(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-TWmgEASRE)
Corvus punches a mannequin with his left hand repeatedly, honing his skill back to razor sharp point as he prepares for his war against the Aldmeri Dominion in a cave hideout near Whiterun. He is training himself in a dark room filled with training equipment and armaments. His knuckles become bloodier with each punch, as each punch becomes harder as he keeps punching the mannequin. But the pain does not deter him. As he continues to punch the mannequin, the King of Beggars enters the room with Corvus’ dog, holding a set of black colored armor while laughing. He pulls out a torch and as he lit a torch by the wall, five other torches lit themselves, filling the entire room with light. The orc pulls out the cuirass and holds it in his left hand.
“You ready Corvus?” he bellowed out to the still training Corvus. Corvus stops punching and slowly turns to the King of Beggars.
“Yeah.”
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1YWEJVjCrE)
As the sun rises over the Alik’r Desert, three Altmers on horseback ride into the desert frantically, as if they were fleeing from the wrath of a death itself. One of the riders looks behind her and sees a rider in black riding on a black horse chasing them. Fear immediately overtakes her as she begins to ride more quickly with her comrades. The rider in black is none other than Corvus Rem, as he pulls out an ebony bow and starts firing arrows at the riders. He misses several shots as each arrow flies by the Altmer riders. Corvus furiously chases the three riders and manages to hit one rider in the back of his chest, causing him to fall off the horse. The other two riders continue to ride in vain as Sithis Incarnate slowly catches up to them. As they continue to ride into the desert, a canyon begins to unveil itself from its illusory magic and the two riders ride towards the canyon, but Corvus kills a second rider just as he enters the canyon. The last rider tries pull out a weir stone as she sees the dead end of the canyon, but her action is cut short as she receives an arrow in the back of her throat and falls off from the horse. Corvus stops his horse and gets off to loot the weir stone from the rider’s hand. He approaches the dead end of the canyon and raises it. A portal reveals itself and he steps into it. He quickly finds himself back in the pocket realm and immediately in the palace ground. He looks around for guards, but surprisingly there are no guards around. He walks to the throne room and sees her. The Queen of the Aldmeri Dominion, sitting on the throne wearing an ornate green dress. The Queen is unusually calm with no fear in her face as Corvus approaches.
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAhSGOL8TA8)
“Corvus Rem. To what do I owe the pleasure?” the Queen asked with a calm composure. Corvus kneels before her, with the bow still in hand.
“My ring. My freedom,” he calmly responded.
“Oh, my dear. Your ring is long gone the moment you pledge your fealty to me. The fealty you saw fit to throw away. And if you came here thinking you can end this by killing me, then you are sorely mistaken. My death will not change the outcome any more than you can change your nature. None of us can escape who we are. And no one escapes the Aldmeri Dominion. And the only way that Corvus Rem will ever have freedom or peace, now or ever, is in death.”
“I know.”
“I’m afraid you come a very long way, for nothing,” she said as she stood up from the throne.
“Yeah. Not really,” he said as stands up before firing an arrow at the Queen’s head, pinning her against the throne as her body becomes lifeless immediately. Corvus turns around and walks back to the portal, bringing him back to the canyon in Alik’r Desert.
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHDoMESCO2s)
Outside of the Violet Rift, an elderly Altmer arrives with a mage accompanying him in a carriage. The Altmer walks into the lobby carrying a bag with him and approaches Nazir, standing behind the reception desk. Nazir looks up as he sees the Altmer reaches in his pocket with his left hand, missing a ring finger, and pulls out a letter before placing it in front of Nazir.
“I’m a harbinger for the Thalmor. The manager, please,” the Altmer said in a gravelly voice.
“Right this way,” Nazir responded, with a hint of unease in his voice. Nazir leads the Altmer to Brynjolf’s office, who is sitting behind his desk with Karliah, Delvin, and Vex in the room as well. “You got a guest, Brynjolf. Someone who claims to be a Harbinger from the Thalmor,” said Nazir.
“I believe we have no further business with your organization,” Brynjolf said.
“We’ve beaten your little army before. Looking for a second beating?” Vex said cockily, but the Altmer ignores her and approaches Brynjolf.
“It has come to our attention, that you have defied the Thalmor once again.”
“This must be a mistake,” Brynjolf calmly insisted.
“There is no mistake,” the Thalmor Harbinger responded as he gives the letter to Brynjolf. He opens the letter and unfolds a large piece of paper. “By order of Lord Sauril Highaire of the Dawning Eagle, you have been summoned to Moonstone Castle,” the Thalmor said. Everyone stood dead silent as the Thalmor reaches in his bag and pulls out a large hourglass and places it on Brynjolf’s desk. The white sand begins to fall to the bottom of the hourglass. “You have one hour,” he said as he picks up his bag and walks to the doorway and briefly turns back to them. “I have a mage waiting outside to take you to him. He’s expecting you,” before leaving the room.
“What are they up to now?” Karliah asked in a concerned tone.
“Something tells me that this is not a friendly invitation,” Delvin commented with an equally concerned tone.
“It seems that this decree signed by the Thalmor council have granted this Dawning Eagle all the power and resources of the Aldmeri Dominion, making him pretty much the judge, jury, and…” Brynjolf said before a sense dread overtakes him. “Evacuate the Violet Rift and the Ratway.” he said as he taps his desk heavily with a sense of urgency and leaves his office.
After everyone was evacuated, Brynjolf and Nazir meets the mage outside. The mage casts a spell and teleports them to Moonstone Castle. They find themselves outside of the castle and the mage directs them to the entrance. Brynjolf and Nazir walk into the castle hall. They see several Thalmor guards, clad in unusual daedric armor, standing guard.
