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The Forsworn Retribution	By : Samson Category: +A through F > Elder Scrolls - Skyrim Views: 60892 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 3
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Black Souls

The Forsworn Retribution
Part IX - "Crownless Kings"
By: Jesse Racine AKA Samson
Original Date Written: December 9, 2015

Max’s eyes darted around. He twisted his head to the side, practically jerking his whole body around the instant he saw something promising. Perhaps forty paces over to their left, poking out of the first few meters of the next ascent in the mountain, was a narrow boulder bulging from the earth. It was short, and it didn’t appear to have enough space for each of them to sit comfortably, but it was just long enough, and tall enough, that if they all shoved close together and kept quiet, they could have a chance of avoiding this encounter before it became an issue...Provided, of course, that the patrol was planning on heading right past them, rather than taking a turn and walking straight up the mountain.

He gave a loud blow with his mouth, like a whistle that didn’t quite make it, in order to get everyone’s attention. Then, keeping low in a crouch, he took off as quickly and quietly as he could, silently waving for the others to follow. It was no great chore for him to move without much noise, aside from his hard footfalls. Although Svetlana was not the stealthiest or most agile of individuals, her choice of clothing, at least, presented nothing in the way of a hindrance. All she had to do was hike up her robe, and then she was rushing along in a squat jog just as quickly as Maximus was.

Gabriella, too, had little difficulty moving to Max’s destination. Her custom-created leather armour had been made specifically with stealth in mind, and even as she bolted along, her footfalls made hardly a whisper. Anya knew the instant stealth became the plan of action that she’d be at a crippling disadvantage. For a moment, she couldn’t move. She refused to, she knew it wasn’t an option, for her. The instant she tried to escape, she’d give them all away. She looked to the side, watching the others rush along to their hiding spot. Her heart was steadily beating harder until it was pounding against her ribs. She looked back over in the direction of the footsteps, coming from just over the hill before her.

How many were there? Enough for their footsteps to mingle together into one nebulous clamour, at least. To her credit, Anya didn’t remain crouched there, locked up and wheezing. She quickly got a hold of herself and realized that sitting there, right out in the open, was no better an option. She was far from clueless, she knew she was just making things worse with her inaction. From the sound of things, the scouts were coming right towards her, and who knew? Maybe she could keep the noise from her armour low enough that they wouldn’t be able to hear her over their own footsteps? Even if they heard her, it was better to try and fail than to have never tried, at all.

As soon as Max had gotten behind the low boulder, he turned back around, remaining in a tight crouch. One eye wider than the other, his mouth slightly ajar, he barely glanced at Gabby and Lana as they moved past him, getting behind cover. The only one who hadn’t moved an inch was Anya. His left hand against the rough stone, he urgently waved her over with his right, hissing her name just once. She looked at him through the corners of her eyes, her jaw visibly clenching.

She finally got the lead out, making for his direction as gracefully as she could. She tried her best to strike a balance between speed and sound, but even with her first step, it was clear that she was going to make a racket when compared to the others. Her hard footfalls made her sabatons clang against her greaves, while her fauld, similarly, struck the leather armour over her thighs as well as the rear sides of her greaves. Gabriella was already getting low behind the boulder when she heard the noise Anya was throwing up. Her blood instantly ran cold. She closed her eyes, just for a moment, before she unsheathed her daggers. That damn noise was going to bring the scouts right to them. She wasn’t going out without a fight.

Svetlana kept her cool as best she could. Positioned between Max and Gabby, the two women were so low to the ground that barely their shoulder blades were propped up against the stone, leaving the rest of their bodies bent at an uncomfortable angle. On top of that, they both kept their legs tucked either underneath them, or very close to their sides, letting their feet come up by their hips. Neither of them wanted to take the chance that, should they stretch their legs out, they’d become visible from over the boulder. When she heard the noise Anya’s armour made, Svetlana closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. Everything would be alright, she told herself. They wouldn’t hear her. They wouldn’t find them. They wouldn’t alert the camp.

Anya had nearly gotten to the boulder when, without warning, the footsteps began to halt. Anya’s eyes widened. She stopped dead in her tracks, nearly losing her balance, in the process. Max’s throat tensed as he swallowed some saliva. He waved her over, again. She promptly shook her head. Brow furrowing, eyes wide, he firmly jabbed a finger down at the dirt by his side, then slid his finger across his throat. Anya got the hint, but she chanced a glance over her shoulder. The footsteps started up, again. Fewer people were covering ground, now, and more quietly, this time. They knew. Even in the last few rays of sunset, Max could see the shine of sweat on Anya’s face.

She wasn’t used to being the one who needed to hide. She had always been the pursuer, the soldier trading blows on the front lines. Subterfuge had her out of her element, but she was doing her best to adapt. She risked moving a bit more slowly, trying to space her feet further apart as she moved, hoping to soften her footsteps and prevent her fauld from hitting her greaves. Once she was close enough, Max reached out and grabbed her arms, pulling her over onto all fours as he helped her silently crawl into cover, beside him. She squeezed in as close to him as she could, but Max was already moving her a little, shifting her body around.

He pulled her right leg over until it was between his. His arm went around her waist until his hand was planted over her stomach, which gave him enough leverage to pull her over his thigh, forcing her to occupy as much of his space as he could. He surprised her with his strength, given the weight of her armour, as he pushed her down a little, sliding her fauld across his leg until she had gone down far enough for the back of her head to rest against his chest. Then, he was pulling her legs up under her, but there was only so far she could bend her legs before her fauld presented an obstacle.

