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"It’s alright." She whispered into my ear and rested a hand onto my shoulder. "I’ve seen you with a lot more blood on you that that." |
With a corner of her dressing gown she wiped away at the last remnants of blood, moving herself closer to me as she did so. "What happened?" |
I sighed and licked the last few congealing drops off my lips, shuddering with the taste. "I got caught feeding." Was all I could bring myself to say. |
"Did they recognise you?" there was concern in her voice as she asked the most pressing of questions, and all I could do was shake my head slowly. |
"You barely recognise me when I am changed." I stepped around her and more into the centre of the room, feeling her follow me close. "I don’t think that anyone will know that it was me, but now everyone will now that there is a Vampire in Leyawiin." |
The soft sound of her bare feet padding on the floorboards reached my ears and she moved closer and wrapped an arm around my shoulders before drawing me down for a kiss. I felt the tingle of desire rush between us, her tongue hungrily entering my mouth and seeking out the hints of blood that it still contained. My own... |
"They will look, but they will not find you Mrannd'ssinss." She whispered as we broke apart from the kiss and dragged me onto the bed. |
With the guild remaining locked down and its members under house arrest there was even less than normal to do. Viconia and I found ourselves spending a significant portion of our time in our room, whittling away the hours in the pursuit of pleasure and companionship. For two full days we rarely ventured forth from our ... |
For some of the members they simply began the arduous process of reducing the guild’s supplies of food and alcohol. As such, it wasn’t uncommon for a significant number of the members to be in various stages of inebriation or severely hungover each day. Others gambled, practiced hobbies and crafts such as reading and ... |
By the morning of the third day Viconia and I had joined the rest of the guild in the training area within the basement. An enormous expanse carved from the ground and leaving a space two stories high, it allowed spectators to watch from the comfort of the ground floor. As those on the basement level trained, sparred,... |
It wasn’t long before the friendly competitions turned into something more serious. The competitive streak that every member of the guild had was as wide as Topal Bay, and coins and wagers were made with considerable frequency. Nearly every member of the guild competed against the others in whatever skill they special... |
Viconia won the contest with blades, managing to disarm and defeat every member one by one, including myself. The local giant; a towering orc by the name of Dubok gro-Shagk easily won the wrestling competitions by a considerable margin. Without calling upon my vampiric strength there was no way that I was going to be ... |
It was when the archery targets were dragged out that I finally found myself in a competition that I had a better chance at winning. The only downside was that out of all of the members of the Guild, there was two members who were giving me a considerable run for my money. |
A soft spoken wood elf by the name of Brodas and a female Khajiit called S’kasha were both exceptionally skilled with a bow. Brodas had spent most of his life as an archery instructor for the Legion and had picked up the habit of wearing heavy plate armours as a result. S’kasha may have been somewhat domesticated in c... |
Sighing softly, I released my grip on the bowstring and felt the microsecond where the twine slid across the rough pads on the tips of my forefingers. The thick callouses were permanently part of my body and were the only thing that stopped the raw wounds that resulted from firing bows. There was a faint whistling sou... |
Limited by our space and fuelled by a not too small amount of alcohol it had soon become apparent that the skill of us who remained were no longer challenged by the short distance. Unfortunately hemmed in the basement and without any other way to fire at longer distances, someone in the guild had created a different f... |
A full deck of playing cards had been pinned to the targets arrayed at the end of the hall, and using nothing but our bows we were spearing them as Statustius stood next to the targets, shouting out the colour of the cards we had to hit. It was a challenge of not only accuracy but also of speed and reflexes. Not only ... |
I winced in expectation as Statustius checked our latest hits, pulling each arrow out in turn as identifying the shooter by the tiny coloured ribbon attached to the shaft. Brodas and mine were lifted up together while S’kasha’s was pointing to the ground; a fact that left her cursing in her native tongue. |
