18+ The Expedition - Open

[Andre Marek]

This is my first RP so don't be too harsh. It takes place during the very outbreak of the civil war in Skyrim. Ulfric has only just killed the High King and the Stormcloaks have barely begun their rebellion. While war breaks out in Skyrim, high in the Druadach mountains an ancient ruin has been discovered. Nestled in a mountain vale, surrounded by soaring peaks, rugged mountain paths, and beautiful waterfalls lies the shell of a once proud Akavirii village along with a mysterious monastery perched on the cliffs above the village. Curious and eager to know more about the enigmatic conquerers of old, Jarl Igmund of Markarth has proposed that an expedition, made up of explorers and archeologists be sent to find out what they can. The expedition is to be accompanied by a small contingent of Legion soldiers for protection from the hostile reachmen, known as the forsworn, and the Jarl has also sent out an invitation to any mercenaries willing to provide further protection.

As the team meets in the city of Markarth and prepares for their foray into the unknown, little do they know that the village is not quite so derelict as it may appear. Deep in the bowels of the monastery dwells an ancient evil, awakened from a long slumber and making preparations of its own for an all out assault on the already besieged provence of Skyrim. Can our group of would be explorers discover the truth behind the village and put a stop to the machinations of it's malicious inhabitants?

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I've taken the inspiration for this RP from the likes of Tomb Raider, Uncharted, and similar games and movies alike. As far as recruiting goes, I'm going to be pretty choosy. By that, I mean that, just because I've Rp'd with you before or just because you put a card in, it doesn't mean I'm going to accept you. I'm really pushing for well written posts. By that, I mean grammar as well as content. A post doesn't have to be exceptionally long but it should fit with previous posts by making sure to read the ones prior to yours and building on them.

Also, I'm looking for realism in characters. This means that I would like to see characters who fit within the story. I'm not trying to be a prick or to discourage creativity, but as far as I'm concerned a 200 year old rogue vampire or a monster slaying veteran of the Dawnguard wouldn't have a whole lot of interest in a academic research expedition. However, IF you can come up with a logical and believable reason that said character would go along on such an expedition, then by all means, post their CC.

The overall plot will have a few twists and turns down the road but it will begin with the group meeting in Markarth before setting out.

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Rules:

1. No godding. (That means no super-duper Nirn killing powers, character ideas, abilities or anything else that ruins other people's fun. If you're not sure if your idea crosses the line, please ask.)

2. No Thu'ums (I'm afraid none of us are the Dragonborn and none of us were trained by the Greybeards.)

3. Master-level skills and spells are fine, but please keep rule number 1 in mind.
Please try and keep cursing and lewd speech to a minimum in the RP itself. I don't care what you guys do in the OOC chat (this thread here).

4. Make all of your posts at least a paragraph (Five sentences.) and please try to post every other day. More is better. Anyone who does not post for two weeks or more and has not posted a reason why will be considered inactive and have their character suffer a terrible death at the claws of a thousand mudcrabs be parked somewhere for when and if they decide to come back.

5. If you know you have an upcoming commitment, you get bored with the RP, life hijaks you or you become otherwise unable to post for an extended number of days, please let us know in the OOC chat or PM me. That way the group knows what's going on with you, we can park you somewhere until you get back, and the story can move along smoothly. More importantly, you don't get badgered about where you are and you can do whatever it is you have to do in peace.

6. I will start this RP when we have 4-6 people, but it will remain open. If you're new and you wish to join, please introduce yourself and submit a character card. You must also provide a generous sample of your own roleplaying along with your character card. This can be something you've written before or something new.

7. Whichever gives you less of a migrane. This includes everyone from the old story in the intererst of fairness. Also, please note which color you want your dialogue to be. Colors are first come first served. NPC's will be standard gray unless Sheogorath deems otherwise.

8. You may have one or two characters in this RP and any NPC's you feel would add to the story. However, please take note of who is doubling up on characters before doing so yourself and be mindful of how it would affect the group. A 20 man party over 10 members is a bit unwieldy. If you need to drop a character because two is too hard to manage, that's fine. Just let us know.

9. This is an 18+ RP, meaning that it could very well contain, blood and gore, cursing, nudity, sex, the whole nine yards. If you don't like that then just remember, you don't have to join, and you don't have to read.

10. Have fun! This is the most importaint rule. If you have any questions about anything, plese speak up.

All of the above rules are common sense stuff. I don't think anything is too hard to follow. If I forgot to address anything, please let me know.

Character List​

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Andre Marek as: Kate​

TheShadedOne as: Jared Ovin and Faelana Whitesun​

CapObvious as: Dolmas, Valen, and Krisandra​

Drahkma as: Telvarus Ulthuan and Danick Kastel​

Blackdoom59 as: Garrett Rendon​

Wolfbane as: Avia' Cael​

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[TheShadedOne]

The Imperial man and Altmer woman made their way along the stone road, towards the stone city of Markarth. According to the guards, it was the safest city in the entire Reach. The roads around the city turned out to be less safe. The Altmer woman, Faelana, had found that out first hand, keeping her charge, the young Imperial male named Jared Ovin, safe from several Forsworn raids.

The Altmers' long legs allowed her to move faster than her charge, which also meant she bore the brunt of most attacks. "Hey! Fae, would you slow down for the love of Mara! My legs are about to fall off!" The Altmer woman slowed long enough to look over her shoulder, noticed the distance that her Imperial companion had fallen behind, sighed, and stopped. "Thanks!" A mischievous light came to the young mans' eyes. "Not that I don't appreciate the ah...view from behind-ow!" The Imperial reeled away, holding his nose.

Fae had trapped her index finger, against her thumb, and flicked her nail against the sensitive tip of Jareds' nose. "Bodyguard, not girlfriend, kid. Now keep up." She turned away from Jared, her long, braided, white hair being lifted by the cold Skyrim wind, along with her fine, hooded grey cloak. Jared, still rubbing his nose, caught up to her,and offered a hurt, puppy eyes look. "That really hurt, Fae. The least you could do is..." he trailed off as his Altmer bodyguard narrowed her eyes, and slowly trapped her index finger against the pad of her thumb.