He kept his hand over her stomach as he ducked his head down, trying to keep himself out of sight. Anya couldn’t hear his breathing, but she felt it clearly enough, against her ear. The cold breeze made bearable the hot sweat on her face. She slowly brought Svetlana’s Forsworn axe up by her side, holding it at the ready. Max watched her, adrenaline coursing through his veins. His free hand drifted to the handle of his sheathed sword, partly trapped under his leg in his hasty positioning. He had quickly deduced what she had been worried about, but he didn’t see how it could ever present a dilemma. Either she had tried moving, or sat there and got herself killed, likely alongside the others.

If the rest of them had managed to escape, the mission would’ve been bust, by that point. If he was being honest, he was disappointed in her. He would’ve expected greater resolve, from her. He would’ve expected that a situation like that never would’ve given her pause. In a way, however, he supposed that her hesitation was a good sign. Perhaps she was finally feeling some real fellowship with the others, and had actually been thinking of their well-being. Her inaction would still be a mistake, either way, but in that case, it’d be a more easily forgivable one. His jaw tightened up as the footsteps quietly swarmed over the hill behind them, descending into the clearing they had seconds before occupied.

He turned his head to the side, eyes slowly shifting around as he listened. Most of the footsteps came to a quick stop, nearly in unison. A couple additional pairs skulked about for a few seconds more, then ceased. “...I know what I heard,” a voice muttered. Max kept facing the nearest edge of the boulder, watching the final rays of sunlight disappear with agonizing slowness. It could’ve been a long shot, but it was always possible that Sabrina was already aware of them and their situation, and was just waiting for the right opportunity to strike. If not, well, there was no time to pull her vial from his pack and signal her. Couldn’t risk it, couldn’t chance that Anya and himself moving around to get his pack out from under him wouldn’t make enough noise to alert the Forsworn.

Besides, maybe she was already aware of them, anyway. If there was anyone in the group who could pacify an entire patrol, it was her and her Magicka. If the four of them could just hold out for another minute or two, then maybe...He held his breath, for a moment, as a set of footsteps wandered closer to the boulder. “Well, I didn’t hear anything,” a second voice remarked, close-by. “We’re wasting time,” a third voice muttered. “You hear what I hear?...Exactly. Nothing. Whoever it is, they couldn’t have gotten far. Somebody’s keeping real still to keep from rattling like a metal cup,” a woman quietly asserted, her voice barely audible. Max’s brow began to sink deep. He recognized that particular voice...

Straight raised her voice, a little. “Whoever’s out there, you can’t hide. We’re going to find you.” Max briefly extended his arm across Lana and Gabby’s bodies, gesturing for them to stay put. He eased his hand back over to the handle of his sword as he listened, a couple moments of silence passing them by. The sunlight was so dim, now...Just a little longer...

Straight Arrow’s order was firm. “Don’t take any chances. Search the area. Find them, kill them. If it’s that Imperial and Bunny’s with them, bring her to me.”

Anya quickly tilted her head back and to the side, looking up at Max. He didn’t turn his head as he looked downwards, meeting her eyes. Her eyes were resolute, her jaw clenched tight. She barely lifted her axe a little, giving it a little turn. He nodded. He turned his head, looking over at Svetlana and Gabriella. The two of them gave a nod of their own. The determination written plain in their hard expressions told him all he needed to know. They were all ready to handle this, regardless of the potential odds. Max turned his head back to the side, watching the nearby edge of the boulder as the footsteps picked up, dispersing about the area.

Shhthunk!

Everyone perked up, a little, at the noise. It had been close, possibly within arm’s reach of the boulder. The voices became a clamour. One of the Forsworn urgently snapped “Archer!” Another demanded “Which direction?” “East, towards the descent!” Max could almost hear Straight growl before she bellowed “Bunny! Don’t you dare fight me like a coward! Show your face!” Again, Maximus put his arm across Svetlana and Gabriella, nonverbally ordering them to stay put instead of trying to take advantage of the distraction. The area was already turning black as the sun finished disappearing behind the horizon. The sound came again, whistling on the air before shooting past the top of the boulder, biting into the dirt mere meters from Max’s feet.

“There! Chase her down!” Straight shouted, already audibly on the move. Max raised an eyebrow, mouth hanging open a crack as the footsteps began to pound, faintly vibrating through the dirt with how urgent they were. They all listened as the footsteps rapidly receded, quieting to a faint din as Straight’s group went on the hunt. “We need to go!” Svetlana urgently hissed, managing to keep her voice down to a whisper. Max glanced at her, giving a quick, chopping gesture, ordering her to keep in cover and out of sight. The seconds ticked by with an agonizing slowness. Gabriella stared off into the distance as she listened, trying to find any hint that someone had stayed behind to keep watch over the area.

It felt like ages before any of them heard something, aside from the beating of their own hearts. Someone was hurrying towards them, their footsteps barely audible as they patted against the ground. Max’s hand tightened on the handle of his sword. First person to round the edge of the boulder was getting the tip of his sword to their gut. “Max? Are you here? Where are you guys?” Max could feel Anya deflate against his body, as she sighed. Svetlana started to turn herself around, getting up to her knees as she peeked over the boulder. Gabriella started to shift, as well, as Max took his hand from Anya’s stomach, sticking his arm out past the side of the boulder. He lightly waved her over by wagging his fingers, quietly answering “We’re right here, Bunny.”

