EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I have already earned their...well, respect may not be the right word, but they both have certainly been shown not to underestimate us. My point is that we know this enemy and how to fight them. So as long as you are willing to judge them fairly, then I am satisfied. It is all I ask. You may rest if you wish. I will not call on you for the rest of the day, unless you come to seek me out." Meesei answered before turning to take her leave.

---

Lorag paced just around the outside of the pair's fighting area. "Goin' berserk ain't gonna help you here. Pay attention, use that brain of yours."

Julan did not have the most control compared to others of his age, but he was at least not struggling for the moment. He did not feel terribly threatened by Narsi, nor was she prey, so the beast did not have cause to resist his mind. He swung wide at about Narsi's shoulder height, aiming to strike her with his palm rather than his massive claws. His swing had a long windup as he had to turn his whole body towards her, and he simply had a lot of weight to move. Even an inexperienced fighter could easily see what he was doing long before he did it, though even if her sword was in the way, his swing was not stopping. Since she did not attempt to dodge, she was easily knocked straight to her back.

"A werecrocodile has armored scales, and a lot of meat to cut through under it. Even a real sword wouldn't have hurt him much there. Only hits that are goin' to count here are hefty thrusts to vital spots." Lorag commented.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei simply grinned back at Rossarm, despite his pessimism. "You underestimate me, Rossarm. That seems to happen all too often, as of late. You have already witnessed how...distance is not so much of a concern for me. I have a method of ensuring that all of us can always be in a position to help one another, no matter where we might be."

After a moment, Meesei took a step back from the door. "But, with luck, such contingencies will not end up being necessary. It may not have been as pleasant of an introduction to us as I would have liked, but I do hope it has shown you the full importance of the situation. The Empire and Dominion both are not only cooperating militarily against Vile, which alone should be telling, but they are willing to allow Hircine's Champion to take the lead in the invasion. If you still had any doubts as to the necessity of what we are doing before you arrived here, I hope they have been settled. I cannot speak for what the Empire or Dominion will offer you, but I can say that there are powerful and professionally trained battlemages among my people who would be willing to follow someone like you. And I do have to insist that you explore the option."

All at once, Meesei's demeanor became far more severe. She did not show anger, or much extreme of any particular emotion, but she was showing more of a commanding presence. "I have noticed how you act towards my people. So I intend to dispel, right here, and right now, any notions you have about all of the lycans who follow my command. In case you have not observed such already, we are not animals in caves. We have been fighting a war that has lasted over a decade, and you will find that shows in our soldiers. We may not have been fighting in the open, but we have been fighting longer than the Oblivion Crisis, Argonian invasion of Morrowind, and the Great War combined. They are veterans by any definition. We may not be as numerous as the legions of the Empire or armies of the Dominion, but we have become just as professional. Do not doubt them...and do not doubt me."

---

Narsi may not have been able to judge much from Julan's indistinct reptilian expression, but she would easily see the fury in her father's face. So angered was he, in fact, that he marched up between the two of them, completely ignoring the rather agitated werecrocodile and instead glaring straight down at Narsi. "Not good enough! You can fail all you want. You can botch every technique I try to teach you, lose every duel, and be the biggest failure of an Orc this clan has ever seen. You could do all that, and I'd still train you. But one thing you WILL NOT do is give up. Not for as long as I'm trainin' you. Understand, girl? I don't care if he turns himself into a damned dragon, you pick up a weapon, or take out your claws, and you FIGHT your opponent!"

