[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“Helloooooo! Walking dead! We're here! Fresh brains ripe for picking. Well, maybe not mine....mine might be little rotten....his is fresh!â€

Nina's voice echoed through the hallways, the darkness giving no hint of life in these chambers. The only objects that projected what little light it offered were these mysterious blue stones protruding out of the white walls. Otherwise, it was eerily quiet.

Nina shook her head, “Oh, I hate it when they hesitate. Nothing good ever comes out of that.â€

“I don't think you help when you announce our presence though,†Felix mumbled, painfully holding his chest with his arms.

“I'd just rather kill the zombies as quickly as I can and get back to helping you deal with your pal,†Nina said with a shrug and turned to him, “Is that too much to ask?â€

“If I didn't know any better, I would've thought you love to be around dead people,†Felix teased.

“Ha ha.....no,†Nina growled, and turned her attention back to the hallway, “You know, if you want a ride back home while you're asleep, I'd be nice. I could just leave you in Windhelm with a bunch of hobos. They would love the company. And the clothes,†she said and smirked.

“If you don't want to be here Nina, then why stay?†Felix looked at her with a small smile of his own, “To me, you sound like you'd rather be as far away from me.â€

“Maybe I'm hoping I'd get myself killed here,†Nina shrugged, her face turned away from Felix as she muttered, “Gods know I can't kill myself any faster.â€

Felix gave her a strange look, but she didn't see it. And he didn't say anything beyond that point, which was a relief to her. A part of her was actually hoping she'd die here. She had no desire to go to Windhelm at all. She'd rather keep the past in the past, but.....the prospect of turning into a zombie like the other poor souls....

She kicked a rock out of the way in frustration. Why must the gods torment her so? Couldn't they just leave her in peace?

“Interesting....â€

“What's interesting?â€

“These stones.....almost straight out of the drawings....†Felix muttered, staring at the blue stones in fascination.

“Glad to see you happy, I guess....†Nina mumbled. There was a soft cracking below her feet and Nina frowned, her ears strained trying to determine the source of the noise, “What was---?â€

Before she could say anything more, the floor suddenly gave out under her and she was left sliding and tumbling into a newly formed darkness. Felix was yelling something at her, but the Nord's mind didn't pay much attention to it. She was too concerned of what would meet her at the eventual end of this pit. She winced and braced herself for impact.

Where she expected dirt or rock, however, she instead was enveloped in a thick, viscous fluid, the sudden cold, slimy feeling almost causing her to inhale the muck. She struggled for a few moments before her feet and hands finally met the rocky floor. She pushed herself up, surprised by how thick the liquid actually was, before surfacing and finally able to take a needed breath.

“Gods' blood!†she gasped and coughed. The liquid left a foul taste in her mouth and she tried to spit it back out with no avail.

“Nina!†a voice finally registered with her and Nina tried to look up....only to find she had closed her eyes to keep the muck out. She tried to wipe it away with her hands to no avail, “Felix! You alright?â€

“Yeah, I'm fine,†Felix said, “I didn't get caught in the collapse.â€

“Well, ain't you just the luckiest little....,†Nina groaned, finally able to open her eyes into the penetrating darkness, “Damn elves. Oh, they can build the Imperial City just fine, but they can't build a frickin' hall worth a swine's back.â€

This made Felix chuckle a little, “Hold on, I'll try to get you out,†he said before he started coughing violently.

“Forget it!†Nina yelled back, “Just.....do you have any rope?â€

Felix finished coughing and tried to hold in the last bit before shaking his head, “You had the rope.â€

“....Damn,†the Nord muttered; she wasn't going to even try to look for it, not in this stuff, “How about some torches?â€

“I can shine some light down there,†the Breton said and he got up quickly, which only brought another violent fit of coughing.

“Woah woah woah, we are not playing that game!†she yelled and growled, “Just.....keep an eye out while I try to....get out of this....†she grumbled and started wading her way to a wall.

“It's just light, Nina; it's not like a giant fireball,†Felix said and shook his head painfully, though giving a hint of a smile.

“Look, I can get out of here, alright? Just lemme...†she said and started gripping at jagged rocks. She felt she had a good grip at first, but when she tried to hoist herself up, the oily substance on her hands caused her to slip and fall right back into the goop.

“....Felix.....make yourself useful and keep an eye out for dead guys, would ya?†Nina finally groaned, “This may take a while.â€

“I can put some light down there.â€

“I'd rather you didn't.â€

“Well I think--â€

“Felix, I don't want to be down here when the corpses start falling.†Nina yelled at him and shook her head in frustration, “Just....gimme a couple of minutes, alright? Please?â€

[On Paid Members and Visible Ads]

Ehm.....well, depends on how annoying the ads are. They gonna be all flashy, script-heavy, and popping out every five seconds when i try to click something or will they be basic and mostly out of the way?

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“Would've been easier to just knock her off the bridge...â€

“Then I would have to be explaining to the whole counsel why I let a Nord run around the college and kill someone,†Felix growled at her and hoisted his bag over his shoulder more comfortably, “You know, when I said let's go smash some stuff, I didn't mean people's faces.â€

“She insulted me!†Nina said, rubbing her hand gingerly from the punch, “Called me a mindless barbarian, that stupid little knife-ear....â€

“Well, weren't you?†the Breton asked, smiling a little as she scowled at him; the effect was only lessened by the fact the snow was starting to fall heavily upon the group and cloud their vision, “You did threaten to throw her off the bridge as your first impression.â€

“She's a mage, I'm sure she knows how to fly,†she mumbled and shrugged.

“Yes, I'm sure she could have....three hundred years ago, when it was still legal,†he rolled his eyes.

“Oi, just like that waterwalking deal....too many people were drowning walking on the ocean, the morons. Ya know, I say let nature deal them out. If they don't want to take a ship, that's their own damn problem, but don't make the rest of us suffer for it. Nothing like a few floating bodies to set an example for the others.â€

“'The rest of us'?†Felix asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

“You know who I'm talking about,†she shook her head quickly and glared at him.

“Uh huh.....well, same problem with flying. At least so the counsel claimed.â€

“Didn't they also ban necromancy?â€

“Mages Guild did that, not us. Speaking of mages....why the sudden fascination in magic, Nina?†he asked and laughed at the look on her face.

“How about trying to distract you from the fact I hurt your little elf friend?†Nina replied. It was Felix's turn to glare at her, “I had a very good excuse for doing what I did!â€

“She insulted you....with words. How does that justify getting half of her face broken into?!â€

“She's an Altmer, she really doesn't need an excuse.â€

Felix sighed exasperatedly, “By the gods, Nina......you know, not all high elves are part of the Thalmor.â€

“Well sorry if I nearly got killed by knife-ears a million times in a row,†she yelled, a tone in her voice that suggested that they were done with that particular conversation or else she was going to make it stop, “But if the mages banned waterwalking, then why didn't they do the same thing for waterbreathing? I mean, that's the same damn thing. The spell wears off and, oh look, you're stuck in a ship on the bottom of the lake. Really, I don't think somebody thought this through very well when they proposed it.â€

“And here I thought you hated magic,†Felix said with a chuckle.

“You know, you don't always have to be a mage to know what common sense is, and that was just not common sense on their part. Just like that cave entrance,†she said, pointing her finger at distant figures through the heavy snow. Strange blue light shined across the snow and towering glaciers that surrounded the entrance, certainly not the likes of which Nina had ever seen before, “Doesn't that just yell 'rob me!'?†she asked and grinned.

“Kvenin did say that Lecelle wanted no further delays...†Felix replied quietly.

“When he said that, I didn't think this Lecelle guy would be literally yelling 'come on in! It's nice and comfortable! Free food and ale for everybody!',†she joked animatedly, her hands beckoning to invisible people to come towards her before finally groaning, “Oh, I can tell this is going to be a very nasty trap...â€

Felix was more than inclined to agree with her, even have a fleeting thought of abandoning the whole mission. But feeling the presence of the small skull-carved stone in his pocket, he set his shoulder straight and said with an air of resolve, “Nevertheless, we need to face Lecelle.....or rather, I have to face him,†he added quietly and looked at Nina, “If, um, this is too--â€

“Felix, I have nothing better to do than to go to a slum-city and deal with an army of drunken soldiers,†Nina interrupted, holding a hand up to silence him before smirking, “So how about we just go in there, kick Lecelle's butt, and come out with you being daedra-free, hm?â€

“Not sure if it'll be that simple,†he said honestly, “This is daedra princes we are talking about here. Vaermina, of all the gods.â€

“Fine, then just kicking Lecelle's poor, doomed rump. I ain't coming out of that place without giving that guy some bit of Oblivion to remember me by. I'll even make Vaermina look tame, if you want me to.â€

Felix laughed and patted Nina on the shoulder, “As long as you leave some for me.â€

Nina erred and shrugged before finally relenting. Just as the sky was darkening in approach to the coming night, they made it to the entrance of the cave. The sounds of the ocean could be heard right next to them and while Nina scowled at the sources of light, floating balls of unnaturally bright light, she said nothing as they ducked under the frozen rock out of the snowstorm. The two took a small break as Felix warmed up his hands, giving Nina time to scout ahead for any signs of enemies or traps. But instead, “....Yo, Felix?â€

“What?â€

“Okay, I may just be an idiot and just not recognize this, but....did the Dwarves use white rock for their structures?â€

“White rock?†Felix blinked a little in surprise, “No, the Dwemer used natural stone and dwarven metal. There's really no white rock around Skyrim. I could be mistaken, but that was what I last heard.â€

“Well then, who'd the dumb idiot to be using white rocks?†she yelled, which made Felix frown and rush over to Nina's position, driven by curiosity and a bit of sheer annoyance that she couldn't come over herself.

But that annoyance was soon forgotten as he laid his eyes upon the clean, white block that protruded from the cave's walls; nothing carved onto the stone, and not a shred of metal to be found, “....could be Chimer, but I never heard of any of them coming this far north, and they were more fond of mazes than straight-shot tunnels...†he commented as he looked further down the cavern, where more of the mysterious architecture could be seen.

“Well, whoever was the architect didn't think ahead far enough...it's a miracle this tunnel hasn't collapsed yet,†Nina mumbled and kicked the rock with her boot, “Alright, rule number one on this expedition: don't blow anything up. Unless in an emergency. Even then, don't blow anything up. I don't know if this place even has a back door after this, and I don't want to know when we're trapped.â€

“I'll try...†he said and suddenly groaned, leaning into the wall next to him as he clutched at his head. His head felt like it was being split apart into several pieces, “Argh!â€

“What?†Nina said quickly, snapping her head around to look at Felix. Seeing him about to collapse, she rushed over and quickly brought him down onto the smooth ground, mumbling a few vulgar words under her breath as she placed the back of her hand on his head and noticing he was feverish, “Dammit....I said last resort, you know.â€

The Breton shook his head and slammed his head into the wall, in hopes of diverting some of the pain; unfortunately, he ended up seeing double for a moment as the pain worsened and had to resist the urge to throw up all over Nina, “I know, but....well, it was. The last resort, I mean. But I think it's wearing off....â€

“Feels like nails be pounded against your head?â€

“Worse.â€

“Of course it is,†Nina said and sighed, “That would be the side effects from the potion. After the headache, you'll get a fever, start shaking a little....well, apparently a lot in your case, then get a little hyper, maybe a little bloodletting, then you get a major crash. After that, should be no problems, hopefully....â€

“Er....b-bloodletting?â€

“You start coughing up blood.â€

Felix blinked at her and gave her a wary look, “Erm....i-is this safe?â€

“If it was safe, I would have given it to you without complaining. Of course it's not safe!â€

“And....you still gave me this?â€

“Kept you awake, didn't it?â€

“Well yes, but it's wearing off now!â€

“Yeah, you'll be sleeping all the way home, most like.â€

“Sleeping? T-that's not good thing, Nina,†Felix said, a hint of fear in his voice, “I can't sleep, you know that.â€

“Yeah yeah, I know....daedra,†she said and waved her hand to silence him, “I know that. You got a couple of days before that crash kicks in. So, how about we stop yammering about ethical stuff and go smash this Lecelle person's head quickly, hm? Cause you're starting to get feverish.â€

He nodded; apparently even that little shake he made was too much as he suddenly groaned and clutched at his head, “By the gods....Nina, you drink this stuff? Why?†he asked, looking at her with worry.

She regarded him silently for several moments before shaking her head, “The headache won't last long. Couple of minutes and you should be able to start walking again. Just mind your aim when your hands start shaking, aye?â€

Felix noticed she had dodged the question and opened his mouth to ask it again, only for Nina to interrupt, “Felix, please...it's been a long few days, I'm already getting sick of all this magic here, and you've been asking me very personal questions of the late,†she gave a sort of a sad half-smile, “Let's just go kill some rogue wizards and forget about my stinkin' life, okay? It's really not that interesting.â€

“I beg to differ.....†Felix muttered and shook his head softly, “I-I think the headache's getting better?â€

“Oi, take your time,†she said quietly, “I'd hate to have to face all those zombies by myself, you know.â€

“Zombies?â€

“That's what it's smelling like at the moment. Wonderful necromancers are, aren't they?â€

Or daedra, Felix mused to himself and slowly managed to work his way up on the wall, his head pounding from the exertion, but thankfully without feeling like he was going to black out, “Okay, I think I'm....I think I'm okay. We should....get going....â€

“Ugh....You people never listen, and yet you wonder why I prefer solitary confinement...†Nina couldn't help but mutter and stayed next to Felix, helping him down the steep slope into the strange new ruins, “So whenever you feel up to it, how about telling me a little bit about Lecelle?â€

[Drunkard's Tale]

Umm..... I don't remember! yep, that's basically my story....have no clue as to how I even found this place. Must've been kidnapped by gremlins or something. yeah, that's it. Kidnapped by gremlins! That's my story.

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“So....?â€

“So what?â€

Felix waved his hands exasperatedly and looked at her, “I told you my secret. So what about you? Why are you heading towards Winterhold?â€

Nina gave him a reluctant grin, “You should get some sleep. You're not going to be any good if you're snoring through a bandit attack.â€

“I-I don't need sleep,†Felix said, shaking his head quickly. Truth be told, he was working hard to keep his eyes open from what little sleep he had been allowed back at the Tavern. The only thing keeping him awake, however, was the uncertainty of would happen if took even a quick nap. Where Vaermina was concerned, he didn't want to find out, “Come on, Nina, tell me....d-don't make me burn you,†he said timidly.

Nina chuckled quietly and raised an eyebrow at him, making him wince visibly, “You know what, Felix? Leave the threatening to me next time. You're no good at it.â€

“Yeah, well.....you're not the one who got sliced up tonight,†he muttered, clutching at his chest at the sudden onslaught of pain as he shifted himself upright, “But seriously.....what can be worse than consorting with daedra?â€

“Mm, I can think of a couple,†she shrugged and sighed when she saw Felix staring at her expectantly, she groaned, “Dammit....you're not going to leave me in peace until I tell you, are you?â€

When he shook his head silently, she glared at him at him before shaking her head, “Of all the....fine, I guess it won't hurt to tell you a little,†she said with a resigned tone and sat down next to him, “Yesterday a courier gave me a letter, who it came from I have no idea, but all the letter said was to come to Windhelm.â€

“No return address?â€

“Take a look for yourself,†she muttered and pulled out a crinkled-up piece of paper from her pocket before handing it to the mage, “Go ahead and do whatever you want with it....it's not much use to me anymore.â€

Felix nodded and unraveled the paper, his eyes traveling over the few words that were scribbled there and frowning, “'Come to Windhelm. Now.' Not very descriptive, are they?â€

“Tell me about it. I mean....I recognize that writing somewhere, but I just can't remember who, and that's the most frustrating part,†she growled, her hands curling into fists, “I can't tell if this is blackmail or....help,†she said the last one quietly and rested her chin on her knees.

The mage let his gaze rest on her for a little bit before looking back to the piece of paper, scrutinizing it carefully, rubbing his fingernail in a few certain spots, “Well....I don't know what to tell you....except this parchment smells a little funny...â€

“Well, I think the courier might have had a bit of fun in Markarth before he came to the tavern,†Nina mumbled, her eyes wandering the landscape aimlessly.

“Not alcohol....musty. Like it's been underground, or near water.â€

“Okay....Felix, I want you to think about this carefully. Where is Windhelm?†Nina said, taking her eyes away from the trees to look at the bard with a small smile.