"This one could do with some improvement." She stated flatly, but purring out a laugh. Her arrow had hit the card but only on the edge, while Brodas and my own had hit dead centre. |
Glancing to my last surviving opponent I laughed as he winked, drawing out another arrow and running his fingers through the feather attached to the end. "It’s just you and me now Kaius. I bet you a bottle of Tamika’s 399 that I can’t split your next shot in a second after it lands." |
I raised an eyebrow at that, trying to make out whether the short Bosmer was making a joke or being serious. Fully clad in plate armour that had taken far too many beatings for any self-respecting wood elf, it was hard to judge his expression as it and most of his face was hidden behind a thick sallet helm. |
"Make it a bottle of Cyrodillic Brandy for me and you’re on." I replied, stringing my bow and readying my own arrow. |
Half hidden behind the helm all I could see was from his upper lip to a few centimetres below the jaw. Amusement twinkled in the dark depths of the eye slits while his mouth made a bleh motion before breaking into a grin. "I don’t know how you drink that stuff." |
"Better than that vinegar that you so love." |
Statustius called out from down the end of the training hall, yelling the word "Red’ as loud as he could. Hefting my bow and staring through my mind’s eye I picked one of the red-backed cards on a side furthest from me. Then, watching Brodas staring from the eyeslits of his helm, I quickly choose a different one and r... |
The arrow impacted into the centre of the red card, slamming a full third of its length into the layers of packed straw. The short Bosmer merely grunted in the second that my arrow flew, the bow twitching in his hands as he too loosed his own a fraction of a second later. |
His arrow smashed into mine, splitting the shaft in an incredible example of the ability of his kind with bows. There was a stunned silence for seconds after the shot, broken only by my exclamation of "fuck!". |
Lifting his helm to reveal his weather beaten features fully, the grin was impossible to remove. "Want to try again?" |
Not being able to do anything else than laugh I clapped him on the back to the sound of applause coming from the packed guildsmen who witnessed the shot. |
"Looks like I owe you a drink." I said to him as we gripped our armoured forearms together and shook to his victory. |
"That you do." He replied, still grinning with his triumph. "I know a nice little shop nearby with the wine on sale. We'll see whether your drinking abilities are any better than your shooting." |
Turning away and looking at Viconia’s amused expression from where she sat against the wall, I clenched and unclenched my hands to work the stiffness out of my fingers. My use of a bow had been fading in the months since leaving the legion, but I was satisfied that my skill hadn’t degraded much. |
"Find that amusing, did you?" |
Smiling honestly, she held out a flagon recently filled with water. "I did actually. It’s always humorous watching you humbled by your betters." |
"I don’t need any help making myself look like a fool." |
"On that we can agree on. It’s one of your greatest skills." |
Chuckling I sat down heavily and carefully unstrung my bow before starting to rub it down with tallow. Viconia had been maintaining her own equipment by rubbing oil into the inner layers of her chainmail while I had competed and it wasn’t long before Bodras had joined us as well. |
The growing wall of noise that filled the interior of the chapterhouse changed in volume and density, and to my enhanced hearing I could hear the bubble of quiet that was slowly making its way through the boisterous mercenaries and their guests. As it moved through and reached the bottom of the stairs to the basement ... |
"What the?" I murmured, placing the length of my bow down on a nearby table and staring at the trio as they were directed towards us by a handful individuals in the hall. |
Viconia and Brodas looked up at my mutterings and they too stared at the individuals making their way across the training room floor, ignoring the way that a handful of fighters had begun sparring with quarterstaffs in the centre. As the loud cracks of wood on wood and the slaps and accompanying yowls of pain from woo... |
Dressed in finery and flowing silks that would’ve required us spending a significant portion of our accumulated wealth to purchase, the aged retainer leaned heavily on a cane hewed from wood from the jungle depths. Studded in precious gemstones and in a riot of colour, everything he wore spoke of power and authority. |
