All-Flag Rangers: Part XIX, Planning
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Valenwood, 4E 97
“We’re going in. That’s final.”
“You’re stupid, and suicidal, and idiotic,” Faylin was laying on her back on a branch ten feet above them, her arms hanging down either side. She turned her head towards Aurelius again, “And any other synonym for stupid you can think of? You’re that too.”
“So you keep saying,” exasperation was Aurelius’ normal tone of voice by this point, “but that changes nothing. We’re going in, and it’d be nice to have a guide. The kineater said only him and you ever dare going into Adamor, and he’s too busy doing his… work…” Aurelius grimaced, as did the rest of the rangers aside from Dram and Dagot-Ei, “so you’re all we got. We can pay you.”
“Your money’s no good here stupid. This is the Dominion remember? Even if it weren’t, what’m I going to do with gold anyways?” she turned and grinned at them. Her canines were very long, “I’m more of a leathers girl anyways. You can bring the metal.”
"So you're coming then."
"Not in the way you mean," she replied with a grin, looked at their weapons, then shifted into a frown, "I thought you said you were gonna talk in there."
"That was the plan. But it doesn't sound like the one we came to find is up for talking."
"Your intel was pretty stupid too, huh?"
"Just came back wrong. We heard about an undefeatable bosmer rebel living in Adamor, not an immortal mer-killing monster. Easy confusion I suppose when nobody in this gods-damned village will tell anyone anything."
"So why are you going in then, if not to speak, like civilized people."
It occured to Aurelius he was being awfully free with the information he was giving this girl. She was distracting him. "Are you coming or not?"
"Not if you're going in to fight him."
"That creature is killing you all. Every week it comes out and slaughters another village, and you're all too scared to fight back, and too ashamed to move away. You keep doing nothing and you'll all be dead before the year's over."
"Well then we still have a month to live. Why waste it fighting our own people?"
Aurelius shook his head, "You don't really believe that wild hunt nonsense?" Faylin didn't look at him, "You do? You think this monster is the remnant of this place's people from the Oblivion Crisis?"
"If it was..." her voice was quiet, soft like sadness, "would you still call it a monster? If it was the last survivor of the Great Anguish, and it had to kill everyone it knew to survive, its ability to reason and recognize the people it loved only returning when they're all dead... is that a monster or a victim?"
"A monster is what you do, not what you are. That thing is killing you people, innocent people who never did anything. That's what makes it a monster."
"Just because you did nothing doesn't mean your innocent."
"Well it surely doesn't mean your guilty."
"It means your guilty of doing nothing," Faylin glanced at Aurelius, "Maybe you should apply that same logic to your imperial law. Guilty till innocent, right? Doesn't seem very fair to me."
"No, but it's safe. Sometimes safety is more important than fairness."
"If safety is so important then don't go into Adamor. It's not safe."
"You will keep dying then, unless we put a stop to this."
"So what?" She said lazily, her arms swinging back and forth beneath the branch, "What do you care, imperial? You and your legions didn't care during the Crisis, when the daedra were breathing down our backs. Your legions were nowhere to be found," she turned her head, black pools staring the legionnaire down, "If they were then maybe Adamor wouldn't exist. So what if we all get killed. What's the problem with that?" she smirked, "Is it cause it's not fair?"
"Fine. We're going to kill the monster of Adamor, maybe get lost and ambushed in the process since no one is willing to guide us. Thanks for nothing."
"Oh boo hoo, there's no guiding you anyways," Faylin sighed, "Look, just go into the woods, you'll know your there when it gets all misty and haunted, when you hear the dead start whispering and there's no sound left of the living. Then you know your in Adamor, and you don't have to worry about finding him. He'll find you."
Aurelius said nothing, just turned, gestured for the rangers to follow. They walked several feet before Faylin's voice called out to them,
"Hey, what you said, about monsters being what you do, not what you are? Maybe you should think about that next time you talk to bull-boy."
Aurelius just kept walking.
" 'Cause you sound like an ass!"
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"There is a problem."
"Of course there is," the imperial said, "there always is."
"What's the issue Iszir?" asked Furioso.
"Dram drank with a group of nomadic hunters last night, spoke with them," there was a shuffle in the trees behind the sword-singer, "I will let him explain."
The dark elf walked up to the group,
"Right," he said while scratching his head, "well they said the Dominion been prepping an army to scour the north ever since the slaughter twenty years ago, before other things got their attention, in both southern Valenwood and back on their islands. Rebellions and insurrections and all that good stuff. But turns out our monster friend ain't just been hitting these bosmer villages. He kills any Aldmeri scout or supplier they try and send anywhere around here. Matter of fact that been going on a lot longer then the killings round here. Seems the creature only started killing these bosmer folk after an increase of Aldmeri scouts started coming round. They ain't get any survivors come back home to report what happened, so they think it was the rebels who broke their first army. So we gon' have company real soon if we don't get out quick."
Aurelius turned to the moth priest, "Brother Furioso? We have no stake here, let the Thalmor deal with their own problem. We won't be getting any recruits out of this place."
"Aurelius please, we cannot simply abandon these people to die."
"It's not our problem, they aren't our citizens. They belong to another empire."
"But they were, once. Come now Captain... it's the right thing to do. What would Akatosh have you do, hm? Abandon the weak and needy to the avarices of monsters? Is that what the legion does?"
Aurelius winced. That sounded too similar to what Faylin had said.
"Fine, we'll stay then. And we'll kill this monster and run before the army arrives."
"They'll probably attack or imprison these people," said Dram, "Assume they're the rebels."
"There's nothing we can do there unfortunately. We aren't here, we can't be seen. It'll cause a diplomatic incident. These people will have to deal with that on their own. At least they'll be safe from the creature. Let's go. Into Adamor."
"Priest."
Aurelius and the rest of the rangers turned back. It was Iszir, and ze was glaring at the moth priest.
"No, Iszir," said Furioso, "Not today."
"I have debts."
"Iszir, we cannot face this. This is beyond our band."
"Not us. I."
"What are you talking about?" Aurelius demanded. Furioso shook his head.
"How far is the army, Dram?"
"Dunno. The hunters said they saw them two days ago, ahead of them while they were scouting in the canopies. Probably be here by the morning."
"You see, Furioso," said Iszir, "A distraction is needed."
"What is going on." Aurelius demanded again. "We don't have time to sit here and argue." Furioso sighed, then nodded at the redguard.
"Iszir will not be entering Adamor with us. Iszir will go to meet the Thalmor's army, and keep them back from us."
"Don't be foolish, how do you plan to hold off an army, Iszir?"
Iszir said nothing. Aurelius sighed.
"Very well. I suppose we don't need seven rangers to kill one creature. Six will do fine. But do not engage, Iszir, just distract them."
The sword-singer nodded, then bowed low to Furioso.
"I thank you my lord."
Furioso nodded at the unseen gesture of respect, "You owe me."
So the rangers went into Adamor.
And Iszir went south.
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Part XIIX, Adamor