Dragonborn from Lord of the Rings

The war was over, and Omuruha and Hashrasiu counted the bodies of their compatriots who died in the battle, and loaded them into carriages and transported them away.Omuruha was responsible for naming the dead, while a literate Okai (god of reincarnation) priest, Verulus, took down their names.

"Butis, Uncle Anton's son." After carrying the tenth corpse, the taller and stronger Omuruha was no longer sad.After the body is dead, he no longer feels anything unless the body is particularly heavy or light.

"Poor child, Anton will be very sad." Verulus said as he wrote down his name.

"Uncle Anton has other sons." Omuruha, who was covered in blood and the smell of corpses, piled the corpses on the carriage and tossed his long hair to one side, "I said Verulus, you are not from Okai. Believers? You should be happy for them, after all, these people have a chance to start over, right?"

The priest of Okai ignored his sarcasm. "What a bright future these children should have had..."

"Uncle Anton is also dead." Hashra Xiu, who is more slender and has a pair of big brown eyes and hair, said in a low voice. There was no expression other than numbness on his stiff face: "He will not be sad anymore. .”

Omuruha and Hashraxiu have lived in Markas since they were young. Omuruha’s parents are skilled silversmiths, and the silver crafts they create are one of the best-selling products in the Treasure Pavilion - Treasure Treasures. The Pavilion is one of the largest businesses of the Silver Blood Family and is famous for selling various high-priced luxury goods. Its flagship products are even popular in the imperial capital.Harshlash's parents were cashiers and freight workers in the trading company of Lovelay and his sons.Their two families can be regarded as relatively wealthy families in Markas.

At least it was before the war.

After the war began, Omuruha's parents were found dead on the way home.Their throats were cut, blood flowed all over the floor, and their belongings were looted.The guards later said they died during a robbery - something that was not unusual in Markas.Therefore, no one thought about revenge for poor Omuruha.So he became an orphan
Harshrashiu’s parents died on the night when the Forsworn first invaded the city—many people died that night, and Harshrashiu’s parents were just one of them.

Verulus opened his mouth, but could not say a word.Rather than being a priest, he is actually just the lowest monk.The high-ranking priest was killed by the Forsworn who happened to invade the city that day during a sermon in order to collect the corpses of the dead and give the living more courage to survive.

"Then," Omuruha paused and said expressionlessly: "May they reunite in the damn Songard!"

Obviously he is still only a half-grown child, but now he has to act like an adult, pretending to be a seasoned street gangster, saying profanity... rude words, as if this can make them appear more difficult to mess with. Verulus just felt that everything was so absurd.

The war between the Rich people in the Frontier Territory and the Empire was like a rainstorm, it came suddenly and went away quickly. It didn't even take more than a week for people to go from panic to death.However, like the rest of Tamriel, the people of Markarth have become numb to the chaos of the world and are no longer surprised.After all, death and war are just another example of Nirn's myriad chaos.

Even the lord and his father, the first lord, were killed in this chaos.

Ah, and the Chief Prophet.

That was the strongest Priest Dibella in the Frontier Territory.

But it is said that they were killed by assassins from the Dark Brotherhood assigned by some people on the eve of the war!It can be seen that in this turbulent era, any death is not surprising.

*****
On the main road connecting the city gate to the commercial district and the square, Rich and they were doing the same thing.They continued to tear down the debris that fell from the Zhudaqi Mountains that were shattered by Turka during the battle with the ancient red dragon. The fighting on this road was the most brutal. The war spread from the road to both sides, affecting the surrounding buildings and innocent people. citizens.

With serious expressions on their faces, the Reach separated the corpses of Imperial guards from those of the Forsworn, and piled them together.

Then both sides transported it away in horse-drawn carriages.

In the process, survivors were often found buried among the dead.

These savage tribes who believe in hunting demons and dark goddesses are different from the Markarths. Most of their wounded soldiers have been transported to temporary hospitals in the city - most of which are still intact hotels and luxurious residences of big businessmen.The dead were thrown into the wild and left to rot.Of course, some tribes will collect the corpses of those who died in battle and bury them.

But these are not what Omuruha and the others care about.What they are concerned about is that most of the Empire's side is contained in the Temple of Talos and the Hall of the Dead.Now that they have lost the protection of their parents, they must find a job to support themselves.Carrying corpses is just such a job.

Obviously the day before, the two sides were still fighting to the death, but now, the two sides are clearly different, but they have some kind of strange tacit understanding.

Omuruha looked at the Rich man on the other side of the road with hatred, "Bah!" He muttered: "One day! One day!"

As if aware of Omuruha's gaze, a Rechi man opposite, wearing a thick bearskin and a full set of leather armor, turned his head and stared at the surroundings fiercely.This man has a fluffy and dense black beard, a pair of cold and cruel eyes, a tall and thick stature, and he is not a good person at first glance. A bloody battle ax is leaning on the broken corner - maybe Hashrasi's parents died in his hands, Omuruha thought suddenly.

