NOVEL NEXT Chapter 5: Does It Look like I Can Move?
When they reach Bleak Falls Barrow, they can see a few bandits acting as a lookout near the entrance. Hiding themselves beside the steps, they took some time to discuss their approaches. Harin is not willing for Ibnor to be the bait again while she finishes the bandits with her bow.
"Why do you insist on painting a target behind your back?" she asked.
"Why not? If I'm careful, even if I get shot, you can still heal me, right?"
"IF, you're lucky. What if your HEAD gets shot? This isn't a game!"
"I won't. I can assure you that, at least. I'm not treating this as a game, whatever I planned to do, I planned it with my capabilities in mind."
"Still, there is no such thing as perfect planning. You may prepare it with a margin of error in your mind, but anything can happen and there IS a possibility that something goes wrong, very wrong."
"Why the pessimism? You believe I can survive a dragon, why not this?"
"As much as I believe in you, there is no way I'm agreeing with a plan where you may end up hurt, or worse."
"Fine, then what?" He sighed, reluctantly giving in.
"How good are you in stealth?" she asked. He took a peek at his status.
Ibnor
Status
Normal
Stats
Strength
12.5
Agility
14.3
Mental
12.9
Physique
14.1
Skills
Passive
[Close Quarter Combat - Beginner],
Active
[Archery (15.2)], [Blacksmithing (22.5)], [One Handed 12.4], [Sneak 15.4],
"Not good at all."
"Then you have to wait here for a bit." she said.
The blowing winds carrying snows muffled her movement and she silently approached a lone sentry. Taking him out from behind, she repeated the process and managed to dispatch two more sentries. All that's left now is the two bandits at the entrance. One of them is a brutish looking male Nord and a female Redguard archer.
Harin signaled to Ibnor to move. He wasted no time and sprint towards the two. The Redguard was the first among the two to realize an enemy was coming. But when she drew an arrow from her quiver, another one pierced her hands, causing her to drop the bow.
The brutish Nord was ready with his battle hammer but was sent falling down on his back when Ibnor stepped on his thigh and delivered a knee to his face, crushing his nose. Leaping from the Nord, he flipped over to the Redguard and managed to whip out a solid kick to her head.
The kick is so hard that it flipped her sideways, her head smashing on the ground and her feet up in the air. The Nord roared and got up, only to fall face down a moments later, revealing three arrows sticking on his back. Ibnor stomped on his head, finishing him off.
Collecting the colored balls, Ibnor can feel that his physical capabilities are increasing, and his control over them getting better. Now he can easily perform difficult movements with ease, putting even the best gymnast to shame albeit with extreme focus. He is still not at the level where he can do it with ease.
They entered the door and stepped into a giant chamber littered with rubles, bones and dead skeevers laying around. One section of the ceiling has collapsed, leaving an opening, allowing lights and cold winds to flood into the chamber. Conversation can be heard, originating from the back of the chamber, behind a large pillar.
"So, we're just supposed to sit here while Arvel runs off with that golden claw?" a female voice questioned.
"That dark elf wants to go on ahead, let him. Better than us risking our necks." a male voice answered.
"What if Arvel doesn't come back? I want my share from that claw!"
"Just shut it and keep an eye out for trouble."
The two are guarding a tunnel that seemed to be the only way forward. They have made a nice camp, with a campfire complete with a cooking spit and a few bed rolls. Ibnor and Harin looked at each other and formed a tacit agreement to quietly approach the two bandits. On her signal, the two bandits are quickly subdued by them. What surprised them is, there is a chest near the bed rolls, used by the bandits to keep their loot and fortunately after Harin picked the lock, it contained a good amount of coins.
The tunnel turned out to be leading downward, and the walk through it proved to be more annoying than dangerous as it is filled with cobwebs, from the walls to the ceiling, getting stuck on their face and bodies as they pass through. After a few twists and turns, the floor is now covered in vines, or roots. There are a few collapsed tunnels and stairs but since it's leading nowhere, they ignore them and proceed along what seemed to be the only accessible path. Finally they reached a puzzle room.
