[IC] Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

[Muttonhawk]

Sabine peered into her shoulder bag briefly before she answered Meesei. "I have glassware and ingredients for some tests, and I have storage for what I need to collect from the scholars, but other things are still in the sleeping chamber. Packing it all and setting it up again would take too long if all I need to do is..." Sabine's eyes shifted as she cut herself off, looking at Vera's followers. She finished slowly "...what I told you last night." Harriet's audience with her followers, sans the group that left to hunt, proceeded with a few more questions and idle conversation. None of it seemed consequential to Jerrick's murder, in fact most of it centred around jabs at Harriet for getting beaten by Lorag. This made Harriet grumble somewhat, but there seemed to be a distinct boundary that no one crossed to drive her anger too far. After a few more strings of conversation, Harriet stood up and addressed her packs. "Alright everyone, it was a free day for the rest of you in the first place, so don't waste it. Regular trainin' as always tomorrow, are we clear?!" Harriet's packs had quietened as soon as she had begun. When she shouted her question, they all emitted a sort of reverberating, quick, low grunt that didn't resemble a 'yes' or a cheer, but seemed to be the way they carried group acknowledgement. "That's what I like to hear." Harriet turned her head to Lorag, "Okay, Big Boy, you're with me." Harriet pointed her index finger to Lorag, then her thumb to her chest. Without waiting for a response, she began walking with purpose towards the main chamber. She spoke along the way. "Well, with what's goin' on, I ain't huntin' today, so here's the deal. We're gonna spar. Not like yesterday. You use a hammer, yeah?" Harriet gave Lorag a questioning look, "Not many people beat me, and the only way I'm gonna get better is if I train with people who are better fighters. Maybe you could learn a thing or two yourself."

[EliteCommander]

Meesei nodded to Sabine. "Good, good. It would likely be best if we started right away. I am sure what you will make will be most helpful." She said, making sure to alter the appearance of what Sabine intended to do to anyone listening in. "We should be sure to speak again later, Vera. Be sure to be attentive to everything Vera shows you today, Kaleeth. To keep this place secure, we will need as strong of an understanding of the details of the clan as we can manage." Standing up, Meesei took Rhazii from Kaleeth, then looked to Sabine. "Come, let us go. If the scholars are not down there already, they should be soon." Last time Harriet asked to spar, Lorag was anxious for the chance to fight, but now, he was obviously less receptive. It wasn't that he didn't want to fight; he would normally jump on the opportunity, but since he had an important task, he felt he needed to be as close to his best as possible at all times. He still felt he could beat Harriet in this duel, but last time, the fight left him tired and wounded. If she was the traitor, he didn't want her taking advantage of that. Once they were in the hall between the chambers, Lorag spoke in a serious tone. "Look, ask me any time after all this is over and I'll beat you down in a heartbeat, but now, we got to be serious. You know this is important, and we got to be alert for it all. Meesei said for you lieutenants to show us around and teach us what you do here, right? So do that. It's boring, but we can put up with it."

[Muttonhawk]

Sabine felt a little confusion, but didn't protest as it dawned upon her what Meesei was trying to do. Sabine was finding that keeping secrets in such a way seemed far more difficult now that she actually talked to people. She decided that she would just talk as little as possible until they caught the murderer.

Vera put her hands together and greeted Kaleeth and Sabine. "Ah yes, it is good to see you two again." Vera gave Meesei a smile, "Best of luck to you, Meesei."

As Meesei and Sabine began towards the scholar's loft, Vera bid Kaleeth sit near her. Breakfast was almost over, but they had some time to talk. "Now, Kaleeth, before we begin, I should note that I have a class to teach in the morning and clothes washing and repairing duties later on, so I may not be able to teach you throughout the day. However, we should have ample time." Vera turned in her seat to better face Kaleeth, "Before we begin, did you have any specific questions?"

As expected, Harriet was less than enthused with Lorag's response. She let out a short groan and frowned, "Really? That was what she said?" Harriet looked forward again and raised one hand, "Pfft, look, if you're not gonna to spar, I'll just find someone else. I'll teach you how the clan works as a...multitasking practice, I guess." Harriet shrugged as the approached the end of the corridor.

Harriet and Lorag came upon the main chamber to find that a few pairs of fighters had donned padding and were already practising amongst themselves. Harriet stopped to scan the room and tried to spot someone she knew. "It takes a lot a' respect to stop most orcs fighting. Are you afraid of me, or is Meesei just that persuasive?"

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth sat down beside Vera after Meesei and Sabine left, just as she indicated. She was just starting to realize that this was the first time she had been assigned any kind of important task on her own, which quickly made her nervous. Still, she did the best she could to keep herself calm with Vera. She had to keep in mind what she was supposed to be doing, and what she needed to be careful not to do. She needed to keep her real task secret, which would be difficult given how much anxiety she had. Although, she was in an unfamiliar place, so perhaps she could just act like she was nervous about being in a new place? It would not be far from the truth.

Kaleeth shook her head. "Oh, not right now. I can...learn by watching when you are doing those things. I'll just make sure to remember all of my questions."

Meesei and Sabine were fairly silent on their way down to find the scholars, as Sabine did not seem too keen on talking, and Meesei was absorbed in her own thoughts. She would have to walk a fine line when talking to the scholars. If Sabine ended up needing their direct involvement, then they could not simply present them with a poison to test with no explanation, but on the other hand, they could not entirely be trusted. Sabine could help ensure that whatever results they made were not fabricated, but if Darahil was the traitor, they could not be trusted to know the truth. Therefore, she needed a reason to be testing the poison. She could, perhaps, say that they discovered the poison in storage, but not indicate that it had been used. She could tell them that they suspected there was a spy within the clan, which, while worrying, would not be as bad as knowing their alpha had been murdered.

It was not long before Meesei and Sabine reached the scholars' room. Hopefully, the alchemist would be present so they could get to work immediately.

"I don't like it either, but I got to do what I got to do." Lorag responded as they were entering the main chamber. He didn't like staying out of a fight when one was offered to him, but it was for a greater purpose. He supposed he could spar with a student if he needed to keep up appearances, but that would not be near as interesting as a fight with someone closer to his level. After Harriet made her last comment, Lorag gave something between a grunt and a chuckle as he looked at her. "Hmph, what do you think?"

