Capsized, My new fan fiction. Options

[Kiln]

Alright guys I know its short but bear with me here eh?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Prologue
I dreamt of Cyrodill and the cool cobblestone streets of the Imperial City. As I walked toward the city gates, the oil lanterns illuminated the many buildings, shops, and people rushing about, giving the city its own unique personality. Brightly colored flowers filled gardens and massive trees overlooked the city from outside the walls. I took a step outside the massive gates of the city and looked toward the woodland nearby, hardly able to see it because of the mist filling the air. In the distance a deer crashed through the brush in the forest as it attempted to evade the graceful mountain lion. Birds and squirrels were stirred from their nests by the noise below. My wife came up from behind and rested her hand on my shoulder lovingly, looking off into the distance with me . I smiled happily and inhaled the fresh air of the city calmly, then I woke.

Chapter 1: Arrival
The huge oak ship creaked and rocked violently around me as crates and barrels in the hold collided and shook, attempting to break free from the ropes securing them to the floor. I sat up and looked at the dirty bedroll on the floor beneath me, unsure of what is going on. My head was overwhelmed with an intense sharp pain. I grabbed the back of my head and felt the bump where I'd been hit but I couldn't remember why or how I'd even arrived there.

I shook off the confusion and attempted to stand but the storm shook the ship fiercely, causing me to fall to the floor once again. I could hear muffled shouting on the level above me as rain fell into the cargo hold through the open hatch at the end of the corridor. As I lay there, a large amount of water rolled inside the trap door and washed over me, soaking my entire body and filling my mouth with ice cold saltwater. I spat the water onto the floor and grabbed a thin blanket from the corner, wrapping myself with it in an attempt to stay warm. I forced myself to stand and began to make my way toward the trap door leading to the next level, staying to the sides of the room and using the cargo to steady myself. One of the imperial guards climbed into the hatch right as I arrived and grabbed me by the shoulder, throwing me to the floor.

"Keep still prisoner, get back with the others!" He yelled over the sound of thunder and the whistling of the wind outside

"Man overboard!" Another voice yelled just outside

As I tried to get to my feet I heard wooden planks crack and splinter in the level below me. I was frozen with fear and I glanced behind me as water rushed in from the bottom deck.

"Breach on the port side!" A voice yelled as water consumed me

The ship popped and creaked as I struggled to stay above water. The ship began to tilt left slowly and then capsized without warning. I try to swim upward to the bubble of air left at the hull of the ship but a strong current dragged me outside into the deadly waters. I finally made it to the top of the water and took a breath, grabbing a floating barrel desperately. I screamed for help in fear as I listed to the screams of the other men as they search for something to grab hold of but weren't successful.

Though the brutal ocean waves threw me into the air and plunged me back into the freezing water I still held tightly onto the barrel, refusing to be devoured by the dark sea around me. I looked around briefly before each time I was plunged into the ocean praying for land. The screams of the ship’s crew became silent and I could no longer see the hull of the ship floating above the water. I was thrown about for hours before the storm dissipated and I finally saw land. I let go of the barrel and was washed ashore a muddy beach minutes later. I looked around weakly, I could see buildings that looked similar to imperial design but no people walked near them and no lanterns lit the streets. No wall separated it from the world outside and no guards patrolled the alleys.

"Please help." I stutter hoarsely

I begin to cough and choke from the cold, my stomach felt as if it were still turning circles inside me, and I was exhausted. I could stay conscious no more so I rolled onto my side and passed out, cold and alone.

This post has been edited by Kiln: Aug 21 2008, 09:56 PM

[Kiln]

Thanks for your comments guys and I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing. I also hope I can keep you guessing throughout the story.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was as if my very existence had begun upon the prison ship, I could remember things, bits and pieces of my life before but it was all very surreal as if I was dreaming. The only thing I knew for sure was that something big had happened, I could feel it like a wound on my soul. I grew tired of waiting and after a while I began going through the sacks and baskets in the room. I found nothing of much use, some bread and what looked like assorted plants and vegetables…but like none I had ever seen. I took the bread hastily and ate it as fast as I could, leaving the rest alone. I’d learned never to eat anything I couldn’t recognize growing up in the imperial city.

