ValenCirdanAug 16, 2014Aug 16, 2014 at 07:39 PM
#1
Elros took a deep breath in. He smelt the forest as he drew his breath and wondered. What should I do next? I am hungry...Maybe I should take Elsy's advice, visit the tavern here. He had just stopped the Blacksap Rebellion from destroying the local Dominion camps. Ready to relax for a little before heading back to Sren Ja, Elros decided to get some food at the local tavern. Elros stepped through the door looking around for the patron. It seemed to be a busy night. The tavern was full of people, mostly bosmer bustling about sharing the news of the end of the rebellion. Many others were simply enjoying themselves. Elros smiled, this reminded him of the tavern in Sren Ja. He got some bread and butter and a mug of mead and looked around for a secluded to spot to eat. He found one in the back rooms and sat down. A few bosmer would come by every now and then, mostly young ones giggling as they held hands and looked at each other with infatuation in their eyes. As they passed by, he remembered the red haired bosmer he met when he was at Sren Ja. She is so beautiful...how could I ever have a chance with her. He smiled to himself as he remembered how he felt whenever she was around. Like a complete idiot. He hoped he would see her when he went back. He observed the goings on of the tavern, making a mental note to stop by here more often. As he continued eating, he started to figure out how he would head back to Sren Ja, and when he should leave. As he lifted the last bit of the bread and butter, he noticed something on his plate. It was a parchment, rolled up and placed against the mug of mead. Curious, he opened it.
The world seemed to stop as he unrolled it and saw what was written on it. A familiar symbol of a black hand was painted on it, along with a few lines written underneath. The color drained from Elros's face, and he immediately started looking around. He put his hands on his blades and became extremely aware of his surroundings. He started calculating escape routes from the tavern. He found one by a window (or what passed for a window in bosmer architecture) and crossed over to it. Looking down he estimated the drop to be 40 feet. Damn...My only way out and I might end up breaking my legs. He looked back up and started observing the people around him. He then looked down and read what the letter said.
"White Blade, you killed our masters. Now we repay you in the name of the Night Mother and in the name of Sithis. Let this be an example to all those who would cross the Dark Brotherhood. Prepare to die."
Adrenaline started coursing through Elros's body. White Blade...they know who I am. Elros rarely ever used his former alias, and those who knew it were in Morrowind. This only meant one thing; the Dark Brotherhood had finally found him. The black hand symbol on the top of the letter was evidence enough.
Just as he finished reading the letter, a rustle came from one of the corners of the room. A female dunmer stepped out of the shadows, wearing all black armor with only one slit for her eyes to see through. Her red eyes burned with pure hatred. Her hands were wrapped around her daggers. She slowly pulled them out...and pointed it Elros. Elros began regretting stepping into the tavern. Getting out of here in one piece would be extremely difficult. Elros remained motionless for a few moments, eyes on the dunmer. Suddenly he whirled around and unsheathed his blades in one motion, following through with two powerful strikes aimed at the dunmer's chest and abdomen. The dunmer saw the blades flashing towards her and parried the strikes with her daggers, staggering back a few steps from the force of the blows. She snarled at him and began advancing at him, readying a teleportation spell at the same time. Knowing what was coming Elros turned around in time to see the dunmer shadow stepping behind him and attempting to sink her blades in his back. He brought his swords around and the two mer clashed to a standstill. Elros began putting all his weight behind his swords, trying to corner the dunmer and break her arms. But the dunmer was no novice. She immediately stepped out of the way, letting Elros fall to the ground. He tumbled, rolled out of the way before she brought her daggers down onto the floor. Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, he kicked her swiftly in the chest and ran for the window. He looked back once more to see the dunmer wheezing but getting back to her feet. Cursing, Elros jumped.
The dunmer followed suit, jumping out the "window" with Elros. The two clashed in the air again for an instance and then they both fell in free fall to the ground. Elros began his teleportation spell and she attempted to teleport as well. A few feet off the ground, Elros teleported into a nearby puddle. The dunmer teleported a few feet from him and landed gracefully on her feet. She turned and started running towards him. Getting up, Elros broke into a sprint out of Cormount and into the forest. I cannot endanger others in this confrontation. Looking back he saw the dunmer readying another teleportation spell. Again?! Damn she is good! Elros turned around and began running backwards anticipating her next attack. She vanished...and reappeared on the tree above him. She screamed and jumped down at him, blades flashing. Elros cursed, not seeing a way out but teleporting again. He vanished and immediately cast a shadow cloak spell on himself. Now he was completely invisible. The dunmer recovered from her fall and looked around, trying to find her prey. She screamed in frustration and ran into the forest. Elros quietly followed her.
