Black Marsh

"There seems to be something you aren't telling the rest of us, Nirrarien." Do'Khaj smiled, "But don't worry, I won't say a word to Allena. Your secret is safe with me. Well, we've likely got an eventful day ahead of us tomorrow, so we need to be well rested. I'm off to my chambers to sleep. Good night."
With that, Do'Khaj turned and descended into the hold, and to his quarters.

It was a large room with rather little decoration, just some weapons mounted on the walls, a wardrobe and a painting of the Avatar of Akatosh above the large bed. Do'Khaj could tell the bed had been put there specially for him, very few people were as tall as he was. Do'Khaj replaced his armour with a simple, white, cotton shirt and black cotton trousers. Both were rather thin, perfect for the warm climate of Black Marsh. He flopped onto the bed and fell into a deep, restful sleep.

Do'Khaj awoke to the sloshing of water beneath him. While that sound would make most Khajiit queasy, Do'Khaj was rather fond of it. He redressed into his armour, buckled his sword to his belt, slung his satchel over his shoulder and ascended to the deck.

Do'Khaj appeared to be the first to wake, save the crew, who were still steering the boat. The shores of Black Marsh were in sight now, shores Do'Khaj was reluctant to set foot upon. However, Do'Khaj did have some influential friends in Black Marsh, such as a Shadowscale and a member of the An-Xileel. Do'Khaj decided eating something might calm his nerves, so he produced a small loaf of bread from his satchel and proceeded to eat it rather quickly.

Finally, the boat moored itself at the docks in Soulrest. Do'Khaj and his group proceeded to leave the boat and walk into the bustling city of Soulrest.
"Well, how do you suppose we are to find our contact in a place like this?" Do'Khaj sighed, not wanting to spend ages searching around the entire city looking for the fifth member of their group.

Do'Khaj was unimpressed by the arrogance of this man, he could tell that Kairos felt that he was superior to the rest of the group due to his facial expression.
"Just because you have expensive armour and weapons doesn't mean you can use them any better than the rest of us can." Do'Khaj hissed, "Not all of us come from rich Nordic families who earn their fortunes by exploiting innocent Elves, Khajiit and Argonians."
Do'Khaj was irritated by the fact that Kairos seemed to be even worse than Allena. He hadn't yet talked to Elevainia, she just seemed to be rather shy, and not objectionable in any way. Do'Khaj continued to follow Kairos through the crowded streets, having little trouble getting through, since nobody dared do anything to him like they had to Allena, due to his giant-like stature. Ahead of the group, Do'Khaj saw two lightly armoured guards, both armed with spears. Do'Khaj was hoping not to have to pass them, but he had no such luck. As soon as they saw Allena's robes, they immediately gripped their spears with both hands and pointed them forward at Allena.
"Your Thalmor aren't welcome here." one hissed in poor Tamrielic, struggling to pronounce some words, but not speaking in Jel lest Allena be unable to understand it.
"No, you misunderstand." Do'Khaj told the guards in Jel, a language of strange hisses and guttural noises, making almost impossible for any ape to speak, "We are mercenaries in the employ of the An-Xileel, and we have been asked to retrieve documents from the Thalmor. Allena has disguised herself as a Thalmor in order to infiltrate their lines to retrieve important documents."
"May I see the aforementioned documents?" the guard asked, now speaking Jel.
"Of course." Do'Khaj nodded, pulled the Thalmor general's diary from his back and handed it to the guard.
The guard proceeded to open the diary and flick through it in confusion.
"What strange language is this?" he asked Do'Khaj.
"Falmer." Do'Khaj answered.
"I'll deliver this." the guard offered, "What is the name of your employer?"
"Alt-Lei." Do'Khaj answered, "Tell him it's from Desert Warrior and he will visit him soon."
"I will." the guard nodded and ran off with the diary.
The other guard lowered his spear, so Do'Khaj continued onwards.

Do'Khaj was rather confused by Nirrarien's outburst, surely he should be grateful, considering he had just saved them a trip to the authorities. Maybe he just didn't understand Jel.
"You should be grateful, we'd all be in the hands of the men who wanted us dead or on the run from the law if I hadn't just saved us then!" Do'Khaj hissed angrily, "I suppose the reason you don't want me to visit the politician I just mentioned is because you don't want allies within the An-Xileel. You know I'm not going to betray you since the lives of my mate and cubs are on the line."
Do'Khaj could tell that something was obviously agitating Nirrarien, something other than his "treachery", most likely Kairos.

