Rastislav
patreon
Arc 8 Side Story I: Side Story I: Merish Marshalling
🕑 Added 2024-12-26 22:47:52 +0000 UTCA/n: Do note that this side story is meant to happen right after chapter 46. Timing them to fit in perfectly with the current pace is pretty much impossible so some finagling is sadly a must.
-----
(General POV, A day before the army of Dagoth set out to Morrowind)
Davos sighed contentedly as he strolled through one of the now inhabited parts of the once Forgotten Vale. Work was getting done at a breakneck pace with hundreds of Mer migrating to the rumored promised land every month and the city had expanded beyond its initial boundaries months ago.
Humans were also welcome but there was a silent agreement between most people of both kinds that this was a place for elves first. Not that the Nords did not have other places to settle as much of Skyrim had been burned by the dragons and great swathes of land were now ownerless.
Shaking those dark thoughts away, the Right Hand of Dagoth, a title growing more prominent by the day to his great consternation and his wife's amusement, gave one final glance to the section of the valley given to the few dozen snow giants to inhabit.
The rowdy fuckers had finally calmed down after he called their drinking buddy to visit them and they begrudgingly accepted that the noise would be a constant 'Will need to find a more permanent solution though...' He thought with some annoyance and promptly shoved the problem for whenever his Boss would return.
He was a killer Webweaver damn it! Not a bloody leader.
Davos stopped in his tracks and sighed before chuckling to himself "Who am I even kidding?" He had long since lost that choice and he wouldn't have it any other way.
Now in silence of both thought and voice he made his way up the many winding walls leading to Silruhn Fell proper. The engineers under Edrassa were constructing a proper lift but that wouldn't be finished for some weeks more which meant he would miss the grand opening.
A shame, but he had been cooped up for too long and he preferred dealing with a massive Argonian invasion to spending any more time pretending to be something he was not.
Inevitably, he found his way to his most recent haunt, The Lightbringer's Cornerclub.
---
The city's most prestigious place of respite grew deathly silent as he entered, some of the more eager Mer within standing up to greet him until he rose a silent hand and bid them to sit down.
They listened this time, thankfully.
The proprietor, an ancient Dunmer woman named Wildred, greeted him with a motherly smile "Running from your wife again, kid?"
No one bothered reacting to her sharp tongue, it was a fact of life, the sun rose every day and Wildred was an annoying old shrew.
Rolling his eyes Davos shook his head "Just taking a short break, is anyone in yet?"
"Just Varmyr" She answered as she wiped a mug squeaky clean "Came in a few minutes back."
He nodded "Bring me my usual" Sayin thus he left for the VIP booth that overlooked the rest of the locale, eternally reserved for him and the other leaders of the city.
Having climbed up a masterfully engraved wooden staircase he closed the door behind him and was greeted with the stocky sight of Varmyr, the Master of the great foundry "Davos" The gruff smith greeted him.
He gave the Mer a lazy wave and took a seat "You got everything done?"
"A few orders had to be rushed" The smith scowled, being a perfectionist at heart "Had to throw the work at the apprentices but it is mostly tent shingles and chainmail so they shouldn't have fucked it up too much."
"You are too hard on them" Davos commented "Let the kids live a little, they may as well use the chance we never got."
The smith scowled "We only have the chance because of pure dumb luck." Shaking his head he went on "Can't rely on Lord Reyvin to deal with everything for us, and equipping our protectors properly is as much a matter of survival as it is one of honor."
"Won't hear me disagreeing" Davos rose his hands in faux surrender before sighing "Guess I still feel a bit bitter about it all..."
"Bah!" The smith scoffs "You aren't in the Quarter anymore kid, you have a future to work towards so stop living in the bloody past before I smack you in your dumb head."
Before Davos could respond the door behind them opened and in walked a quartet of figures, the first one being Wildred carrying their orders while the other three were Karsus, the chief Steward followed by Maren and Varen, the two commanders of the Sworn Mer.
"Gentlemen" Lord Dagoth's Left Hand greeted them and took a seat, the two commanders doing so as well though much more quietly.
Wildred left them without a word, knowing there was a time and place for her usual comments.
"Karsus" Davos nodded "Still have bags under your eyes I see."
The elf chuckled at that "The newest batch of clerks are finishing their training soon so don't worry, I will get some rest..." He pauses and sighs "Probably."
"What you need to do Karsus" Maren speaks up "Is find yourself a missus."
The Steward scoffs "Just because the two of you found yourself a pair of twins doesn't mean you get to hold it over the rest of us."
He looked around for support but found none.
Varmyr was happily married with three grown up kids and outright gave a disapproving look to the similarly aged Mer, while Davos' decades-honed self preservation instincts told him to not make a singular comment.
Seeing he was beaten, the Steward grumbled and took a sip of his drink, an act the rest followed with differing levels of smug satisfaction.
