought fire as the arrows found their mark. More arrows flew through the air, all of them on fire to give a good signal of where they were.

Boldir and Jodun didn't stop running, but they did look up as the flaming arrows flew over their heads.

Boldir sprinted as hard as he could, Jodun was just ahead of him. Running back felt like it took way longer than sneaking in did. He could hear the screams of burning Imperials behind him, but he didn't turn to look. All he could think of was making it around the bend. He felt a hard force on the back of his right shoulder as an arrow plinked off his armor. Can't stop.

Jodun was the first to reach the bend, he could see Witchie, still dressed as a normal Stormcloak, using a spell to set the archers' arrows ablaze. After he turned the bend, he stopped and watched as Boldir pushed in after him followed by two skirmishers. The other three were still behind. Two had fallen to Imperial arrows, another had stumbled and was caught up with by the soldiers. He was desperately fending them off.

"Leave him!" Boldir yelled. "We've got to keep moving!"

The plan had worked. Several dozen Imperials were already in hot pursuit. Boldir lead the way through the pass as Jodun and the two remaining scrimishers followed close behind. The archers fired one more volley before following. Boldir looked over his shoulder as he ran. "Good job Witchie!"

"I thought of having them explode on impact but that might have been too much."

Despite the circumstances, Boldir couldn't help but chuckle. That would've been a sight indeed.

Boldir could hear the echoes of the Imperials giving chase through the pass. He turned to see an archer falling behind. The man was obviously exhausted.

"Keep up! We're almost there!" Boldir raised his horn to his lips and gave it a blow to signal to Baldur and Rebec that they were approaching. As they rounded the next bend, a group of about a dozen skirmishers could be seen ahead. Just as planned. As Boldir approached, the man stopped him. "Sir, the shield wall is just past the final bend in the gulley."

"Good. You know what to do."

"Yes sir."

Boldir and Jodun sprinted around the final bend, followed closely by Witchie and the others.

"There they are!" Jodun yelled.

Boldir looked ahead, and in the faint light of the approaching dawn he could just make out the large shapes of a couple dozen Grim Ones forming a shield wall across the pass.

Boldir heard the loud voice of a Necro Nord hollar out from the shield wall.
"Get behind us!"

The Grim Ones parted to allow for the company to run behind the wall. After they got through, it closed back behind them.

Boldir turned around. At this angle he see several lines of archers posted on the ridges of each side of the pass. Good. Everything's set. He listened as the clashing of swords rang out from where the Pursuing Imperials had reached the small group of skirmishers. Just then, Boldir heard the lead skirmisher yell out. "Retreat!" eight skirmishers rounded the bend and sprinted to the shield wall, which parted for them.

Boldir turned to the archers. "Prepare to fire!"

The first few Imperials rounded the bend in pursuit of the skirmishers.

"Wait for it!"

More and more Imperials surged around the bend.

Boldir noticed an odd red aurora surrounding Witchie's hands. This should be good.

"Fire!"

As the volley rained down onto the surprised wave of attackers. Boldir could see the flames appearing on the heads of the arrows as expected. But what Boldir didn't expect was what came next. As soon as the first arrow struck, a great fireball explosion erupted around the stricken soldier, engulfing him and those around him in flames. Immediately after, dozens more of these explosions erupted all around the Imperials, throwing men left and right. Burning limbs could be seen flailing to and fro. Screams sounded throughout the pass. Visibility around the bend was lost in the smoke.

The next wave of Imperials pushed through the smoke, using it as cover. They covered the distance to the shield wall before another volley could be unleashed. Boldir drew his battleaxe.
"For Skyrim!"

The Grim Ones repeated in unison just as the Imperials reached the line.
"For Skyrim!!!"

[The Good Doctor]

Tribune Titus Al-Nazzir (prior to the attack)

 

By now the Tribune had rebuilt the bandit cave into his own home away from home. Spending more time there than he did in the tent. The Orcish armor had been mended too, he would wear it during his excursions to the nearby camps and communities. People thought he was a mercenary rather than a legionnaire (which was a good thing considering the natives of Bruma weren't particularly happy with the legion's presence nearby). In Bruma he would sell a lot of his booty from the raids and give the gold to his team (while they quit joining him in the bandit raids they still expected their payment). He found out about the Stormcloak camp at pale pass on his own. Thinking it was another bandit camp (he had never seen the Stormcloak iconography before) he tride to raid them.

 

"Drop your weapon redguard," A stormcoak sentry said to him, "You're trespassing on the stormcloak camp, you may want to get out of here before General Red-Snow gives the orders to take out the Legion."

 

"Uhh.. yes of course" the Tribune said nervously, he tried to change the subject "So I guess Skyrim is just north of here? May I pass through?"

 

"Sorry Redguard," the sentry replied, "orders are not to allow anyone down south to pass through here. Don't want any legionnaires sneaking pass us."

 

"Makes sense," said Titus in-character "I guess I'll take my business elsewhere."

 

"Maybe... you can try Elsweyr, get it?," the sentry tried to joke.

 

The joke was horrible, but Titus humored him to stay in good graces. "Ha ha, Elsweyr, not bad my friend. That deserves a drink."

