Civil War Aftermath Chapter 2: War of the Sundered Dragon

[The Good Doctor]

Quaestor Pilus Rato

Falkreath Hold, Forest

Afternoon-Night

 

The rain had moved in the previous day, and made the opportunities for raids all the better. Instead of using rocks, all Pilus' men had to do was wait for the mud to get them. They had already got one like that earlier in the morning, and so were sitting in a small rocky overhang to wait out the rain.

"I don't think this is letting up any time soon," said Eloe, their resident medic, who was also skilled with her long daggers.

"I know, but we've already got one wagon today, and I would rather sit here than out there," Pilus replied.

Martin, a broad shouldered Imperial who wielded a greatsword added, "We could go see what's going on in Falkreath. We haven't been by there in a few days, and it wouldn't hurt to check."

"Fine fine. If you guys want to get the sniffles be my guests," Pilus sarcastically told his men.

After about an hour of walking, they arrived at the rocky overlook on the southeast side of Falkreath they had been using to view the area. 

Pilus pulled out his viewing scope, and scanned the area. What he saw shocked him thoroughly. 

"The Stormcloaks have moved their entire force to Falkreath," he told Gregory, who was sitting next to him. 

"Are you sure?" Gregory asked.

"Of course I'm sure. It's not like I'm just making up that thousands of Stormcloak soldiers are now interred around Falkreath. Well, I guess we can pull back and warn the Legate. Men, move out," Pilus commanded.

Within a couple of hours, the group reached the entrance of the valley. It was night by the time they got there, and they heard yelling about something. Once they got to the entrance, they saw three men jump over the fortifications and start running down the path. The archers fired at them, but it was hard going because of the darkness. Once the three men reached the end of the path, they ran into one of the other guerrilla groups returning.

"Hey, what's going on?" Pilus asked one of the archers.

"That's the Stormcloak General, and he's escaping!"

"Well, he's long gone now. Plus, I have a report to give to the Legate. Men, you are free to return to your quarters," Pilus commanded, and then headed off to the war room.

[The Good Doctor]

Eduard and Lorgar-Falkreath

 

Logar sat motionlessly observing the small, frail, steward walk down an alleyway in the rain drenched streets

"Eduard it's time..."

Eduard nodded. "Alright, I'm ready. One thing though. I think we should try and make it look like an accident. How about you?"

Lorgar merely said, "I agree. How was your chat with Boldir?"

Eduard gave a slight smile. "It was... entertaining. He seems like a nice guy. Although he may have acted differently had he known who I was and what I was here to do. In any case, we should probably get started."

Lorgar chuckled darkly, "I wouldn't say nice, but decent for A stormcloak officer. I agree we should get underway..."

"Alright then, how do we want to this. Remember, accident," Eduard said, getting serious.

"We'll make it seem like she fell and snapped her neck..."

Eduard nodded his head in agreement.

"Sounds good. So, we snap her neck, and put her in a location where it seems she has fallen. Is that what you are getting at?"

"Roger...let's have some fun."

Eduard nodded again.

"On your move."

Lorgar put up his hood, and sprinted down the slope with unnatural speed and stealth, like a wolf.

Eduard, slightly surprised by Lorgars speed, didn't even try to keep up. He'd suspected that Lorgar was a bit above the average man, but that sealed it. He followed relatively closely, but just as stealthily.

Lorgar made sure to avoid patrols of guards, and stalked the steward closely. He made a bunch of hand signals to Edaurd, meaning "I've got it, hold position in the cover of the shadows"

Eduard disappeared into the shadows, waiting for any more signals from his partner.

Lorgar, quietly went behind the unsuspecting Steward, who was busying singing to herself "The Age of Oppression". Lorgar let out a dark smirk before going behind, muffling her mouth, and snapping her neck. He quickly grabbed onto her body before it fell, and dragged her corpse into the shadows.

Eduard heard the snap, and he knew it was all over. He was still waiting on a signal from Lorgar, however.

Lorgar, under the cover of darkness, signaled for Eduard to "Place the corpse in the best location"

Lorgar also made another hand signal, "I'll let you take care of it..." Lorgar....disappeared from view, as if the shadows grew closer to him.

Eduard thought about it for a bit, then got an idea. He dragged the body behind a building, and tossed one of the Stewards shoes to the top.

He then penned a suicide note.

Tell everyone I'm sorry. I couldn't carry on...

He placed the note in the Stewards pocket, and then disappeared as well.

[The Good Doctor]

Princess Dales Motierre and Witchie, Pale Pass camp

 

"Master, master, master!!!!" Dales said, knocking on the door of her masters room,

"Wanna go pick some flowers with me?"

"No!" was heard from the other side of the door, "And I got some things I need you to do." The door then opened soon thereafter. 

She giggled, "What do you need me to do Master?" 

He looked left and right while casting a detection spell to make sure no one was listening. "I need you to try and slow the Legion's advance and I also want you to actually read the papers the Thalmor want you to sign, then try to come up with an excuse to not sign them."

"Well...I could come up with some sort of festival, to celebrate the greatness of the "Imperial legion"!!! That could delay the Legion's advance for a good deal.  And I suppose I could alocate some of my time to read through the papers!!!, consider your requsts done master" Dales happily squealed

Even though the man in front of her usually looked to be in his mid-twenties, he suddenly looked ten years older. 

"Good." he then closed the door door in halfhearted attempt to no ram it through the doorway. 

Dale's made her way to her room. It was quite large, as it was made for a High-ranking officer's. Her maid and snuggle buddy, Elan, was currently eating breakfast down in the mess hall with the other servants, so she was all alone in her room.

I wanted to pick some flowers...oh well.

She sat down on her writing desk, took out the sealed Inquisition documents, and began to read them.

"High Inquisitor Dales Motierre

​We recently captured a soldier doing what we believe to be a prayer to Talos. He was arrested and with your permission we tortured him till he confessed about his prayer and his knowledge about other soldiers who have done the same. He did not survive the interrogation but we arrested the other men and, again with your permission, interrogated them with all our means to our disposal. All of them sooner or later agreed to their crimes and were executed. Thanks to you for allowing us stamp out this filthy heresy we have been able to free the empire from 30 heretics.

Some of them also gave up the information on further Talos worship before being put to the axe and we think that it is of utmost importance that they are found and prosecuted.

To help us in this endeavor we ask that you grant us the permission to not only interrogate the suspects but also their friends and families back home, as we fear that this heresy may stretch deeper than we thought before. 

 

WHAT!? What...

Dales reread the letter three times, looked at every single detail...she ripped the letter in-half before slamming her little fist on the hard-wood desk.

I allowed...the death of thirty imperial soldiers...I let them be tortured and executed...this is a mistake...i never remember giving them permission to do this, but then again, I never bothered to read what I was approving...this is my fault...I could have stopped this...

Dales began to cry, she felt...empty and horribly sad. If it wasn't for master, ordering her to read the document, innocent people could have been killed... 

She rushed out of her room, slamming the door behind her. The tears she couldn't stop, they just kept falling down her face.

I'm an idiot...nothing but a puppet...

She went into the direction of the Officer's bar.

 

Later that day

 

The experiments had gone on for hours, but he was making progress. Karsh was now able to a little more than just mumbling into his ear, even though it was technically into his head as the whispers were part illusion and part telepathy. Now Karsh could whisper a half a word before it all became mumbling. But sitting and casting experimental and very delicate spells was tiresome. It was time for a drink, Witchie let Karsh out the window before heading towards this so called Officer's Bar for some mead, he was still a nord. As he entered the room he saw what looked like the princess sitting at the bar table with her head down into it so you couldn't see her face. She was holding some kind of bottle in her right hand. Witchie simply walked up to the bar and ordered his mead before turning to the princess. 

"What are you doing here?" he asked, clearly surprised.

"Drinking..." said the obviously distraught Princess.

"Why?" Witchie then got his mead bottle and he tasted it, the mead was decent but not exactly what he wanted. 

I miss Frosthoney Mead, too bad they aren't making it in this age.

"Because i'm a monster..." her speech pattern was slurred and un-even.

"Really?" he said with voice filled with hints of sarcasm and genuine surprise. 

She wailed, not noticing the sarcasm,

"I've caused untold amounts of suffering...i'm an idiot and i'm not cute anymore...."

"If you say so." he then drank a bit of mead before proceeding, "So you drink to forget?"

"Yeah...I don't want to hurt inside anymore..."

"You'll get over it. Trust me, there's worse."

She starred at Witchie,

"Yeah like what...i unknowingly approved of the death and torture of thirty legionaries..."

He was now feeling a bit tipsy from the mead as he drank.

"Like losing everything you ever cared about." he said while trying to sound as indifferent as possible. 

She said, still in her tipsy voice,

"You lost everything you cared about?"

"Lets not go into that."

"Do you care about me?"

"You should get back to your room and sleep that drunkenness off."

She...started to giggle uncontrollably,

"I think you fantasize about me in your sleep...nope I like girls..."

Her giggling became louder and she feel off her chair." 

My sleep is only filled with nightmares. 

"You think wrong. Now get back to your room."

"But I want some more drink!!!" 

That's an order. 

And Witchie simply let the bindings do the rest.

"Wait what!?"

The princess legs moved as fast as possible, as she left the table and went back to her room, she left the officer's bar and soon vanished from sight.

Finally some peace and quiet. 

WItchie then drank up the rest of the mead 

[The Good Doctor]

Boldir, Lorgar, Eduard, and Rebec
Falkreath City

 

As Boldir walked up the steps to the Longhouse, he remembered his last encounter with Jarl Dengeir. They hadn't spoken alone since, but Boldir doubted that the man would be too happy too see him.
Here we go again.

He opened the doors and walked in. The Jarl was sitting on his throne holding audience with a civilian man. A refugee most likely.

"Don't worry. I'll talk to them about it. I'll make su-"
Dengeir stopped as he noticed Boldir crossing the hall towards the throne. He looked back at thean in front of him.

"I'm sorry Beurlan, I'm going to have to ask you to leave for a bit. It's important. Come back tomorrow at the same time."

Beurlan bowed. "Yes my Jarl. Of course."

Dengeir waited until the ex-farmer left the room before addressing Boldir. "Here to take my throne again Captain"?

Boldir shook his head. "Not this time. This time, you're much more useful while in it."

Dengier crossed his arms and grunted. "Well? What are you here for then?"

"I am here to speak with you on the matter of the local population. As you know, the influx of refugees has put a strain on the citiy's resources, and I know that my men aren't making things any easier."

"Now that's an understatement! You do know that this town was never meant to hold a lot of people in the first place?! It's the smallest non-destroyed capital in Skyrim. I wouldn't mind the protection if that's all you people were doing, but your men have been causing more trouble then that protection is worth. Did you know that I had to have my guardsmen evict several Stormcloaks from a local's house yesterday? They said that it was the "fee for their protection". Had the man staying in in the tavern while they ate up his food and slept under his roof. And that's not all. Lod is gonna go bankrupt with all the men taking weapons without paying. The inn will be cleaned out within two days at this rate, and not a Septim richer. These kinds of things are happening all over town."

"And I've had seven counts of assault on my men from your people this morning alone. One was pretty bad. That's why we need to talk. The Imperials and their Thalmor friends are camped at the border, not a day away from here. Without us, this city would have already fallen, remember that. However, I will send word throughout the camp. He have our own food and supplies. There is no need to steal yours. I'll make sure they know that the consequences of further crimes will be severe enough to get rid of any thoughts of committing them. I'll keep my men under control, and I know that you've worked to do the same. But the assaulting of my men? That is still a problem. One that needs to stop."

"I-I understand. You're right. We should be more greatfull for what you're doing. The thought of the Thalmor here... I'm thankful for the protection, even if not all the men are. I'll make a statement tomorrow. I'll be sure that everyone here knows just how much you and your men are doing for us. And I'll include that you're putting a leesh on your men, and that I expect my own people to respond accordingly. This could be-"

The door busted open before the Jarl could finish. Boldir turned to see a city guardsman in the doorway.
"Jarl Dengeir! Tekla is dead!"

***

 

On the following afternoon, townspeople gathered at the cemetery near the Hall of the Dead for the funeral of the jarl's steward Tekla.  She had been a respected woman.  Some said it was her hand that got most of the real work of the hold done.  She had also been a kind woman and well loved.

The crowd, therefore, was substantial.  Both townspeople and refugees from the outlying areas gathered around as a small platform of crates was set up for the priest of Arkay to say his rites.  Next to him stood Jarl Dengeir, looking old and tired, and angry.

Rebec decided to watch the funeral from the nearest guard tower that had been erected along the fortification wall.  With all the tensions in the town, it made her nervous to see so many gathered in one place.  She had her crossbow ready and scanned the crowd and the area nearby for any signs of trouble.  As usual, the fog and drizzle of Falkreath made this difficult.  She decided to take out her sailor's spyglass for a closer look.

Unkown to the entire crowd, a dark figure stalked the ceremony from the shadows, cloaked by a mixture of darkness, fog, and rain. He glanced to his companion to the right of him,

"When should I take the shot?"

Eduard turned to his partner.

"Whenever the shot is clear, and you feel you can get away with it. I've got your back."

Eduard had his eyes in Feren as well, who, as planned, was attending the funeral. He would take him down as Lorgar took the Jarl.

Rebec could see nothing amiss in her spyglass, so her scoping came around to center on the old priest of Arkay.  She had become fond of the Altmer since the battle, even if he had served the Dominion.  He was raising his hands to try to quiet the crowd.  When they had settled down, Runil motioned to the jarl and said, "You all knew Tekla well, but Jarl Dengeir would like to say a few words about her."  The priest leaned in to whisper something to Dengeir- probably telling him to be comforting.

That was unlikely. Dengeir stepped to the fore of the platform and shouted loud enough for Rebec to hear.  "Some of you fools may think this was a suicide, but that's because your pants are too short.  It wasn't a suicide, I tell you!  She was murdered by those imperial scum who've been raiding our hold!"

Rebec sighed and muttered, "Great.  This will go over well."  The crowd's murmurs had turned to angry shouts, some agreeing, others arguing.  From her position in the tower, the admiral motioned to some nearby guards to move into the crowd in case it got ugly.  Runil was pulling on the jarl's arm, but Dengeir didn't look like he was finished.  He no doubt had more conspiracy theories to regale the crowd with.  A lot more.

Lorgar went to his knees before silently muttering in ancient Solsthiem,

"All Maker...Lord Hircine..grant my arrow flight..."

He drew the massive ebony arrow from its's quiver, aimed at the ranting Jarl, and let it fly.

At the same time, Eduard pulled back, and sent the arrow that would end Feren's life.

"Sorry, it is for my sister," he whispered to himself.

In her peripheral sight, Rebec saw the motion of a bow being drawn at the edge of the crowd and immediately raised her own crossbow.

Two arrows flew and two men went down, but she only saw the one assassin, who had aimed at someone in the crowd rather than towards the jarl.  The admiral drew aim and fired a crossbow bolt in his direction, then began to load another.

There were screams and the crowd scattered like frightened birds.  Stormcloak guards rushed towards the platform where Runil knelt, holding the jarl's body.  An arrow protruded from Dengeir's neck.  The guards closest to the two assassins had also seen the drawn bow and were trying to intercept them, but were hindered by fleeing civilians.

Eduard was grazed by a crossbow bolt, fired by a female in a tower. He didn't fire back, he just looked at her and smiled. He mouthed the words "Maybe next time, archer". Whether the girl saw it is anyones guess.

He signaled to Lorgar, "Let's go"

Lorgar notched another arrow, and fired it in the direction of where the Bolt came from, which happened to be from a nord female with a crossbow.

Rebec was lifting her crossbow for a second shot when an ebony arrow arced towards her and smacked hard into the weapon, knocking it from her hands.  She went down, unhurt apart from a gash on her hand from one of the crossbow's rivets.  Swearing loudly, the admiral scrambled to her feet and ran down the steps of the tower, this time keeping her head down and drawing her axes as she went.

In this time the crowd had cleared enough to allow Stormcloak guards to near the assassins, as others were also rushing in the gate.  Three guards barreled towards the two men, intent on tackling them, while another stopped to draw his bow.  He had seen Lorgar even if Rebec could not, and drew aim on him.

Lorgr smirked, before drawing his two throwing knives and throwing them both into the two guards, as he did that he noticed a guard drawing a his bow, and let Eduard handle him.

Eduard, seeing the guard who had taken aim at Lorgar, threw his dagger at the guard, hitting him in the throat. However, Eduard was still losing blood. They, well, he, wasn't in condition to have a stand off. They needed to flee. He wasn't going to leave Lorgar alone though, no matter how capable he looked.

"Alright, that clears those guards, we need to get out of here."

"Can you keep up with me with your wound?" I can carry you if you want."

"They're over there!" Rebec shouted at the Stormcloaks coming into the gate, pointing out the two assassins.  "Close the gates, don't let them over the wall!"  In the tumult, the admiral couldn't be sure anyone had heard her orders.

She then ran towards the two men herself, hefting her ebony axe up for a throw, though she was not yet close enough to do so without risking the civilians in the way.

While Eduard appreciated the gesture, he wasn't that hurt.

"No, I'll be fine. We need to get moving though. I'll signal you if I need assistance. Besides, even if I did need carried, I'm not about to risk getting us both caught, just to save my ass. Now let's get moving."

In the corner of his eye, he saw that archer from before charging towards them.

"Are you serious?"

Damn it....

Apparently someone ordered the guards to close the gate, since it was slowly closing. Lorgar turned around, and shoved Edaurd out of Falkreath in the last possible second before charging the Female nord with his two knives.

Seeing the knives in the assassin's hands, Rebec switched tactics and kept her axes in hand to parry a throw if necessary, and kept towards him with a half dozen Stormcloak guards hard at her heels.

As she neared Lorgar, the admiral stopped in her tracks.  "You!"

Lorgar brought down his hood, 

"Yes Admiral it's me."

After he got up from being shoved by Lorgar, Eduard was not happy. He did flee into the wilds a bit, to tape himself up. He wasn't done with this fight yet.

For a moment Rebec is halted by shock.  Memories of the then-legate stepping in between her and the Thalmor come back, and of lying for two days in his tent.  She had not seen him since then, and not seen the changes in him, either.

The guards around her had no such associations and were still charging towards Lorgar with weapons drawn.

Lorgar, with a flurry of slashes to the arms, feet, legs, and chest, cut threw the first three stormcloak soldiers in seconds, before using his hand to snap a fourth ones neck and using his knee to break another's spine.

The sight of her men dying brings Rebec out of her surprise quickly.  She couldn't match Lorgar in melee, that much she knew, but with the distraction of the other Stormcloaks attacking him the admiral could get in one axe throw to try to disable him.   She brought her ebony axe up and heaved it towards the assassin's head, aiming high to avoid her own men.

More guards were coming in, leaving the gate exposed, but they also could see their target clearly now.

Eduard saw as Lorgar was drawing the guards away from the gate. There was his chance. He had to get the gate open. Then they could both flee.

"Really Admiral?"

Lorgar, quite quickly side stepped away from the thrown axe,  before taking on some more guards.

At the assassin's taunting, Rebec's surprise had fully turned to fury.  She glanced at the gate, satisfied that at least for the moment it was shut, though more Stormcloaks would be trying to enter soon.  There was no sign of the other assassin, but Lorgar had been killing their men for months and was the bigger prize.

"Lock this rat inside and drown him!" she shouted, drawing her dagger as a replacement for the axe. The admiral was not going to be so foolish as to charge Lorgar now that she knew who he was, but in any case the numbers were on her side.  By this time there were Falkreath town guards joining the crowd as well, summoned from the other side of the town by civilians shouting that their jarl had been killed.

Lorgar laughed, "Rats? I'm surprised, rats don't usually slaughter guards, what does that make you admiral, a bug?" 

Lorgar slashed another guards throat open, and impaled another one with his two daggers with lighting fast speed. He started to back up towards the closed gate, being pushed back by the overwhelming numbers.

Eduard decided that it was getting too intense for him to go back injured. Instead he started picking off as many archers as he could, while fleeing. In the process, the taping had come apart, and he was beginning to bleed again. He hoped Lorgar would take the chance to escape. Eduard couldn't stay much longer.

Lorgar was covered in sweat by now, and wouldn't be able to hold out much longer...unless he- No...that was out of the question. He had to run, he would head to the lake and swim out of this infernal town, he smired one last time,

"Admiral, send Baldur my regards, I've enjoyed our little dance, but I have to be off, good day to you"

And with that, Lorgar sprinted off through the town.

As Lorgar moved through the stunned guards with hardly a scratch, Rebec's rage turned on the Stormcloaks in her way.  "GET HIM!" she shouted, letting out a string of curses.  Her frustration was as much at herself, for having let slip the man who had tormented their forces for so long.

Guards rushed toward where he had disappeared near the mill run, but the fact that there were no sounds of fighting told the admiral that it was too late.  If she sent searchers out after him, they would blunder around in the forest and probably smack right into one of those imperial guerrilla units, and she would have more dead to put on her ledger.

In dismay, Rebec looked around at the bodies of the men Lorgar had took out on his way.  Others were groaning, injured.  She only glanced at the blood on her own hand before slowly making her way toward the platform where Runil still knelt by the jarl, unmoved by the chaos around him. 

Rebec knew what she would find there.  Dengeir had been killed right under their noses.

[The Good Doctor]

Elan, Princess Quarters, Night

 

“Elan?â€

“Yes Dales?† 

During the dead of night, when Dales and Elan where snuggled up with each other, they would use there first name. Elan was facing Dale’s pale and pretty face, Elan smiled, and gently brushed away some of Dale’s blonde locks from her face.

“Can you sing me a lullaby…I can’t sleep…â€

Elan softly chuckled, before saying, “Of course milady, 

I sing to you, oh sweet Lilly, I love your fragrance, 

I love your smile, for that alone, it causes me happiness eternal  

I love your melodic voice, which makes my ears dance in joy,

I love the way you laugh, it make’s feel warm when I should only feel the coldness of sorrow

I love the way you sing, for your voice brings tears to my eyes,

I love you…I love you…I love you…â€

Elan finished her lullaby, she turned around and saw Dales breathing deeply, at last asleep. Elan smiled, before gently kissing her on the cheek,

“love you”

[The Good Doctor]

Legate Gracchus Ceno, Quaestor Pilus Rato

Fort Pale Pass 

Morning

 

 

Pilus had returned the previous night, but decided that his report could wait until his men got some well deserved rest. He rose early, and headed to the war room where he knew Gracchus would be waiting. 

Pilus walked in, saluting and saying, "Sir, I have reports from Falkreath."

Gracchus turned to his friend, and started laughing. "Hahaha! Since when do you salute? At ease. So, what news do you have?"

Pilus smiled, then pulled up a chair and sat down. "Well, it appears that the Stormcloaks have moved their force to Falkreath. It seems they hope to take safety behind their stone walls."

Gracchus frowned,his brow wrinkling in concentration, and leaned over his maps, studying Falkreath's layout.

"Well, that is helpful information. I have Prefect Lorgar and Specialist Eduard assigned to assassinate Jarl Dengier, and am waiting their return to start the siege. I have given the Thalmor forces the go-ahead to take out both Helgen and Fort Neugrad, and then our combined forces will besiege the city."

Pilus got up from his seat, and looked over the maps himself.

"That sounds like a good plan. By the way, who was that prisoner who was escaping last night?"

"Aw, so you saw that. That was General Baldur Red-Snow, of the Stormcloak forces. Thalmor prisoner. I talked to him, and he tried to persuade me to betray the Thalmor and kill all of their men in the camp. He also told me Marius joined them, after the Inquisition discovered his Talos worship. I told him that as much as I wanted to, I would slaughter my men."

Pilus sat back down, and said,

"Aw, well that was an interesting conversation I'm sure. Why you didn't do it, that's something I won't argue. We both share the same opinion of Amaund, and he basically a Thalmor puppet."

"Don't you think I know that? But we have a job, and we need the Thalmor to accomplish that. Maybe some other time. Well, I'm going to check on the onagers progress. You're dismissed."

Pilus left, leaving Gracchus to his thoughts.

Even my best friend thinks I should have listened to Red-Snow. Maybe I made a mistake. The moments past, however, and now there is no point in dwelling on it. I'm better go check on the onagers.

[The Good Doctor]

Osgumund and Valindil, Imperial City/Falkreath Hold 

An officer entered Valindil’s office.

“Sir, Gracchus has given the order to move on the forts of Helgen and Neugrad. He says we are to leave right away.â€

“That’s Legate Gracchus to you, Ensign. Prepare the men to move out, I want to take those forts by the closing of the week.â€

“Yes sir, right away sir.†The Ensign left the room.

