[I]Rihad...[/I]

The khajiit warrior nodded briskly at Hralvar’s greeting and obvious relief at being spared an unglamorous death. It was becoming too common of a thing for her to be rescuing friends and acquaintances from imprisonment and the unpleasantness that went along with it. The other prisoners were close in tow behind Marassa and Hralvar, who were in the process of disappearing with the fleeing crowd. While Marassa had heard about what happened in Imperial City, she hoped the dwemer here would have some form of restraint when dealing with the citizenry, the memories of Anvil still fresh on her mind. The khajiit and Nord, two outsiders in a sea of people of predominantly dark skinned people in practical but appealing flowing clothing, pushed through way through the crowds when screams and shouts of panic filled the air. Marassa didn’t see what fired the explosive projectile, but she certainly felt the effects as it detonated against the wall near Hralvar and Marassa, showering them with debris and intolerable heat. Had it landed much closer, the concussion likely would have pulped their organs, killing them instantly. From the prone bodies lying askew in the courtyard, bodies broken and contorted in unnerving positions, it was clear that others were not so lucky.

Marassa had time to look towards the source of the attack, one of several large constructs with legs like a mud crab approached from the South, a large barrel projecting from the heavily armoured shells in each automata. Although she could not see them, Marassa knew that the dwemer automations were accompanied by no small amount of foot soldiers, who were forcing their way through the crowds with terrifying efficiency. She could only hope that the others managed to do their parts and slip away into the streets of Rihad… far too much depended on fate. Her heart felt like it could burst, it was hammering in her chest so hard. Running to a battle and running from one dominated two entirely separate emotions, and a part of the reason she hated to run was how utterly terrified she felt. The subsequent explosions and the raining brick and mortar that struck her armour and exposed flesh did nothing to alleviate that. She had quite enough of cities exploding and crumbling around her for a lifetime.

Where in Oblivion was Sevari?

[I]No, focus.[/I] she chided herself, ignoring the screams of the crowd and pushing her friend out of her mind. She would see him and Cub soon enough, she had to get Hralvar and the others in tow to safety, to the safe house by the docks. What could not have been more than a few minutes of running felt like a lifetime by the time Marassa lead Hralvar, the other prisoners, and her team into an alleyway, out of the sight of the courtyard. As the din from the crowd and the skirmish quieted down as they moved through the clotheslined alleys, Marassa led the group to a cellar door, one she rapt with her knuckles in a quick staccato of a tune. The heavy wood door was heard unlatching a few moments later and an older, but sharp-eyed Redguard man opened the door, looked the group over and ushered them inside. Here they would wait until sundown, when their group was instructed to leave the safety of the hideout for the larger headquarters by the docks where they had found Cub earlier. Fresh bread, dried meat, and water were laid out for the group, as well as some floor cushions for them to rest. Marassa grabbed a goblet of water and found a seat, resting her back against the wall. When Hralvar joined her, she spoke.

“Things are about to get rather unpleasant here because of what happened today.” She admitted, eyes unfocused as she stared ahead at nothing in particular. “The uprising in Rihad has begun, and I am not entirely sure if that’s a good thing. We go to the docks tonight to get the captives out of Hammerfell and hopefully to safety, and we’ll meet up with Sevari and Cub then. “ Marassa sighed, drinking deeply, empting half the goblet. After a spell, she continued. “The people of Hammerfell know they can’t take their homes back from the dwemer in an open battle, but perhaps by starting an insurrection, the dwarves will tire and leave. Not a great plan, if I do say so myself. We need to find out if the others came to Hammerfell, and we need to find a way to take the fight to the dwemer, stop them at the source. It’s exactly like the Siege of Storms, Hralvar. The war didn’t end until we took Imperial City. The only difference is now, I have no idea where to start looking for our destination.”