Adult-FanFiction.org : Games

The Forsworn Retribution	By : Samson Category: +A through F > Elder Scrolls - Skyrim Views: 60892 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own the Elder Scrolls intellectual property, nor am I making any money off of this fanfic. Unauthorized duplication of this work is prohibited.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Reachmen

The Forsworn Retribution
Part III - "Rapscallions"
By: Jesse Racine AKA Samson
Original Date Written: April 11, 2014

Maximus smiled to himself. Standing apart from the girls, he watched his lady friends collect their belongings, finishing up a light breakfast. Svetlana would cast him dreamy looks, every now and then. Clearly, she was still quite giddy over the sudden, and rather intense, tryst they had had, the night before. Upon awaking her for her watch shift, Maximus found Svetlana complaining that he hadn’t let her get enough sleep, that he had interrupted a good dream, that she wouldn’t be able to stay awake for long, among a few other topics that Maximus ultimately ignored.

Deciding to wake her up the fun way, he had taken her by the arm, pulled her away from the camp, tore her out of her robe, and mercilessly pummelled her eager little slit with his man meat. Maximus knew that, if Svetlana had had things her way, she would’ve ridden him until dawn, but once she had gotten energized, Maximus had left her to get some much-deserved sleep. He wouldn’t be very surprised if, at some point in the day, she mentioned finishing what the two had started. Maybe she’d get her wish, if she made herself useful during the group’s search.

Once everyone was ready, Maximus led them back towards established pathways, continuing on for the village of Karthwasten. Bunny warned the others about the heavy concentration of Forsworn in and around the Karth river, clearly growing quite uneasy as the group trekked deeper and deeper into thoroughly untamed sections of the Reach. Eventually, Bunny begged Maximus to take the group off of the open pathways, fearing the group might walk into an ambush at any moment. Maximus sighed in annoyance, but allowed Bunny to take the lead if it meant calming her down. Bunny’s anxiety dropped like a rock once the group took to the hills, weaving a disorienting path through valleys and highlands, never venturing too far from the river. After a few hours of trekking, Bunny led the group to the top of a hill, held out an arm, and beamed them all a proud smile.

At the top of the hill, the group could see what had to have been Karthwasten, the little village nestled at the foot of a series of mountains. Now that Maximus saw it, he thought it odd to call Karthwasten a fully fledged village, considering it consisted of little more than three or four modest buildings. A settlement of miners, perhaps, but no civilian village. Maximus kept his opinion to himself as the group descended into the village, wisely deciding it would be best not to offend the locals. Even if he was the leader of a team of sellswords, indignant locals could pose a problem. Bunny plucked some Juniper berries from a nearby tree as the group walked on to the small settlement’s only road, the group taking a quick look around. A few miners watched the group as they walked by, curiosity and suspicion so easily blending in their eyes. None of the miners approached the group, not even to ask them what their business in Karthwasten was. Maximus watched the miners head up a nearby pathway, then groaned. The others looked at him in curiosity, following his gaze as he raised an arm.

“There are two mines! Nobody ever said anything about two, not even Sabrina! How are we supposed to know which mine we have to look around?” The Dunmer raised an eyebrow. As it so happened, there were, in fact, two distinct mines in the village, each within a stone’s throw of each other. They both had their own ore smelter sitting by the entrance, either to help with productivity, or to handle two different types of extracted ore. Bunny shrugged, popping some berries into her mouth as she said “Oh, I dunno. They’re both pretty close to each other. They’re basically under the same mountain. Maybe the steward made a mistake?” Svetlana shook her head, mumbling out “No, I doubt it. I don’t know what’s going on, but I can’t see the steward getting something like that wrong.” Maximus sighed, glancing over his shoulder at a nearby building. Tiredly, he said “Well, whatever. I guess it doesn’t matter. We’re here, now. No point searching to the south. If the Forsworn were on the other side of the river, I don’t think anyone would much care. There are plenty of mountains to the north and west, though, and since that’s right around the mines, that’d be our best bet. We can-”

“Hello, can I help you? I’m Ainethach, I own Karthwasten.” When Maximus saw the man, his very first instinct was to snicker, but he quickly suppressed the fleeting need to laugh. The group faced him, giving him a quick look up and down. He appeared to be a Breton, although his fair height made him look more like an Imperial. He was dressed in a fine set of clothes, cleaner than the person actually wearing them was, amusingly. Ainethach had gone bald over the top of his head, leaving a coronet of dark brown hair around the base of his skull. Attached to his disappearing hair were the bushiest set of sideburns that Maximus had ever seen, sticking down on either side of his face like an incomplete beard, puffed out like frightened felines. Maximus needed to stifle a smile for several seconds before he saw something that killed the reaction. Just barely sticking out from under the man’s sideburns, there were a pair of black tattoos, pointing up towards his nose like hooks. Beneath the hair, dust, and dirt, the tattoos were almost invisible, but what little could be seen damned him, all the same.