“I have been in this game for a long time. I have defied all kinds of people in society. I’ve stolen trinkets from nobles and framed priests for murder. There are consequences for committing these kinds of acts, but nothing like this.”
“Today is not the day you die, you old grizzled con man,” Nazir jokingly remarked.
“You have stood by my side for a very long time now, but you shouldn’t be here. This won’t be pretty.”
“I stand by your side until the end,” Nazir said, this time with a sincere tone. An Altmer, wearing the same daedric armor approaches the two and gestures them to follow. He leads them to the second floor of the castle and into a room living with fancy elven decorations. At the end of the room stands an Altmer in white robes with long luscious white hair with his hands behind his back looking at the window. Brynjolf and Nazir approach and stand behind a table. Brynjolf glances at the hourglass on the table, the same model that the Thalmor Harbinger placed in the Violet Rift, and notices how the top part is nearly emptied with only a small fraction of sand left.
“When I was young, my father used to tell me “How you do anything, is how you do everything.” A life motto if you will,” the Altmer said with a fair and smooth voice, still facing the window. “Tell me, master thief, do you firmly believe in carrying out your actions,” as he turns and faces Brynjolf, revealing a fair complexion.
“I do.”
“And what of the consequences that follows?”
“That too…and forgiveness.”
“Forgiveness. Hmm…you know what I think about forgiveness? Forgiveness is a refuge for cowards and the weak,” the Dawning Eagle said as he approaches his desk with a small cup of tea. He takes out another cup with a small spoon and opens the lid. He grabs the small spoon and slowly takes three scoops of sugar and pours them into his tea. He then uses the spoon to gently stir the tea before putting the spoon in his mouth. “The other members of the Thalmor council blame this atrocity on Skyrim. They believe it’s this province. The Thalmor have indulged this frozen wasteland for far too long. The Stormclaok Rebellion, Talos worshippers, and now thieves and cutthroats,” he said as he drinks his tea.
“I had him shot.”
“And yet he lives! Poisoning everything he touches.”
“Lord of the Dawning Eagle, respectfully my establishment…”
“Your establishment? That pathetic pit of pickpockets and murderers?” the Dawning Eagle interrupted.
“My lord, if I may?” Nazir interjected. The Dawning Eagle incredulously turns his body slightly to him, in slight disbelief that someone would dare to interrupt him.
“By all means,” the Altmer said calmly, trying to maintain his composure.
“The Shadow Continental has a long history of collaborating with different and even powerful organizations. No matter what affiliations or what they do, the Shadow Continental always respect and maintain business relations with them. And most importantly, the Shadow Continental does not interfere with other organization’s businesses.”
“And yet…here we are,” the Dawning Eagle responded with a hint of annoyance in his voice.
“Sir, Corvus Rem is…”
“Silence! We’re not here about Corvus Rem,” he snapped and raising his voice. “He is simply the face of your further defiance,” as he turns his attention back to Brynjolf. “The sand is what remains of my patience on this whole sorry affair,” he said as he pointed to the hourglass on the table. “Mage, show me the projection on that hobble,” he commanded to a nearby mage. The mage casts a spell showing the projection of the Violet Rift from the sky. Brynjolf looks at the sand from hourglass flows down to the bottom completely. He looks back at the projection as the Violet Rift immediately engulfed with mage fire and setting the whole building on fire. There is also a slight quake in Riften, as the fire destroys the Ratway and the Thieves Guild as well. Brynjolf and Nazir look at the projection with horror as their home is completely incinerated. The mage closes the projection, and the Dawning Eagle turns back to them. “You are no longer Skyrim,” he said with a cold look as Brynjolf clenches his fist. “You are nothing. Another human, humiliated by the might of the Aldmeri Dominion,” he said walking towards him. “Since your little haven is gone, what good is your concierge if he doesn’t have a place to manage?” he asked with a grim tone. He turns his head to the mage and gives him a nod. The mage casts a deadly green colored lightning bolt at Nazir, completely penetrating his chest. Nazir clutches at the wound and collapses onto the ground, much to Brynjolf’s horror. But he remains where he is, knowing any against the Dawning Eagle would be suicide. The Dawning Eagle approaches Brynjolf and stares down at him, with his height towering over the master thief. As the Dawning Eagle leaves, he stops and looks at Nazir as Brynjolf approaches him. He puts his hands on Nazir’s hand.
“I always wanted to die in a battle. But alas, it has been an honor…my friend,” Nazir said breathing heavily. Nazir’s breathing soon stops as he draws his last breath, loosening his grip on Brynjolf’s hands.
“You didn’t deserve this,” Brynjolf said in a solemn voice.
“Perhaps not. But it was not so. Now you think about why that is. And maybe one of us would have benefited from this conversation,” the Dawning Eagle said coldly as he and bodyguard leave the room. They walk down to the first floor and to the castle hall. “Kelurmend. Bring me the Blind Spider,” he commanded and his bodyguard part ways.
In the streets of Shimmerene in Summerset Isle, a young dunmer girl is playing her lute flawlessly and elegantly that attracts a group of passersby in the town center. They are all enamored by her skill with the lute as she plays a beautiful, yet somber song. The dunmer plays the lute with her eyes closed and does not miss a single tune, as if she is one with the lute itself. In a corner of the town center, an older dunmer man sits on a chair, 20 feet away from the dunmer girl. He wears an ashen colored typical dunmeri clothes, and a worn brown colored blindfold wrapped around his eyes. His hair is relatively unkept, with long hair and a small beard around his mouth. He sits there, listening to every tune that girl plays from her lute. The girl finishes her song, and the passerby claps their hands to her skill. The blind dunmer stands up and picks up his wooden stick before turning to the other direction and starts walking while tapping on the ground with his stick.