"Or, uh, you couldn't. Up to you, really" Jared said, raising his hands in a placating gesture. He stepped ahead of her, bending his head against the wind, and the pair continued on their way towards Markarth. Fae sighed quietly. Jared was a good kid, mostly. Unfortunately, he was also an insufferable flirt, constantly got himself into trouble, which Fae ended up having to haul him out of, and couldn't fight to save his life. Or hers, if it came down to it.
Fae winced, remembering the last fight they'd had with a Forsworn raiding party. She'd barely seen the archer in time to shove Jared out of the way. She hadn't been in time to stop an axe-wielding warrior from taking a chop at her. She'd barely managed to get her armoured shoulder between the axe and her head. Her entire arm was still sore, and that had been at least an hour ago. It wasn't broken, but Fae was sure she'd have one hell of a bruise.

After about another half hour of walking, they came across the city of stone. "See?" Jared said, turning and grinning at her. "Wasn't too hard to find, was it?" The Altmer woman grumbled something rather unflattering, which Jared decided would be best not to pass on to the Jarl when they arrived at the keep. As they reached the gates, one of the guards said "Welcome to Markarth, travellers, the safest-"

"Save it" snapped Fae, giving Jared a shove in the back, to hurry him along. The young explorer gave the guard a sympathetic grin. They followed the winding streets, climbed several stone staircases, and arrived at the Jarl of Markarths keep. An impressive place, although it seemed strangely empty for a place where an expedition was being planned out of. "Excuse me, sir" Jared approached a guard, doing his best to be polite, and trying to make up for the permanent scowl that had fastened itself to his companions face. "We're here for the expedition. Where is everyone?"

The guard shrugged "far as I know, you're the first ones here. " Jared smiled, thanked the man, and approached Fae, who was studiously examining the buckles of her gauntlets. "First ones here, Fae. Pretty good timing, if I'd say" the elf shot him a glare, and he just chuckled. He was in too high spirits to be brough down by the Altmer womans' perpetual anger. Who knew what could be out their, just waiting for them to find?

 

[Andre Marek]

"Alright, lets move it people! We haven't got all day." Hollered Legate Quintus Pelenix to the squad of twenty Imperial Legionaries. The wizened old Legate was standing on the cobblestone road that lead through the vales of the Reach all the way to Markarth, and was impatiently fingering the pommel of his short sword as he waited for the squad to assemble. A few of the soldiers didn't move quite as fast as he would have liked, "Come on Malpen! That isn't the first corpse you've seen now is it? Get a move on boy! You want their friends to find us standing here with our thumbs up our arses?"

From the back of the squad, Kate smirked to herself over the Legate. She liked Quintus. He was a little abrasive sometimes and he was so slow to trust that she occasionally wondered if he'd spent time working for the Thalmor but he was a good man once you got to know him and had very good relations with his men. He was an excellent Legate too. She was glad that he had been the one assigned the task of providing protection for the expedition into the Druadachs. In fact, Quintus had come along on several other of Kates own expeditions, so it was only right that he be the one helping her orchestrate this one. Shouldering her own pack once more, Kate looked over at Malpen and offered a small smile before walking up the road towards the waiting Legate, carefully stepping over a pool of blood that was spreading across the road from a dead Forsworn raider. She averted her eyes. When she was caught up with Quintus she asked, "Is it normal for the Forsworn to come this close to the city?" She turned around to look back at the road and the five corpses that were now lined up along one side. She'd had a few run ins with the men of the Reach before, none of them friendly, but they had always been far from any town of city to speak of. The rest of the squad had just finished scrounging anything worth taking off of the bodies and then drug them off the road. Kate glanced back at Quintus.

"These bastards are all over this place. I wouldn't say it's abnormal for them to be here."

"But..." Kate said. Quintus continued, "What I find strange is the fact that they're still here, or rather, that their bodies are. Usually we'd be cleaning up a group of travelers, not the raiders themselves. Whoever killed these fellows was either well trained or very lucky. Few people could hope to survive a Forsworn raiding party... which reminds me." He turned back to the rest of the squad and cupped his hands around his mouth, "Last warning! Anybody who doesn't get back into formation right now is getting my boot up their ass!" The squad hurried to comply, some of them talking and carrying on amongst themselves. With a satisfied nod, Quintus turned to Kate, muttering to himself before striding forward.

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It wasn't long after their unscheduled stop over that they finally crested a hill and came into sight of Markarth city. The morning sun reflected brilliantly off of the waterfalls and rivers that edged the city walls and fog still clung to the craggy slopes that surrounded the narrow valley, ending everything a sense of heaviness and silence. Kate paused at the top of the hill for a moment as the squad began the decent to the gates, taking in the view of the ancient city and then, turning her gaze upward, the mountains that surrounded it. It was a beautiful sight to be sure. It only served to heighten her excitement for the upcoming trip. Hurrying down the hill, she caught up with the squad and followed them up to the massive metal gates. Quintus led the way up the steps, drawing a salute from the guards on duty, and then through the arch into the city. The squad of twenty armed and armored legionaries attracted some curious stares as they made their way up to Understone keep. When they reached the keep and pushed their way inside Kate and Quintus left the rest of the squad to wait near the entrance to the subterranean stronghold while the two of them went to speak with the Jarl and see who, if anybody, had decided to join the expedition.

Before they could get very far, Kate and Quintus were hailed by one of the guards, "Hey! You're the ones going on that expedition into the mountains right? There was a man and a woman here just a few minutes ago that were asking about that." The guard pointed up the hall, "They should be right up there."

"Great. Thanks." Kate said to the guard. She followed the guards directions with Quintus following closely and immediately she spotted the pair. One was a young man, several years younger than herself she guessed, who had an excitable air about him while the other was an Altmer woman who also happened to look quite young. The boy seemed to be getting on his female counterparts nerves. Beside her she heard Quintus mutter, "Great, an elf. Just what I need." Kate shot him a look that said 'play nice' before walking up to the pair, "Hello," She said, interrupting the boys prating, "I hear you're looking to join the research expedition." She smiled at them in an effort to be friendly. "I'm Kate, this is Legate Quintus Pelenix." She said pointing at her grumpy looking friend, "I guess we're the ones in charge of it all."

 

[Wolfbane]

"If I have to kill one more bandit, it will be too soon. I get tired of pulling my arrows out of them, especially when it's freezing. I would kill another one of those bastards for a fire, warm food, and a comfortable bed." As she was complaining about the journey, she was approaching the stone pathway to the giant gates that lead to Markarth. A curiosity among some people. A city that's made of stone, and not much else. Some say even the beds are made of stone. She went passed the watch tower and looked at the horses in the stables for a brief moment before stopping at the city gate. "This is Markarth traveler. The safest city in all of the reach." The guard nodded to Avia as she was about to push the door open "Thanks." She then entered the city. The sound of the hustle and bustle of the city flooded towards her like a river. She sighed, then started to walk towards the keep. 'Safest city, yet the saying here is that blood and silver run through the streets. I know its a saying, but it's still funny. The city of stone, silver, and blood' She followed the winding stone streets, a person bumped into and proceeded to threaten her. After shooting a violent glare, the person backed off then she continued her way to the keep. The sound of running water and the waterfall relaxed her enough to loosen up. After going up stairs and crossing a bridge she got to the keep. However, she wasn't the only one there. A imperial boy and an Altmer woman stood by the door, as if waiting for someone. "I suppose you two are here for the expedition?"