Standing by his sides were a pair of armoured soldiers that unfortunately I knew all too well by their uniforms. Dressed in the flowing white and yellow surcoats and clad in layers of chainmail and leather despite the heat there was no mistaking the heraldry of Castle Leyawiin and the Caro bloodline emblazoned on thei... |
"Master Desin, Miss DeVir?" the elderly man stated simply, looking over us intently. While older than anyone I had seen outside of Ashlander tribe elders, there was no glazing of the eyes or decay of the mind that usually accompanied such advanced years. He knew exactly who the two of us were, which our appearances an... |
"Yes..." I replied hesitantly, looking at the professional glares from the Castle Men-at-Arms as they sized us up instinctively. |
Carefully reaching into his flowing robes, the elderly gent withdrew a lavishly made scroll sealed with wax in a liver spotted hand. The signet ring clasped firmly around a skeletal finger announced him as one of the high advisors of the Count of Leyawiin, and there was more power and authority in the wizened figure t... |
Standing up to my shoulders, back hunched with the weight of the years he had lived and wearing his Lord's authority around him like a cloak he seemed to grow in stature as I rose respectively to my feet. Easily eighty years old, there was a high chance that he had served two generations of Counts in County Leyawiin, ... |
Taking the scroll from his outstretched hands with a nod of thanks, I cracked open the wax seal and began reading over the words within while Viconia looked over my shoulder at the elegant script. |
"By the grace of his Lordship; Count Marius Caro," The ancient regent began, his voice perfectly modulated to reach through the hall and cease all forms of activities. "I extend the invitation to the Hero and Heroine of Kvatch to meet with the Count and Countess of County Leyawiin this afternoon. This day; the 7th of ... |
Despite the trepidation building in my guts and confusion of the invitation, I bowed my head in respect to the Count's messenger. Strangely enough I felt a wave of relief wash through me as deep in my mind I still held the fear of being identified as the vampire responsible for the recent attack. The word on everyone’... |
"Tell your Lord that we accept the invitation." I replied, tapping my fist against my chest in respect. "Are we to assume that there is a specific time that we are expected?" |
The Count's messenger nodded. "My Lordship has arranged for you all to meet in the next hour. This scroll gives the authorisation to enter the Keep for your audience with the Count, and due to the continuing house arrest there is a troop of Men-at-Arms waiting outside to escort you to the castle." |
My flash of apprehension was noticed and ignored by the messenger, and Viconia stood up beside me and took the scroll from my hands. "Now? But we don’t have any formal attire." |
"Nothing overly formal will be required." There was an amused twinkle in his eyes as he looked at our increasingly confused expressions. "The Count is not expecting you to arrive in silks and robes, but dressed as you are now; fully armed and armoured. Knowing the young master as I do; if you were to come to the castl... |
He bowed, lowering his already hunched shoulders towards the tiled floors. "I bid you two a good day. Please prepare yourselves quickly and present yourself and that scroll to the Men-at-Arms outside as soon as you can. It is never a good habit to leave a member of the Elder Council waiting." |
Turning and making his way back through the chapterhouse he left Viconia and I looking at each other confused and slightly apprehensions |
Brodas leaned in over my shoulder and whistled appreciatively at the cursive writing on the scroll. "Looks like you have an adoring fan in the castle Kaius." He said, slapping me on the back. "It’s not every day that the Count grants audiences..." |
"I guess so." I replied, rolling the scroll up once more and glancing briefly at Viconia as she began shrugging on her daedroth scale armour. "What do you know of the Count?" |
Brodas puffed out his cheeks and blew out a long breath. "Other than the fact that he’s mad for all things to do with militaries and warfare , there’s not much to tell. He’s a count, as blue blooded as they come and somehow managed to get into an arranged marriage with Lady Valga of Chorrol a few years back." |
"How "mad’ is mad?" |
"Well, he spent a sizable portion of his family’s wealth a decade or so ago establishing the Order of the White Stallion. Built the whole fortress out there out of his own pocket and knighted a dozen or so mercenaries, adventurers and an even a few of his guard as the first knights. Everyone thought he was nuts or was... |
"That effective, are they?" |
