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The Great Welkynd Stone in Baurus pack wasn't heavy enough to make him slow his steps. That was caused by the raised voices he could hear around the corner. They weren't loud—neither Martin nor Jauffre were the type to shout—but it was notable given their lack of prior disagreement.
Baurus's Blade traning kicked in. When heading into a conflict, information is the most valuable tool. He wouldn't deliberately eavesdrop—that would be foolish, as someone had no doubt already signalled to Jauffre that he had returned—but he did slow to a walk.
"—only chance," That was Martin.
"But the risk!" And that was Jauffre.
That sounded like a situation with the potential to be worse than Miscarand. But, duty must.
Baurus knocked on the door. The voices quieted, and then Jauffre told Baurus to enter.
Baurus opened the wooden door and then paused, spellbound.
Before now, he'd only ever seen Martin wearing his priest robes. He'd sometimes imagined Martin wearing less in dreams that made him feel guilty the next morning, but he'd never considered the possibility of wanting to see Martin wearing more.
This was Martin in the Emperor's armor. Baurus had never seen Uriel wearing it—never seen anyone wearing it, for that matter. He'd always thought that ceremonial armor was ostentatious, but Martin made that armor look good.
"Your report," prodded Jauffre drily.
Baurus did his best not to blush. "Emperor. Grandmaster. I have retrieved the Great Welkynd Stone from Miscarand."
He pulled it out of his bag and handed it to Martin.
"Thank you, Baurus," Martin said. Baurus tried not to blush again as Martin's gauntlets brushed his. "Now, the last component of the ritual is a Great Sigil Stone. These are used to anchor Great Gates, like the one that opened to destroy Kvatch."
Baurus was beginning to get an idea of what the argument had been about. "Is there any other way to find one? I can try exploring through a regular Gate—maybe search for a Sigil Keep elsewhere?"
Jauffre shook his head. "I've tried sending scouts with heat resistance and water walking enchantments ever since those gates opened. The ones who returned reported that no amount of fire resistance could prevent their enchantments from degrading in the fire. Even assuming that the Deadlands have a consistent geography, we don't have a way to explore it." Jauffre turned to Martin. "But that doesn't mean we have to provoke them to open one here."
Oh. No wonder Jauffre was upset. Still….
"Do we have a choice?" Baurus aruged. "We need that Great Sigil Stone to find the Amulet of Kings." Baurus saw Jauffre getting ready to argue. "And this is the most well-defended area we have. We've already recruited extra help for Bruma from one of the other towns. If we try to get the Great Gate opened anywhere else, we'll need to move everyone."
"I suppose we don't have any better options." Jauffre sighed. "Fine. But we need to wait at least three days. It'll take at least that long to integrate the other guards into a fighting force that can reassure Countess Carvain." He stared grimly at both Baurus and Martin. "You have that long to prepare yourselves for battle. Baurus, no other duties at this time. Yyou've been running all over Cyrodil, and we need you at your best for the coming battle. Emperor," Jauffre paused, "please actually get some sleep during the next three days. If you insist on being bait, then we need you to stay alive."
And he walked out, leaving Martin and Baurus alone. Damn it. How was Baurus supposed to act normal around Martin when he was dressed like that?
"Thank you for finding the Great Welkynd Stone," Martin said.
"Not a problem," said Baurus. He nodded to the armor. "That's new."
Martin laughed. Baurus thought he felt an edge of something—uncertainty, maybe?—before Martin continued. "I feel like such a fraud wearing this."
"You look amazing," Baurus said, before his brain caught up to his mouth. "I mean—"
Martin laughed much more genuinely this time. "Thank you, Baurus," he said before shaking his head. "I'm going to need to inspire the Countess and whomever you've been able to recruit, so I'm glad I don't look like an imposter. But that doesn't mean I feel comfortable in this."
"Is it about wearing armor, or about wearing this specific set?" Baurus asked. "I can tell you have some experience since you didn't fumble the Great Welkynd Stone." Baurus could remember from his own training how difficult it was to learn to move with gauntlets.
"Both, I think," said Martin. "I last wore armor many years ago, during a time I'd rather not recall. Then again, Bound Armor probably woudn't be the right image, anyway."
Bound Armor would make sense given Martin's knowledge of Daedric lore. Baurus would have liked to know more about Martin's past, but he didn't want to pry. ANd he thought he could offer something to help distract.
"I could give you some tips, if you want?" Baurus offered. "I'm not a trainer, but I've picked up a few things during my years with the Blades."
Martin smiled. Baurus was going to work extra-hard not to blush now. "Thank you! I'd appreciate learning more before I have to wear it in battle." He paused. "And… maybe you can help me make new memories with this. Something to help me enjoy armor again."
Baurus was a professional. He wasn't going to read into that invitation, no matter how hard he hoped.
But then, Martin took Baurus's armord hand in his own. "Or someone." No one should be able to smoulder like that. It was unfair. (It was definitely not all of his dreams come to life.)
Martin paused. "Unless I've misunderstood things…"
"No. You haven't" Baurus stammared out. "You definitely haven't"
They had three days to prepare. Baurus had just been given permission to flirt for three days. He was going to make the most of them.