Tavern Tales: Come on in and Have a Drink! Part V

[WhoGuru]

Selvia had accepted their message with grace and only a single tear when the friends had arrived in Balios. She had easily understood why her sister had left and was still explaining it to her granddaughter when they'd left. Though the village was now safe, there was little celebration. Too many young girls had been drawn to the swamp, never to return. Too many families were forever marked by the incident.

Bryn, Grond, Garulf and Jack left in the first light of morning, dogs at the heels of their horses, to return to the Tavern.

"I know we just saved a village." Garulf sighed. "Why do I feel as though we failed somehow?"

"Because too many people had already died." Bryn replied and reached across the distance between them to pat his shoulder as they rode. "A victory is only as sweet as the number of graves behind it." Garulf nodded silently and Bryn nudged Cloud ahead. Like the others, she was lost in her own thoughts. The feeling in Balios, on the streets and in its homes, had reminded her forcibly of her time in Caripea. Hopelessness. The knowing that each day a new face would be missing that had been there the day before.

She shook her head at herself. "Stop being morose." Bryn muttered to herself and let Cloud have his head. He sprung ahead of the others, flying past Jack on the road.

"In a hurry, Bryn lass?" Jack called after her with a laugh. She waved a hand back at him and rode on. The wind past her face helped cleanse her of the depression that had snuck on her in the village. She tucked her head under her shoulder and cast a glance back at her companions. She was quickly outpacing them and they seemed in no hurry to catch up.

As she turned her head back, she caught a sign of movement off the side of the road beside them. Bryn twisted in the saddle to look back and gasped as dark clothed figures burst from cover to attack the men. Jack was swept from his horse and slammed to the ground as the Nords were quickly overwhelmed with numbers. There seemed to be dozens of the bandits.

Bryn pulled Cloud's reins, turning him and had no time to avoid the body that came swinging down out of the tree beside her. The man thudded into her, knocking her from the saddle. She crashed into the ground beneath him, felt her head hit something hard and then knew nothing else for some time.

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

"Bryn." A voice called her, whispering to her. Bryn thought it sounded like a woman and heard a soft chuckle. "Time to wake up now." The woman's voice whispered in a laugh. "You're worrying the men."

"Bryn." Her name again and she opened her eyes in confusion to find Garulf setting beside her. She swiveled her head to find the woman who had spoken, seeing none, and closed her eyes as the room spun. "Are you alright lass?"

"Wha' happened?" She asked and bravely opened her eyes again. Garulf helped her to sit and she gasped, raising her arm to her head and found irons about her wrists. She looked down and found a matching set about her ankles. "Garulf?"

"Slavers we think." Garulf said to her, holding her upright and checked the back of her head once more. "You and Jack were knocked cold when they took us." Bryn looked across the hold and saw Jack sitting across from her, hand to his head and a disgusted look on his face. Grond knelt beside him and smiled at Bryn, holding his irons up for her to see.

"Are we on a ship?" Bryn asked then. She felt the movement of the deck beneath her and it turned her stomach as her head pitched from the knock it had taken. "Oh gods." She breathed and heaved herself forward to put her head between her knees and breathed through the nausea. Garulf pulled her hair back from her face and held her head.

"Breathe lass. It'll pass." Garulf said.

"Here. Give her this." Jack pulled a small, dark root from behind his belt and tossed it over. "It'll help."

Garulf picked it up, looking closely at it. "What is it?"

"A root." Jack grinned at him. "The sooner you give it to her, the better she'll feel. Chew on it."

Garulf handed it to Bryn and she put the end of it in her mouth and bit down. She grimaced and groaned.

"Aye, it's bitter but you'll feel right as rain in a few minutes." Jack laughed and pushed himself higher against the bulkhead of their prison. "We need to get out of these irons and get off this boat." He reached behind his belt again and came out with a slim lockpick.

"Now how did they miss that?" Grond asked with a laugh. "They searched parts of me even I don't pay attention to."

Garulf snorted. "They were certainly thorough." He ground out and patted Bryn's back again as she chewed on the root. He sported a black eye, given him when he took exception to the slavers all too diligent search of Bryn while she was unconscious.

Bryn straightened finally, still chewing on the bitter root and smiled. "I do feel better now. Thanks." She nodded to Jack, busily working at the irons on his wrists. "Has anyone considered what we do if we're miles form shore?"

"That depends." Jack muttered and looked up with a mischievous grin.

"On what?" Grond asked from beside him.

"On whether or not Nords can swim?" Jack said and went back to his irons, chuckling happily.

"Can we hit him over the head again?" Garulf asked Grond. "He's a hard head."

"Aye." Grond tapped Jack lightly on the head. "We could use him for a raft."

"I'd be nice to me if I were you." Jack said and sat back with a grin. He gave his wrists a twist and the shackles dropped off to the floor. "I could leave you, you know."

"Humph." Grond grunted and held out his own hands. "Not bloody likely. Get these off before they come back." Jack went to work on Grond's irons with a shake of his head and a laugh. Overhead, they could hear the sounds of industry, boots tromping across the deck, voices raised, orders shouted and Bryn hoped they would be free to fight before they're kidnappers returned.

After several minutes of frustrated mutterings from the pirate, Jack removed the last of their shackles until the four stood free in the hold. He watched his companions, seeing them preparing to fight their way out and shook his head. "We can't fight our way out of this." He said then, grinning when they turned shocked faces to him.

"I beg to differ." Grond said slowly and clenched his fists. "Don't need my hammer to knock a few heads together.

"We're at sea." Jack pointed at the blank wall beside them. "I can smell it, the ocean air. We'll be hopelessly outnumbered here. Ship the size this one must be, there'll be dozens of crew. You going to crack all their heads together?"

Grond scowled at the pirate, irritated that he was making sense.

"We need to find another way to get out of this that doesn't involve the four of us being tossed over the side." Jack pressed his point and pointed at Garulf when he opened his mouth. "No, you can't just swim for shore. You'd never make it."

"Alright." Bryn said finally. "What do we do then?"

"Depends on what they want us for." Jack leaned against the bulkhead and regarded them. "If they're selling us, they'll likely leave us in this hold until we arrive wherever we're going. If they mean to pressgang us, well..." He drifted off and smiled a dangerous smile. "Then we have options. They'll let us on deck, among other things."

"How many times did you press innocent men to service on your ship I wonder?" Grond asked and raised a brow at Jack.

"Never." Jack replied firmly. "Wont have crew on my boat I can't trust when I turn my back."

"At least we know there are some lines you wont cross." Grond said and laughed.

"What about Bryn?" Garulf asked then and stared hard at the pirate. "Your type often pressgang women into service?"

Jack's face became serious once more and he looked to her. "No." She remained calm under his scrutiny and he smiled. "Not often, but it does happen. We'll make sure it happens here." He nodded to her, as the others did, in silent agreement.

Bryn sighed softly, trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach. Lone woman on a slaver ship was not a comfortable position to be in.

"We'll keep our heads." Jack said and looked now to the Nords, especially Garulf and his black eye. "No more jumping the bad guys. We stay cool and we will find a way out of this."

They're conversation was cut short as they heard the sound of heavy boots coming closer. As one, they moved to the back of the hold and stood facing the door, waiting to greet their captors and find why they had been taken.

[WillieSea]

The small chamber William, Sherena and Arwin found themselves in was very dark. With their heightened night vision, they noticed a loose stone on the floor that was obviously a floor switch. An almost invisible button was hidden in the corner of the room nearest the exit door. Through the grated door that lead from the room an altar could be seen with a key laying on top of it.

When Sherena touched the door, it swung open easily, inviting them to enter and take the key. The three of them looked at each other, experienced enough to be suspicious of the rooms strange setup. They backed away from the open door.

“Could it be this easy?” William asked.

Arwin rubbed his chin, “I don’t like it. The button in the corner and the obvious floor switch must be there for a reason.”

Sherena added, “The door was not even locked that leads to the key. Nothing has been what it seems since we entered this dungeon.”

“That’s for sure. Everything has been either hidden or locked. The button and the switch are just too obvious. Normally they would be avoided when spotted, but these…”

William then placed a foot on the floor switch and stepped on it until it clicked.

Sherena called out, “William!”

But it was too late. The three of them stood in the silence of the room. Nothing seemed to happen. William then reached out and pushed the button. Again there was a click and then silence.

A confused look came over William’s face; it was almost as if somebody was whispering words into his ears, telling him what he needed to do. He then marched into the alcove and took the key off the altar. He turned around and looked at the three of them with a goofy grin on his face.

Arwin moved to enter the alcove to congratulate William and stopped when William raised his hand and yelled, “Stop!”

Darts shot out of the wall by the doorway ricocheting off the opposite wall while a gout of flame blasted down from the ceiling. Arwin lay on the floor with a startled look on his face where Sherena had yanked him backwards away from the doorway.

William stood motionless in the alcove and whispered out to them, “Sherena, can you please step on the stone and then push the button again?”

After the trap had been disabled again by Sherena, William cautiously walked out of the alcove and the three of them retired to the large chamber again. They looked back at the deadly trap they had narrowly avoided. Arwin began to wonder if he would survive to see his child or his beloved Jean again. He then looked again at William and Sherena; they had certainly saved his life several times now. There was something strange about them though, but Arwin could not quite pinpoint what it was.

It was then that Arwin noticed William’s golden armor was shining brighter than he had ever seen it shine before. And it was loosing its chain mail link look. The links were definitely getting thicker, almost becoming a solid armor. And Sherena looked different as well. Perhaps it was just the poor lighting, but she looked paler than he remembered her to be. It was a stark contrast with her black armor and jet black hair. A sudden fear rose up in Arwin although he could not place where the fear came from or what it was a fear of. Either way he was worried.

The three of them walked towards the still locked door that was in the large chamber with a key in their possession. Whatever was to happen they would face it together.

[WhoGuru]

The door opened with force, slapping back against the wall and two pirates stood framed within it. They gasped together, seeing their captives free of their shackles and drew wicked, curved cutlasses.

"Steady mates." Jack stepped ahead of the others, arms out and smiled at the new arrivals. "No need to get excited."

"You got the irons off." One of the pirates said and Jack smirked.

"Nothing gets by you." Jack said and grinned at the dimwitted pirate. "We want to see your captain. Now."

The two pirates laughed. "Cap'n's got nothing to say to the likes of you."

"Oh I think he will. Tell him you slack-a-bouts have tossed Calico Jack in his hold." Jack crossed his arms over his chest, tapping a foot and waited for it to percolate through their heads.

"Oh bloody hell." One of them breathed.

Jack looked over his shoulder at the others. "There it is." He said and laughed. "Go on then. Get your Captain. Tell him I invoke the right of Parlee."

The shorter of the now pale pirates scrambled from the room and could be heard shouting as he ran topside. His crewmate stood in the door, sword in hand and waited.

"Tell me again what kind of reputation you have?" Bryn asked softly, amused and received only a chuckle in reply. Moments later, they heard steps on the stairs once more and a garishly dressed pirate appeared in the door, plumed hat askew on his head and watched as his jaw dropped when he entered the room.

"Calico Jack Rackham!" The man bellowed and strode quickly to Jack. He wrapped his arms about Jack, lifting him from the floor in a rib cracking hug and set him back down. "I didn't believe it when Scurvy here told me. What in Sangiune's name were ya doing on land, man?"

"Getting kidnapped of course!" Jack laughed and turned to Bryn and the others. "This here's my old friend, Captain 'Trump' Caudill." He turned back to the Captain. "Didn't recognize the Queen Asilia from in here." Jack said wryly.

"Aye, well." Captain Caudill shrugged. "These things sometimes happen. Come up to me cabin and we'll break out that bottle of Rum ya passed me last year, you remember the one?"

"That I do, and the wench what gave it to me." Jack smiled and motioned the Nords and Bryn past him but Captain Caudill raised a hand.

"Now Jack. You I've no problem removing from my hold but these..." He gestured at the others and, as Bryn had moved closer to him, pinched a lock of her auburn hair between his fingers as she hastily backed away. "Well a man has to turn a profit, eh?"

Jack shook his head, stepping once more in front of his friends. "One captain to another Trump. I invoked the right of Parlee and I mean to have it on this." His voice brooked no argument and Caudill sighed, shaking his head.

"If we must. What would you have of me then, Jack?"

"Ideally? Safe passage to the nearest port for all of us and your guarantee that none of them will be sold when we arrive."

"Ah now, Jack." Caudill shook his head. "Not gonna happen. Think smaller lad. I turn no profit on this trip and my crew will be a might displeased with me. They already are." He looked at Bryn pointedly and she surmised the crew had not wanted her locked in the hold at all.

"For what it's worth, Captain Caudill." Bryn said and met his eyes boldly. "Thank you for that." The nightmare of what he'd spared her dizzied her for a moment.

"You understand, I think Ma'am, why it's best you stay in this room?" Caudill asked her and then looked at Jack. "The woman stays here. As for the men, I'll agree to taking them on as Crew." He looked over the Nords with an appraising eye. "They'll do well...if they sign the articles that is."

"What articles?" Grond asked now, sensing their plan was getting away from them.

"The pirate code." Jack supplied and turned to look at them, smiling slightly. "Sign the articles, you'll be pirates under Trump's command and not sold at the next port." He looked back to Caudill, smile gone and did his best to look severe. "Best I'm going to get out of you isn't it?"

"Aye, lad."

