The Accounts of Rayden Options

[redsrock]

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story takes place just nine days after Uriel Septim's assassination, with a unique twist. I am taking the Main Quest and I am remaking it with my own version. What would have happened if both the main-character and Uriel Septim died in the sewers, along with all of the Blades officers? What would have happened if the Amulet of Kings fell into the hand of an "innocent" but hidden bystander?


The Accounts of Rayden


CHAPTER ONE


I wouldn't even have been able to get into the sewers if it wasn't for that foolish Imperial Guard, who, after a few too many bottles of ale, carelessly dropped his heavy set of iron keys lying so temptingly upon the hard wood floor. I was sitting in the tavern, minding my own business. I had planned on settling in for the night, but when I saw that gleaming shine coming from the keys, I knew my night had only just begun.




My name is Rayden, Bosmer and freelance thief of the Imperial City. I am a mere twenty-seven years of age, yet I am capable of many things even veteran thieves cannot accomplish. What, do you think of me as a boastful young brat? I will not argue with you, I am indeed confident of my abilities, but I guess I'll have to prove that to you. Don't worry, you'll learn soon enough.




When I first saw the keys I assumed someone else would pick them up and hand them back to the officer as a sign of good will, possibly a way to kiss up to the Imperials, just like everyone seemed to be so keen of doing. But alas, my inner prayers were answered and nobody but I witnessed the keys fall to the floor. So I left my seat and walked out the door, slyly scooping down to pick the keys up on my way.

At first I wasn't sure what to do with them. There were so many keys hanging from the iron ring, more than fifteen in fact. There were hundreds of places I thought about going to in order to get my hands on whatever I wanted, but one place stood out more than any other: the sewers under the prison. I had heard many a story about how there was a secret passageway to hidden chambers, were rooms were filled with lost and hidden treasures. From my understanding the sewer was not guarded by one soul, meaning it was probably my safest option, as well as my most prosperous.

I left the tavern and headed straight for the sewers entrance, which was just a bit northeast from the city. There, I fumbled through the keys, and thankfully, just as I had originally hoped, one of them opened the large-barred gate that was standing between me and my soon to be treasures.

I stepped inside the damp sewers and walked around for a few minutes, trying to find my way to the secret chambers. The rats were making things difficult, not to mention the goblins. They were extremely difficult to sneak around. After not finding anything of interest for an hour I was beginning to think that the stories must have been false, but then I faintly heard a metal door opening to the west, and the sound seemed as if it was not too far from where I was standing.

I quietly ran to where I heard the sound, and sure enough a door had been opened, and you won't even begin to believe who I saw. The Emperor himself, Uriel Septim, was being led by a Redguard Blade, and some other person who looked to be an inmate of the prison itself. I made that assumption because he was wearing raggedy clothes, and his wrists had irons on them. But the inmate was too far in the back, making it impossible to see what race he was. Obviously the Emperor was an Imperial, everyone knows that. And the Redguard's race was certainly visible thanks to obvious circumstances. As for the inmate, I never did get a look at his face. What happened next went so fast I'm still a bit dazed...

No more than ten seconds after spotting the three, a rustled noise came from their right side. Suddenly men and women wearing scarlet red robes and hoods appeared almost out of nowhere, and for whatever reason a small battle immediately commenced.

It was all so confusing and wild. I didn't know what to do, so I simple hid around a corner, but carefully peeking my head out so that I could see all the action. The Redguard was taking on two opponents at once, and the inmate had already been slain by one of the red-robed.

Uriel Septim had attempted to run away but one of the robed shot a spell his way, hitting him square in the back. A humongous cloud of magic surfaced through the air, and somehow a necklace flew from the Emperor's body, hitting the wall right next my face. I assumed the necklace was a simple, but expensive, piece of jewelry. But, when I picked the item up, I realized it was none other than the Amulet of Kings, THE Amulet of Kings!

I looked back, expecting to see the robed men running towards me, but instead they were running towards the fallen body of the Emperor. The Redguard had taken down his own opponents, and was then rushing over to the Emperor to protect him from the two remaining opponents.

