U.O.T.W. Chapter 160 Friendly Fire

• Posted by Sotek October 15, 2016 - Filed in TSC: CB Story - #Sotek  #U.O.T.W.  - 1,384 views

   

  As Aela walked up the ramp towards the Skyforge she heard the door to Jorrvaskr open. She stopped and looked across the yard to see Sotek hobbling as he made his way towards her.

   

  He cautiously approached her with his hands held up in front of him, forming a barrier between them while the tip of his tail slipped between his feet, almost tripping him up as he walked.

  “Truce?”

   

  Aela looked down at the pitiful specimen in front of her and felt a wave of sympathy towards her mate. She nodded as she wrapped her arms around him. Tenderly she gave his groin a slight squeeze in the cup of her hand as she kissed him lovingly.

  “Yes, truce. However... you do that to me again and it won’t be a truce you’ll get; it’ll be a noose. Now, playtime is over; we have work to do”. She then took him by the hand and led him towards the Skyforge where Eorlund was waiting for them.

   

  “So we’re friends again?” Sotek asked as the palm of his hand slipped down to rest against Aela’s haunches.

   

  After returning his smile with a disapproving smirk, Aela shifted his hand up, repositioning it upon her waist.

  “We are always friends... and more I hope”.

   

  Sotek gave out a small laugh then he pulled her close and hugged her by squeezing her tightly.

  “Always”.

   

  “Alright you two pack it in”. Eorlund called out. “Grief, if you both trained half as much with your weapons as you do with each other you would both be masters by now. You’ve just got up haven’t you? Leave each other alone”.

   

  They both separated from one another and scurried up the slope to the Skyforge where Aela apologised for their lateness.

   “Sorry, we ermm... sorry”.

   

  Eorlund laughed her apology off as he placed a bundle of arrows on top of a big pile of weapons, adding yet more to the growing collection.

  “I’m just playing with you. Here you go Sotek; everything you asked for. There are six sets of armour, eight bows, four hundred arrows, four swords, two short swords and five shields”.

   

  Aela looked over the assortment of equipment in amazement. There were four sets of brand new Iron armor along with two full sets of Fur armor. Every piece of iron gleamed in the light of the sun while the fur pieces were all brushed and soft to the touch.

  “Bloody hell! Where did this lot come from?”

   

  The blacksmith ignored her and instead, chose to keep a watchful eye on Sotek as he picked up a sword and swished it through the air. The Argonian grumbled while his tail slammed down in disgust at the indignity of having to slither across the ground in an effort to counterbalance Sotek and the iron blade.

  “Damn swords; I hate them”.

   

  When Sotek began to carry the armor down the ramp, a heavy hand gripped him tightly by the shoulder, preventing him from making any headway. He looked around to see Eorlund staring back at him along with an outstretched hand.

  “It’s not just me who made them. Adrianne had her part to play and so you must play your part; well pay your part. Gold then the goods if you don’t mind. By the gods I’ll not barter you for this lot. Not this time”.

   

  Sotek tutted and brazenly dumped the gear he was carrying in Aela’s arms with the same respect as a trader would give to his pack mule. He furthered the insult by pointing to the yard as he gave her his instructions.

  “Dump them on the large table on the porch then get your tail back here”. Pushing his luck one stage further, Sotek slapped her on the backside, earning himself a threatening glare in the process.

   

  After responding with a large ‘gulp’ in the back of his throat, Sotek hissed back at Eorlund as he pulled out two bags of gold which he stuffed in his shirt earlier.

  “Iss there no trusst? Here you go ass promissed”.

   

  Eorlund took the two bags in one hand but he didn’t release Sotek from his clutches just yet. He pointed to the forge and squeezed his hand tighter, increasing the Argonian’s attention.

  “You owe Adrianne and me for this; we spent ages on those weapons. And when I say you owe us I mean it. Adrianne has a back log of work now. See that she catches up. You have a week”.