Bunny seemed to be thinking along the same lines as Maximus. Curiously, she asked “You own Karthwasten?” Ainethach nodded, giving Bunny an appraising look, examining her Forsworn pelt garb. A proud hint in his tone, he said “That’s right. The village and mines have been in my family for generations. Mind if I ask why you’re here? Is this about the letter I sent the Jarl?” Maximus nodded, offering Ainethach his hand. “I’m Maximus. My friends and I were sent here to help you with a Forsworn problem?” As the Breton man shook Maximus’ hand, he said “Good, I’m glad. I’d like this problem nipped in the bud, so to speak. Here’s what I know...A couple days ago, some of the miners told me that they had seen some people moving around in the hills, north of Fenn’s Gulch. Later that same day, some of the other miners said they saw some people darting around, north of Sanuarach. Could’ve been bandits, could’ve been adventurers, could’ve been anyone, really. But, these mines have a bad history with both Nords and Forsworn, and Forsworn are more likely to creep around in the hills than Nords are.”

“Bad history? How so?” Svetlana asked, raising an eyebrow. Ainethach crossed his arms over his chest, drawing in a deep breath. Sighing heavily, he said “Well, since I’m a Reachman, myself, I’m put in an odd position, owning this land. The Nords don’t trust me, and neither do the Forsworn. Both groups think I’m secretly working for, or helping, the other one. I’m not, but that hasn’t stopped issues from breaking out. This is just the latest in a long line of fires that had to be put out. If these people slinking around in the hills are Forsworn, like I’m partial to believing, then they’re probably watching us to try and catch us gifting Markarth with ore or supplies. It’d give them an excuse to justify trying to raid this place, at least.”

Maximus briefly held up his hands, saying “Alright, so, what do you want us to do? Convince them to leave?” Ainethach suddenly grinned, letting loose a loud laugh. “Hah! Gods, no. I don’t want you getting yourselves killed. Trust me, you can’t talk these people down. If you go up into the hills and find them, they’ll just charge and start swinging. Don’t let your guards down, you won’t be able to negotiate with them. I want them gone, yes, but violence is really the only option they’ll give you.” Bunny let out a subdued sigh through her nose. Giving Maximus a resigned look, she shrugged, mumbling out “He’s right, you know. They won’t just walk away. That’d be seen as weak.” Maximus raised an eyebrow, glancing at Bunny before addressing Ainethach.

“Alright, fine. No problem. We’re each a capable fighter, we can handle a couple of Forsworn. Give us, oh, half an hour to get ready. We’ll have ourselves a light meal before we start the search, and if we don’t find anything today, we’ll try for a few more days. I imagine you’ll give us half now, half after?” Ainethach gave Maximus a peculiar look. Similarly, the girls glanced sidelong at him. The Dunmer found herself smiling. Ainethach bluntly said “Why would I be expected to pay out of my own pocket? Doesn’t the steward handle things like that?” Maximus briefly tilted his head to the side, shrugging in the process. “You’d think so, but the bounty made no mention of a reward, and we were never paid when we took on the task. We’re not going to bust our backs and risk our lives out of the goodness of our hearts, you know. This isn’t charity work. We’re called “sellswords” for a reason. Before I do anything, I expect to figure out the payment proceedings, otherwise I’m gonna take my girls and we’re just gonna go home.”

Ainethach rolled his jaw around. Slowly taking in a deep breath, he straightened his back, momentarily raising his chin. As he exhaled, he gave in. Begrudgingly, he gave a nod. “Fine. I’ll give you two hundred Septims now, and depending on how this plays out, I might pay you more, I might not. If you find nothing after a couple of days, then you can consider the payment as buying us peace of mind. If you find some Forsworn and take care of them, or whoever it is that’s watching us, then...Well, we’ll talk more, then.” Maximus smiled, a little. “Excellent. Oh, one more thing, by the way. Now that I think about it, we might need a place to sleep. If the search takes longer than today, we shouldn’t sleep outside. Sleeping outside could give us away, and open us up to sneak attacks. As long as they don’t know we’re looking for them, we have the advantage.” Ainethach’s lips pursed. Coolly, he asked “I see. Well, I’m afraid I don’t know how I can help you, with that. There are only three beds in the miner’s barracks, and they’re all being used. I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m not keen on hosting four strangers in my own home.”

Maximus smiled more. “Five, actually. There’s a fifth member of the team, but...Her work with Magicka keeps her up, at nights. She’ll catch up with us some time after dinner, I imagine.” Svetlana raised her eyebrows, curtly saying “Oh, I have an idea! When we were coming up on the village, I noticed a nice little space behind that buidling.” Svetlana raised an arm, pointing at one of the larger buildings, across from one of the mines. Shrugging, she pouted out her bottom lip, adding “We could set up a little camp, behind it. It’s still out in the open, but if the people are always looking from the north, they shouldn’t see us.”