Without hesitating I picked up the necklace and ran away, but before I did that I took one last glance at the battle. The Redguard was on the ground with an axe sticking from the side of his head, and the Emperor was lying unprotected on the hard stoned floor, with both of his frail hands in the air, shielding himself from the two remaining robed men.

"Tell us where the Amulet is!" Yelled one of the robed men. When the Emperor did not respond to their commands they simply stuck a sword through his chest and into his heart, ending the long lived life of Cyrodiil's leader. I watched in horror as Uriel's hands fell to the ground and slammed against the floor. The robed men began searching the area, and that's when I finally left the place.

Now, nine days later, I stand here in an old worn-out cabin, deep in the woods west of Cheydinhal. I sit here with the Amulet of Kings in hand, and I'm trying to figure out what to do. It only took one day for a total transformation of the Empire to take place. After what took place in the sewers, thousands of red-robed figures showed up in the Imperial City, led by an Altmer who called himself "Mankar Camoran". He claimed to be the leader of the cult he called "The Mythic Dawn".

I was in that same tavern where I found the keys when Mankar and his cultists arrived. The death of the Emperor had not yet been spread, since I was the only witness to the deaths, and I surely was too afraid to tell anyone. I was trying to keep myself out of trouble, but then again that would impossible as long as I had the Amulet of Kings still in my possession.

A fight broke out in the city. The guards and citizens banded together to fight the Mythic Dawn, but it was of no use. Apparently Mankar had several men inside the Imperial City who were working for him. That and the fact that the Imperial Legion was greatly outnumbered benefited to the Mythic Dawn's easy victory. Since then Mankar has taken the throne, and his men are looking for the Amulet, which I of course have in hand.

I had left the city before I was rounded up by Mankar's men, and like I told you before, I am now residing in my hidden cabin. It is not hidden by magical powers, but the trees certainly provide help in hiding from the outside world.

I was looking at the amulet closely, examining every last detail of the famed jewel. It was rather heavy for a piece of jewelry, seemingly a little over 1 pound in weight. The gold chain was supposed to wrap around the wearer's neck, and in the middle of the amulet itself was a gigantic, red, ruby-like gem, which was absolutely stunning. Around that gem were eight smaller jewels, all different colors. The amulet was truly a magnificent item, but unfortunately it had some magical powers conjured in it as well.

I say this because when I tried to put the amulet on my own neck, it simply fell off. It never would stay on and I was getting quite furious about the whole situation. That's when I paid a "visit" to the bookstore in the Imperial City, after-hours if you know what I mean. While there I discovered a book about the Amulet of Kings, and in its contents I learned that only a legitimate heir to the Septim bloodline may wear the amulet.

And now, again I say for the third time, here I am sitting in my cabin trying to figure out what to do with my new found treasure. For a while I had thought about giving the jewel to Mankar, for I had foolishly thought he might have given me a hundred heaps of gold for it. But after thinking a bit more clearly, I came to my senses and realized the elf was way too cunning. He would never have given me anything in return; he would have simply tricked me somehow. I do not know the man personally, but I could just tell what kind of man he was by looking at the way he talked.

Ever since the Mythic Dawn's battle was won in the Imperial City, I've been here in my cabin, for fear of my life. I do not want to give the amulet up anymore, I've made that decision. To be honest with you I don't really care about anyone else, but I do not want to see Cyrodiil run by a bunch of cult members and their fanatic leader. Obviously they want the amulet for something, but I'm just not sure what. Right now I'm trying to think of who might be able to help me. Perhaps there is someone who can help me destroy the gem, or perhaps destroying the item isn't what I should do. Back in the bookstore, I read something about that the Amulet of Kings light the Dragonfires, whatever that meant. I don't know what to make of all this, but surely there is someone in this land that can help me; someone who is wiser that I in that sort of business.

At that moment I remembered hearing about an old Breton who lived in a priory south of Chorrol. I knew not his occupation, but only that he had something to do with the Empire. His identity was supposed to have been kept a secret from all, but thankfully for me I was a nosey little thief. I decided that paying this man a visit would definitely help my cause, but of course I really didn't what my cause was at the moment...

