Desert Illusions (Issy)

 Prompt: Desert illusions (+ storytelling collective AU prompt)

When Baurus suggested we take a brief trip to Hammerfell I don’t think our current situation was in mind. We’d spent a few days in Sentential, Baurus, Jauffre, Martin and I with Lucien showing up on the last day having come from across the bay with Vicente unexpectedly in tow. I suppose they had contracts that brought them to Daggerfall and somehow got word we were relatively nearby. We’d moved further inland passing through a few cities I’ve gotten the names of and tiny villages, some nearly buried by the sands. The hot desert sun doesn’t help to poor vampire who keeps his hood up at all times during the day, unless we find a building to take refuge from the heat in. “Baurus, are you sure we’re not lost?” I ask as the blade leads the way toward our destination, wherever that may be. Supposedly this is an alternate route that leads back to Stros M’kai despite it taking one away from the coast. “No we’re not lost I’ve done this before- don’t worry about it. Another day or so and we’ll be there, so long as we don’t run into any sandstorms.” Baurus replies, trudging along leading the party. I’m just glad I wore loose light clothing for a change- how anyone survives in heat and climate like this is beyond me. I guess the body must adapt, like how the Nords of Skyrim can live in the cold, or the Dunmer in the ashlands. Frequently I find Baurus reminds us to drink water, and we find places to stop and rest every so often that allow us to refill from fountains. After seemingly hours of walking we stop in a small village for the night, the deserts get surprisingly cold once the sun goes down. Baurus talks to the innkeeper and secured rooms for us along with food. Much like Highrock there is cultural and culinary diversity that varies by region also found in Hammerfell. Being closer to Stros M’kai the food is different to that found in Sentential, however Baurus manages to find a familiar dish made of eggs, vegetables and spices cooked in a sort of skillet. Every now and again I’ll find him making it early one morning if I find myself at Cloud Ruler Temple.

Martin asks Baurus a number of questions about his homeland while we eat, one upside of a bastard emperor is while it is dangerous to bring him anywhere with the current crisis, things have been quieter recently, and lack of knowledge about Martins true heritage when it comes to the general population allows him to tag along on adventures. Still he is well guarded, though far more covertly, I think he enjoys the change, and Baurus and Jauffre both without a doubt enjoy the however small break they both get. Lucien and Vicente mostly talk between themselves, including me every now and then. It can be a bit of a strange relationship between members of the dark brotherhood and members of the blades, however Baurus and Lucien have forged a rather strong friendship, and Vicente and Jauffre have a bond of mutual experience raising rather chaotic protégés armed with swords at young ages, along with opinions regarding fine wine. There is a sense of mutual respect despite their very different, yet sometimes overlapping, professions of choice.

The hour grows late and Jauffre along with Martin decide to retire, Vicente wanders off likely to find his actual meal of the evening, leaving only Lucien, Baurus and I around the rickety wooden table in the center of the room. “Why is it you keep reminding us to drink while we travel- scared we’ll get dehydrated?” Lucien questions Baurus who nods, that’s exactly why. Apparently if one gets too dehydrated while in the desert you can sometimes begin to see illusions, things that aren’t there- mirages he calls them. As Baurus explains desert dwelling and travel basics to us the wind picks up outside, a sandstorm is moving through we’re told by the innkeeper as she polished glasses at the counter. By the time Baurus finishes explaining the storm has passed and it’s grown quite late in the evening, or at this point early morning when we decide to wander off to our own respective rooms.

Come morning the quiet inn of the previous night has changed dramatically as the common room is filled with patrons drinking coffee and chatting, having had a nights rest and filling meal we set off toward our final destination once again. Stepping outside the storm from last night is obvious, with sand dunes having piled up in places they weren’t before, and others having changed or grown in size. We fill up with water once more before setting off.

A few hours into our journey I see something peculiar on the horizon, it looks almost like a person, a figure with perhaps shoulder length firey and almost curly hair with a set of blue and brown armor. I shake my head a few times and yet the figure still stands there looking rather confused, now I see rummaging through a bag and pulling out things that would in no way possibly be able to fit in there under usual circumstances, it must be enchanted somehow. No one else seems to notice the person while I keep staring, intrigued.

 As I continue watching the person rummage through their things I notice two swords strapped across their back, I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a practice, it’s not common for one to carry more than a shortsword as a side arm, or a single greatsword across the back- two seems excessive…and that’s coming from an assassin. Just then things take a somehow even stranger turn, a sort of portal opens, a blueish color and circular, not like the flaming oblivion gates, and a young woman perhaps my age comes jumping out of it. I watch as she interacts with the other person, they seem familiar as she taps him on the shoulder and helps him pick up his thing placing them back into the seemingly bottomless bag.

There is something, or multiple things, really that are strange about her- notably her almost while colored hair along with the fact that she too has a similar sword to the red haired person, though she does not have the same navy blue and what I now see to be leather armor. Having picked up the last of the items the bag is closed and having somehow realized my presence inching ever so slightly closer as we go in that direction for a big before turning left the redhead looks up and I see from a distance a pair of yellow eyes and a freckled face looking at me before smirking, along with the unphased face of the young woman. In the blink of an eye the smirking man turns and with a cat like agility bounds through the portal, with the woman following, calling after him- seemingly a name, though I can’t make it out it sounded like it began with an A, who knows. Again I shake my head and the portal along with any trace of the people are gone. Huh, out of caution for my sanity I take a gulp of water, must have been one of those desert illusions Baurus mentioned. Yes, it must have been a mirage.