41: The Khajiit

I leaned against one of the columns that encircled an area of the Arena district. The shouting and yells from inside had subsided, and night’s heavy blanket was slowly pulling the sun out of sight. Obviously, the walls of the city blocked my view of the sunset, but I could see the spectacular colors dancing in the clouds directly above me. I watched them for a short while, and then opened the book I had purchased at one of the local shops. It was simply bound and not all of the pages lined up, but the information inside was interesting enough. It was entitled Reflections upon the Summoning of Creatures. I used it to brush up on my theoretical Conjuration knowledge, and discovered that the book needed to be revised in order to keep up with the changing times. It still said fifty foot tall gates to Oblivion were impossible. After my recent experiences, I decided to take the knowledge within lightly.

It was dark when the Khajiit finally exited the Arena. I had been keeping an eye on the people coming and going in order to find out what was going on inside. He was wearing dark blue robes and moved gracefully, but also warily. I had planned on following him to wherever he was going, but I saw him casting the same green light I had seen before. Once again, the light drifted towards me and was absorbed by the ring in pocket. It illuminated me and I knew I wouldn’t be able to escape the Khajiit’s eyes. I shut the book and stowed it in my satchel. This was going to be a rocky meeting.

“So this is the one Jauffre has sent to me.” He spoke with an accent so heavy it was hard to decipher. “Interesting. Normally I would not take on a student so…” He looked me over, “Frail. But it is of no matter. I shall teach, and you shall learn.”

“What are you talking about?” I said. Obviously I had missed something. Train? I wouldn’t train with this monstrosity for anything in the world. “I have no intention of learning anything from you. I’m perfectly happy with my current capabilities and…”

“I can make you walk again.” He interjected quite forcefully, and I was surprised he knew about my disability. I was taken aback, and had lost any verbal momentum I had once had. “It is difficult to move, isn’t it? The absence of toes is quite… debilitating.” He smiled devilishly. He even knew the source of my disability. “I can help you to walk, even run again.”

“Why…” I floundered, frustrated at the creature’s preparation for this, or at least at my own lack of preparation. “Why should I believe you can help me?”

“Because I know what it is like to be missing a few body parts.” He stuck a furry hand out and showed me that he was missing several fingers, and then he showed me his foot, which was also missing all of its toes. “My battles in the Arena and elsewhere have taken their toll upon my body. But I am still capable of walking and running.” My mind flashed back to the slaughter in the pit of the Arena. More than capable, I would say.

My mind struggled with the decision. One half of me told me to run away from this murderous creature and hope I wouldn’t get my throat ripped out. The other half begged me to accept, so that once again my movement would be free. A third and fourth half was silent, quietly colliding luminous shards of thought within the depths of the staff. I reached a decision after a moment’s pause.

“Very well,” I said finally, “I will learn from you, but don’t think I will be happy about anything other than my own restored mobility.”

The Khajiit smiled, revealing glistening teeth that were not meant for anything less than tearing flesh. “Excellent, meet me here tomorrow morning and we will begin. By the way, my name is Darkasha.” With that, his faded from sight and I heard soft footsteps running off into the night.

“Be careful, Will” The cold voice of the Dark One said. “This creature is dangerous.”

“Thanks,” I thought sarcastically, “I hadn’t noticed.”

“No, you don’t understand. It’s more than just the incident in the Arena…”

“What then?” I asked, curious now.

“It was difficult to see at first, and I still am not sure…”

“What?”

“Surely you can guess… The glistening fangs, the dark robe… The only exiting the building at night?”

Realization began to dawn on me.

The voice in my mind chilled me when it spoke, “Darkasha is a vampire.”