» Tue May 17, 2011 11:38 am
@ Foxy - Thank you very much Foxy, I love your poems, (as you know) - even if the subject of them is phooey, ROFL - it ended up being too large, so the one you are waiting for will be after the one I post today. Gaaah, I know the wait is killing me, lol. You ROCK Foxy !!
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@ Acadian - Thank you so much, I did not realize how much dialogue that chapter had till you said something, lol !!! I wrote Vicente and Ocheeva, then just wove Gogron in and out - then added the responses to his parts. I was in hysterics, his odor is not the only thing that took on a life of its own, Gogron's personality did as well - not an endearing one, but very believable for an Orc? ROFL.
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Hauteecole Rider - Thank you very much, Rachel has def started a few things, I will think of Martin as the manly Dragonheart instead of the whiny guy from my game, and not want to sleep anywhere near Jauffre again, ROFL - so glad it brought a laugh reading, because I was in stitches writing it !!
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@ RemkoNL - Now that is what I love to hear !! Thank you so much RemkoNL !!!!
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@ Destri Melarg - That was my favorite line, I could really hear an Orc saying something like that - maybe I played too much Fallout 3 and picked up on the dialogue of the Super Mutants, ROFL - Thank you so much Destri!
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@ SubMinxette the Rosa-Minx - I never had a little brother, but tried to picture one when I wrote Gogron's part, and then pictured locking the two in a cell for an extended period; Vicente's attitude of superiority mixed with frustration and desperation over Maxical VS Gogron's lack of respect for Vicente's superiority and authoritae - the situation had to be funny, lol. In a situation like that, at the end you find out which had the stronger personality - in this case, Gogron brought Vicente down to his level: name calling, etc.
Thank you very much SubRosa, you ROCK the Minxdom of Minxonia!
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@ Rachel (the other Minx) Breton - who was it I recently read that had Vicente and Lucien going at it - Alexander's "Cyrodiil" I think, I was sitting at my desk hooting! The story was old, but someone (other than me) necromanced the story, and I could not stop reading it! - It was a great fight scene!
In writing, (Not in game) - Lucien is coming across with a lot of personality and I would have to tend toward his side, but in game he is really easy to kill compared to Vicente, lol.
Thank you so much Rachel !! (the other Minx).
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Chapter 65: Lucien Lachance and Eyja
"So if I understand you correctly, Vicente did all this over a girl?"
Eyja nodded, never taking her eyes from Lucien's. "Yes, it seems he was quite interested in her?virginity. I did not find this out till we were at the castle. One of the members told me what was going on."
"I see." Lucien said quietly; then very suddenly stood up, as if a new thought occurred to him. "Are you saying that as a vampire he is interested in her virgin blood?"
Once again, Eyja nodded. "That is exactly the way it was said to me. It seems they all knew."
Lucien sat down again. "And he used all the resources of our organization to run a full scale siege on Castle Skingrad for that? Jeopardizing our entire organization?"
"Yes. I was hired the instant he met me to organize the whole mission. I was told it was to rescue a fellow member. I did what I was hired to do, here is a copy of the maps and orders I gave each of them. It was to be a full scale stealth operation. Everything was timed out to the second; that is until Vicente and Ocheeva took over for the mission. After that it was the biggest mess I've ever seen. Vicente changed my maps so even the Count would not be able to find his way to his own quarters by it. Look, here is a copy of one he gave me."
"This thing is unreadable!" Lucien turned the parchment in different angles, but could not find one in which the map was legible. He looked closely at the writing, it was Vicente's.
"Exactly. That wasn't the worst of it, either. The members squabbled and brawled with each other in the middle of a mission, right there in the castle; drawing the attention of the guards. None of them could follow the simplest instruction. Vicente, Gogron, and Antoinetta all showed their faces to the castle guards, risking the anonymity of the guild. Had they succeeded in kidnapping this girl; who was a guest of the castle I might add; they would have been named easily for the crime. The castle is not open in the middle of the night, how would they explain their presence there? Vicente and Gogron were caught, and they sit in jail as we speak."