"Well it will have to do then. I'm sorry Grond. Garulf." Jack said to the Nords and slid them a wink.

"The woman, however, is no part of this bargain. No female crews the Queen Asilia. Bad luck." Caudill said seriously. The men at his back echoed him, making odd gestures at their chests as they did. "It's the sales block for her, Jack."

"You could just let her go." Rackham said, a pleading tone in his voice but his friend shook his head.

"Profit, remember?" Caudill rubbed his fingers together in the age old sign. "She'll not be bothered while aboard my ship, you have my word on it."

"And if she is?" Garulf asked boldly.

Caudill seemed to think a moment, then nodded. "Then she goes free at port. Come to my cabin, Jack. Bring the men." Caudill turned on his heel then and left, leaving the other pirates outside the door as guards.

"Now what?" Grond asked of Jack.

"Now we go topside, you have a measure of rum and sign the articles." Jack said in an offhand manner and went to Bryn. "I can't get you out of here. Not yet."

She laughed softly. "I'm suddenly hoping my guards aren't diligent." Bryn said quietly. "What a thing to suddenly hope for." The butterflies were back in her stomach. Jack gave her shoulder a squeeze.

"Wont come to that, Lass. My word on it." He turned back to the Nords. "We have to go up. Keep your heads down until we make port. Get to know the ship and her crew. It's your best chance of getting free once more." Jack told them. "Come on."

He led them from the room, each wincing when the door shut on Bryn and headed up to the deck to become pirates.

[WillieSea]

As William inserted the key into the door lock, the door swung open easily. The three friends walked down the darkened hallway for a short while until they came to a medium sized room. The floor in the center of the room had a large circular stone set in it and there was a colored gear on each of the four walls at about head height.

There was a red, yellow, purple and colorless gear on the walls. They each smiled, knowing what would need to be done. At least until they looked again at the colorless gear with concerned looks on their faces. What could that possibly be? William knew he had the red, gold and purple flames he could summon, one on each of his fingers, but what was the dark gear supposed to represent?

Arwin looked at William, “Now what?”

Both William and Sherena glanced at each other. The bond between them had been broken when the rings had disintegrated and they felt a little lost, having shared each others thoughts for so long. The black gear was something they would have to decipher. This place seemed to be full of traps, but they were traps that seemed to be tailored to William’s special abilities. It was almost as if the place had been waiting for him to come.

William pondered, if this was true, then there had to be something that he needed to do in order to get past this room. He knew that the three colored gears would require the same color of flame to start them spinning. But what would be required to get the black gear spinning?

William looked up from his hand and suggested into the quiet, “Perhaps the black gear requires all three flames at once?”

Sherena grimaced, “That would be for a white color, combining all the colors. Black is the lack of color. Perhaps you should do nothing with the black gear?”

Arwin was quick to respond, “But something has to make the gear spin, like when the red gear spun and the secret door opened. I am not sure that doing nothing would activate this room’s secret exit.”

William grinned slyly and in a serious tone replied, “Perhaps you need to shoot an arrow at that one…”

Both Sherena and Arwin glanced at William and could not help but burst out laughing, letting the stress of the puzzle burn itself out in their loud barks of laughter! As the last echo’s died down and they wiped tears from their eyes at the memory of Arwin breaking an arrow on the metal gear he had shot in frustration earlier.

After Arwin had finally caught his breath again, he wheezed, “Seriously, what are we going to do? That black gear means something…”

Sherena gasped! She knew what was necessary, a memory returning to her from a time with William not so long ago. She looked at William and saw the colored flames on three of William’s fingers, and just barely noticeable was a blackness surrounding the fourth finger. The only finger without a flame surrounding it now was his thumb!

William and Arwin both looked at the shocked look on Sherena’s face. William rushed to her, “What is it?”

Sherena took William’s wrist and held it up. The red, yellow and purple flames blazed brightly on his first three fingers. She folded those fingers down, leaving the pinky still standing. It was then that they saw it. A black haze surrounded the pinky finger, a swirling mist that took on the ominous shape of a vortex. It was the key to the black gear!

Arwin yelled out, “YES!”

William reached his arm behind Sherena and pulled her close to him and kissed her on the lips, long enough for Arwin to finally the break the silence, “Were not getting any younger here, you know…”

Grinning, William and Sherena moved apart, slowly.

Both Arwin and Sherena moved towards the exit as William stood in the center of the room. He decided to send the blackness first to make sure it would spin the gear.

William concentrated and extended his arm with his pinky finger extended; the blackness swirled around his hand now and shot out at the gear. A screeching noise blasted through the room and electric arcs swarmed up the lance of blackness that flowed from William and quickly surrounded him. As the thunder echoed through the room, William fell to the floor in agony and the smell of burning flesh suddenly filled the room.

Sherena rushed forward with Arwin right behind her as she screamed, “William!”

[WillieSea]

Sherena and Arwin stopped before the kneeling William, black wisps of smoke curled up around him. His hair stood out straight from his head, trails of smoke curled off the ends. He looked up at them and grinned, sparks of electric light traced around his teeth. He opened his mouth to talk and coughed on the smoke, “I guess that’s not the first gear to activate.”

Sherena hugged him close to her and then slapped him on the back of the head. “You have to be more careful! You trying to make me a widow already?”

Arwin chuckled behind her and when Sherena quickly turned her head to glare at him, he choked on his laughing at the look on her face. But, a grin quickly covered her face and then the three of them laughed again.

When they finally settled down, Arwin voiced his opinion, “Perhaps the first gear to be activated should be in the order of the flames on your fingers. The pointing finger is usually always associated with being first.”

William laughed again, “Yes, you’re probably right, but perhaps I can rest a moment before I try that again. That was some jolt!”

Sherena hugged him close and rested her head on his shoulder, “You take all the time you like. We are not going anywhere.”

Arwin pulled a food package from his backpack and noticed there was a note tucked into the ribbon that tied it closed. He pulled it out and opened it up. It was a note from Jean. A tear ran down his face as he read the note.

---

My dearest Arwin,

May this food replenish your body and bring you back to me soon. I miss you so much when you are gone. Please take good care of our friends and benefactors, keep them and yourself safe. I love you very much and will keep a candle in the window for your return.

Love and kisses,

Jean

---

The three of them ate in silence. Jean was a fabulous cook; the biscuits were especially good with the cheese and jerky. With their meal finally finished, they once again took their positions.

William extended his first finger, shooting a ball of red fire at the red gear. He turned and shot a golden lance of flame at the yellow gear. Turning again, a purple beam of light blasted the purple gear. The last turn set him facing the black gear again. He hesitated momentarily, remembering the shock he had received the last time he tried this gear. His decision made, he sent the black fog at the black gear.

There were audible clicking noises echoing through the room. The four gears started spinning faster and faster as the four flames burned on their surface. The circular floor William stood on suddenly dropped an inch. He jumped off it and joined Arwin and Sherena as they stood off to the side and watched the circle. It then cracked into a pie shaped pieces. The pieces started dropping down into the floor and one by one, a piece would stop while the rest continued down. It was quickly apparent that the pie shaped pieces formed a stairwell to another passage below this room.

When the gears stopped and the steps down stopped moving and all was silent once again, the three of them headed down the newly opened stairwell. The walked down a sloping passage. In the far distance a greenish light could be seen at the end of this passage. They quickly but cautiously moved towards the light.

It gave William time to think about the green flame that had adorned the wall at the entrance to this place. He looked down at his hand, at the four flames that burned there. He wondered what would happen when he acquired the last flame. He assumed that the last flame resided here, a green flame. Some of the images he saw in the memories that were shown to him when he had passed out earlier gave him pause to reflect on their meaning.

Sherena noticed that William was walking slower and she held his arm and snuggled her head onto his shoulders. “What wrong?”

She then waited patiently as William stopped and said nothing. She knew he was deep in thought and would talk when he was ready. It was now that she wished she retained her connection with him.

Finally, William whispered into the silence, “I fear what lies ahead. I…, I have seen visions of a past that frightens me. I have seen the mechanisms put in place that would cause the destruction of this entire world, this whole reality. There was a battle to stop this evil, a great battle of epic proportions.”

William held up his hand to show Sherena and Arwin the four flames on his fingers. “I have seen visions, perhaps memories. I, I think they were visions of me, and I was almost defeated by this evil. I survived by splitting my soul into five pieces and sending them through time and space, hidden on this plane of existence. It’s like a dream to me; I don’t know what is real and what is not anymore.”

William shook his head, “My physical form, my being then followed the soul pieces in order to search them out and find them when the time was right. It would be when the evil, the destroyer was preparing to annihilate this realm. It would be then that this evil would be at its weakest as it prepared its great magics. It was the only choice I had at the time.”

Sherena and Arwin both looked wide eyed at William, not knowing what to say. It was all too fantastic to believe. Arwin looked closely at William and saw the fear etched on his face. He had never seen William show fear in all the time he had known him and it scared him deeply. He looked once again down the passage at the glowing green light at its end. He wondered what he had got himself into and he wondered once again if he would live see his child. A shiver ran through his body as he pondered his mortality.

In a whisper, William continued, “I saw visions of myself, but I was not what I am now. I was something else then. I know that when I find the last flame, the last piece of my soul that I will have to face that evil and finally conquer it. Or this existence will cease to be. I also understand that I have been helped by many other powerful beings of this realm, they each have taught me something that may help in the upcoming battle. It’s their realm and they understand that perhaps I am their best hope at stopping the destruction.”

William looked again down the passage at the pulsing green light that glowed from a room at its end. With his mind made up and his friends finally told what he knew, he marched towards his destiny. Sherena and Arwin followed right behind him not saying a word.

[WhoGuru]

The Queen Asilia pitched and rolled in the high seas. Bryn had taken to holding on to one of the beams on the outer wall, holding herself steady against the constant swaying. Above, she could hear the voices of the crew rise and fall as they called out and responded to orders. Once or twice she smiled, hearing the unmistakable sound of Grond's voice and then Jack's or Garulf's, yelling above the wind.

The squall was a wicked thing, pounding the ship with water as it slid into and out of the deep troughs. It had come upon them late in the night. Jack, who had appointed himself her guardian, had been sleeping outside the door of her room in the hold. He'd poked his head inside long enough to warn her, assuring her she was safer below, and then pelted for the deck.

As wave after massive wave hit the ship, each one sounded like a muted explosion to Bryn and she wondered how the men topside were faring.

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

Jack ducked behind the wheel house as yet another comber rolled across the bow of the ship and aft. While many of the crew were grim-faced and afraid, Jack grinned as he steadied the wheel. It had been far too long since he'd had a good fight with the ocean. She was harsh and mercurial and needed arguing with. He often considered her his mistress and very much a living thing like any other woman.

He laughed aloud to himself at that whimsy. Grond appeared at his elbow.

"Are ye daft. Jack?" The Nord yelled in his ear. He was near drowned, his hands raw from hauling sail lines and here stood Calico Jack laughing as though it were a joke. The moons and their light had long vanished behind the angry clouds of the squall and the fore deck of the ship was all but hidden in darkness from the wheel house.

"Don't you worry." Jack yelled back to him. "We'll be out of this soon enough, friend Grond!"

"If you say so!" Grond ducked out of the small cover and back on deck when he heard Captain Caudill hollering his name. Grond grinned now as well. He'd had a hard time holding onto a dislike for the man, as Jack had said he would. The Queen Asilia's captain had his own special morality, one their own pirate understood. Rather than hide in his cabin during the storm, he was on the deck with his crew, hauling line, setting sail and in general whipping the crew to work lest any of them consider taking shelter when he did not.

Grond appreciated that in the man. He'd been gracious, and even a bit apologetic when Grond and Garulf had signed the Pirate Articles in his cabin a mere two days ago. Caudill had plied the three well with Rum before sending the Nords, swaying, below decks and still singing badly to find hammocks for the night among the crew.

Grond saw Garulf now, holding tightly to the line that held the mainsil, keeping it from billowing back up and capsizing the ship. Grond slid across the water logged deck to him and took firm hold of the rope with him.

"About time you got your soft, addled hide out of the wheel house and back down here with the rest of us!" Garulf shouted over the wind and thunder.

Grond grinned at him, standing shoulder to shoulder with him. "Couldn't risk you letting it slip, seeing as you're the one who's gone soft playing catch and release with dragons all these years."

"Ha!" Garulf shouted. Any further conversation was drowned out in another wave breaking across the ship, over the side this time and they fought to hold their ground and the sail as several crew were washed across the deck and into the safety rails on the other side.

Captain Caudill was tied to the main mast by a thin line and yelling up at Jack in the wheel house. "Turn her into the wind!" He bellowed, his voice carrying easily over the deafening chaos of the storm. A muffled shout answered him and the ship began to turn amongst the waves, the wind changing direction and now slapping the Nords in the face as they held the lines.

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

Bryn fought to keep her feet in the hold as the ship seemed to tilt sideways for a moment. It righted itself then and she heaved a sigh. It may have been safer and drier in her prison but it was certainly no less stressful for only being able to hear the fight that was going on above as the men strove to keep the Queen Asilia afloat.

Another bang near deafened her as a wave crashed into the side of the ship. Bryn shouted in surprise, and then fear, as water began to jet from between two of the boards beside her. She fell back when the ship rolled once more and came to her feet, wet, against the other wall.

