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The sun had not yet risen and Sarith already had the feeling that something terrible had happened.
As she crawled down the ladder into the Ragged Flagon she could hear the frantic din of conversation. There was a foreboding sense of terror, and as she hurried down the tunnel she picked up snippets of horrified voices.

"You were supposed to be keeping watch. How in Oblivion did you let this happen?!"

"I hear a noise in the practice room, I go to investigate, I swear I wasn't gone for a minute, but I come back and the poor bloke's strung up like--"

Silence fell when Sarith entered the wide, circular chamber of the cistern.
Drip. Drip. Drip.

The sound echoed across the walls, making her hair stand on end.

There... hanging from the ceiling... Sarith had seen many gruesome things, but she could feel the bile rising up her throat.

A young Breton, barely in his teens from the looks of it. Nothing more than a footpad who got himself into all kinds of scrapes...

Sarith couldn't even remember his name.

Her mouth went dry and she was at a loss for words. She forced herself to stare at him. His arms and legs had been cut off, the bloody stumps still dripping. He was completely naked, and her eyes went straight to the bloody message carved into his torso.

Sarith froze.

The lettering was in Daedric.

SHADOWS WILL NOT HIDE YOU. THE SPIDER HAS YOU IN ITS WEB.

The message was meant for her alone. Whoever did this knew that she was illiterate in the common tongue. Someone close...? Someone with the guild? But who.... and why? Spiders... webs... Could it be they were referring to Mephala?

"That writing... what does it mean?"
Sarith's train of thought was interrupted by the tugging on her sleeve.

"It means 'someone cut this poor kid down already,'" she snapped.
Daedra... it had to be Daedra... at least she had been lucky enough to strike a deal to get her family safely to Blacklight... all it had cost was her soul. She had to get to the Twilight Sepulcher, and fast... she was not going to be happy about this at all.

The small group already gathered turned to her as if looking for guidance.

She swallowed, mustering a few words.

"I will find who did this. And they will pay. I promise. Annika, I want you to grill Vekel and Tonilia for all the names of everyone who came to the bar yesterday. Dirge, go to beggar's row, ask specifically about Daedric cults. And does... " she took a deep breath, her voice becoming softer. "Does anyone know if this kid had any relatives?"

Again, silence save for the drip drip drip of blood falling onto the stone platform below.

After a few seconds, one hand slowly rose.

"He doesn't have any. He ran away from the orphanage when he turned thirteen."

"Constance might want to know what happened to him... spare her the details, she has a soft heart... just see that his remains are dealt with. I'll be back by tonight, so you all better have some information for me by then."

"Will you be alright on your own, guild-master?"

Sarith glared as if the question were preposterous. Though they might have had a point... from the looks of it, someone wanted her dead... but this was something much bigger, and it wasn't just about her. The entire guild was in danger if this was the work of who she thought it was...

"Don't be ridiculous. I can handle myself. I don't need anyone to slow me down," she said curtly, rushing out before anyone else could try and stop her.

The Sepulcher... she had to get to the Sepulcher... and she couldn't risk anyone else finding out about that.

Riften - The Ragged Flagon

Rydian walked into the flagon through the ratway entrance and spied a large crowd gathered at the far end.The thieves guild had gotten a lot more populous since Sarith had taken over and their numbers had grown somewhat. He walked over and cleared his throat, loudly. Being the second in command meant people paid attention, and quickly too. The crowd turned to him, fear etched on their faces.
"What's going on here then?"
"B..boss we found the poor b*****d like this.....Sarith ran off looking like she was gonna murder someone herself..."
Rydian looked at the "poor b*****d" in question. He'd seen worse in the war but the message was a surprise. He didn't know much Daedric but he recognized the word Shadows and something about a Spider.
"I assume she gave you all orders then?"
There was some nodding and a few verbal assents.
"In that case what are you standing around, gawking like a bunch of children, for? Get to it."
Sarith hadn't given him much to do and he wasn't sure where she'd gone, though he had an idea, so he walked to the table, sat down, and waited for a flagon of ale to appear. This was going to be bad for business....