The Colonel had already had his servants pack his things, as he had been planning to move to Neugrad for a few days now.

Finaavin, his valet, entered the room. “Sir, I have cleaned your uniform.†He said. He put Valindil’s new Colonel’s uniform on a chair and sat down.

“Oh, Finaavin!†he greeted him. He sounded like he was angry. “I can’t believe those damn Nords took my apprentice! He was my apprentice for gods’ sake and they took him away into the night!†Valindil punched the wall but appeared not to be hurt by it.

“You mean Braignir?â€

“Yes, I mean Braignir. I hope he uses that magic of his on all those filthy humans. I mean, I taught him everything, from his first fear spell to when he learned blood magic.†He said this with a somber tone, that of someone who has just lost a dear friend. “We will make them pay. I will force their men to fight one another against their will, and I will force them to mutilate the bodies of their comrades. They will be bound to me in undeath. They will butcher their shield brothers on the field of battle, and they will see the true face of the Dominion: one that is to be feared.â€

There was a long pause. Then he said, “come, we must go.â€

**********

Three hours later, as they approached Helgen in mid-afternoon, Valindil ordered the battalion to come to a halt.

“We will prepare for battle now,†he said. He rode his steed, Odytia, around the large mass in front of him that was the 7th Dominion Battalion. He looked at each Elf in turn, making sure his armor and his weapon were in perfect condition. Satisfied, he ordered them to march forward.

He spoke to the group of officers around him, “I want archers in the front. After four volleys of arrows, move them to the left. They are to keep firing arrows until the warriors are within combat range of the enemy. Mages are to take the right flank of the battalion, and are to bombard the enemy with ice spells, hopefully slowing down their advance.†The officers nodded and began bellowing the orders at their men.

The ruins were in sight now, and the sound of hundreds of archers readying their bows could be heard. The sound of steel boots on the road was formidable, and would strike fear into the hearts of any enemy.

“Halt!†Valindil held his right hand up to signal them to stop. He rode to the front of the battalion, where he spoke to the bandits in the fort. “This is your chance to give up the fort. We will take Helgen one way or another, but this way you get to keep your lives.â€

The people in the fort laughed loudly at what they thought was a stupid Elf. Valindil, however, kept a straight face and continued, “Is that a no?â€

There was even more laughter from the fort, which Valindil took as a ‘no’.

“So be it, then.†He said under his breath and rode away. The officers took this as a cue for commencing the battle.

“ARCHERS! DRAW ARROWS!†Officers shouted.
There was a pause while the sound of wood clanking on wood was heard.

“TAKE AIM! FIRE!â€

A volley of arrows flew towards the ruined city at an angle, so they would fly down on the men inside, instead of at them. Some of the battlemages used magic to make the arrows explode on impact, while others sent huge storms of ice at the enemy.

Screams of pain could be heard from the inside, but the enemy wouldn’t back down. They fired some arrows of their own, but most were too high or missed by a wide margin. This, to Valindil, was the symbol of bad leadership, and of disobedience.

After a few minutes of this, the garrison realized that staying and fighting in the fort would be suicide. The gates opened with a large bang and men charged out in a chaotic mass. Elven archers and mages alike retreated, while the warriors lowered their pikes.

“CLOSE RANKS! CLOSE RANKS!†and, “DON’T LET THEM THROUGH!†was heard over the noise.

The bandits continued to charge, and they continued to fall victim to the arrows of the Elves.

The first man managed to get avoid being pierced by the pikes, but as he approached, there was a sword to bring him to his end. He slumped over awkwardly as his head and arms were cut off.

Soon, more arrived, but most met their ends on the pikes that blocked their passage. A few managed to get by, only to die, horrifically trapped.

As the men saw what happened to their comrades, they started to retreat back into the fort.

The Elves then advanced after them. The mages sent a barrage of fire at the gates, and it exploded in a shower of splinters that killed many men who were unfortunate enough to be too close.

The Elves marched into the fort and finished off the remaining bandits. Valindil rode to the center of the fort, “clear out the remnants of the enemy from the town. I don’t want any left!†He shouted.

The soldiers ran all over the fort in search of survivors. After several minutes of this, the last of the survivors had been cut down. The officers crowded around Valindil.

“What next sir?†They all asked.

“Well, I’m certain they have focused the number of bandits here at Helgen.†He said. “Because the 6th Legion is much closer to Helgen than Neugrad, in fact the Legion isn’t close at all. That being said, I want to leave a garrison of about 400 men here. I want the First, Second, and Sixth Companies to stay here, while the rest of us move on to Fort Neugrad.â€

The officers who were in charge of these companies rode off to find their men. The rest leaned in to listen to the rest of Valindil’s orders.

“Seeing as there were no survivors to pass the news of our advance, and the secluded location of Neugrad, I doubt we will be expected. We will make an attack at dusk, while most of the Nords are in the tavern getting drunk. We move out tomorrow. Oh and, burn the bodies of the fallen, I don’t want their rotting flesh stinking the place up.â€

The rest of the officers now rode away now to order their men to set up camp and take care of the dead, while Valindil went to find Finaavin.

**********

Osgumund sat down at the King and Queen Inn. It was the middle of the evening and the place was full of people. He had been waiting for about a half hour now, and he was about to give up when an Argonian wearing very fine robes walked in.

Could this be my man? Osgumund thought to himself.

The Argonian purchased a bottle of distilled wine from the bartender and scanned the room. Upon seeing the Elf in the corner, he approached.

“Lord Kajin?†Osgumund asked.

The Argonian nodded and sat down. “What is it you wanted to speak to me about, Elf?†He asked in a condescending tone.

“There’s no need to speak to me like that. You know, I am also a member of the nobility.â€

Lord Kajin grunted as if he did not care. “Let’s just get to business. What did you want to see me about?â€

“Well, I have come upon the fact that you are a supporter of the Dominion. That you want the Dominion to become an ally of Argonia.â€

The lizard’s look of shock was enough to confirm Osgumund’s information.

“I want to strike some sort of agreement with you. Here’s the deal: you help the Dominion get a foothold in Argonia and I will help you end your exile. Sound goodâ€

Kajin leaned in and said, “you know?â€

“Of course I know.†Came the calm reply.

“Well, as long as it gets me back into my country. I’m only doing it for that, you know.â€

“Please, don’t try to fool me. I know that you think the Dominion is good for trade, and are good for protection. Don’t play games with me.â€

“Alright, you’ve got me. I do like the Dominion, but I don’t want Argonia to be under control of the Dominion.â€

A Khajiit sitting nearby chuckled quietly, but Kajin kept going. “I just want to create an alliance between the two nations, that is all.â€

“Of course, I understand. I’m sure our countries can come to some sort of agreement. Did you know that the Dunmer have allied themselves with the Nords?â€

“They have? Before I was… You know, exiled, no one would support the Dominion because they thought you were a threat to the Hist, even more so than the Dunmer. But once we convince the Argonians that you will help us fight the Dunmer, maybe, just maybe, they will finally understand that the Dominion is what’s best for us.â€

Osgumund smiled. “I’m glad to see you’re on board. It’s getting late, you should go. We’ll keep in touch though, be sure of that.â€

They said farewell and Lord Kajin left with his unopened bottle of wine. Osgumund took a sip of his spiced tea and sat back while the Khajiit came and sat down.

“That went well, wouldn’t you say?â€

“Why yes I would.†Osgumund replied. He smiled and the two made a toast. “To the Dominion!†they said, but made sure to keep it quiet.

A courier came in and looked for Osgumund. “For you, sir.†He said. He gave Osgumund a letter with a golden bow tied around it and left. Osgumund opened the letter and read,

O,

The Stormcloak soldiers have been taken care of, as have a few peasants who visited the shrine of Talos. I have shocking news for you: the Jarl himself has been murdered. It happened just earlier today at the steward’s funeral and I thought I should relay the news to you as soon as possible! Amidst the chaos of the crowd running away and the guards looking for the assassin, I managed to kill a few Nords. 

I have taken it upon myself to give Lord Ramani the news of Falkreath’s defenses. I hope you have no objection to that. 

I have a feeling this siege that we have been expecting is to be starting very soon. Every day we hear about supply wagons having been attacked on the road with no survivors, and every day they are happening closer and closer to the city itself. I have been watching Runil more closely than ever, and I am determined to get him to you, no matter what the cost. 

More big news: there is news that the Stormcloak general has broken out of prison and has arrived, although I have yet to see him for myself. 

I shall make sure to notify you if anything happens, especially concerning Runil. 

-Your humble servant, I

[The Good Doctor]

Legate Gracchus Ceno

Fort Pale Pass 

Morning

 

Gracchus had reviewed the onagers the previous night, which had went well. Valvius and his engineers had been busy, and they had three built (including the test one) with a fourth one almost done. Gracchus then found some much needed sleep, which he seemed to be getting less and less of lately. He walked into the war room, and began penning a letter to his guerrillas, telling them their next move.

 

You have orders to fall back to Fort Pale Pass, at once. We will begin the siege soon, and I want all men ready to fight.

-GQC 

 

Gracchus finished the letter, and the sealed it and handed it to the courier.

"You are to take this to the same meeting place as last time," Gracchus ordered.

"Sir, yes sir," the courier saluted and then walked out the door to deliver the letter.

Gracchus decided to see if the fourth onager was finished, so he walked to the back of the camp were they had set up the build area.

Valvius was busying himself with some aspect of the firing mechanism when Gracchus walked up and said,

"How goes the final catapult?"

Valvius jumped and let out an "Eek!" before saying,

"Aw, sir, you scared me. I thought you were a spy sent here to destroy my beautiful machines. Did you see my request for upped security?"

Gracchus had received the request, but had more important things to use his men for than to guard the onagers, which already had around fifteen men spaced out around the perimeter.

"Yes, but unfortunately I have no men to spare for your project. Speaking of which how comes this last one?"

"Well...as you can see, we decided to make it a little larger, and...um....it can fling a 50 pound projectile around 300 yards, as compared with 200 for the others. It will be ready, sir, that much I can assure you."

"Good, that is all I wished to know. You can continue."

"Um, yes sir," Valvius said, while awkwardly saluting.

Gracchus left, heading back for the war room.

[The Good Doctor]

Rebec, Boldir, Baldur

Jarl's longhouse, Falkreath town

nighttime

 

It was late, past midnight, but Rebec had not been sleeping well.  With the constant rains her tent was damp as well as empty and cold.  A brazier always burned in the command center at the jarl's longhouse, however, and there she could often find Boldir or one of the Necro Nords working.  The only way she could not think about Baldur was to throw herself into the men's problems.

Their supply wagons had been hit again, and this was beginning to be worrisome.  The town's stores had already been drained by the refugees.  Rebec had ordered the routes to be varied and more patrols put out to control the roads, and had the scouts warn civilians out in the countryside to be vigilant.  The imperials were the ones far from home.  They could not be allowed to move with impunity.  They should be worried about even the Nord cows rising against them.

The Solitude courier had made it in, nevertheless, and Rebec sat at a side table with ship diagrams spread out.  The engineers were proposing new ship designs and submitted them for her approval.  The admiral scribbled furiously on one of these which resembled one of the large imperial galleys, dotting the page with "NO!" and her objections to the design.  Finally she threw her quill down and cursed.

Standing, she took up her cup of mead.  "Boldir, tell me.  Why is it that the Nords always want to do a thing just because the imperials are doing it?  When are we going to start trusting our own ways again instead of thinking that everything they do is better?"

Boldir, who was leaning back in a chair in the corner of the room, looked up from the message he was reading. "We’ve left the Empire for good this time. Give Ulfric a decade or two. With his leadership and the people backing him, Skyrim will grow more powerful and more independent of others, just like in the glory days."

"Glory days, eh."  The admiral sounded skeptical.  "Tell me what you think of Ulfric.  Honestly.  It'll be just between you, me and the mead keg."

Boldir raised an eyebrow. "He has done right by me, and by Skyrim. He has done nothing but benefit us. That’s what I think of Ulfric."

Rebec made a thoughtful noise.  "I owe him a lot, now, that's for certain.  Can't say I ever liked him or Galmar much, though.  Galmar is too eager for war, and Ulfric too eager for politics.  He'd have been better off in Windhelm.  Solitude rubs its muck off on you, sooner or later.  And I swear, if I have to sit through another of those long speeches, I'll start farting out a sea shanty just to pass the time."

Boldir chuckled. "I've never spoken to him, but it was those speeches that reassured me that leaving the Legion was the right choice. Although, having served under him for so long now, I know that he mostly says what he knows the people want to hear. Sometimes, I wonder if the things he wants for Skyrim are within his abilities to obtain. But I'd rather us have a leader who wants more than we can get than a foreign Emperor who would take more that we can give. As for Galmar, he’s a good warrior, aye, but you're right. Peace ain’t a word he knows."

"You were in the legion?" Rebec asked, surprised.

"I was, for a time. Enlisted when I was young. After a while, I... got into some religious disagreements with them. Things got ugly. And so I left for Eastmarch. Haven't looked back since. This was well before the war mind you. All I ever killed during my service were bandits and the like. I guess you didn't know this, but very few of the original Necro Nords weren't Legionnaires at some point. It was only this past year when we began bringing in younger members."

As he was talking, Rebec pulled her chair around and straddled it.  She tilted her head. "Can't see you in one of those red skirts with your hair all shaved off.  What's this about religion?  Talos, I suppose."

Boldir nodded. "Aye. I don't wear an amulet, nor do I pray as often as I probably should. But Talos is and always has been my patron."

Boldir had to think hard for a moment. This was another life ago, and he rarely looked back to it.
"Must've been...uh...Seventeen? Eighteen years old? Somewhere around there, when I joined up. Stayed for four or so years before heading off to Eastmarch. But yes, I was in fact in the Legion, skirt, sword, and all."

"Well just think of that.  The mighty Boldir kissing the ass of some imperial officer."  Rebec laughed, the sound hollow compared to her usual easy mirth.  "It's ironic when you think about it.  Talos fought the Nords, too.  Not all of the clans would bend knee to him until he shouted them down.  My father didn't like him, probably some old grudge everyone else has forgotten about.  I wouldn't put a sword to anyone in a god's name, but I'll be damned if I'll stand by while elves do it to Nords."

She paused, reflecting.  "This is probably all about old grudges for them, too.  Tiber Septim conquered Summerset, and now they're finally looking for payback.  That old priest Runil told me he thought there was more to it, but he wouldn't say what."

"I have less to say of Tiber the man than Talos the god. I pray for strength. I don't know if it works, but it does often help to at least ease my mind at the time. Although, there've been a lot of unanswered prayers as of late."

Rebec's eyes fell, as she remembered her prayer with Runil for Arkay to give Baldur strength to endure.  Maybe it would have been better to ask for a quick death.

Before she could answer Boldir, the door of the longhouse burst open.  The admiral started up, putting aside her mead and drawing her axe, thinking there were more assassins about or they were under attack.  A breathless sentry came to the doorway. "It's the general.  He's alive!  He and that imperial just came in over at the east gate."

Eyes widening, Rebec looked at Boldir, rooted as though she didn't know what to do.

Boldir immediatly stood up. He could barely believe what he was hearing. Unable to hide the shock from his face, he settled for a grin.
"I guess I spoke too soon."

Boldir turned back to the sentry.
"Thank you soldier. You can go now."

As the man left, Boldir headed for the door himself. He stopped as he reached it and turned back to Rebec.
"Come on. You should be the first one he sees."

 

***

 

Baldur was half asleep on he and Marius's approach to Falkreath. With the Imperials in the hold, he should have been on alert, but it had been days since he ate, and the last time he had water was during the Legate's visit. He was dragging the now sleeping thalmor soldier on the ground instead of carrying him on his shoulders. It didn't help that it had started raining, which weighed down the bag while he dragged it. It would have been smarter for him to simply kill the elf, but he was determined to take his pound of flesh out from the elf. When he and Marius finally reached the gate, he could see soldiers on the walls running off to tell the others. He told Marius to go ahead and rest, and he'd catch up with him later.

"You Nords are tough sons of...well, you know."

Baldur looked up after he collapsed to his hands and knees to see Jodun in front of him with a group of 20 Hammerfell soldiers going into the city.

"Jodun...good to see you, friend."

Jodun stuck out his hand to give the General a hand up.

"Your men should see you up on your feet, tall and proud. Morale's been...bad, since you left. Even among my men."

Baldur was a bit surprised to hear that his men were actually affected by his disappearance. Jodun noticed his surprised expression.

"They take pride in this new alliance of ours. They see Redguards and Nords as the best fighters in Tamriel, and think the alliance is the perfect match. They know this war in Falkreath has little chance without you. That's the bad side to having good leaders. Tough acts to follow."

"You all would have been fine. Boldir's more than my equal."

Jodun said in a nonchalant manor, "That very well may be. But when he heard about your capture the very first thing he did was take off in full speed to the High Admiral. I made do without him, but his knowledge of the area would have been appreciated. His men knew it well enough, but my efforts would have been better off with him there."

"Well, why are you here? Why are your men pulling back?"

"I was requested to come back by the Captain. If we stayed and held our ground a little longer, we could have shaved their numbers off some more, but...with all do respect, sir, this is why you don't have relationships in war."

"I understand where you're coming from, but I can't have that. Not now. Don't worry about me, I'll handle my personal matters."

"I understand, sir. I just don't want your personal matters becoming a problem. For your sake and ours. Those were ten of my best warriors who got killed defending you. But I stand by you as always. Same for my men."

"I...I understand, Jodun." said Baldur in a defeated tone.

Jodun not wanting to put more burdens on Baldur decided to change the subject. "So, what do you have here?"

Baldur looked back at the large sack containing the sleeping elf.

"That, is a souvenir."

"The scars that you likely have I assume weren't enough?"

"No."

"I see. My brother was taken by Thalmor....I take it they don't give quick deaths?"

"....No."

Jodun wanted to ask what they did to the General to get a better understanding of how his brother may have died, but decided not to press the matter further.

"I'll let you rest, sir. You've more than earned it."

After that, Baldur followed Jodun into the city with the elf slumped on his shoulders.

It's good to be home. Even if it is in Falkreath. 

Baldur looked up into the weeping Sky and smiled for the second chance that he had been given.

 

***

 

At Boldir's prompting Rebec finally moved from her spot and left the jarl's.  Outside it was raining, as usual.  A cluster of soldiers was headed their way, and there was shouting and cheering that echoed on the battlements and then outside in the main camp as the word began to spread what was going on.

The admiral walked slowly, afraid that it was somehow going to be a trick.  It was impossible, after all.

As she neared the crowd of soldiers Rebec saw Baldur among them, unmistakeable though haggard and bruised.  He was dragging some burden behind him.  She took a few steps at a run, slowing again as she neared him.  "Baldur?"  She reached out to touch his chest, then the reality of it hit her and she began to weep, tears mixing with the rain water already on her face.  "I'm sorry.  I'm so sorry."

Baldur didn't hear what she said. He was too busy staring at her face. The face he thought he'd never see again in his life. Baldur fell to his knees and embraced her by the waist. He wept, but lucky for him it was raining. At this point everyone knew about the two, but even if they didn't he wouldn't have cared. All he saw was her.

Boldir stood smiling a ways back in the crowd. He watched as his two closest friends in the world embraced and he felt nothing but happiness for the first time since Whiterun. Dispite all the odds, Baldur was back and nobody was lost in making that happen. If that wasn't cause for happiness, he wasn't sure what was. As he stood watching them, Boldir's smile slowly faded and he felt a pang of guilt.

I should've been there. Shouldn't have made him go through all this shit for so long. I abandoned him.

Boldir forced the thoughts out of his head and let a half-smile come onto his face. Now was a happy occasion, it was not a time to think about such matters. He stayed back, deciding to let Rebec and Baldur have their moment.

Rebec cradled Baldur's head in her arms, then knelt down, holding his shoulders, and turned her face to kiss him.  Crying as she was and weak as he was, it was an awkward kiss, but in the middle of it she began to really believe that he had come back.  Sobbing but now also laughing, she threw her arms around his shoulders and held him tightly as they knelt in the mud.

Finally Rebec sat back and looked into his face, touching it.  "I thought I'd never see you again.  My only hope was to join you in Sovngarde soon.  What did they do to you?  You need a healer."  She moved to help him to his feet.

Baldur laughed before saying, "This is beginning to look like a scene from some Breton love poem. Where's that tough old salty Admiral I remembered?"

Rebec echoed his laughter and pulled him to his feet.  "I told you that you make me do crazy things."  The soldiers around them hadn't catcalled as they otherwise would have to see the admiral and general kissing, but they did cheer as she stood again, and slapped each other on the arms as though they all were responsible for rescuing their general.

Looking over at Boldir, Rebec nodded at him, gesturing for him to come forward.  Meanwhile she turned and called, "Someone get a healer, and bring a hot meal to the jarl's longhouse for the general.  The jarl is having supper in a different hall tonight."

Baldur still holding on to Rebec looked over to see his good friend Boldir, who was watching from a distance. He seemed happy but something was on his mind. Baldur could tell.

"Boldir, I'm so glad to see you again, frie-...brother. What's wrong? And don't you dare tell me nothing."

Boldir's smile grew as he made his way forward to greet his friend.
"I am telling you brother. Nothing is wrong, truly."
His grin broadened further.
"If I look off, it's probably just because I've never been so glad in my life to see your ugly mug."

Baldur smiled at first and then frowned. "Fine, we'll talk about it later. I'm to tired to press the matter and way too happy to want to ruin this. Come, lets-"

The elf in the bag started mumbling and groaning, which cut Baldur off before he could finish his sentence. The elf was likely sore from all the bumps that Baldur dragged him over purposefully on his way there.

Boldir motioned toward the bag.
"Friend of yours? I can have someone take him to the prison now if you want. I'll make sure he gets the good cell. Should be nice with all this rain."

"I'd like that. He won't be around for long to enjoy it. I plan to get my pound of flesh from him and then some. But forget about that."

Baldur held out his right arm while he had his left arm locked around Rebec's neck resting on her shoulder.

Boldir stepped in and hugged his brother.
"It's good to have you back Baldur. Now let's get inside."

With Baldur back, a huge weight had lifted off Boldir's shoulders. He had not slept once since the day before the disappearance, and he'd only managed to appear normal by forcing himself to remain busy constantly. Now that Boldir knew for certain that his friend was safe, he felt an extreme wave of exhaustion overtake him. One that he had somehow managed to block off behind a need to preoccupy his mind. To forget about what had happened. He let go of Baldur and stumbled over to a low wall by the road and leaned on it. "Now I'm-I'm just gonna..."

He didn't look up when he was cut off by the voice of Rebec.  Stay awake damnit! Baldur's been through worse shit than you can even imagine and you're wanting to take a nap!

"You're right, you're right. I'm sorry."

Baldur was a little confused when Boldir apologized, and turned to Rebec to speak.

"Hey Rebec, could you give us about five minutes? Just lean me up on that wall next to him."

The admiral likewise was confused at Boldir's apology, but shrugged it off.  Maneuvering Baldur towards the wall, she said, "I'll go see to things in the longhouse and be right back."

Baldur watched as Rebec walked off, and waited for her to disappear into the Longhouse before speaking.

"Alright, now tell me. What seems to be the matter, Boldir?"

Boldir looked at his friend. "Forgive me. I haven't slept in a long time and it's catching up with me, and for the shortest moment I forgot how bad you've had it. Rebec was right in yelling at me. I don't need sleep at the moment."

Baldur was again confused by Boldir. He was not used to seeing him like this. "What did Rebec have to yell at you for? Was this while I was on vacation?"

"What? No, I mean just now when she got on to me for being a damn pansy. Can't say I blame her really."

"Alright, that's it. You need to sleep. After you get something to eat, I'm ordering you to rest. You went through a lot helping Rebec while I was gone. I'm proud of you, you know. I thought surely you'd be charging your way to the prison by yourself."

The admiral returned in time to hear this.  "Oh believe me, that was Boldir's plan A."  She took Baldur's arm.  "Come on, we can talk after you've had some food and rest.  You look like shit."

"Yes, mom", said Baldur jokingly.

"Come on Boldir. Right now, I could eat a dragon's tail!"

Boldir looked back and forth between his friends. He was utterly confused.

Did the Thalmor mess up Baldur's hearing or something?

"Maybe you're just ******* crazy."

Boldir blinked and shook his head. Had Baldur just called him crazy? He could swear that he heard it but he also could clearly see that his friend's mouth had not moved.

"Uhh, yeah. Let's go get something to eat... That sounds good."

Rebec let Baldur lean on her as they made their way to the longhouse.  On the way, she kept glancing over at him, almost shy.  Shyness was not something she experienced often.

