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The Khajiit dropped into a crouch, drawing his twin longswords, his black leather armor and hood shimmering in the dim torchlight with enchantment. At his back, a similarly attired Orc pulled a large double-headed battle axe off his back. Surrounding them were about a dozen men that could easily be the town guard- they were, sort of, or at least they were pretending to be: the rearing horse town crest of Leyawiin was covered over on their chests and shields by large sections of black cloth. The ambush was perfect, except for the fact that it had been arranged for a pair of thieves, and not two members of the Emperor's personal assassins- the Shadowswords; if the pseudo-guards had bothered to look, they would have seen the Imperial insignia with a dagger-tail. But whatever the false guards planned, they never got a chance to act on it, as the Khajiit and the Orc charged them.

"So much for an Orc being stealthy," Shadow, the Khajiit Master Assassin of the Shadowswords yelled over the clash of battle, recalling his partner's claims earlier in the evening.

"Stab 'em with somethin' other than your mouth!" Grubak gro-Grash shouted at his partner and teacher as he took out one of their attackers. He didn't dare look to see how Shadow was fairing, as he knew his ego could not stand the fact that the smaller Khajiit would be outscoring the Orc warrior badly. Grubak kept up with his attackers, taking three of the false guards while doing his best to keep his back to Shadow so the Khajiit could watch it. He managed this by feeling his partner's tail thrashing against his legs.

Shadow was engaged with a rapidly dwindling quartet of attackers, who could not keep up with the Master Assassin's blade work. He killed three, and then had to spin quickly to take out a guard that was trying to get behind Grubak. The Orc was matched up against two opponents, and was having very little in the way of trouble, except for the trouble imposed by a bench in the wide hallway, which he sent flying into his attackers, following up with his axe before they could get to their feet. With half their number gone, the rest of the false guards fled, but one did so too slowly to avoid Shadow, who kicked him through the door from the castle's private quarters into the main hall. The two Shadowswords had been investigating the health of the count, which was as well as could be considering the circumstances. The false guard, part of the group that had come to attack the count, was not so healthy, as he failed to regain his balance before stumbling into the railing above the county throne- two stories below.

Shadow followed the guard through the door, followed quickly by Grubak. He arrived at the rail just in time to see the termination of the guard's fall, much to the assassin's chagrin- he had hoped to interrogate the guard. But hope remained, as a figure in a black robe and hood looked up at the Shadowswords. In the dim light, Grubak could make no identification other then the fact that both robe and hood shimmered faintly with enchantment, but the Khajiit assassin could see in pitch blackness- it was Gladius Nuncio, the name the man was using to act as an advisor to the Count of Leyawiin. But from what he was wearing, the Imperial was clearly a Speaker for the Dark Brotherhood as well. Nuncio looked up, a torch in his left hand and laughed.

"Well, well. It seems that the Shadowswords have attempted to assassinate the Count."

"Bah! You're the fool who's attackin' the Count," Grubak shouted.

"Indeed," Nuncio mused. "But, sadly the time has come for us to part. Farewell."

As the Speaker departed, an arrow from Shadow's quiver buried itself into the doorframe where he had been standing a heartbeat before. Without a word, Shadow leaped over the railing, hitting the floor in a roll. Grubak, not as gifted in acrobatics, tore down the stairs- but even so, he could not keep up with the Master Assassin. Shadow took off at dead run, knocking over the poor guard that happened to have opened the castle door for their prey. Grubak paused to pull the poor man to his feet and send him to check on the count. The Orc knew his partner's moods, and there was no way he would be able to keep up with Shadow (who he saw heading out of the eastern gate) in the Blackwood in the middle of the night. But they had a procedure, and Grubak headed to the western gate to retrieve their horses, and then he would start out north on the Yellow Road. Shadow would catch up.

Shadow ran on, his nose to the ground, his whiskers twitching, his ears pinned back to his head. Nuncio had taken a horse right at the gate, and had taken off straight into the Blackwood. Pausing briefly to make sure he knew the horse's hoof print, Shadow took off after him. The fact that Shadow could not see a torch cemented in his mind that he was dealing with a member of the Dark Brotherhood, humans could not see in the dark like Khajiit could- unless they used magic or enchanted items.

Grubak set up camp an hour north of Leyawiin, the fire easily visible from the road. The Orc did not sleep in case some bandits or other creatures decided to investigate. Grubak was tired, but still had the high of cheating death again. Orcs were passionate about things like that, and Grubak like most males Orcs would have loved to celebrate with a loved one- but that wasn't going to happen. He had seen the look on Shadow's face- he had missed that bow shot, and even if he came back with Nuncio's head in his pack, Grubak's Khajiit lover would be in no mood for sexual pursuits. It was annoying for the Orc, whose instincts told him to celebrate any victory- and it was a victory. They had been sent to find out why the Emperor had been getting reports of Leyawiin town guards patrolling the borders of the county with both Black Marsh and Elsweyr and harassing any Argonians or Khajiits that they found. It turned out that they weren't Leyawiin guards, but mercenaries hired by Gladius Nuncio, the count's new adviser who had dressed them up as town guards- the count had been completely unaware of the attacks. Made aware that two Imperial agents were poking around, one of whom was a Khajiit even! Nuncio arranged for an assassination of the count, which he planned to blame Shadow for. The Shadowswords, who had been seeking the count for explanations of their own, had blundered into that attempt.

And now, instead of passing the night in each other's arms, Grubak was sitting alone in the dark, waiting for the Master Assassin to show up and be in a funk over not being able to draw his bow fast enough. The Orc's anger at the Dark Brotherhood increased as he blew out a frustrated snort. But that thought troubled the Orc; Shadow had quickly realized that despite the Orc's lack of education (which the Master Assassin had quickly begun to correct), Grubak was by no means stupid and he could pick up on things that even Shadow felt were not obvious. Why was the Dark Brotherhood trying to stir up discord between Leyawiin and its neighbors? The Brotherhood was a death cult, dedicated to the worship of Sithis, Lord of the Darkness, Death and Chaos- they provided assassinations for a fee, political intrigue was outside their domain. In fact, it was the realm of the Shadowswords- whom held assassination as the most vile of their responsibilities, and killing as a last resort. If a problem could be solved with a little backroom dealing, a Shadowsword could handle it with all but the best of the professional negotiators in the Empire. The Brotherhood were simple murderers, they would not care to get involved in political disputes- and yet, this Speaker was. The thought was a troubling one, and Grubak could not find an answer before he dozed off.

It was the dark hour before dawn when Grubak awoke to find Shadow throwing more fuel on the fire. From the assassin's posture, the Orc could tell that his hunt had proven fruitless- the Speaker had gotten away. Shadow acknowledged Grubak's stirring with a nod, but said nothing as he continued to stare into the fire.

"How'd he do it?" Grubak asked finally. Talking about it sometimes helped break Shadow out of his moods, and Grubak desperately wanted him out of this one.

"About a mile outside of town, he had another horse waiting," Shadow replied, still looking into the fire. "It had the hoofs wrapped in burlap. I could not find the trail."

"He was ready for us," Grubak said, trying to sound reassuring. "There was nothing we could do."

Unfortunately, Shadow wasn't buying it, and remained sullen for the rest of the morning. They rode north, heading back to the Red Ring Road that encircled the island Imperial City. About midmorning, they ran into one of the messengers of The Black Horse Courier and Shadow flagged the messenger down and took a broadsheet from the woman. After briefly looking the article over, Shadow passed the broadsheet to Grubak.

Conspiracy in Leyawiin! The title proclaimed to the world. The Black Horse Courier has learned of the harassment of Khajiit and Argonian citizens of the Empire by mercenaries posing as the Guard of Leyawiin. These crimes have been rumors for several months, and had become common enough for the Empire to feel that an investigation was warranted. Fearing the misuse of Imperial funds, two Imperial tax agents were sent to investigate, provoking the source of these complaints into action. The ring leader of these mercenaries was GLADIUS NUNCIO, a male Imperial of middle age acting as an advisor to the count. The agents of the Empire uncovered that he was in fact a high ranking member of the notorious assassin's guild The Dark Brotherhood. Nuncio was acting without the count's knowledge, and attempted to assassinate the count when the investigators discovered his scheme. Thanks to the investigators' warnings, the true town guard was able to prevent the attempt on the count's life. Nuncio fled into the Blackwood, where the search for him has been placed in the capable hands of the Imperial Legion. It is guessed that Nuncio was attempting to drive a wedge between Leyawiin and her neighbors in Black Marsh and Elsweyr, though to what end the Dark Brotherhood would gain advantage is not known. We would like to repeat that the Count of Leyawiin was completely ignorant of this affair, and has offered to make amends to those who have suffered at the hands of his untrustworthy advisor.

Grubak read the article twice, and then the name of the author registered. The Black Horse had means of communicating across great distances- although they could not match the instant transmission of The Black Book of the Shadowswords, the accumulated knowledge/notebook that Shadow carried- and it seemed that those methods had been used.

"Didn't know your brother was in Leyawiin," Grubak commented as he folded the broadsheet into his saddlebag. Shadow's brother, S'rasha, who had trained as a Shadowsword for a time before he realized it was not his calling, was a writer for The Black Horse.

Shadow blew out a frustrated snort. "He was looking into the reports before we were."

