It was odd, being on the cusp of something so great and terrible and still having to deal with the banalities of life. Vivec was already prone to musing over the divine and mundane and how very, very close they were in the calmest of times, so cutting his hair felt particularly sublime in the wake of the war they were about to wage. Like he was making room for the fire that'd soon erupt through Resdayn as they drove out the Nords.

Well, that, and he wasn't sure when he'd next have access to a nice mirror and sharp razor.

He was careful and methodical as he drew the blade over his head, hand steady as a skiff through silt. So engrossed was he that he just about sliced his head open as a broad hand rested on his shoulder.

"Sorry, sorry," Nerevar apologized once Vehk drew the razor away, unscathed, luckily, and trying very hard not to look startled. "I just...thought we could speak for a moment, before we went out."
"Of course, Neht." Blade set aside, Vivec perched on the edge of the washroom's very fine tub. "I'm always happy to speak. Too happy, if you ask anyone else in our party."

Nerevar gave a wry smile, then sighed as he crossed his arms. He was quiet for a very long moment, and Vivec did nothing to interrupt. He was very rarely disappointed in what Neht had to say after a long silence.

"I'm afraid," he finally said, voice soft in confession, "that I'm becoming slipshod in my thinking."

Vivec blinked. "Then why come to me?"

"Because I trust you, Vivec," he answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in Nirn. "You're...a little over-romantic, I'll admit, but your heart is good, and you let it guide you. That's valuable, especially in our situation." He was quiet again, then glanced up. "It may be that we have to do some very terrible things, if we want to free Resdayn. And at the start, it was a...a necessary evil. But now..." He sighed, running his hand through his fair hair. "I'm less certain."

"Reach heaven by violence, then," Vivec murmured; he wasn't aware he'd said it aloud until he caught the look Nerevar was sending him. He froze a moment, afraid of being caught in his eavesdropping, and quickly added, "Or...don't."

Nerevar shook off his surprise–as Vehk noted to himself to be more careful in adopting poetic turns of phrase–and furrowed his brow as he looked off at nothing in particular. "What do you mean by that?"

Vivec drummed his fingers on the stone of the tub. "I mean that the choice is yours. I can't tell you what to do–even if I were in the leagues of Sul or Voryn–but...but I think, if we help more people than we harm, it's better that we shoulder whatever sins we must so others can live better than we have." He looked up at Nerevar, face serious. "I'd give up whatever virtue I have to free Resdayn, to keep the Chimer out of slums and...and to keep what happened to Sil and I from ever happening again to other young mer. We are the heirs of Veloth, and we know better than to believe that our exodus was sterile and bloodless." He stopped as his voice grew louder, the familiar stirrings of a righteous speech thrumming in him. He stayed quiet, for just a moment, then continued, voice soft and serious, "But either choice you make will be an act that carves a path for us. So you can sin or you can not. But...even St. Veloth, with all his followers, it would have meant nothing if he didn't act at all."

Nerevar was quiet again, eyes fixed on one particular spot in the wall. Vivec stayed put, fingers clenching and unclenching as he waited for some sort of response. Praise, dismissal, anything .

Finally, he pulled his gaze back to the present, settling on Vivec. His mouth twitched, and it took a moment before he finally asked, "Where's Sil?"

"In the library, I imagine. He spent all night working on that spider of his, still as anything."

"You think he's still there?"
"I'd be much more surprised if he isn't."

Neht nodded slowly, gaze distant. "Go get him. We're going to be leaving shortly."

Vivec looked over him curiously, about to ask if they were changing the plan. Instead, he simply nodded. "Of course, Nerevar."

There wasn't very much distance between the washroom and the library, so not terribly much time to muse over what the future might hold. But that didn't stop Vivec from starting to think on it. What sort of terrible things? They'd killed before, quite often. Blood on their hands wasn't unusual. Perhaps they'd start conscripting people; but then, how many Chimer would actually be opposed if it meant they'd be free? He supposed–

His thoughts were interrupted as he opened the door, replaced with a stream of curses that escaped his mouth as something cold and hard jumped straight at his face.

He automatically swung at it, but it was already skittering away. As Vivec reined in his surprise, he looked up to see the thing going straight to Sil. He started to lunge for it, but stopped as he saw the wide grin splitting Sil's thin, serious face.