Inside the longhouse, a soup pot had been brought and was warming up on the fire, while regulars milled around, curious to get a glimpse of Baldur.  "Let's get your armor off," Rebec said, directing him towards the privacy of Dengeir's room.  There she had laid out some of his clothes.

 

***

 

As Baldur and Rebec went into Dengeir's quarters, Boldir walked past and went into the war room. He sat back in the chair he'd been in earlier, his elbows on his knees, he rested his head in his hands. His eyes slowly closed and snapped back open. He felt such mixed emotions right now. The biggest one was his overwhelming happiness at his friend's return. But there was guilt mixed in. Guilt he'd felt before, but had suppressed. With Baldur back, he couldn't help but think that his brother must deep down feel somewhat betrayed. Their roles reversed, Boldir was sure that Baldur would have at least tried to save him, which is a lot more than he'd done. And now, on top of everything, Boldir beginning to think that he was hearing voices.

That's because you are.

He looked up. "Baldur?"

The room was empty. Boldir's head dropped back into his hands. "****!"

I need some damn sleep. Not yet though.

Boldir rose from the chair and went out to rejoin his friends.

 

***

 

Baldur looked at the clothes and thought about what his body must look like from all the punishment he took. His gauntlets was covering his nails that were dark from the burned skin and blood under them and his boots were doing the same for his toes. His back was covered in slashes from whips that likely would leave scars, not to mention all the bruises and cuts, and one other specific mark on his lower back that he hadn't gotten the chance to see since it was put on him...

"Um, maybe it's best if I keep my armor on for now, Rebec."

Rebec's brow knit, but she wasn't going to argue with him.  This was about as compliant as she ever got.  "Alright.  You must want to eat first, I guess."  Helping Baldur to a chair at the side table, she called out to the central room to tell the regulars in the main room to bring a bowl of soup and a healing potion in to the bedroom and then to clear out or else.  She poured some cups of water, and when the soup was brought, pulled a chair up to sit near him.

Baldur was happy that Rebec did not press the issue further. He wasn't looking forward to seeing her expression when she saw him. He already didn't like the effect he was having on her currently. It made him feel like a burden. He got ready to hear the bad news he was likely to get from their current situation, considering past events.

"Okay, lay it on me. What's the situation? I see the Jarl isn't here, so I take it Boldir saw fit to put in martial law again. Our food supplies should be tip top from the supplies I had ordered from Helgen and the fort to here, but I imagine the Imperials have been ambushing some of our supplies coming in. Not a large enough amount to make a dent I imagine. Am I correct?"

Rebec didn't want to talk about the situation there, in fact she wanted to forget it and be somewhere else very far away.  But asking such questions now would be exactly what she would have done.  Sighing, she answered, "Dengeir is dead.  They killed his steward to draw him out, and today at the funeral Lorgar shot him.  He got away, of course.  I don't want to think about where he gets those powers."

She took a drink of water before going on, avoiding Baldur's eyes.  Her failures were all too much on her mind without having to recount them.  "The supplies have been hit, yes.  I've varied the routes but we are still only getting one in two.  Honestly I expected them to attack in force by now.  The guerilla teams are mobile, they can't carry much.  The imperials must be lower on supplies than we are."

Baldur's chest sunk at the thought of Lorgar being near Rebec without him. She obviously was fine, but it still worried him all the same.

"You're lucky to be alive then. As for supplies, we should be fine for now, but tomorrow I'll give the order to increase the amount being brought in. We'll need to prepare for a siege. Did Ulfric send word on how the recruiting is going? I know it will take time before he can send reinforcements due to all the money he had to spend on the navy, but doesn't hurt to know exactly where we stand on that."

"Ulfric hasn't said much.  After the report I gave him about you, I'm glad of that fact."  Rebec looked at him, worried, and pushed the soup toward him.  "Eat, Baldur.  You're with us again, you don't have to be so strong- not for a few damn minutes, anyway.  The men will be so glad you're back.  Honestly, morale is not good.  It wasn't good before this afternoon and then it got worse.  The men want to fight, but if Boldir hadn't been here, I think it would have been much worse.  With two of us they're afraid to grumble too loudly.  If it had been just me..."

Baldur was just so happy to see the pair again, that he forgot all about his ravishing hunger. After about fifteen seconds, Baldur devoured his bowl of of soup, and then addressed what Rebec had said.

"You're wrong. They'd have gotten used to you. They already have. You two are more capable than you think. All you need to do is believe it. You must. If I ever disappear again, you two need to deal with the fact that I might not return. If Tullius had not interfered...I'm afraid that you two would have mounted an assault on the Imperials and lose our defensive position here. I don't know if you realize this, but this location is crucial to my strategy and our victory. You can't let your grief affect your judgement. You did good talking down Boldir, however. I don't know how you managed that, but I'm glad he listened."

"It wasn't easy, believe me.  We did consider an attack, but I knew it wasn't right.  You never should have gone.  You should have let me resign and take away Samuel's power over us.  That was our first mistake.  Did he even talk to you or did he just have the Thalmor waiting for you?"

Baldur almost forgot about Samuel. Baldur paused as he recalled the meeting.

"I don't think it was Thalmor that caught me. The men who captured me were using invisibility spells. We had a chat, I gave him the same speech I gave you and the rest, but we were wrong about him. He doesn't have an interest in this war. Before he left our camp he put on this act that made me think he had a personal vendetta against the Legion and Thalmor. He likes to play games with people. So when my first plan of playing on his personal stake failed since he doesn't have one, he asked me as a General what I could offer him since I have Ulfric's ear. I couldn't think of anything that wouldn't go on my conscience later besides money. Needless to say, he didn't like the offer. It being just him and I, or so I thought, I didn't hear his men kill mine from behind. And they subdued me while hidden before I could grab a weapon or even think to grab it, and they put a paralysis ring on my finger. That's when they took me to the Thalmor.

I'll let you in on something. I lied to Marius. I told him that if he helped us and promise not to attack Samuel, I'd help him later after our business was done. With this though, I'll give him any help he needs."

Rebec's face purpled with rage.  "I should have put a bolt in that man the first time I saw him.  Businessman my ass.  My earlier impression was the right one.  He likes to dangle people over the coals and watch them squirm."

Her fists clenched as she forced herself to think about something else.  "At least Marius and Tullius didn't betray us.  You can imagine the look on our faces when Tullius showed up here, just like Samuel had, making promises."

"I can. But you had nothing to lose by sending him. Well, Samuel, or whatever his real name is, his plan is crushed. Even if word about your deed were to get out, it would pale in comparison to Marius being made a Stormcloak. Perhaps that is the reason why he did not make a new deal. He had nothing to hold against me besides my desire to pay him back for his gift at the time. Well...that ship has surely sailed. Speaking of, have you thought of a new name for your ship? I was thinking of "The Black Wisp" myself. After an appropriate paint job of course."

Out of the corner of her eye, Rebec noticed that Boldir had come back in and had likely overheard their discussion about Samuel.  Now he would know that she hadn't exaggerated when she'd said the whole mess was her doing, even if he still didn't know the details about Rikke.  Boldir had been in the legion, maybe he would understand.  Or maybe not.

Turning back to Baldur, she shook her head and laughed.  "You think of the oddest things just after escaping from Thalmor prison.  Come on.  Let's get you out of that armor.  Boldir's here now, he can help too.  I'm all thumbs with these big hunks of metal you lot wear."

Baldur didn't realize that Rebec hadn't told Boldir about what she did, but he didn't expect the discussion to switch so quickly.

"There's no need to take my armor off, I'll just have to put it on again tomorrow."

Rebec tilted her head.  "Don't be ridiculous, Baldur.  I'm sure you're hurt under there, you need to let us clean your wounds, and then you need to get your sleep.  Here, drink this."  She thrust the healing potion at him and reached out to start unbuckling his gauntlet.  Her small era of pliancy was at an end.

Baldur reluctantly agreed, and stood up from the table, giving a sigh as he did.

Standing with him, Rebec worked at the fastenings until she got the first gauntlet off.  Her breath caught when she saw the blistered flesh on his fingertips.  She cast Baldur a stricken look, then moved to the other hand.  "Boldir, maybe you can start on the breastplate," she said, trying to keep her manner as normal as possible even while her stomach heaved.

Baldur averted his eyes from them as they took off his armor. For some reason, he felt ashamed for the marks that they left, even though he couldn't have done anything to prevent it beyond giving in.

"Sure thing."
Boldir stood up and crossed over to Baldur's side. Baldur's arm raised as he reached under it and found the buckle and unfastened it. He switched arms and did the same on the other side. The armor came loose and Boldir had his friend raise his arms above his head. Boldir lifted the heavy armor up and off of Baldur. He gasped when he saw the marks on his friend's back. He knew his friend had been tortured, but given the amount of whip and scorch marks, it almost looked like they enjoyed it. A capital "T" for Thalmor burned into Baldur's lower right back confirmed Boldir's suspicion. Somehow, this touch is what pushed him over the line. He looked away from his brother's back, unable to look upon what had been done to him any longer. He backed away, a cold hatred for his enemy was the only emotion he could harbor. His head began swimming with ideas for what he would like to that prisoner Baldur'd brought back.

That's my captive, let me worry about getting my own revenge.

"You're right Baldur. I'll calm down."

"What was that, Boldir?"

Damnit! That was me again wasn't it?
"Your back... Did you know that they branded you?"

"Yes, but I don't know what it is. What is it?"

"It's a "T"... For Thalmor."

Baldur couldn't help but chuckle at this for whatever reason.

"Haha, I won't lie, that's a nice touch. As far as I'm concerned it stands for Talos. And I'll wear it proudly. Think nothing of it."

As more armor pieces came off, Rebec mumbled something about getting some warm water and dressings and made a hasty exit, as much to compose herself as to do what she had said.

"And that...is what I wanted to avoid. I hate seeing that look in her eyes Boldir. You too. I'm alive. This is nothing more than a battle wound."

Baldur put on the clothes that Rebec had brought him, which was a simple cotton shirt and brown pants.

"It's more than a battle wound brother. That wouldn't bother us so much. This..."

Boldir's voice grew quiet. He couldn't meet Baldur's eyes.
"I let you down Baldur. I let you suffer in there for days without making one move to do a damn thing about it. I just put my faith in General One-Eye and our pet traitor. I let them take their sweet time doing all the work, while I sat around here playing Jarl!"

"Boldir, didn't I tell you? I'm glad you didn't come. If you did, and you got caught, they would have just done the same thing to you. Accept they wouldn't have kept you. They would have put you on the rack, and pulled your arms and legs out of your sockets. And they would have made me watch. Rebec would have been alone, I would have renounced Talos for you, and I'd likely never forgive you for it. Even though I'd have wanted to do the exact same thing in your shoes. Hear me. You did the right thing. You won't see it now, but you will. The only thing I wanted you to do while I was gone was take care of the men, fight on, and take care of the Admiral. That is a better service as a friend than risking your life for no good reason.”

"I was prepared to give up before Tullius arrived. What then? You'd have died in there. I'd say that's plenty of reason. Like you said, Rebec may not believe it, but she's respected here. She would've been fine. But damn her, she convinced me anyway. I made no effort to help you and if it weren't for a damn Imperial, you'd still be rotting and I'd still be ignoring it playing Jarl! You would have come and tried to save me. That's enough for me."

"It's clear that I won't change your mind. And I won't try anymore."

Baldur whispered into Boldir's ear. "Meet me by the gate tomorrow tonight with the prisoner. We'll take a little trip with our guest. I have something special planned. Bring salt, and bring a pole. And a dagger. You'll be happy to know the one that branded me is him."

Boldir raised one eyebrow and smiled. There was no warmth to it at all. He gave a nod. 

At length Rebec returned, and it’s apparent why it took her a while.  She brought supplies from the healer tent, but on her heels is also a sleepy-eyed Dunmer.

The elf looked between the two men, then questioningly at Rebec.  She gestured at Baldur.  “The general.  You know, the leader of the army?† Mumbling something about how all Nords look alike to him, the Dunmer approached Baldur and said mechanically, “Hold still, sera.† He then cast a healing spell over him, and did it again for good measure, in case the obnoxious Nord woman thought to haul him out of bed again that night.  Then he departed.

Making herself busy, Rebec came over and began to rub salve on the burned fingers.  Her own hand was bandaged from Lorgar’s arrow shot.

Baldur sighed in relief as his body began to tingle from the healing effects of the Dunmer's spell. When Rebec started applying the salve to his fingers, he reached out and grabbed her hand when he saw it was bandaged.

"Where did you get this?"

"Lorgar.  He hit my crossbow out of my hands, that's all.  It's just a scratch."  She began carefully wrapping the fingertips with bandages.

Baldur spoke as Rebec applied the bandages, "Okay, I think everything that needed to be said has been said. Boldir, you get some rest."

"I'm off to bed then." Said Boldir, before he made for the door.
Just one thing I need to take care of first.

"Goodnight, Boldir.  This time really sleep, you hear me?" Rebec watched the big man go, then turned back to Baldur.  His fingers were now all bound up.  "To bed with you, too.  In the morning I'll look at your other wounds.  For all we know that Dunmer doesn't know a healing spell from his shopping list."

Ugh, she's turned into my mother. But I can't deny I need rest.

"Alright, I'll head to bed. I just need to write some...reports. Where did the men put my things?"

"Are you serious?  Baldur..."  Rebec stopped, sighing.  "Fine.  I'll get them, they're in the command room across the way."

She left the bedroom, muttering about his stubbornness, and after a few moments came back with a stack of papers and his leather case.  Inside it was his journal, now tear-smudged on some of its pages, and the runed cloth, though Witchie's latest note was on the top of the message stack.  "You should read this," she said, pointing out the note. "It's not unexpected, but still not good news."

The note read:

 

They're soon done with the catapults and they're guarded tight. Haven't been able to get close enough. I would say a nightly raid on the clearing and then cutting the ropes would slow them down a day or two. Setting them one fire might work but their mages would be fast to put them out. 

The Thalmor has also moved out with a large force, probably to take Neugrad. If you haven't already, you better prepare for a siege, fast.

 

 

Baldur took the note, and as he read it's contents gave a smirk.

"Not at all, everything's going as planned. A little faster than I would have preferred, but it's not a problem. We'll have to start rationing food, but we should have enough to last a while. One can't say the same for them."

Baldur reached for the journal, and opened the pages the find his place. He remembered Rebec's frustration when he asked for it however, and decided to save it for later.

"You know what? It can wait. I need my rest for tomorrow to prepare for the sie- wait a minute. Some of the ink...is that smear marks?"

Rebec was surprised at his levity about the siege, but chalked it up to the strain of his ordeal.  As Baldur commented on his journal, she quickly turned her back and busied herself with removing her own armor.  "I thought... I thought there might be something important.  Orders, you know."

Baldur's eyes widened when he she said this. He thought about everything he wrote, the remarks he made about her in the beginning, the thing about Boldir, the poem..

THE POEM! That corny embarrassing poem with the proposal!

"No...no...no no no no no....tell me you didn't..."

"I'm sorry.  I didn't think you were coming back and... we can forget about it.  I never saw it."

"What did you think?"

Rebec glanced around at him, then sloughed off her leather cuirass, leaving her in the clean woolens she'd changed into after the fight that afternoon.  It bought her some time to think how to respond.

So many fears and objections coursed through her mind, reasons why what he had thought to do wasn't a good idea.  Then she remembered the words of the poem.  Before she could stop it, a laugh burst out.  She brought a hand to her mouth to keep from losing it entirely.  Turning, she gave him a mischievous look. "Do I get to call you my steed now?"

Baldur put his hand over his face that was rapidly turning red as he did.

Someone kill me now.

"So you really did read everything..."

Rebec turned around to face him.  "Alright.  It wasn't true that I was looking for orders.  I missed you.  The thought that I might never see you again...  Wait, are you actually blushing?"

Baldur started scratching his arm and avoided Rebec's eyes. His stomach felt like an apple was trying to come out, and his throat turned dry. He didn't want anyone seeing him in that light, but it was much too late for that. He also was worried about the possibility of rejection of his proposal.

"What? No, I...well...ah, forget it. I am. I want to know what you think. About the ending."

"You're really blushing! The great Mer-killer.  I should call Boldir back."  Rebec laughed, enjoying his squirming far more than she ought.  At last she quieted, though a little grin remained.  Resting her hands on his waist, she said, "Do you really need me to say the words?  They always sound so empty.  I've got you back and I don't plan on losing you again.  Let that be enough for now.   Anyway there's no priest of Mara here, just old Runil.  What would it say about us if we had our vows witnessed by the god of death?"

Baldur grabbed her gently by the shoulders and brought her closer to him before saying, "That no force in Tamriel, Nirn, Mundus or beyond will take you from me. Not even death."

Her grin vanished, and she searched Baldur's face, wondering if he could possibly mean what he had said.  It was obvious that he did.  Rebec was silent a long moment before answering. "Then we'll go to Runil in the morning.  He'll think we've cracked a skull."

Baldur said nothing. He merely kissed the woman that he loved once more. And at that instant he felt no worry of the future events, and no longer ached. Afterwards, he pulled back and said, "Oh, and if you tell Boldir I said that, I'll kill you."

She laughed.  "When the mead flows, I promise nothing.  You two bested me at horkersh***ing last time and I can't have that.  Might add a few verses to that poem the next time I tell it, though.  You didn't say anything about my heaving bosom or my bewitching ass."  Rebec took his hand and pulled him towards the bed, wondering how far that Dunmer's healing spell might have worked after all.

[The Good Doctor]

Elan and Dales "In the Moonlight" (Read the entire thing)

 

In the moonlight, under Dibellia’s grace, Dales and Elan had finally become one and became lovers. Under the stars, they made love for the first time. They now lay with each other, clad in nightgowns and sweat, in each others arms. Dales smiled,

“Hey you…â€

Elan blushed, “You look lovely Dales”

“And so do you my sweet teddy bear…â€

Dales lightly kissed Elan on the forehead causing her to blush even more,

“I want to be with you forever milady...â€

“Shall we drink to that?â€

Elan giggled, before getting out of bed, and heading to pour the two lovers some drinks. Dales couldn’t be happier; she had just had sex with the woman she loved most in the world. She would do anything for Elan. She would do anything Elan asked, she would marry her in secret, no…she would do that anyway, she wanted to spend the rest of her days with her.

“Milady-

With the illumination of the moon, Dales could see a shadow in the room…behind Elan. Dales threw off her blanket before screaming,

“ELAN BEHIND YOU!!!”

In happened in seconds, but the memory would haunt Dales for the rest of her life. A dagger, a golden dagger, came out of the shadows like a comet in the night.  Elan didn’t even have a chance to scream, as the dagger plunged into her soft flesh with a sickening sound, spraying crimson across her white nightgown. She was fallen over in seconds, with the dagger still plunged in her back. A dark, tall, figure clad in pitch black elven armour with a scarf emerged, standing atop the fallen Elan , ripping the dagger out of her downed body, causing even more crimson to spray across the room, he laughed,

“Another filthy human killed, nothing to be sad about princess, you’ll join her soon enough-“

The Elf never had a chance to finish the sentence as a cry of pure hate and absolute anguish erupted from the small princess, causing the elves ears to burst, throwing him to the ground, along with the windows shattering.  Before the shocked elven assassin could even react and properly defend himself, the princess had thrown herself onto the downed killer with lighting fast speed, she started to wail again, sounds of absolute rage and despair . The princess’s entire body was covered in a glowing aura of blood red. Blood began to pour out of the assassins ear, as his cries of pain we’re being drowned out by the princess’s cries of rage she began to thrust her dark blade into the elves body over and over again, his groin area was the main focus. The blade sunk deeper and deeper as the princess continued her rage. As the seconds, which felt like hours to Dales, began to tick, so did her rage lessen, until she suddenly…stopped. She looked at her hands and her entire body, dropping the dagger as she noticed she was covered completely in crimson blood. Her vanishing rage was soon replaced by utter sorrow and grief, as she threw her self to the ground and began to weep. Her tears fell down like a steam, a never ending stream. Until she felt warm hands touch her on her shoulder,  Dales tear stained face  turned around, to see Elan’s pale face, whose mouth was dripping with blood, smiling weakly at her,

“No more crying…smile …â€

And with those final words, Elan, passed into Aethrius. Leaving the princess screaming in sorrow and sadness, cradling the dead maid.

[The Good Doctor]

Valindil and Ra’Jahirr, Eastern Falkreath/Imperial City

 

It was noon at Helgen, and Valindil finally decided to move out.

“We’re leaving,†He shouted. “First, Second, and Sixth Companies, stay behind. The rest of you, move out!â€

His staff formed up on him and took the rear of the army. The battalion of Elves followed their country’s elegant flag to their next destination.

About halfway to the fort, they came across a group of scouts. The order was given for the archers to fire on them, but one or two of them managed to escape.

“Shit,†Valindil said. “Blast it all! They will give us away! We’ll have to keep moving, though.â€

When the fort was finally in view on the distance, it was about five o’clock. The sun was almost ready to set on this warm early spring eve.

Valindil had the bulk of his forces hide in the dense forest that surrounded the fort.

“Archers,†he said loudly enough for the archers and their officers to hear, but not so the enemy could hear. “I want archers to move forward and move into Skirmish formation. They are to snipe the men off the walls. This will alert them of our presence, but it will take them off guard.â€

The archers ducked down and spread out. They slowly moved forward, carefully placing each step. The order to fire was given individually. Every few seconds, the whoosh of an arrow being fired could be heard, while a few seconds later, a man could be seen dropping from the walls. After a minute, the people began to become alarmed, and people were rushing to the walls out of instinct to look for the hidden attackers. This was their last mistake, as a huge volley of arrows launched at them.

They learned quickly to stay off the walls. Soon the enemy had archers of their own slowly firing back, and one of the Elves was flung back. He was the first casualty of the battle. After this, an intense arrow fight began. Bandits in the fort were dropping like flies at the incredible talents of the Dominion archers, but that is not to say the Elves did not lose many good soldiers on this day. Some of the more observant bandits spotted the location of the Elven archers, and took a good many out.

The battlemages stepped in and launched massive fireballs at the fort. They enchanted arrows in midair to make them burst into flames, affecting everyone nearby. Valindil smiled, he had trained his men well. While he was about to congratulate his fellow officers on a great victory, a group of men could be seen gathering at the southern gate. One of the Lieutenants pointed this out to Valindil.

“By the Eight, they are going to try to flank us!†He announced. “We shan’t let that happen. Come, we are moving to intercept them.â€

The officers gave the orders to their men and they moved farther south.

As the battalion had its left side to the fort, they were completely unsuspecting of what happened next: a mass of men burst out of the Western Gate, where they had formerly been facing.

The Elves did not have enough time to fully turn, and soon the bandits broke their ranks. The Elves were taken off guard by this common trick, and many died in the opening seconds of fight. That is not to say they didn’t fight back fiercely, though. The battlemages put all their might into making their brethren courageous and keep them from routing. It was a very bloody battle, and many men on both sides died. Some of the mages even forced the bandits fight their own kind.

The battle was in favor of the Nords at the beginning, but quickly turned one-sided for the Elves. In a matter of ten minutes the last bandit was cut down and the battalion moved into the fort.

“Captain, count our losses. Bury our fallen, burn the rest.†Valindil said to one of his staff officers.

“You there,†he said to another Elf. Send the Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, and Twelfth Companies to Helgen. It’s most likely the first place to be attacked; I want them to be reinforced. Tell them that if they are attacked and cannot hold off they are to retreat here. If it is a dire situation, tell them I don’t mind if they leave for Cyrodiil, but only if it is absolutely essential.†He nodded, then rode off.

 

**********

Ra’Jahirr, Imperial City, Waterfront, that night

 

The Khajiit followed the Imperial closely from atop a nearby building. He had been following for about a half hour now, and he was determined to stop him before he reached his destination. He turned a corner. Ra’Jahirr made a huge leap onto the building across the street. He took off to catch up with the man.

He was walking towards the walls now, towards the entrance into the city proper. The man stopped abruptly outside of a tavern. There was a group of shady looking men waiting to intercept the man. They looked to be associates of sorts. Jahirr could only hear part of their conversation.

“Hey Carlos, get over here! We’ve been waiting!â€

The man Jahirr had been following took off his top hat. “Yes, I know. I had some trouble with a few guards a while back. They said I looked suspicious or something. Let’s just say, they ended up in the sewers.â€

The group of men laughed and punched the man playfully.

One of the guys spoke up, “Are you ready, Carlos? Tonight you make history! Tonight we begin to rid ourselves of the filthy Dominion. We don’t need no Elfs to tell us what to do!â€

The group cheered. The man named Carlos responded, “I’m ready. He’s just like any other man I’ve killed, right?â€

“No, this man’s the Emperor, Carlos. Remember that. He will be guarded closely, even though he’s going to be asleep.â€

 

One of the men looked up at the rooftops. Even though Jahirr knew he couldn’t see through his invisibility spell, for some reason he felt like he had been spotted.

