"Look at you," a golden-skinned elf with snow-white hair and an angular face said with a scowl.
She stood alone at the entrance of the small tent that the two lovers slept in, and M'rissi had crawled to meet her, too scared to make Isael wait so she could put clothes on.
"Whore," the elf spat and smacked M'rissi across the face hard enough to knock her to her side.
"She—she is not a whore," M'rissi replied with a low growl. Her fur stood on end as she let out a soft hiss and bared her claws. The elf stepped closer to the tent, and M'rissi pounced, but was flung back with a blast of electricity.
"How dare you attack me, cat," Isael said. "I gave you a life worth a damn, and this is how you repay me? By running off, and sleeping with a man you'd just met? And a Nord, no less, a brute!"
"You didn't give M'rissi life, you took it away and kept her prisoner! She was your plaything!" the young Khajiit exclaimed, picking herself off the ground, not concerned with the fact that she was nude, and there was a growing crowd of watchers from the town. "You abused her!"
"Abused?" the woman sneered. "I'll show you abuse."
Not a second later before she snarled out the last word, a stream of lightning struck M'rissi.
She could feel every muscle in her body tense as the magic attack coursed through her body. It was so bad that she couldn't even scream. Her mouth was locked shut, and tears that rolled down her cheeks only served to create streaks of burned flesh as the electricity used the salt-water as a conductor.
The pain was immense, but through the crackle of lightning, she heard a voice.
"M'ri," the voice whispered.
It was faint and distant, and she could barely make out who had said it. But something within her recognized it.
"M'ri!" the voice called out again, this time louder, more distinct. It was Erik's voice, and it came from the sky.
But—he's in the tent…
"M'ri!" Erik cried out, this time the voice came from an enormous monster that landed behind Isael.
The thunderous sound of the beasts' landing startled the elf, and she ceased her magical attack to turn and face it
It was a hydra. A draconic beast with large, leathery wings and three heads. Its body was surrounded with a golden glow, and as Isael turned to face it, the monster let out a screeching war-cry. Then, it uttered words M'rissi had never heard before, and from each furious head came a blast of fire that turned Isael to ash.
"M'rissi!" her eyes shot open. She was back inside the tent, unharmed, except for the dull pain in her gums and teeth and the slight taste of blood.
"Divines, woman," Erik sighed, shaking his head as he sat her up. "Are you okay? You were clenching your jaw and shaking when I woke up."
M'rissi hesitated to answer, her mind still clouded from her sleep, until the pain in her mouth started to sharpen.
"She—she is fine. It is her blood she tastes, yes? M'rissi did not hurt you again?"
"No, you didn't, but you hurt yourself," Erik replied, parting her lips and examining her mouth. "Looks like you just cut your gums in a few places. You're bleeding, but you should be fine." Then he took her into an embrace and finally planted a kiss on her lips.
Then the memory of the previous night rushed in, and her face turned bright red.
"We—we had sex—we—"
"We made love," Erik said, chuckling and giving her a minute to calm herself. "It felt like a dream, didn't it? It—it was amazing."
"It was—but…"
"But what?" Erik asked with a worried tone. "I—I didn't hurt you, did I?"
"No! No, you did not hurt M'rissi. She—she loved every second of what happened last night. She just—she does not know. In her nightmare, Isael found us, and she called M'rissi a whore for being with you—"
"Stop." Erik put a finger to her mouth, and then he kissed her again. This time, he held the kiss, and M'rissi snaked her arms around his neck. "Did that feel right?" he asked when he pulled away.
"Y-Yes," M'rissi answered.
"Then that's all that matters. You aren't a whore for being with someone you have feelings for. To hell with Isael," Erik said, touching their foreheads. "Last night was amazing, and you are amazing. Besides…no one needs to know that last night was our first night together."
M'rissi smiled and returned his kiss.
"She loves you."
"I love you too," Erik said and pulled their clothes to them. "We should get dressed, and—maybe make some leather armor for you. We can work on that, though."