The dunmer went deeper into the forest. Where is she going? Elros wondered as he followed her from a safe distance. Gradually they came into a big clearing in the forest. The dunmer slowed down and waited. What is she waiting for? Elros thought as he took up a position on a tree. Suddenly, the shadows around the dunmer warped and two figures appeared in the moonlight.
She has friends... Elros assessed the situation. The three began arguing amongst themselves. Elros came to the conclusion that he had to kill them all. Or this would never end. As the three argued, he recovered his strength and prepared his attack.The closest one to him would be the first to die. He cast another shadow cloak spell on himself...and then instantly teleported behind one of the three and sank both his blades in to her body to the hilt. The figure convulsed, dying as the swords cut through her heart and her chest. The other two yelled and fell backwards. They looked for the source of their comrades death and finally saw Elros materializing from the shadows with a cold look on his face. He removed his blades and let the figure fall to the ground. He then stepped forward to the remaining two assassins and readied himself. The dunmer and the other man snarled at him and came at him. Elros sidestepped the dunmer and struck the other assailant in the chest with the hilt of his blade, simultaneously blocking a fatal strike at his chest. He then kicked the dunmer in knee and rolled away. The two disentangled themselves and got up, panting heavily. Elros maintained his cold hard look.
They had come to a stalemate, none of them making a move. Suddenly, the figure that Elros first struck started moving. To his horror, the figure got up slowly and looked at him. Thats when Elros noticed that her eyes were red. A vampire...just my damn luck. The woman removed her mask revealing herself to be a breton. The other two did the same. The dunmer had a look of pure hatred etched on her face, and the other man, a bosmer, looked at Elros with disgust. The breton spoke first.
"You're quite good with your swords, White Blade. I congratulate you, not many get the jump on me." She said as he drew her blade. "You know why we are here. You killed our masters. Now we will kill you."
The dunmer and the bosmer both gave devilish grins, knowing that their target would not make it out alive from here. Elros remained calm and answered, "You're all making a mistake. You won't be making it out of here." And he rushed forward, a white aura surrounding him. Elros tackled the vampire and sank one blade into her chest and pinned her to the ground. He then disarmed her and turned to other two. The white glow still on him, Elros then drew two daggers and cloaked them in the same white aura. Not giving them a chance to recover, he suddenly went into a frenzy and started striking both of them at the same time. The two mer parried each strike, but the next strike always came in at a faster pace. Soon they could not block some of the slashes and after a few more moments, both fell to the ground, cuts all over their bodies. Elros stopped for a minute and looked down at them.
"Now you will all die. You should have left me alone." He said as her prepared two final blows for the mer. The mer screamed as Elros threw the daggers in a white flash. The daggers buried themselves deep in their hearts, the metal from it melting into their bodies, killing them instantly.
He turned to the vampire who had managed to remove the blade the had her pinned to the ground. He drew his other sword and took out the parchment that bore the message of his imminent end. A red glow started to come from the parchment as Elros imbued a spell on it. Then he rushed towards her in a white flash. This time she was ready and came at him in an attempt to kill him in one blow. Elros teleported behind her just as she whipped around in time to block another strike. He then stepped right up to her and twisted her hand in an attempt to disarm her. With his blade he struck her thigh to distract her.
He stepped away with the vampire's blade and dropped it as she lay bleeding on the ground, the white aura around him disappearing. He picked up his other sword and looked at the vampire. She snarled at him. Thats when he realized, they were all so very young. Even the vampire seemed to be a newly turned. She had not turned to mist to escape yet. Elros had just killed two young mer. And he was about to kill the last one as well. He stepped forward and pressed the enchanted parchment to one of the vampire's wounds. The parchment glowed red, then black as the vampire's life force was tied to the parchment. He stepped back.