"I said I could make it better, and I was right ," he said, looking over the rebuilt spider as it twitched in his hand. "And it has less materials than the original design–I could probably make a whole new spider with how much was left over. Its core needs fixing, but I think, if I could find a soul gem, it could power it for so much longer than the current model does." He looked up to Vivec, pale eyes bright. "We can use these, Vehk. They'll be quick a-and less dangerous–for us, anyway–and..." He paused. "Do you think Nerevar will like it?"

This, possibly, was the most Sil had ever spoken all at once, and it took a moment for Vivec to catch up from the shock of it. Finally, he nodded, returning the smile. "Yes, I...I think he'll be very, very impressed."

That seemed to please the boy very much, and a smile–though smaller than the one Vehk had been greeted with–stayed put on Seht's face as he set the spider back onto the desk. "Of course, this is a prototype, just like how it was for the centurion spiders. But when we go back to the Dwemer, perhaps we can get more materials."

"Well, that may be happening sooner rather than later." Vivec started to gather his things. "There's been a change of plans, and we're heading back out soon. Probably this evening at the latest."

Sil's excitement dimmed. "Because of us?"

"No, no. Just...a new plan. I don't know the specifics, but things are probably going to be taking a very different route than the one we've been following." Vivec pauses. "It's a little exciting, actually. I love a good twist in the plot." Ah, no, remember: more warrior, less poet. At least for now.

He could still take notes, though. For later, once they'd reached heaven–violently or otherwise.

They left the city the same way they'd entered, staggered in groups. First Sul, to set up the camp; then Vivec and Sil, in the midst of the bustling midday to stay unseen, and by evening, Voryn and Nerevar joined them. They'd had enough time to send word to those who had gathered in town to join their cause of where to go, warning them to come over the next several nights under the cover of darkness. Nerevar, by virtue of his devotion to Azura, had a natural distrust of Nocturnal, but Vivec swore he heard a whispered plea for her darkness to cover their allies in the coming days.

Correspondence went out to Dumac and his own forces; it was too soon in the alliance talks for them to offer any more than mercenaries in terms of soldiers, but–bolstered by Sil's demonstration of his modified spider–Nerevar gladly welcomed any mechanical things they could spare. There was an air of unease of letting a boy manage something so alien in such a delicate situation. But Sil didn't have the same vocal need to prove himself that Vivec had–still had, admittedly, even after his years of service. He simply worked , his previous focus of his studies now turned to the spiders and spheres delivered from underground, with the hesitant aid of a few mercenaries' basic knowledge. Vehk kept an eye on him when he had the chance, looking for any signs of Seht being overwhelmed; if he was, he hid it well beneath bright eyes and mechanical chatter that no one but a Dwemer could make heads or tails of.

As for Vivec, he'd taken Sul's rebuke to heart, he really had. He listened in their strategy meetings–which were maddeningly uninformative as to what Neht's new plan was, considering half of them seemed to take place when he wasn't around–and kept his words focused on the task at hand, not the account for the future. It wasn't fun , not even slightly, but then, war wasn't supposed to be. When he wasn't listening, he was back to scouting; Nerevar was preoccupied with the defense around Hofstaag, wanting to know entrances and exits of the city. His reports were crisp and concise, with only pertinent information.

By the Three , was it boring to live this way. He supposed this explained why Sul and Voryn were... like that .

But ultimately, Vivec had done what he had been told to and been an exemplary soldier. So, with some validation bolstering him, he went to the fire that night with quill and parchment in hand. He wasn't sure where to start up again, but he knew once he started he likely wouldn't be able to stop.

He'd just sharpened his quill when a glint of metal caught his eye, and he smiled as Sil settled next to him, fair brows furrowed as he worked at what looked like the body of one of his jumping spiders. Vehk rested his elbow on his knee, chin plunked in his palm as he watched the boy work for a moment.

"You really are taking to these clockwork beasties like a netch to the air," he said. "Have you secretly been a Dwemer this whole time, Seht?"

"No," Sil said plainly. He paused, seeming to realize that it was a joke once Vivec laughed, and looked up from his work. "It's very straight-forward. Put the right pieces together, and they do what you want. Not that different from magic–easier, actually; magic you sometimes have to account for emotions."

