The cursed blood., Chapter 1: The celebration. Options

[jack cloudy]

My computer has crashed so I won’t be on for a while. Sorry, but I’ll keep writing stuff on pieces of paper while waiting for the repairs. In the meantime, I am writing this at school which is illegal, so I’ve got to go before people with the big eyes see me.

[minque]

oh....I´m sorry to hear that! But keep up your (illegal, ) work in the meantime!

[DarkHunter]

Yeah, I do that too Jack The librairians hate me...

Anyway, keep writing!

[Sirin]

I just watched Chronicles of Narnia. I'm pretty heard I heard the name Aureus, Mr. Cloudy! It was quite fun! However, I'm sure the two Aureus'es are not intended to be based off each other, right?

[jack cloudy]

Well, I know it is pretty annoying and really frustrating. (Arrgh, can't get rid of my ideas! My head is gonna blow!)

Anyway, the two Aureus's are completely unique. (Though I did once thought of seeing that movie, but I chose not to. Popcorn makes me sick. )
Here's a short update with many thanks to the computer I borrowed.



Jana walked after him. She was not the type to just sit around while the men did the dangerous jobs for her.
,,I’m not staying behind.”
Luper turned around.
,,If you can’t keep up with me, there isn’t much point in dragging you along.” He plainly said before shooting of into the sky with a trail of purple Magicka behind him.

Jana looked at the rapidly shrinking dot as the man flew of into the distance and decided that a walk through the village was definitely what she needed right now, and not just because Aureus was worrying her.
,,What a show-off.”

The village was big mess of both rubbish, destruction and the half-finished construction work. It looked as if the people would have to spend the night at Aureus’ tower for a few more nights before their huts were rebuilt. They’d probably want to stay within the tower for a while anyway, it was a much safer place if more of those vampires showed up.
Her walk slowly brought her to the edge of town were the swamp began, and to where the cemetery was located. One dark robed figure was standing near the newly digged graves, leaning on a dark staff that seemed to emit an evil red light.

,,Ah, you must be the new one. I never forget a smell, and I haven’t smelled yours yet.” The figure said when he heard her footsteps and turned around. Jana brought her hand back to reach for her sword, only to find that it was still in her room. She remembered Luper’s ring and summoned his Daedric sword instead. Having a sword inside a ring instead of a scabbard took some getting used to. The thing shook its head at the sight of the blade.
,,I would really like it if you put that thing away. Too many people have died lately, and I wouldn’t want to become the next, though technically I can’t exactly die.” It said before sitting down next to the graves.

,,You’re probably thinking that I am here to raise some undead. I can assure you that I don’t do that. In fact, I came here to pray for their souls. I am Fervus Noctis, the healer in this town. I know I don’t look quite healthy myself, but I am good at what I do.” It continued. Not looking healthy was a bit of an understatement, for he had the skeletal features of a Lich.
,,Oh yeah, then what about that zombie?” Jana said warily. All her experiences with unnatural beings had been quite unpleasant so far.

,,Him? He’s an old friend of mine. We both attempted to become Liches only in his case, he became a zombie instead. He is like a small child, and quite a nice guy if you don’t mind his cold flesh. He is the best friend of the young children here and a good friend of the older ones. I make sure his body doesn’t decompose, just as I preserve my own. That’s my specialty, looking after the health of the strange beings that live here. We’ve got one zombie here, two werewolves, one Flame Atronach that looks after the fires in the kitchen, one vampire and of course, one Lich.” The lich answered with a bony chuckle.
,,Hey, I don’t live here. So you can scratch that vampire of your list.”
,,I wasn’t talking about you. I was talking about our kind host.”

Jana’s mouth fell open in surprise. Now it suddenly all made sense to her. The source of Aureus’ power, his knowledge about vampires, his reputation with vampires. Aureus himself was a vampire and judging by the things she’d seen, a very old and powerful one.
,,You might want to close your mouth before your jaw falls off. Reattaching it to someone who isn’t death is a bit hard.” The Lich said and laughed with the scary sound of bone scratching on bone.

Jana finally dispelled her sword and sat down beside the Lich. If Aureus trusted the thing, then so would she.
,,So Aureus is a vampire? What else is there I don’t know about him?” She asked in the hope of finally getting some answers.
,,It’s a long story. But you don’t look like you have anything better to do, so I shall begin.”

,,Aureus Lucis is an old Imperial mage who was born before his kind was known as imperials, before the empire and the Septims. As of this moment, his birth lies 2571 years in the past. He was born under the sign of the Wanderer.”
,,There is no sign of the Wanderer.” Jana interrupted the story. She realized the answer before the Lich could speak.
,,Not anymore. What was known as the sign of the Wanderer began to change about 2000 years back and is now known as the Serpent. Aureus may very well be the last Wanderer who is still alive and the last one to be graced by the sign’s power, the ability to pass into other planes of existence, similar to how you open the door to a building. Aureus lived his life as was usual in those days and focussed all of his little spare time on the study of Magicka. Eventually he was taken under the wing of an old wizard and taught how to develop his talent to its limits. Eventually, his master died and Aureus took his place. A few years later, Aureus was infected with vampirism at the age of 69. That is how he became the first subordinate of Gerinj, the leader of the Silver Eye clan of vampires.”