Ainethach simply raised a hand, briefly gesturing at Svetlana. Maximus subtly sighed. Ah, well. It would’ve been nice to sleep in a warm bed, but he supposed he could push his luck only so far. As Ainethach walked off for the mercenaries’ pay, Bunny gave Maximus an unsure look. Putting her hands to her hips, she quietly said “Max, did the note from the steward really not mention any reward? Did we really walk all this way without knowing if we’d get paid, or not?” Maximus immediately snickered. “Gods, no. Have a little faith, I wouldn’t waste everyone’s time, like that. We’re getting paid almost a thousand Septims, for this.” Bunny blinked a few times, her brow furrowing in confusion. Rather naively, she asked “Then, why would you tell that man that we weren’t getting paid?” Maximus just glanced at her, starting to grin. The Dunmer, a thin little smile on her face, slyly said “Who’s the greedy one, now, Maximus?” Maximus gave her a firm pat over the rump, walking forwards as he dismissively said “Quiet, you. He could be back any minute.”

When Ainethach returned, he held in his hands a modestly sized burlap sack, barely bulging with coins. Maximus raised his eyebrows. If that truly was the only payment the group could hope for, he’d have turned everyone around and walked back to Markarth, right then and there. As Ainethach held the sack out for Maximus, he said “There. Two hundred now, possibly more afterwards, depending on how the hunt plays out. For all we know, the bastards have already left, so I could be paying you for nothing.” “Except peace of mind.” The Dunmer quickly pointed out, a sneaky little smile persisting on her face. Ainethach momentarily narrowed an eye at her. Maximus smiled, taking a few seconds to feel the weight of his little bonus before giving Ainethach a nod. “Great. We’ll set up a temporary little camp, have a refreshing snack, and get searching. We’ll find the fools, don’t you worry.” Ainethach gave a nod, about to say something when a miner walked out into the open, giving him a call.

Ainethach glanced at the Orc woman, gave her a little wave, then looked back at the sellswords. His lips drawing tight, he said “Something’s come up, you’ll have to excuse me. Good luck with your search.” Nobody responded, watching the Breton walk off towards the Orc. As the group started walking over towards a nearby building, Maximus grinned and chuckled to himself. Giving the sack a little bounce in the palm of his hand, he quietly said “Thanks for the donation, idiot. I’ll be sure to do my job twice as hard, just for you. Heh heh heh...” Svetlana raised an eyebrow, disapprovingly tut-tut-tutting before commenting “We’d better hope he doesn’t find out, Max. He’ll be none too pleased that you tricked him, like that.” Maximus chuckled even harder. Walking into a small clearing behind the wooden building, he glanced around, noting how close they were to the edge of a cliff. He suddenly tossed the sack of Septims at the Dunmer, making her yelp as she just barely caught it in time.

Smiling at her from over his shoulder, he said “Divvy that up into four shares, would you? Fifty a piece. Nice little bonus, don’t you think?” The Dunmer blinked a few times, glancing down to the sack, then back up to Maximus. An uncomfortable look grew on her face, as if she couldn’t make up her mind whether he was trying to trick her, or not. Maximus started to grin, slowly narrowing his eyes at her. The Dunmer’s complexion started to flush dark, her brow furrowing. Indignantly, she snapped “What’s with that look? What’re you trying to pull?” Maximus grinned even more, raising his eyebrows.

Svetlana got to work making a light meal for the group, trying not to touch the heavier supplies, just yet. Meanwhile, Bunny plucked Juniper berries from a nearby tree, crudely trying to mix them by hand with the other little ingredients she had collected on the trip. Maximus would toss his elven plaything glances every now and then, letting her know with a smile on his face that he was keeping a close eye on her. She poorly pretended that she didn’t notice, even more poorly pretending that it didn’t bother her. She fidgeted around as she counted out the coins, hoping beyond hope that he wouldn’t think she was slipping any of them into her sleeves. Once everyone had their little incentives and had eaten their equally tiny meals, they set off into the mountains, beginning a very long, arduous trek up the stony hills just behind the mines. Leaving behind everything but their weapons, the noon sun beating down on them all the while, they started climbing, struggling against Kynareth’s great monuments.

They were all quiet as they climbed, each understanding the potential risk that talking could pose. Aside from the occasional grunt of exertion, they scaled the hills in silence, trying their best to get a look around. The hills north of Karthwasten were virtually pure stone, with only a thin layer of dirt to support grassy sections. Sporadic openings in the dirt were avoided by the group, for climbing the raw stone made for rough friction, once even burning open a nasty scrape in the palm of the Dunmer’s right hand. As Svetlana saw to healing the pickpocket’s injury with a Restoration spell, Maximus and Bunny climbed up to a small clearing, crawling up a steep slant of grass on their hands and knees. Sweating, burning up under his leather armour, Maximus was breathing heavy as the two got themselves up into a small clearing, the relatively level area giving them a chance to rest.

