Hi everyone, as I promised, Teresa is back with the second act of her story arc. My postings of this act will be much farther apart from what they were in Not A Hero, as I am far from finished writing Moving Through Darkness. This act is a lot more modular than the first though, so it makes it easier to post as I go along writing. So far the chapters are coming out around 8-9 pages each, so I will post them in smaller bites as before to make it easier to read.

For those of you new to Teresa, you can find the first act of her drama http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=1047284

Here he we go:

* * *

Moving Through Darkness

Chapter 1a - Crisis Ends

"That barricade is not going to hold for long," Teresa said in a quiet voice, eyeing the table and chairs piled at the entrance of the shop. As if to underscore her point, the door buckled as something that must have been large and heavy crashed against it from the other side. Reaching into the quiver at her hip with a creak of leather, the pale Bosmer drew forth an arrow and set it upon her longbow.

"If you have any armor or weapons, you had better get them now," Volsinius said as he stepped closer to the barricade and raised his sword and shield. The legionary was clad from head to toe in armor plate, and his heavy steps came with a clang of steel on steel. Yet somehow his motions were not as ponderous as Teresa would expect from someone in so much metal. She could hardly imagine even being able to walk in it, let alone fight, yet he made it seem effortless. "I'll hold them off as long as I can, but just in case..."

The legionary did not have to tell anyone in case of what. The headless Deadra laying on the floor in the middle of the shop spoke volumes. It looked more like a crocodile than anything else, with its massive body covered in brown scales. Its decapitated head was long and serpentine, with red eyes bearing vertical slits and a mouth bristling with jagged teeth. Yet the long claws of its very human-like hands would not be found on any animal from Black Marsh, nor the curved spines running the length of its back to the very tip of its tail.

Teresa still could not believe that Volsinius had decapitated the creature. Yet she was thankful that he had. Like Simplicia and the others in Jensine's shop, she had been completely unprepared when it had come charging through the open door a few minutes earlier. If the legionary had not been on its heels it might have killed all of them, Teresa knew.

It made Teresa feel strange to think that way about the watchman. She could still remember him backhanding her across her face when she was a child. The tip of her tongue reflexively slid into the gap in her back teeth at the memory. His gauntleted hand had done that, and all for a stolen sweet roll. Yet here he was, the monster from her childhood, fighting for her very life.

"I still have that armor that Teresa sold me this morning." Jensine ran to the back of the shop and began digging through a large chest. A moment later the dark-haired Nord drew forth several cuirasses, gauntlets, and greaves of animal hide and haphazardly threw them on the floor.

Teresa watched as Simplicia and the others in the shop began picking up pieces of armor and hurried to put them on. They looked as confounded by the buckles and straps as Teresa remembered she had been the first time she had to put on her own armor. The bard's stories always made it sound easy, but in reality armor was not something you could slip into as like a pair of breeches.

She never imagined when she killed the former owners and took their gear that it would end up being used like this. Usually she avoided roads because of bandits. But sometimes there was just no way around them. Thankfully that one time she had done so and been attacked. Otherwise Jensine, Simplicia, and the others would have no defense at all.

Teresa herself was well protected in leather, wearing a cuirass, greaves, boots, and gauntlets. The thick brown hide clung to her willowy form like a second skin, making it easy for her to move quickly and quietly, while still offering her some measure of protection.

Brushing a lock of her long red hair from her green eyes, she turned her gaze back to the door. Whatever was on the other side of the barrier wanted in quite badly, Teresa thought, and it was going to get in soon. While she still had a few moments, she wondered what in Nirn was going on?

The day had started out wonderful, Teresa thought. She had returned to the Imperial City from an alchemical gathering expedition near Cheydinhal, and had spent hours just talking with Simplicia over lunch at the Feed Bag. Then they had gone next door to Jensine's to sell off some of the mundane loot Teresa had gathered in her travels when all Oblivion literally broke loose.

With that thought the planks in the center of the door burst inward, creating a fist-sized hole there. Teresa thought she could see something dark and scaly through the opening. A moment later a great beak chomped into the edge of the aperture and tore another chunk of wood loose, widening the breach.

"Step aside," Teresa found herself saying to Volsinius as she stepped up to the barricade. The watchman turned to look at her, and she was not sure if she should be pleased with the look of surprise on his face or not. But he did move aside as she raised her longbow and pulled it to its full extension.

Letting out half of her breath, Teresa took only a second to sight her arrow on the breach and loosed. A moment later the hole blossomed a feathered shaft, and a hiss of what could only be pain issued from the other side of the door.