The Lich paused for a while and dug up some dirt with its bony hands.
,,Now unlike popular belief, vampires are not all evil as you probably know yourself. For every vampire that becomes an evil creature of the night, there are a dozen who deal with their curse in such a way that they don’t bother people. Most of them eventually kill themselves, some live far away from man or mer where they feed on the animals, and some instead live among the people where they receive their blood from willing friends, so they can drink it from a cup and avoid infecting people. Aureus is one of them. He left the clan and wandered Nirn and beyond. A few ages back, he came to Argonia where he bought the land to built this sanctuary, using the title of Kalom that he’d received during his journeys. Kalom means ‘the wanderer who came from afar’. This place serves as a home for those who have been forced to flee their homes due to their nature, such as I did.”

The Lich stood up with a slight creaking sound.
,,Now I am the healer here. Your type of vampirism is as with all types, unique to its clan. The Silver Eye clan is one of the oldest and I know of only one cure. That cure does have one minor side-effect. It will kill you instantly, and I won’t be able to raise you as an undead afterwards. So I am afraid I can’t help you. But if blood is what you want, I have a supply which I mostly use when someone has lost too much blood to survive without a replacement. I am sure that it can also be used by a vampire.”

[jack cloudy]

The Lich led her to one of the few buildings that was still standing, the fact that this one was built with stone in the Imperial style instead of a wooden hut was one of the reasons for that.
,,Shoo, go parade somewhere else.” The Lich muttered and waved at what looked like a walking suit of Dwemer armour.
,,You guys sure have everything, don’t you?” Jana commented with a smile. This place was weird to the extreme, but not unpleasant so far.
,,That’s what happens when your neighbour is an old vampire with too much spare time on his hands, and too much Magicka at the end of his fingers. If Aureus doesn’t have something to do, he gets frustrated. You’ll be amazed when you see what he has done in his life. Go take a look at the library someday, half the books have been written by him and it isn’t exactly a small library.”

The Lich moved over to one of the corners of the room and tapped on the wall. The floor slid away and a small platform rose up.
,,Also something he made. Now I really don’t see what’s wrong with a set of stairs, but Aureus thought that a teleportation platform was funnier.” The Lich said as he stepped on the platform and disappeared in a cloud of Magicka. After a short hesitation, Jana followed.
The cold air caught her completely by surprise.
,,What by Akatosh?”

The room was covered in ice with a big blue crystal in each corner. The cold was almost unbearable, ext to the humid warmth of the swamps outside.
,,Surprised? You do know that potions remain useable much longer if they are properly frozen? This is where I keep my potions, amongst other stuff.” The Lich said with a bony grin before moving over to one of the many crates that filled the room.
,,Now let’s see. One little vial of blood before breakfast should keep you young, healthy and away from people’s throats. I’ll give you a couple of handfuls, I heard you were going on a trip.” The Lich put a couple of small silver vials in a bag and handed them over.
,,To get out, take the platform at the far end of the room. Don’t forget to close the door when you leave my house, thank you. I’ll stay behind for a while. I’ve got this patient who nearly lost his arm and I need to grab a couple of potions for his diner.”


Chapter 3: On the road.

Jana looked at the bag she’d put on her bed. The thought of drinking blood from a bottle made her sick. On the other hand, she knew that she wouldn’t be able to resist the urge to feed if she ever got surrounded by people, like in a city. If the blood could keep her from jumping to people’s throats, fine. Not to mention that it supposedly restored her younger looks. Looking like you’re a thousand years old might give you some respect, but she really preferred to wait those thousand years before looking old.

With a sigh, she picked up the bag and swung it over her shoulder. Being a vampire didn’t make life very funny. The news that the only cure would kill her didn’t brighten up her mood either.

She made her way to the stables and found them, after taking the wrong turn a couple of times. The tower wasn’t very big on the outside, but the inside was just huge. She wouldn’t be surprised if a ridiculous amount of Magicka was used here.
,,Ah, there you are. Say, have you seen Luper? He wasn’t in his room when I checked. I hope he isn’t drunk again. That guy sure knows how to drink.” Jalin said when she entered.
Unicorns, Aureus kept a couple of creatures in his stable that were so rare, most people doubted they even existed. Jana shook her head at the sight. Why was she not surprised?
,,That guy already left. So, where are the dragons?” She joked.
,,They wanted to see the world, so they flew off a while back. Before I was born, actually.”

Jana put attached her bags to the saddle and hopped onto her Unicorn. She always loved to ride a horse before she moved to Vvardenfell, so this shouldn’t be a problem. Though they looked exotic, they were really nothing but really fast horses with a big horn on their head. Aureus had perfectly tamed them. This would be fun. There was only one problem, how would they get out?
,,So, where’s the door?” She asked. She really hoped that they weren’t supposed to ride the Unicorns through the whole building.
,,Teleportation platform. It’s right over there.” Jalin answered as he mounted his own Unicorn.
,,What, is he afraid of stairs or something?”