The anvil sung out as his hammer struck the the metal, his ears were ringing and his muscles were burning seemingly as hot at the coals. He had not even heard Eorlund Gray-Mane approach until the mans gnarled hand was upon his shoulder, "Lad you've been at this long enough, go and get some rest." Tolvar looked up at the elder smith and then looked out over the cities walls. "Perhaps you are right, I have been working non-stop for too long. I just might need to take up a contract, after a good meal and some rest." the nord handed his hammer to the elder man and picked up his sword and started to descend the staircase towards Jorrvaskr.

The Rift - Shadow Stone

From her vantage point perched atop the cliffs overlooking Riften, Sarith watched Rydian make his way up the hill. She was dressed in the shadowy hooded armor gifted to her by Nocturnal, though she hoped it wasn't going to be a shock to Rydian. Could she trust him? Someone in the guild had betrayed them, Sarith was sure of it. Which meant there was no use keeping something so huge from her trusted friend and second-in-command if the secret was already out. She needed his help.
When he approached the stone, she spoke, her smirk hidden by the invisiblity spell though the tone in her voice made it apparent.
"You can keep a secret, can't you, Stormheart?"
She appeared right in front of him and lowered her dark hood.
"Did I ever get drunk enough to tell you the story of how I joined the Thieves Guild?" she asked, placing her finger on her lower lip as she tried to recall. "More importantly, were you drunk enough to believe me?"

The Rift - Shadow Stone

Sarith turned her head to look at the stone formation. Who had carved these ancient stones...? It felt as if they had been here since the beginning of time.
"I suppose it doesn't matter anymore. It was a long time ago, long before I met you."
She ran her finger absentmindedly down the groove of the constellation carved into the stone. "You've heard of the Nightingales, yes? The stories we tell to keep the young footpads in line. Stories that tell they are only seen if they want to be seen, and can cloud your mind with shadows and warp you to their will... they say that they take orders from a Daedric prince, or that they are Daedra themselves... but I'm sure you know the... mostly exaggerated tales. The Thieves Guild has a deal with Nocturnal that goes back to its foundation. You ever wonder why we've been so incredibly lucky the past couple years? A window happens to be open right when you need to make an escape, or the guard turns his head or changes his patrol just when he's about to catch you? You ever wonder why most of us never get pinched, or when one of us does we get the rusty lock and sleeping jailor? Why do you think the Guild has prospered so much in the past year? As much as I'd like to tell you it's because of the change in leadership, that's simply not true..."
She knew she must sound like a madwoman, but no one could deny how ridiculously lucky they were sometimes. She turned now to face him once more, pausing and holding up a hand as she heard a rustling in the bushes.
A fox jumped out of the bush with a bloodied rabbit in its mouth. Sarith smiled and relaxed slightly.
"This 'fancy getup' was given to me by Nocturnal herself. We are here because I must commune with her, but I cannot allow anyone else to find this place. I suspect the murder is from a rival Daedra targeting the guild to anger Nocturnal, but I must speak with her before I take action. I... I guess this all sounds crazy, and it is. But can you help me?"
There once were three, but one was now dead and the other had to guard the Sepulcher until the end of her days... Sarith was glad she was at least allowed to move freely. Eternal servitude wasn't so bad... at least not until she made it to the afterlife.

The Rift - Shadow Stone, outside Nightingale Hall

Sarith was pleased, though she wasn't going to let it show on her face.
"You could take the Oath too if you wanted... but I doubt you're as foolhardy as me to sell your soul to a Daedra."
She made a cursory glance of the area for about the tenth time and walked a few paces down the hill, turning back to face him with a smirk.
"As for Falkreath... if I had known she was a werewolf, I never would have asked you to distract her! You can thank Nocturnal for getting out of that mess, though if I recall correctly you weren't exactly shying away from an excuse to flirt with her!"
With a laugh Sarith turned back towards the cliff face. She placed her hand on the large stone with Nocturnal's emblem carved into it, and the stone cliffs parted open for her. It was of course an illusion, but Sarith wouldn't be able to close it while she was inside. As she slipped inside, a shadow seemed to reveal itself for just a moment, following her...

// you get to attack first, since Thief gets the Backstab bonus!!

//rolling first... i'm so sorry if I crap on you I can't tell if mage is overpowered or not... actually whoops I rolled the wrong dice I'll roll again.