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Chapter
15: Four Companions
I was
half asleep, waiting for the silt strider to arrive in Suran. Barbarius however,
was far from tired. He had been looking at anything and everything that the
strider passed by. He almost fell out on more that one occasion, and I felt the
urge to push him every time. He reminded me of the people that came to High Rock
when I lived there, stupid tourists... I couldn't stand them. When we arrived at
Suran it was after midnight, and I was practically asleep on my feet. I stumbled
down the stairs leading from the strider, making my way through town with
Barbarius at my heels. We entered the guild and I went straight to the sleeping
area. I was too tired to even notice it had been expanded again, or that there
was now a sign that read "barracks" mounted on the door.
"The guy
I want you to talk to is called Parven. You can meet with him in the morning,
for now we should just get some sleep. The bar's probably still open if you're
not tired." I whispered to Barbarius so I wouldn't wake up anyone else in the
room.
He nodded
and left, probably for the bar. I shrugged and walked toward the back, glancing
at the people I passed by that were snoring peacefully. Most of them I didn't
know, the only people I recognized were Schimmel and Harvey. I plopped into a
bed in the far corner of the room, falling asleep without even bothering to
remove my robe or shoes.
"Oh
crap... help... help! AHH!!!" I screamed, landing on the floor with a crash. I
looked around, shaken and confused. I was still in the barracks, and the other
guild members that had been sleeping were now sitting up and glaring at me. I
scratched my head, feeling embarrassed, the nightmare I had been having still
fresh in my memory. Being nibbled to death by cliff racers... I can't even
escape the damn things in my sleep. I quickly got up, hurrying out the door
before the other members decided to make my dream a reality.
I left
the guild's headquarters and turned to the tavern. A new sign was hanging
outside of the door. It depicted a large sword, the blade of which was
surrounded by blue fire. "The Blue Flame Tavern" was written next to it. I
wasn't sure what to make of it, so I simply shrugged it off and entered the
tavern.
Before I
could even close the door, someone shouted my name. Bryenn was sitting at a
table with Schimmel, Fargoth, and a black-haired Nord it took me a moment to
remember was Barbarius. I ordered a drink and joined them, already wondering
what kind of daft mission Parven would have for me today.
"Morning..." I mumbled sleepily.
"Morning?
It's almost noon!" Fargoth said, tightening the strings on his lute.
"The key
word being almost, meaning it's still technically morning. Even if only by an
hour." I muttered. I may have been half asleep, but that didn't prevent me from
being a smartass... if anything it loosened my tounge more than liquor.
"I
suppose so."
"So, what
does everyone have planned for today?" Bryenn asked.
"Nothin',
Parven didn't have any missions for me." Barbarius grumbled.
"I take
it you talked to Parven and decided to join us, then?" I asked, taking a sip of
the tea I ordered.
"Yeah,
too bad I joined when it was so slow. I wanted to see more of this place!"
Barbarius said enthusiastically.
"There's
not much to see, really." I chuckled, recalling my first few days on Vvardenfell.
I wasn't
much different, really. "All right, since we don't have missions for a while, we
should take the chance to have a little vacation. I still haven't gotten a
Dwemer tube for that psycho Edwinna. What about the rest of you?"
None of
them answered straight away, each taking time to mull it over. Schimmel was the
first to speak. "I could go back to Pelagiad for a visit. I haven't been there
for a while."
"I guess
I could wander around for a few days, see what I can find." Barbarius thought
aloud.
"I
wouldn't know what to do, nothing comes to mind." Fargoth muttered.
We all
looked at Bryenn, waiting for him to speak. A grin grew across him face. "I've
got an idea, why don't we all go somewhere together? We could... uh..."
"Go
adventuring?" Schimmel suggested.
"Treasure
hunting would be fun." Barbarius recommended.
"We could
go somewhere new. The same old scenery gets boring after a while." Fargoth
added.
"I
know..." I said, remembering something I had heard a long time ago. "We could do
all three at once."
"You have
something in mind, Nem?" Bryenn asked.
"Yeah, an
old story. I heard it shortly after arriving on Vvardenfell. There's supposed to
be a small island in the Sea of Ghosts, where some pirate stashed his treasure.
I don't recall the name of the island..."
"Oh, I
know that old legend. There's supposed to be a mountain of treasure hidden on
it. People have been looking for it on and off for years. If it was real,
someone would have found it by now." Fargoth said, not giving it a second
thought.