The Dawning Eagle cuts a small slice of a cake from the table in the dining hall of the Thalmor headquarters in Alinor. Once again, he is surrounded by groups of bodyguards wearing the unique daedric armors, all standing still. Kelurmend enters the dining hall with the blind dunmer and approaches the Dawning Eagle and gives him a small bow. As he moves to the sideline, the blind dunmer stands behind him looking around.
“Varyn Drals. I have a name for you,” the Dawning Eagle said, straight to the point.
“With all due respect, I’m retired. Finished, done,” the blind spider remarked. A servant walks up to him, holding a letter in hand.
“I beg to differ.”
“I’m no longer of use. To the Thalmor or anyone else.
“You think you have a choice in this matter?” the Dawning Eagle gleefully and coldly remarked as he took a bite from the cake. Varyn attempts to laugh at this apparent prank but sniffles a little, knowing full well what is going to happen.
“I think you should find someone else.”
“You came close today. Too close. You put her danger,” the Dawning Eagle responded, causing the Varyn to relent and sigh. He then reaches to the servant’s and fumbles as he attempts to grab the letter. He breaks the envelope’s seal and takes out the piece of paper within.
“I still remember the deal I made,” he said as he opens the letter. He places his right hand on the letter and starts moving around to find the letters. A brief vision and information floods to him as his hands touch the two words on the letter. A sense of dread and unease immediately overtakes him as he learns what the words he just touched says, “Corvus Rem”.
“A former associate I believe?”
“He was, and a friend.”
“Your agreement with the Thalmor stays the same. We give you a name, you give us a life. Or we take one,” the Dawning Eagle said. Varyn looks down for a moment as he contemplates the dilemma he is forced into. To ensure the safety of his daughter in exchange for the death of a friend. Varyn then kneels, using his walking stick for support.
“Very well. I accept the contract.”
“Very good! Now then, I assume you have some ideas where he might be?”
“Corvus Rem has few friends left in Tamriel. And even fewer he trusts with his life.”
“This is promising. Tell me what you know.”
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZcuUvyH5EU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phhUFZ12zxg)
The once ruined city of Vivec is now thriving once again. The people in Vvardenfell recovered from the Red Year after the eruption of the Red Mountain. Even after the passing of the living God Vivec, the city retains the name. The once foreign quarter in the northwest of the city is now another establishment for the Shadow Continental. Amongst the people walking through the cantons of Vivec, a redguard in peculiar dwarven armor and wearing a backpack walk to the former foreign quarter with his husky wearing dwarven armor as well. On his hip, he carries the legendary saber Boneshaver, with the pommel depicting a dragon’s head. He walks to the entrance of the building and the staff standing by the entrance bows to him. He is soon greeted by a bustling interior filled with people from all over Tamriel and not just dunmers. He approaches the reception desk and there stood a young dunmer woman wearing dark blue robes with a ponytail.
“Welcome to the Ashen Tong, how may I help you?” she cordially greeted the redguard with a smile on her face.
“Hi, I would like a room,” he responded as he pulled out a pouch of 50 gold and places it on the desk. The receptionist takes the pouch and then looks at the dog.
“I’m sorry, but we do not allow animals in this building.”
“Emotional support animal.”
“Your emotional support animal?”
“The other way around. I support her. Isn’t that, right?” as he goes to rub his dog’s head affectionately. The receptionist rolls her eyes and gives him a key.
“She stays in your room,” she said as the Redguard takes the key. “Enjoy your stay,” she said as he left. The Redguard goes to a small area with sofas and sits with his dog as he takes out a bounty poster of Corvus Rem for 60000 gold.
“Hmm…not too bad,” he said to himself looking at the reward. He then takes out a journal, containing sketches of Corvus Rem, his affiliation, recent activities, and enemies. He flips through a page with the signature black hand of the Dark Brotherhood, the shadow marks associated with Skyrim’s Thieves Guild, the raven symbol of the Nightingales, and records of Corvus’ bounties in the past.
Meanwhile, an elderly dunmer with a long beard wearing dark purple robes walks through the lobby accompanied by his bodyguards wearing armors once worn by the ordinators now with uniquely redesigned darker colors. The older dunmer is soon joined by the young dunmer receptionist.
“I see we have a dog in the lobby,” he remarked.
“Emotional support animal,” she sighed.
“Of course.”
“For your schedule tomorrow, you have a meeting with Gorvyn at 11 and the Archmagister of House Telvanni requests an audience at 3,” she said handing a book to the older dunmer.
“What’s this at 7?”
“Dinner with your daughter. She thinks you’ll need a break, that you’ll work yourself to death.”
“What did I do to deserve such a loving daughter?”
“Good parenthood I suppose.”
“No doubt. How are our guests?”
“Some of our premium members are anxious.”
“Its always something.”
“Today, the complaints are about Skyrim.”
“And his concierge?”
“Concerned.”
“Perhaps we should get you an emotional support animal,” the old dunmer jokingly remarked. They walked upstairs and up to the second floor of the canton and into a large armory with weapons and armor displays. Some staff members are also training with their weapons and sparring amongst themselves.
“Should we be worried?” the concierge asked.
“We have done nothing to earn the Thalmor’s wrath.”
“Your relationship with Corvus Rem is not a secret. The Dominion will come,” she said as they walk by a few archers practicing their target shooting at some mannequin.
“And they receive our signature Vvardenfell welcome.”
“Everything he touches dies!” she insisted. The older dunmer turns to her and she begins breath heavily and looks down in shame.
“Do no presume to tell me about a man I’ve known longer…before you came to this world,” he responded sternly.
“Forgive me father,” she responded quietly and proceeds to leave.