"Oh this is not good." Bryn groaned and went to the door unsteadily, fighting the movement of the ship. "Hey!" She shouted, pounding on the door. Another roll and she was left hanging onto the handle of the door to keep her feet. Water geysered from the wall, shooting clear across the room in spurts, each time the Asilia dipped low in the water. "Open the door!" Bryn jiggled the handle to no avail and her attempts to pull it open netted her nothing.

She banged louder on the door and would have kicked it if she'd been able to keep her feet. There was now an inch of water in the room with her. It was cold and began to numb her toes. Bryn realized then help was not coming. Every able bodied man on the ship must be on deck, holding the ship together as it rode out the storm.

Looking about the room, she spotted the thin pallet they had given her to sleep on now floating on the surface of the shallow water. She went to it, ducking another spray of sea water and pulled the sodden material up. The seams of the pallet ripped easily in her hands and she went to the outer wall, avoiding another spray. She could see where the damage had been made. The wall was actually bowed inward just a fraction and the water erupting from between the bent boards.

Bryn pulled a handful of sodden bedding from inside the pallet. Between sprays, she began to pack the straw fibers into the crack as fast as she could. Several times the ocean destroyed her work, shooting it out into the room but she persevered. It took several minutes, during which time the water deepened until she'd finally managed to pack most of the gap with the straw.

Her fingers were numb with cold from the ocean water and she began stuffing the covering of the pallet into and against the gap as well, holding it in place with one hand and maintaining a firm grip on the wall with the other. The sea water no longer geysered into the room but poured in a steady stream down the wall.

"So, I'll drown slower." Bryn muttered to herself and laughed even as her teeth began to chatter. The water was to her ankles, her feet long since made numb and she wondered how long it would be before someone noticed the water leaking out from under her door.

[WhoGuru]

Jack held firmly to the wheel as the storm's fury fought to rip it from his hands. Keeping the Queen Asilia on course and into the wind was testing his skills. Just on the horizon, he could now see a glimmer of daylight and felt relief. Dawn had come while they weathered the rough seas and the edge of the squall was nearing them, if they could just stay afloat until then.

He grunted with effort, using all his strength to keep the ship headed true but she was now trying to pull to his left with every moment. "Caudill!" Jack shouted above the raging wind. He shouted again and moments later, his pirate friend appeared at his side, drenched and grinning.

"Feel alive yet, Jack?" He asked with the same repressed glee Jack felt running through him. They shared a moment of their love of the sea in all her tempers.

"Aye, and the Asilia is pulling to port." Jack grunted again, muscling the wheel under control. "We're taking on water somewhere below I think."

"Damn." Caudill stepped to the wheel and took hold of it beside him. "Take one of your Nords and go below then. Find it before we end up dreugh bait."

Jack released the wheel and saluted with a tired arm before dodging out of the wheel house. He held the rails tightly as he went down on deck. Grond and Garulf were still holding the line to the Mainsil as two other crew tied it off to a winch behind them.

"Grond!" Jack yelled. "We're taking on water below, portside!"

Grond said something to Garulf and stepped clear of the line just as a massive wave broke over the side. The water crashed into Jack, sending him sliding across the deck and into Garulf, taking his legs out from under him. The two were washed across the deck as it tipped and into the safety rail, Jack slamming Grond hard into the rails with a shared grunt.

Jack pushed away from the stunned Nord and heard the cracking a moment before the rail gave way. Grond slipped over the side in a rush of water with a yell. "Grond!" Jack slid back to the rail, bracing himself on the unbroken portion and looked over the side. The Nord hung by one arm, thumping into the side of the ship as it rocked. "Hang on!" Grond stared up at him and waved his other arm before making a grab for the rail.

Jack went to the main mast, taking the line Captain Caudill had been using. He slid back to the rail, bracing his feet once more and tossed the line over the side. A moment later, he felt Grond's weight on the line and leaned back, pulling. The Nord was not light and Jack felt the muscles in his arms and back straining with the effort to hold his weight. "Hurry up." Jack ground out as Grond's head appeared over the side. "I've rustled cows...that weigh less...than you."

Grond pulled himself back onto the deck and hugged the rail for a few moments. "If we ever get on dry land again, I'll see you sorry for that." He growled and Jack laughed, standing and slapped him on the shoulder.

"Come on, Grond. We've a leak to find." Jack pulled him up and grinned at the look on the Nord's face. He had a feeling he was going to find himself well thumped at some point in the future. They went below quickly, heaving twin sighs of relief to be out of the wind and water. Below decks was near deserted. Everyone was topside for the storm. "It'll be down near the boat's waterline somewhere." Jack said and led Grond down the narrow stairs.

At each deck, they checked quickly through each section of the ship and found nothing. They headed down another deck, to the storage holds and stepped into water at the bottom of the ladder.

"I think we found it." Grond said, amused.

"Bryn." Jack breathed and leaped forward down the companionway, Grond at his heels. "Her cell is down here." They ran through the inch deep water, bouncing from wall to wall as the ship heaved until they reached her door. "Bryn!" jack yelled through the door. He undid the lock and tried to push the door inward but it wouldn't budge.

"Move over lightweight." Grond gave him friendly push and put his shoulder to the door. With a mighty grunt, Grond shoved at the door and got it open a few inches. Water poured out through the crack and the men despaired.

"Jack!" Bryn's voice came clearly then. The men's knees went weak with relief. "Get me out of here!" She yelled. Inside the room, she watched the door inch open and the water level slowly began to fall. It had reached her waist and she was barely able to hold onto to the wall or her makeshift patch anymore for the shaking of her body. The water was frigid.

The door inched open further and water whooshed out the opening as Grond and Jack stumbled into the room together. "Bryn lass!" Grond went to her and began rubbing her arms as her legs went weak. "You're freezing."

"Sea water." Jack said matter of factly and stopped to look at her with a smile. "Cold and wet doesn't hurt your looks any girl." He said boldly and made her laugh. He nodded as though that had been his intent and bent then to look at her handiwork. "Not too shabby." He commented.

Bryn was all but cuddling Grond now, her teeth chattering. "Please tell me there's somewhere warm and dry I can go?"

"Soon lass." Jack replied. "We need to patch this up properly first. Keep a hold on this Grond?" The Nord moved with Bryn and placed a large hand over the makeshift patch as Jack strode from the room. He kept Bryn in the curve of his arm, trying to warm her but she was still ice cold.

"The ship has stopped rocking so much." Bryn commented and Grond noticed it as well.

"Perhaps the storm has passed finally." He said and hoped.

"It has." Jack said as he returned. "Blew itself out as quickly as it blew in." He carried several boards, a hammer and a handful of nails with him and bent to the wall once more. It took only minutes to shore up the wall and Jack ushered them out of the room and up to the deck.

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

Much later, the pirates lounged about the deck, enjoying the crisp, clear smell of the ocean air after a storm. Grond and Garulf hung side by side over the rails. With the rough seas passed, their stomachs were now letting them know how much they had not enjoyed the buffeting. Jack grinned from the wheel house in high humor at them and breathed deeply of the clean air. The only thing that would make this moment perfect, he thought, would to be at the helm of his own ship.

He sighed and shook his head. He had a feeling it would be a while until he stood on his own deck once more. Captain Caudill had taken Bryn to his own cabin, wrapping her in blankets and thanking her for stopping the leak that could surely have sunk them. Caudill stood beside Jack now, looking out over his ship.

"You could reconsider selling her, Trump." Jack pleaded for Bryn's release once more. "She did help save your boat after all."

"Only to save her own skin." Caudill replied with a grin. "Can't do it, much as I appreciate her." He fiddled with the feather that hung from his hat and watched Jack. "The three of you are going to find some way to stop me selling her."

Jack shrugged. "You expect me to do any less?" He grinned at his fellow pirate captain. "You'd do the same were it you."

"Of course." Caudill nodded and stepped to Jack, taking his shoulder. "I am sorry lad." He said. Jack looked curiously at him, not understanding and felt a sharp sting on the back of his neck.

"What?" Jack managed and then the world began to blur. Distantly, he saw Grond and Garulf on the deck each slap a hand to their necks. Beside him, Caudill held out a hand, displaying a small dart.

"I gave my word I'd not sell the three of you and I'll keep it. The girl, however, is coming with us to Morrowind. House Hlaalu has offered a great reward for slaves of the gentler variety." He caught Jack as the man slumped to the deck and eased him down. "You'll forgive me someday, lad."

"Wont." Jack managed around a thick tongue and then blackness took him.

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

"Wake up, Jack." Garulf's voice in his ear startled him as did the heavy punch to his shoulder. He groaned and forced his eyes open.

"Wha' happened?" He rubbed the back of his neck and then bolted up, barely avoiding Garulf's chin. "That scoundrel! He drugged me!"

"Us." Grond said and Jack turned to find him and then gaped. They were in a large dinghy, bobbing gently in the ocean. The dinghy's sail was furled inside the boat, paddles crossed atop it. "He set us adrift?"

"Aye, and kept Bryn." Garulf growled.

Jack stared and then began to chuckle and then laugh. He wiped tears from his eyes. "Well he is a pirate and there's little honor among our kind of thieves after all." Jack pushed himself up. "We've got to get this sail up and get after them."

"How do we know where they're going?" Grond asked, pulling the pieces of the mast up from the boat's bottom.

"Morrowind." Jack replied and grinned at the shock on their faces. "He told me as I was passing out. One of the great houses is buying her."

"I'll kill him." Garulf said and helped them to set up the mast.

"No. You wont." Jack looked sternly at him. "Unless he attacks you first, leave him be. He did keep his word, more or less. We aren't being sold, Bryn is safe for the moment until she is sold and more than that, we have our freedom. Come on." He punched the Nord lightly in the shoulder and together they righted the mast, hoisted the sail and set off in the direction of Morrowind and, they hoped, Bryn.

[DarkRider]

“Make it stop,” Garulf moaned, hanging over the side of the dinghy as it fell and rose on every wave.

Grond continued to pull the oars despite his complaints, “Yer looking a bit green there, dragon breath,” he teased, “How is it you survived the storm on that bloody ship, but this wee rowboat has you spitting up like an infant?”

“First off,” Garulf growled, “this is worse and second…” he hesitated, “second...*ulp*” the Nord tipped back over the side of the boat to wretch.

Jack laughed to himself with a shake of his head, albeit sympathetically, as he tried to assemble a proper sail. Though the water was choppy from the storm the night before, there was no wind, so it would do them little good for the time being, but the work kept him busy and his mind off their predicament. He had known of men lost at sea before and most never returned; those who did survive were never the same after a long stretch staring death in the face alone on the water. The sea in all its vastness could be harder to travel and navigate than a desert; the odds of reaching land were not in their favor. Their survival depended on catching a wind soon and on how far Caudill had dropped them from Morrowind’s shores.

                         ==============================================================================

“Follow me, girl,” a short Dunmer woman ordered Bryn with an even voice, tugging at the chain of the shackles that had bound her wrists. Bryn allowed herself to be lead away from the slave market where Caudill had promptly exchanged her for his pay as expected. She should have known this was how things would play out. Caudill was a pirate through and through. The Dunmer woman led her through the streets of the province, saying nothing to her beyond an occasional chiding for her to keep up. The woman greeted her neighbors, people she knew, as they passed.  Bryn watched patiently for an opportunity to overwhelm the woman and seize her freedom, but the Dunmer wisely stayed to main roads where the other people around would never stand by and watch an outsider and slave attack one of their own.

She led Bryn toward a large estate house on the edge of the township, surrounded by a high iron fence on all sides. The front walk was paved and lush gardens lined the green yard. Several people were busily tending the grounds. They were not Dunmer and the irons on their wrists suggested these were also slaves. She would soon be joining them.

“Where are you taking me?” Bryn asked, suspecting she would receive no answer.

The short Dunmer glanced back over her shoulders, “To meet your new master. He will decide your fate,” she answered cryptically, “Now hurry.”

                   ===================================================================================

“We…are going…to die out here!” Grond growled, flopping back against the edge of the dinghy. Jack was leaning against the other side trying to position the sail to block the sun. Garulf was taking a turn at the oars, finding it easier to hold onto his guts if he kept busy. It had been hours since they had first discovered their plight, and despite the hours of endless rowing, they were no nearer to land. The rolling waves were too high; they wouldn’t be able to spot land until they were right on top of it. Jack kept his eyes on the horizon; a roiling sea meant winds would be upon them eventually. His throat and mouth were parched; they had no water and no food to sustain them.

“Nonsense,” Jack answered evenly in a tone that was questionable of sarcasm, “only one of us is going to die. Once he passes the other two will eat like kings.”

“Let’s hope it’s not Grond then,” Garulf added.

A dark spot flickered in the distance when the boat raised high enough to see over the waves, and again, catching Jack’s eye, “There’s a ship on the horizon,” he said, scrambling to his feet.

Grond stood beside him, “If we can get their attention we might be saved.”

“Maybe,” Jack agreed, pulling himself up on the slim mast for a better look. Grond held him steady on his precarious perch, long enough for the pirate to identify the distant ship; the long sleek line, the five masts, the red flags, there was no mistaking it.

“It’s the Charlotte,” Jack sighed in relief, a great smile splitting his face, “We are saved.”

[WhoGuru]

"Cap'n!"

Bootleg Barrow looked up from the maps he was pouring over in his cabin aboard the Charlotte. They'd been at port in Morrowind for near a week taking on supplies and making repairs. He had a yen for the Imperial Trade Routes to the North. They were lucrative this time of year if you knew the currents. He set his sextant aside and opened the door, stepping out on deck. His crew were squaring away the sails busily, preparing to set off.

