#hoping it takes place in summerset isles

[moogaiashe]

The day TES:VI comes out is the day I ascend to heaven

[talldarkandroguesome]

6th of Midyear, Turdas

While I have some more free time, on account of my needing to prepare the manor for Tel's pregnancy and my newest child, I have been investing more time into trying to undo what Urtisa has done to our garden.

I invited a series of well known botanists and a couple of the Temple's foremost scholars on past instances of poisoning crops and land.

The past few days have seen a flurry of activity around the grounds. Not only did they take a look at the strange plants that began to grow and the crops and other plants of ours that have died, they also have been looking into the soil composition, our well water, the fertilizers that have been added to our crops, and the conditions of weather compared to those in previous years. One of the botanists even did a survey of the enchantments whose traces were still found in and around the home. I was told she would not remove any of them until we have spoken about what each one does.

This weekend I shall be going through our options with Plays-With-Fire and Mother along as well. I need to understand more about these ambient enchantments and how they might play a role. Not that I do not trust experts, I certainly do, only, I know how people in this city work. I need to be sure that I am not paying for unnecessary services or ignoring ones that we might need.

Similarly, I do not want to accidentally remove an enchantment that may have been placed by one of my ancestors that still is very much in need of remaining. Can you image how angry Mother would be at me if there were some thousand year old curse that was accidentally removed and ran amok due to my negligence? Parish the thought of me being responsible for another blunder in the eyes of the House.

When I am not working with the experts or doing my own research, to which I must thank Father for allowing me additional access to the Temple's more rare collections, then I am working on my own lesson plans for the Nest. It is nearly time to meet with them again and I shall not let Zethith or my Prince down again. I have much I owe and I do not like to be seen to be lacking in my responsibilities, tired or not.

As I am having to worry about some of my prized poison garden at home, I have put in an order for new seedlings that I am going to install at the Cathedral of Webs. Summerset is, unsurprisingly, a good location for growing plants and I plan to take full advantage of such. If I can manage a scroll on a disguise spell that I trust, I might even make my attempt to purchase some of those plants native to the Isles. I can already see how much suspicion it might throw on the Dominion if poisons that are not sold outside of the Isles were to suddenly be found to have killed someone of the Pact or Covenant. If I were more politically minded, it would be a particularly nasty weapon indeed.

I am getting ahead of myself, though. For now, I must start to grow a second poison garden. I simply hope that the conditions for some of the mushrooms I use will be alright. If not, I suppose I will have to make space for them indoors, where they can be in darker, damper conditions.

[fabeong]

Secrets in the Midden

This had been sitting around in my WIPs for a while, but at long last inspiration struck! Huge thanks go to @thana-topsy, who got me inspired to write more for Ryesandeii at long last. Hope this satisfies any cravings for ex-thalmor dragonborns Going Through Troubles...

Summary: When sent deep into the Midden in search of an answer to all the mysteries this so-called “Eye of Magnus” has brought, the dragonborn mage Ryesandeii encounters something that the College would probably rather he hadn’t.

(Quick content warning for descriptions of torture) (Also on AO3 for anyone who prefers)

------

It was a generally well-accepted fact of life in Tamriel that well-bred, well-raised, and superbly educated Altmer did not use foul language.

“This place is a fucking maze.”

Ryesandeii was used to being a contradiction by now.

His companion gave a half-hearted huff in response and looked up from the dark corner he had been sniffing curiously to shoot the elf an unreadable look. Not that Meeko was much of a conversationalist in usual circumstances but here in the dark depths of the so-called Midden the dog had quietened even from his usual litany of barks into soft, quizzical growls. Ryesandeii wasn’t sure if he liked the change yet.

Meeko padded on ahead of the elf as they poked around the frozen depths hidden deep beneath the College, in search of the apparent Augur of Dunlain. Wanting to conserve his magika for the light healing spell he rolled around in one hand, Ryesandeii held a lit torch aloft in the other, squinting into the gloom barely illuminated by the flickering light as he moved.

“What do you think Tolfdir meant by ‘what led to the accident’?” Ryesandeii mused aloud and decided to take Meeko’s backwards glance as an acknowledgment, if not a coherent reply. “I didn’t even think this Augur was a person, but it sounds like Tolfdir speaks to it – I mean, him fairly regularly.”

Meeko didn’t even offer a reply this time, suddenly far more occupied with burying his nose in an unexplored corner. Then with a yelp of triumph muffled by the plants in his mouth the dog bounded back and proudly dropped the heap of mushrooms at his master’s feet. A rare smile lit up Ryesandeii’s face as he crouched down to inspect the find and, raising the fungi to his nose, recognised the tell-tale bitter tang of blisterwort. “Not bad, boy.” He mused, “See if you can find any more in this room and I’ll check the next one.”

Tucking the mushrooms into his alchemy satchel Ryesandaii got up and forged forward, determinedly ignoring the creeping cold that threatened to sap the strength from his shivering limbs. The Midden was indeed a shithole, he decided, and it was little wonder the College had built its glittering halls and adored Arcaneum in a way to conceal the winding dungeon beneath it. Whatever was hidden beneath was evidently not meant for mere student’s eyes, or any ordinary circumstances.

But secrets were not new to Ryesandeii, of course. He had been raised in the Summerset Isles, where secrets were second to gold – or even on par if you were desperate enough. Musing on what he knew were risky lines of thought, he hadn’t paid attention to his surroundings.

Then Ryesandeii rounded the corner and his torch fell to the ground. Even from the ground the flickering flame illuminated a heavy metal bar across the wall before him, adorned with glinting chains and eerily rusting shackles –

The icy metal slitting into his wrists as they suspended him above the pit of poisoned spikes for hours, days, months, time lost all meaning when the aedra in charge of it abandoned you –

Ryesandeii felt the icy floor of the prison – no, no, the Midden, the Midden, he was still in Winterhold wasn’t he? – seep through his boots as he stepped forward, a growing inexorable horror curling up his aching spine like a serpent. Somewhere inside of him a voice much like his own screamed at him to run but the all-too-familiar setting dragged him horribly closer, like a call he could not refuse. Beside him now floor-to-ceiling bars made a claustrophobic cell, the bars spattered with blood –

His blood, drenching what rags remained of his clothes after every lash of the enchanted whip, cursed to slice his skin so deeply wherever it landed that the wounds would never fully close, his blood as it bubbled up in his throat from the ice spikes they flung into his chest and the world grew blissfully dark except they would never let him sleep, never let him rest, they would never let him die, not when they could pull him back from the brink and start over again –

The world fell from beneath Ryesandeii’s feet as the walls closed in around him, the flickering shadows coming to life and curling into gleaming blades or outstretched hands –

And from their fingers lightning struck him viciously and endlessly from every direction, lighting his skin and hair aflame, burning his blood, draining and severing his magika until there was nothing he could do but scream for mercy that would never come, forgiveness they would never grant, scream even as the bolts and blows shattered his bones, they put them haphazardly back together and broke them anew, scream for help from a god that was no longer listening –

Something wet, warm, and disgustingly slobbery dragged across Ryesandeii’s cheek. And again. And again. The high elf’s head jerked up with a choked gasp, but the walls were far too close, his chest far too tight, there was a ringing in his ears so loud he felt they might bleed, his muscles jerked in agony as the deep-scarred lines across his back and chest began to split open again from how violently he was shaking –

“Arf!”

Something solid and warm wriggled its way under his arms where they were wrapped around his knees, and that wet thing touched his cheek once more, slobbery and smelling strongly of meat and… wet dog?

“Meeko?”

Ryesandeii opened his eyes. Instead of the cell, the blood, the chains, his vision was completely filled with thick grey fur and golden eyes, and a lolling tongue as the dog squirmed closer and licked his cheek again. Slowly Meeko’s whines became more audible than the agonising ringing and Ryesandeii’s arms stopped shaking to the point where he could open them, at which point his dog pounced properly onto his lap and nuzzled the altmer’s face; Ryesandeii spluttered in token protest at the slobber and indignity of it all and yet… the impossible had happened. His lungs loosened to the point he could breathe, the awful ringing subsided, and the walls returned to their normal place. Well, it was very hard to panic and succumb to terrible memories when there was a heavy nord dog weighing you down and apparently trying to lick your face clean.

“Alright, you silly dog..” Ryesandeii’s throat felt scratchy and hoarse – had he been screaming aloud again? His back felt sticky and wet, and he winced, hoping the blood had not seeped through to his outer robes; they were tricky to clean at the best of times without disturbing the enchantments, and he really didn’t feel like answering the inevitable questions. His gaze flickered unconsciously to the wall across from him again, to the bloodstained chains and –

Meeko was having none of it. The dog growled and Ryesandeii jumped as the sound reverberated through the Midden and Meeko nudged at his chin with a cold, wet nose.

“Alright, alright..” Sucking in a deep breath Ryesandeii looked firmly back at his dog and brought his hands up to scratch behind Meeko’s ears. “You’re not so bad, are you?” he murmured, quiet affection evident in his tone. If he didn’t know any better he would have sworn Meeko actually grinned at his admittance, revelling in the scratches and his whole body swaying with how much his tail wagged. Ryesandeii freed one hand and flexed his shaking fingers, taking a deep breath before calling on his magika to send waves of soothing restoration spells over his bleeding body. The sensations of forced healing wracked through his body and he ducked his head into Meeko’s fur, gritting his teeth and breathing hard through the sensation of his cut skin pulling itself back together, at least temporarily, the stretch of sinew and veins agonising as the spell sought to somewhat undo the damage the Thalmor had never intended him to survive.

Then at last it was done, and though the back of his robes still felt uncomfortably sticky with remaining blood the wounds themselves had sunk back into tenuous risen lines across Ryesandeii’s back. He didn’t move, and neither did Meeko. The dog, loyal and steadfast as ever, remained perfectly still and let Ryesandeii bury his head into thick fur with no complaint. Meeko was neither human nor mer after all and thus the least likely individual to take advantage or mock his weakness, and so Ryesandeii let himself stay where he was and clench his jaw against the remaining tremors. He only roused when the cold, wet nose was once again nudged against his cheek.

“What?” he mumbled. Meeko wriggled ever-so-slightly and Ryesandeii raised his head at last, his gaze following Meeko’s own line of sight. The dog was staring intently in the direction they had come, and once Ryesandeii was looking too he moved, nudging the elf gently yet undeniably persistently until Ryesandeii hauled himself up and obediently followed where his dog now led. This time, he did not look back at the chains.

Meeko bounded back along the corridors and Ryesandeii kept pace as best he could, almost slipping on the icy Midden floors and wincing as the sharp motions twisted his aching body. Once or twice he stopped completely, summoning more restoration to his shaking fingertips and forcing his scars to stay closed. It should not have surprised him that every time this happened Meeko paused, looking back and waiting with far more patience anyone else had ever afforded him. “I’m coming, I’m coming.” Ryesandeii mumbled, feeling guilty all the same.

But Meeko hadn’t moved further this time, and instead turned his head to a thick door Ryesandeii hadn’t even noticed the first time around. He approached it with a newfound caution. The very frame seemed to hum and the wooden slats trembled with a powerful, pulsing magika. Moving closer, Ryesandeii raised his hand carefully, pulling his focus into a steadfast ward and watching with wide-eyed intrigue at how the shielding spell shuddered and illuminated as streaks of magika from whatever was behind the door battered the ward, something powerful no doubt as his spell crumbled under its pressure.

Meeko growled, rousing Ryesandeii from his inspection. The dog was hanging back, hackles raised and tail low, evidently uncertain about the forces he could neither see nor interfere with as the Altmer could.

“It’s alright. I won’t let anything here harm you.” The softness in Ryesandeii’s tone surprised himself. When had he last been so gentle, or with whom?

Meeko’s head tilted cautiously at the Altmer’s words and he padded a few steps further. Despite everything he’d just relived and the crippling pain in his very bones, Ryesandeii found himself smiling as he leant down to ruffle the dog’s fur, quietly appreciating the solely innocent companion he’d ever had.

No more time for memories. Ryesandeii squared his aching shoulders and pushed open the door.

------

(...seriously though there's a whole prison and torture setup in the Midden wtf was Savos Aren allowing under his floor???

Like Ryesandeii? Here's his little bio!)

[itspronouncedjulia]

Hi @itspronouncedjulia I hope you’re doing well!

So I had oral surgery a few days back (Wisdom teeth were pulled) and I had time to finally catch up on (and reread) a few fics. Those being your stories “song of the Reborn” and “My Virtual Girlfriend”. I also Caught up on @theowritesfiction story “Azula’s Kitchen Nightmare” (which I highly recommend if you hadn’t read it before, that story is phenomenal!)

Anyhow, I read both MVG and Reborn simultaneously and I had a very random and strange question come to my mind. On which I’d like to ask you.

Question: If the main cast of ATLA were born as Mer on Nirn, which elf race do you think they would be?

In my view Azula would be an Altmer. Or perhaps one of the few living Aylieds (as certain theories about Mankar Cameron and the Thalmor imply). Zuko would be the same. As would Mai. Though I think that Ty Lee would be Bosmer.

Katara I feel may be Maomer, Dunmer (perhaps one of the Ashlanders?) or even a Falmer (pre-degeneration and forced blinding of course). As would Yue (though she might belong to one the great houses rather than Ashlands if she is a Dunmer) . Sokka would be one of the three, or perhaps a curve ball Dwemer. Due to his skill in engineering and his beliefs of science over spirituality. I think Suki would also be Bosmer, similar to Ty Lee.

Toph is feel would either be Dwemer or Orsimer. Though perhaps also an Altmer. Due to her noble heritage in canon. While Aang is more difficult to consider, perhaps he might be Falmer (pre-generation)?

But what do you think? what races of elves/Mer would the ATLA crew be?

Second question: What world ending threat would this Elven Gaang + Dangerous ladies face? A Daedric invasion or something else?

While out of commission and catching up of fics, I was also reminded of my love for MVG. I am eagerly anticipating Azula and Ty Lee eventual dreaded discussion. I have a feeling about what it is about, and all I can say is that Ty Lee better leave Snowkats and Cantankerous Warts budding romance alone! I kid of course, I am eager to read no matter how the conversation is resolved.

I look forward to the next update (Both for Reborn and MVG) Though please don’t rush! (in writing or trying to get yourself in the muse of the story or fandom) good art takes time to form after all and you my dear author are writing several master works! Take any and all time you need or want!

PS: Jamie is awesome! And a ray of sunshine in Rhaenyra (as of now) bleak existence.

Hey @745voiceofthepeople it's good to hear from you! I would like to start out by saying that I hope your surgery went well and your recovery is going equally as well. Getting your wisdom teeth pulled definitely sucks lol

I have actually started Azula's Kitchen Nightmares and it is awesome. I need to catch up myself but I really loved the creativity of that story. Theowritesfanfiction is so good dude, you can not go wrong reading one of their stories.

So onto your question. Definately a unique question but I really like it. As I was reading it I jumped the gun and thought immediately Azula and Zuko would be altmers, I just couldn't imagine them as anything else. Of course, I could see them as Aylieds as well but I think they would work best as altmers. Mai as well. I could see the three of them sweeping around the Summerset Isles.

I also agree that Ty Lee would be a bosmer. And my first thought would be that Aang would be a bosmer as well. I just feel like him living in the woods in harmony with animals and the nirn suits him best. I think Suki is a little bit harder for me to place but I could see her as a bosmer.

I think Toph would be best suited as an orismer. It just seems like the perfect fit. Do you know when you play Skyrim you can have a random encounter with the orc who's looking for a good death? I could see that being Toph - looking to go out in a badass blaze of glory.

Now Sokka and Katara you can go a lot of ways with them. Of course, Maomer seems like the natural choice. I mean sea elves of course fit the water siblings well and I think it would be cool! Then you have falmer(pre-dwemer enslavement) also works well and I feel like the Snow Elves have some things in common with the Southern Water Tribe people so exploring those parallels would be cool too.

It seems like my thoughts line up with yours pretty closely lol As for what kind of world-ending threat they might face? That one is a little harder because of all the possibilities that could go. It could be a Nordish threat if they're all in Skyrim or fighting against the Thalmor?

Or maybe they have to battle a group of necromancers who are trying to turn everyone in Tamriel into zombies. (This one might be a little funnier than the other two).

Or they could cross paths with a certain Targaryen Dragonborn and her companions and maybe assist her in fighting back some world-ending threats in the ultimate ItspronouncedJulia multi-verse crossover.

But anyway I want to say thank you! I really appreciate your patience with my other stories. I know MVG, The Arrangement, and my other ATLA bender stories have been on hiatus for over a year now but it's been hard trying to get back into the swing of things. But I promise they aren't abandoned, just taking me some time to get back to them.

Thank you for reading and your support!

(And I'm glad you love Jaime! She's one of my favorite OCs. Definately a little ray of sunshine for Rhaenyra.)

[what-even-is-thiss]

Personally I kinda hope it takes place in the summerset isles because a) griffins are in them there isles and b) potential plot line that involves killing a lot of thalmor

Hammerfell is probably a likely candidate if I’m being honest but we’ve also already been there in a mainline game. Even if it was Daggerfall we have technically already been there.

I’ve seen some articles saying they think it could be in cyrodiil and like. Does Oblivion mean nothing to you? You can go to cyrodiil right now. Boot up your pc and go exploring. Kill some rats.

