Bab 649: Dear Dear Cicero
Is it Eid? Is it Holiday? No! But it is another 2n1 Chapter! My hands hurt. I should divide those chapters into two from now on.
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(Part 1)
While the situation was unfolding in Solitude, Whiterun was having its troubles going on and the one who was in the spotlight was Jon's sworn brother, Wulfur.
Wulfur has joined the Companions and moved to Breezehome manor in Whiterun to keep an eye on things. In the notes that Jon gave him, there were many secrets and future events that made Wulfur not know how to think about it all.
Jon said that Wulfur can either save Kodlak White-Mane from an assassination attempt launched by the Silver Hand werewolf hunters or leave Kodlak to die which will open the door for him to be the Harbinger of the Companions.
The problem was that this attack will happen when Wulfur leaves to slay the Glenmoril Witches per Kodlak's request and Jon doesn't know how to stop it from happening unless Wulfur convinces some of the Companions to protect Kodlak personally.
For that, Wulfur could only turn to Aela the Huntress but her reaction wasn't anything special since she didn't imagine that some bandits like the Silver Hand would find it easy to break into Whiterun and make trouble with the entire body of the Companions.
It took Wulfur 4 days to travel to where the Glenmoril Witches were, kill them all, and return to Whiterun. The whole process was done at the fastest speed he could achieve but just as Jon foretold, the Companions were attacked and Kodlak White-Mane was killed.
Wulfur wasn't the kind to get attached to many people but Kodlak was a good old man whose honor was known across Skyrim. Seeing the old man stabbed and torn with the red of his blood mixing with the white of his hair made Wulfur silent and sad.
"Kodlak… I am… sorry."
Aela was the one to first get on her knees and cry over Kodlak's body. Farkas and Vilkas were in grief and Skjor swore vengeance and headed off.
"Let us move the old man somewhere else." Wulfur asked Aela who nodded and started going behind Kodlak's head to hold him from his shoulders.
"You don't need to. Farkas and I will…" Vilkas wanted to carry Kodlak instead of Aela since she was overcome with emotions but she shook him off her shoulder with a violent jolt and waited for Farkas to carry Kodlak in front of her.
Vilkas made sure that Aela and Farkas put Kodlak's body on the biggest table and rested his axe in his hand. Meanwhile, Wulfur approached Vilkas.
"I've brought the heads of the witches Kodlak wanted." Wulfur said.
"That should wait. This ritual must be done later." Vilkas said.
"The more we wait, the longer his soul stays in the Hunting Grounds of Hircine. That's not what he wanted." Wulfur said.
"Then you know how this ritual is done?" Vilkas asked.
"I do." Wulfur nodded.
"I see…" Vilkas nodded.
"We can't bury him before getting vengeance." Aela said, "Wulfur, you will come with me."
Wulfur looked closely at Aela as she walked away fuming with vengeance. He turned to Vilkas and asked.
"Where is Skjor?"
"I don't know. He just left and nobody could stop him." Vilkas replied.
"This is bad." Wulfur didn't feel good about this situation.
Originally, Skjor was supposed to die in the fight with the Silver Hand earlier than Kodlak but because Wulfur refused to turn into a Werewolf like the rest of the members of the Companion's Inner Circle, this situation wasn't triggered.
Wulfur headed out immediately and looked for Aela. When he found her, she was already readying her sword.
"Where is Skjor?" Wulfur asked her.
"We're going after him." Aela replied, "He heard of a location where the Silver Hands are hiding and he's out for blood."
"What location?"
"Gallows Rock. A man there called Krev the Skinner is an old-time enemy of our kind… Skjor wants his head."
"Shit. Let's go."
Wulfur and Aela headed out to Gallows Rock where Skjor should be. From the notes Jon left, this location is where Skjor may die.
***
Jon and Serana traveled together through the woods of Falkreath for the first time in a few months. Jon was cloaked and hooded like the creepiest person on Nirn and Serana's eyes were glowing in the dark like the second creepiest person on Nirn.
"Hmmm…"
"What?"
"I just had a word with my brother. Things seemed to have diverted from the original plan… again." Jon said.
Serana looked at him and wondered how many plots can one man keep running all at the same time.
"Can you give me some advice?" Serana asked.
"What?" Jon paid attention to her sudden question.
"The way you do things… how often do things go wrong?"
"Well… all the time. HA!" Jon couldn't help but let out a burst of strong laughter.
Serana never expected this answer at all since in her eyes, Jon was always the meticulous mastermind and the resourceful guy who knows his way around every problem.