"Cap'n!" One of his crew dashed up the gangway to him and slid to a stop, grinning. "You have to hear this!"

"Out with it, Tiberius." Bootleg ordered.

"We were in the Drunken Sailor having a pint or three." Tiberius grinned. "Plain as the nose on my face was our Jack's old friend Captain Caudill knocking a few back with his own boys."

"And I care what Trump was doing having a drink?" Bootleg said severely. He'd little patience for frivolity. Tiberius wilted somewhat under the stare but continued.

"Yes, sir. You see he was talking about how they'd just made a sale in the slave market and then he was after boasting about how they'd set Calico Jack and his friends adrift at sea on their way here." As he'd hoped, his Captain's face suddenly registered interest.

"Is that so?" Bootleg said slowly, already considering how long until they could get under way.

"Aye, sir. Just a few miles out to the east so he said."

Bootleg nodded. "Go back to the pub, get the men. We're under way in an hour." He ordered and went back to his cabin, not watching Tiberius scurry from the deck. Inside, he laughed loud and long. It wasn't often he got to rescue his own son. Jack had learned the ways of the sea early and well at his father's side.

He gathered up his charts, went back on deck and in short order, had his crew hoisting his trademark red sails into the crisp morning air.

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

Bryn stood in a grand hall, vibrantly painted and thought she might enjoy this trip to Morrowind under other circumstances. She had always wished to see it, but this had not been quite what she'd imagined. The Dunmer woman who'd led her in had left Bryn there with a guard. Another Dunmer, hand on his short sword, who watched her as she would watch a fly. Little interest unless she did something irritating. She found herself wondering if Jack, Grond and Garulf were alright. She'd not even seen them before they'd reached port.

Shortly, another Dunmer man entered the room. He was very well dressed in the curious garb of the province, dark hair slicked back from his high forehead and his red eyes latched onto her.

"So you are the new slave?" He said and circled Bryn as you would a horse, looking her over. "You are some bedraggled girl. The journey from Cyrodiil was rough?"

Bryn stared at him as he passed in front of her and stopped.

"You may answer me if you wish. I am Lord Hetman Arendu of Great House Hlaalu, your new master." He bowed slightly and smirked as if amused at himself.

"What are you going to do with me?" Bryn asked quietly.

Lord Arendu smiled again. He reached out and took a lock of Bryn's auburn hair in his fingers. "I have not yet decided. I was not expecting so pretty a slave." Bryn jerked her head back from him and he laughed, clapping his hands. "Good, good. You will need spirit I think." He tilted his head, looking at her and finally nodded. "Yes, I will give you to my son. Neldam." He snapped his fingers at the guard who promptly stepped outside.

"What exactly is it you think I will be doing for your son?" Bryn asked now and braced herself for the answer. Lord Arendu laughed again.

"Why you will do whatever he, or any other member of my household tell you to, girl." He did not smile now and stepped close to her. "Fail to do so and you will be punished. Is the skin on your back as delicate as that on your face I wonder?"

The guard returned, another slave in tow and the Lord gestured at Bryn. "Take this one to my son. See that she is properly attired to serve in the household."

"Yes, my Lord." The woman bobbed her head nervously and waited for Bryn to come to her. When she did, the guard took the lead on her shackles and led the women away, deeper into the house and Bryn resigned herself to waiting for the first opportunity to escape. She had survived the shadow army, she would find her way home again.

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

"Ahoy there!" The call came from the deck of the Charlotte as the dinghy bobbed alongside her hull. Jack, Grond and Garulf cheered and clambered quickly up the rope ladder dangled over the side. Jack had assured them that this time they truly were safe with these pirates.

"Bloody pirates." Grond muttered from below Jack as they climbed.

Jack laughed and swung himself up onto the deck and found himself grabbed up in a crushing hug. Bootleg swung him about, set him down and then soundly cuffed him upside the head. "Daft boy. Trusting pirates and worse, one you call a friend. Did I teach you no better than that?"

The crew gathered about them whooped with laughter as Grond and Garulf did, helped on deck by many hands. Seeing their pirate friend chastised by the older man set quite a different tone aboard this ship. Grond looked closely and realized Jack looked like him. As Jack rubbed the back of his head ruefully, Grond saw the same jaw, eyes and rakish smile and knew he was looking at father and son.

"This just gets more interesting every day." Grond commented and laughed.

"You have no idea." Jack said and grinned, then turned to his father. "Thanks for the rescue, Bootleg. You can tell us how you knew we were out on here on our way to Morrowind."

"Morrowind?" His father stared around at them. "Why would you want to go there? Home's the other way as I understand it."

"We've a friend there." Jack said.

"Sold there." Grond corrected.

"Aye. We need to find her." Garulf said forcibly. "Before something bad happens. She'll not take being a slave well I think."

"Hmm." Bootleg turned to his son. "Well then, Jack. Best take the wheel then, and try not to run us up on the reefs."

Jack dropped his head and muttered up the stairs to the wheelhouse. "One time." He grumbled and called back to his father as he went. "I was only nine you know. You could let that go someday."

"Nope." Bootleg grinned. "I don't suppose I will."

[WhoGuru]

Bryn was led through the sprawling house, down long corridors and curving ramps and finally into a large master chamber. The guard, saying nothing, bolted her leg irons to a small ring in the wall and left. The servant woman went to a large bureau and removed a few items of clothing: A shift and a colorful overdress of some kind. These she set on a table beside Bryn and then, taking a key from her pocket, removed the wrist irons.

"Dress yourself quickly. The young master will be here soon." She said softly, not once meeting Bryn's eyes and left the room as well.

Bryn rubbed her wrists, raw from the manacles and took stock of her surroundings. There was a single window on the other side of the chamber, small, but large enough for her if she could only get there. She looked down at the clothes and knew there was no way she was wearing them. She bent instead to study the ring her leg irons were chained too.

It was a simple iron ring, driven into the mortar wall and from the looks of it, had seen much use. Bryn took hold of it and tried to shift it. Though she couldn't pull it out, she managed to turn it slightly in the wall and felt a stab of hope. She could perhaps work it loose and set to twisting it back and forth as hard as she dared, doing her best not to make a sound lest the guard overhear from outside where he was no doubt standing. She hoped she had enough time.

It took her several minutes of back breaking, hand cramping work to twist and pull the ring loose and finally, it slid from the wall with a soft screech. Bryn sat with it in her hands for several tense moments, hoping the guard had not heard. When he did not materialize, she heaved a sigh and stood.

The window was easy to reach once she moved a chair beneath it. It took her a few frustrating seconds to get on top of the chair with the leg irons. The chain was just short enough to hobble her. Running was not going to be easy but there was no way she was waiting for the 'young lord' to come for her.

She pushed the shutter open, boosting herself up onto the sill, grateful the servant had removed the shackles on her arms and slid through. She dropped several feet to the ground outside and looked about quickly. There was no one in sight and no cry yet from inside to show they knew she was gone. She could hear the sounds of industry from around the side of the great house but near her was the edge of a swampy marsh. Great, long limbed trees dipped low to the ground and Bryn made for them as quickly as she could, forced to a hobbling run by the chain and wishing Jack and his cleverly hidden lockpick were there.

[WhoGuru]

Arlow busily scrubbed at the back wall of the Tavern room. Echo had been 'experimenting' again over breakfast. Yet another cheese related incident and Arlow smirked. He wondered if the smell of burnt cheese would ever leave his Tavern and decided, likely not. The scorch marks were sure to make Grond and the Dark Rider a bit tetchy when they returned and he snorted.

Lily had vanished downstairs to Grond's room in hopes of finding some combination of herbs that would help with the cleaning process. Meanwhile, Wilson had shooed Echo out the back door and was, he imagined, still trying to scrub the lad clean in the springs.

"Arlow!" Wilson's voice came to him, but from the front of the Tavern and he frowned, wondering what he was doing out there. With a sigh, he set his rag aside and headed out the front door.

"What is it man?" Arlow called and then stopped. Trooping up the road were four horses. Dancing about their legs, two brindle dogs yipping happily as they came. "What in the Nine..." Arlow muttered.

"Is that not Grond's horse there in the lead?" Wilson pointed and Arlow nodded, recognizing Mik easily.

"Aye it is and that spotted white one there belongs to the Lady Bryn no doubt." Arlow and Wilson walked out to meet them and the horses stopped eagerly by the stable doors. The two of them made a quick inventory of the horses and became worried. Their rider's weapons were still in their saddle sheathes, though Brynna's sword was a little askew of hers, as if half pulled.

"What happened to them all?" Wilson breathed softly.

Arlow shook his head. "I don't know." The two dogs, male and female had sniffed around the two men and now took off at a run for the rear of the Tavern.

"Where they off too then?" Wilson asked, suddenly amused.

"Wherever dogs go when their masters aint around I imagine." Arlow watched until they vanished around the building and then slapped Wilson on the back. "Come on then. Let's get these stabled. Whatever happened, I reckon their owners will turn up eventually. Almost time for dinner." He took Mik and Cloud's reigns and led them in stable, Wilson behind him with the other two horses. Silently, he said a short prayer for them, wherever they were, for a speedy return.

[DarkRider]

At long last the Charlotte made berth in the seaside town at Morrowind�s tip. There was no sign of Caudill�s ship among those docked nearby. Grond and Garulf paced restlessly on the deck, waiting for a chance to spring onto solid earth, even if they may be unwelcomed by the locals. It was a better alternative than remaining under the foot of the Charlotte crew. From the Captain�s quarter, Bootleg Barrow appeared followed by a mysterious figure clothed all in black, from head to toe. The lower part of the figure�s face was obscured by a fold of the black garment that rested over his features like a mask, showing only the dark Dunmer hue of the skin around his eyes. Grond nudged Garulf and motioned to them as they approached.

�Ready to sail for Cyrodiil, lads?� Bootleg asked them cheerily.

Grond frowned, �Are you daft? We�re not leaving here without our friend, Bryn is in danger, and I will not rest until she is rescued.�

�She will be, Muthsera,� the dark figure said evenly, �But this is a journey you cannot make. Two Nords such as you would only draw attention; in the world of the slavers�discretion is needed.�

�Bah, there�s no problem that can�t be solved with this,� Garulf boasted, drawing his hammer.

�Easy now,� Bootleg said, setting a hand on Garulf�s hammer to lower it and glancing to the docks, �Let�s not go swinging weapons around.�

�Where�s Jack,� Grond asked, �he won�t sit by and pass off Bryn�s rescue to some Dunmer spy.�

The dark stranger bristled but remained silent. Bootleg intervened, �Jack disembarked before we made berth; couldn�t let anyone see him arrive. If slavers are still in the area, they may alert whoever is holding Bryn that a rescue is on the way�you�ll never find her.�

�I don�t like this,� Grond was seething within himself, reminded of the helplessness he had felt when Red was slain.

�No one�s asking you to like it, N�wah,� the Dunmer said coolly, �You just have to go along with it.�

�Our friend here will be helping Jack,� Bootleg said somewhat gently sensing the mounting tensions, �He can be trusted, he has been a friend of the Charlotte for many moons.�

The Nords exchange a look the Garulf re-holstered his hammer, �Fine. We�ll go along with ye. Doesn�t look like we have much choice in the matter.�

The Dunmer nodded his head in a sort of polite bow toward Bootleg, and then went ashore alone. The Nords watched as the Dunmer vanished among the crowd gathered in the dock market. Grond grabbed Bootleg by the collar, instantly met by several blades being drawn and set against him by the Charlotte�s loyal crew. Their silent threat did nothing to sway him.

�If anything happens to her�there isn�t a place in all of Nirn that you will be able to hide from me, pirate,� Grond growled through clenched teeth.

�If you want to live long enough to make good that threat, I suggest you let me go,� Bootleg answered. His crew pressed their blades into the Nord�s hide to make their point. Grond let him go and the crew backed off slightly.

�Take them to the brig,� Bootleg ordered.

Before the Nords could protest they were manhandled by the largest sailors toward the hold.

�I�m sorry for this,� Bootleg said genuinely as he headed for the wheel, �I promised Jack I�d get ye safely to Anvil. I see to make good on that word, but for my safety and the safety of my crew�well, you understand. Have a good trip, lads.�

� � � � � � � � � � � � � � �===================================================================================

Bryn dropped to the ground beside a large tree, vanishing in the long grass growing around it. The ground was soft, but her attention was not on the swamp water sopping her clothing, but on trying desperately to wrest the shackles from her ankles. In the distance she could hear the howls of tracking dogs, no doubt trailing after her through the swamps as she tried desperately to lose them. Her ankles were swelling from the weight and pressure of the iron making it harder to slip free. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, her hands pulled at the shackles in desperation, her breath was quickening as the howls drew closer. Like a rabbit she was flushed from her hiding spot and took to running again. Bryn glanced over her shoulder and spotted a dark canine form in the long grass bounding toward her. She scanned her surroundings; there was no tree she could climb, no cave she could vanish into, no escape of any kind. She spotted a large mossy boulder ahead and decided to make a stand. She dropped into a crouch, her back against the cool rock, wielding the chain attached to her shackles as a weapon. Timing was essential, she would have to strike a devastating blow to the dog to halt its attack, but he arms were exhausted from carrying her chain, it would be no easy task. She could see the dog coming closer. It bounded through the grass snarling. It would be upon her in one stride...two...three. Just as the creature broke the grass and appeared ahead of her, lunging toward her head with an open maw, it suddenly crumpled with a yelp in a heap at her feet. �

She stared down at the still form of the dog in shock. A slender black steel knife was embedded in the animal�s skull. Bryn�s blood went cold as she crouched closer to the rock and looked for the hand that delivered the creature�s death. The dog�s counterparts howled as they closed in on her location, a reminder that she was not safe yet, and she was pinned between the veritable rock and a hard place. Bryn stood and started to limp away as quickly as she could, but suddenly she was overtaken by a figure cloaked in black. The figure scooped her up into his arms and ran lightly through the swamp like a deer.