"Your life is in my hands now, vampire. Run, run far and hide. Don't ever let me find you again. Or I will kill you." Elros said as he brandished the enchanted parchment. With a cold glint in his eyes he turned around and began leaving, not noticing three small cuts that each assassin had made on him during their melee. As he left, he burnt the two dead mer's bodies, disintegrating them into piles of ash.
The vampire screamed at him. "You will die! There are more of us, and we will have our revenge! Mark my words, White Blade, you will die by our hands!" She continued to curse at him as Elros walked away from her in the moonlight, slipping the enchanted piece of parchment under his armor. He then vanished and began his journey to Sren Ja. He needed somewhere safe to be, somewhere far away from all this.
The world seemed to stop as he unrolled it and saw what was written on it. A familiar symbol of a black hand was painted on it, along with a few lines written underneath. The color drained from Elros's face, and he immediately started looking around. He put his hands on his blades and became extremely aware of his surroundings. He started calculating escape routes from the tavern. He found one by a window (or what passed for a window in bosmer architecture) and crossed over to it. Looking down he estimated the drop to be 40 feet. Damn...My only way out and I might end up breaking my legs. He looked back up and started observing the people around him. He then looked down and read what the letter said.
"White Blade, you killed our masters. Now we repay you in the name of the Night Mother and in the name of Sithis. Let this be an example to all those who would cross the Dark Brotherhood. Prepare to die."
Adrenaline started coursing through Elros's body. White Blade...they know who I am. Elros rarely ever used his former alias, and those who knew it were in Morrowind. This only meant one thing; the Dark Brotherhood had finally found him. The black hand symbol on the top of the letter was evidence enough.
Just as he finished reading the letter, a rustle came from one of the corners of the room. A female dunmer stepped out of the shadows, wearing all black armor with only one slit for her eyes to see through. Her red eyes burned with pure hatred. Her hands were wrapped around her daggers. She slowly pulled them out...and pointed it Elros. Elros began regretting stepping into the tavern. Getting out of here in one piece would be extremely difficult. Elros remained motionless for a few moments, eyes on the dunmer. Suddenly he whirled around and unsheathed his blades in one motion, following through with two powerful strikes aimed at the dunmer's chest and abdomen. The dunmer saw the blades flashing towards her and parried the strikes with her daggers, staggering back a few steps from the force of the blows. She snarled at him and began advancing at him, readying a teleportation spell at the same time. Knowing what was coming Elros turned around in time to see the dunmer shadow stepping behind him and attempting to sink her blades in his back. He brought his swords around and the two mer clashed to a standstill. Elros began putting all his weight behind his swords, trying to corner the dunmer and break her arms. But the dunmer was no novice. She immediately stepped out of the way, letting Elros fall to the ground. He tumbled, rolled out of the way before she brought her daggers down onto the floor. Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, he kicked her swiftly in the chest and ran for the window. He looked back once more to see the dunmer wheezing but getting back to her feet. Cursing, Elros jumped.
The dunmer followed suit, jumping out the "window" with Elros. The two clashed in the air again for an instance and then they both fell in free fall to the ground. Elros began his teleportation spell and she attempted to teleport as well. A few feet off the ground, Elros teleported into a nearby puddle. The dunmer teleported a few feet from him and landed gracefully on her feet. She turned and started running towards him. Getting up, Elros broke into a sprint out of Cormount and into the forest. I cannot endanger others in this confrontation. Looking back he saw the dunmer readying another teleportation spell. Again?! Damn she is good! Elros turned around and began running backwards anticipating her next attack. She vanished...and reappeared on the tree above him. She screamed and jumped down at him, blades flashing. Elros cursed, not seeing a way out but teleporting again. He vanished and immediately cast a shadow cloak spell on himself. Now he was completely invisible. The dunmer recovered from her fall and looked around, trying to find her prey. She screamed in frustration and ran into the forest. Elros quietly followed her.
The dunmer went deeper into the forest. Where is she going? Elros wondered as he followed her from a safe distance. Gradually they came into a big clearing in the forest. The dunmer slowed down and waited. What is she waiting for? Elros thought as he took up a position on a tree. Suddenly, the shadows around the dunmer warped and two figures appeared in the moonlight.