He gave a slow sigh as Anya began to rise, getting off of him and his leg. The awkward positions everyone had been in made them each stumble as they got to their feet, but they each managed to keep themselves from tripping over their own feet. Bunny came running over, panting with a big smile as she stopped beside the boulder. Quietly, breathlessly, she said “I found Straight just as she mentioned me being brought to her. Didn’t even, hoo, didn’t even know it was you guys, really. Distracted them with...With arrows, whew, lost them, circled back around, and got here. What do you think? Pretty, huff...Pretty good, huh?”

“Very impressive,” Anya remarked, a telling lack of condescension in her tone. Svetlana nodded, a relieved smile lingering on her face. Bunny glanced over her shoulder, quietly adding “Well, listen, we are really close to the clan. We need to get out of here before Straight comes back, or another patrol walks right into us.” Raising her eyebrows high, her eyes wide with concern, she looked at Max and hastily added “When I was still a part of the clan, the scouts never went very high up the mountain. I guess they didn’t see the point, I mean, it wasn’t as if High Rock bandits were going to climb over the mountaintop and jump into the camp. I think I know a spot we can hide out at, it’d give us a chance to look over the camp and make a plan. R-Right?”

Max nodded. Bunny needed no further prompting before she was speed walking past the boulder, beginning to climb the steep ascent off of the plateau. He followed after her, coming up by her side as the rest of his lady friends brought up the rear, Gabriella keeping a watch over her shoulder for any sign of Straight. Max kept his voice down as he asked “Did you find what you needed for the poison?” Bunny gave a nod, giving half a shrug to shake the tiny satchel strapped to the back of her shoulder, her own personal supply bag for her alchemy tools and the spoils of her mercenary work with the rest of them.

“Have you seen Sabrina, anywhere?” He added, giving a look over in the direction the smoke in the sky had been coming from. Bunny shook her head, quietly mumbling “No, it’s just been me, this whole time. Haven’t seen anyone, aside from a couple clan scouts.” He nodded in understanding. He reached over, taking her by the side of her head. Pulling her closer, he leaned in and pressed a kiss to her temple, smiling a little as he said “Good job, by the way. We were ready for the worst.” Bunny smiled a bit sheepishly. He could practically see the waves of goose bumps ripple across her skin. Keeping her voice under control, she warmly answered “No problem. You would’ve done the same thing for me.”

Bunny silently led the group up the ascent, the cover of fresh darkness offering them an excellent, all-purpose shield against any Forsworn scouts, roaming and watching the territory. Anya did her best to keep the noise level from her armour to a minimum, a task which was made somewhat easier during a climb than it had been during a crouch. Bunny guided the group up a ways, spending a few minutes scaling the steep slopes of the mountainside until the dirt under their nails felt like ice, the grass became frosted over, and their breath began to fog. Eventually, the group found a small plateau in the mountain, little more than a shelf covered over with half an inch of snow.

They’d all be quite hard-pressed to find a more convenient, safe location, Bunny asserted. Lying prone, the group crawled to the northernmost edge of the plateau, trying to get their eyes on the Forsworn camp. Thankfully, it wasn’t particularly difficult to do so - the column of smoke they had previously seen in the distance had been coming from an immense bonfire, which even now continued to burn. Bunny, lying by Max’s side, stared at the distant glow, speaking barely above a whisper as she murmured “They light it, almost every night. My clan wasn’t as afraid of being found out by Nord armies as most of the others, so they don’t exactly bother trying to hide where they are. Bonfire’s right in the middle of the camp. Keeps them warm, gives them light, lets them cook, all of that.”

Svetlana looked over at the two of them, peering past the top of Gabriella’s head. In spite of the snow soaking through the entire front of her robe, in spite of the fact that she didn’t even have underwear to shield her, she hadn’t been reduced to the same level of quaking and shaking that the elves present had. Aside from the occasional vibrating chatter in her jaw, Svetlana found the cold fairly tolerable. Gabriella and Anya, on the other hand, were both visibly trembling inside their armour, each quivering in waves rushing through their limbs.

Maximus and Bunny were both doing relatively well, by comparison. Aside from the occasional quake, they both seemed to find the chill bearable. By Ysmir, Bunny was wearing even less than Svetlana was, and she was faring better than the Altmer soldier wearing a full set of platemail over leather armour. As quietly as she could, Svetlana asked “I can only see a couple tents. Do you know where the rest of them are?” Bunny nodded. Barely holding up her hand, refraining from making the silly move of sticking her arm out over the edge of the plateau, she pointed around near the sizeable bonfire glowing white, in the distance.

Softly, she murmured “If things are still the same since the last time I was here, there should be six right around the fire pit. I think I can see them in the light, but I can’t be too sure.” Bunny began pointing a bit more northward, then added “There’s a bunch more off to the side, in that direction. That’s mostly where the workers are. My mom, Moira, has her tent, there. She’s the clan wisewoman, she knows a c-couple things about Restoration and potion-brewing. If the clan already has anyone working on trying to cook up poison, it’s her. Oh, right, that reminds me...” Bunny eased herself back from the edge of the plateau, crawling backwards with her elbows. The rest followed suit.

Bunny unshouldered her little brown leather pack, unbuttoning the flap cover before reaching around inside. “Here we go...” she murmured, the faint clinking of glass against glass emerging before she withdrew her hand. Reminded of Sabrina’s vial, Maximus unshouldered his own pack, reaching around inside as Bunny discerned which vial had which poison. In the dark of night and with creating a light an impossibility due to the risk of detection, it ordinarily would’ve been next to impossible to differentiate between the four identical vials. Thankfully, Bunny had had enough foresight to mark the cork of each vial, using the sharp edge of an arrow to gently cut a symbol for her own future reference.