This post has been edited by redsrock: Dec 5 2007, 08:23 PM

[redsrock]

CHAPTER SEVEN


“Ay, you gotta nasty bruise there, lad.”

Slowly my eyesight came back and I was face to face with an enormous Nord. His wild and untamed beard went from his upper lip all the way down his gigantic chin about two feet. He was kneeling down, apparently examining a cut I had sustained. When he stood straight up his body rose high over mine; he was likely at least seven feet tall. If he was drunk, like Nords tended to be, and fell on top of me I would die instantly. He certainly was a sight to behold.

“Well aren’t you gonna say somethin’”?

What did he expect? I had finally woken from passing out. I didn’t know where I was, or how long I had been out of it. The last thing I wanted to do at that moment was talk, but I suppose I didn’t have much of a choice; he was going to keep at it until I said at least a little something.

“Where am I?” I managed the mumble the words and at the sound of my voice the Nord’s eyes lit up as bright as the midnight stars.

“Why lad, you’re in the Imperial City prisons!”

I looked around and sure enough I was surrounded by hard stone walls, and on one side a set of iron bars. That’s when I remembered Mankar telling someone to throw me in the dungeon. But who was he talking to? Then I also remembered Mankar call his companion Hieronymus. He couldn’t have been talking to the Imperial Legion captain, could he?

“Who brought me in here?” I asked the Nord.

“Hieronymus Lex; that cowardly traitor!”

I still didn’t believe it could have been him. “Are you certain it was him? Why would he be on the Mythic Dawn’s side?”

“Dunno, lad, but I heard somethin’ from another inmate about how he was about to be killed by Mankar himself, and Lex then pledged his worthless life to Mankar’s cause. That’s all I know, nothin’ else.”

Well that was certainly some bad news. Why in the world would Lex stoop to such a low level? How could he betray his friends and fellow countrymen?

“Oh, sorry for not introducin’ m’self. The name’s Alfhedil, but you can call me Alf.”

I wasn’t too sure about this Nord, but he did seem friendly enough. I don’t think he’s insane or anything like that, perhaps a little…different.

“And what’s yer name, wood elf?”

I wasn’t one to give my name out to random people I don’t even know, but this Nord was harmless, I could just tell. To tell you truth I wasn’t too sure he was smart enough to remember my name anyway. Besides, perhaps he knew of a way to get out of this retched cell.

“My name is Rayden. How long have I been here…Alf?”

“The coward threw you in here about an hour or so ago. Yer head hit the floor rather hard and that’s where you got yer cut.”

I felt my forehead and sure enough there was an enormous gash, about six inches long and still a bit bloody, but not too much.

“Don’t worry about the bleedin’, it stopped about fifteen minutes ago. I made sure to hold that there cloth tightly in place,” he said while pointing to a bloody rag to my left.

“Thanks. Umm…were you one of the original citizens here when the Dawn first attacked?”

“Ya, I was arguin’ with some baker over a stolen muffin when the attack came. They were fast as lightenin’ I tell ya. It was over in now time; the Legion didn’t stand a chance,” he said with the usual Nord accent.

“Do you know how many people they have captured?”

“Not many; I’d say no more than twenty or so, mostly soldiers. They killed most of the civilians, except fer the ones who they think can fight. They’re tryin’ to get me and the like to fight fer em’. Aint’ gonna happen though. I aint no coward,” he said proudly with his big arms crossed.

He was certainly loyal to the country, but of course none of that was any use to him now. Surely in time Mankar will have him killed, along with everyone else. But I didn’t plan on being one of those unfortunates.

“There’s got to be a way out of here somewhere,” I thought aloud as I felt my hand along the walls, hoping to find something leading to a trap door.

“Your wastin’ yer time, woody. I look m’self, there’s nothin’ that’ll help ya’.”

Woody? I was starting to get annoyed now. The Nord was probably too stupid to even know what to look for. This was my profession, I’m pretty sure I know a little more than him.