Sure enough, Nirrarien hurled a spell at Kairos' feet and shouted at him violently, ordering him to tell him where he was leading the group. Do'Khaj could tell that this would not end well, but if the worst came to the worst, Do'Khaj would side with Nirrarien. However, Do'Khaj was hoping it would not come to a fight, but would gladly beat some sense into Kairos.

"Just because you have expensive armour and weapons doesn't mean you can use them any better than the rest of us can." A hiss came from behind him "Not all of us come from rich Nordic families who earn their fortunes by exploiting innocent Elves, Khajiit and Argonians." Kairos payed no mind to the enraged Khajiit. Perhaps he appeared to be rich to the races who were highly discriminated against, but he had gone through the hardships of working his way to where he was through a painful journey. Yet, Kairos was amused that the Khajiit still inclined to follow him regardless. Though he came off as arrogant, he was more interested in their next destination rather than making simple pleasantries. It was dangerous in the midst of town, but he had no plan of disclosing the information while surrounded by the glaring Argonians.

He pressed onwards towards the edge of town when confronted with two Arognian guards. They carried with them spears and were draped in light armour. Kairos glanced back at the young Altmer clothed with those of the Thalmor, no wonder the guards were so persistent. Kairos knew he could easily take down both guards yet he decided not to draw attention to the small group and stood down when he heard Do'Khaj's voice. He spoke in the tongue of Jel, which Kairos only knew few words. He caught the end of the conversation and watched as the native dashed off to locate find his superior. As it was clearly unsafe for the group to be knownst as agents of Thalmor, he decided he would need to have the young Altmer be protected.

Kairos' sword brushed against his armor while pursuing he destination further when suddenly the voice of the mage shouted behind him. He quickly noticed the ward in front of him and paused in front of it while drawing the massive blade from it's hilt.“You are in Atatil's employ; and he has chosen me as his representative. So it is to me that you will answer, and you will answer this; where do you lead us, and to what end?” As the firemage approached Kairos, he turned his heel and put the blade to his throat. After what seemed like a long moment, Kairos withdrew the blade and sheathed it. Kairos was slightly surprised at the mage's sudden reaction. He had assumed the Khajiit was the leader of the few companions as brash as he was, but was taken off-guard when the Altmer revealed his leadership. Kairos wonder if the two males had fought for dominance previous to their arrival in Black Marsh but it appeared they hadn't. They would struggle for dominance in the group eventually Kairos thought inwardly, he himself didn't want dominance, he had other motives.

Kairos looked towards the sharp tongued mage. "It's dangerous here" he stated firmly. "I will not reveal such information where there are prying eyes. I also have no intention in engaging in battle with you, or your companions here for that matter. I will explain myself when we reach safer ground." He nodded towards the group and turned to continue on, not before noticing the young Bosmer girl from the corner of his eye. She appeared young and slender with flowing hair the was blowing faintly in the wind. Why did she look like someone Kairos knew? He shook it off, but he was surprised he hadn't initially noticed the resemblance. He stepped forward, his boots clanking with every step he took. He rather not speak of the threat the Dark Brotherhood was to the group out in the open of the city.

"It's good to know there's somewhere in Soulrest where we can stay without fearing that the Dark Brotherhood will kill us in our sleep." Do'Khaj smiled before downing his entire tankard of ale in a single gulp, "Ale, that's the good stuff. I'm not one for wine. I find it entertaining how people outside Elsweyr are strongly opposed to Skooma, yet alchohol can be just as harmful. If you'll excuse me, I'm going outside. I haven't really been able to stretch my legs for some time."

With that, Do'Khaj opened the door of the house and walked outside, making sure he would be able to quickly draw his sword lest the need arise. He walked round the back of the house where he saw Elevainia shooting a deer. Do'Khaj noted that she spent a rather long time aiming. However, the arrow had driven itself exactly through the centre of its heart, so maybe it was worth it. She could probably do a better job than he could, he knew how to use a bow and arrow, but was hardly skilled at it. He remembered Khjar-Li, his second in command when he was commander of the Mane's Warrior Guard, she was skilled with a bow, being able to fire lethal shots at extreme speeds. She was also skilled in the use of daggers two of which she possessed, both expertly crafted from ebony. She was probably head of the warrior guard now, and waiting for the birth of a new Mane.
"Nice shot." Do'Khaj complimented Elevainia, "You are going to eat that deer aren't you, otherwise her death will have been in vain. I premuse the main reason you shot her was to practice, but in future, try shooting targets. Life is precious, so don't waste it."
Do'Khaj walked over to the corpse of the deer, hoisted it over his shoulder and walked back to Elevainia.
"What do you want me to do with this?" Do'Khaj asked, "I could skin it for you and carve it up or sell it to a butcher, I'd give you the profit, of course."