Lorag took a glance towards Julan, his voice lowering at least somewhat once he returned his attention to her. "Look, a werecrocodile is bigger and stronger an any werewolf will ever be. But so what? The boy's mother is even bigger than he is, but it took her years to even get a single sparring match over on me. And I still win most of 'em. Power ain't just muscle, girl. Yeah, you're probably gonna lose, that's because he's better than you. Not 'cause he's got bigger arms."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei glanced briefly to the side at Rossarm. "They will be safe because she is coming with us. Talking with her, she has made it very clear that she has no intention of confronting Vile directly, but she will be joining the invasion. Along with all of the other forces that Molag Bal chooses to send. I do get the impression that she is not fond of that fact, but it is on her master's order. I do not trust her, and especially not Molag Bal, but if Vile succeeds, it would result in a substantial imbalance of power among the Daedric Princes. Molag Bal does not care for us, but in this case, stopping Vile does align with his interests. Not to mention the power he can steal from Vile's realm in the process, if he is defeated. Hircine will be taking the majority of the risk in this invasion, so Molag Bal has little to lose. As for Neesa herself, not only is she subject to the orders of her master, but she has expressed that Vile dominating Mundus would be detrimental to her, obviously. She claimed it would interrupt her path along the Walking Ways."

As Rossarm's quarters were on the first floor, they reached them in short order, though Meesei still lingered just outside the door. "But, all of this is just our reasoning for taking the risk. It is still a risk, and we are acutely aware of that. If everything is as it seems and she will be helping us, then she will obviously be a great asset to us in combat. She had millennia more experience than all of us combined. But, we are still preparing for the worst as best as we can. That is actually another reason that I am glad to have you here. Hal-Neesa is exceptionally powerful, but as much as she would like to have us believe it, she is not invincible. And far from infallible. She is here because I defeated her in single combat. She was arrogant, overconfident, and far underestimated me. She did not anticipate me being capable of an attack that could penetrate her defenses. I have seen how it affected her. Even in the duel you just had with her, I could tell she stayed focused throughout. The final spell you launched at her, I do believe she could have guarded it with the kind of wards I have seen her use. Yet, she was cautious and used that other barrier. You, me, Teroiah, we can challenge her. And all working together, I do believe we could defeat her, if something were to go wrong."

---

Lorag held up a hand towards Rhazii. "It's fine." He said sternly. "Your brother can handle her."

Julan did yelp at the pain, but it was not all that much compared to what he felt in his trial. Even Orc tusks could not match the burn of trying to fight on a leg that had been pierced by an Argonian spear. Nevertheless, he struggled to wrestle his arm free. Kneeling over her, he brought his knee up to hold down one of her arms so that he could raise his free hand up high, then brought it down hard straight onto her chest. Even at his age, a good, solid blow from Julan could break bones, but he held back enough to just guarantee to knock the breath out of her. Her reflexes would loosen her jaw's vice grip on his arm to pull it free.

However, since Lorag was not calling an end to the fight, Julan supposed he had to get Narsi to concede. Despite everything Lorag had been saying, he did not feel right just beating her senseless while sparring, but she was surprisingly hard to hold down. Fortunately, he now had another option that had not been available during his trial. He started to transform, his body twisting and contorting over her. His rapidly growing weight would bear down on her even more, though as he was not fully aware during the transformation, she might find the opportunity to wriggle free in the midst of it. In any case, the transformed Julan's massive size, thick scales, and immensely powerful jaws would make it abundantly clear to Narsi that he certainly was not a werewolf.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei placed a hand lightly upon both of Sabine's shoulders the moment she reached her. "It is alright, Sabine. She was just administering a test of Rossarm's abilities. She gave me a list of items she needs for some purpose, and I will trust your judgment on why you promised her these things. In fact..." Meesei began, reaching into her satchel for the parchment Neesa had given her. "...how about you bring this list to the scholars while I tend to our guest? A glance at the list tells me that it is mostly parts of Dwemer make that she needs. Now, you should have some rest, Rossarm. I will show you back to your quarters."