Teresa wasted no time. Drawing forth another arrow, she sent it chasing after the first. Now the shafts of both arrows vanished as they were pulled through the opening by whatever they were lodged in on the other side. The hissing stopped, and a loud thump came from the other side of the door.

"By Talos I think you killed it!" Volsinius declared in amazement, and turned to look at Teresa with what she took to be grudging admiration. "You certainly have come a long way from that little street urchin stealing sweet rolls."

"You remembered that?" Teresa was stunned. She had thought he did not recognize her anymore, not after dyeing her hair red and starting her new life as a forester.

"Of course I remember," the watchman said, "oh you threw me for a while with the hair, but I always remember a face."

"By Talos I think you killed it!" Volsinius declared in amazement, and turned to look at Teresa with what she took to be grudging admiration. "You certainly have come a long way from that little street urchin stealing sweet rolls."

"You remembered that?" Teresa was stunned. She had thought he did not recognize her anymore, not after dyeing her hair red and starting her new life as a forester.

"Of course I remember," the watchman said, "oh you threw me for a while with the hair, but I always remember a face."

YES!!!

I somehow KNEW that he'd never forget her...even during the first part of your story, I had this feeling that he DID recognize her, but was keeping it to himself...

Oh what a great way to start your new thread! Like Foxy, I thought he must remember her too, lol.

This is fabulous!

As the first story in her second act, you obviously decided to provide for some review of Teresa. If we had never read the first act we would, from this story, know what Teresa looks like. Yet you wove it in with a subtle brilliance. Great decision and flawlessly done.

Similarly, by reviewing her first encounter with Volsinius you prevented any possible confusion as to his significance. Yet again, in such a way that attentive fans who remember would only be delighted.

Your descriptions are vivid - better than ever. Only one morsel: "A moment later the hole blossomed a feathered shaft,"

I hesitate to even mention the only edit oversight I noticed: "Like Simplicia and the others in Jensinse's shop," {Jensine's}

WOW!

Teresa is back. :twirl:

And what a way to start it !!

Great to have the story continued. There are so many parts of her personality and background that are begging to be told.

More, please.......

AUDIENCE

kimira no dare ka ga
YES! datte sakenda toki ni wa
boku wa narande
YES! datte sakebu darou

saa ryoute o hirogete
issho ni te o tataite arukou
hashiridasu toki ni wa
koko e kite tomo ni hajimeyou
kimi tachi ga boku no hokori

--------------------------------

If one of you yells "YES!"
Then I'll get in line and
yell "YES!" as well.

Spread your arms wide.
Let's clap our hands and walk together.
When you start running
come here and we'll begin together.
You are my pride



A happy song for Teresas happy comeback! :celebration: (happy for us, at least. I don't think daedra have that much of a party factor...)
Awesome to have you back! :3

D.Foxy: Volsinius really is not subtle enough to pretend he did not recognize her in Not A Hero. You have to keep in mind that it Teresa really did undergo a dramatic change, both physically and mentally (the latter of which only further accentuates the physical changes). One thing Teresa had right about him is that he is a blunt instrument.

But he really is a very good cop/soldier. While he does not have a mind for subterfuge himself, he is very perceptive and knows the streets. When something is out of place he picks up on it and pays attention. If he had that mind for deception he would have become the equivalent of a detective a long time ago, and would be an extremely good one. As it is he is probably the best beat cop in the IC. One of the most brutal as well. I kind of channeled Judge Dredd in writing him.


mALX1: It is looking like Volsinius is becoming popular. He appears in Chapter 2 as well. If people do like seeing him, I might work more of him in if possible, as I am thinking along those lines already.


Acadian: I was originally going to go without the description of Teresa and of her history with Volsinius. But then I realized that I needed it for people new to the character. Likewise as a refresh for those who may have forgotten anything.

Editing noted and fixed, o' Acaditor.


Winter Wolf: Is there anything in particular you are looking for about Teresa? I could try to work it if I am not already planning to.


AyuFan: "I don't think daedra have that much of a party factor" Well, no rain, can't have the rainbow...

In the spirit of Ayumi Fan,

Volsinius having a bigger role? Not just a YES...

HELL YEAH!!!!


The sensitive yet steely girl paired with a tough, blunt down to earth soldier = A MATCH MADE IN LITERARY HEAVEN!!!

