Welcome Guest
[Log In]
[Register]
R.I.P. neildarkstar. Haven will miss you dearly.
| Arilliana, the Heretic | |
|---|---|
| Topic Started: Sep 12 2016, 05:41 PM (223 Views) | |
| neildarkstar | Sep 12 2016, 05:41 PM Post #1 |
|
Overlord
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
In late afternoon I left Helgen in the company of Hedvar, headed toward Riverwood and the hoped for sanctuary of his uncle Alvor's smithy. We hadn't really gone far when we heard wolves howling from both sides of our path, and then only a very few moments passed before the snarling, howling pack was upon us. Hedvar laid about him with his sword, sending wolves flying in all directions, but it seemed to me that they only rarely stayed down. For my part, I had a shield in my left hand, and was throwing flames on the wolves with my right. Even on fire, the burning wolves just kept attacking, and it wasn't long before I knew I would shortly be unable to cast any spells at all. Catching one free moment, I turned to look, and my heart fell as I saw Hedvar fall. Down to his knees, he was almost invisible in the midst of the wolves that covered him. For just a second all of the wolves seemed to focus on Hedvar, as if they knew their next meal was nearly ready, and I chose to run for my life in that brief moment. I'm not proud of that, but Hedvar was far beyond any help I could give no matter what I did. In my desperation I drew my sword while simultaneously bashing a wolf with my shield, then I leaped over the staggering wolf and ran off the trail into the brush and up a short rocky ridge. The ledge on which I made my stand was narrow, allowing no more than one wolf at a time to attack me. Of course the down side of that was that if I was forced to retreat I'd have to jump a considerable distance the ground below the ledge. I managed to kill two of the pack that beset me, but three more wolves crowded to the attack. Inch by inch, I was forced back until I found I had nowhere to go but down. Switching from sword back to flame, I covered the wolves in fire as I stepped back into space. The landing was hard, but not crippling so I began to run looking for a new position to try and hold... but there was no defensible position anywhere in sight. The wolves had recovered from the flames and were rushing towards me far faster than I could run. Just as I was about to give up and simply go down fighting, I heard a voice just behind me. Rough and low in the manner of an orc, the male voice warned me not to come any closer. I took that warning to heart of course, so I ran straight towards the orc who had spoken. Straight to him with a pack of wolves hot on my Altmer tail that is, then straight past him into the bandit camp where the orc's companions stood watching with widening eyes. One woman drew and arrow to send my way, but I was past her before she could really aim, and the arrow went sailing off into the gathering darkness of the forest. Then the wolves were in the camp, and the bandits seemed to forget all about me. Alone at last, I tried to put some distance between my foes (furry and otherwise), and ran up a steep flight of crude stairs. It wasn't really far, but night had fallen by the time I reached the top where I was greeted by a shrine to Talos and a collection of bodies. Worshipers of Talos and the Thalmor had apparently had a disagreement over religion... I spent the night there with the dead, jumping at every sound and always in anticipation of wolves or bandits stumbling on my little sanctuary... but I was left in peace. My dead companions did not try to bore me with conversation, or convert me to their various beliefs, and I found that the company of the dead can be quite refreshing. Given a choice between dead worshipers and hungry wolves, I'll take the dead worshipers every time! As I was thinking those admittedly odd thoughts I realized that I was feverish, my bones were aching, and it occurred to me that those damnable wolves had given me some cursed disease. I thought perhaps Rockjoint, though I didn't know. What I DID know was that I found myself in a most uncomfortable position. Aside from being sick that is. You see, my name is Arilliana, and I am a highborn Altmer of the female persuasion. I suppose it would have been hard to tell by looking at me given my bloody blond hair, and the clothes I was wearing. They were wolf-chewed robes that I had stolen from a corpse in Helgen (and come to think of it, they still smelled of the dead). Bloody, tattered, and I'm sure my hair must have been a complete mess, and DAMMIT, I'd broken a nail. I was not really the picture of the cultured anti-Thalmor dissident who normally frequented the courts of the Aldmeri Dominion. In my entire 57 years of life, I had never found myself in a situation like this. I mean, it's one thing to alienate one's government by taking