“Ya better stop, woody, I can hear someone comin’ down the stairs.”

I immediately stopped what I was doing and turned around. Sure enough, a figure was descending down the stairs, accompanied by three others. It was Mankar and two Dawn cultists. Then, behind them, was Lex carrying the lone torch. They walked up to the barred door and Mankar then spoke.

“So, you thought you could fool me, Bosmer?”

I said nothing, and instead waited for Mankar to continue.

“I’ll admit to you, when I first saw you I actually thought you were Judo. But then when you spoke you gave it all away I’m afraid. I could easily tell you were faking it, yet I did not stop you, did I? I simply wanted to see if you were foolish enough to follow me, and I guess were,” he laughed. “Now tell me, why have you infiltrated my city, Bosmer?”

‘Your City?’ I thought to myself. This wasn’t his city and it never would be. Anger was definitely bubbling up inside of me, but I couldn’t let that distract my focus. I couldn’t show any anger, which would only be a sign of weakness.

“So you’re not going to speak, heh? That’s perfectly fine with me. I think I’ll let you rot in the dungeon for a couple of days. Maybe then you’ll change your mind.”

The four of them walked away and Alf and I were left alone once more.

“If ya’ ask me, that there was kinda pointless, don’t ya think, Woody?”

“He was trying to get put fear into me, Alf, possible embarrass me. Too bad I’m smarter than that.” In truth, I was lucky Mankar didn’t know the real reason why I was here.

Once Mankar and his cronies were out of sight I continued my search for a trap door. I could hear Alf sigh and sit down on a stool, likely out of frustration. He was so bent on believing there wasn’t anything to find in the walls, but I wasn’t going to give up until I was one hundred percent sure there was nothing to find. I searched on for another five minutes or so, when finally I gave up. Maybe Alf was right.

“I tried tellin’ ya’, Woody,” he announced.

I gave him a grim stare and sat down on the other stool that was in the cell. I started thinking on another way to escape, and that’s when I eyed a knife lying on the table next to me. I picked the blunt blade up and held it close to my face. It wasn’t too sharp, but perhaps just enough for me to unlock the barred doors.

I got up with the knife in hand and walked over to the cage. Alf was now looking at me with great interest. I took the knife and shoved it hard into the key hole. It was kind of hard because of course the lock was located on the outside, and I could not see it with my own eyes. I went on for about ten minutes, poking around with the knife, when finally I heard a faint click, and then the cage creaked open. Alf suddenly stood up and started yelling like an idiot.

“Woody, ya’ actually did it! I…”

I hushed the dumb oaf the raise of my finger to my mouth. I didn’t plan on getting caught just minutes after escaping. I walked out and started up the steps when I heard Alf whisper from behind.

“Pss, Woody, what about me, lad?”

I sighed heavily because I knew I was stuck. He wanted to come with me, but how was he going to do that with his humongous size? There was no way he’d be able to get out unnoticed.

“You can’t come with me. You’re just too big. I have to get of here without being captured again. I can’t explain it to you, but let’s just say I hold the key to Cyrodiil’s fate.”

I was hoping that would shut him up, but of course it didn’t. Like many other Nords, Alf was ignorant.

“Let me pave the way fer ya’,” he said with a huge smile. “I’ll cause a disturbance while you get away. I think I can handle them fer a few minutes while you take yer leave.”

I wanted to argue some more, because at first I didn’t even want to consider the idea. But, when I thought about it, it wasn’t that bad of an idea after all. The big Nord would definitely cause a stir, that much was for sure, and if all went well I would be able to escape freely. If I can remember right, outside there’s a gate, and beyond that is open land. I’d be able to get away in a matter of seconds.

“Are you sure you want to do that? Why would you want to help me? You don’t even know me?”

“I don’t know. I figure one of us should be able to get away. And like you said, I’m too big to get away unnoticed.”

And that was that. I had made a decision.

“Thanks, Alf. I appreciate it.”

“No problem, Woody,” he winked.

I turned around and started quietly up the stairs, with Alf carefully lumbering behind…