M'rissi nodded and got dressed, but smirked when she looked over to Erik, who was awkwardly pulling his pants up with a noticeable bulge between his legs.
"Would you like M'rissi to take care of that?" she asked, getting his attention.
"Wha—um—" Before he could answer, M'rissi crawled over to him and pushed her hand into the center of his chest, telling him to lay down as she wrapped her finger around the edge of his pants and exposing his member to her. "M'rissi, you don't have to—"
"Shh," she whispered, taking it into her hands. It was warm, almost hot, and it twitched as she wrapped her fingers around his girth.
She laid down, and remembered how he serviced her as she got closer.
His smell wasn't particularly pleasant, they would certainly have to bathe afterwards if she was to do this again, but she could bare it, just as he did so for her.
She gave him a small lick, taking in his salty taste and his natural musk. Then she gave him another, this time longer, as she started to pump her hand up and down the length of his nine-inch member.
"Oh—gods," Erik moaned as she took his member into her mouth and pushed it as deep as she could without gagging from the sheer length. She was careful to keep him safe from her razor-sharp teeth, but eager to use her tongue to lick and tease him. "M'ri—fuck—"
She looked up to him, feeling him throb in her mouth.
"I'm gonna cum…" he gasped out, but M'rissi didn't care. She would keep going, pumping what she couldn't fit in her mouth.
Then she felt his shaft tense up, and a burst of something thick, warm and salty entered her mouth through his head.
She didn't mind the taste, in fact, she enjoyed it.
When she swallowed and pulled away from his member with one last lick, M'rissi looked up to Erik, and gave a smile.
"Before we go hunt—we should shower. Our bodies—they smell."
"Oh—was it bad?" Erik asked, his cheeks red with blush.
"No—not too bad. But—she would prefer if we did not smell like sweat and dirt the next time we—make love."
Erik nodded and sat up, pulling his pants up and kissing her.
"That was good…thank you."
"M'rissi enjoys making you moan. She thinks it is cute," she giggled and kissed his cheek as she crawled out of the tent, brushing her tail against his cheek.
After the two of them emerged from the small tent they shared, M'rissi and Erik went to the inn to use the bathhouse and freshen up before they returned to their camp.
"M'rissi thinks you should stay in town while she goes hunting. She thinks if you come with her, it will be harder to sneak up on animals and kill them!"
Erik quirked an eyebrow.
"Are you sure?" Erik asked.
"She is! She will be fine, M'rissi is good at being quiet. She is a—" she paused. She instinctually wanted to say cat, but something stopped her. "She is a Khajiit. We Khajiit are natural hunters, no?"
Erik gave a smile and nodded.
"They're pretty good at it," he replied and patted her shoulder. "Alright," he said. "I'll go find a job from the innkeep, then. Just—remember what I taught you yesterday."
"She will remember, M'rissi is a good learner," she nodded and rested her hand on her quiver of arrows. "If she kills something big, she will come get you. M'rissi is small, and not that strong."
"Strong enough to take out two mercenaries and a dog," he reminded her. "Go on and get started, get a couple of rabbits and we'll have dinner. Get a couple of deer and I can start on that leather armor."
"M'rissi will kill many deer, and we will be rich!" M'rissi declared, giggling as she took her bow and stood. "She—she loves you. She will see you later today, yes?"
"We will," Erik nodded. "And I love you too."
Erik smiled as he watched M'rissi walk off towards the woods before he turned to the pile of armor and sighed.
Soon, he'd dawned his armor, and returned to the inn.
"Innkeep," Erik called out as he approached the counter. "I'm in need of gold, you wouldn't happen to have any jobs for me, would you?"
"Ah, you're that traveler that came in here with that strange-looking Khajiit earlier, aren't you?" the man asked. "Quite the attractive one, she is."
The man's words brought a pang of jealousy to Erik's heart, but he pushed it away.
