Somewhere in Hammerfell...in a large room, filled with expensive decorations and a gigantic painting of the mountains in the northwest, with the burning sun setting just above the snowy tops to the east. The painting showed a place of peacefulness and solitude, something that no longer runs prevalent in Hammerfell, nor Tamriel as a whole. Two men stood in this room, one with great power, and the other with a weary soul.


"But, my lord...do you really think such a ploy is necessary? Perhaps we should-"

"Perhaps you should hold your tongue! By Onsi I swear you never shut your mouth, Domas! Act not like your good for nothing father and for once act like the man I hired to aid me in the first place! Can you do that, Domas ? If not I can easily find someone else! What is it going to be?"

The much littler man cowered before his much larger master, his entire body shaking uncontrollably, causing his silver family heirloom to jingle softly against his dark-skinned chest. "I...I am yours to command, my lord, you know that. What is it you would like me to do, sire?"

Domas looked outside the rooms window and saw that night's fall had descended on Hammerfell, and that the creatures of the night were already mingling about, dangerous and ferocious creatures in the mountains that he did not want to even think about. The route through the mountains was such a route that Domas would soon be traveling through, somehow he just knew this.

And it wasn't just the monsters that he was afraid of. He also feared the demented ideas coming from his master's mouth, but what was he to do? He was a but a pawn in a mad man's game. An important piece to the puzzle, mind you, but one with many risks as well. Domas certainly had his doubts, but he didn't dare go against his master's words anymore than he already had, or else suffer the same fate his father had just a few months ago.

"Excellent, I knew you would come to your senses, Domas. You always were smarter than your father," the large man said happily, patting Domas' right shoulder. "The first task that needs accomplishing is the infiltration of Anvil. I need you to sneak into the city and take note of how many ships the Anvil Guard have, along with their general defenses such as towers and whatnot. After that scour through the castle and see if you can find any documents referring to the amount of soldiers residing in the city. I'd like a full report on their defenses before I order the invasion."

"Yes, my lord, whatever it is you desire. Shall I take my leave tonight?"



"Yes, take one of my horses for travel. And be sure not to attract any attention, Domas. You have to make sure you are not caught. If they catch you all is lost...for I know how loose of a tongue you have in certain situations. Come to think of it, perhaps I should tear that tongue of yours out after all.....if only to insure myself that my secrets won't ever be revealed, at least by you."

Domas cowered once more, this time falling to the ground with his hands raised in the air in defense, screaming and pleading to his smiling master, all the while crawling backwards. "NO, SIRE, PLEASE NO!"

The larger man began to walk towards him, a small dagger now held in his right hand, and the smile on his hairy face widening even further. "I am sorry, Domas, but why should I take such foolish chances, after all of your father's failures? Tell me why I should spare you the right to speak..."

"I have never failed you before, sire! You know I can be trusted!" he pleaded, tears already forming in his eyes, one of the ultimate signs of weaknesses. The larger man seemed to have noticed this.

"Get up you coward! I can't believe a man of your background is crying! How embarrassing! If it weren't for your skills I would have had you executed long ago, I swear it! Now, leave here and fulfill your mission. Do not fail me, Domas..."




1



As the moon shined high above the large oval clouds in the early morning skies, a faint cry could be heard throughout the land of northwestern Cyrodiil. Some would say this was the calling of The Nine, their morning wakeup call to Bruma's children and whoever else is willing to listen. But that was only a figurative theory, thought up by all traveling Bard's alike in order to add a bit of creative flare to their many stories. I myself knew otherwise. It was the call of the Hron.

Three months after the defeat of Mehrunes Dagon and the Daedra, Chancellor Ocato appointed himself as the new leader of Tamriel, now gaining the titles of both Imperial Battlemage and Emperor of the Empire. He quickly had ordered the constructions of high looming towers called "Hrons". The massive structures are taller than anything I've ever seen before, and offer a wide view of the area. There are three in every region, to offer protection and defense against any potential enemy.

