An Unexpected Rescue

Chapter 14- Dying Honor

As expected, the Solitude guards were not happy to see Forges-Many-Blades near the city. Thankfully, since it wasn't the real Emporer and he had served the Empire during the civil war, Forges paid off his staggering bounty of 1000 gold and no one batted an eye. Of course, the contract was far from over...

Only Nazir, Babette, and Forges remained after the Falkreath Sanctuary's destruction. The trio relocated to the Dawnstar Sanctuary, where the Night Mother had spoken again, stating that the assassination of Titus Mede II was still up.
But first, he needed to meet up with an old friend...
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Maro stood on the Solitude docks and took a breath of fresh air. At last, the Dark Brotherhood was gone. He had done it. He had avenged his son and countless other lives. What could go wrong?
"Hello, Maro..."
Maro felt his blood go cold. That voice... He turned around and saw the assassin, Forges-Many-Blades, staring at him evilly. The Argonian pulled up a dark hood and draped it over his head. "Say goodbye to the Emporer," He whispered before pulling up his mask and walking away.
What?!? He's supposed to be dead!
Not for long, lizard!

Forges wasn't at all surprised to hear Maro charging at him from behind. He held a shield up and blocked the sword being swung at him and pulled out the Blade of Woe.
"After all that," Maro growled. "You still live. You still serve murders. I'll make you pay!"
"Word of advice?," Forges retorted. "Don't kill my entire Family."

It wasn't long before Maro's body was thrown over the bridge, into the Murky water below...
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Forges snuck past the guards walking around the ship. This was it. The Emporer was dead meat. He had broken onto the ship some time ago, fueled by rage and the need for vengeance. He had killed some of the Penitus Oculatus on board and even found a strange key on one of the corpses, presumably for the Emporer's room.

As he grew closer to his goal, however, Forges felt his thoughts blur. His entire mind seemed to go blank. Only one phrase lingered in his head: Kill him... Kill him... Kill him...
I will...

He tried to open another door but discovered that it was locked. He placed the key he had acquired earlier and turned it. Click!

Forges pushed open the door and saw the Emporer himself, looking straight at him. "And, once more," Titus said disappointingly,"I prove Commander Maro the fool. I told him you can't stop the Dark Brotherhood. Never could."
"You," Forges asked,"Were... Expecting me?"
"But of course," The Emporer replied. "You and I have a date with destiny. But so it is with assassins and emperors, hmm? Yes, I must die. And you must deliver the blow. It is simply the way it is. But I wonder... would you suffer an old man a few more words before the deed is done?"

He should've said no and killed the man right then and there. No more Emporer. No more Penitus Oculatus. But the phrase of, "Kill him... Kill him" had shifted into bloodthirsty menace.
Blood for the Fallen... Death for the Mother... Soul for the Father... Bliss for you...
It was all empty...
"I'm listening..."

"I thank you for your courtesy," Titus smiled. "You will kill me, and I have accepted that fate. But regardless of your path through life, I sense in you a certain... ambition. So I ask of you a favor. An old man's dying wish."
"While there are many who would see me dead, there is one who set the machine in motion. This person, whomever he or she may be, must be punished for their treachery. Once you have been rewarded for my assassination, I want you to kill the very person who ordered it. Would you do me this kindness?"

Forges felt like he was fighting himself. One side demanded more blood be spilled, more death to rise into the air. The other refused, yelling to just get the job done and leave.
There was no definitive answer.
"I'll consider it," He said at last.

The nodded in acknowledgement.
"Thank you. Now, on to the business at hand I suppose, hmm?"
Titus Mede turned around, not even bothering to defend himself.

Forges didn't think twice. He shot the man dead with an arrow. He had failed not the Brotherhood but the Empire. The Emporer was dead, killed by his own soldier. Forges unconsciously took the Emporer's robes as a trophy and prepared for Whiterun.
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Everything was gone. Forges-Many-Blades was practically a husk. He felt empty and unimportant, that he had failed everyone. His reputation was mixed together in an ugly record of heroic and diabolical deeds, of hate and love, Divines and Daedra.

Amaund Motierre was dead. The haul: 20,000 gold and a small assortment of expensive gems. The Dawnstar Sanctuary was thriving now. New recruits had shown up and the Brotherhood was back in business.
But its Listener was gone. Not physically, but mentally.

Forges sat in his renovated room and just stared at the ceiling.
Your fault, your fault, your fault, my fault, my fault, my fault...

Nazir walked in the room with two bottles of mead in his hands. "Hey, brother."
Forges didn't look at him.
"Hmm?"

"C'mon," Nazir complained, "We may be in the middle of repairs to members but that doesn't mean you can't be happy." He handed a bottle to Forges. The Argonian sat up and took the bottle from the fellow assassin. Nazir popped the top off and took a sip while Forges just stared at his drink. What was the point?
There's nothing left for me. Not here. Not anywhere...

Forges got out of his bed . "I'm taking a break. Don't follow me."

"Okay, I guess," Nazir replied, confused.

As Forges-Many-Blades left the Sanctuary, he realized that the Night Mother hadn't spoken to him. Fair enough.
There was one place he wanted to go to. A place he hadn't seen in almost a month.

What harm was there in getting a good look at the lakeside?