Do'Khaj left Kairos to carve and cook the slain doe while he went to join Nirrarien in scrolling through the tomes. Many appeared to be mythological books as opposed to factual books, but after skimming through a few, it seemed that they all pointed to the same place, the Vaults of Gemin, near Stormhold in the north of Black Marsh. They claimed that within the vaults was hidden an Elder Scroll that would reveal the location of Murkwood, a strange, magical forest that moves around Black Marsh. The books claimed that within the Murkwood was one of "The Old Gods"; beings worshipped by the Aldmer that were neither Aedra nor Daedra, but beings such as the Dragons. The books revealed little about this Old God, only that it was known as Kehrok and that it owned one of the 5 keys.

Do'Khaj's study was interupted by Allena and Elevainia running upstairs wearing expensive dresses and circelts. Do'Khaj never understood why women were so obsessed with clothes, surely as long as they were clean and didn't look stupid they were fine, they didn't need a million different pairs that were laced with expensive furs and jewels. One thing Do'Khaj liked about his wife was that she shared his taste in fashion. He heard Allena ask if Nirrarien had discovered anything, so he decided that now would be a good time to share his findings with the group.
"According to what I've read, we need to find the ruins of the Vaults of Gemin where there is an Elder Scroll that will guide us to the key." Do'Khaj announced, "It's only mid-day, we can probably reach Targus by nightfall. It's a small town between here and Gideon that is unlikely to be as dangerous as where we are now, considering its remoteness. If we are to leave for Targus, we should leave soon."

"Why am I not surprised..." Do'Khaj sighed, "I can't expect anyone who isn't a seasoned veteran like me to bear having their feet sink an inch into mud. I was under the impression that you were a soldier, you should be able to take on a Hackwing or two. I don't want to turn down Jeelus-Tei's hospitality, but neither do I want to drag this damned mission out for longer than it need be. The sooner I can go home with my family, the better."
Do'Khaj turned his attention to the fire, first examining the roasting deer, it looked cooked enough for him, then quickly glanced at Kairos and Elevainia sharing an intimate moment. They looked a rather odd couple, Kairos looming over Elevainia, but who was he to judge? He was taller than both of them, and his wife was over a foot shorter than he was. Do'Khaj then stood and slipped behind the couple, removing the doe from its place above the fire, where it would have burned had it been left there much longer. Drawing one of the ebony daggers he had obtained from the Argonian assassin, he sliced the doe into 6 equal pieces, placed those pieces on plates and gave everyone in the group a piece, as well as Jeelus-Tei. He sat down and devoured his quickly, his breakfast of a small loaf of bread had hardly been sufficient to keep a man of his stature going for long.
"Well, I'm going to spend the time I was going to have spent earlier had I not carried Elevainia's kill for her, outside." Do'Khaj announced, making sure to say so in such a tone that Elevainia would understand that he was in no way annoyed with her.

Now was the time to make a name for himself lest he got in trouble and needed more support than Jeelus-Tei could provide. The most obvious place to go to would be a tavern, the barkeeps would surely have worthwhile information. So to a tavern he went.

The Tavern he entered was named "The Deathbell and the Bottle", not an attractive name for alchoholics. Never the less, Do'Khaj entered to see a young Argonian man staggering around and shouting angrily. He made the mistake of shouting at Do'Khaj.
"Get out of my bar, furball!"
With that, he hurled his empty tankard at Do'Khaj, which Do'Khaj expertly caught, to the surprise of the spectators. He then hurled the tankard to the floor angrily. The drunk Argonian was next. Do'Khaj hurled himself at the young man, hurling him backwards into the wall, causing him to loose conciousness and crumple to the floor like a sack of spuds.
"Who was that?" Do'Khaj asked the bartender.
"My best customer." He sighed, "I really wish he'd stop doing this. I should thank you for putting him in his place. Have a drink, on the house."
Do'Khaj didn't pass up the offer, so he sat down at the bar and downed the tankard of ale the bartender gave him.
"I'm new here." Do'Khaj told the bartender, "Is there anything I should know about the city?"
"Not much has happened until recently." The bartender replied, "There's some strange Imperial man who says he wants to go to the Murkwood, who's staying here. Dark Brotherhood activity has increased recently, many innocent people have been killed recently for supposed affiliations with the Empire and the Dominion. I wouldn't be surprised if that Imperial was killed by them."