Quietly, she explained. “I lucked out and found enough stuff for four different poisons. I don’t know who’d make the b-best use of each one, though...And, it’s important to remember that poisons are only really good for one solid hit, more or less. I mean, Max, you could probably get away with a few more if you smeared the poison on both edges of your sword, but, like, Anya, your axe would probably only get one good hit. The axe’s edge is a lot smaller, you know? Anyway...I made f-four, that’s the important thing. One for each of us. I’m guessing Sabrina won’t need one, at least, and Lana gave her axe to Anya, so...”

Max nodded, already absentmindedly tossing and lightly twirling Sabrina’s vial, signalling her towards their location. “I doubt it. She’ll get by like she always does.” Bunny nodded. As she explained, she started to smile a little excitedly. Maximus could only assume she was imagining the faces of her former family as her handiwork took effect, inside their bodies. “Well, I made a poison that, if it gets in someone’s blood, it’ll rip the energy right out of their body. If it gets in them, just a couple s-seconds later, they’ll feel so dead exhausted that they won’t even be able to swing their sword, anymore. They’ll practically be helpless. I made another that does something a lot like that, but it’s more slow, if that makes sense.”

“Instead of ripping away their energy, it’ll just make it so that fighting is a lot more exhausting, for them. They won’t be able to try and take it easy or rest up to get their strength back, so, in a rough fight, they don’t have a lot of time to win before they’re as good as dead. There’s Frost Maidens in the clan, though, and probably a Briarheart, so I grabbed some mushrooms and moss from a cave and made a poison that drains the Magicka right out of someone. And, um...Lastly, I just made a regular, run-of-the-mill poison. If it gets inside you, it heads straight for your heart and takes a lot out of you.”

Maximus was quick to decide who’d make the best use of each. Still keeping his voice down, he instructed Bunny to keep the Magicka poison. “It’s more specific than the others,” he said. “It won’t do any good against more than a few people. You’ll have a better view of the place than we will, so you’ll be able to dip your arrows in it and stop the mages before they can cause us too much trouble. Besides, we might not be able to close the distance with a mage before they let the lightning fly. Taking the fight out of people, or simply putting them down right away, would be better for us, instead. I’ll take the one that keeps someone from getting their energy back.” Max turned his head, looking over at the other three women.

“Anya, you should take the poison that saps people’s strength. Gabby, you take the regular poison. If you’re quick and careful with your slashes, you might be able to get a few good hits out of each dagger before the poison’s been wiped off. Anya, the Forsworn might surprise you with how fast they can move. Slowing down one or two of those fuckers could keep them from overwhelming you, give you a chance to get used to how they fight.” The two women nodded in acknowledgement. Bunny needed a couple seconds to ensure which vial was which before handing them out. “It’s a good idea not to get any of these on your skin, just so you know,” she warned. “Either pour it on your weapon, or smear it on the edge with a leaf.”

“Obviously,” Gabby quietly remarked, a hint of sarcasm in her tone. Nobody responded, not even Max. Instead, he looked at Bunny, nodded towards the edge of the plateau, and said “Alright, keep going. Give me more of the layout. You were mentioning the work tents, to the north?” Bunny nodded. Just as she put her vial of poison back inside her pack, closed the flap, and shouldered it, a sudden whisper surprised them all. Sabrina, materializing behind them as her Invisibility spell lost effect, quietly said “Max, I’m here. Good to see everyone’s no worse for wear.” Svetlana briefly tensed up, her eyes momentarily closing out of surprise. Looking back, she slowly hissed “By the Nine, you nearly turned my damn hair white! I thought I’d at least hear your footsteps!”

Sabrina smiled, a little. Raising a hand, she adjusted the fit of her spectacles over the bridge of her nose, lightly pushing between her lenses before pointing down at her feet. “Of course not, I Muffled myself. That’s Bunny’s clan down there, correct?” Max turned onto his side to better look back at her, sticking Sabrina’s vial back inside his pack as he said “Yeah. You’re actually just in time, fang-face. Bunny was giving us the lay of the land. You could help, you can see the camp better than any of us.” He couldn’t help but notice that she had tied her hair up in twin ponytails once again, letting the long, voluminous manes of vibrant, raven black hair hang down over her shoulders. Hmm. Secret code for wanting his attention, perhaps?

Sabrina nodded in acknowledgement, but as he shouldered his pack, she said “Yes, of course, but first, I should really fill you all in on what I’ve been doing. I haven’t been idle, I may have even given us an opening for our attack. On top of that, I have something I want to give you, Max. I think you’ll appreciate it.” He raised an eyebrow at her, out of curiosity. “Another gift?” he asked. “What, did you enchant a necklace with ice protection, or something?” Sabrina smiled, a little. As Bunny slid a wee bit to the side, giving Sabrina space to go prone between herself and Maximus, the vampire explained herself.

Rather noticeably lacking the same warm fog the rest gave off when they exhaled, her immense breasts helplessly pushing aside the snow as she crawled up between them, the woman kept a hushed, soft-spoken tone as said “I left all of you at the mine because I had assumed there’d be nightly patrols by Forsworn in the area, as well as scoutings for outsiders. I was right. I captured one of them, took him into the cave I was resting in, and asked him a few questions about the camp. He was, understandably, reluctant.” Sabrina’s eyes briefly drifted downwards, in recollection. “I was...Not gentle,” she vaguely added, in little more than a murmur.