"Yes, I have a job. It's a tough one, but I'd only suggest taking it if you've dealt with spirits and the undead before."
"Undead?" Erik perked up and leaned into the counter. "How much are we talking about?"
"Five hundred gold if you come back alive," Wilhelm replied. "When you came here, did you notice that barrow at the edge of town?"
"Kind of hard to miss."
"Well, legend has it that long ago, a man ventured into the barrow and was killed by a draugr. Things have been quiet, up until a few years ago."
"What's been happening?"
"Draugr. They've been coming out of the barrow and coming into town. So far, the town guard have been doing a good job at keeping them from hurting anyone, but I doubt it will stay that way for long. Jarl Law-Giver hasn't answered any of our pleas for help, and I wouldn't doubt that the Black-Briar's have something to do with it."
Erik paused for a moment.
Never dealt with draugr before, but—five-hundred gold? That might be enough to get us past the border, but we'd need more if we're going to start a new life.
"Six-hundred, and I'll do it."
"Five-fifty is all the gold the town could come up with, sir. Ivarstead isn't a wealthy place. We've been waiting for months for a mercenary to come through to take up the job."
"Alright, five-fifty," Erik nodded. "And—maybe we could strike another deal. My—partner and I are going to be staying here for a couple of weeks. We planned on making some gold by hunting, but if five-hundred and fifty gold is all the town could come up with, that's not going to do very well. So, how about this. I'm teaching my friend how to hunt, whenever she comes back with a kill, we give it to you, you let us stay in a room for a couple of days. Does that sound fair?"
"Well—usually I would ask for gold, not animals—but if you manage to come back alive from that barrow, I'll let you stay for two days for each rabbit you bring back, and a week for each deer you bring back."
Erik smirked and nodded, extending his hand.
"That sounds like a deal to me. Erik Far-Giver."
"Just—be careful. Deal with the spirit, and find a way to block off the draugr from coming out. We don't want you to clear the tomb out—not unless something more is found. If you start killing them, you'll anger them."
"I understand. It sounds easy enough. If my companion returns and I'm not here, tell her where I've gone," he told Wilhelm before he left the inn, heading towards the barrow at the edge of town.
As he walked through the surface building that made up the entrance of the barrow, Erik could hear the growls and snarls of the Draugr inside.
"Arkay, grant me protection and allow me to pass through this barrow untouched by the restless and angered undead, for I am there to calm them, not fight them."
Erik took a deep breath and pushed the doors to the grave open, and as he pushed them closed, he heard the low growl of a Draugr behind him.
It spoke in a language that he did not recognize, but somehow, something within him recognized the speech.
"Druv dreh hi haav un qoth, nahl gein?" the undead spoke as Erik turned. A fire lit in his hand and exposed the gaunt, pale skin. (Why do you enter our tomb, living one?)
This Draugr, was once a man with dark brown hair. His once fair skin has shriveled and turned to leather, thanks to the sands of time. He held a rusted cast-iron axe, an ancient Nordic weapon.
"I've come to deal with the spirit that has disturbed your sleep, departed one," Erik replied.
"Hi los nid sonaak do Arkay," the creature said with a scowl. (You are no priest of Arkay.)
"I am not," Erik said. "But I know the writs of burial. I came from a small town miles away from any city able to bury the dead. We all had to learn them."
"Rinik pruzah," the Draugr croaked. "Kiibok zey, ahrk dreh ni haalvut naan." (Very well. Follow me, and do not touch anything.)
With that, the Draugr descended down the wooden spiral staircase that it had come up, and Erik followed at a distance.
How in the hell can I understand this thing? Erik asked himself while they traversed the halls of the dead. There were many sleeping Draugr that lined the walls and tucked into crevices. Some of them opened their eyes as Erik passed and watched him, as if warning him.
Then the two of them came to an intersection of two hallways.
