WittyReference

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Leidenschaft said
I was going to reach into my inner-Dwarf and forge a sword for my senior project.

From everything I've learned in my eight hour binge of blacksmith videos, it's that decent swords are all about the heat of your fire; too low and the metal won't be pliable enough, too high and the metal becomes brittle when cooled. this of course is all basic stuff so I hope you seek the insight of one who knows substantially more than me but the thought's there :p Good luck, SoulSmith

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Maybe it's the Orc in me but I had to share this.

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Cub's head pounded as he made his way from Marion's camp, his hammer and Hravlar's staff in hand. As he marched south toward the sea in search of this "Moon Shadow" he struggled to make sense of his thoughts; constantly knitting and unbinding them to find some consistent thread among them. Only the sound of his own gears whirring kept him company, the sounds of battle had subsided, replaced with the regrettable coo of negotiation and Shavie's measured steps beside him mirroring his own.

The sun still hung high above the strange land to which Cub had awoken mere hours before to the siren song of the Silver Dagger and his new Patron. Like so many times before Cub simply accepted his change in scenery, the shuffle of days and nights around him as the winds of fate strung him along its sordid machinations. He did as he was told and things had always worked out, the weak obey the strong and are so made strong for it, is the way of things...then why did everything seem to be falling apart?

It had been over half a year since he left the wreckage of Windhelm and crossed a dying Skyrim yet still he'd not found Zhaveed. He'd not learned anything of the threat they faced though it burned Rihad simply to find him; there was no progress, only fire and death. Sevari had fled, Marassa traveled in circles, Hravlar was captured as well as Cub; without Zhaveed to lead them, they were helpless.

Cub stopped and turned to Shavie though if it ever was more than simply a name he'd never know as now the beast of burden showed no emotion, only stoic obedience. As it should. A mule is a simple creature made strong and useful by its labor, without purpose, without a caring owner it would be prey to quicker predators, smarter creatures of better design.

"You understand Shavie. Some are born prey and some are born predator. The weak serve the strong, whether in life or death, and they are made stronger for it..." Cub felt he finally found a twine he could follow to the heart of his own thoughts. "...Because those left behind were stronger than those weeded out...if Malacath has chosen me, it means...it means he thinks I can become strong. I can become a predator!" Cub spoke excitedly to the mute creature, the Dagger resting silently in its saddle bag. "If I find this Moon Shadow he will take me to Zhaveed and we will hunt those who hound us. Prey becomes predator...it all make sense now!"

From some distance away Cub heard a familiar voice. "I should have guessed you would have survived; no sword in Hammerfell could pierce that thick fat of yours!" The voice chuckled briefly then choked on a wince of pain. "Over here, behind the rock only slightly larger and dumber than you."

Cub moved closer to where the voice originated, a giant boulder weathered and beaten by the desert sands, hiding a wounded Redguard, his midsection sporting a deep gash and his once handsome face bruised and broken. "You're that damned javelin thrower!" Cub exclaimed, still frantic from his revelation as what might be mistaken for a smile, had it not been so gnarled, crossed the man's face.

"Always nice when my work proceeds me. Yes, it is I, Nazir, lover of women and taker of lives. We never officially met, you were far too winded for introductions if I recall." His pain was well masked behind flourish but Cub could tell from the amount of blood coating his garb his bravado was just that.

Cub remembered clearly how the nimble man had tired him despite his incredible endurance. Had he really been toying with him the whole time? Best not to think about it right now. Cub inspected the cut the Redguard clung to, no doubt trying to keep sand out until help arrived. "Looks more like taker of sword strikes to me; what happened? Can you walk?" Cub holstered his hammer and slid Hravlar's staff into Shavie's pack. "Hold on, this'll probably hurt."

Cub lifted his one time foe as gingerly as he could muster from the desert floor. Even so, the Redguard's bravado slipped momentarily as he brushed against the Dwarven Centurion Cuirass. "You're light as a feather!" Cub exclaimed. "That's why you were so fast when we fought, isn't it?

Nazir's grimace slowly returned to a broken smile as Cub situated him to a more comfortable position. "As perceptive as ever my fat friend." Nazir showed a toothy grin. " One must be quick in our line of work. Believe it or not, some people don't take as kindly to our 'steal from the rich, give to the poor' banditry as others. Unfortunately, those people usually have enough left in their pockets to hire head hunters which is exactly what brings us here now." Nazir smirked at Cub's furrowed brow. "Best not think about it to hard, you might hurt yourself. Bad people come to hurt. Nazir hide behind rock. You find Nazir. Underst-OWWWW!"

Nazir landed with a yelp and all around him sand puffed and fell. "What the hell do you thi-"

"You hid?" Cub's voice was shaky as he towered over the man.

"I, what? What? Of course I hid, look at me you dumb ox! I'm covered in blo-"

"You hid. They came and you hid. You hid. You hid." Cub's voice began stronger as his mantra's rhythm picked up. "You hid. You hid. You hid." Cub's eyes narrowed on the pitiful creature before him, Nazir trying desperately to squirm and writhe away. "You hid. You hid. You hid. You hid. You hid." Cub unsheathed his hammer once more and held it high above him. "Prey becomes predator."

- - - - -

A single javelin sailed toward the gathered party landing a few feet away and startling the lot of them. All eyes, Marion, Marassa, Burkswallow and Harding's boarding party darted to the figure cresting the hill from whence the projectile flew.

Cub and Shavie approached the stunned masses in silence, his eyes locked to Marion's as he approached. Towering over all but his fellow Orc, Cub cut an imposing outline as he knelt to lay the sling of javelins at her feet before returning to his full height. Eyes still locked with hers, Cub broke the fragile silence. "I found him bleeding out behind a rock. It was quick."