[Muttonhawk]

There was a nod of understanding from Vera. The clan's culture was not one that was entirely complete just from immediate visual observation. Kaleeth's questions would come eventually. Vera still proceeded as normal, "Very well, I suppose we might start with those immediately in my service," Kaleeth looked around her table and motioned to a number of people from those around her at various distances, "Tertia, Loren, Tulga, Pierette, and...where is he?" Vera had to crane her head up to find the final one, "...over there, Valan. These five are all alphas of their own packs, but I am their alpha in this clan." Vera gestured with one hand while she explained in an attempt to keep Kaleeth engaged. "All of the other lieutenants have about as many people in their command. The hierarchical structure makes it busy for us lieutenants, and unfortunately it makes for less personal time spent with pack members, but it seems to work." Vera paused to take a short breath and think of what to say next, "I have duties outside of leadership, of course. Everyone takes time out to do various labours according to our capabilities. Complex things, like smithing, fall to those trained, but everyone here knows how to clean or sew, for instance."

Vera began to stand up and motioned for Kaleeth to follow, but did not set off from the dining hall yet. "I myself used to work at an orphanage before I was turned. I learned how to teach young children, and I still do. The only difference is that now they're lycans." Vera managed to smile and laugh through her nose, "With some of their tantrums, it makes you wonder whether it really takes their teenage years to start turning, but at least there are not terribly many living in this place."

After walking up the stairs to the scholar's loft, Meesei and Sabine found it even quieter than before. It was bordering on silent if only for the small sounds creeping up the halls from the rest of the clan. Neither Juteem or Carana were present this time, the room was devoid of people. Although, as luck would have it, Sabine heard footsteps ascending the stairs behind them a short moment later accompanied by quiet, but casual voices. Sabine turned to see Carana holding a book to her chest and talking up to an Altmer woman about twice her height. Neither of them noticed Sabine and Meesei until they neared the top of the stairs, but Carana's reaction was more polite and surprised than anything. "Ah, Champion, good morning. Can I help you with anything?"

"What do I think?" Harriet repeated, a grin spreading on her face, "I think both." Harriet's grin instantly faded as she spotted someone out of the corner of her eye and swiftly shouted in the character's direction. "Hey, Gerald!" She stuck to fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly to grab the attention of the sword and training mace wielding Redguard in one section of the main chamber. The man was running through weapon drills at the time.

Despite being of a heavier than average build and clearly displaying practised movements with his weapon, Gerald the Redguard's body seemed to tense up in shock and slight fear. He even double checked Harriet once he spotted her. Harriet just seemed to laugh at the reaction as she walked towards him. She leaned her head towards Lorag to explain. "Gerald here is one of the more talented fighters in one of my packs. This'll still probably end up turning into a tutoring session for him, though. Who do you think would win a fight between him and...let's say your Imperial friend, Janius, was it? What do you think from a glance?"

[EliteCommander]

Even though Kaleeth knew that learning about the clan was simply a cover, she was surprised at how convincing Vera seemed to be. She almost believed Vera was being genuine. Although she did not necessarily need to remember everything Vera was saying, she decided to pay attention anyway. Not only would it make it easier for her to act believable, but it probably would be helpful to know more about the clan anyway. They did not know who the murderer was, and there was really no telling what knowledge would be useful, so she reasoned that it could not hurt to learn as much as she could.

"So everyone helps out with everything? It was the same way in my village, and it makes more sense to me than what they do in Imperial cities. We all had our own roles, but we helped anyone who needed it. Elders didn't have to, but most did something to help if their bodies let them. Though, if lycans come here from places like cities...is it hard to get new lycans to live this way?" Kaleeth asked, genuinely curious. She had been through the jarring experience of seeing how Imperials live after coming from her village, but she wondered if the reverse would be just as difficult.

Meesei returned Carana's greeting with a polite nod and a greeting of her own. "Yes, actually." She began with a friendly smile. As they were waiting, Meesei had thought about a way they might approach this. Her pack had arrived only the previous day with plenty of belongings of their own, so it was entirely possible to simply imply that they already had the poison before arriving. She did not want to lie directly and say that, of course, but with the right attitude and wording, she could strongly imply that was the case to the point that they might not question it. "We have something that Sabine has been wanting to test to learn more about it. It is a finished concoction, and from my understanding, it has been proving...stubborn. Do you think you could provide some assistance?"

Lorag gave a grunt. "Hmph, whatever." He commented just before Harriet called the attention of one of her pack. He looked like a reasonably trained fighter, but he didn't want to judge before seeing him in action. There was a time that Lorag believed he could easily size anyone up just by looking at them, but that was before he met Meesei. She did not exactly look defenseless at a glance, as most lycans naturally had a stronger physique than normal, but she did not look intimidating either, at least not by pure appearances.

Lorag chuckled for a moment after Harriet's question. "That city boy? I'd love to see him get knocked down a peg or two, but he's got some training. He was Fighter's Guild before he turned, and he's picked up Legion training from me. We've all been through some rough fights. Anyway, how 'bout you show me what he can do?"

[Muttonhawk]

Vera raised her brow and answered in a matter-of-fact tone, "Actually, it's less of a problem than you might think. Come along," Vera began to walk, turning her body to wave to each of her pack. Some regular farewells followed Vera and Kaleeth out of the dining chamber. "It really depends on the individual as how hard it is to adjust to our life, but it seems to mostly be shaped by how they cope with the trauma. Being turned into a lycan is a terrifying experience at the best of times, but most people have to unwillingly separate from their family and friends. There are some who..." Vera pushed the backs of her hands out in front of her in a repelling sort of gesture, "...are outwardly angry, there is often a period of rebellion for them before they learn to release pent up emotion and accept themselves. There are also those who try to stay calm and attempt to run away. That's trouble where we have to track them down before they perish in the wilds or hurt other people. Many people, however, find the structure of being assigned simple tasks to be relaxing, regulating. Calming, even. Those are the people that go into a sort of depression if they aren't driven on. In all cases, with support, consistent structure, and most importantly patience, they soon find themselves a place. Other culture shock is sort of ironed out along the way."