Then a young woman seemingly appeared at the right moment. "I hear you're looking to join the research expedition." The girl had a friendly tone to her voice. "I just arrived, so yes. I am looking to join. Couldn't pass up a chance at a tomb or ruin!" She then leaned her back against the wall while thinking about the wonders they will find. She also took note of the girls angry looking companion. 'Geez is everyone in a bad mood? This should be fun' She quietly chuckled to herself.

 

[Blackdoom59]

"I'l take that double-distilled one" whispered Garret to the Khajit merchant. The cat smiled, opened his chest with one hand while keeping eye contact with Garret. As he took the skooma out, he started speaking: "Good choice, human, but also also expensive. Are you sure you can-" the khajiit didn't even manage to finish his sentence as Garret threw him over a rather large, and extremely heavy coin purse. Without wasting a second, he handed the skooma to Garret and grabbed onto the purse, smelling the thick leather it was made from. As soon as he got the skooma, Garret went away, walking in haste towards the stables of Windhelm. Soon his walking turned to running, which turned to sprinting. He quickly jumped in the back of the carriage there "To Markarth, with haste".​

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As the horse started moving, you could hear the khajiit's voice "Those aren't coins, this is iron ore!". Garret took out his bow, pulled an arrow from his quiver, which he then dipped in a white poison from his vial holder. As the Khajiit Guard sprinted towards the carriage, with a giant battleaxe in his hand, Garret readied his bow and while aiming for the neck he released the arrow. The guard was perceptive however, his jump allowed him to dodge the arrow, that only scratched his cheek. As soon as the arrow missed, the guard returned to chasing the carriage, while Garret, with a smirk on his face, placed the bow on his back once more, and opened the skooma bottle. The guard's legs moved slower and slower, until they stopped, and he fell over, palsied. The breton drinked from the skooma he just stole, and as his vision had begun to blur, he fell asleep in the carriage.​

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They were aproaching Markarth keep, the city of stone, which Garret knew well, from past events. He had always kept a keen eye when wondering in that city, many people know him there, and none were happy of his pickpocket skills. As the carriage man was enjoying the wonderful landscapes of the Reach, he eyed a few dead forsworn. Panicked as he was, he stopped the horse in an instant, and woke up Garret. He yawned, from which he proceeded to say "Are we there yet?". The carriage manturned to him, scared "Th-There bodies... and blood". Garret, seeing how he was so scared, thought of enjoying the moment. "Oh yes, this usually happens in the Reach, the forsworn block the roads and attack whoever comes by. Having bodies here just means that they can pop out at any second, ready to strike." .The carriege man, scared as he was, asked Garret what are they going to do. "Well I shouldn't worry, really. If they see you are armed, like I am, they usually let you walk away. However breed hate towards unarmed men, carriage men. They don't even kill on sight, they take the poor fellow to their hideouts and torture him, cutting his limbs one by one, and when the life drained out of him, they give the body to the hagraven, which resurrects it so that the forsworn may torture him again." Garret said, convincing as one could be. He took a broken dagger from one of his pockets and pretended to "accidentally" drop it. The Carriage man, quickly got out of the carriage, grabbing the dagger and sprinting the other way, breathing like a sliced pig. As the carriage man got away in the distance, Garret bursted out in laughter.​

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He took the horse and rode towards Markarth, stopping at the large dwarven gate. As soon as he got in, the crowed lured him away. It's been a long time since he's been to Markarth, but seeing the market so populated raised a smile to his face. "There is no time to waste" ,he thought to himself, "I came here with a reason, an expedition that gives one the chance to visit ancient tombs that might have undiscovered or rare plants is hard to find."​

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He went to the keep, to find other people chatting, along with a large group of imperials. This seemed like the team he should expect. However he eyed one of the explorers, a female which appeared to be wood elf. He kept looking at her wondering where had he seen this woman before.​

 

[Drahkma]

"These Forsworn...so eager to find death..." sighed a voice. The owner of that voice was a tall man, wearing dark grey robes, with a long staff in his right hand, his left hand stroking his long, silver-grey beard. He stood over several corpses, that had been shoved off the road, and stripped of valuables, presumably. The mans' name was Telvaris Ulthuan, a former battle-mage, and still remarkably powerful, despite his age of sixty five. "Sir...we should keep moving. There may be more nearby" a younger man, standing behind and to the right, said, glancing around at the surrounding rocky hillsides.

The older man waved away his young students' concerns. "Nonsense, Danick. These fellows met their demise some time ago. And more travellers than ourselves have been here." The younger man, Danick, sighed, and rested a hand on a dagger at his belt. They'd been attacked several times by Forsworn, but they'd trickled off as the duo had drawn closer to Markarth. "If you say so, master. I still think we should move on. It wouldn't do to be late" Telvaris shot an admonishing look over his shoulder at the younger Breton. "A wizard is never late. He arrives precisely when he means to" and with that, the battle-mage turned scholar continued along the road, the thump of his staff punctuating his every other step.

Danick simply shook his head and followed in his masters wake. After all, he'd been the one to convince Telvaris to leave their solitary tower in High Rock to join the expedition that was assembling in Markarth. That didn't mean he was particularly enjoying the journey. He was new to this part of life, the rough life of the road, constant attacks by bandits, and more recently, Forsworn raiders.

"I just hope this is worth it. Or at least interesting. I'm sick and tired of translating arcane texts all day." Muttered the young mage. Then he shot a nervous glance at Telvaris, who was walking along, seemingly oblivious. Danick didn't buy the master mages 'I'm a harmless old man act' for a second. The scholar would just as soon share a laugh with you, as he would blast you into ashes. So far, Danick had avoided his ire, and he hoped the others in the expedition would be as cautious.

