The Talendor Chronicles, Part One Options

[TheOtherRick]

AUTHORS NOTE AND DISCLAIMER

This is my first attempt at fan fiction. I am not a writer, by profession or hobby. At least it wasn't a hobby until now. We'll see where that goes. So since I am not a writer, grammatical and spelling errors may slip past the spell-check from time to time. Please feel free to point them out so that I may make the proper edits.

I have read very little fan fiction, which is to say that I have not finished reading any story that I started reading...yet. But starting to read a few has put a flow in my creative juices. (Go Buffy!) Any similarity to any other fan fiction posted in this or any other forum is purely coincidental, with one exception. I have posted this story on another site. I am posting it here because I would like feedback, and I am not getting any at the other site. The readers here seem to post more feedback than readers at the other site. I'm not trying to be a glory hound, and I encourage constructive criticism.

The story is a gameplay narrative. It starts in the 3rd person for the prologue only, the rest will be in 1st person. It is not a walk-through of the Main Quest. However, as it is a gameplay narrative, so readers will have to plod through the tutorial section much as I had to plod through while writing it. The tutorial is essential for character development, as you will see. The posts will be relatively short so that the reader will not have to wade through miles of text per post. To keep them short, I am going to borrow Acadian's chapter numbering system (1.1, 1.2, etc.) so I don't end up with three digit chapter numbers.

I hope you will enjoy...The Talendor Chronicles

Post Script - I have already screwed up. Instead of putting "Authors Note and Disclaimer" in the subject line, it should read "Part One". Is there a way to change that?

Post Script #2 - The first four installments after the Prologue are way too long. This was a rookie mistake and has been rectified Beginning with Chapter 3. I apologize for the long posts, but I promise you'll be glad you slogged through them.

This post has been edited by TheOtherRick: Feb 5 2011, 02:00 AM

[TheOtherRick]

@ Everyone - Thank you all so much for every comment and critique. This is still a little nerve-racking because it is so new to me. Your support is what keeps me going.

@ SubRosa - I didn't even realize that I had paraphrased a Star Wars line until I read your comment, and that comment had me rolling! Glad you got a kick out of the title.

@ ghastley - But what do I do now when I am supposed to do this and I do that instead and then...and then....and...

@ h.e.rider - I'm glad so many were surprised by the curve ball. The end result, just like a curve ball, will either be a swing and a miss or a home run...TBD

@ Chef Thomas - Thanks for the nit catch...picked. I'll give a lil spoiler and tell you that there will not be a crowd.

@ mALX - Glad I was able to rouse another ROLF....I'm gonna keep gunning for a SPEW though...

@ olen - Thanks for joining in and my apologies for the epic lengths of the first few posts. Rookie mistakes that were corrected with the aid and guidance of Acadian and mALX. I really appreciate your critiques and compliments on the first 15 chapters. Because I am so new to this, your input will be invaluable.

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Chapter 16 – To Cloud Top and Back

Honditar’s mark was north of Chorrol, just as Earana had said. It looked like a pretty good distance, so I stopped in at The Oak & Crosier for some additional provisions before heading out the north gate. Not far after leaving the town, a pathway split off to the north while the main road continued east. I followed the path and shortly the land began to rise. A series of switchbacks helped the path to gain elevation. Someone had even gone to the trouble of building some wooden stairs at a particularly steep portion.

Just past the stairs was a suspension bridge made of wood and rope. It appeared to be in good condition, but I still crossed gingerly, holding the rope rail and ready to grab it if something broke. About halfway across, I stopped and looked to my right. I was awestruck by the view. I could even see the tower of the Imperial Palace from here. With the sun beginning to set, it had a golden cast to it against the purple mountains on the eastern horizon. The sight was breathtaking.

Beyond the bridge, switchbacks became more frequent as the path struggled to climb. I stopped and crouched as movement caught my eye at one of the bends. A wolf was coming around the turn and hadn’t noticed me yet. I removed a vial of poison and applied it to an arrowhead. As the wolf was struck by my anointed arrow, it seemed to gain a green aura. The beast fell and lay motionless halfway through its charge toward me. I walked over to it and assumed that the green I had seen must have been my eyes playing tricks on me. The wolf looked normal now, except for the new appendage protruding from its chest. I used my dagger to skin it, placing the pelt in my pouch and dragging the carcass off of the path.

A bit further up the path, I wasn’t so lucky as to see my next assailant before it saw me. I had just rounded yet another switchback when a blur of silver fury knocked me off of my feet. I wasn’t able to regain my footing in time to prevent a second onslaught from the wolf. He leaped at me and I got my arm up just in time to prevent his jaws from closing on my throat. We began to roll downhill along the path, an odd boulder of silver fur and brown leather. I struggled to keep the wolf from biting areas more vulnerable than my arm as we gained momentum. Suddenly, we hit a large rock where the trail had made a bend. The wolf began howling in pain and broke off the attack. He made a couple circles as he yelped, trying not to stand on his broken leg. This gave me time to draw my sword, but the wolf seemed to think better of pressing the attack in his wounded condition. He took off through the brush, giving more yelps every time he put too much weight on his shattered limb.

I inhaled sharply through clenched teeth as I examined my forearm. Blood had begun to drip from my fingertips. I cast the healing spell twice, stopping the bleeding. It took me a few minutes to find my satchel. It had been flung off during our display of gravity in action. Luckily, all of my possessions were still in the bag. The only other casualties of the encounter were a few of my arrows that had snapped as we tumbled.