I’ve been trying to figure out why everyone is so convinced that the elder scrolls 6 will take place in hammerfell and it seems to boil down to vibes from the generic teaser in 2018 and trying to find secret meanings in a tweet one time

[janearts]

I was trying to make dinner and this thought came to me and I HAD to ask/tell you right away. What if Roisia and Brii swapped romance circumstances? (Roisia is betrothed for status perfection, Brii fails at romance - kind of like Bree did, come to think of it - with her first two choices and then oopses into the vampire's arms.) How would that even work? Would it? Why/why not?

First of all, I love that this came to you as you were making dinner. I don't know why I find that so amusing, but I hope your dinner was delicious. Secondly, this prompt made me realise about how ... alike? I suppose? Lucelion and Roisia are in some respects. Anyway, I've answered your question in detail beneath the read-more.

The Protagonists & Their Premises

Let me walk it back for those who are not familiar with... any of it because I feel like it’s been ages.

Briisebrom

Briisebrom is a Skyrim character of mine. The premise of her story for TES V was that, as a young girl, Brii was betrothed to the son of a Patriarch of a noble family in the Summerset Isles. It was a betrothal that was done with the best of intentions: the family she would be marrying into was a prominent one, she would be taking a step up in social status, and she would have a one-way ticket out of this miserable backwater province they call Skyrim. Farewell, Thalmor Embassy! Hello, life of luxury and leisure! Problem is, Brii grew up on an unhealthy diet of romance books and fairytales and quite liked Skyrim thankyouverymuch. Before she is scheduled to return with her fiancé to the Isles of her ancestors, she stages her own abduction and flees with her lover into the night towards the Skyrim-Cyrodiil border.

(Bree is the exact same character as Brii, just recreated for DAO and given a more generic name for that particular world than her TES-specific Dovahzul name.)

Roisia

Roisia is my Source Hunter from Divinity: Original Sin, but I recreated her in BG3 as a way to continue her story albeit in a completely different universe. I haven’t drawn nearly as much of Roisia’s story as I have Brii or Bree’s, so I’ll spell out it for you here.

In DOS, Roisia was a witch, who, on top of working with her mother tending the town graveyard, happened to be good at crafting poisons & summoning the undead. For the latter two skills, she was recruited into the Source Hunter order by a wizard named Eustace. They were then both assigned to investigate a mysterious murder.

In the game itself, I set Eustace to have an AI Personality of “Judge” while I gave Roisia the AI Personality of “Free Spirit”. In other words, I could control both Roisia & Eustace, but there was always an AI to help play the other character. I chose to play predominantly as Roisia and let the AI do as it pleased with Eustace. It was a wonderful and hilarious experience and it made the dialogue between the two characters all the richer because I wasn’t picking dialogue lines for both, just for Roisia. After completing the game, the epilogue mentioned an unrequited love between the two—('saviour the second merely clapped saviour the first on the back and rode away')—and I have since made that epilogue a canon part of Roisia’s continuing story. She had fallen in love with Eustace, Mr. Saviour the Second, over the course of their adventure and those feelings were not returned.

To “cure” herself of heartbreak, Roisia drew up a list of lifelong goals for herself. These goals were intended to be practical, methodical ways of delivering to herself her own desires without being sidetracked by an irrational heart. One of these goals is to find herself a suitable spouse. (This item is #4 on her list and so “#4” becomes Roisia’s shorthand for “spouse”.) If only she had had this list beforehand, she thinks to herself, because that would have prevented her from falling in love with Eustace in the first place. They had clearly been incompatible from the start and this very practical list would have highlighted that.

We “begin” BG3 years after the events of DOS as if Roisia’s story had all taken place in one universe: Roisia was part of some sort of investigative order, she fell in love with her investigative partner while solving a murder mystery, Eustace didn’t return her romantic feelings, she quit the order after the investigation was complete and returned home with a renewed focus to tend to the dead.

By the time Roisia is abducted in BG3, she thought she had been doing exceedingly well with her list. Nos. 1 & 2 were well taken care of, No. 3 was progressing nicely, she had a number of potential suitors for No. 4, and No. 5 (children) would progress naturally after the marriage to her No. 4. Then she was sucked up into an Illithid ship, had a mind flayer tadpole inserted into her eye, and now progress on her list has been stalled for the foreseeable future. Quel dommage!

Now that everyone’s on the same page--onto your actual question!

The Switcheroo

I tried imagining a world in which Roisia was betrothed at a young age to a perfectly suitable suitor and finds herself rapidly approaching her own wedding date with an elf who would bore most people to tears. Brii, meanwhile, after one failed adventure, finds herself on another that yet again fails to meet her expectations in terms of grandeur, nobility, and romance.

Roisia

I didn’t have such a hard time imagining Roisia in Brii’s situation because, after DOS/before BG3, I think she would have welcomed an arranged marriage provided the suitor was not repulsive to her in looks, manner, or habits. And, rather ironically, I think Lucelion and Roisia would be well suited to each other in a dispassionate way. They’re both quite cool, calm, and collected. Roisia is more open, enthusiastic, and verbose than Lucelion could ever be, but they’re both focused, knowledgeable, and sharp-witted in their respective fields (for Roisia, medicine/magic and for Lucelion, law/magic). I think they’d like each other’s presence in that I think they would find the other soothing, rational, reliable, and, dare I say, even fun to talk to on certain subjects.

However, their romance would not happen whatsoever in either universe. In TES, Lucelion was raised in Alinor as a member of the Thalmor and thus falls prey to the completely unfounded belief in Altmeri superiority over all other creatures on Nirn. It is for this same reason that I do not believe they would be betrothed in BG3 because if Lucelion were recreated in D&D, he would likely be a Sun Elf who—surprise, surprise—also believes in their superiority over other elves and non-elves (at least according to the 5e Player’s Handbook). Under such a belief system, no betrothal would have been made binding his family to a human one.

But let’s say that even if they were somehow betrothed to one another, Lucelion--rather predictably--does not approve of Necromancy. As far as he is concerned, the art of Necromancy desecrates the honoured dead. Not that Roisia loudly and proudly advertises that she’s a Necromancer, but she is very serious about the scientific and magical pursuit of Necromancy and so help her there will be skeletons in closets. And in the cellar. And in other places about the house as it suits her. It’s simply not a lifestyle match for Lucelion: he would rather be surrounded by his ancestors in theory than in practise.

On Roisia’s side, Lucelion would not please her for the same reasons he did not please Brii. Racism, classism, and xenophobia aside, he is hard to read, altogether too staid and stoic, and he lacks passion. One quality Roisia wants in her #4 is for her #4 to love her without reserve whereas Lucelion has nothing to offer a person but reserve and decades of repression. So although they would be aligned in their desires for their individual futures (marry, have loads of children, successful careers, etc.), Roisia would nonetheless reject Lucelion. She’d have more courtesy and tact than Brii and would actually talk to him about how she is feeling because Roisia has what Brii thought she did not have: agency. A choice. Roisia has more #4 candidates to sort through--next!

Briisebrom

When I tried to imagine Brii in Roisia’s romantic situation, everything kind of fell apart. You see, Roisia is better at minding her own business: if someone wants to murder an imprisoned gobbo, Roisia doesn’t bat an eye; if a grown man and a wee child have a fight over some stolen property, well! who is she to know who is telling the truth? Brii, meanwhile, is the worst at keeping her nose out of other people’s business and thinks she’s helping every step of the way. Not to mention, to the ire of her immediate companions, she’s kind and generous even to goblins.

My point here is that if Astarion--who generally enjoys kicking animals, swindling children, extorting quest givers for power and/or riches, as well as minding one’s own goddamn business--is frequently aggravated by Roisia’s willingness to help others, then he would be absolutely fuming at Brii, who frequently declines rewards of any kind as payment for benevolent meddling. I’m not 100% confident that Brii’s willingness to let him bite her would make up for her personal shortcomings in literally every other way in Astarion's eyes.

But even if Astarion was open to having a one-night stand, Brii wouldn’t. You see, the fact that Astarion’s such a horrid person and a twig at the same time rather spoils the mood. Now if Wyll or Gale or Halsin or Zevlor or literally anyone with any muscle and any moral fibre had been a vampire, then she’d be swooning. Because Brii’s type--as evidenced by every DA canonship and DA AU crackship I’ve created--is typically fit men with some sort of moral compass and sense of justice. (Samson, I suppose, would really be the only exception to this rule and even then I see him as a more sympathetic villain than Astarion.) The fact of the matter is Astarion isn’t sexually attractive to Brii, especially given his... personality.

***

TL;DR: I just don’t see any of it working. Regardless of universe (TES vs BG3), Roisia and Lucelion’s families would never have chosen to unite with each other. Regardless of universe, Brii and Astarion probably wouldn’t get along--in part because their values are so misaligned, but also because while a vampire might seem appealing in her romance novels, the reality is that when the rubber hits the road, Brii tends to be more attracted to those with more than one (1) moral.

[yanderemommabean]

Hi Mommabean! My semester just ended for me and I finally have time to play Skyrim, which I haven't touched since the start of the semester, so that pent up frustration has now resulted in a bunch of random, yandere scenarios in my head. 😅 Most are just short, smutty noncons and some fluff, but I hope you enjoy reading them!

• Jarl Balgruuf rejecting the idea of loving another after his wife's death until he meets the reader, who plans to marry his brother soon. He quickly becomes obsessed with them, especially when he sees them getting along with his children. He soon sees an opportunity after the wedding reception, when the reader is passed out from too much Alto wine while his brother is occupied with a dragon attack near the city. Added drama when reader gets pregnant and no one but Balgruuf knows that it's his baby ...unless a certain daedric prince behind a certain door whispers it to a certain son of a Jarl.

• General Tullius and his spouse being captured by the Stormcloaks after losing the Civil War to them. He's extremely shocked to see from his cell his usually shy, innocent spouse loudly moaning as they're unwillingly sandwiched between Ulfric and Galmar nord sandwich.

• Jarl Siddgeir going on his usual hunting trip until he sees reader bathing near a waterfall. He decides to claim his prize then and there, later taking them back and locking them in his Longhouse lol as his prized "water nymph."

• Ancano finding an amulet of Talos on an apprentice reader and blackmailing them into marrying him. Reader is shocked to find out that instead of a sadistic, cruel elf, she's faced with a rather affectionate, touch starved tsundere elf (I just love a soft boi Ancano 🥰).

• As kind of a sequel to the a/b/o Thalmor submission I previously sent, I like to think that after the party, the Thalmor sent the dovahkiin to the Summerset Isles. Mainly because they think that they'll be able to properly treat them as the jewel they are there than in Skyrim.

• Another scenario I thought for a/b/o Skyrim is a naive dragonborn reader moving to another place like Elsweyr, Black Marsh, the Isles, Morrowind, or Orsinium. Like the reader has absolutely no clue about the type of situation they're in, basically thinking like "Wow! Everyone is so nice and hospitable here. Merchants are giving me great deals, the guards are very protective, and the bards keep singing about me. Although, they seem very defensive since they like keeping their daggers hidden in the front of their pant- ." (I'll stop 😅)

• Mercer growing frustrated by the newest recruits constant rejections. After seeing them get too cozy with Brynjolf, he decides to use the skeleton key to make them return his affections.

• After defeating Harkon, Orthjolf and Vingalmo obsessively compete to try and prove their worth to their new lord, eventually deciding that the best way to do so is to see who can make the reader cum the most.

• I like to think it's canon that everytime the dragonborn has a baby, they climb all the way to High Hrothgar and show their baby to grandpa Paarthurnax like that one meme where the otter is holding their baby and saying "I made dis." 😆

I hope these were ok!

((They were fantastic bean! -Mommabean ))

[dani-dear]

oc profile

Got tagged by @untaintedtea for this! ;u; thank u for the interest dfgdfg. Not everything is super set in stone (but i mean...one can always be flexible with ocs, there r aspects that'll never change and some that just depend on the mood huehuehuehue) but for now this is what i got!!! c: i uh,,, i actually don't know who to tag for this, but if anyone wants to take this template HAVE AT IT!!! and @ me so we can pretend im cool and tagged u....

GENERAL

name: Miranon alias[es]: Quaril out of necessity. and i guess it's not an alias, but "Mimi" is a nickname that he's had for forever. Only people that call him that are his family and whatever previous lovers he's had. (and me and my gf, bc mimi is cute and shorter than Miranon) gender: male age: I wanna say around 70 years old, given Altmer lifespans birthdate: 4E 131 roughly?? place of birth: The Summerset Isles hometown: Alinor spoken language[s]: Altmeri and Tamrielic (had to look that up but basically Common Tongue sdfdfg) sexual preference: bisexual occupation: Previously a Thalmor soldier, largely at the urging of his family. After his desertion, mimi becomes a bard, then an instructor at Solitude's Bards College, then takes a year long break as a traveling bard, and then back to being an instructor again when he returns to Solitude. he teaches young bards singing, how to be charismatic when u perform, and survival skills (like how to fight, which would come in handy when you're traveling on ur lonesome).

APPEARANCE

eye color: greens hair color: auburn height: 6'/182.88cm scars: Most noticeable one is the one right in the middle of his face that goes straight across his nose.

FAVORITE

color: shades of maroon and greens. and cream. hair color: auburn lol, he doesn’t do anything with it song: he tends to lean towards any of the singable songs. his favorites may be The Dragonborn Comes, The Coldharbour Compact, and Stagger and Sway (the last 2 being from ESO which I've never played lmao, but let's pretend that ppl still sing those in TES:V timeline) food: fish of all kinds, so long as they're well seasoned. or even over-seasoned. and paired with bread. Oh and he also loves hearty stews. That's a more recent development for him. drink: since coming to Skyrim, he's really taken to ale and mead lol

HAVE THEY

passed university: definitely, though his family had considered it a miracle at the time, since he didn’t much care for it. (he was more of a party boi) had sex: yes had sex in public: yes, mostly in his younger years whdjwjjf gotten pregnant: no kissed a boy: yes kissed a girl: yes gotten tattoos: no gotten piercings: no been in love: yes stayed up for more than 24 hours: yes

ARE THEY

a virgin: no a cuddler: YES a kisser: YES scared easily: no jealous easily: no dominant: yes submissive: yes in love: yes c: single: no C:

RANDOM QUESTIONS

have they harmed themselves: nnno? or maybe yes in the sense of drinking a lot pre-desertion of the Thalmor. thought of suicide: no attempted suicide: no wanted to kill someone: yes have / had a job: yes have any fears: getting recognized, captured, and dragged back to the Summerset Isles mostly. and the general fear of losing those closest to him. and draugr.

FAMILY

sibling[s]: a twin sister named Siriana. they were pretty close and she’s the only one from his old life that knows where he is. they exchange letters from time to time. parent[s]: Neneth (mother) and Runarion (father), both alive, presumably. mimi became more and more distant from his parents during his years as a Thalmor soldier, which other Thalmor were aware of. though he doesn't hold them in the highest regard, he does hope his desertion hasn't impacted his parents too terribly (beyond any humiliation in social circles anyway). children: none significant other: @illrae's Foro c: pets: no, though he's not against the idea

[synapple]

The elder scrolls 1 is pre-oblivion isn't it? I am now curious and implore you to tell me as much about it as you wish.

HERE WE GO

Yes, the first elder scrolls game, Arena, takes place before Oblivion, but not by much! The first four main series games take place pretty much back to back; they only span about 35 years total. Skyrim, on the other hand, takes place a whole ass 200 years later, and i think that fact is part of why Skyrim is just so goddamn good.

Okay so, time in the elder scrolls is divided into eras. Here’s the spark notes:

Dawn era: all the shit that came before mortals. So much cool shit happens but that’s a post of it’s own

Merethic era: human and elves start crawling all over Tamriel like the parasites they are. The beast races are vibing

First era (1E 0-2920): the start of recorded history! All mortal races are fucking around and trying trying to establish themselves and shit. The dwarves go poof. My bestie Vivec starts slutting it up in Morrowind. The evil vampire snake people from a continent over try to take over.

Second era (2E 0-897): more stuff happens but important thing is that this stupid, sad little bitch named tiber septim is born and manages to conquer the whole fucking continent.

Third era (3E 0-433): tiber starts the empire. yaaaayyyyy the empire. eventually the dude croaks it but supposedly ascends to godhood in the process. That’s how Talos happens. The ascending to godhood thing is an essay in its own right because it’s a MESS but anyways. Shit in the third era is relatively stable, and that’s thanks to the empire.

The first four games all take place in the context of a relatively stable, unified empire. Shit is always going at least somewhat wack, but there’s hope in the empire; for a continent filled with races who love to hate each other, it’s a reminder of unity and collective strength. All that shit goes out the window after the events of Oblivion and the end of the third era.

Fourth era (4E 0-???): fall of Rome, baby!!!!! With the death of the last of the septim line, the empire collapses in on itself. Vivec fucked off at some point during oblivion crisis, red mountain fucking exploded, refugees were being murdered by the thousands, and the thalmor took over a collapsing summerset isles. War happened, and then more war happened, and by the time the events of Skyrim occur, the empire is a at a fragment of its former glory.

