EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ri'vashi shrugged her shoulders. "This one guesses it is simply part of us. Moon sugar has been a part of our culture for as long as our people have been keeping records. When every member of every generation of your family has had a preference for the sweet taste of crystallized moonlight...well, maybe the taste for it is hereditary. We enjoy any kind of sweetness, but moon sugar is usually preferred."

With a relaxed expression, Ri'vashi leaned back in her chair, and even put her feet up on the table in front of them. She ended up pushing aside a few of the documents onto the floor of the tent. Even in her most casual of states, it was not something she would normally do, but in this case, all of the documents she had been working with were now essentially useless, since none of her attempts at an alternative plan had been successful. "From all your time in Elsweyr, seeing it from one corner to the other, what do you think of the Khajiit? Some outsiders think we're primitive tribals, others see us as drug addicted outlaws. Some, usually religious, outsiders see a few of our practices as hedonistic. Others enjoy our different lifestyles, and end up never leaving. Really, the biggest mistake Ri'vashi thinks some outsiders make is assuming all of Elsweyr is the same. One of them might visit a city in Pelletine and assume one in Anequina must be the same. You, though, have seen all different parts of our lands."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ri'vashi chuckled as Gallus sat down in her chair. "Ri'vashi rarely drinks with others, true, but even she needs something to calm her nerves from time to time. Well...you probably already knew that rather well, actually."

Grabbing the bottle, Ri'vashi uncorked it with her claw, then sat it down on the table in front of Gallus. She pulled up another seat beside him, rather than across from him. "Just be careful with it. It is on the strong side, and it does contain moon sugar. Ri'vashi is sure someone like yourself can handle it, though. From all she knows about you, you do seem like someone who knows how to enjoy his self."

---

Peiter scarcely pulled away from Sabine at all as he spoke. His forehead was pressed against hers, and he was still holding her tightly enough that he could feel her heartbeat. "Honestly, I don't think the words do it justice." He said before continuing his kiss and pulling both her and himself down onto the bedroll. Between his intense feelings of both love and fear for the future, he was motivated to express his affection with greater passion than he had at any point in their relationship so far.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ri'vashi made sure to close up the tent behind them after they entered, then started going through one of her bags in the corner next to her bedroll. "Well...this is a bit unconventional for Ri'vashi to have, she will admit. She really wasn't sure at the time why she was even bothering to bring it, and if you mention it to anyone, Ri'vashi will say she confiscated it."

From the bag, Ri'vashi produced a tall, unmarked bottle of what appeared to be wine. She brought it over to the table and cleared out a space to set it down. "Ri'vashi has two bottles. She proposes that we split this bottle right now, and the other after we win this battle. She would wait until right before the fight, but if we drink it now, it will have worn off completely by then."

---

Silence was Peiter's first reaction. For a few seconds he sat, staring down at the ground with uncertainty dominating his demeanor. When he finally looked up, it was with some reluctance. "It's not...easy to think that way. I want to, I really do, but those fears are always popping back into my mind. No matter what I do, or how I try to think, they're always there. Though I...guess it's probably the same for you. I don't see how anyone could forget them."

After another, brief pause, Peiter tightened his arms around Sabine and pulled her into his embrace to give her quite a long kiss. "At the very least, no matter what happens, I can be here right now, with you."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ri'vashi smiled and gave a slight huff. "Well, to be fair, Ri'vashi has mostly just been social with you. Some of the others this one has been speaking with have found her sudden outwardness a bit odd. They haven't said so, but Ri'vashi can tell. Relaxing with you, though...Ri'vashi will admit it has been nice."

As soon as the pair reached Ri'vashi's tent, she opened the flap and stepped inside. It was one of the larger tents, with standing room even for a Cathay. At its center was a small table with an array of neatly arranged documents and maps, though the markings she had made on the maps were far more haphazard. Evidently, she had been trying to draw up some alternative battle plan for the attack, but by the fact that she had not mentioned anything during the meeting, she had been unsuccessful. "Since we have some time, Ri'vashi has a proposal for you." She said as she motioned for Gallus to join her in the tent.

---

Peiter stared into Sabine's eyes for a few, long seconds before closing his own. "I...don't know." He said. He opened his eyes again, this time with a hint of a few tears. "That's the problem. I don't know what is going to happen to us. I know everything could go just fine, and that we have really powerful friends. My pack is going to be with Ri'vashi, who moves like some supernatural force, and you're going to be with Meesei, who is powerful like something out of a legend. But what if I get unlucky? What if you get unlucky? Or anyone else we care about? Our friends, the people we trust and that we'll be fighting with, they're not perfect. As strong as they are, as much as they can do, they can't see everything. They don't know everything that's going to happen. All it would take is one unlucky arrow out of a volley that they aren't able to protect us from."

Turning his body to face Sabine, Peiter pulled her into a tight hug. "I don't want to lose everything we have, and there are so many ways I can think of where that could happen."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Ri'vashi certainly would not mind relaxing, even just for a short time. Though, perhaps what she needs right now is just to sit down and talk. About something entirely unrelated to the attack or this march, preferably. Perhaps you want to sit down with this one for a while?" Ri'vashi asked.

Stepping away from the tree, Ri'vashi started walking in the direction of her tent. It was unlikely that any amount of encouragement or reassuring words could truly stop her from worrying about the impending attack, but that was understandable. At the very least, she could distract herself to prevent herself from thinking about it constantly.

