Chapter 1: An Ordinary Mercenary Contract, Part 4
The End is Just the Beginning
Excerpt from Official Reports, authored by Zeldava Ellis
It was nice to have one of my plans work for once.
Was it poorly thought out to hop through a portal created by a stone provided by the Syndicate that could lead literally anywhere? Maybe. Was it a stupid idea to split up in the cave we found? Probably.
But godsdammit it worked and I’m not going to let your judgy attitude take that away from me alright?
The stone was mildly hot in my hand as I tossed it.
Yeah, I know its a bad idea to hold glowing, warm, magical things, but bad ideas were my specialty, so piss off. Slowly, the members of the Expeditions Branch began to assemble around the table.
Well, two of them did. Azazel and Aesla. The other three people who arrived were investigations: Valtire, Ascela, and Servita. Don’t get me wrong, I was glad for their help, but Investigations is sometimes kinda weird. Though I guess that’s unfair, coming from the jackass tossing a glowing portal stone that leads to gods know where. I cleared my throat as they shifted around the table, eyes on me.
"Today's a bit different than usual,” I said. “We have no contract, just some unfinished business. Last week, when we... dealt with Commander Vallendus, he gave us this stone. At the time, it was dark, with only a rune on it. He said it was how Ellivus summoned him for meetings. Wouldn't you know it, it's started glowing. I'm inclined to think that means the Syndicate wants to meet with the Commander. Seeing how he's dead, I think, it might be time we crashed that party."
Aesla nodded. “So, what’s the plan?”
Dammit.
“Good question,” I said. “Haven’t gotten that far. I've gotten about as far as ‘figure out how the fuck this stone works and then follow wherever it goes.’ Not... my finest plan, if I'm honest.”
Note to self: think of the plan before posting the contract.
We set to the first task: figuring out how the stone worked. Aesla and Azazel started pouring through the Commander’s journal, in the hopes he might have been stupid enough to write down how it worked, while Ascela and Val examined the stone itself.
Pale purple magic stemmed from Val’s hands as he cast a spell, wincing at the stone as it finished. “"I heard some strange words... Possibly the passphrase? I think it was Daedric but... By the Gods do I not understand Daedric.”
Val said the words, and they were utterly butchered. Even as butchered as they were, the stone seemed to react, bouncing in his hand, sparking with blue electricity. No portal opened, though, cause of course we aren’t fucking lucky.
My eyes widened as Val nearly dropped the stone. “Careful with that thing.”
“Would throwing it at your face count as careful?” Val chuckled nervously. I can’t tell if he was teasing, or being an asshole.
So I’m assuming he’s just an asshole, and the kind words he’d given me the day before were out of necessity.
Ascela seemed to know what the words were, frowning as she thought through them. “That...translated to...Even Gods shall bend their knee to the Syndicate." She cleared her throat, "Appears we might be dealing with a...cult of some kind instead of a crime organization."
Az frowned at the book, speaking up. “They're using code to communicate, very clearly. I'm sure that's no surprise to us." He flipped a few pages past, then returns to where he initially was. "There's a section where the Commander wrote about the Syndicate and stone. A riddle," He looked up momentarily to Aesla, then turned to face the rest of us. "Once, twice, thrice in the air..." He looks to the journal again. "... a stone's thrown away. Speak the truth, and the Syndicate shall sway."
“Aye. No one writes between the lines anymore,” Aesla said. “How times change." She sighed lightly, at hearing the riddle, "Ah, damned be, I'm absolute shit with those."
Ascela took the stone from Val, tossing it three times in the air before hurling it at a pillar. “Even the Gods shall bend their knee to the Synnnndicate!”
With a spark, a brilliant blue light shimmered out of the portal stone, spilling out into a large oval and taking shape. Within the light, the pale, distorted image of a cave filtered in and out of view.
“Aye, good job,” I said. “Everyone ready to crash whatever shitty plans the Syndicate had for the Commander?”
“Congrats!” Vita said. “We can throw stones.”
And with that particular snide comment, we were off, into another dark cave we probably shouldn’t be in.
Oh great, caves with no exits. My favorite.
The portal let us into a dimly lit passage, torches guiding us towards an ominous door at the end of the walkway. Behind us, dark stone arched up and over us. No way to go but forward.
We moved as quietly forward as we could, trying to avoid creating any echoes that would alert the entire fucking cave to our presence. Valtire vanished beneath the magic of an invisibility spell, and, with a soft sigh and hands gripped on our weapons, we stepped through the door.
The inside of the room was… posh. Clockwork Dwemer torches lit the room, the heads of a variety of monsters mounted on the wall. Some exotic turtle relaxed in a cage next to the desk placed in the center of the room. And sitting at that desk, was the single most terrified man I’ve seen in my life.
The man was wearing Syndicate robes, just like the ones he’d been wearing in the cave. But without his hood up, he was small, mouse-like, an average Breton with average features and close cropped hair. And…
Fuck, he was running.