Skyrim is great because of the overwhelming lack of resolution. No matter if you stand with the empire or join the storm cloaks, there is a looming thalmor threat cannot be eradicated. There’s evil to be defeated, but even you, the last Dragonborn, cannot swoop in and save Tamriel from politics. Considering that the thalmor might be trying to destroy the fabric of reality for their own personal gain, fuck!!!!!!! Pee pee!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyways thank you so fuckign much for this ask I’m literally vibrating out of my seat. Feel free to ask me literally any questions about elder scrolls lore I will weep with joy

[ace-memelord]

Do you have any hcs about Fennorian? 👀

OKAY sorry it took me so long to answer this but. I just got home from work and I wanted to give this my full attention.

that said these are just my headcanons so feel free to disagree! Also this might be long so they're going under the cut 👇

-First up, I love the headcanon that Fenn is a trans man, so I'm down with that wholeheartedly. I also hc him as biromantic demisexual!

-As for age, we all know he's pretty young, I think he's in his mid-late twenties. If I had to go with a specific number I'd say 26.

-I've posted about this before but he's introverted, as well as socially anxious. This might also be me projecting but I see a lot of tendencies he has that I experience as well. He says himself that he doesn't trust his vampirism (which is probably true) BUT anxious people tend to make excuses to not be near large groups of people and the general public too. Also suffers from low self esteem, the poor bab :(

-Before he joined the Ravenwatch, I believe he was a Direnni scholar. I think Verandis was Direnni as well, and given it's implied they are related in some way, it makes the most sense to me. Fenn does NOT give me Summerset Altmer vibes, but he does feel... isolated in a way. Coming from the Isle of Balfiera would explain that :0

-Fenn's a chronic insomniac, and his sleep schedule is all over the place.

-He's also touch starved... he craves more physical interaction (with anyone), but he has a hard time feeling comfortable enough to do so.

-Likes to do some mindless activities because his brain needs a rest! Gardening, a bit of cooking and folding laundry are his usuals (inspired by Fenn mentioning Gwen's sock drawer)

-When he needs a break from Ravenwatch manor, he'll wander by the little pond and sit on the dock. The sounds of the waterfall relax him ✨

-His flask was made specially for him as a gift from Verandis.

-He has a pet bat named Peeps! Fenn likes to talk to him, even if he doesn't talk back haha. Will also turn into a bat himself and fly around with his friend 🦇

-Gwendis often ropes him into helping her with pranks, and even if he protests at first, most of the time he actually enjoys it. Until Adusa catches them that is.

.... and I'm gonna stop there! Honestly I could go on about my fave vampire boy but that'd take all night lmao. Well, I hope this suffices and thanks for asking!! Maybe I'll add on to it in the future 💖

[laughableillusions]

Moving Back Home

AN: Oh boy it’s the first mini-fic of Lindir & Farkas that you all haven’t been asking for but I’m giving to you anyway! I pasted this from my notes (in all its raw unedited glory) so if it’s wonky dw about it...

I hope to write more of these 2 in the future if you all enjoy it!

(I encourage you to read this while listening to Lady of the Moon by 2002)

———————————

The night had already settled in, and both Lindir and Farkas had snuggled themselves into their bedrolls. Lindir decided to go without the tent that night, as it was a clear night and neither he nor Farkas could smell rain coming. The opportunity to gaze at the stars calmed the elf, his mind could jump between the small twinkling lights and his eyes slide across the Aurora borealis. He loved Skyrim, he really did. He loved the cold shivering weather, the crunch of snow under his boots, the large trees and delicate flowers. There was something so comforting about it, something he didn’t really see until now.

Back in Summerset it was hard to get such a view of stars as this, the cities were large and full of light. And the heat kept anyone from even thinking about making a campfire, cold weather was rare and treasured. But even then, his friends preferred the heat. Or at least they did...it was still hard to grasp that they were no longer alive. Lindir hadn’t been there, it was hard to really accept a death when you were never there to witness it.

He sighed, it was no good to dwell on the dead. Besides, it was years ago...he had almost forgotten about Summerset Isles. Something in him bloomed in Skyrim, maybe it was his mixed blood. He perhaps was more Nordic than he believed, but he found himself thriving in cold weather. The shivering cold mornings kept his mind alert. The warm blankets and furs he slept in meant something more to him than a decoration, it was to keep him alive. He remembered being a child and begging Aradnae to buy him a bear pelt from a merchant. She refused of course, he was still small and had no use of it at the time. But the interest of an outsider, he didn’t quite understand why they wore the pelts or what they were used for. Now, ruled under a thick layer of one...he very well could.

And Farkas, his beloved Farkas...just the thought of him put the grief out of his mind. He was warm, he was soft and he loved him perhaps more than Lindir could understand. He remembered reading something in a book long ago about love like this, how one could simply hide their face in a lovers chest and shun the world entirely away. If he could...if he could, Lindir would without hesitation. Every time they parted it felt like they weren’t together long enough, sometimes almost unbearably so. But he must...he had to, or else all of Tamriel would fall into ruin, the world would be consumed and there wouldn’t be anymore stars for them to gaze at.

Lindir turned to his side, there he could see the outline of his beloved’s face. There was something so powerful about this bond...it felt bigger than him, bigger than both of them. He had never felt love this strong before, never had such unrelenting feelings of utter devotion and adoration for anyone. It scared him sometimes, it scared him that he would away from the world if it meant to stay beside him.

“I would stand at his back, so that world would never overtake us...”

Never overtake us...

Even after a year and a half of marriage, he was still blushing at that. even though his face was stained with tears and mud, and Farkas practically limped the way back. Those words never left him, they were etched on the stone of his soul. Like the carvings of old Dovah, it was alive...it was pulsing. The memory of that cold night in the courtyard of Jorrvaskyr, it softened him.

“Darling?” Lindir asked softly, scooting himself closer to the Nord.

“Hm?” Farkas half-groaned. He was obviously dozing off.

“I love you...a lot...” Lindir whispered sheepishly.

Farkas now reanimated, and he turned his face to him. His features were still shrouded in the darkness, and he strained to try and look at them.

“What’s wrong?” He asked.

Lindir shook his head and sighed.

“Nothing, I’m just feeling sentimental again.”

Farkas scooted closer, now rolling over to face him. Lindir blushed a little by his interest, and he smiled.

“I just...I don’t know, I really love it here.” He said. “It’s all so much better than Summerset, I feel more at home here than anywhere else...”

He then wriggled himself closer to Farkas, trying to get as close to him as possible whilst keeping snug in his little bedroll.

“I know what you mean...” Farkas answered. His voice was raggedy with drowsiness.

“Well I mean, of course you do. You’re a full blood Nord and Skyrim has been your home for generations-“

Lindir cut himself off and shook his head again.

“I-I didnt mean it like that...”

Farkas hummed a little in response.

“It’s just...I was always looked down upon for my Nordic blood. Nords were seen as barbaric and primitive, but coming here to their homeland I felt...I don’t know, safe?”

“Skyrim is in your blood, and not just the people, but the Land as well.” Farkas said.

Lindir felt tears collect in his eyes. He had always felt out of place in Summerset, he always felt like he had to hide himself unless he was performing. He was regarded as a freak, a “halfbreed” as he was sometimes called. In Skyrim however, the Nords would praise his Nordic blood. Said it made him strong and resilient, they lived life they way he wanted to live it. They were impatient and passionate about things. They lived like they would die the next day, and some of them did. But there was kindness, there was love and happiness. Even as harsh as life was it was still beautiful, Skyrim was more than just Land, more than just the people that lived there. It was home...it was belonging.

No wonder people fought so hard for it.

Lindir sniffled.

“Yeah it is...I-I do belong here don’t I?”

Farkas perked up his distress, his arms now wrapping around the elf.

“Yes, yes you do.”

Lindir nestled his head against Farkas’s chest. His voice beginning to shake.

“Thank you...” He almost whispered.

Farkas huffed.

“Now you have to tell me what’s wrong, I don’t want you messing up my only clean shirt.”

Lindir chuckled a bit and wiped the tears from his eyes.

“Ok ok I will, you big oaf.”

Farkas squeezed him a bit in retort. Lindir squirming as he was shoved against him. He let go a bit, letting Lindir have space to talk.

“I just, I never had a proper home before...no place to go back to, no real place. Home was always people, family, but I’ve been through group after group and person after person and well...I never felt like I really belonged.”

Lindir then paused, his cheeks going pink.

“I mean, except with you of course...”

He could feel the blush on the nord when he said it.

“A-and because of that The Companions...I-I mean your family sort of became my family in a sense...”

Lindir felt vulnerable, silly and flustered. It was stupid and he knew it, latching onto someone else’s family because they’re married to them...it felt predatory. But he couldn’t help how much he loved all of them, even when Vilkas was being a smart -ass or Aela being rude. After he married Farkas the responsibility of Harbinger sat heavily on his shoulders, he was responsible for all of them and he did not take that lightly.

Farkas was silent for a moment, he was thinking of a response. Poor man wasn’t very good when it came to words, Lindir didn’t mind it, many times Farkas’s presence was enough to put him at ease. But when Lindir needed counsel, Farkas always tried, and that too was enough.

“They’re not just my family Lindir, you became a part of it when you joined, and you’re still a part of it now, they all love you too. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done.”

“You really think so?” Lindir asked cautiously.

“Yeah...” Farkas was soft but confident in his answer.

Lindir smiled quietly, Farkas never lied. There was something so finalizing about his answer that quelled any suspicion in Lindir. He had done so many things, and was still doing them now. From the Thieves Guild to The Dark Brotherhood now. Not Farkas or the Companions ever wavered in their loyalty and support toward him. Even Kodlak, who he known only a short time accepted him as one of his own.

“Hey Farkas?” Lindir now asked.

“Hm?”

Lindir hesitated for a second.

“I-I want to move back to Jorrvaskyr...”

Farkas pet his hair.

“Mhm...”

The Nord was dozing off again, Lindir could tell. He was as well, all that thinking and talking finally exhausted him enough to sleep. That was alright though, they could talk more about it in the morning.

Lindir snuggled himself against his husband, his home and dozed off to his quiet breathing.

[robobirdie]

Another two bonus story

Over the holidays I came up with and whipped up two short bonus story. The first I was kind of inspired to write it because while playing Elder Scrolls Online for the holiday event I got the one where you throw mudballs at people in the town of Skywatch on the summerset isle of Auridon but in going there someone who was a were-wolf was going on a psycho murder spree trying to see how high a bounty they could get by killing all killable and non essential npcs. You just came to the town and dead bodies were everywhere. It had me thinking of were-wolves and sparked a little short dealing with were-wolves. 

The second I came up with spontaneously while looking over notes I made on the characters for aid while writing the story. I thought it a fun idea so decided to write it out.

Beasts of the Stag This one takes place shortly after the first encounter with the Stag.

“Are you sure this is a good idea? There’s a reason the town council asked us and not the ninja to look into this,” Macy stated and Lance added, “yha you saw what he could do in the arena when he had no control imagine if he gets cursed into a savage half machine half beast thing and has no control.”

“Not to mention I don’t think the ninja would be very pleased if we did something that hurt their cyber bro,” Aaron noted and Clay proclaimed, “I know but none of us are really good at tracking. As a droid Zane has in built senses that could help us find what we are looking for. We’ll just have to be extra cautious with him.” Since they were some of the most skilled fighters they had available and the town guard was stretched thin already fighting to keep the city and nearby settlements safe from the necromancers the city council had asked the Nexo Knights to look into a possibly dangerous occurrence. Something had been wrecking havoc on some local farms and savagely ripping livestock apart. From evidence the town had they had reason to believe the culprit was someone under the curse of man-beasts lycanthropy, a were-wolf. Because of this the council had avoided seeking the ninjas help and didn’t want the knights to get the ninja involved. They were scared of the ninja possibly contacting this curse worried over what it could do to them especially Zane. The knights understood the councils worries but they also knew it could really help them if some of the ninja aided them with this. They had asked if Zane could help aid them in this task, the ninja were hesitant and wanted to talk it over first before making any decision. The knights understood; with how people in this realm viewed and treated Zane the others had become quite protective of their friend and wary of anyone asking for or about him. The knights were waiting in their room for the ninjas answer.

“Alright Zane can help you but I have to come along too,” Kai proclaimed as he and Zane came into the knights room.

“That’s fine with us bro, the more we have the quicker we could get this done,” Aaron expressed and Clay stated, “alright now that we’re settled lets head out and get this over with. We’ve been told the culprit seems to be hanging around the farms near the forests south of the town. Don’t worry we have some rides to get us there. Hope you got a source of light cause it’s going to be dark out there.”

“No worry I’ve always got a source of light. The benefits of being the master of fi-yha,” Kai boasted bringing a small fire to his one hand. They then began to head out Ava, Robin and Merlok staying behind in the room. Before he left Clay whispered to Macy and Lance who were closest to him, “the hot head is not the one I’d take for this task, would’ve preferred someone more level headed like Cole or Lloyd but we have to respect their choice.”

“Well as long as he doesn’t do anything reckless I don’t see anything wrong with him tagging along,” Macy stated. Using their vehicles they had with them on the Fortrex the Knights along with Kai and Zane headed out to the location they had been told of. Along the way the Knights briefed Kai and Zane on all they knew of the case.  It was night and cloudy with a bit of a chill in the air. They stopped off at a farm on the edge of a forested region that looked to have recently been ransacked. The fence for holding in livestock was smashed in several places and there were no signs of livestock. Some of the crops were trampled and what looked to have been a small barn or shed had been torn apart. The door to the house, the boarding over the windows and the plaster and wood walls of the house boasted large scratch marks over them. There was no sign of the dwellings inhabitants. Behind the farmstead a dense and dark forest made of the typical flora of the region sat. Some of the glowing native flora of the region helped illuminate its dark understory.

“Whoa what happened here?” Aaron expressed as they arrived and got out of the vehicles. The knights and Zane held lanterns while Kai made a small flame in his hand to provide some light.

“This was the place of the last attack, the farmer and his family are safe in town for now till we can find the culprit. Considering what we might be dealing with I think it best we stick together. First thing we should do is look for tracks,” Clay declared as they cautiously searched the farm and its fields. As they searched they all got an uneasy feeling from the area.

“Didn’t they say there were remains of the livestock here when they left?” Axl wondered and Zane theorized, “if the culprit is bestial in nature than it is highly likely the culprit returned to claim its prey or scavengers could have taken them however I cannot see any track ways matching any known scavengers of the area.”

“No just these large strange looking ones. Kinda looks like a wolfs, a really big mutated wolfs,” Aaron noted finding some track ways in the pen for livestock. They all came over to have a look at the tracks.

“They look recent, within the last day or so,” Zane noted inspecting the tracks and Clay inquired, “can you tell which way the track maker was headed?”

“It appears to be headed into the woods,” Zane proclaimed and they all looked at the woods where something had clearly recently trampled through into it. The uneasiness they could all feel they felt strongly emanating from the woods and they also got the feeling of something watching them from within its dark understory. They were all hesitant to enter.

“I’m not very keen on wandering around this disturbing place but we have a job to do. Might as well get it over with, hopefully this man-beast thing isn’t too far away. I don’t want to spend any more time out here than we have to,” Clay declared leading them into the woods. They all stuck close to each other as they surveyed the woods following the path this thing had made through the place. They all felt uncomfortable and on edge.

“Why does everywhere in this place have this unnerving dark feeling to it?” Lance voiced and Kai inquired, “you guys feel it too?”

“If you’re talking about the feeling that something dark and sinister seems to have a hold on this realm than yha,” Macy agreed and Aaron added, “it’s so un-chill; sends shivers up your spine for no reason and always has you on edge.”

“Makes this place feel like it’s cursed,” Axl noted and Zane expressed, “So we are not the only ones aware of the strange aura to this place. We were worried it was just us feeling it.”

“Yha, nice to know we’re not the only ones here feeling it,” Kai stated and Lance agreed, “yha, what makes it even creepier is the locals don’t seem to even notice it.”

“Most of them thought we we’re joking when we asked them about these feelings; that just made the feelings even more unnerving,” Clay regaled disliking the eeriness to the place. The deeper they got in the woods the worst the feelings seemed to get.

“What do you think is causing it?” Macy wondered and Kai stated, “don’t know but whatever it is feels worse than dark matter.”

“Dark Matter?” Clay wondered confused, the knights were confused by what Kai was talking about.

“It is a substance found in our realm of Ninjago that can turn anything it touches for lack of better words evil. It is found primarily under the dark island,” Zane explained for Kai to add, “yha it can turn anything evil even Zane. If something can turn Zane evil than you know it’s bad. We got hit with it once, got Zane, me, my sister, Cole, Jay… I think Lloyd and maybe Wu were the only ones not affected by it. It’s pretty nasty stuff…”

“I wonder if anything like that is in our realm,” Macy wondered and Lance was quick to state, “if there is we should make sure to keep Jestro far from it.”

“Who’s Jestro?” Kai wondered and Aaron explained, “oh just someone we know. He’s the royal Jester, not very good at that though. He tends to have the bad habit of turning evil. Clay and him are friends.”

“It’s not entirely his fault he was turned evil, dark forces affected him making him what he was. He’s tried to make up for his wrong doings…” Clay stated and Lance butt in to say, “Yha, but with these monsters from this realm invading I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up joining them.”