Grubak said nothing else, knowing that Shadow was too frustrated to keep talking about this. Part of the Shadowswords' creed stated that their business was conducted in the shadows- they did not exist, and if the public learned that the Empire was training and employing assassins, that would be the end of their order. While the odd rumor was tolerated, anything that would give conformation was not. The count would not say anything, but the assassination attempt had left many who had seen them. Shadow had moved fast to quell any reports- and in Grubak's view had done an excellent job. While The Black Horse was funded by the Elder Council, which allowed them to distribute for free, they disagreed with Imperial policy often enough that most people saw them as impartial, so S'rasha's reporting of Imperial agents would not raise any eyebrows-such agents were used in cases of misappropriated Imperial funding. Instead of assassins, Grubak and Shadow were portrayed as tax collectors.

They rode in silence for much of the rest of the day, taking a brief stop at midday for a short lunch. As the shadows of the Blackwood began to cross the Yellow Road, Shadow broke the silence.

"I have been thinking Grubak," he began. "I think we need another partner."

"What?" Grubak asked in mock horror, pretending to misinterpret the Khajiit's meaning. "One Orc not good enough for ya?"

"Not what I meant," Shadow said, missing the Orc's attempt at humor. The broad grin that had spread across Grubak's face collapsed. "I think we need a dedicated archer or mage."

So this was how he was going to deal with his perceived failure back at the castle. It was, to Grubak's thinking, an improvement. Shadow had reached the phase in his career where his body required rest more than the constant grind training that younger members of the Shadowswords, called Dagger-Tails after the guild's dagger-tailed dragon insignia, were put through. But even by Dagger-Tail standards, Shadow's regimen was still brutal and when he felt he had failed in some way, he attempted to correct it. These corrections took the form of even more brutal training sessions, so brutal that Grubak would often have to drag Shadow to the infirmary after finding him two days later, passed out in his own blood. But even these were an improvement over what Shadow viewed as his ultimate failure. A little over a year ago, Shadow's first partner (in both senses of the term) Ra'jarr had been killed on a mission- an event that had driven Shadow close to the edge, no one saw Shadow for months afterwards.

"You want Ralas to run around with us?" Grubak asked, mostly in jest.

This time, Shadow did pick up on the fact that his partner was being funny. "Ralas is too old for us. I was thinking of someone younger."

"And more handsome," Grubak added.

Shadow chuckled, but did not feel the need to extend the conversation. They continued to ride north in silence. The shadows continued to lengthen, and suddenly, Shadow stood up in his stirrups and looked off into the woods.

"What is that?" Shadow asked, pointing at a low dell just off the road.

Grubak couldn't see anything, but given the dying light, he didn't expect to be able to see as well as the Khajiit. Whatever it was, it was out of place enough for Shadow to want to investigate, and Grubak loosened his axe in its straps to be ready. The Orc followed Shadow off the road.

What Shadow had seen proved to be a body. It was an Argonian, lying face down in the puddle that had collected in the dell- from where Grubak stood he could not tell if it was male or female, but it had been badly beaten. Blood had clotted all along the Argonian's back, turning the green-brown scales a sickly black, and the Orc could see white bone from open wounds on the shoulders and along the spine. Similar trauma was visible on the head, where some of the Argonian's hair-like spines had been ripped out, and his tail was twisted at an unnatural angle about half way down its length. The poor creature had been wearing leather armor, dyed black like their own, but that hadn't done it much good as only the tattered remains of the greaves remained. Shadow knelt down for a closer look while Grubak unsheathed his axe in case whoever had done this didn't have the good sense to make themselves scarce. But there was something troubling about the Argonian's armor, something familiar.

Shadow feared the Argonian was dead, but as he reached down and gently turned the body over (it was a male) he saw the slight rise and fall of the chest as he struggled for breath.

"He's alive," the Master Assassin called out, as he came out of the dell cradling the Argonian as gently as he could in his arms.

Grubak reacted quickly; Shadow had made the statement because the Orc had their supply of extra healing potions. He set his axe down and pulled the strongest one he could find out of his pack and bit the cork off the ceramic container. He spit the cork out and came over to where Shadow was holding the Argonian, and pried the lizard's mouth open and slowly began to pour the potion down his throat. As Shadow had taught him, he was as gentle as he could be- if this was an Orc, this would have been a sign of weakness, but Shadow nodded in approval. The potion was working somewhat, as the young male's worst wounds slowly began closing, but both Shadowswords knew that it would not be enough to heal him entirely- as soon as the Argonian finished this potion, Grubak would pull out their bandages to wrap his wounds as best they could.

"Uhmph, this one is all muscle," Grubak said, gently prodding the Argonian in the chest. "Quite handsome for one of the Lizard-Folk, if he wasn't so beaten- and wasn't so thin."

"He is younger then you Grubak," Shadow said, a statement that put their new acquaintance somewhere in his teens. He was too young to be hovering on the door of death, too young, in Shadow's opinion, to be wearing that armor. Oh, yes the Master Assassin recognized it instantly, even from the tatters that remained, and while he was not happy about it, he would give the youngster a chance to explain himself if he could.

And that chance seemed likely to come now, as the youngster gagged on the potion, which Grubak quickly withdrew, and his eyes fluttered open. That was when Shadow got his first surprise- they were a grayish color that somehow reminded the assassin of raven feathers in the sun, not the usual reddish-brown color that made most Argonian eyes look the same shade as their facial scales. The second surprise came hard on the heels of those eyes quickly sweeping over the Khajiit and the Orc: he spoke.

"Come to finish the job?" he rasped. "Not enough to just let me go in peace?"

"We mean you no harm," Shadow replied as he gently lowered the Argonian to the ground in a sitting position, careful to make sure that he did not set him on his broken tail and put his back against his legs to hold the Argonian upright. Grubak placed the potion back in front of the Argonian's face, and the lizard did manage to reach up and take it to finish drinking it. "My name is Shadow, and this is Grubak gro-Grash. We just found you lying by the side of the road and came to aid you if we could." Grubak nodded, but kept quiet- Shadow had that fatherly tone in his voice that he used to reassure young Dagger-Tails that found the Orc scary, it was best to keep quiet in those situations.

"You're not Brotherhood," the Argonian whispered. It was a statement, not a question, and Grubak realized where he had seen that armor before- the Dark Brotherhood used a similar armor to the Shadowswords- virtually indistinguishable at a glance save for the Imperial insignia on the shoulders.

"And it would seem that you are not anymore either Shadowscale," Shadow said, still in that comforting tone. The Argonian didn't react to the pronouncement, but Grubak stiffened- all Argonians born under the sign of the Shadow were given over to the Dark Brotherhood at their hatching, where they became elite assassins for use in the Argonian royal power struggles. A Shadowscale was a formidable opponent. "Who did this to you? What cause could they have?"

The Argonian chuckled, and act that sent him into a coughing fit until he spit out a blood clot, and said something that sounded like a name followed by "because he was handsome."

Grubak looked at his partner, and saw the Master Assassin looking back at him. They had both heard the same thing. Shadow motioned for Grubak to get out the bandages.

"We are with the Shadowswords, if you have heard of them," Shadow told the Argonian. "We are headed back to our headquarters- there is a first rate healer there named Nenya. She can patch you up if you are willing."

"I have no home," the Shadowscale rasped. "It would be better if I died, rather than be a burden to the enemies of the Brotherhood."

"Silly fool," Shadow chided as he knelt down and took the Argonian's right arm, gently threw it around his neck and pulled him up by his chest. "I do not like to see my efforts go to waste, and Fort Daggertail can be your home if you like. Now, what is your name?"

Grubak had already begun to bandage his wounds, rubbing them with a salve to help them continue to heal while the Shadowscale considered that.

"I... I can't remember," he said, and then promptly passed out. Neither the statement, nor the lapse in unconsciousness were completely unexpected.

"Rest then," Shadow said quietly. "I will just have to come up with a name for you."

***

Two weeks later, the Argonian dressed to leave the Shadowswords' infirmary for good under the watchful eye of the Shadowsword's High Elf healer Nenya. The female High Elf had been patching up the wounded Shadowswords since Tiber Septim had realized that not all of his Empire's business could be conducted in the open. She had seen just about everything in her time, and knew just what was required with any patient- right now, this one needed his self confidence restored.

"I'm terribly sorry about your spines," she was telling him- and she meant it. Her Argonian medicine was out of date for lack of practice, and she had not been able to re-grow the spines that had been ripped out of his head- and despite her best efforts, he still had scars all along his back and shoulders. Otherwise, he was completely healed, broken bones and torn muscle- including his broad tail, had healed, and the only signs of his ordeal were cosmetic. But the spines were what bothered her most, as her patient was a young male, and as she understood it the spines were primarily for attracting mates. "I do hope that they will continue to grow back."

"It does not matter," the Argonian (who still seemed unable to remember his name) said dejectedly as he ran a hand over his spines. "I do not think I shall attempt to look for a mate again."

Shadow had visited the youngster every day, as had Grubak, and they had confirmed that the Argonian had attempted to start a relationship with another male member of the Dark Brotherhood, with the result of leaving him for dead on the side of the Yellow Road where the Shadowswords had found him. The Argonian was in his mid teens, and this had been his first attempt at seeking love in a world that viewed his tastes as strange. And yet, it gave Nenya some faith in the Gods that even this act of cruelty had brought the youngster into contact with two extraordinary males that shared his views, and could put him on the right path. And if Nenya read it right, Grubak found the Argonian handsome.