Just before entering the puzzle room, Harin stopped Ibnor from going forward with a finger on her lips and gestured with her head to the center of the room. There is a lone bandit trying to open a gate through a puzzle. After confirming his choice, the bandit pulled the handle of the mechanism. Right after he pulled the handle, darts rained down towards the bandit. While he managed to roll to the side, evading the shower of doom, a few darts grazed him and a couple of them successfully pierced him.
The bandit grunts, cursing the mechanism and whoever it is that's responsible for installing it. Suddenly his eyes went wide and he dropped down to the floor with his mouth frothing.
"Looked like poison darts." Harin said.
Ignoring the dead bandit, Ibnor went to the side and turned the stone pillars on the side of the room, matching the symbols with the ones carved on the ledge, top of the gate. Only two symbols are left on the ledge above, while the middle one has fallen to the ground, lying next to the handle. Without hesitation, he pulled the handle.
"Wai…" Harin tried to stop him but stopped herself as the gate swung open.
"You knew?" she asked.
"Kinda."
Harin just took it as it is and they proceeded to the next section, a room with a stone table, a bookshelf and a spiral staircase, leading further down. Scanning the bookshelf, Ibnor found a book called Thief.
"Harin, try this," he said, handing the book to her.
As she held the book, for a moment, she seemed to be lost in thought with a blank face and then a smile bloomed on her face.
"Did you get it?" He asked.
"Yep, it raised my pickpocket by one level. Thanks."
"No problem. After all, only you can do that." He replied with a smile of his own.
They made their way down the staircase and arrived into another room filled with spider webs. The room has few stone tables and was littered with scrolls and old parchment. Harin went to one side and after rummaging a few scrolls, she managed to fish out two still usable magic scrolls. A Scroll of Fireball and a Scroll of Paralysis.
"Here, take it. Might come in handy." she said, giving the scrolls to Ibnor.
He thanked her and took the scrolls happily. Just as he wanted to say his thanks, he raised his hand up, attracting Harin.
"Did you hear that?" He asked.
"What?"
"Focus."
She focused on her hearing and she could hear a voice, yelling for help.
"Heh, it's that idiot." He snickered.
"Who?"
"You remember the conversation of the two near the entrance earlier?"
"The dark elf?"
"Yes, the Dunmer."
"Seems like he's in trouble."
"Let's go."
He leads Harin to the connecting room on the other side. The room is filled with white and sticky spider webs. There are also eggs lying in the corner. There, they saw Arvel, the Dunmer thief who went ahead with the Golden Claw currently caught within spider webs, screaming his lungs out, with a large spider approaching him. The spider seems to be riddled with wounds and its movement is quite sluggish. It was so badly injured, perhaps after a battle with Arvel that it only took a single arrow to the head from Harin to end its life.
"Get me down! Get me down! Don't leave me, for Arkay's sake!" Arvel shouted to the two.
Harin looked at Ibnor, silently asking for his opinion and he responded with only a shrug. The two then approach Arvel, who was still stuck.
"You did it. You killed it. Now cut me down before anything else shows up." Arvel said.
"Where's the Golden Claw?" Harin asked.
"Yes, the claw. I know how it works. The claw, the markings, the door in the Hall of Stories. I know how they all fit together! Help me down, and I'll show you. You won't believe the power the Nords have hidden there."
"Hand over the claw first!" Harin hissed.
"Does it look like I can move? You have to cut me down, first." Arvel retorted.
"I'll cut you down alright!" Harin snarl.
"Just let him down, he still has his use," Ibnor interjected.
"Sweet breath of Arkay, thank you." Arvel said, being relieved.
"It's coming loose. I can feel it." he said as Harin cuts the spiderwebs.