“Really I think maybe he’s learned his lesson and will fight back against them this time,” Clay countered and Macy stated, “yha I don’t know given his record…”

“Quiet do you hear that?” Zane stated picking up a sound in the woods near them. Everyone went quite and listened. It sounded like something of notable size was moving through the woods.

“What is that?” Clay quietly whispered and Kai stated, “not sure but we should probably check it out.”

“It could just be an animal,” Macy noted and Lance worried, “or it could be one of these man-beasts wanting to eat us!”

“I think to be on the safe side we check it out. Weapons ready just in case it is something dangerous,” Clay declared. They all readied their weapons Kai dropping the fire in his hand as they slowly picked their way towards the sound. It came from a gap in the woods by a small cliff where at the base sniffing a pile of debris was what they guessed was one of these man-beasts, a were-wolf. It was a partial humanoid monstrous wolf hybrid creature with a bluish silver coat. It seemed unaware they were there. Their group stopped some distance from it.

“Okay we found it what do we do with it?” Kai quietly wondered and Clay whispered back unsure, “well, I’m not entirely sure. The town wants us to destroy it but… something about that doesn’t seem entirely right. It is a monster yha but it’s also a person. It might not be entirely their fault they’re causing havoc. Most inflicted with this curse cannot fully control the bestial nature of the condition. They probably didn’t even want the curse.”

“There is a cure for this condition isn’t there. Maybe we could take it into town where someone could help them,” Aaron proposed.

“Yha but I doubt this thing is like a big puppy and will just follow us to the authorities. It will probably want to eat us,” Lance sarcastically remarked confusing Zane who inquired, “was that how you planned to deal with it? That is not a very wise plan …” before Kai cut in to explain, “It was a sarcastic remark Zane.” The creature picked up their scent and looked back at them baring its teeth at them. Even though it looked to be prepping for an attack it remained still.

“Whatever we’re going to do we better do it quickly before that thing attacks,” Kai remarked before something ran into him from behind. He got in a quick scuffle with it before his attacker broke away taking his sword with them.

“What in the world!” Kai exclaimed as Zane helped him back up. Now standing between them and the monster holding Kai’s sword out to them was Kais attacker; a male member of the ungulate folk wearing worn commoners clothes who stood defensively and baring his teeth at them.

“Don’t you dare touch her!” he growled.

“Her? How do you know that things a her?” Lance inquired confused and the ungulate folk stated, “because she is my sister, even in her bestial form I can recognise her and she me. I know what you are out here looking for and she’s not to blame, neither of us are. I don’t want to but if I have to I will hurt you.”

“Okay there we don’t wish to cause trouble. Just put down the sword and we can talk,” Clay declared trying to settle the situation before things could get out of hand. The person refused to let his guard down so Clay made the others put their weapons away hoping it would ease this folk.

“Look we won’t hurt her. Can I ask what your names are?” Clay inquired talking calmly.

“Koda, my names Koda. My sisters is Aela,” the person stated still not relaxing.

“Okay Koda, the town council just want her to stop harassing farms out here. I’m guessing with her curse that is hard for her to do but we can help with that. We know some people who could help, if you want we can get you help to fix her by removing her curse,” Clay stated but the person was refusing to relax.

“Fix her… you talk as if something’s wrong with us. There’s nothing wrong with our curse, we may be so called ‘monsters’ but that doesn’t mean we are monsters,” Koda growled and Zane noted from how Koda was speaking, “you use the term us and we instead of her. Am I right to assume that she is not the only one with this curse?”

“You are… we never intended to become cursed… it was an accident…,” Koda stated and Kai inquired, “may we ask how it happened?”

“My sister got bit while collecting firewood; we don’t think it meant to hurt her as it ran off after it bit. She probably just startled it. Despite what many think most were-beasts are pretty harmless. They’re simply like animals not monsters. Most don’t seek to harm others. I got cursed later during her first transformation. She never told me she got bit so I didn’t know what was happening. I heard a noise from her room so I went to see what was up. I found her door was locked and I got worried she normally doesn’t lock her door. It’s just been the two of us since we were young… our parents passed from Serpentus when we were young,” Koda began and Kai sympathized, “sorry to hear that. I know what it’s like. My parents were kidnapped by a maniac so me and my sister grew up without them.”

“So then you understand when all you have is each other… your bond is strong. You’d do anything for each other…” Koda stated and Kai agreed, “yha I know; I would do anything for my sister and she’d do the same for me.”

“Indeed; worried something was wrong I broke down the door to make sure everything was okay… we were both quite surprised. In a mix of fear and surprise she bit me. We’ve come to terms with our curse and can control it. We don’t seek to be cured anytime soon. Despite what you might think we don’t use our curse for evil. Sure we’ll hunt the occasional rabbit, rhea-guar, deer or other wild animal but we always eat what we kill or give it to those who need it. We don’t hurt those who don’t deserve it or for fun. Instead we use our curse for good,” Koda explained starting to calm down and his sister in her beast form relaxed as well. He still held Kais sword at them defensively.

“Really, how can you use your curse for good?” Macy wondered.

“Many don’t realise but this curse makes us immune to the curses of Oni make such as vampirism and even the Blight. We can keep those inflicted from harming others and our enhanced senses from our beast within help us find them, criminals, bandits even those monstrous Ashers no matter how well they try to hide. Also as lycanthropes we are able to take on others like us with no problems and keep those who do seek to harm others or who are unable to control the curse like the one we’re out here looking for from harming the innocent,” Koda explained.

“Like the one you’re looking for? Who are you looking for?” Clay inquired hesitant to fully trust these two. The other knights and Zane were not sure how trustworthy the two were however Kai felt strongly that they could trust them.

“We know why you’re out here; we’re here for the same reason. To find the beast terrorizing local farms…” Koda began and Axl wondered, “wait how do you know why we’re out here?”

“Truly it’s not hard. Farmers tell each other about it, some of them get paranoid and tell shop keepers while they buy traps to try and protect themselves and their properties, shop keeper can’t keep their mouth shut about it, it just goes on from there and soon many hear of it. It would only be a matter of time till the town council caught ear of it and sent someone to solve the issue to keep peace in the town. Never would have expected them to give the task to outlanders though. Thought it would go to the guards,” Koda explained and Clay inquired, “that aside, you were saying about this culprit?”

“They are right it is a man-beast but it isn’t from one of flesh. It’s a horrid monstrosity half of flesh and half of machine; a construct likely a hyenoid cursed with Storabeks curse,” Koda explained and Aaron wondered, “Storabek?”

“Storabek the Hunts-Father, Lord of the Wilderness, Lord of the Hunt and father of the curse of man-beasts. He’s a great powerful spirit that was once worshipped by many tribes through northern and alpine lands but many now consider him a type of daemon possibly related to the Oni as he turned on his followers and is known for many dark deeds. Oddly despite his cruelty and darkness there are many who still worship him often drawn by his sphere of the hunt particularly hunters, woodsman, those who get a thrill from the hunt and those who have come to cherish their skin-changing curse. Storabek created the curse of man-beasts and before you ask in some ways we accept him as our patron since we carry his curse we are now in ways his children but no we do not actively serve or worship him. We don’t do sacrifices or rituals or summon him. We just accept he has power over us and if he calls upon us we must answer or face his dark wrath,” Koda explained and Macy wondered, “really and how do you know it’s a droid with this curse?”

“Because we’ve seen it; me and my sister overheard a farmer in the market talking about it and decided to look into it. While searching we found it feeding on a cow. With our curse we could recognise it as one of our own but also not one like us. With its glowing eyes and the metal parts of its body which reflected the light of the flora in these dark woods there was no mistaking that thing was not from any man. We were scared of the thing. It tried to attack us but we ran and managed to give it the slip. I have no doubt that is your culprit. Droids can rarely control this curse when inflicted and they turn into wild savages; true monsters that attack anything that moves or catches their eyes. They often remain stuck in the beast form and are driven mad when not in it because of their lack of control. I bet this one is no different. We set a trap on the farmstead you came from earlier to try and catch the creature when it returned to scavenge what it left. It managed to escape the traps but not before it received some damages causing it to drip what we guess is some sort of equivalent to blood, maybe some mutated oil, as it moves around. It’s allowing us to track it,” Koda stated while his sister gave a nod of conformation from where she crouched by a patch of leaf litter and dirt that was stained by this substance.  

“How do we know what you say is true?” Macy inquired. After a moment’s pause to look back at his sister Koda threw Kais sword back to him where it landed in front of him before proclaiming, “There is only one way; come with us and we’ll show you. We promise we won’t hurt you or give you our curse. When we find the culprit you can do as you please with it. Take it back to town to be studied or simply terminate it; it doesn’t matter to us. I’ll even give you this to help you…” Koda pulled a strange object and threw it at Kai who clumsily caught it before looking it over. The object resembled an epi-pen or the anti-venom shots sold back in the town.

“That’s a special formula we made that can force a were-beast out of its beast form for a while. Hopefully it works on cursed metal-skins the texts we found said it should; it will make dealing with it much easier. You just have to stab it with that nothing more,” Koda finished. The knights, Kai and Zane looked at each other unsure what to do. The knights and Kai who first picked back up his sword huddled together to talk it over. Zane hung back a bit while listening to them.

“What do we do? How can we be sure they’re speaking the truth,” Macy inquired and Aaron added, “yha they could just be luring us in to curse us as well.”

“Or to eat us!” Lance exclaimed and Kai offered, “A droid cursed with being a were-wolf that sounds like something Jay would think of. Maybe they can’t control this condition as well as they think and don’t realise it. We could take them to town where someone could try to help them; maybe give them a cure. What do you say Zane… Zane?” Zane had wandered over to inspect the substance making sure to not get too close or to directly touch it.

“This is a rather strange substance. There are qualities of a mechanical oil like that Scimitar Oil to it…” Zane noted and Kai asked coming over to see what Zane was doing, “whatcha yha doing pal.”

“I do not think they are lying about this culprit. I have noted small spills of this strange substance along the path leading up to here. I did not think much of it due to how strange it was but with what they say it makes more sense now,” Zane explained before asking Koda and Aela, “when you catch this droid what did you plan to do with it?”

“There ain’t much you can do for it. If brought back to town they will seek to study and experiment on it which I don’t think would be a good idea. Terminate it is the only option I can think of. It will just keep causing havoc if not and risk infecting more individuals,” Koda explained.

“If we help, what about you two?” Clay inquired and Koda growled, “what about us?”

“Well I’m pretty sure the town would not be happy with were-wolves hanging nearby,” Macy noted and Koda stated, “what we do will be up to us; you do not need to worry though we promise what we’ll do won’t threaten anyone.” All but Zane were still hesitant but decided to go along for now so the culprit did not have time to get away. With their agreement Koda transformed into his beast form which had creamy goldenish colored fur and sniffed at the substance.

“We have the smell, it goes this way,” Koda spoke his voice sounding deeper and gruffer in his beast form. Though he spoke his mouth didn’t properly move with the words. Koda and Aela began to lead them off through the woods moving on all fours.

“Wicked you can talk while in that state,” Aaron expressed and Koda explained, “it is a learned skill; a rather hard to learn skill. My sister is still trying to learn it; she’s a little too impatient to practise like I have.” They followed the trail as it lead deeper into the Blackwoods keeping alert for this beast cursed droid.

“You shouldn’t have brought the metal-skin. This thing we’re following will be attracted to him. You’re risking him getting cursed or worse out here. He could easily be turned into a monster and turn on us,” Koda whispered to Clay as they travelled.

“Well we felt we could use his aid besides I’m pretty sure he’ll be okay. He’s not some mindless machine. From what we’ve seen he can’t be easily swayed and will do the right thing besides isn’t it a little hypocritical of you to be calling him a monster when by definition you are also a monster,” Clay whispered back and Koda quietly responded, “true but just because we’re monsters doesn’t mean we are monsters. I’m just saying be on guard. No matter how good he is or how hard he tries to fight it things here can warp even the purest of hearts to darker than the void. Trust us it is not always the monsters that do the monstrous things. Only by becoming a monster did me and my sister see who really were the monsters. The truth would surprise you.” Without warning Aela growled what sounded like “Metal one down” though it was not very clear out of nowhere before lunging atop Zane from behind to pin him down to the ground surprising and startling him and worrying the others who felt they had just been led into a trap. Seconds after Aela pinned down Zane a startling half bestial half machine style of were-wolf lunged from the dark undergrowth atop Aela biting her on the back. The thing looked like a were-wolf with dark blackish fur but the areas of skin while looking like dark organic flesh were clearly more synthetic in make baring slight metallic tints to it. Along with the metallic tinted synthetic skin were what looked like clearly metal made plates embedded in or growing out of parts of the body like some strange growths; to those who didn’t know what this thing was they might have mistaken the plates as armour embedded into a regular were-wolf. The metal skin covered parts of its face and top of the top snout, made up the ears, shoulders, the back running a bit down on to its sides, top of forearms, outer sides of the upper arm and thigh, the front of the lower legs and made a distinct patch on its chest over its heart that bore a circular mark at its center revealing the bluish glow from its power source. Its eyes were more artificial looking in make with a bright greenish glow to them, the claws and teeth were clearly pure metal and its calls and even breathing had a clearly metallic signature to it. This beast held onto Aela trying to pull her down and off Zane who she was keeping pinned down while trying to fight the creature with her brothers’ aid. Koda had managed to bite onto its one leg and was trying to pull it off its feet but this droid-beast was stronger and with its extensive metal skin patches more resilient to attacks than Koda and Aela. The droid beast temporarily turned to Koda to attack him freeing itself from his grip to then pick Koda up and toss him at the knights who were rushing in to join the attack. Koda hit them knocking them over while Kai rushed over to hit the droid-beast with a blast of fire to the face. This action clearly irritated it singeing some of its fur but didn’t really do much damage. The creature went to lunge at Kai but Aela intervened tackling Kai out of the droid beasts lunge. The droid-beast roared at Aela before turning its attention to Zane who was attempting to get up but feeling shaken was having trouble getting to his feet. He came to sit looking at the creature as it stalked towards him feeling terrified by it stalking towards him. The knights and Koda had gotten back up and were preparing to rush in to help Zane.

“Wait let me try something,” Clay expressed to the others stopping them. He summoned up some of his magic skill picking an electrical based power thinking the creatures half machine nature might weaken it to electrical powers.

“Aaron hit it, careful you don’t hit Zane this could seriously hurt him,” Clay proclaimed touching Aarons crossbow to charge it up with Nexo powers. While Aaron aimed at the beast it stalked closer Zane looking him straight in the eyes. Zane couldn’t help but look straight back into its eyes. He could swear for a second the droid beasts eyes softened even become saddened as it looked into his eyes and he got a feeling this thing wanted something from him though Zane couldn’t tell why he felt that. Before it could launch an attack at Zane Aaron shot it several times. The electrical power defiantly had an effect giving it quite the shock. After a few seconds to shake off the blasts effects it turned to roar at the knights before rushing back off into the undergrowth Koda and Aela giving chase. With them gone Kai got up and hurried over to help Zane up and check him over.

“I am okay, she just startled me,” Zane stated as the knights came over Clay inquiring looking Zane over, “you weren’t bit by any of them were you?”

“I do not think so,” Zane stated looking himself over. Macy then stated, “we need to catch up to them and stop that thing.” As they started to follow the direction the three had run off to they could hear a howl like noise echo through the woods coming from where the beasts had rushed off through.

“I think they’re calling for us,” Aaron hypothesized as they all followed the trail the beasts had made. It led to a somewhat clearing in the woods. A large dark structure sat partially overgrown by foliage and fungi and partially in ruin in this clearing. Any of the flora growing on it or near it looked dark and very unhealthy compared to the rest of the flora in the woods. Koda and Aela just hovered nearly cowering at the edges of the clearing hesitant to get closer to the structure looking scared of it. The structure was a large round edged rectangular structure with upward slanted walls and a flattened platform on the top where a large building like structure sat atop it. A stairway went up the side of the structure whose whole build seemed to be made of a dark volcanic rock. Something about the structure they all felt unnerving and they could feel a deep darkness, far worse than what they had already been feeling in this place, emanating from it. Bones and husks from insects and droids lay scattered around and on the structure; many looked to have been laying there for years.

“What is this so unnervingly and un-rad place?” Aaron wondered fighting the urge they all felt to turn and run from this place and Koda regaled, “outlanders this is an Ashers stronghold. One of the darkest places you can find in our realm possibly even all the realms.”

“Where’s that droid beast thing?” Kai wondered and Koda stated, “it went up into that place.”

“Well we can’t let this thing escape. I know there’s some really bad feelings coming from this place and I think we’re all in agreement we’d probably just want to turn and run but we have to deal with that thing. We can’t let an uncontrollable monster run loose around here,” Clay proclaimed after a moment’s hesitation fighting the fear and uncomfortable feelings this place was giving. It took a moment for most of them to agree to continue, Lance was opting to hang back but they forced him to follow as they all headed up the stairs of the structure.

“Why would this thing come here?” Axl wondered and Koda responded, “Not sure. Metal skins in this region often serve dark entities. Just look at all those following the Black Stag. Never heard of any serving or in association with the Ashers but if they’re fine being near the Stag than this place probably doesn’t bother them much.”

