Trouble never comes alone Options

[jack cloudy]

Yes, so I just couldn't resist and had to get this off my chest. We'll see how long it lasts. Same deal as with redemption, I'll be using this post as a character list and the first part will be in the next one. For now the list is simple.

A question. Should I add a separate entry for Spar at the very bottom that is basically the extra-spoilers edition?

Spar: A female Imperial and the main character of this story. Is guided by 'Them'.
(Portrait)

Silent Fist: A Companion Spar hires to escort her into Bleak Falls Barrow. He doesn't speak, wear shirts or use weapons. Click here for portrait

Faendal: A wood elf who lives in a small village known as Riverwood. He works as a hunter and lumberjack.

Lucan Valerius: The shopkeeper of Riverwood.

Jarl Balgruuf: The Jarl of Whiterun, a city located in the center of Skyrim between the fronts of the Imperial and Stormcloak factions.

Hrongar: Jarl Balgruuf's brother. Looks like he walked off the set of a Conan-film.

Irileth: A Dunmer who serves as Jarl Balgruuf's bodyguard.

Proventus Avenicci: Jarl Balgruuf's steward.


Vilkas: One of the Companions, a mercenary group in Whiterun
Vignar Grey-Mane: Formerly of the Companions, now retired.

Ulfric Stormcloak: The rebel leader in Skyrim, once on of the Emperor's generals.

Arkarik: Someone Spar was supposed to meet in Cyrodiil.

This post has been edited by jack cloudy: Aug 1 2013, 06:34 PM

[jack cloudy]

I consider this a failing on my part. I wanted to show that not everyone is a natural born zombieslayer. Some people are rather unsettled at the idea of curses or being doomed to forever walk through some forgotten tomb till some jerk with a silver sword and a bag to fill comes visiting. In the process however, I plain made him unlikeable.


As for Fist being Dovahkin, he has the potential for it at least. All I can say on the subject right now is that Spar isn't.


Also, we are getting close to the climax.



Chapter 1.13


The dragon let out a roar and I heard the beat of its wings the moment it saw the elf. As far as challenges went, I had never come across one as intimidating as this, but it cost precious time. Time Faendal used to save himself. The mer bolted like one of his arrows and threw himself into a wild run for safety. I peered around the pillar to see that he didn't take the path as I'd intended either, but scrambled down between the bends. The dragon took for the skies in pursuit.


"Now." I said and ran off passed the side of the Barrow. I slid over the edge, grabbing the rope as it came within hand's reach and dropped down the slopes. It was a sloppy descent and a noisy one, but time was of the essence. There was nothing I could do about the tracks Fist and I left in the snowbanks on the ledge and here on the mountainside we were completely exposed. I rappelled down as quickly as I could, constantly teetering on the fine edge between scraping away the soft leather of my gloves and losing my grip entirely. Pebbles and bigger debris clattered down from our feet. With the Breton above me, I was subjected to a constant shower of rocks and ice. If it hadn't been for my helmet, though it was more designed to protect against the cold than blunt battery, I probably would have fallen.


Occasionally we heard the dragon's roar. It was a sign of good fortune whenever we heard its challenge. It meant that Faendal was still alive. I tried to get a fix on its location whenever I heard its call, but it was hard with the echoes of the mountain and the more pressing need to keep my footing. The best I could do was make an estimate of the giant beast's distance based on how loud it was. At first the roaring got softer, but by the time we crossed the treeline and the mountain smoothed out into the valley, it got louder. Which spurred us on to more haste.


I reached the bottom of the slope in less than a tenth of the time it had taken me to climb the mountain yet it still felt too long. I ignored my fatigue and kept moving, staying low and close to the trees so they would cover me from any aerial observers. I could hear the Breton follow in my wake. He was louder than I'd liked, clearly not accustomed to the basics of stealth.


The woods were but a thin belt straddling the mountain's roots. All the big trees had been cut down long ago to make room for farmland and grazing fields. The Whiterun of the past must have been bigger and more populous, for the farms had thinned out and the fields had been allowed to overgrow with thorny brush almost as tall as a man. Off in the distance I made out a badly maintained road, closely guarded by an equally poorly kept tower. I paused at the edge of the woods to consider whether or not we should keep moving. I was tired but could still reach the city if I maintained a relaxed pace and followed the easier footing the road would provide.


Another roar and Silent Fist pointed at the sky. I looked and saw a small blot gliding across the clouds. Too far away, too big and too fast to be a bird. It was the dragon and it seemed to be coming our way.

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We both dove back into the brushes that grew around the trees. We went down on our bellies and I spread handfuls of moss and mud over myself to enhance my camouflage. This would have been easier if I just knew magic, perhaps a spell of invisibility. But I didn't and besides, what if the dragon could detect the use of sorcery? Then all my attempts to hide would only make me stand out like a beacon.


I gestured at the Companion to do the same. The man frowned at first but after a moment did as I'd commanded him. He did seem to keep his distance more than usual. Why?
"Is this about Faendal?" I asked him softly. "The Bosmer is the fastest and most nimble among us. He knows every path and if he made it to the treeline, he'll be able to hide. Frankly, his odds for survival are better than our own. If I could have convinced him with words, I would have but as it was." I shrugged. What else was there to say? I wasn't going to apologize, either to the Breton or the Bosmer. It would be a waste of my breath.


