Cloak and Dagger, A Fan-Fiction Options

[mALX]

I strode to my room and sat on the bed. Mira quickly followed. “If you always lie Naïlo, how will anyone know when you tell the truth?” she asked.

“I guess they’ll just have to hope,” I replied. The truth was I did lie a lot. Maybe too much, but it was part of my life. I had to, because if I didn’t, I didn’t get the job done and I didn’t get to eat. It was a way of survival for me.

“I don’t want to just have to hope,” she whispered.

“Then don’t stay around me,” I sighed. “I’ve never had a choice but to lie and steal.”

“Then perhaps you should come with me, I can help you…”

“Do what? Turn my back on my family?”

“Listen to what your heart, Naïlo... What do they tell you to do?”

“I don’t know what it beckons for me to do, Mira, but eventually I’ll find my answer,” was what I said as I laid down on the bed. I closed my eyes and let my mind drift into the land of sleep.

These paragraphs are outstanding !!! Very deep, Zalphon !! Awesome Write !!!

[Lady Syl]

Chapter One

This is a very interesting read for me, especially because I haven't played Morrowind more than a few times, and I never got very far in it. Ald'ruhn is one of the cities I never got to, but reading this is making me very much want to play Morrowind again.

The detail you put into Nailo's ride in the silt strider was excellent. I was not aware that you actually ride inside of them like that, and your mentioning their "loud shrieks of anguish" makes me sort of feel bad for the creatures.

When the silt strider hopped into the air and made Nailo go flying around inside its shell a bit, that made me laugh. It sounds more like an amusement park ride than a means of transportation!

I forgot that the Dunmeri in Morrowind made slaves of various races of people in Tamriel. But when you portrayed the Breton woman with a collar and a leash around her neck, my mouth dropped. It's hard to imagine sometimes that real living, breathing people have been enslaved--it's a very sad mark of our history that we would do that to other humans (not to mention the atrocities we have been guilty of in regards to our treatment of animals!). I am glad that Nailo is not like most of his Dunmeri brethren in Morrowind--he felt empathy for her, where others of his kind see it as perfectly normal. This shows him to be greatly advanced--a man ahead of his time. He is most deserving of respect, in my eyes.

When he bought her and took her to his room and then set her free, the way you describe her is worth noting. You do a very good job portraying the brokenness of her spirit--slavery and cruel experimentation has had a traumatic impact on her self-image, and it will take a lot of time for her to rise out of that. I have a feeling Nailo will be a great help to her in this way.

Wow, it rains ashes in Ald'ruhn? I didn't know that. Not somewhere I'd want to build a city, but "to each his own."

I loved the paragraph where you pointed out the tragedy with the Redoran noblewoman--she could have anything in the world she wanted, yet she chose skooma and is destroying her body with it. Sad. Her sister sounds like a much more level-headed person, to be so humble and kind to them.

Mira is a good character, and I have a feeling that both of them are going to have immense impacts on each others lives, and in a good way. I look forward to reading more.

[Zalphon]

Chapter Two: The Witch-Hunter

Mira was sitting at the foot of my bed with her legs in a meditation stance. She glanced at me as I managed to open my eyes. “Good morning, Sera,” the young apprentice greeted warmly. Her eyes followed me as I dressed myself in the Redoran Clothing.

Mira gazed into my eyes and whispered, “If I may—perhaps we should meet up with the Hlaalu. If we could get the Duke indebted to us, we’d have both House Hlaalu and the Imperials at our service.” Her suggestion was a good one. If we had Dren on our side, we could probably get the Camonna Tong destroyed by the Imperial Legion in one fell swoop.

I walked up the stairs to find Relam sipping Flin and enjoying a bowl of seasoned saltrice. “Naïlo,” he greeted. “The client, who bought the first book on vampires, seeks the second. He’s willing to pay a thousand drakes and you’ll receive a ten percent commission.”

“I’m afraid I can’t, I have other matters to attend to. They’re guild matters, but I can’t handle any ‘procurement duties’ right now,” I replied. “I give you my most sincere apologies, Muthsera.”

“This isn’t a request, Naïlo.”

“I can’t take care of it, Arinith.”

“You’ll do it, or I’ll slit your throat. Do I make myself clear, N’wah?” he barked at me. Rage was in his tone, it was obvious. Everyone stopped drinking and stared at us. When I shook my head no, he grabbed me by my throat and lifted me up.

Behind him, a Dunmer in black clothing with the hood of his cloak pulled up grabbed his crossbow and scowled, “Put the kid down or you can try to bully me.” I felt Relam drop me and he turned around.

“You want to fight me? Let’s dance.” The Dunmer that saved me put back his crossbow and muttered under his breath. Out of nowhere, a scamp appeared and scratched at the flesh of Relam.

Arinith kicked the thing across the bar and pulled out his polished, glass short sword. “Taste this, Fetcher,” he hissed as his blade lunged for the challenger. The mysterious Mer dodged and then pulled out a silver short sword of his own and slashed with it. It connected and a spray of blood flew across the tavern.