“Are you sure about that? I’m pretty sure this place is bothering Zane, right buddy?” Kai stated and Zane expressed feeling just as uneasy as the others, “indeed it is. I am getting several very unpleasant feelings from this place including one that feels like we should not be here.”

“That likely means then that the darkness in this realm has not influenced you yet,” Koda expressed and Kai proclaimed, “that’s a good thing then. Right?”

“It could be,” Koda noted as they reached the top of the structure. The building atop the platform was split in two with an L shaped two story structure towards the back right and a large single structure to the left. There were no windows on any of the buildings and the larger structures entrance doors were collapsed in while those on the large outbuilding were smashed into the structure but still passable to the buildings interior.

“Guess that’s where we should look unless you think it jumped off the other side,” Aaron commented and after a quick sniff of the air by Aela and Koda Aela stated, “in building it is.” They slowly made their way into the outbuilding which by its large open interior and strange dark symbols etched and painted on surfaces gave them the feeling it was once used for dark rituals. A hole in the ceiling let in the only light for the place letting them make out some things. The place was pretty clean. Despite its ruined state there were no piles of debris and no flora had taken root in the structure. They couldn’t see the creature they were looking for but there were still dark areas to the room. Clay noticed some braziers by the entrance which held a strange substance. Curious he asked Kai to see if he could light them to maybe give them some more light. Kai hit one with a small blast of fire and not only did the brazier light up but the one on the other side lit up plus what appeared to be two troughs one lining either side of the walls lit up as well. The fire that lit them had a strange dark quality to it.

“That’s kind of disturbing,” Kai expressed as the fires started up and Koda stated, “I bet leftover dark Ashers magic is responsible for that.” The fires helped light up the dark areas. Their light reflecting off its metal skin and the glow of its eyes as it turned its head to look at them revealed the droid-beast crouching in the one dark back corner. It bared its teeth at them with ears back looking ready to attack.

“Alright it has no other way to escape, this should make things easier. We should surround it to cut off any means of escape. Kai Zane keep behind the rest of us so you don’t risk getting bit. We’ll use our shields to try and hold it back while Koda and Aela you try and pin it down. Once it’s restrained you Kai can try and give it that shot,” Clay formulated as the knights pulled out their shields and held them out towards the beast. It took a few swipes at the knights who were able to block its attacks with their shields as they ushered it into the one back corner Kai and Zane sticking close behind them while Koda and Aela stalked around to try and ambush the creature from behind. While it remained focussed on the knights Koda and Aela jumped it and made a quick struggle to pin it down.

“Hurry red one this thing is trying to get loose. I do not know how long we can hold it,” Koda expressed him and his sister struggling to hold the construct down. Kai quickly rushed over to stab the shot into the beasts neck Clay coming with him to put himself between the creatures head and Kai keeping his shield up to prevent it from possibly biting them. Despite aiming for an area with flesh and not metal skin he couldn’t get the shot to pierce its skin despite trying in several places.

“It can’t pierce its skin!” Kai exclaimed and Clay stated, “there must be metal under the flesh parts.”

“Then we’ll have to do this the hard way and destroy it as it is,” Koda expressed before the beast managed to escape his grip to grab him and throw him into the far wall before managing to do the same to his sister dazing both of them. Kai, Zane and the knights took a few steps back worried for its attacks. The droid-beast let out a loud roaring noise at them. The noises volume hurt their ears and caused a bit of disorientation to them. As they recovered from the sound the creature took their moment of disorientation to launch an attack to grab and toss the knights and Kai to the far wall before turning to Zane. Zane tried to freeze the creature as it stalked towards him but shortly after starting his attack he stopped when his eyes met the creatures and he got that strange feeling again. He felt like it was wanting to communicate with him but something, likely this curse was preventing it from being able to do this. He went to attack the creature but couldn’t bring himself to. While he was hesitating Koda and Aela again tried to attack the beast but it got the better of them and tossed them into the knights and Kai who were coming to aid in the fight knocking everyone into a pile.

“This things quite powerful,” Lance noted and Koda guessed, “probably because it comes from a droid.”

“You don’t say,” Kai expressed as they all worked to untangle themselves and get back up while Aaron stated, “We better do something quick or we’re going to have two beast crazed droids to deal with, including one that likely will have a rather chilling bite.” The creature was stalking towards Zane who had fallen backwards from Koda and Aelas attack and just sat staring at the creature almost like he was shocked or in some sort of trance.

“We can’t let him get infected,” Clay stated throwing a blast of electrical energy at the creature as they all got up to distract the creature and hopefully buy them some time. The creature jumped back a bit from the energy of the blast growling at them but was undeterred.

“Do any of the cures for this condition even work on droids?” Macy wondered and Koda regaled, “they do but people here will never give them to him no matter what you do.”

“I won’t let him get cursed. Besides I’m pretty sure Zane could control the curse if he did get it; if not I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t hurt us; well at least not me I’m his brother,” Kai proclaimed hitting the creature with some fire driving it back a bit and angering it.

“Dude I’m pretty sure he’d just go as crazy as that monster and just end up eating you. Boy I’d hate to be the one to tell your sister the news of that?” Aaron noted giving Kai an idea as he looked at the shot he had then back to the beast which looked to be prepping to lunge at Zane who still seemed mesmerized by this beast.

“Hey you rusted fur ball,” Kai called shooting a blast of fire at the creatures head to catch its attention. It turned to look over at them angered while Aaron inquired confused while the other knights were worried, “uh dude what are you doing?”

“You know I’m pretty sure a droid wouldn’t taste very good, probably isn’t healthy for you either. No real meat there. Why don’t you go for something meatier like a fiery hot ninja,” Kai called out to the beast before he again threw a fireball at the creatures head hitting it straight in the face and Axl worried as the creature turned its attention to them, “why are you trying to drag that thing over to us?”

“Trust me I got an idea,” Kai proclaimed before quietly muttering to himself, “hopefully this works.” The creature came charging at them angered. Everyone backed away while Kai held his ground. As the creature jumped at him mouth open to bite at him he quickly through the shot in its mouth as hard as he could proclaiming, “now take your medicine.” It slammed its mouth shut on the shot as it crashed into him knocking both to the ground. After landing on him the droid-beast took a second to come to its senses before getting up and backing away a bit while giving off a coughing noise. The knights came over to help Kai who was shaken and a bit dazed to his feet while Koda and Aela put themselves between Zane and the creature to keep it away from him. Zane seemed lost in thought, almost confused, as he looked at the creature which was backing up into the back wall.

“What did you just do?” Clay wondered as he helped Kai up. Kai responded with, “the only way I could think of getting the potion into it.” The droid-beast finally coughed up the shot which was broken having been split in half with its contents missing. It then backed itself into the corner shaking its head a few times before collapsing onto its knees where it transformed out of its beast form into a hyenoid. It didn’t look like the hyenoids however they had trained with in the city. Instead it looked more like the type that was known to serve the Stag and was dressed like a commoner though a serious patch of damage on its one shoulder letting wires poke out indicated where he had been bitten to receive its’ curse. The droid put its hands on the side of its head keeping its eyes closed as it looked to be fighting something in its head. With the droid out of its beast form Koda and Aela changed out of their beast forms back into their normal forms revealing Aela to be of the hyena folk type.

“Dude I thought you said she was your sister, she looks nothing like you?” Aaron wondered confused as the knights came over to help trap the droid while Kai helped up Zane who no longer seemed to be in whatever state he had been in during the fight.  

“Yha that’s a strange quirk in this realm. We came from the same parents both of the ungulate folk but for some reason I grew to be of the hyena folk. No one’s still quite sure why that happens. Don’t worry it’s just as confusing to us as it likely is to you,” Aela expressed before Clay cut in to declare, “we can talk later guys lets deal with this thing first.” The droid had opened its eyes to see what was going on around it but was clearly being driven crazy by its curse and was mumbling to itself something about its curse.  

“This isn’t a usual droid. It looks a lot like the ones known to serve the Stag; that makes this even more dangerous. These ones are known to be highly calculating and unpredictable and usually don’t travel alone,” Koda commented and Axl wondered, “then where are its pals?”

“I think it’s alone, we haven’t smelt any other droids than yours out here. I’m betting because he’s cursed they abandoned him to his fate to protect themselves. Many would say it is because those things are cold hearted but people do the same thing when they find you have this curse. No one wishes to understand the condition,” Aela speculated and Macy wondered, “how long does that potion last?”

“For a normal folk that amount about a day, not sure about a droid possibly the same maybe more or less. I’m not sure; couldn’t find much research done on beast cursed droids. Few wish to study them because of how dangerous and uncontrollable they are,” Koda explained before the droid muttered, “watch dragons in city… ash warped mind cursed beast attack… I only survive… manage escape… cursed… beast within wants out… needs out… cannot get out… need to hunt…need meat… need feed… fang cub help… mercy…”

“What’s our metal skin bro here muttering about?” Aaron wondered and Macy noted, “don’t know, I think this beast curse is driving it crazy.”

“We need to destroy it before it attacks one of you and curses you guys, especially the metal skin,” Koda stated and Aela stated, “one of you with a weapon preferably a long pointy one like a sword stab it in its power source.”

“We’re sorry about this. It’s not personal. It’s just you’re a danger to others and it clearly looks like this might be good for you, bring you some peace,” Clay stated preparing to stab at the droids chest feeling a bit torn about just finishing this thing. It didn’t look very menacing and dangerous and was clearly having difficulties with what it was going through. It looked pretty down trodden and the knights code told him to protect the down trodden even if they weren’t necessarily human. The droid didn’t deserve such a punishment, it wasn’t purposely out to get anyone it was a victim of its curse, but they had little choice. Before Clay could move in to finish the droid Zane intervened putting himself protectively in front of the droid proclaiming, “Don’t. We do not have to destroy him.”

“Then what do we do with him?” Clay inquired and Macy stated, “if we take it back to town they’re not going to be nice to him and they likely won’t give it a cure. You should know most of all how they’ll likely treat him. This is the best thing for it. There is nothing else we can do for it.” Zane was torn. While it had looked like the being had been trying to hurt or curse Zane he had become aware it just wanted his help. Even though it was having extreme difficulty connecting with him because of the curse driving it mad Zane could still sense what it wanted. It didn’t wish to hurt anyone it just wanted help but it couldn’t control the curse so was unable to effectively seek help and was instead causing harm to all those it tried to seek help from. Zane had a feeling the reason he felt he knew what it wanted was thanks to the Scimitar programming he had gotten which he shared with this droid. He felt despite its curse it was still able to use this programming in some ways to try and find help. Zane wanted to help the droid but he knew the others were right. The people here would not help it and he didn’t know enough from this realm to help it himself. He also didn’t want to risk himself catching this curse which would just endanger others and make the people of the town hate him more. Not to mention cause problems for their current quest.

“I’m guessing because it’s a droid you might be feeling some kinship for it and want to help it but there’s nothing we can do for it. We don’t have very many options and this will be best for everyone even this droid he clearly looks to be suffering in some way. How’s this we’ll make it quick so it doesn’t have to suffer, sound good?” Kai urged coming to comfort Zane and try to get him to see reason. Zane had to agree but still felt it was wrong to simply terminate the construct. Realising Kai was right Zane reluctantly stepped aside to let Clay do what had to be done.

“Please mercy… spare this one… do not want harm others… other side want… hunt Kirin… gift Stag Prince Kirin… beg for freedom…” the construct mumbled seeming to try and beg from them making Clay hesitate in finishing it.

“Stag Prince? Hunt Kirin?” Clay wondered and Aela expressed, “The Stag Prince is Storabek and hunting a Kirin… is it talking of a Great Hunt? That might explain why it’s been causing havoc near here. The Ghost Fence and a passage for wildlife through the fence isn’t far from here. It’s probably trying to get to the other side of the fence to perform the hunt but can’t find a way. The guards at the gate would never let him through no matter what form he takes.”

“Great hunt?” Kai inquired and Koda explained, “part of the beliefs of Storabek told of an act known as the Great Hunt that one could accomplish in order to seek a boon or make a bargain with Storabek. It involves an individual tracking down and hunting a beast of Storabeks make known as a Kirin. It is said he uses the beasts to test the skills of his followers, as targets for those wishing to prove their prowess as warriors and as guardians for sacred sites in the wilderness.”

“What do these Kirins look like?” Clay wondered and Aela stated, “take a deer, give it the tail of a cat, tusks of a boar, the fangs of a wolf, get rid of the antlers and stick a single spiralled slightly curved horn on its forehead with a small bump of a horn slightly in front of that one then cross the whole thing with a dragon and you get the Kirin. They are very powerful, said to be magically gifted in some ways, very agile, fast and aggressive and have great regenerative properties. It is said only specially crafted weapons like those that can harm a Fear, magical weapons or a man-beast can harm or destroy the beasts. I’ve also heard them be referred to as dragon unicorns by some folk as some of the more superstitious people believe the word Kirin is cursed or will get you targeted for Storabeks hunts which are often not pretty.”

“Does this hunt work? Can an individual get a cure for the curse through this hunt?” Zane wondered and Aela stated, “don’t know. According to historical tales it can but Storabek is known to be very temperamental.”

“According to the tales if you can fell the monstrous beast and bring its heart and horn to a shrine to Storabek than he will grant whatever you ask of him usually… you’re not thinking of doing this hunt are you?” Koda wondered clearly not liking Zanes question and Zane responded, “is there one of these creatures and a shrine nearby?”

“Wastes… other side…” the droid mumbled looking to have calmed down a bit and Koda added, “Kirin are rare though one has been spotted in the wastes recently, some say Storabek is setting up for one of his Great Hunts and has brought the beast here for that hunt. Many have come to try and fell the beast over the recent while. So far no one’s been able to fell it. We also know of a few shrines over there too, some of them are eerily still in use by who though I don’t know and would rather not know.”

“You can’t be thinking of helping this thing hunt this beast are you?” Kai wondered not liking what Zane could be thinking and Zane responded, “since the people will not help him this could be his only chance for a cure and a chance to live.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. For one thing I don’t think we should be venturing into the wastes not unless it is for the quest we came here for. It’s too dangerous. Secondly we have no guarantee this will work. Thirdly this droid is a minion for this Black Stag; I don’t think we want to let one of them go wandering around freely,” Clay explained and Zane was quick to point out, “so what if he is one of the Stags allies. You ever consider maybe they do not have a choice in serving him. That he is just as much a victim to the Stags cruelty as the people are. If his allies have abandoned him than maybe the Stag has to and this is his chance for freedom so he does not have to serve evil. He is just as much a living being as you or I does he not deserve a chance to live despite what he is?” The others were unsure what to do or say. Clay noticed Kai was clearly worried and muttered mainly to himself, “this isn’t good.”

“True he does deserve a chance but even if he has been abandoned aiding him is still too dangerous a risk for us to take,” Clay stated then Aela noted, “you outlanders defiantly wouldn’t stand a chance over there and you’d be risking getting the beast curse when the potion wears off on the thing. Also I don’t think any of you are a match for a Kirin. It would fell you before you fell it metal-skin.” They stood around for about a minute going over the idea. Zane still insisted on helping it but none of the others were in agreement. Koda and Aela remained largely quite just listening.

“You guys do not have to come I will take him to find this Kirin and ask this Storabek for aid on my own,” Zane declared when he noticed it seemed no one was willing to help and Kai stated worried, “no that’s not a wise idea.”

“Indeed it isn’t. I doubt you would make it back and as a metal skin the moment you step foot on the other side of the fence the Stag will come for you,” Aela expressed to Zane who was clearly disturbed by the thought of the Stag coming for him and Koda offered, “You know if the hunt doesn’t work I don’t see much harm in letting him run loose on the wastes side. Sure he could still cause problems over there but for those who deserve it like the Ashers… how’s this you all head back to town, tell them the creature has been slain. We already have the curse so he can’t do much harm to us. We’ll take him to the other side of the fence where he can perform this hunt if he wants. If anything we might be able to teach him some control and he could help in taking down some of the enemies numbers.”

“You’d be willing to do that?” Clay wondered and Aela stated, “sure. We’re in a lot better a position to aid him than you are besides given the current climate it might be best if we remain on the other side as well. People won’t have to fear us and we can help keep those who venture over there safe.” After a quick think they all felt this was their best option. The knights with Kai and Zane helped Koda and Aela get the hyenoid to calm down and follow as they took him to a tunnel made by some Boernix beetles which led under the fence into the wastes. A beetle was hanging around gaurding the entrance and became defensive at their sight but quickly calmed down when it saw they offered no threat. It even let Koda, Aela and the hyenoid pass into its tunnel so they could get to the other side.

Before they left Koda stopped to mention to Zane trying to remain quiet so only Zane would hear though Clay overheard as he had been keeping a close eye on Zane to make sure the hyenoid didn’t do anything to him, “you did the right thing metal-skin. Do not listen to the people here. The metal skins are not the monsters not even those following the dark Stag; the real monsters are hiding in plain sight among the people here hiding under many illusions. You know the hyenoid and us share more than our curse in common. In ways we share the same master, a stag master. Indeed he is a cruel dark master but sometimes you need the darkness in order to see the light.” Once they were headed off the knights with Kai and Zane headed back to town. Once back Clay made sure they all got checked over by Merlok first thing to make sure they had not become infected by this curse of man-beasts in any way. They were free though Jay was still not too sure being on the verge of paranoid. Clay could hear him chastising to Zane and Kai while Clay talked to Lloyd in the hall before he went to tell the council what they wanted to hear promising to keep the truth and about Aela and Koda a secret.