Bunny, likewise, was sweating and panting, but she wasn’t quite as drained as Maximus was. Looking at her, Maximus could now understand why her people wore so little; the Reach certainly had a nippy temperature, but physical activity warmed the body, and scaling mountains made for an inferno under the skin. She’d have an easier time cooling off, and thus pressing on, than he would. It would serve to make her a better hunter, a better survivor, even a better killer if Bunny’s demeanor wasn’t so withdrawn, by Forsworn standards. Sitting side-by-side on the small patch of grass, Bunny looked down at Karthwasten, trying to catch her breath. Brazenly lifting up the front of her loincloth with one hand, she flapped the furry material to and fro, trying to cool off her nether regions.

“Think they might’ve sat here?” She asked, giving Maximus a glance. Maximus raised an eyebrow, looking down at the village. Nonchalantly, he said “Maybe. High enough not to be seen clearly, but low enough to be seen. You never know.” Bunny, somewhat nervously, fidgeted with her quiver, murmuring out “You sure we’re ready for this? If I had more time, I could’ve made a poison, dipped my arrows in them-” “We’ll be fine, Bunny. Just stay focused and make good use of that bow. You wouldn’t want to make me regret buying it, would you?” Bunny smiled sheepishly, her eyes dropping to her legs. A hint of pink rising in her cheeks, she affectionately said “No...I guess not. It was nice of you to get it for me, by the way. I promise, I won’t let you down.”

Maximus glanced at her, a half-smile growing on his face. Bunny glanced at him, barely able to make eye contact before she shyly looked away. Maximus grinned at the display. If the group weren’t engaged in a life or death hunt, he might’ve pushed Bunny down and made love to her, right then and there. Instead, the two fell into silence, waiting together for Svetlana and the Dunmer to catch up. Once the group had gotten back together, they resumed climbing, making their way to the summit of the miniature mountain.

Svetlana slowly paced off to the side, briefly throwing her arms up. “No ashes from bonfires, no tracks trod into the grass or dirt...Not even scraps of food. If someone was around here, they must not have stayed for very long...” Bunny kicked at some dirt, putting her hands to her hips. Mumbling, she said “No, they wouldn’t set up a camp...Putting down roots, even temporary ones, would be dangerous. Carry nothing but what you need, never stay in one spot for long...” The Dunmer sighed, squinting against the sunlight as she glanced around. She sighed, then flatly said “I never thought I’d say this, but I’d actually prefer if Sabrina was here. Bunny, didn’t you once say that some Forsworn use Magicka?” Bunny gave a vigorous nod, looking over at the dark elf. “Mhm. It’s mostly the women that go into it, but some of the men do it, too. The Briarhearts do it a lot, too, but that’s...Different. Most of the ordinary Magicka users make use of ice spells, and plenty of them like summoning Atronachs, as well.”

Svetlana shrugged with her eyebrows. “Ice. Great. Vampires can shrug off the cold like nobody’s business. Now I wish she was here, too.” Maximus’ brow suddenly sank. He shot up a hand, hissing out “Shut up, everyone. Be quiet!” Everyone paused, looking at Maximus. His eyes slowly roamed over the area, looking at nearby rock formations, slanted sections, anywhere where someone could conceivably hide themselves. The girls started glancing around, hands at the ready. The Dunmer silently unsheathed her Elven daggers, brow furrowing as her crimson eyes darted around. Bunny readied her Orcish bow, notching an arrow on the drawstring. Svetlana’s hands clenched into fists, the priestess ready to cast whatever healing spell she could at a moment’s notice. Maximus’ hand rested over the grip of his sword, slowly unsheathing it over the span of several seconds. His eyes eventually came to rest over a small section of stone, jutting up from the summit near a downwards slope. There were a few tense moments of silence. Just before Svetlana turned to Maximus and asked him what he had heard, a shrill voice rang out.

“For the Reach!!”

Maximus’ eyes widened when a short figure popped up from behind the stone formation, the telltale glint of an arrow shining in the sunlight. Before Maximus could react, the left side of his body felt like it had been shoved back. Even before his shoulder had finished recoiling from the impact, he knew an arrow had bitten through his leather armour. Before shock from the pain could overcome him, he grabbed the arrow by the shaft, yanking it back out of himself. Pulling the arrow out just widened the injury, giving his blood an easier time pouring out. Svetlana rushed to his side, the golden light of a Restoration spell already shimmering in the palm of her hand. Bunny, after a very brief moment of hesitation, pulled back the drawstring of her bow. She let loose the Orcish arrow with a high twang, the arrow flying like an emerald hawk.