�Do not be afraid, Sera,� he said gently, �You are safe now.�

She stared up at him in disbelief, this dark angel who had suddenly appeared and swept her toward safety. Her flight began to take a toll on her senses; she felt a blackness coming over her mind, �Jack?�

With the rest of the world, the growing howls faded away into darkness.

[WhoGuru]

Jack had found tracking Bryn's location childishly simple. He'd been lucky the Queen Asilia had been late and arrived with only a single slave for sale. That had been enough for the locals in the seaside town to take note. The passage of what they described as a moon-skinned outlander through the town and to the manor just outside was the popular gossip when he walked it's streets.

His disguise was perfect, thanks to Bootleg. He smiled beneath the concealing hood, amused that neither of the Nords had recognized him. He strode quickly through the ramshackle town, ignoring the Dunmer hawkers offering him baubles and weapons of dubious value despite their claims. Once he would have dallied for a time, to be sure his disguise was up to the job. This time he felt time was slipping away from him. Though he had not known her long, he knew Bryn would not take slavery quietly. Best to arrive before she forced them to punish her or worse.

Outside the town, and the prying eyes of it's citizens, he left the road heading instead into the swampy marshes surrounding the town on it's south side. He had learned from an Innkeeper that the mansion in question backed the swamps. They would offer the best route of escape once he had Bryn.

As he cut through the marshes, tall grasses and shallow bogs, he heard the sound of howling carry on the warm wind. He changed his course, aiming for them as they were coming from the general direction he had been going. Adrenaline rushed through him. He knew with certainty the hounds had been loosed after Bryn. What other slave would escape so soon after sale? Jack picked up his pace, sprinting between the enormous trees with purpose. The sound of the hounds was becoming closer. Jack scaled one of the ancient trees, perched on one of it's largest limbs and very close now, saw a wavering in the tall grasses of the marsh. The dogs howled again and as he watched, Bryn appeared, hobbling to the cover of a large rock. A massive dog cut through the grasses behind her, intent on taking her down.

Jack pulled a slim black, steel knife from his boot, balanced it easily in his hand as he waited for the right moment and then let it fly...

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

Bryn woke with a start, jerking upright and pulled her legs in defensively. She'd felt someone pulling at her.

"It's alright, Bryn." Jack's voice came to her and she looked down to find him at her feet, lockpick in his hand as he worked on one of the manacles about her ankles. "You're safe."

"Jack." She breathed and settled back. "I thought I'd dreamed that." She winced as he shifted the manacle, unlocking it and slipping it off. He hissed between his teeth at the swollen ankle beneath and set to work on the other one.

"Have you out of these in a minute," He said kindly and bent to his work.

"How did you get here?" Bryn asked, trying to take her mind off the discomfort. Jack grinned up at her briefly, showing her his painted face and he told her what had happened since the storm. He concentrated on not causing her pain as he worked the lock and laughed with her as he related how neither Grond nor Garulf had recognized him.

"My disguise can't have been that good." Jack said finally and eased the second manacle from her ankle. "You knew it was me right away." He chuckled and Bryn flushed gently.

"Can't hide your eyes." She muttered and pulled her feet to her, trying to massage the swollen flesh and blinking tears back at the pain.

Jack laughed again, pleased and amused. "Aye, I suppose not." The distant sound of howling dogs reached them and Bryn tensed as he did. "Alright, enough dilly-dallying, my lady." He rose and bent to her, scooping her up in his arms once more. "No arguments from you. You wont be walking on those until we do something about the swelling."

Bryn wisely didn't argue. "Where are we going?" She asked instead.

"South." Jack said and grunted as he carried her up an incline. "To Gnisis. The garrison there receives a weekly supply shipment from Cyrodiil. We can hitch a ride back."

Bryn chuckled. "I wont ask how a pirate knows the Imperial shipment schedule."

"Best not to." He replied with a breathless laugh. They reached the top of the hill and started down the other side as the dogs howled again behind them. He felt Bryn tense in his arms. "It's alright, girl. They'll not have you on my watch. Grond would never forgive me." He chuckled. "And I think I'm already in for a thumping from him."

At the bottom of the ravine, the dogs' howls lost for the moment, they found a clear stream. Jack set her on a low rock beside the water and helped her removed her shoes. "Best rest your feet in the water," He suggested. "That should help the swelling."

Bryn hissed in a breath as her feet dipped into the clear, cold water and then moaned as her ankles numbed. "Let the dogs find me." She said with her eyes shut and smiled. "I'm not moving."

Jack laughed. "That's the spirit. I'm going to scout ahead." He drew a small dagger from his back and handed it to her. "I'll be back in just a few minutes. My word." He added, seeing the moment of fear in her eyes at being left alone. She nodded and he set off into the marsh. The sun was lowering top his left and the light beginning to fade beneath the ancient, twisted trees. He was looking for a suitable place to hide for the night. While they could travel in the dark, he didn't fancy doing it while carrying her or the risk they'd get turned around. There was no way to navigate without the sun. The moons would never be clear beneath the canopy.

He found a collapsed mine entrance further down the raving and partly up it's side. The remains of Kwama eggs sat in a pile outside. He made a quick foray inside, finding nothing save a few Scribs blindly hunting for food and decided it would have to do and went back to collect Bryn from the stream.

[WhoGuru]

When Jack returned to the stream, he drew his sword instantly. Bryn was nowhere in sight. The grasses about where she had been sitting were disturbed and her boots still sat in a heap where he'd left them.

"Bryn?" He called softly and scanned the area for attackers. He saw nothing and more, heard nothing. "Bryn!" He dared to call more loudly and a hiss met his ears.

"Shhh!"

Jack followed the sound some thirty yards from the stream and found her, alive and alone and crouched awkwardly behind a moss covered boulder.

"Bryn, what are you doing?" Jack asked, sheathing his sword. She pointed up above him and he lurched back reflexively.

"What in Talos' name is that?" She whispered. She had his dagger in her hand and watched the beast above them.

Jack chuckled, recovering himself and crouched down to her. "It's called a Bull Netch. They live all across Morrowind. It wont hurt you."

"It was hovering over me, still is, just breathing like that." Bryn said, exasperated. "And it followed me over here."

Jack valiantly smothered a laugh and picked her up. "Must be your sparkling personality." He took her back to the river, setting her down and did laugh finally as she eased her boots back on. The Netch followed them, slowly gliding through the trees to them. "I think it likes you, girl."

Bryn snorted and used Jack's arm to pull herself up. She teetered on her feet, walking a couple steps and stopping. Jack shook his head and took her up once again. He set off into the trees with her and laughed merrily as the Netch continued to follow them.

They reached the old Kwama mine, guard Netch in tow and Jack squeezed them inside.

"That thing is just going to wait out there, isn't it?" Bryn asked in the darkness. "Stop laughing at me." She said when he started again and then laughed herself. "I've seen you fall off your horse."

"Touche." Jack replied in high humor and struck a torch to light. "There's a small room a little ways up from here with a back tunnel out. Just in case." He said and picked her up once more.

"In case they find us." Bryn added soberly. "I need to get my feet back under me."

"You will." He assured her. They reached the small chamber and found a wobble legged table, a few broken bottles and a moth eaten pallet. "Looks like were not the first to take refuge here." He set her on the pallet and went to the table. He easily split the aged thing into timber and piled it in the center of the little cave. Set alight with the torch, the place seemed a little less foreboding and they set in for a quiet, if tense, night.

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

Some hours later, Bryn was woken from a light sleep by the muffled sound of men yelling. She jerked upright and found Jack at the mouth of their small cave, sword drawn. "What is it?" Bryn asked, though she knew the answer.

"They've found us I think." He looked back to her with a grin. "Though I think they've found your friend first. Doesn't sound as though it's going at all well for them."

Bryn strained her ears and could make out the deep, bass rumbling that must be the Netch growling at their followers. "Is it really that much of a fight? That thing?"

"You'd be surprised." Jack commented. The sounds of battle were dying outside and he could vaguely hear voices raised and coming closer. He sheathed his blade and went to Bryn. "Right. They're coming. Come on, girl." He pulled her up and headed for the tunnel at the rear of the cave.

"Do we even know if there's a way out back there?" She asked and fought to walk beside him with every step as he grabbed up a lit torch from beside the fire.

"We'll find out one way or the other." He replied and the sound of barking dogs spurred him on. "No time to hobble I'm afraid." He picked her up once more and sprinted into the darkened tunnel away from her would be captors.

[Jheuloh]

Rebbecca hid behind a wall of of the Tavern, just before dawn – she was closely observing a feral horse who had found the Taern. It wandered around the ivy growing near the Tavern with curiousity, inspecting the new building found with interest. The horse seemed to be completely amazed by the sight of the Tavern, and frequented the ivy growing on it, sampling some of the leaves carefully, then continuing to investigate the Tavern's exterior. Rebbecca wandered if this horse was merely a lost riding animal, but stayed low, wanting to wait until the sun rose in the morning before seeing if this horse was tame.

[WillieSea]

The three cautiously approached the doorway where the green glow emanated from. It was a useless attempt at stealth as a deep voice broke the silence, “I know you come, golden one. Enter my lair and meet your doom!” The exclamation was finished with a loud hissing noise.

William stopped and faced his friends. “I think this is something I must face myself.”

Both Arwin and Sherena looked back at him with shocked looks on their faces.

Arwin was the first to reply, “No! I have come this far with you and I will finish the last few feet with you. There is nothing more to say on this matter.”

Sherena nodded her head and added, “I will never leave you my love. Your fate is my fate!”

William hung his head, “There is probably nothing I could say or ask that would change your minds. You are true friends to be here with me.” He then looked up at them and continued, “But I must face this alone this one time.”

William stepped backwards into the room and a wall of flames covered the entrance to the room, blocking Arwin and Sherena in the passage. No sounds from their screams to William penetrated the magical wall. He then turned and looked into the room.

The room turned out to be a very large cavern. A green fire rose from a pedestal at the far end. A movement in the center of the room caught William’s attention. A large green creature moved and looked up towards where William stood surveying the chamber. Realization then dawned on William as he recognized a large and ancient green dragon.

Eloshizar! One of the Evil ones minions who had been a part of William’s temporary defeat and the reason he had to split his power, his soul, and to cast it into this realm.

Eloshizar rumbled, “Ah, I see you recognize me! Your power is increasing, but you will not go any further. This last piece of yourself shall remain forever apart from you. It will be destroyed when the master destroys this realm. You still have a chance to save yourself, without this last piece. These creatures that inhabit this realm are of little consequence, why must you persist? Since you are not yet whole, there is no way you can defeat me or get past me. You must realize this by now?”

The last echo’s of Eloshizar’s speech finally dispersed and silence returned to the room. William knew the dragon was right, but there was no way he was going to let it or any other creature destroy this realm. He then smirked, or destroy a part of himself.

- - -

Arwin and Sherena stood on the other side of the fiery barrier yelling and screaming at William to let them in to help him. They listened helplessly as the deep rumbling sound of the dragon spoke to William, They knew a battle was imminent and they wanted to help defeat this truly malevolent and evil creature. They did not want their world to cease to exist!

- - -

William looked down at the great green dragon in the chamber below him. Stone steps lead down to the chamber, and on the far wall another set of stone steps lead up to where the green flames danced, the last essence that William had been searching for. If he could reach that, he would have a very good chance of defeating the beast below. The problem remained as to how he would get past the dragon. It was large and powerful.

He quickly decided that the best time to attack was now. A lightning bolt of incredible power shot forth from William’s outstretched hand blasted into the body of the dragon lifting it slightly off the ground and sending it backwards by the force of the explosion. Scorched and blackened scales marked where the bolt had struck the dragon. Other than that, there was little apparent effect on the dragon.

A hissing laugh echoed through the chamber, “Is that the best you have? My, my, I have seriously over-estimated your current abilities. Come to me and meet your doom, come.”

With that, the green dragon stood up off the ground and opened its great wings, filling half the chamber with its bulk. William looked at the immense size of the dragon and for the first time had a twinge of doubt creep into his mind.

Twin blades formed in William’s hands, their serrated and dual edges glimmered in the light from the green flame. The golden armor that surrounded him fully enclosed his frail human body from head to toe. This was going to be a fight of his lifetime.

William then jumped away from the steps and dove down towards the dragons bulk, his blades guiding the way towards his prey.  Eloshizar screeched a battle cry and the razor sharp teeth in its maw flashed in the green light. Green vapors spewed from the dragons mouth and his wings blew the poisonous vapors towards the quickly descending golden man and around the room.

The golden armor kept the poison away from William’s flesh and filtered it from the air he breathed. But it could not help him see in the suddenly foggy bank of poison he found himself falling through.

In a jarring impact, the blades hit the scaled hide of the beast, deflecting one blade while the other found its mark and penetrated the skin between two scales. William then sent a blast of red hot fire down the blade and into the beast.

