Chapter 6:

Sun's Height 8th, 4E-50

The Imperial city; Talos Plaza


"Knight of the Garland eh?" Isaac Iron-heart said as he and Gaius walked through the Talos plaza, "I'm suprised they even gave you that with the way you said the meeting went. Chancellor Ocato must hold you in high regard."

"If only that were true Isaac." Gaius said with a sigh, "And even if he was, many of the council members obviously want me to fail whatever challenge Ocato might have in store for me. All the while I have to deal with Sulla constantly watching me. And I thought I was finally rid of the fox-lion."

Isaac chuckled at Gaius' description of Sulla and said, "Where is this sly fox-lion anyway? He is probabely celebrating your bad fortune as we speak."

"In a sense he is doing just that," Gaius said with a hearty chuckle of his own, "He is visiting the actor Metrobius at the waterfront playhouse."

"Ah yes," Isaac said as he rubbed his chin with his hand, "the Waterfront playhouse. My father says that he remembers when it was just a bunch of rundown houses for the poor. Such a shame that Ocato had the houses destroyed to put up a playhouse.Isn't Metrobius that femenine looking fellow?"

"Yes, he is the breton with the long blond hair and lean figure." Gaius said softly "And I have heard rumors that Sulla and he are very close friends if you know understand my meaning."

Isaac stopped suddenly and turned to look at Gaius, who was wearing a sly smile on his face. "You can't possibly mean..."

"That is what I've heard dear Isaac." Gaius muttered, "Nothing more, nothing less."

Isaac thought of this or a second, then finally broke from his disbelief and continued forward. Gaius watched him and then followed suit, moving a little quicker to catch up with him. "I was always wondering about Sulla's fascination with that man, but it seems I now have my answer. I guess as long as he is the..." Isaac stopped for a second and coughed before continuing, "As long as he is the master of the relationship I can say he is not dishonoring himself. Even so, I believed him to be a woman chaser."

"He is a lover of women as well." Gaius said as he placed his arm around Isaac's neck, "I have seen him with many women on our way back from Hammerfell. Either the rumors of Metrobius and he are false, or Sulla is a man who has no preferences." Just as Gaius finished speaking, they finally arrived at the Tiber Septim Hotel. The hotel looked almost no different than it did fifty years ago, except for the third floor they added. The third floor was twice the size of the other two floors, and contained a small lounge. That was where Isaac and Gaius were going to meet up with Matthew Ironheart, Manius Artorius, and Annabelle Praxedes. They were going to discuss his "promotion" to Knight of the Garland and what it meant to all of them.

They stepped into the hotel and were immediately greeted by Ontus Calidia, son of Augusta Calidia and the new innkeeper. "Sir Marius," Ontus said as he wrung his hands and bowed his head, "your guests are waiting for you in the lounge. Would you like me to send up some wine or food?"

"Send up a few bottles of wine and seven servings of venison." Gaius said as he placed a small satchel of septims on the counter, then continued to the stairwell.

"Why did you order seven servings of venison when there are only five of us?" Isaac asked as they ascended the first flight of stairs.

"You know as well as I do that glutton Manius will want seconds at the very least." Gaius said with a chuckle, and both Isaac and he laughed until they finally reached the top of the last flight of stairs and entered the lounge. The lounge was furnished with four finely crafted wooden tables that could each seat four people, two benches that could also seat four on each side, and a small stage in the front of the room. Above Gaius' head was a glass chandelier that glistened with the sunlight coming in through the large window above the stage. "There you both are!" Matthew called as he stood up and went over to meet Gaius and his bother. Isaac went forward and gave his brother a quick hug before putting an arm behind his brother's back and motioning him towards Gaius. "This is commander Gaius Marius." Isaac as he pushed Matthew forward, "He was very excited to meet you, so be gentle with him."

Matthew gave Gaius a salute, and Gaius gave a quick one in return before taking the young Iron-heart's hand and shaking it. "It is a pleasure to meet you Matthew." Gaius said cheerfully, "Your brother speaks very highly of your talents. Now let us go take a seat."