"So, what do you intend to do with the Dark Brotherhood?" Serana asked.
Jon looked around the wood of Falkreath before deciding to reply.
"Astrid is hungry for power. She will try to get rid of you who she thinks is the Listener so she can remain in control of the Sanctuary. Her little scheme is futile though since I am the real Listener." Jon said very proudly.
Serana narrowed her eyes before shrugging her shoulders, saying "Whatever!", and following him along the woods.
"But the Assassins still won't listen to you. They don't know who you are and they have no intention to trust a stranger over Astrid." Serana said.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that if I were you." Jon said, "Back in the day, the Dark Brotherhood used to have a lot of traitors. Some caused great damage to the order that they needed to perform a Purification on whole sanctuaries sometimes"
"Purification? Like purging them all?" Serana asked.
"Exactly. If the Black Hand suspects one traitor to be hiding within a certain sanctuary and they pose a great danger to the entire Order, purging the bad stock would be better than infecting the whole field." Jon replied.
"But there are no fields anymore and all the stock is in one barn. You burn it and you have nothing left." Serana said.
"How so?" Jon smiled, "I have you."
"You know I don't intend to be your Listener Substitute forever. I need to get my business done on my own." Serana said.
"Well… in that case, we have him too." Jon said nonchalantly.
"Him?" Serana asked.
"Oh! Your senses are so dull."
Jon immediately moved his hand and broke a tree trunk.
*Squeak*
Once he pulled his hand out, a figure of a man came out of the trunk and flew over as Jon flung him across the woods.
Jon and Serana walked to the poor fellow who landed badly on his back and he saw the creepiest pair on Nirn looking down on him. In truth, his appearance can count him as the third creepiest person on Nirn.
"Hello, Cicero." Jon spoke in a sinister deep voice.
***
(Part 2)
"L- L- Listener… Lord Listener."
"Oh, yes, dear Cicero."
"Can you please… put me down?"
"Oh, poor poor Cicero… can I, though?" Jon wondered dramatically.
"Well of course, of course, you are… the Listenerrrrr." Cicero said cheesily.
"Hmmm… you truly can't keep a gentleman like myself in an entertained mood." Jon complained, "What use of you as a Jester if you can't hold your ground being hanged upside down?"
"The problem is… I am lacking any ground to hold at the moment, Listener."
"Don't get too smart with me, my dear." Jon flicked Cicero's forehead.
"Truth of the matter, dear Listener… Poor Cicero is not that good of a Jester… he can be a servant… he can be a fool… but never could he jiggle balls or stand on ropes."
"Heh! You can jiggle blades just fine." Jon laughed unintentionally, "Dear Cicero, no need to fear. I have only been testing you but it seems you are a true servant worthy of praise. Your devotion, your sense of duty, and your incredible care of our Mother all these years truly touched your little brother's heart."
"Truly? Oh, Listener… how… how… how wonderful! You witnessed… you knew… Cicero was all alone… all lonely… but there was Mother with me… and she never spoke… oh, Dear Mother, she must be lonely now… she must be waiting… Listener. Please, let me down so we can go and see her." Cicero spoke and whined.
"Of course… but you have to convince me first, Cicero. Convince me that I can put my trust in you, dear brother." Jon approached Cicero but the latter couldn't see Jon's face under the cover of Greed.
"I will… Cicero will prove himself to the Listener… all for our Sweet Mother… Brother." Cicero spoke and Serana rolled her eyes from drama poisoning.
"You please me, Cicero. You truly do." Jon said in obvious ecstasy, "Now tell me… how did you hold your urge in and didn't attack Astrid even though you know the rotten greed inside her?"
"What… What do you mean?" Cicero started to hesitate before answering.
"Oh, Cicero my dear, you are breaking my little fragile heart." Jon turned around and put his hand on his head in an artistic pose of melodrama.
Serana, who was sitting by the fire, watched the two mad men and couldn't help but be amused with the performance Jon gave so she started to pick up nuts and crack them with her fangs in harmony with the crackling firewood.
As for Cicero who was tied by a magic rope and hanging upside down from a tree, he was having very eerie vibes about Jon.
"Dear Cicero. Please be truthful… your answer means the world to me." Jon said and repeated his question very seriously this time, "You hate Astrid for the traitor she is and you could have taken many swings at her lately. Why didn't you? What stopped you?"
In Jon's mind, very important questions were running around.
First, Cicero the Mad Jester should have attacked Astrid before Serana would go after the Gourmet. This would lead Serana to hunt him down before going after the Gourmet. However, Cicero didn't act against Astrid even though she keeps undermining the authority of the Listener and the Night Mother all the time.