   

  Sotek gazed across the Wind district to the roof of the Warmaidens where he pictured Adrianne working tirelessly at the forge like she always had. He nodded back to the blacksmith in agreement.

  “Yes he does don’t he? He’ll help her out; sorry, I will”.

   

  Eorlund grunted in response. Knowing that Sotek would keep his word in giving Adrianne any help he could, Eorlund proceeded to hammer down a blade he was working on in an attempt to clear up his own backlog.

   

  Leaving him to his own devices, Sotek and Aela quietly and efficiently transported the rest of the equipment to the yard and divided it up, placing each set on its perspective table just like they had done inside the hall when they cleared out the storeroom. When he was ready, Sotek signalled to Aela, instructing the she-wolf to fetch the Whelps and other Companions from inside Jorrvaskr and make their way to the yard.

   

  The six Whelps and Companions all gathered around in a group on the porch where they waited with trepidation. While Sotek addressed them, he noticed Kodlak had also graced him with his presence and was now sitting in a chair by the sidelines watching the young Harbinger organise the Companions and Whelps as a single group.

  “Quiet!! All of you! We’ve a lot to get through and it will be quicker... Kodlak? Hsss.... Right, can I have all the Whelps attention please. All of you, line up for your armor”.

   

  The Dunmer tapped himself in the chest and spoke diligently so not to cause offence.

  “We have armor Sera. Is this armor not suitable anymore for the Companions?”

   

  Sotek gave a warm smile back at him and picked up a Fur chest piece.

  “It’s not a question of whether your armor is suitable for the Companions, but rather a case of is it suitable for your role within the Companions and of Skyrim itself. You are all free to keep the armor you have although for some of you, the armor we have picked for you has certain benefits”.

   

  The Imperial girl looked across at him with an air of curiosity which was common for her as she tended to be curious about everything.

  She raised her hand up as she asked about the armor.

  “What benefits?”

   

  Sotek replied to the inquisitive girl before tossing the Fur chest piece to the Dunmer who deftly caught it.

  “Well, for one the Fur armor is far warmer than the hardened leather some of you are wearing. You yourself fight close combat so the Iron armor is far more suitable for your preferred style of fighting. It’s all new unlike your armor which is worn and it comes with the biggest benefit of all; it’s free!”

   

  The Dunmer felt the thickness of the Fur armor and compared it to his own Hardened Leather chest piece. With a thankful nod, he unstrapped his old armor, leaving it to fall to the ground where he stood.

   

  Following his cue, the remaining Whelps lined up and approached Aela who handed out the armor. One Whelp in particular asked for a heavy Iron set, earning a hateful glare as Aela slammed down a set of fur armor in front of him.

  “Light armor! You’re an archer, next!” She dismissed him on the spot and waved another Whelp towards her, causing the other Companions to laugh over the face she pulled.

   

  Once they all had their armour, Sotek began the task of distributing the various weapons to each member. Most of the Whelps received a sword and shield, something Farkas referred to as the ‘Bash and Smash’ offensive. The main exceptions were the Dunmer who received two Iron short swords and the Imperial girl who used an orcish sword. As it had personal significance to her, Sotek allowed her to still use it.

   

  An Elfin Whelp found the matter of a Companion, regardless to being a Whelp or not, being armed with such a blade as distasteful and more so disrespectful. She sneered at the Imperial girl with contempt for brandishing such a blade in her presence.

  “There’s no need for such a barbaric and filthy weapon like that. Give her a proper sword and throw that piece of worthless scrap in the fires; it’s where it belongs”.

   

  The Imperial’s hand held the handle tightly as the sword rested in its scabbard. She stepped away from Sotek, preventing any attempt at taking the blade away from her despite the fact that Sotek never moved an inch.

  “Leave it alone, it’s not a piece of crap! It’s an Orichi... Oricha...”

   

  Upon seeing her distress, Kodlak rose out of his chair and brought his own weight to bear on the argument; quelling it before it escalated.

