U.O.T.W. Chapter 47 The Skinner

  • As Sotek’s force shout rumbled throughout the cavern, it was joined by two loud howls. The animalistic cries echoed downwards from the top of the shaft signaling the fact that Farkas and Vilkas who were both in their werewolf forms had started their attack. Red growled as she let out her terrifying cry as she joined in with the unearthly chorus. All hell broke loose as further rumblings and cracking of rocks echoed all around. Various boulders, some the size of horses, weakened by the tunneling of the Silver Hands finally broke free and fell in the water and amongst the Silverhand ranks adding to their confusion and aiding in Aela’s escape by eliminating various members of the werewolf hunters under a hail of rocks. 

     

    As one large boulder slammed down just in front of Red and shattered, she angrily turned towards Sotek and showed her fangs while she growled menacingly. Sotek glared back at her as he pointed defiantly at the rubble.

    “Hey, that wasn’t my fault!”

     

    Just at that moment two Silverhands burst into the cavern to see Red and Sotek arguing. One of them, a woman who was in her thirties with long blonde hair stepped forwards raising a crossbow. The other opponent, who was a young man, drew his two handed silver sword. Just as the woman started to take aim a massive grey stone fell on top of her. Death was instantaneous. Blood seeped out from under the rock to form a pool around the boulder.

     

    Upon impact with the floor, the boulder cracked in two. One piece fell into the man knocking him to the ground. His sword was thrown away from his grasp which he desperately tried to reach as he stretched out his hand. His leg was crushed as the second piece of boulder pinned his leg underneath it. With his face filled with agonizing pain and pure terror, he screamed out as he tried vainly tried to shift the rock so he could free himself.

     

    Red walked towards him before she dropped to all four paws. She stuck her nose into his chest as she sniffed at him with a curiosity you would see from a wolf who found a carcass in the wild. Her eyes seemed to bore into the man like she was studying him. Just as he started to fool heartedly believe that she might let him go, her claws slashed across his armor tearing it from his body with ease before her fangs tore into his flesh. Sotek stood alongside her as she ate. His hand stroked her on the head like a master praising his faithful hound.

    “Don’t spend too much time with him. We got a long way to go yet girl”.

     

    The Silverhands line struggled with the surprise attack from above and had started to fall. As of yet no one had even realized that they were under attack from below. Sotek started running up the ramp with his bow, shooting up at a group who were heading along the ramp to reinforce the crumbling line trying to contain Farkas and Vilkas. Sotek cursed as in his haste he missed with every shot. It did however cause some disruption as a number of Silverhands fell back so they were under cover from Sotek’s fire arc. A red blur ran past Sotek at speed, ripping into any one she regarded as prey who were unfortunate to be near the bottom of the ramp. Without stopping Red started to tear her way up the line killing then eating corpses as she went.

     

    Transforming back from her werewolf form, Aela grabbed a sword off one of the dead bodies and started fighting the closest Silverhand. The man she was fighting cried out and staggered sideways much to Aela’s surprise. She watched him fall from the edge due to an arrow piercing his chest. Sotek had caught up with her then fired at Aela’s target at near point blank range. He offered her his bow which she literally snatched from him. A few seconds later she tugged at Sotek’s quiver yanking it away from him. As she tried to pull it off him, Sotek lost his balance and ended up sitting on his backside while Aela started firing at a second group of men who were making their way to the top of the ramp.

     

    After cursing at her, Sotek scrambled up to his feet and raised his hand in front of himself. He summoned his new familiar from a plain of oblivion. A wolf covered in flames appeared through a dark blue portal and ran at high speed towards the Silverhands. They immediately struck out at it, killing it in two blows. Sotek grabbed Aela and forced her into the wall, just as the dead familiar exploded in a ear shattering fireball. Various people ran screaming from the flames just to see another flaming wolf attack them. The second familiar died then once again a fiery explosion rang out. Two people screamed as they were caught in the blast and became coated in flames. In their haste to escape, they fell off the edge and found themselves hurtling into space before crashing into the ramp below.

    Aela started shooting at the furthest possible target that was fighting Vilkas while Farkas and Sotek joined up. With the Silverhands having nowhere to go, they were cut down in minutes. Two men saw Aela and ran at her as a last ditched attempt to kill her. Charging headlong, they both grabbed her as they sprinted towards the edge of the ramp. The three of them flew straight off the edge into the water below. Instantly the assailants started dragging Aela down under the water while she franticly tried to fight them off.

     

    Sotek, who was too busy fighting the remaining forces didn’t notice Aela’s plight but Farkas did. While he fought off one opponent, he shouted across to Sotek who he could see in the corner of his eye.

    “Aela’s in trouble. In the water!”

     

    He thrust his blade into the Silverhand’s stomach then swiped it savagely to the side before he could point to Aela who was by now over powered. She struggled to gasp at the air before she was dragged under the water’s surface.

     

    Sotek turned to see where Farkas was pointing and saw the threat for himself. He dived down straight at the group and within seconds he entered the water with a large splash then immediately grabbed at Aela. He forced her above the surface while he kicked out at an Imperial who had hold of her ankle. Within moments he grabbed the two people and swam full bore into the depths, dragging them down to their doom. He only released them when they were too far under to recover. Sotek then headed back up to the surface to see Aela crawling out from the side coughing and spluttering as she tried to regain her breath.

     

    One Silverhand gripped her tightly by her hair then held up a dagger against her throat before she could even get to her feet. All she could do was to grab hold of his hand as she tried to release some of the pressure she felt on her neck as she was being lifted up off her knees by a few inches.

     

    He shouted out his warning to the other Companion.