Maximus barely raised an eyebrow. Slowly looking over at her, he asked “Did you learn anything good?” Sabrina nodded, meeting his eyes. “He gave me a good idea of what kind of resistance we can expect, as well as a bit of the lay of the land. Of course, now that we’re here, I suppose that that’s moot. He simply told me exactly what we can see, here: the camp is out in the open, not hidden behind wooden walls or stone ramparts.” Bunny nodded, lightheartedly remarking “I could’ve told you that.” Sabrina arched an eyebrow, momentarily looking off in Bunny’s direction without turning her head. Looking back at Max, she added “He couldn’t tell me how many ordinary fighters we could expect, but he filled me in on the more noteworthy individuals.”

“According to him, the camp has six Ice Maidens, three Hagravens, and two Briarhearts. I can handle the Hagravens, myself.” “Wait, two Briarhearts?” Bunny asked, narrowing an eye. Sabrina turned her head, giving Bunny a nod to the affirmative. The petite Breton’s brow furrowed, a touch. Eyes wandering downwards in thought, she mumbled “...In that case, someone new must’ve stepped up to replace the one we lost, a while back.” Max nodded. Bunny had mentioned the clan losing a Briarheart, before. Sabrina raised an eyebrow, eyes half-closed as she casually mentioned “Yes, the man I took mentioned something along those lines. He mentioned a name, as well, however - “Sun Eater.” Do you know who that might be?”

Bunny’s eyes instantly widened. Without hesitation, she admitted “Sun Eater’s my dad. Did he really say that he was a Briarheart, now?” A few of the others reacted with suppressed surprise. Sabrina gave a small nod. Bunny seemed to deflate. Her eyelids falling heavy, her head beginning to hang a little, all life seemed to drain away from her face, leaving a sombre mask over her. Anya felt like pointing out that Bunny should’ve realized a long time ago that going into this battle meant slaying her parents, but thought better of it. Smart move, in all honesty - everyone else could see that that wasn’t the reason for Bunny’s reaction, and a comment like that would’ve come across either ignorant or insensitive.

Sabrina waited a moment, then quietly said “I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, Bunny...I haven’t had a good opportunity to study a Briarheart in-depth, but I can say with certainty that they are, at least to a certain extent, undead in nature. If it makes you feel any better, you can think of your father as having already passed on, if you wish.” “I know,” Bunny replied, a little curtly. Her expression steadily hardening up once more, she looked back up to Sabrina's eyes. Agitation rose in her tone the more she spoke. “I don’t know much about what Briarhearts are, either, but I know that he’s not himself, anymore. I’m not upset about it. It just...It shows me just how insane they really are. He let those...Hags...Do things to him. He let them cut out his heart, for...!”

She sighed hard through her nose, briefly pressing her lips tightly together before adding “I mean, I always knew about the whole deal, I always knew that some people made the choice, but why him? Why did he do it? What for? This stupid attack on Markarth? He really did it, just for...No, I’m...” Bunny sighed, again. Eyes falling half-closed, jaw tight, she looked off into the distance and shook her head. The rest watched her with interest. None of them had ever seen her fume, like this. Bunny waited a moment before, tone hard with determination, she said “I’m done, I’m not gonna talk about him all night long. Doesn’t matter, everyone there had to die, anyway. Right?”

Gabriella gave a little nod. Bunny looked over at Max, her voice steadily falling to a mumble as she said “You guys should know that he got his name because he likes to use fire spells. Most Forsworn don’t, so...You know, he picked the name, and...Yeah...” Sabrina raised an eyebrow, her eyes slowly shifting to the camp, in the distance. “...That could be a problem,” she quietly commented. Max nonchalantly reached an arm back, giving the buxom vampire a firm patting over her big, round bubble butt, feeling the way her plump cheeks lightly jiggled underneath her dress and panties. Smirking, he remarked “Not as much as you might think. Your ring, remember?”

Sabrina looked over at him, softly conceding “It’ll help, but not by much. The enchantment I put on the ring is strong enough that, on an ordinary, living person, it’d offer a good bit of protection, but on me, all it can do is help mitigate my inborn sensitivity. Luckily, I got my fill from that scout I captured, so my symptoms are as tame as possible, right now. My sensitivity could be much worse.” He nodded in understanding. When he abruptly slipped his hand up under her dress, she lightly cleared her throat, trying to get him to focus on the task at hand. After all, she still had important news to share with them, and neither of them could afford to be distracted.

Her concerns were unfounded. Oh, Max was focused on the business at hand, quite so, in fact. He just felt like teasing her, a little, after days without showing her a good time. Stroking his hand up the swell of her rump, feeling the silky ruffles of her panties under his palm as he felt over her curve, Sabrina continued speaking, trying her best not to let on that anything was happening. Certainly, in this darkness, none of the others had any clue what was going on, and they had no reason to, really. Just a slight case of a wandering hand, going to...Certain places...Oh dear, when was the last time they had been together? Her face already felt warm, and she was already making a point in her panties. If he didn’t stop, he’d turn that point into a full-blown tent, and then she’d be really distracted.

“Ahem...Yes, ah...After I was finished with him, I, um...Let’s say I charmed him, then sent him home. He’ll do whatever I will him to. I don’t know what his situation currently is, but...” Sabrina trailed off, waited a moment, then cleared her throat, yet again. Max smiled innocently. Raising his eyebrows, he prodded “Go on.” Sabrina tried to suppress the escalation in her breathing. He started off pushing his fingers between her cheeks, digging her underwear in. When one of his fingers found her crinkle, he gave the girly pucker a light prodding through the material of her underwear, then grabbed her thin, lace waistband and gave a few tugs upwards, helping to further bury the fabric inside her manslaying posterior.

