18+ The Dawnstalker

The elk's head snapped up from it's grazing, fixing its eyes on the tree line. Somewhere in the foliage, a branch had snapped, and caught the beast's attention. Four thick muscled legs held its tremendous frame off of the forest floor. It was coated in grey fur, flecked with spots of brown, and its head was adorned with enormous antlers.

This elk had been feasting on the lush grass in the clearing. The earth was dry, for no rain had fallen recently, and in the warm season the air was hot enough to bring on a sweat. The morning sun soaked the ground, and a few grateful flowers dared to climb above the uniform line of grass and reach for its brilliant rays. A small stream trickled through the middle of the small clearing, the rush of cold water coupling with the sound of wind rushing through the forest canopy and the movement of small woodland creatures to create a natural orchestra.

Deciding it was nothing worth worrying about for the moment, the elk wandered over to the stream to drink its fill. A few seconds passed, the creature lapping at the water, when another branch snapped. This time, the elk didn't wait around to find out why. It bolted instantly, and for a moment there was complete tranquility. The instant the distant sound of thumping hooves was gone, the source of the disturbance emerged.

Thereniel Darias walked slowly into the clearing, bow in hand and clad in his usual attire. He wore brown breaches and a tunic, with black boots. A long green coat hung to his frame, covering his arms and threatening to cover his hands, which were wrapped in black fabric with his gingers protruding. The coat reached down to his shins, and hung open at the front. It was trimmed with white wool, but the dirt had turned it a sickly shade of grey.

The Altmer man walked over to the stream and threw his bow on the floor. He fell to his knees, and pulled the hood of his coat back, revealing his dirtied golden hair. It fell far beyond his shoulders, but he tied it into a ponytail to keep it from getting to unruly. The brown fabric mask that covered his mouth and nose was pulled away, revealing his face in full. He was a handsome elf, looking youthful yet rugged. His face had all the usual elven characteristics; slim, long, with pointed ears and a long rounded chin. His eyes were pale green, but his pupil dominated most of it, and stubble was breaking out over the lower half of his face. A scar ran up along his face, from his jaw up over his mouth, over the bridge of his nose and ending on his forehead.

Theren drew up his sleeves and brought himself down to the water, using his hands to splash the water on his face, hoping to prevent the sheen of sweat becoming anything more. When he was cool he slurped the water from his hands, and then pulled out a leather-bound flask and filled it with water from the stream. The elf laid back, throwing his satchel on the grass next to him, knees in the air, on the warm soil, recalling the morning.

It had been fairly standard. He'd woken up in a tree, where he usually spent the nights, and had wasted no time in making breakfast from some bread and meat he had traded for in a nearby village. He was in High Rock, he thought, although he could have crossed over into Skyrim by now for all he knew. He had been wandering for a few hours, picking up a few flowers to use as ingredients when he sat down to cook tonight. That was when he had spied the elk. He stalked it for a mile or so, watching its every move, and eventually it came to a halt in the clearing. He had been sneaking up on it. He had been careless. Theren hadn't quite mastered stalking yet, and it showed when he made the rookie mistake of stepping on a branch. As if that wasn't bad enough, he had done it again moments later. It was no great loss; he wouldn't have been able to haul an elk carcass with him until dinner. Small game was the preferred choice.

Theren grabbed his satchel from the ground next to him, and undid the small clasp. He fished out a fistful of berries, and sat up to eat them, taking his time to savour each one. The berry bushes were becoming more and more scarce as of late. every berry was a gift in the eyes of the altmer hunter. Theren decided to save some for later and put the berries away, exchanging them for a few chunks of diced rabbit meat, left over from the night before. He let out a shrill whistle, and waited, arm out.

A few minutes passed, with only the sound of the stream rupturing the veil of silence. He whistled again, and this time the unmistakable sound of a hawk's wingbeats became audible. Percy slid into view above the tress, silhouetted against the morning sun. After circling a few times, the bird came down and perched on Theren's arm. The bird eyed him happily, before turning its attention to his closed left hand. The bird's great beak was coated with dried blood; he must have fed recently. "Hey Percy," Theren's voice was soft and sweet, soothing in every way. He spoke quietly to his friend. "I guess you're not hungry, so you won't be wanting these?" He opened his left hand, and Percy's eyes lit up. He cawed happily, a shrill squawk almost identical to the one Theren used to summon him. With a chunk of rabbit between his thumb and forefinger, Theren began to feed Percy. He gave him a few chunks, before putting the rest back into the satchel. "Come on, we should get moving." The bird hopped into the air, staying close above the trees and flying directly over Theren as he set off back into the forest.