Sorry to take so long to reply to this hoped-for continuation. You certainly start at a run, but also provide enough plot hooks back to the original to keep new readers in the loop. Your skill and love for your character is again evident- add my vote to the "Larger role for Volsinius" side of the ledger. Even though he is "not a nice man," the world- especially the world of the IC at the time of the Oblivion crisis- is in dire need of such men (and women).

And I can just see Volsinius and Teresa striking sparks from each other- probably enough to burn the city down- or to save it.

treydog: Now worries mate, I am the first to understand people have lives.

I purposely started out Moving Through Darkness In Media Res. It is not something I normally do with my writing, so I wanted to experiment with it. I also thought it was the best way to do it, with it not only being the start of a new chapter, but also the start of a new Act. I did the same with the early drafts of Not A Hero, but had to scrub the idea as it was not working out there. I think it works perfectly here though.

Another vote for Volsinius then? It must be a Vols thing (I could not resist ) I will have to see what I can do with him in the later parts of Moving Through Darkness...

* * *

Chapter 1b - Crisis Ends

Then the door buckled under another crash, and this time completely disintegrated. What looked almost like a man stood in the entrance of the shop. He wore some sort of monstrous-looking metal armor that was red and covered with spikes and sharp ridges. In one hand he carried a great mace, and in the other a kite-shaped shield. His head was bare, exposing ashen skin and two horns that rose up from his forehead. His eyes were fiery slits that scanned the room before falling upon Teresa.

"Your spine will be my trophy Bosmer!" his voice sent a chill through Teresa, sounding more like razor blades scraping against bare metal than the speech of a living being.

"A Dremora!" Volsinius hissed, moving in front of Teresa with his shield up. His sword was held low at his hip, blade parallel to the ground and point forward to stab.

"Give me room to shoot!" Teresa shouted, trying to push the watchman aside with her shoulder. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and every sane part of her was screaming at her to run. But something within her that was cold as Skyrim and hard as steel had risen up to steady her nerves and drive her on, as it always did in times like this

The watchman moved aside while Teresa drew an arrow from the quiver at her hip. Clutching its shaft near the point, she drew hear arm across her waist to where a small jar hung on her left hip. Popping off the stopper with her thumb, she thrust the arrow into its open mouth and drew it back a moment later, leaving an inky paste smeared over the steel head.

By then the Dremora had kicked the last of the chairs and table of the barricade aside and was charging forward. Teresa brought the bow to full tension in one smooth motion. There was no time to aim. She saw the fiery eyes of the monster in front of her, and simply loosed.

Then something large and unyielding shoved against her shoulder and sent her sprawling to the floor. Teresa heard the crash of metal on metal behind her, and when she turned her head and looked up she saw that Volsinius was standing where she had been an instant before, shield raised high to block the Dremora's mace. If it had not been for him, she would have been standing there instead, she realized, and would probably have that mace buried in her skull.

As she watched, the legionary punched forward not with his sword, but with his shield. The Dremora staggered, and Volsinius' longsword darted forward like a serpent, striking low at the creature's belly. But the monster gained his balance quick enough to lower his shield and deflect the blow that would have gutted him. A second later it sent its own mace crashing once more into Volsinius' shield in reply. Teresa could do nothing but stare in wonder. From where she lay on the floor they seemed more like a pair of Gods trading blows than a mortal man and a monster.

The cold fury within Teresa did not allow her to stare for long however, and her fingers wrapped themselves around her bow. Scrambling to her feet, she reached for another vial of poison when the Dremora suddenly slumped over forward, dropping his mace and clutching at his midsection. His lips moved as if to speak, but not a sound came out.

Volsinius did not spare a moment. He stepped forward and thrust the tip of his longsword directly into the exposed flesh where the Dremora's neck met his shoulder. A fountain of blood erupted from the terrible wound, yet the Daedra still made no sound. With a flip of his wrist that looked almost effortless, Volsinius tore out the rest of the monster's throat with his blade, and it finally crashed to the floor of the shop at his feet.

"I never landed a real hit till he doubled over like that," the legionary said, tapping his sword against the shaft of the arrow rising from the Dremora's briastplate. "What's in that stuff?"

"Nightshade root," Teresa answered as she prepared her next arrow with the poison. "it works wonders on bandits. I was not sure it would on this thing though."

"Good thing you were at point-blank range," Volsinius observed. "Its armor looks strong."

Teresa nodded as she set the arrow on the nock of her longbow. Simplicia and the others were now stepping up, clad in hodgepodge of ill-fitting fur and leather armor. Some also carried shields, and all had an axe or sword in hand. If it were any other time Teresa would have laughed at how ridiculous they looked. But as it was she was having a hard enough time keeping her fingers from shaking on her bow.