The pair were about halfway to the room in which Vera held her class. With a glance, Vera turned the inquiries onto Kaleeth, "You say that the clan is like your village? I don't know much about Argonian villages, what's it like living there? If you don't mind talking about it, of course."

Carana swiftly nodded and rushed up the rest of the stairs. "Yes, I can give it a try if you like! What do you have?" The woman that Carana left behind stood with a puzzled expression at the proceeding, but Carana turned back to her at the top of the stairs to clear things up. "Safina, come along, you know what Darahil said. Come up and help." Carana was about to address Sabine when she realised that the Altmer woman had not been properly introduced. Carana smiled and started with a quick gesture to her friend, "This is Safina, by the way. She's been my charge for about a month now. She knows a spot of alchemy as well."

Safina, evidently nervous with beholding such an important figure at Meesei, crept up the stairs quietly and nodded in greeting.

"Now," Carana levelled her eyes with Sabine, being roughly similar height, though shorter than Sabine by just half a hand, "What do you have?"

Sabine fished around her shoulder bag and pulled out a vial of the poisoned water, as yet untested. "It has a poison, a slow poison. My tests haven't been working."

With confirmation via body language, Carana lightly took the vial from Sabine's hands and took a close look herself, swirling it around and holding it to the magelight that illuminated the room. "What tests have you done?" She asked.

Before answering, Sabine looked to Meesei for confirmation. A wave on anxiety had burned across her mind shortly after mentioning that the vial contained a poison. She was unsure how much she was meant to share with Carana.

"Hmph," Harriet imitated Lorag's grunt, then closed the last few steps to Gerald the Redguard Warrior. "Throw me a couple of wasters, Gerald," Harriet ordered. Gerald didn't say a word and rushed to a nearby weapon rack that held wooden weapons. He tucked his sword under his other arm and tossed two wooden short swords, one at a time and hilt first in Harriet's direction. They were well aimed enough that Harriet caught them out of the air with ease. "And pick the mace or the sword, Gerald, you look ridiculous."

Gerald spoke up for once, trying to be casual but visibly perspiring from more than just his workout. "Why do you use two swords, then?" His voice was higher than his appearance suggested.

Harriet pointed both her wooden swords in front of her, "One, because these are twin weapons; two, you train hard to use them both at once; and three, I'm you alpha, so what I say goes. Pick a weapon, kid."

With a sigh, Gerald put his off hand mace back on the weapon rack and held his sword in both hands. It was a longsword, not for use with a shield, but certainly effective in skilled hands. His previous 'weapon drills' were seeming more like they were just showing off.

"Guard up," Harriet dropped into a combat stance with her weapons and began to pace carefully towards Gerald's reach. Gerald twitched in feints to keep Harriet at bay, but it would only be a moment before they would be at each other in melee.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth did not expect Vera's answer, though she supposed it made sense. For someone who had just turned into a lycan, learning to live in the clan would be a relatively small problem. They would be a lot more worried about coming to terms with their lycanthropy than anything, and like Vera said, being made to be so close to the rest of the clan could even be helpful.

"Oh, no it's fine." Kaleeth answered, pausing a moment to try to think of where to begin. "It was like this in a lot of ways, but we didn't stay in one place. We moved our village with the seasons to get away from floods. We always set up our village in around a HIst tree in a few different places. Once you're old enough, everyone has to help out somehow, but most hatchlings spend a lot of their time training for their future role. I trained to be a hunter, so that's why I have my tattoos. Every hunter has to go through a difficult test to earn them. Mine show...resilience, I think is the right word."

Meesei gave a slight chuckle. "I believe that is all we know at the moment. It is slow, and is a poison. I believe Sabine just wants to learn more about it: how long it would take to work, what it is made of, and other such properties."

Since Meesei was not as directly needed as Sabine, she looked around a moment, then found an empty chair in which to take a seat. She nodded to Sabine for her to proceeding, hoping that she would gather from her casual tone that she should avoid giving away too much information if at all possible.

Although Lorag was not participating in the duel, he had no problem giving his comments on it. His mother's harsh training early in life, coupled with his unforgiving Legion training, made it difficult for him to avoid pointing out anything he perceived as a flaw in an ally's technique. "I'm with the skittish Redguard on this one. Two swords is more flashy than effective. You'd be better off with a parrying dagger, or better yet, a buckler. You'd get a better defense, with the same or better attack. Sure, two swords can work, just like killing someone with a rusty fork can work. You'd just be better at killing with somethin' else."

[Muttonhawk]

"I see, so you were nomadic, then? That would make sense," Vera responded while she gave Kaleeth's tattoos proper consideration. "I guess one difference is that everyone in the clan is a hunter in some capacity. That's really because we have to be, though. Our beast spirits don't feed themselves. If you got tattoos for a trial to become a hunter, you must be good at it." Vera smiled, "Maybe we should start trials like that, it might make for some stronger hunters."

Vera looked forward and her smile started to fade for a moment. She didn't speak or even appear to listen for a few moments. After another swallow, she held her chin up and regained her smile. "We're almost there."

A short distance later, Vera came upon a room that was bubbling with childish voices on the inside and from a few short figures waiting outside. As soon as the children outside saw Vera coming, they skittered inside. Vera and Kaleeth found the room to be relatively spacious and well lit. At the sides of the room were shelves of roughly cut slate tablets, pieces of parchment, old books, buckets of chalk pieces and other stationary. The children, roughly fourteen in number, were sitting cross-legged on thin carpets spread on the stone floor. Their ages seemed to be spread between five and seven years old at a guess. They either wore furs or thoroughly repaired regular clothing. They were collected together, but not in any formation except to face one of the walls of the room. The wall they faced was blackened somehow, likely with a paint or a tar. There were markings on the wall make by white chalk, evidently from the previous lesson.

"Good morning, class," Vera announced on her arrival.

The class droned slowly in unison, "Good morning Missus Vera."