"Don't be so sure," Nenya replied. "There are no certainties in this life, and it would not surprise me if you did manage to find a man that will make you happy."

The Argonian didn't respond to that, and the arrival of Shadow prevented the need for there to be any response. The Khajiit tossed a pack on the Argonian's bed and then turned to face them both. He shook his head- Nenya knew that he had just come from a meeting with the Grandmaster and the Master Trainers, a meeting that the Master Assassin had not expected that meeting to go well. The subject had been the Argonian.

"Well," Shadow said with a sigh. "They are not happy, but if the Shadowscale wants to stay, he can."

"I do not wish to stay if I am not wanted," the Argonian said.

Shadow glared at him. "You are wanted. I, and Grubak, would like it if you stay."

The Argonian considered that for a moment before responding. "Do you think I might join your order? I have been an assassin all my life- I have no other skills, and no real desire to learn any."

Nenya looked at Shadow, throwing the Master Assassin a knowing smile. While the youngster had slept away the last fortnight, they had several long discussions about the Argonian's future. Shadow had hoped that the former Shadowscale would show an interest in joining the Shadowswords, but knew that he would not pressure the youngster one way or another. Nenya's evaluation had been that if the Argonian had fully recovered, he would certainly be physically qualified.

"You are physically ready to try," Nenya said. "But I think you should see Ralas before Shadow gives you the run around."

The Khajiit raised an eyebrow at that, but Nenya knew that Argonians had some natural affinity for magic, and if this one did then it would be a crime to deny him that opportunity. Shadow finally shrugged and turned to face the young Argonian.

"Have you had any luck remembering your name?" he asked sympathetically. He watched the Argonian slowly shake his head. "Would you mind greatly if I gave you a name? I do not want to have to continue to call you 'Shadowscale.'"

"I would not mind," the Argonian replied.

"I am afraid that I do not speak Argonian," Shadow apologized. "But if it does not offend you greatly, I will call you 'Raven-Eye.'"

The newly christened Raven-Eye smiled broadly.

"Greetings, Raven-Eye. My name is Ralas Telvanni," the Dark Elf mage greeted his Argonian visitor. He motioned the youngster to a chair, and stepped over to a table. "Would you care for some tea?"

They were in Ralas' sitting room in the top ring of Fort Daggertail, the Argonian taking a seat in one the overstuffed chairs while shuffling his bare feet through the carpeting. Shadow and Grubak where, by design, absent so that Ralas and Raven-Eye could converse in private, so that the Dark Elf could evaluate the former Shadowscale. Ralas poured himself some tea, made sure that the Argonian truly did not want any, and then sat down himself.

"Of House Telvanni?" Raven-Eye asked. With that remark, Ralas made his first mental note, the Argonian was familiar with the Great Houses of Morrowind, and an edge of distrust had crept into his voice. Not that Ralas blamed him- slavery was legal in his homeland, and the Argonians were the primary victims of the practice. Raven-Eye studied Ralas as the mage stirred his tea. He was a Dark Elf, with the grayish-black skin and red eyes of the race, his black hair beginning to show some grey gave the trained Shadowscale the hint that he was past middle age, as did the small creases around his eyes and lips. He wore the traditional robe of a mage with the hood down and draped over his shoulders, the whole thing a dark blue with red trim and the Shadowsword insignia in red on his chest. Raven-Eye was wearing some scavenged clothes, a simple homespun shirt and pants, without shoes as Ralas made all his guests remove their footwear when walking on his carpets-the mage hated cleaning them.

"Formerly," Ralas replied, taking a sip of his tea to hide a pained smile. He had joined the Shadowswords some three decades previously after being exiled from his homeland. The events that led up to that exile were not something that the mage wished to relive. But he was dealing with a trained assassin, and Raven-Eye saw the signs and did not pursue the question further.

"You are wondering of course why you are here," Ralas said, setting his tea cup on the side table. "Or perhaps you are wondering why you are here without your new friends?"

"Somewhat," the teen said, his eyes dropping to the carpet. "But Mistress Nenya requested that you evaluate me before I can join the order."

"But you are nervous without Shadow here," Ralas mused as he leaned back and studied his guest.

Raven-Eye nodded a gesture that seemed to be almost submissive. "The Master is unlike anyone I've met. He doesn't judge me constantly."

"Ah," Ralas said. That made a great deal of sense: from the time they were hatched, any Argonian born under the sign of the Shadow (the constellation that had given the name to a legendary black furred Khajiit Master Assassin some 200 years ago, a name that the current Master Assassin was the third bearer since) where given over to the Dark Brotherhood for training as Shadowscales. Once they completed that training, at about Raven-Eye's age, they became assassins for the royal Argonian families- pawns in the hidden and ever shifting political struggles in Black Marsh. While the Brotherhood portrayed itself as a family to its members, Ralas highly doubted that it was a loving one- no place for a child to be raised. Which was why the Shadowswords rarely took recruits under the age of 10, and most Dagger-Tails joined when they were Raven-Eye's age (Shadow, of course being an exception to both rules- but then, he was skilled enough to go from a Dagger-Tail to the third highest rank in the order- which required him to acquire the two titles of Master Shadow and Master Blade, the two paths through the Shadowswords, and had done it all in less than two decades). Raven-Eye would have grown up with his every action scrutinized, his every flaw exposed, his every mistake punished, his every weakness exploited. Anger surged through the Dark Elf as he thought about what those fools had done to this youngster, but he choked it back.

"Shadow is unlike anyone I have ever met either," he finally said. "But do you feel you are being judged?"

"They said you wanted to evaluate me," Raven-Eye replied. "It feels like it."

"Then I must apologize," Ralas said. "They do want me to evaluate you, but not you. They want to see how you are recovering. If you feel that I am judging you, I apologize again, but I am curious about you. You are fascinating to me."

"Because I think I like..."

"No. I would have thought it would be clear by now that we both know people that share your views," Ralas interrupted, noting that the teen expressed uncertainty in his statement. "It's the fact that you are also unlike anyone I have ever met. You will forgive me, but Shadow has told me all about the talks he has been having with you while you recovered. I find it fascinating that you outlook is not the same as the other members of the Brotherhood and Shadowscales that I have met- it seems to be more in line with our philosophies. As for this evaluation, this may be speaking out of turn, but Shadow has expressed a desire to have you become his student. His training regime is...difficult."

"Mistress Nenya said you thought I might have some magical ability," Raven-Eye said. "I don't see how, I have been training for as long as I can remember- I have shown no signs."

"Yes, well, the Dark Brotherhood and the Shadowscales are geared to turn out a certain product. Quite frankly, they would not know a good mage until he incinerated them with a fireball. We Shadowswords are somewhat different- we are not merely the Empire's hired killers, we are its investigators, its thieves, its blackmailers, its guardians in the shadows."

Raven-Eye was quiet for a long time after the mage stopped talking. Ralas watched him for that time, studying carefully. The youngster was just into his teens, fifteen if Ralas guessed correctly, far too young to have experienced so much of the bad in life. It had made him uncertain, vulnerable, and truly uncertain about the world and where he fit in it. It made Ralas sad to think about it, but a smile came to his face- if one believed that the Gods took direct influence in mortal affairs, then there was no clearer sign of this then Shadow showing up to save this Argonian both physically and perhaps spiritually as well. Ralas began to remember the fifteen year old Shadow that had sat in that chair, already a Master Shadow, and just coming to terms with his own sexual views- but he had Ra'jarr to help him through that phase. Another bittersweet smile crossed the mage's face as he remembered the teenage Shadow. He was almost as nervous as Raven-Eye was now, but Ra'jarr had given him advice before his conference with the mage.

"What did Shadow tell you about me?" Ralas asked as he finished his tea.

"He said to be honest with you," Raven-Eye replied. "He said that you wouldn't try to make me feel like something to be poked and prodded."

"And has he been right so far?"

Raven-Eye suddenly drew in a deep breath and seemed to collect himself. He looked into Ralas' eyes. "Is it too late to ask for some tea?"

Ralas smiled broadly. He rose, taking his own cup as he moved over to the tea table. "Not at all. Would you like milk or sugar? There you are. Now then, remember this is not an evaluation of you, this is just to see how you are healing. We will just have a normal conversation, so just relax and try to enjoy yourself."

As noon began to pass, the sun found Ralas on the wall of the top ring of Fort Daggertail, leaning against the battlements while Shadow sat atop the one next to the mage. Next to the Master Assassin was a tray with the remains of the Khajiit's midday meal, Shadow himself was munching on an apple- a sweet gold, Ralas knew: all Khajiits loved sweets, which made them prey to addiction to the drugs Moon Sugar and the much more addictive and potent Skooma. Shadow used Moon Sugar recreationally, having been introduced to it by Ra'jarr who used it was an aphrodisiac, which was also Shadow's primary use for it as well. As he chewed, the assassin watched the birds flying to the west of the fort. Grubak had taken Raven-Eye to the mess hall for their midday meal.

"It seems that he will fully recover, as much as that is possible," Ralas was telling Shadow. "I see no reason for him not to become your apprentice."

"No gift for magic?" Shadow asked with a smirk that revealed his pointed teeth.

"No, but that is not unexpected," Ralas replied. "Nenya forgot that it is mainly Argonian females that become mages. Raven-Eye wants to be an assassin, much like you."

"What do you mean by that?" Shadow asked, picking up on the mage's emphasis on his last statement.

"He has already begun to form an attraction to you, Shadow."