(Ignore)

"Kairos, I really do wish I could give you an answer, but I am afraid that I have no memories beyond last season. Please if I do look familiar to you, I am trying to find out who I used to be." the young elf quietly whispered. The Nord held her gaze for a few moments before the pair heard the sound of footsteps approach. It was Do'Khaj, who had seemingly decided the doe was readily cooked. He removed the the doe from behind them and began to slice it. Kairos was not impressed, the Khajiit clearly needed to have some kind of control within the group, as Kairos could have handled the deer himself. Though he was conversing with Elevainia, he still kept a sharp eye on the deer.

Kairos let the tooth from the Bosmer's neck fall gently against her collarbone. The man shook his head, "I'm sorry," he began as his eyes softened, "I do not know of your identity." He felt the need to not say more in front of the others as Do'Khaj promptly served the party with the doe. Kairos accepted the plate before giving a slight nod and making his way to the main room where he sat and feasted on the kill. "Well, I'm going to spend the time I was going to have spent earlier had I not carried Elevainia's kill for her, outside." The Khajiit decided to announce as he promptly left through the wooden door. It didn't sound as if he minded about the kill, but the way he said it made Kairos wonder if there was an underlying annoyance in the comment.

As the evening grew colder, Kairos prepared the sleeping quarters. Despite the Khajiit wanting to leave earlier, he had not returned from the tavern. The Nord sighed as he gulped down a drink of ale. He stepped out from the small room and made his way to the front of the house. He informed the group of their awaiting beds and Allena quickly stood from her chair and bid the others goodnight. Kairos sat next to Jeelus-Tei and began to inquire about the groups next destination. Before long, the rest of the party had retreated to their rooms, as well as the Argonian. Left alone, the Nord rifled through his satchel producing an old journal. He flipped through the creased pages long into the early hours of the morn before finally falling asleep in the wooden chair.

The sound of frogs croaking and birds chirping awoke Kairos from his sleep. He turned his head towards the window to see the morning sun begin to fill the sky. Luckily, no one had awakened to find him fast asleep in the old chair. He rose from his sleeping position and proceeded to prepare his armour and blades. As the morning drifted on, the others awoke and made their way to the kitchen area for breakfast. Much to Kairos' surprise, the Khajiit had appeared from the bedroom. He must've arrived late in the night and settled in. While continuing the meal, the Khajiit again left the dwelling and ventured into town. He must have found some information in town that would prove useful to the party's quest, the Nord thought to himself. Kairos payed no mind an began to inform the others of the journey they would take to Stormhold.

"Which room is this Imperial in?" Do'Khaj asked, "He sounds interesting, I'd like to talk to him."
"First room on the left, upstairs." The bartender told Do'Khaj.
Do'Khaj thanked him, left the bar, ascended the stairs and walked into the room.

He was greeted by a scene of horror. There was a large splatter of blood on the wall, and a decapitated body was lying in a pool of his own blood. The body was covered in mutiple gashes and was wearing bloodied, orange mage's robes. Into his chest the shape of a human hand had been carved, proving that this murder had been commited by the Dark Brotherhood. Do'Khaj rummaged around the room for evidence as to how recent the killing was and why it had happened. He couldn't find anything, all he had to go by was the hand carved into the victim's chest.

Once Do'Khaj was downstairs, he immediately alerted the bartender of the recent murder, who hurtled upstairs to investigate. Once he was outside, he alerted the nearest guard so that investigations would begin. The guard questioned him as to how much he knew about the murder then went to investigate.

By the time he returned to Jeelus-Tei's house it was late night, and all the others were soundly asleep. He slipped upstairs silently where he entered his room and changed into clothes approriate to sleep in.

He awoke earlier than the others, so he prepared his own breakfast of eggs, venison and a sweetroll made using moon sugar that he had brought with him. He was just finishing as the others arrived, so he greeted them and bid them goodbye as he finished off his plate then made his way outside. He neglected to tell them about last night's affairs lest it dampen the party's morale and make them fear for their lives even more.

There was one man Do'Khaj suspected greatly of hiring the assassin, a preacher of Sithis who looked after the Hist and despised all other nations. He made his way to the nearest Hist he could find, where, luck would have it, the preacher was resting.
"You're coming with me." Do'Khaj snarled as he lifted the man up by his collar.
The preacher hissed multiple insults in Jel at Do'Khaj before he was knocked out by Do'Khaj's gauntleted fist. Hoisting him over his left shoulder in a fireman's lift, Do'Khaj carried him the the barracks and informed the guards that he was a likely suspect, since he preached against the other nations of Tamriel, and would get extremely worried if he knew a foreigner was trying to make his way to the Murkwood.

Do'Khaj returned to Jeelus-Tei's house and took a seat by the crackling fire, he was tired and needed a good rest.