He nearly tripped over his chair, bolting out the door behind him, screaming more swear words in a single breath than even I was capable of.
“Oi! We'd like to ask you a few questions! Sir!" Aesla acted fast. She vaulted over the desk, spilling some of the papers on it, and flew through the air, tackling the man trying to flee. They fell in a heap of asshole on the ground, tumbling through the door at the back and into the larger parts of the cave.
“I had to say the baffling statement you lot put into Daedric and you run away!? HOW RUDE OF YOU!" Aesla shouted as she walked towards the pile of people. "I may kidnap your Haj Mota." Her second sentence was calmer and directed at the weird turtle in the cage.
Vita crouched down next to Aesla and Ellivus, grinning in a way that really made me question whether we were actually the bad guys here. “Hey little buddy. Nice place you got here.”
“Can we ask those questions now?" Aesla asked, putting most of her weight on his back, so he couldn't move.
“Please! yes, just don't kill me!” Ellivus was breathing hard enough I thought he was going to pass out from the effort. He looked utterly horrified, a far cry from the man I remembered dropping dozens of Clannfear on an unsuspecting group of soldiers.
“...Isn't it kind of ironic that the ones in charge are usually the most cowardly ones?" Aesla said.
Val said what I was thinking. “Hey, I’m right here, Aesla.” Granted, he was invisible, and we couldn’t see where that was coming from, and that was creepy.
But hey, at least he said it so I could pretend I hadn’t been thinking the same thing.
“I'm not taking it back." Aesla said with a smirk.
“I... please I'm not in charge! I'm just the messenger! I'll tell you anything you want to know!"
“Ah, see!” Vita said, I knew he was a sweetheart.
“If you treat us kindly to a few dinners, a couple of paid vacations, and perhaps pay for Rattles' new room I have plans for then you might live." Ascela said, folding her arms and pouting while standing by Aesla.
Then we all heard it. A soft chuckle, quiet like it was carried on a breeze that came from nowhere. The cave filled with the smell of magic, my grip tightening on on my great sword.
“Oh Ellivus,” The voice was female, soft and lyrical. “I knew you were trash. You couldn't even do the one job I gave you.”
“Please, no my lady!” Ellivus looked up at the ceiling, shouting at someone who could have been anywhere. “Give me another chance!”
Then, all of his reason vanished. Screams filled the cavern as the smell of boiling flesh filled the air. In an instant, he was consumed by blue flames. Aesla leapt back, barely avoiding Ellivus’ fate. The fire burned hot and fast, destroying every piece of him. When it was done, all that was left was ash, his skeleton, and the brand of the Craglorn Syndicate's rune on his left shoulder blade.
“That was quite rude,” Ascela grumbled. “We were about to get a few dinners, paid vacation, and a new room for Rattles! And some witch killed him!"
Ah, Ascela.
Her priorities might be fucked up, but at least she’s consistent.
With nothing but a deserted cave and the smell of burning flesh to keep us company, we split up down the forked branches by the cave’s entrance.
I followed after Az and Val, who took the right branch. Or, I guess I followed after Az and the obnoxious steps of an man who won’t drop invisibility, which I assumed to be Val.
We walked for a good few minutes, arriving at a large opening in the rock, a few stone pillars dotting the area. Around the room were a few tables, holding gear that looked like it was meant to be used for branding the animal. In a crude pin fashioned from the natural formation of rocks in the cave, multiple large animals, including an Indrik, watched us, seemingly content to be standing in place and locked up with thick chains around their necks. A few other animals were in cages, oddly calm. For a room so full of animals, it was strange how quiet it was.
You’d think that the first thing I’d have noticed in the room was the big, fuck-off sized magic circle on the floor. But then you’d also assume I don’t get easily distracted by living things that could potentially trample me if I spook them. And you’d also be a jerk.
“What in the goddamn..." Az said, tilting his head. "This is where they store the creatures, huh?"
"It seems so,” Val said, still proving that it was creepy to be an invisible jackass in a deserted cave. “They are monster smugglers, after all."
"If I didn't feel your presence, you could've given me a heart attack." Az said with a gruff chuckle.
I’d have offered to give Val more than just a heart attack, but it seemed inappropriate to suggest stabbing a fellow council member, especially after he’d been so oddly nice to me the day before.
And yes, Val, if you’re reading this, for the love of the gods tell me what the fuck you’re thinking. Your behavior towards me is an emotional shipwreck of go-fuck-yourself and I’d like to get off it at some point.
“Heartless pieces of shit,” Az said, pointing at the tools near the large animals with the tip of his sword. “Branding and enslaving these creatures for their own gain." Az started moving deeper into the cave. “We oughta go deeper, since there's nothing here for us.”
Val and I followed after Az, Val speaking up. “People who hurt animals disgust me. Should we try to free them or is that wasting too much time?"
