Haa-Rei the Marsh Ranger Options

[hazmick]

Chapter 1.0

I ran from the Merchants Inn as fast as I could. Holding tight to the precious bounty I had wrapped in cloth, ignoring the angry shouts behind me. I dipped into an empty side street and paused to look around before examining my prize, a large loaf of bread covered in melted cheese. Deeh would not believe that I had stolen some food without his help, I couldn't wait to get back to Leyawiin and tell him.

The bread was warm out of the oven and tasted delicious as I hungrily crammed it into my mouth. Before I could finish, I heard a rattle of armour and a wall of iron in the shape of a legionnaire crashed down the alley towards me. My hand found the hilt of my dagger but I decided against fighting this particular soldier. If only I had a bow.

“Stop right there pondscum!” his voice was like thunder and echoed about the grubby walls surrounding me. The only exit was behind me. I made a run for it but the soldier was too fast and grabbed my arm in a bone breaking grip.

“I assume you don’t have 5 septims?” This time his voice was lower but still sounded loud in the cramped alleyway.

I quickly swallowed the bread in my mouth, “I…no,” my mouth was dry and my voice croaked, if I was a man or mer my face would be bright red with embarrassment and fear.

“Come with me,” The soldier secured the irons tightly on my thin wrists, cutting off the circulation. Minutes later we arrived at the imperial prison, it’s walls were darker than those of the other city districts and corpses in various states of decay hung from atop it’s large spire.

Once inside I was lead down a short tunnel, light seemed to fear this place as it grew darker and darker the deeper we descended. One of the rusty cell doors was open, I assumed this was mine.

Sure enough on reaching the cell, an iron clad hand grabbed me by the neck and pulled me closer to the soldier.

“ I hope you rot, criminal scum,” His voice was a low growl with an edge of disgust which most people had when talking to me and the other beggars. The soldier threw me into the cell, my head colliding with something hard. Everything went dark.

This post has been edited by hazmick: Aug 17 2010, 03:56 PM

[hazmick]

@Acadian & SubRosa- I'm glad you liked the re-write.

@SubRosa- we'll be seeing more of Amusei later

@Destri- Yep, Haa-Rei arrived in Leyawiin straight from Black Marsh. He met lots of his friends there.

@Trey- Thanks dawg, such wonderful praise is most welcome

@mALX-YEAH!!! I'm busy reading through maxical's adventures so I hope I will be able to return the praise.


Chapter 2.0


I looked at my reflection in the waters of Lake Rumare. The purple and green scales on my face were a pale grey. I looked awful. How long had I been in those sewers?

The white stones of an Ayleid ruin were reflected in the deep azure, giving the illusion of an underwater city. I looked towards the ruins that stood on the far side of the lake. The once grand structure had been reduced to rubble. White stones were now grey and weathered after years of disuse. I’d never been in an Ayleid ruin before, too dangerous. I smiled inwardly and marked the ruin on my map.

I set off at a brisk walk, following the walls of the city. The gate wasn’t hard to find and I arrived a few hours later. Much to my surprise, the guard smiled and let me through. I had half expected them to arrest me for my recent prison escape. That Redguard must have said something to the watch captain.

The streets of the Talos plaza were full of people, most were merchants headed to the market district. I took the road to the Temple district and then on to the Waterfront. I had some people I needed to see.

The Waterfront wasn’t nearly as busy. A few people carried supplies to the various ships that were moored in the harbour. The brothels were closed during the day so guards had no reason to be here.

I walked across the bridge and through to the housing area. The tumble-down wooden shacks were arranged in two lines of five. People who were unemployed and thieves lived here. Most of my friends in the city lived here.

“Me children will thank ye’ fer ye’ help,” The figure clad in rags grabbed my arm.

“Methredhel, you don’t have any children. A good actor though,” I said as the Bosmer stood up and grinned.

She took off her rag cloak, revealing a set of leather armor. An iron mace hung at her left hip.

“I thought it was very convincing,” She started giggling.

“Just stick to thievery,” I smiled “Where’s Amusei?”

“He needs to steal a diary from Amantius Alectus for the thieves’ guild test.” She reached into a bag at her shoulder. “This diary,” She laughed again.

“Hmmm,” Was my reply as I walked over to pack up my bedroll. “If you see him, tell him I’ve gone to Chorrol.”