“S-stop, please,” Relam struggled to say as he coughed blood. “No more, I give. I won’t hurt the kid.”

Mira looked at me and shrugged. I walked over to the stranger and asked, “Who are you and why do you care about my well-being?” The Dark Elf just kept walking, as if he didn’t even care about me anymore. As he reached the door, I strafed in front of him and asked again.

“Raynil Myrth,” he responded after much goading. “And I helped you for my own reasons.” His voice was deep and scratchy, typical for a male. He put his sword in its sheathe and stood there for a moment.

“You summoned a daedroth,” I said. “How did you do it? I thought only powerful wizards could do that.”

“I’ll tell you…eventually,” the Dunmer replied as he walked out the door. When I opened it he was gone. Raynil Myrth could definitely be a powerful ally, if only I knew where to look to find him.

[Acadian]

Well done! You had a very nicely done quiet wake up scene, then a well-rendered fight. Finally, another mystery for Nailo.

[mALX]

You did an Awesome job on that fight scene !!!

[Zalphon]

Chapter Two: The Witch-Hunter - Final

Myrth was gone, Relam was in a pool of his own blood, and Mira was scared out of her mind. I noticed her out of the corner of my eye she was in the fetal position, sobbing. With a few steps, I walked over to her and knelt down. “Are you okay, Mirabelle?” I asked gently. I was hoping for a yes, but I knew it wasn’t coming.

She just hugged me and whispered, “I-I-I’m so scared. What are we going to do?”

“We will have to find Myrth. I have a feeling he’s someone we need to have with us or he’ll end up with our enemies.”

Between sobs she managed to say, “Where are we going to go?”

“We’re going to Balmora. If we can warn the Hlaalu that Galos was slain by the hand of Redoran and that the declaration of war is from a Redoran, we can probably save them.” We needed to alert Hlaalu that this was of Redoran work. If we didn’t, then the Arch-Magister of House Telvanni would sweep Vvardenfell of all life, save for Telvanni.

I opened the door and there was Myrth. “Who’re you?” I asked him. “Why do you care about us? We need your help, but we need to know that we can trust you.”

“We’ll talk about it on the Silt Strider. Quickly, it’s almost midday, the last one for Balmora leaves at midday. I’ve already paid for the passage.” I motioned for Mira to get up and we traveled towards the gargantuan, insect-like creature.

The ash wasn’t beating, surprisingly. We climbed the stairs and crawled into the carapace of the beast. I firmly grabbed the hair, hoping not to have a repeat of last time. “I am Raynil Myrth, a Witch-Hunter. I have traveled across Tamriel searing the life out of vampires, ending the lives of necromancers and witches, and slaying undead in the name of the Tribunal and the Daedric Lords.”

“How does this affect us?” I questioned, right before the beast bounced high into the sky. “Why do you care about some thief and his friend?”

“I care about you, because you’re more than just a thief. I’m going to teach you a spell. Remember the pronunciation, it is called Almsivi Intervention. The words are: “Zekag Mo—Sep”. You say it together and the spell will bring you to the nearest Almsivi Temple.”

I nodded and with one final leap, we were home… Or what I thought was home. I climbed of the beast and Myrth whispered, “Use the spell.”

“Zekag No Sep?”

“Mo Sep, not No Sep. That spell has saved my life more times than I can count. Try again.”

“Zekag Mo Sep.” Suddenly, a flash of light surrounded me. I was left blinded momentarily and then I could see again. Suddenly a Dark Elf appeared, maybe a little older than I greeted me, “Hello, Traveler. Can I get you anything?”

“I am sorry to disturb you, Priest. I was practicing a spell.” Suddenly materializing beside me was Mira and Raynil. The priest greeted my companions, but Myrth was distracted and Mira was too anxious to say anything.

“We have to go,” Myrth stated. “If we don’t reach the Council House before the letter reaches the Duke, we’ll surely see a war break out that may cause much bigger problems.” The priest raised a brow, but I shook my head and sprinted up the stairs.

It was strange, but beautiful. The vases were filled with the bone-dust of heroes of Morrowind. The statue of Saint Nerevar was breath-taking. It looked so life-like. I knew it was all made of marble, but the armor looked like real bone-mold armor, the sword looked like his famous blade, Trueflame and was enchanted with an eternal, heatless flame spell.

I realized I had stood there gazing at the statue for well over a minute. Myrth grabbed me and we jogged up the stairs. We opened the door and darted for the Council House. In what felt like seconds, we arrived. Mira held the door open for me.

The Duke was standing there, with the Hlaalu Councilors. “Milord,” I blurted out, breathing hard. “Miner—Arobar—sent the a—assassin after Galos.”