“Nelvana…” he said as he turns around, but turns back to her, causing her to turn back to him. “Please tell me daughter, that I look forward to our dinner together,” he said with a calmer and friendlier tone, causing her to smile at his fatherly gesture. The manager walks to the kitchen area with his bodyguards, with its staff working hard to cook all kinds of foods. As approaches a table with other dunmer staffs drinking sujammas and eating, they quickly stand as they see the manager, expecting possible punishment for lazing about. Instead, the manager gently raises his hand, letting them know they are fine before they sit back down. The manager walks to a doorway leading up to the rooftop of the canton, guarded by two orcs in orcish armor.
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnHcrbDEKuQ)
“Don’t let anyone in,” he said to the two orcs. They walked up a stairwell to the large rooftop that overlooks the city of Vivec. He gestures his bodyguards stand and guard the stairwell as he walks to the rooftop’s center with a small garden and a table. As he stops, he sees a dark figure, with his back turned and looking at the outskirts of the city. As he walked closer, he knew it was Corvus. “So, I assume you have you found your peace.” he asked. Corvus looks down for a moment with his back slightly hunched before turning to face the manager. “Apparently not. Killing the Queen of the Aldmeri Dominion was mistake, my friend. The Thalmor retaliated by destroying Skyrim’s Shadow Continental. My daughter fears we are next,” he said as he walks to the table with tea and some foods at the ready.
“Brynjolf?”
“Alive. But they killed his concierge. To prove a point,” he said, gesturing Corvus to sit. Corvus sits down as he process what he just heard, the death of a loyal friend he has known for a long time. “Have you given any thought, on where this end?” the manager asked as he poured canis root tea into two cups and gives one to Corvus. “The Thalmor will never stop. You know this. They’re only known for their relentless pursuit for dominion over Tamriel. And death to those who stands against them.”
“Maryl. For troubling you like this…I’m sorry,” he said with sincerity.
“Friendship means little…when it’s convenient,” Maryl responded. The two raise their cup of tea and proceed to drink.
The Redguard continues to sift through his journal on Corvus Rem while sitting comfortably on the sofas. He then looks up and sees a few Altmers in Daedric Markynaz armors walking into the lobby and one even sits on a sofa next to him. He then notices a couple more Altmers in the same armors beginning to surround the lobby while the guests are oblivious of their presence. The Redguard looks back into his journal and flips to a page with the symbol of an eagle stretching its wings. Under the symbol is written name “The Dawning Eagle” and next to it “Doom Heralds” and recognize that they’re the elite bodyguards of the Dawning Eagle. He looks up and sees Kelurmend with three Doom Heralds behind him as they approach the reception desk, with Nelvana behind it.
“Welcome to the Ashen Tong, how can I help?” she said, but with a no smile as she looks at Kelurmend and his followers clad in daedric armors.
“The manager,” he calmly demanded. “Please”.
“Of course. Please make yourself comfortable. I will fetch him,” she said trying to muster a smile and composing herself. As Kelurmend and his followers walk away from the reception desk, she leaves approaches another staff member, “Evacuate everyone. But be discreet,” she whispered to the staff.
Back on the rooftop, Maryl and Corvus still sits on the table as the former grabs a bottle of sujaama and opens it.
“The path this leads to is death,” he said while pouring the alcohol into two glasses.
“I’m going to kill them all.”
“Of course. I believe you’ll try. But no one, not even you, can kill everyone,” Maryl said as he gives a glass to Corvus and clinks with his. “You want to die? That’s your choice. A good death only comes after a good life.”
“You and I left a good life behind a long time ago, my friend,” Corvus said solemnly. As the two reflect on their chosen life paths, Nelvana rushes in at the two men.
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yxUb28leeY)
“Father, it’s the Thalmor!” she said with fear in her voice. But upon seeing Corvus, she becomes visibly angry. “What is he doing here?”
“Corvus is our guest,” Maryl insisted as he stands up from the table.
“Father…” she with clear frustration and anger in her voice.
“I’ll talk to them. They don’t know you’re here.”
“Please.”
“Stay with Corvus,” he commanded, ignoring her pleas. Maryl walks back to the kitchen area with his bodyguards and approaches the same dunmers reveling at their table. “We have special guests…prepare to show them our “Vvardenfell hospitality,” he said before leaving. The dunmer staffs quickly drops what they are doing and goes to several nearby compartments and opens them, revealing weapons and armors hidden in them. The staff grab various weapons from the compartments and quickly put on their armors, with each staff using different styles including netch leather, chitin and bonemold. Some staffs don armors from the other Great Houses and even ones that belonged to Almalexia’s personal guards.
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jpIow735AY)
Maryl and his bodyguards, with some additional staffs wearing their armors, arrive at the main lobby and approaches Kelurmend and his Doom Heralds as the lobby begins to empty with guests leaving.
“Welcome to the Ashen Tong. How can I be of service?”
“We have reasons to believe that you are sheltering a high priority target who has committed serious atrocities against the Thalmor.”
“That is a grave accusation.”
“We will need to conduct a full search of your establishment.”
“Of course. But in case you don’t know, no business, not even your kind, can be conducted on this ground. If you want to have full access, I’m afraid you need to surrender your weapons.”
“We speak for the Lord of the Dawning Eagle.”
“And I speak for Vvardenfell. Your weapons, please.”
“Do not make the same mistake as that fool in Skyrim did.”
“Fools talk. Cowards stay silent. But those who are wise listen.”
“So which one will you be?” a voice called out. Maryl looks as a dunmer in shadowed netch leather armor, wearing a black hood from the Thieves Guild, walks in using what seems to be an elegantly made walking stick. As he drew closer, Maryl sees the black blindfold under his hood.
“Hello, old friend.”
“Varyn,” Maryl sighed. “So good of you to come to visit, after all these years. You work for them now?” he asked with a hint of disappointment in his voice.
“No. No…”
“Your daughter, Dalsi?”
“Alive. And your daughter Nelvana?”