"Volsinius I..." her lips tried to form the words to show her gratitude to the legionary. Yet as she looked through the slits in his helmet to his cold blue eyes, she found that her voice had deserted her.

She knew that she would be dead if it not for him, yet she could not even bring herself to say 'thank you'. She turned her face down to the corpse of the Dremora at their feet, and was keenly aware of how red her cheeks were turning.

"There is nothing to say citizen," the legionary rasped and strode to the doorway, "we are here to serve."

Teresa had heard the men and women of the Imperial Watch say that a thousand times, but never to her. Once more her tongue felt the empty spot between her teeth, and she remembered that gauntleted fist crashing against her cheek. What do you do when the monster of your childhood saves your life? she wondered.

"Are you ok?" Teresa heard Simplicia ask, and she looked up just as the older woman brushed the red hair from her face to caress the same cheek that Volsinius had struck years before. "You had me scared to death."

Teresa wanted to say that she was just as frightened, but she did not think that the elderly beggar needed to hear that right now. Instead she put a comforting hand on Simplicia's shoulder and forced a faint smile to her lips. She was just glad that both of them were still alive.

This was so good on so many levels.

It says alot about Teresa.

It says alot about members of the Legion - they don't do what they do for the thanks they so rarely get.

Your description of a dremora was pulse-quickening.

I will defer to D.Foxy on this, but your descriptions of combat detail are fantastic.

It appears to be a tiny error, but review this sentence: "Scrambling to her feet, her she reached for another vial of poison... "

Wow! This one drew more than a faint smile.

I loved it...just a tiny little error -

Teresa drew an arrow from the quiver at her hip and set it to the nock. Then with her free hand she dug into one of her belt pouches and produced a glass vial. Popping off the stopper with her thumb, she thrust its open mouth over the top of her arrow head. She drew it back a moment later, leaving an inky paste smeared over the steel head.

You put an arrow to the nock AFTER you have smeared the poison on it, not before. For safety reasons, you always smear poisons with the arrow head pointing downward into the poison container, so that there is no chance at all of any poison dripping or pouring out - even if the poison is a thick, viscous glue-like substance, you do this. Handling both a bow and an arrow pointing downwards is very difficult, hence poison smearing first, nock later. In set piece battles the pots of poisons are always placed on the ground beforehand: this of course is difficult to do in an encounter battle.

BTW, it would have added to the realism if you had mentioned that the arrow which was poisoned and shot was a bodkin arrow, since only bodkins will pierce steel armour - especially Dremora armour! (Of course even then you would need a 150-200 lb bow to do so, but we will not go into that level of realism here! )

For future use ... arrow and melee fighters working in combination frequently use the kneel and shoot technique, where the melee fighter kneels and the archer, behind him, shoots over his head. The archer will shout a prearranged signal before shooting, so that the melee fighter doesn't stand up into the shot, and the melee fighter will shout another signal before standing up, so that the archer doesn't hit him as he stands up. This of course requires some practice beforehand!


VOTE FOR VOLSY LIKE MEEEEE FOLKS!!!!

ROFL !!! How am I supposed to read when I am spewing pepsi all over my keyboard? (it must be a Vols thing) - ROFL!!! I will read as soon as I stop rolling now, lol.



Oh, what a tough thing! It is hard not to like Vols today, but hard to like what he was when Teresa was 10 - Awesome writing, I was totally rapt from the minute I started reading!

Acadian: Thank you. I am trying to make the action scenes not only exciting, but if possible in some way character-revealing as well. This whole first chapter was meant that way. Both to portray the battle at the end of the Oblivion Crisis, and to drive some important character development. That is why Volsinius is present, as he is a catalyst for the latter.


D.Foxy: The whole poisoning of the arrow was a very difficult sequence to write. My first few drafts did have Teresa dipping the arrow head in the poison first, then nocking it. But having to hold both the vial of poison and the bow stave in one hand while she held the arrow in the other just came out sounding too awkward. The main problem is that there are just not enough arms to do it easily (Mehrunes Dagon would have no problem here), and setting the vial on the floor or the bow before dipping it does not sound better either. Not with the factor of having so little time to do it in. It is something I have been wrestling with since I started writing it. If you have any suggestions on how I could describe the mechanics I would love to use them. My other option is to simply remove most of the description by simply saying she poisoned the arrow.