"And was that ever a problem for you?" Vivec asked. "Having to deal with the emotions part?"

Sil shook his head. "Nall did," he said quietly, going back to his work. "But she'd never really liked magic all that much anyway. She'd just started..." He trailed off, throat flexing as he swallowed. Vivec didn't dare say a word; some days, he knew, were harder. He didn't so much as blink as Seht dropped that train of thought. "I was always good at separating the two." His brow furrowed again, and he added, very softly, "I wanted to be a Psijic."

"A Psijic?" Vivec repeated, equally quiet. "The ones over in Summerset?"

Sil nodded. "I've heard they take people from other races, besides Altmer, if you're good enough."

"Then why are you talking about it like a childhood fancy?" Vivec asked, then gestured to the half-spider. "Find me an Altmer forty times your age who can make sense of that. I guarantee you won't." He grinned as his chin returned to his palm. "I'll come with you, with all your accomplishments written out. Sotha Sil: mage, inventor, liberator of Resdayn–you know, I'll even do it in verse ."

"Do not , Vivec, please ." The words were muttered with all the exasperation expected of a young mer, but there was no hiding the hope, however fragile it was, that danced over Sil's face as he fiddled with the gears inside the spider's chassis.

"I'll have one ready, in case you change your mind. It's inevitable that you will, you know," Vehk quipped back, still smiling, before he settled back to start at his own work. But before he could so much as tap his pen, more movement caught his eye. He smiled up at Nerevar as he sat across from them, then put on a pleading face.

" Please don't tell Alandro I'm writing," he whispered, just loud enough over the crackling of the fire. "I won't be able to stand the look he'll give me. It's like having the sky be disappointed in you." He sat up properly at the weak, tired smile Neht gave him, returning it with a frown. "Something's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong," Nerevar quickly assured. "In fact, everything's going very well. It's just...very hard." He rubbed his face with a long sigh, then stayed very silent and still. After a few moments, even Sil looked up from his work, a small frown of his own mirroring Vivec's. But they both stayed quiet, waiting for Nerevar to take the lead on whatever soon-to-be-had conversation was hanging darkly over the three of them.

Finally, Neht drew his head up, taking a breath as he looked over the two of them. "In three days," he said slowly, eyes reflecting the fire as he met each of the younger mer's gaze, "we're going to do something incredibly dangerous. And I need you both to do exactly as you're ordered. This time, it is a matter of life and death ."

Despite the seriousness of what Nerevar was saying, Vivec couldn't help but feel a flare of petulance in his chest. So it hadn't been bad luck keeping him from the majority of the strategizing; he'd been excluded , no doubt dismissed as a troublesome youth even with all his work. But, righteous though he was sure his anger was, now wasn't the time. So he merely nodded, and Sil did the same.

Another pause, this time with Nerevar shutting his eyes. When he opened them, the hesitance melted from his face, replaced with a look of steely determination.

"We're declaring war on the Nords," he said, "by burning Hofstaag to the ground."

Silence followed, only broken by the now-foreboding crackling of the flames between them. The air was terribly still, and Vivec, for once, was left without any idea of what to say. On one hand, it was drastic and so very, very risky. On the other...action was the only language the Nords seemed to speak, and a small part of him roared in anticipation of sending such a damning message.

"What about the mer?"

Both Nerevar and Vivec were started by Sil's question. His thin jaw was set firmly, expression sharpened even further by the flames throwing his face into harsh relief. Nerevar was the first to shake himself out of his reverie.

"I...don't know what you mean, Seht," he said. "But our for–"

"Not them. The mer in Hofstaag, the ones in the slums." Sil's voice was clear above the flames, and his eyes bore into Nerevar with challenge . "If we burn down Hofstaag, they're in danger, too."

Vivec had traveled with Nerevar for quite some time now. Sil probably wouldn't notice, but there was the slightest twitch in Neht's mouth; he'd thought of this as well. The question of sin suddenly made much more sense. There was clear deliberation in his face before he finally looked away.

"Azura will protect them," he said, voice firm and confident. Vivec almost believed him, but he knew the words for what they really were: a prayer, not an assurance.

"But they'll have no idea," Sil shot back. "We have to get in before, warn them of what will happen."