I don't really know if I agree with what's happened, what with Ocato naming himself Emperor and all, but I suppose it doesn't matter. My job is to protect the Emperor, not gossip about him, no matter who it is. And to be quite honest, I guess I really can't complain too much. Ocato did a wonderful job of holding the Empire together during the Crisis, and he's done a marvelous job ever since the war ended, doing his best to bolster our military numbers and at the same time tending to the needs of our people.

And that's definitely saying a lot, coming from an Altmer who was supposedly more interested in relations with the other provinces, rather than the Empire itself. The people don't seem to mind him a bit either. I guess it's just me getting used to another leader, especially that of another race.

"Cyrus, come here for a second." My fellow blade, and best friend, Baurus was standing inside the covered overlook outside of the Cloud Ruler Temple. I walked over to the spot he was standing at, noticing that the he was looking out into the open. "Isn't it beautiful?" he asked me, still staring out.

He seemed to be drifting off a bit, but I couldn't blame him. The scenery in the Bruma region was absolutely gorgeous, a wonderful sight to behold at any time. The Hron tower rose high above Bruma, located just a few miles to the east. "It most certainly is my friend. Perhaps it is a sign of good things to come today?"

"I doubt that," he said with a laugh. "If that were the case every day would be a good one, but unfortunately that's not the way it goes."

Silence for several minutes as we both looked into the distance, the birds flying so freely as if they had not a care in the world, which in fact they did not. Suddenly we were snapped back into reality, and Grandmaster Jauffre yelled from the Temple entrance behind us. "Baurus, Cyrus, come! The others are here as well, I've received news from Anvil of a captured spy from Hammerfell!"

Excellent! You have started a rewrite.
It has turned out nicely. But.... OCATO AS EMPEROR!!
Well, I suspected as much. Personally, I think he was behind the whole Oblivion Crisis in the first place. You can never trust Altmer!

2

Baurus and I entered the Temple, where indeed the others had gathered around a table where a single letter was lying, unfolded and with the broken red velvet seal lying next to it in a crumpled ball. Jauffre was standing next to the table, and once we were settled in and all eyes were locked onto him, he read the letter out loud.

A Redguard was caught snooping around the castle courtyards last night, sometime after midnight. The guards asked him what he was doing and he took off faster than a deer. Lucky for us the fool tripped over a rock and sprained his left knee. We threw him into a cell and I started asking him questions, but of course he didn't say a thing. I don't know why, Jauffre, but there's just something about the man I don't like, and I think he's a spy from one of the kingdoms in Hammerfell. I would appreciate it if you came down here immediatly to help me interrogate him. I know you and the Blades have special tricks in getting information.

Langley

Jauffre dropped the letter to the table and looked at us for several seconds. Then he spoke with a tired tone. He had been staying up rather late the past few nights, and I'm not sure if he even slept last night. An attempt to steal one of the Elder Scrolls was made two weeks ago, at the Palace in the Imperial City, though the hooded thief got away. Ocato sent some of the scrolls here for us to protect, and Jauffre has been paranoid ever since, which is not like him. Now his beard was at least a week old, and he was getting skinnier by the day. He didn't look too good at all.

"I'll need two people to travel to Anvil and handle the situation, as I am too busy to meddle with this, especially when it is likely something that Langley is wrong about anyhow. It shouldn't be more than a two days ride on horseback. Is there anyone who wants to volunteer?"

Baurus immediatly raised his hand, and I did as well. One being that Baurus was my best friend, and two being that things were boring around the Temple as of late. I hadn't even visited Bruma for three days and it's only a ten minute ride from the Temple!

"Excellent. You two should probably leave now, just so Langley doesn't send me another letter asking where I'm at. I expect a full report on the situation when you get back."

