Corrupted heart, part 2, And I ain't halfway yet, dudes. Options

[jack cloudy]

Alright, I just noticed I breached the 200 post mark at the first thread. So here's the new thread.

No update here yet, though. I'll see if I can edit this post later today.

Edit, forgot the link to the last part. Here it is.

Corrupted Heart, part 1

This post has been edited by jack cloudy: Sep 24 2007, 09:30 PM

[jack cloudy]

Knowing Ra'trith, he'll struggle for a bit. Good thing the teacher is an all-mighty vampiric Shehai-master.



Winterhold

The restaurant was sparsely lit by several strategically placed candles and a total of four torches at each corner of the hall. Plants covered the pillars that supported the roof while the tables were covered by a white sheet. A bard sat on a small stage, plucking at the strings of his lute. There weren’t many guests and beyond Rajn, Aran and Marsh, there were only half a dozen Nordic nobles drinking mead. Merdrar had chosen to remain at the suite. This didn’t bother anyone for Marsh always kept the vital prophecy on him.

,,Zowie! Silver cutlery. That’s just sweet!” Rajn squeeled as they took their seats.
,,Whatever, just don’t take any for souvenirs.” Aran cautioned half-mindedly. Within moments they were assaulted by a grand total of two dozens servants. Marsh flipped open the menu he got handed and decided to give out a few pointers.
,,First of all, payment is applied to the charge for our room. Now, the menu is divided into several sections. It starts with drinks. I suggest you two take something like grape-juice, mead only gets you a hangover……Don’t look at me like that, Rajn! Fine, you can stick with water.”

He sighed.
,,This place is for upper-class only. Don’t even think of eating with your bare hands, that goes for both of you. Now the second section is salads, followed by the main course which in turn is followed by dessert. But since it is upper-class and caters to foreigners like us, there is also the option of assembling a custom menu where you get to choose exactly what to eat.” He finished his explanation without further interruptions.
,,White wine, horse in tomato-sauce, please.” He then ordered after which he looked questioningly at his companions. He had to restrain another sigh at the mischievous grin he got.

,,Ok, get ready to take down the notes! I want a big jug of water, as big as the ones those drunks over there are using. Boil the water in a pot over an open fire. The fire must be made by burning worms or this oily stuff, no wood. Then, I’ll have some horse as well, grilled. No spices or salads or vegetables or fruits or anything else. For the sauce, chop up some pork in little bits, smash said bits with a mortar and pestle, mix with water and two handfuls of salt, then heat till most of the water has evaporated. For dessert, bacon and fried bugs.” Rajn listed, flicking through the pages. She then began a large speech on what kind of bugs went best with bacon and what kind would only make her puke.
,,Got that? And you, Arie?”

,,I’ll settle for a loaf of bread and a glass of salted water.” The Dunmer ordered. It was by far the most Spartan meal ever ordered at this particular establishment. Reasonably, everyone stared at him as if he’d lost his mind. Even the bard stopped playing. The only ones who hadn’t noticed a thing were the nobles, who were too busy singing a drunk song anyway. Aran frowned.
,,That is my decision and it’s final. All this decadent food only makes me soft.”

As soon as the servants had ran off to the kitchen and the bard had picked up his lute again, marsh returned to the earlier subject.
,,I think we’re looking at it the wrong way. We shouldn’t try to think where the staff is hidden, but where we would hide it if we were Tharn.” He noted. To this, Aran agreed.
,,If we know how he thinks, we can scrap 90% of the province from our list. If I were him and I had to hide some supreme artefact of power, I would make sure that no matter what happens, the artefact would remain safe from all but the most powerful of beings. For that matter, I wouldn’t trust any place that relies on guards, unless those guards are loyal spirits or in some other way immortal.” He added and frowned as he tried to think of something else.
,,Says you. But does anyone here have an idea who we’re talking about? I don’t know anything about him beyond the fact that he’s a total creeped out jerk and survived the grove. That’s impressive, but not impossible. I could do it, with preparation. But seriously, why don’t we just hop over to his place and whack him with one of those little suns you always throw at things? It would be so much easier.” Rajn complained. She looked longingly at the kitchen and absentmindedly rubbed her stomach.

Marsh folded his handkerchief into a small pyramid before answering.
,,Jagar Tharn is as of this moment, the absolute ruler of Tamriel. He is however, not the ruler by any legal authority. From what I’ve gathered, he somehow removed the Emperor from the throne without killing him, therefore dodging the automatic warning the Elder council would receive upon his death. As a result, no one knows that the man on the throne is just an illusion and he has the full loyalty of every legion on Tamriel, including a garrison of his personal bodyguards the Blades.” He began. At this point, Aran’s meal was brought in, fresh from the bakery two blocks further down the streets.
,,On top of that, Tharn is a Battlemage. But not just any Battlemage. He is the Imperial Battlemage, which makes him the elite of the elite. Quite simply put, we just can’t afford a direct confrontation without shifting the odds into our favour beforehand.” He finished after the short interruption. Rajn was not convinced however.

,,So? I still say that catch him in his bed, he’ll be as helpless as a Khajiit in boiling water. But you act as if he’s some kind of god. I’m telling you, he bleeds like the rest of us.” She pointed out. The Argonian shook his head.
,,We tried that already, before we got the first prophecy about the champion. We contacted the Dark Brotherhood and they sent an assassin to slay Tharn, without knowing the truth. The assassin reached Tharn’s bedroom where he was unceremoniously taken down by the impostor without difficulties. I believe he is now rotting in prison somewhere.” He argued. Rajn froze and paled.
,,An…assassin? He wouldn’t be…a black Khajiit, would he?” She questioned in a trembling whisper.
,,As a matter of fact, we were rather strict on our requirements and the only one to meet them was indeed a black Khajiit.” Marsh confirmed.

,,Wah! I spent like a mo…omfhe…egh..afmhenh...Aran get your hand away from my face!” The Bosmer screamed. Again the bard paused. After glancing their way, the Nord shrugged, tapped his forehead with a finger and resumed playing.
,,Sorry, but it was best not to make anyone know that you’ve spent time behind bars. Marsh, she’s met your assassin and wasn’t happy with it. We left him chained to the wall when we escaped with the champion.” Aran whispered calmly. Marsh nodded in understanding and cleared his throat.
,,I see, my apologies. I had no intention of that to happen. But I feel compelled to finish my story. Now after the assassin, lady Silmane told me of the champion and we put our hopes on him. Alas, he died and when I went down to lady Silmane confirm it, I was attacked by those demons you both saw. While we have since then managed to slay two by catching them by surprise...” Marsh took a deep breath. A thought flashed through his mind.
,,And a third by sacrificing my own life and a precious soul.”

,,There are simply too many to kill. So we are dealing here with a Battlemage who can take on assassins, has been trained by an institute that only selects about nine applicants from all over Tamriel and was elected as the best of these nine. On top of that, he maintains an army of demons that would gladly shred him to pieces if they even dared think that he might be vulnerable. That sounds pretty god-like to me.” He finished.
,,Ok, I got it. But then why are we even trying if he is a god? Shouldn’t we just go to a quiet place and hope it all blows past?” Rajn asked softly. Aran answered for the Argonian.
,,Because he is nearly a god, but not one. Besides, it is the right thing to do and waiting won’t help a thing.”

This post has been edited by jack cloudy: Mar 11 2008, 08:46 AM