Vera held out a hand to Kaleeth and beckoned her in front of the children. Some of the children whispered quietly amongst themselves, but they were quiet enough that Vera and Kaleeth couldn't make out what they were saying. Vera spoke again once Kaleeth was next to her, "This is Kaleeth. She is going to be joining us for a while, everyone say hello to her."

"Good morning Missus Kaleeth."

Even though the end to Kaleeth and Vera's previous conversation seemed abrupt, the lesson started in earnest and didn't look like it was going to pause for a while. Vera found Kaleeth a chair to observe as she continued teaching the children about the Cyrodilic alphabet and how to properly write the characters. The older children were run through some spelling drills instead.

Sabine was still unsure, but she turned slowly back to Carana and began to explain what tests had been done already to the poison. The language they were speaking had so much alchemical jargon mixed among it that it barley seemed like Cyrodilic at all when heard. Even Sabine had to clarify what some of the words Carana was saying actually meant, but there was either a translation in Dunmeris to be had, or simply a concept that Sabine had found herself but was yet to find the name for. It took perhaps a solid twenty minutes of discussion, with Safina chiming in occasionally with her own insight, before they devised some tests that Sabine had not yet attempted. This would continue to be a busy morning.

Back in the main chamber, Harriet smirked at Lorag's critique, but didn't take her eyes off Gerald. She considered responding right then and there, but Gerald thrust his sword forward in an attempt to catch her while distracted. Harriet was far from it. She crossed her swords and sidestepped, catching Gerald's sword and redirecting it harmlessly past her. Harriet attempted to follow up by stepping up and slashing at Gerald's arm, but Gerald had already brought his sword back around his head to strike at Harriet's other side. With an uncanny lightness to her feet, Harriet's step forward floated back as if it was not committed at all. In an instant, one of her swords was in position to check the incoming strike with a resounding clack and the other was already prodding the padding in front of Gerald's stomach. He recoiled and coughed loudly in surprise, shrinking back a couple of steps. It was clear that Harriet had one that short bout.

"Big Boy, you legionnaires have no imagination, you know that?" Harriet quipped. Despite the validity of Lorag's comments, Harriet was using a technique that she had obviously developed enough to be an equivalent alternative. She wasn't as nonchalant towards Gerald, "As for you, use your reach more, kid. The end of your sword is as good as the part closer to your hands."

[EliteCommander]

As Kaleeth and Vera were passing through an unpopulated hallway on their way to the classroom, she saw the hints of Vera's true mood. Seeing the sudden shift made Kaleeth noticeably more sympathetic to Vera. She could imagine losing her husband would be painful by itself, but to have to act like nothing was wrong as well? It was something Kaleeth hoped they could somehow make right in the future.

When they reached the classroom, Kaleeth was not really sure what she should say to the children. Fortunately, it did not seem like she would have to say anything, as Vera got started with her lesson almost right away. Despite all being lycans, the children all seemed just as lively and...innocent as any hatchling she had seen back in her village. The fact that they, and everyone around them, had ferocious beasts within them did not seem to matter to their young minds. True, they could not transform themselves, but it was still a though that made her smile. As for the lesson itself, Kaleeth likely did not have to worry about becoming bored, as it was about something she was interest in. She did not know how to read in Cyrodilic either.

"Imagination'll get you killed if it doesn't come with sense." Lorag retorted. He obviously was not budging on his position, as he was certain he was in the right. The fact that Harriet was far too stubborn to listen did not seem to matter to him.

"That style gives too little and takes too much. Sure, you won, but you could probably beat him with about anything around here. Fact is, two swords isn't efficient. If you fought someone just as good as you with a different setup, you'd lose. Not without some dumb luck saving you." Just like with his own pack, Lorag did not hesitate with criticism. Everyone who had ever trained him had been a taskmaster of some form or another, so doing the same was natural for him.

Immediately after he finished speaking, he gave a glance to the Redguard. "She's not wrong 'bout the reach, though. Press every advantage you got."

[Muttonhawk]

Vera did not spend her entire time simply talking to the entire class. It wasn't long before she had briefed them all enough to get stuck into practising what was taught. On command from Vera, the younger children stood up and quickly retrieved a lump of chalk and a stone tablet from the shelves on the side of the room. Vera had given them a few letters to practice on and they were all soon sitting with their heads down, occasionally looking to one side to talk with their friends. Although it wasn't obvious at first, Vera had noticed how rapt Kaleeth was with the lesson that she retrieved a tablet and chalk for her to try as well. Kaleeth probably had a more coordinated hand than the children, but it was probably better than sitting and doing nothing.

A couple of hours later, Vera spoke up and the volume of the children faded. "Okay class, it's time for a break. Everyone is to be back in fifteen minutes," Vera had to speak up over all of the children suddenly rushing to stand up and get to the door, "Do not stray far! I will call you back in as always!"

Once the children had put away their tablets and left, giggling and talking amongst themselves, they could be heard playing in various rooms surrounding the classroom. Vera smiled at the door and approached Kaleeth. "They have a lot of energy. It's good for them to expend it a little, else they never pay attention." Vera peered down at Kaleeth's tablet, "What do you think of Cyrodilic writing? I probably should have asked if you had learned it before."

As time progressed in the alchemist's loft, so increased the frequency of disappointed sighs. It seemed that the tests that Safina, Carana, and Sabine had devised were all still yielding the strange black substance that Sabine's tests were producing. Carana scratched her head and turned to Sabine and Meesei. "This poison must have been made by otherworldly means. I have never encountered something so...so..."

"Stubborn?" Safina suggested.

"No, more like...hmm,"

"Elusive?"

"Sensitive," Sabine said plainly, speaking her mind.

"Sensitive, yes," Carana waved her finger in agreement, "Every test we try makes it almost trip up some kind of trap and denature into this putrid ichor. The only thing I can think to do is what Sabine suggested at one point; make a potion to act as a fake human body and fool the poison into working naturally. Observing how it works will give us much better hints as to its properties." Carana paced with her hands on her hips, "It might take all day, though. Would that suit you, champion? Also, might I ask where you found such a poison?"