"Ah. Markarth. Fascinating city, is it not, my young friend?" Said Telvaris, observing the city of Markarth. "They say that even the beds are made of stone.Can't be very comfortable" the mage continued. Danick gave his teacher a sceptical look. "They? Who are they, if I may ask?" Telvaris shot an irritated glance over his shoulder. Then waved a hand in the air "you know, they, them, the gossips and such. Now come along!" Without waiting for a response, the old man strode up the steps, through the gates, the winding streets, and into the keep, where a group of people waited. Obviously the members of the expedition. "Ah, waiting for us, were you? How considerate" Telvaris said, his eyes sparkling with mirth. "Telvaris Ulthuan, at your service. Oh, and my assistant, Danick"

 

[CapObvious]

Four thousand and one, four thousand and...Drat what comes next? AH! four thousand and two!

Do you ever shut up? Dolmas thought to himself quietly, grasping for a bottle on his belt.

Valen heard him, even when he had attempted to whisper.

What was that you insufferable-

Dolmas took a swig of the elixir, and Valen's voice quieted down, almost to the point of silence.

Nothing, you dreadful bastard.

He continued to walk toward the gates, with his partner and friend, Krisandra in tow. Dolmas eyes were on the gate, which grew larger with every step they took toward the large city of stone.

Krisandra's however, were on Dolmas himself.

She saw the mer reach for his belt at the elixirs, so whatever that bastard was doing in there must have been bad. Dolmas only had four of those, and he had just used his first. She couldn't read his face, as she was used to, as his face was covered with that skull face-plate that Dolmas wore when he was out and about. He always said it was for his namesake, as that had become a sort of calling card for his work. But Kris believed it was much more than that.

The damned thing was a warning.

She finally broke the silence as the pair crossed the bridge that ran across a stream.

"Everything alright in there?"

Dolmas looked to Kris, surprised at the sudden voice from out of nowhere, but was relieved as he registered who it came from.

"You know better than that." Kris looked down, and Dolmas continued. "He's shut up for now, and if the woman who gave me this is right, he will for at least the rest of the day. Plenty of time to meet up with the expedition, get to know them, and get them wherever it is they need to go."

He looked at Kris as they started to come up to the stables, and smiled half-heartedly. "Simple enough right?"

Krisandra smiled and looked to the pained mer. "You know better than that." She repeated.

Walking the rest of the way in silence, they finally reached the staircase that led to the front gate, and Dolmas exhaled.

They trudged their way up the steps, and watched as the guards turned to greet them, but instead looked to him in wonder.

Yeah, a mask made from a skull of a deceased would do that.

They didn't have time to utter their famous line, as Dolmas was halfway through the door before they could speak, with Kris following close behind.

As the gate closed behind them, the pair studied the city in wonder.

The place was gorgeous, but the stain of its reputation was still enough to mar its beauty.

Finally getting a grip on themselves, they find their way toward the keep, taking the winding path upwards. The city's structure still amazed them as they went through, but they didn't come here to sight see.

This wasn't some blasted vacation.

Finally they reached the keep, and were escorted to the group, who had all come accounted for, aside from them.

They were speaking amongst themselves, getting to know one another. Good idea. They would need to know the people they were going to be with for this long endeavor.

Dolmas removed the mask from his head, revealing his pained, marked dunmer face. He smiled at the group as he approached, but was caught off-guard by a horrifying sound.

Did you miss me?

Dolmas cursed under his breath and stepped away again, heading off to a corner to get his mind back in order, tif there was such a thing. This left Krisandra with introducing themselves.

She looked of to Dolmas, concerned, before meeting with the people they had been hired to protect. She put on her best friendly-act as she spoke the group.

"Looks like we're the last to get here, if the dossiers they handed us are correct. Sorry for our tardiness. I am Krisandra, and this is my employer, Dolmas Hlerayn. We were assigned to protect you on your journey.Though some of you seem like you can handle yourselves, to be honest." She said, her golden-yellow eyes glazing over the group, but especially at the rather angry looking Altmer woman.

She looked mad enough to take on the forsworn all on her own.

Dolmas stepped out from the corner, looking to have collected himself, and bowed his head. "It's a pleasure to meet you all." He said politely, wincing.

 

[Wolfbane]

As she was leaning against the wall, a very familiar face crossed into her view. 'Garret? Wasn't be blacklisted? He was, now that I think about it. Perhaps I should be cautious. Wouldn't want to ruin my career in the guild. I wonder if he remembers me?' Then an old wizard came and introduce him and his young assistant. "Ah, waiting for us, were you? How considerate. Telvaris Ulthuan, at your service. Oh, and my assistant, Danick" Avia was lost in her thoughts, but was still trying to listen. 'And I suppose you always give your 'Assistant' a warm welcome?' A nord woman and a dunmer man then arrived. The dunmer was obviously pained, but tried to hide in a smile and proceeded to go into a corner. "Looks like we're the last to get here, if the dossiers they handed us are correct. Sorry for our tardiness. I am Krisandra, and this is my employer, Dolmas Hlerayn. We were assigned to protect you on your journey.Though some of you seem like you can handle yourselves, to be honest." 'Well, she's an attractive one. With the young woman leading as well as this one, maybe this journey won't be too bad. But of course, the mission comes first! At least I know someone here. Although I might have to stay away until I know for sure. I need to focus on the task, instead of flirting with the cute ones.' Then the Dunmer emerged and bowed his head. "It's a pleasure to meet you all."

"Pleasure." She said as she nodded to the new arrivals. She took out an arrow and started to play with it to pass the time. Most of the time she took out a septim and played with it, but she needed to clean her nails, so she just used an arrow after she got done cleaning them.

 

[Blackdoom59]

Having stared at the elf quite enough, and with so many new people that joined in the group, Garret decided to introduce himself as well, while still not having an idea of who the wood elf is. He took a sip from his skooma bottle before he stepped from the shadows. He felt cheerful and happy, even if he was surrounded with so many imperials.

"Greetings, I stand by the name of Garret." He made a brief pause, looking at everyone. They all seemed way to serious. Even though in the face of business he is usually the man that wont change his facial expression, the whole expedition seemed more like leisure, rather then a job. "I see that you're all eager to go, after all, everything this city has to offer is "The best stone of all Skyrim!" He let out a small chuckle, from which he continued talking: "So, shouldn't we be off to see the Jarl before he goes to sleep after a hard day of sitting on a stone chair?"