Concerning bodkin arrows though, I left them out on purpose. For while they are of the correct shape to be armor-piercing, those recovered have been found to be of metal too soft to actually pierce armor. The only English arrows of the Medieval period as of yet found to have been made of steel (and thusly strong enough to punch through steel) are of a barbed and socketed type. http://www.royalarmouries.org/what-we-do/research/anolytical-projects/armour-piercing-arrowheads

I did not know about the kneel and shoot technique though. Or at least I did not remember it. I was under the impression that in the medieval era the infantry opened their lines to allow archers to the front to fire, and then they simply withdrew through the ranks when the enemy came near, and every other infantryman stepped back into place behind them. It is not something poorly trained soldiers could do, but professionals like Roman Legonaries could in a pinch.

I was mainly thinking of Teresa to be using zone-shooting when standing behind her Fighter's Guild mates in later stories though. Still that would not have been good for short range firing, or accurate against one or two targets at a distance. For the latter I was thinking she would be taught to move out around the line of sluggers to get side shots on targets not too closely embroiled with friendlies. But the kneel and shoot technique would be ideal for close-range shooting where the enemy has not yet engaged the melee folks.


mALX1: Better make a no-pepsi rule for the future!

An excellent 'action' beginning to the new series. If Teresa was on a journey of self discovery in Not A Hero, she seems to have arrived fully in this opener. I have my suspicions about the sudden appearance of Daedra in the IC but I will wait to see where all this is going.

Your writing evokes fascinating responses and comments. I would love to have heard AyumiFan's words set to music and D.Foxy's comments were a revelation. We have you to thank for inspiring these wonderful discussions.

Again, the excellence I have come to expect from you. And yet it is still a revelation to see how beautifully you put the scene together.

A suggestion in re using poisoned arrows in rushed situations- and I seem to have read/seen this before- the poison vial is held in a pouch or similar on the hip opposite the quiver- arrow can be dipped and then nocked.... Spillage is still a possibility- but perhaps the outer container is made of a specially resistant material (scamp skin, alit hide, etc.)

As for all the "Vols" pvssyr, I will merely point out one thing- what we often refer to as "red" hair actually has a somewhat ORANGE tint.... But if Volsinius shows up wearing a big "T" (for Talos?) on his helmet, I may have to boycott this thread :ninja:

bobg: I am certain that your suspicions about the Daedra in the IC are correct, as will be shown in the next two posts or so. Teresa still has a great deal of self-discovery left though. But in this Act it will be with the help of many other people, Volsinius among them.


treydog: That does sound like an excellent idea. The only real trick I think would be to avoid stabbing yourself with the arrow when you are in a hurry. I suppose if you gripped the shaft near the head that would not be as big of a danger, especially if the vial/pot had a wide top. Or if you had some kind of a mail covering around your skin in that area too... Let me see what I can come up with...

Do not worry, no "T"s. But after this VOLSinius may have an "A" for Akatosh!

Uh Oh, the "Big Orange" hair, and the "T" for Talos helmet? - wait, let me go check my thread - oh yes, here is the quote: "* or say something bad about the VOLS, it's on!"
(case closed)


(just kidding) You ROCK Treydog!

I would love to see Teresa visit our fair city of Bravil. To me, Bravil is the only place in Cyrodiil that a person with her talents can be appreciated.
Even the waterfront doesn't quite have that feel.

Are you planning to weave any of the guild quests into the storyline?
I would love to see her and Amusei meet.
And our little Buffy for that matter.....

Treydog: I had totally forgotten about that! Yes, that WAS a technique for quick poisoning of arrows - if I recall correctly, it was a Parthian/Armenian technique. :facepalm:

A suggestion: let the container have a wide mouth, narrowing down to a narrow neck, and widen out again to a wide reservoir of liquid behind - in short, a vase shape. This will take care of both the arrow insertion problem and the spillage problem.

mALX1: ...and do not say anything bad about the VOLSinius either!


Winter Wolf: You will have your wish, at least some of it. Most of Moving Through Darkness takes place in Bravil, and the Fighter's Guild is central to it all. To a lesser extent we will see the Mage's Guild as well, at least certain members. Several of the Bravil quests will be featured (actually, maybe all? I would have to check my outline).

Right now I do not see Teresa has having anything to do with the Thieves Guild, aside from her relationship with Methredhel of course. We might see that become important in Act III, when events might lead Teresa to need to get in touch with the TG. Amusei was actually a front-runner to be Teresa's best friend when I was in the early stages of working on her history, but I eventually dropped him for Methredhel instead as the two of them not only being female but also Bosmer made them seem like a perfect pair.