To any green fighter, Lorag's words might have been blunt and impactful, however, Harriet grinned and chuckled instead. "Am I teachin' Gerald or are you tryin' to teach me?" She slowly shook her head and stepped to face Gerald again, "If I was tryin' to kill him before he killed me, I wouldn't take on a handicap. This's more fun. Now, put up your weapon kid, lesson's far from over."

Bout after bout went on between Gerald and Harriet. Each time, Harriet would give advice and encourage Lorag to do the same. Harriet started off winning each bout, but some hits to the hand and the arm developed into a couple of well placed moves on Gerald's part. Gerald had improved noticably in just a few hours.

Eventually, Harriet put her wooden swords away took a seat on the floor to catch her breath. She sat with her forearms on her raised knees and her head rolling side to side. "Alright Gerald, find another partner and keep practising for the rest of the morning. Bring over Benilada, I'll work with her next."

Gerald gave a quick thanks and walked off, nursing the many bruises he had inflicted.

"So...you seem a bit more uptight when it comes to training," Harriet looked up at Lorag and uncorked her waterskin, "D'you learn everything you know about fighting from the legion?" Harriet took a swig of water while she listened.

[EliteCommander]

Although Kaleeth's penmanship of the Cyrodilic letters was perfectly readable, she did not think she was much closer to committing them all to memory. The letters were drastically different in form from those in Jel, and they seemed to form words differently from Jel lettering.

"Oh, no, I haven't learned to write Cyrodilic before. My father taught me some Cyrodilic, but I did not know too much when the pack visited my village. It was hard talking to them at first, but it has gotten a lot easier. Janius gave me some lessons, and speaking it all the time made me get better. Sometimes it is hard for me to think of the right word still, and I mess up sometimes, but I can speak well now." Kaleeth explained, pausing a moment to look down at her tablet with a slightly disappointed expression. "But I need to practice a lot if I want to learn to write it. Children learn so quickly. I think it would take me a lot longer than them to learn it."

"An otherworldly poison? I had a suspicion that could be the case." Meesei commented as she stood up from her chair and walked over to Sabine and Carana. It would have been preferred to have their answer quickly, of course, but Meesei could wait until the end of the day for the results. As long as the clan as a whole did not know what had transpired, they did not need to rush the investigation too quickly. Carana did ask the question Meesei had been worrying about, but for as long as Meesei had been waiting for their initial tests to finish, she certainly had enough time to come up with a satisfactory answer.

"As for where we found it, I mentioned to the clan yesterday that we have been working against Vile's followers for some time. We believe that followers of Vile are the ones most likely to have created this concoction. That, or they were gifted it from Vile's realm itself. In either case, the ingredients to make the poison could come from Oblivion. I hope that a clearer understanding of the poison could help us better understand our enemy's capabilities." Meesei explained.

Lorag did not say any more, as he had made his point, though he still didn't agree with Harriet. To him, practicing bad habits would just end up reinforcing bad habits. Harriet was far too stubborn to have her mind changed, but Lorag didn't care that much, at least not yet. If they ended up staying with the clan for any decent amount of time, he would probably make sure the recruits were being trained properly

Lorag was starting to debate on whether or not it would be too risky for him to get involved in some lessons as well when Harriet started questioning him again. "All of it? Nah. Legion's definitely tough, more than people give it credit for, but they got nothin' on an Orcish mother. Especially one whose the Master of the Cheydinhal Fighter's Guild. Father taught me some too. He was a retired Legion soldier, but he was usually busy with the forge. Learned more about smithing than fightin' from him."

[Muttonhawk]

"Well, you aren't doing too badly so far," Vera looked down at Kaleeth's tablet and sat down beside her. "Learning to read and write isn't too hard once you get into the basics. Reading and writing well, however, that takes practice, like you said. As long as you have a willingness, it's no problem at all, really. And living day to day, it can be very hard without knowing how." Vera looked up at Kaleeth, and nodded encouragingly, "You could keep attending my lessons as long as you're here, if you wanted. You're certainly not the first adult to do so. Can others in your pack read and write?"

Carana pinched at the skin on her temple and gave a worried look. "I should have known. If there is one thing that Vile's followers are doing if this poison is theirs, it is driving us to madness with trying to figure it out. Very well, Safina?" Carana lowered her arm and looked up at her assistant, "Fetch a human heart and a pint of human blood from cold storage. We'll need them."

The next while consisted of a friendly discussion between Sabine and Carana regarding whether to use a human heart or liver for the test. It contained as much jargon as before and they had set up the test with the heart before they even knew they had come to an agreement. Curiously, Sabine's anxiety seemed to fade off and turn into a sure confidence as she spent time talking about alchemy. The threat of the clan falling apart if she said the wrong thing was all but gone from Sabine's mind. As they worked, there were a few other scholars that came and went from the loft. They gave curious glances, but didn't cause a disturbance.

An hour of precise frost and fire spells later, the four in the scholar's loft beheld a large flask filled with a thin mix of blood and water. Suspended in tendrils of ice was a fresh heart that had been administered the poisoned water. "There," Carana breathed once the poison had been added, "Now all there is to do is watch and wait. This will likely take a while."

"Cheydinhal? Hah! I should have known. We sometimes get Cheydinhal Orcs coming by, they've all got the same...hmm, how do I put it?" Harriet lifted a finger and pressed at the front of her mouth in thought, "I dunno, you all got somethin', I think it's the way you talk." Harriet waved the thought away dismissively, "Anyway, so your mother was the warrior and your pa was the smith? I tell you, from the perspective of a stronghold girl, that's just weird. At least you had your parents teachin' you," Harriet stood up and began stretching her arms, "My parents weren't too keen on me worshiping Hircine instead of Malacath. The clan had plenty of teachers when I joined it, though." Harriet tensed her face, then released her breath through her nose, "Your parents still around?"

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth had to stop and think for a few moments to answer Vera. "I...think so." She said, her tone somewhat unsure. "I remember Fendros teaching Sabine a while back, and I...think everyone else can. I haven't really asked, so I don't know for sure. I guess everyone raised in Cyrodiil can. I don't know if Meesei can. I would have to ask her."

