The Bloody Sword (Skyrim Fanfic on Hold)

Chapter 2

Commander Aron Silvanious opened the door of the barracks and entered, followed by the Dark Elf housecarl, Irileth. The guard barracks was under Dragonsreach, next to the prison. There were a number of off-duty guards both male and female already here. They saw him and Irileth and quickly stood up.

"Alright, we need a troop of about 30 men, all of you will follow me and Captain Irileth to Rorikstead to check out the hamlet. Now I want you all assembled and ready and outside in 10 minutes. Come on, let's go! Move!" They quickly changed into the yellow Whiterun guard armor and grabbed their weapons. Some prefer 2 handed weapons such as the Steel greatswords and warhammers while the others prefer the shield and sword. But both carried bows and a set of arrows.

"Wonder who could have attacked Rorikstead. Probably bandits. It's lightly defended." I quietly told Irileth who replied with a nod. When all 30 of the guards were in a straight line, we marched our way past the city, passing Breezehome, my house and exiting the giant wooden gates. The troop marched down the hill and into the great plains of Whiterun where deers and elks and giants made their homes. And the roads here are notorious for thieves and bandits. Our slow steady marching made the time and before reaching Rorikstead, we smelt something before actually seeing the hamlet or what's left of the hamlet.

"Gods, what is that smell?" One of the guards asked.

"I don't like this, not one bit." I pulled out my scimitar, a gift from a few Redguard officials after their caravan was attacked by highway men on the way to the city ,and the others did the same. The lead scout yelled at us to move and we ran. We saw what was left of Rorikstead. The farm was trampled over and the tavern was burned to the ground.There were bodies all over the place, Whiterun guards, civilians. Arrows sprouting out of the bodies. Slash marks and stab marks all over the bodies.

"By the Divines.." I said silently. "Spread out and search for survivors." Commander dashed down the hill and checked a pulse on a body of a dead guard. There were 2 arrows sprouting on his back and on his leg. And a single stab mark on his chest. No pulse but I pulled out the arrow and examined it. The arrow head was made of a sharpened stone. The feathers on the arrow was not made of standared feathers unlike military arrows, but different feathers from different birds. The feathers were from birds that stayed in only one region of Skyrim. The Reach.

The farmer described the bandits as savages. Most bandits were savage like wearing fur armor but the way the attacks were in certain patterns. The other bodies showed signs of the same familiar attack patterns. Arrows used for a disadvantaged fight for the one hit. The arrows were for injuring the attacked. Not meant to kill. An arrow to the back and an arrow to the leg. And slash marks used rather than stab marks visible.

I was about to tell Irileth when a horn sounded off.

"They're back! Form up! Shield wall!" Irileth cried out as she drew her sword. Several guards pulled out bows. We were on a disadvantaged fight. They were all uphill. Then the bandits ran downhill. The archers fired arrows and some of them went down. The ones who survived the run downhill slammed into the shield ranks of the guards. There were about 40 bandits who survived the run downhill, I quickly joined the ranks and swung an experimental swing at my attacker. His right hand blocked the sword stroke with a bone sword and his left hand armed with an axe, swung it, I ducked under the swing, unlocked my sword from the block and stabbed right through him. An arrow flew right over my head. I stabbed another attacker with the edge of the scimitar.

"Archers, take out the bandits above us!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. The archers who were right behind the shield wall fired simultaenously as if it was just another drill. Shrieks of pain confirmed that we hit them. The bandits suddenly just ran. "Don't go after them. Let them run." The wall kept firm and the blistering sun was on us. We were nervous and the sweat was soiling our under shirts.