"Farengar!" A guard shouted in the catacombs of Dragonsreach. "Farengar!" They were searching for the court wizard of the Jarl of Whiterun. During the attack on the city and keep, he made his way down here to ensure the protection of something important. Something he had studied away from public eyes, even to those inside the keep itself.
The Jarl had entrusted him to study this strange new crystal the Whiterun guards had found within one of the giants campsites. It was black. Pure black. It wasn't a soul gem, or some strange artifact of the gods or Daedra. It emitted a power that had never been seen before. And it was too dangerous to study in Farengar's quarters. It was only the catacombs could he study it.
And with the attack over, the guards had come to bring him back to safety as Dragonsreach was still smoldering from the fires. "I'm here!" The high elf finally said, coming out from around the corner with a small sack. "Is it over?"
"Yes, but we must hurry. The keep isn't safe yet, and we aren't sure if the invaders have gone for good. We'll take you to the city center, that's where the Jarl is."
"Help! Help!" an older commoner woman yells coming down another hall of the catacombs to intercept the group. She trips over herself in her frantic haste, falling to her knees and ripping her brown tunic dress.
"We...my children and I...we ran into Dragonsreach from the fire...but...then we ran down here from the fighting...now..oh...I can't find my children! Please help!"
The two guards turned quickly to the shouting woman, watching her trip over her clothing in the mad dash down the stairs and across the room. One signaled his comrade to stay back with Farengar, in case this was a trap, while he moved over to her with his sword drawn. "Ma'am, it's okay." He said, trying to calm her down. "The fighting has stopped, and the town is back under control. I'll help you find your children, but we must leave the keep immediately." He explained, kneeling down to her.
"Can you tell me what they look like?"
"Thank you thank you!" The woman wipes tears from her eyes and looks around. "They have blonde hair, like mine...the boy has short hair and the girl long braids...the boy looks like his father...he was a guard like you good Sir." She moves to stand up, but buckles back to the ground holding her left knee "Oh no...I think I broke something…"
"I'll notify the guards once we're up above again. Here," he takes the arm carrying his shield, and puts it under hers so she can lean onto his shoulder, with his blade arm still pointing forward. "Can you still walk?" He asked, trying to stand her up.
"Barely" The woman leans on him and with his support rises on her other leg. "But with your help, I will manage. Thank you good Sir, please lead on." She gives a grateful smile.
"We'll be right behind you." Farengar told her, as the guard began leading the woman back up towards the stairs out of the catacombs. He wanted to sound positive for her. "I'm sure we'll find your boys as we head towards an exit. They're probably just as worried for you as you are for them."
"I have one boy and one girl." The woman corrects the guard calmly as they start up the stairs.
"Not your worst mistake today." She says and suddenly the woman lifts the guard up with her one arm, spins around to toss him at his comrade and Farengar. There is a glimmer of orange light around her,revealing the woman is no commoner, but Bex.
"It is your last mistake." Bex quips before running at Farengar, to seize him by the neck.
The guard she threw shouted out in surprise as he was thrown; his back smashing into his comrades head, while his legs hit Farengar, knocking the wind out of him. He barely had time to register what happened before Bex's hand clenched around his throat, as he let out gasps and grabbed her hand to try and pull it off.
Of course, to no good. The guard she threw quickly got back up, slashing downwards with his sword to cut into Bex's neck.
The sword is met by Bex's other clawed hand. Her claws glow white hot and cuts through the the sword in one swipe. Bex follows up with a hard kick to the guard's chest.
The guard hesitated for a moment once she broke his blade, looking to his sword. The metal she sliced had molded sideways, still glowing orange like it had come from a forge. He had never seen such magic before, but in his confusion, he wasn't blocking for her kick.
He smashed into one of the pillars; his entire body hitting it so hard, the stone cracked and pieces flew off from where he struck it. Farengar was quick to act as Bex's attention was away from him, as he formed bolts of lightning out of his hand and threw it all into her face
Bex takes the lightning full in the face, and she does yell in pain, but the wizard had made a grave error in attacking her so close and quick in his current position. Her hand on his neck squeezes hard on his windpipe.
For a second, Bex would hear the sound of a loud cracking. The lightning faded, and the wizard's hand fell to the floor with a thud. Farengar's eyes rolled halfway back, and his mouth laid open. She broke his neck.