a political stand. To rise up against the powers that be and say that barbarian cultures should be left to govern themselves and worship the gods they choose, it's another thing entirely to find one's self forced to grovel before the shrine of that barbarian God just to get rid of Rockjoint... a completely uncouth disease that should be reserved for commoners! Then, there is the problem that I had no idea how to go about petitioning this "Talos" to rid me of my disease. Should I grovel on hands and knees, or raise my butt in the air and plant my face on the ground while imploring the mercy of Talos? Should I have a sacrifice or an offering to place in front of the shrine? I didn't know, and the humiliation of finding myself in this position was almost more than I could bear. Finally, I stood before the shrine, then dropped to one knee. I bowed my head, and quietly (and with all the piety I could muster) implored Talos to cure me. Nothing at all happened. No cure, no sign of a God, no blessing, not even ac curse! What the Nine Hells kind of religion IS this anyway?!? In my fevered rage, I reached out to knock over the shrine but then as my hand touched the shrine, I was suddenly filled with a golden light and I was overcome by a sense of goodness and well-being that filled my body and soul. In that moment, I knew Talos... As that glow faded, I lay down by the altar and slept until well after dawn. It seemed Talos had made a new and most unusual convert... Posted Image Posted Image Edited by neildarkstar, Sep 12 2016, 05:48 PM.
|
![]() |
|
| Serethil | Sep 12 2016, 06:04 PM Post #2 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Oh lordy Neil! That was GREAT! Um. Her pics aren't "blond" though.... but she's very pretty! I guess you could call her strawberry blond?
Edited by Serethil, Sep 12 2016, 06:05 PM.
|
![]() |
|
| neildarkstar | Sep 12 2016, 06:09 PM Post #3 |
|
Overlord
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Thanks Serethil! To tell you the truth, I'm not sure what color that hair is... and it rarely seems to be the same in any given light. It's the stock color that came with the preset I started with though. :) |
![]() |
|
| Andra Hawksdaughter | Sep 12 2016, 06:13 PM Post #4 |
![]()
Jarl
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
She's gorgeous, and I absolutely love her beginning! :D Yes, a most unlikely convert! :clap: |
![]() |
|
| Rick | Sep 12 2016, 06:29 PM Post #5 |
|
Jarl
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Oooh she looks kinda strict...I LIKE her already :$ |
![]() |
|
| Areial | Sep 12 2016, 08:03 PM Post #6 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
A Beautiful start to a Beautiful Altmer's story. |
![]() |
|
| neildarkstar | Sep 16 2016, 12:36 AM Post #7 |
|
Overlord
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
I have learned a new word for "jack ass"... Stenvar! On entering Forsaken Cave we had nearly been killed by two sabrecats before even reaching Curaldmil's tomb proper. If they had attacked together, we would not have survived the battle at all. I summoned a flame atronach while hitting the first cat with lightning bolts, but still Stenvar couldn't hold his own with it. I knocked the cat back down the short grade with a shout, and while the atronach focused on it, I healed Stenvar as best I could in the limited time before it got back to us. The cat had no more than fallen, when the second sabrecat began its attack. Touch and go, but we killed it within a few moments. Can you believe it? Stenvar was complaining that he should have dressed more warmly, and I caught him warming his hands on the flame atronach before she vanished. I gave him my very best "What the hell are you doing" look, and Stenvar just shrugged and said he should have dressed more warmly! The idiot lives in Skyrim, and waits until we are in a frozen tomb before he decides he should have dressed more warmly. It's no wonder everybody of any import agrees that we Altmer are naturally superior! Humans.... phtttt... The rest of the place had been overflowing with draugr, which we handled with only small problems until we reached Curaldmil's tomb itself. The ancient alchemist was quite a handful, and shouted Stenvar's weapon away early on. After the undead alchemist had knocked Stenvar aside, I found myself fleeing for my life, and casting fire runes on the floor as I ran. I finally managed to summon an atronach, and then the three of us managed to finally bring the old alchemist down. I am certainly glad Curaldmil had not chosen "warrior" as his line of work. After we had looted the tomb, it was late at night, so I decided we should wait out the night there in the tomb. It was cold and we had no blankets, but after I cast flames on Curaldmil's casket for a while it radiated a fair amount of heat. In the morning we exited the cave, and