Board Thread:Roleplaying/@comment-768817-20160530212729/@comment-5543592-20160601044457

Vestulf poured over the documents spread out on the table before him. He had several that were important to him, although most were simple hobbies. Tracking the location of Wuuthrad, for instance. With a large enough shard of that he could forge a blade that would tear through Thalmor like no other. Others were simple troop reports, the ongoings of important officers, ticket purchases for the Reman theater.

He looked up from the table and crossed the stone floor. The lair he was in was someone comfortable, with a number of amenities. When he'd first refurbished it some 30 years ago, it'd been in a state of disrepair. It had been an old Mythic Dawn hide-out, the location of which he'd dug up in the Cloud Ruler Temple archives.

The memory of that used to hurt him, that he'd gone in and then left, abandoning his brothers to be slaughtered. Now it was just numb.

He crossed to the racks of weapons--all singature of the Blades: a katana, dai-katanas, wakizashi, shuriken-- and pulled his katana from it's sheath. He stared at the blade for a moment, scanning his own reflection--wrinkles at the forehead, around the eyes and mouth, creased cheeks, gray at his temples, powerful by sagging muscles at his neck and jaw--unsure why he had left the desk to do just this.

He spun, suddenly, leveling his weapon at the darkness of the lair entrance. A noise had come from it. Vestulf wore little besides a pair of baggy pair of linen pants, shirtless so that the bandaged wound across his stomach could feel the damp air.

He crossed to the arched entry way, which lead to a bridge that sat high over a family of sizeable rats. Vestulf fed them regularly. The rat pack had grown to over twenty in number, were fat, and stayed in place. They were mean too and tore up anything that tried to enroach on their free-eating. That was why Vestulf kept them.

He stood in the entry way now, staring out across the bridge, katana lowered to his side, at a young woman who had gotten caught in his net. The trap was rigged to a pressure plate, which was very easy to avoid if you knew where it was. If you didn't, however, you'd undoubtedly step on it walking in. A net swung out, caught you, and then dangled you over the fifteen foot drop down to the rat family.

"Hi." The woman trapped in the net said, not struggling, but she looked very uncomfortable.

Vestulf stared at her blankly, before glancing down at the rats, then across the bridge from where she'd come, then back to her.

"How did you find me?" His voice was strong, with the reassuring depth only a man of his age and stature could portray. Vestulf had always played the leader well, although he rarely welcomed such a responsibility.

"Do you remember me?" The girl asked. Vestulf nodded.

"I followed you after you, uh, rescued me and my friend from those thugs."

"No one had been following me.  I checked."

"I just went in the direction I thought you had gone, then headed towards the sounds of fighting.  I watched until you went into the sewer, then ducked in after you."

"I didn't leave a trail."

"You were bleeding, I followed-"

"I left a misdirection, then patched the wound and took the correct path." Vestulf cut in. "How did you find me?" He asked again.

She was silent for a long moment. "I used a Clairvoyance spell." The girl finally said. "You hadn't masked yourself yet with magic, like you are now, so I guess you're a mage, and it took me in the general direction of you.  But I lost your trail soon after, and I took me the rest of the night and  today to find this place." She rambled on, then laughed nervously.

Vestulf frowned. That had been quick thinking of her. He wasn't sure whether to be impressed or suspicion. "Why'd you follow me?"

"I've never seen anyone fight back." She answered, almost immediately. "The guards walk a fine line between action and inaction, always unpredictable, but I've heard all about you.  You've gone to the extreme.  Murders in the streets, targetting ranking officers, guerilla tactics.  It's all just so out of the box..." She trailed of as Vestulf approached, eyes boring into her, scrutinizing. She eyed the katana in his hand.

"I was hoping you'd let me help." She finally said.

That got a brow raise out of him. "Let you help?" He almost smiled. ''Help me what? Murder people in the street?''

"I'm a mage and I've got my own bone to pick with the Thalmor!  You know I'm smart, I managed to follow you here, and I guess you're pretty good at not letting that happen.  I figured if you were a revolutionary, you'd need help.  One man can't take on the Thalmor alone."

"I'm not revolutionary." Vestulf said. "And I'm not one man, I'm two."

"And I'm not a spy." She countered, correctly guessing that this whole interrogation had been about that one aspect.

Vestulf nodded, looking away. "I know you're not." The Blade admitted as he cut the rope to the net, starting her on the descent down to the rats.

The girl's face dissolved into an expression of shock as she dropped, a scream forming on her lips-- but the fall was stopped short as Vestulf caught the net in his off-hand by the cut end of the rope, and hauled it and it's contents onto the bridge, before cutting the net down the middle to free the woman.

The girl rose shakily, pushing the ropes asides aside. She was red with outrage and embarressment, but she held her tongue though, which Vestulf appreciated and respected. They both stood there in silence, each staring at the other.

"I thought you were going to kill me for a second there." She finally said.

Vestulf only shrugged.

Then the knight turned, gesturing for her to follow him back the way he had come, into the old Daedra-worshipper's hideout.

"You already know where the place is." He said. "So I won't bother trying to force you out."

"What?" She asked, surprised for a second time, "Why not?"

"Perhaps I'm curious why you think I should let you help.  Besides, you'd only get lost down here.  You'll find it's harder to get out than in."

"Oh." The girl said, probably not getting the answer she'd been expecting.

"What's your name, girl?" Vestulf asked.

"Ielia."

"Vestulf." He said, giving his own in return.

"Nice to meet you, Vestulf."

He didn't return the pleasantary. "You have any family?" He asked.

"No." She simply answered.

Vestulf gave a curt nod, as they entered back into his temporary headquarters. Ielia was immediately surprised at the amount of stuff in the room, space, and cleanliness, judging by her wide eyes.

"That's more an asset than you know.  Attachments are only a burden." Vestulf said, completely aware of the irony in that statement.