"There isn't time," Nerevar said, voice tightening as his frown deepened. "We'll risk showing our hand. This has to be a surprise, and done with no warning."

"But Chimer will die!"

"And many, many more will die if we're caught," Nerevar snapped, voice low. "In war, Sil, you have to think about the greater good. Even if it means doing terrible things to bring that greater good around."

Vivec expected Sil to be cowed by Nerevar's chiding, but he saw another argument about to bubble out of the boy's mouth. Quickly, he rested his hand on Sil's shoulder, squeezing it in a silent Shut up as he looked to Nerevar. " We ," he said, punctuating the word with a hard look at Sil, "understand, Neht. We'll be waiting for instruction, and we'll follow them to the word."

Nerevar let out a long breath, an undeniably grateful look sent Vehk's way, and he gave a short nod as he got up to his feet. Vivec and Sil stayed silent as he faded into the darkness of their surroundings, no doubt to wrestle with his guilt.

Once he was gone, Sil jerked his shoulder out of Vivec's hold. "We have to do something," he said, fire still in his voice. "We have to talk to someone. Voryn o-or Alandro..."

"If Neht's gotten to this point, then Voryn and Sul agree with him. And they'll be unshakeable ," Vivec said, running his hand through his hair. "Look, we've said time and time again: Azura has blessed our mission. She'll protect the mer in Hofstaag."

"Like she protected Ald Sotha?"

Oh.

Vivec looked up at Sil; rage seemed to fill every bit of the boy as he stared at Vivec, making him tremble hard enough to rattle the metal parts in his lap. There was no sign he would lash out, but, if he were just a few years older, he could tell that there would be something very, very dangerous in this silent fury.

"The daedra do nothing , Vivec," Sil spat out. "They don't care. If...if none of the others will do anything, then we must."

"We? You and I?" Sil nodded, and Vivec let out a disbelieving little scoff. "Because going off on our own worked so well before?"

"We can plan. Come up with...with something. But we must do it quickly." Sil pulled the chassis from his lap, eyes darting about as he thought. "I...my spiders aren't ready, but, but I know there's a way to make them combust. If we can start on the far side of the slums..."

"We'd have to go through the whole city for that," Vivec said, shaking his head. "I've been around the whole perimeter of it." He set aside his parchment and quill and grabbed the long stick used for tending the fire. In the dirt, he drew a crude imitation of Hofstaag's walls, with Xs serving as the entrances and exits and a wavy line serving as the slums. "You see? The governor's mansion is up here, and any way to enter there–especially the hidden ones–are going to be far too secure. We have to go through these areas, and that would be dangerous." He rubbed his face–a habit picked up from Nerevar, no doubt–then kept his mouth covered as he looked over the map. "If there was a way to get word out...a whisper or a rumor or..."

"Or a notice." Sil's eyes had traveled from the map to the parchment, and he looked back to Vivec. " You can write something. In Chimeris, maybe, warning about what's going to happen."

"And when someone snitches?" Vivec asked dryly. "Or when the odd Nord who's picked up enough Chimeris can get an idea of what we're saying? No, that's as good as a bounty." He rolled the stick in his hand; despite his dismissal, words and ideas were already starting to dance in his head. "But...perhaps it's a notice from the Nords."

Sil frowned. "There aren't any Nords on our side."

"No, but we have someone who can write like one." Vehk gave Sil a smile as he picked up his parchment and pen again. "Skalds are Nordic poets, and as much as I can't stand the people, I admire the way their poems are ingrained in their society, and I've read quite a bit. Know your enemy and all. So even their official notices have a particular cadence to them."

"It can't be a poem , Vehk."

"Not a poem. An...homage, let's say, to the stark lyricism of Nordic government issues." Vivec chewed his lip as he looked over the blank page. " Notice, effective immediately: anyone not descended from the noble sons of Ysgramor ..."

"No . "

"You're right, too much. Notice, from the office of the governor, effective immediately: all knife-ears and animals... Ah, they'd say that, but even Nords show a bit of nuance in paperwork. All mer and beast-folk are required to vacate the city of Hofstaag. Any who don't comply will be... persecuted? That doesn't sound right. Penalized , no, severely penalized, there we go." He looked up to Sil. "Threatening enough without overdoing it, yes?"