“Next to a river?â€

She nodded, “And it's cold. So most houses are...?â€

“Underground,†Felix sighed a little in frustration, “Alright alright, so that doesn't help at all, except maybe confirm where it came from. ...I don't suppose the courier said anything about the sender?â€

“An alchemist. Only problem? I know tons of people who are alchemists. Really doesn't help,†Nina said with a small laugh and shrugged, taking the letter back from Felix, “Thanks for trying anyways, Felix. Gods, I just hate it when stuff like this happens.....I wasn't even planning on going back to that place...â€

“Back?â€

“Oh damn, now I have to explain that too, don't I?†she muttered and chuckled, “Yes, I lived in Windhelm for.... fifteen years, give or take. When I left, well.....I didn't exactly leave the greatest impression for them. Put it this way, we're not going to Windhelm until after Winterhold, 'cause I have no idea if they're going to greet me with boulders, arrows, flaming arrows, or the axe. Heck, probably not even in that order.â€

“That's....quite an impression,†Felix looked at her, his eyes wide in surprise, “What did you do to anger them so?â€

“That's not important.â€

“But--â€

“You're not coming with me to Windhelm,†Nina said darkly, “I'll help you with your situation if you want, but I don't want you caught up in my mess. At least with Daedra, not all of them are for gathering heads and sticking them on pikes.â€

“No...they just steal your soul instead...†he said with a small gulp and shook his head, trying to shake off the horrible thoughts that threatened to take over his mind. “But if that's the case, then....why are you answering the letter, if you're hated so much in Windhelm?â€

“Because,†she said simply, “if it's blackmail, I want to kill the bastard who sent it. If it's a cry for help, though, well....†Nina shrugged gently, “I'm not the type of person that refuses straight out. At least not until I know the situation. And I can't very well send a letter back in either of those cases.â€

With nothing else to say, Felix leaned back against the log, watching the fire snapping at the air, its orange, greedy tongues drawing in more fuel for it. The creatures that lived within the woods were starting to settle down, the nocturnal ones beginning to wake up and begin their own hunt for food. It would have been peaceful, if not for the dark thoughts that clouded both of human's minds.

“You sure you don't need to sleep?†Nina asked suddenly.

“I....I couldn't sleep if I wanted to,†he admitted with a small sigh, “I'm fine now, but I'm....I'm actually afraid of what might happen once sleep catches up to me......Vaermina, I don't know what...†his voice trailed away, his face paling under the firelight at the mere thought of the consequences.

“Ooh.....,†she said quietly, seeing the look on his face and realizing the issue, “I forgot about that little bit.â€

He nodded and Nina sat there, her brain hard at work, trying to figure out a way around this particular dilemma. She knew how to keep him awake for a little while, but she didn't know how long it would be before he resolved this issue he had with the prince. And it would only be a matter of times before those techniques became worthless. But on the other hand, she didn't want to subject him to this particular substance, especially for something it wasn't designed to be used as.

Holding back a rather nasty cuss, she rubbed her temple with her fingertips, until she finally made up her mind, “Alright, hold on...†she said muttered before standing up and heading towards Rain. She opened up one of her bags and rummaged around, looking for something specific. Moments later, she pulled out a small vial and gave it a hard look, biting her lip in thought, before heading back towards Felix and hesitantly handing him the bottle, “This stuff....I'm not really supposed to give you this. But I don't want to see you in the hands of the Daedra either. This is very potent, and very addicting even after a few uses, not to mention some....other side effects...†she said quietly, “But it will keep you awake. Only, and I mean only use this as a last resort. Okay?â€

Felix nodded understandingly and took the bottle into his hands, holding it as if it was very fragile, and peering at the clear liquid contents swirling inside. At first glance it looked like water, but it shimmered against the light as if oily, “This is.....unique,†he said inquisitively, “Erm....side effects?†he had to ask, looking at her quizzically.

She merely shook her head, “Let's just say, you don't want to find out. As I said: last resort. But I've seen my fair share of Daedric infliction, and I don't want that on anyone. Especially on someone I can agree with for once,†she said the last part with a small chuckle and smiled, “Glad to see I'm not the only one who thinks the Nine Divines are a sham. Well, except Talos, but he's still a dead guy. Can't really do much besides moan and drool.â€

This made Felix laugh, at least a little until he started coughing from the pain radiating from his chest at the attempt. “Damn, don't you start dieing on me, dude,†Nina snickered and handed him a water pouch to drink, quickly slipping the small vial in Felix's bag, “I didn't stitch you up to have you bleed all over the place again.â€

“Yeah....s-sorry,†he said quietly, still laughing from her last statement and shook his head, “I just wasn't expecting to hear that from you, of all people.â€

“Uh huh, sure....,†she shook her head with a smile, “What is it with you people, thinking I'm an Imperial, hm?â€

“Imperial? I thought you were--†he was suddenly cut off when her hand clamped around his mouth. Surprised, he frowned at her and she made a motion with her free hand to be quiet before removing her hand. She was staring at something off in the distance, her body tense. Felix dared a glance towards the bushes she was looking at, silently wishing he had enough magicka left in him to cast a Life Detect...

She continued looking at the same spot for another minute before growling in frustration, “Damn....could've sworn that was somebody....†she muttered and shook her head before looking at Felix, “Alright, well....since you're not going to sleep, we might as well keep traveling for a bit.â€

“Wait....you're not tired?â€

“Tired? What's that?†she joked and patted his shoulder, “Come on, let's get you up, eh?â€

[What's an Ordinal?]

If you have Windows Live installed, then Hana's advice is good. A reinstall should fix things right back up.

If not, then you need to either install Windows Live or a workaround. (shameless linking: Windows LIVE Disabler)

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“No, no....stop. Just stop,†Felix sighed heavily and leaned his head against his hand, absently rubbing away the headache that was threatening to take over.

“Gods, what's wrong this time?†the young man asked sarcastically, glaring at Felix, “Lemme guess, wrong pitch? Too rough? Or perhaps I missed yet another set of words?â€

Though Felix wouldn't like to admit it so bluntly, the singing was definitely the weakest point in this aspiring bard. Being in no mood for company from his latest worries, he tried to pass by the wandering merchant along the road and hoped he wouldn't strike a conversation with him. But alas, the merchant didn't have to. His horrendous singing was like nails on rough glass to Felix and, being the kind, gentle person he was, he couldn't help but at least try to teach the man something.

Obviously, that was a mistake.

“It's.....you were okay, that time,†Felix mumbled, hoping the bard wouldn't see past that white lie, “it's just the wording. That's an old song you're trying to sing, probably as old as the Great Dragon war itself. I know some of the lyrics doesn't make any sense, but if you keep trying to flip the words around like you are doing right now, the whole meaning of the song could be destroyed. Does that make any sense?â€

“No, that really doesn't,†the man muttered and frowned at him, “What does it matter how the words are arranged?â€

“Ugh....look, it's a very simple concept,†Felix said impatiently, “You're changing the meaning of the song and confusing everyone. Trust me, bards confusing noblemen doesn't end very well for said bard.â€

“Well, exactly! As you said, confusing them is not very productive, so the last thing you wanna do is start spewing out what sounds like nonsense, right?â€

“Nonsense....?â€

“'Now sooth I say of what first I saw as I passed to the world of pain...',†he sang and Felix winced again. He was about to open his mouth to try to interrupt him when a feminine voice said behind him, “Oh for Sheogorath's sake, will you shut up already?!â€

“What?†the merchant said surprised and both of the men turned around to face the newcomer riding up to them. She had a very tired look about her, but that apparently didn't stop her from giving the merchant a rather venomous glare, “Shut up? How dare you--?†he started.

“Oh? How dare I? I'm sorry, but I could have sworn back there that you were some sick dragon trying to kill the poor guy over here. Did I mention it was a sick dragon?â€

“Sick dragon?†the merchant looked at her, rather offended, “I will have you know that I am one of the best bards in all of Cyrodiil, much more than what you barbarians can do!â€

“Really?†Nina said with a chuckled and rolled her eyes, “Barbarian? Me? You know, I've heard better insults from drunkards. Calling me a barbarian is more like a compliment, if anything.â€

“And I suppose you can do better?â€

“Not in the mood.â€

“Ha!â€

Nina glowered at him, which made him flinch, “I. Am not. Singing. Not for you, or anyone else. In case you haven't noticed, I am not in a very good mood at the moment. So with that said: tick me off even just a little and I may just kill you to spare myself the headache.â€

“Woah, wait a minute!†Felix said quickly and guided his horse in front of hers to confront her, “You are not seriously considering--â€

“If he keeps singing, I will!†she yelled and leaned over to glare at the merchant behind him, “Out of mercy, at the very least.â€

“M-Mercy?!†the man stammered.

“Mercy for everyone else. No one should have to endure that pathetic voice of yours.â€

“I can sing! Y-You just do not appreciate the innovative style I have created!†he said and crossed his arms, holding his chin up rather haughtily. This only annoyed her more, however.

“You are kidding, right? 'Innovative style'? Is that an excuse for 'can't sing worth a cow's behind? What, did standards fall that much ever since Meche or Meda or whoever's that guy take over?â€

“It's Mede. Emperor Titus Mede the second,†the merchant mumbled, staring at her in shock, “By the Eight, woman, shame on you! Have you no respect for the Emperor? Of Tamriel?â€

“Not ever since he gave up nearly the whole continent to those knife-eared bastards.â€

“Gods....you're parents must be ashamed of you. Ashamed!â€

“Parents? Ashamed? Ha!†Nina exclaimed and smirked, “I was been raised by mutts. Smelly, nasty ol' mutts in an abandoned farm. Whereas you, I don't know who the heck raised you, but I bet they are turning over in their graves just hearing your voice every time you open that hole of yours. Come on, a land dreugh can sing better than you! And the ironic thing is....they can't sing! Go figure. Hey, ya know, if it's any comfort....our famous Orc-bard is better at singing than you are. Just to let ya know.â€

“That's enough!†Felix growled.

“Hey, hold on, I'm not done yet,†she said and looked at him, “You wanna lecture me afterwards? Fine. At least let me vent on what little I am allowed, will ya?â€

“You are going to let her continue to harrass me?†the man asked Felix, affronted.

“If he still wants his skin, he will,†she growled warningly.

“You can't--†the man was interrupted with Nina growled annoyed and pulled out her knife, waving it in front of his face, “Last warning, bud. Start singing again, and I'll cut out your tongue. Try to sing after that, and more....sensitive parts go flying. Got it?â€

He clamped his mouth shut and nodded quickly, eyeing that knife as if it was going to attack him at any moment. “Good,†Nina smiled and patted his cheek, “Now you can lecture me....well, after we get away from giant Big-Nose over here.â€

“Was that really necessary, Nina?†he asked when the two finally parted ways with the merchant.

She couldn't help but chuckle, “What? And you're telling me trying to teach that guy how to sing was a better idea?â€

Felix shrugged, “I dunno, I guess I felt bad. I tried to give him a few pointers, but he just wouldn't listen to me.â€

“Yeah...that was apparent by all the screaming...â€

“Really? I thought it was his singing. …..Did he really sound like a sick dragon?â€

“What? It didn't to you?!â€

“More like scraping nails against a window.â€

Nina thought for a moment and shrugged, “.....that might be a little kind, for him anyway. Okay, maybe not a sick dragon, but I thought you were being mauled alive back there. Literally.â€

Felix raised an eyebrow at her, “And....you decide to come and try to help me?â€

“Sorry, Felix, but I kinda liked your performance back at the tavern a little too much just to let you fend for yourself, ya know?†When Felix only shrugged, Nina frowned a little at him and tilted her head, “...what?â€

“I'm fine!†he said just a little too quickly and shook his head, earning him an odd look from her, “I am. Really. I'm just tired, is all....â€

“Tired, pale, and you look like you're going to throw up,†she chuckled, and it was Felix's turn to stare at her, “Wow....was his singing that bad? Maybe they should enlist him in the army instead. The Ultimate Shout: Ear Bleeding! Hey, a distraction, if nothing else, right?†she snickered and slapped Felix on his back. Only he didn't laugh back.

“Agh....Alright, I know we're both not in such good moods today, but this is kinda pathetic. What's with the Mr. Moody act, buddy?†she asked and nudged him, “What? Did someone slip a vampire into your bed or something?â€

Felix paled even more at the mention of a vampire and Nina winced, “Oh.......wrong thing to say, eh?â€

“I'm just not.....very fond of....undead....†he said carefully, not looking at her.

“Well, you know what? You're not the only one either. Especially those that can't seem to stay down,†she muttered, rubbing her wrist where that draugr had been holding her. She shook her head quickly and looked back to Felix, “Sorry, man.â€

“It's alright.â€

She let her gaze settle on the bard for a few more moments before she decided to try to find another topic to distract the two of them, only to notice his bags threatening to burst with furs, “....jeez, what'd you pack in there, a family of bears?â€

Felix looked at her and noticed where she was staring, “Close enough to it, I think. There may be a pack of wolves in there if you dig deep enough.â€

“Pack of..... where in Oblivion are you heading to? Solstheim?â€

Felix gave off a quiet chuckle, “No.....but it is cold up there where I'm heading....â€

“Cold......as in Windhelm cold?†she asked, straightening up on her saddle as she thought of something.

Felix shrugged, “Erm....may I ask why?†he asked, looking at her with a frown.

“Because I have a proposal to make you,†Nina said, “Look, it looks as if we're both going in the same general direction. So....how about we just ride together for the journey until we have to part? Trust me, frost trolls up there....not the little buggers you wanna be fighting with alone. Even if you are a mage...â€

Felix's ears perked up as he heard the tone she used when she said “mage†and looked at her, “How'd you know I was a mage?†he had to ask first.

“You just give off that vibe. Plus, you have a dagger for a weapon and you're wearing robes.â€

“But....you wear robes too!†he said, smiling and pointing at her apparel.

“Ya? I also got leather, buddy,†she smiled back and lifted up her shirt to reveal her armor, “And a bow. These clothes just cover up the ugly stuff.â€

“Uh huh.....†he nodded and tilted his head, “And....something tells me you're not very fond of mages, are you?â€

“And what makes you say that?â€

“You just give off that vibe,†he smirked, “Plus....that wasn't a particularly cheerful tone you used when you said 'mage'.â€

“Don't look at me like that,†Nina muttered, “Look, I'm just not very fond of this magic, in fact I'm better off just without them. But I'm not going to be a jerk about it. Just....don't blow me up. I've already had enough of that for one lifetime, thank you very much.â€

“I'll try not to hurt you then....so long as you don't start jumping in front of my fireballs,†he chuckled.

“Oh trust me....I am going to be staying as far away from you if you start shooting those things. Now, with that in the air and done with....what do you say? Wanna just tag-team until we hit Winterhold province? I'll behave! Erm....for the most part.â€

Felix shrugged, “I'll....think about it. Alright?â€

Nina nodded, “Eh, alright. No, I won't threaten to kill you if you decide you can't handle some psycho like me,†she laughed.

“Now you tell me you're a psycho...?â€

“Oh, you didn't catch that vibe either? I could've sworn it was so obvious, especially back there with the elf-lover.....speaking of which, what song were you trying to teach the guy, anyways? You got me kinda curious...â€

“...Now sooth I say of what first I saw

 as I passed to the world of pain:

with singed wing birds—souls they were—

flew there as many as midges.

From the East saw I the Black dragon fly—

he lighted on Akatash's path;

his wings he shook so that far and wide

were heaved up Aetherius and Oblivion.

Lorkhan saw I, from the South faring—

he tethered the two together;

with his feet standing steadfast on earth,

his horns touching very heaven.

From the North there came kinsmen riding—

seven saw I of them:

out of full beakers pure beer they quaffed

from out of Kyne’s burn.

The wind ceased, the water stopped;

  then heard I dreadful din unfaithful wives or their wicked lovers

    ground there mould for meat.....â€

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

Nina sighed, watching Akash walk off to be with his friends. As much fun as it would be to teach a few bandits a lesson, she was still wary of his Altmer friend. She wasn't sure if she was ready to put her life in the hands of the same race that's trying to kill everyone. But perhaps what they said about her is true...?

“Gods, why do you guys have to throw these things at me?†she muttered and slammed her mug onto the table in fustration before leaning back and closing her eyes, her fingers rubbing her temples tenderly. She wasn't that strapped for cash. But she was itched for a nice fight and bandits sounded like an opportunity where she could forsake her bow for once; not like that encounter she had with the draugr.

She shivered at the thought of those dead bodies and quickly pulled herself away from her chair, looking around eagerly for some sort of distraction. Seeing the big chair void of the familiar Nord, she figured Grond must have run off in the dead of night in a drunken stupor and chuckled at the thought. But then again, there went once source of entertainment.

Ugh....Rain's gonna hate me for this... Nina thought, but she knew it was necessary. Rain was starting to look like a mess and if she didn't brush him soon, she would have to be dealing with him bucking her off every time she climbed onto the saddle.

“Hey, your horse supplies are in the stables, right?†she asked the bartender, “Or do you guys need some ID for me to mess with those?†she joked, smirking.

“Plan on stabbing someone, are we?†Balow asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

“Me? Nah, I'm innocent,†she grinned and shrugged, “Now....I can't say the same for the horse, but if you see blood in the stalls....not my fault. He just hates being cleaned. I can't help that.â€

Balow laughed, “Aye, that sounds familiar....tools are in the stables, aye. I can't say where exactly. The young lass likes to hide that stuff where I can't find them.â€

“Eh, I'll figure it out. Thanks, though,†Nina shrugged and pushed a few septims towards Balow. The bartender grinned and nodded towards her, happily sweeping the coins away to a safe place.

