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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 28, 2006 15:32:46 GMT -5
Eh, why not? I assume most people here haven't read this (based on the fact that almost everyone on the Oblivion board from back then left, including yours truly). As such, I'll post one at a time like I did orginally. Frankly, I like this story better as a serial and posting 16 pages of stuff all at once can be overwhelming for some people. If nobody likes it, I'll simply stop. Oh, and I always want feedback. I need people to point out mistakes and inconsistencies so I can correct them in the future.
(Another thing to keep in mind, this was the first thing I had ever written at the time)
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 28, 2006 15:33:55 GMT -5
Artorus Varo awoke to the clanging of steel as his fellow guards put on their uniforms. At one point, he would have been the first one up in the morning, but no longer. It was amazing what a comfortable bed could do to one’s willingness to arise each morning. Artorus was surprised to realize that it had already been a month since he had been stationed at the Imperial City. He had been assigned to patrol the Waterfront District, a duty normally used as punishment for those members of the Imperial Legion who had displeased their superiors. In his case, however, it was nothing of the sort. In the wake of the fighting that had erupted after the assassination of the Emperor, the Legion was grossly understaffed. Many legionnaires had died defending their home from the forces of Oblivion and now, barely two months since the final battle, the newer recruits to the Legion were just beginning to accrue the experience they would need to protect the Empire.
Artorus was not one of this new generation. He had been recalled from the province of Morrowind, where he had spent the last twelve years. Men were being recalled from provinces all over the Empire to reinforce Cyrodiil. The capital had taken the brunt of the fighting and so needed more men with experience to fill out the ranks of those who were still wet behind the ears. Artorus, the one with the most experience on his watch, had been assigned to the place in which trouble was most likely to occur. He didn’t mind. The Waterfront was paradise compared to Vvardenfell. Life had become easier there in recent years. The successful push for the abolition of slavery in the province by the Great Houses Hlaalu and Dres had meant that catching escaped slaves was no longer part of his job description. Artorus had never liked the practice of trafficking in intelligent beings, but, to tell the truth, he had been happiest about having one less thing to do. He didn’t exactly have an aversion to work, he just enjoyed peace and quiet. Still, he would be happy never to set foot in Morrowind again. Even Waterfront duty was more enjoyable, since he could spend his off-duty hours in more entertaining parts of the city. Artorus found the wastelands and numerous ancestral tombs of Morrowind depressing. Besides, he didn’t get along well with the local wildlife. Cliff racers were just unnatural. Artorus shuddered at the thought of the winged beasts. Just then a loud crash startled Artorus from his reverie. “Hey Tobias,” shouted Marius with a mocking laugh, “need a hand?” Tobias, the youngest legionnaire in the city, had apparently tripped over his own gauntlets, which he had left lying next to his cot. Marius was the only person in the bunkhouse who outranked Artorus. Marius had been stationed at the Imperial City for longer than anyone could remember, and he saw it as his Gods-given duty to antagonize the younger, “inferior” guards whenever possible.
“Marius, leave the kid alone,” Artorus said casually from his cot. Marius sneered at him but made no further comment on Tobias’s actions. He may have outranked Artorus, but Marius was not the type to pick a fight with someone he did not know he could beat handily. Marius, who had just returned from his own watch, albeit a bit early, finished removing his armor and climbed into bed with a grumble.
Artorus reluctantly rose from his bunk. After going through his morning routine of stretching to help wake up, he began putting on his armor. He took a moment to admire the quality and style that were above and beyond anything he could have ever hoped for as little as two months ago. After donning his armor, Artorus went downstairs for breakfast. He devoured an apple before downing a pint of mead. Without wasting anymore time, he ran off to commence patrolling the Waterfront.
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Valgaera
Inactive Member
I am the Light within the Darkness
Je suis le Lumi?re dans l'Obscurit
Posts: 124
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Post by Valgaera on Sept 28, 2006 16:23:26 GMT -5
Dagonda and I were tlaking about our writing yesterday. I quote him. "Your stuff is really good, but not perfect. No writing is perfect. Unless Deltas writes it, that is."
Keep it coming. I can't wait for your reposting to stop and newness to start up. Whee!!
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 28, 2006 16:27:41 GMT -5
^_^
Just for that, I'll do two a day from now on.
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Valgaera
Inactive Member
I am the Light within the Darkness
Je suis le Lumi?re dans l'Obscurit
Posts: 124
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Post by Valgaera on Sept 28, 2006 17:55:47 GMT -5
Squeee!!!!
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Post by dogonda on Sept 28, 2006 18:01:08 GMT -5
W00T I WINNNNNN
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 28, 2006 18:12:49 GMT -5
Artorus stepped outside the city gates and was hit in the face by a gust of wind blowing in off the water. It was a cool morning and the sun was just starting to evaporate the layer of fog that had settled over the water during the night. Artorus scanned the docks looking for the guard on duty. After a few seconds he spotted him arguing with a sailor down at the end of pier. Artorus hurried over to see what was going on.
"Atticus," Artorus shouted when he got closer, "your relief is here! What problem are you dumping on me this time?" Artorus grinned as he arrived to stand next to the two men. Atticus tried to glower at him but couldn't quite hide a smile from showing in his face. The man he had been talking to had no such trouble.
"This gentleman here," Atticus explained with more than a hint of irony in his voice, "seems to have a problem. His ship was supposed to set sail this morning but they seem to have found a stowaway on board. We were just trying to decide what to do with him."
"Actually, your man here was attempting to let the little swine get away scott free," growled the sailor. Just then a shout was heard from on the boat and a little scamp of a boy ran across the deck of the ship and leap down onto the dock below.