As she had not been with the pack very long, Kaleeth wondered what else she did not know about them, or even just Janius. Granted, they had been traveling through Black Marsh for most of their time together, so writing in Cyrodilic was not something they had to commonly do, but it still seemed like something she should know about her friends. For a moment, she wondered if she should take the time to simply ask all of her friends about themselves once they had found the traitor and made peace in the clan, but since she was still talking to Vera, she decided to worry about it later. "Have you taught everyone in the clan to read in Cyrodilic, or are there some who still don't know?"

Once again, Meesei had little she could do as Sabine and Carana were preparing their next test, so she simply went back to waiting to the side patiently. Eventually, the pair set up their test, which Carana explained would take some time to complete. Meesei had expected that the test would take some time, though she was not quite certain what she should do in the meantime. She did not wish to continue questioning the lieutenants until she had the results of the test, and she had to wait until the proper time to speak to the three of Jerrick's trusted that were serving as her eyes in the clan. She did not like being idle as long as the traitor had not been found, but she did not have many options at the moment.

Meesei stood up and walked back over to Carana and Sabine. "That is quite alright. Will the test be able to accurately model what the poison will do to a lycan? I am assuming that is who Vile's followers would intend to use it on." She questioned.

Lorag shrugged his shoulders. "No clue. After I was assigned to fight that war in Skyrim, I never went back. I did talk to someone from Cheydinhal a few weeks back and asked her about it, but she didn't know either of 'em. She did say there was an Orc who died a while back, then her wife went to find a good death. Could've been them, or not. Plenty of Orcs in the city that'd do the same. I probably won't know unless I go back, which I'm probably not."

Instead of spending the entire time talking about himself, Lorag decided to comment on Harriet. "You're from a stronghold, you say? Better than a city, but I still wouldn't live there. I'm all for strength and Orcish tradition and all that, but Malacath's holdin' us back. Since when has anything good actually happened to the Orcs following him?"

[Muttonhawk]

"Well, I know that now might not be the best period of time, but after all...you know." Vera was clearly trying to move on quickly, "W-what I'm trying to say is that if anyone in your pack wants to learn as well, they're free to join in as well." Vera smiled and firmly nodded.

Thankfully for Vera's emotions, Kaleeth had another question to move the conversation along. Vera placed a hand on her chest and laughed, before shaking her head and clarifying, "Oh, no no no. Most learned beforehand, mainly those who turned after being educated. I'm not the only teacher, though, and there are also those who don't want to learn to read and write. They make their own lives harder by doing so, but it's their choice." Vera looked blankly ahead for a while, even the slight pause was not at all relaxing for her. "Say, do you like apples? It's a bit of a tradition for teachers to have apples." Vera stood up and walked quickly over to a shelf on the other side of the room that housed a bowl full of deep red shiny circular shapes, "Sometimes I like to partake for breaks like this." Vera plucked out one of the apples and turned around to show Kaleeth.

Carana actually looked to Safina and looked puzzled. Meesei's question had left her unsure. Sabine seemed to understand with more clarity and her eyes went wide. Behind Carana and Safina, Sabine hurriedly drew her dagger from her belt and stepped up to the flask. Without any hesitation she held her knife with one hand on the handle and the other on the blade, held them over the flask, then pulled. The dagger didn't make any sound louder than Sabine's sharp intake of breath as it cut shallowly into her hand, but it was the quickest way for droplets of Sabine's blood to hit the mixture in the flask.

Safina noticed the movement out of the corner of her eye and gasped at the scene. Carana was similarly shocked when she realised what happened as well.

Sabine slowly retracted her bleeding palm and looked to Meesei guiltily. "It is infected now. It will work."

Knowing that sympathy wasn't a particularly appreciated Orcish sentiment, Harriet gave an acknowledging nod to one side to hear about Lorag's parents. At least as Harriet finished her stretch, Lorag had something else to say.

"Eh, Malacath might be part of the problem," Harriet began, "I mean, the strength and independence thing is all well and good, but what got me annoyed was all the 'vengeance' this and 'we've been wronged' that when it was for stuff that really didn't matter." Harriet glanced past Lorag and started to stand up. Benilada, a lithe but certainly not fragile looking Dunmer woman with training pads similar to Gerald's, was walking towards them. "We'll have to continue this chat later. Time to keep training." Harriet gave Benilada a grin as she closed in, "Alright, Benny, time to cover that weakness you have against spears. Get yourself a weapon and toss me a training spear from the rack."

Benilada didn't seem nearly as nervous as Gerald did. If anything she seemed slightly annoyed at Harriet mentioning her weakness in combat. "Yes, alpha," Benilada said clinically.

To this, Harriet swung her head and exhaled sharply. "For goodness sake, Benny, I told you once, I told you a hundred times, call me Harriet. You don't need to title me to give me respect."

"Oh, right, sorry," Benilada at least seemed a bit more human in her response before she passed Harriet a spear with a small swaddled cloth instead of a point.

"You got any tips for this one, Big Boy? She's a little greener than Gerald."

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth watched curiously as Vera stood up and approached a shelf in the corner of the room, grabbing an object that looked something like a fruit, though not one she was familiar with. Most of the plants that Imperials grew for food in Cyrodiil did not grow in Black Marsh, so she had found herself unfamiliar with many foods they had come across in their stops in Cyrodiil. She thought she might have seen one of these "apples" before, perhaps in an inn, but she was not sure.

"I haven't seen one of those before, is it a fruit? Most of the things that grow in Black Marsh are different from here." Kaleeth commented before shifting in her seat somewhat uncomfortably and speaking more quietly. "But...are you sure you should eat? Meesei said..." She began before trailing off, not sure how to continue discretely.

"Ah, that is good." Meesei commented after Sabine added her own blood to the mixture and assured her it would emulate how the poison affected a lycan. "It is best that your experiment be as representative as possible. Given its potential origins, it is possible that it could even be a poison designed to harm only lycans. We could test for that later, if this works."

As Meesei paused, her expression turned more concentrated, as if deep in thought, for a few moments before she continued. "Now, I simply need to figure out how to pass the time. There is quite a lot I need to do over the next week or two, but right now, it is going to be quite a few hours before I can start on my next order of business." Meesei said, turning her head to Sabine. "Perhaps we can find a space nearby and have another lesson in magic, Sabine? It has been a while since we have had an opportunity for one. That would also allow you to check periodically on the experiment."