I started toward Windhelm to collect my reward. I'd not gone far when I realized Stenvar was not with me. When I turned to look, I was amazed to see he was walking off in the opposite direction! I actually had to run to catch him, because he wouldn't even stop when I hailed him. Breathless, I caught up with him and demanded to know where he was going. Stenvar started to reply something about an inn just over the next hill, when we were attacked by a stupid wolf. I was in no frame of mind to put up with being chewed on, and without thinking I hit the thing with a fireball... The resulting explosion blasted the wolf completely out of sight, and I believe burned the stubble from the top of Stenvar's nearly bald head. He snarled "Careful!" and strode off toward the inn. Smiling, I wondered to myself if he was still cold... In any case, we eventually arrived at the inn - the "Nightingale something or other Inn" - a place with few amenities, poor service, and only one customer whose only words to me were "The beds are like the beer... Lousy!" as he strode out the door. I should have taken him at his word. After sleeping for a few hours, I thought Stenvar and I were ready to go, but... that jack ass Stenvar REFUSED to leave the inn. He didn't quit the job, he didn't argue when I said I was ready to leave, he just WOULD NOT walk out the damnable door. I became so angry that I stomped my foot while talking to him, and I'm telling you, I have NEVER before in my LIFE stomped my foot while arguing with a man! In the heat of the moment, I dismissed him from my employ, and walked out into the cold air of skyrim alone to head for Windhelm. I hate to say it, but I feel a bit naked without Stenvar at my side, and I actually miss the fool... and now I've got some accursed Nordic bed disease to try to get cured in Windhelm... If I don't die of the itch before I get there. Sunset while on the way to Windhelm: Posted Image |
![]() |
|
| Areial | Sep 16 2016, 01:18 AM Post #8 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
LoL...Itchy bed disease! I love it!!! |
![]() |
|
| Serethil | Sep 16 2016, 09:29 AM Post #9 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
ROFL!! Welcome to Skyrim.... not! |
![]() |
|
| Andra Hawksdaughter | Sep 16 2016, 10:24 AM Post #10 |
![]()
Jarl
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
LOL, oh lordie. What is up with Sten! She's certainly not getting a good impression of Nords or Skyrim! |
![]() |
|
| neildarkstar | Sep 17 2016, 08:25 PM Post #11 |
|
Overlord
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Upon arrival in windhelm, I had straight away gone to the Temple of Talos and my itchy problem had thankfully been cured. What a relief! Afterward, I had taken my prize to the old alchemist. I received his undying gratitude, his lavish praise for risking my life for his little trinket, and my huge reward. I figured that and ten additiional gold might get me a mug of ale at Candlehearth Hall if I was lucky. Well, a mug of ale, good company, and evetually a warm, clean bed can soothe a lot of ills. I had no more than walked into the inn when I was challenged by a guy named Sam to a drinking contest... Well, what could I do? The pride of Altmer females everywhere was on the line, so of course I accepted. I don't know what vile brew we were drinking, but I pray to Talos to never encounter it again! The world had faded to black and by the next day I was many miles from Windhelm. On first awakening, I had the impression I had stolen a giant, gone deeply in debt for a ring, and married a goat... One out of the three options was actually correct. After a time spent correcting my various actions which I had taken under the influence of Sam's brew, I found myself in Windhelm trying to give my wedding ring back to Ysolda to clear my huge debt with her. That's when the world seemed to take a left turn without me. There we were standing in the Whiterun market area speaking of a place called Morvunskar, when the commander of the Whiterun guard came up behind me. He snarled "Never should have come here!" and tried to take my head off with his sword! Taken completely by surprise, I stumbled away from him, only to be struck in the left shoulder by an arrow from one of his guards. Wide-eyed, I found it hard to do more than stare as I realized the commander and all of his guards were seemingly intent of taking my life for some imagined wrong! They had all apparently gone insane... Though I was rattled by the sudden unexpected attack, I managed to use a shout that temporarily turned me into a somewhat ghostly entity and the next three or four arrows passed through me harmlessly as I wheeled and ran for the city gates. I suppose I presented a less than dignified sight, as robes flapping and barefoot, I ran out through the city gates. Once outside the gate I was presented with