She has friends... Elros assessed the situation. The three began arguing amongst themselves. Elros came to the conclusion that he had to kill them all. Or this would never end. As the three argued, he recovered his strength and prepared his attack.The closest one to him would be the first to die. He cast another shadow cloak spell on himself...and then instantly teleported behind one of the three and sank both his blades in to her body to the hilt. The figure convulsed, dying as the swords cut through her heart and her chest. The other two yelled and fell backwards. They looked for the source of their comrades death and finally saw Elros materializing from the shadows with a cold look on his face. He removed his blades and let the figure fall to the ground. He then stepped forward to the remaining two assassins and readied himself. The dunmer and the other man snarled at him and came at him. Elros sidestepped the dunmer and struck the other assailant in the chest with the hilt of his blade, simultaneously blocking a fatal strike at his chest. He then kicked the dunmer in knee and rolled away. The two disentangled themselves and got up, panting heavily. Elros maintained his cold hard look.
They had come to a stalemate, none of them making a move. Suddenly, the figure that Elros first struck started moving. To his horror, the figure got up slowly and looked at him. Thats when Elros noticed that her eyes were red. A vampire...just my damn luck. The woman removed her mask revealing herself to be a breton. The other two did the same. The dunmer had a look of pure hatred etched on her face, and the other man, a bosmer, looked at Elros with disgust. The breton spoke first.
"You're quite good with your swords, White Blade. I congratulate you, not many get the jump on me." She said as he drew her blade. "You know why we are here. You killed our masters. Now we will kill you."
The dunmer and the bosmer both gave devilish grins, knowing that their target would not make it out alive from here. Elros remained calm and answered, "You're all making a mistake. You won't be making it out of here." And he rushed forward, a white aura surrounding him. Elros tackled the vampire and sank one blade into her chest and pinned her to the ground. He then disarmed her and turned to other two. The white glow still on him, Elros then drew two daggers and cloaked them in the same white aura. Not giving them a chance to recover, he suddenly went into a frenzy and started striking both of them at the same time. The two mer parried each strike, but the next strike always came in at a faster pace. Soon they could not block some of the slashes and after a few more moments, both fell to the ground, cuts all over their bodies. Elros stopped for a minute and looked down at them.
"Now you will all die. You should have left me alone." He said as her prepared two final blows for the mer. The mer screamed as Elros threw the daggers in a white flash. The daggers buried themselves deep in their hearts, the metal from it melting into their bodies, killing them instantly.
He turned to the vampire who had managed to remove the blade the had her pinned to the ground. He drew his other sword and took out the parchment that bore the message of his imminent end. A red glow started to come from the parchment as Elros imbued a spell on it. Then he rushed towards her in a white flash. This time she was ready and came at him in an attempt to kill him in one blow. Elros teleported behind her just as she whipped around in time to block another strike. He then stepped right up to her and twisted her hand in an attempt to disarm her. With his blade he struck her thigh to distract her.
He stepped away with the vampire's blade and dropped it as she lay bleeding on the ground, the white aura around him disappearing. He picked up his other sword and looked at the vampire. She snarled at him. Thats when he realized, they were all so very young. Even the vampire seemed to be a newly turned. She had not turned to mist to escape yet. Elros had just killed two young mer. And he was about to kill the last one as well. He stepped forward and pressed the enchanted parchment to one of the vampire's wounds. The parchment glowed red, then black as the vampire's life force was tied to the parchment. He stepped back.
"Your life is in my hands now, vampire. Run, run far and hide. Don't ever let me find you again. Or I will kill you." Elros said as he brandished the enchanted parchment. With a cold glint in his eyes he turned around and began leaving, not noticing three small cuts that each assassin had made on him during their melee. As he left, he burnt the two dead mer's bodies, disintegrating them into piles of ash.
The vampire screamed at him. "You will die! There are more of us, and we will have our revenge! Mark my words, White Blade, you will die by our hands!" She continued to curse at him as Elros walked away from her in the moonlight, slipping the enchanted piece of parchment under his armor. He then vanished and began his journey to Sren Ja. He needed somewhere safe to be, somewhere far away from all this.
Edited Aug 16, 2014 at 07:49 PM by 0