  “It’s called Orichalcum; Ori-chal-cum. You would be far better off calling it an Orcish blade. There is no disrespect in that”.

   

  Sotek approached her from behind and hissed in her ear, causing her to cringe.

  “Hsss... no-one’s taking it away from you. Bows, move yourself!”

   

  She shook her head and stuck the tip of her finger in her ear in reflex as she eyed the Argonian carefully in case he repeated the hiss.
  “Urghh... that makes me shudder!”

   

  Farkas chuckled as he watched her flap about aimlessly.

  “A shadow makes you shudder”.

   

  She grinned back at him and coyly replied.

  “Some shadows are spooky”.

   

  Aela cried out in contempt, completely cutting down the conversation.

  “Why are you even here? Oh for the love of... never mind. Here, Whelp!”

   

  She handed the Imperial girl a Nordic bow, causing both Farkas and Vilkas to ‘wolf whistle’ at the expensive weapon. They watched each Whelp receive a similar bow along with fifty iron arrows but they were doubly surprised when they found out there was one for each of them as well.

   

  Vilkas questioned Sotek about the bows as he felt they were too expensive for the Argonian to simply hand out.

   “These are luxurious for what we need aren’t they? A basic hunting bow would suffice surely? Are you sure you really want to hand these out?”

   

  Farkas grinned as he weighed the bow in his hands.
  “This would serve a better purpose if I mounted it on my wall”.

   

  Aela punched him in the chest and openly threatened him.

  “You do that and I’ll wrap it around your neck!”

   

  Sotek pulled her aside and replied to Vilkas while he tried to keep the she-wolf from reaching her shield sibling.

  “There are eight of you but only two of you have had proper training in Archery. I’m after maximum damage from you all. Now, as you’re not likely to hit your target, when you do, I want it to count. So yes Vilkas, you all have Nordic bows... and you will train with them”.

   

  Sotek then addressed them all, leaving no-one with any doubt to his sincerity.

  “These are now your property. You will look after all your equipment as there will be regular kit inspections. Now, each of you, get your tails over to Kodlak who will hand out potions”.

   

  Kodlak sat bolt upright in his chair. Everyone could see he was caught out as his startled expression gawped back at the Argonian who chuckled back at him. He never expected to be helping distribute potions and he was doubly shocked when Sotek dumped a large backpack on his lap. The Argonian relayed the quantities he wanted to be handed out, leaving Kodlak little to do except pass each member of the Companions the required number of bottles and vials.

   

  As they lined up, Kodlak handed out five health and stamina potions to them all. He also gave them three cure disease ones. Each vial was stored in their packs so should they ever need them then they were on hand.

   

  Once everyone had been given all of their respective gear and equipment, Aela climbed up on a table and addressed them all irrespective as to whether they were a Companion of the Inner Circle or a Whelp.

  “You may be called at a moment’s notice at any time for external tasks. I will warn you once and once only; if your kit is not satisfactory then you will not be able to join in. Do I make myself clear?”

   

  A few members mumbled back at her as if they weren’t interested in her threats or more to the truth of the matter, what she had to say. They were too busy chatting with each other over the new armor they had been given. Aela’s lip curled upwards then as quick as a flash, her dagger spun out of her hand and struck a dummy which was immediately behind the larger group of Whelps.

   

  Everyone stopped talking and turned to face the Huntress who glared at each and every face as their gaze were caught in her wild like eyes.

  “I said... do I make myself clear?”

   

  All the whelps shouted out ‘yes’ while Farkas and Vilkas blankly stared back at her. Farkas whispered across to his brother while he watched Aela’s hand as it slid passed her waist to rest on the hilt of a second dagger.

  “Does that mean us as well?”

   

  Vilkas simply nodded to him in response.

   

  Having decided enough time had already been wasted, Sotek called the group towards him as he headed to the centre of the yard. Aela moved along the side and formed the Whelps and Companions in a line ready to face off against the archery targets. They all stood in silence except for Farkas who groaned quietly.

