Pesci, Formaggio, Sorbet, and Gelato sat at the table in the sanctuary living quarters. The green-haired Imperial had emptied a couple of glasses of milk while the redhead was eating a sweetroll. Gelato was sitting on Sorbet’s lap.
“So,” Sorbet said, breaking the silence, “you managed to swim across Lake Rumare–”
“Actually, I left the city using the main entrance,” Pesci corrected.
“Wait,” Gelato interrupted. “So, you got out of the sewers, ran to the exit, and kept running to Cheydinhal while it was still bright out?”
“Yeah, and nonstop too,” Pesci said. “You make it seem strange.”
“Well, vampires aren’t supposed to be in the sun, so you could’ve stopped running right there,” Sorbet added.
“I got scared.”
The redhead finished his sweetroll and placed his arm on the table, interested in the conversation.
“Pesci, you have amazing stamina,” Formaggio complemented. “It usually takes some time to travel from the Imperial City to Cheydinhal. You know, I remember seeing this Khajiit that ran faster than my horse.”
“Hold on,” Gelato said. “I think I know that guy.”
“I think I know that guy too,” Sorbet added. “He told me something once, and it was a lie.”
“What was it about?” his lover asked.
“Something about a helmet at the bottom of the ocean near Anvil. I never found it.”
“Alright, I should go,” Pesci said.
Before leaving the table, he finished up his last glass of milk and left.
“He’s kind of a coward,” Gelato gossiped.
“How is someone like him an assassin?” Sorbet added.
---
Pesci entered Illuso’s room. Illuso was sitting in the same spot he normally sits, but then he got up and walked to his desk, looking at stacks of paper. The vampire turned his gaze to Pesci, and he froze. Illuso sighed.
“The two contracts I gave you were completed but not by you. I’m against this idea, but your brother believes in you,” Illuso said.
“Huh?” questioned Pesci.
“You’ve earned the rank of Slayer. I don’t believe you earned it, but I’m not in charge,” he explained. Pesci grew a smile on his face. “You lacked the scent of Styx’s blood, and you lack Luca’s blood. When you entered the sanctuary screaming, I only smelled fear from you. I think you’re a pathetic excuse for an assassin.”
His words hurt Pesci, making the green-haired Imperial almost cry. Then the trapdoor to Prosciutto’s room creaked open, and his brother dropped down.
“Illuso, you know I can hear you from up there,” the blond man said. He walked towards his brother, rubbing his hands over his head. “Pesci, I know you can do this. To join the Dark Brotherhood, you had to kill someone. I know you’re capable of murder.”
“It was an accident,” Pesci whispered to him.
“The Night Mother knows you’re capable,” he whispered back. He then returned to his room.
Pesci held back the tear in his eye. “What’s my next contract?”
“You’re to kill a pirate named Gaston Tussaud,” Illuso answered. “You’ll find him in the Waterfront District in the Imperial City.”
Pesci sighed. “Again?”
“Yes, again,” he said. “Also, I may have held some information to you that would’ve helped find Luca quicker. I wanted to test if you could find the target yourself. There’s a crate where you can sneak yourself into the boat. Now go.”
---
Pesci was back at the Imperial City again, but this time it was late in the night. A pirate was standing just outside the ship, whistling a tune. He was probably there to guard anyone from getting on board, but he seemed carefree. With darkness around him, he snuck to the crate and hid inside. Waiting in the box for a few minutes, someone picked him up.
“Give me a hand,” he heard someone say.
“This crate is heavier than usual. What’s in it?” said another.
“Don’t know, don’t care.”
Pesci could feel that he was at the bottom of the ship. He waited for the pirates to walk away. Once their footsteps were fading, he got out. Before he could continue, he removed his overalls and placed them in his bag, no longer hiding the skin-tight armor.
He walked towards the wooden ladder. As he moved, the wooden planks creaked. Pesci started to sweat and froze in terror. No one heard him. He let out a sigh of relief and went upstairs.
Once there, he noticed the shadows of two people.
“A Dark Elf and a woman,” said one of the men. “I tell ya, something bad is going to happen.”
“Gaston thinks she’s a capable bodyguard,” said the other.
“We’ll see.” He paused for a second. “Hey, I can’t get this feeling that someone was in that crate.”
“Hmm, we probably picked up a stowaway. Let’s go look.”
Shit, Pesci thought. There was no point in heading to the bottom deck, but there was a room a couple of feet ahead he could hide in. He decided to hide in the room, but the loud creak in the floor gave him away, alerting the pirates to his position. They unsheathed their cutlasses. Pesci took out his dagger, but he was indecisive on who to attack.