“She’s well.”
“I’m glad. Listen…this doesn’t have to end with blood.”
“Then leave.”
“No one defies the Thalmor. Not without consequences. I remember you once knew when to walk away from a losing battle.”
“And I remember a time when you valued the meaning of brotherhood!”
“Enough!” Kelurmend barked. “We will tear this place down if we must, rules or not. Now I will only ask you once. Step aside,” he commanded. Maryl quickly snaps his finger, causing the torches in the lobby to go out, soon replaced with green fires instead. Suddenly legions of the Ashen Tong staff show up on the second floor, aiming their bows with arrows drawn at the Doom Heralds. Kelurmend looks around at the archers point at him and his followers.
“Don’t do this Maryl…” Varyn pleaded, only to fall on deaf ears as Maryl remained silent. “I’m sorry,” as Varyn gives up before turning around and walks away. Kelurmend points to Maryl and two Doom Heralds attempts to apprehend the dunmer manager.
“Fire!” Maryl shouted as two archers fired warning shots. One arrow pierce one of the Doom Herald’s throats while Kerlurmend blocks the second arrow with his left gauntlet. Maryl’s bodyguards and staffs slowly unsheathes their weapons from their hips as Kelurmend pulls the arrow off from his gauntlet. The Doom Heralds arm themselves with spells at the ready.
“Kill them all!” Kelurmend suddenly shouted, after deciding to forego the peaceful approach. The lobby quickly erupts into a full-blown battle as both sides rush at each other with weapons and spells. The Doom Heralds begin firing destruction spells at the archers while fending off the melee fighters at the same time. Maryl jumps into the fight as he brandishes his dagger and swiftly kills a Doom Herald. A staff member in wielding a mace attempts to attack Kelurmend, but he quickly incapacitates him with his hands before freezing him and shattering him into pieces with a punch. Maryl quickly engages in hand-to-hand combat with Kelurmend, with the dunmer barely fending off the altmer battlemage. Another Doom Herald attacks Maryl, but he dodges his spell and counters his attack before killing him with the archers’ help. Another staff member attacks Kelurmend with her daggers, but he effortlessly blocks her attack and punches her several times before grabbing her throat and incinerates her with his fire. Maryl and his staffs quickly kills a few more Doom Heralds before they stop the fight, after losing considerable members from each side.
“Get out!” Maryl growled, pointing his dagger at Kelrumend. The Altmer lowers his spells, but still with a grin on his face. As Maryl continued to point his dagger with his remaining staff at his sides, suddenly they heard large footsteps in the lobby, and they only grew louder. An army of Thalmor soldiers and mages in black elven armor enter the lobby with their weapons drawn. “Fall back,” Maryl said quietly to his staffs, realizing they’re outnumbered.
“Secure this dump. Find Rem,” Kelurmend commanded before Thalmor soldiers and Doom Heralds spread out into the whole building.
“You have no right to be here,” Nelvana said to Corvus. “If they find you here, the Thalmor will kill my father. Me. Everyone because you chose to wage war against them. You should not have come here!” she said with despair in her voice. Before Corvus can say a word, a staff member rushes in with two bows in hands.
“We’ve been attacked,” he whispered to her. Nelvana looks back at Corvus before disrobing herself, revealing a slim dark colored chitin armor underneath. She grabs the staff’s second bow and a small quiver. “You armed?” she asked and Corvus pulls out his ebony dagger. Suddenly, an arrow pierces the staff’s head, and they realize the Thalmor soldiers have arrived at the rooftop. Corvus, Nelvana, and two other staff attacks the Thalmor soldiers. Corvus rushes at a group of soldiers while Nelvana jumps onto a soldier and fires an arrow at his head point blank. Corvus fights off the group of soldiers and manages to kill two of them with some struggle due to their armors. Nelvana uses her bow to attack several soldiers and disarms one of their swords and uses it against them. Corvus fights one last soldier and finishes him off after the soldier’s leg is pinned with an arrow from Nelvana. After killing the small squadron of soldiers, Corvus and Nelvana regroup with one remaining staff. “Let’s go,” she said before they got off from the rooftop.
Maryl and his remaining staff retreat to the kitchen area and go to the compartments to retrieve additional weapons.
“Stop them,” he said to the two armored orcs, with their axe and hammer drawn. One of the staff gives Maryl his enchanted daedric katana from the compartment just as another squadron of Thalmor soldiers enter the kitchen area. The two orcs quickly decimate them without effort, but another squadron led by a mage enters the kitchen from another doorway and kills a few of Maryl’s staff. They fend off the soldier as Maryl unsheathes his daedric katana and swiftly slays them. Maryl and two of his staff then retreat out of the kitchen. Kelurmend and two Doom Heralds enter the kitchen, but two staff members fire arrows at him, forcing him to stay at the cover from a wall and firing a lightning bolt at them. He then looks across the other side and sees Varyn sitting in a dark corner, eating a bowl of soup.