***

Some time later, Theren stopped again for a rest. He slumped against a tree, and Percy came and perched in the branches above him. He sat still, his breathing not even audible, roasting in his coat with hood drawn and mask on. He sat still for around ten minutes before a small brown rabbit came into view. Theren stood quietly and grasped his bow, knocking an arrow and taking aim. He slowed his breathing and steadied, the rabbit having not noticed him. Percy squawked, the rabbit bolted, Theren released his grip all simultaneously, and the arrow slid harmlessly into the dirt. "Percy!" Theren half shouted half whispered his complaint, before sighing and deciding to stalk the rabbit. He moved slowly, but eventually he had a chance to take the shot again. This time the arrow found its mark, a clean kill.

Theren moved close to the rabbit and knelt down, reaching to his belt and sliding a small knife from its tie. He had fashioned the knife from the tooth of a saber cat a few years ago. It was crude; the blade kept the natural curve of the tooth but was much thinner. Despite the poor quality of the blade, it was good for skinning. He was proud of his handiwork.

The rabbit's skin came away fairly easily, and a few minutes later Theren was peeling away the meat from the tiny skeleton while Percy watched hungrily from a branch overhead. Theren's fingers worked quickly to wrap the small scraps of meat in a few leaves for later, and slide them into his satchel. He stood and got ready to continue trekking, hoping to find somewhere to make camp before nightfall, when he heard voices in the distance. He could tell Percy had heard it to; the bird was looking from the direction of the sounds, back to Theren, and then back to the sounds. Without thinking, the altmer set out to find the source of the noise.

Only around thirty yards away, Theren found that he had come to a cobbled road. He recognised it, and he knew he was only a half a days walk or so from the capital of Skyrim, the Imperial stronghold of Solitude. There were four men on the road. Theren stayed hidden, using the large green coat and the shrubbery to conceal his outline among the trees. "Are you sure they'll be coming this way?" The voice was undoubtedly dunmer, but the man had his face concealed under a brown hood. The three other men with him had their hoods down. Two were nords, one with fiery read hair and almost no nose, and the other with the face of a young lad, but the body of a bear, and shining yellow hair.

The third man piqued Theren's interest. He was imperial, with all the classic features. He was dark of hair, with a rugged face and a thick black beard. His voice was raspy, as if he was overly thirsty. "Yes. That much I'm sure of. All I know is that they're taking something to Markarth. Something valuable."

"That's all we need to know," said the red haired nord. "If there's money involved, we'll take it."

"Let's not be too hasty," the Dunmer seemed the thinker of the group. "Do we know about guards?"

"Soldiers. Four soldiers with the carriage and its driver. Imperial, armed and armored as such."

"How do you know all this?"

"I stole the shipping manifest." They looked confused. "It was shipped into the port at Solitude. God knows where it came from, but the notes mentioned something about Stros M'kai."

"Stros M'kai... to Markarth... this reeks of dwemer."

"Aye that it does."

"We'll make camp over there tonight. Halgus, ride back and rally the others. Bring them here." The blonde nord nodded and wandered over to a tree. There was a large brown horse there that Theren hadn't noticed. He took off along the road in the opposite direction to the capital.

Theren couldn't let robbery like this just happen. Whatever was being transported was clearly important. He looked at Percy circling overhead, and decided to camp nearby, so that he could try to prevent the attack come morning. He paced about 100 yards back and found his way to the base of a grand oak, out of sight of the road. The sun had begun to creep down below the tree line, turning the sky into a terrific display of colour, ranging from pale pinks, to blood red, and everything in between. Theren gathered rocks and built a shallow pit for a fire, gathering wood and kindling and rubbing rocks together for a spark. Theren skewered the chunks of rabbit meat he had gathered earlier and rested the sticks across the pit so that the meat could cook.

Soon enough he was sure it was done. He grabbed one skewer and hungrily gulped down chunks of the flesh. It was hot and juicy, tasty for sure, but he regretted being too lazy to apply seasoning tonight. Some form of herb or spice would definitely have made it better. When he was done with the first, Theren grabbed a second, and then a third, and then the final one. Each was as good as the last, succulent and filling. Theren pulled a small oat biscuit from his satchel, and a few of the berries from earlier. He smeared the berries on the biscuit, topping it with paste, and happily savoured the sweet treat.