"Yes Sir Knight Marius." Matthew said shyly as he turned to head towards the table. Gaius and Isaac both followed, taking a seat at the table with Annabelle and Matthew. Manius had sat at another table, wanting more room for himself. "Hello my friends!" Gaius exclaimed as he looked from Manius to Annabelle, "I am honored that you both decided to join me here."

"I only came to see what sort of ridiculous request you might have for us." Annabelle said as she pushed her loose hair from her face, looking beautiful as she did so. She seemed disinterested, but the gleam in her eyes said differently.

"And I came to see if you could throw some danger and excitment into my soon to be boring life." Manius said roughly, "Now that the war is over there is nothing to do!"

"Indeed I have gathered you all here for an important matter," Gaius said as he noticed their food finally arriving, "but first let us eat. Waiter! Please place three of those plates in front of my large friend here. Then see if you can get us some music to listen to while we eat."

"Yes sir." the dunmer waiter said as he placed all three of Manius' plates in front of him, then placing one plate in front of each person. Manius immediately began eating as soon as his plate touched the table, the Iron-heart brothers waited for Gaius to begin eating, Annabelle stared blankly at her plate, and Gaius waited for his wine before he began eating. After about thirty minutes of awkwardly silent eating and some horrible lute playing, Gaius finally decided to get down to business.

"Let's start talking about our futures in the military." Gaius said as he finished off his venison, "Where do you all see yourselves in a few years?"

Isaac put down his glass and looked into Gaius' eyes before speaking, "I might assume that my brother and I would be assigned to become captains of the town guard. I might even settle down with a lovely lady and have a child or two."

"I want to get in some more fights!" Manius said after he gave a large belch, "Then I can die either in a glorious battle or by sweet Annabelle's hands."

"You got that right!" Annabelle exclaimed with a drunken slur as she finished off a bottle of wine, "Once you are dead Manius I will live out the rest of my life peacefully!" Annabelle was known to be an excessive drinker, and on occasions men have tried to use this against her, but they all fail to realize that when she is drunk she gets kind of violent.

"Maybe you should stop drinking Anne." Isaac said playfully, "We don't want you passed out on the ground now!"

"My name isn't Anne!" she exclaimed with her drunken slur as she picked up the empty bottle and held it by the neck, "My name is Annabelle, so show me some respect!" She moved towards Isaac with the bottle and swung it at his head, but she missed his head by a foot and fell to the ground. Matthew rushed nervously to her side, but relaxed once he saw she was unharmed.

"She is only unconscious." Matthew said while he lifted her body and layed it down on one of the benches.

"Well then you will have to tell her the good news later Isaac." Gaius said with a chuckle.

"What good news?"

"All that stuff you expect to happen will not be happening. You will all be serving under me in my legion for my mission."

"What mission?" Isaac asked hesitantly "Did the council assign it to you?"

"No," Gaius said as he pulled out a copy of the letter from Morrowind, "Ocato personally gave it to me. He wants me and my chosen officers, Sulla included, to go to the border of Morrowind and halt their rebellion."

"Rebellion?!" the three legionnaires exclaimed simultaneously, "What rebellion?!"

"Morrowind plans to rebel against the empire, but we will be dealing the first blow. We are moving out in a few days, and the legion will meet up with the Crimson Nine to break through their borders. Then we will fight towards Mournhold and de-throne their king."

"Finally!" Manius yelled as he jumped up from his seat, "I get to return to my rightful place on the battlefield!"

"And I get to finally get to serve on the front-lines!" Matthew cherred, "I get to serve the empire in war!"

"This is great and all." Isaac said as he approached Gaius' seat, "but why did Ocato personally give you this order? Why not tell the council?"

"That is explained on Ocato's personal letter to me. It seems that he disagreed with the council's decision to hold me back, so he wants me to take my legion and cut through to Mournhold while the major army takes control of the rest of Morrowind. I know it seems impossible, but the letter described the bulk of their forces as being in Vvardenell. We will be fighting a smaller force while the Crimson Nine fight towards Ebonheart."