“House Redoran would never try something so deceptive,” he replied agitatedly. “What are you? Are you a Telvanni Hireling? My friend is dead, we’re going into a House War, and my people will be suffering.”
“I’m trying to help you,” I explained. “I’ll admit to being a Thieves’ Guild—well former operative, but I overheard Arobar and a Morag Tong Assassin speaking.”

“Guards,” the Duke yelled. “Take this Mer and his companions to Fort Moonmoth. I’m sure they’ll enjoy a year of hard labor for being Thieves’ Guild Operatives.”

“Remember that spell, Nailo?” the Witch-Hunter asked. I knew it was time to cast it and I muttered the words. The flash of light gave me a feeling of serenity. We appeared in the Temple again, all of us.

“We’re too late,” I nervously muttered. “What are we going to do?”

“We’re leaving for Sadrith Mora.”

Mira heard those words and started whimpering. I saw the tears running down her face. “Goth—Gothren did his experiments there.”

“What did he do?

“I was born without any magical talent. I couldn’t remember spells and when I could remember the most minor ones, it left me feeling drained. My parents viewed me as a failure, both to my family and my race,” Mira explained as she whimpered. “So they sold me to Gothren. The Mer tested the ability to empower one’s magical potential. He succeeded, but I live in constant agony.”

She grabbed my short sword and pulled it across her wrist. Pale, blue blood dripped from the wound and boiled once it touched the ground. “Y-your blood is blue and it boils at this temperature?”

“Indeed it does,” Mirabelle whimpered.

“Let’s go to the Mages’ Guild to get teleported to Sadrith Mora,” Raynil advised.

I realized we were still in our Redoran clothing and as we walked out, I headed for the pawn broker. A few minutes passed as we walked towards it. A youthful Mer smiled as we walked in. “Clothes,” was the one word I said.

She pulled out a trunk of clothes. After digging in it, Mira pulled out some black, velvet robes. She also pulled out some black, velvet slippers and gloves. The Pawnbroker’s eyes just I was going to dig in, but Myrth pulled me back by the back of my shirt. “Do you have any leather armor?”

Her eyes lit up, “I have come into ownership of a suit of Septim-Grade Leather Armor. Made from the leather of a de-scaled Daedroth, then beneath is an extremely thin layer of troll leather for the regenerative property, and beneath that is velvet. Although, I doubt you could afford it.”

“How much would it cost for her clothes and this suit of armor?”

“For all of it, the cost would be—about twenty-one thousand drakes.”

Raynil muttered under his breath and the broker started to slouch. “How about ten-thousand?”

“This is Septim-Grade Leather Armor! I won’t settle for less than twenty-thousand.” Grumbling, Myrth pulled out a bag of jewels with a diamond the size of my fist in it.

“Do we have a deal?”

“Oh yes!” Mira undressed, save for her loin-cloth and donned the robes and pulled up the hood. She put the slippers on and the gloves. I put on the Septim-Grade Leather Armor and it felt extremely comfortable. Like a second skin. Raynil motioned for us to leave, quickly.

“How did you get all that?” I probed in awe.

“It’s called illusion. That’s actually a bag of rocks with one the size of your fist. By the time she realizes that, we’ll be long gone. The illusion will wear off after a few hours.” That was brilliant. He turned a bag of rocks into a bag of precious jewels.

“I’ve only ever seen rocks get their color changed, not their weight, texture, and entire shape. That’s amazing,” I blurted out.

“You learn some tricks when you’ve adventured with people who’ve forgotten more about magic than Telvanni Wizard-Lords will ever learn.”

We reached the Mages’ Guild and walked in. The Mages watched us as if we were Telvanni. When we reached the portal room, the Breton simply smiled and asked where we wanted passage. I said calmly, “Sadrith Mora.”

A flash of light appeared and suddenly, we were in the center of Sadrith Mora. Mushroom Towers sprouted to the East, the West, the North, and the South. Thieves, assassins, thugs, they all found refuge here. The Wizard-Lords cared little as long as they weren’t disturbed. This was a hive of villainy; hopefully Raynil had a plan…

[Zalphon]

http://s1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff452/...ent=example.jpg

You can see the leather armor that Nailo got there, but you have to imagine the gloves and boots.

[mALX]

Oooh, Zalphon! Did you draw that yourself? Great chapter !!

[Zalphon]

Alas, I didn't draw it myself. I found it on the internet, but it fits the idea.

[Acadian]

I liked the ability to teleport to selected locations that you gave them. Very handy.

And -
“It’s called illusion. That’s actually a bag of rocks with one the size of your fist. By the time she realizes that, we’ll be long gone. The illusion will wear off after a few hours.” That was brilliant. He turned a bag of rocks into a bag of precious jewels.'
How neat was that?!?

And a new set of great armor!

[Zalphon]

Best set of leather armor money can buy. It is Septim-Grade (as in made for the Emperor or the Royal Family). Simply put, I expect one VERY angry pawnbroker...

Also, that spell (Almsivi Intervention) is a real spell in Morrowind and has saved my life more times than I can count (and in situations just like that!)