And then they'd brought Argis, terrified, sobbing, absolutely traumatised, his mother dead and that had hurt to hear, it really had, but he was here, alive, safe, and Madanach hadn't even hesitated. His son was alive, and he'd sworn there and then that he'd take care of him. Argis had barely believed him and had just cried harder, but he'd not objected when Madanach tucked him up in his own bed and got him food and water. Argis had slept alongside his father until he got too big for the tent, at which point he'd been given his own on the top level. For five years, he'd had a son, a strong and healthy one, brave, fearless, skilled in combat and archery and the ability to give a bear concussion with one punch, which had saved his life and made for an excellent story. Who cared if he towered above the rest of the camp by fifteen and couldn't get to grips with the simplest spells? Madanach loved him anyway, and the feeling was absolutely mutual, he'd known it. Then he'd ended up in Cidhna Mine, seen the Nords take Argis away and he'd been forced to lie, tell them the boy had been captured in a raid, the Hags needed innocent Nord blood for a ritual. He'd not seen the boy for another five years until one day a new guard came in to see him. His son had returned, a man not a boy, left eye gone in what had been a sabre cat attack, but for all that, looking well. Apart from the downcast eyes and quietly calling him sir, not father. A Forsworn agent in the guards, trained by Nepos all this time and having had it driven home that he must act as if Madanach was his king, not his kin. Madanach agreed with the reasoning, but it still broke his heart. All the same, if Mireen had ever found out Argis existed... Madanach couldn't protect him from inside Cidhna Mine, and Argis would be powerless against Mireen's formidable magic. So he'd done the best he could and treated him like just another agent. Now he didn't know how to do anything else. He'd hoped Argis understood anyway, but now Liriel was saying he knew no such thing. His son thought he was a disappointment, and there was nothing Madanach could do about it. He wasn't sure Argis would believe him no matter how much he complimented him.
“All right,” Madanach announced to the camp. “You lot are heading off to the north. The rest of you, head south. We've got a dire situation on our hands. We're running out of jenever.”
That galvanised everyone and aside from the sentries, the rest of the camp tore out to scour every juniper tree for miles around. All apart from Kaie, who raised an eyebrow and sauntered up to her father.
“You've got two whole bottles stashed away in your tent, and I've still got a little as well. What are you up to?”
“Wanted the camp cleared,” said Madanach, leading her up to the top tier. “I need to talk to you. In private. Something I should have told you years ago.”
Maybe he couldn't make things as they'd been before. But by the gods, it was about time he did the right thing by his son. Mireen was in her grave and Madanach was done hiding.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Over my dead body!” Anton Virane snapped at the Altmer in red and black staring glacially down at him. “I swore to keep it a secret, and I'll take that secret to my grave.”
The woman leaned in, yellow eyes unblinking.
“For the Dark Brotherhood, that can easily be arranged.”
“The – the Dark Brotherhood.” Now that was a whole other story, and Mara it was true, it had to be, the red and black and those cold yellow eyes, this woman was a true-born killer and no mistake, and weren't there rumours she had escaped Cidhna Mine with the Forsworn? “Now – now wait a minute, I'm sure he wouldn't want me to endanger my own life...”
Liriel listened as Anton babbled the Gourmet's identity, filing away the name and location. An Orc, interesting, she didn't think he'd one of them. Orc cooking was mostly filling and meaty from what she'd heard, not a lot of variety there. Maybe that was why he'd left home and gone to High Rock. Well, he wouldn't be going anywhere once she was done.
“Thank you, you've been very helpful,” she told the hapless chef. “That's all I needed to know. You have a good day now.”
“Wait, that's it?” Anton asked, confused. “I can go?”
Re: Nightshade and Juniper 11.6
“All right,” Madanach announced to the camp. “You lot are heading off to the north. The rest of you, head south. We've got a dire situation on our hands. We're running out of jenever.”
That galvanised everyone and aside from the sentries, the rest of the camp tore out to scour every juniper tree for miles around. All apart from Kaie, who raised an eyebrow and sauntered up to her father.
“You've got two whole bottles stashed away in your tent, and I've still got a little as well. What are you up to?”
“Wanted the camp cleared,” said Madanach, leading her up to the top tier. “I need to talk to you. In private. Something I should have told you years ago.”
Maybe he couldn't make things as they'd been before. But by the gods, it was about time he did the right thing by his son. Mireen was in her grave and Madanach was done hiding.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Over my dead body!” Anton Virane snapped at the Altmer in red and black staring glacially down at him. “I swore to keep it a secret, and I'll take that secret to my grave.”
The woman leaned in, yellow eyes unblinking.
“For the Dark Brotherhood, that can easily be arranged.”
“The – the Dark Brotherhood.” Now that was a whole other story, and Mara it was true, it had to be, the red and black and those cold yellow eyes, this woman was a true-born killer and no mistake, and weren't there rumours she had escaped Cidhna Mine with the Forsworn? “Now – now wait a minute, I'm sure he wouldn't want me to endanger my own life...”
Liriel listened as Anton babbled the Gourmet's identity, filing away the name and location. An Orc, interesting, she didn't think he'd one of them. Orc cooking was mostly filling and meaty from what she'd heard, not a lot of variety there. Maybe that was why he'd left home and gone to High Rock. Well, he wouldn't be going anywhere once she was done.
“Thank you, you've been very helpful,” she told the hapless chef. “That's all I needed to know. You have a good day now.”
“Wait, that's it?” Anton asked, confused. “I can go?”