"Marcus," muttered Artorus under his breath, "I might've known." Marcus was a local street urchin who seemed especially adept at getting himself into all sorts of sticky situations. He had also taken a shine to a certain Imperial Legion guard. Just then Marcus caught sight of Artorus.
"Art," Marcus was positively beaming, "Where've ya been? This guy doesn't do very well as a replacement." Marcus jerked his thumb at Atticus.
"How many times must I tell you? I am an officer of the Imperial Legion and should not be addressed as Art." Artorus sighed resignedly. Marcus had attached himself to Artorus six days after Artorus had been stationed in the Imperial City and for the past several weeks had seemed to ignore everything that he was told. "As to where I have been, I was sleeping. It is something us mortals have to do from time to time. You should try it. It's rather pleasant."
"Well, I better be going," Marcus shouted over his shoulder. "See'ya later!" One of the sailors had made his way off the ship by this time and was heading toward Marcus. Unfortunately for him, Marcus saw him coming and had bolted long before he could be reached. The first sailor stared at Artorus then Atticus before storming back on board his ship. Artorus shook his head, sighed, and began making his rounds. This was not shaping up to be a quiet day.
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 28, 2006 18:21:13 GMT -5
< I guess no one noticed. "Exceeding" is spelled wrong.
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Post by Maliku on Sept 28, 2006 20:26:34 GMT -5
I like it, can't wait for you to continue.
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 28, 2006 20:34:05 GMT -5
I'd post more now, but I'm trying to stay with two a day for the moment (besides which, I'm not on the right PC)
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Post by Maliku on Sept 28, 2006 20:45:19 GMT -5
Alright, I can wait until tomorrow.
Also, +karma
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 29, 2006 6:29:14 GMT -5
Augusta Calidia, the proprietor of the Tiber Septim Hotel, was engrossed in a copy of the Black Horse Courier. According to the article, there had been a streak of disappearances in the province. The first reported disappearance was one Davide Surillie, of the Surillie Brother's vineyard. Since he went missing over a dozen others have disappeared in five different cities. It is also suspected that several beggars may have gone missing without anyone realizing. Augusta shivered as a chill ran down her spin and her skin tingled as if hundreds of tiny spiders were crawling over her. She felt someone watching her and looked up, startled. A man was standing in front of the counter. At first glance he appeared normal enough, an Imperial of medium height and hair that didn’t quite reach his shoulders. He seemed a bit sickly, however, as his complexion was ashen and his eyes never quite focused. He was dressed in a black, hoodless robe and had a pearly white amulet on a gold chain strung around his throat.
“May I help you?” inquired Augusta a tad nervously. When the man made no reply, she continued, anxious to break the suffocating silence that had suddenly fallen on the room. “We have the finest rooms in the city, only…” Augusta trailed off as the man raised one hand and tossed a bag of coins on the counter. Augusta glanced inside before staring up at the stranger with a sort of curious amazement. “This is enough money for several days, sir. Are you are sure…” The man nodded; although he might well have been at his own thoughts for all the attention he seemed to be paying Augusta. He did not look distracted as much as dazed and out of touch with reality. “Your room is upstairs, second door on the right,” stammered Augusta. Without uttering a solitary word, the figure turned and, for a moment, seemed to glide across the floor toward the stairs. Augusta blinked once before shouting after him, “Enjoy your stay!” Augusta glanced at the front door as a strong breeze blew on a nearby candle and sent shadows dancing across the wall behind the stranger as he ascended the stairs. Curiously, the door was shut tight. Augusta shrugged and went back to reading the Black Horse Courier.
Later that night, Augusta prepared to get some rest. She locked the front door and then made her rounds. She always made it a point to check on each of her guests before retiring for the night herself. She knocked on each door in turn and chatted briefly with several of her more cordial customers. When she reached the newly rented room she founded her hand staid on the verge of knocking. She decided she was being silly and rapped, a bit softly, on the door. She did not receive an answer and, deciding the tenant must have fallen asleep, hurried down the hall, a half imagined whisper of a groan chasing her all the way.
Augusta slept restlessly that night. Her dreams were haunted by shadowy specters and a cackling emptiness. Once during the night, she woke in a cold sweat with the faint memory of cold hands upon her skin. After an hour of lying awake, she convinced herself that it was a dream and drifted off into darkness once again. The next morning, one of her tenants descended to find that she had already left, possibly on some errand. Grumbling about the lack of service he made himself breakfast. It was not until later that evening that anyone grew concerned. Two days after the stranger, who had departed as suddenly as he had arrived, rented the upstairs room, the Black Horse Courier was reporting the disappearance of a citizen of the Imperial City itself.
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 29, 2006 14:49:05 GMT -5
Augusta slowly regained consciousness. She was lying in a room devoid of light. The air was musty and stale. Each breath seemed to drain the life from her just a little bit and let a bitter taste in her mouth. Suddenly, the room was illuminated by a soft red glow. A score of shadowy figures encircled Augusta. One of them walked up to her and began chanting. The others simply stood, their faces shrouded in darkness under large black hoods. The figure standing over Augusta took out a large amulet the color of ebony and held it at about an arm’s length over her head. Suddenly the pendant began pulsing red and horror scarred Augusta’s face as she stared, hypnotized, at the amulet. A large cry, arising from the surrounding group, startled Augusta from her trance. She opened her mouth to scream but no sound came out. Instead, a white light shot from her mouth to the glowing jewel. Augusta’s world faded, once again, to blackness.
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Post by Delta1212 on Sept 29, 2006 14:50:17 GMT -5
That part was originally seperated from the preceding piece, which is why they were not posted together. I won't count that as the second post for today, though.
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Post by Maliku on Sept 29, 2006 18:36:05 GMT -5
Loved it.
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