Another teleportation later, and the three Unicorns with their riders were standing right in front of the gates.
,,Amarie, be a good girl and listen to the zombie, ok? I’m gone for a while.” Jalin shouted before spurring his Unicorn along out of the village.

The Unicorns where over twice as fast as any horse she’d ever been on and Jana totally enjoyed the ride. There was something about riding through the swamps of Argonia with the wind in her hair that swept all her worries away. They’d reached the border of Cyrodiil when the sun reached its peak. Those Unicorns sure were fast.

[Agent Griff]

Wonderful updates! With what you've written here, I'm compelled to write once again since I was in writer's block up until now. I loved the lich and I love this wacky village in general, great job! There should really be a writers award ceremony where awards are given on categories like "Best Original Story" or "Best Story in an Elder Scrolls Game" or "Best positive character' or "Best negative character" or "Best female character" or "Best male character". The Moderators and the Admins should really hear me on this. It would be so cool if this actually happened.

[DarkHunter]

... ... ... YAAAAAHHHHHHOOOOOO!!!!

... Alright that was a little over the edge but I've been waiting sooo long (what about 5 WHOLE DAYS?!?!)

[jack cloudy]

Update alert, don’t you love school?
Anyway, a bigger one this time and the return of an old favourite of mine.



The dark trees and murky waters of Argonia made place for a less dense forest that was filled with green plants and small streams of clear water. Jalin stopped his Unicorn and took in their surroundings.
,,There’s a village to the east. I think we should stay away from the roads and move through the forest. It will slow us down, but I don’t want to be seen by anyone while I’m riding on one of these. It would be too hard to explain where we found these Unicorns. Too bad Aureus never felt anything for breeding normal horses.” He noted as he looked around.

,,Have you been to Cyrodiil before?” He asked once they’d begun moving again.
,,Only the east part, a stone’s throw away from the border with Morrowind. Some official business between my father and someone else, so I never got the chance for some sightseeing. It sure is beautiful. Much nicer than Vvardenfell. There are plants everywhere. Where I live, the land is like a desert. Say, where are we going anyway?” Jana responded and sniffed the fresh air.
,,We’ll spend the night in the forest. Tomorrow, we should reach the capital where I want to check out the library. Aureus never actually told me where his clan lives. I’ve got a note with a couple of fancy signatures that should give me access to the emperor’s personal library. It’s a bit old but knowing Aureus, I bet I could give orders to Uriel Septim himself with it. If I can’t find the information I need there, I don’t know where to look.”

With the help of both Jalin’s skill at finding small paths through the thick forest and the spells of Jana’s amulet, they managed to travel without being seen by any of the people who lived in the province. The local wildlife appeared to be frightened and ran as soon as they got into view. The night in the forest proved to be quiet and peaceful. Next day, they continued their trek into the heart of Cyrodiil. A few hours after the sun had reached its peak, they got to the edge of the forest surrounding the capital where they left the Unicorns behind. The brilliant walls of the capital rose up before them.

,,Well, this is it I guess. I’d never thought I would actually trust a Lich someday.” Jana muttered as she took out one of the silver vials. The taste of blood was both disgusting and delicious. Her whole body was filled with new energy. She carefully took off her hood and looked into a nearby pool. Her reflection looked just the way she did before being infected and the sun no longer burned her skin. It was definitely an improvement.
,,Nice. I’m ready now, so let’s get going.”

The guards in front of the massive gates barely noticed them as they walked into the city. Once inside, Jalin headed directly for the palace and left Jana behind to look around. For a while, she just aimlessly wandered the streets. Cyrodiil showed that it deserved its reputation as the center and capital of the Empire. It was not only a huge city, but also one of the most crowded. People of all races and all professions wandered the streets while vendors where praising their wares on the market. She could see the guards walking around to keep the peace and always just behind their backs, the thieves, robbers and other people with a not so legal profession. Above all that, the massive tower of the palace rose up into the air as a symbol of the might that had made the Septims the rulers of Tamriel.

She also took the chance to look around all the different shops. Unlike most times, this time she only bought things that where useful for anyone who wanted to take on a lot of vampires. She bought a couple of torches, some small prongs for necessary sword-maintenance and a good meal at a tavern. It was nice to be in a city again without staring at people’s neck. After the meal, she went back to shopping. In the Apothecary, she was met by the sound of an arguing Breton and Redguard.
,,What, 300 Septims just for some lousy potions?! Ajira makes them twice as good for half the price! Too bad she is still on Vvardenfell.”

The Redguard wore a brown cloth that covered most of his armour but the Dwemer gauntlets, Indoril boots and the big Claymore on his back gave away his identity.
,,Luper? What are you doing here?”
Luper turned to see who had spoken and looked at her for a while. It was the first time he saw her in a well-fed condition.
,,Oh, hi sweety. Say, did you do something with your hair?”