"Daar los kolos volaan nok," the creature said, turning and gesturing to the intersection. "Nahlot mok, ahrk hi fen lif." (This is where the intruder lies. Silence him, and you will leave.)
"You have my word," Erik replied and gave the undead a small bow of respect. "Thank you for your guidance."
The creature let out a grunt and started back towards where they came from, leaving Erik at the head of the intersection.
The moment he stepped foot into one of the other hallways, a voice called out.
"Leave this place," the spectral voice demanded. Erik whipped around to see an ethereal figure of a Dunmer staring him down from behind an iron gate. "Leave this place!" it repeated. "Leave…leave…leave…" it continued as it wondered from the gate.
"Right…" Erik sighed and stepped to the gate, looking for a lever or a chain to pull. When he found none, he turned around and walked to the other end of the hall, where he found himself in a small room with a couple of levers on the wall. It wasn't hard to figure out what lever opened the gate he wanted, and when the gate opened, Erik was presented a second set of hallways.
Then another intersection, separated by a wooden door that, when opened, led to a hallway. It was too dark to see what was on the other end of the hallway, but the Nord could feel something pulling him in that direction.
It wasn't a force, so much as it was a desire.
"I told you to leave." The ethereal voice growled, pulling Erik from his thoughts just in time to react to the stream of fire that spewed forth from the specter's hands.
"Damn!" Erik said, putting his shield up and hunkering down. "By the will of Arkay, whose domain life and death, I put you to rest, so that you may sleep eternally in peace! Your time on Nirn has come to an end, departed one, rest and be at peace!"
But nothing changed.
Erik could still feel the heat of the fire that spewed forth from the specter's hands, and when he looked up, the spirit was still there, enraged at Erik's presence.
"Damn it, why won't you leave?" Erik questioned, but no answer came.
The warrior gripped the hilt of his sword and whispered a quick prayer of forgiveness before he dashed towards the flames and sunk his blade into the chest of the specter.
Expecting the ghost to dissolve into a pile of ghostly remains, Erik was surprised to feel a warm spurt of blood splash against his face.
Soon, the ghostly appearance of the Dark Elf faded to reveal a man in dark robes.
"Huh…" Erik huffed as the body slid off the blade. "Not what I was expecting."
The Nord looked up, seeing the alchemy table and lit fireplace that the man was using in a room that he must have been living in.
In the room, Erik found a vial filled with a liquid that had an ethereal appearance, as well as a journal with the name "Wyndelius Gatharian" on the first page. The journal only had a few entries, but they showed Wyndelius's slip into madness.
"Well—I guess that solves that issue," Erik sighed and bagged the book and the philter before he slipped his arms under the Dark Elves' still-warm body and lifted him.
As he walked through the barrow, he was met with the same undead that met him and led him to where the elf was staying.
"As I promised, I've dealt with the intruder, and now I'm leaving. He wasn't a spirit as I thought, but a man who'd come here and gone mad. I'm taking him to be given a proper burial, so there won't be any chance of his spirit returning and disturbing you."
"Dreh ni daal het, nahl gein, uv hi fen kos ofan rinis dez ol daar mey," the creature replied, moving aside for Erik. (Do not return here, living one, or you will be given the same fate as this fool.)
Erik nodded and moved forward, leaving the barrow and its undead inhabitance behind before finding a spot on the edge of the cliffside behind the barrow. He found a boulder and set the body next to it before covering the body with rocks and whispering the writ of burial that he'd uttered before.
Then he got up and walked back to Ivarstead, where he met with Wilhelm.
"So…it was an elf?" the innkeeper asked as he flipped through the journal. "So, will the Draugr stop coming out of the tomb?"
"I imagine so, yes. They were being disturbed by Gatharian, and I imagine being awake for so long was driving them mad," Erik replied, shrugging.
"Well, thank you for your help," Wilhelm said, sighing and digging out a hefty bag of coin, but he also pulled out something…more.
It looked like the claw of a dragon with talons made of sapphire.