I finally reached the end of the path as the sun was casting its final light before ducking behind the mountains. The ruins of Cloud Top weren’t large. There was area of overgrown pavers, roughly square in shape. Ruined stone pillars were set at each corner and what appeared to be the remnant of a campfire was between the two closest pillars. It seemed an unlikely place to find a book. As I approached the extinguished campfire, it began to take on a ghastly shape. It was a charred corpse, burned so badly that I couldn’t tell if it had been man or mer. All I knew for certain was that it was too large to have been a Bosmer.

I searched the ruin and discovered a chest. Grinning to myself, I quickly opened it, only to have the grin wiped away when I did not find a book. All it contained were three coins and a crystal ball. I kept the contents and continued to search. After checking every nook and cranny, I squatted with my back against a broken pillar set in the center of the ruins. I looked at the corpse.

“Hey fella, you haven’t seen a book lying around have you?” I asked the charred body.

I got up and walked toward it. Its arms were clasped across its chest. Closer inspection revealed that there was something clutched under its arms. I bent down to check and was amazed to see it was a book. I pulled it away, trying to ignore the sound of charred flesh separating from its frame. I brushed it off and my eyes widened as I realized that the book hadn’t even been singed. I couldn’t read the title, but that didn’t surprise me because Earana had said as much. This had to be the book though, so I put it in my satchel and stood up.

The sun had passed below the peaks in the distance. The sky was a splash of vivid color, bright orange at the horizon, fading through pinks and purples into a deep blue that promised the arrival of stars. High clouds had grabbed some of the pink and held onto it, as if they refused to let the day go. Since there was level ground and shelter from the wind, I decided to camp here and head back to Chorrol in the morning. I figured that Mr. Crispy wouldn’t mind, and if he was frightened or offended by the campfire I built, he kept those opinions to himself.

After a very satisfying meal, I lay on my bedroll and looked at the stars. For the first time since my adventure began, I was treated to the sight of Nirn’s two moons. They looked close enough to touch if I stood up. It was with this celestial showcase that I closed my eyes and went to sleep.

* * *

When I awoke shortly after dawn, my overcooked campmate was still staring eyeless at the sky. After breakfast, I considered moving the body into the brush. I certainly wasn’t going to bury it, but placing it out of view had somehow seemed the decent thing to do. I grabbed its hands to drag it away and they immediately snapped off at the wrist with a crackling sound that turned my stomach. Disgusted, I threw the hands into the brush. It seemed that the heat from whatever had burned this poor fellow actually fused the body to the pavers under it. Rather than carry roasted chunks to the bushes all morning, I decided that ravens or other scavengers could have all the fun.

Judging from the sun, it was about eight o’clock when I started the descent from Cloud Top. During the climb yesterday, I had my back to the view when I wasn’t busy fighting off wolves. Now it seemed I could see half of Cyrodiil on my return trip. The view was spectacular. The trees were mostly evergreens up here, and the grass had a golden hue compared to the meadow grasses down in the Great Forest. Firs, pines and spruce ruled the skies, while mountain laurel and holly fought for the sun along the forest floor.

I had pulled my bow and kept an arrow nocked after I discovered that the wolf carcass from the day before had been dragged away. Whatever had moved it might prefer some warmer, fresher blood. But the walk down the mountain passed without incident. Soon I was within the sight of the Chorrol town walls. As I entered the town gate, I heard the thrum of a bowstring and looked to my right. Honditar was at the targets behind the Fighters Guild. He saw me at the same time and motioned for me to join him.

“You’re going to have a tough time getting in the Guild hall. Earana has been camped in front of the building since dawn,” the Altmer said.

“I don’t know if there is a back door,” I replied.

“There is not. But listen. I’ll go out and run interference for you. Wait until I have her standing with her back to the door, then you sneak in unnoticed. The woman is such a fuss-bucket that I should be able to keep her engaged until you come back out of the hall. Just wave to me through the window when you are ready to exit,” he explained.

“Okay.”

The plan worked like a charm, and I was inside the hall looking for Teekeeus a few minutes later. I found him in the dining area and sat down in the chair next to his.

“How was your trip to Cloud Top, Associate?” the Chapter Steward inquired.

“Successful, sir,” I replied.

“You found the book?” he said with wide eyes, “My trust in you was well placed, it seems. Hand it over, if you please.”

I dug the book out of my satchel and handed it to Teekeeus.

“Ah yes, this is indeed the correct book,” he said with what looked like glee. It’s hard to read Argonian facial expressions. “You’ve not been able to open it I presume.”

“I didn’t even try. Earana said I wouldn’t be able to read it anyway, and since I couldn’t rea---“

“Yes, yes, yes…Fine. You have shown yourself worthy of the Guild, and for that I shall give you the recommendation that you require. Follow me, Associate,” he said and rose from the table.

I followed Teekeeus downstairs to the counter in the main lobby. He pulled out some parchment, a quill and ink, and a small cube of red wax. He wrote his recommendation, and then folded the paper in such a way that the bottom edge was centered between the two folds. He placed the small wax cube on that edge and then melted it with a well controlled and very small fireball spell, stamping the melted wax with a large ring on his left hand and sealing the letter. The ring left an imprint of the stylized eye that is recognizable as the Mages Guild symbol. My jaw was slack with amazement at the control he just exhibited. Had I tried that, there would have been only ashes instead of my paperwork, if not a charred counter as well.

“Here you are, Associate,” he said as he handed it to me, “Now you must excuse me. I must ensure that this book is kept safe.”

Now for the hard part…following him without being obvious...

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EDIT: Nits picked.

This post has been edited by TheOtherRick: Mar 4 2011, 07:10 PM