 

One of his raids he found a bottle of "Blackbriar Mead" apparently imported from skyrim. He was going to try it himself but conversing with the Stormcloak gave him an idea. "Ah, black briar mead," said the sentry upon receiving the bottle.

 

"I guess you've been to skyrim before"

 

"Sure have" lied the Tribune, "just going to complete some business I have there."

 

"It's a real shame," said the sentry between gulps, "if it wasn't for the emperor rejecting the High King's plea for independence we wouldn't be in this situation."

 

'Or maybe if your King wasn't a murderer we could focus on taking out the Thalmor',Titus thought to himself.

 

"Friend," he said to the sentry, "do you know when the attacks on the legion camp is going to start?"

 

"Oh, any moment now", he said, " can't give you an actual time but maybe in a few hours... maybe tomorrow... I dunno, but soon."

 

"Well as soon as the conflict is over I'll be able to get through" he said walking away. "Maybe I'll see you on the otherside," said the sentry, "I'll buy the drinks next time!"

 

A few hour later he arrived at the camp (wearing his Legion armor) and he approached his team. "Get ready to start killing some Stormcloaks," he said to the leader, "now we'll show them what we're made of. Meet me at the cave, we'll give them a surprise attack."

 

_________________________________________________________________________________________

 

EDIT PART: 2

 

Pale Pass before dawn

 

Since the 3rd cohort hadn't arrived the Tribune was a bit more flexible then the other Legionnaires.

 

The cloaked daggers spread around the camp hiding in the trees. Moving from tree to tree the plan was to take out the stormcloaks using invisibility and archery to attack from a distance.

 

The Tribune would act as a distraction primarily. He could hold his own in a fight but his job was to make sure the stormcloaks didn't give too much attention to the trees raining arrows from above. He could take a good deal of punishment from the zerg rush with his heavy armor and healing abilities.

 

In one hand he held his enchanted scimitar and in the other was a healing spell.

 

"For Skyrim!" yelled the Stormcloaks at the battle field.

 

"Here we go", he said to himself.

[The Good Doctor]

Osgumund and Valindil, Fort Pale Pass, Morning

Osgumund awoke with a start at the noise of the Stormcloaks’ horn. He quickly changed into his uniform and rushed outside. What he saw, he could not believe: Stormcloak soldiers were attacking the fort with flaming arrows. 

He summoned one of his guardians, “go find Valindil, tell him I have already started to gather the Thalmor soldiers and that he should meet me in the upper parade grounds! HURRY!†He shouted. The Elf ran off in search of Valindil. 

“Soldiers, to me! To me!†Osgumund shouted in the Meri tongue through all the chaos. “Do not chase the Stormcloaks! Come to me!†Most, if not all, the Thalmor soldiers nearby rushed to him. 

The fiery arrows lit up the night sky and Osgumund couldn’t help but think about his experiences from the Great War. 

“Mer, form up on me! Stay together now!†he kept shouting. He could no longer suppress the flashback now.

----------

Osgumund ran through the streets of the Imperial city, trying not to look up at the arrows raining down on the city and not to worry about the battle happening outside the walls. “I must find Terindil and escape, that’s all that matters now.†He thought to himself, over and over again. The Imperials were about to take back their beloved capital, and Osgumund was determined not to lose his life on that day. “Haven’t I been down this street before?†He asked himself. He was lost, there was no denying that, and he had to reach his friend Terindil before the Imperials did. 

Terindil had been working on a special project in the Imperial Palace, which was no doubt where Imperials would be swarming in a matter of hours, maybe even minutes. He finally found the right street and headed west.

“There’s an Elf! GET HIM!†Osgumund heard someone say, and immediately afterwards, ten Imperials were after him. “I don’t have time for you! Go away!†He said, but he knew he would have to fight them. He sent a few fireballs after the closest ones, and they quickly burst into flames.

“I smell weakness!†said the Dremora Lord Osgumund had just conjured. The Dremora charged three of the Imperials and they were quickly dead. Another Imperial was charging, but Osgumund used a spell that stopped the man in his tracks. It was as if invisible hands were choking the man’s neck. He clawed at thin air, but his attempts were futile. The opponents’ eyes met for a few seconds, then Osgumund forced the Imperial to kill himself with his own blade. 

After the rest were dead, more and more Imperials spilled into the road. “No, no, no! There’s too many and I don’t have time to fight them!†He said in despair. He ran for the Imperial Palace, leaving a wall of deadly flames behind him.

When he finally arrived, he saw hundreds of Imperials pouring into the streets approaching the palace. “Come on Osgumund, we’re leaving the city!†an officer said to him in an anxious tone. 

“I have to find Terindil!†he responded.

“Terindil is dead, I saw it with my own eyes. Please, just come with me and we can both live.†

“No, I will avenge his death.â€

“You’re just going to get yourself killed, trust me. You come with me and the others and we can live to fight another day, to kill the Imperials and avenge the deaths of our brothers some other day.â€

Osgumund nodded in agreement and started to leave. “Wait, we can’t leave without a fight.†He said. He then proceeded to conjure up a blizzard, which put the Imperials into even more disarray. Then, Osgumund ran like he had never run before.