“Hey. Blind elf! Do your job!” he hissed at him. Varyn stops eating and slowly sets the soup on a nearby table before grabbing his walking stick. He looks at Kelurmend and nods slightly before standing up. As staff member rushes towards where Kelurmend is hiding, Varyn quickly uses his dagger and incapacitates him with his walking stick. Two more staff fires arrows at Varyn, but he swiftly dodges them and crawls behind two barrels before sitting his back on them. He wipes his mouth and gives a small sigh before jumping out and attacks the two staffs. He effortlessly slices one of them in the leg with his dagger before knocking him out with a kick in the head. He proceeds to attack the second and pins him against a table, with his dagger pressed on the staff’s forehead. Rather than penetrating his skull, Varyn rapidly hits him with his walking stick and kicks his head on at the table, knocking him out as well. Suddenly, three more staff arrive and fires at Varyn, forcing him to run into another area of the kitchen and taking cover behind the wall. He then casts a spell on the wall’s ledge near where he’s hiding, creating a dark green colored rune. He rolls out of his cover near some stone cooking stations. He places two more of the same runes at the station’s sides and goes to a nearby station with cooking pots. He places his walking stick on a cooking pot’s surface and moves around a little. He casts the same spell on the surface as well before sheathing his wooden stick and pulls out his dwarven black bow with a few arrows in hands. The three staff arrive, and they try to flank him, knowing he’s hiding behind the other end of the cooking pot station. As one staff slowly walks to see his hiding spot, they suddenly hear a loud sound of creepy exhalation behind him, causing them to turn around and see the rune on the wall glowing and shimmering brightly. Before he can turn around, Varyn fires an arrow at the staff’s left shoulder. Another staff runs to Varyn, but he triggers the second rune and Varyn fires at the sound’s direction but misses. When the staff triggers the third rune, Varyn manages to land a shot on the staff’s knee. Varyn sheathes his bow switches back to his walking stick and effortlessly fights off the staff when one triggers his fourth rune. He incapacitates one of them and the remaining two rushes at him from both sides, but he swiftly counters their attack and knocks one onto the ground. The last one grabs Varyn from the back, but he quickly breaks free and jams his stick between the staff’s thighs. He lands several rapid punches and knocks him before struggling a little to find his stick. As he attempts to walk away, another staff barely recovers and rushes at Varyn again, but triggers the fourth rune again, causing Varyn to react fast enough to knock the staff out. He leaves the kitchen while cautiously raising his stick around.
Corvus and Nelvana continue to fight Thalmor soldiers and Doom Heralds in a large area on the second floor, as Corvus kills and knocks one soldier down a stairwell. Nelvana pulls out a small, curved dagger and attacks two Doom Heralds. She dodges and does acrobatic jumps while attacking the heavily armored battlemages. One of the female Doom Heralds knocks her onto the ground, but Nelvana throws a throwing knife at her, but she manages to block with her gauntlet. Nelvana uses her legs to trip her before rushing back to the other Doom Herald and stabs him in the head. She turns her attention back to the female Doom Herald who attempts to crawl away, and she slits her throat. Corvus struggles to fight two Doom Heralds as they fire destruction spells at him, but he dodges them and cast silence spell on both, rendering them unable to cast spells at him. Two more, with one bulkier than the other, Doom Heralds rushes at Nelvana and attacks her. She manages to swiftly throw a throwing knife at one of them in the head and tackles on with the bulky one. The bulky one grabs her and slams her against a pillar, but she uses her body to throw him onto the ground. She attempts to stab him, but he blocks with his gauntlet, and he pulls out his daedric dagger and attacks her. She dodges his attack effortlessly and manages to disarm his daedric dagger. She uses both daggers and stabs him in the thighs, causing him to scream in pain. She slides between his legs and stabs both his feet and kicks him to the ground. The bulky Doom Herald attempts to crawl away, but she climbs onto his back and continues to stab him in the back several times and finishes him off with two stabs near his neck. Corvus kills the two Doom Herald, but another one shows up and he tosses him to the floor and stabs him in the skull. Nelvana breathes heavily as she tries to recover from the fight but was cut short when a Thalmor soldier fires an arrow at her abdomen.
“Nelvana!” Maryl shouted as he rushes in and kills two Thalmor soldiers with his daedric katana. The third soldier attempts to shoot Maryl, but Corvus runs at him and immediately kills him. Maryl rushes at Nelvana as she lays on the floor and pulls the arrow out of her abdomen. “Here!” he said handing her a healing potion and she quickly drinks it. “Can you stand?” he asked as he picks her up and letting her lean on his shoulder. “Get out the way you came. Go to the small dock northeast of the canton. There’s a boat there.” he said to Corvus.
“I’ll stay.”
“Don’t squander my gift to you! And Corvus, do me a small favor. Kill as many as you can,” he said as he raises his blade at him.
“I will,” Corvus responded with sheer determination and a nod before partying ways.
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBLuH3Q3tig
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwfgHZEILZo)
Corvus goes to the armory on the second floor and hides behind a corner. He looks around from the corner and hears shouting across the room. He cautiously walks into the room but was immediately met with a barrage of arrows and fireballs hurled at him. He runs and barely dodges the projectile before getting up close and quickly kills three soldiers with his dagger. Corvus engages in a fight with two extra soldiers, and one pulls out an elven dagger and swings at Corvus. He quickly disarms him and kills the soldier with his own dagger. He then pins the other soldier on a wall and rapidly stabs him in the stomach before decapitating him with his blades. As Corvus continues to make his way into the armory, two Doom Heralds enter and flings ice spears at him, forcing Corvus to get close to them. One of them disarms Corvus’ daggers and throws at a display case. He picks himself up and notices two eskrima sticks next to him. He picks them up and throws one at another approaching Doom Herald in the head. He uses one eskrima stick to rapidly attack them and knocks them to the ground. Corvus performs a flourish with the stick as the Doom Heralds gets back up and continues to fight them. He grabs his dagger and uses the stick to counter their attacks delivers the killing blow with his dagger. As he stood back up, he was met with three thunderbolts flying past him, forcing him to take cover behind a panel. He confronts two more Doom Heralds wielding his dagger and eskrima stick. Corvus counters one of their attacks with stick and uses it to trip him down to the floor before starting to bash the battlemage in the head. He turns his attention back to the second one and tosses him to the ground using his arms. He then stomps the battlemage in the crotch before slitting both in the throat with his dagger. He regains his composure and continues to make his way across the armory before three more soldiers appear rushing towards him. Corvus quickly disarms one of the soldier’s swords and jams it into another soldier with it. He takes out his eskrima stick again and bashes them in their helmet and crotches. One soldier pulls out his dagger, but Corvus dodges the attack effortlessly turns the dagger against his throat and kills him with it. The last soldier pulls out an elven dagger as well and Corvus blocks all his attack with his stick. Corvus grabs the soldier with his leg and tosses him onto the ground before taking the dagger from his hand and repeatedly stabs him in the throat. Corvus turns around and sees two Doom Heralds arrive with a flame atronach. The atronach hurls a firebolt at him, but he dodges it and throws the elven dagger at one of them in the head, causing the atronach to disappear. Corvus fights the last Doom Herald using the stick as he rapidly hits and stuns him with his attacks. He grabs and tosses the last Doom Herald onto the ground and musters his last strength with one swing with the stick to the head, effectively knocking the battlemage out, but Corvus falls to the floor as he loses his balance. He slowly gets back up as he tries to regain his strength and begins to walk. However, he stops walking as he hears faint footsteps drawing closer to him. Behind a large glass display, Varyn turns up from the corner while sliding the glass with his walking stick.