Night came quickly. Theren sat around the fire for a short while, contemplating the blood he would spill tomorrow. He looked at his bow, laying on the floor next to him. He didn't like killing but knew that he lived in a world where it would happen, whether he wanted it to or not, and that it was either kill or be killed. A born survivor, Theren quickly chose kill. Come morning, the ground would be watered with blood. Who's blood, however, remained to be seen.

***

When Theren woke, the world was still. No wind rushing through the trees, no distant voices. Not even the woodland creatures seemed to have woken yet. The forest was in complete and utter silence. Percy was absent, as he was every morning, likely off on the hunt. The bird was of a considerable size, and as a result he harboured a considerable appetite. Theren sat up, slowly. The sun was up, barely, telling him that it was early morning. The elf unwrapped some bread, and took several mouthfuls, before gulping water from his flask and finishing with an apple. After maybe ten minutes, Theren stood up. He packed his things into his satchel, throwing his bag over his shoulder, before clearing the area had lain upon and dismantling the fire pit to remove any signs that he had been there. Drawing his hood, Theren set off for the road. It seemed he had beaten everyone to it, or he had missed them. He liked this scenario; he had time.

Theren chose a small mound on the opposite side of the path, with bushes tall enough to crouch behind and shoot over, a quick path to the road, good elevation and enough trees behind him to break up his outline. Theren squatted down, and jabbed five arrows into the ground after checking each one. They were hand crafted, a long and straight shaft and a fine iron tip, yet he hadn't quite mastered the flights yet so they didn't always find their mark. After half an hour or so, Theren could hear wheels in the distance, with the trotting of hooves. Sure enough, Theren spied the two Nords in the trees with around three other men, just as the imperial convoy rounded the corner. A loud cry went out, and suddenly a number of men jumped from the roadside. None were well armored but all held strong iron weapons. The soldiers reacted, and the two mounted ones charged, cutting down a man each on their first run. An arrow flew out of nowhere and hit the carriage driver in the centre of the chest, killing him in seconds. Theren quickly located the archer, perched further down the road behind a log. Theren's first arrow dug into the log, but when the man showed his face again the second arrow entered just below his left eye and into his head, out the other side. The skirmish was quickly swinging in favour of the bandits. One soldier was on the floor with a bandit stood over him. Theren took aim, and hit the man in the leg, allowing the soldier to drive his sword up into his skull and kill him. Theren's fourth arrow hit its target in the stomach, and he fell but didn't die. Theren corrected his error with a fifth arrow.

The thunder of hooves quickly drew Theren's attention. The red-haired nord was galloping toward him at incredible speed, a ferocious looking war-axe in his hand. Theren reached for another arrow but his hand only grasped the thin air. He prepared for his death, closing his eyes and turning away, when he heard a shrill shriek followed by screams. He opened his eyes to see the horse without its rider, and the red-haired nord laying on the floor with Percy clawing and pecking at his face.

Theren walked over and Percy flew away. The bird had ripped most of his nose off, pecked his left eye beyond recognition, and split the man's cheeks wide open with his talons, taking chunks of the man's lips and mouth with him. He was moaning in agony. Theren knelt down. drew his dagger, and drove it into the man's temple. He couldn't help but feel guilty as he watched his remaining eye jolt open, before all the life slipped away for good.

The elf rushed down the verge, coat flowing in the wind behind him, towards the soldiers, who had fended off the remaining bandits. There were three still standing. Theren had killed three men today. That was more than he could bare to think about. Three men with a family, goals, now dead because of him. The imperial soldiers greeted him with smiles. "Thank you. Were it not for your help, we surely would be dead. Are you a Dominion scout?"

"No." Theren's reply sounded blunt, and it was meant to. They were taken aback, surprised that he was just a freely roaming altmer man.

"Well, if that's the case, you should ride back to Solitude. Tullius will want to hear of this, and he'll want your account." Theren didn't protest. He got to ride into the wagon. The real reason he did this was out of curiosity. Whatever was in that wagon was of interest to him. He had always been naturally curious. Today he got to save people, and satisfy his curiosity. That, and he was saved half a day's walk to Solitude. Theren sat in the wagon with another soldier, and one drove the wagon while the other rode one horse and led the other by the reins. Theren stared at the sheet covering whatever it was they were escorting. It was golden cloth embroidered with the imperial dragon. Theren reached a hand out to lift the cover, but the other soldier grabbed his wrist. "That's private. Don't get any ideas, elf." Theren smiled and nodded.

Too late, he thought to himself.