“I, uh...” Sabrina mumbled, subtly breathing steamier and steamier. Swallowing some excess saliva, she calmly said “I’ll be able to use him to create a distraction...I can give him whichever orders I please, and he’ll fulfill them to the best of his abilities, or die trying. That’s everything important, I believe...Back to you, Bunny. You were saying?” Max raised his eyebrows, still smiling as he casually said “Well, hey, that’s pretty useful. Could make for a good opening before any of us risk our necks.” She gave a distracted nod in agreement. Sabrina got out maybe two syllables before he brought his hand a little further down, between her cheeks. Flick.

Her whole body tensed up, for a second. She trembled, trailing off before the word took shape. Oh, gods. He had actually touched her, there. It hadn’t hurt, he hadn’t flicked her that hard, but it had definitely caught her off-guard. It was so rare that he touched any part of her front, and even if it had been over her panties, even if it had just the tip of his finger for half a second...Gods, that did it, she was stretching the fabric. She moved her arm, sticking it down by her side. Reaching back, she found his hand, grabbed it, and lightly squeezed it as she pulled his hand away. He grinned as she turned her head, looking into his eyes.

He could read what she was trying to say, holding his hand by her side like she was. Her balls weren’t so backed-up and tender that a light flick had her squirming, but just that light touch probably already had her meaty prick digging into the snow. In truth, the angle was a bit different - Sabrina stopped him from playing with that round, globular bulge between her thighs before her meatstick, already naturally tucked down under her at an angle, grew to the point of pushing it’s way down along her thigh. She could only imagine what he’d do if something firm all of a sudden began poking the back of his hand. He’d probably goose her so hard that she’d squeal, or something like that. Would be pretty tough to explain that off.

“You cold, Sabrina? You just shivered, really hard. I thought the cold didn’t bother you?” Bunny curiously asked, looking over with interest. The other ladies each looked over. Sabrina raised her eyebrows, glanced over at Bunny, and smoothly answered “It doesn’t, but I suppose I’m not used to having so much of it against my skin at one time. This dress is rather low-cut, after all.” Bunny nodded, and as far as Sabrina could tell, everyone else was satisfied with that answer. Max smiled. Quick thinking, fang-face. Rather smooth, if he did say so himself. But, yes, enough fucking around. Back to business.

Sabrina would’ve brought his hand up and kissed his fingers by way of an apology, if it wouldn’t be an out of the blue, unexplainable gesture. She hoped he understood that it wasn’t necessarily that she didn’t enjoy the attention, it’s just that this wasn’t the right time. At least him paying attention to that part of her proved he wasn’t feeling particularly rattled about the upcoming conflict. Slowly, she let go of his hand, tenderly running her fingerprints along his palm in the process. After. He could do whatever he wanted to her, but business before pleasure.

Slowly calming back down, Sabrina brought her arm back up in front of herself, looked over at Maximus, and said “By the way, Max...I asked the scout something I thought you’d be interested in. I asked him how many of the people in the clan were veterans of the attack on Markarth, all those years ago.” Max slowly raised an eyebrow with interest, his smile already fading away. Gabriella intently watched the two of them, paying close attention. Sabrina waited for a couple seconds, then softly said “...Eight. He said that there were eight people old enough that they had likely been in fighting shape, at that time.”

Maximus didn’t answer. His eyebrow eased back down as he turned his sights on the camp, below. His lady friends all descended into silence. For several lengthy moments, the only noise any of them could hear was the whistle of the wind. Gabriella tried willing up the strength to ask him if eight was enough for him, but she just couldn’t find the words. Anya, similarly, thought about placing her hand on his back to express her support, but she wasn’t quite sure how he’d react to such a move. In the end, she simply played it safe, doing nothing, at all. Eventually, Max gave a nod. Teeth on edge, he quietly stated “...Eight’s enough. Eight’ll have to do. Even if they didn’t do it, it’ll...”

He briefly trailed off. Nodding, he finished his thought. “It’ll have to do.” Bunny slowly nodded, curving her lips inwards for a little nibble as she looked down at her own hands. Gabriella opened her mouth to say something, the Dunmer finding it simple to at least assure Max that she was with him no matter what, when Sabrina continued, taking away Gabriella’s chance. “And, one last thing, Max...We’re wasting moonlight, so I’ll keep it brief. I have something for you, something I thought you might appreciate. A memento.” He turned his head, watching her bring an arm down, slipping her hand between the ground and her chest.

She reached inside her dress, and a moment later, pulled out a somewhat long, thick piece of what appeared to be crystal, the gemstone gleaming as it reflected what little starlight there was. Max raised an eyebrow in confusion. He wasn’t one for jewellery, so he wasn’t quite sure where Sabrina had gotten the notion that he’d find a black gemstone valuable. The others didn’t recognize the object any more than Max did, something Sabrina had fully anticipated. She held it out towards him, giving him the opportunity to take the roughly cylindrical, half a foot long gem from her. In a hushed tone, she explained. “It’s a black soul gem, the only type of soul gem capable of capturing black souls - humanoid souls, in other words. They’re exceedingly rare.”

Anya’s eyes widened, as did Svetlana’s. Gabriella and Bunny, on the other hand, didn’t have much of a response. Max shrugged with his eyebrows, looking down at the soul gem. Svetlana was about to say something when Max beat her to the punch, quietly remarking “That’s nice, Sabrina, but I don’t know the first thing about Magicka. I can’t capture souls like you can, and I don’t see how a soul gem is supposed to be a memento, honestly.” Sabrina withdrew her hand, giving the soul gem a little squeeze. Her face calm, her tone a soothing little murmur, she cooed “I know, I’d catch the soul, for you...I just thought that, you might appreciate it if I caught the soul of one of the veterans.”