Garret then turned his head to the wood elf, so he could get a closer look. Apparently she eyed him as well. Then it finally hit him.
"The war paint, the bright yellow eyes, it can't be...Avia? It's been 6 years, yet she looks the same. Oh dear Nocturnal, I forgot, she's with the guild" Garret swallowed dryly, as silently placed his right hand to sheathed sword. He looked Avia in the eye, trying to remember how she was. "Wait...calm down Garret, not everyone who you remember wants to kill you. She isn't even a thief anymore, she joined up with that.. walking sword band or whatever was the name. But still, i must be careful." Garret looked panicked, unlike before, when he was quite uplifting.

 

[Wolfbane]

"Greetings, I stand by the name of Garret." The breton man made the silence less of a presence. 'It's Garret alright. He couldn't make it anymore obvious' she then swiped her hair back. "I see that you're all eager to go, after all, everything this city has to offer is "The best stone of all Skyrim!" The man let out a small chuckle. 'Nevermind, he just did' "So, shouldn't we be off to see the Jarl before he goes to sleep after a hard day of sitting on a stone chair?" Garret's demeanor went from uplifting to panicked. "Let's give each other a chance to introduce ourselves. Let's start with the first group to arrive. If we plan on spending a great deal with each other, we need to know who each other are." She then made a quick glance at Garret, then went back to twirling her arrow. 'I wonder where this expedition is heading. Is it somewhere cold? Somewhere hot? What or who is going to get in our way? Could I also make a profit? Questions, questions. Right now, I want warm food and a comfortable bed. Maybe a good book as well.' She then glanced at the glistening waterfall and gave a quick smile. She loved the sound of it. Plus it reminded her of a certain, peaceful day.

 

[TheShadedOne]

"I hear you're looking to join the research expedition." Jared stepped forward, eager to introduce himself. "A pleasure. I'm Jared, and my rather, um, moody friend over there, is Fae" the Altmer scowled at the Legate, and nodded curtly to the woman, but kept her mouth shut. She was there to keep an eye on Jared, and make sure his big mouth didn't get him into trouble. Over the next few minutes, several more people entered, most of them looking like the bodyguard-mercenary type.

The only ones that actually looked like they were in Markarth to do some exploring, besides Jared and the girl with the Legate, seemed to be an old wizard, by the name of Telvaris Ulthuan, and his younger assistant, Danick. Both Bretons, and both magic users, if she guessed correctly. One of the men that looked like some sort of thief suggested moving on, and Fae had to agree. She wasn't one to waste time with introductions and pleasantries.

 

[Andre Marek]

Kate blinked a few times as seemingly everybody showed up at once. The group immediately exploded into conversation, save for the Altmer standing next to Jared. Besides the unlikely pair standing next to her, Kate found herself in the company of what appeared to be mostly mercenaries, although one fellow looked like a scholar of some sort, as did his apprentice. Glancing at the Legate, Kate spoke up, "Alright everyone, can I get your attention here?" Everybody turned to look at her, some slower than others, "Great, Glad to finally have everyone here. For those of you who don't know, my name is Kate. I'll be helping to organize this expedition so if you have any questions, you can ask me. This here," She pointed at Quintus, "is Legate Quintus. He'll be in charge of security for the course of our trip. Him and his men will keep us from winding up on a spit in some forsworn camp. The Reach, along with the Druadach range are dangerous so what he says, goes. Unless of course you fancy being disemboweled." Kate surveyed the group as she spoke, eyeing a few of the mercs. They all seemed pretty capable, and the one wearing the skull mask was definitely going to creep her out. She wondered for a second where he had acquired such a moniker, but she quickly decided that she didn't want to know.

Giving the group a half smile, Kate said, "But, all that aside, I'm sure this is going to be an exciting trip! Not everyday you discover an ancient village thats been lost to time for hundreds, if not, thousands of years. Anyway, if you could all follow me, the Jarl has lent us one of his conference rooms so that we may discus the details more comfortably." Turning around, Kate and Quintus led the group further up into Understone Keep, down a couple corridors, and a few more flights of stairs until they finally cam to a set of heavy, bronze colored steel doors. While Quintus pushed them open, Kate told everyone to grab a seat around the large table in the center of the room. Once everybody was seated, Kate strode over to the far wall, where a set of maps was pinned to a board. She waited for everyone to settle before asking, "Alright, so does anybody have a question?"

 

[Blackdoom59]

"Alright everyone, can I get your attention here?" a loud yet warm voice gathered everyone's attention. Garret hastily turned his head to the source, only to feed his eyes with a woman, seemingly imperial woman, standing close to a high ranking imperial solider.

"Great, Glad to finally have everyone here. For those of you who don't know, my name is Kate. I'll be helping to organize this expedition so if you have any questions, you can ask me. This here," She pointed at the imperial next to her, "is Legate Quintus. He'll be in charge of security for the course of our trip. Him and his men will keep us from winding up on a spit in some forsworn camp. The Reach, along with the Druadach range are dangerous so what he says, goes. Unless of course you fancy being disemboweled."

She must be the leader…interesting lass. It seems that we will be protected on our trip.

Giving the group a half smile, Kate said, "But, all that aside, I'm sure this is going to be an exciting trip! Not everyday you discover an ancient village thats been lost to time for hundreds, if not, thousands of years. Anyway, if you could all follow me, the Jarl has lent us one of his conference rooms so that we may discus the details more comfortably."

She then turned around, and the group followed her towards the conference room. Garret was somewhat surprised by how formal things went so far. Everything seemed planned out, without a doubt Kate expected some hostility either on the trip or in the village, otherwise she wouldn’t have hired so many mercenaries, and imperials. This was a relief for Garret, the last thing he needed was ending up fighting a forsworn horde along a few terrified explorers. The legate stopped to a set of large doors, which he opened. The group entered what seemed to be the conference room, and Kate told everybody to take a seat as she strode over to the far wall. "Alright, so does anybody have a question?"

Upon hearing her ask that, Garret raised his head enough for his eyepatch to be noticed, ready to answer, but instead he hesitated. There was one thing on his mind for a long time, but he wasn’t sure if this was the right time for such a question to be asked. However the group seemed preety silent, and the woman awaited questions and so he spoke:


“I have a question. In an ancient villiage such as the one we’re going to explore, there is a good chance we might find loot, items of interest, or ingredients. If such thing happens, I’d like to know how we shall share what we find, or if we share anything at all.