However, when he was finally freed from the spiderwebs, instead of keeping his word, he ran towards the next room, bushing Ibnor aside. It's clear that he had no intention of giving up the claw.
"You fool! Why should I share the treasure with anyone?" Arvel taunted as he was running away.
"You see? This is why we ought to finish him right then and there!" Harin hissed.
"Relax, he won't be going far."
"What do you mean?
*Clang!*
*Snap!*
Two distinctive sounds rang before he could answer her.
"That."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"That… Means he served his purpose. Come, we got a party to crash."
Harin followed Ibnor through the passage towards where Arvel had escaped. They reach a hall with carved pillars and on the walls there are hollowed carved sections, lining the wall. The space is filled with draugr roaming around growling and snarling.
"There's too many of them guarding this storage chamber." Harin muttered.
"This is not a storage chamber. This is the catacomb section."
"That explains why there are so many of them."
"Are you ready?" He asked.
"Yeah. You?"
"Not at all. But we got to do this, right?" He gave a self mocking smile.
"Follow my lead then," She grinned and unsheathed her sword.
Her left hand glows red and she launches a fireball in the middle of the draugrs. Few draugrs were caught in the explosion while others were attracted to the loud noise.
"Dir Volaan!" The draugrs roared.
Harin rushed towards the undead and decapitated the first one she reached with a single stroke of her sword before weaving around the rest. One of the draugr tried to cleave her with its axe but she easily parried it and fired the Sparks spell in the same time towards the others. Streams of electric currents split and forked towards the draugr before engulfing them and chained to the nearest draugr. The spell shocks and stunned them for a fraction of a second.
A fraction of a second is a short time but it is long enough to buy the time needed for Harin to dance around the draugr, inflicting damage while avoiding incoming ones. As she flashed between the draugrs, cutting limbs and bones, Ibnor worked in tangent with her by finishing off the ones that she missed out. Missing arms and legs doesn't stop the draugr, but it does slow them down and lower the threat they posed.
Harin acts as the main damage dealer while Ibnor assists and provides support. Grabbing and pushing one draugr into another to keep them at bay and slow them down, tossing the ones with missing limbs and even intercept any blows that Harin might have missed or ignored.
Using a front kick, Ibnor hit the shoulder of an attacking draugr stopping it on its track and quickly turned around to do the same to another draugr. Spinning his body to the right, he dug his right heels into its chest with a backspin kick. Unfortunately, its chest caved in and his leg is now stuck inside of it. Noticing another incoming draugr, using only his left leg, he jumps and rotates to the left, delivering another backspin kick overhead the draugr that had his right leg stuck on, hitting the incoming one on its head. Dropping both the draugr and himself to the ground, he reversed the kick, now striking the draugr that had his right leg stuck. The draugr recoiled back, freeing his leg. With both of his legs free, he gets back on his feet with a kip up.
"Kren sosaal!" A draugr growl, trying to slash Ibnor.
"Jump!" Harin warned just before she launched a fireball towards the draugr.
His athletic ability made it easier for him to perform an acrobatic maneuver. Hearing the warning, he grabs the nearest draugr and uses it as a springboard, leaping up in the air. The fireball passed his body and exploded on its target. Twisting his body, he made a backflip and stepped on another draugr shoulder to jump forward. Choosing his target, he delivered a drop kick to a draugr that was about to attack Harin. The draugr took the blow head on and lost its balance but only took a few steps backwards.
Harin uses the moment of vulnerability to plunge her sword into its throat and loop its head off. She kicked it towards an incoming draugr and continued her frenzy and the amount of the draugrs now dwindles considerably. As the number of the draugrs lessen, it gives both of them more room to breathe and they can now focus on the few instead of doing hit and run like earlier. Soon, the battle comes to an end, leaving them both standing, gasping for breath.
"Thi… This… This is… Crazy. Even… For me." Harin said between her breaths.
"Hahaha… There… Are times… I thought… I was a goner." Ibnor wasn't any better, now leaning on a wall to support his body.