"In a sexual sense?" the assassin asked, working a piece of apple out of his teeth.

"A mentoring one," Ralas replied with a shake of his head. "He looks at you, and for the first time in his life, he sees what he wants to be. He wants to be you when he grows up, and he desperately wants you to show him how- I did not sense any sexual attraction at all. Does that displease you?"

Shadow took another bite of his apple. Ralas and Nenya were among the few people that knew that he and Grubak were a couple, and the naturally secretive assassin liked to keep it that way- almost no one else would believe it anyway, and the rest were too bigoted to accept the fact. Ralas was studying him closely; trying to guess what was going on behind those green feline eyes. The only clue the mage could get was that the Master Assassin's hand went to his chest, clutching the locket he wore on a chain there through his shirt.

"This one is a one partner Khajiit," he said after a moment of reflection.

"A much more mature attitude then I had when I was your age," Ralas said with a laugh. Shadow did not join him, and Ralas quickly realized that he was thinking of his dead love.

"It is Grubak that he will have to watch his tail around," Shadow said finally, and Ralas was glad to see that he was able to snap himself out of his funk so quickly.

"Does that bother you?" Ralas asked seriously.

"He is an Orc," Shadow said as if this was the most self evident thing in the world. "And he is only twenty."

"Meaning he is not ready to understand what a relationship means beyond sex," Ralas said. "And yet you have proven that that is what you want."

"He is an Orc, and he is just past twenty," Shadow reiterated as he tossed his apple core off the wall, clearing the four other levels of the fort. There was plenty of time for that relationship to build.

And you have had an extraordinarily hard life, my friend, Ralas thought. It is almost amazing that you and Grubak formed a connection that extends deeper than physical attraction, something that speaks highly of you both.

"Raven-Eye has had an extraordinarily harsh experience," Shadow mused. "I have told Grubak not to push him. It would not surprise me if he does not feel like looking for love for a very long time."

Ralas did not know how to reply to that, and was saved from any need to reply by the approach of Grubak and Raven-Eye from the mess hall. Shadow hopped down from the wall. Grubak was smiling broadly as he playfully pushed Raven-Eye in front of Shadow.

"Don't know if we can keep 'em," the Orc reported with a chuckle. "He'll eat us outa house an' home."

Raven-Eye looked embarrassed by that, and began studying the stone floor of the wall.

"Did you get a good meal?" Shadow asked, ignoring the Orc.

"Yes Master," the Argonian replied, running his pointed tongue over his snout. It had been a fine meal indeed, after two weeks of nothing but infirmary food, and Raven-Eye had taken full advantage- eating almost twice as much as Grubak, a feat which stunned and amused the Orc.

"Get's better," the Orc continued with another wide grin. "Turns out this one's a bowman- a good on'."

"Master Grubak exaggerates a little," Raven-Eye stated sheepishly. "I did favor the bow in my training, but I trained with other weapons as well."

Shadow could barely hear the Argonian over the laughing fit that Grubak went into from being called "Master", the Orc sat down on the edge of the battlements, holding his sides, and at that moment, Shadow was not sure he would have caught him if he fell.

"Do not be embarrassed," Shadow replied. "You will find that Grubak exaggerates a great deal about his own skills as well."

That shut the Orc up instantly. While he sat there trying to decide just what the Khajiit was referring to, Ralas began chuckling to himself. Shadow put his arm around the Argonian and began to lead Raven-Eye to the stairs down to the upper ring of Fort Daggertail.

"As I am sure Ralas let slip, we think that you are advanced enough to not be a Dagger-Tail. I would like for you to train with me."

"I would like that Master," Raven-Eye said, his voice taking on a note of hope.

"Good," Shadow said as he motioned for the still puzzled and somewhat miffed Grubak to follow them. "Then, if you are ready, we will begin."

***

The top ring of Fort Daggertail was reserved for the highest level of the Shadowsword order: at the moment, that consisted of four members as the Grandmaster had taken up semi-permanent residence in the Imperial City. Nenya and Ralas' homes were on the west side of the ring, the Grandmaster and Master Trainers homes/offices were on the north side of the ring, and Shadow's house was on the east side- and was the only one that was not built into the outer ring itself. In the center, two abandoned houses had been taken over by Shadow for training the more advanced students.

It was to one of these that Shadow took Raven-Eye while Grubak trailed behind, still trying to decide if Shadow was actually questioning his performance in both their spheres. The three story house had been gutted by the Master Assassin and transformed into an obstacle course for his students to practice their sneaking skills. Shadow had set the course up so that he could quickly change the course around, isolate a floor for a shorter course, lock doors, turn out all the lights, or expand the course to cover all three floors and the attic. Shadow pulled Raven-Eye inside the front door, into the front waiting room. Grubak followed and closed the door behind himself, passing the Master Assassin and his new student without a word- he was in charge of making sure that the course was setup for the training session. Letting a moment pass to allow Grubak some lead time, Shadow pointed to the inner door.

"This is a fairly simple test," Shadow told Raven-Eye, passing the Argonian a set of lockpicks. "This entire house has been converted into a course to test your sneaking skills. Right now, we are just going to use the first floor. Are you ready?"

"What is the goal?" Raven-Eye asked. He was more confident, Shadow noted, less uneasy about being evaluated- he was more in his element here and with his goal of becoming Shadow's student in sight he was worried more about proving his worth rather than worrying about failing.

"For now," Shadow said with a flick of his tail. "There is a locked chest in the center of the course that contains a small reward- a few septims for your efforts. The course will be dimly lit, so you will be able to see somewhat."

Shadow paused, as while Raven-Eye was still listening, he had sat down and was unlacing his boots.

"I see this will be mostly review," the Khajiit said with a grin.

It was. Raven-Eye took the course in only ten minutes, and the rest of the afternoon was spent increasing the difficulty- changing the course around, adding new areas, guards (played by Grubak and two Dagger-Tails), and finally by sundown Raven-Eye was starting in the basement to get to a guarded chest in the attic pursued by the Master Assassin- who had the advantage of being able to see in the dim light as if it was the noon sun. During the entire afternoon, Shadow only caught Raven-Eye once when the former Shadowscale took a wrong turn that left him in a dead end. But for the most part, Raven-Eye exceeded Shadow's expectations- and the Argonian seemed very pleased when Shadow started putting fruit and dried meats in the chests along with the almost five hundred septims that he collected. Shadow smiled a bittersweet smile as he watched the youngster wolf down yet another apple. Raven-Eye had not been eating properly even before his brush with death, and it would take him a long time to properly adjust to eating regular meals again. But it was time to try, as the sun was probably already over the Summerset Isles by now. It was time for this exercise to end, and Shadow approached Raven-Eye and tried to prevent the Argonian from choking on his apple.

"I think that is enough for today" Shadow told his student. As he spoke, Grubak also approached after sending the Dagger-Tails back to the dorms. "It is getting late, and you have worked hard today- you need to rest."

"I feel fine," Raven-Eye replied, his eyes twinkling- though a slump in his shoulders gave away his exhaustion.

"We gotta find you a proper place to stay anyway" Grubak added with a yawn. He rubbed his porcine nose as spoke, a sign that he was ready to call it a day Shadow knew. In their concern for the Argonian, neither of the Shadowswords had had a full night sleep since they had return by Leyewiin.

"I thought that I would stay in the barracks with the others," Raven-Eye said.

"You are not a Dagger-Tail," Shadow said shaking his head. "The barracks are only for the Dagger-Tails."

"Then where will I stay?" the Argonian asked, the uncertainty from earlier in the day creeping back into his voice.

"Thought that was obvious," Grubak snorted. "You're gonna stay with us."

"But I thought... I mean... I don't want to..."

Shadow broke him off with a laugh. "Do not worry yourself about that. The house we live in is at least as large as this one- we have plenty of extra rooms."

"We have students stay over all the time," Grubak added. "Now com'on, we have to hurry if we want to make the mess hall before it closes!"

As it turned out, they were too late- but Shadow took his student up to their house and made them supper himself. After that, they let Raven-Eye pick his room. To their surprise, he chose a downstairs room, a currently empty storeroom right next to kitchen. Grubak pointed out that the entire second floor (the third floor consisted of only three rooms- the master bedroom that he had Shadow shared, a washroom with a large tub that was magically heated, and the "attic" which provided access to the roof) was nothing but bedrooms, except for the occasional washroom, but the Argonian insisted on the room he had chosen. Shadow said nothing and set out with Grubak to retrieve a bed and brought it down to the room. Raven-Eye asked for it to be placed right up against the adjoining wall to the kitchen, and the Master Assassin thought he was beginning to understand his student's choice. Depositing a night table, a lantern and a promise to bring down dressers in the morning, the two older Shadowswords left the Argonian to his own devices. He fell asleep right away.

"So ya think he'll be alright down there?" Grubak asked a short time later, already lying in their own bed. He was still wearing a loincloth, a sure sign that he intended to really sleep tonight. Shadow was putting away clothes that had come back from the laundry, and was similarly still wearing an undergarment.

"He will be fine," he replied. "He has a reason for wanting that room."

"Ya think he'll work out?" Grubak asked a slight edge of concern in his voice. "He ate like a horse every time ya gave 'em a chance, an' he was still worn out by the end 'o those mazes- passed right out tonight too."

Shadow considered that for a moment. "Nenya says he is underweight, he probably has been for a while now. He should be my size or a little bigger." Khajiits were naturally very lanky, and Shadow himself was somewhat bigger than most Khajiit.