 

[Wolfbane]

"Alright everyone, can I get your attention here?" The Imperial girl called for attention, so Avia looked towards her. "Great, Glad to finally have everyone here. For those of you who don't know, my name is Kate. I'll be helping to organize this expedition so if you have any questions, you can ask me. This here," She pointed at the angry man next to her. "is Legate Quintus. He'll be in charge of security for the course of our trip. Him and his men will keep us from winding up on a spit in some forsworn camp. The Reach, along with the Druadach range are dangerous so what he says, goes. Unless of course you fancy being disemboweled." 'Well, I think a lost a bit of my appetite, thanks Kate.' She let out a small laugh, then quieted down as to not be rude, or as if she was laughing at the girl. "But, all that aside, I'm sure this is going to be an exciting trip! Not everyday you discover an ancient village thats been lost to time for hundreds, if not, thousands of years. Anyway, if you could all follow me, the Jarl has lent us one of his conference rooms so that we may discus the details more comfortably." She pushed herself off the wall and began to follow Kate. 'You don't have to tell me twice!' The two imperials lead the group down stone corridors, which Avia ran her fingers against, down some stairs, then stopped at two giant bronze doors. The legate pushed them open while Kate directed everyone to take a seat. "Alright, so does anybody have a question?" She looked around the room to see of anybody had one, then Garret raised his head exposing his eyepatch and answered. “I have a question. In an ancient villiage such as the one we’re going to explore, there is a good chance we might find loot, items of interest, or ingredients. If such thing happens, I’d like to know how we shall share what we find, or if we share anything at all." She then thought of a question, then asked. "Are we sleeping together?" she thought about it for a second then shook her head real fast. "I mean like sharing the same tent, to conserve space and heat if the weather demands it!" 'Why did I phrase it like that?' She felt fairly embarrassed, but tried to play it like she wasn't. She leaned back in her chair, and waited for answers, or other questions

 

[Blackdoom59]

After questioning the leader, Garret felt like he gave a bad first impression. Asking a question about loot would most likely make everyone think he only joined the expedition for money, and not for real reasons. Even if money was something he needed, quite badly as well, he joined the expedition for the purpose of research and exploring. Awaiting the answer from his question, Garret looked straight into Kate's dark brown eyes. She seemed confident and quite happy about the expedition, even if the facial expression didn't show.

Before Kate could even open her mouth to answer, another question was asked, by Avia. As soon as she started talking, Garret turned his eye to her. He wanted to know if she has changed in the past years. He would hate to think of her as an enemy, as they once were brothers in The Guild.

"Are we sleeping together?" She questioned. Garret couldn't help himself but to let out a small chuckle. Avia quickly shook her head, probably realizing what she just asked."I mean like sharing the same tent, to conserve space and heat if the weather demands it!" Avia spoke fast, with an alerted tone. Quite the comeback. Even if the question was a serious one, Garret was bound to make fun of it. That is in Garret's nature, saying something for the plain sake of hummor. This quirk has lent him enemies, but also friends. As far as he could remember, Avia was fond of his hummor, and so a little joke wouldn't hurt.


“I wouldn't mind sleeping with you...to conserve space and heat of course!" Garret had a smirk on his face as he spoke. At this point, he awaited Avia's reaction more than the answer for his earlier question. She did seem to recognize Garret, however she didn't seem hateful towards him at all.

 

[The Phantom]

The group sat, gathered around the campfire situated in the pine forest of the Pale, attempting to keep the cold at bay. It was an unlikely band of brothers that night: a skilled mercenary, a corrupt yet warm guard, a grizzled assassin and quite curiously, the Master of Coin of Skyrim. Despite all of the killers' differences, they were all united in one thing. Each one was currently employed by the same man, Lord Pinarus Baenius, Master of Coin.

Many had tried, although none had succeeded, in attempting to truly understand the machinations of Lord Baenius. He was a short man of slender build, with handsome features, Pinarus had gray-green eyes, a small pointed beard on his chin, and threads of grey running throughout his dark hair. At first glance, you would never believe he was much of a fighter. That you would make you right. Most intellectual people tend to treat Pinarus with distrust, and this, is quite possibly the wisest thing they will ever do. However trust means nothing to a Sellsword like the aforementioned men, money was the only thing they respected. Coincidentally, money was one thing Lord Baenius had.

"Always keep your foes confused. If they are never certain who you are or what you want, they cannot know what you are likely to do next. Sometimes the best way to baffle them is to make moves that have no purpose, or even seem to work against you." A master Machiavellian was Pinarus Baenius. People often made the mistake of underestimating him and woe to those who do.

Laughter filled the cold camp as the mercenary finished a rather pathetic joke. Everything seems to be funny when you're drunk, Pinarus noted. Of course, he was not drunk and he was not laughing, but the others were. Then, he looked up from the fire to see the assassin looking at him. The assassin was clad in tight leather, he was a Dark Elf, an ex-Morag Tong member with red eyes and short black hair. The Dumner spoke, his voice ever so slightly slurred and surprisingly jovial for his kind "So then... My Lord." He mock bowed and they laughed drunkenly "You've heard all our stories. We'd like to hear your life story now. How did you, a low born like us, rise so high with such callous disregard for honour?"

For a brief moment, there was silence. The ex-Morag Tong feared he had overstepped his boundaries but was disproven by a reply from his employer "So, you want to hear my story?" The question was evidently rhetorical yet his tone was not forbidding "Well then. My story began in a small village in the land of High Rock, home of the Bretons. At the age of eight, I was fostered to a wealthy family in Windhelm. Oh they were quite nice to me, treated me like a son in fact! They had a daughter named Sottilde, beautiful, intelligent, impeccable blood lines. After a time, I began to love her." He paused for a moment and closed his eyes, then spoke again, softer this time "When we were seventeen, she was wed to a man of another wealthy family. So I challenged the brute to a duel. I mean, why not? I'd read all the stories about the little hero defeating the big scary villain, I wasn't afraid. Before the battle I begged Sottilde for her favour but alas. She gave it to her thug of a groom."

There was another short pause as the events flooded back to him, his face contorting in a mixture of long suppressed emotions. Anger and love. When paired is there anything worse? Lord Baenius continued his story, his voice growing more bitter "The duel was rather long. But only because I refused to yield, even after I was wounded multiple times. When he had me cornered, he stabbed me in the chest and slashed up from my navel to my collarbone. He gave me a lovely scar. As I lay bleeding on the floor, the ruffian about to finish me, I began to accept that I had lost, but I at least was happy that I died for my love." He clenched his fist as his gaze passed to each of his underlings, the tone of his voice was now frightening "In the end she didn't even let him kill me!" Then rather suddenly, he snapped back to normal as he regained his composure, the tone calm once more.

"I passed out and that was the last I saw of either of them. Boy got himself killed, joined the Stormcloaks and got captured. I personally oversaw his torture and subsequent execution, I believe I got my vindication. I resolved to be stronger before that however, I was appointed the equivalent of my current position in Whiterun. In a few years Whiterun was the most wealthy city, I the most wealthy man. The High King personally asked for me to be Master of Coin and offered me a lordship. The rest is common knowledge. But I am the Mockingbird now. I hear everything, with so many songs to sing."

Upon the last sentence, he rose from the ground and outstretched his arms in a grandiose manner. After he had finished there was a long period of stunned silence, the men all seemed quite frightened of their employer now. All except the Dunmer. Noticing this he said "Ah, good! You're not as easily scared like these fools. Kill them both and then catch up to me. It's a long way to Markarth." He began to walk away before finishing "And remember: should you tell anyone my story, you will suffer the same fate as the men you are about to kill. Farewell my mercenary, my guard. I don't like bad investments you see, and you two... Were bad investments. I don't know who hired you to spy on me but they won't be getting any more information. Cheerio." With that, he mounted his white horse, Shadow, and began to ride away.
_________________________________

"Oh, the Forsworn! Quick tempers, slow minds." Lord Baenius said as he inspected the bloody corpse. The assassin was with him, surveying the landscape and probing for any spots from which they could be ambushed. Over the course of their long journey, the two of them had gotten quite well acquainted and the assassin's name was finally revealed. Movere Slylvare. Movere was half-Dunmer and half-Imperial born with ties to the Morag Tong. He was brought up in a poor family learning to take what he needs at any cost. When he was 14 his family was on the brink of starvation when a man showed up, unbeknownst to him it was a Morag Tong assassin. The man told Movere that if he murdered this one man, he would pay him enough to feed his family for a month. He sceptically accepted and killed the man and the assassin stayed true to his word. The Morag Tong began to contact him more and more until he finally joined the cult and things were beginning to look up for him and his family. Until the Dark Brotherhood assassinated his father, Movere was devastated and was in a state of almost depression, barely saying a word until he enacted his revenge on the Dark Brotherhood assassin who murdered his father. Years passed and he left the Morag Tong, becoming freelance assassin.

The Master of Coin gestured for Movere to approach him as he began to explain "Movere. It doesn't appear that we are the only people to use this road recently, in-fact it seems that quite a lot of people have." He then pointed to the Forsworn's body "This man, you see has been killed. I'm sure you can see that for yourself however. It was clearly a different denomination that killed the bastard as, if you inspect the wound, the blade of a Forsworn has somewhat serrated edges and the appropriate wound for that type of weapon is not present." Movere was rather confused now, he asked the Mockingbird "Oh for Arkay's sake, please will you explain what you mean?"

As a rule, Baenius did not like it when people interrupted him, especially when he was close to doing what they asked of him. He rolled his eyes "It means that whoever killed him possesses some considerable skill as we've passed many with similar wounds. Also if you inspect the area you will notice the hint of a large band of soldiers marching through, and the indentation here connotes that a staff was possibly being used to walk with." Now Sylvare appeared to understand and responded with "And I presume that you presume that these are the others on the expedition?"
"Precisely."

CRACK! They both turned quickly in the direction of the snapping branch to see three Forsworn running towards them. Pinarus sighed and indolently waved his hand in their direction to order Movere to kill them. Quickly, he drew his bow from his back, grabbed an arrow and fired; the arrow embedded itself in the jugular vein of a Forsworn while the other two continued running. By this point the two reachmen were now upon them. The first brought his sword down on Movere who promptly dropped his bow and dived out of the way. He then grabbed the Forsworn's arm and snapped it before slamming him hard unto the ground, finishing him with a leather boot to the face. The other had continued running at Lord Baenius. Humorously, he looked rather un-phased by this. He stepped to the side and held out his dagger, Littlefinger, as the Briarheart ran into it, suddenly petrified by the enchantment.

Lord Baenius inspected the Briarheart: he was a rather muscular man and donned the regular regalia of the Forsworn albeit two slight differences. He wore a hat reminiscent of a deer head and his heart was exposed, replaced with a briarheart seed. A malicious grin spread across Baenius' face as he cut open a wider hole around the briarheart seed and viciously ripped it out of his body, killing him in excruciating pain. He chucked slightly before beckoning Sylvare to continue the journey.
_________________________________

Approximately an hour later, the duo arrived in Markarth as a guard exclaimed "Welcome to Markarth traveller, safest city in the Reach." Pinarus nonchalantly replied "It's also the only city in the Reach, guardsman. Tell your captain that Movere Sylvare is no longer a wanted man on the authority of Lord Pinarus Baenius, Master of Coin. Deny me and you'll be dealing with the court of Solitude and the Jarl of Markarth. Now I'm off to meet the others at the expedition, I presume the others are already there?" The guard seemed rather taken aback by this and simply stuttered "Umm. Yes, sir. They should be starting soon." Lord Baenius threw a coin purse at him and proceeded to the Keep where he saw the rest of the expedition party.

He carefully surveyed each one of them, surprised that he actually managed to deduce a few things about them back by the Forsworn corpse. Seeing as how he was their patron, he decided it best to introduce himself "Fondest greetings to you all. I am Lord Pinarus Baenius, Master of Coin of Skyrim and patron of this great exhibition. This..." He said, gesturing to Movere "...is my bodyguard, Movere Sylvare. I will be providing almost limitless funding for this expedition, anything you want, I can get it." Upon the last sentence he attempted his best warm smile to encourage the others before finishing with "But know that the reason I am attending this is to see if this was a good investment. I don't like bad investments. Just remember who I am. I'm the guy with the money!" The way he ended sounded more like a passive threat, rather than a friendly reminder.

 

[Wolfbane]

“I wouldn't mind sleeping with you...to conserve space and heat of course!" 'I wouldn't mind getting a chance with a couple of people. I'm just flirting and thinking, no harm in that. It's not like I'm going to do anything, right?' She winked, gave a nod, then a half smile to him before answering. "Of course!" She had always liked Garret's humor, made some of the seriousness in the guild more bearable. 'Whenever when I was in the guild, some were so serious. Take Dirge and Tonilia, for example. Dirge didn't say more than a few words except 'Grr, I'm going to bash you on the head if you don't behave', while Tonilia did the whole 'I'm so bad and tough. Don't mess with me 'act. I'm not a big fan of those two. Thrynn was one of my favorites. I hardly remember what I thought of the rest of the members. Didn't really pay much attention. They probably have more now that I'm gone. Garret was always the funny one, and I like that about him. Not to mention he was one of the people I liked, along with Thrynn. Maybe I should be paying more attention?' As she was thinking, a slender, somewhat pompous man walked in with what he says, to be his body guard. "Fondest greetings to you all. I am Lord Pinarus Baenius, Master of Coin of Skyrim and patron of this great exhibition. This..." He said, gesturing to the dark elf next to him. "...is my bodyguard, Movere Sylvare. I will be providing almost limitless funding for this expedition, anything you want, I can get it." 'I want a warm bed, a good book and company, and a dog. Animals are so much better than most people.' The man then tried his best at a warm and welcoming smile before continuing, "But know that the reason I am attending this is to see if this was a good investment. I don't like bad investments. Just remember who I am. I'm the guy with the money!" He adopted a more, serious tone when saying this. Avia quietly sighed, and rolled her eyes. 'You made that quite obvious. Was it the 'I'm the master of coin' or the "I'll be providing almost limitless funding'?' She thought for a moment, then continued, ' As long as we won't run out of gold, and he can get whatever we want, then I'll let him slide. I'm going to give him a chance. He's going to pay for this expedition, after all.' She then sat back and relax a bit.

 

[TheShadedOne]

Fae glanced over the speaking woman, the one organizing the expedition. She didn't look very old, but then, neither was Jared, and when he wasn't being an annoying, skeever head, he was quite good at what he did. The woman was named Kate, and the Imperial soldier, was Quintus. Apparently, he was to provide security during the journey.'Fine by me' she thought. 'The more Imperial soldiers between me and those crazies, the happier I'll be' although, she'd keep her blades ready anyways. Putting too much trust in strangers was never a good idea. The woman finished her speech, and asked if there were any questions. The man with the eye patch asked about dividing various finds, and Fae snorted. With the coin she was going to make on this one job, she wouldn't need to work again. Ever. Or...for a few years, at least.

The second question caught the Altmer mercenary off guard. "Are we sleeping together?" Fae stared at the woman that had asked, a Bosmer. 'Well, someone's a little too excited...' "I mean like sharing the same tent, to conserve space and heat if the weather demands it!" Fae chuckled softly and rolled her eyes. The man with the eye-patch certainly seemed to find the idea intriguing. While Fae found the Q&A boring, and a little amusing, Jared hung on the womans every word. Whether he was generally interested in what she had to say, or just interested in getting into the womans pants, the Altmer couldn't tell. Before Kate could answer any questions, two more people joined the group. "Fondest greetings to you all. I am Lord Pinarus Baenius, Master of Coin of Skyrim and patron of this great exhibition. This..." He said, gesturing to a Dunmer man"...is my bodyguard, Movere Sylvare. I will be providing almost limitless funding for this expedition, anything you want, I can get it." At that point, Fae stopped paying attention. Usually, people who spoke like this man did were full of empty promises, and offered deals that could only get you in trouble.

 

[Drahkma]

For the most part, Telvaris kept quite as the others spoke, watching them carefully. The old mage believed that power stemmed from knowledge, not coin or strength of weapons. For the most part, it seemed the group was largely made up of warriors and mercenaries, besides the girl that was speaking, himself, and Danick. That was...disappointing. Mercenaries cared nothing for knowledge or discoveries, only money. He drifted away from his young apprentice, and towards the legate. "Quintus, was it? A pleasure to meet you!" He said warmly, seizing a shaking the mans' hand. "I fought with the Legion in High Rock, you know" he said. Then the old mage looked puzzled. "At least...I think it was the legion..." he turned away, mumbling to himself. Danick just shook his head. The apprentice knew his master had fought in a few wars, but his recountings were usually broken up, and more than a little confusing.

 

[Daryl Dixon]

"Now are you going to tell me before my aim remarkably improves?" Alex asks as he draws another arrow, having just shot one into the wooden panel behind the kneeling man who was tied by his hands and feet. "Yes, yes! Yes! Just please have mercy." the man weeped, his left eye bruised from the blow Alex had given him earlier. "He's gone, he went to Markarth. I don't know anything else!"
-
A few hours past, and Alex found himself leaning against a wall listening in on a conversation between a group. "So this is the master of coin?" Jason asks, the Nord sizing him up. "Aye, that's what I've been told."

"So if he's funding this, and can provide them with anything they'll need, we should join." The imperial said, Jason was always the more thoughtful one.

"Have you gone mad?" Alex asks, as he got up from leaning against the wall and turned toward his old first mate. "I thought we were just going to kidnap and rob the guy."

"I think we'll get more out of making friends, and he likely has powerful allies."

Alex thought for a few moments. Jason ran his fingers through his long brown hair, and continued his persuasion. "It can't be that bad, we can always back out ya know. Lets give it a try."

"Alright, let's go."

The pair approached the group as a conversation ended, and went introduced themselves. A few members noticed them approaching, and just as Alex went to open his mouth a voice boomed out from across Markarths Hall. "Cap'n Alex Brody!" as a large Nord man approached with his arms wide, before dropping them by his side. "Ya think ya can hide from me but ya can't, you tore my ship to pieces and now I'll do the same to you."

Jason unsheathed his elven blade, while Alex just stood there. "Mate, I don't know what you're talkin' about." he said, standing in a firm stance.

"Bloody pirates!" the man shouted as he went to rush forward. Three guards had been approaching and rushed forward, drawing their blades. "STOP!" one shouted, but the man continued firm on Alex. Alex gestured for Jason to back away and as the man drew near he went in for a huge swing, guards hot on his tail. Alex narrowly dodged it by leaning to his left, then with his right hand stabbed the man in the gut with a dagger he had drawn during the dodge. The guards grabbed the man and pulled him back, arresting him.

Alex slowly turned to the group, Jason was already facing them. "Well lads, not the best start." Alex approached the man he had heard of being 'the master of coin'. "If you're funding this, why don't ya fund me? You get me a decent blade, decent mead and decent pay I'm all yours mate." Jason was still a few meters away. "This group could use bit more muscle, and once I'm bought I'm bought mate. I'll stay with your crew until I either die or carry out my task. Offers on the table." Alex stepped back a bit still facing the man, and Jason approached Alex. "I don't drink, I got a decent blade, pay me and I'll join." Jason said, before introducing himself. "I'm Jason."

Alex pulled ah 'how-could-I-forget' face, before stepping towards the man once again. "Alex Brody," he said as he extended his arm for a handshake.