Jana couldn’t help but laugh for a bit. It was obvious that the Nerevarine hadn’t planned to be in Cyrodiil. She loved to see him when he wasn’t in full control of his situation.
,,So, how did you end up here? And why the change of clothes?” She asked in a mocking tone.
,,Alright, I get your point. Now stop laughing at me before I shout out your little toothy secret. If you want to know, I left my Magicka restoration potions on my bed so I ran out of steam for my levitating. And the cloth? I simply don’t want people to see me with my armour all visible. I would hate it if someone recognizes the Lord’s Mail. They would know instantly that I am the Nerevarine. Call it the burden of fame if you like.”

His mood lightened up again and he grinned.
,,Now I’m not the only one who makes mistakes here. Did you really think that you could hurt those vampires with the poison you just bought? The answer is no. Anyway, want to tag along?”
Jana frowned. She really didn’t like to have people pointing out her mistakes. And Jalin always said that Luper was a drinker. If he wanted to go anywhere near a place with alcohol, she’d pass. The Nerevarine was annoying enough when he was sober, who knew how bad it was when he was drunk.
,,Where do you want to go?” She asked warily.
,,I just heard that an old friend of mine is in town so I want to pay him a little visit. You’ll love his clothes. They’re very elaborate and fancy!”

Luper’s friend appeared at first glance to live in the palace, but the Redguard entered a small alley before they reached the gates and opened a small door in the massive wall of the palace. Inside, a long winding stair descended into the depths.
,,What by Akatosh is this dump?” Jana complained while seriously considering if she should kick the rats that were everywhere. She decided not to. Who knew what those rats had been crawling in.
,,This my dear, is the prison. Ah, it brings up memories. Bad ones, I mean.” Luper answered and lighted up their descent with a fireball in his hand.

At the end of the stairs was another door which led to a small office that was fortunately completely devoid of rats. Behind the desk, a somewhat fat guard was sitting.
,,Visitors, what can I do for you?” He said with a very bored tone as he eyed them over. His eyes remained on Luper and he frowned.
,,Do I know you?” He grumbled.
,,Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten about me. It’s me, Luper Alkad! I’m back! Did you miss me?!” Luper’s grin couldn’t have been bigger.

The guard shot out of his chair with wide open eyes and grabbed his sword from the floor.
,,You?! They sent you to a prison colony on some freaking island covered in snow! You can’t be here!” He cried.
,,This girl, is an old friend of mine. We go way back. Don’t worry, his bark is much worse than his bite.” Luper told Jana without even paying any attention to the guard who held his sword high over his head.
,,This is the friend you wanted to visit?” Jana answered in disgust. She couldn’t believe she had actually been dragged along to some revenge action of sorts.
,,Nah, the friend I wanted to visit is supposedly around here somewhere.”

The guard finally seemed to have gotten over his shock and was now actually smiling.
,,I always hated you and your big mouth. I am so going to enjoy this.” He said and brought his sword down to the Redguard’s unprotected head.
Luper raised his left hand and effortlessly caught the blade of the sword with his Dwemer gauntlet.
,,Still no manners I see. So how do you like Wraithshield? I made it as a left hand version of Wraithguard, which I have on my right hand. And you’re going to love this. They dropped me off on Vvardenfell instead of Solstheim where I made a small career change. I beat up gods now, how do you like that?” He said with one of his trademark grins before punching the guard in the face with his other hand while simultaneously kicking him between the legs with one of his boots. Both hits looked rather painful.

He walked over to the guard ,who was now lying on the ground in pain, and took his keys. He then picked up a large book from the desk and looked into it.
,,Now where could good old skoomie be? Hey, that’s my old cell!” He kicked the guard again and walked towards the row of cells.

Jana picked up the book as she followed him and took a look for herself. There it was, right after the number 013: Luper Alkad. As she went through the pages, she noticed that the spot behind 013 was taken up by the same name for about fifteen years. After that, the spot was empty for a while before being taken by a new name: Caius Cosades.
,,Ten, eleven, twelve…thirteen. This should be the one. Hey shirtless, how are things going?” Luper shouted through the bars.

In a dark corner of the cell, something moved.
,,I know only one man who used to call me that. For your information, they gave me a shirt to wear.” A voice said and its owner stepped within range of the light cast by Luper’s fireball. He was an old Imperial with a largely bald head and a beard that had been growing for a long time. Despite the dirt and dust that covered him, he carried himself with dignity.
,,Nice to see ya, Caius. Mind if you step away for a moment? I’m going to bust the lock.” Luper said and lowered his hand. The fireball shrinked till it was the size of a coin before shooting towards the lock which was melted by the intense heat.
,,I always dreamed of breaking out of this place, never of breaking in.” He laughed. He then realized that it wasn’t necessary for him to melt the lock.
,,Meh, I never liked keys anyway. They always get lost.” He said and threw the now useless keys on the ground.