The drink they were all partaking of? Tea.
'He must never know' Davos shivered.
"Man" Maren spoke up with a contented sigh "If only Oren could see us now."
Varen pretends to scoff but the sudden melancholy overtakes him as well "We can always summon him..."
"You know that is not the same" His older brother shakes his head.
And that is all he gets to do before a silent thud makes most of them flinch as they all spin to the new arrival, having snuck up on all but Davos as she carelessly plopped her ass on one of the free seats.
"Jenassa" Davos greeted her in a slightly stilted tone "How nice of you to join us."
"The pleasure is as always, all yours" The still youthful looking centurial killer that pretty much raised him grins with teeth showing.
Varmyr scoffs "What do you want woman?"
"Oh?" She smirks "Am I not allowed to be here, dear Varmyr?"
The smith grumbles to himself about troublesome women and returns to his drink.
"You have to admit you rarely show yourself" Karsus points out "What with young Alor being away and Edrassa never bothering to show it is usually just the five of us." He gives Davos a quick look, he didn't even bother mentioning the ever serious Nightshade or her potential presence.
'Fools just didn't understand her is all.' Is all Davos had to think on that.
"As if the children want to spend time with us old relics." The woman smirks "But no, I did not come back to drink the grass juice you all so enjoy" Cue grumbles "I just returned from meeting with the Morrowind branch."
All of them turn completely serious as Karsus leans in "And?"
She just shrugs "Didn't take any effort to convince them really, what with the Webweaver herself showing up and outright ordering the Grandmaster to do as he is told."
The two commanders, the smith, and the Steward gawk.
Davos snorts "Yeah, that sounds like her."
Unwilling to open that deathly can of worms, Karsus tentatively speaks up "So would it be safe to say Lord Dagoth has their full support?"
"Full support" Jenassa mimics him before snorting "Most of them would slit their own throats at his command just to get a chance of pleasing Her."
A few of them blanch, while the smith made a point of ignoring the conversation and focused on the crowd below.
"Good news aside." Jenassa keeps her grin as she looks to the two commanders "How goes the betting pool for today?"
The constant military exercises in the form of team battles had become something of a sport within the house and where sports went followed bets, the crowds of citizens would thus gather whenever free to observe the eternal honing of their defenders, something all of them enjoyed.
The two brothers immediately brightened up, having earned a mighty sum of septims by leading the two competing forces and the talks descended into one of the most entertaining parts of living within Silruhn Fell.
Sadly, even as the banter descended into increasingly unimportant topics and Davos began to truly relax, the doors behind them opened for the dozenth time but this time instead of Wildred in came the veiled form of Agent Beetle.
"My Lord" The woman purred "The mistress invites you to join her in the tower."
'Already?' Davos grumbled inwardly and got up after only a second's pause.
Karliah pulled an actual whip from her belt and struck the nearby wall, making the sound as crisp as unreasonably possible.
Davos flipped her off and went home with a smile.
---------
A small Dunmer girl dressed in miniature robes rushes through the northernmost of the three residential districts of Silruhn Fell, its distinct white marble look dotted with numerous flower gardens easily setting it apart from the rest of the city as the place where the most wealthy dwelled.
"Slow down child, you will not miss anything." Beetle jogged after her, her voice carrying amusement instead of the expected exasperation.
Irenni completely ignored her and kept moving, too eager to see the army set out.
"You know we could have just looked at them from the tower" Beetle points out, having caught up with ease "The Mistress could have made them look closer too."
The little girl finally turned to her and crossed her arms "No. I want to see them up close." Even as she kept up her innocent mask she inwardly wondered how powerful it would feel to have an army of her own.
Hiding her smile, Beetle sighed "Well, at least you told her."
"I am a responsible girl!" Ireni proclaimed proudly and turned to run once again "Now come on, they will be starting soon!"
A minute or so later they found their way onto one of the seemingly empty houses, the young thief turned mage not caring one bit before she levitated the both of them to the house's grand balcony that should give them a perfect view of everything.
Only for the girl to still completely and Beetle to each for her dagger as they learned the house was not abandoned in the least. 'Really should have checked which house it was first, damn it all' The woman cursed inwardly.
A Dunmer wearing high quality green clothes of Nord make looked up at them lazily, though Beetle could see his eyes scanning them rapidly "Is there any reason you have invaded my property?" Terryn the Unmailed as he was known drawled out.
Irenni, seemingly having forgotten her previous fear, eagerly pointed at the rows upon rows of armored Mer "We came here to see the soldiers!" She said happily "Can we stay for a bit, pleeease?"
Beetle almost chuckled at how manipulative the little hellion could be, and she taught her all of it!
Terryn was so very tempted to tell them to fuck right off but the girl's sparkling purple eyes made it too difficult for him to be his usual cuntish self so all he did was huff and wave his hand to a pair of free seats "Do as you will, but once they are done leave and don't come back."