The Dunmer assumed a combative stance as two more figures showed themselves, but wisely didn’t make the mistake of charging in and separating herself from the others. The Forsworn archer, barely a black silhouette in the sunlight, grunted when Bunny’s arrow struck her in the chest. Her form unbroken, the archer readied another arrow as her comrades charged in. Svetlana had barely healed over Maximus’ wound when he was abandoning her side, running into the fray. He reached the Dunmer’s side just as the two Forsworn men came in swinging, wildly whipping makeshift axes to and fro. The men, faces covered in bold tattoos and dressed in little other than loincloths, yelled like wild beasts as they struck, lashing out at the outsiders with a primal rage only the mindlessly frenzied could muster up. Maximus and the Dunmer divided the attentions of the close-ranged combatants, but their sweeping onslaught of swings left them without openings, keeping the two on the defensive.

Bunny tried not to hesitate, but she only sent another arrow downwind at the Forsworn archer after a moment or two, hitting her in the torso a second time. The archer hardly seemed to notice, firing an arrow back at Bunny. Bunny gasped, her whole body recoiling as the arrow struck her hard in her exposed stomach, biting deep. The Forsworn archer ducked behind cover, presumably to pull Bunny’s arrows out of her body, then strike again at a more opportune moment. Svetlana, a healing spell readied in her hand, ran towards Bunny. To Svetlana’s surprise, the pain Bunny was feeling quickly honed itself into a sharp determination; the introduction of pain hardened her and brought out her resolve, rather than discourage and shrink her. Bunny seemed to ignore Svetlana, entirely, as the Nord pulled the arrow back out of her body, keeping a hand over the wound as she radiated Restoration Magicka into it. Her face going pale despite her wide, alert eyes, Bunny notched another arrow on her drawstring, aiming at the male Forsworn.

Maximus kept a tight grip on his sword, holding it with both hands as he deflected whatever blow he couldn’t backstep or lean away from. The Forsworn man swung his homemade axes in wide, cleaving arcs, clearly attempting to intimidate and unsettle Maximus with his brutal approach. The Dunmer, meanwhile, had an easier time handling her opponent, thanks to her more nimble movements. She easily dodged the second Forsworn man’s swings, rather flashily leaning out of the way, narrowly saving herself from harm. The smug smile on her face only served to further infuriate her enemy, forcing him to tire himself out as he tried swinging with even more ferocity. Like a cat playing with a cornered mouse, she swooped in closer to him, swung one of her daggers up across his chest, and ducked behind him before he could grab her. She paid for her arrogance when the Forsworn man spun around, wildly throwing one of his axes with a shout. The Dunmer gasped and collapsed when the axe hit her in the stomach, biting through her custom leather armour.

While the throw was nowhere near as damaging as a straight hit, it still gouged into her abdomen, slicing dangerously deeply. Momentarily lost for breath, she clamped a hand down on her wound, trying to stop the blood from spilling. When the Forsworn man lunged at her legs, she kicked away his discarded axe, sending it flying down a nearby incline. Doing a reckless hop, she turned in the air, rolling over his back to deftly land on her feet behind him. She stumbled a few steps away from him, looking down at her bloodied hand as she brought it away from her wound. Maximus, meanwhile, dealt with several more swings from his own opponent, his frustration rising as his patience wore thin. The rage on his face grew until he lashed out with a savage kick, catching the Forsworn off-guard in the narrow window of time between swings.

The Forsworn man stumbled backwards, abdomen recoiling backwards. When Bunny’s arrow struck up in the throat, his entire body reared up, head swinging back as blood trailed down his chest. Maximus made full use of the opportunity, lunging forwards with his sword, mercilessly running the man through. The man tried swinging an axe into Maximus’ back, but once Maximus twisted his sword and started pulling it back out at an angle, the man’s struggles grew feeble. Once Maximus had pulled his sword back out, he cocked back a fist, flattening the mortally wounded Forsworn with a haymaker to the face. Svetlana cried out for the Dunmer to look behind her, spotting the man as he readied a decapitating swing. On instinct, the Dunmer ducked, dropping low to the ground on a knee. A few strands of her hair drifted away as the axe flew over her head, sweeping through her long black locks.

Svetlana bared her teeth, throwing an arm out in the duo’s direction. A flash of light shot from the palm of her hand in an instant, flying towards the Forsworn man. He grunted when the light came close, shutting his eyes when the orb hit him in the face, bursting into blinding pops of light. He brought his free arm over his face, trying to shield his eyes from further strain as he wildly swung his axe, senselessly chopping downwards. The Dunmer rolled to the side, getting herself clear before she could sustain anything more than she already had. Like an acrobat, she leapt up to her feet, ducking behind the man in an instant. With surprising brutality, she grabbed the man by the hair, yanked his head back, and plunged one of her daggers into his throat from behind, slashing him with such viciousness that the first spurts of blood were practically fountains. Almost exposing bone with her one rip, she raised a leg and kicked the man forwards, sending him face-first into the dirt.