Once outside, she paused for a moment to enjoy the cool breeze that tickled her skin. She always contemplated if it was such a good idea to be this far up north, especially this close to Solitude. But for the most part, she seems to be finding the peace and quiet she's been begging for a while now.

She took a second to enjoy the moment before she sighed and headed towards the stables. It didn't take her long to find the bag of supplies, tucked away neatly behind a bench, and pulled out a couple of brushes and a hoof pick. “Alright, come on Rain...†Nina muttered and turned to face her horse, “Let's make this as nice and painless as possible, hm?â€

Rain snorted and looked at her warily as she approached him. She petted him gently on the flanks to assure him before she began brushing down his body. She tried to be gentle for him, but the burrs were trying very hard to make her life difficult....and succeeding.

“Rain, come on!†she yelled as he slammed his back foot into the wall, not enjoying having the sticklers pulled out of his hide, “Look, it's either I try to get rid of these or I just don't ride you anymore. I'm fine walking! Just don't blame me if you can't scratch your own back, alright?â€

Rain huffed and swished his tail in annoyance, but otherwise did nothing to prevent her from going back in. Muttering something under her breath, she started back on the task at hand before she heard a couple of twigs snap behind her.

She froze, her hand frozen in midair as she tried to listen for the intruder. Several more twigs snapped, and unfamiliar footsteps entered the stables. She frowned and cautiously called out, “Who's there?â€

“I'm only a courier miss,†said the man behind her and Nina turned her head a little to look at him. From what she could tell from the corner of her eyes, he was very scrawny and toting around a large bag that looked a tad too heavy for him. Indeed, he seemed to be leaning severely to his other side to make up for his lack of strength. “I have a letter for a Mrs. .....Nina Alamain, is that how you pronounce it?â€

Nina turned her head around fully so she could look him in the eyes, “A message?†she asked, her eyes narrowing at him. A letter, for her? She didn't think anyone would guess for her to be all the way in the mountains....or even in this exact spot for that matter...

The courier nodded, “Aye, I uh....I don't suppose the lady is staying here?â€

Nina sighed, “Look....for one, it's Miss. Not Mrs. And second....how'd you know where I'd be?†she asked bluntly.

“The lady who gave me the letter said you would be here....or at least somewhere close to here.â€

Who? the question popped into Nina's mind and she asked, “Uh huh....I don't suppose she gave you her name, did she?â€

The courier shook his head and pulled out the letter, holding it out for her to grab, “She just said to get it here as fast as possible. She paid good money to do so too.â€

“She's not a.....noble woman, is she?†Nina asked with a half-groan, seeing no handwriting on the surface of the folded paper.

To her surprise, he shook his head, “Er....no ma'am. In fact....she looked more like an alchemist than a noble woman. Is there a problem?â€

“No....I'll take care of it, thank you,†she said quietly before coughing her throat, “Is there....anything else for me?â€

“No ma'am. You have a good day!†With that, he turned around quickly and rushed back out the door, no doubt he had more packages to deliver. She just hoped the poor thing had a horse and she chuckled gently. Turning her attention back to the letter, she flipped the paper in her hand a couple of times, as if some hidden name would pop out at her, but she knew sooner or later she was going to have to break the wax seal on it.

Rain tilted his head towards her and she shrugged at him, “Well....might as well figure out who knew we were here....gods, I just hope it's not her...†she muttered darkly. She wasn't looking forward to meeting up with either member of her family, or at least those who were left.

Opening the letter, though, left her in surprise and in confusion. There was only one line on the page, written in what looked to be in a haste:

Come to Windhelm. Now.

Nina frowned and flipped the page around, looking for some sort of name, address, or anything to symbolize where the letter could have came from. But coming up with nothing, she was left to staring back at the words with a dark expression on her face.

“'Come to Windhelm'......talk about a deathwish...†she muttered absently to Rain and sighed heavily. She wanted nothing to do with Windhelm anymore, and even if she wanted to, she was sure going there would mean her death in some way.

But the writing....it was so familiar that it left a constricting feeling in her gut that she couldn't shake off. She couldn't remember who it belonged to....but she had a feeling it would be very bad if she just ignored this particular summoning.

Okay....I'm going to Windhelm, I'm sure as heck not doing it alone. Let's see....Red's gone. Grond's wandered off gods know where.... Nina thought as she leaned against the wall of the stable and rubbed her face with her hand, Akash? Dead Man's Respite is nowhere near Windhelm, and I'm not sure if he would want to go to the freezing city anyways....not to mention Glynis... She groaned and slammed the back of her head against the wall, regretting it immediately as a sharp pain radiated from that spot and left her seeing brief stars, “Dammit!†she yelled and clutched her head, “Who sent that damn letter?â€

Her answer was only the sharp huff from Rain and she glanced at him rather sadly before sighing, “Alright....stay here, boy. I have to go tell Akash the bad news. Hope you feel like going home.â€

---------------------

The two of them were trotting down the trail that lead to the main road, her bags filled to burst and bouncing uncomfortably against her back. At least the weather was behaving itself for the most part: sunny skies for what seemed like miles.

But Nina couldn't find it in her to appreciate the fine weather, not at that moment. Her mind wandered over the mysterious letter, and the handwriting in it. She still couldn't figure out who it belonged to...and why this person would be begging her to come back to Windhelm, of all places.

If this woman knew her so well, then surely she must know that it would be dangerous for Nina to go back, right?

Unless that was the woman's intention.

Nina's head started to pound and she bent herself over Rain to press her hands against her forehead, hoping to ease the pain a little. She tried to run it through her mind again: woman, seemed to leave an impression of an alchemist....not a noble woman...

Jeez, how many people do I know who fit that description? Twenty, thirty even? she thought and closed her eyes briefly. The name was on the edge of her mind....it just wasn't willing to come forth when she wanted it to.

Her thoughts were interrupted by distant yelling up ahead, yelling she would have been more than happy to ignore if it hadn't sounded so familiar. Nina tilted her head up to try and look up at the path, straining her ears to listen for the man's voice again.

Is that....the bard from that first night? she wondered and frowned, his name escaping her for the moment. The yelling was becoming more intense, and by the sound of it she figured it was going to escalate into a full blow fight very soon.

“Finally....something I can actually hurt..."

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“I can't believe you just did that.â€

Grond chuckled and turned his head upwards to look at Nina, who was resting her arms against the back of his chair and giving him a look of astonishment, “Just did what, dearie?†he asked, feigning ignorance.

Nina rolled her eyes at him and said, “That. Back there, with the Legion.â€

“Oh, that,†the Nord said and shrugged, “What about it? We didn't have any need for the key. And the gold was nice, wasn't it?â€

“Aye, I will admit the gold was sorely needed,†Nina muttered as she made her way to the chair next to Grond and sat down, “I'm just concerned about the fact that you didn't even take a split-second to think before sealing the deal. Did you forget a little something about the Imperial Legion, hon?â€

“Is this paranoia talking or just plain distrust?†Red asked, cupping her warm mug of ale in her hands, “Granted, not many of us would trust the Legion as far as we could throw them, but what else would you have done with it? We don't know where the key goes.â€

“Pfft, I'm not concerned about the Legion using the key,†Nina replied with distaste, “It's the knife-ears who own the Legion are what concerns me. To be honest, I'd rather trust the Stormcloaks with that key. Even if they are a bunch of apes that don't know one end of a sword from another...†she muttered as she took a sip of her own drink, chuckling lightly.

“Even though you were within their ranks yourself?†Haunt said quietly behind her, a small smirk on his face.

That brought an unexpected reaction from Nina, who reared her head towards the Breton with a dangerous look in her eyes, “Oh? And I could label you for a necromancer, Haunt. If you don't want a knife stuck in your gut, I suggest you think carefully next time you throw an accusation like that around.â€

Haunt only shrugged quietly before wandering away from the trio, leaving Nina to fume in her seat, “Bastard....why'd you guys even brought him along, anyways?†she whispered harshly to the other two.

“We needed the help, Nina. In case you didn't notice...†Red replied sharply, “We would have been draugr meat if Haunt hadn't solved that puzzle as fast as he did.â€

“I just don't trust him, is all,†the Nord said with a small sigh, “He may not have lied to us directly yet, but he's still hiding a lot of things about him. For one, I don't believe he's a Breton. And two, I'm pretty sure his name is not 'Haunt'. What kind of parent would name a kid that?â€

“Hm, you know...same could be said for you,†Grond said, forcing Nina to stare at him, “No offense, lass, but you seem a bit more than just a 'mercenary'. You didn't think Red and I wouldn't pick up on that, did you?â€

Nina was silent for several moments before saying quietly, “There's no reason for you to know any more than that. Currently, I am a sort of mercenary. But I'll admit you're right, Grond: I used to be someone else a long time ago.â€

“A Stormcloak?†Red guessed, a hint of curiosity in her tone.

“I never said that, now did I?†Nina muttered before waving them off with a free hand, “Come on, now...is this really the conversation we want to be having now? We just escaped from a group of murderous draugr, nearly escaped having a huge spider drop on our heads thanks to our mysterious stranger....Can't we just relax for a couple of minutes?â€

“Mm, alright...†Grond said before grinning, “But on one condition.â€

“I'm not wearing a dress,†Nina answered quickly, “You can shove me into Oblivion for all I care, but I'm not wearing one. Period.â€

“Why? What's wrong with dresses?†Red asked, laughing.

“I'm just not the kind of person that wears dresses all for the sake of pleasing some guy. Not to mention I can't run in the damn thing even if I wanted to. Oh, did I mention how ugly they are?†the Nord said with a shake of her head, “I'll go to a dinner party with what I got right now. And I don't care if I have bloodstains all over my shirt. If it scares the living Nine Divines out of them, all the better.â€

Grond was laughing so hard that his voice could be heard almost across the whole mill and rivaled even the waterfalls gushing nearby. It was a miracle, at least in Nina's opinion, that he hadn't spilled his drink yet from how much his was laughing, “Haha, I like you, little one,†Grond finally said after he managed to stop laughing for a couple of seconds, “But no, I wasn't suggesting you'd wear a dress, though now you got me curious...â€

“Don't you even dare, Grond,†Nina warned, but was grinning herself, glancing at the redhead Imperial laughing next to her, “And don't you start plotting with her either! Or else I'll just have to do something nasty to you too...â€

“Oh please, do tell us, Nina,†the Nord said with a smirk, “I would love to hear this grand plan of yours for gaining revenge on me.â€

“And what makes you think I'm going to tell you, hm?†she said with a raised eyebrow, “I didn't survive this long being a dumb as a common soldier, you know what I mean?â€

Grond nodded, “Hmph, fair enough. 'Course, I could just get ye drunk enough to spill something.â€

“Good luck with that. No, really,†Nina said sarcastically with a wide smile, “Just do me a favor, aye? Could you probably run by either one of us before you make another deal with someone? To, you know...lessen any consequences that might happen in the future?â€

“Don't bother, Nina, I tried that. Whenever he hears the word 'gold', he's just like a little puppy greyhound on a bowl full of treats. There is just no way you're going to stop him,†Red said, narrowly dodging a pillow being thrown by the said Nord they were talking about.

“Well, worth a try...†Nina shrugged with a smile until, out of the corner of her eye, she saw an Argonian moving towards the group, “You want a drink, Akash?†she asked him, turning her head towards the lizard, though quietly predicting what could actually be on his mind.

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

The group only glanced at each other briefly before Nina spoke first, her tone flat and business-like, “Manan can wait on the shipments. It's not likely that he'll be needing those fairly soon,†she said.

“Aye, maybe,†Grond said, scratching his chin in thought, “....what'll be in it for us?â€

The Breton chuckled, knowing full well Grond's motives, “Gold, for sure,†Berach said with a nod, “Knowing these men, they'll have plenty of it. It's yours if you'll help us. We're, eh....comparatively outnumbered. It would be good to have a few extra hands with us.â€

“'Comparatively'?†Nina said with an eyebrow raised, “Let me guess....three to one?â€

“.....more like four. Not in numbers, but they can handle themselves fairly well in battle,†Berach said with a shrug.

“In other words, they're not your usual bandits,†the Nord said and shook her head, “You know, you can be a lot easier on the slower folk behind me by dropping the fancy speech. Even my vocabulary's a little rusty.â€

“And my military vocabulary is far from par at best, ma'am,†the Breton said with a smile, “perhaps we can settle to a compromise, then?â€

“I know better than to barter with you folks,†Nina said with a roll of her eyes, “Gods only know how I tend to screw situations up by only talking.â€

“Yes, that is quite obvious,†Glynis said and approached the group with a friendly smile, “All we are asking for is a little help, with a small reward for your efforts. So....will you help us?â€

Everyone only took a moment to think about it before shrugging and nodding. Nina, however, did not smile back; her face instead grew dark at the sudden approach of the high elf, “....depends,†she finally said after a moment of silence, “I wish to talk to you in private first, Akash, if you do not mind?†Nina said suddenly to the Argonian, not taking her eyes off of Glynis.

Akash only blinked a little in surprise before nodding and walking off to a distance, the Nord following behind him quickly. Glynis watched them walk off before sighing quietly, a hint of pity in her voice, “Only I know too well what you're going to say....â€

Akash knew what Nina was going to say as well and, as soon as they were a reasonable distance away from the group, he said definitively, “Glynis is our friend. Yes, she is an Altmer, but that does not change anything.â€

“Maybe not for you,†Nina said in a dangerous tone, “but for me, it changes plenty of things. Have you forgotten who the Thalmor tend to be made up of?â€

“Altmer, yes I know,†Akash said impatiently, “but she is not one of them. She's our friend and we trust her with our lives.â€

“But I don't,†she growled, “I've yet to see proof that she is not with the Aldmeri Dominion.â€

“Ah, I see...†Akash said with an annoyed tone, “You want to see proof for something that cannot be proven except through actions. You haven't even met her for two seconds before flying off the handle, Nina.â€

“'Flying off the handle?'†Nina said and glared at him, “Sorry if I'm just a little paranoid, Akash, but I kinda care if people get hurt on my watch. Especially when the Aldmeri Dominion's involved.â€

Akash only crossed his arms and stared at Nina before shaking his head, “It's alright, Nina. We get this kind of reaction a lot. If you don't want to come with us, then we won't force you.†And with that, Akash walked back to rejoin the newly expanded group, leaving Nina to stand in the snow thinking about what to do.

“What's wrong with Nina?†Grond asked as soon as Akash was within earshot.

“It does not look like she will be joining us,†the Argonian replied. But as he said that, Nina suddenly appeared beside Grond and said, “Never said that, now did I? Just...don't make any sudden moves,†she warned Glynis. Though she was not reassured as the high elf nodded her head, she gave her a wary look before asking Berach, “So....which way are we heading? And who are these people who've captured your friend? Come on, don't hold out on the details. They save lives, you know.â€

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“Hi...looks like everything's here,†Red said happily as her eyes laid upon the glimmering weapons resting innocently on the straws of hay, “Stroke of luck, eh?â€

“Luck?†Nina asked Red grimly before shaking her head and wandering away from the group to explore the rest of the cavernous room. Ignoring the curious stares she was receiving from the others, she turned her head towards the alcoves and caved-in doorways, searching for any Forsworn that might be hiding and waiting for the opportunity to ambush them.

Shaking off the straw, Red looked at the engravings on the head of the axe in curiosity and ran her fingers along the ridges, saying with a small chuckle, “Heh, you know...if Manan didn't have his heart set in having these back, I wouldn't mind 'borrowing' one for, say...an extended period of time.â€

“Share, dearie,†Grond smiled as he worked on pulling the rest of the equipment from the boxes, “You're not the only one who can be smitten by dwarven work.â€

Red winked at the Nord as she held the axe and gave it a few soft swings. But it wasn't long until she frowned in concern and stared at the weapon. “Wow....this feels, I dunno....awkward, I guess? Something doesn't feel right about this...â€

“Okay...awkward is not a good word,†Nina commented and withdrew her gaze from one of the caved-in doorway to look at the red-headed bard, “What do you mean 'awkward'? What's wrong?â€

Red shook her head and wordlessly handed the axe to Grond, who immediately began scrutinizing it carefully with his fingers. “Mm...The weight is all wrong. This thing should be balanced, but instead...†he said and held up the axe with two fingers at the base of the head. Almost immediately, the axe slipped from Grond's hand and crashed onto the floor, “...all the weight is on the head.†he concluded.