"That
doesn't mean it's not out there. If it is, there's a fortune to be had. And even
if we find nothing, it'll be something different. It seems like all I've been
doing lately is killing things, I'd like to try something a little less bloody."
I argued.
"He has a
point. All I've been doing on my missions lately is fighting too." Schimmel
said.
"You can
go on your pointless trip if you want to, but count me out. I'm not fond of
boats anyway." Fargoth said, getting up and walking off.
"Don't
mind him." Someone said, walking up behind me. I turned to a Breton with long
red hair and a serious expression. "He gets like that sometimes, especially when
boats are involved."
"Any idea
why, Ruby?" Bryenn asked.
"Not a
clue." She replied, shaking her head. "Oh well, good luck on your journey. I'd
ask to join you, but I have someone to take care of." She said simply, turning
and walking out of the tavern.
Barbarius
stared at her as she went, looking confused. "Uh... did she just say someone
to take care of?"
"Yeah,
she's an assassin." Schimmel said.
"Her, an
assassin?" I wondered."She sure doesn't look like one."
"So are
we going to search for that island?" Bryenn inquired.
"I plan
to, it's better than doing nothing... or another of Parven's insane missions." I
said, finishing my drink.
"I'll
come along, it sounds interesting." Schimmel said.
"It's not
like I have anything better planned. Hell, even if I did, a mountain of gold at
stake will avert my attention from almost anything." Barbarius chuckled.
With
that, the four of us packed up what we thought we would need. After a brief stop
for repairs and some last-minute travel necessities, we departed for Sadrith
Mora. It was more difficult than expected to find a ship would take us on such
a, as some captains put it, ludicrous mission. Eventually we found ourselves out
of luck and wondering what to do next. We went into Dirty Muriel's Cornerclub
eventually, it took a couple minutes to convince Bryenn that, despite the name,
nothing remotely lewd was happening inside.
The four
of us sat at the upstairs counter. Bryenn and Schimmel had water, Barbarius was
favoring tea, and I was enjoying a bottle of Greef. I grumbled to myself about
how spending time with them made me feel like an alcoholic, but I tried not to
dwell on it.
Barbarius
was the first to speak after we placed our orders. "So... what now?"
Schimmel
scratched his head. "Well, we could do something else. It looks like nobody here
is willing to take us."
"We could
try renting a boat to take ourselves." I suggested. "I've never put it to
practice, but boats have been an interest of mine for a long time. I read up on
them whenever I have time to kill."
"That's
an idea... I know the basics. You don't live on an island region like where
Dagon Fel is without picking a few things up." Bryenn said, trying to recall
what he had learned years ago.
"A tiny
fishing boat is all I've ever been on." Barbarius mumbled.
"I've
never even thought about how to use a boat." Schimmel muttered.
"We
should have enough experience and knowledge between us to handle something
small. And if we're lucky, we'll find that island!" I said.
"What
island are you looking for?" The bartender asked as he wiped down part of the
counter.
"Desano."
The
bartender laughed. "Don't waste your time. People have looked for that island
for years and found nothing."
"Don't be
so hard on 'em." Someone off the the corner said. I turned to see an old Dunmer
with long white hair drinking a bottle of shein. His clothed were frayed and the
sleeves of his shirt roughly cut or torn off, revealing the long scar down his
left arm. "I used to look for that island when I was younger... I may have given
up on it existin', but others are welcome to try if they're crazy enough to."
"Would
you be willing to take up out looking for it then?" I asked.
"I've
nothin' else planned, so as long as you can pay... I suppose so."
We worked
out a deal with the old captain, and before long we had set sail to find the
island of Desano. I honestly didn't have much hope in finding it, I just found
boats relaxing, and relaxation was a welcome break from fight after fight. I was
sitting below deck, having a light snack after a couple hours of watching for
any islands, when I must have nodded off. The next thing I knew I was knocked
off my chair, and the ship was rocking violently. I unsteadily ran back to the
deck, and was greeted by a blast of water as I opened the hatch. Somehow we had
gotten into the middle of a storm.
I scanned
the deck, trying to see where everyone else was through the thick darkness and
whipping rain. Barbarius, Bryenn and Schimmel were each clinging onto the most
secure parts of the ship they could reach, and the captian was nowhere in sight.
I was trying to figure out what do to when the ship struck something beneath the
waves, knocking me onto the deck. I heard someone scream and looked up just as
Barbarius was thrown overboard from the impact. I stumbled over to the side of
the ship, hoping he had been able to grab something before hitting the water. I
never saw if he did. The last thing I remember is something hard striking the
back of my head.
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