“If you turn into one of these man-beast things and you try to or even do eat me and I’m stuck in your stomach being digested I will give you such a shock not only will you feel it the rest of your nindroid life but every droid from here to this forbidden city will feel it you got me! And don’t you laugh the same goes for you Kai,” Jay was proclaiming loudly to Zane who was startled and a bit unerved by Jays accusations and attitude to him. Kai didn’t seem bothered and instead stated just to mess with Jay who was put on edge by the statement, “we’re clean. We all made sure to keep some distance from these things. Well most of us. I would be a little careful around Aaron though. You know how he is with no fear. He was getting a little too close to them and I could swear he’s looking a bit hairier now.”

“Why do they insist on making him paranoid?” Clay wondered and Lloyd explained, “they’re just messing around. I get this isn’t the time for this though. I’ll make sure to have a word with them. Did anything odd happen out there?”

“Odd? Well other than dealing with some really strange man-beast things and coming across one of these Ashers ruins…there was a few things… is it normal for Zane to side with other droids even if they’re your enemies?” Clay wondered and after a moment’s pause Lloyd responded quietly making sure the other ninja couldn’t hear him and clearly worried, “no he usually doesn’t do that, he’s normally indifferent or on our side… something here is making him over trusting to the cybernetic entities here including ones with dark ties. It’s worrying. We’ve all noticed it, it’s gotten us all worried; I want to think maybe because they’re like him he is just feeling for them especially seeing how cruelly they’re treated here but… I’m worried its worse. He’s had contact with a servant to the Stag and no one was around to see what went on. Who knows what that thing could have been doing to him, what it could have been doing or saying to sway his mind.”

“That brings up the other thing. I don’t know if they were just trying to be nice to him or if they were trying to mess with him but the two we dealt with they were saying some things to him. Sounded like they were trying to sway him into trusting not only the constructs but this Black Stag as well,” Clay noted which he could see clearly got Lloyd even more worried, “that’s not good. I hope he will ignore what they said or at least be sceptical if not… I don’t even want to think of it but the outcome likely won’t be good.”

Zaaron This one occurs prior to the Chapter Merchants Tale.

Since meeting them the ninjas relation with the knights had gotten pretty good and they got along rather well. It had taken a little while for them to get used to each other and develop a good relation. There were still some kinks in their relation but they were largely nothing they couldn’t work through. Lance had been made uneasy with Zane after Zane had roughed him up and froze him in ice for a while after Lance had mistakenly treated Zane like a Squirebot for a few days angering Zane who didn’t like being ordered around or treated like a servant and Jay was still a little uncomfortable with Aaron unnerved by how he could be so fearless causing Jay to think either something was wrong with Aaron or he wasn’t truly human. These were minor issues however and didn’t interfere with their relations or ability to work together. There was however one notable problem that was occasionally causing issues. The young knight in training Robin was super fascinated by Zane who was not used to the attention nor liked being the center of attention preferring to let others take the center stage and instead being in the background. Often during down times Robin was trying to hang around and watch Zane making him uncomfortable. To make it worse Robin was often asking him questions while observing him that made Zane uncomfortable often revolving about his internal workings, his being and thoughts. This had made Zane rather uncomfortable around Robin and had led to a few incidents. On one of their early days in the city Hassiri had taken the knights and ninja to the hanger the ship they were to be using was being worked on so they could see what they were going to be using and to try a hand in fixing it to give them experience in case they needed to make repairs in the wastes. The ship was in a really bad shape. While helping to work on it Robin had been hanging around Zane asking him questions while helping out. Nervous of Robin hanging around him and the kids questions Zane had accidently touched the screwdriver he was working with to the wrong piece of machinery and got a serious shock from it knocking him out for over an hour. Robin, who had been worried over what happened, had at least gone and gotten the other ninja to help him after he got shocked. While checking him over when he came too to make sure he was okay Jay had stated “I could see Kai doing this to himself not you, what happened?” Zane was hesitant to say anything about Robin not wanting to get him in trouble just proclaiming it was an accident. Zane knew Robin wasn’t trying to do anything bad to him, the young knight was just over curious. Once while the two groups practiced in the arena together against some hyenoids Robin joining the others to get some practise with the other knights Robin had asked Zane if he ever felt like joining these evil droids in enslaving and destroying people. Zane had been surprised and a little shocked someone would think he would do that and in his surprise he had miss aimed his ice attack on the hyenoids he had originally been aiming for and instead hit Clay, Macy and Kai freezing them in Ice. The hyenoids and some of the spectators watching them were amused by the mistake. Zane had felt too embarrassed by what he had done to help get the three out of the ice and tried to keep his distance from them for a few hours afterwards even though they understood it was an accident and didn’t hold it against him. Another time Zane had been meditating in the common room of the scholars center trying to relax when he noted Robin and Ava coming into the room. Thinking quickly for some way to keep Robin from asking him questions he picked up a bowl of candies someone had placed on a nearby shelf and started eating them. People tended to talk less to someone when they were eating so he was hoping it would work. To his surprise the two had just come to let him know they had a training session soon and Lloyd had sent them to retrieve him and were not there for chatting. As they left Ava noted startling Zane who had eaten almost the whole bowl, “you do realise those are magnets for the whiteboards not candies you’re eating right? I don’t know much about your internal workings but I don’t think those are good for you.” Zane tried to get through the training session as if nothing was wrong but the magnets he had swallowed not only made him feel unwell but also began messing with some of his systems both physically and mentally including messing with his ability to navigate and aim. This caused him to frequently miss aim, make navigational errors causing him to walk into objects and walls, to have trouble balancing and when he performed Spinjitsu he would get extremely dizzy and often ran into objects or the others. The others were confused over why he was performing so poorly and acting strange till Ava explained about the magnets to them since Zane wasn’t wanting to talk about it too embarrassed about what he had done to tell the others. It took Nya and Jay over an hour after the training session to remove as much of the pieces of the magnets from inside Zanes synthetic digestive system as possible. They were both a little irritated that he hadn’t shut down this system when he had realised his mistake causing parts of the magnets to be scattered throughout his synthetic digestive system making their task harder and longer than they would have liked. To add on to his embarrassment while they worked on him Robin was hanging around and trying to help out making him even more uncomfortable. While they worked on him Nya had commented, “You know I could see Cole making this kind of mistake not you; what were you thinking?” All Zane could think of as a reply was that it was an accident.

The one day Zane was headed for the room they were staying in to retrieve his shurikans for a training session. Before he could enter the hall from the main room however he could hear Robin talking to someone in the Knights room in the hall. Wanting to avoid Robins attention thinking quickly Zane activated his cloaking ability disguising himself as Aaron. Robin didn’t seem to take note of him till he went to go into the ninjas room.

“Whatcha doing?” Robin wondered and thinking quickly Zane responded in disguise using Aarons voice, “oh hey little dude Jay just wanted me to retrieve Zanes shurikans for him for their training session. He forgot them in their room and you know how the people here dislike him so Jay felt I should get them for them.”

“You can tell Jay he can retrieve them himself, we have some training of our own to work on,” Clay declared coming out of the knights room to hand Zane Aarons crossbow and shield.

“But aren’t we I mean the ninja using the training ring?” Zane commented confused still in disguise. Even though he felt he should let the cloak down to show Clay he wasn’t really Aaron he didn’t not wanting to reveal himself to Robin.

“Yes they are. I have some special training planned for us though in the Fortrexs holo-decks. Everyone else is already there we’ve just been waiting on you. Now that you’re here we can head over and get started,” Clay declared. Still hesitant to let down the cloak while Robin was there Zane decided to just go with it seeing no other option to get out of this. He followed Clay Robin following behind them to the Fortrex trying to not reveal any hints of his true identity as they left. Shortly after they left Aaron came out of the bathrooms interested in what he had overheard. He had overheard talking in the hall while finishing washing his hands and had been a little confused to have heard his voice. He had a feeling it was Zane disguised as him. He had after all been helping Zane perfect a disguised persona based off him that the ninja had come up with to give him some peace from the people. Aaron wasn’t sure why Zane had at that point decided to go around disguised as him but wondered if he was maybe doing some sort of test on his skills. Seemed like something he might do.

“Oh hey Aaron have you seen Zane? We’re starting training soon and he’s going to be late if we don’t get going now,” Lloyd stated coming down the hall. Aaron quickly decided not to mention anything about what Zane was doing unsure if he maybe was doing this in secret or not. From Lloyds question he had reason to believe the others didn’t know what Zane was doing. To help Zane and not give the ninja any suspicions or reason to worry Aaron decided to play along with Zane. If Zane was going to try disguising as him than he could try disguising as Zane so no one would get suspicious and break Zanes cover.

“Why Lloyd do you not recognise me?” Aaron inquired trying to talk with a tone similar to Zanes. Lloyd looked at him a bit un-amused for a second before stating, “I’ll admit that’s pretty impressive Zane but now’s not the time to be playing around. We’ve got some training to do. Grab your shurikans and meet us in the ring.” While Aaron filled in for Zane, Zane entered the Fortrex and followed Clay into the Holo-training deck. Even though Robin hadn’t followed them into the deck Zane was still hesitant to let down his cloak worried of getting into trouble and unsure how the knights would react to him. He had good reason to believe they wouldn’t hurt him. Instead he worried they might think he was trying to trick them which he feared would cause problems for the ninjas relations with the knights. He didn’t wish to cause any problems.

“Alright knights. I thought today we might want to prepare for what we could face in this Forbidden City. We couldn’t find much on what the inside is supposed to look like so we’re going to pretend today for this session the inside of the city is like this Blackreach place. Both occur underground so there is a good chance they could be similar environments. Hopefully this works. Ava and Merlok went through a lot of research for this,” Clay explained working on a tablet as the Holo-deck changed into a dark cavern filled with strange often glowing flora and fungi with some scimitar ruins. Zane was surprised and impressed by the holo-deck.

“I wonder if the ninja would ever be interested in training in here?” Axl wondered as Zane inspected one of the fungi by him amazed by what he was seeing. Despite being a digital construct it not only looked but felt real!

“I’m pretty sure that worry wart Jay would wet himself,” Lance commented before Clay stated, “Maybe we could think of letting them have a go, not sure how good an idea that would be though. We could think about it later in the meantime we have training to do. Since it is our first time in this kind of environment our enemies are set to a low level.” Various beasts from the vale such as Gloambeasts, Vale Hyenas and Vale Slothdillos along with a bunch of hyenoids resembling the ones they usually trained with in the town materialised around them and began to attack. As the others started the fight Zane hesitated looking around for a door to get out thinking this might be a good chance to try and slip away unseen. He was unable to see a way out and Macy commenting why he was just standing looking around mesmerized drew him into the fight.

“Sorry this place is just so… rad, kind of lost focus,” Zane stated as Aaron hopping onto Aarons shield to copy how he fought. Zane had to exercise great control to not use his powers nor to perform Spinjitsu instead relying on the shield, crossbow and skills in combat to fight their enemies. While fighting Clay would give out commands for fighting formations or instructions for the others. Zane tried to follow along trying to use what the others were doing to help him figure out what to do since he didn’t know what any of these formations were. It worked to some extent but his multi tasking of trying to hide his identity, keep up the illusion he was Aaron and follow orders caused him to make a couple mistakes including accidently crashing into Axl knocking both over and causing the reared up Slothdillo he had been fighting to fall back and land on Lance who upon being landed on lost grip of his weapon and shield which bounced out of his hands. Macy ended up tripping over his shield and as she fell she lost grip of her mace accidently tossing it into Clays back knocking him forward and winding him.

“Okay that didn’t go so well,” Clay stated calling off the session as they all got back up.

“My bad, got a little… discombobulated by the environment,” Zane apologised as Aaron worried they would become suspicious of him. To his relief they accepted it all agreeing to be a little confused by the environment and didn’t show any suspicions. Aaron meanwhile had joined the ninja in their training which was against a bunch of hyenoids. So far they had bought the idea that he was practising his disguise. It took a while for Aaron to get used to fighting without his shield and using shurikans and his fists instead of a crossbow. He had managed to convince them the reason he wasn’t using his powers or Spinjitsu was because Aaron didn’t know those so to keep up the illusion he couldn’t use them. Some of the others clearly thought he was getting a little too into his disguise but bought it. He tried to copy some of the moves the others were doing to not seem out of place but quite a few of them he couldn’t do and when he tried he kept screwing up. They spent the afternoon training and it had not gone well. Aaron was thankful it wasn’t entirely his fault they failed. The hyenoids had been set to the toughest level and were told not to hold back. The ring had been set up with some ruins and foliage and the droids had been given not only weapons but things they could use to trap the ninja and even items made of this cursed stone to block their powers. The droids had gotten the better of them all. Aaron actually hadn’t done to bad; it was Jay and Kai who failed the most. Both kept falling into traps, sometimes together, that the droids kept setting up. At first the hyenoids were clearly into the fight but were soon simply trying to mess with the ninja to have a laugh amused by how Jay and Kai reacted when falling into their traps especially when stuck together. After the training they went back to the main hall and Aaron had the suspicion some of them notably Lloyd and Nya were onto him. By the way they talked to him while they hung out afterwards in the scholars center’s main room he had a feeling they were testing him. He tried to answer them like Zane would as best he could though he had a feeling he might have screwed up on a few answers. They didn’t know enough about each other for him to get everything right. At one point Nya gave him an iced tea made with this Scimitar Oil wanting him to drink it. He tried to think a way out of it but she stated they always made Zane have some at least twice a day to help ease some of his anxieties from the people of the town and the Black Stag. Worried what the ninja would do if they did start to get suspicious he didn’t want to give up the illusion so he drank the tea trying as hard as he could to hide the fact that he didn’t like the taste and it made him feel sick. A little later worried they were suspicious and might do something worse to him than making him drink a tea with a mechanical oil in it he decided to try and sneak out to the Fortrex to get Zane. He managed to sneak out into the foyer of the scholars center before he found himself ambushed with a sack put over his head and dragged off somewhere. When the sack had been removed he had been tied up to a chair in the ninjas room. The ninja were there and looked pretty mad, Aaron was sure now they had suspicions.

“What have you done with our friend monster?” Jay demanded giving Aaron a hefty shock.

“Jay ask questions first then use persuasion if it doesn’t answer we’ve been over this,” Lloyd stated as Aaron recovered from getting shocked quickly stating before anyone else could do anything drastic, “Okay you got me I’m not Zane. I would think I did a pretty good job at filling in for him though wouldn’t you say.”

“Who and what are you then and where’s our friend?” Kai demanded lighting his hands on fire to threaten him and Aaron stated nervous, “Dudes it’s just me, you know Aaron of the Nexo Knights.”

“Yha nice try I saw Aaron head off with Clay to their ship earlier before I found you,” Lloyd stated and Aaron explained, “that was Zane who left with Clay not me. He disguised himself as me. Not entirely sure why but I think he’s trying to test out that cloaking thing he does.” The ninja didn’t seem convinced. They couldn’t see why Zane would go around disguised as one of the knights especially without telling any of them especially with all the dangers to him in this place. It took a while of Aaron trying to convince the ninja he was who he said he was and not an Asher or servant to the Stag like they thought he was.