Fist looked doubtful but he didn't make any objections when I led him into better cover. That was good. It meant he was more concerned with finishing an almost complete job than second-guess my decisions.


Meanwhile the dragon circled around and I heard it land on the mountainside. After a few minutes of silence, we risked a look at it. It turned out that the dragon had settled up in a crag on the mountainside. It had hidden itself as we had and only its head showed, swaying from left to right in the rhythm of the trees. We didn't need to guess who it was looking for. So far it hadn't seen us, but it clearly knew we were here. Was it smell? Doubtful. No, I bet it didn't smell or see or sense us otherwise, but it could roughly feel where we were. Only roughly.


Them piped up and I agreed. It had to be the cube. The lich's actions had definitely been guided by the artefact. It had avoided any action that could damage it until it looked like I was going to get away with it. The dragon had to be another guardian of the thing and it certainly behaved as if it was constrained by the same rules.


And there was more. It could burn us out, spreading its fire in such a way that we would suffocate but the cube and its contents remained unharmed. Afterwards it would be free to search the fields at its leasure. It had the power and time to do so. Even if it would take a century or more, the dragon could scour the fields for the little rock and its contents. If it was invulnerable. The fact that it hadn't done so proved to me that it at least feared the military might of a city as large as Whiterun.
"The dragon aims to kill us and will not leave till it has done so. But at the same time, it cannot achieve its purpose with wild destruction. Killing us is only a means to an end." I said and the Breton glanced at my backpack. I nodded to him and then crawled the other way till I had a good view of the open field that lay between us and the tower.


When it came down to a waiting game, the dragon held the advantage. Whiterun was clearly too far away for us to make it, but close enough for its troops to sally forth if they knew the creature was in their territory. Was Balgruuf the kind of man who would rather meet an enemy on the field than hide behind his walls? I supposed it wasn't really a question of courage. People like Hrongar would insist upon attacking the dragon before it could do harm, Farengar would act like a child who's been promised a toy when he heard how close the dragon was. As for Balgruuf, he was the leader of a city in war. It wouldn't take him long to realize that his walls didn't offer any protection against an enemy that could fly. The city with all its flammable buildings would be a deathtrap.


But as long as the dragon stayed here, as long as we stayed here, they wouldn't know and wouldn't sally. I realized that we had to force a move out of it without dying.


My thoughts went back to the cube and the leash it held upon the beast's destructive nature. Even if it knew exactly where we were, it wouldn't strike at us if it couldn't reach with its claws. I looked at the tower again and considered it. It was not going to hold up if the dragon actually tried to take it down, but it wouldn't have to. All it had to be was a place for us to hide in and wait for reinforcements. If we could get there and make fire to signal Whiterun, they'd learn about the dragon and come.


How good was it sense for the cube? Good enough to know we were in this stretch of the woods it seemed. We were no longer on a direct line with the rope and hadn't gone straight towards Whiterun either. I was quite certain it would know we had moved by the time we reached the tower. And if it didn't, I wasn't going to complain. Gaiden Shinji was best known for claiming that it was skill that let one survive, but he didn't deny luck. The wise man never expects it, but he will take advantage when it comes.


"Now then, a warrior is never idle. When he rests his arm, he labors his soul. I want you to memorize the path you will take when we make our run for the tower in the night. Take your time for it so you don't make a mistake." I whispered to the Companion. To be honest, I would be the one carrying the cube. So even if Fist made a wrong turn or tripped and fell in the dark, he would likely be safe. But if he'd taken the cube and died in the dark, finding it again would be tricky. And the Thalmor would not let Whiterun's army pass the gates without her. I couldn't risk that to happen. But if I died, well I wouldn't worry about anything anymore.

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While the sun slowly sank beneath the mountains, I performed the necessary preparations. I wasn't like the Breton. Just one pass of my eyes across the fields was enough for me to later remember all the wild-trails, all the boulders, pits and treacherous mudslides. After that, I had time to spare. I took a knife to my pack and carved it into ribbons. When we ran I wanted to be as light as possible. I would carry no food, no water, not the map or anything else I could leave behind. I only kept the cube, torch, knife and the mask which I tied to my body in such a way that they would not hinder my balance or snag on a bush. Everything else I buried and I convinced the Companion to do the same with his treasure. If he lived, he could return for it later.

We ate and drank early so the nutrition could be turned into energy for our legs. Then, we waited.

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When night came it was as complete as the inside of a coffin. Skyrim had no lanterns lighting the roads as in civilized High Rock, and even its cities where only lit with the occasional bonfire and the smaller light of a torch in a guardsman's hand. We could still see the watchtower by two such fireflies at its top and I removed the torch from my possessions. Everything else in the field between there and Whiterun was perfectly black. There might have been enough light to see at least something on a clear night, but heavy clouds kept the stars and the moons out of sight. It suited me well.

I looked to my right where the Companion lay, but couldn't see him. The only sign of his presence was the sound of his breath and the touch of our fingertips meeting.
"Get ready. I go first, count to five and follow." I whispered to him. That should give me enough of a headstart to prevent any collisions. The man grunted in agreement and I took a deep breath. Then I crawled ahead till I knew I was out of the bushes and in the open field. I scrambled to my feet and ran.