Meesei started to reach out her hand, which was glowing slightly with restoration energy, to grab Sabine's, but stopped herself just short of holding her bleeding hand. "Actually, I believe now would be an opportune time for another lesson in healing."

Lorag simply gave another grunt in response to Harriet's opinion on Malacath, though this time, it had something of an agreeable tone to it. When the Dunmer woman approached, he looked her over, but just like with Gerald, withheld his judgement based only on her lithe form. Of course, Harriet's description of her skills would be plenty reliable. It seemed she had a problem with spears, which made sense for someone who had never fought in a military.

"Spears? Yeah, I've got training with those, mostly from the Legion. They are one of the most effective weapons you can use in war. Of course, most of my training with 'em was about how to use spears in formation. I trained in how to use them on a battlefield, not so much in just a one on one or small group fight. I mean, I can use them in a normal fight, but I probably don't know any more than you for that. Tell you what, I'll watch and give some tips if I see her make any mistakes you don't fix." He said.

[Muttonhawk]

Vera's expression sank into that of disappointment and realisation. "Oh, right, of course, um," Vera turned around and slowly placed the apple back in its bowl, "Never mind. I'm not sure why I thought that would be a good idea." Vera remained facing the wall and bowed her head. Her voice seemed to quicken in an attempt to keep it somewhat level. "I think I just need to keep doing things. Just to keep going. I need to make sure that I don't..." Vera shot her hand up to her mouth and bit on a curled finger. A single small, light cough sounded from her that was unmistakably a suppressed sob. She started holding her breath and staying perfectly still, her back to Kaleeth and the door.

"Very well, champion. I will be here for most of the morning if you need anything else." Carana said, glad that the situation was resolved without fuss. Before she turned away, Carana looked up at Safina, "How about you, Safina?"

Safina took a short breath, smiled lightly, and then nodded. "I will be in and out. Hadryn said he has some artifacts he needs me to examine. Oh, and you two," Safina addressed Sabine and Meesei, "Sabine, you've a lot of talent for your age." With that, the two alchemists strode away to mind their own business. Carana didn't go far, having her own projects to work on nearby.

If Sabine wasn't wincing from the stinging cut on her hand, she would probably be pouting at Meesei's surprise lesson being on healing. Sabine was not especially good with healing magic in general. It took a lot of concentration and relied on feeling more than any other senses, more so than most magic she had learned so far.

"Okay," Sabine said to Meesei, charging a yellow glow in her uninjured hand. The glow seemed to flicker and roil for a while before Sabine could get it right. Even then, she was having trouble keeping it stable. "I'm nervous. I don't want to get a sore scar like the last healing lesson."

"Alright, alright," Harriet smiled in acknowledgement to Lorag as Benilada slid on a shield and took a training sword from the weapon racks. Harriet pointed the spear forward with both hands and began her instruction. "So, Remus told me you kept screwin' up in sparring against those with spears, I'm gonna try and help you with that today, darling. Let's try a quick bout," Harriet angled her head towards Lorag, "Big boy here will shout at you after I give you some pointers. He's right in saying they're used in formations by a lot a' people, but you'll need to be able to fight against them whether it's against one or five. What you'll learn here, you can use when you let your friend out of the cage as well. Now, guard up!"

Harriet left no more time after her warning to step up and thrust her spear forward. Benilada was able to block the thrust with her shield, but her stance narrowed as she shied from the blow. Harriet kept up the offensive, thrusting quickly above and below. Benilada had trouble finding any way to advance while Harriet kept her at bay. Shielding was all she could do to stop herself being prodded by the swaddled cloth on the stick. Apart from an ineffective swing at the spear at one point, Benilada did not seem to attack. She just kept losing ground. At first, it seemed like a stalemate, but Harriet had a small trick up her sleeve. With a well placed thrust, Harriet encouraged Benilada's shield to one side to expose her body, then whirled the point around the shield and caught Benilada in the upper leg. "Halt there," Harriet commanded. Benilada had recoiled from the thrust, but didn't move further except to look slightly ashamed.

Harriet brought the spear back and held it vertically against the ground, then put her other hand on her hip. "Come on, Benny, what was that? You're too defensive with this thing. Look, the way to beat a spear is to get past the reach, not to avoid it. Here," Harriet held the spear forward in one hand towards Benilada. "From here, I can get you, right? You can't get me. Now, take a pace and a half towards me, I won't stab you, promise." Benilada tightened her mouth, then stepped forward. Harriet held her spear to one side, but still had it horizontal. "Now, I'm in reach of your weapon, and if I want to get you I have to step..." Harriet took an exaggerated step back and pulled her spear arm back just far enough to hold the point to Benilada, "...aaaall the way back here. If you got up this close, you could probably kill me before I got to this position, right?"

"Wait," Benilada held up a finger from her sword handle, "How do I to get that far without getting stabbed, though?"

Harriet's eyes widened. She grabbed and shook Benilada's shield momentarily. "With this!" Harriet hissed, "And these!" She added, gesturing to Benilada's legs. "Most of all, though, you use this," Harriet put a hand on the top of the padded cap that Benilada was wearing. "Take's practice, but parry, step up, follow through, understood?"

Benilada nodded apprehensively after a short moment.

"Before we try again, have you got anything to add, legion trainer?" Harriet asked Lorag.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth had no idea how to handle the situation, for more reasons than one. If she tried to comfort Vera, the children would probably notice, but she was not sure if she could just do nothing. It was frustrating not knowing what she could do, and when she finally did speak up, both her tone and the look in her eyes showed that she was confused and nervous. She just hoped that moving on to a new topic would help her at least get her mind off of everything that had happened.

"So, uh, how long do the children usually practice on their own? I have never been in a...class like this." Kaleeth asked.

Meesei looked to Sabine reassuringly. "Do not worry, I will make sure it is healed properly, but these lessons are quite important. If you fight for long enough, injury is unavoidable, and knowing how to heal can mean the difference between life and death for yourself or your allies. Not only that, but in learning to heal, you also learn all of the intricacies of the body, all of its strengths and weaknesses. Now, let us find some place quiet."