“Look I’m sorry if I’ve caused any trouble. I get you’re very protective of your brother I’d be too. Please just call Clay. Have a talk to him I’m pretty sure he’s noticed I’ve been a little strange all day,” Aaron vouched. The ninja were still a bit hesitant but decided to give his offer a try. When they contacted Clay he was at first confused but after some thought he believed Aarons story. Him and the other knights had noticed Aaron acting stranger than usual all afternoon but hadn’t thought much of it. They had trained most of the afternoon and Clay had noticed Aaron had not been doing his best while training. After training they had been hanging around in the Fortrex to have some down time and to work on repairing damages from the fall before they would be leaving for the Undercity for diner and the rest of the day. Since training had ended the knights had seen very little of Aaron. After the ninja had contacted him Clay went to the control center with Ava and Merlok to figure out what Aaron who Clay now had reason to believe was actually Zane had been doing during that time. He had told the two about what he and the ninja believed was going on but wasn’t going to tell the other knights just yet wanting to be sure it was just some misunderstandings going on and not something dangerous. They were after all in a place where there were terrible beings out to get them. Some of these they had heard were capable of disguising themselves as someone else. The three of them went over the ships security footage to see if they could see what Zane who was disguised as Aaron had been up to. After training while everyone had gone to hang out in the common room or worked in the control center or with the engines Zane who had remained disguised as Aaron had wandered around the ship. He didn’t appear aware of the security cameras. By the way he was looking around like he was lost or confused and entering every room and looking behind every door even random closets they believed he was trying to find a way out of the ship however it seemed his curiosity had quickly gotten the better of him and he began investigating things that caught his interest which along with various items from their world included things like technical devices, books and pictures. He had come across Clays copy of the Knights Code in his room and read it for over half an hour occasionally muttering things like ‘so that is what that formation is’, ‘oh that is what I was supposed to do’ and ‘okay that is why I messed up’ to himself as he read it looking to be studying it. He had come across some of the Squirebots they had onboard who were helping Robin with repairing the ship while wandering. He seemed both curious and confused by them as he quietly talked with some of them. While they had let the ninja know about them none of them had seen or met the Squirebots as the knights were keeping them hidden on the Fortrex to keep them safe. They knew in no way did the Squirebots have the fortitude to handle the conditions or people of this place so the Fortrex where no one but the knights were allowed in was the safest place for them. They were guessing because they were similar in being to him he was curious about them but was also confused because they were much simpler in build and programming than he was. They also noted he was keeping his distance from Robin who was working in the same room while he quietly talked to the Squirebots. It looked like he was trying to not reveal his presence to Robin. They found that a little curious as if he wandered somewhere where one of the others were he didn’t seem to care if they noticed him. He had wandered into the kitchens at one point where Axl was trying to figure out things they could make out of the items available to them in this realm that wasn’t going to have strange effects on them or make them sick. Zane didn’t seem to care that Axl noticed him and asked him to come try something. Zane tried what he had been making. He had first however tried the slop for Lances pet pig Hamletta that was on the counter thinking that was what Axl had been talking about till Axl a little surprised by who he saw as Aarons actions corrected him. ‘oh, well this is not too bad either’ Zane commented as Aaron appearing a bit embarrassed by his actions before trying what Axl had made. He had also wandered into the control center while Ava, Macy and Merlok were working in it trying to get some of the Fortrexs main systems working again. They clearly noted him and Zane didn’t seem to care that they did as he was looking around the room. They wondered what he was doing curious about his actions and when asked he replied that he had just misplaced his copy of the guide book they had been given and was searching for it. They accepted it and went back to work though Merlok admitted to them as they went over the footage that he had sensed something strange about Aaron at the time but wasn’t sure what it was. While in there noting what they were working on and how they were struggling with getting something’s to work he had gone to investigating the control center. While they were occupied talking with each other he went under the control board and was doing something but from the angle the camera was at they couldn’t see what it was. Those in the room had no clue what he was doing till he finished whatever he was doing and got up from under the board giving them some suggestions on what to do. They weren’t sure about his suggestions but tried it anyway. They were surprised to find it worked. When asked how he knew he simply replied ‘lucky guess’. Now that they had a feeling who he actually was they wondered if he had somehow hooked himself up to the ships computers and used his own systems to diagnose the problem. At one point he wandered into the storage section where he took note of some oil barrels and inspected them. He appeared to try some on his wrist at one point still not letting down his cloak. After that they were guessing out of curiosity he tasted some of the oil which surprised two of the Squirebots who just happened to enter the room at that time to get some supplies. The Squirebots were both surprised and stumped by who they believed was Aarons actions. Zane was surprised to note the Squirebots come in and looked to be embarrassed as he moved around them to leave the room. In his embarrassment they noted slight flickers to his cloak revealing their suspicions.

With his suspicions confirmed Clay deciding to confront Zane on his own feeling he probably would feel very uncomfortable for everyone else to confront him as well. With Avas help he found Zane who had found his way into the garage to the drawbridge and was trying to figure out the code for the lock on the door. He was still disguised as Aaron but by how quickly he was working on the control panel it was obvious he wasn’t human. Zane didn’t seem to note Clay coming into the garage as he was too busy working with the control panel.

“Forget the password Aaron? Not surprised as we never told any of the ninja,” Clay stated calmly strolling up to the Aaron disguised Zane with his hands behind his back.

“Ninja? Why would you mention them?” Aaron wondered clearly trying to hide he was on edge and Clay stated, “oh just engaging in some friendly chit chat. Heading out already?”

“Uh yha, feels a little stuffy in here so I thought I would go for a stroll,” Aaron expressed and Clay noted, “having some trouble with the door.”

“Oh… yha I got a knock to my noggin while training and it has made my head all funny. I think it has made me forget a few things. Part of the reason I am going for a walk so I can clear my head,” Aaron expressed.

“Sure Zane, would you like some help?” Clay proclaimed and Zane wondered clearly nervous by how his cloak started to glitch though trying to hide his anxieties, “Zane? Why do you mention the ninjas cyber bro? I am your knightly bro Aaron.”

“Uh-huh sure you are. Here why don’t I give you a hand,” Clay stated touching his hand to Aarons shoulder. Using his magic powers Clay gave Zane a minor shock when he touched him. The minor shock Zane got caused his cloak to fail and shut off revealing a rather surprised Zane who looked at himself a bit worried.

“I can explain! I didn’t mean to cause trouble I was just… just,” Zane quickly blurt out worried he was in trouble and Clay comforted, “it’s okay you’re not in trouble. Just next time you plan on practising you’re cloaking skill you should let others know. You’re friends are worried something had happened to you.”

“Practising? Yha that is what it was,” Zane mumbled mainly to himself sounding unsure of his words and Clay inquired, “is that not what you were doing?”

“Well actually, I was just trying to avoid Robin but then you thought I was Aaron and I was not sure what to do so just went along with it,” Zane explained after a short pause looking to be embarrassed to admit it.

“Are you scared of Robin?” Clay wondered confused and a little surprised a nindroid was scared by a kid.

“Not really… he just makes me uncomfortable with all his questions and how he watches me,” Zane regaled clearly nervous and Clay stated, “why don’t you tell him then. You don’t have to try and hide whenever he’s around.”

“I guess. I just don’t want to be rude or hurt his feelings,” Zane mumbled and Clay explained, “don’t worry he’ll understand. I think he’s just so fascinated by you that he might not realise he’s making you uncomfortable.”  

“I guess… how long have the others noted I was gone?” Zane inquired.

“Surprisingly not long, Aaron has been filling in pretending to be you all afternoon. It worked for a while but they’ve clued in. Come why don’t we get you back to your friends. They’re worried for you plus I’ve got to rescue Aaron, he’s in a bit of trouble for tricking them,” Clay declared. Zane reactivated his cloak so he could wander around town without catching the peoples attentions while Clay unlocked the door. They headed to the Under-city. Once in the scholars’ center Zane let down his cloak before they entered the ninjas room. The ninja were pleased and relieved to see Zane, mostly. Jay was unsure if it was really Zane or one of their enemies so gave Zane a shock. When his appearance didn’t change and seeing he had just shocked his friend Jay gave up his paranoia and apologised to Zane.

“Why did you suddenly decide to go around as one of the knights?” Lloyd inquired confused and Nya added, “and why Aaron did you pretend to be Zane?”

“He was trying to avoid Robins attention and he was doing such a good job at his disguise that I mistook him for Aaron and got him involved in our training today,” Clay explained untying Aaron from the chair the ninja had tied him to and Kai asked Zane, “didn’t you think of letting them know there had been a mistake?”

“Kind of but I was worried I would get in trouble and I did not want to cause problems. Then I got a little distracted by their training deck and some other things,” Zane explained and Aaron noted, “the training decks pretty wicked isn’t it cyber bro.” Zane agreed; he had found the training deck quite fascinating.

“You still haven’t explained what you were doing?” Cole asked Aaron who replied, “I thought Zane was just testing out his skills and I didn’t think he had let any of you know about it. I thought I could help out my cyber bro and keep you guys from worrying or breaking his cover so I decided to fill in for him. Then though you started asking questions and that tea...”

“Oh yha sorry about that, at first we fell for it but then there were some things you would do or say that we felt were a bit odd,” Jay explained and Lloyd added, “When you weren’t able to answer the questions very well and were bothered by the Scimitar Oil we knew then you weren’t Zane and were worried you were an Asher. No harm done?”

“All’s good, I get it you were worried and I probably shouldn’t have fooled you like that,” Aaron stated.

“I’m sorry if there was any trouble,” Lloyd apologized to Clay who reassured, “no there was no trouble however I think some of the Squirebots are going to think Aaron has a taste for mechanical oils.”

“What?” Aaron wondered confused and a bit worried while Zane recalled, “You saw that? Sorry I was just curious.” Later the knights and ninja hung out in the scholars center’s main room going over the events of the day. When the knights had returned to the scholars center Clay explained what had happened. Lance was a bit uneasy that Zane was able to easily pretend to be one of them however the rest of knights were impressed that Zane had managed to pull off disguising himself as Aaron for so long. They had all been rather surprised that Aaron had been able to trick the ninja into thinking he was Zane. They didn’t think he had it in him to be more subdued and calm in personality. While they hung out Clay encouraged Zane to talk with Robin to clear some things up. Zane was hesitant to do so and guessing he was nervous of interacting with Robin Clay talked Robin into starting the conversation.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realise I was making you so uncomfortable,” Robin apologized to Zane.

“It is okay; I understand you are just curious. I guess I would be too in the same circumstance. I do not see the harm in answering some of your questions but there is a time and place for that not while training or when relaxing or…” Zane stated still feeling nervous from Robin but acknowledging he was trying to make amends for the uneasiness he had been causing him.

“Okay. Maybe we could work out some times we could talk,” Robin offered and they both agreed to it.

In the short Beasts of the Stag an interesting fact that makes Kais wondering of who Jestro is kind of funny is that the voice actor for Kai is the same person who voiced Jestro.

To find previous and later chapters look here: https://robobirdie.tumblr.com/archive

You can also find a copy of the story written here https://archiveofourown.org/works/34894561/chapters/86888878 and here https://www.wattpad.com/1087355671-ninjago-the-oni-scrolls-foreword-important-info You can also find images pertaining to the story here: https://www.deviantart.com/nerdy-hyena/gallery/72478681/story-project

[talldarkandroguesome]

2nd of Morning Star, Sundas

I decided to approach my Earl as formally as possible. It was easy enough to do with my emotions locked away.

To that point, I did not dally from broaching the subject, having decided that it was best to be straightforward. I told him that I can come from a briefing and in light of what I had learned, wished to be informed, as best as was able without overstepping, what the goals of the Court were, that I may not obstruct them unintentionally again.

Before he answered me, my Earl asked me what was wrong, for my mannerisms had changed.

So I explained to him that I had shut off my emotions in order not to be overwhelmed, mentioning that I now knew I was responsible for killing one of the Court’s members and that, learning that many newcomers were being taken to be sacrificed to power the Court’s goals, I did not wish to consider why there was no sign of the House Intelligence officer assigned to assist me or of Nabine and my children. Rather than allowing my mind to be clouded with possible scenarios of things that may or may not have already come to pass, I wanted to focus on moving forward with our goals.

My Earl was looking ever more dour as I explained everything, carefully keeping my feelings of anxiety that threatened to bubble back to the surface down and away.

With a sigh, he told me that, given that I was now involved, I might as well be brought in. So he asked me to explain what I already knew, and what the Psijics knew, so that he could clarify to me and also know what our next best move might be.

I explained about how Valsirenn learned of the Court’s involvement with the Aldarch, that the court was using pearls given by the sload, that the sload were involved because Vile had made a deal with them, exchanging the isle of Summerset for the Heart of Transparent law.

The Earl cut me off there with a scowl, saying that he had not been informed of that particular bit of information and never would have agreed to such a thing.

I replied that I had suspected that Nocturnal might be working against us because of her treatment of me during her and Vile’s plans in Vvardenfell and within the Clockwork City, but perhaps they were both taking more liberties than they are letting us know. 

He inquired about Vile’s methods of delivering the island to the sload and what the time frame was, and other related questions, which I answered as best as I could for not fully knowing. I had to pull out my journal and review what I had written after the briefing to check information for him.

When he was satisfied, he bade me continue, so I explained about the need for the Sapiarchs to do a rushed reattunement of the keys to the Crystal Tower, that Meridia’s golden knight was able to use the Dawnbreaker to fight back both our Prince’s webs and Nocturnal’s shadows. That our Prince had managed to capture the knight, but he had removed the Dawnstar gem and given it to the Eyes of the Queen before being pulled into the Spiral Skein. That the Ritemaster was trying to recover his memory about where in the Dreaming Cave he hid the Heart of Transparent Law, but that there was a path that was blocked by shadows. When utilizing the Dawnstar gem, it was simply not powerful enough to fight back the shadows, so the Eyes of the Queen were currently looking for a way to contact Merdia for a more powerful artifact that might help with opening up the path for the Ritemaster.

When I had finished sharing what I knew, my Earl sighed and took a moment to think before he spoke. He told me that the Psijics had learned more than he hoped, but less than he feared. That as blindly as the Psijics had sought to stop the Court, they had been surprisingly adept at stumbling into succeeding. Though he hoped to use his time back on Artaeum to further his goals.

My Earl told me that Mephala had chosen him to help to reshape the world, make it a paradise without death or sickness. A place where suffering can be put to a stop and parents never have to lose their children.

Where I able to feel at that moment, I may have had my heart ache on his behalf. I was lucky enough to still have my children. At least one of them. He had lost his only child from the sounds of it. It was no wonder he would desire to fight for such a grand goal. And I knew that this was proof that my Prince was truly the loving mother that She always portrayed Herself to be.

I apologized again for my part in thwarting the achievement of such a worthy cause and asked how I could be of use. That as it stood, I had some obligation to assist the Psijics, since it was my only hope to healing Nabine’s mother now, but I wished to do so only in a way that also worked towards achieving the goals of the Court, without getting in their way.

My Earl explained that the final stages of the plan was to gain entrance to the Crystal Tower, where, working together, the three Princes would be able to take control of the Tower’s power and reshape the world as they saw fit. Already they had managed to eliminate a great number of other Prince’s followers, in order that the Princes would not have enough power to stop the Court. That Vile had said seeding the pearl around the island would help to assist in bringing the Tower under their three powers, but that the Earl was beginning to doubt if the price was not too great, all things given. 

I asked if the retrieval of a relic of Meridia’s that allowed the Ritemaster to discover his lost memory would not prevent the plan reaching fruition.

The Earl seemed rather perplexed about the barrier, saying it was certainly not the work of our Prince, but that, should the Heart be retrieved, it would be for the best, since my Earl would be in the perfect position to capture it here. We had only to deal with his being bound to the island for everything to be perfect.

I told him of my suspicion that the barrier was Nocturnal’s. After all, it reminded me much of the shadows that had tormented me before. Then I asked if I should be working to help retrieve the Heart and if so, should I try to convince them to bring the Heart back to Artaeum or somewhere more advantageous.

My Earl said that the Heart would have to be brought through the island here regardless. That they would need to gain entrance to the Crystal Tower to be able to repair Transparent Law, which was the next step for my Earl as well. Though he thought things were too uncertain to make more concrete plans as of yet. So instead, I should be ready to move when he gave word, but to play along with the Psijics in the meantime. 

I assured him that I was fully dedicated to this endeavor and prepared for whatever the cost. That I would not hesitate to eliminate anyone in the way at his word. No matter who. And that I would lay down as many of my lives as possible to see that he was kept safe. That my loyalty to him and our Prince was unwavering and he should make use of me however he saw fit. 

He told me he wished to avoid bloodshed as much as possible. That I needed to keep from tipping our hand as long as we could. That my efforts were appreciated.

I felt a swell of pride. I was doing what was right.

More might have passed, but there was interruption as a couple of passersby came along the road and I went back to my farce as the dutiful warden of the evil cultist.

For now, I wait. Like a trap ready to be sprung, I await my Earl’s signal. I shall play my role fully until the time is right. Then I shall snap my jaws shut round my prey.

Everything I do now, I do for my Prince and my Earl. If everything else is lost, at least I have this.

[middy399]

Nerevarine Questions 👀 11, 12, and 30

11. Which of Morrowind’s nine regions is their favourite overall?

Probably the Ascadian Isles, but the Bitter Coast is a close second. They remind her of the lush greenery of the Summerset Isles, but without all of the pain associated with her homeland, and with so many new and fascinating creatures. A lot of her best memories took place between those two regions.

12. If they have one or more stable homes, where do they choose to live?

Ace never really had a stable home or place to live, but she fell in love with a couple in Balmora, and they would constantly remind her that she was always welcome to return to their home and make it her own as well. That's probably the closest thing she had for a "home" in a very long time.

30. Are they proud of themselves? Do they see themselves as a hero?

LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO FUCK NO. Ace is a Hero by Prophecy and Event only. She stepped into Seyda Neen with the hopes of starting a new life, for things to go right and good for her this time with her fate in her own hands, and it all came crashing down around her harder than anyone could've imagined. She had responsibility thrust upon her, betrayal around every corner, and she met and quickly lost some of the most important and beloved people in her life, some by her own hand. Any comfort she had in knowing that she ultimately saved countless people was dashed quickly when Baar Dau eventually crashed down and brought about Red Year, claiming countless lives as a result of Vivec's absence in the wake of her deeds. She came to Morrowind with nothing, and left with even less, and Red Year managed to take even more. She's no hero. Just a broken, confused, and horrifically lonely altmer. She’s just another victim.

[datorchoe]

TES Hero’s

 Bruh I’ve never written this much in my life. This is a description of all my main TES ocs from ESO, Morrowind, Oblivion, Legends, Blades, and Skyrim. Read all under the cut :)

Vestige

Cahira Stegan - Breton, 21 years old, dark brown hair, dark brown eyes  

- Cahira was born to a small family in a village called Krratch in western High Rock. Her family wasn’t able to take care of her so they married her off to the Kings son, Tan, when she was 14. She is a prodigy with a great sword, being the one of the strongest people in the village at only 16.