In somber silence, Shavie stood beside the near javelin embedded in the soil from Cub's herculean throw before following Cub as they both took their place beside Marassa, only then noticing the Breton to which she spoke. Without a second thought, Cub turned to the newcomer.

"Are you the Moon Shadow?"

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Good News: After working since this morning I've gotten my computer to a semi-stable state.
Bad News: My hard drive shorted and I lost all my plots and schemes.

It shouldn't be too noticeable in my posts that I'm flying blind since Cub has always been prone to flights of fancy but at least before I had a method to the madness. If anything in the next few weeks seems more off than usual just let me know as I need to find North again.

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Arrivederci, Bossman! Enjoy the weather!

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

From: CUB
To: SION

<3

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Man, do you know how much trouble a Cub follower would be? Just imagine telling him to wait in Riften while you do Thieves' Guild stuff only to find out later he got bored and wandered to Fort Dawnguard to pet the huskies.

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Voltaire said
Yeah, I dig. Don't mind me, I just felt like being a know it all. :p

No worries, I understand. If you want, feel free to pick apart all the cheesy come to the dark side tropes in that post I just made :p

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

The battle roared like thunder. The rev and boom of strange Dwemer weaponry soared over the clang and tin of metal. Cub couldn't work out who was what or where was anything. Armed with only his lone shackle and chain, Cub did his best to avoid confrontation as he skulked through the carnage looking for any sight of Marassa or the bandits that had captured them.

"That's right, make sure the flame spreads to the hay bales. They're not running anywhere." The menacing laugh of one of the invading mercenaries was punctuated by fearful whinnies as in the distance Cub saw smoke billowing from the stables.

"Shavie!"

Cub broke into a sprint toward the sounds of dismayed horses as flames began to lick up the sides of the wooden structure, his recent injury only adding a slight wobble to his gait. As he crested the hill and the stables came into sight, Cub saw two Redguard mages clad in Dwemer light armour setting fire to the large building under orders from a third Redguard, her heavy armour weighing on her dark coloured horse.

Still at full tilt and picking up speed down the hill, the green bull let out a mighty roar as he collided with one of the mages and momentarily distracted the other. Tackling the first to the ground, Cub clasped his chain around the mage's neck as the other let loose a blast of searing flame and the mounted Dwemer rode off to gather reinforcements.

Barely managing to avoid being incinerated, Cub rolled onto his back subjecting his helpless captive to the brunt of his comrades conjured flame, drops of melted flesh coating his armour. Thankfully, the enchanted steel digging into the poor soul's throat muffled his screams.

Using his opponent moment of horror, Cub managed to move to his knees, still holding his charred human shield between himself and his foe before lunging at the remaining mages legs. Gathering his wits, the mage coated himself in a powerful frost cloak, super freezing Cub's gauntlets and whipping jagged shards of ice against his face. Blinded by the sudden shards, Cub managed to grab only one of the Mages legs leaving the other free to keep him upright and his hands free to conjure a point-blank spell.

"This is for making me kill Malara, you green bastard!" The Redguard seethed and the hum of magicka filled Cub's ears and he blindly tried to grip anything on the Mage's Dwemer armour.

|You disappoint me.|

The hum of energy stopped abruptly, replaced with the sound of cracking wood and frantic braying. Desperately trying to blink back his sight, Cub heard the braying coming closer as the mage fired his destructive spell at the coming beast.
Then another.
And another.

Cub could barely make the shape of the charging blob and clung tighter to the mage's leg despite his struggling and pleading. Perhaps it was for the best that Cub was snowblind as the sound of pounding hooves and broken bones resonated mere inches from his ears.

|Pitiful. Your steed serves me now; a small punishment for allowing yourself to be beaten so easily.|

The Voice from the Below chided Cub as the braying ceased.

|Heed this mortal, for the consequences of failure are not yours alone to bear. Your weakness has cost this beast its freedom. But know this. As the weak serve the strong so they are made stronger for it. This creature's life shall be hardship but if it survives it shall never know fear.|

Cub knelt in silence, his eyes slowly adjusting to vision once more. The Mage to which he once clung was now nothing more than a trodden mass of bloodied armour and over him stood Shavie red to his knees.

|Listen carefully for you too shall know only despair beneath my yoke. But in doing so you will earn the strength you need. Fitting you stay on your knees then for I reward the loyal; your weapon rests in the main camp due South of here. Retrieve it and continue toward the water's edge and there you shall find your first labor.|

Rising to his feet, Cub finally saw what have driven Shavie to hysterics: a large wooden beam was caught on his lead, flames leaping dangerously close to his tail and driving him to escape the now emblazoned stables. It was odd then that even as the flames singed his hide, as long as the Voice within the Dagger spoke, he stood stoic.

|Go now! Exact my will, and hunt the Moon Shadow!|

The Elder Scrolls: Vengeance of the Deep

Voltaire said
Just woke up and I'm grumpy, so I'm gonna be that guy.The whole "lighter weapons swing faster" thing is a myth anyway (to an extent, a dagger and a claymore are two entirely different beasts). The difference in swing speed between two weapons is so minute as to be inconsequential. The biggest difference is in how much energy it takes for somebody to move the weapon at that speed and how maneuverable it is. But those two variables can also be mitigated with good technique.

This is true. I guess what I meant is, in flashbacks and the like, I've shown that Cub has only ever used a hammer and the only way to use a hammer effectively is momentum. where swords can pierce and parry and axes can cleave and disarm, stopping a hammer is dangerous and getting it started again takes time. Keeping that in mind, Cub would find a sword to be easier to start and stop and thus it's easier to get from zero to sixty, dig?