   

  Unfortunately for him, he wasn’t quiet enough. The Huntress swiftly retorted him for his impertinence with a clip on the back of his head.

  “Shut your whining; You’ll start the others off”.

   

  Sotek smirked at his counterpart who seemed to know she was being watched. After she rolled her eyes at him over Farkas’s ‘attitude’, she moved away from the pack to join her mate’s side.

   

  Seeing as there was no point in waiting, the Argonian began the session in earnest.

  “Right, everyone start training with your bows. I want nothing fancy from you; just get the feel for them”.

   

  So began the dull thudding of arrows as they hit their respective targets, but more so of the arrowheads shattering against rock when they flew past the target, missing it altogether. Smirking to himself, Sotek disappeared inside the hall. This left Aela watching over the training session.

  The Huntress, who was far from happy due to the below average marksmanship of the pack yelled at Vilkas who hadn’t managed to hit the target once despite having fired off several arrows.

  “And I thought that snake of an Argonian was bad. At least he shoots in the right direction. Vilkas! You’re not even trying are you?”

   

  While they were all practicing with their new bows, Sotek reappeared with a large plate of food in his hands. He placed it on a step and beckoned Aela to sit with him, offering her the wolf’s share of the meal.

  “You haven’t eaten yet; now’s your only chance”. Then he himself sat down and started eating.

   

  Aela sat next to him and watched the Whelps and the two Companions use their bows. With half a roll, filled way too much with cheese and thin slices of yesterday’s venison shoved in her mouth, Aela mumbled about the effort and enthusiasm for Sotek’s new regime.

  “Farkas don’t look happy”.

   

  Sotek glanced over to him and smirked as the large brutish Nord fumbled as he tried to attach the delicate end of the arrow shaft to the drawstring.

  “Oh he’ll be ok once he gets the feel for it”.

   

  After a few minutes of watching each member shoot a few arrows, Sotek gave Kodlak a nod and moved to the forefront of the line.

  “This is where it starts...”

   

  “Right, everyone load up an arrow but don’t draw it yet”. The Argonian demanded as he signalled the pack to lower their bows so they wouldn’t accidently shoot him.

   

  He and Aela watched them pull an arrow from their quivers. Once they did so, Sotek continued with his lesson. He could see they were all fed up so he decided to lighten the mood.

  “Now, raise your bow and aim at the target and pull back the drawstring. When I say ‘fire’ release the drawstring. Don’t release the bow; it will spring back and smack you in the face”.

   

  All the Whelps laughed along with Aela and Kodlak. Even Farkas and Vilkas had a bit of a chuckle over Sotek’s instructions.

   

  Stepping to the side so he was in relative safety, he called out to them, giving the command to release.

  “Fire!!!”

   

  All as one they fired their arrows across the yard. However Sotek should have put more emphasis on aiming which he quickly regretted as three arrows flew over the top of the lip of the Skyforge. Not even a second had passed when a hollering insult from Eorlund bellowed to the pack below him.

  “Gods damn you all you idiots! Watch it; I’m working here”.

   

  Aela’s eyes went wide in shock as she saw the blacksmith’s head peek over the ledge and peer down at them in disgust.

  “Oh by Hirc... Harbinger...! You nearly killed him”.

   

  Sotek groaned loudly and shook his head. Huffing bitterly, he shouted out at the Whelps before cautioning Aela for her loose tongue.

  “Did he say aim at the target? He is sure he did. Aela, careful of your swearing... Kodlak’s just over there”.

   

  The Imperial Whelp held her hand up and replied as seriously as she could muster.
  “Who is ‘he’?”

   

  Sotek gave her a cold hard reptilian stare and hissed at her before yelling out once more.

  “Reload. When I say fire, make sure you are aiming at the bloody target. Hssss”.

   

  As they prepared to fire again, Aela counted down the seconds.

  “They are way too slow”.

   

  Sotek just smiled at her and replied.

  “Don’t worry about speed. Let’s get them hitting the target and not killing the blacksmith first”.