It was not difficult for the pair to find a suitable room nearby. It was not entirely empty, as it looked like it was used for something, even if it was just storage, but there was no one currently using it. The main reason behind starting the lesson was so Sabine could stay nearby to her experiment, but while they were waiting, there was no harm in actually going through with the lesson. Meesei sat herself down on the floor just in front of Sabine as she began.

"Restoration, just like with most forms of magic, is about the understanding of your subject. In this case, the body. For the convenience of learning, we start with your body, that of a female Breton. Of course, the races of Humans and the races of Elves are not greatly different from one another, so knowledge you learn from one can be applied to another, in many cases. You may need to spend some time studying the anatomies of Khajiit and Argonians to fill out your knowledge completely, but for now, we shall start with you. To master healing, you will learn everything about the body: how the muscles interact with each other and how they connect to bone, where every organ is, what they do, and what they are made from. Every minute detail can be important. I cannot say it is easy, and it is sometimes an...unsettling topic to learn about, but I do have to say, there is a certain beauty to the inner workings of our bodies. They demonstrate how truly complex we all are." Meesei explained. To begin the lesson, she reached out and grabbed Sabine's wounded hand.

"For this lesson, let us start with pain, since it gave you trouble last time." Meesei began, pausing to numb Sabine's hand with a minor restoration spell. "In general, one cannot die from pain, and in an emergency, your first priority should be the wound itself, but it is easier for all involved if the pain is not an issue." Meesei released her hand, allowing the pain to return to it. "The most important step to understanding pain is understanding what causes it. It may seem like your skin, and the flesh underneath, can simply feel pain, but that is not the case. The flesh itself does not feel, but rather, it is an incredibly small, long organ that spreads throughout your entire body, in much the same way as your arteries and veins. They are invisible to your eyes, but with magic, you can perceive them. Try practicing looking inside yourself with your magic, as I taught you. Try to feel the slight presence of magicka within your body, feel how your energies are disrupted around the wound. If you have trouble, you might try taking your dagger and pressing on your skin until you feel a slight amount of pain, then see if you can feel what changed."

"Yeah, I guess." Lorag answered, taking a step forward and looking over the Dunmer. "Harriet's got the right of it. Be aware of your reach, and your enemy's. When you're not attacking, you want to be outside the other guy's reach. Usually, where they'd have to take a step forward if they wanted to hit you. That means they'll have to telegraph more if they want to hit you, which gives you time to react. The place you definitely don't want to be is where you can't hit them, but they can hit you. If you're in that spot, then either back off, or push forward, but do somethin' quick. If your weapon's shorter than theirs, then push the attack quick to get in range. A shield's great for that, so make sure you use it. Also, be more aggressive. A good defense is important, but it won't win the fight alone."

[Muttonhawk]

Vera didn't turn around immediately. She took a few moments to react. Her stillness ended with her wiping her eyes, rubbing her face, and taking a deep breath to level her mood. "The children generally have classes until the mid afternoon. I only teach them in the morning." Vera took one more deep breath through her nose and turned to walk to the door. Her face was still red with emotion, but her expression was more blank, trying to settle herself. She avoided eye contact with Kaleeth to keep herself from feeling shameful. "I give them some material to practice with in their own time. Mostly the older children. Any further practice is only done if they want, but they prefer to spend time playing and socialising. I don't blame them, I was the same at their age."

Once she reached the door, Vera reached her arm out and pulled at something on the other side of the door frame. A small but loud bell began chiming and she cupped her hand to call out into the halls. "Come now, children! Time to come back to class!"

As much as she tried to hold her cut shut, Sabine trailed a few droplets of blood as she and Meesei found a space for their lesson. The pain was such that Sabine was having some trouble even listening to Meesei. However, the information was important enough that she was still able to take it all in.

The concepts of healing and pain were something that Sabine was marginally familiar with via her alchemy, but magical healing was going to be more detailed. She could tell that much. Trying herself to see the pain through magical means was not obvious at first, especially since the real feeling of pain was far more prevalent to her senses. There was a disturbance as Meesei said, though the subtlety made it difficult to pinpoint. In an attempt to see it better, Sabine took Meesei's advice and incised a shallow cut into the side of her hand with her dagger. Seeing the pain develop in real time with her magic, and with a less painful wound, made the effect much clearer.

Despite the success, Sabine was rushing herself. "I see it. It's hard to see, but I see it," Sabine looked up at Meesei, her hands shaking slightly. "The pain is making it hard to think. Can you please heal me now?"

[EliteCommander]

It was not unexpected that Sabine would have a difficult time concentrating. Meesei could recall experiencing the very same issue when her father was beginning to give her lessons in healing, but it was something that was necessary to overcome if one wanted to use restoration in a practical sense. As such, she decided to handle the lesson in much the same way as her father.

"Being able to concentrate despite any pain you are feeling is a skill that is unavoidable to learn for practical healing. It is not as much of an issue for healing others, but if you need to heal yourself, it can mean the difference between life and death. However, you do not need to overcome the problem all at once. I will numb the pain mostly, but not completely. I shall leave just enough so you can feel it, but it should not be terribly distracting." Meesei explained before reaching out to grab Sabine's wounded hand. Her hand glowed with a very faint golden light as Meesei's magic targeted her nerves, calming most of them, but leaving just enough active that Sabine could feel it. The cut itself she left untouched, though it had already stopped bleeding on its own.

"Okay, look at it again. The part of you that causes the pain, like tiny strings or spider webs spread throughout your body, some of them should be active. When they are energized and sending the sensation to your mind, they influence the magicka around them just slightly. That is what you are perceiving when you 'see' them. To calm them as I have, you have to take the disturbed magicka around the wound and make it stable. This will, in turn, numb the pain. I will warn you that it is not easy at first. To say exactly how to stabilize the magicka is not something easily put into words. You must simply feel it happening. I can say that the magicka follows the same patterns as your pain, so you may be able to use that to help. Now, give it a try. It may take a few tries, but once you have done it the first time, it becomes much easier." Meesei explained.