    “Stop right now or she dies!” The brutish Nord looked straight up at Farkas not even realizing Sotek was in the water behind him. Sotek swam down into the depths and took a sword of one of the bodies he dragged down minutes before. Once again he swam at full speed towards the surface. He broke though the water literally clearing the bank as he dived towards the man.

     

    Swinging the sword as he leapt, he managed to swipe at the Silverhand’s neck. He turned around Just in time to see the sword arc through the air and managed to duck just as the blade whizzed over the top of his head. Sotek crashed on the floor in a heap but Aela made good with the distraction. She drew a dagger which she had claimed off a fallen foe and savagely twisted round. The blade dug in the side of her captor’s stomach. Without even pausing for breath she struck several times in the same spot smothering her in his blood which now coated her armor.

     

    Sotek gently pulled Aela to her feet then they both headed over to where Farkas was watching them. Vilkas however called down from his current position. As Sotek and Aela looked up at him, they noticed he had a massive grin.  

    “Guess who I got”.

     

    Aela’s eyes bore into the captive as she scolded his very name.

    “The Skinner! That bastards mine”.

     

    Sotek looked around for a few seconds before yelling to Vilkas with instructions. What he asked was simple and Vilkas happily obliged.

    “Vilkas, throw him down here”.

     

    The man screamed as he plummeted into the water. Sotek dived in and rapidly swam towards him whereby they fought albeit very briefly before the Skinner struggled for breath. Only at that point did Sotek pull him to the side, barely alive. The Skinner gasped for air as he climbed out of the water on his hands and knees. He cursed out at the four of them.

    “Come on you dogs fight me fair and square! I’ll kill you all you mangy dogs”. His gauntlets had claws attached to the ends of the fingers forming two giant paws.

     

    Sotek, who by now was already out of the water waiting for his opponent to join him, threw Farkas a nod. He drew his weapons and stood there defiantly. The lone warrior charged at him, but he easily blocked the attack and smashed his shield into the Silverhands face knocking him to the ground.

     

    Aela snatched ‘Spirit’, Sotek’s axe away from his belt and stepped on the man’s arm. Before anyone could do anything she slammed the axe head down on his wrist slicing clean off his hand. She stepped back away from him after venting off her anger and rage while he held his arm as blood drained from the wound.

     

    Aela grabbed him by the hair which prompted him to start begging for his life.

    “Please, please spare me. I got gold, thousands. I can get you anything, anything”. Sotek just grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and forced him into the cage which had previously been Aela’s cell.

     

    By this time the others had entered the cavern. Neither one of them said anything. They just watched Sotek throw two jugs of oil over the Skinner before walking back to the group. He wrenched a lit torch from the cavern wall and stood right in front of Aela as he held it out to her.

     

    The man shouted at him as he held his badly wounded arm.

    “You’re not one of them you bastard your one of us, we need to kill them, you need to kill them, they won’t let you live you fool”.

     

    Without even looking back at him, Sotek left the cave and proceeded to walk up the ramp slowly dawdling along the pathway as he waited for Aela and the others to catch him up.  Aela looked at the cage for a few seconds then threw the torch in the water and walked away. She wrapped Sotek’s arm around herself as she rested her head in his chest. She looked up at Sotek then whispered softly to him.

    “Take me home”.

     

    She glanced back down the ramp to the holding area as she addressed the other Companions.

    “He’s no threat any more. Some of us have a sense of justice and mercy, that’s what makes us different to him. Leave him to rot. No doubt the others will find him in time”.

     

    Sotek nodded then started walking her up the ramp; he glanced back at the Skinner and shouted down at him.

    “Aela’s granted you mercy and decided to let you live... You get no such mercy from me you bastard”. Then he cast his flaming familiar. It instantly charged down the slope and ran at the Skinner before promptly exploding in a great fireball smothering him in flames. Sotek pressed his palms against Aela’s ears as they all headed out, deafening her from the screams and hallowing cries from the unfortunate foe as he burned to death.

     

     

Comments

7 Comments   |   Aela The Huntress likes this.
  • Relycs
    Relycs   ·  March 31, 2016
    Hmm I think that's exactly what I ment to say, but didn't, lol.

    This balance also stresses the fact that they are ment for each other by destiny.
    Huh, fearsome. I guess they will have their 'first fight' in one of the next chapters.more
  • Sotek
    Sotek   ·  March 31, 2016
    In so many ways Sotek and Aela are similar. One thing you will I hope find is they are usualy able to balance eachother out. One angry then the other calms them down. If they are BOTH angry however....
    Fixed the Silver Hand and eliminated a good few...  more
  • Relycs
    Relycs   ·  March 30, 2016
    I like that Sotek still has flaws, that he needs Aela & the rest and that he has that darker side without letting it feel unnatural.

    Good to see him killing the Skinner, instead of Aela. It feels a bit like they are changing roles, Sotek ...  more
  • Sotek
    Sotek   ·  July 5, 2015
    I'm glad about that. I didn't want Aela to appear too brutal and I wanted Sotek's dark side to come out. I'm relieved that you found it ok.
  • Exuro
    Exuro   ·  July 5, 2015
    It's also easier to forgive someone for what they did to you than if they did the same to a loved one. So I can see how they both made there decisions.
  • Sotek
    Sotek   ·  July 2, 2015
    Yep. I was toying with Aela as to whether she would kill him but i wanted to show that she isnt a merciless killer and that sotek had a dark side.

    As to sotek having his girl back...
    if you have someone you love and they go off then you...  more
  • The Long-Chapper
    The Long-Chapper   ·  July 2, 2015
    Hehe, that is one angry Argonian, but I'm glad he got his girl back and the Skinner's dead.