[DarkHunter]

No keys for Luper... Cauis, Eh? hmmm this should be interesting....

[mplantinga]

Just found this one, and read it straight through. I'm definitely hooked. I've enjoyed the variety of characters that you have used, especially the many undead and otherworldly creatures. I'm looking forward to seeing more of the great vampire fight, especially now that the special weapon has become useless.

S.G.M.

[jack cloudy]

Sorry, but no more vamp vs vamp. I just didn't know how to continue that one. But the outcome is quite predictable.
Anyway, update time.



Caius looked at the scene with an amused smile on his face. Some things never changed, such as the attitude Luper always displayed. It was this attitude that had both annoyed him to no end and assured him that the man was the only person who might ever stand a chance against an immortal enemy who had lived longer than most people could imagine. It wasn’t that he was the toughest person in Tamriel, cause he wasn’t, but it was the simple fact that he always managed to come up with something when in trouble, no matter how stupid it might be. Besides, there had always been the chance that he managed to make Dagoth Ur kill himself by being annoying.
,,So, what happened to Dagoth Ur when I was gone?” He asked when the door swung open.
,,Oh, you know how things go. I broke the poor guy’s heart. It burned him up.”

,,I’ll take that as you won. Congratulations, Oasis.” Caius chuckled, Luper’s smug grin brought back memories to the first time he met the Redguard. Whenever he looked back at the scene where Luper tried to get him out of his house by pretending to be the Imperial drug patrol, he still had to laugh.
,,I don’t think I’m all that lucky. The moment I tell my name, people go crazy and start acting like a fan. That’s the problem with being famous. And girl, Oasis is what friends call me back in Vvardenfell in case you were wondering.” The Nerevarine responded with the grin gone for a moment.

,,Right, I suppose you are here to bail me out? Sorry, but I’m staying here. I don’t want to get my family in trouble. As for you two, the entrance must be swarming with guards now so you’ll need an alternative exit.” Caius said and walked to the wall where he tapped a few of the stones in the wall. With the sound of grinding stone, the wall slowly sank into the floor, revealing a tunnel.
,,Hold on for just a second here. This was my old cell! I’ve been rotting away here for fifteen years! Couldn’t anyone tell me that I was sitting right next to a secret tunnel? I could’ve been a free man years ago!” Anything else the Redguard might want to say was lost in a constant stream of curses.
,,I suppose you still want to stay here?” He continued, slowly calming down again. Caius nodded and was promptly hit by a spell.

,,Would you mind putting me down?” Caius grumbled two minutes later. He never liked it when people were carrying him around. Fortunately Luper put him down, after blowing up the tunnel in the direction from where they came.
,,Just in case you were thinking of going back to your cell. You are stubborn after all. Now would you mind to explain where this tunnel leads to?” The Redguard said with the usual grin.
,,The throne room.”

Skyrim.

After more than a day, the constant rumbling and other sounds finally stopped. Whatever those vampires were doing, it sounded like they were having one big party. The sound of something clattering onto the ground near him caught his attention. He strained his neck to see what it was. A small distance away from him, a bowl with what looked like raw meat was lying on the stone floor. It didn’t look very appetizing, but he was suddenly reminded of just how hungry he was.

,,Eat up, Athus.” The vampire who was standing in the dooropening demanded.
,,And what if I don’t?” The Dunmer defiantly answered.
,,Then you’ll starve. As simple as that.” The Vampire responded as if he was talking about the weather.
,,Besides, you won’t be able to get out of here. Your friend came by recently. I must say that he fought well but in the end, no one can defeat our leader.”

Athus listened to the footsteps of the leaving vampire.
,,My friend? Then who was here?” He muttered to himself and fixed his attention on the bowl again. All his limbs were tied to the floor with those accursed Daedric shackles. The only way to get the food within reach was to use Telekinesis. When they came for him, he would either be too weak to cast any spells due to not eating, or he’d have used up all his Magicka so he could eat. Either way, his situation was hopeless. And he just couldn’t figure out who this friend could have been.

Secret tunnel.

Everyone was silent for a moment.
,,The throne room? That place must be crawling with guards!” Jana eventually complained. She should never have tagged along with the Nerevarine.
,,So what? I guess that means you’ll have your diner a bit early.” Luper stuck out his tongue when he said that.
,,I’m not like that! I am a civilized, educated girl who does not chew on people’s necks!”

Caius stepped in before things could escalate into a heated argument that would have them standing here till the end of the world.
‘Which might not be that far off.’ He reminded himself.
,,Now I’m sure this is all very interesting, but can we please get moving? As for the guards, the Emperor is old and not very healthy. He rarely goes to the throne room these days. There will be a minimum of guards present. We don’t have a choice anyway, thanks to the pyrotechnics of our friend. As you can see, I made sure they put me in the right cell. This is only one of the possible escape routes for the emperor. There are more secret tunnels in the palace than normal corridors.”

Throne room.