"Hey! Help me, I can't move this!" Harsh Rash's shout woke up his companions.Omuruha quickly shook his head, put aside some terrible thoughts, and moved on to the next corpse.Just in time to miss the patrolling gaze of the Forsaken.

"Who is this?" the priest asked softly, his face and blond hair covered with sweat and dust.

"I guess it's... Mance, uh... no, it's Degain, not Mance." Omuruha grunted and pulled the sword from the corpse's hand and picked it up, "I thought he wouldn't Use a sword."

"He won't," sighed the priest, "but the whole city is armed before the war begins."

Verulus carefully placed the wooden board with the wax plate and the pen on the carriage.The names of the casualties were written on the wax disks, which would later be transferred to parchment.This would normally have been done in the priest's study, but unfortunately the priest died and the job fell to him.And he wasn't even the priest's best student.This is one of the most troublesome things for Verulus.

The appointment and dismissal of a priest is decreed by the Pope of the Imperial City, but now he is stepping over the throne——

In addition, he was worried about whether so many bodies could be accommodated in the Hall of the Dead.

The Forsworn could not find the reason for the numbness in his back. He stared at Verulus and the others for a long time, and finally looked away.

Omuruha didn't notice it himself, he seemed relieved.

"Don't think about it -" Harshlash seemed to understand what he was thinking and whispered, "The only thing we can do now is to move these corpses to the cemetery. I don't want to drag it until dark!"

"But don't you want revenge?" The two had similar experiences, and Omuruha thought they would have something in common.

Hashraxiu stared at the Forsworn opposite with a complicated look that Omuruha could not understand, and muttered: "We are just children, and we are blessed by Shur to be alive——"

"Damn Shur!" Omuruha gritted his teeth and uttered blasphemous words, "If Songard really exists, I hope they all get drunk to death! Yes, that's it!"

But Harshrashiu and Verulus knew that the child was just grieving the death of his relatives and resenting the Rich people who caused this war. If it weren't for them, their parents might still be alive and well——

As if they heard Omuruha's words, the Rich people on the opposite side laughed rudely.The big man who was not easy to mess with before and his companions pointed at Omuruha and Hashraxiu, showing mocking smiles.Then he spat at Verulus, who was wearing a monk's uniform. Omuruha vaguely heard the words "Damn heretic——".

This aggravated the already bad relationship between the two parties, and several people glared across a street.

And in the buildings that were still standing on both sides of this street that had managed to escape the disaster, pairs of eyes filled with hatred were secretly observing, evaluating, and brewing through the blinds.

The Sheriff who heard the news stopped the farce.He dispersed the two sides and scolded everyone, reiterated the various laws issued by the Ragged King after the 'liberation of Markas', and warned that those who caused trouble would be thrown into prison - forced by the frontier fortress to attack the Hidana Mine Out of fear, everyone shuddered and closed their mouths.Omuruha spat at the magistrate who was walking away, wanting to say something, but in the end he remained silent.He and Harshrash grabbed the limbs of a fat corpse and threw him into the carriage. Verulus turned around and picked up the wax plate and pen on the carriage, and continued to write the long list of the dead.

The Rich people were similar to them. Occasionally, they would glare at each other, but they never had any conflicts.

Scenes like this can now be seen everywhere in Markarth.For some reason, both sides maintain a delicate balance.But it is foreseeable that this situation will not last long, and bloody conflict may break out again between the empire and the Reach people at any time because of some trivial matter.

*****
The carriage filled with corpses ran over the stone road that was soaked in blood and turned black, making an overwhelming rattling sound and taking away the hateful eyes of both parties.

The dead are gone, and those who survive still live.They cleaned the main roads in the city again, but the sky was still gray, and the continuous snowflakes soon covered the stone-paved streets with a light layer of snow.This caused the old and thin horse to snort strenuously and move forward step by step. Omuruha even worried that it would completely collapse before the body was transported, and then it would be his turn to pull the cart.

As a last resort, Omuruha could only guide the skinny horse, which was so old that he could almost be his father, to move forward with difficulty, while occasionally getting off the car to help push it along.

As for Harsh Rash, he followed the carriage the whole time and pushed it with difficulty.

The seemingly never-ending white snow in the sky soon covered the outline of the carriage, covering the body that had just been pulled out of the snowdrifts and ruins with a shroud.

Harshlash suddenly said, "Have you heard?"

"what?"

"People are saying-"

Omuruha turned back unhappily, "If you want to tell a story, hurry up, otherwise, work harder. These corpses are as heavy as rocks. I don't want to stay in a pile of dead people after dark."

The two friends habitually call the temple of Okai (that is, the Hall of the Dead) the pile of the dead, because most Nords hand over their bodies to the priests of Okai after death, which makes the cemetery in every city They were all filled with shriveled corpses.

Hashraxiu also thought of the countless shriveled or rotting corpses in the Hall of the Dead, and he shuddered for a moment, "There are rumors that there are people who can resurrect the dead! I don't mean those who summon skeletons. trick, but actually resurrecting a person.”