Sil sucked in his lips before giving a shrug. "I can't think of anything better."

"Then we have our notice." With a flourish of his pen, Vivec started to write. "Now, we will have to be very, very quick, and very, very good at sneaking." His eyes flicked up to Sil. "Voryn keeps his cloak in the wagon, in the storage area under the driver's seat. It'll be too big for you, but in this case, that might work in our favor. Go get it."

Sil blinked. "Are we going tonight?"

"If we want to do so without getting caught by our enemies or our allies? Yes, we're doing this as soon as the ink dries." Vivec let out a quick little breath, willing his hand to stay steady. "And if Azura won't help us, then let's at least pray that Mephala will."

There was a crumbling bit of wall Vivec had found in his last scouting that led straight into the slums, a place favored by thieves and those doing illicit business. By a stroke of luck, it was empty when they arrived despite the late hour, and Vivec ushered Sil through before he followed. He'd considered coming alone, truthfully, but again he recalled how well that went. Besides, the fire was still burning bright and clear in Seht; he'd have followed no matter what to see it through.

Once they were on the other side of the wall, tucked out of sight behind a ramshackle building, Vehk got their bearings. The danger of this task seemed amplified in the quiet city streets, and every way it could go wrong hung heavily over him. After a moment, he pulled a dagger from his belt. "Take this," he whispered, meeting Sil's pale eyes very seriously. "You can't use your magic, it'll be too obvious. With this, it's two motions." He demonstrated: one sharp pull out of the sheath, and a sharp, sideways push into an imaginary threat's belly. He sheathed it before holding it out to him.

Sil looked down at the knife, then back up to Vivec. "Do you think I'll need it?"

"I pray you don't. But if you do, do what I said and then run. "

Sil's brow furrowed, but he took the knife. "And you? What will you do?"

Vivec swallowed, then set his hands on either side of Sil's head, face as serious it'd ever been. "I know you don't trust Azura," he said, voice a whisper. "But I will keep you safe. No matter what." A little smile eked its way out of him. "Okay, hla'daesohn?"

Sil's mouth twitched, but it didn't come close to a smile. After a moment, he slid the knife onto his own belt and nodded. Vivec let out a long breath, then led the way out. Cloaked as they were, hoods drawn far over their faces, they went unnoticed by the few people out at this hour. Vivec could hear the whispers of clandestine meetings–tones differing as they bounced off the stone walls of the alleyways–punctuated with the odd call offering a night of pleasure for a low price and pleas to be allowed in, they hadn't had that much skooma. But none were threats, and the one hollow-faced boy who came sidling up just a touch too close to Seht was easily scared away with a sharp look from Vehk.

"Here," Vivec whispered as they crossed a wooden wall of a fence. "We'll put it up here, that ought to be in everyone's eyeline. Sil, keep watch while I get it up."

Sil nodded, and he turned to keep an eye on the street, dagger shifting back and forth between his hands. Carefully, Vivec pulled out the parchment. It didn't look very official, but he couldn't imagine anyone looking too hard at it. The Nords would be overjoyed, and everyone else would be expecting it. And, realistically, this was the only option they had.

"Guards," Sil said softly as two voices wafted down the alley.

"Nearly done." Vivec pressed the notice to the wall. Now just to secure it with...

"Vivec, hurry ," Sil hissed as the footsteps grew louder, to which he received a " Shit , shit shit shit ," in return. He looked over his shoulder, eyes wide, and Vivec met his gaze with a horrified one.

"I didn't bring anything to secure it with," he whispered. His eyes darted to the footsteps that became ever-louder, keeping time with his thudding heart. He'd been thoughtless, and it'd cost them again.

Sil looked to Vivec, then to the alleyway, then to the parchment. His eyes flicked about, thinking very hard. Finally, as the guards let out a laugh that echoed through the alley, he pulled the knife from its sheath and slammed it into the parchment, fixing it to the wall. Vivec allowed himself one breath to be impressed with Seht's quick thinking, then quickly grabbed Sil and pulled him back into the shadows just as the guards rounded the corner. They paused, and both mer held their breath as one went up to the fake notice. With a wince, Vivec wondered if it perhaps looked too dramatic with the knife.