Nina, done with her search, finally wandered back towards the group and lifted the axe up from the ground to hold it herself, “Maybe....a mistake on the blacksmith's part?†she asked the Nord, “I know dwarven weaponry's quality is hard to duplicate, much less even forge for an average Imperial.â€

But Grond shook his head, “You can't mess up dwarven metal that badly. At least not without it looking like a big blob of mess instead of an axe. It's the material that was used to create it.â€

Nina nodded thoughtfully and held up the axe in front of her face, looking at it carefully, before she slammed the side of the head against one of the stone columns still standing within the room. Sparks from where metal met stone flew across the room and Nina held up the axe close to the small ball of light in Haunt's hands. There, bold as the sun, was gray matter sticking out against the bright orange of the axe. “Shaped and painted to look like dwarven,†Nina said with a small chuckle, “Too bad they couldn't have had the decency to at least use steel. This thing can't even gut a pig.â€

“Damn....looks like you get your wish, Grond. We're going bandit-hunting,†Red said and laughed before running towards the only doorway that wasn't caved in by century-old rocks, instead featuring a solid iron door, “Come on! It's a tomb! There's bound to be treasure in here, right?â€

“And draugr,†Nina said as she caught up with Red, “Never been in a tomb where there wasn't anything dead sitting upright and walking around.†Nina shivered at the thought of reanimated corpses and shook her head before gently pushing the bard along. “Alright, come on...the sooner we get past the corpses and spiders and stuff, the happier I'll be.â€

Red raised an eyebrow at her before grabbing Nina's sleeve and pulling her up into the front, “That's it. You get scout duty just for that little comment about the spiders.â€

“Oh come on now,†the female Nord said with a sheepish grin, “spiders can't be any bigger than your foot...†But under the increasingly-annoyed glare from Red, Nina chuckled and rolled her eyes, “Alright alright, I'll shut up about the spiders and stuff. Happy?â€

“I will be as soon as you do shut up,†she said and pushed Nina along with a small smirk as they ventured into the bowels of the tomb.

---------------------

The group met little resistance as they made their way further down the tomb. Though the hallways were coated with cobwebs and occasional skeever nests, there was barely any lifeform that posed as a challenge for the group. Though Nina kept a close eye on the skeletons that littered the floor, none of them ever came back to life. After running into several caved portions of the hallways and rooms that led to nowhere, they finally reached a large room at the end of the hallway.

“Another dead end...†Grond muttered. Coffins were lined up on the walls of the room along with tables filled with embalming tools and tattered linen cloths. But by the looks of things, it seemed as if this room was indeed another dead end. Except now he didn't know where they could turn next.

“I wouldn't be so quick to judge...†Haunt said quietly. Being their silent companion throughout most of their trip, his voice suddenly popping up was enough to startle Nina. With a yelp, she tripped over a few bones that were scattered on the ground and slammed into the wall before sliding down onto the ground, “Ow....Haunt!†she complained and glared at the Breton, who only shrugged. “Man, dude...give us some sort of warning that you're here or something, 'kay? You scared the heck out of me.â€

“Afraid something's going to pop out of these coffins, Nina?†Red said with a snicker.

“Actually, yes,†Nina muttered and rubbed the back of her hand before pulling herself back up to her feet. But as she tended to her bruises, her eye caught something unusual on the wall. Blinking a little, she tilted her head up to stare at the wall before her and realized quickly what it was. “A puzzle!â€

“Exactly,†Haunt said and joined up with Nina to examine the wall. The light from his hand illuminated the wall brightly enough to show everyone in the room what it was: a series of rings that spanned across almost the entire wall, all the pieces aligned in a random order. There were faint outlines of an image etched across each piece, but the nature of the image was impossible to discern at the moment.

Nina brushed her hand along the faint lines in the stone and rested her finger on the center piece, “Here's the origin. All we need to do is line up all the pieces to match up the center and we'll be able to get through in no time.†Without waiting for anyone to comment, Nina pushed down on one of the rings and spun it to the right just a little bit.

Suddenly, there was a creak of joints and gears clicking together faintly as two other rings followed the ring Nina was pushing, causing her to cuss loudly; one of the rings that happened to move was the origin piece itself. “Aw come on...Even the origin piece? Really? Gods, why couldn't they just stick with gas traps or something...?†she growled angrily.

“I dunno, I think the walking dead is enough of a trap, don't you think?†Red said. This caused Nina to turn around and look at Red confused. Red shrugged and silently pointed behind her, where Nina could hear the faint rattling of bones as skeletons rearranged themselves to dutifully protect their tomb. The puzzle had been rigged to reanimate the dead should anyone dare tamper with the doorway.

“Oh. Great. Just what we need: Pressure,†Nina muttered, “Haunt, help me out with this damn thing,†she said to Haunt before she turned back to the puzzle. Biting her lip, she began spinning pieces at random, causing all others to move along with them. She was only faintly aware of the sounds of fighting behind her as she concentrated on how to reverse the trap.

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“Shame....I kinda like reindeer,†Nina piped up with a small chuckle and gracefully hopped back down onto the ground to meet with the others. But as she strolled up to Grond, she noticed his foul mood and followed his gaze onto the two corpses. “Forsworn....†she muttered, her cheerful disposition replaced with a grim expression as she knelt down at one of the bodies. “Oh, don't tell me that old badger sent us this far south...â€

“The Forsworn?†Red asked, frowning, “If Manan was attacked by the Forsworn, I don't think he would've survived such an encounter. Nord or not.â€

“You haven't heard him,†Grond grunted, “I reckon I could throw him into a pack of giants and he'll just lecture them to death. Bandits aren't any smarter.â€

“But that still leaves the question,†Nina said and glanced at the rest of the group, “how in Mephala's name did we get this far south without knowing? The Forsworn usually mark their boundaries. Skulls, signs....heck, there wasn't even a skeleton hanging off a tree when we came through. Just a bunch of bandits and one of them was an Argonian.†Nina shook her head and stood up, staring at Grond and Red, “This just doesn't sit well with me.â€

“Maybe they're expander their territory,†Grond muttered, still staring at the two Bretons with deep hate, something that was all too familiar to Nina, “Everybody knows how much they want to take over our homeland, bloody mongrels...â€

But she shook her head at Grond and explained, “I doubt that. They're having a heck of a time trying to take over towns that are already in their territory. There would be no strategic advantage from trying to expand northward.â€

“But what if they are?†Grond interjected and stared at her, his hand clenched around the handle of his warhammer.

“Grond....†Nina said quietly, “I know you're looking for an excuse to smash every single of the Breton's skulls into dust. I can see it in your eyes. But trust me when I say they're not advancing north. Doing so would open themselves for an attack from Ulfric. As much as I would like them to be dumber than common rats, they're not.â€

Grond, rapidly running out of excuses to rush after his most hated enemy in a fiery rage, grumbled and tried to content himself to kicking one of the corpses roughly. Red couldn't help but chuckle a little at the Nord's temper and walked up to her friend to comfort him, “Come on Grond....where there's two, there's probably twenty more of those guys running around this place. The first ten's yours to smash to your heart's content, okay?â€

Grond glanced at her before shrugging sarcastically, “Bah...alright, I suppose I can live with that. But you two keep yer arrows to yourselves,†he said with a grin, “I'd rather have my Witchmen kicking and screaming. It's more fun that way.â€

“No guarantee, Grond,†Nina smirked a little, “If they end up dog-piling you, I'm just gonna ignore what you say. And I'll be sitting on a nice, fragile beam so you can't reach me.â€

“Oh?†Grond said and laughed, “There's more than one way to coax a monkey off of its perch.â€

“Good luck,†Nina said and winked teasingly, “I'm very hard to persuade, mate.â€

There was a cough behind her and Nina turned around to see Haunt looking at them, a slight hint of impatience etched across his face, “Are we going to rid this patch of land of the bandits or are you two going to sit here trading blows?â€

“That depends,†Nina muttered and gestured towards the large hallway leading deeper into the fort, “You supposedly can see the future. What do you think we're going to do, hm?â€

Haunt only stared at her and shook his head before walking down the corridor, Nina following right behind him to mainly keep an eye on him. As the group continued their journey into the belly of the cavern, the walls of the hallway seemed to grow wider each step. When Nina thought Grond could have laid down upon the floor comfortably, the hallway suddenly gave way to a small, rather comfortable pit. Hastily-fastened beams spanned across the dome that formed the ceiling in hopes to prevent the room from collapsing upon itself and decorative columns encircled the center of the room, though they were nearly crumbled to dust save for the bases. Nina thought that before the centuries of decay and dust, the room could've served as a sort of antechamber.

“Wow....pretty fancy for a fort in the middle of nowhere...†she heard Red say quietly and Nina nodded in agreement. As everybody else stared at the architecture of the room, Nina cautiously leaned far enough over the edge of the balcony to scan the floor of the room. Though the Nord spied several fresh campfires scattered around, she didn't see anyone occupying the camps, making her wonder out loud, “Three campfires and not a soul in sight...What the heck? Haunt, you trying to scare away our prey?†she joked with him.

“I see some crates down there,†Red said and pointed to the stack of boxes at the other side of the room, “Think maybe some of Manan's shipments are in there?â€

“It's worth a shot. If not, I suppose our hungry Nord back there wouldn't mind the food,†Nina said with a chuckle and shrugged, “I'll go first. Being a Nord, I'm sure they'll be more than happy to jump all over me. And I don't think I need to mention my 'frailness' again, do I?†Not waiting for an answer, Nina decided to skip the staircase and hopped over the railing, landing on the ground with a surprised yelp.

“Oi! Plan on having me carry you all the way back, are we?†Grond said with a laugh.

“Hush, you,†Nina muttered and staggered a little to her feet, “....was a little farther than I thought, that's all...†she said and dusted herself off a bit before looking around the room. “Alright....where in Oblivion are you guys...?†she said to herself and carefully walked across the room, trying to keep an eye on a few of the doors that could pose as perfect hiding places for the Breton.

But no one attacked her as she made it to the other side and turned back towards the group, “Alright, come on....maybe an extra Nord will entice them. And I don't want to search through all this by myself, ya know.â€

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

Nina couldn't help but chuckle a little at Grond's unique tracking technique, but her chuckle was of a strained one. Bouncing the scarab key in her hand, she glanced repeatedly at the haunting newcomer, wary of how much he knew so much about the group. It was enough to put her on edge and didn't quite agree with Red and Grond's decision to let him come on.

But nevertheless, she didn't say anything as they made their way through the maze-like forest. While she didn't trust him as readily as the others, she was still willing to give him a chance. So long as he doesn't tip her off as a person with hostile intentions.

“This way!†Grond yelled and waved his hand at the rest of the group, “Aye, don't tell me carrying all that weight of gold and keys is slowing you down...â€

“You want to help, Dragon-Breath?†Red said and laughed before gently punching his shoulder, “Then be quiet and find that door for us. You can carry all the loot back to the tavern.â€

“And yer helping,†Grond remarked back, earning him yet another punch from the red-haired bard.

Seeing the two preoccupied, Nina glanced over at Haunt and decided it was a good time to learn more about their mysterious hitchhiker. “'Tis a dangerous game you play, Haunt...†she said quietly so as to keep the conversation between them, “Posing as a 'Messenger of Fate'. That'll get you killed in some places.â€

Haunt chuckled gently and smirked, “So you do not believe me then, do you?â€

“Oh, how did you possibly know?†she said sarcastically and glared at him, “Look....I'll be blunt, 'Haunt'. I don't like you. The fact that you can just walk up and know someone just by looking at them already has me on edge. But that's not all...†she said, glaring at him, “I don't even think half of what you say is true.â€

Haunt's smirk was gone now, replaced by an unreadable, grim expression, “It may be. It may not be. But surely that can't be the thing that upsets you. After all, everybody lies at one point in their life,†he looked at her curiously, his eyes boring into her as if he was trying to read her mind, “No, what upsets you about me is not me lying to protect myself, but rather what I work for.â€

“What you 'work' for?†Nina laughed and shook her head, “You can be the High Priest of the Nine Divine for all I care. No, what upsets me is that you just pop out of nowhere, know each one of us as if you lived with us, and expect us to trust you right off the bat. That's what I don't like about you.†Nina glanced at the Imperial and the Nord starting to walk away again and sighed, “....You can come. Apparently you made a better impression with those two than you did to me. But,†she warned and pointed a finger at him, “That doesn't mean I have to like you. Or even trust you. If you do anything to us....I won't hesitate to kill you.â€

“I assure you,†Haunt replied, “you have nothing to fear from me.â€

“We'll see about that,†Nina muttered and walked back quickly over to the rest of the group. She ignored the petty argument that was ensuing between the two, instead glancing at Haunt out of the corner of her eye.

---------------------

“Here,†Grond said as they entered a small clearing, “their scent's strong here.â€

“You know if you keep talking like that, I'm going to have to give you a nickname,†Nina said with a smile, “You may not like the choice, either.â€

Grond laughed, “Haha....and what can be worst than 'Dragon-Breath', little one?â€

Nina smirked and leaned in to whisper a few words in his ear. Grond listened and chuckled before nodding, “Aye....alright, I suppose that could be worse. But nothing can beat this...†he said and whispered something back at her.

Nina gawked and drew her head back to stare at him, “People call you that?! Really?â€

“Yep!†Grond said proudly and thumped his chest, “And I wear the name proudly, too.â€

“I wouldn't have. I'd probably put the guy who called me that in a coma,†Nina said and rolled her eyes.

“Ha, good luck,†Grond said with a laugh and thumped her in the back, “He's like a ghost. You never know where he is until he sneaks up behind ya and sticks a slimy frog down yer pants.â€

“Yep, as I said....coma,†Nina laughed before saying quietly, “But uh....I would prefer if you didn't call me 'little one'. In case you haven't noticed, I have a few more wrinkles than you do.â€

“Ah, but you're still a little one, little one,†the Nord said with a grin, “In case you haven't noticed, I'm a good foot taller than you.â€

“Bah....alright, I'll give you that one,†she grumbled and crossed her arms, “Sorry, I can't help it if I'm as short as an elf!â€

“Hey, that's a good thing!†Red piped up, “Means you can get into places this big boy can't get into. You have no idea how many times I had to get him unstuck.â€

“Oi....I'll get you later for that one, ye little bard. But we have other things to deal with,†Grond said and walked up to the stone wall that stood in their path. Where the wall led to, no one could see as the vegetation grew thick around them. Once again, Grond bent down and sniffed the air, taking a few small steps towards one particular spot until he placed his hand on the stone, “Here. This is the entrance.â€

“Alright, you greyhound,†Red said and gently pushed the Nord to get him to move out of the way before clearing the moss and vines off of it, “My turn to be useful,†she said and winked at the Nord before feeling her way among the stone. To Nina and Haunt, the section of the wall she was searching looked like any other part of the wall.

Just as Nina was going to comment on Grond's tracking abilities, the section of the wall sudden sunk into the rest of the infrastructure and slid open, revealing a large cavernous corridor. Judging by the lack of spider webs and footprints in the dirt, the entrance was used quite often. “Wow....mind if I steal Grond every now and then, Red?†Nina said and laughed, “I think I have some use for the big boy.â€

“You can get your own Nord, Nina,†Red said with a chuckle as she lit a torch, “Ol' Dragon-Breath here's my Nord. Lead the way, hon,†she said and handed Grond the torch.

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

Throughout the whole battle, Nina took charge of ranged artillery from the safety of the tavern roof. She kept her eyes upon all three trolls and every time she saw either one of the groups struggling with the monsters, she redirected her arrows towards the troll and helped distract them long enough for the others to take them down.

Nina smiled gently to herself. She always felt more comfortable behind a bow than from any other weapon. Though most of her race preferred to wield a claymore and hammer to smash their foes with, she opted more for the wood elf style of fighting: lightweight weaponry and the ability to move quickly out of harm's way while delivering her own blows. It wasn't a surprise to her when people gave her odd looks towards her along the streets.

But her biggest flaw in that plan was blades. While she could wield a dagger with the skill of an average bandit, that was it as far as her knowledge went. She never took the time to really master some of the one-handed blades and it has cost her many times in the past. While she did try to devote some bit of time to learning how to use a dagger at the very least, she always found herself reverting back to her fists. Or her bow.

With people, it was not much of a problem. Trolls, on the other hand, she couldn't take down with her bare hands. She always tried to avoid a direct confrontation with trolls for fear such a confrontation would be the end of her.

As Nina kept watch over the dead trolls to make sure they stayed dead, she glanced at the troll, surrounded by a ring of fire, rushing around frantically in its prison. She would have been more than happy to focus on the troll that was giving a couple of men some trouble when something caught her eye: it was the behavior of the troll within the mage's prison.

“What in Dagon's name are you doing...?†Nina muttered and frowned in confusion. Watching the creature, she saw it rush closer and closer to the fire, though hesitant about crossing the object it feared the most. Out of caution for the safety of the mage, she nocked an arrow into the string and drew it back, aiming for the troll but not firing just yet. She waited to see what the troll was going to do.

The troll pranced around in the circle in a frantic rage, trying to find a way out of its inescapable prison. Locking its eyes upon the mage, the monster made multiple attempts to charge at him; but on every single attempt, it drew back and roared in displeasure as the immense heat from the flames burned the troll, forcing it back into the center.

But as each of the other trolls fell, Nina saw with dread, the monster's behavior became more and more organized. The monster was starting to purposely run closer and closer to the flames; it looked as if it was prepared to risk burning alive if it meant it could avenge its fallen brethren.