- She is 21 when ESO kicks off. Manimarco attacked Krratch and she gave her soul in turn that way he doesn’t decimate the village. She looses all memories when Manimarco takes her soul.

- Cahira is the strongest of all of the characters on this list. In addition to being a master great sword wielder, when she defeats Molag Bal, she keeps the Aedric powers she is given by the Amulet of Kings.

- After about a year of adventuring & training with her Aedric powers, she has fought and defeated about half of the Daedric Princes shes come across, including Molag Bal, Clavicus Vile, Vaermina & Mehrunes Dagon. After defeating so many Daedric Princes, Cahira absorbs a ton of Daedric energy, and becomes immortal. 

- (One thing I did change lore-wise is that Darien doesn’t disappear for a while after Coldharbour so he travels with Cahira for quite a while.)

- Cahira is mother to 5 children. Her first child is named Garbashur. He is an orc that she adopted when she was 14 and living in Krratch. Her next child is a breton named Dynar Gautier, which she had with Darien. Sadly, he never got to meet his son, but after news of her pregnancy, she retired to Camlorn after General Gautier offered to help her raise Dynar. He is named after the Ayleid king from The Hollow City. Her next child is a half-breton half-redguard named Maya, who she bore with Merric at-Aswala who she married after 3 years in retirement. The next two children are half breton half orc half, well, Daedra. Agroh is the older child, and Motkh is the younger child of the Daedric Prince Malacath who Cahira consorts with after her and Merric divorce. 

Nervarine 

Montague Tesari - Altmer, 718 years old, gold skin, gold hair, green eyes.  

- Montague was born in the Summerset Isles in the second era. His biological parents couldn’t take care of him, so they gave him to a family of Bretons living in the Isles, hence his name. 

- Monatgue has very few responsibilities he actually cares about. His biggest priority is his son, Denken, who is a half-altmer half-dunmer. His ex wife, Neryn, divorced him 5 years after their son’s birth because he couldn’t keep a stable job. Despite his fathers absence, Denken has nothing but love for his father and vise versa. They sent letters between each other for years until Denken was old enough to go out on his own. 

- Monatgue is a very powerful mage. Using mostly Daedric magic, Alteration magic, and Destruction magic. Montague trained with Divayth Fyr for three years after the events of Morrowind. But, it doesn’t last long since Divayth & Montague had a falling out. However, his strongest ability is the ability to commune with animals. 

- After spending time with a Hircine cult, he developed a special connection with a lot of animals. This connection is one of the major reasons that Emperor Uriel Septim VII asked Montague to travel to Akavir. As a trusted blade of Uriel, Montague has a lot of political backing to his name. His strength is known and respected by many. This is another reason that Montague was asked to go to Akavir. However, Uriel Septim was assasinated before Montague could return to mainland Tamriel. 

 - He is still very much alive and kicking during the events of Skyrim. After Uriel Septim’s death, Montague returned to Cloud Ruler Temple to see what was happening. Montague teaches Risiki (HoK) blood magic to help her combat the Mythic Dawn. He also teaches Koraan (LDB) a new shout he learned on Akavir. 

Hero of Kvatch

Risiki “R248″ Utherd - Nord, 30 years old, black hair, green eyes 

- Risiki was part of an experiment by some scientists who operated out of a cave on the border of Skyrim & Cyrodil. One day when she was eight, she was awoken to the scientist being slaughtered. She runs from the cave and comes apon a small village in the Reach of Skyrim. The villagers turn her away, as she is covered in blood and will only repeat the phrase “R248″. She leaves to the outskirts of the village and meets a man named Urgmard Utherd. Urgmard takes her in and raises her. 

- When Risiki was 25, a massive group of bandits comes and attacks the village, killing all of the patrons, including Urgmard. Risiki makes it her lifes work to hunt down and kill all of these bandits. After 5 years, she finally learns the location of the leader, who is posing as a citizen in the Imperial City. She enters the city and slays him once and for all. However, the guards catch her and throw her into prison. Thats how the events of Oblivion kick off. 

- Risiki became involved with the Thieves Guild after hearing rumors of Mythic Dawn agents within. She quickly rose to the top and became the Grey Fox. However, after her retirement, she passed the Cowl on to Armand Christophe. She is also the Grand Champion of the Arena, going by the name “The Gatekeeper”

- Risiki’s main weapon is a battle axe, but she was also taught ice magic. After Montague returns from Akavir, he teaches her blood magic, which he believes will be helpful in the fight against the Mythic Dawn. 

- Risiki becomes incredibly attached to Martin Septim, seeing as he becomes one of her only friends. Her and Martin had a child named Uria Martin Hassildor. After Martin’s passing, Janus Hassildor takes her under his wing, knowing the pain of loosing the one you love. 

- She spent twenty years in Skingrad with Uria before being murdered in The Shivering Isles. Uria went with her mother and got trapped in the Shivering Isles till the events of Skyrim, when Koraan (LDB) rescues her from her suspended time. 

Forgotten Hero (Legends) 

Carwhien Balfwood - Half-breton half-bosmer, 27 years old, light brown hair, green eyes 

- Carwhien comes from a very large bosmer family in Grahtwood. Having 4 half siblings and 17 cousins living under the same roof, she struglled to keep up with her family, being considered the “odd one out” since she was half breton. She never had a good relationship with her father. So when he ran off to join the Thalmor, an organization she deeply despises, her hatred grew more. Eventually, she decided to track him down and make him answer. Being caught snooping around in the Thalmor’s records, they threw her into the Arena with Tyr, the former Blade. This kickstarts the main questline. 

- Being bosmer, Carwhien is very agile and light, using mostly daggers. She is also a master of shock and lightning magic. Her bubbly personality and worship of Y’ffre and The Green sometimes makes it hard for her to kill, especially animals. When Tyr and Carwhien encounter the wolves in the woods, she cannot bring herself to kill the wolves and takes one in, naming him Boomie. 

- After the main questline takes place, Carwhien returns back to Grahtwood with Tyr, Swims and Laaneth to reunite with her family. They spend a few months there before spliting off. Tyr & Carwhien go to Skyrim and get married and have three kids, Uurfin and Fortar (twin boys), and a girl named Svail. 

- They are still alive by the events of Skyrim, when Tyr hears of the Dragonborn’s return, his pride as a former Blade tells him to track down Koraan (LDB) to see what she’s about. 

Blades Hero

Holkom at-Muraak - Redguard, 30, Black hair, brown eyes. 

- Holkom is a former member of the Blades, who was friends with Tyr, as they were in the organization together. For as long as he can remember, Holkom lived in the small town of ‘Swordbreak’ training with a blade. When he turned 16, he went to Cloud Ruler Temple and joined up with the Blades. After most of the Blades were wiped out, Holkom decided to return home to Swordbreak. The events of the main quest then kicked off. 

- Holkom’s main weapon is a greatsword, but being trained by the Blades, he can also use katana’s very well. Holkom has a very “heroic” personality. He enjoys being the center of attention, but would never pull the “people love me” card to flex on anyone. But his massive muscles do flex often. 

- After completely rebuilding Swordbreak, Holkom became the new mayor. He then married Sabina Clovia, a breton mage living in Swordbreak. They have two children. An older male named Rhani, and a young girl named Prollie. 

- Like Tyr, Holkom was very curious about the new Dragonborn. So, after Tyr met Koraan (LDB), he invited her to Swordbreak to meet Holkom, cause ya gotta look out for your bro’s. 

Last Dragonborn

Koraan Buxom - Nord, 24 years old, dirty blonde hair, blue eyes.  

- Koraan was born in Cyrodil, close to the border of Skyrim. Her mother is actually a desendant of Risiki’s (HoK) brother, Brarius Velldo. Akatosh thought it would be a funny coincidence. Anyway, Koraan’s parents were doctors in Anvil, and they trained Koraan in medical sciences. At age 10, Koraan’s parents were attacked by vampires. Her mother passed away, and her father became a vampire. However, they were saved by a Khajiit vampire named Raizin, who brought them back to their little vampire sancutary, where Koraan would train for the rest of her life. After many years of being with them, a rival vampire group rose up and killed most of them, including her father. Raizin was kidnapped and sealed away by the other vampires so that he couldn’t fight back. Koraan then ran and spent three years hiding in a cave, living off the bandits that would take refuge there. Afterwards, she went to Skyrim, hoping to find her father. That kicks off the main events of Skyrim. 

- Koraan is mostly a restoration mage, however, she is also very adept at telekinisis, being able to hold up the entirety of the College of Winterhold in an effort to keep it steady as it broke off. However, when she first comes to Skyrim, she joins up with the Companions to make some money and begins training with swords. She prefers katana’s but is capable of wielding a greatsword of battleaxe. 

- Koraan is the Harbinger of the Companions, but is also the Listener of the Dark Brotherhood. She got mixed up in the Brotherhood before Alduin’s defeat and became Harbinger literally hours before going to defeat Alduin. Being the only doctor in the Companions, she has a lot of work on her back trying to keep them alive. Her passive and patient nature is definetly put to the test. 

- Koraan adopts three children in her time in Skyrim. Lucia in Whiterun, Zenneth (a Nord boy based in Falkreath and his dog Paku), and Rylu (a Dunmer boy they found on Sothstiem). She also technically adopts Aventus Arentino, but he begs her to let him stay in Dawnstar with the Dark Brotherhood. A couple of years after Skyrim’s main quest, she marries Farkas and they have two twin girls, Kodlin and Parthurn, and one boy, Jergen. 

[theskyrimlibrary]

2920, Sun’s Dawn, v2

Sun’s Dawn Book Two of 2920 The Last Year of the First Era

by Carlovac Townway

✲•······················▃🖋️······················•✲

3 Sun’s Dawn, 2920 The Isle of Artaeum, Summerset

Sotha Sil watched the initiates float one by one up to the oassom tree, taking a fruit or a flower from its high branches before dropping back to the ground with varying degrees of grace. He took a moment while nodding his head in approval to admire the day. The whitewashed statue of Syrabane, which the great mage was said to have posed for in ancient days, stood at the precipice of the cliff overlooking the bay. Pale purple proscato flowers waves to and fro in the gentle breeze. Beyond, ocean, and the misty border between Artaeum and the main island of Summurset.

“By and large, acceptable,” he proclaimed as the last student dropped her fruit in his hand. With a wave of his hand, the fruit and flowers were back in the tree. With another wave, the students had formed into position in a semicircle around the sorcerer. He pulled a small fibrous ball, about a foot in diameter from his white robes.

“What is this?”

The students understood this test. It asked them to cast a spell of identification on the mysterious object. Each initiate closed his or her eyes and imagined the ball in the realm of the universal Truth. Its energy had a unique resonance as all physical and spiritual matter does, a negative aspect, a duplicate version, relative paths, true meaning, a song in the cosmos, a texture in the fabric of space, a facet of being that has always existed and always will exist.

“A ball,” said a young Nord named Welleg, which brought giggles from some of the younger initiates, but a frown from most, including Sotha Sil.

“If you must be stupid, at least be amusing,” growled the sorcerer, and then looked at a young, dark-haired Altmer lass who looked confused. “Lilatha, do you know?”

“It’s grom,” said Lilatha, uncertainly. “What the dreugh meff after they’ve k-k-kr-krevinasim.”

“Karvinasim, but very good, nonetheless,” said Sotha Sil. “Now, tell me, what does that mean?”

“I don’t know,” admitted Lilatha. The rest of the students also shook their heads.

“There are layers to understanding all things,” said Sotha Sil. “The common man looks at an object and fits it into a place in his way of thinking. Those skilled in the Old Ways, in the way of the Psijic, in Mysticism, can see an object and identify it by its proper role. But one more layer is needed to be peeled back to achieve understanding. You must identify the object by its role and its truth and interpret that meaning. In this case, this ball is indeed grom, which is a substance created by the dreugh, an underwater race in the north and western parts of the continent. For one year of their life, they undergo karvinasim when they walk upon the land. Following that, they return to the water and meff, or devour the skin and organs they needed for land-dwelling. Then they vomit it up into little balls like this. Grom. Dreugh vomit.”

The students looked at the ball a little queasily. Sotha Sil always loved this lesson.

✲•······················▃🖋️······················•✲

4 Sun’s Dawn, 2920 The Imperial City, Cyrodiil

“Spies,” muttered the Emperor, sitting in his bath, staring at a lump on his foot. “All around me, traitors and spies.”

His mistress Rijja washed his back, her legs wrapped around his waist. She knew after all these many years when to be sensual and when to be sexual. When he was in a mood like this, it was best to be calmly, soothingly, seductively sensual. And not to say a word unless he asked her a direct question.

Which he did: “What do you think when a fellow steps on his Imperial Majesty’s foot and says ‘I’m sorry, Your Imperial Majesty’? Don’t you think ‘Pardon me, Your Imperial Majesty’ is more appropriate? ‘I’m sorry,’ well that almost sounds like the bastard Argonian was sorry I am his Imperial Majesty. That he hopes we lose the war with Morrowind, that’s what it sounds like.”

“What would make you feel better?” asked Rijja. “Would you like him flogged? He is only, as you say, the Battlechief of Soulrest. It would teach him to mind where he’s stepping.”

“My father would have flogged him. My grandfather would have had him killed,” the Emperor grumbled. “But I don’t mind if they all step on my feet, provided they respect me. And don’t plot against me.”

“You must trust someone.”

“Only you,” smiled the Emperor, turning slightly to give Rijja a kiss. “And my son Juilek, I suppose, though I wish he were a little more cautious.”

“And your council, and the Potentate?” asked Rijja.

“A pack of spies and a snake,” laughed the Emperor, kissing his mistress again. As they began to make love, he whispered, “As long as you’re true, I can handle the world.”

✲•······················▃🖋️······················•✲

13 Sun’s Dawn, 2920 Mournhold, Morrowind

Turala stood at the black, bejeweled city gates. A wind howled around her, but she felt nothing.

The Duke had been furious upon hearing his favorite mistress was pregnant and cast her from his sight. She tried again and again to see him, but his guards turned her away. Finally, she returned to her family and told them the truth. If only she had lied and told them she did not know who the father was. A soldier, a wandering adventurer, anyone. But she told them that the father was the Duke, a member of the House Indoril. And they did what she knew they would have to do, as proud members of the House Redoran.

Upon her hand was burned the sign of Expulsion her weeping father had branded on her. But the Duke’s cruelty hurt her far more. She looked out at the gate and into the wide winter plains. Twisted, sleeping trees and skies without birds. No one in Morrowind would take her in now. She must go far away.

With slow, sad steps, she began her journey.

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16 Sun’s Dawn, 2920 Senchal, Anequina (modern day Elsweyr)

“What troubles you?” asked Queen Hasaama, noticing her husband’s sour mood. At the end of most Lovers’ Days he was in an excellent mood, dancing in the ballroom with all the guests, but tonight he retired early. When she found him, he was curled in the bed, frowning.

“That blasted bard’s tale about Polydor and Eloisa put me in a rotten state,” he growled. “Why did he have to be so depressing?”

“But isn’t that the truth of the tale, my dear? Weren’t they doomed because of the cruel nature of the world?”

“It doesn’t matter what the truth is, he did a rotten job of telling a rotten tale, and I’m not going to let him do it anymore,” King Dro’Zel sprang from the bed. His eyes were rheumy with tears. “Where did they say he was from again?”

“I believe Gilverdale in easternmost Valenwood,” said the Queen, shaken. “My husband, what are you going to do?”

Dro’Zel was out of the room in a single spring, bounding up the stairs to his tower. If Queen Hasaama knew what her husband was going to do, she did not try to stop him. He had been erratic of later, and prone to fits and even occasional seizures. But she never suspected the depths of his madness, and his loathing for the bard and his tale of the wickedness and perversity found in mortal man.

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19 Sun’s Dawn, 2920 Gilverdale, Valenwood

“Listen to me again,” said the old carpenter. “If cell three holds worthless brass, then cell two holds the gold key. If cell one holds the gold key, then cell three hold worthless brass. If cell two holds worthless brass, then cell one holds the gold key.”

“I understand,” said the lady. “You told me. And so cell one holds the gold key, right?”

“No,” said the carpenter. “Let me start from the top.”

“Mama?” said the little boy, pulling on his mother’s sleeve.

“Just one moment, dear, mother’s talking,” she said, concentrating on the riddle. “You said ‘cell three holds the golden key if cell two holds worthless brass,’ right?”

“No,” said the carpenter patiently. “Cell three holds worthless brass, if cell two - -”

“Mama!” cried the boy. His mother finally looked.

A bright red mist was pouring over the town in a wave, engulfing building after building in its wake. Striding before was a red-skinned giant. The Daedra Molag Bal. He was smiling.

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29 Sun’s Dawn, 2920 Gilverdale, Valenwood

Almalexia stopped her steed in the vast moor of mud to let him drink from the river. He refused to, even seemed repelled by the water. It struck her as odd: they had been making excellent time from Mournhold, and surely he must be thirsty. She dismounted and joined her retinue.

“Where are we now?” she asked.

One of her ladies pulled out a map. “I thought we were approaching a town called Gilverdale.”

Almalexia closed her eyes and opened them again quickly. The vision was too much to bear. As her followers watched, she picked up a piece of brick and a fragment of bone, and clutched them to her heart.

“We must continue on to Artaeum,” she said quietly.

The Year continues in First Seed.

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