11th of Heartfire, 4E 201
It's good to have a bow in my hands again. I'd rather have a simple bow than all the money in the world.
I started the yesterday with some hunting. I came back pretty early after shooting two rather large deer. I asked Hulda for any work, and I got a bounty for some bandits holed up at a keep downstream from Whiterun. I set off immediately, being in dire need of money.
I walked downstream, and had an almost deadly encounter with a bear. I was casually walking across some rocks, roughly a hundred meters from the stream. When all the sudden a paw struck me hard in the back. I got knocked down, rolling down a small slope toeard the stream. I could see it running toward me on all fours, bludlust in his eyes. I slowly made my way back to my feet, and prepared to run.
But there was very little options. My only viable option was to run across the stream. I did so, but the bear followed. He hit me again in the back, leaving a giant scar on my back. I flew toward the rocks in front of me, then turned toward the rocks and prepared to roll out of the way from his next attack. I successfully did so, then limped as quickly as I good downstream. I came upon some deep water, then turned the only way I could; up the rocky cliff. The bear was right behind me, with his full intent on killing me. I scaled it, carefully but quickly.
He caught my foot with his paw and nearly pulled me off the cliff. I regained my balance, then jolted up the cliff, until I reached a point the bear couldn't. I sat there for an hour or two until the bear gave up and walked away. I rested some, treating my wounds. I then kept going downstream, until I reached the towers. It was a bit past noon when I arrived, so stealth would be hard.
I saw my first target, a female Nord as a sentry on the top. I figured if I could shoot her off, it'd be easier to get closer. I shot the woman on my first shot, with a lurching shot to her back. She stumbled forward, then turned toward me, still unaware of my location. As soon as she turned her head, an arrow met her head, knocking her off the tower. Two shots. Not bad.
I advanced forward, and saw a leather fitted Khajiit. He was by himself, so I could take my time on my second shot. I pulled back an iron arrow, aimed, then fired at his torso. He fell down, and slowly got back to his feet. By the time he was back to his feet, another arrow had taken flight and pierced him, right next to the first arrow. He fell limp onto the ground, totally lifeless.
I advanced up the tower, looting a chest on the way up. Once I got to the top, I came upon the bridge, which was accompanied by the bandit chief. It was a male Nord, suited in full Iron Armor. Nothing I'm unfamiliar with, but with my weaker gear should still prove a challenge. I poisoned an arrow that would seep into his veins, causing direct pain throughout his body. I pulled the arrow back, then released it, going right into a gap in his armor near his arm. He yelled in pain, as the poison spread through his body. He saw me, as he grabbed his two steel axes and charged me. He yelled as loud as he could, in an attempt to intimidate me.
I fired amother arrow at him, going right into his neck, but his life still drew on. He kept charging, having his right axe ready to cut my head off. I drew another arrow, then walked backwards some. I fired it into the same spot in his neck, throwing the upper half of his body back, causing his body to do a complete backflip. I proceeded to his body with caution, and checked if he was still alive. He luckily was not.
As that happened, an arrow zoomed by my head. I returned an arrow at the source of the shot, an archer sitting on a rocky outcrop. The arrow hit him in the gut, but had little effect on him. This guy had some willpower. I shot another arrow, piercing through the armor on his torso. This made him fall forward down into the stream far below. The keep was bandit free.
I looked around for chests and loot, finding two bows. One was an Imperial Bow enchanted with a frost enchantment. The other was a hunting bow enchanted with a strong fire enchantment. The took them both. I advanced back to Whiterun with a smile on my face.
On the way back, I did however run into a skirmish between two bandits and a bard. The bard was using magic, and killed both of the bandits. With dangerously quick and careless movements, I shot at the bard. He had little power left in him, and died after the first shot. I decided against looting him, since he didn't deserve it. I will long regret that kill. His happy face with the arrow in his throat haunted me that night. But I trekked on... Until I ran into some guards who tried an arrest on me.
I didn't know what for, but they said I committed assault and that I owed them 40 gold or some time in prison. I vouched on prison, since I lacked the current funds to pay them. I didn't dare to attack the guards, since I didn't want to be repelled from my new home again, especially that late in the day. So I now write this in the Dragonsreach dungeon. It's not too bad in here actually. They feed me, the bedroll is kind of comfy, and the guards seem nice. But I can't wait to get out, on the other hand. At least they don't know about my great assassination. I'd be in he for quite awhile if that was the case. It's noon now, and they'll be letting me out soon. I'll write tonight after selling all my stuff.