Baurus and I nodded, and then left to gather our gear for the trip. We wouldn't need much, just our Blades uniform and katana of course, and for the most part that's all we would need. I myself would be bringing a fur coat along, just in case I become too cold traveling through the Bruman region. Baurus always makes fun of me for that.

After we had everything we needed we reported to Jauffre one last time, though it was of my begging that we did so. Baurus didn't want to bother him since his door was locked, but I was determined what exactly it was he was doing in his room. I knocked on Jauffre's door, and after a few seconds of silence I knocked again.

This time Jauffre answered the door, with a mean look spread across his face. "What in Oblivion do you want, Cyrus? I'm a little busy in case I didn't make myself clear during the meeting!" He was downright yelling at me, in a rude and cutting way. It hurt me that he was acting like this. Not to where it made me cry, mind you, I am well used to the strictness of Jauffre. But this was different. Ever since those elder scrolls had been handed to us he's never been the same. "Well...what do you want?"

"I just wanted to let you know that Baurus and I are about to leave for Anvil. Is there anything else you wish to tell us?"

"If I had something to say then I would've said it during the meeting," he said rudely. "Just hurry back, will you? I've got enough on my mind without having to worry about Langley's paranoia."

And then he slammed the door in my face.

*****************************************

"No....I've failed him...I've failed my kingdom...what will I do now?"

Stop babbling and figure something out, you twit! You're always crying like an infant! Whatever happened to the old Domas who was never afraid, and never got caught either? What happened to him, hmm? Why is the new Domas such a weakling?

"Shut up! I'm not a weakling! I...I just need some time to figure things out. If father were here he'd-"

Well you know what, weakling? Father ISN'T here...you're by yourself, locked in a cage, about to face the Grandmaster of the Blades...the one association you were supposed to avoid at all costs. You're a failure, Domas. You're a disgrace to your father's name, and even he too was a failure. What does that tell you about yourself, hmm?

"I SAID SHUT UP! Just leave me alone, stop talking to me..."

Than Anvil guard would have been surprised by the Redguard talking to himself. That is he would have if wasn't sleeping outside the cells at his desk, snoring like a bear, oblivious to the talking in the cell room even with the yelling. It was a little after midnight, a day after Domas had been captured and thrown into jail, and no one was present to hear the one man conversation going down in the cells of Anvil. Domas had been placed in a separate cell, in a room away from the other prisoners. This was by the strict order of Langley.

And why should I shut up, Domas? Who else is going to keep you in line? If anything you should be thanking me, not telling me to shut my mouth. If it weren't for me you would have been dead a long time ago.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Domas yelled, covering his years tightly with his dark and dirty hands. But of course that did nothing to help him, and rather only echoed the voice even more.

He never would have hired you if it weren't for me, Domas, and you know it. Without me you'd be the same weakling you've always been. The only reason he doesn't see through you and see the true coward that you really is because I've provided you with a shield.

"SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!"

And even that is starting to wear off I'm afraid...

Domas rolled up into a ball in the upper right corner of the cell and started to cry, a soft cry filled with self-pity...but above all, fear.

I really like schizo characters and one-man conversations. Keep this up.

Also, I've read a little of the first Excursion of Hammerfell, and it seems that the main character is some guy serving Janus Hassildor in Skingrad, not a Redguard. Has this story changed that much?

Yes, this story is taking a whole new direction.....well, partially I guess. But yes, the main character has changed. I'm glad you like. Having Domas talking to himself was really hard for me, since I've never done it before.

Interesting take on Cyrodil (and Tamriel in general) you have here, with a fair few whacked out conspiracies developing. I really liked the character of Domas, with his Gollumesque rantings.
Just a note-several of the counts and countesses were opposed to Ocato taking the title of Emperor. Maybe mention it.

Sure, that's a good idea. Thanks, Bean. You seem to be the busy reviewer all of a sudden. I like that...a lot.

I keep a busy schedule to ward off boredom-I'm a very proactive person!