“You could hold on to it...Like a trophy, I suppose. Just, you know...Something to remember this all, by. Something to remind you that you won.” “Oh, I see...Hm.” Max took in a breath, nodding to himself as he gave the soul gem another look. Lana and Anya both came to the same sort of understanding, around that moment. At first, they had been stunned at the idea of trapping a person’s soul inside a soul gem, but then they remembered the injustices committed by the Forsworn, including what they had done to Maximus, personally. They were just bandits, more or less, right? They were practically scum, at least from their point of view. Dehumanizing them, like that, made it easier to fathom siphoning their very souls into gems.

Still, Svetlana couldn’t help but mutter “...Pretty damn cruel thing to do, to someone.” “Pretty morbid trophy,” Gabriella laconically chimed in. “I like it,” Max remarked. “Do it. Let’s not count our chickens before they’ve hatched, though. We haven’t won, yet.” “We will,” Lana asserted. Sabrina nodded in agreement, already slipping the soul gem back inside her dress. Under her breath, Anya muttered “Well, we certainly won’t be victorious if we n-never come up with a battle plan. If we’re all quite finished, can we p-please talk about the mission at hand?” Gabriella chirped out the same sentiment, sarcasm oozing in her voice as she quipped “I’m n-not lying on this frozen stretch of r-rock for my health, you know.”

Max lazily raised an eyebrow, looked over at Bunny, and gave her a nod. “Go on,” he urged. “Fill us in on the rest of the camp.” Bunny nodded, looking back down at the camp. Aside from some sharp hills here and there around the camp, she said, the terrain on the plateau should be largely flat. More troubling were the Briarhearts’ tents: her father’s, in particular, had high ground over the camp. At the base of the ascent into the mountain, along the eastern edge of the camp, a jagged outcropping of stone teeth protruded from the base of the mountain, providing a tiny platform for Sun Eater to keep his personal dwelling.

Just north of that, slightly further up the mountain range, a narrow depression in the mountain created a tiny slot. There, Bunny asserted, was the hag’s brooding grounds. The first Briarheart, the one who had offered his flesh prior to Sun Eater, kept his tent at the base of the mountain depression, allowing him to be the last line of defence for the three Hagravens. Unfortunately, Bunny had always given the hags and their den a very wide berth, so she couldn’t offer any hints as to what could be found, in there. In the same industrial area, if it could be called that, where Moira kept her tent, Bunny claimed that the clan had an established smithing area, complete with forge, smelter, and the varying accoutrements of weapon smithing and care.

Sabrina uncertainly corroborated this, stating that she could see an open area with sparse constructs, but the group were much too far for her to be able to discern the shapes, nocturnal vision or no. Considering Bunny had no real reason to lie, Maximus saw no reason to doubt her, and took into account the possibility that the Forsworn in this camp could’ve had more conventional smithing work arming their fighters. Along with a few extra housing tents, there was a small training and sparring area, a place of particularly bitter memories, for Bunny. She hated that place, she plainly asserted. Once this was all over, she’d like to see that place razed, if at all possible.

Max wasn’t one to tell her that her anger was unjust. Bunny looked down at her hands, rubbing her fingers together as the cold finally began to get the best of her. There was just one thing, she said. Sabrina’s idea of trapping someone’s soul for a trophy - she wasn’t going to argue that it was wrong, but she felt compelled to make the request that the person whose soul Max took for his memento wasn’t that of Sun Eater, Moira, or Straight Arrow. Anyone else was fine, Sabrina could Soul Trap everyone but, for all she cared. Although it wasn’t an easy way to feel, particularly in Straight’s case, she didn’t want to have to live with the notion that she had helped ruin one of their eternal futures.

Max and Sabrina looked over at each other. He gave her a nod, a signal she reciprocated. Kill them, but don’t Soul Trap them. Quite the mature request, in Max’s eyes. Considering how they had apparently mistreated her, he didn’t really think they deserved the leniency. Still, if that’s what Tiger wanted, Max could pay her that respect. She deserved as much - they all did. Max began to look from face to face, doling out orders for how he wanted this battle to go, instructing his soldiers on which tactics he wanted them to follow. Above all else, he didn’t want them to take any unnecessary risks, either for glory or out of self-overestimation. Never forget, he said, that the enemy severely outnumbered them.

Bunny, he ordered, should stick to the cover of darkness and use her intimate knowledge of the camp’s layout to her advantage. Hiding just out of sight, she could use the large campfire at the clan’s heart to spot the enemy and turn each foot soldier into pincushions. When the Ice Maidens or Briarhearts begin to show their faces, she could disable them from afar, opening up opportunities for the others to finish them off. Should the enemy attempt to blindly rush her position, she could slip away, find a new spot in the shadows, and resume her efforts. She was quick, she was quiet, and she should have no problem evading her own people. Maximus had faith in her accuracy - she had proven herself before, and she certainly had her own very personal stake, in this conflict.

Anya, he wanted directly on the front lines, alongside himself. The two of them would be the vanguards, the first in and the last out. She was the only one out of the entire group who had any sort of formal combat training, and that, combined with her platemail, made for an equally durable and valuable ally. The two of them would need to be able to trust in one another to watch each other’s backs, and given the numbers they’d be facing, they’d need to be able fight knowing that the other could keep them from being overwhelmed. Steadfast in her resolve, continually driven by her desire to redeem herself to Max as well as atone for the rest of her compliance with the Thalmor, her expert swordsmanship and cool head in the heat of battle would make for an unshakeable compatriot in this assuredly hectic conflict.