   

  All of a sudden, a bar of iron flew down and landed near Sotek’s tail causing it to flick up and coil itself between his feet for protection. He and Aela looked up to see Eorlund standing on the edge of the Skyforge’s ledge. He pointed straight at Sotek and shouted.

  “I Heard that”.

   

  Sotek yelled back at him in equal ferocity.

  “Well it’s not like they are deliberately aiming for you is it?”

   

  Eorlund shouted back down at him, mocking the Whelps and Companions for their wasted efforts.

  “I wish they would; it would be safer”.

   

  Aela and Kodlak both laughed, but Sotek wasn’t amused. He shouted out “Fire”, ordering everyone to release hell upon the archery targets. Just as before, three arrows flew over the Skyforge.

   

  Eorlund once again shouted down at Sotek and waved his blacksmiths hammer threateningly.

  “Now you’re doing it deliberately”.

   

  Sotek returned the threat by calling for a reload. Upon seeing this, Eorlund ducked down for cover and cursed Sotek’s name to several different deities.

   

  Having decided a dead blacksmith was too counterproductive; Sotek ceased the groups training and made each member take turns in firing their arrows. After a good hour or so, to Eorlund’s relief, they were mostly hitting the targets albeit off centre. Sotek kept them training for another half an hour until the number of aching limbs drew the session to a close.

   

  Knowing they had enough for one day, the acting Harbinger allowed the pack to break for a much needed early lunch.

   

  During the somewhat early meal, he and Aela approached the two brothers, Farkas and Vilkas and enquired about their morning.

  “Well you both seem to be doing well. How do you feel about it now?”

   

  Farkas looked tired and fed up. He pointed to the Undercroft stairwell and complained.

  “I prefer listening to Aela’s howling all bloody night; this is stupid”.

   

  Sotek rested his hand on Farkas’s shoulder and smiled; taunting the Companion.

  “I know you’re not keen but would you really prefer to listen to her all night? I can arrange that if you think it will help”.

   

  Farkas grabbed him by the collar and shook him, causing his arms to flail by his sides.

  “Don’t you even joke about that”.

   

  Sotek turned straight at Kodlak while he was still being held and called across the hall at him.

  “Here, he’s threatening the Harbinger”.

   

  Farkas cursed and lightly shoved Sotek away from him, letting him go.

  “Aww damn it”.

   

  Just as the afternoon was turning to evening, Aela approached Sotek and pulled his hand towards her. She seemed to have some dire need to talk to him so he followed her to a small table where they could chat without anyone listening in on their conversation. As she spoke she held his hand tightly yet she couldn’t refrain from playing with the tips of Sotek’s fingers. She stared at their entwined hands before bashfully looking at Sotek deeply in his eyes.

  “Can you stay in my room tonight? I want some company”.

   

  Sotek initially thought his luck was in but something about her seemed off. Her voice had a frailty to it and not the typical prowling Huntress when she wanted sex. Feeling somewhat unsure of himself, Sotek nodded and asked about her strange behaviour.

  “Of course I will. Are you ok?”

   

  She smiled at him then gave him a quick kiss on the forehead.

  “Yes I’m fine; I’m just a bit tired. I just want to know you're there beside me”. She then excused herself from the hall and headed downstairs. Approximately half an hour later, Sotek followed her example and made his way to the Undercroft. He pushed open Aela’s door which was ajar to find her lying on her bed in nothing but a loincloth. Two furs were on the floor where she had kicked them off as she slept while a third one covered one leg from the thigh down.

   

  After he stripped off his armor and rested it on the table alongside Aela’s own gear, he slid alongside her and gently moved her head so it rested on his bare chest.

   

  Upon being slightly disturbed, Aela’s eyes half opened and she lazily smiled at him and tucked herself up to him while he wrapped his arms around her. She lifted her leg up so his tail could coil around it then she closed her eyes and drifted back asleep.

   

  She was vaguely aware of Sotek giving her a goodnight kiss on the top of her head.