Omuruha curled his lips, "Verulus will be even happier when he hears what you say. He will tell you endlessly about how Okai is doing, and what you are doing -"

"you do not believe?"

Omuruha's already bad mood became even worse, and a surge of anger rushed into his heart. He understood what his companion meant when he said this to him, but - "No one can resurrect the dead! The chief prophet can't, old man Feier can't do it, and neither can any monsters or monsters..." He roared at his companions.

Harshlash was obviously startled, and he stood there at a loss.

His stupid look made Omuruha even more angry, and he said harshly: "Ah, you actually take the nonsense of drunkards and beggars seriously? The dead are resurrected, the dragonborn returns, the empire collapses, and the elves come back, Hear it, Harsh, hear it, which one do you think is more worthy of a bottle of mead? Ah, if you want, I can even talk about it all day long, and I’ll make sure it’s not repeated!”

After losing the guidance of the coachman, the old horse also stopped breathing heavily.

Looking at the majestic fortress not far away, and then at his angry companions, Hashrasiu was stunned, and then said in a calm tone that made Omuruha extremely uncomfortable: "Even if there is only one ten thousandth chance, Sex, Otto, wouldn’t you like to try it?”

What to try?The friend didn't say anything, but Omuruha seemed to understand what he meant.So Omuruha fell silent.His silence is not because he doesn't want to believe it, but because he is hesitant.

What if this rumor is really just a rumor?
Omuruha recalled those two familiar cheeks in his mind, but tears couldn't stop flowing down. "They will never come back again." He gritted his teeth and said, "Just like yesterday, you can never come back again!"

Hashrashu remained silent.The two allowed their grief to consume them, remembering in silence.

"Excuse me." A voice suddenly appeared, interrupting the conversation of the friends, and the two of them were almost stunned.

"Wha...who is it?" The two people who had just been talking so loudly were trembling and almost fainted - Shuer at the top and Okai at the bottom. The two of them prayed to all the known Holy Spirits to know about the carriage. There were piles of corpses in different forms of death.Omuruha was even dazzled to see the fat corpse in the car grinning at him.

"Feel sorry."

A figure stepped out of the shadows at the street corner, as if he had always been there.But Omuruha could swear that when he took a glance, there was no one there at all. "I didn't mean to scare you, I just-"

"stop!"

Although the wind and snow weakened a lot as the night receded and dawn came, it was still enough to cover the mountains in the distance.The earth was completely white, and even the muddy footprints made by the Ragged King entering Markas at night were covered with white snowflakes. There was not a single pedestrian on the road.Therefore, when the tall mysterious man in front of them, wearing a thick robe and hood, with his face hidden in the shadows, suddenly appeared, the two of them were immediately horrified and thought they had met a ghost.

"Are you a human or a ghost -"

The visitor's face hidden under the thick hood showed a smile. He stopped at a safe enough place away from the two of them, and then exhaled a breath of hot breath.When the hot air met the biting cold wind in the sky, it immediately turned into a mist and dissipated in the wind and snow. "As far as I know, ghosts can't breathe..."

This indeed reassured the two of them, but the stronger Omuruha still maintained a vigilant posture, as if he could break out at any time and hurt - or escape - the visitor. "Okay, I admit you did scare me." He said, "War makes everyone nervous. You shouldn't jump out suddenly. It's dangerous!"

Suddenly, the young man's eyes lit up, "Are you a mage?"

Qualanir smiled.Ah, yes, the person who mysteriously appeared here is the mage from Atayum Island who has been tracking Turka's whereabouts.The mage bowed politely, and then straightened up - only then did Omuruha and the others realize that the mage in front of them was extremely tall, half a head taller than most Nords. It is relatively rare for the elves. "I guess it's not hard to guess," Qualanir replied.

Looking at the obvious mage robe and hood of the man in front of them, the two friends nodded slowly.

"That's right." It seems that standing on the street chatting like this is not a wise move. After briefly expressing his attitude, Qualanier quickly explained: "I just heard you say, about Someone can resurrect the dead—"

Omuruha and Hashraxiu immediately took a step back warily, "Sir, I think you must have heard wrongly..." Hashraxiu even considered whether to shout for help.He hoped that those damn sheriffs were, as they said, keeping an eye on all the 'uneasy' factors in the city.

They really shouldn't accept this job. The two friends looked at each other. They are not Okai priests like Verulus. Dealing with the dead is not a good job!Look what trouble they got into!
As if aware of the resistance of the two, Qualanier changed his attitude again, "Maybe this is not a good place to talk," he said considerately: "If you are willing, you can come to the grazing trough in the old stable after work. Tavern, I will always be waiting for you there——"

"Don't refuse me yet," the mage raised a finger, a smile appeared on his sallow face, "a conversation, I just want a conversation, and the reward will never let you down."

Omuruha and Hashrasi looked at the mage's finger blankly, and nodded slowly, as if they were possessed by an evil spirit.