Svetlana would help Max and Anya during the fray, but she’d focus primarily on the Ice Maidens, drawing their fire in however much time it takes Bunny to sap their Magicka with her poison. With her skill in Restoration allowing her surprisingly capable Wards, she could antagonize the Ice Maidens and absorb the brunt of their attacks, shielding the others from their spells until either Bunny could deal with them, or Sabrina could counter their Magicka with her own. Until she could scavenge a weapon off of the dead, Svetlana’s involvement would be limited to a support role, something that, truth be told, played to her strengths. Although she was serviceable with a sword, she was better at healing, and if she could keep her distance while jolting the others with Restoration Magicka whenever they took a hit, she could drastically improve their chances of both survival and victory.

Gabriella would, like Bunny, keep to the shadows...At least, at first. Her pickpocketing skills might’ve been a bit lacking, and she had never been the luckiest thief around, but she could sneak with the best of the Thieves Guild, and she had never had any trouble landing her daggers somewhere vital. While Max and Anya drew everyone’s attention, she could rush around in the shadows, looking for archers too distracted with targets to notice a blade coming up over their spines. The berserkers, too, who liked to swing around dual axes, would be perfect fodder for her - she was more nimble, and daggers were quicker to swing, more precise.

If any of the others got into any serious trouble, she could dash over and dextrously disable the enemy. This role didn’t please Gabby, who tried to insist that she fight by Max’s side. If it was protection he wanted her to offer, she could do a better job of it right next to him, right in the thick of the battle. Max couldn’t help but smile, a little. Somewhat gently, he asked her if she remembered the promise she had made to him. A little frustrated, she asked if he remembered his own. He chuckled. He couldn’t bring himself to feel annoyed with her.

This was the role he wanted her to play, he said, and if she felt like he was pushing her out of the conflict to keep her safe, well...She could just go out of her way to protect him, if she wanted. After all, he couldn’t exactly keep his eye on her, when she was in the shadows. So long as she looked after the others, too, he’d have no reason to complain. Gabby was quiet at first, but then she agreed. She could live with that deal. If and when a Briarheart showed their face, however, she couldn’t promise that she’d continue hiding forever. Fair’s fair, he agreed.

If Svetlana were the beating heart of their effort, if Max and Anya were the hide of their war beast, then Sabrina would be the backbone. Max was entrusting her with the most responsibility, considering her wide array of talents. He believed that she would be the most capable of handling a Briarheart, although it would’ve been safer for her to let Bunny and the rest handle Sun Eater, given Sabrina’s natural weakness as a vampire to flame. The Ice Maidens, on the other hand, would be mere novices, compared to the Master Sorceress.

With her Conjuration, Sabrina could summon forth anything from a wide variety of creatures to aid them. With Mysticism and Illusion, she could dominate the flow of battle. With Alteration, she could imbue herself and others with magical armour as strong as ebony. With Destruction, she could be a typhoon of Magicka, tearing down the Bretons like chaff before the wind. When she let loose, she was a fearsome sight to behold. Her lack of Magicka-restoring potions did, ultimately, put a limit on how much she could exert herself at any given time, but no matter. Her pool of energies ran deep, and she could naturally replenish it at a rate that would likely surprise even an Altmer.

However, even as skilled as she was, she was far from invulnerable. None of them were, no matter how well they worked together as a team, shoring up each other’s weaknesses and complementing each other’s strengths. The first few moves of this assault were all-important. None of them had seen Straight or her band of scouts return to the camp, and for all they knew, she had opted to abandon her apparent excursion in favour of staying close to home, watching for any possible attack. She was the unknown element, keeping them on edge.

If they were going to strike, they’d need to do so quickly and brutally, doing as much damage in as short a time frame as possible. Sabrina had a thought on that, she offered. She had just the idea on something that could offer them a perfect distraction while they descended the mountain and took up their positions. After all, she hadn’t just brutalized Sabre for information, she had...Adjusted his abrasive attitude. In fact, her “little helper” should’ve been waking up right about then, feeling like a new man...

(Author's Note - Hey, guys! Sorry for taking a while to post an update, I ended up having computer trouble. Great time for my PC to fry, huh, right at the climax of the story^_^”? Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed seeing the close encounter with Straight, and watching as Max and the others took a moment to properly formulate their plan of attack.

After coming within a hair’s breadth of being discovered and outnumbered by Straight and her troupe of headhunters, Bunny saves everyone’s bacon from getting cooked before guiding Max and the rest to a discreet location, higher up on the mountain. She passes out some poisons she had cooked up, and gives everyone an idea of the camp’s layout before Sabrina arrives, filling Max in on the enemy numbers Sabre gave up. As well, she offers him a somewhat macabre trophy: a black soul gem, filled with the soul of any Forsworn soldier Max desires. This causes some contention among a few of the others, but nobody outright disputes the trophy.

After Max assigns each of them their roles to play, Sabrina states that Sabre should be waking up at any moment, a fully-fledged thrall in service to her will. He should offer them a perfect distraction as they take up their positions for the assault, keeping any Breton eyes off of the surroundings and on the chaos Sabre should be able to create. If any of you have any suggestions or requests, feel free to leave a comment, this story never would’ve gotten this far without everyone’s amazing support and feedback:). I hope you all enjoy the next chapter, I’ll see you later!)
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The Forsworn Retribution