Jalin was seriously getting frustrated. He’d been busy for hours and he hadn’t seen a single scrap of paper yet, safe for the one he was holding in his hands. At least he’d managed to get past all the clerks and was now standing before the emperor himself. He listened only with half an ear to what the old man was saying while trying to stay calm.
,,You do realize that your document has an approximate age of 350 years? The Emperor who signed it has been death for a long time. I don’t think he intended to grant access to the library after his death. So the document isn’t valid anymore.”

Jalin was about to answer when a big chunk of the wall exploded. Like everyone else, he backed away from the dust that flew up. When he saw who had caused it, he could kill someone out of frustration and anger. There went his last hope of ever seeing the library.
,,Oops. Umm, secret tunnel investigation guild! We make maps of any secret tunnel. Low prices, deep digging. Sorry about the inconvenience, we’ll take the door on the way out, ok?”
The guards didn’t share the Redguard’s humour and approached with blades drawn.

,,Oh, great. Just like the old days. Me and guards, always trouble. Stand back, I’ll handle this.” Luper muttered and stepped forward with a hand on the hilt of his Claymore. He waited till the guards were all close to him before drawing and throwing the heavy sword in one smooth motion. The sword sailed to the other end of the room where it cut the ropes that held up one of the big curtains that were hanging on the walls. Luper fought off the guards with his Daedric daggers before Telekinetically wrapping the curtain around them. A few paralyzation spells, and they were all knocked out.
,,And they always lose. Someone should train these guards someday.” Luper laughed, kicked the guards and then turning towards the throne.
,,So you’re the emperor? How are you doing, gramps? You know, you look older than I thought.” He said in a mocking tone and with one of his big grins.
Caius shook his head. ‘He still has no respect for anyone.’

[Agent Griff]

Um, is Caius really held in a cell ingame? You got me curious. Anyway, I loved the update and I also loved the fact that you re-introduced Caius into the tale. It'll be interesting to see what the Emperor has to say in this situation.

[jack cloudy]

I have no idea where he is in Oblivion. Besides, this story takes place after Morrowind but before Oblivion. Who knows what Caius did in the meantime.
Anyway, a short update.



The emperor was clearly not used to being spoken to like that. Most people would almost crawl over the ground in humbleness. It took him a few moments to get over the surprise and shock.
,,And who might you be that you dare to enter in such a fashion?” He said in a tone that managed to be insulting while still sounding polite.
,,Hey, I’ve saved the whole world for you! I’ve faced zombies, Daedra, half-demented gods and the weather. Show some gratitude, will ya! Heck, you probably never even saw an ash storm in your life!” As expected, Luper fell for it and was now getting really angry.

,,Unlike you, I however learned some manners.”
The only one in the room who was smiling, was Caius. He never thought he would ever get to see the Emperor arguing with someone like a spoiled child. He had to hand it down to Luper, the Redguard always managed to annoy people.
,,With your permission, my emperor. We would like to take our leave.” A short nod was all Caius got and he managed to drag Luper out, who was still busy throwing insults at the Emperor’s head.

,,Now what was that good for?!” he yelled when they were finally outside.
,,First you drag me out of my cell, then you blow up half the palace and finally you start a contest with the emperor about who knows the best insults! Granted, you would win that contest easily but still, what did you think you were doing?!”
Luper finally seemed to calm down a bit upon hearing Caius’ tirade.
,,I was just thinking you wanted to get out of there. I hated my time in prison. Look, I’ll make it up to you by telling you how to get your family and yourself to Vvardenfell. I’m sure that Ajira will give you a place to stay.”

A couple of drinks later everyone had calmed down to the point where conversations were possible without exploding into shouting, insults and cursing all the time.
,,Right, now I don’t think that you all just joined up for fun. So what are you planning this time, Luper? Are you trying to revive your smuggling days?” Caius joked over a glass of Nordic ale. He’d learned that the stuff was a good antidote against Skooma, though it did have its own side-effects.
,,Thanks for the idea, but no. Rather, we’re trying to save the father of the lovely girl sitting right next to you. Be careful, her bite is much worse than her bark. And while we were all busy getting ready, an old guy decided to run ahead and we haven’t heard of him yet so he’s been added to our list.” Luper said and threw back his current mug of ale. He then immediately ordered another one. A rapidly growing collection of empty mugs stood before him.

Jalin rolled his eyes. He’d tried to warn them not to go near the tavern. But when did anyone listen to him? At least the owner of the tavern was getting rich. Luckily Luper had an impressive resistance to alcohol.
,,Seeing as how you’re this drunkards old friend, I guess I better tell you what we’re after before he says it himself. We’re going to hunt a bunch of vampires in Skyrim. Where in Skyrim, I have no idea.” He said, ignoring the sharp look he received from the ‘drunkard’.
Caius frowned and scratched his face. He’d got rid of the beard, but it was now constantly itching.
,,Skyrim? I remember once hearing rumours there of vampires. It was in Snowhawk. There was talk about vampires who lived in a mountain of pure Silver who came into the city from time to time to feed. Of course, they were only rumours and it must’ve been thirty years ago. Besides, who has ever heard of a Silver mountain?” He muttered, more to himself than anyone else.
,,If it doesn’t exist, it is very persistent in my dreams.”