“Corvus?” he asked.
“Varyn,” Corvus responded as the blind dunmer stops in his track, facing him. Corvus looks down at his right hand, holding his skull dagger. “They gave you my name.”
“Yeah…”
“I’m sorry.”
“Me too,” Varyn said solemnly before he strikes at Corvus with his dagger in lightning speed. Corvus barely dodges his attack and blocks a flurry of attacks from Varyn. He rolls behind some panels, causing Varyn to lose his detection on him. Corvus looks around and sees a steel wakizashi on the floor and picks it up. He crouches next to the panel as he sees Varyn raising his walking stick and tapping against some panels. “You should have stayed out. For all our sake!” he said, looking for Corvus.
“I tried,” Corvus responded, still hiding behind the panels as he prepares his blades.
“Did you?” the dunmer said bitterly, as he drew closer to Corvus. When his walking stick touches the panel, Corvus jumps out and swings his wakizashi at him, but Varyn blocks with his stick. The two start trading blows as they slash and block each other’s attack. Corvus kicks Varyn away from him, but the dunmer quickly recovers and performs an air kick at Corvus, breaking his guard with his wakizashi. Corvus swings his blade at him, but Varyn dodges all his attacks and rolls to the side before pulling his walking stick outward, revealing a long thin blade hidden in the wooden scabbard and slashes at Corvus. Corvus barely dodges again and rolls out of Varyn’s sight, behind another panel. Varyn slides onto another set of panels as he recovers from their attacks.
“Come on Corvus. Let’s get this over with.”
“Yeah, sounds like a good idea,” he responded, also trying to recover. Varyn walks out of his cover, with his dagger sheathed and only holding his sword. He starts to walk slowly, trying to find Corvus. “You took a deal.”
“Same as you, Corvus.”
“Family?”
“Family,” Varyn said nodding his head slightly. As he is walking, Corvus sneaks up on him from behind. As he drew closer, Varyn turned his head to his left shoulder. Corvus tries to sneak attack from behind, but Varyn quickly turns around and counters his attack once again and they start clashing their blades. Varyn’s rapid attacks prove too fast for Corvus this time, with the former managing to disarm him and does a spinning air kick on him, causing Corvus to crash against some glass panels. Corvus lies on the ground as he sees Varyn trying to find and touch Corvus with his sword. “Are you dead, Corvus?” he asked. Corvus remains silent as he sees Varyn still trying to find him. When he receives no response, Varyn lets out a small sigh, believing he has killed his former friend for good. Corvus turns to his right and sees his dagger two feet away from him. As he turns over more trying to reach his dagger, he cracks a small piece of glass. He turns around and sees Varyn immediately rears his head towards the sound’s direction. Corvus quickly turns around and reaches for his dagger, but Varyn slides over with a slash from his sword at Corvus’ hand. Corvus attempts to grab Varyn’s arm, but the dunmer tosses him over his shoulder to the ground. Varyn pins Corvus onto the floor and presses his sword against Corvus’ throat. Corvus tries to push away the blade with his hands.
“Corvus,” he said, still trying to kill him.
“Varyn,” Corvus responded cordially, struggling to push the sword away from him. As the two assassins struggle, a loud sound is heard as a bolt land near them. From the armory’s balcony, the redguard, now wearing a Remnant’s hood, aims his automatic dwarven crossbow at them with his dog next to him. He fires several shots, forcing Corvus and Varyn to disengage and dodge the bolts. Corvus grabs his dagger and flees as the redguard continues to fire at Corvus and missing every shot. The Redguard shoots a bolt at Varyn, forcing the dunmer to take cover behind some panels. The redguard leaves and puts away his dwarven crossbow.
Corvus makes his way to an underground cavern, located beneath the canton and under the flowing waters of Vivec city. As he walks through the dark cavern, he gets ambushed by several Doom Heralds launching spells at him. Corvus evades them and comes against one of them. He grabs and struggles against the battlemage but manages to use his leg to throw him onto the floor and stabs him in the head. He looks around to check for more Doom Heralds before perusing the body. He finds a small golden insignia on the body, depicting an eagle stretching its wings and puts the insignia into his pocket. Two more Doom Heralds appear, but one is suddenly mauled by a dog that jumped out of the shadow as the second one gets shot in the head with a bolt. Corvus turns and sees the Redguard in dwarven armor walk out of the shadow, holding point his crossbow in his right hand while holding Boneshaver on his left hand, both pointing at Corvus.
“Stand down Corvy,” he threatened him. “You have made quite a mess.”
“I don’t know you.”
“But I know you,” he said slowly walking to Corvus.
“You’re tracker? Bounty hunter? How much?”