“I’m off now, I’ll see you in a few hours, when the Emperor is dead.â€

The guys gave him some last minute advice that was inaudible to Jahirr. Carlos started walking towards the Imperial City again. The Khajiit started moving again too.

When he came to the wall, he was about fifteen feet short of the top of it. He backed up to the edge of the building he was on and started running. He leaped onto the wall and moved his body left and right, to help him move upwards. After a few seconds of clawing his way up, he finally reached the top. He took of running after the man again.

Some minutes later, he reached the Imperial Palace Gardens. Ra’Jahirr skillfully landed right in front of the man with the hat. “This ends now,†he said.

The man was taken by surprise and almost tripped backwards in fright.

“Who... What are you talking about? I’m just taking a walk in the Imperial Gardens!â€

“Normal people don’t simply take walks this late at night. I know what you’re really up to, Carlos.â€

The man hid his emotions, trying not to admit to what he was really up to. But he couldn’t help but feel surprised at how the Khajiit knew his name.

Jahirr went on, “the Emperor does not take kindly to those who try to take his life from him. You must really want him dead. Why is that?â€

“I kill for my own enjoyment. I kill because I want to.â€

“A man like that could simply kill lesser people, but you’re not like that. That kind of man would not attempt to assassinate the leader of his own country. No, you wish to end the Emperor’s life because of political matters.†Jahirr paced for a moment, and said suddenly aggressively, “And I’m here to end that, and you.â€

He drew his dagger, while Carlos drew his sword. Jahirr laughed loudly. “You expect to murder someone with that? A sword?†

Carlos thrust at the Khajiit, who jumped away. It was almost as if he floated out of the sword’s range. Carlos took a swing right at Jahirr’s middle, which was easily parried. Jahirr couldn’t help but continue laughing at his opponent. The Imperial was now infuriated that he couldn’t get a single hit on his adversary.

Ra’Jahirr dodged another thrust, this time on the left side of the Imperial. He grabbed the man’s wrist and pulled forward, bringing him to his knees. In one quick motion, Jahirr cut off the man’s sword arm, sending his weapon to the now red grass. The Khajiit held his elegant glass dagger under Carlos’ chin.

“You filthy bastard.†He said. He thrust the dagger up and ended the man’s life. He wiped his blade on the dead man’s clothes and wiped off his own robes, as if cleaning some invisible dust from them.

“Guards!†He yelled. “Clean up this mess!â€

At once, tens of Royal Guards came running. They were now used to seeing this same Khajiit disposing of hopeful assassins, and knew exactly what to do. Jahirr sped off, but not before he took any valuables he found on the body.

[The Good Doctor]

Boldir Iron-Brow
Falkreath
Nighttime

"Goodnight, Boldir. This time really sleep, you hear me?"

Boldir nodded his head to Rebec as he headed out the door. It was still raining, but it had died down a bit. Now it was more of a light drizzle.
One last order of business. Then it's off to bed, alright?

Of course.

Boldir made his way to the city guard barracks. There was a young woman sitting at the table inside. She was still in her armor, but she didn't appear to be armed.

"Sir?" She asked as he walked across the room and to the table.

"Do you have a dagger on you soldier?"

"A dagger?"

Obvious frustration showed on Boldir's face as he sighed. "That’s what I said. A dagger."

The woman turned around in her chair and opened a chest that had been sitting behind her. After ruffling through its contents for several moments, she procured a plain steel dagger. "Here you go sir."

"Thank you."

Boldir looked over the dagger as he headed past the table and down the stairs to the prisons.
That'll do nicely.

Yeah, it will.

Upon entering the prisons, Boldir immediately could tell that most of the troublesome civilians must've been asleep. Normally, there were a lot of hollow threats and insults when he came down here. He turned left and went down to the lowest part of the prison. There, in the same holding cell Lorgar had been in, laid a sleeping Altmer. He was laying against the wall to shield him from some of the rainwater, which filled the ground in his cell. Boldir pulled the chain to release the prison bars. He stepped up to the entrance to the cell and looked down on the pathetic, beat up elf that was asleep on the floor.

You're sure that's the Elf that branded you?

You think I'd forget something like that?

Good point. How about I give him a little mark of our own? Break him in before the real torture starts.

Boldir stepped forward, dagger in hand. He kicked the Altmer in an attempt to wake him up, but the man didn't budge. He was still out cold. Boldir flipped him over onto his back and slapped him hard across his face.

"Ungh... Wha- where am I"

Boldir pinned the Elf's already chained arms to the ground with his knees and sat on his torso. He brought up a length of cloth and stuffed the end of it into the prisoner's mouth as a gag. He pulled the ends up and tied them around the back of his head. Now the screams wouldn't wake anybody.

"What? You don't recognize what it looks like to be on the other end? That's fine. When we're done with you, that'll be all you can remember."

He picked the knife back up, flipped over for easy carving, and carefully lowered it down until the tip was pressed to the left side of the prisoner's forehead. A small trickle of blood was produced.

Let's see about a branding of our own, shall we?
Boldir pushed the knife in further and began carving.

"MMMMPHHHH!"
The gag worked like a charm. But it didn't keep the man from tossing around his head. When he did, the dagger slipped from where Boldir intended for it to go and instead its point jabbed directly into the elf's eye.

"MMMMMPPPHH MMMPPHH!!!!"

A look of minor annoyance took over Boldir's face. "Damnit. You see what happens when you move? No matter, I wasn't far yet. I'll just start over.”

Boldir sunk the steel dagger back into the Elf's forehead and drew it down the side of his face, which he now held still with his left hand. After several minutes of carving and muffled screaming, Boldir pulled back to admire his crude handiwork. He'd had to wake up the prisoner twice throughout the process after he'd slipped unconscious.

"Hmm, the spot where I cut your eye kinda stands out, but you know, other than that it's not bad. Now you'll at least be presentable for Baldur tomorrow."

I'm sure I'll like it. Too bad for him we don't have a real branding iron eh?

"Yeah, too bad."

Boldir removed the cloth from the sobbing Elf's mouth and poured some healing potion mixture down his throat.

"Here. Don’t bleed too much."

Wouldn't want that. I've still got plans for him.

"That's right." Boldir said as the Elf coughed several times before eventually swallowing.

"Hear that Elf? Oh right, of course you didn't. This here? This was nothing. The General is going to handle this personally tomorrow."

The prisoner coughed again. His eyes were red, one from tears, the other from blood. "You- you're insane."

Boldir took no notice at the insult as he looked into the eyes of the Elf l for a moment before he stood back up and silently walked from the cell, pulling the lever to relock it on the way out. He turned to see all other prisoners watching him from behind their own bars. Some had terrified looks in their eyes. A few actually looked happy. Most however, just stared without expression. Boldir ignored all as he walked back out and up the steps to the barracks, dropping the bloody dagger back on the table on the way out. He felt in a daze as he walked down the quiet city street. The only sound he could make out was the constant pitter patter of raindrops hitting the ground and rooftops.

What did you just do?

Boldir stopped in his tracks and spun around. "Carlotta?"

No one responded. Of course they didn't. No one was there.

***

As Boldir walked past the Longhouse, he remembered that he had never set up his tent. Too tired to bother with dealing with that now, he decided that one night in the old empty quarters upstairs wouldn't hurt. It had been made his when he'd last lived in the city anyway. He went on inside.

Once in the dusty old room, Boldir Took off his axes and shield and carefully laid them next to the bed. He took off his blue Stormcloak sash and folded it before setting it on a dresser. Then he took off his heavy Nordic Carved cuirass and setting it on the floor near the door. Boldir stripped off the rest of his armor and slipped on a pair of cloth pants from one of the drawers in the room. Boldir then collapsed into the bed. Ready to get the sleep that his body had so long craved.

***

"Boldir! Hey Boldir!"

Boldir looked over to see Mila running his way. He was sitting on a bench in the Cloud district listening to Heimskr preach about Talos. It was something he'd been wanting to do for several days now. The man was a very good speaker.

"..by the Nine to speak for Talos, Legion haven’t you heard?..."

"Shh" Boldir whispered, pointing at the priest. He scooted over on the bench, motioning for her to sit down beside him.

Mila sat down and whispered back. "Will you come play with me?

Boldir looked at the priest

That’s why I preach his mighty word every minute and hour..." 

He looked down at Mila and sighed inwardly. "Now?"

"Momma told me that she wouldn't need me today, and that I could take it off. Braith is being mean and I can't find Lars. I'm bored and nobody else can play with me!" She looked up and batted her eyelashes at him. She looked genuinly sad over something so minor.

Those eyes... Damnit! How could anyone say "no" to that?

Boldir looked back at Heimskr.

"...I still love you Red Legions, Aye love, love!..."

Today's sermon was a good one, and Boldir wasn't at all happy that he'd be missing it. He grumbled. "Fine. What do you want to play?"

"Yipee!" She shouted. Boldir quickly put a finger over her mouth and looked to make sure she hadn't interrupted the sermon.

"...Not only is a man a god, but that man is a Nord!..."

Boldir was relieved. Heimskr hadn't even taken notice. That man truly was passionate. He looked back at Mila, who was looking down at her shoes appearing extremely deep in thought. As if whatever was on her mind was so ridiculously complex that the scholars in Winterhold themselves wouldn't comprehend it. After almost a minute of Mila remaining locked in this new level of thought process, her little face snapped back to normal and a big smile spread over her face.

"How about hide and seek?"

Boldir looked confused. "What's that?"

"It's where one of us runs off and hides while the other, who's "It", counts to ten. When the person who's It finishes counting, they must go and find the one that's hiding. Then you switch roles." She smiled and looked proud of herself, having given such a good and thorough explanation.

"Why on Nirn would- ... sure. That sounds fun."

"Oh thank you thank you!" She yelled. Boldir glanced back at Heimskr.

"...So we, not the elves, will rule Skyrim!!! FOREVER!!!!!!!"

Boldir breathed a sigh of relief and turned back to Mila. "Let's go do this down in the market or near the gate, away from here."

"Okay!" The little girl grabbed Boldir's hand and tugged. He reluctantly stood up and followed.

When they reached a spot near the Drunken Huntsman, Mila turned to Boldir. "You be It first!"

”Um... okay." Boldir leaned on the shop sign and closed his eyes. "One... Two... Three..." I must look ridiculous. "Four... Five... Six... Seven..." I don't remember games like this when I was a kid. "Eight... Nine... Ten!" Boldir looked around. There was no sign of Mila. He walked over to Warmaidens and asked Adrianne if she'd seen Mila. She shook her head. Would've been too easy I suppose. Boldir walked down to the bridge beside the guard barracks and looked under it. Nothing. He hadn't expected Mila to be down there, but it was worth checking. He walked back up the hill and towards the market. He stopped halfway there when he heard a giggle coming from a nearby bush between two houses. Boldir diverted his eyes from the bush and kept walking, pretending that he hadn't heard. As he passed the house, he rounded it and came up on the bush from behind. Sure enough, little Mila was hiding on this side of the bush with her back turned to him. She was still looking out into the street. Boldir quietly stepped up behind her and leaned in behind her head.
"Gotcha!"

Mila must've jumped a foot in the air before spinning around. Her eyes were wide and she was breathing heavy. "You-you scared me!" she gasped. Her face quickly regained its color. "Good one! I'm It now!" She said childishly. She closed her eyes. "One... Two..." Boldir walked through the bush and headed for the market square. He searched in vain for a place a big Nord like him could hide in this daylight. He was looking behind a barrel when he heard a familiar voice behind him. "Looking for something Boldir?"

He quickly straightened up and turned. "Carlotta! I’m-"

"There you are!" Mila yelled from behind. Carlotta and Boldir both turned to face her. "You're not very good at the hiding part are you?"

Boldir tried to hide his embarrassment as he looked back at Carlotta, who must have spotted him poking across the market and decided to sneak up on him. She covered her mouth to stifle a laugh. But Boldir could see something other than humor in her eyes. Was it relief? How could that make any sense though?

Boldir looked down at the little girl. "Heh... No Mila I guess I'm not. You win."

Carlotta was still grinning. "So the great Stormcloak Lieutenant enjoys children's games?"

Boldir grinned back. "As it happens, there is a great deal of tactical understanding that goes into hide and peek.”

”Hide and seek,” Mila piped.

”It looks to be around noon,” he said to Carlotta. “Would you like to close up the stall come have lunch with me at the Mare? The little bloodhound here can come too."

Carlotta's smile widened. "I'd like that."

***

Boldir's eyes opened. He wasn't in Whiterun. He was still laying in the his old room in the Falkreath Longhouse. He sat up, all tiredness gone. He must've slept for a solid twelve hours at least.

That was a fun day, wasn't it Boldir?

Boldir could feel a tear rolling down his cheek. He sighed.

"Yeah Mila... Yeah it was."

[The Good Doctor]

Witchking (aka Witchie alias Skjari)

Imperial camp

Early evening 

 

Witchie had just spent all day training the princess in the finer points of magic. She was progressing well, mostly thanks to the initiation. Now he was taking a walk by the clearing where they build the catapults. They were soon done and this last one was bigger than the others, that one would be his first target if he ever got close enough to sabotage them. 

Gracchus had just left the clearing where the catapults were being built, when he noticed the princess' Synod teacher walking nearby. Gracchus walked up to him, introducing himself.

"Hello. I'm afraid we haven't met. I am Legate Gracchus Ceno, leader of this legion."

"Skjari, princess magical teacher."

"Pleased to meet you. I'm in the magic business myself. A battlemage, actually. I'm sure your magical knowledge far outweighs mine, though."

"Most likely as I'm pretty sure I'm older than you but still doesn't even look half your age."

"Yeah, I'm the ripe old age of 51. How have your studies with the princess gone?"

"She's progressing rather well. But sometimes it feels like I'm babysitting a child."

"She does come off that way. I'm just glad you showed up, otherwise it may be me who is babysitting her."

"One problem is that she's also allowed to drink. Yesterday I found her all drunk and I think she was rambling something about the Thalmor and her killing innocents."

"That is strange. I do know that some men were arrested for Talos worship. I wonder if it had to do with that?"

"Most likely. What's your opinion about the Thalmor?"

"Well, I'm not the biggest fan. But I need the troops, and they have provided them. My preference would be to not have to has their help, but beggars can't be choosers."

"You always have a choice." 

Unless you're bound.

"It's either accept their help, or be forced to "retire" as many others have."

"Want to hear the story of how I got this scar?"

"Um sure...it'll keep my mind off war for a while."

"I was once part of a coven. It's leaders where three witches and they were what could consider decent. Though they later became corrupt and thus turned into hagravens. I did not approve of it and neither did I of what they started to do afterwards, but I had little say in any of it. Though one day they did something that sent me over the edge, not going into detail. After that I decided it was time for a change in management, so I studied harder and was more determined to become a more powerful mage. A few years later I challenged them about their leadership.

Hagravens got sharp claws and you can guess who won."

Gracchus was surprised that the man he had barely met would disclose that kind of information.
"Why are you telling me this?"

"Just telling you that sometimes it's best to act before you find yourself over the edge." Witchie made small bearably noticeable and devious smile, "Watch out for hagravens." and then he walked back to the fort for some rest. 

Gracchus caught the almost unnoticeable smile, but figured it was just associated with the quip about the hagravens.

That was an odd conversation. It seems every one I talk to lately bring up the Thalmor. Maybe I made the wrong decision. Maybe I should have listened to Red-Snow.

The rest of the evening was uneventful, except Karsh coming by with what appeared to be rest overs from another bird and with a small note with a golden ribbon. But the note was damaged and covered with blood and some entrails from what must have been from that bird Karsh was eating up right now. It was simply unreadable. And there was no new information to rely back to camp. So he simply went to bed. 

Witchie woke up from what seems to been have screaming from the princess room. Witchie quickly checked what happened in her room with a detection spell, what he saw was a small figure that seemed to be repeatedly stabbing another bigger figure. 

Seems like she got it under control.

But it would be best to look after nonetheless. So he got out of the bed and got dressed before walking over to the princess room, he didn't even knock and instead just walked right in. What he saw was the princess holding that maid which was covered in blood and a few feet from them lied what looked to be a Thalmor assassin, Witchie had seen those before, but this elf was covered with so many stab wounds that the princess must have used him like a pincushion. He silently walked into the room and used the detection spell to see if there was any more of them waiting in the shadows, nothing. Dales was crying and wailing over the dead maid, she was covered in a blanket of crimson blood, along with tears all over her face.

"At least there aren't any more of them. Right now anyway."

Dales turned around, her sadness was soon overcome by absolute rage, which erupted from her face towards her master, who she just noticed had come in.

"Anymore?! There doesn't need to be ******* anymore you ****, those fuckers killed Elan!!! You said you would protect me and her, we're the **** were you!?"

"I was sleeping and somehow he managed to get past the seals I put on your door that would have alerted me."

She looked away, gripping the body of the maid tightly, "Well he's dead now..."

"And I doubt he will be the last."

"Why...I was the target, why did they kill her?"

"She probably just got in the way. Or they simply didn't want to leave any witnesses."

"It's my fault she's dead...My fault..." Her rage, once again lessened, and was replaced once again by grief, "I was going to propose to her tomorrow..."

"We should clean up this mess."

"You handle it...I have matters to settle down in the dominion camp..."

The princess began to walk out of the room, gripping her dark dagger tightly. But Witchie grabbed hold of her shoulder before she could leave, locking her in place so she couldn't move.

"A direct approach wouldn't do any good."

"Let go of me" She screamed "They killed her, the killed my beloved, I cant let that go!!!!"

"I'm not asking you to let it go."

"Then what do you propose I do?!"

"The assassin allows for some interrogation of the Thalmor. There's also the option of poisoning their food and assassinating their officers and so on. Be creative."

"I'll still get to see them suffer, right?"

"Just have a little bit patience and you will see greater results."

She nodded before sheafing her blood. She Picked Elan's body up, before telling Witchie, obviously trying and failing trying not to cry.

"If we do it your way...we'll have to get rid of all the evidence. Will you help me bury her?"  

"Better if we let the legionaries see this. It will make it look like a coup from the Thalmor's side."

"Good idea. Find Legate Trixus or Graccus" She then turned away, and cradled the corpse once again.

Witchie hurried out of the room and found a guard patrolling the hallway and told him that there's been attempt on the princess life and that he needed to find Gracchus. The legionary said that Gracchus was in the war room and gave the location of it before hurrying off to alert the other guards. Witchie followed the directions to the war room and then banged on the door almost to the point of it starting to crack.

Gracchus was in the war room, with a large woolen cloak draped over his armor to stave off the cold, when he heard a monstrous banging on his door.

"What is it?" he replied impatiently, hoping whoever it was would stop trying to break his door down.

Witchie opened the door, "There's been an attempt on the princess life."

Gracchus was shocked to see the mage Skjari open the door, and was even more surprised by what he said.

"She...WHAT? Take me to her, at once!" Gracchus commanded.

"Follow me." Witchie said before running off through the castle corridors. They were soon in the princess room with her still cradling the dead body of her maid. "The assassin is over there" and Witchie pointed to the half mutilated corpse on the floor. "I recognize his kind. Thalmor assassins."

"This is an outrage! Where were your guards? How could this have happened?"

"He must have climbed in through the window somehow. I had seals on the door, so I doubt he would have been able to get through that way."

The princess was weeping, "Legate!!!" she ran over and embraced the officer, "They killed Elan...they killed her"

Gracchus was obviously uncomfortable with the princess embracing him, but he tried to sound as comforting as possible.

"It'll be okay. We both promise no one will ever get in here again. We'll up the guards, and if you want we can find a way to send you back to the Imperial City."

She literally screamed out, "Dont send me back there, DONT SEND ME BACK THERE!"

 

Gracchus was shocked by the forcefulness in which she screamed "Don't send me back!"

"Okay, okay, you don't have to go back. You can stay here. I won't make you leave."

"Thank you..thank you legate..." She buried her face in the Legate's shoulder.

"I guess the Thalmor will have some things to answer for." Witchie interrupted. 

"Yes, yes they will. But not until after the siege. Otherwise it'll be impossible with the number of troops we have."

"But what are we going to do about the dominion then, what if they try and kill me again?" the princess said with a low voice. 

"We'll be there to stop them, don't worry your highness." said a legionary, before another one joined in,

"Yeah, they'll have to get threw us legionaries!!!"

The princess smiled a little, "I feel safer with you strong soldiers guarding me...”

"You guys should clear out the bodies." Witchie said to the guards that just arrived.

"I'll be going then. I need to have a word with some of my men." Gracchus said and then he left the room in a quick pace. 

The princess nodded before going over back to Elan's body and just sitting there with it.

"Let the guards take and prepare her for burial." Witchie said while the guards cleared out the other body. 

The princess, obviously hesitated for a second, before holding onto her hand for the longest time possible while she was taken away.

"Elan..."

Witchie stayed quiet till the guards have cleaned out the bodies. When the room was empty and the door closed he spoke.

"Look on the bright side. At least she's not in the Soul Cairn. Anyway, this presents an opportunity."

"Her soul is free...there is some small comfort...but only a little..." She turned around to face her master, "What opportunity ?"

"The throne."

"The throne..." It took only a few seconds for her to take it in, "You mean...me Empress?"

"You'll have the power to make the Dominion pay. The whole Dominion, not just those few soldiers that you would have killed if I hadn't stopped you."

"Make them pay...for all of the people whom they killed unjustly...Elan wasn't even a target, and those bastards killed her." Dales was getting angrier as the seconds flew by, she slammed her fist in the wall, and a blood red aura started to glow around her. "If I become Empress, will you help me make them pay?"

"Didn't you even listen to me back in my sanctum? Killing elves is something I've been doing for a long time."

"Then...I will become Empress....And I'll make them suffer." She smiled, "But i'll need help, what we'll I do? My father has an entire Legion loyal to him, as well as the dominion? How will I take the throne?"

"We kill him. All I need is for him to be in the same room as me. I'm sure you know of a way to arrange that." 

"That will be impossible, my father is paranoid. He'll refuse...."

"I'll find a way. But now we should focus on the Dominion in Skyrim."

"Okay..." She seemed to hesitate for a moment, but her fury faded away once again as well as the red aura, she asked with a sorrow filled voice, "Was this my fault?"

"Depends on how you see it. But she would probably just have died later on."

"Elan..." 

She took out what appeared to be a ring, of gold and diamond. She quickly pocketed the ring, before getting up, and heading out of the room, without a word to her master.

"Where are you going?" Witchie shouted after her.

"Burying something..." She added, "You can join me if you wish..."

He ran after her till he caught up. "Just making sure that no other assassins will try."

She nodded, they walked for fiteen minutes in the darkness, before reaching a glade illuminated by the moon. The princess quickly dug up a hole, before dropping in the same ring Witchie saw early. She whispered something that Witchie couldn't hear, before piling the dirt back in the whole. She got up and started to head back to the fort. After another long, uneventful walk back to the fort it was time to sleep. But first he decided to put additional seals on the now broken windows in the princess room. Now an assassin would have to break through the walls or teleport in to avoid his detection.

"Goodnight." and he walked out of the room but stopped in the doorway. "And you should stop channeling you rage into that red glow around you. It's just a waste of magicka." he then shut the door and went to his room to finally get some much needed sleep. 

[The Good Doctor]

Legate Gracchus Ceno

Fort Pale Pass 

Evening-Morning

 

 

Gracchus has just left the princess' room, and was almost instantly sought out by the Thalmor courier. 

"Sir...huh....I have a letter from Colonel Valindil," the exhausted man huffed out.

Gracchus violently grabbed the letter from the young looking Altmer.

"What does he have to say."

 

Legate, we have taken Helgen and Fort Neugrad. We will meet you at Falkreath, if you set off in the morning.

-Colonel Valindil 

 

"Hmmm....you are dismissed. Go grab something to eat," Gracchus told the obviously fatigued letter bearer.

Gracchus sent a sentry to gather to other legates, who were gathered around the table in the war room within ten minutes.

"Men, I have received word that the Thalmor under Colonel Valindil have taken both Helgen and Fort Neugrad," Gracchus told the assembled men. 

He continued, after seeing that none of them had anything to say, "I want you to prepare your men, we move tomorrow morning, so that we can reach the city by the evening. You are dismissed."

Gracchus then retired to his quarters, where he tried to find some sleep before they moved out tomorrow.

"Mom, mom, where did you go?"

The house was empty, yet Gracchus could feel a presence there. He had no idea what he was doing here, he had sold the house to a widow, through a land selling agency. 