I stood and began pacing the room, beginning to worry about what would happen to me next. Thoughts of execution and imprisonment rushed through my mind as I debated on whether or not I would try and escape. I reached for the handle of the door and just before I grabbed it the door opened, revealing the guard I’d met moments before. He raised an eyebrow when he saw my outthrust hand and shook his head in confusion. He then grabbed me by the arm and pushed me in front of him, forcing me down the hall toward the office I’d entered hours before when I’d first arrived.

I emerged once again to the presence of Socucius Ergalla sitting in the chair behind the table. He smiled and motioned for me to sit down in the seat across from him. I took my place and the old man began turning through the ledger he’d written in before, browsing its contents carefully.

“Hello again Elith, before we begin I’d like to ask you a few more questions that will help me to find a place for you.” He said in a friendly tone

“Place for me? I’m not sure I understand.” I replied in confusion

“I’ll explain when we’re finished; the only thing I ask is that you answer in complete honesty.” He said

“I will answer your questions but I would really like you to explain to me what’s going on first.” I told him
“I’ll try to explain.” He said with a frown as he shifted in his chair

“It appears that we don’t have your arrival on record, though the ship you were on was supposed to dock here and let off prisoners, we don’t have you on the list. This means that you were likely a last minute change on the roster and the papers stating what we’re supposed to do with you were still on the ship when it was lost.” He said as he continued to flip through the pages of the ledger

“I still don’t understand what you’re telling me…what’s going to happen to me?” I asked

“Well it seems that we will have to place you into the service of the empire until we can acquire your papers.” He said

“Service of the empire? What are you talking about?” I asked

“It’s the empire’s way of saying that you’ll be working as an general laborer. Probably serving in a mine or plantation until we get your papers.” The guard said condescendingly

“How long do you think that’ll take?” I asked

“It will likely take at least three weeks, maybe longer.” The old man told me

“Ask your questions then if it will make a difference.” I replied almost grudgingly

I knew the old man was just doing his job but I wished he'd cut me a little slack since I'd nearly drowned just hours before.

He began to question me carefully about myself, asking about various physical attributes as well as social and diplomatic skills I might have. I was honest about my skills which wasn’t the best course of action in hindsight since I might have been placed somewhere much easier had I fabricated a bit on what I could and couldn’t do efficiently.

Ergalla eventually finished recording my personal details and told me that the only place I would be able to work until my papers arrived was in some sort of raw mineral mine in Caldera. It sounded bad and when I asked the guard about it he told me that he wouldn't even accept guard duty there with all the controversy circulating there. I was confused when they told me I would be riding a silt strider to a nearby town and then some other form of transport out of the mages guild…I figured a silt strider was just a backwater way of saying carriage…I was far from right.

After the census office had completely recorded me I was escorted to the exit of the building under guard by two imperial soldiers who were to escort me to the mines. As we stepped out the door into the misty town a pungent odor assaulted my nose, it smelled as if the entire town were sitting in a stagnant swamp. As I looked around more carefully I realized that it was.

Buildings of beautiful but worn imperial design as well as wooden shacks surrounded me, covered in moss and fungus. The ground beneath my feet was slick and muddy from the rain. A few townsfolk wandered the paths between houses and the bridge leading over a small river at the edge of town. I walked with the guards across the bridge and turned the corner heading to the right up the hill and thats when I saw and heard it for the first time. A huge monster bellowed and shifted its weight, pressing its six sharp legs into the mucky ground below it. It had two huge claws that hung lazily before it and an incredibly small head in comparison to its body.

I turned around and started to run but was grabbed by the two imperials beside me. They looked at eachother and began to laugh.

"You'd think he's never seen a strider before eh?" One guard said jokingly

"Yeah I guess some folks aren't used to them." The other replied

I looked at the beast carefully as we came closer to it. A small ramp lead up to its side where a dark elven woman stood. The guards began talking to her and she looked at me and smiled, finding humor in my obvious fear of the creature that was apparently used for transportation in Morrowind. One of the guards climbed inside and the other motioned for me to follow. I knew that it would be a long ride.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yeah I know its short but I don't have alot of time on my hands right now mates.

This post has been edited by Kiln: Jul 24 2008, 12:37 PM