“Chorrol?” She raised an eyebrow.

“It’s hard to explain, I’ll tell you when I get back.” I wasn’t ready to tell anyone about the Emperor yet.

I said goodbye and set off, allowing my feet to take me through the crowds until I reached the city gates. A guard looked me up and down.

“Going far this evening?” The guard's question had surprised me. It didn’t end with the word ‘Pondscum’.

“I’m heading to Chorrol,” I stood up straight. I like to think the guard felt intimidated.

“You won’t make it to Chorrol tonight, there is a small village called Weye at the end of the imperial bridge where you can stay.” The guard smiled and opened the gate.

I spent the next half hour travelling across the imperial bridge, the stones hurt my feet and I was desperately hungry.

The village of Weye was small, consisting of the inn and a few stone houses. A small vegetable patch was next to the stables. Several horses were munching hay in their stalls.

The smell of wine and ale welcomed me as I stepped into the inn. The rather attractive Altmer innkeeper sold me a room for the night along with some cheese and bread. I now had no money at all. That’s more like it.

There was an empty table in the corner so I sat down with my meal. The bread and cheese made me thirsty but I had no money for a drink. A voice to my left interrupted my thoughts.

“Excuse me, is this seat taken?” It was a Bosmer. He was dressed in tan robes and carried a bottle of wine.

“Not at all,” I motioned to the empty seat.

“My name is Gaeleg, pleased to meet you,” He smiled and poured me some wine. His bronze skin was framed with thick brown hair. His eyes were a strange yellow colour, he reminded me of a khajiit.

“Well met Gaeleg. My name is Haa-Rei,” I took a sip of the wine. I’ve always liked Wood Elves, such kind people.

The next few hours were spent drinking wine and chatting to my new friend. He was also on his way to Chorrol and convinced me to visit the Mages Guild with him. He talked about his home in Valenwood and listened as I talked about Black Marsh. After the wine had been finished off I went to bed, Gaeleg would meet me for breakfast.

After wrestling with my leather armor I decided on a bath. I heated the water with stones from the fireplace and carefully slid my body into the copper tub. The water soothed my burned shoulder and I could feel the dirt and grime washing away. Sleep took hold and I drifted of into dreams of my home land.

I woke up fully submerged in the cold water which had gone through a distinct colour change. After looking in the small mirror on the bedside table, I found that the purple and green scales on my face were back. Much better.

Gaeleg had already ordered breakfast and was tucking in to a plate of eggs and ham. My stomach growled to announce my arrival.

“Hail friend, you sound hungry.” He smiled and waved to the seat next to him. “Please, help yourself,”

Without hesitation I sat down and tucked into some cooked ham. “Thanks Gaeleg, remind me to buy you lunch one day,” We both started laughing.

After our hearty breakfast we set off for Chorrol. I stared open mouthed at the trees of the great forest whose branches interlocked like a roof above us. Deer skipped through the undergrowth as we passed. Gaeleg said it reminded him of Valenwood.

Just over an hour after we had set off from Weye, we reached the gates of Chorrol. Gaeleg immediately said his goodbyes before heading off to the mages guild. I agreed to meet him there later on. I went to ask a nearby guard for directions.

“Can I help you, sir?” The guard was dressed in full chainmail armor; the great oak of Chorrol was emblazoned on the cuirass.

“Oh, I’m looking for Weynon Priory,” I explained.

“It’s just south of the city. Take the road until you come to a fork, head left and you can’t miss it.” He nodded before turning back to his patrol.

Fifteen minutes later I arrived at the small settlement of Weynon. The priory house was directly in front of me, flanked on either side by small vegetable plots and cottages. Several people wandered around carrying various food stuffs to the chapel and the Priory house. A Dunmer dressed in the attire of a blacksmith walked over to me.

“Greetings, how can I help?” He sounded friendly enough.

“I’m looking for Jauffre,” It was at that moment that I realized I knew nothing about this Jauffre fellow, thankfully the Dunmer did.

“He’s in the priory house, probably reading.” I gave the Dunmer a nod and walked towards the settlement’s central building. It didn’t look that important. Who was this Jauffre anyway? A warrior? There was only one way to find out.

This post has been edited by hazmick: Sep 6 2010, 01:49 PM