Gracchus walked into his old house, which was just as he had last seen it, when he left at the age of 18. A film of dust covered the furniture, and the only light coming from the basement. He walked down the stairs, and found his mother tied to a small chair, surrounded by straw, with his father holding a candle behind her.

"Gracchus, help me," she screamed!

"Too late boy," his father said, before fading out in a mist. 

The candle fell, and the straw burst into flames. Just like the coward he was back then, Gracchus ran back up the stairs, ignoring his mother's pleas for help. When he opened the front door, he was himself set upon by more flames. 

"Noooo!!!" he screamed, waking from his nightmare. He shook off the sleep, and tried to forget the awful dream he just had.

Gracchus got up, and saw the sun peeking through his windows. He dressed in his armor, then walked outside where the tents were being packed and the men were gathering. Within 30 minutes, everything was packed and the legion was ready to leave.

"Alright, I want the onagers in middle, with the supply wagons and medics. Lets get to moving, so we can kick these Stormcloak butts back where they came from! Get a move on!" 

Gracchus mounted his horse, Lil Ceno, and started off at the front of the column. 

By the time they reached the outskirts of the town, it was already past 7:00, and the sun was almost set in the west.

"Column, halt! Set up a perimeter and camp! Tomorrow, the attack begins!" 

This battle will not be a short one, that's for damn sure. 

[The Good Doctor]

Witchking (aka Witchie alias Skjari)

Imperial camp outside Falkreath

Afternoon

 

The camp was busy with preparing for the siege to really begin, so far they've only been setting up camp and getting everything in place. Witchie had been surveying it all to see how it all went so he could later relay the information to Baldur. When he was done surveying he went to the big tent that now was the princess home. The tent wasn't simply bigger the the others but had also an imperial banner on each of it's sides. He stopped right outside the entrance of the tent. 

"You there?"

"Yes I am..." Came a reply from inside the tent. 

He stepped into the tent, "I think we should start training swordsmanship today."

The princess was who reading a novel in her bed, took out her dagger, "I don't use a sword."

"Swords got longer reach, daggers are mainly for last resort." 

She smiled, "Cute little me, would someone imagine me as a killer? They wont even know until my blade is stuck in there throat...I don't need reach"

"That wont work if you ever find yourself on a battlefield. Now come." 

That's an order.

She sighed a little, before placing her book on her nightstand, and following her master. They walked through the camp till they reached the spot which had been designated the training grounds where the legionaries could go to spar. He picked up two swords from a nearby weapon rack and tossed one to the princess before putting himself in a battle stance. The princess, who had actually watched the legionaries spar on occasion, took a standard combat stance, while a bit sloppy it was decent for a beginner.

WItchie then make a charge and swung the sword at the princess left side. The princess, side stepped from attack, before attempting to land a blow to Witchie's ribs. The stab was easily parried and he did a small spin in an attempt to elbow the princess in the head. The blow collided into the princess's head, causing her to fall to the ground. Before Witchie could press the attack, the princess pounced from the ground and tackled Witchie. The air flew out of his lungs as the princess shoulder pounded into his stomach, but he was still able to hold his ground. The princess started to rain blows with her fists into her teacher. Her rage was starting to act up and her face was in a snarl. He then did something unexpected, he fell backwards hoping to catch some breathing room and with the sword held above his head with it's tip pointing downwards, ready to use if he got enough space between him and the princess. Ignoring the sword the princess continued to press the attack, violently assaulting Witchie with her unrelenting fists and the occasional slash from her sword. He then grabbed hold of her sword arm by the wrist and kept it locked away from him while reaching his sword down to her throat. Before Witchie could get a good position on her throat, the princess violently slammed her knee into his groin. Which was an expected move, but her knee didn't reach it's goal before it rammed into a solid ice block. 

"AAAAHH"

The princess squealed in pain, but continued to focus on the battle. Since he used magic, she thought she would use it. She formed a two handed rod of ice using the ice magic her master taught her, and pressed the attack by trying to land a heavy blow to the chest. When the icy spear was just a few inches from his chest he utilized his own magic to send the the spear out of the princess hands and sky high. 

The princess instinctively, jumped a few paces back. She took the slight pause as a time to observe her surroundings, by now a large crowd of legionaries had gathered around them, watching the display. The princess once again charged, this time throwing two large tendrils of ice and fire at Witchie. But Witchie had gotten up and already begun charging and when her spells had barely left her hands he threw his steel sword at her and then slid under her incoming spells. The princess barely had any time to avoid the steel sword, and when she side stepped it, the sword managed to cut a slight slash in the right side of her body. Her face, was now completely enraged, and her mind entirely focused on hurting Witchie, ignoring the pain she once again drew her steel sword and slashed at Witchie in the gut area. But he had already drawn his own stalhrim sword when he reached her and was ready to parry the incoming blow. The steel collided with Stalrhim in a pang of sparks. The princess, began to glow her red aura signifying her decent into her rage, she with lighting speed drew her black dagger from it's sheath and slashed at Witchie while blocking his sword with her steel blade. He barely saw the blade of the dagger as it flew towards him, but it did however not reach him as he instinctively summoned a blizzard that pushed them both backwards, giving a few yards breathing room. The princess, in a raged filled whisper that only the two of them could hear,

"Am I worthy to be your Wraith yet master?!"

She closed the distance between the two with her speed and brougth down her two blades at Witchie. The blizzard intensified so one couldn't see further than one own hand. When her blades landed they flew through the air without hitting anything. Witchie had now disappeared into the blizzard while conjuring up shades of himself around the princess. Glancing from right to left, she could see shadowed copies of her already dark master, and with the now large blizzard obstructing her vision, it was hard to different between them, she was really pissed, and started to slash at all of the shades in fury. As she hit a shade it dissipated only to reappear deeper into the blizzard. Witchie silently walked through the snowstorm up to her from behind. She was so enraged she didn't even try to figure out which of the shades was real. He then made a stab for her stomach through her back. The blade buried itself into the girl, whom by now stopped slashing at the copies, with a thud, she dropped, still clutching her weapons. As she started to bleed out in the snowm her red aura faded as did her rage. She let out a cry of pain. 

He then bent down and whispered into her ear, "Not enough focus." while pulling out the blade and casting a healing spell as the sword left her body, leaving no trace of the impalement behind. 

She looked up to her master, grateful for the healing, "I'm sorry Master, I lost it, besides that did I do well?"

He let the blizzard and the shades fall and he could now see the legionaries standing in a large circle around them, all of them with a faces varying between chock, curiosity and excitement. 

"Well enough for someone at your age." he sheathed his sword, "Now lets get back to your tent where I'll teach how to heal such a cut." pointing to her side which still had the cut from his thrown sword. 

She gripped the cut side tightly, and began to walk side by side with her master back to the tent.

When they reached the tent Witchie pulled out a chair, from the nearby small table that was in the tent, for her to sit down on. 

She nodded, before gently sitting on a chair. She said,

"I'm surprised you didn't destroy me, that was the first time I've used a sword, and I did a decent job"

Witchie crouched down besides her and ripped hole in her clothe even bigger so the wound was clearly visible. 

"Now listen carefully..."

She listened intetnly to her master explain the details of how to mend a wound like this, After that, she channeled her power, and healed the wound perfectly,

"Like that?"

"Looks good." 

"Master I was thinking of what you told me...I think we should try and convince Legate Graccus to aid us in our plans."

"That might be necessary, but I think you know him better than I do."

She looked shy for a second, before speaking, "I know he has a intense hatred for the dominion, as well as my father. I think if we explained to him what we where planning and how it could be done, he would help us."

"What you are planning. No one should know who I really am."

"I'm planning...to kill my father, take the throne, and to expel the dominion from our lands. If we could get Gracchus in, we would have the Sixth Legion on our side, we don't have to tell them who you really are. With them, we would also be able kill the dominion solders currently stationed here."

"Seems like you are finally starting to grow up." he ruffled her hair a bit before going towards the exit of the tent, "Come find me when you need me."

She smiled and lightly hugged him from behind, "I'll always be the same old me, I'll find you when I'm ready to tell Gracchus my argument."

Great, more hugging.

Witchie then left the tent walked throughout the camp will he heard a familiar croaking and he looked up to Karsh flying down to him and then land on his left shoulder. He then walked to edge of the camp where he sat down on a rock and started to try again to give Karsh the ability to whisper.

[The Good Doctor]

Eduard Laenius, Legate Gracchus- Just outside of Falkreath, Midday

 

After another day of resting in the area around Falkreath, Eduard felt he was prepared to go back to the fort. His wound from the crossbow bolt was closed, and beginning to heal.

Better late than never, he thought. Then his thoughts started to get away from him again. Damnit Eduard, you should have been able to make it back with Lorgar. You were a burden on that last mission, plain and simple. Yes, maybe he is a freak of nature, but you should have at least kept up. Inexcusable...

As he walked, he saw Imperial soldiers camped nearby.

Well, that's convenient. I'll just join up with them for now.

As he approached the men, one of the soldiers asked him to identify himself.

"I'm Praefect-Specialist Eduard Laenius."

"Well met Praefect. You look like **** why don't you go grab a drink or something."

Not too bad an idea, he thought. Not that he was really that thirsty. In fact, if it weren't for the dirt, and maybe the wound, he would look and feel perfectly fine.That soldier obviously doesn't know what **** looks like. I've seen, and put, people in much worse condition.

Gracchus was busying himself by walking the camp perimeter, making sure that all the guards were in place to make sure that they weren't ambushed or surprised, when he noticed a haggard looking soldier talking to a sentry.

"Sentry, who is that?" Gracchus called out.

"Specialist Eduard sir, and he's pretty banged up," the sentry replied.

"Eduard, how did the assassination go? And what happened to you?" Gracchus asked.

Eduard gave the Legate a half smile.

"The assassination? It went well enough. We got the job done, if that's what you were asking. As for what happened to me, nothing too bad. I was grazed by a crossbow bolt as we fled from Falkreath. It bled a lot more than I had originally expected it too, but it's nothing I can't handle. I hid in the surrounding area while I recovered. That's where all this dirt is from. What's the situation around here sir?"

"Here sit down. I know a restoration spell or to."Gracchus' hand began glowing orange, and the healing hands spell closed the wound and helped cleanse it of any infection.

"The situation here is good. The Thalmor have taken Fort Neugrad and Helgen, and we are waiting on them to begin the siege."

"Thanks sir, I feel quite a bit better already," Eduard said, thanking the Legate.

Now that he healed that wound a little bit, I feel a lot better. Maybe I underestimated that cut, he thought.

"Alright, sounds good. How are the men faring?"

Gracchus could tell the healing spell was making Eduard feel better, but he made sure not to mention that the infection was more on-set than Eduard suspected.

"Good. I think the morale has been up ever since we drove the Cloaks back using our guerrilla forces. How's the situation in Falkreath? What kind of set up do the Stormcloaks have?"

Reaching into his mind, he remembered Lorgar's scouting of Falkreath.

"The town is manned by 40 guards on the outside; not counting the large Stormcloak army camped around the town, which numbers in the hundreds if not thousands. Though some of that could, and most likely did change after the assassination, and as we approach Falkreath."

"How does our situation compare?"

"Our troops number around 3,000 to 4,000 range, plus the Thalmor troops who number in the 2,000 range. With them on our side, we outnumber the Stormcloaks. It's good we do, otherwise this siege would never work," Gracchus said, withdrawing the healing spell.

Damn, there's still an aching feeling in that cut.

He didn't show his concern though. He was more focused on the situation.

"That's good that we outnumber them. We'll need those Thalmor here too. Their mages can provide valuable support that we can really use. What do we have in the way of siege equipment?"

"Ah, that's my special little project. I had head engineer Valvius and his men build some siege onagers, or catapults. They are able to fling 50 pound rocks 200 yards, and there is a larger one that can fling a 50 pound rock 300 yards. Valvius made 3 of the smaller ones and 1 large one. Hopefully we can break down those stone walls,"Gracchus told Eduard, obviously excited.

I just hope they work well enought to do the job,Gracchus thought.

"Catapults you say?" Eduard asked, his interest obviously showing. He loved all things strategy. 

"Knock down part of the wall, and try to push troops through, that the plan? That's a good plan, although, if the Nords employ the shield wall at the point of attack, it could pose a problem. It will be Pale Pass all over again. A narrow opening guarded by a wall of fierce defenders. We'd probably lose much more than they would. That's where our numbers should come in. Maybe come the time of the siege, there will be a hole in the defense we can exploit."

 

"Aye, that's the plan, except we will try and break multiple holes in their defenses, maybe splitting up the catapults into groups of two, so we can make two holes and spread their troops out. Unfortunately, we don't know what they will do, so out plans can't be too set in stone," Gracchus was glad someone appreciated his strategy, because good mitsry minds had been lacking since Marius left.

"One problem we have is food, which I don't know how we are going to remedy that."

"It's always important to have a plan that is like water. Able to change its path based on what it comes across," Eduard replied. He wasn't too happy to hear about the food situation.

"As for the food problem, there isn't too much we can do about that while we are in enemy territory. That's fine, it just means time isn't on our side. Even though that could be a problem, considering this is a siege. The only thing we could do is try to cut into their food supplies as well. In any case, we will need to gain the upper hand rather quickly for a siege if we want any chance of taking this city. Hopefully come the siege, we can take advantage of every opportunity."

"Exactly. I have already started rationing the food, much to everyone's displeasure, but it must be done. I've considered that it may be so bad we have to slaughter the pack animals. That would be worst case scenario though," Gracchus said.

"Worst case scenario? I'd say real possibility. But like you, I hope it doesn't come to that. However, if it would mean a successful taking of Falkreath, it would be more than worth it," Eduard said, with the half smile long passed from his face. He had become much more serious. 

The planning before a siege is just as vital as the siege itself, he thought.

"Anyways, it seems you have planned as much as possible before this siege. You're doing a great job sir. I'm proud to be one of your men."

Even leaders should get morale boosts, he figured.

"I would hope that we could take the city, via surrender or battle, before we had to slaughter our animals. And thanks, not only for the assassination, but for letting me bounce these ideas off you. I'm proud to serve over men like you," said Gracchus, returning the half smile.

"You had better go to the medical tent, just to get that cut looked at. I'm no expert healer."

Plus, it may be more infected than even I suspected, Gracchus thought.

"It was my pleasure. Strategy is a huge interest of mine, so I'm always up for some strategy talk. And yes sir, I'll have it looked at right away. Hopefully they can get me even closer to 100%. It's been good chatting with you."

They better be able to help a little. This cut has been nagging me for a while now. I would have thought it would just be a dull ache by now. Maybe it got infected. I didn't exactly keep clean, he figured.

After Gracchus walked away, he took the Legates advice and headed to the medical tent.

"Gracchus said you guys might be able to help with this," Eduard said, taking off the top half of his leather armor.

What the removal of armor revealed wasn't too pretty. The cut, and the surrounding area, was a big festering mess. It was now obvious that it was infected.

****. I guess that answers that question.

"Uhh... Yeah, why don't you just lie down," said a female healer in the tent. It was obvious she didn't like the look of Eduard's wound.

The healer then began to tend to the wound. Although Eduard appreciated what Gracchis did for him, he had nothing on this healer.

Wow, this is really helping out. Glad I listened to Legate.

After a while, the healer spoke up.

"Alright, that is it for now. I want to see you tomorrow morning though, alright?"

As long as your doing the healing, he thought to himself. The girl was more attractive than most girls he has met in the legion.

"Alright then, I'll see you first thing in the morning," he replied.

Eduard then got up, and left the tent. He was pretty tired, although he was feeling refreshed from the healing.

[The Good Doctor]

Legate Gracchus Ceno, Princess Dales Motierre

Fort Pale Pass 

Evening

 

Legate Graccus, was currently reading a few charts of Falkeath, heard the soft, child-like, voice of the princess outside his tent.

"You there Legate Gracchus?"

"Yes, come in," Gracchus said. He recognized the voice of the princess, without having to look up from the maps.

What in the world could she possible want? Gracchus thought.

"Can I speak to you... privately?" She asked, slightly shy.

"Uh yes...make it quick," Gracchus said impatiently, and dismissed the guards with a wave of his hand.

"As in...really private, I have a glade in the forest, it's a five minute walk."

"Oh, well, fine then." 

Gracchus followed the princess into the forest, and after a few minutes they were in a small clearing between the thick pine trees.

"What is it you wanted to talk about?"

She simply starred at him, before saying,

"I'm going to come clean with you Gracchus, what i'm about to tell you would be considered High Treason, do you want me to continue, or back off now?"

"Treason, but you're the princess, and..." Gracchus' sentence trailed off, and a worried look crossed his face.

"What exactly do you plan on doing?"

She looked away, and glanced at the sun,

"Our people are suffering Gracchus, due to the blasted Aldmeri Dominin and there puppet, my father." She let those words sink in.

"Yes, the general consensus among those not apart of Dominion is that they are the scum of Nirn," Gracchus said.

"What does your father, the puppet that he is, have to do with this?"

She whispered,

"I plan to gut him like the pig he is."

"Do you understand the magnitude of what you are speaking of? Overthrowing your father, the EMPEROR?" Gracchus asked, disbelief covering his face.

"That Emperor is planning to announce him allowing a Garrison of dominion soldiers to stay in Cyrodiil in a few weeks..."

"And you want to overthrow him? Why, what possessed you to want to do that?" Gracchus asked, still taken aback by the princess' proposal.

She looked away, looking very depressed,

"You know Elan, my maid, the one they butchered?"

"Yes. Was she...murdered, by the Thalmor?" Gracchus asked, calming down and trying to be sympathetic.

"She was..." She couldn't contain it any longer, tears where starting to fall down her cheek, "She wasn't just my maid...we where "together" for eight years...and...I was going to propose to her on the morning following the night she was murdered..."

"I'm....I'm sorry. I...I didn't realize that's what was going on. I....wish there was something I could say, or do, but I know nothing would make you feel better," Gracchus said. He then walked over tow the princess, and wrapped his arms around her, letting her sobs and tears fall down his armor.

She wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his shoulder , letting all the tears fall down, 

"Then help me prevent the dominion from talking away another person's loved one."

Here it is, another chance to help rid the world of the Thalmor. I won't pass this up, I won't fail myself and my empire again. 

"I.....I will. I won't let another chance to end this go by either. They must be stopped, and I have the power to do it," Gracchus said defiantly, as his arms were wrapped around the princess.

"I won't let them kill anyone else."

She squeezed him tightly, a massive smile forming on her tear stained face, before she let go of him.

"Then kneel..." Her face was radiating joy and warmth, despite the tears.

Gracchus knelt, and was reassured by the warm smile that crossed the princess' face.

"Do you Legate Gracchus swear to free the empire from the control and captivity of Amaund Motierre and the Aldmeri Dominion?"

"I do swear. I swear to purge corruption from the Empire, and to not rest until the Aldmeri Dominion has been wiped from Tamriel. I swear that, on my watch, the Thalmor will not kill another innocent soul, or may mine rot in Coldharbour."

"Did you swear loyalty to me and the people of the empire?"

"I swear to loyally serve you, and to serve the people of the Empire so long as I am living."

"Then rise Gracchus, As Sir General Gracchus, knight of the rose."

Gracchus rose and, although his face remained solemn, his heart was filled with thoughts of joy, as he knew what he has just done was the right thing.

Red-Snow, I know you can't hear this, but I hope this makes up for what I did, in not helping you kill the Thalmor when I should have. I hope that from this day forth, no one will needlessly die at the hands of those vermin. 

"Thank you, ma'am. Unfortunately, we still have a war to fight, and to these men I am still their Legate, so I must return. But know this, that I am yours, and my loyalty is to the Empire, and to its citizens."

She nodded, before chuckling a little,

"Of course, General, I shouldn't keep you to your duties. I'm going to remain her for the time." She then turned away, and starred once again at the sun.

Gracchus left, a million thoughts running through his head. Treason, for a little girl and her girlfriend. 

No, it was the right thing. I did the right thing. The Thalmor must be stopped, and together we have the power to stop them. 

But do we? Are our troops enough to kill them all? If we were to attack them, would we have te backing of others, like Red-Snow? 

It doesn't matter, allies or not, they will be stopped. 

By the time Gracchus' mental debate was over, he had returned to the war tent, where Pilus was waiting for him.

"Where have you been?" Pilus asked.

"Oh, I was jut taking a walk in the woods, to....clear my head. I've been stressed lately, from the war as all, and I wanted to relax a little," Gracchus replied.

"Oh, alright then. I was just coming to see how the planning is coming," Pilus said.

"Oh, it's coming along. I you don't mind, I think I'm going to take a nap. I'm not as young as I used to be, and I still have a lot of thoughts I need to sort through," Gracchus told his friend.

"Suit yourself. I guess I'll go grab some chow then." With that Pilus left, and Gracchus drifted off into sleep.

[The Good Doctor]

Rebec, Baldur, Boldir

Falkreath town

the day after Baldur's return

 

Rebec and Baldur slept late into the next morning.  The admiral woke first and went out, leaving Baldur still asleep in the jarl's bed.

Some time later she returned, dressed in chainmail and warpaint, her hair fixed in braids.  Stepping into the bedroom, she was just fixing her axes in her belt.  "Baldur!  Come on.  We haven't got much time."

Sweetrolls...lamb...mead.....mead....

"Uhuh, I want some more plea..pleazzz....."

Baldur rolled over in the bed and put his head under the pillow.

Removing her axe, Rebec smacked Baldur's shoulder hard with the flat.  "You got plenty of that last night," she answered, mistaking his dream of sweetrolls and mead for something else.  "Come on.  You aren't off lolligagging in Thalmor prison anymore.  Speaking of Thalmor, there are a few hundred headed this way."

Baldur finally snapped out of his dream of food when Rebec smacked his shoulders with the axe. Remembering why she was waking him, Baldur bolted out of the bed, and began to put on his armor in a hurry. First, he put on the greaves, and then he put on his breast plate. After the straps were secured, he stepped into his large nordic boots. After his armor was on, and his axes were holstered, he washed off his war paint with a bucket of water in the room, and reapplied his swirl design on his cheek. After that, he put on his gauntlets and attached his General cape under his fur collar over his pauldrons, and then holstered his shield over his back and his cape.

Laughing as Baldur bolted out of bed, Rebec watched the flurry of activity for a moment, satisfying herself that he was neither suffering too much from his injuries, nor had he had second thoughts. 

"The Thalmor aren't on the way, by the way.  That was just to get you moving.  But there were some sighted near Helgen, so it's probably true we haven't got much time.  I'll be just outside when you're ready.  Oh, and there are some sweetrolls and warmed mead in the main room."

Just outside in the main hall, Suri came up to her trailed by some of the other redguard.  "Aunt Rebec, are you sure about this?  It seems rather sudden."

"Suri, when I want your advice, you'll be the first to know."  Rebec grabbed a sweetroll and began stuffing it into her mouth.

Baldur was a bit ticked when Rebec said the Thalmor were not on their way, but got over it when she mentioned sweetrolls. He was still hungry from the night before, so he planned to get as much in as he could before the rationing began. Once Baldur was done, he grabbed his bear helmet, and bolted out the room and attacked the plate of sweetrolls like there was a naked woman somewhere buried under them. While he was gorging himself, he noticed a Redguard girl staring at him in the middle of his meal. Embarrassed from this, all Baldur could think to say was, "Um...would you like one?"

Rebec had wandered off, looking for Boldir.  In the meantime Suri tried to size up her new "uncle."  Though she was half Nord, she was also noble stock in Hammerfell, and it showed in her manner.  "I've eaten, thank you.  You're General Red-Snow?  We were all glad to hear it when they said you'd returned.  The Thalmor are despicable creatures."

Baldur reluctantly put down the plate of sweetrolls, but he put his helmet over the last two in case someone tried to steal them from him.

Anyone tries to steal my sweetrolls, and you'll take care of 'em, won't you bear?

"Yes, yes they are. So, I don't think I've spoken to you before. What's your name? Are you one of Jodun's people?"

"My name is Suri Falani, though you may call me Snake-Blade, as the Nords like to do.  I'm the High Admiral's niece.  She had some surprising news for me this morning.  It isn't one of her pranks, is it?  We've got a lot to do and can't afford to waste time."

Baldur couldn't hide his confused expression when she said "niece", but figured that someone in Rebec's family must've married a redguard. What confused him more was that Rebec had family here and didn't mention it.

"Huh. Rebec must've been too busy to tell me she had family here. So I'll have a Redguard niece then? Wow, that's rather interesting. Maybe you could show me some of those Redguard sword techniques, eh?"