For the next few hours they all discussed the plan to attack Morrowind. Annabelle woke up afterwards and raised some hell after hearing of their plan. Eventually they all departed, Isaac and Matthew escorting a half-unconscious Annabelle home, Manius heading for the nearest tavern, and Gaius heading home to get soem much needed sleep. Soon they would be heading out to war, and some of them would not return home.

lookin good

I eagerly anticipate the next chapter

OOC: Does anyone see anything wrong with my latest chapter? I just don't like the way it turned out, so any corrections or criticisms would be good.

It was very lengthy and detailed but not much was accoplished overall

umm......are you ever going to write the next chapter???????

OOC: After a little bit o' writer's block and a horribly messed up computer, I present the (hopefully) long awaited next chapter. This chapter delves into the circumstances that led to Sir Thedret's death. The next chapter will be the beginning of Gaius' departure of the Imperial city and Morrowind's preparation for their rebellion.

Criticism is greatly appreciated

IC:

Chapter 7:

Sun's Height 10, 4E-50

Chapel of the Nine


It was a cold night, and Shamar was sitting outside the chapel of the Nine, thinking of his current situation. He had decided to help his little brother, Roderick, become the next Knight of the Nine, but had no idea of how to proceed. It was his father that asked the knights to allow Shamar to join, and he worried that by asking the same for his brother, they might think that he only wanted to put his family in the knight position. That was obviously one of his reasons, but Roderick was deserving of the position anyway. He is one of the best swordsman in the entire Crimson Nine, almost out-dueling Sir Falcar in a sparring session. Roderick was also a hard working and honest person who would stand for justice at any moment. Shamar shouldn't be the only knight that agrees with this, as the others knew of Roderick's deserving of the position. If there is a spot missing from the Knights, they usually chose one of the soldiers from the army to replace them after passing a few trials. He himself was excused from the trials since he had his father's mighty recomendation and because it was during the Hammerfell rebellion.

"So it seems the only way to get my brother into the knights is to have him pass the trials." Shamar muttered as he watched the stars light up the sky, "Then I must speak to him and the other knights about it."

He stood up from the bench and walked inside the chapel, where Roderick was sleeping on their father's old bed. Shamar looked into his brother's sleeping face and was suprised at how calm it looked. Less than a few hours earlier Roderick was still mourning their father's death, but now he looked as if it never happened! Shamar was focusing on his little brother's face when Roderick began mumbling in his sleep.

"Father..." Roderick mumbled sleepily, "How are you today father?"

The sleeping redguard turned away from Shamar, as if he was trying to avoid looking at him, and dropped something as he did so. Shamar walked to the other side of the bed and saw an emerald neclace, it's silver chain sparkling in the moonlight that poured through the window above. He picked it up and immediately recognized it as the emerald pendant their father gave to Roderick before leaving to fight the Hammerfell rebellion. Shamar staggered back and plopped into the nearest chair as he remembered that horrible war. The sound of steel clashing against steel, the clink of armor, the neighing of horses, and of course the screams. They haunted him even now, the sound of friends and foes screaming out of fear, inspiration, blood-lust, and pain. As the sounds of battle filled Shamar's mind, the battle that resulted in his father's death began to resurface.

They met the rebels of Hammerfell in a hilly area, hoping to overtake their camp on the hill's crest, which was a large plateau. He remembers the pride he felt knowing it was his first battle as a Knight of the Nine, and how he could barely contain himself as they waited for the order to attack.The rebels had the large hill well fortified; three levels of barricades going up the mountain with men guarding each level, a ballistae on each side of the hill, and a ten-man group of battlemages ready for battle. The plan was to attack at dawn since their backs were to the east, and they hoped the rising sun would blind the rebels waiting on the hill top. There was a smaller force of legionnaires that was helping in the attack, and their plan was to go up the western side of the hill while the Crimson Nine had the rebel's attention. The wind was blowing very gently that day, and Shamar remembered the feeling of the grass brushing his face as he layed down in the short green grass that covered the hill's bottom. Even though he wanted to, Shamar couldn't force the memory out of his head. He was going to re-live that battle all over again, the battle that claimed his father's life...