Caius looked at the girl who was sitting next to him. He didn’t know why she was travelling with those two men. The Altmer looked like a hunter and Luper….Well, if he could play with the Emperor’s elite guards and win, then he was very tough. But the girl? Sure she walked around with a big Broadsword on her back, but Caius noticed in the way she moved and act that she wasn’t very experienced with it. So why would she be travelling with them if she couldn’t look after herself in a fight?
,,I’ve studied Ashlander beliefs for a while. They believe that if you repeatedly have the same dream, then it is important. I suppose that the mountain then has a certain meaning and maybe even exists. If you find the mountain, then you’ll find the meaning of the dream.” He finally said before putting his ale away. He couldn’t afford being drunk now, he needed to think.

[mplantinga]

Intriguing developments. I would have thought they would have more trouble breaking into the throne room; in a world where magic is commonplace, I would have expected a battlemage or two among the guards. The way the emperor was treated was spectacular; sometimes I think people in power need to be put in their place.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the vampire hunt continue.

[jack cloudy]

Hmm, I totally forgot about the Battlemage tradition. Does he have one after what happened with Yagar Tharn?

And about Luper yelling at him. Well, I won't say that the emperor is a saint, but he's been through a lot and the Redguard could at least have been somewhat respectful. But this is Luper, and he hates the word respectful.
Update time.



Next day, they met in the woods close to the city. All of them felt refreshed from last night’s sleep, though Luper was constantly complaining about a hangover.
,,Right, so you will proceed to Snowhawk in Skyrim and ask for further directions. Seriously, I’d love to come along if I wasn’t so old. Besides, I have to get my family out of the province before the Blades catch on to my escape. I doubt it would take long, considering the redecoration of the palace by a certain Redguard with a hangover who I won’t call by name.” Caius spoke from the back of his horse and laughed at the accusing glare he received from the ‘Redguard with a hangover’. He then turned his horse around and ran off.

,,With that out of the way, we can get going. At least our visit to Cyrodiil hasn’t been a complete waste of time.” Jalin muttered before bringing two fingers to his mouth and whistling. Within a few moments, the three Unicorns arrived. They all mounted with the exception of Luper, who backed away.
,,Hold on, I am not going to ride one of these mules! I sail boats and I fly, but I don’t ever ride a horse. Especially if that horse has got a freaking big horn!”
The two Elves looked at each other and burst out in laughter.

,,I can’t believe it! You’re afraid of a horse?” Jana giggled and nearly fell off her Unicorn. But it was true what she said. Luper could face an attacking army of Daedra without blinking, but he never dared to get close to a horse, or an Unicorn.
,,Alright, so I’m scared. Do you have a problem with that? For your information, my mother never said anything about not hitting girls, so that won’t protect you.” Luper responded and kicked at a nearby tree, causing a big dent in its trunk.
,,Still, it would be the best if you put your fears aside and rode the Unicorn. Just hold on tight and let it choose its own path.” Jalin said once he’d regained his breath.

After a few more minutes about arguing and complaining, Luper finally gave up and climbed, rather clumsily, on his Unicorn. He didn’t say a single word during the entire ride and looked rather pale, but he miraculously never fell off either. The second day he still grumbled a bit, but he got on the Unicorn when told to. The third day, he was gone again, together with his Unicorn.

The lush forests of Cyrodiil made place for the snowy waste of Skyrim. And with the snow came a severe drop in temperature. A drop in temperature that wasn’t too pleasant, since they were used to warmer regions. There was a reason for why most of the people here were Nords. They were the only ones who could handle the cold easily. Snowhawk itself looked like a reasonable city with a big castle in the middle. They might have some heaters here.

Once again, the Unicorns were left outside the city and they entered on foot.
,,Now where do we start looking?” Jana muttered to herself.
,,We’ll just go to the nearest tavern and ask around.” Jalin responded in a tired tone. Before either of them could say anything, a Nord guard on a horse rode up to them.
,,Lady Mirhtri and Master Jalin? Come along.” He commanded with a voice that would allow any objections.
,,Oh, what did we do wrong this time?” Jana said, heavily frustrated.
Jalin shrugged and walked after the guard.

Skyrim

Athus was dropped to the ground in a rather rude way. If he hadn’t been paralyzed, he would have broken his fall with his hands but since he was, he fell flat on his face instead.
,,Get that paralyzation off him. He’s no threat to me and I want to talk.” An evil sounding voice said.
Athus felt a tingling sensation run through his muscles and noticed he could move again. He looked up and saw the owner of the voice.

,,Well, so you are Athus. Well met. I am Gerinj, though you will call me master.” The vampire said and laughed evilly. Athus slowly walked forward till his face was nearly touching that of the vampire.
,,I won’t bow before you, filthy bloodsucking Corprus-ridden zombie.” He whispered. He rarely cursed, but this seemed to be the perfect situation for it. Luckily he’d learned a few words from his daughter.