“Hey, over here!” shouted a voice familiar to Pesci.
Both of the pirates turned to face that called out his name. Pesci took this opportunity to stab one of them in the back. The pirate’s slightly white shirt turned red. He watched as the pirate lain there, unmoving. Pesci’s mystery friend then stepped out of the shadows, revealing who he was, and charged towards the other pirate. A knife deeply plunged into his abdomen. Oddly, he had this feeling of excitement. To take someone’s life had awakened something in him.
“Gelato!” Pesci said with a smile.
“Shh!” the Wood Elf responded. “You shouldn’t say people’s names out loud.”
“Oops, sorry. That was fun, thrilling. It almost reminds me of that time in Anvil where I– Never mind. Hey, where’s Sorbet? Aren’t you two always together?”
“Not all the time. Hurry, he’s holding off the Dark Elf woman and your target.”
Before they headed towards the captain’s cabin, Pesci grabbed one of the pirate’s cutlasses. Sorbet was there, fighting the balding Breton and the Dark Elf woman. He kicked the woman towards the wall, stunning her for a few seconds. He then focused his attention on Gaston, moving with such speed. Swipe, swipe, clank, parry, dodge! He did notice Gaston had many cuts on his fine outfit, as well as a large, nasty gash on his chest.
“Gaston!” the woman yelled.
She charged towards Sorbet, but a throwing dagger cut the skin of her neck. Covering her neck with her hand, she looked to see who threw it. Pesci then looked at Gelato, realizing he had thrown it. His face seemed emotionless, expressionless.
“Accept your death,” the blond Wood Elf said to her, “Pesci, you can do the honors.”
The woman’s eyelids felt heavy, and soon, she breathed no more. As for Gaston, the green-haired Imperial slowly approached him, cutlass in hand. He watched as the Breton chest slowly rose up and down. He was furious, not ready to leave this world. The cutlass hovered over his chest, ready to pierce, but Pesci’s hands were getting shaky.
“Come on, do it! Why are you trembling?” Gelato commented. “I know you felt something when you stabbed that one pirate. I could tell from the look in your eye. Do it, boy!”
A loud knock interrupted them. “Captain Gaston, are you alright? We heard a noise. Captain Gaston? We’ll open the door in just a second.”
“Hurry!” Sorbet whispered. “The two of us unlocked the back door. We’ll jump into the water.”
Pesci plunged his cutlass into his chest. Just as that happened, the pirates kicked the door open.
“Assassins!” one of the pirates shouted.
“Run!” Gelato yelled.
They hopped out of the ship’s balcony and into the lake’s cold water. “Keep swimming in case one of them decides to chase us down!” Sorbet yelled. Once they were on land, they had a chat.
“Thanks for the help, you two,” Pesci said.
“We heard your conversation with Illuso,” Gelato said. “I just had to help. Sorbet said we shouldn’t.”
Sorbet sat down on a rock and sighed. “Well, it was on the way. I have to go to Skingrad. By the way, did you feel like someone was following you on the road?”
Pesci shook his head.
“Well, we were shadowing you. Anyways, Gelato, make sure Pesci returns to Cheydinhal unharmed.”
“What?” the blond Wood Elf cried out. “I thought I was coming with you.”
Sorbet stood up and walked towards his lover, grabbing his chin and pulling him closer to his lips. “And what would happen if we get caught? Go with Pesci and take a nap.” He kissed him then walked away from them.
Gelato blushed. “Wait, what if Illuso smells me? He’ll know that we helped him.”
“Pretty sure he just does that to scare us into doing the job.”
“Illuso sniffed out three people I killed,” Pesci added. “He’ll know.”
---
For years, Vicente Valtieri had been this sanctuary’s Executioner. Long before Prosciutto was born, he was the only Executioner, and he saw many members come and go, as in die. And then he lived for a long time and retired, but still gave orders after someone became Executioner. Now, Vicente was a Speaker, looking for a Silencer. He approached Illuso’s room, which was once his room. He gave the heavy metal door a slight push, making them open slowly. Illuso sat at the round table, reading a book. He placed it down once he saw Vicente.
“I thought I smelled someone familiar,” Illuso said, smiling.
“Yes, I– Wait, you can smell me?” Vicente replied.
Illuso laughed. He got up from his seat and poured Vicente a glass of blood. “No, I actually can’t. But it’s so funny to make everyone think you have heightened senses. I did it to this one recruit. It’s quite a funny story. When Pesci was resting at an inn on the road, I–”
“I didn’t come here for stories,” Vicente interrupted. “You have a contract.”
The older vampire took the glass of blood and drank from it anyways.
“Once the sun goes down, I’ll be on my way.”
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