"She is worried that Raven-Eye was out there for a few days before we found him," Shadow continued. "So I think that tomorrow we will worry about that, and just move on from there."

Grubak yawned, then rolled over and blew out the candle on his night table and put his arm across Shadow's side of the bed. Shadow put the last pair of pants away and climbed into bed himself. He blew out his candle and rolled back with his head on Grubak's shoulder and pulled the covers up to his neck. As he settled in, Grubak reached over and began rubbing his hand through the fur on Shadow's chest and stomach- an action that never failed to get the Khajiit purring, but the Orc's hand stayed high on his chest and stomach, never venturing below his waist- another indication that Grubak was interested in sleep only. In fact Shadow realized that the Orc was already asleep, and as he continued to purr, Shadow followed him into sleep.

***

They spent the next day stuffing the young Argonian like a goose, and then slowly began to put him through the training regimen. Raven-Eye began to quickly gain weight, without (much to Grubak's delight) losing any of his muscle tone. With his student's weight problem solved, Shadow began training him in earnest. Grubak had been quite correct, Raven-Eye proved to be an outstanding archer and was quickly surpassing Shadow's skills in that department. For the next month, Shadow and Grubak put Raven-Eye through his paces, and eventually Shadow was beginning to consider that they had reached the end of what they could teach Raven-Eye at Fort Daggertail, and the confines of the fort were beginning to become claustrophobic. Grubak was feeling the same way, and Shadow was thinking about heading up to their house outside of Bruma. Up there, they could train Raven-Eye without worrying about interfering with other trainers- and they could hunt without having to worry about poaching. Fort Daggertail was in the middle of the Imperial Reserve, and most of the game belonged to the Emperor- taking it would provoke an investigation by the Imperial Rangers, which would lead to questions being asked that were worth avoiding. Up at the house that would not be a problem.

But there was one minor problem that had to be dealt with before they took their new student up to the home, which was why Shadow was sitting at the table in their room while Grubak sat on the bed reading. Raven-Eye had been given the day to do what he pleased and had said that he was going to shoot with the Shadowswords' archery trainer. It was just as well that the Argonian was not around, as from a certain point of view he could be seen as the problem that was troubling Shadow. The house at Bruma had been built by the Master Assassin's illustrious ancestor as a retreat away from the noise of Fort Dagertail- and Shadow had used it for that purpose for as long as he'd been old enough to appreciate the need for it. Much of his time had been spent up there with Ra'jarr, who in addition to his assassin skills was a very prolific painter. He was very good. Most of his work consisted of historical or mythical events, or landscapes- these were displayed in the main areas of the house at Bruma, with two here in this house. But a large portion of Ra'jarr's work included works of a more personal nature, meant to be enjoyed solely by the two lovers. And that was the beginning of the problem. These paintings were displayed all over the third floor, which was all bedrooms as the assumption was that there would be a need for guests or family- but it had just been Shadow and Ra'jarr, so the third floor had become a private playground.

But Shadow knew he could not leave those paintings up with Raven-Eye coming to the house. The Argonian was in a conflicted state about his sexuality, where his experience had left him with his body telling him one thing and his mind questioning if this was right. Ra'jarr, who had more experience with these matters, had told Shadow that for some this was just a phase, and some went back to loving males, while others went on to females. How long this conflicted state could last, Ra'jarr didn't know- and he was just mostly glad that Shadow's had been very brief. But during that time, Ra'jarr had left Shadow alone and had not pressured Shadow at all about sex- and Shadow would show the same courtesy to Raven-Eye: those paintings had to come down, at least for the time being.

And that situation brought its own set of problems. Ralas had reported that while Raven-Eye was steadily become more confident, he was definitely much more so when Grubak or (especially) Shadow was around. Leaving Raven-Eye alone was not an option- so one of them would have to go up to Bruma alone. But that brought up another set of problems, this time with Shadow. The last time he had been to the house alone, he had (by request) scattered Ra'jarr's ashes from the roof- he was not ready to face the ghosts that inhabited the place on his own. And so, he had to ask his new lover a large favor.

"Grubak," Shadow said, breaking a silence that had settled over the room. "I need to ask you a favor."

"Oh?" the Orc asked, not looking up from his book. Shadow was just glad that the Orc was reading- he had not been a reader when they had first met, and Shadow placed great value on education.

"I think that we should take Raven-Eye up to the house to continue his training," Shadow said, watching a broad smile spread over Grubak's face. Grubak loved the house at Bruma, and was even fonder of the time they spent there. He was not going to be happy about the request that Shadow was about to make.

"I need you to go up there and take down the paintings on the third floor. You can store them in the basement."

"What!" Grubak exclaimed. "Why?"

"You know why," Shadow said sternly. "We are not going to keep having this discussion- it is a disservice to him."

"Bah!" the Orc snorted as he set his book down on the bed. "Seeing some fine Khajiit tail will help him sort himself out- you're actin' like there's something wrong with it."

"Did you want to be hit over the head with it when you were 'sorting' yourself 'out'?"

Grubak didn't respond to that right away, as he now sensed how thin the ice he was treading on was. Sometimes the Orc wondered if whoever read the Black Book of the Shadowswords or some other chronicle of their adventures would find his Shadow to be moody and easily depressed- that wasn't the case: Shadow only had one button, but it was a big one. And when Ra'jarr tended to come up, he would come up a lot. Grubak couldn't blame Shadow for sliding into depression when he remembered his lost love: if he had gone through what Shadow had gone through, the Orc was unsure he would have chosen to continue living. Shadow had already thought this through, and he was probably even less happy about it then Grubak- if the Orc played this wrong, Shadow would slide into a very deep funk, and Grubak did not want that. Grubak suddenly remembered that they had this same conversation when Shadow had first taken Grubak up to the house, and it had only been at the Orc's insistence that he had not taken the paintings down. It had helped that Ra'jarr had proved to be quite handsome, if a little thin for Grubak's tastes (something that mattered a great deal to Shadow, although Grubak couldn't understand why) - Shadow was big for a Khajiit, for which Grubak grateful. This was not a fight that Grubak wanted to engage in.

"This is a crime ta art," the Orc said finally as he slid his feet off the bed and sat up. He didn't question why Shadow was sending him instead of doing this himself, he knew only too well the ghosts that lingered up there for his partner- and he had held a sobbing Shadow for many a night when the Khajiit had finally summoned the courage to take Grubak up there for the first time. But Shadow wasn't ready, and might never be ready, to face the ghosts on his own.

"I know," Shadow replied with a sad smile. "Hopefully Raven-Eye will come around soon and then we can put them back up."

"Alright," Grubak said finally. "Lemme pack an' I'll head out right away."

"Why so soon?" Shadow asked. "I am not going to ask Raven-Eye until tonight, so the earliest we could set out is dawn tomorrow."

"Well it's gonna take a while ta take all those paintings down," Grubak said with a mischievous smile. Orcs were as open and forward about sex as they were about everything else in their lives, and Grubak had no reason to hide his intentions from Shadow; after all, that was why those paintings had been done, wasn't it?

Grubak had expected Shadow to smile at that, but the Khajiit's tail curled back on itself and began smacking the floor- a sure sign that the assassin had one thing on his mind. Instantly, Shadow was out of his seat and across the room and locking the door.

"Well then," Shadow said with a sly smile as he turned back to face Grubak. "I guess that you are in no hurry to leave..." He loosened his shirt.

Grubak jumped off the bed and had his shirt off before he even realized that in his current mood, Shadow might enjoy removing the Orc's clothing. But there was no time to regret his choice as just as quickly, Shadow was back across the room and embracing Grubak. They drew each other into a long kiss, drinking each other in. As they continued the kiss, Grubak reached down Shadow's shirt and ran his hand through the fur on the Khajiit's chest, careful to avoid the silver locket that Shadow never removed, setting the Khajiit purring. Shadow's hands ran over the tattoos on Grubak's chest and followed the designs around to his back, and then ran down under the waist of Grubak's pants while Shadow's tail curled around the Orc's leg. Meanwhile, Grubak's hands didn't stop this time at Shadow's waist, an action that set Shadow purring even louder.

***

Raven-Eye had decided that Master Shadow was much better than any other teacher he had ever had. For one thing, Master Shadow realized that there was a fine line between training heavily and just torturing yourself, and Shadow did not care if Raven-Eye chose to take time to relax when he had been given time to himself for training. Like today for example: Raven-Eye had spent the morning shooting with the Shadowsword's Wood Elf archery instructor until he had to go work with the Dagger-Tails. Raven-Eye, having continued to practice for a few more hours afterwards, had then decided that the noon sun would be warm enough to drive off the high altitude chill that permeated the air at the top of the fort. It was likely that no one else would find this late spring day cold, but the reptilian Argonian suspected that he would find it cool even in midsummer. That was why he had taken the room next to the kitchen, where the heat from the cooking fire kept the wall warm through most of the night.

And so, Raven-Eye was spending the afternoon on the roof of Master Shadow's house with his shirt off, enjoying the sunshine. He was more content then he could ever remember being in his life. But a small cloud was beginning to form in the Argonian's mind- a sense of restlessness; Shadow and Grubak had been regaling him every night (at his request) with tales of their exploits, but there had been no call to adventure lately. Master Shadow said that this happened a lot in the winters, but the period of inactivity was now stretching into late spring- if the older Shadowswords were feeling as restless as Raven-Eye, they were doing a good job of hiding it. Maybe they could go on a hunt, or explore some of the Ayleid ruins nearby- nothing too dangerous or out of the way. Raven-Eye had just decided to ask Shadow about it tonight when something on the ground below caught his eye.