several homicidal city guards who seemed to have developed a taste for my blood. My shout having worn off I was now vulnerable, so it seemed to me to be a good time to summon some creature to keep the guards busy while I made my escape. I quickly hurried through the gestures to summon a Frost Atronach (a spell I had never tried before) and cast the spell directly in front of me. As I ran through the spell aura, I chuckled thinking of the surprise the guards were about to get as they ran headlong into my mighty atronach of ice... but of course nothing ever goes quite according to plan. It seems that in my haste with all that adrenaline pumping, my heart trying to leap out of my chest, my breath coming in ragged gasps and so forth, I miscast the spell. What appeared out of the summoning aura was not an atronach of any sort. Instead I had managed to summon a chicken... a spectral chicken at that. She was bluish in color and quite transparent, and any other time I would have marveled at this wondrous creature. I squawked, the chicken clucked, and the guards seemed to pause in puzzlement at this development. Then I ran forward and leaped down over the outer wall to the roadway below. More arrows from the guardtower whizzed past my head with an evil hiss, lending yet more speed to my barefoot run for the safety of the wilderness. I don't know what happened to the chicken at this point, but I ran off into the darkening night down the eastern road back toward Windhelm. I guess there is good and bad to this tale of woe. On the good side, I can now summon a ghost chicken when I so desire. I've named her "Trixie" ("Trixie Chicksy" to be exact) and she now often accompanies me on my adventures. I also seem to have acquired a 40 gold bounty in whiterun that I know I didn't have when I first started talking to ysolda about the ring. It all leaves me confused. I swear Skyrim is the most perplexing, frustrating, and surprising place I have ever visited! Arilliana and Trixie at Skyborn Altar: Posted Image |
![]() |
|
| Serethil | Sep 17 2016, 08:29 PM Post #12 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Oh LORDY! What on earth happened in Whiterun? I've never had an entire city out for my blood in this game.... Trixie.... um. Is that a mod? |
![]() |
|
| Andra Hawksdaughter | Sep 17 2016, 08:33 PM Post #13 |
![]()
Jarl
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
:lmao: I love Trixie! What the hell happened in Whiterun, what did she do??? (besides summoning the chicken) Poor thing, she's having a hard time in Skyrim! What a fun read! :clap: Edit: I hate typos... Edited by Andra Hawksdaughter, Sep 17 2016, 08:35 PM.
|
![]() |
|
| neildarkstar | Sep 17 2016, 08:41 PM Post #14 |
|
Overlord
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
To answer a bit, yes, it's a mod that goes under one of two names "Spectral Summoning" or "Graylite" (both available on Steam though one is more or less obsolete and the other the current version). You see, I had acquired this spell for chicken summoning, but had never used it and somehow it got selected instead of my atronach spell I guess. As to what happened, I haven't a clue. Everything was normal as I walked through town to meet up with Ysolda, and during the conversation whasisname the commander attacked me. When I turned to face him I saw his health meter, and he had taken a really good bit of damage somehow, but I have no idea how. I never actually hit any of them (though who knows about the chicken, eh? :) ) |
![]() |
|
| Serethil | Sep 17 2016, 08:43 PM Post #15 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Wow.... |
![]() |
|
| neildarkstar | Sep 18 2016, 08:59 PM Post #16 |
|
Overlord
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
After clearing Morvunskar and finally collecting the staff she had won from "Sam", Arilliana found herself back in Windhelm at Candlehearth Hall. She was glad to be in a place of relative peace, where she could gather her thoughts and perhaps make some sort of plan for her future. She spent the next few days getting to know Windhelm, Talos, and Ulfric. In the end, she had to admit that she wasn't all that fond of Windhelm, and that was mostly because she could not find in herself any fondness for Ulfric and his cause. Ulfric cared only for the Nords in his hold, and the rest could go hang for all he cared. For all of his "talk of Talos" he was never seen in the Temple of Talos. Arilliana had asked the priest of Talos about it, and he had told her that Ulfric had NEVER set foot in the temple but he wrote it of to Ulfric being occupied with the war. After a short time in Windhelm it became obvious that Ulfric really cared only for Ulfric and his acquisition of power. When it became difficult to hold her tongue regarding Ulfric's policies, she realized it was time for her to leave Windhelm before she