Beetle chose to stand behind the young one, much to the retired Champion's amusement.
Now fully focused on the sight, Irenni feels her eyes widening with awe. So many elves gathered in one place, so many of them more powerful than the Windhelm guards that once tormented her, hundreds upon hundreds of them all neatly stacked into rows and standing perfectly still, unmoved by the cheering of the crowd.
And of course, the unofficial guardian of the city was present as well, the great Kreinaarvokun lounged atop Tel Dagoth as he too observed his liege's forces readying for a glorious march.
'To have a dragon loyal to you...' The girl thought in awe.
The cheering slowed down and finally died down as a trio of figures walked out of the great tower, two Mer in full plate armor, styled in the same way as their fellow soldiers only covered in sashes, cloaks, and plumes, easily designating them as the two Commanders.
But the third elf is the one Irenni was truly there to see, and fa- Davos looked quite powerful in his own right as he led the small procession with assured steps, his helm held under his arm and his master crafted armor glinting in the sun.
The entire square went completely silent as he turned to face the army, his eyes seemingly looking for something as he nodded to himself "Brothers and sisters." He spoke as one of the nearby Falmer cast a spell on him, making his voice spread so all could hear.
Listening to him rehearsing the same speech a hundred times last night was quite funny to the young girl.
"Our lord has given us sanctuary and prosperity when none bothered to care. He has protected us and nurtured us, and even slew a god for us!" As he spoke murmurs of agreement spread through the crowd "It is time to pay back that debt!" Davos went on "Our kin in Morrowind are under attack by the Argonians once again and it is our liege who stands against them even now!"
Everyone knew this for a fact and yet excitement and fury still spread.
"And we will not betray him by staying out of this fight!" The Right Hand declared "We will show our kin of old Morrowind the true might of House Dagoth, and show them the truth of his vision!"
The troops stomp their weapons.
His voice quieted as he shook his head "And that is enough of that" He chuckles to himself "We have been preparing for this long enough, it is time to spill some damn lizard blood!"
And at this all the soldiers let out a clipped but loud cheer.
Davos turned around, momentarily pausing as his eyes met distant Irenni's, and without acknowledging her further he looked east "Soldiers! March!"
As one they began moving down the square, and into a portal that shimmered into existence.
Absently, Irenni remembered hearing her... mother say how it was all for show an the portal was actually connected to the room below the tower itself. She just took it as an elaborate illusion which made perfect sense to her.
'Just a big courage spell really!'
"A bit short but he could have done worse" Their host chuckles to himself as the army slowly begins disappearing "Good little crowd pleaser for a gutter rat though."
"You take that back!" Irenni rounds on him and points her finger at his face. Part of it was the act and part of it was true annoyance.
Terryin just rolls his eyes "Don't take it too seriously kid, just an old Mer rambling."
"You do sound old." She raises her nose and huffs.
"You got spunk child, I will give you that" He smirks and turns back to the square "Still, aren't you a bit arrogant to go around insulting people willy nilly? Not afraid someone will stab you?"
Her entire expression shifts into a cold look then and there "Afraid?" She asks in a flat voice "You'd just get burned to a crisp."
The old elf's eye twitches as he suppresses a shiver and mutters "What the fuck do they feed the kids in that tower and where can I get some..."
Having heard him completely, Irenni giggled "You are funny."
He gives her a dumbfounded look "Right..."
"Come now Irenni" Beetle cuts in while giving Terryin a pointed look, something the retired elf could only shrug his shoulders at "We should go back."
"Fiiiiine" The little girl grumbles and begins levitating them "See you later funny old man!"
Terryin stares at a literal ten year old levitating two entire persons for a long moment before promptly shaking his head, picking up a bottle of mead, and downing the whole thing. This is why he decided to retire.
-----
It was some ten minutes later that Irenni was led to Nightshade's chambers and she found the woman she considered her new mother standing atop her balcony in silence and watching the now empty quarter.
"Irenni" Nightshade spoke with a tone the girl couldn't quite place "Had fun?"
"I did" The girl muttered "But I feel really sad now."
The Falmer gently placed a hand on her shoulder and brought her up next to her "Feeling sad is fine, we have done all we could to prepare so all we can do now is do our own jobs while hoping they return to us whole."
"I still think they shouldn't waste time helping the idiots in Morrowind" The girl couldn't help but mutter "They didn't help us when we needed it."
Nightshade sighs "It is more complex than that child, besides Lord Dagoth gave the command."
And that was that.
The two remained silent, staring at the now empty square for a while before their silence was broken by little Varador who chose this as a perfect moment to wake up and begin wailing loudly.
As Nightshade went back inside with a motherly smile, Irenni once more thanked the stars for that chance encounter she had all those years ago, and prayed to them that the kind Mer who saved her and gave her her new family would be safe.