“Not enough,” he said after a moment’s pause and lowered his weapons. “But it’s getting there,” he said as he sheathed Boneshaver. Suddenly, a Doom Herald appears behind Corvus, but the Redguard’s shoots the battlemage two times with his dwarven crossbow. Corvus calmly looks at the dead Doom Herald before turning back to the redguard. “I need you to take better care of yourself, Corvy. Afterall, we’re in this together now,” he said as he puts away his crossbow. Seeing he is safe for now, Corvus turns around leaves. The Redguard calmly turns to his dog and sees it still biting and chewing the dead Doom Herald.
Maryl and Nelvana attempts to escape the Ashen Tong through the north entrance of the canton that leads to outside of the city. Maryl is still carrying an injured Nelvana while using his katana for support. As they get to the bridge that leads outside of the city, the stop walking as they look ahead with shock and fear. Varyn sits on the bridge with, still holding his unsheathed sword, with two dead Doom Heralds beside him. Nelvana gasp at the site of the Blind Spider while Maryl is becomes concerned what will happen next.
“Alright Maryl,” Varyn said as he puts his sword on the ground vertically for support and gesturing his hand to the two dead battlemages. “Just tell me where to find Corvus, then get out of here. Leave. Go somewhere and lay low.”
“You know I won’t,” Maryl declared without fear, but Nelvana looks at him with concern and fear. Maryl puts her down as he grunts a little.
“You’re bleeding…” she said with worry as she looks at his stomach with some blood pouring out. Maryl remains undettered by his wound and clutches at his daughter’s hand tightly. He gives her a solemn look and a slight nod, causing Nelvana to become visibly fearful of her father’s impending fate. He picks himself up and slowly staggers towards Varyn using his katana’s scabbard for support.
“You owe Corvus Rem nothing. He has no marker on you,” Varyn said as he walks towards Maryl using his sword for support.
“You must be a fool to think that the only debt in life lies in marker,” Maryl said walking towards Varyn. The two dunmer soon find themselves facing each other on the bridge.
“Come on. I don’t want to do this,” Varyn pleaded, but once again his words fall on deaf ears as Maryl pulls his daedric katana out of his hip, holding the scabbard. Varyn quickly readies his sword and points it diagonally facing downward as Maryl slowly approaches him with left hand on the hilt. Varyn slowly walks back while tilting his head a little as he hears Maryl gripping his katana tightly before he unsheathes the blade swings at Varyn. Varyn deflects all Maryl’s attack effortlessly before going for the offensive himself as he swings his sword at his friend, which Maryl deflects flawlessly as well. The two then lock their blades together as they use their free arm to push themselves to another. Maryl trips Varyn to the ground with his leg and swings his katana again, but Varyn continues to deflect all the attack while on the ground before quickly getting back up. Varyn rolls to Maryl’s side to dodge his horizontal swing and quickly slashes him in the right ribcage.
“Father!” Nelvana cried out, seeing her father being wounded more. Maryl barely composes himself as he clutches his wound.
“Look at me,” Varyn said as he stopped attacking. Maryl slowly turns to him and sees his hood pulled down and his blindfold taken off, showing a pair of grey colored eyes, lacking the signature red eye color of a typical dunmer. “Even a blind dunmer knows when you’ve lost.”
“And Varyn…you don’t need eyes to see the right path.”
“Just go. Take care of your daughter,” he said as he proceeds to walk away.
“I…I am!” Maryl growled before quickly staggering to Varyn to attack again, but he swiftly dodges his swings. Maryl and Varyn violently clashes blades again, but Varyn counters all his swings and swiftly stabs him in the chest. Nelvana gasps as her father falls to the ground and she crawls to him to hold him in her arms while Varyn stands where he is, filled with remorse and guilt. As Nelvana holds her father, he takes his last breath and soon succumbs to his wounds. Nelvana looks at Varyn, with tears rolling down her eyes. Seeing Maryl’s daedric katana next to him, she quickly reaches for the hilt.
“Don’t. Live,” Varyn said quickly and calmly, causing her to not raise the blade. She lets go of the blade and looks at her father’s corpse one last time before standing up to leave. She passes Varyn as she goes to pass the bridge to the outskirt of the city, with her left hand still holding onto her wound. “I’ll be waiting,” Varyn said calmly, causing her to stop. Hearing those words filled her with hatred and desire for vengeance before continuing to walk. Varyn puts his blindfold back on and wipes a tear rolling down his eye, knowing he has killed a longtime friend of his and Corvus’.
(Music soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1HIfzllFeU)
Corvus exits the cavern and walks to the small dock that Maryl told him. He arrives at the dock and sees a dunmer boatman sitting on the dock and approaches him.
“Can you take me to Ebonheart?”
“That’ll be 25 gold,” the boat master answered gruffly. Corvus gives him a small pouch without hesitation. “Alright, hop onto the boat and let’s…”
“Do you have room for one more?” a voice called out behind Corvus. He turns around and sees Nelvana, in tears with a small pouch as well. She throws the pouch to the shipmaster.
“Gold is gold. Now get on,” the boat master said. Corvus and Nelvana gets onto the boat, and they sail off to the river. As they were sailing, Corvus kept looking down throughout the whole trip.
“Who is he?” Nelvana asked tearfully. Looking at her tears, he knew what happened and who she was talking about.
“He was a friend.”
“My father is dead because of you. Because of what you did! So, either you kill him, or I will,” she said tearfully.
“I understand,” he responded with sympathy. Nelvana looks at him with silence as she sniffles a little.
“We’re here,” the boat master called out as they arrived at Ebonheart. Corvus and Nelvana gets off the boat and steps onto the dock.
“Goodbye, Corvus,” Nelvana said before slowly leave the dock. Corvus looks down for moment, contemplating the loss of a close friend because of his actions.
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