I scratched my scar, musing as I considered Val’s suggestion. “If we freed them, how would we get them out of here? Maybe we should come back and do that when we can get them somewhere.”
Val and I finally noticed the magic circle. Yeah, yeah, I know, shut up.
“Uh, what's that?” Val asked. “There's some runes on the ground here...”
Az looked up from some crates he was checking. “Nothing in the crates, but this circle you speak of… can you make out what it does Val?”
I leaned against the wall near the circle, watching Az and Val start to pour over the runes, figuring it was better if I stayed over here and kept watch instead of trying to help them figure out something I knew nothing about.
Valtire’s mood grew more and more sour as he put the pieces together. “What the fuck, these people are fucking MONSTERS.”
“This is their method of weaponizing these creatures.” He turned to Val. “What sort of mag-fuckery is this…”
“I… It makes sense… But I just… " He grit his teeth and clenched his fist, trying to calm down. "They're enslaving them and tormenting them. I... I can't leave them here, Azazel."
“I know. That's why we can't afford to lose any more time, not while the Syndicate is out loose." He turns his head again to gaze at the circle. "I understand how you feel, Valtire. I do... I-..." His gruff voice trembled for a moment. "We'll make them pay."
Val and Az walked over to the pin with the large animals, checking them for brands. I stayed outside, cause me and animals don’t tend to get along. Except for Rex, for some reason, who was currently wagging his tail next to me like the idiot he was.
A cute idiot. But an idiot.
Val stroked the head of the Indrik, which was currently licking him. "I own an island and I can open a portal for them, if we do want to get them out here but I just... Should we? They don't seem hurt..." His voice trailed off.
"Don't fret,” Az said, with… wait… was he smiling? When does he do that? “And follow yourself. You and I both understand that freedom is what they deserve. Besides, if we left them here, what then? The Syndicate could abduct them again."
"There doesn't seem to be anyone else here,” I said. “They might die if we don't do something. If you can take them to your estate, that might be a good idea."
“You're both right... I'm just worried, if they were born in captivity, they won't be able to fend for themselves. We'd need to protect them, or find others to do so." He started channeling some magicka in his hands, preparing to open a portal. With a swish of his hand, it opened, quiet and not too bright, like he didn't want to scare the animals.
To whatever gods are listening, please fucking explain Valtire to me. I don’t understand him. One minute he’s cold, aloof and rude, and the next he’s saving dozens of animals and respecting my opinions.
“You've a kind heart, Valtire." Az said with crossed arms, gesturing towards the tunnel that snaked further into the cave. "Once you're done transporting all these animals, let's head further in. There could be more."
With the animals saved, we set off down the tunnel, only to find ourselves looping back around to meet up with the others. Their words met us before we could see them.
“Hey, so you know that guy who was charred into jerky in front of us?” Vita said. “Well, he may have been actor paid, or threatened, to keep this ‘Syndicate’s’ ruse up…”
“The more of these journals we find, the more I dislike this.” Aesla’s grumbling paused as we rounded the corner, looking up from some books she was reading.
“Looks like the tunnel led us around, good to see you all." He lowered his torch. "We had unsurprising discoveries. I'll let Val tell you all."
Val remained silent.
“Val's a big softie who saved a bunch of animals,” I said, chuckling.
“H-hey…”
Aesla smirked. “Aw, that’s so sweet.”
“Thats good." Ascela said. "Vita is correct. Ellivus, and more than likely, many others like them in this Syndicate don't know what is going on. Nor do they have a single clue." She shrugged. "We know of what goes on while processing the beasts to what we see them as when they are released from the stones being shattered. The process is...not for the faint of heart. Its all in the second book in the pile I'm carrying." Ascela pointed to the four books in her hand.
Learning that Ellivus was just a paid actor made his death less cathartic. Worse still, Val and I seemed to reach the same conclusion at the same time.
“If lots of them don't know what's going on... Those people in the tavern..." He stared off into the distance, both of us did. I wondered for a moment if the ones we’d slaughtered had been as unknowing as Ellivus.
We made our way towards the sound of running water, examining the lSat spot left unexplored in the cave. These seemed to be old abandoned docks, crates mouldering into nothing. Blank runestones spilled from the collapsing crates, dusty and worn from sitting alone on the beach for ages.
We set about pushing the stones into the water, reasoning that it made sense to rob the Syndicate of whatever resources we could. But as we set about the work, and the others began chatting idly, my mind wandered elsewhere.
A cave, abandoned and used a set piece for an actor who knew nothing. Names in journals like Kalaril and the Lady Marauder. I’d come here expecting to wrap up the last remnants of the Syndicate, only to find we’d been chasing smoke and mirrors the whole time.
I was getting godsdamn tired of chasing dead ends.
Members in Attendance and Deserving of Coin Disbursement
Aesla Stout
Ascela Levazon
Azazel of Menevia
Servita Belrose
Council Members in Attendance
Valtire Leythen
Zeldava Ellis