achieved the status of dissident in Ulfric's court. She couldn't help but wonder at how things worked out. She had become an outlaw at home in the halls of the Thalmor by supporting Ulfric's cause, and now she was likely to become an outlaw in Ulfric's court because she couldn't support Ulfric or his cause. At length, she decided to go to this "College of Winterhold" she had heard of, so with a bit of preparation she took a carriage to Winterhold. Arriving late, the moons had set and were not visible when she climbed down from the carriage. The truth was that nothing else was really visible either, but there seemed to be an inn ahead on the right and the flickering torch of a guard could be seen farther down the street. She had just reached the steps leading up to the inn's door when there came a deafening roar, and she simultaneously was hit with a blast of icy breath that nearly killed her on the spot! Dragon! With one hand she cast healing on herself, and with the other hand summoned a flame atronach in the middle of the street. As the dragon settled on a rooftop across the way, she dived up the steps to get under the cover of the inn's porch. Casting a magelight spell light up the dragon, she was amazed to see that a man and a woman were standing near the middle of the street a block or so down. What conversation could cause two people to disregard the attack of a dragon? With a shrug, Arilliana set the matter aside, and turned to give battle to the dragon. The atronach was peppering the winged lizard with firebolts, and Arilliana quickly joined her in casting firebolts of her own. The battle was long, but eventually the dragon came to earth on the road just above the Inn where Arilliana stood nursing frozen fingers and trying to wriggle her toes. What foul luck brought a beast that breathed ice to attack a place inundated with cold and ice? Two surviving guards had rushed up to finish off the dragon, and Arilliana was thinking of going inside when she saw the telltale reddish glow of a vampire draining the life from one of the guards. By the Nine! Dragons AND vampires in the same night? She summoned another flame atronach, and standing back a ways, covered the vampire with flames as one guard fell dead while the other hacked away at the vampire. Overwhelmed, the vampire soon died in flaming glory, but sadly, the remaining guard fell dead as well. With every bone in her body aching from the long carriage ride, and sore of limb from the attacks of the dragon and vampire, Arilliana slowly walked back to the Inn and climbed the rough wooden steps. The odor of burning flesh of both the dragon and the vampire mingled in the air to form a smoky but miasmic cloud that drifted down the street obscuring what little vision remained in the dark of night. With a shock, Arilliana noticed that teh man and woman were still standing exactly where they had been at the beginning of the fight. Shaking her head, she hurried into the inn with a chill crawling down her spine that was not entirely born of the cold... A few hours later Arilliana stepped out into the bright light of day, and stood on the porch a moment waiting for her eyes to adjust to the brilliant light of sun on snow. As her vision cleared, Winterhold resolved itself into a few rustic buildings standing among scattered ruins of what had once been a fair-sized town. Standing there in the street, just where they'd been the night before, was the man and woman as if frozen by the wintery air. Arilliana moved down the street toward them, and soon discovered they weren't actually frozen, but they didnn't speak to either her or each other as she approached. When she tried to speak to the man, he made some obscure statement about not enough of Winterhold dropping into the sea, but wouldn't engage in any real convresation. The woman however was a different matter. In short order, she had essentially told Arilliana her life story, that the man was her brother and a hopeless drunk, that she and her brother were life-long residents of Winterhold, and that she had purchased a claw that reminded Arilliana of the golden claw in the Riverwood Trader, and that the woman (whose name was Birna) would like to be rid of it. With an idea that this claw might open a door similar to the one at Bleak Falls Barrow, Arilliana bought the claw from the trader. As Birna handed it over, the most unusual thing happened. An arrow seemed to suddenly materialize in the brother's head. Like an oddly placed set of horns, it appeared to be stuck with the fletched end and three or four inches of shaft on one side of his head, and the arrowhead and a length of shaft protruding as well from the other side. The scene seemed to be frozen in time and space, but then the brother fell dead on the snowy street. As his body slumped, Birna let a cry born of a mixture of grief and rage. She turned and charged down the narrow road that ran beside her store, engaging the archer ( who had apparently been the vampire's thrall) in hand to hand combat. She was badly outmatched though, and even though Arilliana's quickly summoned familiar was leaping to the attack, Birna fell dead in a bloody heap before he could save her. The Familiar and a few firebolts ended the thrall's life quickly. Arilliana checked the area, and found that she was apparently the last living being on the streets of Winterhold. No town guards had survived the night, and others were safe in their homes and buildings or dead. Only Arilliana and Trixie moved in the town. Finally she turned toward the college. As Arilliana approached, she was surprised yet happy to see a woman standing on the bridge that led to the College. Now if only the woman would remain alive long enough for conversation... |
![]() |
|
| Areial | Sep 18 2016, 09:07 PM Post #17 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Omg....what a night!! very nice updates! |
![]() |
|
| Serethil | Sep 18 2016, 09:14 PM Post #18 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Oh LORDY! The things that happen in other people's games! Wow, great chapter Neil! |
![]() |
|
| neildarkstar | Sep 19 2016, 07:48 AM Post #19 |
|
Overlord
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
I had traveled generally South from Winterhold, until I reaced Whiterun's Northern guardtower. Then I turned due west and soon arrived at my destination. Urag had asked me to collect a book called "Chronicles of Nchuleft" from Halted Stream Camp near Whiterun, so there I was. As I arrived near the camp, some wolves had decided I might make a decent meal, so I soothed them with kyne's Peace as I scouted the bandits in the walled keep of the camp. They didn't really look very tough, and there were only two that I could see. I almost felt sorry for them as I cast "Fury" on one bandit who was sitting on and elevated platform. She turned and using her bow, immediately attacked her comrade who had until then been chopping wood for the camp. With a truly scary cry of rage, he turned and charged the bow-wielding female thug... but he only managed to hit her once with his sword before he fell dead with an arrow lodged in his skull. their fight was brief, but I'd managed to move fairly close while they were distracted, and as he fell I loosed a couple of fireballs at the surviving bandit. As luck would have it, the fireballs were stopped by a wooden railing, and did only minor damage to the bandit. However, the next four fireballs cast two at a time finished her off quickly, and I moved into the mine itself. A lone bandit fell in seconds, but I'd managed to set off a deadfall trap which not only brought down the roof but raised some kind of elemental guardian spirit. The thing looked like a storm atronach, but it whirled fine grains of sand that acted on my flesh like sandpaper. Quickly, I summoned a flame atronach to get the things attention off of me, while I healed up before attacking it with offensive spells. I had noticed that the flame atronach's firebolts seemed effective against the thing, so I used fireballs to finish it off. To my relief, it seemed the sounds of combat had not reached any bandits who were down on the lower level. I opened the locked gate, and after casting muffle and invisibility started down to where I was certain the bandit chief and my book were waiting. I quickly arrived at a raised ledge which overlooked a lower area where two bandits were apparently working on skinning the corpse of a giant mammoth. To one side I could see the one I felt must be the bandit chief. Unlike the others, he was wearing very good plate armor and sporting a huge axe of Dwemer make. On top of that, he was a mature and obviously seasoned orc warrior and I could feel the touch of fear in my heart as I watched him. Well, no point puting it off... I cast two fireballs at the bandit chief, quickly turned and summoned a flame atronach at the point where a ramp from below landed on my ledge area. As the atronach soldified, the two bandits arrived and began combat, and the bandit chief was near the bottom of the ramp. I moved farther to the left away from the combat, and threw another two fireballs at the chief as he ran up the ramp. By Talos, that orc could MOVE! Then the atronach was fighting the three opponents at once, and I loosed every fireball I could directly at their position. It didn't hurt the atronach of course, but the effects on the bandits were immediate. As the atronach fell, I sent the last two fireballs I had magicka for directly at that orc bandit chief, and they hit just as the atronach exploded in flame. The combined explosion took out all threee of my opponents. Iwas actually a bit saddened at the death of such a fearless warrior, but of course there was