The Story of the Listener, My first fanfic. Options

[Kayla]

Ok. This is my first fanfic. I'm a tad nervous about it, but I'd like to see what everyone thinks.
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I sat quietly on a bench beside the pawnshop on the docks of Anvil, staring out over the dark Abecean Sea. Through the clouds in the sky, I could see that the sun was setting. A chilly wind blew my black robes and hood as though they were weightless, but the persistent breeze was unsuccessful in penetrating the black light armor I wore underneath my robes. I listened to the fragmented conversations of the dock workers, and watched as people hastily walked by, fearing that it would soon begin to storm.

Before I knew it, the sun had set completely. The Nord who owned the shop I was sitting in front of walked outside. He locked up his shop and began to make his way down the stone street toward the resident area of Anvil. He hadn’t even noticed that I’d been sitting just feet away from him. I heard the Nord loudly greet someone before he walked completely out of earshot. Soon after, an Orc walked by. I studied the Orc carefully as he passed. He walked with a slight limp and had a large scar on his left arm, and just as I expected, he opened the door to the dockside warehouse and went inside.

It was completely dark now. Neither sun nor moon shone through the twisting clouds in the sky. The wind picked up, carrying moisture in it.

I stood and made my way to the back door of the warehouse. I picked the lock and the door swung open. Quickly I slipped into the thick darkness inside. The warehouse was fairly big but, a few candles on a large table in the middle of the room revealed the Orc’s position. He was busily unpacking things from crates and setting them on shelves. He was completely unaware of my presence, and I preferred it that way. I slipped through the shadows toward him. In the darkness I felt strong, invincible, and incapable of fear. I observed his movements, the way his body flowed with each contraction and relaxation of each muscle. I watched every joint in his body, paying close attention to his spinal cord. The Orc was old, and moved as though he’d been doing hard labor his entire life. Almost every movement looked as though it pained him.

As soon as I was sure of his reactions, I silently unsheathed my ebony blade, a gift from a dear friend, and I closed in on the Orc. He was still unaware of my being there, even though I was soon right behind him, almost breathing down his neck. In one quick motion, I lunged out of the shadows, grabbed the Orc with my right arm, wrapping it around the front of his neck and shoulders, then I brought my left hand up and stabbed him right in the jugular vein. The poor old Orc didn’t even have a chance to yell. I let go of the body letting it fall limply onto the wooden floor of the warehouse. I waited for his gurgled breathing to stop, then I snuffed the candles out and exited the warehouse the same way I’d come in.

(Expect updates!)

[Kayla]

I walked quickly back to the living quarters and prepared my weapons and armor for battle. I took off my Dark Brotherhood armor and checked it for any damage, repairing what little I could find. Then, I put it back on, and threw my Black Hand robe and hood on over it. I threw my quiver and bow on over my shoulder, and sheathed my dagger and elven short sword to my side. Arquen caught me before I left. She handed me a map of the Mournhold sewers that directed me to the Dark Brotherhood sanctuary there.

Immediately, I set off for Morrowind. The border wasn’t extremely far from Cheydinhal, but Mournhold would be quite the journey, though I knew that Shadowmere would make it fast. I watched as the day turned to night, and the deer and wolves turned to scribs and nix hounds. I had always believed that the sunset was extra breathtakingly beautiful in Morrowind.

I was proud of myself when I arrived at the city’s gates a little after nightfall. It didn’t take as long as I had expected. I stabled Shadowmere and walked the last few feet to the city.

I entered the gates and was amazed at the sight of the grand city. The great Chapel of Amalexia loomed magnificently over the city and its residents. The amazing red brick, used to build every wall in the city was still as stunning and eye catching as ever.

Although I hadn’t visited Mournhold in a long time, I still remembered my way around. I walked into the Plaza Brindisi Dorom, decorated with the large statues of Amalexia and Mehrunes Dagon doing battle, and took the door leading into the Godsreach district. From there, I walked toward the western wall, and found the grating leading to the sewers, otherwise known as Old Mournhold.

I had never been in the sewers before and the smell was certainly… interesting to say the least. The map was very specific and I followed it, sneaking around the goblins and other strange creatures that were completely foreign to me. After about an hour, I reached a door labeled, “Manor District”. Apparently, the Dark Brotherhood’s sanctuary was made up of the entire district. I stood outside the door, thinking about what sort of approach I needed to take. Since I was unaware of how hostile the environment would be, I decided that stealth would be the best choice. I opened the door and walked inside.

The vast manor district was made up of nothing but crumbled houses now. But, even though the houses were ruined, they were still beautiful. The intricate artwork on the bricks, and the remaining shapes of the houses intrigued me.

Arquen had written on the map that the central, most intact building, which was once an apartment like structure, was the main base of operations in the sanctuary. Pressing my back against the rough stone walls, and sticking to the shadows, I snuck through the large manor district, slowly making my way toward the central structure. On my way, I spotted quite a few Dunmer. They seemed to be patrolling the place, and were not wearing Dark Brotherhood armor. Still, I could not tell whether they were friend or foe, and I decided to leave them alone.

I reached the target building and noiselessly snuck inside. The place seemed to be completely devoid of life. The beds were empty, weapons lay on the floor, opened, full bottles of beer and ale sat on the tables. It was rather strange.

My boots made no sound whatsoever as I walked over the cracked stone floor, and into the main room. A large desk sat in the middle of the room. Chairs were overturned, and paper lay scattered all over the place. This was the only room that signaled a struggle of some sort. One piece of paper was lying on the desk. It looked oddly out of place in a room full of such obvious chaos. I walked over and picked it up.

“Your target should arrive soon. With, or without the assistance of a murderer, I do not know. I am sure that you will be able to handle things, should she have some help. I have directed her to the main building. Do whatever you wish to the other murderers in the sanctuary.”

-Arquen

My hands began to shake as I felt anger pulsing throughout my body. My vision turned red, and all I could see was Arquen’s signature on the paper. She had set me up for betrayal. Why would she do something like this? What could she possibly gain from it? I had come to trust her… she was the only adviser I had after Mathieu had betrayed us all. The Night Mother told me that she was loyal… Arquen had set up the attack of this sanctuary. She cared nothing for the Brotherhood. What had the attackers done to my brothers and sisters? Who were the attackers?

At that moment, I heard footsteps behind me. I set the paper down, brandished my sword, and turned around to face whoever was there.