Damien "Foxy" Reynard: Shaped like one of those non spilling coffee travel mugs? I was thinking that too. For now I will give her a standard jar/vial, that way I can use her getting a pinched one later in the story. I can think of just the person to make it for her, which will add some to the character development at the same time.

Parthians and Armenians you say? I will do some hunting to see what I can dig up. I am happy to invent things on my own, but it is even better to use things that are proven to exist. Along those lines I am thinking of introducing the gorytos to Tamriel as something the elves of Valenwood use, and I know I am going to make the "Elven Bow" of the game a composite bow along the lines of those used by either the Huns or Mongols, probably the latter.

Something else I turned up looking at poisons is that Monkshood was commonly used to poison arrows by the Chinese and Ainu. I had no idea that it and wolfsbane are the same plant either. So Teresa might start using that too.

Treydog: Thank you again for the idea of the poison at the hip. I have gone back and updated the story with it.

* * *

Chapter 1c - Crisis Ends

"What is going on out there?" Jensine asked, gingerly stepping near the doorway where Volsinius stood, but not too near...

"It looks like all Oblivion has broken loose," the legionary gasped, "this must be what it was like at Kvatch..., or Bruma."

"But they stopped them at Bruma," said a Bosmer. Teresa recognized him as Gelephor, the watchman for the warehouse next door.

"They stopped them at Bruma," Volsinius agreed, "but the Daedra were outside the walls. Still half the garrison and nearly the entire Fighter's Guild from all over Cyrodiil died doing it. They are already inside now. There is a damned gate right out there in front of the shop!"

Volsinius raised his shield then, and a moment later one of the massive crocodilian Daedra crashed against it. The legionary staggered backward with the monster's claws still wrapped around the edge of his shield. As Teresa watched in horror, she saw its long, serpentine head dart forward over the rim of his shield and at the legionary's head.

Somehow Volsinius threw his longsword in front of his face, and the creature's jaws snapped around it rather than his head. The legionary tried to slash with the sword and rip its jaws in half, but Teresa could see he was still off-balance, and was unable to get the strength of his body behind the motion. Instead the Daedra snapped its head to one side, tearing the sword from Volsinius' grip and spitting it across the room.

Teresa leaped into action then, darting forward right beside Volsinius. She saw the Daedra's head rear back for another strike, jaws gaping wide, and brought her bow to full tension in one swift motion. The monster's head rushed forward just as she loosed. A moment later it whipped back again with a brief flash of light. The feathered shaft of Teresa's arrow sprouted from the roof of its mouth, and its steel head erupted from the top of its skull, directly between its eyes.

The massive beast fell to the floor of the shop a moment later, still clutching Volsinius' shield in its claws. The legionary would have fallen with it if Teresa and Jensine had not been there to steady him. Once he had his legs under him he used his free hand to pry the monster's dead claws from his shield.

"Those things hit harder than a troll," he breathed, "I think I saw the flash of a shield spell when you hit it too. That was good shooting Bosmer."

Teresa had no time to think of a reply, because at that moment another of the Dremora macemen came charging into the shop. Before either she or Volsinius could react, Jensine, Gelephor, and even Simplicia rushed forward from all sides and hacked at it with their weapons. For a moment he staggered under the assault, but then he regained his feet and sent Gelephor flying from a backhanded swat of his mace.

Teresa drew forth another arrow and set it on her bow. Pulling it to half tension, she tried to sight in on the monster. But Jensine, Simplicia, and now a Redguard whom she did not know were clustered around it. She could not shoot without hitting one of them. She lowered her bow and tried to move to get a better angle, but there was always someone in the way. Then suddenly the Dremora dropped to the floor with Simplicia's axe buried in the back of its skull.

Gelephor did not rise however, or make a sound. A moment later Jensine found that he was dead, his chest crushed by that single blow of the Dremora's mace.

Your fellow fanfic writers will no doubt dissect the chapter (which makes for interesting reading in itself), but as a simple reader, I'll just tell you it's good and I'm looking forward to more.

I guess this didn't look right without the quote that it was responding to :






Another simple reader here, I love it too. Vols just saved her, now she has saved him. Will Simplicia have to wash Vols drawers after that?

Short, crisp powerful. I like very much your combat descriptions. Not only are they gripping to read, you use them to full potential in developing the characters in your story.

Ah yes, don't you just hate it when you can't get a clear shot with your bow?

Thank you for another wonderful morsel! :goodjob: