Meara’s Diary : 28th First Seed
Slept most of yesterday after getting back. Today was a rest day, all of us pretty quiet. Tally, myself and Hey Gal sat and chatted about inconsequential things, trying to avoid the subject of the battle. Hey Gal said the Reivers had had the upper hand a few weeks ago which is why we started moving down into the Heartlands. Tally started wondering about a spy, perhaps it's her Dunmer nature. I started worrying that it's something to do with my arrival. I know I'm not a spy but what if I'd brought something by accident. Tally comforted me and came over to check all the stuff in my chest. She couldn't find any sort of scrying or spying magic amongst my clothes, necklaces, bracelets and rings.
I wore my (only) dress, the nice soft shoes and my best sapphire silver necklace. All just for dinner, knowing that Saffsir will be watching. It was nice to dress and feel like a girl again. Tally made me blush teasing that if Saffsir didn't want me the TT's would.
At least I managed to trade some of the gold and armour for healing and magicka potions. Stamina potions are quite easy to make, Gramma taught me but the ingredients for the other potions are harder to find. At least it kept me busy and not thinking about flamin' Fort Caractacus. Time to take the dress off now and back into my breeks and undershirt. Lay my armour out and sharpen my blades. Fortunately the Support Hand Wizard, Grimble, re-charges magic items for free.
Meara’s Diary : 29th First Seed
Some happiness at least today. It was The Whitefire who I helped out, she came and thanked me today. She said my slaying helped the WhiteHeat get away. In front of Shaker and Hey Boy too. They gave me a hard time in training now I'm the 'Whitefire kindling' but I kept my own. I must be getting stronger to parry their blocks!
Meara's Diary : 30th First Seed
Boethiah's buttocks, bugger, bugger bugger... the other hands have thought like Tally. There's a traitor in our midst. Then like hammers they've sliced to the source; the new girl. Shor's stones why me? I got a real cold shoulder in the training yard from them. I almost cried when Saffie did too but I kept the sobs in and trained harder. Hey Gal and the rest of the hand believe in me, or at least they said so.
Meara's Diary : 1st Rain's Hand
Things have been getting worse, the mutterings, black looks and spitting but at least I'm accepted as a Fiddler... otherwise Shaker and the rest of the hand wouldn't have squared up to the rest. Hey Gal used her battle shout on one of the TT's in her anger. It got so bad that The WhiteFire herself came down, she said the diplomatic words "there's no proof of a traitor. Just because Beni's new don't blame her.". Damning with faint praise, almost. Maybe it's me but I got the feeling she did believe it, after all I did save her
p.s Shor's bones The WhiteFire does believe in me, yippee. She came to our cave after dinner gave a pep talk, all the Fiddlers are one of my best hands...Beni saved me...yadayada then took Hey Gal aside. After she left Hey Gal barred the door and told us we were on lock down until tomorrow night.
Note : FAO Magister Phaegol
Muddy prints on the Kvatch Road.
Meara's Diary : 3rd Rain's Hand
What have The WhiteFire and Hey Gal been cooking up? Weird night after night and day locked down in our cavern. After dinner Hey Gal told us to get ready for a mission, then she gave us invisibility potions and we had to sneak out of the Reivers base. She had a hard face when we got out, it matched the hard pace she set westwards, any questions were met with a hard glare. The we moved south coming to the typical rolling country of the heartlands. It was then Hey Gal gave us our orders. We were to take some place called Beast's Maul. If the Aldmeri were not there we were to clear the place and wait for the regular Legion troops to occupy it. If they were then we were to head north and warn the Legion. We crept through the underbrush to the cave entrance, a normal wooden doorway and underground. The usual fungi and mosses hanging from the stalactites. Tally pointed out various large Minotaur's. We split into two's, Shaker and me moved to the left, Tally and Hey Boy to the right waiting for Hey Gal's signal. Hey Gal fired flaming arrow and we took them...easy. Nervously we checked the other caves, more Minotaur's some Spiders, an Imp and a Sprite. All easy as we hit each one hard and with numbers. A few shocks from my staff and then Shaker would step in to finish the beast off. Even so after the last couple of battles we felt twitchy and kept watch at the entrances. It was a long night waiting until we heard the Legion 'creeping' up on us. Hey Gal became all military formal, saluting and saying 'sir' when she handed over to the Legate. With that we headed back to base. An uneventful march, war does clear the bandits and wolves from a land.
Hey Boy made fun of his Sis' the whole way back about the sir thing. We were all happy, easy loot and I didn't use a single potion.
The base was conspicuously empty when we got back, even the support Hands were gone. Hey Gal said it was all part of the plan, very strange. Tally and I, as usual, had nattered and came to the conclusion that we'd proved I'm not the traitor. We didn't dwell on what the Legion might have done had the Dominion turned up... I don't think it would have been nice for me. Then we got to wondering why we were alone and couldn't work out why and Hey Gal has a vicious tongue when annoyed.
Meara's Diary : 4th Rain's Hand
We think we’re going to go crazy, we’ve been locked in again all day and there are only so many songs you can learn to play with all of us. We’ve practiced until our fingers bled, then played knucklebones but that led to arguments and Hey Gal had to give her brother a slap. We trained too, magic, archery and swords until we were dog tired and wolfed our food down.
Then we heard sounds towards the end of the day. Another Hand had come in, from their Imperial armour and winged helmets it looked like the G Wings.
Meara's Diary : 5th Rain's Hand
We awoke to find that another Hand had come in overnight. Hey Gal got us up at dawn and we wandered into the great cavern where we saw them, dead on their feet by the looks of it, the StrongArms had arrived. We came in from one doorway and the G Wings another doorway. Between us we were ordered to guard all 5 doorways, in pairs. All of us were looking nervously around, the tension was high and all coming from the look on Kudri’s face…
She started off quietly with an apology, she was sorry we’d been sent out without knowing what the mission was or where we were going. Then she looked around us all, staring with her deep blue eyes into our souls. Backing up the tone of her words before motioning to the Hand Leaders; Hey Gal, G and Saffsir moved to step behind the WhiteHeats who had formed up behind Kudri. I’d never seen blue eyes turn red before, well only in a Dunmer witch, not in a Nord. Her voice crackled with anger and hurt “We have a traitor in our midst and you unfortunate Hands have been pawns in my game. Four Hands left, only three have returned and only one person betrayed them!” She turned swiftly and pointed at “BB”, “Grab him!”
Hey Gal and G were ahead of her words, this was a planned move, Saffsir had a sword in his back. “Later we will give due honour to our dead Thunder, Quinty, CoolHand, Skinny and Curly of the FlytingStaves who have died at the hands of our enemies. Only one person, besides me and Thunder knew where they were going. The same for each of you, I only ‘accidentally’ left one of my hand able to find out where each of you were heading. Danvil” Kudri faced him “you had the opportunity to see where the Fiddlers were going, Bolger you and Juicy had the chance for the G’Wings and StrongArms. That you three Hands took your targets uneventfully, StrongArms bumping into that patrol was just bad luck, meant you’d not been betrayed.”
The anger faded and sorrow took her face, the rest of the room had stone, stern faces except for BB whose head was shaking in the resignation and desperation of a man who knows his head is about to leave his body. “We all know the rules of the Reivers…” Kudri let the thought hang in the air like Damocles Sword “but I need to know how and why BB. Will you tell us?” BB looked up, the struggle in his mind showing in his face.
- ”What’s the point? My family will die now, as will I.”
- “It doesn’t have to be that way, if the power those bastard Aldmeri’s have is over your family.”
- “You don’t know Phaegol, he’s got them hidden away deep in Oblivion and the only entrance is deep in Aldmeri occupied Cyrodiil. He’s also one of the most ruthless, cunning and ambitious Thalmor.”
- “If he’s so ruthless why have I not heard of him?”
- ”You will do once he has become Naarifin’s right hand and he’s close, with just one more task to do.”
- ”Which is?”
- ”Your destruction.”
- ”That isn’t going to happen. As I see it you only have one chance to save your family and that is to work with us. All the other options leave you dead and them to die unmercifully at the hands of that evil Aldmeri. We can all work to help them, if you will help us. Once we have them, the aim is to kill this Phaegol. Then you will be able to leave for exile in Solstheim with your family.
- BB looked sullen and kept silent.
- ”This is a one time offer, you will have from now until sunset tomorrow to decide.” She nodded at her Hand leaders “take him to the cells. The rest of you make preparations for an endgame with this Phaegol. We cannot let him think he will get away with turning one of our Hand members.”
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