Lucien looked over the notes Eyja handed him. It was the most intricately and brilliantly planned out mission he had ever seen, down to the last detail. The handwriting was unfamiliar.
Lucien was not surprised by Eyja's revelations. The Cheydinhal chapter had been lax for quite some time. A purge had been imminent for a while now, increasingly so in the last months.
Vicente caused dissention among the members with his womanizing; disappeared with no notice to anyone for months; most recently the summons and order to drop all contracts for one missing member; dragging the whole chapter halfway across Cyrodiil. And he had hired an outsider without going through proper protocol. He was out of control.
Antoinetta acted more like a thwarted two year old than a professional assassin, and Ocheeva coddled her. The whole promiscuous lot of them spreading disease amongst themselves was unacceptable.
They had all become weak, that could not be tolerated in this organization. Worst of all, the traitor assassin had been traced to the Cheydinhal chapter. It was time for the Black Hand to enact the Rite of Purification.
When Lucien didn't speak, Eyja continued. "I have never seen such an inept and unprofessional crew in my life. I believe in running a 'tight ship' as my father used to say. Ocheeva loves the others?maybe too much. It gives her a disadvantage as the leader of the chapter. They walk all over her and do as they please. She caters to the megrims of that child Antoinetta as if she bore her in her womb. A leader has to distance themselves so respect for their authority is not lost." Eyja declared roundly, then in more dulcet tones added, "More Shepherd's Pie? It's my specialty. I make it with triple the garlic, that is why it is so good."
"This is delicious, I will have to stop into the sanctuary more often if I will be treated like this! I'll bet Vicente was upset he couldn't partake of this, being allergic to garlic."
"Actually he ate quite a bit of it. I repeatedly warned him of the garlic in it, but he loved it so much that he continued eating it anyway." Eyja smiled, ladling out more on Lucien's plate.
Lucien looked up at that, surprised. "I'll bet he suffered." He hesitated, then added, "Would you mind sharing the recipe?"
"I don't give it out. If everyone made it, it would cease to be special. If it is a handwriting sample you seek to verify those are my plans, why not just ask?"
"Was I that obvious?" Lucien was stunned that she had caught him.
"Yes." She said flatly.
"How so?" He was genuinely curious.
"Men don't ask for recipes unless they are married." Eyja looked him directly in the eyes.
"How do you know I am not?" He blanked his expression.
Eyja reached over and lifted his hand to his view. "No ring, no whiteness of your skin showing one has been there."
"Not all men wear rings." Lucien raised one brow, as if challenging her.
"You would." Eyja did not break contact with his eyes.
Lucien stared at her, surprise dawning in his eyes. "Yes, I would. How did you know that?"
"Some things you just know without a reason." Eyja turned away, busying herself with opening a fresh bottle of wine.
Lucien watched her a minute before speaking, but he had already made up his mind.
"Eyja, I have a task that requires a very special person to handle. I find myself very impressed with you. Would you consider working directly under me? If you do this for me, I will give you the running of the Cheydinhal sanctuary. All the members would come to you for their orders. The pay is extremely high. What would you be willing to do for a position like that?" Lucien asked, taking another large forkful of the pie. He watched her reaction carefully.
"I'd kill for an arrangement like that!" Eyja declared, pouring more wine in Lucien's glass. She slowly raised her eyes to his, the wine bottle poised over the glass momentarily. With a flicker of a smile she added, "Literally."
"I hoped you would feel that way. I am enacting a total purge of this chapter. We have had a traitor in our midst, and our organization cannot tolerate the weakness I have seen in these members. You have more than proven yourself to me." Lucien hesitated, she was looking intently at him.
"I will make a gift to you of my personal blade. This Purification is a sacred Rite, a ceremony of cleansing. This particular blade was handed down through the ages specifically for this ritual." Lucien un-strapped the sheath from his waist and held it out to her.