---

Though he had been distant for the past few hours, Peiter did not reject Sabine's show of affection, but rather, embraced it readily. He reached one hand up and placed it on Sabine's cheek, then gave a soft smile. "The attack, naturally. It's all anyone's thinking about in camp. I didn't expect it to be this bad; the stress and anxiety that is. I mean, I've thought about it before in the march, and even before we found the Orcrest clan, but now it's just so...close. I'm afraid, enough to make me feel sick to my stomach. These massive battles between armies were always fun to hear about in stories, but thinking about everything that could go wrong is just too much. What if I end up fighting an opponent better than me...or just get unlucky with an arrow or spell? Everything could be over in an instant for me, and I might not be able to do anything about it. What's worse, I won't even be able to fight alongside you. How do I deal with the idea that tomorrow could be my last day on Nirn?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ri'vashi sighed lightly. "Some trouble sleeping. Ri'vashi doesn't know if it is anxiety, or just ill-timed lycan nightmares, but she has been stressed as of late. Luckily, she did get a decent night's rest last night, so hopefully the same will be true tomorrow. This one would like to be well-rested for the attack. Ri'vashi has lead many battles before, but never one of this scale. She supposes it will be a test to see if she is really as skilled as her father told her."

After finding a nearby tree to lean against, Ri'vashi closed her eyes and took a few moments simply to breathe deeply. "Ri'vashi wishes she could just...bring herself to relax."

---

With the attack drawing ever-closer, Peiter had not been acting quite like himself. He was sitting with Sabine outside their tent, but he had been quiet, and even more unusually, somewhat distant from Sabine. There had been no hugs, kisses, or other signs of affection from him; only nervous glances and silence. Eventually, he decided suddenly to crawl into their tent with no hint as to why. He had previously told Sabine that he would not be going to sleep until at least noon the next day, then followed it with a lewd innuendo, so he was likely not retiring for the night.

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

Ssarak Dyreackthanose

---

Ssarak was already focusing intently on the Knight, so he was ready in an instant when he began to attack. His opponent threw at him what appeared to be his only good means of close quarters attack and defense, then rushed at him with only his fists. It was a questionable decision, in Ssarak’s mind, and one he intended to punish him for.

Since his shield was already at the ready, it took only a quick movement to bring up his own shield to protect his head. He held it forward and at an angle to deflect the incoming shield, and more importantly, the force it carried with it. Meanwhile, Ssarak also swung his mace low as hard as he could muster, directly towards the knight’s incoming fist. Ssarak intended to break his attacker’s hand, and if he missed, his mace would still continue on to strike the knight’s torso with frightening force. Ssarak was too focused on aiming his strike to pay close attention to what Meirin was doing, but he trusted in her abilities to help.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

While Meesei stayed to collect the documents on the table, the rest of the council started to disperse through the camp. However, outside the tent, Ri'vashi quickly caught up with Gallus, as she had been doing quite often recently.

"Seeing as we are all checking on our subordinates, Ri'vashi reasoned she would check on you. She is glad that she will have you and your pack at her side during the attack. Has there been any trouble for any of you worth mentioning?" She asked.

---

Ma'tanza appeared uncomfortable up to the point where Tzirret finally agreed to drop the subject, though she was still somewhat flustered even afterwards. She did not embrace him again, but she did at least try to smile. "Yes, Ma'tanza just wants to move on from this subject. Actually...she thinks she would like to go talk to her sister for a while. We...might not get a change again before the attack. Ma'tanza will talk to you again later." She said, standing up rather hastily, though she did at least wave to him as she started to walk away.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Gallus' question was met with a look of determination from Miranor. "There is always more I would like to have, but we have made all of the preparations possible. As the one leading the infiltration, trust me when I say no one understands the stakes better than I. This plan relies on myself and my scouts, and it is our lives at stake if we fail. If we had a better option, I would be the first to suggest it."

Ri'vashi nodded in understanding. "We have done all we can do for now, at least in a meeting. This one recommends we speak to our officers and other subordinates to make sure there are no outstanding issues before the attack."

---

Ma'tanza's initial reaction was one of simple confusion. "What? No, what are you talking about? This one knows you are younger, but you have to know it would hurt. You're Khajiit; the barbs are...painful, this one has heard. She just isn't ready for that. Nothing else is wrong, and this is still...uncomfortable to talk about."

At this point, Ma'tanza was starting to unconsciously pull herself away from Tzirret. "Can we please move on to something else? Ma'tanza doesn't like focusing on her body. She just wants to be ready for tomorrow."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I have spoken with the officers and had a sufficient number of mages assigned to the task, and I have instructed them on what to do." Meesei answered. "I can lead the ritual, so they need not have any knowledge of the spell. They just have to lend their power to me. We have enough soul gems as well. Some of our scouts will place them in position behind the treeline around the stronghold. I will summon the mist as soon as the front gates are open. We have had as many magicka potions made as possibly with our ingredients, and Ri'vashi even sent scouts to try to find more. To my knowledge, all of our preparations are in place."

Meesei's eyes shifted around the room to the others. "Does anyone have any further observations, or knowledge of any problems with our warriors? If not, I believe we can commit to this plan."

---

Ma'tanza was still looking away, though Tzirret's response did calm her somewhat. "Of course, Ma'tanza is fine. She just...she didn't know you thought about doing that with her. Or at all. That isn't...that isn't something Ma'tanza wants to do right now. We haven't been together for nearly that long. It makes Ma'tanza uncomfortable to think about it; she isn't ready for that kind of pain." She explained nervously. She did not pull away from Tzirret, but she was more just allowing Tzirret to grab her hand than holding his hand mutually.