Nina finally saw what she was waiting for: the troll drew as close as it dared to the flames and turn around to face the young mage, it's body bowed in a charging stance. “Oh, that's a stupid mistake, you stinkin' ape...†she muttered when she realized what was going to happen. Tightening her grip upon on the string, she prepared to fire at the troll and end its miserable life.

But a shadow caught the corner of her eye and she quickly turned her eyes to see a figure rush towards the ring of fire. Just as the beast made a dash towards the mage, the Nord rushed through the flames and crashed into the troll, his battle roar mingling with the troll's cries as they were locked in a fierce wrestling match.

“Oh, you son of a...†Nina muttered and growled loudly. She could not find a clear shot anymore. Within the chaos of the fighting, there was a very high chance that the arrow would find its mark within the wrong target. She was torn between risking the shot or letting the Nord and the mage handle the troll.

Nina, deciding upon the later, prepared to withdraw her shot when she heard something over the howling wind; a series of loud, patternless thunks upon the wooden sides of the tavern. Alarmed, she turned her head to search for the source of the noise when a large monstrous hand shot out and grabbed one of her legs, its hand tightening into a deathlike-grip.

Nina screamed as the troll violently dragged her off of the roof onto the frozen ground. Amidst the chaos, the arrow she had intended for the troll was loosed, aimed directly at the two still fighting in the circle. As she landed on the ground with a soft thud, her bow flew out of her hands and landed several feet away from her. But as she tried to search for it, her view was blocked by the hairy mass of a fourth troll hovering over her. Its free arm was raised above its head to crush her.

Swearing loudly, the Nord rolled her body as best as she could away from the large fist as it slammed into the ground. The hand missed her by mere inches and enraged the troll at the prospect of an uncooperative meal. Nina pulled a dagger out from underneath her bracer and held it in her hand as she saw the troll prepare to attack again. “Oh come on, don't let me die like this...†Nina muttered as she gritted her teeth and launched herself at the troll, aiming for the monster's soft neck....

[Skyrim & Steam]

Aw man...does that mean the patches are mandatory now? Forget that, I'll just mod the heck out of Oblivion.

_{At least until the price comes down to a reasonable level, maybe...}

*sighs* Well, I guess my PlayStation's going to be playing a lot more games from now on...

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim, Volume One (Legend)]

“Hush, Rain....†the woman said as she leaned over her horse and stroked its face, “We'll find someplace warm and safe, okay?†She sighed a little and tilted her hood up a little to watch the clouds pile into each other, darkening the landscape with the threat of heavier snow. After the few days, she was eager for something other than the frozen ground to sleep on.

Just as the visibility within the storm started dropping, she spied the warm light of a house in the distance and smiled, “See? We're nearly there. Now come on, Rain. I may be a Nord, but I don't like sleeping in the snow all the time, 'kay?†Nudging her foot gently against the stallion's flanks, she managed to coax him into a trot towards the tavern and cautiously looked around their surroundings. Other than a few travelers heading towards the building, the landscape was barren of any creatures. Many had taken refuge within the snow and it wasn't long until the two were taking refuge under the roof of a stable.

“Ho' there,†she called out to a small boy who was raking the muck from the ground as they rode up, “is this a tavern?â€

“Yes ma'am,†the stable boy said with a grin and nodded his head, “you stayin' for the night?â€

“You bet. This poor guy can't take any more sleeping in rocky caves,†she said with a chuckle and hopped down from her horse before asking, “Uh....there is room, right? Or can I just sleep in the stables? I can pay.â€

“Oh no no, there's room available,†the stable boy nodded quickly and nodded towards the tavern, “Ask Barlow for a room; he'll accommodate you. And don't worry, I'll take good care of your horse.â€

She couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at this, “You better. The last time a stable guy tried to mess with my horse, the guy's head ended up on the wrong end of his body. Don't ask me if he still looks like that, I didn't stick around to admire my handiwork.â€

She watched the boy's eyes grow wide with fright before she busted out laughing, “Haha, I'm just kidding. The guy only ended up with a broken jaw and that was on accident. But I'm not kidding about Rain,†she said grimly, “Take good care of him, okay?â€

“Y-Yes ma'am,†the stable boy stuttered out and rushed over to Rain's side to tend to his needs. With a chuckle, the woman placed a couple of coins on a crate nearby for him and quickly dashed across the yard towards the building. The cold wind bit into her skin and she winced as she tugged her hood over her face and walked as fast as she could towards the door.

As she opened the door into the tavern, the warm air brushed against her face and providing a rather soothing effect compared to the bitter cold. Shaking the snow off of her, she tilted her head up and looked around the building with green eyes, a unique color of greenish-emerald. She spotted several men huddled in a group around the fire with the talk of hunting bandits and spied the bartender behind the counter, “Any room left?†she asked, sitting down on one of the chairs at the bar.

“There is,†Balow nodded, “only for a few coin.â€

“Sounds good,†the woman nodded and passed a few coins in his direction, “Now how about the strongest drink you have over here?†she said with a small smile.

“Plan on besting Grond in a drinking match?†the barkeep asked with a laugh, “I will give you a fair warning, he can drink a lot more than it looks like he can handle.â€

“Oh trust me, I'm not here to drink anyone under the table,†the woman laughed and pushed back her hood. Her face was covered with faint bruises and lacerations still oozing small bits of blood, but she still managed to smile widely, “I just need something to disinfect these wounds. I swear, the robbers are getting more pathetic by the year...â€

“Er...are you sure you don't wish to have those wounds checked out?†Balow asked and gestured to the group, “I'm sure one of the gentlemen over there would be more than happy to help you.â€

“It's just a cut,†she said and waved her hand dismissively, “It's not like I got shot in the heart or anything. I'll be fine. I just need something with some alcohol in it, 'kay?â€

The barkeep nodded and walked over to the back to fetch the drink and she leaned against the counter, listening in to the conversation the four men were having near the fireplace. From what she could pick up, it seems they were looking for some help in dealing with bandits.

“Ah screw it...I got nothing better to do...†she muttered and, taking the drink handed to her by the barkeep, she walked over to the group of men and asked, “I heard you're looking for help. I don't suppose there's room for one more? And what got your undergarments in a knot?†she suddenly asked when she received a rather glaring look from the old man that was smoking a pipe in the corner. She rolled her eyes and chuckled, “Look, I may look frail, but I can handle myself in a fight. Give me a weapon and you can start makin' prayers for the guy on the other side of the blade. Or don't, doesn't matter. Ends up just the same really. My name's Nina, if it makes you feel any better,†she said with a sympathetic smile.

[Tavern Tales: Skyrim Out of Play Character Thread]

Nina

Type: Main Player Character

Character Name: Nina Alamain

A.K.A.: Nina

Age: 35

Race: Nord

Occupation: "Mercenary"

Guardian Stone: The Warrior

Mount: Rain, a grey stallion with faint “freckles†along its face

Physical Attributes:

Nina tops at around 5'9†and weighs 136 lbs. Though she has a small frame, but her slight muscular build makes up for her looking “frailâ€. Her eyes are a unique color of greenish-emerald and her long, black hair is kept in a bun. Her arms and torso are decorated with aged scars, as if she had been in battle a long time ago.

Clothing: Nina wears a black cloth cloak, underneath it a leather vest covered by a white tunic and black leggings. The only visible armor she has is light-plated armguards (hidden underneath the tunic and a great hiding place for a dagger) and boots.

Weapons:

In close-quarter combat, Nina prefers to knock out her targets rather than kill them, so she tends to use her hands as her weapons. Her technique seems chaotic to some hand-to-hand combat masters, but to her it's more comfortable than the other “restricting†styles she's tried. And she'll be more than happy to voice her opinion when confronted.

But when worst comes to worst and if she can get away with it, she will usually snipe her opponents from a distance with her ebony bow, tuned just for her style. But due to its impractical use within close-combat, Nina keeps a steel dagger tucked away in a safe place for such occassions. Her greatest friend in these situations will be her environment, using whatever she can find laying around and/or unused to her advantage to corner her enemy.

Her greatest weakness is magic, or at least any magic being used against her (except for cold spells). With no defense against such attacks, she's often left pinned down with no possible chance of retaliation unless they run out of magicka or someone helps distract the mage.

Backstory:

(Under works)

Personality:

To most strangers, Nina's found to be quite the basket-case. Reckless, often pessimistic, and very crude in her methods are some of their first impressions of her. But what they don't know is this is Nina's method of staying one step ahead of her enemies. Or at the very least trying. She is very quick to judge a person's character and, like all other native Nords, it can be very hard to persuade otherwise, especially when the person happens to be hiding a secret. Not very patient, she'll be more than happy to “rush†things along to conclusion through brute force, often to the point of spilling blood if not held back.

But when Nina eventually views them as a friend, she seems like a completely different person in front of them. True, her stubbornness and reckless ways still persist, but her approach seems more precise and calculated, not unlike one of a seasoned military officer. Her “pessimism†dissolves and what's left is someone who cracks crude-humored jokes and brawl with anyone who challenges her just for the fun of it. True, her drinking days are behind her, but that won't stop her from partaking in just a little bit of fun with a light drink.

But if there's several things she hates the most, it's the Aldmeri Dominion, undead, and offensively-used magic, though even then she may stray away from any type of magicka from lack of or no desire to understand it.

Special Abilities:

Immune to the cold

Additional Images:

_{Concept art.}

[Tavern Tales: Come on in and have a drink! Part VII]

“Ow....†Nina muttered quietly, “Damn you, Alistair. When I find you, I am going to kill you.â€

“I'm right here, you know.â€

Nina opened her eyes and turned her head in surprise to find her brother sprawled out on the forest floor beside her. Alistair lifted his head a little and gave Nina a small shrug, “Do we have to fight right now, though?â€

“Oh, yes we do!†Nina yelled angrily and jumped to her feet, pulling out one of her daggers, “Dammit, Alistair! Where in Oblivion did you run off to?†Her face was splattered with a mixture of reptilian blood and her own, making her look rather frightening, “You had better have a damn good excuse or else this dagger is going into both of your legs so you can't walk anymore!â€

“Nina, wait....what happened to you?†Alistair said in alarm as he took a good look at her. Her clothes were ripped in several places, only to be replaced by fresh wounds that continued to drip blood onto the ground. Her right arm was supporting several bite wounds, but she seemed to ignore it as she glared malevolently at her brother.

“What happened? What happened?!†she yelled and shook her head, “Gods' blood, Alistair, did you hit your head or something? You left us to fight against this giant lizard-thing just to go chase some pretty firefly. That's what happened! I almost turned into lizard-meat because of you! Gods, Alistair, what possessed you to go wandering off like some three-year-old, huh?â€

“I...I thought I....†Alistair started as he sat up, only to suddenly pause and stare at the ground below him. The leaves struck him as something odd, but he couldn't quite place what...

“You thought? What? You thought that back there was the perfect time to ditch us? Sheesh, sometimes it feels like I'm the older one of the family...†Nina couldn't help but mutter and threw her hands in the air exasperatedly, “Wonderful....I'm stuck in a god-forsaken realm with a half-wit brother, oh this is just wonderful. You couldn't have waited until we were out of there, at least?â€

“Nina...†Alistair stared as he picked up one of the green leaves.

“But of course, you didn't want to, did you? “ she said, interrupting him, “You just wanted to go off by yourself to do whatever it is you wanted and leave us to clean up. Did you not learn from the last time you did that...?â€

Alistair stood up all of the sudden and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her a little, “Nina, I know! I know what I did was stupid. I'm sorry, alright?â€

“Sorry? Alistair, 'sorry' doesn't heal this freakin' bite mark I have on my shoulder now,†Nina said, shrugging her right shoulder as if to demonstrate, “You wanna apologize for that stunt you pulled back there? Don't. Do it. Again,†she said with a finality in her voice and pulled away from Alistair's grip, “I didn't rescue your sorry bum from that prison for you to be doing this again. I thought we already talked about this...†she said quietly.

“We did,†Alistair muttered and shook his head, “Nina, I'm sorry. I'm really am. I just....I thought I saw something...â€

“What? A shiny firefly?†Nina said incredulously, though she couldn't help but grin just a little.

“Merissa.â€

Nina blinked a little at the sudden answer and looked at him confused, “Um....not Merissa, right? Not that dead one...?â€

Alistair nodded quietly and stared at the golden-green leaves by his feet. He was just as confused as his sister was. He didn't even get to have a closer look at the woman before he was suddenly thrown back into the darkness.

Nina winced a little at this and was quiet for several long moments before saying cautiously, “Um...o-okay....Alistair, why would she be...?â€

“I know,†Alistair said darkly and looked up at Nina with pained eyes, “Don't you think I thought about that when I started chasing her?â€

Nina sighed and shrugged, “....You could have said something at least? That way Jheuloh and I weren't running around like frantic chickens trying to find you?†she said, trying to lighten the mood a little.

Alistair shrugged and didn't say anything else as he stared at their surroundings blankly. Nina shook her head gently before she began looking around as well, then noticed the rather healthy-looking trees around her, “Um...are we back? We're back, right? I mean, this isn't another one of those screwed-up realms with the screwed-up women and whatnot, right?â€

“Well, one way to find out,†Alistair said and smiled a little, “Go find a deer and make sure all of its body parts are where it's supposed to be.â€

“Oh, haha. Stop trying to make me work so much, Alistair,†Nina muttered, but grinned at her brother, “I deserve a little break after that stunt you pulled back there.â€

“So now you're going to make me go chase after those things? I'm still trying to recover from that troll-fiasco, Nina,†Alistair said with a laugh and pulled his sister into a tight hug.

“Ow ow ow! Alistair! I'm still trying to recover from that lizard-fiasco!†she yelled and squirmed painfully until she managed to slip out of his grip again, “Ow....could you at least wait until after I had a bath?â€

“I don't see why. You look cute with all that blood on you,†Alistair snickered at her.

Nina rolled her eyes, "I'll be more than willing to share some of it with you, you know. You may not like the paint job, however," she warned him with a smile before she noticed the absence of someone in their group, “Hey...where'd Jheuloh go, anyways?â€

Alistair looked around their surroundings, and in the treetops just to make sure, and shrugged helplessly, “I don't know. I'm pretty sure he came with us, though...â€

“Aw damn, I find one friend and he goes and disappears on me,†Nina rolled her eyes and chuckled, “Alright, let's go see if we can't find our sneaky little friend. And maybe a bath.â€

[Tavern Tales: Come on in and have a drink! Part VII]

Nina gave him a small frown before shrugging and tossing the two black eyeballs in his direction, “Be my guest, then. If you're that much interested in gross and disgusting things that you wanna carry them, you won't be getting any complaints from me. Unless you're clumsy,†she said quietly with a small snicker.

“Not that much. It'll make me look pretty bad if I was able to walk across a single line of rope with such grace only to drop these sticky, slimy eyeballs on the ground and step on them,†Jheuloh said sarcasticallyat he caught the objects in his hand, keeping a tight enough grip on them so they wouldn't fall but at the same time not squeeze them too hard to make them burst. With a small chuckle, he lifted up one of the eyeballs and held it up in curiosity, examining them critically, “Hm, this is interesting...â€

“Eh?†she glanced at him over her shoulder and laughed, “Careful, hon. You might give someone the wrong impression if you keep looking at those eyeballs like that. And they're slimy disgusting eyeballs, did I mention that?†Nina smirked, though not unkindly, and turned back to the half-submerged corpse and crossed her arms across her chest in thought, “Huh....I didn't think this lake was even big enough to house a huge squid,†she said quietly. She tilted her head a little and stuck her hand experimentally into the blood-diluted water, “Damn thing's cold too, and on a warm night....â€â€

Alistair, who was standing some distance away from the group, merely gave her a small glance at her comment before turning back to the woods surrounding the lake, keeping an eye on the creatures that darted from tree to tree through the night. Sighing heavily, he paced around a little in circles waiting impatiently for the two to be done with their investigation.

Something suddenly glinted out of the corner of his eye and his spun around in alarm to face this new threat....only to see nothing but the complete darkness in the shade of the trees, “What the...?†he muttered, frowning as he tried to look past the trees to see who or what had shimmered in the distance.

But instead, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary and the only sounds that filled the air were the idle conversations between the two people behind him and the shrill cries of the local wildlife.

Just as he was about to turn his back to the forest, something in the distance blinked again. Alistair glared at the spot where the light originated from and he saw something move through the forest. What it was, though, was anyone's guess. And Alistair hated it when he didn't know what was happening.

He sighed gently and glanced over his shoulder at the group before he stepped into the maze of trees, unsheathing his swords in case this “creature†proved to be aggressive. As he tried to avoid the overhanging branches and vines that threatened to entangle him in their trap, he tried to keep an eye on the beast in front of them that seemed to steadily lead him deeper into the forest....