Suri lifted a brow.  "You want me to teach you?  I could.  They are not often taught to outsiders, but this is a desperate situation.  As for my aunt keeping things from people, she didn't tell me she had a new...  friend, either. Since my father and grandfather aren't here, I suppose it falls to me to welcome you to our family."

Baldur gave a warm smile to the young woman. "Are all Redguards so well mannered? I'm just teasing. As for the training, as of right now it may be best for me to stick with what I know, but when we're done with this, I'll hold you to it. So, Rebec made no mention of me?"

"She mentioned you of course.  You're the one who got her out of prison, and she spoke highly of your martial abilities.  I just wasn't aware...  No matter.  We all know better than to try to dissuade her when she has her mind set on something."

Rebec came in the door then.  "I can't find Boldir anywhere, damn it.  Oh, you met Suri.  Suri, Baldur, Baldur, Suri.  Can we go?"

"Don't you want any flowers, Aunt Rebec?"  At the admiral's blank stare, Suri laughed.  "Leave that to us, then.  We'll be along shortly."

The redguard soldiers departed, off to flower picking duty, and Rebec turned to face Baldur.  Leaning in, she lowered her voice.  "You haven't changed your mind?"

Baldur was in the middle of the last sweetroll when Rebec asked the question. After he finished, he replied, "About the flowers? No I'm fine with that if you want them."

"No, horkerbrain.  About any of it.  About me." She shifted, keeping a hand gripped on her axe.

Baldur gave out a bellowing laugh at the reaction. "Hahaha, hehe, oh, sorry. I'm just pulling your leg."

The grip on her axe tightened.  "I'm being serious now.  This is me being serious."  In her armor and warpaint, she looked more set for battle than for nuptials.  However she had woven tiny seashells into those in front, the closest thing to pretty jewelry she owned.

Baldur actually started to get worried when he saw how tight her grip was on her axe. He wasted no further time giving her his answer.

"Sorry, sorry! I haven't changed my mind. And I won't."

Rebec eased off the axe, and took a deep breath.  She had worked through her own doubts that morning, in her warpaint ritual.  There was a battle coming, but the marriage seemed more momentous than that.  And then again, it didn't at all.  She couldn't imagine her life anymore except that it included him.

"Alright.  I'm glad."  She smiled a little.  As they began to walk, she added, "I haven't got a dress.  This is as good as it gets."

Baldur tried picturing Rebec in a dress, and immediately drew a blank.

"Probably for the best. This suits you more than some frilly dress if you don't mind me saying. It's fitting that we marry under the god of death as warriors, no? We may be starting a new tradition among the Necro Nords."

"It's true that Lady Mara and I have never had much to say to each other."  They stepped into the street, busy with civilians and soldiers.  Rebec glanced at Baldur's hand as they walked and was tempted to take it, but decided that in their armor that that was ridiculous.  "I couldn't find Runil earlier, either, but his assistant said he was walking and should be back soon."

Baldur stopped walking for a second when he realized something.

"Wait a minute...What about rings?"

"We don't need such things, do we?  Look, if you want to wait so that we can do it properly, we can.  But with this battle..."  She let the implication hang in the air, that one or both of them might die before that was possible.

"No, you're right. We could always get some later if Runil doesn't have any." said Baldur.

Rebec smiled at him, finally allowing herself to feel happy and even excited.  "Good enough.  Let's go surprise the old elf.  He must get sick of looking at people crying, so it will give him something different.  Unless you plan to start crying."  She smirked and knocked on the door of the House of the Dead with her gauntlet.

Rebec could hear the old elf's voice from the other side,

"Come in..."

Baldur's mouth was a little dry, and his breathing was shaky when he gave the priest a reply.

"Hello, Runil...we were wondering if you could oversee a wedding for myself and the admiral. You think you can do that for us with Arkay as witness? It's a little unorthodox, but considering the situation, and our profession...it seems fitting."

Baldur could hear a slight chuckle from the man who was sitting across the aged Elf, it was Marius. 

"Well well, the mighty Nordic warrior Baldur Red-snow, getting married..."

Baldur's face turned red when he heard Marius's voice.

"M-Marius? What are you doing in here?"

"Just chatting with a fellow Veteran." said Marius, who had a coy smile aimed at Baldur,

Runil chuckled, before saying "I was just telling Marius about the recon unit I served in during the Great war. And of course General, it would be my pleasure to marry the two of you together."

The admiral was surprised that Runil took the request in stride, but he was older than dirt and must have seen everything.  She was about to thank him when Suri peeked in at the doorway.  "There's a nice little clearing up the slope by the waterfall.  That should do nicely."  The girl paused.  "You...  weren't thinking of getting married here in the cemetery, were you?"

"Let's pretend I wasn't," Rebec answered. Runil told them to go on and he would be along.  As they stepped outside, the admiral paused and turned to Marius.  "So you didn't betray us after all, imperial."

Marius, who decided to join the group, said, "Tullius tried to tell you he meant what he said, as did I, Admiral."

"You'll forgive me if I rate imperial promises about as much as the dung on my boot.  Look, what I'm trying to say is... thank you.  I owe you a debt I can never repay.  It doesn't make me like you any more, but in case you didn't know, a Nord takes such things seriously."  Her tone was grave, the sentiment obviously sincere.  "You might as well come see us make fools of ourselves, if you've got nothing better to do.  This would never have happened without your help."

"Don't mention it, I merely did what any proper soldier would have done. The alternative was risking the entire defense force and losing our fortified position, I did what was expected of me."  Marius tone switched from professional to light-hearted and chuckled a bit, "Just don't be calling me brother or anything..."

Rebec gave Marius a half-smile.  "You're a little scrawny to be my brother.  No offense."  With a nod to Baldur, she started up the slope towards the waterfall.

Suri and the other redguard had strewn the area with blue mountain flowers, and as the group approached, she put a sprig of them into Rebec's hair, ignoring the admiral's protests that it looked absurd with warpaint.  A few curious Stormcloaks had gathered around to see what was going on, and a few redguard, owing to their reverence for Arkay.  Runil was only a step behind them, and as they arrived he took his place with his back towards the waterfall and waited for Baldur and Rebec to take their places.

Baldur's right hand started to shake noticeably as they approached. He was nervous, but Baldur didn't think that was the reason for the shaking....

"Are you alright?" Rebec whispered.

Baldur didn't wish to worry Rebec, so he was forced to lie to her. Baldur placed his hand on his axe handle, and gripped it tight to cease the shaking.

"It's nothing, I'm just a little nervous is all."

***

Boldir, was getting frustrated. He jogged across the street and spun a soldier around. "Have you seen Baldur?"

The soldier was surprised at being handled like that, but upon seeing who it was, she calmed down and shook her head."No sir."

"What about Admiral Rebec?"

"No sir."

Boldir left her and walked down the street at a brisk pace. He spotted a couple of Redguards leaving the cemetery. He waved to get their attention as he headed towards them. "Hey! Have either of you seen Baldur?”

"He just left the Hall of the Dead with the Admiral. They were going that way." The Redguard pointed towards a slope a ways off.  "Suri said something about a wedding."

What the? Boldir composed himself. He nodded at the Redguards. “Thank you." He turned and hurried to the slope. As he reached the top and approached the clearing, he could see a small group of Stormcloaks and Redguards had gathered. More importantly, Rebec and Baldur were there, and they were walking together. All eyes were on them. Boldir could see the local Priest of Arkay standing further into the clearing, waiting for the pair to reach him. He smiled. Ha! It's just like these two to go and have a wedding with no notice and in full armor. He wedged his way to the front for a better view. He didn't want to miss anything.

Unknown to most, Marius watched from a nearby tree, leaning on it. He had...a look of "disapproval" on his face for some reason.

Baldur heard grumbling from behind and a few people saying "watch it" and "don't push". Baldur turned around and he saw Boldir working his way to the front. Baldur saw him standing there with a big stupid grin, and he couldn't help but grin too. His face started turning bright red again. Baldur put his helmet on for good measure.

"Uh, friends," Runil started, trying to get their attention.  He looked nervous, too. 

"Thank you.  Welcome.  This occasion is a bit unusual, but not inappropriate, I think.  The god Arkay was once a man, and as man he knew that the mortal soul craves companionship.  His province is not just death, but life, to teach us its value, and to appreciate all that we have in it.  In this troubled time, we are more aware than ever that life's greatest treasures are the people we love."

He then leaned forward to whisper to Rebec and Baldur, "I have something for you both.  I hope they fit."  From his pocket the old Altmer produced two silver rings, graven with health enchantment runes.  Gesturing to Baldur to put the smaller one on Rebec's finger, he raised his voice again.  "Do you agree to be bound to this woman in love, now and forever?"

Baldur took the ring from the priest. His hand started shaking again which cause him to drop the ring.

"Whoops, sorry about that."

Baldur quickly grabbed the ring before Rebec took it as a sign of his reluctance or something. The crowd giggled at the sight when he hurriedly scrambled for the ring. Some one in the crowd said "Smart man." Which caused more laughter. After they settled down the priest repeated the question. Baldur cleared his throat.

"I do. Now and forever."

Baldur took off Rebec's left gauntlet and put the ring on her left ring finger.

As Runil was speaking, Rebec suddenly had a flashback to the previous afternoon.  A pang of fear caught her breath.  She turned her head, scanning the rocky outcropping for a sign of Lorgar drawing his bow on them.  On Baldur.

The admiral was brought out of her thoughts by Baldur apologizing, and looked around to see him grubbing in the mud for the dropped ring.  His bashfulness drove out all thoughts of the assassin.  She helped with the gauntlet, and then watched as Baldur put the ring on her finger.  Meeting his eyes, it took her a moment to realize that Runil had said the same words to her and everyone was waiting for her.

She helped Baldur take off his gauntlet, then held his fingers in her palm.  The burns had healed a bit, but the scars would be there for a while to remind them both of what they had almost lost.  Rebec slipped the ring on his hand and, throat catching, said, "I do as well, now and forever."

Runil continued on.

"Then with Arkay as my witness, I hereby proclaim you husband, and wife. The newly weds may kiss."

Baldur removed his helmet and dropped it on the ground and brought Rebec's head to his for the kiss.

In her nervousness Rebec missed at first, but soon found the right spot.  The crowd watching, which had grown by the minute, cheered and clapped.

Pulling back, Rebec smiled up at Baldur, then said under her breath so only he could hear, "This is embarrassing.  What were we thinking?"

Baldur laughed and gave her a reassuring kiss.

"Oh hush. You love it. Now, all of this will make the men think I'm soft. Want to work off the nerves with some weapon training? You could use some practice."

"Oh I could, eh?  You're on, big talker."  Rebec looked around and threw her arm out toward the crowd.  "Get out of here, you lazy mudcrabs, before I put you to digging privies.  Oh, not you, Boldir.  Where in Oblivion were you?  I looked all over."  She glanced also over at Marius and caught his sour look, but shrugged it off.  The imperial was still a puzzle to her.

"Where was I?" Boldir spread out his arms We he approached, and pulled the two of them into a massive, inescapable hug.
"Where were you?! I thought you'd gone and gotten captured on me or something! Turns out only Baldur has! Ha!"

"B-Boldir, watch...the neck!" said Balur while Boldir's inescapable iron grip of comradery has locked around him.

"Right. Sorry." Boldir backed off, but left his hands on their shoulders.

Rebec grinned and stood on tiptoes to kiss Boldir's cheek.  "Better late than never, big man.  Now Baldur's got it in his head he's going to show me a thing or two with the shield and I'll have to humiliate him on our wedding day."

Boldir's eyebrow raised as he looked at Baldur. "And what does General Red-Cheeks here have to say about that?"

Baldur smirked at the jab towards his blushing face before giving his reply.

"We gotta show the men we didn't turn Breton overnight, and as my shield maiden, it's important Rebec's martial skills increase. Besides...I haven't spared in a long time and I want to see how tough my new wife is. Wanna watch?"

"Of course!”

"Good, then lets go! I need to warm up and move around to get my body ready after that whole ordeal."

The trio made their way back by the Jarl's loghouse after grabbing a few practice weapons from the weapon storage. Some of the men commented and asked why Baldur had so many extra weapons held in Falkreath, to which Baldur replied you never know when you'll need more...As the newly wed couple reached the area they would use to practice, Baldur began taking off his armor except his boots and grieves.

As Baldur and Rebec geared up, a thought crossed Boldir's mind.
"You two go ahead. I'll be right back. There's something I need to get." He took his leave.

Rebec's armor was light enough for her to keep on, so she took a practice sword and shield and set herself, her face sober.  Baldur was a formidable opponent and she intended to beat him.

Baldur decided to remove his bandages from his body as they were a bit restricting. Baldur strapped his wooden shield to his back, and decided to wield two wooden axes for the duel like he liked to do every so often. He started waving around his arms to stretch them a bit, and hopping up and down in a sort of jig to get his feet ready to move. He looked over to Rebec who looked like she was ready to pounce at any moment like a Sabre Cat stalking her prey.

"Why so serious, Ms. Red-Snow?"

Rebec lowered the shield briefly at him calling her by his name, eyes flashing.  "You think you own me now, eh?  We'll see about that."  She set herself again and waited for his attack.

Uh oh.

"I don't think I own you, I just assumed you'd want to take my name."

Baldur could see she was determined, so he removed his boots as well so he could attempt to match her in speed. He walked towards her and got into a defensive position by crouching his legs slightly and holding his left axe in front of him to parry, and his right axe above him to strike.

"Come on, snowback, hit me."  Rebec circled a bit, shaking out her arms a little to keep loose.  She had a defensive advantage now and wasn't going to waste it.  "Or are you afraid to hit something with teats?"

Baldur was a bit wary of hurting his new wife on the day of their wedding, but he did want to see what she could do.

"Okay, you asked for it, Rebec Red-Snow!"

Baldur started striking at Rebec with his axes in a left and right pattern. He made sure not to strike at the shield in the same position so she would have to work to block the blows in an attempt to make her grow fatigued and lower the shield. Only thing is she wasn't letting him hit the shield.

Boldir returned carrying a small bag and saw that the fight had already started. He found a large rock and sat on it. This should be good.

Rebec didn't use the shield at all.  Waiting until Baldur was almost on her she sidestepped and spun, letting his own momentum put him ahead of her.  Then she reached up and tapped his back with the shield and, laughing, backstepped a few paces quickly to wait for the next charge.  "That's Red-Eye, Red Snow.  Your brain's as weak as your attack.  I've fought mudcrabs tougher than you."

Baldur grinned at the insult, and decided to show her how taunting was really done.

First, let me issue the challenge.

"Is that the best you can do? Are your weapons for show?

I was merely testing you misses Red-Snow,

If I defeat you, and I win this game,

Then will you agree to take my last name?

But if I'm layed on my back, my eyes to the sky,

Then the name I shall take is Baldur Red-Eye!"

Rebec halted a moment, visibly impressed.  You knew you were fighting a real Nord when battle was paired with poetry. 

"Challenge accepted.  Got the name for having second sight on night runs, you know.  I already know what you're going to do next."  It was not all bluster.  Dual axe was her favored attack, and she had fought many a Dunmer reaver and redguard pirate with the same.

We'll see about that.

Baldur charged Rebec with speed that must have been surprising to see from someone so large. Without his armor on to restrict him, he could let loose more than he would normally need to.

"Huuaaahhh!"

Baldur jumped in the air and brought the pair of axes down as hard as he could to stagger Rebec from the block.

Rebec smiled a little at the charge, quickly going to one knee, bringing the shield up above her head and slashing at Baldur's exposed legs with the sword, hoping to trip him.  She was likewise stronger than she appeared, from years of manning oars and climbing rigging.  The axes came close to her back, but she was already moving forward to avoid his backswing.

Baldur was ready for the swing to his legs. He hopped over it and attempted to pivot behind her for a back stroke. After she ran forward to avoid it, Baldur charged at her again, this time using the under hooks of the axe blades to snag on the bottom and top of her shield. Baldur spread his legs apart for balance, and with all the strength he could muster tried ripping the shield from out of Rebec's grip.

Surprised by his speed and reflexes, Rebec nearly lost the shield simply from the wet grip slipping out of her glove.  She hung on, however, grappling with Baldur, now face to face.  Gritting her teeth, she said, "Not... today... Red-Cheeks..."  With the sword arm she reached around and slashed toward his head, then spun to try to disengage her shield from his axes.  Her own cheeks were red from exertion, and sweat mixed with the rain on her face.  The chainmail had put her at a disadvantage after all.

Meanwhile the scene was beginning to draw more spectators than the wedding had.

Baldur ducked, then parried and feinted for a while, waiting for Rebec to grow tired from his strikes. He put enough force behind his hits to cause the shield to slightly crack. Not enough to break, but enough to show how hard he was hitting it.

"What's the matter my lady, do you need to take a knee?

Would you rather go back to your boat on the sea?

Pack your bags, wench then go hit the road,

I've seen more agility in an elderly sload!"

Rebec cursed, though she was too out of breath to do more than mumble it.  Her arm was beginning to ache from the force of his blows.  The plan had been that he should never even hit the shield, as with many other opponents, but he was far better than your average pirate.  Disengaging, Rebec circled, trying to buy time.  Blood trickled from her nose, her own gauntlet having hit her face behind a shield block.

Baldur could see that he finally tired her out, and decided to try and end things. Baldur charged at her once more, to make her think he was going to power attack once again, and instead hopped forward and lifted his legs to kick at her shield with the force of his body weight, in an attempt to knock her down.

Rebec saw the fake and the kick aimed at her shield, but too late.  Losing her footing in the mud, she crashed down on her back.  The already weakened shield cracked in two at the force of the blow, but only after it had knocked the sword out of her hand.  "Gods damn you," she spat out, trying to scramble back in the mud to retrieve her weapon.

Baldur rolled backwards to get to his feet after he landed on the ground after the kick. He saw Rebec rushing to get to her weapon, so he ran forward to try and deliver a swift kick to her stomach before she could reach it.

Seeing his run, Rebec switched tactic and quickly reached out to grab Baldur's leg in an attempt to force a stumble.

Baldur wasn't expecting her to grab at his legs, and he almost toppled over. To avoid falling over, he grabbed her by her armst to try and lift her off the ground.

Rebec came up face to face with him, breath heaving.  She fought briefly, but so close to him, the fury at being bested turned into something else.  It was a battle that had more reward for losing than winning.  Her name hadn't really come from her uncanny abilities at night sailing, but from her frequent hangovers.  It was the blood of war that had brought them both together.  She wanted his name, she realized.  But some of the fury was still there, and he shouldn't think it was something that it was not. "I yield," she told him, seething and out of breath.  "But you don't... own me.  Red... Snow."

Baldur smiled at her stubbornness. That independent attitude is what drew him to her. She was not just a woman. She was his equal.

"Of course not. You can keep your name."

Rebec eased a little in his arms.  "It was a fair fight.  I keep my word."  She smiled briefly, letting him know she was happy with the change.  "Rebec Red-Snow it is.  Captain of the Black Wisp, and the muse of poems from lovesick skaldic fools."

"Oh? So you decided you like the ship name I came up with?"

Realizing that they were still locked together and that the crowd around was calling out suggestions as to what should come next, Rebec stepped back and straightened her chainmail tunic.  "I was already thinking it was time for a change.  It will be the most beautiful little terror on the Sea of Ghosts and the Abecean."

Baldur saw his window to make up for beating her in the duel, and took full advantage of it.

"Rebec, you're the most beautiful little terror on the Sea of Ghosts and the Abecean."

Rebec's mouth fell open, and for once she was speechless.  It didn't take all the sting of being beaten away, but it was a start.

Boldir made sure to carefully hide it from his friends as be turned and accepted his winnings from a bet he'd made with two Redguards behind him. After thanking them for playing, he stood up and walked over to Rebec and Baldur. "Here."

Boldir reached into the bag he'd been carrying and took out a stamina regeneration potion. He handed it to Rebec.

"This oughta have you feeling a little better."

Rebec looked at the stamina potion with disgust, but grumbled and took it anyway.  "I was just going easy on him so he wouldn't be crying in his mead tonight.  Nobody wants to see that."

Baldur began putting his gear back on before addressing the two.

"Something tells me I'm gonna pay for this in the future."

Baldur twirled his index finger in a circle for only Boldir to see, so he could know he wanted him to wrap it up. He and Baldur both had things they needed to do.

Seeing Baldur's motion, Boldir nodded.

"Heheh, I can tell that.”

He decided to move things along for Baldur.

"Well, I think it's about time we got back to business. There's a city full of soldiers and people over there that is probably wondering where its leaders are. I've gotta talk to Erik and Thorygg. I'll be in the Longhouse if you need me."

Boldir nodded at his friends and turned to head off for Falkreath.

Suri came up and put her arm around the admiral's shoulders.  "Come on, Aunt Rebec.  You look like you could use a drink of something stronger."  Over her shoulder she said to the men, "We'll have a little celebration at the redguard fire tonight.  Sing some more of those verses, Uncle, and we might even bring out the good liquor."

Baldur smiled at the thought of a party of sorts. It would be nice to have the men relax and enjoy themselves before the siege.

"But of course! And Boldir can play the flute! I'll see you all then. In the mean time, I'll prepare our defenses and meet you all in the camp area. See you later!"

With that, Baldur ran off to prepare for the long battle that would surely take place in the near future.

 

*****

Later in the day after it started to grow dark, Baldur finally completed his rushed preparations for the siege. The supplies were numerous, but to be safe he lowered the rations for everyone including himself, and he put as many men as he could on the wall as archers. He gave them the order to fire on sight, and to lock down the doors that lead into the city. The big doors were large and thick enough that they could keep the doors from being broken open by pressing his men against it, and he had some dunmer posted nearby to use frost magics on the doors if the Imperials attempted to set it on fire. Baldur made his way to the doors and waited for Boldir to arrive with the materials he told him to bring. And the elf.

Boldir arrived at the gate about an hour after dusk. He had one bag for the materials he'd been told to being strapped to his belt, and another much larger bag containing the prisoner slung over his shoulder. "You ready?"

Baldur stood up off of the wall and signaled the guards next to him to unbar the gate.

"I am. Lets hurry so we can get to the celebrations. Then we can put this behind us."

"Sounds good. Lead the way."

After a bath and meal, Rebec went to the command center to read up on the sentry reports.  There was troubling news of Thalmor and imperial forces moving out of their fortified positions in Pale Pass.  She went to find Baldur and Boldir to discuss their defense, but could not find them in town, so she went outside the walls to the main camp.

“They left half an hour ago, admiral,” a Necro Nord told her.  “Headed east.  Had the elf prisoner with them, and a wooden pole.”

For some minutes Rebec stood looking out at the eastern road.  It might not be too late to catch up to them.  She recalled Baldur’s wounds, the assassins’ terrorizing of the civilians, and the Dominion army moving towards them, and decided it was better for her to stay away.  If Baldur saw her, he might not go through with it.

Baldur took the further up the road until he found a good spot with a tree and a nice big surface on it so he could string up the elf. He took the pole, and some rope that Boldir had brought, and tied the rope around the tree and pole in an x pattern. The pole was set horizontally for the elf's arms. After that, he dumped out the Thalmor who was still bounded, and began stripping him down leaving him in nothing but his loin cloth. Just as they did to him. He took the elf's hands, unbound them and snapped them back, breaking the wrists further so that he was sure the elf wouldn't use his blood magic. The cry from the mer sent the birds in the trees scattering.

"Back in that prison...where you poked, prodded, burned, and branded me, I thought about why you were doing this. You look at me and my brother here, and all you see are...what did you say...pale skinned apes. That was it. All you see are animals. Why? Is it because our culture seems...savage, compared to the Altmers? You're not even an Altmer. You're a Bosmer! Your people are cannibalistic, and we're the savages? Those Thalmor truly have you all brainwashed. You Thalmor have such high opinions of yourselves, that you have the nerve to come into our country and tell us who we can and can't worship. You look down on us from afar and think that you're so perfect, that Talos, a god to you is still beneath you because he was once man. That's why you hate him, right? Because you too desire to be put up high. Well...I can help with that. Boldir, help me tie him up."

"Get up!" Boldir kicked the Elf in the gut for good measure before dragging him to his feet. He raised the Elf's arms and began to tie him up.

Baldur in all honesty after his wedding had lost all desire to string up the elf. Rebec had an effect on him that was dangerous for a man in war, especially one in charge of it. But when he thought about his friends and how hurt they felt when they saw his wounds...as if the wounds were inflicted upon themselves, and how distraught his friend was over what Baldur considered was doing the right thing...he knew he was going to go through with it. To Baldur, in his mind he had to do this for Boldir more so then himself. As Boldir was stringing up the mer with his back facing them, Baldur noticed the crudely cut marking over the elf's face. His eye was closed shut, and it seemed that Boldir must have accidentally cut down into it as he was applying the mark to his face. When Baldur saw it, he could tell it was supposed to be a big S for Stormcloak.