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The Hammerfell Rebellion
"The Battle of the Rising Sun"
The Crimson Nine Army and the Knights of the Nine
Rain's Hand 10, 4E-50


"You are too eager son." Sir Thedret said to an excited Shamar as they both waited in the prone position.

"I'm sorry father, but I am determined to show everyone I can be a great knight just like you!" Shamar said softly as he turned to face his father. He couldn't see his fther's face that well with the grass in the way, but he knew his father's face enough to remember it. Sir Thedret looked almost the same as he did all those years ago fighting alongside the Crusader against Umaril, but now he had the features of a wisened old man. Shamar couldn't help but smile knowing he was going to fight alongside his father from now on. Before he was just a member of the Crimson Nine army, serving as the captain of a small group of men. Now he was a knight, and he was willing to do anything to prove skill to everyone.

"It's alright to be a little eager son, but too much of it will distract you from the battle." Sir Thedret said as he crawled closer to his son, "Do not try to risk your life trying to prove anything. Eventually the other knights will respect you, just be patient."

"Yes father, I will try to be more humble."

"You will make me proud no matter what happens in this battle, remember that son."

"Yes father." Shamar said dissapointedly as he struggled to contain himself.

They continues to wait, and soon the sun began to rise. As the sun's rays began to cover the land, Sir Cassius was silently running towards Sir Thedret and his son. Once he reached them he got into the prone position and crawled towards them.

"Prepare friends." he said quietly, "The attack will begin soon." he looked directly at Shamar, "Make sure you are ready for battle."

"I'm ready Sir Cassius."

"Good, then I hope to see you both after the battle ends."

Shamar watched as the imperial knight got back up and moved to alert the other knights. Sir Cassius was the strong-silent type. He was known for being second only to Thedret, and he was considered the best swordsman of the nine knights. He was also one of the most respected of them all, besides Sir Thedret of course. Sir Cassius was aginst making Shamar a knight so of course the young man's opinion of him was very low at the moment, but deep down he wanted to be just like him one day.

"Get ready son." Sir Thedret whispered coarsely when he saw his son's blank face, "The battle nears."

The sun's rays washed over the hillside, and when it reached the rebel camp, a deep horn bellowed through the air.

"Charge!" they all yelled in unison, loud enough for the rebels and the legion on the other side to hear. In response the legion rose from the dark side of the hill and slowly began treading up the hill, Isaac Iron-heart and Manius Artorius leading the attack. The rebels brought both of their ballistae to the side facing the knights, as they did not notice the legion creeping towards them from the other side.

As they charged forward, Shamar was wondering how long until the ballistae began firing and he felt like he was in the enemy's sights. They hadn't fired yet even though they looked to be in position, so they must be unable to aim properly. "The plan is working!" he thought happily as he ran alongside his father. After a minute or so, they finally reached the first level of barricades. Shamar spotted Sir Cassius and fellow soldiers slaughtering a group of rebels, and he had to stop himself from jumping into the slaughter too. He had to be the first one to reach the hill's top, no matter the cost. The second level of barricades had been overrun, easily being taken by their forces. There was nothing that could stop their momentum now. They may have a disadvantage regarding the high-ground, but the rebels had a nasty suprise coming up the hill on the other side. "By now the legionnaires must be almost up the hill." he thought as he neared the third and final barricade level before the actual camp. Once they reached it, Sir Thedret jumped in, cutting down the rebels that stood in his way. "Come on Shamar!" he called as he cut down a fourth rebel, "Get down here! You must follow the plan!"

But even with his father's orders, Shamar continued up the hill, knowing that even if he wasn't the first one to the top he had to be the one who slew the captain. That would show everyone how great he was. He looked up and realized that one of the two ballistae was missing, but this didn't woory him. As he neared the plataeu, he saw at least five soldiers go flying off the hill, their bodies charred and smoking. Then another few men were thrown off the hill, lightning bolts flying after them. There were battlemages up there, and they would be a problem if he wanted to get the captain.