------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hey.....where did Alistair go?â€

Jheuloh took his eyes away from the eyes to look around the clearing quickly, looking slightly alarmed, “I......he was here a second ago, wasn't he?â€

“Exactly,†Nina said simply and muttered some choice obscenities before climbing back onto her feet and took a couple of steps from the corpse, “You have any idea where he might have run off to?â€

“You're looking at me?†Jheuloh chuckled a little and shook his head, “You know him better than I do and I didn't see which direction he ran off to,â€

“Dammit...I am going to kill him someday and the hell Hermaeus Mora is going to stop me,†Nina shook her head and sighed a little before walking towards a random patch of trees, “Alistair, if you don't get that bum of yours back here right now, I swear I will riddle your legs full of arrows and carry your sorry hide back home! Remember the last time I had to do that? That was not fun!†she yelled angrily. When there was no answer, she growled low in annoyance, “Gah....idiot. He's more unpredictable than drunk... Come on Jheuloh, we have what we came for. Now we just have to get something back,†she muttered darkly and unsheathed her bow from her back as she began her approach towards the forest.

“Wait, what happened last time you had to carry him?†Jheuloh laughed a little, a little curious about the story behind that particular incident.

“Er.....let's just say you don't wanna know. Maybe when we're not stuck in a forest full of talking spiders and gods know what else, I'll share that story with ya,†Nina gave a small chuckle.

“Fair enough,†Jheuloh smiled, “But I'm holding you to that,†he added with a small snicker. But he was cut short when he saw something move out of the corner of his eye and spun around quickly in alert, “Alistair?†he asked, though when he was what had come out of the trees his eyes widened a little and he took a couple of steps backward.

“Alistair, damn you...†Nina growled and spun around towards the direction Jheuloh was looking at, only to blink in surprise and curse a little, “Figures he leaves us in a time like this,†she muttered as she slowly pulled an arrow from her quiver and knocked it onto the bowstring, watching the creature with amber-colored, slit eyes edged closer to the two adventures with a small hiss....

------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Ow!†Alistair yelled suddenly and clutched at his nose; the branch decided it didn't like being pushed like so and sprung back to hit him in the face as he hand slipped from the branch. It wasn't that the trees were slippery, but more like he was completely distracted by what he saw that he forgot what he had been doing for a brief moment. He gave the branch a glare of annoyance before he turned his vision back to the “creature†in front of him.

Only the creature wasn't a beast, but a female Imperial, her back turned against Alistair's and seeming to stare off into the distance towards some unknown object. Long, wavy brown hair hung down her back in a loose, carefree manner and the skirts of her red-gold embellished robes waved breezily as if being pushed by a light breeze. Only there wasn't one with the thickness of the trees.

Alistair stared at the person in front of him and cautiously took a step towards her with a nagging feeling of recognition about her. No....it couldn't be... he thought, which only made him feel even more confused and alert at the same time, “.....Hello?†he asked quietly.

The woman turned her head slightly in response to his question and gave him a brief, friendly smile. But before Alistair could see the woman's face, she turned back and began walking away from him quickly.

“H-Hey! Wait!†Alistair said quickly and began rushing after her, glancing the surroundings quickly to see if anything was sneaking up upon them. He was feeling surprisingly very protective of her all of the sudden, but any suspicious thoughts towards her were quickly banished before he could have time to reflect upon them. He muttered a little as she had quickened her pace and sped up himself while trying to duck under low-hanging branches. He noticed that she seemed to do this effortlessly, as if she had done this a million times before, but Alistair ignored this and kept following her, wondering who she was and why she looked unnervingly familiar....

[Cell 0,0 Problem]

Funny, I don't have that problem. Just a whole bunch of khajiits seeing how far they can stretch their tails.

[Tavern Tales: Come on in and have a drink! Part VII]

The spiders, instead of answering Jheuloh's question, began walking on ahead of them deeper into the menacingly dark cave. Nina raised an eyebrow at the spiders' questioning behaviors before giving a small shrug to the two males and walking after them, “Well, I guess we'll find out soon enough, eh? Assuming that lizard-thing doesn't come back...†she muttered, at the same time casting a small glance behind her towards the entrance.

“I don't think so....It seemed pretty harmless, at least for the moment,†Jheuloh said quietly with a small shrug.

“Yeah, the scaley little thing only gets cranky when it gets hungry, I get it. We just ran into a few, didn't we, brother?†Nina snickered, receiving only a small, silent glare from Alistair, “Of course, they were more furry than scaley...â€

“You know what? I would rather not be reminded of that, thanks...†Alistair said almost inaudibly, his hand automatically reaching towards his ribs. If anyone had been paying attention, they would have saw him wince a little in pain, but otherwise his face was indistinguishable of any emotion.

“Wimp,†she smirked, not faltering when he glared at her menacing-like and laughed softly, “Oh come on! I got cracked on the head with a boulder and I'm still as chippy as ever,â€

“Yes, because that skull of your has been cracked a million times beforehand. Probably the reason why you're always this insane and not feeling a damn thing...â€

“And your ribs have been cracked a million times before,†she smirked, “And you're wincing,â€

“Am not,†Alistair growled at her and quickly withdrew his arm from his ribs.

“Hence why he has all those scars on him,†she said to Jheuloh with a small grin, “'Cause he's too stubborn and too proud to go see a healer. You know chicks don't dig scars, right?†she added quickly, glancing at him.

“Only because you're not a chick yourself,†Alistair muttered and shook his head at her with a small sigh. Though he tried to hide the hint of a small smile that creased his face.

“Aw, you wound me with such cruel words....where's your love for your dear sibling, hm?†she cried dramatically before she chuckled and turned back to the crowd of spiders in front of her, “Speaking of which...can one of you tell us what sort of impending doom we're shoving our poor skinny little asses into? Just outta curiosity, ya know...â€

“The reason we are asking for your help,†one of the spiders said; which one, they couldn't tell as they were all moving at the same pace and kept shifting around in their small, tight-knit group.

“Yeah, I get that part,†she said quickly, rolling her eyes a little impatiently, “Now how about you answer the question as to what it is you want us to do exactly? Come on, I don't feel like being mince meat for that snake-woman's pet, whatever it is....gods, I hope it's not a snake, I can't stand those things....†she muttered and shivered slightly. When none of the spiders answered, she only shrugged and sighed, "Fine, be that way..."

Deeper and deeper they followed the spiders into the cave and what little illumination the light from the entrance gave off was quickly dissipating. Much sooner than they had expected, it came a point where the trio could not see where they were going. The fact was very evident when Nina suddenly crashed into Alistair, who had suddenly stopped, “Oi, you big oaf...†Nina's voice grumbled in the dark and he suddenly felt her try to shove him a little to get him to move, “Unless you're paralyzed, maybe we can try to move a little faster?†she said with a small chuckle, “No offense, but....I don't really want to know what happens at sunrise, you get what I'm saying?â€

“I would.....if I could see where I was going,†Alistair whispered back harshly and placed a hand on her chest to keep her from crashing into him again.

Jheuloh glanced at where he thought those two were before he began rummaging through his pack hanging off of his shoulder. His hand groped around the contents of the bag, his fingers brushing over each familiar vial until he found the one he was looking for: a small, slim glass vial filled with darkish blue liquid. Smiling a little, he walked up to the female Agent and tapped her shoulder, “Perhaps I have something that might help,â€

Nina gave a jump of surprise and spun around quickly to punch the unfortunate thing that had brushed her shoulder, only to stumble a little and cut her assault short, “What the....oh Mankar's two-timing blazing.....don't scare me like that, Jheuloh!†she suddenly yelled at him before laughing, relieved it was only him, “Lots of bad things come out of that, ya know...â€

“Apparently,†Jheuloh chuckled before handing over the vial to her, “Sorry, I can't help it sometimes. Old habit, you know,â€

“Yeah yeah,†she snickered and took the vial, giving the contents a small, experimental shake, “Just don't sneak up on Alistair. He'll be more than happen to rearrange part of your face for you. You may not like the results, however,†Nina said with a small smirk towards Alistair. He only shook his head silently and shrugged.

“Well, I kinda like the way my face is, so I'll be sure to avoid doing that,†Jheuloh joked and gave Alistair a small pat on his back, “I really don't feel like having my nose 'rearranged' to look like Akatosh or someone. I like the gods, but not that much,â€

“What's in the vial?†Alistair asked suddenly, rather eager to get away from the subject of him knocking people out on accident all the time.

“It's a glow potion,†Jheuloh answered, shrugging a little at the sudden change in topic, “Just give it a little shake and it'll make the room glow enough for us to see. Or at least far enough so that we don't run into each other,â€

“I'm up for any light at the moment. Hey, you little buggers, come back!†she yelled at the group of spiders as she quickly shook the liquid, “Damn, they're just impatient little things, aren't they?â€

“Really? Last I remember, you have the patience of a hyperactive Chihuahua. Very short, in other words,†Alistair muttered and snickered quietly.

“Okay, lemme get this light all fixed up and then I'll consider hitting you for that snide remark,†Nina chuckled as she held the container in front of her face and frowned a little, “Oi, piece of junk...†she muttered and shook the liquid again. At first, the light emitting from it was very dim and offered no help trying to see through the black caverns. But just as she was about to complain to Jheuloh about his alchemical skills, the whole potion lit up, illuminating the cave in bluish light and they were finally able to see at least several feet in front and behind them and their other companions standing in a small huddle.

“You were saying?†Jheuloh said with a small smirk on his face.

“Meh....still a piece of junk,†Nina said and rolled her eyes a little with a smile, “A good piece of junk mind you,â€

“Mhm....sure, Nina....†he laughed before he looked at the surroundings around them, staring at the walls around them. The smoothness of the walls they had encountered earlier were now draped with a variety of cobwebs. Jheuloh's brown eyes wandered the scene until they stopped at something that was sitting in the middle of the room.

“Ick, not my preferred decoration,†Nina muttered as she glanced at what Jheuloh was staring at and frowned a little, tilting her head in curiosity as she stared at what looked to be a rock, “Erm.....is it just me or does that rock look a little....furry?â€

“It does....†Alistair said and cautiously took a step forward, keeping an eye on the floor to make sure he wouldn't step on any of the spiders that were sitting at their feet. He crouched down and examined the “furry rock†with a small frown on his face, “I don't think this is a rock...†he said quietly. Hesitantly, he reached his hand up and placed it on the furry flanks of the large spider that was lying very still and stroked it gently, “It's another spider....a much larger one too. And it doesn't look as if he's feeling very well either....â€

“Our queen is dying,†one of the blue spiders said, who had climbed up the wall until it was at eye-level with them, “The witch woman's beast had poisoned her as she was trying to protect all of us. It seemed there was no hope for her....â€

“Last I remember, male spiders don't give birth, Alistair,†she snickered humorously before sitting down next to her brother and taking a look at the queen, “....you said 'it seemed'?†Nina said, frowning and looking at the spider.

“You are here now. You had survived and you are the only ones who can help our mother. Please...†the spider pleaded, “Please help us. We would be forever in your debt if you helped us,â€

“Hm...†Nina pondered a little at the offer and asked, “...Could you tell us if this tunnel leads us out of this place?†She asked.

“No,†the spider said simply, “it only leads to a series of tunnels that wrap themselves around the mountain, coming to a full circle back to where you first started. The way out is not through here...â€

“Then where's the way out?†Nina demanded before either of the two males could so much as take in a small breath.

“Only the queen knows,†the spider said quietly and Nina groaned, “We are sorry....we want to help, but we can't do anything without our mother,â€

“Alright then...†Alistair said, “What do we need to do to help her? And would you perhaps help us with Yilan if we were to help her?†he asked suddenly, a thought springing in his mind, “I think this realm could do with one less scheming witch trying to kill everyone,â€

“We will! We will! But you have to help her. She needs an antidote and we know what we need. We can't get them by ourselves, however,â€

“Aw gods.....if it's a bottle of wine, I swear I will start squishing heads here!†Nina said impatiently, growling a little in annoyance.

“No bottle of wine. We need two eyes of a Kraylan,†the spider said hesitantly, wondering if Nina would actually go through with her threat.

“Oh come on, where are we going to find.....wait, what's a Kraylan?†Nina said suddenly, blinking a little in confusion.

“A tentacled monster that lives deep in the woods of the Valley. It feasts upon any living creature that enters its territory, with frightening long and thick arms and teeth that rips to shreds everything in its path,†another spider in the mass of colors replied and soon a chorus of childish-sounding voices began telling them rumors and myths about the creature it seemed they had to slay. Their voices echoed off the stone walls and bounced back against their eardrums rather painfully that all three of them had to shout at them to silence them.

“Alright alright.....it seems we won't be getting out of here, not without this queen's help,†Nina muttered, “So which one of you knows where said giant beast lives? And is that lizard tamable?â€

[Tavern Tales: Come on in and have a drink! Part VII]

Against the very faint moonlight only the shadow of the creature could be visible as it slowly extended what appears to be its head above the surface of the water. The trio readied themselves against this unknown beast and Nina muttered something under her breath that Alistair wasn't able to hear, though he could probably guess what it was; she never had any real love for snakes. A small, snake-like hiss escaped into the darkness of the night and she flinched visibly, biting her lower lip as she tried to keep her fears silent and to herself.

“....Lemme guess....make it up as we go along?†Alistair whispered quietly to his sister, his voice softer and a little more caring than she had heard him do in a long time.

“Well, besides the obvious 'flank it' part......er yeah, pretty much,†she whispered back, her panic apparent in her voice as she tried to see through the impenetrable darkness, “Dammit, where's light when you need one...†she muttered and began rummaging through her pack with one hand, trying to keep her eye on the huge creature.

To the trio's surprise, the “creature†suddenly began cackling loudly, “Light? Why, I would have thought one such as you would not need such silly nonsense as light....â€

“Um......†she stammered as she stumbled back a couple of steps, apparently not really sure what to make of a talking water-snake, “w-well.....not for me, you thick-headed....whatever you are,†she snapped back awkwardly, “Er.....what are you exactly? Please don't tell me you're a snake....â€

At this question, all four boulders around the lake suddenly lit up in a column of flame; almost instantly the whole clearing was lit up in a warm, orangish warm glow of the firelight.

That's when they all realized that it wasn't a water-snake or any type of creature at all; it was only an old woman who was leaning heavily on the wooden staff of hers and glaring down upon the three with a sly grin on her face. At this, Nina breathed a loud sigh of relief, though it quickly turned into severe dislike for tricking her like that, even if the old woman didn't mean to.

“You look surprised,†she stated the obvious and chuckled darkly and waved her hand around the clearing, “What? You were expecting someone else? Something else, perhaps?†she leaned a little lower towards them and grinned at Nina.

“A snake, maybe....†Nina muttered, her weapons still raised in case the witch woman decided to make any strange movements and frowned a little at her, “I don't suppose you could be a stinkin', slithering reptile in disguise, could you?â€

“Why, little ol' me living in the middle of a forest with no one around for miles?†she laughed and took a couple of steps towards Nina. Before she could back away, the woman rapped her knuckles against the Imperial's forehead, “Hehehe, you have quite an imagination for a Mundus, not like the others who came through here,â€

“Mundus.....†Jheuloh said quietly, testing the rather familiar word and saying quietly, “.....do you mean Nirn?â€

“Mundus....Nirn....whatever you call it these days,†she waved her hand airly and turned her eyes towards Jheoloh. It was then he noticed that her eyes were white and clouded over; it was then he realized that she was completely blind. Though she certainly didn't act like it as she looked straight into his eyes.

The woman took notice of him staring back and smiled, “'Tis true...but while I may be blind, lass, I can still see you as sharp as a glass spear. But,†she nodded, “you do not worry about my health. Worry about your own,â€

“Oh, because we're stuck here with an insane woman who's could very well be Sheogorath's mother?†Nina snipped and rolled her eyes, “Ugh, this is a waste of time....let's get out of here. There's gotta be a way of getting over those mountains....†she said quickly, thrusting her daggers back into their sheaths, and cast the woman a look of disdain before walking off towards the thick of the woods, leaving the two males behind.

“Oh, there is a way,†the woman nodded, “but you're heading in the wrong direction,†she added with a small smirk and turned to the men, “And are you to follow the ignorant female into your doom? Or are you more intelligent than that, I wonder?†she said in a voice filled with curiosity, tilting her eyes at Alistair.

Alistair looked at her carefully into the white eyes of her before saying quietly, “Perhaps if we heard what you had to say.....then again, maybe I should just let my sister have her wish and run you through...†Alistair raised an eyebrow at her, his face betraying no emotion as he warily noticed how she seemed to bore through him with her gaze and wondered what exactly she could see.

“Oh, try she might. But she will only fail,†the woman grinned at him before turning her head towards the Imperial.

“Oh really?†Nina snapped at her and spun around quickly to face her, “You wanna bet on that, old hag?â€

“Careful who you call an old hag, Mundus....†she said in a dangerous voice, returning the glare at the Imperial.

“I have a name you know,†she smirked gently, pulling one of her daggers out and weighing it in her hand, “Nina,†she said simply. With a battle cry, she launched at the woman at such a speed Jheuloh couldn't help but think the woman could surely be dead.....