On the other hand, Wulfur reported to Jon that Kodlak White-Mane had died despite the warnings they tried to give the Companions. Moreover, Skjor of the Companions was supposed to die in the same quest when the player becomes a Werewolf and joins the Circle but as Wulfur didn't accept to be a Werewolf, Skjor didn't die. Still, once Kodlak was killed, Skjor headed off to the place he was supposed to die in order to avenge Kodlak and will probably end up dying.
Somehow, Jon hasn't figured out the formula of how to save people who were supposed to die in the game from dying.
In the case of Wulfur, he killed Sibbi Black-Briar and it worked.
In the case of King Torygg, he tried to warn him from facing Ulfric unprepared but Torygg died.
In the case of Vittoria Vici, he entered her life and tore her marriage apart before faking her death and it worked.
But that all depended on luck.
So is it Luck or Fate that decides things? Why does the Future feel like it is set in stone sometimes? And why doesn't it feel like that the other times?
"So Dear Cicero, why didn't you do it?" Jon asked.
"I… Cicero wanted to… Cicero always felt like doing so, O Listener… Astrid always hated Us… Cicero, that Vampire, the Listener… and our Mother." Cicero said, "But I knew there was something… Cicero knew… He can always tell… that the Vampire wasn't listening… The Listener must be favored by the Night Mother… but she didn't act that way… She felt like lying but told words that are true…" Cicero said before reciting the unholy words.
"Darkness Rises when Silence Dies." Both Jon and Cicero spoke the words.
"Yes… the words… You say them but you actually know what they are… but the Vampire didn't understand them… I was fooled like Astrid and the rest but I realized…"
"Realized what?"
"That the Listener is walking Among Us in shadows. That he sees us and we cannot see him and whispers words to his Speaker. That he knows everything." Cicero said, "The Night Mother may not speak to me but she shows me signs and those signs were many. I could hear them… walking… trotting… snoring… yawning… scratching… watching… and growling."
Jon and Serana narrowed their eyes and looked at each other before raising their indexes as if they realized what Cicero was talking about at the same time.
"Hissing and purring sometimes?" Serana asked.
"Yes… sometimes." Cicero confirmed.
"I think I know what he's talking about." Serana said.
"Right." Jon held his head as there was no use for Cicero anymore.
With a swift swing, Jon cut off the rope tying Cicero and let the jester fall down on his back.
Cicero landed with an expression of pain on his face but he hurried up and freed himself quickly.
"Listener… O Listenerrrrr… thank you… thank you dearly." Cicero said as he groveled to Jon's feet, "But what is it? What is it that Cicero felt? What is that he heard? I was always trying to Listen but the signs were never as clear as before."
"I can't believe it." Serana held her head.
"Is it… the Unholy Sweet Maiden… the Night Mother? Did Cicero hear her signs correctly at last…"
"It was a cat, you dumb moron!" Serana said, "He uses a Cat Familiar to infiltrate the Sanctuary. That's what you always have been hearing."
"A cat? Cicero heard a cat? The cat was the sign?"
"By Oblivion! You stupid?" Serana didn't take shit from Cicero and cussed at him.
A round of banter and madness started between Cicero and Serana while Jon sat alone thinking.
Cicero was led to believe by his wild imagination that there are signs of the Night Mother going in the sanctuary while it was just Nefertiti when he sent her out to communicate with Serana and spy on the Assassins.
Nefertiti usually values her privacy and doesn't seek attention but she is usually playful. However, once she sticks to the shadows, it is very difficult to spot her by someone who isn't trained in Shadow Magic which is a lost art.
On the other hand, Cicero is a complete nutjob, he spent years hiding in Dawnstar's sanctuary and talking to a corpse. While that would just be regular lunacy, he was always close to the influence of the Night Mother. His stealth and overall aptitude as an Assassin are top-notch without relying on anything magical. Jon himself is not that good at stealth without relying on Magic.
Dark Senses, Cicero has acquired something akin to that but that still doesn't mean anything to Jon. What he wanted to know is how Cicero diverted from the main storyline without major interference from Jon while the Companions didn't divert that much with Jon's direct interference through Wulfur.
Possibility? Future? Fate? Law of Causality?
"I can't figure it out." Jon said.
"Hm?" Serana and Cicero looked at him with questioning faces.
"Nothing." Jon said, "My Growth is stuck again and I think the answer lies somewhere around a certain topic. It is not a problem now but I'll need a long break later to organize my thoughts."