When Maximus made a charge for the remaining Forsworn, she quickly ducked out from behind cover, an arrow already notched and ready to fire. In that split-second opening, Bunny fired another arrow, hitting the Forsworn archer directly over one of her forearms. The arrow pierced right through her arm, sticking almost halfway through the limb, utterly debilitating it. The archer let the arrow loose on instinct, but with such little force that Maximus’ armour stopped it, entirely. Before the woman could grunt in pain, Maximus had spun his blade around in the air, cleaved through her neck, and left her utterly headless. The severed piece of her body rolled down a nearby incline, disappearing down the side of the mountain. The body left over, meanwhile, was tense for just a moment, then nervelessly collapsed in an undignified heap. The skirmish was over.

The Dunmer, breathing hard, pressed a hand down over her wound, again. Slowly, she dropped to her bottom, her face contorting in pain as she took a seat. Svetlana rushed towards her, leaving the clearly shaken Bunny behind. While Bunny had had her only injury healed, the entire conflict had clearly rattled her. Her pale complexion and trembling body was a clear indicator of just how unused to adrenaline and combat she truly was. Her face blank, Bunny simply drifted off to the side, aimlessly walking a few steps as she tried to come to grips with what had just happened. Maximus stared down at the woman he had beheaded, for a moment, before looking over at the others. When he saw the Dunmer sitting on the ground, he quickly made his way over. Although his question was a general one, his eyes were glued on the pickpocket, suggesting the majority of his concern may have rested upon a certain individual.

“Is everyone alright? How are we doing?” As Svetlana dropped to her knees beside the Dunmer, she glanced at Maximus, muttering out “Considering we just had a brush with a bunch of savages, I’d say we’re doing amazingly.” The Dunmer didn’t say anything, her breathing slowly starting to become less tense once Svetlana began healing her injury, feeding twinkling Restorative energy into her wound. Maximus looked over at Bunny, watching her for a moment, noticing as she simply stood away from everyone. Arms crossed over her stomach, she breathed slowly but deeply, clearly trying to calm herself down. Maximus glanced around at the corpses, speaking aloud his mind. “We should check the bodies for any valuables, then take something for proof. Piece of clothing, maybe. It’ll suffice for the bounty. Once we’re healed up, we’re getting back off his damn mountain.”

Bunny suddenly said “The others will know about this. About these people. They’ll notice that they’ve gone missing, Max...They’ll know that they died.” Maximus raised an eyebrow. The carefree tone in his voice was disturbingly at odds with the corpses lying around and the blood on his hands. “Not right away, they won’t. And even if they do, so what? We were sent to do a job, and we did it. We’re gonna get paid. The Reach is a dangerous place, maybe the friends of these people will think a sabre cat stalked them down.” Bunny didn’t respond, causing Maximus to turn his attention to the Dunmer. He walked closer to her, leaning over until his face was near her’s. She looked up to his eyes, no discernable emotion on her face. He smiled, a little. “I never thought I’d say this, but you did good, back there. Maybe you really can carry your own weight, after all.” Before she could answer, he brought a hand up to her chin, tilted her head back towards him, and surprised her with a brief, passionate kiss. Without giving her time to reciprocate, he pulled away, leaving her a little stunned and more than a bit confused. As Maximus walked off to check the corpses for anything of worth, Svetlana gave the Dunmer a knowing smile, raising an eyebrow at her. The Dunmer didn’t know what to say or think, simply going a little flush as she bit her tongue.

As the group walked back down into Karthwasten, Maximus sighed, looking over the Forsworn axe he had taken. His trophy would act as his proof, and would hopefully ensure the group earned their reward. Gods knew he hadn’t found anything of worth on the corpses, leaving them with no immediate compensation. Everyone had been healed at Svetlana’s talented hands, leaving the rest with bloody clothes and armour for further proof, although it shouldn’t have been necessary. Maximus turned the axe over, once or twice. The handle and shaft was made of some sort of old bone, but Maximus couldn’t fathom what creature had produced it. The blade was fastened between numerous prongs sticking out at the end of the shaft, very securely tied into places with an abundance of twine. Maximus truly couldn’t be sure if the blade was sharpened stone or very, very poorly handled iron, but either way, it had been honed to a surprisingly keen edge. In the hands of a sufficiently enraged individual, the axe could cause horrifying damage to a person’s body. The dried blood covering the weapon like rust was a testament to the anger fuelling each Forsworn, driving them on.