A split second later, there was a bright flash of light, a scream, and then a large thunk! as Nina flew through the air and crashed into one of the numerous dead trees around them. The old woman cackled loudly, “And you can call me Yılan, dearie. My my, and here I thought there was something different about you three. But I guess I was wrong,†she shrugged as she watched Nina crawl back up to her feet, “So arrogant and so violent....it's a wonder you haven't destroyed yourselves yet,â€

“Watch who you're calling arrogant, old hag,†she muttered as she rubbed the back of her head where she had been clubbed from the troll from earlier and winced a little in pain. But nevertheless took the blow as a warning and didn't attempt to attack her again, thinking Alistair might freak out a little if she hit her head once more today.

Yılan nodded approvingly, “Well, seems you catch on quickly, Nina. I'm impressed, even with that cracked up skull of yours†she said, chuckling quietly.

“So....Yılan?†Alistair said, frowning a little at her, “I'd called you 'Snake', but due to the company we're with...." he muttered, glancing a little at his sister.

Yılan laughed, “Oh, we have a smart one here. And to think they banished you here because you were barren....well, except for that sister of yours. That one,†she laughed, “now I understand why they wouldn't want her. Wish to paint my forest pink, do you? You even think about trying, little Missy, and I might have a new trophy to add to my collection....†Yılan glared at her threateningly before shaking her head.

“Wait, what do you mean 'barren'?†Jheuloh asked suddenly, cutting into what would appear to be the start of a rather deadly argument and looked at the old woman slightly confused, “I heard someone say that as we passed through the portal, but um.....perhaps you could elaborate on what they meant?â€

It was Yılan's turn to be surprised, “You don't know? But surely you do....†she asked quietly. When she noticed the blank look on all three of their faces, she sighed heavily, “Agh....and they open a portal into your realm....a bunch of boneheaded fools if you ask me. They can't survive one day by themselves without a Master....â€

“Um, I'm sorry,†Nina said and raised her hands up in confusion, “But....who are these fools you're talking about and what do you mean by Master? Cause for all we know, big boy over here knows how to rile up a nice-sized mob of rioters when he wants to,†she chuckled a little, pointing her thumb at her brother.

"Jheuloh....you don't happen to have anything that could silence her for a few minutes, do you?" Alistair said after a pause and glanced at Jheuloh rather pleadingly.

Yılan huffed a little and shook her head, “Hmph....they must truly be desperate to open a portal into your realm.....very well then, I shall try to explain this to where your simple minds can comprehend it. You see, our aeons are the spirits of the old Masters that used to control this realm. But since they're dead, they can no longer control the elements around them--â€

“Magic?†Alistair asked, crossing his arms a little in thought,

“Oh, well in that case, why didn't you just open the portal right smack in the middle of the Arcane University?†she snapped accusingly at her, “There's tons of mages there and there's even an Archmage. Last I heard, he was the most powerful mage of them all.....well, at least that's what they think. Me, I don't think so,†she smirked as she pulled out a small amulet from her pocket and dangled it in the air, “You'll be surprised what you can nick off the old man.....â€

“Okay, when did you get that amulet?†Alistair rounded at her and growled a little, “Nina, what had I said about stealing from the mage when he had been visiting the city....?â€

“'Not to harm or to taunt or to steal or to in any other way embarrass him,' I know I know....†she laughed and rolled her eyes before pocketing the amulet and held up her hands up in the air innocently, “But it wasn't stealing, I swear. I was um....'protecting' it. You know, it dangling from his pocket, it was bound to attract the wrong sort of people who would definitely steal it...â€

“People like you?†Jheuloh snickered, finding this particular argument between the two siblings rather amusing.

“Me? Nooo,†she said with a small smile, “He left before I could give it back to him....I mean, he was all over the place and I don't exactly have the time or resources to track him every day, you know....â€

Alistair shook his head and pointed a finger at her, “We are going to talk about this once we get out of here and you are going to return that thing back to the Archmage...it's a miracle you weren't even caught....â€

“Because I'm good like that,†she smirked widely at him and patted his shoulder softly with a small chuckle, "You can stop envying me so much, my dear older brother,"

“Ahem....†Yılan coughed and immediately brought everyone's attention back to her, “If we're done trying to rip each other's throats out like canniabals....to answer the young lady's question, I was not the one that opened the portal. The aeons did and if you want to kill them, be my guest,†she said darkly, “Anyways.....the old Master had died suddenly and so the aeons began opening portals up to different realms in hopes of attracting at least a suitable mage who can take up the mantle of the Master. Apparently, everybody else had gotten very smart and you are still very dumb,â€

“Er....you know we were invaded by Oblivion just a few years ago, right? And the only way we could destroy the gates was to rush in there head-first, sword drawn out, and charge through the daedra until we found the small, little blasted rock that powered the whole thing....†Jheuloh said, shaking his head a little, “So....you think you can understand why we rushed in here like lemmings?â€

“And lemmings you are....even after the Oblivion Crisis was over, you still thought rushing into this place was such a good idea....and now you're stuck with me and my little pets....†she smirked.

“Er.....can I ask a question first before I become this little plaything to your pets?†Nina asked and cocked an eyebrow at her, “You said your gods were looking for something that can do magic....well, I see someone and she's standing right in front of me,â€

Yılan's face grew dark and she stared at Nina with her fathomless eyes, “Oh....and what makes you so sure that I would be someone the aeons would want...â€

“Well, since they're so desperate, and you can do magic....Hey, you were standing and walking on water, you set boulders on fire and managed to keep them alight even without wood, and the fact you can see us when you're supposed to be blind....if that's not magic, then call me a donkey with a stick shoved up his....â€

“What she means to say is why are they opening portals to other realms when they have you?†Alistair said quickly before Nina managed to insult Yılan again.

“That......is a secret which I will not give you,†she muttered and turned around, walking towards the pond in the middle of the clearing.

“Hey, wait!†Jheuloh demanded and rushed up to the old woman, “You said there was a way out of here....where is it?â€

“It is in the valley, somewhere...†she muttered absently and began walking away from him, “Another secret that I will not give you,â€

Jheuloh frowned at her and crossed his arms as he thought about how to get her to spill the secret, “....what if we did something for you in return?†he asked. He didn't think it would get him anywhere, but he wasn't about to give up trying.

Yılan paused a little and just stared out into space in thought. It was impossible to distinguish what she was thinking from the blank look on her face and Nina rested her hand on the pommel of her dagger, wondering if she might have to convince the old witch woman a different way....

Yılan finally smirked widely and said, “Very well then, Imperial....I shall indulge the passageway out of the valley, for one small item....â€

Jheuloh blinked a little and nodded quickly, “Alright then, what is it you want?â€

The witch woman's smile grew wider, “A bottle of wine,â€

The trio blinked a little in confusion before they began rummaging randomly through their own stuff, but failing to find such a bottle in their possession.

“Um....we have a problem,†Alistair said and looked at Yılan, “Where are we going to find a bottle of wine in the middle of the woods if the city is on the other side of the mountains?â€

Yılan chuckled, “Oh, you will find out very quickly, young man, very quickly indeed.â€

“Okay, so all we need to do is find a bottle of wine, give it to you, and then we'll be free to go? That's it? Really? Come on, there's no catch or anything?†Nina said incredulously, “What, no giant ogre or anything to fight? No sacrifices or anything? Damn, this sounds way too easy....â€

The old woman merely chuckled and wagged her finger at Nina, “Oh, but there is several catches, dearie. But, because I am feeling nice today, I'll give you a free one: you have until sunrise to give it to me. If you are too late, then you will be forever trapped in my valley.â€

“Ha, I knew there was a catch!†she yelled at her, but faltered a little as she replied the words through her head, “Er, wait.....several catches?â€

“I will only allow one hint....I suggest you choose wisely what you wish to ask,†she smirked slyly at the trio.

Jheuloh answered promptly before Nina had enough time to draw breath, “Which way?â€

Yılan merely nodded and pointed to the north, “Along there. 'Tis not a long journey if you are quick on your feet,†she smiled at them as she walked back to the middle of the lake, not sinking into the depths of the water just yet, “You have what you need, I hope. I'd suggest you do not dilly-dally too long here....it can be very dangerous at night,†she smirked at them before she slowly slipped under the surface of the water and disappeared. The columns of fire dissipated as well as the witch woman left and the cold and darkness made no hesitation to descend upon the travelers.

"Dammit.....why do crazy old bats keep sending us on foolhardy missions....?" Nina couldn't help but mutter.

[Tavern Tales: Come on in and have a drink! Part VII]

“Oi.......that was not comfortable....†Nina muttered as she rubbed her forehead gently. As they had stepped through the gate, the trio were overwhelmed by a nauseous feeling that threatened to take them down at any second but it didn't offer the relief of collapse. Though as soon as they tumbled out of the portal into this strange, new realm, the feeling immediately eased up and they were left with minor gut-wrenching sensation, Oi.....I hope we don't have to go through too many of those....

Shaking her head a little, she tilted her head up to survey the landscape where they landed and had to blink her eyes a little, “What the....†she muttered as she rose up to her feet and frowned a little.

Everything around her was black. Or at least almost everything. The trees that surrounded all four sides looked like they had been charred to death with no leaves to offer any shade to the harsh sunlight that was peaking through the blackish-grey clouds; even the grass was an oily, dead black.

“Guys....?†she said quietly as she looked around for the two other companions that were with her. But the spine-chilling song that a bird from nearby sung out into the bleak landscape was the only thing that kept her company and she sighed heavily, “Just my luck.....â€

“Agh.....whoever designed that portal should be fired....†she heard a familiar voice call out behind her. She spun around quickly in reaction and pulled out one of her daggers, only to see the large form of her brother rise up from the tide of grass.

Sighing with relief, she slid her dagger back into its sheath, “Heh, you had me worried for a sec. I thought I was stuck all alone with a stinkin' bird who needs to learn how to sing,â€

“I could say the same for you. You're not exactly a nightingale,†Alistair snickered at her before climbing back up to his feet and rejoining her, taking a quick look around the forest, “....where's your new friend Jheuloh?â€

“Over here....†there was a voice above them and, frowning a little, they both turned their heads up to see a rather peculiar sight of an Imperial hanging awkwardly over the tangle of tree limbs and vines crisscrossing like a spider web. Struggling a little against the tangled mess, he sighed heavily and called out, “Um....perhaps a little help would be appreciated?â€

Nina laughed gently and grinned widely, “Wow, even I'm not that good when I'm landing blindly....feeling lucky today, Jheuloh?â€

He shrugged, “Well....it could have been worse,†the Imperial chuckled and shrugged a little, “I could've landed on top of you. That'll be a story worth telling, I'd bet.â€

“Mhm....and I would make sure those loose lips of yours remain tightened for that reason,†she smirked at him and laughed, “Alright, lemme see what I can do....just so long as the vines don't come to life, I think we'll be good,†she said with a small chuckle before her deft hands grabbed one of her brother's swords.

Before Alistair could voice his protesting of using one of his swords as a tree ax, she quickly scaled up one of the dead-looking trees and landed on one of the low-hanging limbs. Her brown eyes searching the strange forest, she jumped nimbly from limb to limb, occasionally grabbing a vine to steady herself and to climb up just a little higher.

When she finally reached the stuck mercenary, she tilted her head a little in curiosity at him before grabbing the sword and start hacking away at the limbs, “Heh.....you know, you look cute when you're stuck like that....†she teased a little, flashing him a goofy grin.

“Cute? Exactly what's so cute about this?†Jheuloh muttered and tilted his head away a little; having led a somewhat quiet and lonely life, he felt a little awkward as Nina had started talking to him so boldly. And he really couldn't see what was so cute about a man being stuck in a tree while the other two were safely on the ground.

“Oh you know....†she shrugged gently with a small chuckle. After hacking away a few more limbs and plants, Jheuloh managed to free the rest of himself and quickly jumped down onto the ground to join Alistair with only a few tiny scratches from the branches above.

“Don't mind my sister,†Alistair said amusingly as he saw the look on Jheuloh's face and smiled slightly, “She's just forward like that and likes to tease. A lot,†he added, giving Nina a small glare as she made her way back onto the ground.

“Ah.....†Jheuloh blinked softly before laughing, the awkward tension that was built up inside him elevating, “Well, um.....she is a very interesting person, I will give you that....â€

“Define 'interesting',†Alistair chuckled softly as he placed a friendly hand on Jheuloh's shoulder and patted him gently, “As I said, don't worry about her, she's practically harmless........most of the time,â€

“What? I haven't heard you complain once,†Nina laughed and handed her brother back his sword, all sticky with sap and with bits and pieces of wood splinters and shreds of vine glued on there.

“Not when you're in the same room,†he grumbled as he tried to wipe off the sap off his sword as best as he could before sliding it back into the scabbard.

“Mhm....whatever you say, dear brother,†she smiled before scanning the forest critically. By the looks of things, they were as deep in the forest as they can be with vegetation so thick that one would only have to walk five feet in a direction before they became lost, “Wow.....feels like we just dived inside the mind of a depressed Orc,†Nina said quietly as she stared at the bleak, depressing landscape that surrounded them.

Behind her, Jheuloh gave a small laugh, “Haha, depressing and ugly? Yep, I think we just found the guy that runs this place,†he gave her a wide grin as she turned her head to look at him in curiosity before giving him a small smirk.

“Hey, it's something I'm willing to bet a few drakes on,†she chuckled gently, “Now....let's go see if we can't find some sort of civilization here. There's bound to be someone that can tell us where the heck we are....,â€

“And lemme guess: if they don't, they'll always spill about who's the wolf controlling the sheep?†Alistair raised an eyebrow at her with a small chuckle.

“Unless they're just really dumb sheep,†she snickered, “Well come on then....the locals have gotta be be more entertaining than this. Seriously, does anyone have a paintbrush?†she asked and raised her arms questioningly, “Cause I would love nothing more than to at least throw a couple buckets of paint around this place, probably color it pink or something....â€

“Oh good gods, are you trying to kill everyone here?†Alistair laughed and shook his head at her, “Pink....only she would come up with that...†he muttered quietly with a small smile.

“Hey, if it blinds creatures as a result, I'm game for it. The less things that attack us, the better,†Jheuloh nodded approvingly, “Now....onward!†he cried out all of the sudden and began heading out into a random direction into the thick of the woods with the two siblings following up shortly behind him, remaining cautious as they did not know who or what exactly lurks in these woods....

[Tavern Tales: Come on in and have a drink! Part VII]

The rain steadily pounded upon the travelers and the trolls that were surrounding them. Staring back at their foes, Alistair and Nina stood back-to-back, each facing two trolls by themselves who looked unfortunately a little more well-fed than their companion that was bleeding on the ground.

“So....you wouldn't happen to have a plan to get us out of this mess, would you?†Alistair couldn't help but ask, frowning as he wondered if he could take two of them on at the same time.

“Um......depends,†she muttered as she glanced at the creatures with hostility, “Does 'Making it up as we go along' count as a plan?â€

“.......Forget I asked,†he closed his eyes and sighed heavily before looking back towards the creatures, “....if you need any help, just yell,†he said quietly to his sister with a tiny smile.

“I knew you still loved me,†she smirked gently. Giving him a small nod, she began yelling at the creatures in front of her, “Come on then, you fat pigs! Don't tell me you're scared of a skinny little Imperial girl with toothpicks,†she grinned wickedly at them.

One troll, the biggest and most brutish-looking of them all, dared to take a couple of steps towards her. With a low snarl, he raised one of his freakishly huge hands, with the looks that it could crush a skull in one simple squeeze, and thumped it against his chest, as if he was challenging her. And, by the sound of it, there was a couple of insults hurled at her in the process.

“Heh....I'm right here, you stinky, oversized gnomes,†she smirked, holding her arms out wide in a teasing manner just to enrage them even further.

The troll's patience was exceedingly low and finally had enough of her games; He bellowed out a battle roar and charged straight towards the two people in the center of the road; the others followed him quickly as the thundering sound of the heavy feet pounded against the ground and their claws extended, their teeth bared and dripping with saliva.

Nina, far from being scared, merely smiled and ran towards her group of enemies, both daggers in her hands and in her preferred backhand position. Quickly, she darted under the first troll's attempt to grab her and, in return, stabbed one of her daggers deeply into his ribs. She made sure to wedge it in there deeply before ripping it out of him and pushing him away from her. Leaving the first one tumbling behind her, she quickly spun around and drove her other dagger into the second's shoulder, missing his chest but she could still work with this.

Kicking the troll on its side to knock it from her, she watched as they crashed into each other and became an entanglement of moss colored fur and claws. Chuckling softly, she watched them push away from one another and, with a low growl, charged after her once more as if nothing had happened, "This is going to be fun," she said quietly.

The larger creature swung its arm out towards her to knock her down and instead missed as she rolled under its arm towards the direction of the smaller troll. When she reached the feet of the beast, she launched herself up at it; tackling him, she drove the sharp point of the blade into the soft flesh of the troll's jaw, pushing it in as deep as the blade would allow her to.

When she heard the deep footfalls behind her, she spared a glance over her shoulder before ripping the dagger out of its jaw. She leapt out of the way of the charging monster and rolled on the ground to a stop before looking back behind her; it was barely a second later before the two collided once again, “Heh.....you'd think they would learn....†she muttered quietly and chuckled.