Eloshizar felt the blade penetrate his scales and the molten fires start to burn beneath his skin. He screeched out and swung his head around, plowing into the golden one with its thick horn covered head. The force of the blow sent William flying through the air where he crashed into the steps below the green flame.

The world went black as stars floated in William’s vision. He tried to breathe in, to bring air into his crushed body, but only managed gasps. The pain from the impact was tremendous, of all the attacks William was immune to, blunt force was the one thing he could not tolerate. He looked up and saw the green flame so close to him, but so far away.

It was then that the face of Eloshizar came into his view, blocking the green flame above. “Well, well, perhaps you are as powerful as I had surmised at first.”

One of the dragon’s wings hung limply at its side, a deep gash above where the wing was attached to its body bleed a greenish goo which could only be the creatures blood. The deep gash then turned into a small crater as the fire burned itself out. It sent a trail of greasy black smoke into the air around the dragon as it mixed with the green poisonous gas the dragon had filled the room with. William now knew it had been a good idea to keep Arwin and Sherena out of the room. The gas would have dissolved the flesh in their lungs and their bodies.

Eloshizar continued, “Now I will crush the last of life out of you. Prepare to meet your maker!”

The dragon turned around and lifted its great tail high in the air so as to crush the gasping golden man into the stone cobblestones. William was not sure if delirium had overtaken him as he watched what happened next.

The vision of a familiar and loved person hovered high above him and looked down on him. The red hair seemed to flow about and frame her face as she then looked up at the dragon preparing a death blow to the man below. Fires blazed in her eyes and she suddenly glowed an intense white, finally erupting into a shock wave that blasted through the chamber. The blast of white energy knocked the overbalanced dragon over as it had been preparing a crushing blow with its tail. Eloshizar fell forward and crashed his head onto the stone floor.

William was finally able to gasp some air into his bruised body. He knew he did not have much time before the dragon was able to gain his feet again. He gasped for air as he started crawling up the stone stairs towards the green flame. The poisonous vapors the dragon had filled the room with seemed to be drawn to the green flame which burned even brighter when the vapor touched it. In moments, the poison had been cleared from the chamber.

William had managed to clamber up half the steps when he heard behind him the familiar voice of Eloshizar say, “Oh no you don’t!”

[DarkRider]

Bryn slid on the cold wet stone until she was seated, “Wait,” she called after Jack, who was bearing a torch down the path ahead of her some, “Jack, please.”

The pirate stopped his descent into the long tunnelway and turned to see her sitting on the wet ground rubbing her ankles mournfully. He turned to return to her side, but a haunting sound from somewhere down the hall caught his ear. His breath held in his chest as he strained to listen.

“What is it?” Bryn asked seeing his posture change.

“Shh,” he hushed her. Far down the hall the sound echoed again…a ship bell.

With only silence in the cave, Bryn heard the ringing as well and her exp​ression furrowed in confusion, “What is that?” she asked, “You think the cave opens up soon? Near the harbor?”

Jack shook his head, “Don’t think we’ve walked long enough to be back around to the harbor; besides, we’re heading in the wrong direction.”

“Maybe it’s a bandit camp…or something?”

“Maybe,” Jack returned to her side as she tried to stand, helping her to her feet, “Let’s keep quiet and on our guard, just in case.”

Bryn nodded and followed him down the tunnel once more. As they turned another bend, the smell of sea water met them. Salt on the air in a gentle breeze that ruffled Bryn's sweat streaked hair from her face. Jack looked back at her and held his finger to his mouth, then smothered out the torch on the tunnel floor.

Bryn reached out quickly and caught the back of his wide belt. She'd no wish to lose him in the dark. The bell sounded again, nearer now and she shuffled behind him silently. Soon she found there was light to be had, very dim but getting brighter as they went. Jack took her hand then, pulling her beside him and all but breathed in her ear.

"There's an opening ahead. I hear something moving."

Bryn said nothing, nodding to show she'd heard and drew the dagger he had leant her. They stepped cautiously through the opening and found themselves on a high ledge overlooking a partially flooded cavern with a massive hole in the outer wall that clearly showed the sea. Below them, floating serenely on the low tide, sat a ship. She was old and somewhat battered but weathered well for being inside the cavern for who knew how long.

Bryn tugged Jack's arm and pointed down. On the rocks below their ledge and on the deck of the ship itself strode ghosts, shades of the departed. Even from their vantage point high above it was clear they were pirates, or had been at one time. Their spirits now guarded the derelict ship.

Jack nodded and motioned her back into the tunnel mouth. Once inside, he bent to her ear again. "We need that ship."

"Will she sail? After so long stranded in this cave." Bryn wondered and then voiced something she had noticed. "The center mast looked wrong, Jack. Too short. How can we sail her if she can't carry a sail?"

Jack grinned. "She will. They unstepped the main mast to get her in here. I saw it lashed to the deck. All we have to do is hoist her back up."

"Oh is that all." Bryn replied irreverently. "You're forgetting the part where we have to deal with the ghosts of nine or more dead pirates to reach it."

"I wasn't forgetting." He said and frowned. "This is going to be interesting."

Bryn missed the familiar weight of her longsword and hoped it had not been lost along with her horse. "Get me a sword and we'll be fine." She said and earned another of his grins.

"Nothing easier." He waved an arm back to the cave. "Shall we?"

Bryn suppressed the urge to laugh and shook her head instead. Only a pirate could look at this situation and grin as though it were a game. She hefted the light dagger in her hand and, Jack at her side, went back to the ledge and together searched for a way to climb down without being seen.

They found a narrow pass down the underground cliff face. It was a steep climb with her sore ankles, but knowing it would be over soon gave Bryn the fortitude to go on. They reached a turn in the pass where the ships rigging was fanned out so close they could nearly touch it. Jack paused for a long time staring at the ropes swaying in a silent draft.

“Don’t even think about it,” Bryn said in a whisper, casting a glance down to the ship deck where the ghostly forms continued through the motions of tending their ship.

“Why not?” Jack flashed a grin at her, “Beats climbing down.”

“Why not?” she rolled her eyes and shook her head, “Because Jack, it’s insane, that’s why not.”

It was no use, even as she argued he was climbing up on the jagged rocks and reaching for the rigging tie. He managed to pull a knot loose and release the end of one of the tie lines. Before she could attempt to stop him Jack swung down on the rope he had loosened landing on his feet nearing the steering column.

“I invoke the rights of parley, I demand to speak with your Captain,” he demanded as arrogantly as if he were speaking to living buccaneers.

From the ledge above Bryn watched as one by one the specters turned their hollow eyes to stare at him. He must have been a sight to them, if they could see; all the pirate swagger hidden in the costume of a Dunmer. Jack brushed the dust from his sleeves unfazed, “Well?”

As one the pirates drew enchanted blades and attacked.

Bryn climbed up to the rigging, “That’s it,” she said aloud to herself as she pulled a rope free and prepared to swing down to his aid, “If we get out of this I’m giving Grond permission to kill him.”

[WhoGuru]

Bryn took a firm grip on the rope, saying a quick prayer and swung free from the rock face. She flew out over the ship and down towards the fight. She saw Jack draw his cutlass and, quick like a snake, fend off the first attack of the ghost pirates.

As she neared the deck, Bryn put her feet down to catch herself and squeaked when her ankles gave, unable to take the impact. She hit the deck gracelessly on her backside and slid across it. She took the legs out from under four of the pirates, sailing through them and coming to rest against Jack.

The pirates legs had felt like falling into water from a great height, soft as she'd passed through them and they'd tumbled soundlessly behind her. Jack reached down, taking her shoulder and pulled her upright. "Nice of you to join me!" He roared and Bryn found one of the pirates blades thrust into her hand. "See if that suits you! If not, we'll find you another!" He leaped away back into the fray with a laugh, perfectly in his element and she laughed as well.

"Suits me just fine!" Bryn called and turned to meet her own attackers. Unsteady on her feet, she was made more so by the gently swaying deck. The sword however was lighter than she was used to but cut through the spirits with ease. She wondered briefly what enchantment the blade held as it flashed briefly in her grasp. Of a sudden, she felt energy return, invigorating her as she cut into yet another pirate and gasped at the strength of the feeling.

Each time she wounded one of them, another wave would surge through her. Bryn's tender ankles were soon forgotten as she fought. Jack danced nimbly about the pirates on the foredeck, down to only two now, he would make quick work of them. Bryn dispatched another and the last, hesitating a moment, turned and ran to her surprise, vanishing through a door below the pilot house and below decks.

Jack turned to find Bryn, hearing her yell and saw her give chase to one of the lost souls and head below decks without him. "Bryn!" He called in warning but she was beyond his hearing. Jack beat back one pirate, slicing it neatly in two and turned to the other. He now held one of their own swords in his left hand. He flourished both blades at the undead pirate and as it watched the whirling blades, trying to defend itself, Jack had it's head from it's shoulders before it realized.

He yelled in triumph and leaped to follow Bryn. Jack pulled up short with a gasp. Three more of the ghosts had appeared from over the side, those that had been patrolling the meager shore. They blocked his way, swords waiting and Jack was forced to roll away from what looked like a Frost spell the taller of the two loosed at him. "Gonna be like that is it?" He growled with a grin and rolled to his feet, blades at the ready. "With you in a minute, Bryn." He yelled, hoping she'd hear and stepped ahead to send the last of his fellow pirates on to their rest.

-------

Bryn rushed inside the ship, seeing the head of the spirit vanish once more through a trap door. The energy from the sword still coursed through her though it was waning and she yearned to feel it again. She pulled the trap door open and dropped to the deck below into a dimly lit hall. Few torches burned here and those that did guttered with a blue light as if they too were ghostly.

She went cautiously along the corridor, seeking her prey. At a turn in the hall, she found herself in a wide open hold, shelves along the walls and the pirate waiting for her on the other side. "No more running." Bryn told it happily and jumped ahead to kill him. As her borrowed sword swept down and into the pirates chest, a huge shadow swept from the door she had not seen behind him. It floated near the ceiling and seemed to snuff the light from the room.

"Wraith." Bryn breathed, caught once more in the sword's magic. She fell back to avoid a sweeping blow with it's gleaming glass longsword and dimly, heard Jack's voice from above as the Wraith advanced on her, empty hand outstretched and now glowing as it readied a spell.

[DarkRider]

Jack made quick work of finishing off the last of the ghost pirates before leaping down to the lower deck to shield Bryn as she scrambled to her feet, using his scabbard to pull herself up. They turned to face the wraith together, but this was no ordinary haunt. It loomed before them with the hollow voids that were once eye sockets and they were paralyzed by its empty stare as a red glow began to grow around them.

“Fall…”

The voice hissed over the rotten teeth like a mist moving over the ground.

“What…?” Jack managed to mumble through his trance.

The wraith reached out and touched them with its black fingers, “Fall…”

A fog of darkness came over them; Jack and Bryn slipped into nothingness and fell backward, not to the deck of the ship, but into a long void. As his consciousness faded, Jack could feel himself falling through the air staring at the wraith that was now drifting high above them. He reached out blindly and gripped Bryn’s lifeless hand before succumbing to their fate.

                                           ===============================================================

“Brynna!” Jack called her name in his first waking thought as he rose with a start. Immediately he gripped his throat, he didn’t recognize the voice that echoed in the cavern still. Though disoriented, he managed to get his feet under himself. He was standing on the porch of a dilapidated house. It was only a single house in what appeared to be a forsaken and half sunken town. The sky was an unnatural color, a sickly faded green, filled with dark clouds. The trees and lands surrounding the town were bare twisting up out of the marshlands like many withered, skeletal hands reaching to blind gods overhead. Jack stared at his hands. They were changed…indeed he was changed.

“Jack?!” a youthful female voice called through the mists.

“I’m here,” he said, again, in a voice that was foreign to him.

He could see a form moving closer to him from another house across the road, “Jack!” the form called out to him. As the mists parted, a young girl of about ten was standing there. Her eyes brimmed with unshed tears, not from fear, but something else.

He shook his head uncertainly, “Bryn?”

“Jack?” she cocked her head slightly in disbelief.

He stared at her for a moment, then his knees felt weak and he slumped to the ground leaning his back against the house, “This…this is not real.”

“Look at us,” Bryn exclaimed, staring at the juvenile version of her swashbuckling friend, “We’re…we’re children!”

Jack just groaned, the heighten pitch of his voice made her smile despite the madness of it all. He banged his head back against the wall a couple times as if trying to jog himself out of this bizarre delusion, but nothing changed.

“How did this happen?” he mourned finally, “Look at me? I’m…augh!  I didn’t enjoy my childhood the first time around,” he paused hesitantly, “…is this hell?”

Before Bryn could answer a chilling cry howled through the mists beyond the town.

Bryn felt the howl pass through her and she shivered uneasily, "I wish I knew..."

[WhoGuru]

Jack looked about the wasted town as Bryn wandered to the next house. There seemed to be no life save themselves and whatever howled at them from the blasted forest surrounding them. Bryn's child form vanished inside the house and Jack felt a moment's panic, taking a step and opening his mouth to yell for her when she reappeared. He heaved a sigh as she came back to him.

"There's just no one else here is there?" Bryn asked and scowled at the sound of her voice. She looked down at her gawky, ten year old self and sighed. "I was always short you know. Even in a...whatever this is, I'm still short." She kicked bad temperdly at the dust and scowled up at Jack for he was inches taller still. "No fair."