"Break?" Serana asked, "How long?"
"Not sure." Jon replied, "But for the time being, I'll act based on the things I know."
Jon cracked his fingers and chased the noisy thoughts away.
"Let's focus on Purifying the Dark Brotherhood for now." Jon said.
"Alright." Serana was happy to finally rid herself of those pesky assassins.
"O Listener… Cicero wishes to punish every last one of them. Please! Allow me to be your hands and feet." Cicero said.
"Fine. But how can you trust me, Cicero?" Jon asked.
"Listener… Cicero doesn't need to trust you, Cicero only needs to perform his duties as the Keeper. The Listener as well must keep to his duties. If any of us fail with that, trust will be the least of our problems." Cicero said in a menacing smile.
Jon sighed then turned to Serana.
"And you, I'll offer you an opportunity." Jon said.
"I'm listening." Serana replied.
"The Dark Brotherhood may be nothing now but it is a group that has a lot of power when managed properly. They may not be much compared to the Volkihar Clan but you will get many benefits if you have any personal agenda you need to be done." Jon offered.
"I prefer independence." Serana said, "And our Promise to stop my father didn't include that."
"True." Jon nodded, "But at the end of the day, you are a Daughter of Coldharbour. If Molag Bal decides to use his influence on you, you will be nothing but a plaything that he can track and control as he wishes."
Serana made a dejected face since bringing up Molag Bal's control over her was something she wasn't that much proud of.
"I mean… if your Father asks any of Molag's servants to capture you, it will only be a matter of time." Jon said, "But if you put yourself under the influence of another Patron."
"The Night Mother?"
"No, Sithis." Jon said, "Sithis never limited the freedom of anyone since his Chaos requires absolute freedom. On the other hand, his retirement plan is an eternity of Darkness compared to Molag's entirety of Servitude."
"I had my fair share of both Darkness and Servitude." Serana said.
"However, this time it will be on your terms." Jon added.
Following Sithis is much better than being subject to Molag Bal in Jon's opinion. However, Oblivion is one thing, Aetherius is another, and Sithis is a whole different subject.
Choosing between an afterlife of complete slumber within the domain of Sithis or choosing an afterlife of servitude as a subject of Molag Bal.
"Just to get away from Molag Bal, I will try this Path to Sithis for now." Serana decided to take the 7-day free trial option.
"Alright." Jon replied, "Now, to the most important subject. The reason why the Dark Brotherhood hasn't been functioning properly is there is no Black Hand."
"What are they exactly?" Serana asked.
"Oh dear… for you to not even know the basics." Cicero said, "Cicero will educate you, Vampire…"
"Just the ruling Council of the Dark Brotherhood." Jon said, "Consists of a Listener and Four Speakers who represent the Thumb and the other Four Fingers respectively. I, the Listener, am the Thumb. Serana, you can be the Index Finger. And, Cicero…"
"My Liege." Cicero bowed.
"You are the Keeper of the Night Mother but because there are many vacant spots in the Black Hand, you will be the Little Finger."
"By your orders. Cicero lives and dies for the Night Mother." Cicero seemed actually very happy with the promotion.
"As every finger has a claw, each of you can have one personal Assassin as your arms and legs. They will be your Silencer so pick them carefully and keep their identities to yourself and those you trust. I have my own Silencer decided." Jon said.
"I'll recruit someone I have been keeping my eyes on." Serana said.
"And Cicero will pick one after the Purification is complete." Cicero said.
"Great." Jon stood up and asked, "Serana, I believe that Astrid gave you a spellbook. Have you taken a look at it?"
"Yes." Serana handed over the book, "She said that this spell was one of the last things she could salvage from the last Brotherhood hideout. It summons a Spectral Assassin from the Void of Sithis. I summoned the guy but he creeped me out."
Jon opened the book, memorized the spell, then passed it to Cicero.
"Learn it."
"Yes, Listener. Cicero understands."
Jon kept muttering the words and skillfully cast the spell in a few minutes.
There was no void when this conjuration happened. It was as if the void itself was forming something from nothing.
A summon from outside the realms of known reality. Nurina would beat Jon up if he doesn't hand it to her for study.
But that wasn't the case for now. The summon which formed in front of the group was taking the form of a ghost yet with a very vivid look in his eyes and an outstanding ego in his behavior.
The ghost walked out with confidence towards the campfire where the three gathered.
"I live… Again!"
Jon smiled as he finally met a soul that goes back to the events 200 years ago. The man who guided the Champion of Cyrodiil when he was but a mortal assassin.
The Legendary Lucien Lachance.
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