little choice. After all, he was a bad, bad, individual who had no doubt ended many lives. I found the "Chronicles" and started for Whiterun where I hoped to spend the night and sell off some of this booty I'd collected. I'd spent a lot lately, and I needed every coin I could get. It was very late or perhaps really very early when I arrived at the city gate. Certainly it was after midnight. I stepped into the city and had just started toward the Bannered mare when the vampires attacked. The street was very dark, and I could hardly make out who was fighting who at any given moment. the cries of the guards, teh yels of the vampires, the screams of the wounded melded into a cacophany of sound that merely accentuated the absence of light and sight. Unable to strike a certain blow myself, I summoned my flame atronach once again knowing she coud hit the true targets without error. In the meantime, I slowly moved to the roof of the guard barracks that are just by the bridge. From up there, I hoped I could perhaps lend some aid to those who battled in the street. As it happened, it was all over by the time I got to a decent vantage point. I sent a magelight down to the scene of the battle, and I could hardly comprehend the number of corpses that lay sprawled there in various poses of death. AS I walked, I saw no living guards or citizens, and somehow it made me think of Winterhold, only this was worse because Whiterun is a more populated place... Eventually, I made my way to the Bannered Mare, where I rented a bed and slept until late morning. Dressing as I made my way out of the inn, and admonished by the old seer that I was embarrassing myself, I arrived on the porch and took in the destruction that had occurred last night. The street was actually littered with bodies from a point alongside Belethor's shop all the way to the city gates. It was difficult to walk down that road without stepping on the dead. The first body I came to was that of Carlotta Valencia who lay staring at the side of Belethor's, and nearby were the bodies of Jon and Birgette Battle-Born. Then the bodies of two city guards, and between them lay a Master Vampire. Not much farther on was a pile of ash that I discovered had been a vampire's thrall and laying almost in the ash was one of those death hounds the vampires like so well. Does such a viscious creature know love for a thrall, I wondered? I continued down the street, and laying almost in the doorway of Breezehome was another Master Vampire and his death hound as well as another guard. Proceeding down the street, I found Ulfberth War-Bear just in front of War Maiden's, and across the street from him lay Amren. Between those two lay another thrall, two more guards, and nearby was a death hound. The body of the inner gate guard lay at his post, right beside the gates. Held in place by duty, or simply no chance to run? I thought I'd give him the benefit of the doubt, and call him hero that Sovengarde might welcome him properly... By the Nine, how do you accept such things? How do you make sense of so much senseless death? The deaths of the guards were sad enough, but Jon, Ulfberth, Amren, and Carlotta made it nearly unbearable... and even poor old Birgette... As I stood there nearly in shock, Adrianne came out of War Maiden's, uttering a cry of pain as she saw her man Ulfberth laying there dead. I saw Carlotta's daughter run by me headed up the street to where Carlotta lay, and I thought I should try to stop her, but she was gone and out of my reach before I could move. So much pain, and really it was just starting... I went into the Drunken Huntsman, and sat crying in my ale for a time, but then I knew there was nothing for it but to just move on, and I made for Belethor's to sell my goods before I started the long trip back to the college. There'd be time for thought and further tears on the road. *** Writer's note: Some of you may be wondering, but let me assure you that I have both mods "Run for your lives" and "When Vampires Attack"... For unknown reasons, they just didn't work for this vampire attack. While I'm adding this note, I'd also like to apologize for moving into third person narrative in the last chapter. I didn't intend to, and I have no excuse other than my current sorry mental state. I hope it wasn't unduly unsettling for anyone besides me. :) Edited by neildarkstar, Sep 19 2016, 07:50 AM.
|
![]() |
|
| Areial | Sep 19 2016, 08:31 AM Post #20 |
|
Et'Ada
![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
|
Na it was a very good update... as we do in RL sometimes our writing reflects. |
![]() |
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
| Go to Next Page | |
| « Previous Topic · Single Volume Epics · Next Topic » |
| Track Topic · E-mail Topic |
4:46 AM Jul 11
|
Theme created by Sjaelen Auren from Zathyus Networks Resources








4:46 AM Jul 11