He laughed. "They charged into an Oblivion gate, slaughtered Akatosh-only-knows how many daedra and lost only two of their brothers. In total. You tell me..." |
There was a shrug that rattled his armoured plates and he frowned at the sound before rummaging under a plate with his hand. "Plus the banditry and insurgencies that used to be an issue from a few years ago are completely a thing of the past." |
"He does sounds a little vigh..." muttered Viconia, strapping her breastplate across her chest. |
"If that means what I think it means." Bodras glanced over to her. "Then yeah, he is a bit eccentric. He means well, and if anything I’m surprised that he has been able to hold back for this long with the Heroes of Kvatch staying in his city." |
"Should we expect anything strange then?" |
Another shake of the head and he finally found whatever was making the noise in his plate mail, grunting with satisfaction and rolling his shoulder with an obvious lack of noise. "Nah. Probably get you out in front of his other bluebloods and give you a toast or the key to the city or something. A few years back he di... |
Viconia finished dressing quickly enough, leaning over the chair and giving me the opportunity to look over the form-hugging curves of her chainmail chausses that pleasantly showed off her legs in a surprisingly attractive way. There was something about her fully dressed to kill that seemed to give me a healthy dose o... |
Quickly rubbing a polishing cloth over the metal plates of my armour I buffed off the extra layers of tallow and oils that blurred the metal somewhat. With a quick buffing, the silver etching of the vines working their way up my torso gleamed and flickered in the light. Every other metal plate was wiped over quickly, ... |
Leaving most of the collection of pouches, travellers pack and other accruements and taking only our primary weapons we travelled light. The gleaming hilts of Sunchild and the Light of Dawn poked from my hip and behind my head respectively, the dagger normally clasped to my chest being left in the chest in our room an... |
The sound of bells reached our ears as we left the chapterhouse’s interior, the early afternoon being announced with the single sounding of each bell throughout the city. Waiting with the bored expressions shared by all soldiers throughout the Empire on such duties the half dozen Men-at-Arms stood idly, but straighten... |
It wasn’t difficult to remember how the castle had looked in the depths of the evening only a few nights previously. During the day the castle appeared regal and awe inspiring, draped in massive unfurled banners depicting the rearing white stallion of County Leyawiin and whitened pennants and banners flapping in the b... |
Stepping across the lowered draw bridge and into the darkness of the gatehouse I fell a chill go up my spine despite the increasing heat of wearing my full armour in the Leyawiin sun. Returning to the castle, even during the daylight hours was enough for the claws of shame and self-loathing to sink deep into my consci... |
The courtyard was just as large as what I remembered but during the day the sun brought it out in all its glory. This far south where the touch of snow had never been felt, flowers bloomed in the several gardens and trees were lush and full of life. The cobblestones underfoot had been worn smooth from hundreds of year... |
Upon entering the enormous expanse, we laid eyes on the groups of Men-at-Arms marching back and forth in the courtyard, obeying the snap of orders and war horns as their commanders drilled them relentlessly. In a combination of ceremonial and battle drills they marched back and forth, turning sharply and moving with a... |
To the left of the gatehouse in the northern section the squared walls of the city prison sat, squatting into the stones like a lumpy toad. Doubling as a podium for the Count to make public speeches and announcements and for executions and trials of criminals it contained not only platforms for speaking but an arrange... |
A crowd had gathered around the platform, the dozens of individuals from throughout the city and from all walks of life huddling around in a mass of humanity. The undefinable cries and shouts of the crowd rolled and merged together into the background noise but the emotions fuelling the shouts were unmistakable. The r... |
"What's happening over there?" I asked one of the nearby guards, slowing my pace and straining to see the source of the commotion. |
"Oh, that?" the guard turned and looked in the direction of the crowd with a shrug. "A few nights ago one of the castle guard was caught consorting with a Vampire." |
"I heard that she had only been fed on..." Viconia said icily as she stared daggers into my skull, her immediate assumption making me feel even more nervous. |