Bunny had gone quiet since the encounter with her old kin, she no longer looked pale, and had long stopped quaking. The Dunmer maintained her composure, trying her best not to show any weakness to the others, particularly Maximus. Svetlana still fawned over the others, showering them each with an unexpected amount of concern, repeatedly checking their healed wounds to the point of annoying each of them. When Ainethach noticed that the group had returned after hardly two and a half hours of searching, an unimpressed look grew on his face. When Maximus held up his new axe, however, Ainethach’s eyes widened.

He quickly walked over, glancing from individual to individual, only then noticing how some of them had sustained injuries. Eyes locking on the axe once he was close enough, he exclaimed “I don’t believe it...How many were there? How did you manage it?” Maximus gained an arrogant grin. “We managed it by being strong, clearly. Doesn’t hurt that we have someone for just about everything. If our fifth teammate had been here, things would’ve been even quicker and easier. But, anyway, down to business...We killed three Forsworn, you can send a miner up and see their bodies for yourself, if you want. I doubt you’ll be getting any more reports about being watched, any time soon. What’s that worth to you?” Ainethach quickly crossed his arms over his chest. Barely shrugging, he weakly pouted out his bottom lip before saying “Well, I’ve already paid you two hundred, and I would prefer to send someone up to check the bodies...Let’s make it...Another one hundred and fifty. Fifty Septims per head.”

Maximus’ face immediately split in two with a big, wide grin. He let out a slow, halfhearted chuckle. His brow twitched downwards as his eyes sharpened. Casually, he gave both the Dunmer and Svetlana slaps across their rumps, nonchalantly saying “Give us a minute, girls. Man-talk time.” Ainethach raised an eyebrow at the display, his head subtly tilting back. While the Dunmer simply rolled her eyes and walked off, Svetlana had a genuinely hurt look on her face. Bunny needed to take the priestess by the hand to prompt her into walking, leading the much taller woman after the Dunmer. Once his lady friends were out of earshot, Maximus took a few steps closer to Ainethach, somewhat confrontationally staring into his eyes. In a low voice, Maximus muttered out “You know, if there’s one thing I hate, it’s someone trying to make me look like a fool. Doubly so if they’re trying to insult me in front of my special ladies. Let me ask you something...Do you mean to tell me that you honestly think taking down a Forsworn is worth fifty Septims? You’re insulting the efforts of my team with that crap. If they were that easy to kill, they wouldn’t have become a problem, in the first place.”

Ainethach could easily tell that he had genuinely offended Maximus. Despite trying to keep his cool, it was obvious that Maximus had intimidated him, a little. Trying not to let his voice crack, he asked “Well, what would you expect, then?” Maximus’ brow sank even deeper. “Anything less than a hundred gold per head would be an insult to my intelligence. Make it an even five hundred, and we’ll all be happy.” Ainethach’s eyes narrowed, a little. “Everyone except my coffers, that is. But...I see what you mean, fifty is too little. Let’s make it eighty. That’s more than generous, it’s downright charitable.” Maximus’ jaw tightened. After a few seconds of deliberation, he flatly said “Fine. But you really should get some clarification on what “charitable” means.” Ainethach barely smiled before he turned around and walked off, heading for a nearby building. Maximus waited until he had turned around before he started smirking, walking back to the others. Somewhat smugly, he said “We’re getting an extra two hundred and forty Septims. Not bad, if I do say so myself. That’s a hundred and ten Septims, for each of us. On top of the gold we’ll get for the bounty, well...Heh heh heh.”

Svetlana looked at Maximus a little unsurely, a bit of hurt still shining in her eyes. Without pulling him aside to ask him in private, she said “Why’d you send us away, Max? I...Just...W-Why? We could’ve helped with the negotiations, you know...” Maximus momentarily raised his eyebrows, giving her a faintly surprised glance. A second later, he smiled widely, leaned in, and silenced her with a surprise kiss. Raising an eyebrow at her, he confidently said “Leave the gold issues to me, huh? I can take care of it. Besides, you should be thinking about what you’ll spend your Septims on, once we get back to Markarth.” Svetlana didn’t reply, simply looking downwards. Once a little smile slowly crept up on her face, he glanced at the others, then nodded over his shoulder. “Now, go grab your stuff. We’re leaving as soon as we get our gold. Call me paranoid, but I’m not keen on sticking around here for nightfall...”

“Finally, there you are. I’ve been looking everywhere for you guys! So, what’s the situation? Didn’t you make it to Karthwasten?” As Sabrina walked out of the shadows and into the dim glow of the fire, the others looked over at her, some of them raising eyebrows. Maximus sighed through his nose, smiling contently as he lifted up a bulging burlap sack from his side. Sounding as if he didn’t have a care in the world, he said “Of course we did. Even managed to get a nice bonus, too. Turned out there were Forsworn hanging around the mines.” Sabrina took a seat on the far side of the fire from Maximus, sighing delicately through her nose as she crossed one leg over the other, preventing anyone from looking up her skirt. Maximus knew she probably would’ve liked to sit closer to him, but with the Dunmer at his right and Svetlana to his left, the vampire was flat out of luck. Bunny looked over at Sabrina, cooing out “We outnumbered them, but it was still a tough fight. We could’ve used you, if you’re as good at Magicka as the others say. We’re lucky we didn’t fight any mages, ourselves.”