On it, the image of a moth, an owl, and a howling wolf were depicted on the palm of the claw.
"What is this?" Erik asked, taking the gold and observing the claw.
"It's something to do with that barrow. A Draugr was holding it when it came out, I figured it would do you good if—"
"Keep it," Erik said. "Seal the barrow, and keep the claw. The Draugr there are going to kill whoever enters. They only let me through because they were desperate to go to sleep."
"Are you sure?"
"Do it," the Nord nodded and turned to leave. "If you need my help, I'm at the edge of the town—"
"Erik!"
Erik whipped around to see M'rissi standing at the entrance of the inn, panting, afraid.
"What is it?" Erik asked, rushing to her side.
"We must leave! M'rissi—she—she was attacked by a man while she was hunting. He had this—" she said, digging into her side pack and fumbling a note while rushing to open it.
When she handed it to Erik, and he began reading it, his heart dropped.
You are hereby hired by the Thalmor Justiciars, refusal will result in your immediate death.
You are needed to track a Khajiit subject. She has the appearance of a human, or elf, with Khajiit ears and a thin, brown fur that covers most of her body. We've been told she and a Nord were heading North, but in case we were misled, you will head East. If you pick up their trail, send men to contact us, follow them, and capture them.
The girl is to remain untouched. Any harm done to her will result in execution. The Nord is unimportant. Do what you will with him.
-Eleria.
"How many where there?" Erik asked.
"Just one," M'rissi replied as Erik folded the note.
He turned back to Wilhelm, walking back to the counter.
"Thank you for the gold, Wilhelm, but, my friend and I need to leave. I need to ask one last favor from you."
"Anything. You've helped our town more than you know; I'll be glad to help you."
Erik took a deep breath and handed the note to the innkeeper.
"I'm being followed by the Thalmor. I'm taking a massive leap of faith by trusting you, but you seem like an honorable man. I need to make sure they're thrown off our trail."
Wilhelm paused for a moment as he read the note. His eyes grew wider with each line he read, and Erik feared the worst.
"I see," the innkeeper nodded. "I'll do what I can."
"Thank you," Erik replied. "We'll have to cross into Helgen, after that, I have no idea where we're going, but I imagine if you tell them that we're heading to Rorikstead, through Falkreath, it'll buy us some time." Then he paused and sighed, setting the bag of coin that he'd just ben given on the table. "Here, take this back and—"
"What? Why are you giving the money back?"
"I don't feel right asking you to do this without compensation, you're risking your life—"
"You risked your life for Ivarstead," Wilhelm said, shoving the coin purse back to Erik. "I have no qualms about doing the same for you, and I'll be sure to try to spread the word. Folks here don't care too much for the elves anyway."
"Try not to make it too easy for them," Erik replied after a moment.
Wilhelm nodded, and Erik turned and met with M'rissi. Together, they left for their campsite on the edge of town and began to pack up for the next leg of their journey.
"You said we would be safe here for weeks," M'rissi grumbled as she helped destroy the firepit they'd built.
"I was wrong," Erik replied. "I didn't count on them hiring more mercenaries so soon, that's on me. It seems like our only option is to keep moving."
"But for how long?"
"Until we can get enough to cross the border with protection," he replied. "We almost have enough already—"
"What? How?"
"I—may have went into the barrow near here and took care of a man who was disturbing the Draugr within."
M'rissi glared at him and delivered a soft slap, shaking her head.
"You went into there without M'rissi! You could have gotten yourself killed!"
"I know—I know. But it seemed like easy money, and it was. Besides, the Draugr didn't even touch me, they wanted me to get rid of him."
"That is besides the point! What would happen if you died in there? What would M'rissi do? She would be destroyed."
Erik sighed and nodded, kissing M'rissi.
"I know, and I'm sorry. I should have waited for you, but I figured it'd be easier if I did it alone. It won't happen again, I promise," he said, hefting his bag with the tent over his shoulders. "Come on, let's get moving."