"Finally!" Shamar said impatiently as he reached the top of the hill, but he regretted that once a ball of fire flew past his head.

"Get down you idiot!" someone said as they tackled Shamar to the ground and fired a bolt of lightning from their staff at the closest battlemage, sending him flying backwards. As his savior got up, he realised it was Sir Falcar the altmer, followed by Lady Falena the dunmer and Sir Brellin II the bosmer. They were the three mer of the knights, and they were each a deadly opponent in battle. Sir Falcar charged forward at the nearest rebel, swinging his staff of lightning and silver cutlass together. Sir Brellin II shot down three rebels in three seconds with his silver bow, then using his silver crossbow when they got too close. Lady Falena used her twin silver shortswords to cut down a few rebels before setting a battlemage in her sights. The rebel battlemage saw her and began firing off a few fireballs in her direction. She duked and dodged all of the fireballs as the exploded at her feet, then ended the battlemages miserable life by ramming her blades into his chest.

Shamar watched in awe as the knigths fought off most of the battlemages by themselves, then he jumped to his feet when he saw the one he was looking for. The rebel wore a green sash embroidered with gold. The only ones that wore this were the ones in charge, or in other words, the captain. Seeing his chance, Shamar charged forward, hoping to catch the captain before he tried to escape. Shamar was right about to catch him when a rebel tackled the young knight to the ground. Shamar thought he was in danger, but aftetr a few seconds of struggling, the rebel fell lifelessly to the ground. "Are you alright?" someone asked with a khajit accent, and Shamar wasn't suprised to see Sir Do'Shadda the khajit standing before him. He looked at the now dead rebel and saw four silver throwing daggers in his back. "Thank you friend." Shamar said quickly, "I must go now and catch the enemy captain, see if you can help the other knights out."

"I shall see you later." Do'Shadda said as he drew some more throwing dagger and rejoined the battle. Shamar looked out and saw legionnaires in the battle now, meaning he would have to hurry. He also saw Lady Vanessa the breton throwing fireballs at the remaining battlemages. He ran in the direction the captain went, hoping that he wasn't dead yet. When he found him, he was manning the missing ballistae and aiming it directly at him. Shamar could only stand there in fear as the enemy captain chuckled, spittle flying out of his mouth.

"I will not die like a coward!" the rebel captain exclaimed, "Now die intruder!"

"No!" someone yelled right before the ballistae went off, knocking Shamar to the ground before being hit by the ballistae bolt. The bolt sent the body flying off the hill over the legionnaires, and Shamar could only lay there in shock as he realized that a knight died to save him. A legionnaire ran up behind the captain and stabbed him in the back, ending the battle as well as the captain's life.

"Are you alright?" the legionnaire said as he crouched next to him, "My name is Isaac Iron-heart, and the legion is here to help. I am sorry about your friend."

"He.....he wasn't my friend," Shamar stuttered as he began to cry, "He was my....my father."

Shamar still sat in his chair, a single tear running down his face. His father's death was his fault, if he followed his orders then Sir Thedret would still be alive. That event, along with the battles before that, convinced Shamar that war was hell. He would rather fight Mehrunes Dagon himself than go through another war. He sat their in the dark squeezing his father's amulet for a minute before he heard his brother mumbling. Shamar was startled, then relieved when he realized Roderick wasn't awake. He had to be strong for his little brother now, so that meant no more weakness. Even though he never wanted to see a battlefield again, he knew that the only thing he would go to war now was not his orders, not his fellow knights, and not even the Nine Divines, but his little brother. He would go through Oblivion and back for Roderick, but little did he know that war was approaching. Soon he and his brother would both be thrown into battle, and only one brother would return.

Characters in "Gaius Marius"

Legion:

Gaius marius(Knight of the Garland): The center of our story, he is a man of action that will do whatever he needs to do to gain power. His greatest wish is to be remembered forever by everyone in Cyrodill.

Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix(Knight Protector): Nicknamed the "fox-lion", Sulla is Gaius' second-in-command and biggest rival. His true goals are unknown, but it is obvious he doesn't want to be serving Gaius for long.

Isaac(Knight Protector) and Matthew Iron-heart(Champion): The two sons of Peter Iron-heart, these two brothers are well known in the legion. Isaac is a master strategist and Matthew is a young man bristling with potential. Together these two make up a team that even Gaius would never want to face in battle.

Manius Artorius(Champion): This bear of a man is the beserker of Gaius' team. His skill in battle is known and feared by even outlanders, as everyone has heard of his disregard for friend or foe. His mighty axe is a perfect match for him, as it was designed to rip flesh from bone.

Annabelle Praxedes(Knight Bachelor): This femme fatale is one of the best battlemages in the legion. Her mastery of lightning and ice spells is a blessing to her allies and a curse on her enemies. Her skill in battle has awarded her the nickname "Valkyrie".


Army of the Nine:

Roderick Hawker: The youngest of Sir Thedret sons, Roderick is a member of the Army of the Nine. He hopes to one day be a member of the Crimson Nine.

The Knights of the Nine (now officially The Crimson Nine):

Sir Cassius the imperial- He is considered the wisest and most respected of the knights, having the most experience as a knight. This middle-aged imperial is a master of sword-and-shield combat. He is the best swordsman of the knights.

Sir Amragor the nord-

Sir Brellin II the bosmer- The calm, cool, and collected member of the knights, this bosmer is a master of long-range combat

Lady Vanessa the breton- She is the best battlemage of the knights, using her wide array of spells to save lives...and take them.

Lady Falena the dunmer- This dunmer is the most ferocious of the knights, using her twin blades in a symphony of death.

Sir Do'Shadda the khajit- This dagger weilding knight is a master of ambushes. His useage of throwing blades makes him a danger, no matter the distance.

Sir Falcar the altmer- Uses a combination of his lightning staff and silver cutlass to form the most unorthodox fighting style of all the knights. He is also the most arrogant of them all.

Sir Shamar the redguard- Sir Thedret's oldest son, his father's death caused him to take a stance against war. He will do whatever it takes to help his little brother.


Morrowind:

King Hlaalu Alanil: The current king of Morrowind, he took his throne after King Helseth was murdered. His plan is to free his lands from the Empire and become the next superpower of Tamriel.

General Bralyn Famori: Head of the Morrowind forces, this man is a force to be reckoned with. From the House Redoran, this warrior is a servant of Bolvyn Venim, the current house leader. Clad in ebony armor, this man's mastery of twin-bladed combat inspires his allies and strikes fear into his foes.

OOC: I know it has been a long while, but I have regained the will continue writing. In the meantime I have created this list of the legion ranks based on Morrowind's legion ranks and it's equivalent to real life ranks. I have also gone through and edited my previous entries to go with the new ranks, and the next chapter should hopefully be up maybe Monday or Tuesday!

IC:

Ranks in the legion

Enlisted:

Recruit-equivalent of a new guy

Private-(self explained)

Trooper-equivalent of lance corporal

Agent-equivalent of corporal

Champion-equivalent of sergeant


Officers:

Knight Errant-equivalent of a lieutenant

Knight Bachelor-equivalent of a captain

Knight Protector-equivalent of a colonel

Knight of the Garland- equivalent of a commander

Knight of the Imperial Dragon- equivalent of a general

Legatus Legionis- head of the legion, a rank only held by the emperor


Support:

flagbearer: equivalent of the roman legion "Imaginifer", one in each unit

Horn blower: equivalent of the roman legion "Cornicen" (They worked hand in hand with the Signifer drawing the attention of the men to the Centurial Signum and issuing the audible commands of the officers)

specialists: equivalent of the roman legion "Immunes" (surgeons, engineers, surveyors, and architects, as well as craftsmen.)