"Shor's bones, Eirfa really needs to stop giving Stedvar knives," the other guard said. "He thinks he looks like a real hard-ass putting up notices like this. Just a waste of a good weapon if you ask me."

"Huh! Looks like old Vanskyr finally wised up, come look at this." The first one stood up straight. "About damn time we clear out the knife-ears and animals. Get this place civilized. " (Vivec, it had to be said, was quite proud that he knew the Nord voice so well.)

"Wait, really?" The other joined him before letting out a loud, "HA!"

Vivec let out a long, silent breath. There, the Nords were convinced, and that's all they needed. He nudged Sil, urging him to move, and they tried to slip away. But the movement gave them away.

"Hey, you! Halt!" the first guard called.

They both froze. Slowly, Vivec turned around, nudging Sil behind him. He stared at the Nord from beneath his hood, ready to draw his blade. Sil knew where they'd come in; he'd push him toward it if things got ugly. The guard crossed his arms, looking unbearably smug.

"What's got you skulking about at this hour, elf?" he asked.

Vivec swallowed, then put on a demure face. "I-it's my brother, sera," he said, averting his eyes. "He has terrible nightmares. We...walking helps, after he's had one. We were just heading back home."

"Oh, no you're not. New decree just came out: all the elves and cats and lizards are out of Hofstaag." He pointed toward the city gate. "So you'll be having a nice old walk out of the city."

It took every bit of Vehk's acting ability to look panicked. "But...sera, please, let us get back to the house, our mother is..."

"Look at the sign, elf," the other guard drawled. "It's effective immediately ."

The first leaned down, flicking at Sil's hood; he pulled it back down, but luckily, it seemed like the guard was just trying to irritate rather than identify him. "Listen here, little knife-ear. You want to see your big brother here get punished? He's resisting authority, and that's a big crime." Sil shook his head. "There, you already seem smarter than him. Why don't you try and talk some sense in him? Surely whatever you've got at home isn't as valuable as your brother's teeth?"

Sil hesitated, then looked up at Vivec. His face was, as always, unreadable; in this case, it worked to their advantage. "Let's just...go out, V–al'daesohn."

"That's right, Valdayson," the guard mocked, butchering the word thoroughly even without Sil's slip. "Just go out, and there'll be no trouble. Your mother will be right behind you, along with the rest of you yellow-skinned devils!"

Vivec slipped his arm over Sil's shoulders, finally turning away from the Nords and guiding the younger mer out from the city gates. Neither of them breathed until they were through, and Vehk didn't let go of Sil until they came to a bend in the road. Once they were clear, his arm dropped, and he and Sil looked at each other.

"It...it worked ," Seht said, breaking the silence first. "It worked. "

Vivec let out a disbelieving little laugh. "It did. By Oblivion , it did." He gripped Sil's shoulders, giving him a wide smile. "We've done the impossible, Seht. We saved people! By the Three , once the others hear..." He trailed off, glancing overhead. On the horizon, the barest sliver of gray lightened the sky; Azura was entering her domain.

"We'll celebrate later," he said. "We need to get back to camp before anyone realizes we're gone." He picked up his pace, darting off the road for a shortcut back; all the scouting certainly paid off in that respect. Sil followed after, right on his heels.

For quite some time, they walked in silence, a mutual rush of success keeping their steps light and providing more than enough fodder for a pleasant walk. And, even more surprising than their success, it was Sil that finally broke the silence for once.

"What are you going to do when I'm older?" he asked. "You can't call me your little brother forever."

"I wasn't aware that siblings were age-restricted," Vivec said, voice light. "But then, I was born an only child. Not much room in an egg, you know."

Sil was clearly still in a good mood, because he didn't even roll his eyes. "I mean, it's not, but we're not actually brothers."

"No? You know, Seht, it's funny with stories; if you tell them long enough, they start to become fact. And, well...I've told the story now of you being my brother so many times, I'm starting to think it might be true." He looked over his shoulder with a smile. "But then, you were there each time. So in this case, you can tell me if I'm wrong or not, and I'll amend my story."

Sil blinked a few times, until finally he shook his head with a little smile. "You're ridiculous, Vehk," he said as he walked a bit faster, passing him as they approached the camp.

But, Vivec noticed, Seht didn't correct him.

---

Language notes:

al'daesohn - older brother