It was now long after Meesei walked away with Rossarm that she started to deliver on her promise of an explanation. Though, she did wait until they were inside just to make sure that Neesa was not still in earshot. "So, as is rather obvious, Hal-Neesa is a vampire. One that is truly ancient, and currently in the service of Molag Bal. If her own account can be believed, she was born a slave to the Ayleids, just before the time of the Alessian Slave Rebellions. We do not exactly have any way to confirm that, but she is powerful, and she does speak the Dwemer language, and has considerable knowledge of the operation of their machines. In any case, she is no one that I would normally desire as a friend. She is dangerous, arrogant, and sees all of us as little more than children compared to her. But, we do need her. Or rather, the master she serves. Our attack against Vile is going to require the power of a Daedric Prince other than Hircine, and Molag Bal is the only one we have found who is willing to become directly involved. Certainly for his own, selfish reasons."

---

Narsi did not react as Julan expected, but that did not cause him to lose his composure. He focused his blade on parrying her axe to protect himself, though he could not act quickly enough to give himself an opening to counterattack with it. Unlike Lorag, he did not predict her attacks before she made them, nor did he always come up with the perfect response to punish her mistakes. However, he could still press an advantage when he saw it. Narsi kept wanting to press close, but he realized that a grapple would be to his advantage. When he saw the opening for it, Julan let go of his own blade so that he could grab Narsi's wrist securely in his hand to control her weapon. Then, he gave up on struggling for the shield, and instead got his arm over her shoulder and through himself on her to wrestle her to the ground. Not only was he older, but his innate strength made the gap in physical power between them larger than Narsi was probably expecting.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"For me? No, I have seen what I needed to see." Neesa replied, entirely ignoring the fact that the question was directed at Meesei. "Perhaps the Altmer will come up with another task for you to justify her presence, but I have taken my measure of you. Insisting you fight a few lowly daedra would accomplish nothing. Your reliance on equilibrium will probably get you killed, but as long as you are useful enough to us before you die, I don't care."

As Neesa was stepping out of the arena, Meesei stepped in, telekinetically pulling one of the healing potions she had brought to her along the way. "Here, to recover your strength." Meesei offered, though her voice came down to barely above a whisper as she continued. "I apologize; I would have preferred to give you a different introduction to her. She is an ally to us, but...not by anyone's first choice. I can explain in more detail once we have some privacy. In fact, I would say you have earned some rest right now, if you want to return to your quarters. We can talk on the way."

---

Julan's first reaction was to deal with the most immediate threat, which meant that his blade was in position for defense against her axe instead of trying to force another opening. He could not stop her from charging into him; however, that was not necessarily to his disadvantage. He held strong in place, stumbling only slightly. He could not get a good swing on her with his sword, but he did get his free hand onto her shield. As Narsi was trying to back away, Julan yanked on the shield as hard as he could, attempting to rip it from her hands entirely.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The explosions of fire and light that Rossarm produced was enough to blind the duel's onlookers to what was happening just as much as it did to Neesa. The capstone of his flurry of spells was, without a doubt, the product of a master mage who was at least a peer of the likes of Teroiah and Meesei. However, they all had to wait a few seconds for the smoke and flames to clear in order to see the results, and as usual, Neesa's magic found new ways to surprise Meesei. She had not seen nor heard a ward at any point during Rosssarm's attack, and indeed, she had not cast one.

Neesa hovered a foot or so off of the ground, her hand outstretched with a blank expression towards her opponent. She was surrounded by a protective barrier, but it was not a ward, and not at all like any spell Meesei had seen. It was a red, somewhat transparent barrier surrounded by a dark energy with the appearance of black smoke. The barrier formed a complete bubble around her, giving off a loud hum until the point that she lowered it herself. Meesei did not have any way to even begin quantifying how much of an affect Rossarm's spell had on the barrier, other than the clear fact that it had not been enough to destroy it.

"Congratulations, I felt it." Neesa remarked just as her feet touched the ground once more. "So you are at least capable of a reasonable offense. There is much more I could test you on, but you look like you just might kill yourself if I try. I doubt throwing spells at each other any longer is going to tell me any more that I need to know. The only thing of value that is left to learn about you is your strategic competence regarding Daedra, but that doesn't require a duel between us. Now, heal yourself. You're much less handsome with internal bleeding." She said, giving a grin that revealed her fangs. "Though, notably more...appetizing."