Alistair, in the meantime, wasn't quite having as much fun as his sister was, or at least he didn't show it. As a small troll made its way towards him, he lunged forward with his sword raised as if he was going to cleave its face. But instead, he feigns the attack and sweeps the sword low to the ground, slicing the beast's legs and crippling him severely. As the troll tumbles behind him with a wail of pain, Alistair turns to the second and advances towards it, sword raised and ready to end the troll's life quickly.

Only the creature had other plans; growling loudly, it began releasing an assault of rather well-aimed swipes and punches at him. Alistair, who was unable to find a good enough opening to thrust his sword in, was left dodging left and right to avoid having to come face-to-face with one of those hands again.

But after a while, the troll made a mistake and raised both of his fist into the air to try something different; hammering him down into the ground like a nail. Alistair made no hesitation in jumping all over the opportunity; As hard as he could, he rammed his whole body into the troll, attempting to give himself some breathing room. As the creature stumbled a couple of steps backward, he hastily lifted his weapon up and prepared to run the blade through its chest.

All of the sudden, a large, detached hand made its way into his line of vision and he barely had enough time to duck before the crippled troll's arm sweeped over his head. But he could only breath a small sigh of relief when another pair of clenched fists came flying down. Swearing loudly, he rolled out of the way as best as he could, though still managing to get his shoulders nicked by the brute force behind the strike.

Groaning low in pain, Alistair shot towards the crippled troll and kicked it furiously in the leg as hard as he could. As the troll faltered and went down onto the ground on his knees, the Imperial ran the sword through the troll's back, right over where its heart would be. With a rapidly-decreasing wail, the creature quickly died under his blade and he wrenched it out of the dead body, kicking it away as he looked around for the second enemy.

The answer to that question was given quickly enough; a large boulder crashed about a foot away from him and left a sizable crater in its place, causing him to yelp and back away quickly in surprise. Turning his head in the direction the boulder came from, he groaned inwardly at the sight of the troll next to a bunch of large rocks that do quite a bit of damage, "Oh come on.....how in Oblivion is this fair?"

The trolls were beginning to put up quite a bit of a fight and it wasn't long before a shred of doubt found its way into both of their minds as they tried to figure out how they can escape from this pack of monsters. One was dead, true, but the other three were still going strong despite their attempts to wound and slow down. As Alistair repeatedly dodged all of the rocks that were flying through the air towards him, Nina was busy dodging and parrying the repeating pummeling of both of the trolls' fists. Each opportunity she got, she managed to injure either one of them just a little bit. Though as much as she was doing it and as strong as they were going, she wondered if it was even doing any good at all. Her legs were beginning to shake a little with fatigue and she was coated up to her elbows in rancid-smelling dark blood, “Dammit! Die already, you worthless things!†she yelled; she wasn't taunting anymore. Now she just wanted them to fall to the ground and stay still for eternity.

She wasn't able to carry out her threat as suddenly a world of black enveloped her and she felt herself fall onto the ground, instinctively letting out a small yell in surprise. She wasn't really sure what had happened, it didn't look as if they had managed to bring her down for once, or either that she didn't remember.

When Alistair heard his sister scream a little from a distance, he distractedly turned his head towards the crumple form on the ground, along with a sizable rock laying innocently next to her head, though a layer of blood was splattered on the side of it. Fearing the worse, he ignored the troll behind him and began rushing over to Nina as the group of enemies she was fighting before began hovering over her ominously.

But he almost faced the same fate as her as a fist-sized rock found it's mark and hit him squarely in the jaw, causing him to stumble and nearly crash into the ground once more. Furious, he rubbed his jaw, which didn't feel like it had shattered but was at the very least bruised quite a bit, “Grr.....is that how you want to play it....?†he muttered and glancing down at the ground, he bent down and picked up a random rock. Tossing it once in the air with an air of curiosity and catching it, he glared at the creature in front of him before throwing the rock as hard as he could at him.

The beast, not expecting the puny human in front of him to retaliate in such a fashion, barely ducked under the sailing rock and when it noticed the Imperial had missed, gave a low growl that sounded eerily similar to a chuckle.

His laughter, however, was cut short when a blade suddenly shot out of his back, tinted red and dripping with blood. With a small gurgle of surprise, the troll began squirming wildly in pain as the blade that was shoved into his stomach didn't inch, instead further injuring him at his vain attempts to escape. Alistair, who was grunting from so much weight being pushed against him, held his ground and waited impatiently for the troll to die so he could tend to his sister.

Nina stirred slightly on the ground before suddenly jolting awake at the sight of the two monsters hovering over her with hunger in their eyes. Swearing loudly, she reached over to grab her dagger that fell out of her hands onto the ground some distance away. But it was too far for her to reach and, improvising as she stared up that the huge teeth that was occupying most of her vision, she grabbed a clump of dirt and threw it into the one that was hovering directly above her in the eyes. As the large troll screamed and clutched at his eyes in pain, the larger one growled threateningly at her and grabbed one of her legs, keeping her trapped in an iron grip as he slowly began dragging her away towards the forest....

Nina yelled obscenities at the beast and lifted herself up a bit, raising her leg up and kicking it as hard as she could in all three of its eyes. The troll, who was not expecting such a reaction, reared backwards with a sharp yelp that was promptly cut short as she managed to grab one of her daggers that were one the ground and leaned up, stabbing the monster rapidly several times so she wouldn't have to worry about if it was dead or not.

And now for the last one.... she thought grimly as she wiggled her foot out from the deathgrip and grabbed her second dagger before facing the leader. Not even bothering to say any last words to the troll, she darts quickly towards the troll; with a battle-cry, she jumps up so that she was eye-level with the troll before sweeping both of the daggers in opposite directions at his neck, creating a narrow, blood red X that bled profusely before tackling him to the ground. Panting heavily, she pinned it down to the ground with her daggers at his neck to make sure nothing more came out of the stubborn beast, watching the fire of life go out in its three beady eyes.

“Burn in Oblivion,†she muttered before climbing back up to her feet and surveying the scene, “Please tell me there's no more of those damn things running around....â€

“I think that was the last of them,†he muttered at he looked at the small injury that was on the back of her head, which for some reason she didn't seem to be feeling at the moment, “How are you feeling?â€

“Chippy. Real chippy,†she said and suddenly gave him a small grin, as if nothing had never happened, “Not a bad way to end the day, eh?â€

“Hmph....†he merely grunted as he pulled out an old rag and began wiping up the blood, “Says the woman with a cracked skull....glad to see you're alright though,†he gave her a small smile in return.

“I could say the same for you, but then I would be lying,†she chuckled as she raised her hand up, gingerly touching the scratches on his face and the small bruise that was forming on his jaw.

“I'll be fine, it's just my face,†he pulled her hand away from his face, “Should we go look for the horses?â€

"Nah. They already found us," she chuckled gently before nodding to two horses cautiously wandering back onto the road towards them. While their ears and their tails were showing signs of being very nervous from being this close to trolls regardless if they were dead, their faces showed signs of being relieved to be back with their riders.

"Mia, you're alright!" Nina said happily and rushed up to hugged the mare around her neck gently, "Damn, don't you scare me like that again, do you hear me?" she said sternly to the horse, though the effect was marred when she chuckled and rubbed her muzzle gently. Her mood fell quickly, however, when she glanced at something on the horizon and frowned, “Um.....†she said quietly, looking over his shoulder at something behind him, “I don't think that's normal, is it?â€

Alistair frowned in confusion at this as he was checking up on Cesare, who for the record looked about as happy as one could be at the moment, and spun around to see what she was staring at. A red tint was rapidly streaking through the clouds and slowly turning the world around them dark red, “What the....a gate?†he muttered in surprise and frowned, “How is that even possible.....?

“I dunno,†she replied and patted him on the back, “But whatever the reason, it can't be good. Therefore, we should go take care of it, right?†Her face grew serious as she said it and gave him a brief nod before climbing up onto her horse and promptly riding as fast as they could towards the gate.

“Meh.....to be honest, I would rather sleep,†he said stubbornly before he checked the equipment to make sure everything was there, then climbed up on the war horse, "Come on then," he said to Cesare and gave his hind legs a gentle kick. Cesare snorted a little before he began galloping after Mia.

[Tavern Tales: Come on in and have a drink! Part VII]

They both tightened their grip on their weapons as something crawled its way through the thick bushes. Its body was grotesque and bulky, blotches of dark green fur coating its body and his three beady eyes searching the road hungrily until it rested upon the two travelers.

The horses in unison shrieked in fear and Alistair made to cling onto the saddle at Cesare's second attempt to kick him off. Staring back at the newcomer, he could clearly see that this was not a creature to be around, especially in the middle of nowhere with nobody to help them. In fact, he was a little worried this troll might have friends. While it was only a forest troll, the dumber and slower of its cousins, it still didn't help sate his fears.

It was apparent the troll was hungry; its jaw was hanging rather loosely from its hinges and droplets of saliva dripped down onto the ground as it drooled over what seemed to be a feast. With a low hungry growl, it decided it couldn't wait anymore and launched itself at the terrified mare directly in front of him, his large brute-like arms opened wide to strike her down.

Nina swore out loud as she saw it charge toward the two of them and, as quickly as she could, clambered on top of her horse. She nimbly launched herself off of the top of her mare just before the creature overtook the two and landed behind him with a thud. Alistair, unable to keep Cesare calm during the whole commotion, instead leapt off of the very frightened stallion and landed on the firm, stable earth. He spared a few moments of the battle to watch Cesare run into the thick of the woods; whether they were safe or not, Alistair was hoping it wasn't the latter.

Unfortunately, the mare wasn't so lucky with her escape. The troll promptly crashed into the poor mare just mere moments after Nina had fled the spot with a large thud and terrified whine from Mia, "Oh you stinkin' piece of...." Nina muttered darkly before she yelled, “Hey, you big stinkin' brute! I'm over here!â€

The troll, seeing the rider absent from the writhing horse that he had pinned to the ground, turned his head towards the source of the noise and, finally noticing her, bared his teeth at the Imperial. He apparently wasn't pleased from how much his meal seemed to be moving.

With a small, taunting grin, she raised a hand up and beckoned silently at the creature to give her all he's got. The troll in turn snarled at her fervently and quickly rushed towards the small female in the middle of the clearing, it's arms outstretched and claws extended to grab her...

With speed not unlike a Bosmer, she stepped quickly to the right and ducked under one of his large, reaching arms. With a small chuckle, she held up a hand towards her brother to let her handle this; it was a long time since she had come face to face with a challenge, "Aww, is that all you got? I had Slaughterfish do better than you," she said and grinned widely.

The troll made several more attempts to rush at her and pin her to the ground, but again and again she merely stepped out of his way, the grin never leaving her face for just a moment. Suddenly, the troll just stopped and merely stared at her apprehensively, pondering whether she was worth this much trouble. They were surprisingly so close together that she could count the individual ribs on the beast's torso, Huh.....that would explain the lack of bandits... Nina thought in curiosity as she stared back at him, smirking slightly, But then again, I really don't want to be someone's lunch, so.... "Heh, what's wrong? Do I not taste very good? That's weird, considering you couldn't even bite me," Nina asked in a mockingly surprised voice before chuckling a little, "Do I stink or something?"

"Okay.....I think that's enough, Nina," Alistair said cautiously, eyeing the beast a little. At the word "taste", the troll's eyes widened greedily and his mouth gaped open, the only thoughts on his mind are how delicious she looked. The thoughts of his previously failed attempts slipping out of his mind, he gave a low, lustful growl before he charged once more. This time, Nina didn't bother to move from her spot as she watched the creature rapidly gain ground towards her, her hand on the hilt of her dagger.

Before it was able to wrap his enlarged hands around the Imperial, there was a flash of steel on the corner of his eyes and a sharp, burning sensation on the side of his neck, along with the absence of his meal in front of him. With a wide smirk, Nina ripped the dagger out of soft flesh of his neck in a fluid motion, leaving a sizable gash that poured out ample amounts of blood, and kicked him sharply in the back to push it away from her.

Alistair couldn't help but be surprised, though, as he saw the troll still standing and turning his head towards Nina, a malevolent glare clearly seen in his three black, beady eyes. Normally, a wound such as that would fell an enemy very quickly. But due to their unnatural constitution, it was merely an unnaturally large thorn that managed to pierce a humanoid's neck. He was stumbling, true, but he did not show any signs of injury except for a loud whine that he had gave out prior to the knife being wrenched out of his neck. Nina muttered something under her breath and prepare herself for whenever he would launch himself at her again.

Alistair didn't want to wait for the troll to make a move this time, though, and he thought they should finish this quickly as the rain began steadily pounding the dirt around them. Making sure to stay out of the troll's line of site, he silently moved behind it, pulling one of his swords out as he figured out his plan of attack. He didn't know much about trolls, but he did know one thing: it can be killed. It's just the matter of weakening it enough. It was already starving, so it should be fairly easy. At least that was what he hoped

Just as the creature began to make a move towards his sister, he rushed over to its side at once, bringing the edge of the shortsword down onto one of the troll's hands and pinning it to the ground. The troll let out a pained wail as his wrist was suddenly immobilized by this new assailant and made to pull it away from Alistair. But the Imperial was having none of it; keeping his grip on the sword, he used almost all the weight he could spare as he struck out a sharp kick to the side of the troll's knee. While it didn't break the knee like he has hoped, the beast did double-over in pain with a loud whine, giving him a sliver of a chance where he then pulled the sword away from its wrist and brought the sword up into its face in a smooth motion, slicing the edge of the blade at its neck for the finishing blow.

The next thing he knew, the rocky ground of the road was suddenly rushing up towards him. He wasn't able to react quickly enough before he blatantly face-planted into the ground.

He could barely hear a female voice calling out to him as he stirred softly on the ground. Groaning a little, he lifted his head up and tried to figure out what exactly had just happened. A warm trickle of something thick and of some fluid ran down his cheek and in annoyance, he raised one of his hands up to wipe it away, only to find out it was blood. His face ended up mildly cut and, to his mild surprise, his ribs were throbbing achingly in pain.

He heard the troll growl fervently and, realizing the ground might not be the best place to be, he quickly climbed up to his feet and noticing that he didn't quite injure the troll the way he wanted, but he did manage to create a blind spot on his left. A wide laceration went straight from the lower-right side of his jaw up to the left temple, taking out one of his eyes in the process which looked like nothing except clearish-white fluid mingled with the unnaturally dark hue of troll blood. The creature ignored it's fruitless efforts to fell the female agent and instead turned its attention to the male in front of him, roaring loudly in displeasure.

But then a different sound came out of the troll, a piercing wail that shattered the air before progressively getting weaker and weaker. Alistair frowned a little until he saw something strange coming out of its ears.

Nina slowly pulled both of the daggers out from the dead troll's skull and kicked the bloodied, scrawny body away from her before rushing up to her brother, “Oi, you alright?â€

“I'm fine, I'm fine,†he said, waving it off as he shrugged his shoulders lightly, wiping the collecting pool of blood from his face with his sleeve, “You?â€

“I'm alright, I was a little worried about you though,†she said gently, tentatively touching one of the scratches on his face, "The damn thing hit you pretty hard,"

“It's superficial; it's nothing,†Alistair gave her a small chuckle before eying the troll on the ground, "Though I will agree with you on that part,"

“Well,†Nina said, glancing at the corpse as well, “I didn't remember hearing stories about how easy trolls can be killed. I kinda expected a better fight than what that thing gave,â€

“It was starving,†he said simply and prodded the body with his foot, “It probably didn't have enough energy to put out a full fight, you saw how it attacked Mia....â€

“Oh god....†Nina winced and ran her hand through her hair, “I hope she's alright. That damn thing ran her over like a sapling....†Not seeing her mare anywhere, she sighed heavily in distress. But it wasn't long before curiosity overcame her mind again and she asked, “Hey......don't trolls usually kill each other? You would think that they wouldn't waste such good food like that...and if that's the case, then why haven't they tried to kill each other....they're not like goblins....â€

“And when did you become an expert on trolls?†Alistair couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at his sister, “For all we know, they could be mutated goblins or some mage decided it would be fun to giantize tiny gnomes and then ended up eaten in the process,â€

“Well, he did deserve it,†Nina said and shrugged a little, “Well, the lucky thing was there was only one. Could've been worse, right?â€

There was a further rustling of leaves and when Alistair turned around, expecting either one of the horses, he instead was met with another pair of eyes; the same as the enemy that attacked them before, “Aw dammit, Nina....what'd I say about jinxing things like this!?†Alistair yelled and rounded at her, giving her a small glare.

“Um.......nothing. You didn't say anything!†Nina said, glaring back before quickly turning around to yet another sound behind her, “Aw damn....†she muttered as she saw two trolls make their way through the trees, much bigger and more healthy-looking than the previous assailant. She was wondering if this might just be pushing it a little and was actually thinking about retreating, until she realized they were surrounded.

Alistair glanced at those two before turning back to the first group, both hands wielding his weapon, “If we get out of this, we are going to be having a big talk....â€