"I see you two were already well acquainted...good. Then we can skip introductions and get down to business. Lets start things with a history lesson. The Atmorans...were an interesting people. Ysgramors people when they came back to Skyrim brought with them a sort of animal worshiping religion. Most scholarly types agree that these are merely animal representations of the gods, like Shor and Kyne. Do you know what lay at the top of that pantheon? A dragon."

Baldur pulled out the dagger that Boldir had brought. It was a Nordic Carved dagger. Very sharp.

Perfect.

"You ignorant elves probably think that that dragon is the representation of Akatosh. We nords call him Alduin. Alduin is not the same as Akatosh. He is much crueler. Legends say that the Dragon Cult used to take elves and strip them of their armor, and expose their backs. After they did this, the executioner would take a dagger...and cut two slots into their backs. This exposed the rib cage to the executioner, who would then break the ribcage, and pull the ribs back through the wounds. This gave the appearance of wings of sorts. Then...the executioner would pull the victims lungs out as they stuck out the wounds and fluttered while he was still alive...and then they salted the wounds and left him to die. They called this method of killing "The Blood Dragon". This is my gift to you. For what fate can be better for a Thalmor then to be like the immortal dragon?"

The elf spoke finally after Baldur finished his speech.

"You think this will solve anything? Do you have any IDEA who we are? We are the Thalmor! We do not fear death! You have no idea why we seek to squash Talos worship. Your brutish barbaric pathetic excuse for a brain cannot comprehend the machinations of the will of our kind. And how could you? We were once gods before your Doom Drum, your Lorkhan tricked us into this prison! Once we stomp out your god, and stomp out all of human kind, we will be one step closer to reaching our birthright in Aetherius! Man will be nothing but a bad memory and we will be the new Kings of existence! No longer bound by the confines of the time dragon. You cannot stop our destiny! So go, send me away. I will be back as a lord, and I not you will have the last laugh! Behold perfection! Behold the ThalmoAAAAAAAH!"

Baldur had enough of the elf's mad ramblings. He jabbed the dagger into the elf's back and carved it down exposing the ribcage, just as he described. Then he did the same to the other side, and he shoved his armored hands into the gash in the elf's back. Then at the same time, Baldur  broke both sides of his ribs, and pulled them back until they poked through his wound and stuck out. The screams coming from the elf were deafening, and reminded Baldur of his during his ordeal. Once the ribs were out of the way, Baldur shoved his hands into his back, and pulled out the bloody fluttering lungs until they stuck out. Just as he described. Baldur stepped back to admire his work.

"Boldir, salt him."

As Boldir crouched down and reached into the bag to find the jar of salt, he realized that his hand was shaking. He made a titht fist. They would see this through.

Boldir...

Not now Carlotta.

Are you sure that it's Baldur alone who wants this?

You're right. I DO want this! After what this elf did to my brother, he deserves every bit of it! You have no business here.

Boldir realized that he must've been kneeling in front of his bag for a while. He took a breath and steadied his hand before grabbing and opening the salt jar. His face was devoid of emotion as he stood up and handed it over.

Baldur hurriedly emptied the contents of the jar into the elf's wounds. The elf, who Baldur had thought to be dead thrashed around madly from the pain of his salted wounds. Shortly after, the elf faded from existence.

Good. It's over. I hope this helps Boldir move on.

"One last thing."

Baldur unsheathed the dagger once more and carved the word TURN on the elf's back for the Thalmor and Imperials to see once they made their way to Falkreath.

"There...it's done. How do you feel, Boldir?"

Boldir shrugged. "One less Thalmor bastard to worry about. I'm just glad you got your revenge. By the way, I borrowed that dagger, so I'll need it back."

"Are you sure you are okay? No more thoughts of guilt now that you helped me with this?"

"Am I okay? I suppose. Is it okay to feel good after doing something like that?"

"To be honest, probably not, no. I didn't really want to go through with this after the wedding, but we are warriors. Not priests of Mara. We do what others cannot. And we have to send a message to those Thalmor. No one will take our land. And no one will ever take me from you and Rebec ever again. I swear it. Now come, lets go to the party. I miss my wife."

Before Baldur turned to walk away, he looked one last time to the Thalmor's corpse. "Now that's how I celebrate a wedding."

Baldur spat into the elf's wound, then took off in the direction of Falkreath.

[The Good Doctor]

Eduard Laenius, Gracchus, Lorgar- Just outside of Falkreath, Early Morning

 

After not getting much sleep, Eduard got up to go see the healer in the medical tent. He was feeling pretty bad at this point.

I'm feeling worse than when I first got here, he thought.

As he walked to the tent, he swayed from side to side. He could not walk straight for the life of him.

I uhh... I should have gotten... More sleep.

He then looked down to see how the cut was doing.

What the hell happened?!?

It wasn't pretty. Not only had the wound gotten as bad as it was previously, it had gotten worse. There were small blisters forming in the surrounding area around the cut.

Hopefully she does a better job this time. I could care less if she's hot at this point. If she can't cure me, it won't matter anyways. Need to find that tent.

He finally saw the tent through his blurry vision. He stumbled towards it.

The girl from yesterday was shocked to see the state Eduard was in.

"Oh my.... come here," she said, beginning to walk towards him.

"Oh, okay.... I'll walk... to you," he slurred.

"We're going to get you through this," she said, nearing him.

"Oh... tha-"

Out of nowhere, Eduard began to cough up blood.

He coughed about 6 times, before saying "What's going-"

He didn't finish that sentence. He collapsed in the girls arms.

"****. This isn't good."

 

~-~-~-~

 

Wh.... where am I....

Eduard looked around, only seeing a blinding light, only to have it, and his consciousness, fade away again.

 

~-~-~-~

 

This time when Eduard awoke, he was slightly more aware.

Am I really going to fall to this infection? I can't. But I don't really have a choice in the matter... I guess.

He tried to open his eyes, but he was unable to do so.

I have to fight. If I'm gonna die, I mine as well make it interesting...

He let himself fall from consciousness, hoping he would awaken with more strength.

 

~-~-~-~

 

Eduard re-entered consciousness again. He was feeling extremely drained, but no longer in pain.

I'm feeling alright. This must be it. The calm before the storm. Hopefully Liv will forgive me. Pretty weak death. I'd of rather that bolt hit me between the eyes. Damnit no, I need to keep fighting.

Eduard went back out of consciousness, for, in his mind, the very last time.

 

~-~-~-~

 

Eduard suddenly opened his eyes.

What? I'm not dead?

He began to sit up, but he was promptly pushed back down.

"No no no! You can't sit up. You need to stay lying down!"

He looked to see the female healer. The hot one, anyways.

"Okay... Although, if you don't mind me asking, what happened?"

"I did it. I was able to rid your body of that nasty infection though. However, it'll take 2 days of rest for you to recover, at the least!"

A days rest you mean. I can't afford to take 2 days off at this point. Time is too valuable right now.

"Alright. Whatever you say. You did save my life after all, miss..."

"Lyra. You're Eduard, right?"

"That would be correct."

Well Eduard, you need to get some sleep."

"That's all I've done so far this morning. How long did this take anyways?"

"Around 45 minutes, I believe."

"Well then. I'll stay up a little while longer, if that's alright by you. Can't waste this whole morning sleeping."

"Fine. I have stuff to do. I expect you to be sleeping when I return though."

Okay, mom.

"Oh... alright."

The healer then left the tent, leaving Eduard alone.

A hooded figure, went into the tent, Eduard recognized him anywhere, it was Lorgar,

"Eduard, are you alright? I came as quick as I could when I heard you collapsed."

Gracchus was standing over Eduard when the healer left, and said,

"My my, someone is looking rather ill this morning. Good to see you are starting to pull through. I guess my healing abilities aren't as practiced as I thought."

He gave his partner a half smile. It was the first time he had seen him since the assassination.

"I'm alright. Well... I wasn't. But I am now. Healer just says I need a days rest. It's been a little bit of a wild morning for me."

He hadn't even seen the Legate in the tent.

"Yeah, like I said. Quite the morning. As for your healing abilities, at least you tried."

He smiled under his hood, smiling coyly,

"Want me to read you a bedtime story to help you relax?" he said in a deadpan tone.

"It depends. What story would you plan on telling?" Eduard asked, with a smile.

"I've heard Lorgar's stories, and trust me, they all are awful," Gracchus said with a playful smile directed at the Darkened Archer

"Oh you know, a little bit of girl love, a little bit of action, a little bit of drama, the way I like it..."

His tone became more serious, "So the Crossbow wound was more deadly then you originally thought?"

"Not so much the wound, but the infection that followed. Nasty business," Gracchus said, his brow wrinkling as he thought about the pus filled wound.

He smiled at Grachhus' crack at Lorgar. That smile changed to a serious tone once Lorgar had gotten serious.

"Well yes. I had thought I was able to keep it clean, but I guess I was wrong. Enough dirt and **** got in there to put me here, so I did underestimate it. Luckily I didn't figure this all out on the battlefield, I guess."

"Yes, fainting at the hands of the enemy wouldn't do you any good. So how you holding up?"Gracchus asked.

He turned towards Graccus, once again using his dead pan tone,

"We all know sir, you have a stash of Yuri under your pillow."

"If that's what help you sleep at night Lorgar,"Gracchus said playfully.

Eduard shuddered at the thought of th Legate reading his partners odd Yuri stuff.

"I'm holding up decently enough. I mean, I don't think I can stand up, but I'm doing well enough."

"Well too bad then, leaving all the poor stormcloak too little old me..."

Eduard responded by sitting up.

"You kidding? Those damn Cloaks come around, I'll get myself out of this bed."

He lightly tapped him on his shoulder,

"No your not, your going to stay in bed during the siege, and let the healthy soldiers fight. Your in no condition too."

He nodded his head.

"Unless you guys are planning on winning this siege today, I'll be able to join the fight. I should only need one full day of rest to recover."

"I think you will be fine come siege time. We are still waiting for the Thalmor to arrive," Gracchus said.

Lorgar blurted out, "I dont trust them at all sir..."

"Neither do I, but this siege will not work at all if they aren't there to help us. Our troops are too few to successfully lay siege to Falkreath without them," Gracchus said while frowning.

"I agree. I wouldn't trust one to be further than the length of a blade, but we don't have much of a choice," Eduard said.

Random outburst by Lorgar. Must be a big deal to him. Can't say I blame him.

"True..." Lorgar leaned in and whispered into his CO's ears, 

"Sir, how's the princess doing, did those bastards hurt her?"

Eduard thought he heard Lorgar say something, but he decided it was the fatigue getting to him.

"Fine, she is a little depressed still, but she seems better off. Has she talked to you about anything?"Gracchus asked in a whisper.

"Yes, a blade length is always a good form of measurement when it comes to the Thalmor,"Gracchus said aloud.

"She did, a day ago, she said she would require my loyalty and skill soon. I think she's...sad for some reason" He continued to speak in a whisper, but also said out-loud,

"Quite sir."

By now, Eduard had figured out that Lorgar and Gracchus were having a hushed conversation. Not that he cared. 

People are allowed to have secrets after all, he thought.

"Lets continue this discussion elsewhere, like in my tent," Gracchus whispered.

"Well, I guess we had better let you sleep, if you are going to be healthy enough to join the siege,"Gracchus said before leaving.

Lorgar, took out a book before pulling up his hood and winking at him. He placed the book on the soldier's bed, before saying,

"Something for relaxation"

He left the tent and followed his superior officer to his tent.

Eduard didn't even bother to look at the book his partner left him. Even if it was a war strategy book that he hasn't read yet, he was too tired to read besides he -

"Ahem. Would you mind telling me why you're still up?"

It was the girl who saved him.

"Oh yeah. Sorry. My bad..." Eduard said, barely awake. "You know, I thought I was going to have a much different morning."

"I would hope you wouldn't be planning a morning like this."

"Yeah, I was hoping to come here and have a relatively good time."

"Yeah well, we didn't have a good time. You spit blood in my face. That's as far from a good time as it gets."

Eduard let out a small laugh.

"Well, it could have been worse."

That got a scowl from the healer.

"Okay okay, maybe it was really bad."

"Yeah. That's what I thought. I'm glad you pulled through though. But you need to get to sleep."

"Thanks, and fine," he said, already drifting towards sleep.

She really does sound like my mom, he thought before going to sleep.

[The Good Doctor]

Lorgar Grimmaw and General Graccus,  Pale Pass Camp

 

Gracchus made it to the tent, with Lorgar behind.

"So, why exactly did she tell you?" He asked.

"She told me many things, knight of the rose. She told me everything... She confided in me, though I already knew half of it."

"Ay, so you know about the whole "knight of the rose" business. So what's your take on her grand ideas?" Gracchus asked.

"Well, I can see her motivation is very strong, and despite what you think she's a strong-willed girl. If anything, the death of her beloved has made her stronger. As long as she has people to guide and assist her in this plan of hers, I think she can pull it of."

He looked a little grim for a moment, "But we''ll need assistance, a little bird told me you visited General Baldur Red-snow in his cell when the Thalmor had him. That true?" 

"She did seem to gain motivation from her maid dying. And yes, I visited him, and probably was his savior. They handy given any water for at least two days, so I obliged. Why?" Gracchus asked.

"What did you two talk about?"

"The Thalmor. He wanted me to betray them. And I refused. I see now that was the wrong choice," Gracchus said solemnly.

He nodded his head, "I understand. I'll have to put aside my personal feelings now it seems. Is there anyway you can get into contact with them and arrange a meeting?"

"Are you insane? Even if I wanted to talk to him, whose to say he would want to talk to me? I...I don't know what he would do," Gracchus replied.

"Baldur is a man of reason if nothing else. You have to swallow your fear and pride and act like a knight, just as milady expects you too."

"You're right. If we come to him,
I'm sure he would join us. But until then, we can not just postpone the siege, otherwise the Thalmor will suspect something. Kill a thousand to save a million," Gracchus said solemnly

"Agreed"

Lorgar began to leave the tent, he turned around,

"I'll need a few weeks to arrange everything. Be ready by then..."

"I will be. Make sure the princess knows, and until then we go along with the siege as planned." 

Gracchus saw Lorgar leave, and then went about planning for the siege.

[The Good Doctor]

Valindil and Gracchus

 

Valindil left a few hours ago with one thousand seven hundred men. The rest of his Elves he had left at Helgen, while he left about forty Elves at Neugrad. He ordered the Helgen garrison to immediately retreat to Neugrad if they were attacked.

It was a sunny day, and the rainstorms had finally stopped. Valindil could see the Imperial camp at the bottom of the hill from his horse.

"Stop here." He ordered the battalion. "You Elves," He pointed to a Lieutenant, a Captain, and seven lancers. "Come with me. We are to go see Legate Gracchus and notify him of our arrival, he shall be glad to hear of our arrival right from us."

They all rode off together down the hill towards the Imperial camp in search of Gracchus.

Gracchus was in the war tent, which also doubled as his living quarters, when he headed the clanging of boots on ground, signifying the Thalmor's arrival.

Just what I needed, another reminder of all the shit that has happened the past few days, he thought.

Valindil dismounted his horse and his entourage did the same. He entered the war tent with the captain and the lieutenant while the lancers waited outside and tied up the horses.

"Good morning Gracchus. I trust everything is going according to plan?" Valindil greeted.

"Good day Colonel. Yes, we have move into preliminary position and were awaiting your arrival to begin the actual siege. How did your tasks go?" Gracchus asked.

"They went well indeed. Losses were only 40 Elves, which is more than I would have liked, but still acceptable."

"Understood. How many did you leave behind?" Gracchus asked.

"About 700, why do you ask?"

"Just wondering how many troops we have at our disposal," Gracchus said.

"Now, how about you get them fed and rested so we can begin the siege tomorrow."

"Alright, sounds good. We will be camped up the hill, a ways away if you need us." With that Valindil and his entourage left and headed back up the hill.

[The Good Doctor]

Witch-king (aka Witchie alias Skjari), Lorgar, Dales

Imperial camp outside Falkreath

Afternoon

 

 

Lorgar walked though the rain drenched camp, his cloak soaked. He hurriedly walked to his designation trying to ignore the downpour. 

Witchie's going to be pissed.

It was the tent beside the giant "Royal" one, the one belonging to the royal teacher he knocked on it's entrance.

"It's Prefect Lorgar."

"Come in." Witchie said is an indifferent voice. 

He opened the flap of the tent, the tent was actually quite luxurious, though his target wasn't the furniture, it was his "ally" Witchie. He addressed him,

"I'll get straight to the point, and I don't think your going to like it. The High overseer has left Cyrdolil and has headed back to the Summerset Isles."

"I feared as much. But this doesn't change much. Your target was the most high ranking Thalmor in Skyrim. Now that person happens to be Valandel or Velandil or whatever that bloody elf is called. I'm sure you know of who I speak of."

Lorgar's curled his fist into a ball, "That's the bastard who ordered the hit on Dales correct?"

"Most likely, though I don't know exactly who gave the order. All I know is that the assassin was Thalmor. But yes, all indications point to him as he would be the one to take over if the princess died." 

Lorgar nodded, "I'll get it done, that bastards been alive for far too long." His tone softened, "I also thought you should know, Dales is having very bad nightmares. I've heard her cry out many times for the past few days."

"I think I can guess what she dreams about. But that isn't important right now. You know that your target is now surrounded by an army. You might need help on this." 

"I can request tactical assistance from my contact and if the need arises I can also request the support of my partner, Prefect Edaurd."

"I think I heard about him, he was brought into the medic tent for an infection. Apparently he survived, which is quite a feat as the work all the healers do is sloppy at best."

"He's a tough son of a bitch, so he should be an asset. I also need to ask you something, Dales has garnered the support of Legate Gracchus and in doing so, the entire legion, did you assist her on this?"

"Depends on how you see it, though I wont disclose any details to you." 

His eyes narrowed, "Witchie, are you using Milady as a pawn? Or is she making these choices herself, and doing this on her own?"

"It's Skjari here. And as I said, depends on how you see it and I wont disclose the details to you. Or do you want a 10 years lesson in how the binding works?"

"As long as Dales isn't turning into some Dwemer construct that obeys your every command and is treated like a machine, I'm fine. One more thing, one of my contact's...thanks your for your assistance in breaking out General Red-snow...Witch-king." Lorgar put his hood up, before walking out into the rain stained camp.

That fool will break my cover if he continues to call me that. 

"MASTER MASTER" Witchie heard a girly and shrilly voice coming from outside his tent, a few seconds after Lorgar left.

So much for peace and quite.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Can I talk to you about a few things master?"

"Depends on what you want to talk about." 

She entered the tent and looked really shy for a moment, before saying, "I have a few questions on being a monarch...and relationships. Your the only one who I thought would know about these stuff, since you know everything!!!”

"I would be a god if I knew everything. Last time I checked I was not a god." 

She giggled, "But you're my master, you're suppose to know everything silly."

"Ask your questions."

She nodded her head quickly, before entering his tent. She took out a chair and sat down. "So I've been thinking of late, me being empress and all that my first question is, I don't want to be like that pig Amaund, I don't want to oppress my subjects, so how will I be able to win there hearts?"

"Find out what they like and give 'em that. And find out what they don't like and crush that. I gave my people stability and all that when I conquered Skyrim. I gave them vengeance when I crushed the invading elves. I gave them blood, war and misery and the loved me for it. Though you wont be ruling a warrior people." 

"Do you think they would like me if I wiped out the dominion from Cyrdoili and High Rock? Or maybe I could help the people in my cities to rebuild?"

"Or you could do both." 

"That seems like a good idea...I want to help the common folk, my dad spends a large sum of money on making the richer districts grow in splendor, but doesn't give a single septim to help the poor and middle caste. I have another question...it's about heirs..." Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

Alduin's fire. 

Dales uncomfortably shuffled in her chair, before saying, "I you...know by now my...ummmm "preference" correct?"

"Get to the point." 

"Ummmm....I'll need an heir correct?" She looked terrified, "Will I have to...get married to a boy and have..." She was genuinely scared.

"That is what is expected of you. Unless you have siblings that can produce heirs for you." 

"Do I have to?...I don't like boys..." Her face lit up for a second, "Can I just adopt some children?"

"Might work, I don't know how the ruling class works like in Cyrodiil. So you don't have any siblings?"

"I have two brothers... but- They're like my father." She looked away darkly. 

"Kill them once they've done their part then."

She nodded, "They...helped my father beat me when I was younger...I want them to die." She also looked depressed, "I have one more question...I'm debating with myself should I start another relationship....but I don want to dishonor Elan's memory...but I know she would want me to be happy...so I'm stuck."

"Now you're asking the wrong person."

"But didn't you lose someone you loved? What did you do?"

"Conquered Skyrim." 

She looked away before sighing, "I'm serious, this has been bugging me for a long while now." She looked away again, "I see her face when ever I close my eyes..."

"You'll get over it. This isn't something I can answer for you."

She nodded her head, "Okay then...Thanks for listening to me ..."

"Is there anything else I need to know?" 

"What.... do you mean?"

"Information about the Thalmor, your little conspiracy and such." 

'"OH, that." She breathed out in relief, "A large force is here, aiding the imperial forces in the siege. They tried to get me to sign some documents a few days ago, I tore them to shreds."

Witchie noticed her sudden relaxation, "I get the feeling that you're hiding something."

"I... don't know what your talking about."

"Spit it out" 

That's an order.

"I'm... having very bad nightmares.. every night..."

"Is that all?"

"That's all..."

"You'll get used to that too."

"You have nightmares too?"

"Don't you have anything else to do?"

Unexpectedly, tears started forming around the princess eyes and she started to cry, "If you don't wanna bother listening to me, you could have said so in the beginning." She ran out into the rain, crying.

Why can't I get stuck with more resilient princesses. 

[The Good Doctor]

Princess Dales Moitre, Pale Pass Camp, Morning

 

The princess spent the rest of the rainy day crying by herself in the trunk of a tree, thinking about her being empress and Elan. It was getting really dark out, so the princess decided to head back to her tent and went to sleep, when she woke up , her maids weren't there.. She didn't really mind at all to do things herself, but her maids where always there when she woke up . This was unusual. She decided to go to the maids tent and see if there where all right, she opened the flap, 

"Hey Merci-

She froze up, her mouth opened wide. What she saw was...very unexpected. 

All the beds was stuffed up together near the middle of the tent, with all the maids lying in the now very large bed. They were all cuddling up to each other under the cover and in the middle of the tight bundle of all the women lied her master. Whom just looked up at her and spoke in a calm and a bit sleepy voice.

"You need something?"

"MASTER?!"

"Unless we're under attack, it's too early for screaming." 

"WHAT THE HELL?" 

The one directly beside her master, Miku, yawned and sheepishly stretched out her arms, cuddling closer to Witchie."

"My Lord who's screaming?"

He leaned towards Miku a little, "It's just Dales."

"Oh okay..." She closed her eyes for half a second, before everyone was woken up by a loud shrilly scream

"MAIDS BACK TO MY TENT NOW!!!"

"Why? I think they deserve a moments rest." Witchie said with a relaxed tone.

"I said maids get out of HERE NOW!!!" 

With sighs of protest and annoyance, one by one the maids got out of there beds, put on there clothing, and left to go to Dales tent.

"There's always the next night." he said, sounding both a bit disappointed and hopeful. 

A trace of anger flashed on her face, and she closed the distance between them, landing a slap on the right side of his face.

He chuckled, "Why?"

 

She looked really pissed "All you men are pigs!!!"

"You are NEVER to use my maids to satisfy the thing under your pants again, Do you understand me?"

"The maids were quite satisfied themselves. Why do you want to spoil their fun?" 

"Their fun? Being used as an object, and being treated like nothing more then a plaything is degrading for them. I wont let you use them."

"If you were here last night, I would argue that it was I who was used as a plaything." 

She put her hands up, "I don't want to know the details, just don't touch them again."

"Why? Truth be told, it was they who instigated it. I just didn't say no."

She said, "What?!"

"You remember what I told you back in the fort that a maid flirted with me?" 

"Yes? I think it was Kongami or Miku..."

"Well she decided to try her luck and next thing I know the other three are in on it as well."

"You mean...you all..."did it" all at the same time?"

"I used to do it most of the time when I was king. There were always three to five mistresses in my bed."

"You...you pig!!!! You where never faithful to one person?" 

"One, but she died. You remember that golden statue back in my sanctum? And what I told you about it?" 

"But...after she died you buried yourself in woman, booze, and warfare!!!! Typical man...and you wonder why I like girls..."

With that she left her maids tent.

