Unwelcome Homecoming V

"You see, I want to be an adventurer like you! But my father says I can't. He says that he needs me to stay here and work the farm and that even if he did let me be an adventurer, we still couldn't afford to buy any armor. My father's name is Mralki, and he's the innkeeper here. I was hoping you can try and change his mind."

"Ha! Still the same ol' Erik, wanting to race off towards adventure." Lokir says with a nostalgic chuckle.

"I'm sorry, Stranger. I don't think we've meet, have you traveled through our little village before?" Erik asks, still trying to place Lokir's face.

"I know it's been a few years, but to think you'd forget your best friend?" Lokir asks with mock pain.

"No... Lokir?! What are you doing here?! You were banished after what happened! Quick, you must leave before Lemkil catches word of your return!" Erik exclaims before fear overtakes him and he tries to warn Lokir out of the village.

"I'm sorry, Erik. But I'm not running away again. I've come to pay my debt and make amends." Lokir says with resolute determination before asking, "Is my father still in his house or has the old bastard finally kicked the bucket?"

"He... He's still around... But... What happened to you? You're... Different?" Erik asks, starting to question if this is the Lokir he knows.

"I saw the path my choices had lead me down... And with the help of a friend, I choose a different path." Lokir says before turning away coolly and towards... Rorik's house? Hold on... Is he Rorik's son?!

I follow him towards the manor on the northern side of the town, it is easily the most impressive structure in the village, but that isn't saying much.

Once at the door, Lokir stops as he stares at the handle, seeming to shake, causing his armor to slightly clink together.

I place my hand on his shoulder to reassure him, making him look at me with a grateful smile before raising his hand to firmly knock on the door.

I hear a faint grumbling before the door is thrown open and an elderly man shouts, "Who in Oblivion is interrupting my lunch?!"

Lokir looks at Rorik with a myriad of mixed emotions before he steadies himself and looks at his father with steely resolve and declares, "Your son."

"I have no son, just a disowned piece of bandit scum that was told to never come back here. So obviously you can't be him, because even he is not stupid enough to come back here after what he did." Rorik says with obvious disgust before starting to slam the door in our faces.

Lokir forcibly holds the door open before explaining, "I've come to make amends, you old bastard! Whether you like it or not, I have changed, I believe for the better. And I've seriously thought about what I've been doing and how I've lived my life over the last few years and I didn't like it... So, I've come back to pay my debts and to apologize. I know it won't fix what I've done... But I need to do it, to prove to myself how much I've changed."

This leaves Rorik quiet as he stares at the honorable man before him, a far cry from the cowardly boy he banished all those years ago.

Lokir pulls out a substantial bag of coins, easily capable of holding thousands of septims, and hands it to Rorik.

"Here, this should cover the lost crops... And the loss of life... I've also added interest. Every septim I've made since I've turned my life around." Lokir says with a pained look before letting go of the door and turning to leave.

"I..." Rorik starts to say but he can't seem to find the words as he watches his son leave towards the tavern.

After a few moments standing there, he finally turns to me.

"And who are you? What's your relationship with my son? Is what he's said true, has he truly turned his life around?" Rorik asks me with tentative and conflicted hope across his face.

"Well... I am the Commander of the Dragons Maw Mercenary Company, and Lokir is my trusted right hand. We survived a harrowing ordeal with the dragon that attacked Helgan and since then Lokir has become a changed man. He's worked hard to become better than the petty thief that he was. And I've even taken him as my sworn brother though not through blood, but through battle. He asked me to come with him today to confirm to you and others that he's a changed man. But if what he's just done is not enough to prove it. I don't think there's anything I could say that can change your mind." I tell Rorik who stares intently at me for several moments before sighing.

"I had hoped my son would experience something similar to this, but I feared that he'd most likely die a nameless thief. It's beyond my wildest dreams that my son could change so much that he even sought me out to make amends..." Rorik comments in shock at Lokir's drastic change in character.

"Do you mind telling me some of the exploits of your company, I myself was a soldier back in the legion... Oh, and can you tell me my son's role in your company aside from being a trusted subordinate? What has he done personally?" Rorik asks with an almost giddy expression, which is strange for a man so old.

"I'd be happy to share our exploits, mind if we come in?" I ask motioning towards the still-open door.

"Of course, of course." Rorik says, inviting us in as I spend the next half hour or so giving him the highlights of our grand adventure.

From Helgan to here, and every battle in between, I narrate our journey and the vital leadership role Lokir has taken within the company. I was just getting through the routing of the Heroes of Nirn from Jonestead when a loud disturbance is heard from the village and we quickly exit Rorik's manor to find out what it was.