---

Going into the duel, Julan's first thoughts went into identifying his strengths and weaknesses. He was not using a shield, so Narsi would probably have comparatively more defense, at least theoretically. But, she was using an axe instead of a sword, which he knew gave him certain advantages. The largest of them was reach, which he had painful memories of lacking during his trial back in Black Marsh. But, the fact that he won that duel did prove that he could still lose with a reach advantage. He just had to stick to his training.

Julan's first response was indeed one that was trained. As Narsi rushed at him, Julan launched his fireball high, then quickly stabbed low. It was a simple attack, but it meant that her shield could not defend against both at once. A sword was an agile weapon, especially compared to an axe, and Julan was good enough with it to get it around her first attempt at parrying it. If she did not stop her charge, she would end up just running straight into the blade. Julan did not have near the skill or experience as Lorag, so victory would not seem nearly as out of reach for her, but she still would not find it easy.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Hal-Neesa observed the blinding spell through squinted eyes, but unlike every other point in the duel she did not keep up her continuous pressure. Her rapier was still pointed towards him, but she was standing far out of reach of her opponent. With the first lull in their duel, Neesa simply hummed a moment to herself before finally speaking. "Adequate defensive reactions thusfar...but your attacks have been pathetic. Come, hit me with something I can actually feel."

Meesei did not need to see what reaction Rossarm had in mind to realize that the situation was likely becoming more dangerous. She did not interrupt the fight, but she did direct the onlookers to step farther back from the duel. As well, she placed herself between the crowd and the duel in case of any stray magic.

---

At first, Julan was confused at Rhazii's comment. It took him a few moments to realize that he was not hiding his nervousness nearly as completely as he thought he was, though Rhazii did not quite understand the source. Regardless, Julan took a deep breath, then forced himself to smile as he nodded back at Rhazii. "Yeah, right, I know. I was just...thinking about something else, is all."

The training room that the group had entered was not empty, but there was enough room for the pair to spar. Much like during his rite in Black Marsh, Julan selected a single sword as his weapon. The training swords were metal, but blunted and lightweight to limit how dangerous they could be. Standing just opposite Narsi, he raised up his weapon to show that he was ready, though Lorag easily noticed that he was distracted.

"Julan, focus!" Lorag barked at the Argonian, which brought him immediately to attention. "If I see you holding back, you'll be fighting again. Now get started."

"Right..." Julan sighed, focusing his eyes on Narsi. He raised his blade up defensively, while his off-hand erupted in flame. His fire spells would not be delivering intense burns, but they would certainly leave a mark.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Whether or not she was capable of it, Hal-Neesa did not avoid Rossarm's quick parry, nor was she able to raise a ward to guard against his surprise counter-attack. However, she still evidently had no intention of being harmed. Rossarm's lightning bolt had what was likely its intended effect as the crystal shattered in the air beside her, but Neesa's body, her weapon, and everything she wore turned to mist as the fragments passed through her. The mist surrounded Rossarm, passing around him, and reforming into Neesa's corporeal body just in time for her to deliver a kick to the back of the Dunmer's head. It was not as strong of a blow as she could have managed, but it was enough to send most people to the ground.

The moment Neesa's feet touched the ground, the red aura around her darkened, and there was a frenzied eruption of flapping wings and shrill screeching all around her. A cloud of bats, formed from her vampiric blood magic, swarmed all around her. Each one that flew close to Rossarm bit at his flesh, transferring a small amount of life force from him into her each time.

---

Julan felt just as anxious as he feared he would after hearing Rhazii's reaction, but with a quick motion of his hand, Lorag was quick to get them all to follow him indoors. Lorag ignored Narsi's comment, and only actually spoke up once Rhazii asked a question pertaining to the only topic he cared about.