Jack laughed and then scowled himself. Like her, the sound of his own voice irritated him. "Come on then, shorty." He draped an arm over her shoulders. "Let's do a proper search of this place."

"When I'm grown-up again, I'm knocking you in the dirt for that." She grumbled at him.

"I'll still be taller." Jack replied and danced away from the kick she aimed at him. Their humor was cut short by another eerie howl from the surrounding woods and Jack stepped back beside her again.

"I don't think I like this place." Bryn said in a hushed tone. The wail came again, closer she thought and she shivered as the sound continued.

"Neither do I." Jack shivered himself. The sound seemed to cut through them as they walked. They searched the few houses, sunken slightly into the ground and found nothing but abandoned homes, rotted furniture and cobwebs. In one small shack, Jack found an aged and rusted iron sword. "It's as likely to break on the first hit as be any good." He said, giving it a practice swing. He was clumsy, the sword feeling twice the size it should be and he growled.

"It'll have to do." Bryn peeked out from the shack as another wail cut the air. "It is closer now. I'm sure of it." She whispered. "Is it getting darker? I can't tell."

Jack stepped outside, sword over his shoulder as there'd been no scabbard and squinted up at the lurid green sky. "No way to tell." The sound came again, louder, closer and together they stepped out into the empty street. It was coming from the direction they'd come.

Bryn felt a sudden chill in the air as a strong breeze whipped down the street, tossing her hair across her face. She pulled the auburn locks away and gasped. "Jack!" She gripped his arm and pointed. At the far end of the street, draped in shadows, stood three figures. Inky black hair whipped about their heads in the freak wind, hiding their faces.

"I see them." Jack took a firmer grip on the sword and began backing slowly away with Bryn. "They don't look friendly."

As if in answer, the wailing came again, building this time from a faint cry to an ear piercing scream as the three figures began moving towards them. Bryn slapped her hands over her ears in defense as the sound began to make her head spin.

"We have to get out of here!" She yelled over the sound. Jack said nothing, taking her arm and turning away he pulled her along the street. He cast quick glances over his shoulder and saw the fiends following though they were falling behind.

"What are they?" Bryn asked, breathless as they ran from the town and into the twisted forest.

"Banshees!" Jack gasped. His shorter legs making him pant as they ran up a rise in the woods. When they reached the top, Bryn pulled him to a stop and stared back into the village. The Banshees were still coming, still singing their maddening song. "Come on Bryn!" Jack grabbed her again and started down the other side.

Suddenly, the sky went dark, turning from sickly green to a green so dark it was almost black. There were no stars, no familiar moons to see by. They lost their footing in the sudden change from day to night and tumbled together down the hill. They came to rest in a gully at it's bottom and for a moment simply lay and caught their breath.

The screams of the Banshees had died, now only a moaning on the night wind. Bryn pulled herself up, feeling beside her for Jack as her eyes had yet to adjust to the darkness.

"I'm here, girl." He answered and took her seeking hand. "All in one piece I think." He blinked his eyes furiously until they adjusted and he could see once more. "You?"

"Other than being a couple feet too short? Great." Bryn rose, feeling bruises making themselves known and heard Jack's youthful voice groaning beside her. "Now what? I'm not going back to that village."

"Nothing there anyway. We need to find out where we are. How to get back." Silently he thought, there has to be a way back. We're not dead, and hoped he was telling himself the truth. A sound brought him up short. "Did you hear that?"

"What next?" Bryn breathed and listened intently, waiting to hear the Banshee's wailing once more. Instead, she heard a crunching sound in the brush, then a snuffling as of some animal and breathing. "What is that?" She whispered. Jack took her arm once more and felt her startle as he did when a howl broke the night air.

"Dogs?" Jack asked. In answer, a creature burst into the gully with them. By the meager light, they could see it was, or had been a dog. It was skeletal, stretched brown skin over bones and it's piercing red eyes glared out at them as it growled deep in it's throat.

Bryn had felt Jack's sword as she'd gotten to her feet. She dropped to the ground now, finding it easily and wrapped both of her small hands around the grip. The dog hunched itself and leaped at Jack in a rush. Bryn grunted and brought the rusty old sword up in an arc, taking the dog beneath it's head before it reached him.

The impact knocked her off her feet even as the dog's head flew into the trees, it's body to drop at Jack's feet. "Bryn!" Jack pulled her up, taking the sword as they heard more howling fill the night around them. "Thanks." He said, teeth showing in the darkness as he grinned at her. "More running I think!" and pulled her deeper into the stunted forest as the howls of more dogs sounded around them through the strange night.

[WillieSea]

When we last left our hero, he was valiantly climbing the steep stone steps to claim the last piece of his power, the green flame. He gasped for breath as he tried to force air into his previously crushed and bruised chest. He had made it half way up the stairs when he heard Eloshizar call out to him, Oh no you don’t!” We now join William as he battles not only for his life, but the lives of everyone in the whole of Tamriel.

- - -

William quickly looked back and saw the clawed hand of the foul green dragon swinging towards him. He rolled down the steps in an effort to get out of the claws way. He lost precious ground in his goal of gaining the flame at the top of the stairs. In avoiding the claws which screeched against the stone steps sending chunks of stone through the air, he would live another moment in his battle with the dragon.

After William stopped rolling down the stairs, he looked up and into the looming form of Eloshizar directly over him. Saliva dripped from the dragons maw and its snake-like tongue flicked around its sharpened teeth. “Your mine now, Golden one!” Eloshizar exclaimed as he then dove his open jaws towards the golden morsel below him.

William saw the sharpened teeth come at him and time seemed to slow down. He was too weak to continue avoiding the dragon any longer, it looked like this might finally be the end, even though so many lives would be lost if he did not succeed. Without his full power, this beast would eventually win…

William watched helplessly, gasping for breath as the dragons head suddenly shot into the air, a violent screech booming from its mouth and echoing around the chamber. He could not run anymore, this was finally it.

But Eloshizar turned away from William, back towards the other side of the room. That’s when William saw that several arrows protruded from the back of Eloshizar’s head. He looked to where the dragon now faced and saw Arwin and Sherena near the entrance to the room where he had left them behind the magical wall. The wall was gone and both of them were taunting and firing missiles and magic at the dragon.

William started the painful climb back up the steps; he would not waste the diversion his two friends had given him. Their only chance was in him getting to that flame! Step by step, he slowly made his way upward, the air still refusing to fill his lungs. He soon found that he could only crawl up the steps in painful agony from the bruising he had received. Magical lighting and fire castings could be heard behind him, along with cursing from Arwin as his bow string twanged continually.

Eloshizar roared again and then came the unmistakable hiss as he belched poison gas towards the two brave attackers. William inched ever forward and upward towards the top of the stairs. He had to make their sacrifice worth it. He knew he had to. Looking up, the green flame was very close now and it seemed to be burning a brighter green and that is when he noticed once again that the green poison gas from Eloshizar was being sucked into the flame and burnt. It was an attack that was rendered useless by the dragon. William said a silent prayer of thanks for that miracle.

William took a quick look back at the dragon just in time to see Eloshizar do the same to him. The dragon roared a curse and launched itself back towards William to stop his ascent of the steps. Both claws extended from his body and his rows of sharpened teeth were bared and open, ready to devour William when he reached him.

Just then a powerful fiery explosion blasted into the rear end of the dragon causing it to loose its balance in its headlong flight towards William’s position. Eloshizar’s clawed hands dug into the steps as he tried to right himself but his head smashed into the steps just below William’s position. The mass of his body forced Eloshizar’s head to continue up the steps which pushed William up and into the air, and towards the green flame.

Clawed hands reached and grabbed for the now flying William as he fell into the green flames. Only a muffled whumph sound echoed through the room as the green flame vanished. William lay on the ground at its base, unmoving.

Eloshizar’s eyes went wide and it jerked its head around the room, looking for any sign of the Golden dragon’s presence. The room remained unchanged. He looked again down at the still form of William and came to the conclusion that perhaps this was his last chance to defeat this mortal before he gained his full power. Both Arwin and Sherena watched in horror as William lay on the stone slab at the top of the stairway where the green flame had been. They then saw the murderous intent in the dragon, an intent that they would have to try and stop.

Arrows once again flew through the air finding their mark on the dragon. Magical energies followed the arrows and blackened the dragons hide as well. Eloshizar ignored these annoyances and focused on William, he would take care of the other two when the greater danger was dealt with. With a mighty pounce, he dove at William; there would be no escaping this time.

Sherena watched in horror as the beast of a dragon scooped William up into its great maw and flung him into the air and gulped him down. The dragon then turned to face the two remaining antagonists, “Now it’s your turn!”

Eloshizar launched himself at the two. Arwin and Sherena continued their attack on the dragon as it flew through the air, their anger and frustration at William’s fate sending energy back into their battle weary bodies.

As the dragon flew closer to the brave defenders, it seemed to grow bigger and bigger as it closed the distance until it simply flew apart in a cloud of green dust. Then a golden glint continued in the dragon’s trajectory and a very golden hued man hurled over Arwin and Sherena’s head and landed just behind them.

Wide eyed in disbelief, Sherena turned towards the golden man and when he turned towards her, she saw William’s face smile back at her. Her beloved William! She rushed into his now outstretched arms and sobbed against his chest, the tears running down the minute golden scales that covered his body. Arwin just stood with his bow in his hand, an arrow in the other staring at the two. He was not sure what had happened, but it was apparent that there was a great change in William. He had become something else, or, had finally found himself. Arwin always had suspicions of the man called William, that he was more than what was visible.

The green dust quickly settled to the ground and William gently pushed Sherena away from him and held her at arms length, looking deeply into her tear stained eyes. “Sherena? Sherena, you know who you are now? What I am? What we are? Think. Think…”

Sherena looked back into William deep eyes and saw many colors swirling there, where golden flares seemed to stitch together the other colors into a vibrant tapestry. She now knew what she was and what their destiny was. She was the rider and he was the dragon. A great and ancient golden dragon on a mission to stop the evil one. She only nodded her head and then both of them looked back at Arwin who still stood nearby with his mouth agape.

William walked over to Arwin and put his hand on his shoulder. “Arwin, my good friend. There is little now to keep me bound to this plane of existence. I must continue the fight against the evil one in the many dimensions that he travels. He has been stopped from entering this realm but there are many more out there that face a similar destruction at his claws.”

Arwin reached up and grasped William’s arm, his bow and arrow dropped to the ground, forgotten. He saw the power but also the empathy in William’s eyes along with the flashes of colors. Had he not known this man, he would have trembled in fear from this suddenly powerful being.

William continued, “Let them know at the Tavern that we shall not be returning. Take this, my chest satchel. It will hold an unlimited amount of treasure, use it to gather the gold, gems and treasure at the base of this chamber. Please keep my work with the orphanage alive and live well with Jean in the magic shop. There is more to that shop than you realize. Talk with Jean about the shop, she knows. And take this ring; it will always guide you to those that you love. Just think about them and you will know the way.”

With one last look, William turned once again towards Sherena, took her in his arms and the two of them jumped mightily of the ledge and into the air at the center of the chamber. Suddenly William transformed into a giant golden dragon and Sherena sat at his shoulders. The great golden wings flapped into the air which suddenly vibrated into a black swirling vortex with purple flashes of lightning. The dragon flew into its center and then it suddenly closed and a deathly silence overtook the room. Arwin just stared at the place where William and Sherena had vanished. He finally sighed and picked up his bow from the ground and placed it at its resting place on his back.

Arwin looked down and saw the ring already on his finger; he was not sure when he had put it on. He thought about William and Sherena and a vision of them came to him. They were flying through a multi-colored vortex and both of them were laughing loudly at the exhilaration of knowing who they were again and the freedom of their flight. Arwin knew they would be happy to finally continue their battles. William had always been a protector of those he loved and Arwin knew he would continue to protect those who where in danger from the evil one.

He then wrapped the satchel around his chest and started down the steps to the waiting treasures below. He knew he would not have need of gold again for a long while as quite a bit of it covered the entire floor of the huge chamber. Finally reaching the ground floor he reached to start collecting the treasure, but it vanished from around him. His heart pounded suddenly in his chest, was the treasure just an illusion? He felt a slight movement at his chest and he opened the satchel. He could see inside the treasure that he had reached for. A smile crept over Arwin’s face. Not only would the satchel hold an unlimited amount of treasure, but it was self collecting! Arwin had soon walked over the entire floor and collected all the treasure.

When the last of the gold had been collected, a glowing portal suddenly appeared in the center of the chamber casting its eerie light across the floor. Once again Arwin sighed. He shrugged his shoulders and walked into the portal and a bright light blinded him as a nausea overtook him…

[WillieSea]

The blinding light soon faded and a landscape slowly appeared before Arwin. The sun above was bright and the air around him was hot. Smashed and crumbling buildings soon came into focus around Arwin. He looked down and saw he was standing in the middle of an equally crumbling street. The only sounds were of the wind whistling through the ragged buildings.

The town he stood in appeared to be vacant of life as if some great evil had befallen the place and destroyed the work of its makers. In the distance only barren rocky mountains could be seen amid a dry and dusty land devoid of any apparent life.

The scream of a young girl pierced the air and Arwin instantly had his bow in his hand while he ran to where he had heard the cry. His footsteps pounded on the strange thick slabs of rock. He turned a corner of a building and down an alley, dodging the crumbled building remnants the littered the alley.