Sabrina arched an eyebrow. Raising her hands, she smoothed her bangs behind her ears, somewhat dismissively saying “Well, you seem to have managed without me. Why didn’t you just spend the night at the village? I thought you guys would’ve stayed there, I spent almost two hours looking around that place.” The Dunmer tossed a glance at Maximus, flatly saying “You’d think so, but Maximus had other ideas. Maybe he was afraid about being ambushed in the night.” Maximus raised both eyebrows, turning his head in the Dunmer’s direction. Flatly, he said “If I was afraid of being ambushed, I would’ve had us travel more than half a mile away from the village. No, I just wanted us to get away from the village because I knew Ainethach would send word to the Jarl that he had gotten the help he wanted. He’s probably going to make mention of the gold he paid us, and while it probably won’t change our reward, it’s likely going to get him pretty riled up when he finds out that the steward was going to reward us.”

Sabrina slowly started to grin, bluntly commenting “Well, you cheeky little sneak! How much did you con out of that fool?” Svetlana raised her eyebrows, jokingly saying “Don’t encourage him, that kind of thing has a way of catching up with you.” Maximus smiled more, evasively saying “Doesn’t matter how much I got, you don’t get a share, remember? You get paid in blood, and...Other things.” Sabrina rapidly blinked a few times, averting her eyes as pink blossomed in her cheeks. She uncomfortably recrossed her legs, squeezing them a little tighter together than before. She glanced left and right, cleared her throat, and softly said “I know, I remember. I was just curious.” The others, who noticed the display, glanced at Maximus through the corners of their eyes. He grinned, then said “Maybe next time you’ll be able to chip in. Something tells me this won’t be the only fight we ever have against Forsworn, and thank the gods for that.”

The Dunmer shrugged, sounding a little bored as she said “Well, it’s good for our bellies not to have to worry about coin. I just wish there were an easier w...Wait a second. You almost sound like you want to fight Forsworn, Maximus.” Maximus glanced at her. Normally, he wouldn’t be so forthcoming about himself, but he nevertheless found himself divulging a little nugget of personal information. “I do, actually. Forsworn killed my real parents. My father was a guard in Markarth at the time of the rebellion, and my mother was killed when she tried to escape the city, with me. I don’t know why they didn’t kill me, but I doubt it was out of the goodness of their hearts.” Everyone went silent. The Dunmer felt confused, for a second. She turned her head away from Maximus, her lips pursing. What in Azura’s name was this sensation? By the Nine, it had been such a long time since she had felt it: sympathy, perhaps the most revolting of all emotions. Maximus was arousing her sympathy, the bastard! How in the name of all that was sensible could he possibly make her feel bad for him?

She slowly turned her head back towards him, glancing at his eyes. She reached over and, feeling like quite the fool, placed her hand on his wrist. He barely glanced at her, then paid no further attention to the little gesture. She withdrew her hand as Svetlana quietly said “Mara’s mercy, Max...That’s terrible. I’m so sorry, for you.” Maximus was about to say something when Svetlana slipped her arms around one of his own, hugging his arm to her body. When Bunny rose to her feet and started walking around to Maximus, he quietly groaned, trying to discourage her. “No, no, come on, let’s not get all sappy. Please, I was a pup when it happened, let’s just...” He trailed off and sighed. Bunny had ignored him entirely, coming down on her knees behind him, slipping her arms over his shoulders and around his neck, pressing her chest up against his back as she hugged him tight. Maximus looked at Sabrina, raising his eyebrows in resignation. Sabrina gently shrugged, a rueful smile spreading on her face. She briefly puckered her lips at him, then grinned to the point of showing off her fangs.

Maximus narrowed his eyes at her, then curtly said “Alright, come on, get off of me. I’m fine, let me go, already.” Slowly, Svetlana and Bunny eased up with their affections, slipping away from him. Maximus gave them both a look, raising an eyebrow at Bunny as she sat back in her previous spot. Sabrina briefly held up a hand, glancing from face to face. “So? What’s our next move? We go back to Markarth, then...?” Maximus chuckled, looking across the fire at her. “Now, we have fun. We’re more than likely going to get some more work related to Forsworn, but that might not be for a day or two. When we get back to civilization, we can afford some better gear, some better supplies, some good food and drink...As they say, work before pleasure. Hard work deserves a juicy reward, hm?”
- 6
- 7
- 8
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

The Forsworn Retribution