"You don't even know half of it." he said when she had barely stepped outside the tent. 

" Hmpth, All I need to know is that you are a pig. Making love with someone has nothing to do with pleasure"

"That's a point of view. You said you had nightmares... you don't know the half of it." 

"Do you even know what I have nightmares about?"

"Let me guess, your lovers death? That's not even half as bad to what I got." 

She chuckled, "You only know half of it then." With that she turned away, and left after saying, "Leave my maids alone."

[The Good Doctor]

Osgumund and Ra’Jahirr, Imperial City Thalmor Headquarters Early afternoon

 

Osgumund was at the Thalmor Headquarters sitting in his office when his secretary entered.

“An Argonian here to see you, sir.” She said.

“Ah yes, let him in.”

Lord Kajiin entered the room and sat down in the chair in front of Osgumund’s desk, next to where Ra’Jahirr sat.

“Good day, Lord Kajiin,” Osgumund greeted. “Are you ready to discuss politics again?” He asked with a chuckle. “Come, let us begin. I have sent the information to Argonian news sources and the story should be out soon. I can see the headlines now!” He said dramatically, “Shocking truth revealed: Dunmer ally with enemies of the Dominion.”

“Yes, we will be forced to ally with the Dominion, and the Dunmer can finally be cut down to size!” Kajiin replied.

They all laughed together.

“Here, have some tea.” Jahirr said. He poured a cup of tea for the new arrival and handed it to him.

“Thank you,” the Argonian replied. “So when should we be expecting news of a treaty?”

Osgumund sighed and thought for a moment. “Two weeks? Maybe three? The Argonian government is sure to respond quite quickly I’d hope.”

There was a long silence.

“So where will High Rock be allying itself?” Ra’Jahirr asked.

Osgumund thought again. “I’d like to say it would stay with the Empire, but I’m afraid Hammerfell would pressure it to join its side, and the fact that it is not directly connected to Cyrodiil makes the odds that it would join us even worse.”

Ra’Jahirr nodded, deep in thought.

They kept talking for a half hour when Ra’Jahirr announced it was time for him to leave. “The Imperial Palace shall be needing me more than ever in the near future. I must be leaving now, good day.”

They said farewell and the Khajiit left.

[The Good Doctor]

Rebec, Baldur, Boldir
Falkreath
evening, after the wedding

Rebec found it hard not to think about where Baldur and Boldir were, more importantly what they were doing, but there were too many war preparations to dwell on it.  As she was talking to the bowyer who was almost done with her crossbow repairs, she found herself suddenly surrounded by Ra Gada warriors.

"We're here to kidnap the bride," one of the men said sternly.  The others with him were just as stone-faced and imposing, such that the bowyer asked Rebec worriedly if he should call some other guards.

Rebec waved off the man's concern, knowing that her niece was behind this.  To the redguard she replied, "Very well I'll just be a mo-"  Before she could finish her sentence, one of the largest of the Hammerfell warriors had picked her up and slung her over his shoulder, and was carting her off towards the redguard camp.

There, a large bonfire had been made and other redguard were already gathered, passing around whatever food and drink they'd been able to scrounge.  They all cheered when they saw Rebec being carried in like a sack of potatoes.  The men took her to a large tent and dropped her down on a pallet, where Suri and some of the other female soldiers from Hammerfell waited with silks and gems in hand.

 

***

Baldur already trying mentally block out the fate of the elf. While he did not feel bad for the elf, he still wished that he did not sink down to the mer's level. But that was in the past, or so he wanted to believe. After a few minutes of forget, his hand would start shaking again to remind him.

I may have taken more damage than I thought. Hopefully it will stop one day.

Baldur gripped his axe once again to stop the shaking. As the pair walked back into the town, Baldur asked, "Boldir, do you still have your flute?"

"I left it at Neugrad." That flute was one of very few items that held sentimental value to Boldir, and even though he knew it wasn't his fault, he'd kicked himself inwardly for losing it more than a few times. By now some bandit's probably claimed it for himself. The thought sickened him. Boldir hated bandits.

Baldur tapped Boldir on the back, as he was obviously distraught over the flute.

"That simply won't do! I'm sure one of the Redguards can trade for one. Come on, lets hurry to that party!"

"Sounds good." Boldir hurried to keep pace with his friend.

Baldur and Boldir ran as fast as they could to make it to the festivities before they missed too much. Baldur could see the Redguard camp area ahead and heard some laughter. Baldur looked around and didn't see Rebec, however, and was a little annoyed. He wondered if she was mad about the duel afterall.

I hope she didn't decide not to come.

"Hey, soldier."

Baldur spun the man around and was surprised to see Jodun.

"Jodun? Hey, you came for the party? I thought you had to stay disciplined or something. Boldir told me."

Jodun seemed to have been drinking, which was very bizarre for Baldur to see from what he knew about him. The alcohol's effect only seemed to make him more normal. At least by nord standards.

"Hey, Baldur! Why didn't you tell me about the wedding, you pile of dragon scat! Yea, I came to loosen up a bit. Don't tell my men though."

Baldur smiled, but was still visibly confused.

"Wouldn't dream of it. Where's Rebec?"

Jodun pointed in the direction of the tent with the women, but it was shut closed. All Baldur could hear was girls giggling in the tent.

"Um...Boldir? What do...you uh...think they're doing in there?"

As if in answer to Baldur's question, there were screams and peals of laughter from the tent and the canvas bulged as though someone was thrown against the side from within.

Boldir laughed at the commotion. "I don't know. And I'm wondering if it's safe to try and find out."

"Let's find out, Iron-Brow."

Baldur tip toed his way to the tent entrance, and could still hear lots of giggling and laughter. Baldur turned around to Boldir and whispered.

"Ok, Iron-Brow. This is either the best day of my life, or the most disappointing. Which do you bet it is? I have fifty septims on best."

Boldir wasn't much one for socializing. And he wasn't for invading privacy either, although he was a tad curious. "You're really going in there?"

"...Hmm. I don't know. I wasn't planning on jumping in of course, unless of course she asked...Would I? I mean if she asked...but she could be drunk...but if she's not...but I could feel guilty afterwards even though she's there..but...and then...damn it! Fine, Boldir, you peek in and tell me what you see. Okay?"

"What?! No way am I-"

Just then the flap of the women's tent opened and a gaggle of redguard emerged, bodily dragging Rebec with them.  She was dressed in Hammerfell silks:  Sand-colored loose pants, a scrap of bright yellow on top that left her midriff and a good bit of her cleavage bare, cloth slippers, and a loose cowl with a jeweled headpiece.  Her warpaint had been replaced by kohl liner around her eyes, henna tracings on her face and hands, and red color on her lips.

The crowd around the fire erupted in whistles and cheers, and there were calls for the bridal dance.  More women joined the others and it was apparent this was meant to be a female-only dance.  Jostled along as the dancers start up,  Rebec suddenly spotted Baldur and Boldir nearby and yelled "Get me out of-" but was pulled into the circle around the fire before she could finish her distress call.

Boldir looked over at Baldur, who he could see looked just as surprised. "Should... uh... Should we help her?"

Baldur was entranced, and didn't hear what Boldir said. He never saw Rebec in anything but military clothes and had no idea she could look so...different.

Amazing.

Jodun popped up behind him which made him jump.

"Wowy, who is that? I don't think I've seen her before..."

Baldur elbowed him in the gut.

"Hey! She's mine."

Jodun replied confusedly. "Aren't you married with Rebec?"

"You idiot, that IS Rebec! How drunk are you?" said Baldur.

"Whaaat? That's Rebec?"

"Hey, what the hell is that supposed to mean?" asked Baldur.

"Nothing, it's just...if you asked me to picture Rebec in our bride garbs...I'd draw a blank."

Baldur still looking at Rebec laughed out at the coincidence.

There had been sand liquor flowing in the women's tent already, and someone handed Rebec a flask of it as she passed by, so by the time she made a second circuit around the bonfire her attempts to follow the dance steps were beginning to resemble human movement rather than horker.

She was even laughing as she came around to her husband and his companions again.  She pointed at Baldur.  "Hey Jodun, if I have to get dressed up then so does he.  And take Boldir with you, too, if you've got one of these turban things big enough for his head."

Baldur looked to Boldir and said, "I am NOT wearing those. No offense Jodun. It wouldn't suit me."

"Nor me." Boldir agreed. He grabbed a flask of the liquor from someone passing by and took a swig, then promptly spat it back out. "What is this? Horker piss?! Where's the mead?"

Jodun had a mischievous look on his face, and saw a perfect opportunity to get some laughs. He ran into a nearby tent, and came back with some nord mead and two tankards.

"Here you go! Nord mead."

He gave them both tankards and began to pour. Then he stood back his the bottles in hand and waited for them to lift their tankards back and drink.

Come on you two...drink!

Jodun twirled the bottles in his had as if they were a pair of daggers.

Baldur took the tankard from Jodun without hesitation.

"Thank's Jodun! A toast, Boldir?"

Suri came up to the men. "Uncle!" she shouted happily at Baldur.  She'd been into the drink already, too.  "You made it.  Why are you drinking that disgusting drink?"

"Oh, hey niece!"

Baldur stood up and walked off with the mead to speak with his new family member. Jodun was a little put off, but he still had Boldir.

You're mine, big man.

As Baldur headed off with Suri, Boldir took a large swig of his mead.

"That's more like it." He turned to Jodun. "So how about tha-"
He stopped as he saw the odd, almost mischievous way that Jodun was looking at him.
"Er... Jodun, why are you looking at me like that?"

"What? Oh, nothing. Here take another swig, and I'll get you some more mead." said Jodun.

Boldir took another drink. He's being odd. "Slow down there, Redguard. I'll have another when I'm ready."

Jodun had enough. "Oh for the love of Shinji!" Jodun took the bottles he was twirling and smacked both sides of Boldir's thick skull with them, cracking them both instantly and breaking them apart. Boldir didn't fall unconscious however, so Jodun had to take his tankard and smack him once more. After the thick headed nord finally toppled over, Jodun let out a loud whistle, and a group of female redguards came and took him back to the tent that Rebec was in. After Boldir was gone, Jodun whistled innocently and walked away to get more drink.

"So what do you think?" Suri asked, gesturing at Rebec.  "It took some bumps and bruises to get her into those clothes.  You know, I think you both should come to Hammerfell after we've beaten the Thalmor.  It never stops raining in this Skyrim."

The women had stopped their circle dance and broken off into small groups.  To the sound of small hand drums and flute, they were doing a slower, more sensual dance.  Rebec had gotten enough drink in her to lose her inhibition.  She already knew the dances, in fact.

While Baldur watched his wife participating in the strange Redguard dances, he answered Suri defensively.

"Hey, not all of Skyrim is like Falkreath. Most of it's snow, which I am not as fond of as you'd think. But it has it's nice spots. Anyway, if we get a break after this war, then yes. I'll insist that I get some time off from Ulfric. He and Galmar can supervise the rebuilding efforts. That is...assuming we get past this situation of course."

"Don't worry, Uncle.  You've got the best Thalmor fighters in Tamriel here.  I've been making mana drain and paralyze poisons for the archers.  It's great fun.  I'm curious to see them in action.  Come on, you look hungry."  Suri pulled on Baldur's arm and led him toward a stool near the fire, then went to get him some food.  Other redguard gathered around him, slapping him on the back and congratulating him.

Suri returned and gave him a piece of bread, then held out a small bowl of a smooth red sauce.  "Here, dip your bread in this, Uncle.  It's a special food from Hammerfell, very delicious."   The redguard were all grinning, watching Baldur intently.

Baldur's eyes widened at the mention of food, especially exotic food. He was once again starving, and wasted no time dipping the bread in the strange red paste. Baldur's mouth began to salivate in anticipation in great volumes before he took a bite.

"Ha, I'm loving you already, Suri! Keep bringing me food, and we'll get along great. *Nom* Mmm, this stuff is really good. You know...mmm, this reminds me of my moms..."

Baldur started chewing slower and slower when the spicy food started to kick in. Baldur's face turned bright red, and his brow started to grow moist.

"MMMM! There's something wrong with this paste! *cough cough* Hot! I need mead!"

"It's like your mother's, really?" Suri asked Baldur, watching the steam come from the Nord's ears and barely able to contain her laughter.  The others around her had less self control.  "Well then, have some more, Uncle.  Eat, eat."

"Now you know why they call her Snake-Blade," one of the more compassionate redguard said, handing Baldur a bottle of mead.

Baldur downed the entire bottle in one tilt. The burning sensation wasn't fully gone, but it was better. Baldur was not as tickled as the rest. In his eyes if there was one thing you don't do, it's trick a man when it comes to food. Baldur gave a pout at the still laughing Suri.

"Hilarious. Well, since my niece decided to feed me lava, I guess I can't sing anymore."

There were howls of disapproval, Suri among them.  "Here, have some more mead, that always makes Nords feel better."  She pushed another bottle of cure-all on him.

Rebec's voice could be heard, and as she approached there were echoes of "Tu'kathwa" from the redguard, and more laughter.  The admiral plopped down on a stool next to her husband, saying, "Very funny, you sand rats.  What are you doing to my husband?  He'll be running back to the Thalmor for quarter."  Soon Suri came around with more plates, this time with hunks of roasted meat and vegetables.

Baldur hated admitting it, but the mead did indeed make him feel better. Lucky for Suri, Baldur may have been up to some Bard tales afterall.

"Your niece here was just treating me to some delicious lava. Fresh from Dagon's Deadlands. I'm loving this new get up of yours by the way. You wearing that all night?"

"Don't get used to it," Rebec answered, grinning.  She grabbed up a chunk of meat from a passing plate and started eating with her fingers.  "Where's Boldir?  You didn't let the women get at him, did you?  They are Dagon's devils and no mistake."

Baldur turned around to point at his location.

"No, he's back over...no...no way..."

Baldur looked over, and sure enough the very same tent was shacking and filled with giggles, but the giggles this time were much much louder and suggesting.

"Oh Talos, it sounds like they're really enjoying themselves. I'm surprised they got him in there."

Jodun stepped up to the couple and waved around a broken bottle.

"Actually...They had a little help."

Baldur noticed the label on the bottle was the same one Jodun poured for him.

"You bastard, you were gonna knock us both out!"

"Easy there, Baldur. It would have failed anyway. It took me both bottles and a tankard to knock him out."

Baldur started thinking about what they did to Rebec.

"They're not gonna dress him up like Rebec, are they?"

Rebec started laughing, first small hoots and then louder.  "Oh, this should be good."

"Uggghhh...."
Boldir could feel his head throbbing, and not just in one spot, but two. He could hear giggling coming from all sides. All women from the sound of it.
What happened?
He was almost scared to open his eyes. Finally, he forced himself to, causing an eruption of giggles and laughter. Boldir looked around. He appeared to be in a tent, and there must've been a half dozen Redguard women surrounding him, all laughing for some reason.
He sat up groaning. "What's so damned funny?"
The intensity of the laughter must've doubled when he spoke. Confused, Boldir turned and saw a pile of armor pieces at the edge of the tent. His armor. Boldir looked down at his own body. "Shor's bones!"

Boldir tried to compose himself, something that was easier said than done when you're a Nord man sitting in a room full of giggling Redguard women who are wearing outfits to match your own. Or moreover, you're wearing one to match their own. The laughter further increased as Boldir reached up to remove the ridiculously small top and felt his own hair. His hand jerked back. He was sure it wasn't his hair he'd felt. One of the Redguard women turned a mirror his way so he could see his reflection.

You've got to be kidding me. Boldir's hair, which normally loosely hung over his shoulders, had been twisted into Redguard-styled dreadlocks. The fact that his hair was nowhere near as thick as a Redguard's only further added to the ridiculousness of this look. "Kyne preserve me."

The redguard women flock around Boldir, chattering in Yokudan, possibly bartering for him.

"Come on, large one," one of them said, pulling on the Nord's arm to lead him outside. "Come dance for us."

Boldir pulled back. Refusing to budge.
"Sorry, but there's not enough mead in the world to get me out there wearing this. You'll just have to try clubbing me again."

The Ra Gada then tried greater persuasion, gathering around him and plying him, though still with cooing voices. "You're so handsome now," one told him.  "Our clothing suits you."  Another started to laugh at that and got a slap from the first.

Boldir had never felt so awkward in his life. "Your clothing suits someone about half my size."
Unsure how to respond to their advances, Boldir elected to just remain seated. The only thing he knew for sure was that he wasn't willingly going to leave this tent. He'd never hear the end of it from the troops. And he didn't want to give Jodun the satisfaction.

Desert warriors were nothing if not resourceful.  As Boldir refused to budge, one of them slipped out. A few minutes later there is rustling at the sides of the tent, and then- there is no tent.  The front wall of the tent is thrown back, and then another side and another until Boldir and the redguard women are all out in the open.

"Gods and harlots," Rebec said, standing from her chair.  She licked the meat juice from her fingers and pointed to where Boldir sat among a gaggle of adoring redguard.  "Baldur.  I think you'd better go rescue him.  The tattooing will be next.  They're just arguing over who gets to put her mark on him."

Baldur stood up and looked in Boldir's direction, but Baldur wasn't really there. He was staring right at him...but his disbelief made him blank out for a while. Seeing Boldir sitting in that outfit. Baldur realised he was there when he accidentally dropped his mead. Then, the uncontrollable fits of what only a mad man would call just laughter. A sane man crying with a combination of extreme cackling from a sabre cat. Baldur bent forward from the pain in his gut from the uncontrollable laughing, and he silently cursed Sheogorath for temporarily infecting him with his influence.

"Huyuhyuhyhyuhyuhhyuh! *coughcough* huyhuyhuyhuuyhuyuhhaha!"

Rebec was in much the same condition as her husband, but a little shot of empathy from having been a victim herself brought her around.  Approaching Boldir, she said, "It's a good look for you.  Maybe between the two of us we can go out on the walls and seduce the Thalmor to go home."

Boldir looked from Baldur to Rebec. His face had never been so red, from both embarrassment and anger. He couldn't even make out what Rebec was saying as it was being drowned out by Baldur's drunken laughter. His one and only consolation was that there weren't many Nords at the party. He spread out his arms. "Yeah yeah, laugh it up you bastards."

After giving everyone a good minute, he struggled to take off the ridiculous top. He couldn't imagine how those women had gotten it on him, as he ended up just ripping off before finding a way to actually remove it, much to the onlookers' amusement.

Aw, you looked pretty.

Boldir's frown intensified. Not only because it was Carlotta's amused voice that he'd heard, but because he knew that even his own subconscious mind was making fun of him.

So you're back now? What changed Carlotta?

Your clothes.

Funny.

Of course I'm back. I'm in your head, remember? Where am I gonna go?

The women around Boldir were speaking lots of gibberish in Yokundan, or whatever the Redguards' tongue was called. He couldn't make out their words, but some sounded downright heated, as if in argument. He turned to Rebec, who was doing a very poor job of stifling her own amusement.

"Uhh Rebec... What are they talking about?"

"They're about to go to weapons over who gets to take you home to Hammerfell after all this is done.  Don't worry, my lady, I'll protect you."  Rebec doubled over then, unable to hold back.

After pulling herself together, she found a blanket to throw over his shoulders, and took one for herself.  "Come on, Blofar, come sit with us by the fire.  You'll feel better with a flute in your hands.  They owe you one of their best after this."  She said something sharp in Yokudan to the women, who groaned in disappointment, then wandered off laughing.

Boldir wasn't quite as amused as everyone else seemed to be. Although he knew it must've been a pretty funny sight. Were it anyone else, he'd have been laughing his ass off. He looked down at himself again and sighed. Even without the top, he still looked beyond ridiculous with the braided hair, baggy pants, and whatever this big thing on his head was.

"Fine." He grumbled.

As Rebec and Boldir made their way back, Baldur was still crying from the laughter, as was Jodun who was next to him.

"Boldir, I..huhuh-I, eherm..I..wait a minute, hahaha!"

Baldur turned around to Jodun's direction to laugh and get it out of his system.

"Okay...okay. I'm done. I was going to sing a few songs. Would you like to give us some music to go along?"

Boldir briefly smiled and nodded at Jodun to show that he was forgiven. He mouthed the words "well played".
You're not really letting it go so easily are you?

Nope. But I'll save it for later.

He turned back to Baldur, who was waiting for an answer.
"I need a flute."

Jodun pulled a flute out of his pouch attached to his belt and tossed it to him.

"Here, you can have that one. It belonged to my brother. He used to play a bit himself. It's a bit fancier than you average flute with the gold trim on it and the topaz, but it's a flute all the same. This is the second time I've so freely given away my brother's things. Ever since I lost him to Thalmor, that one thought was all I could think about. I give this to you because you and Baldur can understand that better than most. And because his things cause me too much pain. Play it well, Boldir. Heh, you earned it"

Jodun's disposition began to go back to normal he noticed, so he grabbed another tankard of the Redguard's Hammerfell drink, and drowned himself in his cups once more.

Boldir examined the flute. A bit fancier was an understatement. This flute was a thing of beauty. It was adorned with magnificent golden trims and some kind of Yokundan inlays. The red-orange topaz stones along the sides must've been worth a small fortune to most. It made Boldir's old one look like a twig.

Alright, so maybe I should forgive him.

Boldir looked at Jodun. Unsure if he could even accept such a gift. But at the mention of it causing Jodun pain, Boldir decided it was best if he did. "Thank you, Jodun. I will." He brought the flute to his lips and began to play. It was an upbeat tune, one that he would change to suit Baldur when he joined in with his song.

Baldur smiled as he thought of a subject to sing about. Baldur stood up and stood in front of the fire so the light would focus on him in all the darkness for dramatic effect as he pantomimed during his song.

"Gather 'round, everyone, gather 'round. Can I get some drummers? Good, good. I shall tell you a tale that proves that my lineage was born to kill invaders of our land. This is about the tale of the Nord's return to Skyrim after the elves had taken it from them. This is a tale, about the Snow Prince!"

Baldur signaled with his hands to Boldir to play a bit slower. Once he was satisfied that the tune matched what he was going for, he began.

"To understand just who I am, you must go back in time,

To a land in an age oh so long ago, an Island called Solstheim,

With axes and shields and hammers and swords,

They went to battle these elves and these nords,

To punish the elves for heinous and ancient crimes,

 

The nords had long fought back the elves to these shores,

Led by the prestigious Lord Ysgramor,

Off to the island the nords set their courses,

To finish the rest of the enemy forces,

 

In the finest steel, they were ready to fight,

But an elf like no other rode in in all white,

This magical warrior was a bane of man,

“The Snow Prince is here! Doom is at hand!â€

 

The air was so cold, but his magic was colder,

He was more like a Wight, and less like a soldier,

In front of this mer, few Nords could stand,

“The Snow Prince is here! Doom is at hand!â€

 

When the Snow Prince rode in, the elves would rejoice,

They shouted and cheered all them with one voice,

Why this was so, they could not understand,

“The Snow Prince is here! Doom is at hand!â€

 

The battle commenced, he slayed many with spear,

And magics so cold, his weapons caused fear,

An easy win was once the nord’s plan,

But “The Snow Prince is here! Doom is at hand!â€

 

The victory seemed to fall on the elves,

But he killed the mother of a girl that was twelve,

His doom came from youth, not woman or man,

“The Snow Prince has fallen! Doom is at hand!â€

 

At his back she threw, her weapon would soar,

Her grief gave her strength, the power of Shor,

The Prince’s blood poured, like water or sand,

“The Snow Prince has fallen! Doom is at hand!â€

 

The child had then proved to be born warrior,

This girl’s name was Finna, daughter of Jofrior,

They saw the Prince fall, the elves had all ran,

The Snow Prince has fallen! Doom is at hand!â€

 

The battle was over, finished by a throw,

The Nords laid to rest this worthy elf foe,

But remember this fact once all of you go,

The girls name was Finna. Her last name….Red-Snow!

 

That's the end of my tale, and now you all see,

Just how I related this story to me,

No matter if it be on land or the sea,

We Red-Snows will fight until Tamriel's free!

 

Baldur looked to Rebec while he sang that last line, hoping she'd appreciate being included in his boast.

The Nord general had the redguard eating out of his hand before the second stanza.  They wouldn't normally have cheered a Nord story, but defeating an elf force was on all their minds, and even before it ended they were cheering and clapping.

Rebec had kept her eyes glued to Baldur the entire time.  As the song finished, Suri called out, "Uncle, is that really true?"  Rebec, still shocked that it might actually be, decided to run with it.  She answered for him, "You bet your ass it is!  I didn't marry no milk drinker."

She then caught Baldur's hand and held it the rest of the night, even when the redguard women came around and asked if he would come to their fire to sing some more. Especially then.