17 2.6

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As we ran into the keep, I quickly understood what the challenge for this side mission was.

We first ran through a long corridor, before ending up in front of a circular room. And in said circular room, was the corpse of a Stormcloak. Unlike the game, however, his killers were still here, as three Imperials surrounded the corpse, cleaning the blood off their swords.

"Die, Imperial scum!"

Not a man for plans, Ralof raised his axe high as he charged at the three Imperials. I followed closely after him, taking the one on the right.

The Imperial was in light armor this time, yet he was still slower than the Captain I killed. I charged him like a bulldozer, and I saw the fear in his eyes as he swung his sword at me.

Easily parrying his strike with my own sword, I arrived in front of him, and knocked into him.

Because of the height difference, my shoulder crashed into his face, and I used my arm to further propel him, properly sending him flying into the stone wall behind him.

[Imperial Soldier killed. Rewarded 100 Points.]

His body made a sickening crunch as he slammed into the wall, blood splattering behind him as his unprotected head slammed into the wall first.

I know it's cooler to go without a helmet, but there's a reason it exists!

Turning to the other two, one was backing me as he fought against Ralof, while the other looked at me in fear. Still, he managed to raise his sword, about to strike me.

[Imperial Soldier killed. Rewarded 100 Points.]

He never got to swing down that sword though, as mine went through his head before he could move.

Swiping my sword to the side, I flicked his corpse off my sword, while Ralof finished his own Imperial with a clean decapitation.

Was the Dark Side of the Force making me insensitive to these deaths, or was I deranged from the start? Meh, who cares.

Neither of us bothering to clean our sword as we would certainly find other Imperials deeper in, Ralof muttered a prayer for his fallen comrade, before grabbing his axe, switching to a twin axe style.

As for me, I also picked another Imperial Sword, and now had one in each hand. I didn't really know how to use the sword, but I wasn't a useless moron either. I had already been to several fights to the death, and the Super Soldier Physique was allowing me to learn on the go.

So I did not take the second sword because I knew better how to fight with two, but simply because it felt better.

I didn't follow any sword style, and instead tried to kill my enemies by following my instincts. And my instincts told me that two swords were better than one.

And if the second one ended up being a bother, I could just throw it away.

After sending a quick prayer for his fellow Stormcloak, Ralof stood back up, with both axes, and pointed at my chest as he asked, "Do you want to take one of their armors?"

I looked down at my bare chest, and shook my head, "No, this place could fall on our head at any moment, so we better run."

Ralof nodded, and tried to open the door leading deeper into the dungeons, but failed to do so.

"Curses! It's locked!"

I had understood what my challenge was by now. Whoever the player chose in the game, they would face the opposing faction within the dungeon.

But this wasn't a game that was gradually procedural anymore. Instead, the Dragonborn made a choice, and it seemed that unlike the game, he was not going to face the opposing faction.

Instead, we were the ones facing the Imperials. Had I chosen to go with the rest of the group, I would have probably found Ralof's body here, or somewhere deeper, and faced absolutely no resistance as I escaped through the cave.

But I hadn't, so if I wanted to leave this place, then I would have to cleave my way through it.

If we followed the game, with the door locked, we would have to wait for Imperials to come, kill them, and get the key from them. In this world, I didn't know whether they would come, or Hadvar would arrive first. Or maybe the key was on one of the corpses.

I used the other option.

The door was made of metal, but the hinges were not so strong as I managed to kick the door off its hinges. Super Soldier Physique for the win!

Ralof looked at me with wide eyes for a moment, before laughing, "Once we get out of here, you must join the rebellion!"

I smiled, half expecting a quest prompt at this point, and walked to the other side.

There, two more Imperials were coming for us, probably having heard the commotion as they were running up the steps to get to us.

Not willing to let go of even 100 Points, I jumped at them, swinging my swords so fast they didn't get to react as I severed both of their heads.

[Imperial Soldier killed. Rewarded 100 Points.]

The Super Soldier Physique did not just grant me incredible strength, speed, and overall stats. It also made me ambidextrous, and gave me near perfect balance.

And while using two swords, the biggest issue is to be able to use both with the same efficiency, while not weakening each other. Being ambidextrous mostly solved that issue for me.

I used to be right handed, but now I felt no awkwardness from my left hand as I controlled both perfectly.

Landing at the bottom of the stairs, I flicked the excess blood from the swords, and heard Ralof laugh, "By the gods, you must have been blessed by Shor! Leave some for me!"

Not willing to give away any unnecessary Points, but also not wanting to look like a complete psycho, I grinned at him and said, "Let's see if you can be fast enough!"

Ralof laughed at the challenge, and started running, and so did I.

But as we reached the next junction, I had a feeling of deja-vu as I stared down the corridor, with doors on the left side. Then, I remembered. This part would crumble in front of the player when they arrived in front of it.

This was good, as it meant we were fast enough, and if we continued at this pace, we would reach the cave before the way to it crumbled down.

Although the Dragonborn and the group with him were nowhere in sight, I preferred not to take any risks as I increased my speed, overtaking Ralof as I slammed into the wooden door to the side, landing myself in the reserve.

There, two officers in heavy armor were pillaging the potions, while three soldiers stood in the back.

They froze with my dynamic entrance, and we stared at each other, before I roared in laughter, "Here you are!"

This was both to express my happiness, and to lead Ralof here.

And sure enough, he followed me in, both axes raised as he roared.

Following him with speed, Ralof engaged the first Imperial, while I quickly sneaked past them, arriving in front of the two in heavy armor.

I swung both of my swords at them, and to their credit, they managed to block with their own weapons. However, despite me striking with both arms at the same time, I was still stronger than them, and forced them to take a step back.

In exchange, however, I felt a sword cut into my side. I managed to minimize the damage by reacting with lightning fast speed, rotating along the sense of the strike as only flesh was cut.

It wasn't disabling, but it was really fucking painful.

I turned to look at the Imperial, my eyes full of killing intent, and pounced on him, impaling him with both swords.

[Imperial Soldier killed. Rewarded 100 Points.]

Another swift strike, and his friend followed him.

Then, I turned to the remaining two, who had recovered from the earlier strikes, and rushed at them, my swords raised high.

Expecting another strike, they both raised their weapons in response, expecting an overhead slash, their eyes stuck on my blades.

However, I moved even faster, and dropping my sword as I was about to swing them down, I crouched, and tackled them both.

Taken by surprise, I easily lifted the two grown men off of their feet, and slammed them hard into the wall behind them, completely crushing the barrels in between.

They did not die from the impact, as they had the decency to wear helmets, but they were completely out of breath and out of fighting condition as they slid down the wall.

[Imperial Officer killed. Rewarded 150 Points.]

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