Fishing out potions from his side pouch, he tosses a few potions towards Harin. She caught them and gulped them immediately.
"I raised my level by three and a few of my skills. What about you?" She asked.
"I guess we'll find out." He replied and started to collect the coloured balls.
Ibnor
Status
Normal
Stats
Strength
13.6
Agility
15.5
Mental
13.0
Physique
15.2
Skills
Passive
[Close Quarter Combat - Intermediate],
Active
[Archery (16.5)], [Blacksmithing (22.5)], [One Handed 15.8], [Sneak 15.4],
"Unfortunately, not much of improvement. One coloured ball only gave me 0.1 or 0.2 increments. The highest gain would be swordsmanship, but still, it's negligible. But, the fight just now did push my mastery of fighting into Intermediary."
"Better than nothing, I suppose."
"Yeah. Half of a bread is better than none."
"Let's continue." She said, leading the way.
They reach the end of the catacombs, not far from where they were fighting. On the floor was some kind of mechanism and there was a steel trap door stuck on the wall, pinning a now dead Arvel.
"You're right. He didn't get far."
"I'm going to retrieve the claw. Watch my back."
Ibnor went to the body and managed to find the Golden Claw. Before returning to Harin, he did not forget to collect some colored balls dropped by Arvel.
[Sneak +1.3]
[Mental +0.6]
[Lockpicking +1.6]
[Pickpocket + 1.5]
They proceed through the crypt, going further downward and along the way, they encounter more traps and draugrs. After experiencing how the draugr mostly rely on the numbers, they took their time and took down one group at a time. They even begin to utilize the traps against the draugr themselves. The journey took a while and finally they followed along a narrow tunnel, into a large chamber with cascading waterfall, turning into a stream flowing at the center of the chamber to the south, through a wall gate. The supposed exit was blocked by collapsed rubbles and stones.
*BAM*
*BAM*
*THUD*
*CRASH*
Just as they entered the chamber, a stone lid flew out and smashed the wall. Looking at the source, a hulking draugr can be seen coming out of a sarcophagus.
"Qiilaan us Dilon!" the hulking draugr roared towards the two.
"Come on!" Harin roared back and rushed to the hulking draugr.
The hulking draugr is bigger than the ones they encountered earlier and was at least three heads taller than Harin. It is strong without a doubt but the movement is a bit sluggish for Harin and she used her superior agility and speed to evade its strikes with dishing out her own. Sliding between the legs, she slashed the ankles of the draugr. Ibnor jumps into the fray and tries to hit the hulking draugr with a body blow but it simply shrugs it off. Harin managed to stab her sword into its back but the sword is now stuck.
As she was trying to remove her sword, the draugr turned its body and swung its arm towards Harin. Ibnor intercepted the swing and caught it. The force was halved but it is still strong enough to knock him back. Losing his footing, he was sent flying to the wall. His body hit the wall and bounced before dropping to the ground. He grunts out of pain.
"Bolog aaz, Mal lir!" the draugr growl.
"Shit, it feels like a car just hit me." He cursed under his greeted teeth.
Harin is now keeping a distance and harassing the draugr with her bow and arrows. He shakes his head and notices a piece of the stone lid lying near him. Mustering his strength, he picked it up and lobbed it towards the draugr. The stone lid hit the side of the draugr head and stunned it for a fraction of second. Harin took the opportunity and jumped, striking the draugr's chin with a back flip kick. While in the air, Magika converged as Harin charged them on her hands and immediately released a fireball to the draugr's head upon landing.
The force from the explosion tilted the draugr further backward. Ibnor ran up the wall for momentum before leaping off to grab the draugr tilting head, yanking it down using his body weight, RKO style. As it fell on its back, the sword that was originally stuck, pierced its body and came out of its chest. Harin followed up by plunging an arrow into its eye, penetrating the brain before taking out her dagger and stabbed the draugr repeatedly on its throat.