"They'll be armed. Whatever weapons they want, whatever form they want. Here that, Julan? I want you using every trick, every technique you've got. No holding back, even if she ends up being way behind you. Same goes for you when you eventually fight her, Rhazii. Right now, I've told her that she needs to get to the point where she can reliably beat the both of you. And you're gonna make sure she has to earn that." Lorag explained.

Last of the Jedi (EliteCommander and Sep)

While Mevenn was searching her feelings for answers, Kresst took the time to more closely examine the structure before them. As a historian and archaeologist, he had likely spent years of his life in such ruins. He looked for any inscriptions in the stonework, or any tell-tale signs in the construction that would point to its origin. One thing that he was sure of was that it was familiar, and not just in its physical traits. He felt what he presumed Mevenn was feeling through the force. The very stones had a strong light side presence, and yet, it was not alone. There was something else, something darker in its undercurrents. Kresst had a feeling that the structure's ruined state may not have been a product of time alone. Tragedy may once have struck this place.

"I cannot be certain of anything without an extensive exploration of the ruins, but I can say that this place is old indeed. Nature had already reclaimed much of it. Grasses have grown up through the very walkways, and I would be willing to wager that it is the same inside. And I do believe I recognize the architecture. It comes from the era of the Old Republic, and may be thousands of years old. From the strength I feel in the Force here, it may have once been a Jedi outpost or Enclave. Or at least a place that Jedi once resided. Even if there are no surviving records here, I would be able to tell you the nature of the structure if I could examine its layout, though we may not have time for such things. You say you feel the same call you once felt as an initiate? Perhaps that is no accident; perhaps this was once a place for training? If that is so, then maybe we should follow that call? Let us see where it takes us. I will follow you." Kresst suggested.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Initially, Meesei had worried that this test would be little more than an anger-inspired duel on the part of Neesa, and would appropriately demonstrate the breadth of Rossarm's ability. However, she had to admit that she could see what Neesa was intending with each new attack. Testing his raw defenses, his agility and speed of casting, and his decision making when faced with a potentially overwhelming frontal attack. Meesei saw no signs of fatigue in the vampire, who was simply smiling as she moved from one spell to the next.

From Meesei's perspective, Neesa's next spell was particularly interesting. She conjured a sword, but it was no Daedric blade. Rather than a usual bound blade, what emerged from the dark violet portal was an actual, physical blade. It was not taken from Oblivion, but rather seemed like it had been taken from some other place in Tamriel, if that were possible. It was a rapier made from material that was mostly black, likely ebony, and was engraved intricately in gold, though the designs were difficult to make out from a distance. It was unnecessarily ornate and likely fantastically expensive, especially if it was enchanted.

A slight, red aura emanated from Hal-Neesa as she suddenly began to levitate just a few feet off of the ground, and as she dropped her ward, she dashed to the side through the air with impressive speed and control. She moved with grace and ease, and seemed able to change her momentum almost in an instant. Her rapier was kept always with its point towards Rossarm, and with her off-hand, she formed more of the dark crystals that followed around her. She did not yet launch any of the crystals, and instead dashed forward through the air for a thrust with her blade.

---

Julan slowly nodded back to Rhazii. "Um, yeah. Kind of. They're tattoos, like my mother's. My grandfather wanted me to complete a rite to join the village. That also meant getting the marks."

For the moment, Julan saw Narsi as an easy way to get the focus of the conversation off of himself, so he ignored her rudeness for now. "I didn't know uncle Lorag had a daughter. But I guess it could be fun to train with someone new."

The specifics of Julan's answer did not matter to Lorag, so as long as he was willing. Lorag grunted, and continued to focus on Narsi. "Underestimate him all you want, but the boy's still better trained than you. If I'm remembering right what Kaleeth said about her tattoos, they're meant for warriors, and they've gotta be earned. Seems like the boy earned 'em. So what you're goin' to do is spar with Julan here, and he can show you how much you've got left to learn. We'll head inside and use one of those training rooms, since the one out here is taken."