But, he still had the little brown sack on his hip. And she could feel the unique power of the item she came to obtain once Lautrec failed. It was like a strange vibration in her mind, like her skull was softly vibrating. "Down there!" A voice yelled, as several more guards made their way down to the catacombs from all the commotion.
The lightning fades and the burning damage done to her face disappears as well to reveal a very pissed off Bex.
"Impudent!" Bex throws the wizards corpse hard to the ground. She snatches the sack from him.
"Let's see what you felt ready to die for." The Daemon feels the pulse of power and would have investigated it, but the imminent arrival of more guards stops her. She ties the sack to her right wrist and runs up the stairs out of the catacombs to escape.
Once she was up the stairs, she was immediately faced with fourteen guards. They cornered her at the staircase, swords drawn and shields up. "Halt!" One shouted. "You have committed crimes against Skyrim and her people! Hand over the bag, and submit to your surrender!"
Bex stops in her tracks at the head of the stairs, raises her hands as if in surrender, but her eyes look around at each of them with no fear, only contempt.
"Look upon me, humans, and see your death."
There is a brilliant flash of orange light from Bex that obscures her form from their eyes. It is two seconds of blindness which ends abruptly and reveals an immense Chimera-like beast that charges forward. Curved horns slam into guards. Jaws snap. Giant leathery wings flap and kick up a small powerful gale of wind.
"By the gods--" One guard muttered as the flash vanished to reveal her transformation. Not even werewolves became such creatures. In their minds, this was but a new beast of Hircine. But they were mistaken. This was a goddess they were witnessing. The wind she summoned sent them flying across the room, each screaming out in fear and pain as they smashed into the walls and pillars, or crash landed hard against the floors after several feet of travel.
The burnt wood of the Dragonsreach broke away, turning to debris that floats around Bex's form. Her way was clear to escape.
Her hooves tear up the floor as she charges forth. She shakes the battered hall. Bex does not bother looking for a door. She rams into a wall, and the walls behind that wall, to run out of Dragonsreach. She comes out the back of the building, leaps over the wall into the forest.
There was a mighty shake across the ground, like an earthquake had just happened. And the townspeople could see the smoke and dust fly into the sky like a mushroom cloud. It was like the apocalypse had come to Skyrim.
In the forest behind Whiterun, Bex returns to her original form, then casts Glamour to appear as a dark-skinned and brown-cloaked woman. Running around in either of her other forms would be too conspicuous; she needs to move unseen now that the other prize of the day was in hand.
And she is unseen as she makes her way to the rendezvous point. From a distance she hears a woman yell, then a man scream briefly in agonizing pain. Bex comes around a narrow game trail in time to see Ben make his entrance. She is nearly silent as she approaches, but Vader would feel her presence as a deceptively calm swirling nexus of lust, hate, pride and malice.
Azula is herself, oblivious to the approach of Bex. She's firstly fighting the ravages on her body, and secondly doing so to enjoy the respect this Ben Forbes is giving her. And even with the proper hand gesture.
He must have paid my world a visit.
"It is your pleasure, Ben Forbes." Azula haughtily affirms his greeting with the same motions. "However, given my grand feat this day, I declare that I am now not only Princess Azula. I have claimed my right to be Azula, the Blue Dragon." She takes a deep breath, and tilts her head back to let out a large plume of blue fire into the air above her.
"Neat trick, Blue Dragon." Bex says from far behind her, still in disguise.
"And who are you? Another pawn?" Azula questions with contempt as she had caught the condescending tone.
"I fancy myself a Queen." Bex dispels the Glamour and smiles back at Azula.
"I would say you are free to test me, but you're barely standing on your own, mortal." Bex comes within striking distance of Azula, then steps closer, but the young woman can't find the strength to strike now. Her fingers shake and knees bend. Bex puts a hand on her right shoulder, and gently but firmly pushes Azula down to sit on the ground.
"Best to rest, and you'll be healed soon enough. We will take such good care of you." Bex strokes Azula's chin. She looks up at Bex, and does not feel calmed, as she is still incensed at such treatment; Azula feels and looks subdued.
Bex walks over to Ben, holding the sack she'd taken aloft in the air.
"The prize Lautrec could not claim. Now claimed."