----------

I’ll not let my fellow Altmer and Bosmer die tonight like they did twenty years ago! He thought, now back in the present and ready to fight. I’ll avenge their deaths and show these fools the true might of the Dominion.

Valindil, who had finally arrived, asked what was going on. 

“We are under attack! I was about to address the men before we jump into the fray.†Osgumund replied. He proceeded to turn to the hundreds of Thalmor soldiers that had found their way to him. “Soldiers!†he said, still speaking in the Meri tongue that the Altmer and Bosmer had formed together almost two hundred years ago. “Tonight we fight bravely, we fight like true Mer! These Nords worship Talos! A false god! We will send them to hell tonight and teach them not to question the authority of the Dominion ever again! Are you with me?â€

“Yes sir, colonel sir†they shouted in unison. 

“Now go kill some Talos worshipers! Make them wish they had never been born!â€

Valindil led the Thalmor soldiers into battle, while Osgumund went to find Gracchus to help him and the other mages.

It will be difficult, but I have to learn to forgive the Imperials. There are bigger fish to fry, and plus, they were just trying to get their homes back. I can't blame them. Terindil wouldn't have wanted me to act this way. He thought, he then hurried off.

[The Good Doctor]

Legate Gracchus Ceno

Fort Pale Pass

Early Morning 

 

The sound of a war horn woke Gracchus from his sleep, and the screams of his men sent shivers down his spine. He ran outside, just as the sun had begun to rise in the east, so see the flaming arrows fall on his troops. Their screams were the worst sound he'd heard, and set his hands to shaking.

 

He noticed that the attacking Stromcloaks were retreating, and several dozen soldiers, a little more than a full cohort, were in hot pursuit.

 

"Gather the men!" he yelled, and sent a nearby guard around to wake up the men still asleep. He then ran to the Princess' room, and opened the door, blowing past her guards.

 

"You have orders to stay here and protect her at all costs. We are under attack!" he commanded her guards, who just nodded and returned to their positions around the room, while the Princess whimpered in her bed.

 

Going back outside, he bolted to the stables, and mounted up his horse before heading into the camp.

 

"Men, we are under attack," he yelled across the camp!

 

"The Stormcloaks have come into the camp and slaughtered your friends and brothers in arms as they slept! We will not stand for this! Battlemages and Thalmor mages, gather your ranks and converge on the front! Archers, you are in the back, with skirmishers between the two!" the Legate ordered the men.

 

"We are the men of the Empire, and we will take the fight to the Stormcloaks!" Gracchus yelled, and the men cheered as they gathered their weapons and armor.

 

Within 10 minutes, the highly trained legionaries were battle ready, and they were marching after Stormcloaks, with several dozen burning bodies littering to road. They marched for the better part of five minutes, and finally arrived at the scene of the battle, or better yet, the scene of the massacre.

 

The Stormcloaks had established a shield wall, where they had taken out all of the troops that had followed them, with what looked like little to no casualties on their side. The arrow-ridden bodies of the legionaires were burned to crisps, and the smell of burned flesh hung over the field of battle. The Imperial dead numbered in the dozens, with Gracchus being able to see almost a cohorts worth of dead from atop his horse, Lil Ceno.

 

"Battlemages, fire at the enemy, and archers, when they began to retreat, fire at their backs!" Gracchus' orders were followed, as the fire was brought forth upon the enemy wall. The flames danced across their shields, and lit their bodies on fire, with the screams signaling the dispersal of the shield wall.

 

The Stormcloaks began to retreat, probably to join up with the main force. The archers fired, and were able to make quick work of the skirmishers, but the main force of the shield wall that consisted of Necro Nords in Carved Nordic Armor was able to make it away more safely, due to their heavy armor, although he did see several fall from arrows in between the armors plating.

 

Just then, the larger group of Thalmor joined in, and Osgumund, ther leader, ran up and said "Glad I found you in this chaos. Lets kill some Stormcloaks, shall we," and proceeded to fling spells at the enemies direction.

 

"Advance!" he ordered, and the legionaries began marching after the Stormcloaks.

[The Good Doctor]

Boldir and Witchie

 

As the next wave of Imperials approached, Boldir could tell that these were more organized. They were in a tighter formation, and weren't charging head on. He could see archers in the back. His own archers on the eastern slope had stopped firing down onto the Imperials. Boldir couldn't see them over the ridge. Not a good sign.

Boldir had just enough time to dive backwards out of the way as a fireball struck the shield wall. Several more followed, devastating the front line. Boldir scrambled to his feet.

"That's it! They're definitely following! Everyone get back to the main force! Witchie, give us something to cover the retreat!"

Witchie started to channel a spell that froze the ground to solid gleaming ice, slippery and would cause about anyone that tried to walk on to fall. And on top of the ice he summoned a simple blizzard, nothing that would hurt anyone, only blind them. It would slow them down as it would take a bit of time to either pass through it or dispell it all.

"Good job Witchie. That should buy us some time. Now let's get going!"