Muttering under his breath, one of the other guards shrugged. "From what the guard who caught them in the act said, she wasn’t exactly resisting the fiend’s attentions." |
"So what are they doing over there then?" I asked carefully, feeling my nervousness at the situation mixing with the anxiety of Viconia’s darkening mood. |
"They have her locked up in the stocks. If she’s infected and turns the sun will take care of her." |
"And good riddance to the whore." Another spat to a chorus of agreements. |
"And if she isn’t infected?" |
"Then she’ll stay in the stocks until the Count makes up his mind on what to do." |
One of the surcoated guards cursed and motioned to the castle entrance a hundred metres away. "The Count should just grow a pair and kill her anyway. Just to be safe. Better that than leaving the vampire’s slut besmirching the County’s honour." |
Unseen by the Men-at-Arms I felt my jaw twitch and the skin pull tight with my growing emotions. My shame had been building, as had my guilt but now anger was starting to pump its way through my veins. With a visible effort that Viconia noted I crushed the vampire deep inside with my will and before I realised what I ... |
"Sir?" the Men-at-Arms glanced amongst themselves, suddenly unsure of what to do and finally noticing the darkness of my expression. Without hesitation Viconia followed me and our armoured boots rang out against the cobblestones as we left our escorts milling in confusion. Their orders had been to merely to escort the... |
Wordlessly Viconia and I strode across the courtyard, once again escorted by the Men-at-Arms who were now all sporting expressions of nervousness and confusion at our actions. The crowds fear and loathing was like dirt across my skin, and despite my nature it was emotions that I shared with them. Their superstitious f... |
The crowd parted as I strode through it. Most made way to my armoured form and those that didn’t felt the not too gentle shove of my gloved fists in the spines and shoulders and I simply pushed through. Some turned to complain but the appearance of a hooded and cloaked stranger, fully armoured plated and wielding nume... |
Raised over hip height, the platform was designed for where criminals would receive their various punishments in full view of the public. Everything from whippings to beheadings and hangings would be enacted here, and my vampiric senses could still smell the tang of months-old blood on the stretching rank and chopping... |
Half a dozen stocks were laid out in a row, leaving barely a metre between them and consisting of nothing more than the holed planks of wood for securing the heads and hands of the prisoners. Only one was currently in use and I felt the building rage and guilt at the sight. Stripped of her armour and wearing nothing m... |
For a moment I stood there, fists clenching tight in my gloves and feeling my fingernails digging into my palms of my hands through the minotaur leather. The anger that was building in me was of such intensity that the last time I had given into such an emotion I had left the Lake Arrius Caverns strewn with gore. |
Stomping over to me from his position lounging in the shade, the brutish form of one of the prison wardens superimposed himself between me and the woman. A grin was slathered over his overweight face and for a moment all I could think of was that the only way one such as himself could become so slovenly was if he was ... |
"I'm sorry sir, but you are not permitted up here." he said arrogantly, looking over my armour and equipment and trying to determine whether I was a noble or some other high-ranking official from my unusual appearance. |
"Let me pass." I said softly, my voice no more than a threatening hiss that was tightening in rage at the woman’s treatment. |
"For your safety, I cannot let you go near her." With a smug grin he pushed back on my shoulder roughly, deciding that I was some nobody that he had rank over. "She’s blood-cursed. Tainted by a vampire. She could turn any minute." |
Men like this I had known in the legion, such as the commander that had been behind my decision to desert. Carefully... Slowly I lowered my gaze to where his grubby paw gripped my shoulder and saw how the grease of his last meal had smeared into the pauldron and cloak. |
"Do you want to keep that hand?" the moment’s hesitation crept into his eyes as I reached out and burrowed my will into his quivering mind. With a bit too much force I stabbed into his fear, filling his soul with a supernatural dread that made him snatch the hand away as though my armour had been engulfed by a flame c... |
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