Straightening up and rolling his shoulders to relieve the growing ache, Alazir wiped the sweat from his brow with a rag tied around his wrist. Heaving a sigh and glancing briefly at Hegathe on the horizon, he stooped again and heaved the sack of grain back onto his shoulder before continuing towards the city. It wasn't until he was within view of the walls that he was able to see the crackling light against a dark patch of sky on the other side of the city. A storm rolling in from the sea. He hurried on, not wanting to be caught outside when the rains and wind reached the coast. He knew his wife would worry. So would Lidis. He smiled to himself; especially Lidis. Picturing her small hands reaching up to embrace his neck drove him on even faster.
There was quite a bustle on the city walls, but Alazir couldn't see what for from his place on the road. He could only guess that they were securing things against the storm. They must have been expecting it to be a harsh one. As he passed the city gates, he saw them slowly swinging shut. It seemed a little extreme, just for the weather. He looked down the road towards home, worry etched on his face. The city no longer blocking his view, he could see that the flashes of light weren't lightning from the sky, but arched upward from the ground. Black pillars of smoke billowed from the harbor. He dropped the sack behind him and took off down the road at a flat run.
It wasn't long before he encountered a trickle of people going the other way. Fleeing, it was clear from the frightened glances backwards, the nervous stumbling, the tearful voices. Every now and then someone would cry aloud, and each time it shook Alazir, for each one sounded like Lidis to his ears. As he neared the roadside settlement, he was met with still more chaos and fear. There were people emptying out their homes onto the streets in their haste to get away. He couldn't see his house, but he began shouting as he pushed through the crowd.
"Rithnna! Rithnna! Where are you? Lidis! Where are you?"
Shoving his way through the masses, his door came into sight. It was open. He looked fearfully down toward the bay, but the smoke, fire and lightning still seemed a way off. Finally pushing free of the crowd, he stumbled into his doorway, and nearly collided with a dark haired, dark-skinned woman who was rushing out. Alazir's face flushed with relief when he saw her.
"Rithnna! You look alright, what's happening?"
"An invasion!" She said in a hushed tone, "They say it's the Dominion!"
"Where is Lidis?"
"I'm here, Papa!" called a small, tanned girl, no older than seven, as she rushed past the curtain door from the rear room, a small sack over her shoulder. Her hair bobbed as she ran to join her parents at the door, fear apparent in her teary eyes.
Alazir crouched down and scooped her up, groaning as he did.
"My, my, is all the wealth of Hammerfell in that sack of yours?" He asked, forcing a smile as he guided them outside. Lidis' worry seemed to retreat for a moment at her father's light-hearted tone.
"I had to bring a snack!" She answered with exaggerated seriousness.
"Mhm, your mother was right, you are going to be a big, strong girl."
"Like you, Papa!" She clung tightly to his neck, and his smile was real for a moment. Finding themselves at the back of the chaotic crowd leaving the settlement caused the furrow to return to his brow.
"Come, we need to hurry to Hegathe," he said, feeling a twinge of panic as he recalled the city gates closing. Surely they would open again, to let their own people to safety. Taking hold of his wife's hand he led them around the side of the throng.
"Alazir, what about your parents?"
"They know what do, they'll be fine," he subdued another twinge of worry.
A second later, a bolt of lightning raked the sky over their heads, eliciting a ripple of screams from the panicked citizens. Another bolt followed fast on its heels, striking a windmill, and showering them with masonry. Alazir swung away from the blast and pulled his wife and daughter under his arms, but the largest of the falling stones missed them. Straightening up, Alazir glanced back toward the bay. They were being overtaken, and they had barely begun to leave.
"Rithnna, take her," Alazir lowered Lidis, into her mother's arms. He wasn't the only one among them beginning to withdraw back towards the settlement. Rithnna was shaking her head, eyes wet, but she knew how it had to be.
"Papa?"
"I'll see you both in Hegathe!" The crowd was sweeping them away in its hurry to escape, leaving only a few men and women standing still in it's wake.
"Papa!"
"I love you!"
The buildings lining one side of the street behind him detonated as they were pummeled with lightning, scattering the villagers who had stayed behind. Alazir flattened himself against a rear wall, and for the first time heard Elven war cries. Ducking low, he sprinted around the building until he was below the back window of his home. Pulling himself into the room, he looked around for a weapon. There was the hatchet he kept for hunting, but had barely had to use. It rested on a low shelf across from the foot of the bed. Grabbing it, he felt more at ease as the sound of collapsing timbers and ransacked houses continued to fill the air. As he crept through the dividing curtain toward the front door, he began to hear armored footfalls. He suddenly remembered his woodcutting axe by the fire pit, and turned to grab it. Feeling more confident with two weapons in hand, he swung back towards the door, only to find it filled by a fully armored soldier carrying a gilded blade and standing no less than six inches taller than he.
Before he could react, the Altmer was on him, a cold gauntlet-clad hand around his throat. He was slammed against the wall and lifted bodily off the floor. Lights danced before his eyes, but when he saw the Altmer drawing back his arm for a killing stroke, he regained his senses enough to raise his legs and kick. The elf stumbled back, and Alazir crumpled to the floor, gasping for breath. But he knew he couldn't waste time recovering. Keeping low, he lunged across the room, tackling the elf just above the knees and sending them both to floor. The elf's sword was already raised, but Alazir's hatchet was faster, and found the space between the elven helmet and the collar of the armor. The elf died, gurgling.
Alazir got off his chest, returned to the door in a daze. He could smell the buildings burning on the street as he stepped outside. He had a brief view of an ornately armored elf whose fingertips crackled with light, raising her hand at the sight of him, before there was an explosion almost directly over his head. He was knocked to the ground, and was only vaguely aware of the sound of crumbling stone before something struck his head and he knew no more.
~~~
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