Eyja took it, drawing the shortsword out and examining it. "Blade of Woe." She read aloud, then fastened the sheath around her.
Lucien stared hard at her, shaken out of his sangfroid. The words on the blade were etched in enchanted code, and she had read them easily. Who was she? He shook himself and began with the instructions.
"If possible, isolate each member before killing them, so the others don't realize the Purification has been enacted. We prefer things like this to be done cleanly and quietly. There is a bonus, when completed I will give you my enchanted mare for your own. Shadowmere is the most loyal mount you will ever find."
"Shadowmere." Eyja repeated. "Will you not miss her?" She asked softly.
"I hope to continue to see her, with her new owner aboard." His voice was sincere, and he looked deeply into her eyes as he said it.
"I will do it. When?" Eyja kept her eyes and voice steady under his intense scrutiny.
"As soon as possible. I think we will work well together, Eyja." Lucien lifted her hand and placed some spells in it, smiling up at her. "Take these. This one is a vengeful ghost. Don't rely on it to help you, it is really just a party trick."
"Hmm, I wonder what kind of party I would pull this out at?" Eyja laughed. "Lucien, I will strive to see you always feel we work well together. Thank you." Eyja smiled, looking briefly into his eyes before removing the empty plate from in front of him. "More wine?"
"Yes, thank you. This wine is excellent! I usually have Surilie Brothers delivered to me, but this is much better. What is that, Tamika's 399?"
"Yes it is, and I will tell you a secret few people know. The Surilie Brothers don't even drink their own wine, they prefer Tamika's themselves."
"Eyja, you are a gem!" Lucien smiled up at her again. She was the one good thing that came out of this mess. "By the way, where is everyone else? Why are you here alone?"
"Oh, they all had to go to the chapel for healing from that disease. It seems Antoinette also gave it to several of the guards at Skingrad Castle during the mission. They were at the Chapel getting healed at the same time our members were there. Had the guards found out that our members were being treated for the exact same thing, it would have directly connected us to the trouble at the castle."
"Yes it would. What did they have?" Lucien was watching her eyes intently. Her eyes did not even flicker once, nor evade. Her body seemed relaxed and open toward him. She had to be telling the truth.
"The healer said they all had 'Red Rage' and 'Brain Rot'. Antoinetta caught it from the beggar that hangs in front of this manor. He is well known to have both diseases. 'Nigidius the Needy' is what they call him. I guess Antoinetta is the one that was needy." Eyja gave a tinkle of laughter. Lucien laughed, still watching her eyes as she spoke.
"The healer said the disease made them weak as newborn babies in more ways than one." Eyja flipped her index finger against her temple to demonstrate weak minded. "I noticed them all itching, and stayed as far away from them as possible."
"That was smart." Lucien said, pushing back his chair and standing up. "The others will be returning soon, and I would like to take my leave before they do. You seem to have this well in hand. I have had a surprisingly pleasant morning, Eyja. I may come visit you often when you are the new head of the Cheydinhal chapter. I don't know when I have been more intrigued with a woman." He looked deeply into her eyes, a questioning look in his.
"That is not supposed to be a question." Eyja whispered, her cheeks pinking from his intense look.
Lucien lifted her left hand, turning it palm up. He pressed a key into her palm, then curled her fingers over it. "I've already given you keys and the code for the sanctuary, this key is separate from anything to do with the sanctuary. It is the key to my personal quarters in Fort Farragut. I want you to feel free to use it anytime, you will always be welcome. If I am out, you are free to wait for me there." Lucien's eyes sought hers before continuing.
"Whether you ever avail yourself of the sanctuary or not, matters not for this invitation. It is from a man to a woman who has caught his interest greatly, and has nothing to do with the Black Hand or Dark Brotherhood. The entrance is within a great oak to the left of the main enclosure." Without taking his eyes from hers, he lifted her other hand to his lips. Giving it a brief salute, he turned and walked out the door.
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