Five days passed since Rikka had been apprehended... obviously Falk Firebeard was mistaken when he swore that the serial murderess would be hanged on the morning after she'd been captured. There'd been no word from the guards as to what was taking so long, or even the slightest indication that her fate had been averted. Yet she gave no sign that any of this was important to her... even as she sat in shackles on the bed of her cell, her eyes portrayed nary even the most subtle display of concern, of fear... or even of emotion at all.
"How long has she been sitting there like that?" An Orc inmate asked his Nord neighbor about the new resident.
"She's been like that ever since they brought her in." The Nord responded, "It's so creepy just lookin' at her... sitting there, lookin' like she's waiting for something."
"What is it with her eyes? That's what I wanna know. Look at 'em... it's like staring straight into the Void. Like there's nothing there. No soul. You know why she's even in here to begin with? She tried to kill Jarl Elisif. Can you believe that? Would've worked too, if the fops hadn't set her up."
"You think she can hear us talking about her like this?"
"I don't think she gives a horker's leavings what we say about her. All day, all she ever does is stare ahead like that. She ain't even looking at anything, she's just... sitting there."
"Wait... lookit that scar on her face... isn't she that serial killer the guards've been talkin' about? The one who killed the Emperor a while back?"
"Hey, yeah... she does match the description, doesn't she? Yeah... yeah, that's her alright. Rikka Northwing: 'Whispering Death', my gang used to call her. They'd tell all sorts of stories..."
"Like what stories?"
"They used to say she wasn't even human... like she was some wraith living in the shadows, taking whoever she wanted. That she could go through walls like a ghost and that nobody could ever stop her, catch her... or even see her."
The cells went quiet for a moment, as both the Orc and the Nord reflected on the tales they'd heard whispered about Rikka all across Skyrim. The blood that'd been spilled... the shadows she would hide in, where she could strike from any corner... seeming to be everywhere and nowhere at once, perpetually lying in wait like a predator seeking its next victim...
"But guess what." The Orc said in a proud and confident tone, "Turns out that Skyrim's greatest serial killer's just human after all. She's flesh and blood, not some monster from a fairy tale."
"But Bagamul... with all the people she killed--"
"What? She never left any trace. Could've been anybody that killed those high-profile guys, and they just decided to pin the blame on spooky ol' Whispering Death. I mean c'mon! There's no way she could ever live up to the stories! Hey, you hear they got her sword too? Damn Akaviri katana, what I hear. Apparently they're hangin' it in the Jarl's room like a trophy."
"I've heard about that sword..." The Nord's tone of voice became shaky with dread. "Folks in Whiterun said it ran poor old Nazeem clean through. Heard that Belethor ain't doin' so well himself. They say that the blade is so sharp that it can cut into the fabric of a man's very soul... keeping him from ever reaching the other world. They say the blade gives her the very life essence of her enemies. They even gave a name to that blade..."
"Yeah? What'd they call it?"
"Sál-bani... old Nord name meaning soul-slayer."
"Ooh, scary, she's got a sword with a spooky name." The Orc said sarcastically.
"Don't talk about her like that! Not where she can hear you!"
"Yeah? Why not? What're you gonna do about it?"
"It's not me you should be worrying about, you fool -- it's her! If she should ever get out of here--"
"She's not getting outta here anytime soon. Nobody escapes from this place without getting their head chopped off."
"She's not a nobody... you know that."
"Yeah, well, it seems that the legend has surpassed the truth. She wouldn't be sitting here with us in the slammer if she was really as good as they say."
"I wouldn't be so sure; did you hear what Firebeard was sayin' when she was brought in? He said she'd hang that morning, but she hasn't. They haven't forgotten her; they couldn't forget capturing someone like Rikka Northwing. No... they're keeping her alive on purpose."
"And why would they do that?"
"I don't know... but something ain't right about it, that's for sure."
"Pfft. Whatever." The Orc scoffed, then turned his attention to Rikka. "Hey you! Yeah you, pretty little killer you!"
Rikka simply stared ahead as usual, seeming not to notice the Orc's booming voice.
"You're not so dark and scary now, are you? Now that you're down here with us! This is where men go to die! And women... oh, they die too. Eventually. Tends to take them a little while down here!"
"You idiot, don't encourage her!"
"You just wait 'till I get my hands on your pretty face! You hear me?! ... Hey! ... Hey! Look at me when I'm talking to you!"
Still, Rikka did not even afford the brutish Orc so much as a glance. She simply stared ahead, seemingly oblivious to the threats being thrown her way.
"You'll make me the talk of the underworld down here -- the great Bagamul Gro-Ushug, raper and killer of the infamous Rikka Ivy Northwing who murdered the Emperor! You're mine, you hear me you little psycho?! Mine!"
"Shut up in there!" A guard's voice finally broke the moment, approaching Rikka's cell. "The Jarl has requested to meet you in person tomorrow. I'm not sure what she wants but if you try any funny business, the Jarl's legion of guards will stick you full of cold, hard Nordic steel."
Silence. As usual. She never said a word to anyone, it seemed.
"Fine. Be that way. But we're watching you, Northwing... never forget that. You're not getting away this time."
The Orc Bagamul grumbled and sat on the cell floor as he listened to the sound of the guard leaving the room. Over and over again in his head he imagined besting the murderess, and pondered how he could make it as painful as possible... just for the sake of putting his superiority on display for everyone locked away in Solitude to see. He would show them all his might, he muttered to himself, as he tore Skyrim's most notorious serial killer limb from limb. He would bathe in her blood. He would feed on her flesh. He glanced casually out the door to his cell, to mock the assassin and threaten her once more -- only to suddenly become startled and reel back from what he saw: Rikka's eyes now silently met his own, with an empty stare that seemed to pierce Bagamul's very soul...
Comments
And yes, Bagamul is toast. Burnt, smoking toast. Glad you enjoyed it, ... more
Bathe in his blood. Did Rikka have a sex change? I give Albee sex changes on occasion as well.
Super fun to read.
I'm still not used to how excited I get when you post one of these.