What the former Shadowscale saw was Master Shadow and Grubak leaving the house- but what was odd was that while Master Shadow was still wearing his normal clothes, Grubak was wearing his Shadowsword armor and had a pack on his back as if he was going on a trip. That was interesting. Grubak stopped about halfway across the ring to the tunnel that lead down to other levels of the fort and turned to Shadow, but the Khajiit said something, and they continued on to the tunnel. Just before they passed out of sight, they stopped again and Grubak turned back and waved to Raven-Eye. Of course Shadow had sensed the Argonian up on the roof, as Raven-Eye had made no effort to hide himself. Raven-Eye returned the wave, and the pair moved out of sight and into the tunnel. A minute later, Shadow reemerged alone. As he approached the house, he waved again to Raven-Eye. The Argonian began moving, but Shadow motioned for him to remain on the roof and that the Master Assassin would join him. As he waited for his Master, Raven-Eye was puzzled- Shadow was almost skipping as he returned and was generally showing that he was very happy and almost giddy. There was nothing wrong with the emotion; it was just that the Master Assassin was very good at controlling how much emotion he showed. And as a trained assassin, Raven-Eye was just as good at picking up on the tells.

The hatch in the roof popped open and Shadow emerged. This close, the Master Assassin was smiling broadly, even before he focused on his student.

"How is the sun today?" he asked playfully, grabbing Raven-Eye's shirt as he spoke.

"Warm," Raven-Eye replied as he got to his feet. Whatever had gotten into the Master was infectious, as Raven-Eye found himself smiling as well.

"And no wind either to ruin it," Shadow mused. Then he turned and headed across the roof to the outer wall, still in possession of Raven-Eye's shirt. "Come along, Raven-Eye."

Shadow's house was offset from the outer wall of the fort by about three feet, creating a gap between the roof and the walkway along the outer wall- this was requested by the Master Assassin who had the house built, and Shadow used the gap in his training. Shadow jumped the gap without any difficulty, and then turned to assist Raven-Eye- the Argonian had only made the jump a handful of times, and hadn't quite memorized the jump necessary to make the gap. This time, he overshot, landing in the Master Assassin's arms. After making sure that Raven-Eye had his feet back under him, Shadow headed a few yards down the wall, stopping at a section that Raven-Eye knew was above the main gate and taking a seat on the battlements. Raven-Eye followed, even more confused than he was before- Argonian's senses were not as sensitive as Khajiit senses, but compared to human senses they were much sharper; when Shadow had caught Raven-Eye, the Argonian noticed that Shadow's scent was... off. He wasn't sure if it bad, but it was different- and Khajiits tended to be rather fastidious about being clean on account of their own sharpened senses. He shook it off and took a seat a few steps away from Shadow, and waited for his Master to start the conversation he clearly wanted to have- Raven-Eye had several questions, but it seemed that Shadow would answer them in his own time. The Master Assassin continued to look down at the gate, his tail slowly sweeping the stones as he began talking.

"So, how are you liking Fort Daggertail?" he asked, his tone even and inviting any response- even a negative one.

"It is much nicer than the other places I have trained," Raven-Eye replied, his own tone even as well. He also noted that after a month training with Shadow, he was beginning to avoid contractions just like his Master did.

"It is a wonderful refuge," Shadow agreed. "But it's not home."

As he spoke, the Khajiit's tail went stiff and he seemed to focus on something outside the fort. Raven-Eye looked out to see a large figure on a horse leaving the main gate. Given how high up they were, and Master Shadow's reaction, that could only be one person- and a wave from the figure confirmed it. Getting return waves from both Shadow and Raven-Eye, Grubak rode off to the east.

"I think that you have learned all you are going to inside these walls," Shadow said as he continued to watch Grubak ride off. "You have made it farther than any student I have trained and I think it's time to move on to the advanced training- and we cannot do that here. If you would like, we will go to my home and continue your training there."

"If I like?" the Argonian asked. "I have a say in this?"

"Of course you do," the Master said, as if it was the single most evident thing in the world. "This is a partnership between the three of us, Raven-Eye. You may be the junior partner, but you have a say- there are no 'Masters' here."

Raven-Eye puzzled over that for a moment.

"But you have earned that title," he said finally. "Doesn't not calling you by it diminish your achievement in some way?"

Shadow was about to respond to that very quickly, but then Raven-Eye watched a thought cross his face, causing the Master to rethink his answer.

"As you wish," he said. "But I will never demand it of you."

"Thank you, Master. I have been growing; well, somewhat restless inside these walls. I know I should be grateful for the peace and quiet, but it has become..." he trailed off.

"Boring," Shadow finished for him. "Peace does not have to be boring, but Fort Daggertail is not set up for the kinds of diversions that you or I find engaging. But my personal retreat southeast of Bruma is."

"Bruma?" the Argonian asked in disgust. The northern most city of the Imperial Province was high up in the mountains and was locked in a semi-permanent state of winter, not the kind of place that a reptilian Argonian would willing spend his time.

Shadow laughed. "Fear not, my student. We Imperial Khajiits may have become more resistant to the cold by breeding with our cousins from Skyrim, but we are still desert dwellers at heart. Every room in the house has its own fireplace, and I assure you that they are well insulated."

Raven-Eye considered that. "I would like to see your home."

"Good. Grubak has gone ahead to get it ready, and we will set out tomorrow."

"What would you have done if I said no?"

"Ralas has ways of communicating at long distance, we could have told him to come back. Anything else?"

"How long will it take to get to the house?"

"Two days or so if we head straight there," Master Shadow mused. "But I think we will see what kind of trouble we can get into on the way there." With that, a mischievous smile crossed his face and his tail thumped the stones. He stood suddenly and turned to face Raven-Eye.

"I have some things to take care of before we can set out, so you will not likely see me until you turn in for the night. Make sure you get to the mess hall, at the house it will only be Grubak and I cooking, so this will be your last chance to get a good supper!"

And with that, the Master took off, hopping back on to the roof of his home and leaving Raven-Eye alone with his thoughts. So the Master was sick of being cooped up here as well? That was interesting. But what was wrong with his scent? Shadow had not proved as obsessive about cleanliness as some other Khajiits that Raven-Eye had known, but he did not like to remain dirty any longer then he had to. Still, going to what the Master considered his true home would be a new adventure- one that Raven-Eye was looking forward to. Why had he sent Grubak up alone? To get the house ready, he had said- that made sense, somewhat. Thinking of Grubak suddenly made Raven-Eye remember when he had been wrestling with the Orc under Shadow's supervision. Grubak had made them compete in just pants, and the memory of the close contact between them made Raven-Eye realize what was wrong with Shadow: he smelled of sweaty Orc. Oh. Oohhh. That would explain the Master's general and suddenly jovial attitude, he had gotten some quality time with Grubak before the Orc had departed. The thought caused a stirring in the Argonian's loins, but just as quickly he heard a deep, scratchy whisper in his head.

You are an abomination and must be destroyed.

Pain began to seep into his left shoulder, right where the first dagger had gone in- then the second lower in his side, followed by the third...

"No," Raven-Eye whispered, balling his fists against the memory. "This will not rule my life..."

From the hatch in the roof, Shadow saw the action and realized what a fool he had been. He should have washed- he had forgotten until he saw the membranes on Raven-Eye's nostrils flick open and closed how sensitive Argonian senses were. And while Grubak's scent might comfort him sleeping alone tonight, it had likely provoked the conflict in the teenager that Shadow had been hoping to avoid. He could not go back to comfort him- it would only make the situation worse. All Shadow could do now was belatedly go and correct his mistake- Grubak would understand; it was just one of the reasons that Shadow loved him.

Back on the battlements, Raven-Eye continued to work through his emotions. Even as the dark thoughts clouded in, there were bright spots in his memory- most of them more recent then the events that threatened to overwhelm him.

Well done! Master Shadow said in his memory. A few more months of recovery, and you will be a better archer then I am. You have a natural eye for shooting Raven.

Not bad for a youngster just outta the infirmary, Grubak said as he came up from behind the remembered Raven-Eye. The Argonian could almost feel the Orc's knuckles on his scales as the Orc attempted to muss up his spines- the fact that he failed seemed to amuse Grubak all the more. But the Orc's hearty laughter could not quite drown out the last scratchy whisper.

You are a disgrace to this family...

"I have a new family," Raven-Eye stated flatly. "And they're proud of me."

With that, the whispers were gone, blown away by a sudden breeze. The Argonian shivered, and stooped to retrieve his shirt from where the Master had placed it. He remembered Master Shadow's injunction to make sure he got to the mess hall. The Master undervalued his cooking skills, but some things one did not have to be told twice. Putting his shirt on, Raven-Eye headed for the watchtower and the stairs down to the ground.

That night, Raven-Eye returned to find Shadow putting the finishing touches on a gift for his student. It was an old suit of the Master's armor, which Shadow had just finished modifying to accommodate the Argonian's broader tail. While the armor was patched, repaired, and still bloodstained in places, Raven-Eye was so excited that he stripped and tried the armor on right away. To his delight, and Shadow's relief, it fit perfectly and especially did not pinch his tail at all. Shadow sent his student to pack and to sleep- they would leave at midmorning.