Gerinj frowned in thought and his eyes blazed with anger once he realized that the man had been cursing. He moved faster than the eye could see and suddenly held a ghostly blade in front of the man’s face.
,,Don’t you dare to speak to me like that, weakling! You are pathetic, like all mortals! You stand here, hoping for your friends to save you while they won’t! Do you want to know why? Because your most powerful friend came here and I killed him. And this is his sword!” He screamed.

Athus was dumbfounded. Friend? He stared at the blade and his eyes widened in shock. He’d seen such a weapon only once before, at the time of its creation. With recognition, his fear ebbed away. If he was to die, then so be it.
,,You’re lying.” He calmly responded.

[Kiln]

Great story as usual mate, good descriptions and dialogue between characters as well. I just caught up and you left off at an interesting point, please continue soon, I'll be waiting4updates Jack.

[DarkHunter]

hmmm... Good writing... puzzle.. hmmmm....

[jack cloudy]

Wow, the only scene that I have firmly and completely set in my mind is the end. And it is quite spectacular in my opinion. Anyway, an update of sorts.



,,Lying, why would I be lying?” Gerinj chuckled. This man was amusing. Athus thought over his possibilities. The thruth wouldn’t help the vampire and frankly, Athus loved the idea of frustrating it with the thruth.
,,Quite simple. I will explain. That sword you’re holding is constructed from a living metal you won’t be able to find anywhere in Nirn.” He began, conveniently not telling the vampire that they were standing inside a whole mountain of it.
,,After you manage to somehow make the metal take on the shape of a sword, you can further change it by making it come in contact with a soul. Once the sword has touched the soul, it will merge with it and create a weapon of unparalleled power. Unfortunately, the soul will be trapped inside. To remedy this, you will need to find someone who can create a duplicate of a soul to act as a bridge between the sword and its master. Too bad for you, but you won’t find such a person on Nirn. Since the sword shares the soul of its master, it can’t exist without him. The sword still exists, so that means Aureus is still alive. You didn’t kill him.”

Gerinj was silent. He had intended to torture Aureus till he got bored and killed him. But the sword intrigued him and he didn’t like the idea of losing it. He finally snarled a few orders to some other vampires in the Daedric tongue.
,,You think you’re smart, right? I think I shall bind you to my will by morning. Enjoy your last hours as a free soul. After all, someone has to pay for the damage you and your friend caused.”

Snowhawk.

The Nord let them straight to the castle and through the brightly lit hallways. He finally threw open two big doors.
,,Our guests have arrived!” He shouted.
,,Ah, what took you so long? Have a drink.” Luper made his way through the crowd. He was obviously drunk, again.
Jalin shook his head. It was just something for the Nerevarine to get drunk with a few Nords.
,,What did you do this time? And where did you leave the Unicorn?”

,,Oh, I waved my ring around a bit, told them that I was the Nerevarine and that I was here to hunt vampires. That loosened their tongues and they told me everything I needed to know. Guess what, that silly mountain is actually real. And the Unicorn is in the stables. It helped with establishing my identity as some legendary hero. Now why are you all so upset? I managed to arrange beds for all of us.” Luper told them before joining the party again.

The rest of the Nord party wasn’t very eventful and the night afterwards, all three set out for the silver mountain. Jalin’s attempts at hiring a few Nords turned out to be unsuccessful and in the end it was just the three of them. After two hours of riding, their destination showed up on the horizon. The only one who had been prepared for the sight was Jana, since she’d been dreaming about it since she was infected with vampirism.

,,Alright, I hate to admit it but I’m impressed. Just look at that thing. It looks like some big slimy, silver creature.” Luper muttered.
,,And guess what, it is alive. Crap. Now I’m getting scared. I shouldn’t have used that life detection spell.” He added a few seconds later.

,,Right, we’ll set up camp here and think of a plan before going in. We know practically nothing about this place or the vampires inside.” Jalin noted and climbed off his Unicorn.
,,Plan? By the time you actually finish coming up with a plan, they’ve all died from old age. Why can’t we just go in and improvise?” Luper answered with a small grin. He took out Chrysamere and waved it around a bit.

,,Excuse me! That place is filled with vampires! Aureus went in there and he didn’t come out! I’ve seen how he treated a god as if he was punishing a child! And those vampires managed to beat him! So can you please come up with a plan a bit more complex than running in and swinging your sword at everything that moves?!”
Everyone backed away from the furious Dunmer who didn’t seem to notice that she was creating small sparks in her hands during her tirade.
,,Fine, I’ll wait till you two come up with a plan. That better?” Luper asked once she’d calmed down a bit.

This post has been edited by jack cloudy: Jun 11 2006, 07:56 PM

[treydog]

This is a quite wonderful story- ambitious and wide-ranging. Great fight scenes and definite personalities. A fun and fascinating read.