...Cicero won't, dear listener...

Trying again sorry

/sorry hope you liked the first chapter/

/where was i- uh uh uh OHhhHhHhH/

The sound of hooves clicking on rocks as we stopped near the sanctuary, on the road. I leaned down and stroked shadowmere's mane and hugged her from above her, and she responded with a snort and a huff, as she turned and made her way down into the dip in the ground. The horse stopped short before the black pond and dug her hooves into the dirt. Arnbjorn got off of her and looked up at me.

"So? You coming in?" He says, his voice even more gruff than before.

"Yeah, just give me a minute with shadow here" I smiled warmly and nodded as I said this. He turned and opened the door, the noise of the socialization echoing from inside. The door slowly closed and clicked shut. I let out a sigh in relief. Damn, what if Astrid figures out that I let Cicero live? I'm absolutely going to get booted out of the guild. Certainly. It's literally a guarantee. Ugh how deep is this hole I just dug myself into? How many layers of lying will I have to weave? And somehow I'll have to track him down when all of this is done! So what am I to do at this point? I huff with frustration and slowly approach the door and enter, waiting for the door to seal the dark ambience from the outside. Sometimes I wish I could just bring shadowmere in here and take a long nap and think this through. This is the worst thing. Who am I to ruin my life this bad? Why am I letting myself do this? I should've just finished the job but lucky me only got attached. This is dumb. I'm dumb. He's dumb. I crawl off of shadow and enter the door, stirring into the noise inside.

x——————————x

Astrid approaches me. "Is it done?" She asks.
"Yeah, he's dead" I sigh and look as truthful as I can. She nods. "Go talk to Festus. He's been waiting for you. He has your next contract."
I nod back. "Of course." I stumble down the stairs, as always. I absolutely hate stairs. They're a problem, they're not even that helpful. When I arrive at the bottom, I see festus across the sanctuary, talking to Babette. I almost expect to look over and see Cicero standing and mumbling through the stained glass. I slump into those feelings and my posture is visibly affected.
"Festus. The contract?" I say. He nods.
"You have to find the gourmet and kill him. Return with the writ of passage, and for your bonus, hide his body. Are you listening?"
"Yeah. How will I find him?"
"Well, I have a certain signed copy of the gourmets book. Anton Virane. He is the head chef in markarth. You are to find him, find out who the Gourmet is, and then kill him."
"Go on." I gesture towards him.
"Oh, and when you're done, kill Anton. Loose ends, and all that."
"For sure. So, that's it? No advice?" I say sarcastically.
"No. Go ask Nazir for advice, I have none." He swore under his breath and raised his eyebrows at me. I scoffed and turned to leave. I wanted to rest here before I left to go find someone who cooks for a living and kill them. Cause that's needed. I smiled at myself in the glass and tried to imagine what it would be like when I finally was done with all the lying. I frowned at my reflection and wondered how I got myself into this mess. Of course I know how I did it. I did it. I did.

When I got outside, it was snowing. The cold got into my eyes and my nose was cold and red in seconds. It was intimidating to go into it. I thought about it for a bit and realized I'd be in markarth soon. Markarth. Never been there.

x——————————x

When I got back from the contract, all I could think about what getting this done with. Shadowmere dug her hooves into the dirt and threw it around. I huffed when I got off of her. I entered the sanctuary and it was pretty much silence. I walked down the stairs until I saw Astrid. "You're back. I hope you're ready to kill the emperor."
"Already?" I ask, notable sarcasm in my voice.
"Oh yes. I've decided you will have the honor." She said, laughing in her... smooth voice.
"Of course. Yeah. What do I need to do?"
"You'll be going up to Solitude to kill him as the Gourmet. You will poison him. I've arranged for your exit to be guaranteed. Good luck!"
"What poison should I use?" I ask.
"Here, take this. It's jarrin root. One taste will kill anyone."
"Right, okay, I'll see you later I guess." I said, taking the root and putting it in my bag, making sure that it didn't break or smell up everything in said bag.
"Yeah... I'll see you..." she said, her voice breaking every few syllables.

x——————————x

When I arrived back at the sanctuary, the only thing running through my head was sheer panic. I didn't know who sold me out, or if they were even still alive to repent. What if it was Cicero? What if Cicero knew our plans and decided to end us? End us all? My eyes widened and my pupils dilated as I looked around frantically. I unsheathed my dagger, the ebony shining in the night, under the moonlight. Shadow whinnied and I heard hooves hit metal. Behind us, were a couple of penitus oculatus. I swung blindly and saw blood fly into the air. I prayed I didn't hit shadow, and kept swinging, ensuring I was in front of shadow while doing so. Dark liquid filled the air and all over my clothes it was warm and disgusting. It was raining, so the blood surprised me when it landed on me.

Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain on my upper arm. Liquid spewed out like nothing. I turned and swung my blade from my odd hand. I ran it across his neck and went as deep as I could, before squeezing my arm and rushing into the sanctuary.
"Which one is the traitor?" One soldier echoed through my head.
"It's gotta be one of these burnt bodies" Both of them rung out in laughter and I got dizzy. I stumbled down the stairs and threw my blade into their skin. They seemed surprised before they died, but they didn't die a noble death. None of ever have, or ever will.

I rushed down into the sanctuary common area, still pushing down on my arm, which was now covering my hand in blood and I had to find a way to keep it from bleeding. I see arnbjorn fighting off the soldiers, before I hear a blood curdling groan as he falls to the ground. I feel only sorry for him. I make my way into the dining and see Nazir being attacked. I get dizzier and dizzier until his attacker is dead. He looks at me with concern, and sees that I'm hurt. I hear the night mother in my head, as he starts to speak. She drowns him out.
"Listener.... come embrace me. I am your only salvation..." she hisses. Her voice jumps like a ball between my ears and I gesture for Nazir to follow me. I reach the night mother and enter her coffin. Her whispering voice takes me into a different place.

"Sleep..."