The trip did indeed take longer than two days, as the pair did find quite a bit of trouble to get into: bandits were almost everywhere in the Imperial Reserve, the ruins of the elven empire that had ruled these lands also provided a distraction, as did the forts from before the founding of the Septim Empire. During these side trips, Raven-Eye learned why his Master had been so pleased when the Argonian turned out to be a gifted archer: the Khajiit favored using twin longswords, and as such, did not devote himself to archery to the extent that Raven-Eye was willing to. Raven-Eye doubted that he would be willing to devote himself to blade work to the extent his Master had. Raven-Eye preferred some distance in his work. Only one incident broke the enjoyment of the trip- when Shadow had attempted to spar with Raven-Eye, the Argonian had experienced massive pain in his hand when he had tried to hold a sword. Shadow checked to make sure that the bones in his student's hand had set correctly and called it a day. Shadow had not told Raven-Eye that he could find nothing that should have been causing him pain- but the same thing happened when they attempted to spar the next day.

Shadow took all the watches that night, letting Raven-Eye sleep while he wrote in The Black Book of the Shadowswords. The Black Book was an enchanted journal, similar to the legendary Elder Scrolls- anything written in it became a matter of historical record, and nothing could change that history once it was written. In addition, Shadow could also read anything that had ever been written in the book according to his needs- a powerful tool that had left custodianship of The Black Book in the hands of the absolute best of the Shadowswords. Only Ralas had access to the Black Book and the secret library that held the almost infinite number of _Black Book_s and Shadow made use of this fact to converse with the mage, who rarely slept at night. When he reported the incident with Raven-Eye and the sword, he had not expected a reply until the next day, as he wanted the mage to ask Nenya about it. To his surprise, Nenya was not only awake, but at Ralas' house- indicating to the Master Assassin that the elves' on again/off again relationship was back on, and he had likely interrupted something as the High Elf healer was an early to bed/early to rise type. Nenya seemed amused by the Khajiit's suggestion, but stated that poor Ralas needed a break anyway- High elves had extremely long life spans, and Nenya seemed to take their legendary patience even into this arena. But in terms of his problem, she could only confirm what Shadow already knew. Raven-Eye's hand had been badly broken when Shadow had brought him in; Nenya guessed that he had tried to defend himself from his attackers, and his hand had been stepped on as it had held a sword hilt. Nenya also pointed out that Raven-Eye had been bow training for over a month- an activity that put much greater stress on the fingers then did just holding a sword- if the fingers had not set properly, they would have known about it long before now.

Phantom pain, Nenya wrote. His body is remembering a moment of weakness, even if his mind is not. You are doing an excellent job restoring his confidence Shadow. As you continue to do so, this too shall pass.

Shadow mused on that for a moment before replying. If the problem is that he feels weak, would making him feel strong help the situation?

It would not hurt, came the reply. What do you have in mind?

Tell Ralas that I need the instructions for the Shadowedge ritual.

The next text that appeared in the Black Book was not the High Elf's stately script, but the blockier print that Ralas used- especially when he was agitated. Are you mad? You really want to attempt to bind the Shadowdge to him? You haven't even tried this with Grubak!

Grubak is already confident- he does not need a dagger. Besides, Grubak doesn't like daedra, and he distrusts magic.

Ralas still wasn't completely convinced that this was a good idea, and made Shadow promise that he would honest with the Argonian about what he was getting into, and would not proceed without his student's approval. With that secured, Ralas provided Shadow with the ritual. But the night did not proceed uninterrupted, as Raven-Eye had his first nightmare. Shadow woke the thrashing Argonian up as soon as he realized what was happening, and let his student sit with him. Surprisingly, Raven-Eye willingly put his head on Shadow's shoulder and let the Khajiit put his arm around him- the Argonian was at that age where youngsters tended to see this kind of contact as "babying" and rejected it. Instead, Raven-Eye began to tell Shadow exactly what had happened to him. Shadow listened patiently to his student's story and in response told him one of Grubak's stories from before the Orc had joined the Shadowswords.

"Master," Raven-Eye whispered when Shadow was finished. "I haven't been entirely honest with you. I remember my name."

"I see," Shadow responded in an even tone. Of course he remembered his name; he had little difficulty recalling everything else. Shadow had always suspected that the Argonian had chosen to set aside that identity for whatever reason.

"You aren't surprised by this?" Raven-Eye asked as he looked up at Shadow.

"Not at all," Shadow said. "I knew from the beginning, but I also knew that you would have a good reason to set it aside."

"I, I decided that I wanted start over," Raven-Eye replied as he looked back down into the fire. "That person was not who I wanted to be with my second chance and when you cared enough to give me another name; I knew that I would never go back."

"You are going to find in this life it is not who we say we are," Shadow told him as he squeezed Raven-Eye's shoulder. "It is who we chose to be. The only question is do you wish to still be Raven-Eye?"

The teenager was silent for a long time after that question. He sat watching the fire, his only motion was to blink every now again. Then he took a deep breath.

"What do you want me to do Master?"

"I want you to be happy," Shadow told him. "There is too much sorrow in this world to be adding to it."

Another long pause followed that comment as Raven-Eye considered that.

"My name translated as 'Night-Blade' into Imperial," Raven-Eye said finally. "But I am Raven-Eye now. Night-Blade died, the Brotherhood killed him."

"Should we mourn him?" Shadow asked after a long moment.

Raven-Eye laughed- a short, bitter, snort. "He would think we're weak."

Shadow said nothing in reply to that, and let it slide. They began to talk about other things, and eventually the Argonian fell asleep with his head still on Shadow's shoulder. The Khajiit continued to hold his student and began to analyze his feelings. He sensed nothing of a sexual nature in his student, and he began to wonder if he was looking too hard for signs of it. Ralas had chided him more than once about the fact that he wasn't out of the phase of his life where the world revolved around sex- even though the Khajiit claimed he was. In the sixty year old mage's eyes, the twenty-five years that the Khajiit had lived put him squarely in the middle of that phase. But as he sorted through his feelings towards having a teenage Argonian sleeping on his shoulder, the feeling that the mage was right wouldn't leave- even though he found no real urges on his part when it came to the Argonian. Shadow shook his head. He was reading too much into this- there were times when everyone just needed to be held, and the Master Assassin knew from experience that he was no exception. And so, Shadow kept watch, holding his student for the rest of the night.

The next day, they resumed the trip to Bruma, and Shadow had decided to head straight to the town- which was fine both because Raven-Eye no longer seemed in the mood for dungeon delving, and the only ruin they would encounter that day would be the infamous Sancre Tor. The ancient fort was the site of one of Tiber Septim's great victories, and still contained his bloodstained armor. As Septim became the Emperor of Tamriel, the place became a shrine. But at some point during Septim's reign, something happened, and pilgrims stopped returning- as did the four Blades that the Emperor sent to investigate. After that, Septim ordered the place sealed, and locked with a unique lock that only the Grandmasters of the Blades had the key. The lock was so unique that it could not be picked- Shadow had brought his not inconsiderable skills to it twice in his youth; on the second, he had triggered a trap and received a shock that probably would have killed him if the disapproving Ra'jarr had not been there to save him. Shadow explained this (minus the mention of Ra'jarr) to Raven-Eye as they passed the fort.

They reached Bruma in the midafternoon, and hit up the local shops to unload the loot they had picked up, amounting to several hundred septims, which Shadow split with his student. Then they headed to the tavern for a meal- and ran into Grubak in the street, who had come into town to gather the last provisions for the house. The Orc grabbed the Argonian in a massive hug that lifted the teen off his feet. Once again, Shadow failed to detect any sexual desire on the Orc's part- if any was there, it was well hidden behind a façade of sibling greeting. If the Orc was going to see the Argonian as a younger brother, that was fine by Shadow. They followed through on Shadow's plan to stop and eat at the tavern, followed by a trip to the local tailor to make sure that Raven-Eye had enough warm clothing. The Nord was somewhat distrustful of a Khajiit, an Orc, and Argonian- even ones wearing the armor of the Imperial Rangers. But Shadow paid for the clothes in advance- the tailor had to take measurements, as he did not have much call to make clothes for Argonians this far north, and the Shadowswords made sure to walk out with a heavy cloak for their reptilian student- the tailor promised that the clothes would be ready within the week. So, with the supplies laid in, their stomachs full, and their loot sold, the three headed out of town to Shadow's house just before sunset.

An odd thing happened as they began climbing the hills- Raven-Eye got chatty. He began regaling Grubak with tales of their exploits in the week since they had left Fort Daggertail. He left nothing out, even telling Grubak about the night he had spent in Shadow's arms after his nightmare. The Orc sympathized, and recounted, again, the tale of how he had become a Shadowsword. Shadow listened to all this, happy to see that the Argonian and the Orc were getting along so well- while they chatted, the Khajiit scouted a little bit ahead making sure that no animals or monsters had gotten on to the trail. Finally, they reached the house just at full dark- Grubak had left a lantern glowing just outside the door, illuminating the front of the three story log house. Raven-Eye's jaw dropped as he took in the impressive structure, and Shadow smiled broadly as he led the Argonian into his home. Raven-Eye was given free run of the house (except for the basement), and explored the entire place while Shadow took his pack up to his room and gave Grubak a quick demonstration of his gratitude for the favor the Orc had done for him. After that, Shadow and Grubak began preparing dinner.

