Skyrim: The Nightshade Assassin

An Imperial Ambush

Chapter 3

19th of Last Seed, 4E 201

"Honestly, Babette, it is just a small burn. It will heal soon, I already cast a Restoration spell to stop the pain," I reassure the child vampire as she forced me in her room, grabbing all her health potions and bandages. After dressing in my armour, Babette saw the injury I got from escaping Helgen. While searching for Veezara, I guess the dragon's flames caught onto my left arm. I only discovered the pain a while ago when bathing in the pond with Gabriella and Babette.

"No, Cortana, I read a Dragon's flames will cause pain to strike up your arm in a while, not like the flames you cast," she says, rummaging through her many potions. I sigh, gazing at my wound.

The injury left a large rosy stain onto my left arm, I could probably still hear the sizzling against my skin. It does not seem bad as it looks, but trust me, it stings like Sithis' wrath. "I'm fine, and besides - OW!"

"See? Told you it still hurts!" Babette had slapped my wound, making it sting angrily and shoot the pain throughout my arm. She forces a health potion down my throat, knowing how much I dislike the medicine. She then sighed once I 'accidentally' made her drop the scarlet bottle onto my lap, crashing to the floor. "You act so serious doing your business, so cruel to your victims, but really, you're so childish."

I scowl, flipping my orchid locks of curls to the side. "Says the one who's stuck in a child's body. Anyway, I feel like doing a contract." I sit up as Babette finishes bandaging my wound.

"Drink the potion first."

"No."

"Cortana!"

"No."

"DRINK IT!"

"Fine! You're buying me a sweetroll, child."

Babette eyes me closely as I grasp a health potion in my hands, popping the golden top to open it. With a sigh of exasperation, I press my lips against the bottle and chug the potion, shutting my eyes in disgust as a small, burning sensation and a disturbing taste overflows my throat. It isn't like the elixir burns, it just feels like it, the same as alcohol. I wipe the side of my mouth in victory, throwing the bottle and shattering it on the ground. The wound on my left arm begins to feel hot and cold, a bit of the pain ceased.

Wobbling to Nazir, who is relaxing on a chair with a silver tankard in his left hand, admires his blade in his right. My legs are still sore from all the running. He swivels to face me as he immediately knows what I desire.

"You just escaped from a dragon attack two days ago. Are you sure you want to do a contract now?" he asks me, gazing at my rolled up sleeve that reveals a bandaged arm. "Plus, you're injured. Gabriella and Festus are already heading to Riften, and Veezara is exhausted. Why don't you rest?"

I slip a small whine, stomping my feet onto the ground as if I was a child. "I'll just chat with Astrid," I whinge, heading out the dining room and stroll towards the training area. Astrid leans her back against the wall Veezara usually sat at, watching her husband hastily swing at the training mannequin with his warhammer. I step beside her, crossing my arms as she smiles, facing her attention towards me.

"What's on your mind?" she asks, pausing her concentration on Arnbjorn to speak with me.

"Nazir won't let me do a contract..." I tell her sadly, letting my desire to have a knife in someone's throat fade away. Arnbjorn suddenly notices his wife isn't paying any heed to him, and halts his training. Astrid immediately begins to chuckle, gloved fingers pressed against her lips.

"Ah, I told him to avoid giving any contracts to you until you're feeling better. Don't want you failing a kill," she smiles warmly, catching a glimpse at my reddened arm, fading to a shadow of roseate once it reaches my wrists. "Say, if you really want to murder that badly, then I'll give you a task to do."