A growl echoed from down another alley along with another scream. Arwin quickened his pace and saw a thick brown squat animal with large upper and lower incisors. It was bearing down on a small girl who was curled up in a dead end alley. Arwin sent several arrows into the vicious beast that ignored his attack while it concentrated on its own prey. The arrows had not penetrated very far into the beasts hide and it was almost upon the girl.

Arwin had only moments to react. He pulled the bow back mightily and aimed carefully and the swiftly moving creature. He let loose and the shaft quickly sailed through the air and pierced the back of the creatures skull which caused it to head plant into the ground just before the girl.

Arwin rushed towards the girl and called out, “Are you all right?”

The girl quickly realized that she was no longer in danger and saw the tall man quickly approaching. Her eyes widened as she attempted to burrow into the wall behind her trying to get away from him. Arwin stopped his headlong rush when he saw the frightened girl’s reaction to him. “It’s okay, the beast will not harm you now.”

Just then voices called out from behind Arwin, “JAN!”

As Arwin looked behind him, the girl who was called Jan quickly scampered past him and towards the ragged looking adult male at the start of the alley. The man waved the girl towards him as the torn and dirty clothing flapped in the light breeze. Arwin ran after them calling out to them, “Wait! Can I help you?”

Arwin chased after them but soon lost them in the maze of broken and crumbling buildings. The two could easily be a few feet away from him and he would never know it in the many hiding places the ruins contained. He started to wander the ruins and wondered where he was and how he was to get home.

He then remembered the ring he now wore on his finger and he though about Jean, the love of his life. He felt its pull and with nowhere else to go, decided to follow its lead through the broken town.

It was not long before he came to a building that was not smashed in quite so badly. There were two large plate windows and a glass door on the front of the building. The rubble was clear from this entrance so he decided to enter what looked like a shop of some kind. He felt a tingling sensation when he opened the shop door and soon found himself in a darkend shop.

The bright light from the wasteland he was in made it so he could not see in the suddenly dark room. A bell had tingled as he opened the door which would call the shopkeeper. A familiar voice broke the silence as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, “Arwin?”

Once again Arwin’s mouth went agape, “Jean?”

There were suddenly arms wrapped around him in an embrace and the familiar face of Jean could now be seen as she kissed him. “I am so glad to see you back, although I am curious how you managed to make your way in through the ‘back’ door.”

Arwin felt his legs wobble and quickly sat down on one of the many benches that filled their magic shop. “I have a long and unbelievable tale to tell Jean. I think I will need some food and drink before I can begin.” He then sighed heavily and Jean squeezed his hand and gave him a quick kiss, “I will go make us some lunch and have it ready in the back room. When you feel ready, come on back. I am sure it will be a grand tale!”

Jean turned away to prepare the food and a worried exp​ression suddenly covered her face. Something had happened, she knew it. She had seen visions of Arwin’s death and great beasts in battle with him. But she was also happy that he had returned safely physically if not mentally. Perhaps after he told the tale, to share the burden, he would feel better. Jean looked back at Arwin before entering the back room and saw him bent down with his face in his hands. She also knew that something tremendous had happened and she would never see her good friends William and Sherena again. Ever since she had become pregnant with Arwin’s child, she could feel strange magicks stir inside her. She had a feeling the child would be no normal child. But then, what was normal in a world filled with magic?

[WillieSea]

Arwin finally fell into a restless sleep. Jean held him to her. The story he had told her of his latest adventure with William was almost unreal. A golden dragon, one of the learned and intelligent good dragons of the cosmos. She finally fell asleep as well, thinking about magic…

Jean awoke to Arwin getting dressed. She knew he had a long day ahead of him, notifying the Tavern staff of William and Sherena’s absence as well as dropping off another donation at the orphanage. He would then have to check in at the castle to make sure the archers in the guard were still in order. She would be busy for some time trying to catalog the vast assortment of magical items Arwin had brought back with him. The Black Powder Shoppe was becoming well known as the place to go for anything magical.

After a quick meal, Arwin left the Shoppe with another chest full of gold and gems on the small cart they owned and headed for the orphanage. With plenty of gold to spare, the orphanage was being repaired and enlarged by several craftsmen. The chest of treasure would keep the place running for some time.

Dropping the cart back off at the Shoppe, he headed towards the Tavern. The trip was full of memories of the last time he rode to the Tavern. A time not so long ago when he had met up with William. He sighed and rode up to the stables and handed the reins to the stable boy.

Once inside, Arwin did not see any familiar faces other than Wilson who tended the bar. After a quick conversation, Arwin headed up the stairs with the key William had given him. The room was quickly emptied of the few remaining items. Once again back downstairs, he handed the key to Wilson who nodded and took it.

Arwin headed for the door and turned once again to Wilson, “When William’s friends get back, can you let them know what happened to him?”

Wilson nodded again and waved at Arwin as he departed. The Tavern had been quiet lately. The old timbers pined for stories of wondrous adventures told around a roaring fire with plenty of mead being passed around.

Arwin decided to take the long way back to town and headed through the woods like he used to do when he tracked the foul werewolves before he had found the Tavern. The sun shone brightly through the canopy of the trees and the wind blew the leaves so that they swayed slowly. The sound of birds and insects unseen could be heard carrying their melody on the light winds. The smell of grass and flowers perfumed the air. It was a perfect day for a ride in the woods.

That’s when Arwin noticed a shadow flitting through the trees out of the corners of his eyes. When he looked at the movement, there would be nothing there but the moving shadows from the canopy above. The hair on the back of Arwin’s neck stood straight up, a sure indication that something was not right. He continued riding his horse as if he had not noticed anything out of the ordinary.

The shadow trailed to the left of his position, so Arwin rode in that direction. The shadow was soon directly ahead of him, and Arwin had the feeling that this shadow was trying to guide him somewhere. He only hoped he was not getting himself into more danger than he could handle on his own but something compelled him on.

He rode for a while and saw that he was heading towards some hills that were covered in large rocks and short cliff faces. Once in the cliffs, the shadow seemed to vanish into the dark shadow of a large boulder that rested against one of the rock cliffs. Arwin dismounted from his horse and cautiously walked forward to investigate the area where the shadow had vanished from sight.

Behind the boulder and hidden by a bush was a hole which lead into the cliff side. Peering inside, the tunnel disappeared into the inky blackness of the natural cave.

Cautiously and slowly, Arwin made his way on hands and knees down the passage. His eyes soon became used to the dim light from the glowing fungus and molds. The passage angled downward slightly and as he advanced, he soon started hearing noises from further down the tunnel. Grunts and growls soon became discernable over the whistling of the air moving through the tight tunnel.

Soon, Arwin could make out the sounds of Goblins, just before the small tunnel he was in opened into a large chamber. The tunnel entrance was well hidden behind a large boulder and probably unknown to the resident Goblins. He peered over the boulder and scanned the cavern. There were five visible Goblins in the room. Behind a wood cage was a young man who was tied up and looked like he had been beaten badly. Next to him was the lifeless form of a young woman who had been equally beaten.

A rage built up in Arwin. These Goblins did not deserve any more sympathy than they had shown their captives. Such a malicious evil being destroyed would do the world a favor for all civilized folks. Especially since they were so close to town, his home and family.

Arwin watched them carefully from his concealment, watching their movements and waiting for his chance to put an end to the Goblins wanton carnage. There were a great deal of bones littering the floor, both animal and human. These were no ordinary Goblins, they were skilled enough to take many creatures and humans without ever being discovered. This was a danger Arwin knew he had to watch out for when he made his move against them.

Then Arwin saw his chance. All of the Goblins were gathered around the make-shift prison cell except one of them. The loner was on the other side of the cavern looking up what was probably the exit tunnel they used.

Arwin had already placed the threads on his bow string that would keep it quiet when he shot it. A precisely aimed arrow soon flew through the room and hit the Goblin in the back of the head and flung it forward into the passage, out of sight from the cavern.

The apparent Goblin leader then noticed that there was nobody standing guard where the exit tunnel lead into the cavern. He growled and motioned one of the other Goblins to find out what had happened to the now missing guard. The remaining three Goblins opened the wooden enclosure and moved inside.

As the new guard moved towards the exit, it pulled a wicked looking club from its belt and hefted it into the air. It them cautiously walked towards the exit, calling out to the missing guard. Arwin let another arrow follow the first just before the new guard saw the previous guard’s corpse. The second Goblin joined his brethren on the tunnel floor. The remaining three Goblins saw their compatriot fall and howled as they rushed for the entrance.

[WillieSea]

The three Goblins stepped over and on their fallen brethren as they rushed up the tunnel to the cave entrance where they must have assumed the attack had come from. Their battle screeches filled the cavern and quickly faded with distance.

Arwin wasted no time. He rushed from his place of concealment and rushed for the tunnel entrance where the two dead Goblins lay. He pulled out a slightly glowing rope with a wooden stake tied to either end. He quickly hammered the stakes into the ground with the rope held taught between them. The rope would catch the feet of the Goblins when they returned to the chamber and its magic would be released. Arwin had hoped to witness the magical trap in action, but this time, he hoped he would not be around when the Goblins returned.

He quickly rushed to the open cage and cut the ropes that bound the young man. A quick glance at the young woman showed Arwin the cruelty the Goblins had especially shown her. Arwin grimaced as he lifted the limp man onto his shoulders and moved towards the secret tunnel he had come down. He pulled the man up the tunnel as far as he could until he heard the screeches coming from the cavern below.

A sudden booming noise reached Arwin as he scrambled back down the secret tunnel. The smell of burned hair and other things hit Arwin like a wall and he gagged at the smell. He finally reached the cavern and looked over the boulder. The remaining three Goblins lay on the floor with smoke trailing up into the air from them. Two of them were just starting to move as Arwin shot an arrow through the skull of each of them.

He turned to go back up the secret tunnel to finish hauling the young man out when movement near the cage caught his eye. The shade stood over the body of the young woman and it looked at Arwin before slowly fading from view.

Once Arwin had the young man in the fresh air and sunshine outside, he started to regain consciousness. Arwin took a vial of healing from his saddlebags and gave it to the young man to drink.

After drinking the contents of the vial, the young man yelled out, “Valire!”

Arwin held him down from trying to get up. “You have been hurt badly, you need to rest a bit. I am sorry but the young woman that was with you did not make it. But I think she may have saved your life.”

Arwin then told the frightened man of a shade guiding him to the Goblin cave, and how he had dispatched the Goblins in their lair. The man cried freely at the news of his sister. After a while, he asked Arwin if they could bring her body back with them to town. It would not be right to leave her down in that filthy hole.

Soon they were on their way back to town, with Valire strapped to a sled behind the horse. It was not long before they reached the house of the young man’s parents escorted by the town guard.

- - -

Once again Arwin flopped down in a chair in the Black Powder Shoppe with his hands on his face while Jean rubbed his shoulders. It had been another rough day. Arwin began to wonder if there was any happiness to be found in the world.

Jean sat down next to him and took his hand and placed it on her growing stomach, Arwin smiled as he felt the kick of his child and he knew there could be happiness in the world, and that the world was worth protecting, to make it safe. He looked up into Jean’s eyes and she smiled back at him. She kissed his forehead and whispered, “Soon…”

[Jheuloh]

Rebbecca had fallen asleep while watching the horse – in the morning, the mare woke Rebbecca when it licked up whatever was in her hair. She brushed her hair back and got as much , then looked at the obviously tame, curious horse, and said “Hmm... maybe I could bring you along with me when my visit here ends.” Before anything more could be said, Rebbecca heard footsteps from several meters away, and saw a long eared dark elf girl packing a simple sack, with a brown dappled horse and red clannfear by her side. Rebbecca observed the clannfear with interest, wondering how it arrived here, where its distinct coloration came from, and what it intended to do on Nirn.

She approached the light framed dunmer, and asked her “Pardon my pestering if you would, but how exactly did your big red friend arrive here?” The dunmer promptly looked up, throwing her ragged black hair out of her face, and asked in return “Wilson is its name, and I'm Tajomaki, but more importantly – who are you?” Rebbecca had realized she had forgotten her manners, and took a step back before revealing her name “I'm Rebbecca – excuse my rude entry, Tajomaki, though I'd like to ask you how your friend Wilson managed to come here.” Tajomaki hesitated for a moment, before telling Rebbecca “He's been with me for as long as I've been here, and that's all I know – now, I need to pack my bags and leave as soon as I can, Rebbecca.”

Rebbecca could see that Tajomaki was wary of her, as she had feebly said farewell to Rebbecca when Tajomaki mounted her horse and rode off towards the woods. Rebbecca turned her attention back to the curious horse patiently waiting behind her, and noted to herself to ask about Tajomaki back at the inn. “Let's bring you to where the rest of the horses are, maybe I'll be able to learn something from the folks who are more experienced with horses.” Rebbecca called the horse, seeing if it was trained to the extent of understanding voice commands – the horse never came, however.

The horse continued to examine Rebbecca, following her where she walked – Rebbecca decided to simply walk towards the stables, hoping that the horse's curiousity would get the better of it. She approached the area where she had earlier seen horses roaming in, and when Rebbecca opened the gate, the horse went into the pen with no prompting from Rebbecca. When she closed the gate, the amazed Rebbecca wondered if a human was missing its horse, or if a horse was missing its human. Rebbecca walked away, checking to see if this apparently trained horse would try to follow her or escape, though it never did, and she went back into the Tavern.