As they settled in, Shadow told Grubak about his plan to help Raven-Eye regain his confidence. The Orc was surprisingly receptive to the idea, despite some reservations about binding the dagger to the Argonian when he was new to the Shadowswords. Eventually, they agreed that it would probably be the best thing for the youngster. And so, within two weeks of their arrival, Shadow was headed out to the shrine of the Daedra Prince Azura, which was east of the house in order to secure a powerful daedric soul for the ritual: a Winged Twilight, the female servants of the Lady of Dawn and Dusk would do nicely. Azura agreed, but the Twilight wanted proof of Shadow's skills before she would submit herself. To the utter horror of the worshipers at the shrine, Shadow faced off against the Twilight right in the depression that housed the shrine.

"What in the Nine Hells have you done to yourself?" Grubak all but shouted when Shadow returned at about midnight. The Khajiit's face was battered and torn, with one eye swollen almost shut, his left ear torn almost in half and his nose bloody.

Shadow chuckled painfully. "Winged Twilight," he said through split lips.

"I thought that you were going to Azura for help," Grubak said as he went into the pantry to rummage for a healing potion. "If this is how she helps, I hafta lower my opinion of daedra. Did you at least have a weapon?"

"Where is the fun in that?" Shadow asked, twirling a grand soul gem on his fingers.

"Did you think about me at all when you did this?" Grubak asked as he held out the potion to Shadow. "She ripped your ear in half! That's my favorite ear!"

Shadow raised an eyebrow at that. He had a favorite ear? Shadow thinking about that instead of taking the potion annoyed the Orc, who stepped in, pried the Master Assassin's mouth open and rammed the potion in, tipping the liquid down the Khajiit's throat. Somehow, the assassin managed not to choke on it. The wounds slowly began closing, including his ear, but the adrenaline was wearing off, and Shadow was yawning. Grubak shook his head.

"So, is this gonna work out?" he asked. "Ya got a Twilight to agree ta be bound to Raven?"

"It should," Shadow said. "You will probably have to find something to amuse yourself tomorrow."

Grubak looked at the torn up Khajiit face, and shook his head as he remembered what Shadow had told him about the ritual. "Sumthin' tells me that checkin' the potion stock might be quite amusin'."

Shadow chuckled, and put his head on Grubak's shoulder and fell asleep on his feet.

***

The next morning, Raven-Eye had breakfast with a somewhat somber Grubak, who informed him that Shadow would want to have a very serious conversation with him- something that might take all day. The Orc would not elaborate, beyond stating that Shadow wanted to give him something- but Raven-Eye would have to decide for himself if he would wanted it or not. Grubak directed the Argonian to an empty room on the first floor. Raven-Eye went into the room, more puzzled and somewhat fearful. In his initial exploration, the room had been empty except for a massive fireplace- the only odd thing about it was that it was one of the few rooms that had a stone floor. When Raven-Eye entered the room, the floor was wet and a fire was roaring in the fireplace. The Argonian Shadow was checking a handful of items on a small table setup in the center of the room- oddly the Master was wearing a robe, which was not his usual style of dress. The Master Assassin motioned for his student to enter the room. When Raven-Eye did so, Shadow held out the hilt of a sword to him. Raven-Eye hesitated, his hand aching already.

"Take it," Shadow told him with a quiet but firm tone. Raven-Eye tried, but the instant his fingers closed around the hilt, the pain became unbearable. He let go, his eyes falling to the floor in shame. He didn't look up as Shadow put his arm around his shoulder.

"It's alright Raven," he said sympathetically. "I'm sorry that I had to put you through that again, but I had to be sure. Do you know why your hand still hurts you when you try to handle a sword?"

"No," Raven-Eye whispered. "I just thought it hadn't healed, but Grubak said it had."

"Your body is remembering a moment of weakness," Shadow said. "You were weak once, and you think you still are. Do you want to be weak?"

"No," Raven-Eye said. What was the Master saying? Had Raven-Eye failed in some way? The Argonian doubted it, as the Master seemed to be incapable of being displeased by anything his student did- and the amount of flak that Grubak gave him, suggested a high tolerance for things that did not please him.

"I can help you feel strong if you like," Shadow said. "But I warn you now, that what I propose is the second most painful experience that I have been through in my life."

Raven-Eye hesitated for a long moment, thinking about that statement. The Master had experienced a lot that exceeded Raven-Eye's experience, and to earn anything close to "the most painful experience of my life" would have to be a lot. But Shadow had done it clearly, and that was good enough for the Argonian.

"I will do it," Raven-Eye declared.

Shadow undid the fastening on his robe and let it slide to the floor.

"Strip please," he told the Argonian. "It is part of the ritual that you present yourself as naturally as possible, and it cuts down on the risk of fire."

Raven-Eye did as his Master instructed, feeling less embarrassed by the fact that the Master was also nude. Shadow instructed him to take a seat on the floor next to the table and he took a seat across from his student.

"Alright," Shadow said as he drew in a deep breath, giving Raven-Eye the idea that he was still settling his own nerves. "I will not force this on you, I will tell you when we reach the point of no return- but up until that time, if you say that you do not want to do this, we will stop."

He held out his arm, and Raven-Eye saw that he had the logo of the Shadowswords branded onto his forearm. As that registered with him, the brand began glowing- and instantly, Shadow was holding a daedric dagger.

"This is the Shadowedge," he said. "Take it if you want, but be careful- it has a powerful paralyzation enchantment- don't let it cut your scales."

Raven-Eye took the dagger gently and took a quick look at it before handing back to the Master Assassin. Shadow dismissed the dagger.

"The Shadowedge is bound to the greatest of the Shadowswords," Shadow said. "I can bind the dagger to another, but it will be an extremely painful experience- we begin with a branding and it will get worse before it gets better."

"Should I do this Master?" Raven-Eye asked nervously. But for all his nervousness, there was an edge of determination in his voice.

"If you do," Shadow said, making clear that he was not advising him one way or the other. "Then you will have great power in the eyes of many. But I warn you that the Shadowedge will be fueled by your will and your energy. It will be a very long time before you are able to maintain it in the mortal plane for longer than a moment. It will be a hard road, but I think you have the strength for the journey- and you will never fear being unarmed again."

Raven-Eye looked down at the floor, and remained silent for a long time.

"You have gone through this, Master?" he asked finally.

"I have."

"I want to do this," Raven-Eye declared after another moment of reflection. His voice was quiet but firm. It was exactly what Shadow wanted to hear, with just an edge of nervousness.

"Give me your main arm," Shadow told his student as he selected a jar from off the table. When the Argonian presented his right arm, Shadow began rubbing a salve on his forearm. "Your arm may go a little numb; this will take the edge off the branding. Chew this when we begin, it will also help also. Are you ready?"

A short nod was the reply the assassin got, and he reached into the fireplace and retrieved the brand. He showed Raven-Eye that it was the Shadowsword insignia and gently took his wrist.

"This is it Raven," Shadow said quietly and without judgment. "This is the last chance to turn back; do you still wish to do this?"

"I do," Raven-Eye said through clenched teeth.

"Alright," Shadow said. "This is going to hurt- a lot."

Raven-Eye closed his eyes as Shadow brought the branding iron up to his arm. As the Master had promised, the pain was indescribable- he instinctively tried to jerk his arm away, but Shadow had his arm in a tight enough grip that his arm didn't move.

"Hold on, Raven, hold on," Shadow told him as the smoke of burning scales began to fill the room. The Argonian's eyes fluttered open briefly to reveal the Master was holding a glowing soul gem in his other hand now. "We're almost there, but the worst is still coming- get ready."

Somehow, Raven-Eye believed him and was barely surprised when that proved to be the case. He kept his eyes closed, and he heard Shadow beginning to recite some words that weren't in Imperial. Then the pain spiked, driving the Argonian to the floor while Shadow continued to hold on to his arm. Lying on the damp stone, Raven-Eye was glad that Shadow had wet the floor as the heat and moisture reminded him of home and somehow helped to dull the pain. Suddenly he was drooling as it seemed the pain overloaded his body and then he blacked out.

When he woke up, he was in his bed, still nude, with his right forearm bandaged. The fire was roaring in the hearth, even though it seemed that for the moment he was alone. He tried to sit up, and got himself up onto his elbows before his strength failed and he collapsed back into the bed. He didn't know how long he was asleep, but when he woke up, Shadow was sitting next to him. The Master smiled at him.

"You made it through, Raven-Eye," Shadow told him as he patted his student's hand. "Rest now and we will see how things go from there."

It was a day before Shadow allowed Raven-Eye out of bed, but after that they went back to their normal training routine. They went hunting, climbing, exploring ruins, and shopping in Bruma. By the end of the first month, Raven-Eye had more money than he had before in his life as Shadow allowed him to keep about half of everything they sold to the merchants in Bruma. Shadow also did very little to pressure Raven-Eye into being able to use the Shadowedge- after a week, the Master Assassin began showing his student how to summon the dagger. As expected, Raven-Eye could barely get his brand to glow before passing out from exhaustion. The Argonian felt badly about this in spite of Shadow's constant reassurance that he was doing quite well. But the important thing was that handling a sword no longer pained him, and Raven-Eye was able to start sparring with Shadow and Grubak. A month later, Raven-Eye was able to summon the dagger, if only for the briefest instants. Shadow said that he was keeping pace with his own experience with the dagger, but any further progress was forestalled by a summons to the Imperial City.

The Emperor had a task for his Master Assassin.