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The Elder Scrolls: Before the Great War

Do'Zabka

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Do’Zabka jogged down the Orange Road, smirking as he thought back to his training days; he never thought he would be running for his former commanding officer again, but the world had a weird way of bringing people back together. Though, he supposed, he was running for Confessor Elessenia moreso than him. She had seemed like a busy person when they met, and Do’Zabka took care to absorb the information quickly so she could get on her way. It seemed this “Hidden Militia” was a disparate group of people, and he had been sent to back them up on their mission. He questioned the collection and mix of people, but perhaps that’s what the Empire needed.
He stopped his jog and introspection when he heard the sounds of combat and magic up ahead, breaking into a manageable sprint across the paved road. He wasn’t sure what spells were being cast, but he hoped they were coming from his comrades. Do’Zabka pushed his pace as much as he would allow, getting closer and closer. Finally, he spotted a wagon with a large Khajiit in it and what seemed to be a mostly-finished battle going on a little ways ahead, with a lot of bandits laying on the ground.
Do’Zabka slowed his pace a bit, taking deep breaths. While he could probably leave it to his new friends, it never hurt to be safe; numbers counted, after all. As he passed the wagon, he stifled surprise at the realization of the person in it. The size of the Cathay-raht Khajiit, the vibrant orange coat, and the face pointed to only one person: Kiffar the Unbound. Having heard the rumors, no doubt diluted through word of mouth and what he assumed was a lot of exaggeration, he didn’t know the full situation of the Mane’s assassination and thus tried to reserve his judgement. At the very least, he thought, that tragedy didn’t fall solely on Kiffar’s shoulders.
“Warm sands, Kiffar,” Do’Zabka spoke a greeting in Ta’agra to the giant before heading off into the battle. An Altmer man stood nearby, around as tall as he was, and the Khajiit nearly stopped in his tracks. But quickly realizing his back was turned to the wagon, he surmised that this high elf was on their side. Further on, a Nord (perhaps a Reachwoman?) and Dunmer were closing in on a robed mage, whose escape route had been blocked by a wall of fire. At the sight of the dark elf woman, Cassius’ dying face and the slaughter of the Dunmer archer who had killed him flashed in his mind, and he couldn’t stop a small scowl from forming towards her. Regret filled him as he did, which he pushed down for later as he refocused himself.
He moved towards the first bandit he could see, a Nord with a greatsword, who saw him coming as well and prepared to make a wide overhead swing. But Do'Zabka closed the distance and threw a piercing punch with his right at the man’s armpit before sending his left to the Nord's face. The man let out a grunt and barely caught himself from falling. The Khajiit quickly sent out a kick to the man’s abdomen and sidestepped the falling greatsword, pouncing on the prone warrior and knocking him out cold with a punch. Do’Zabka breathed and cycled his energy through his body, revitalizing it as he prepared for his next opponent.

The Elder Scrolls: Before the Great War

Do'Zabka

Name: Do’Zabka

Race: Khajiit



Appearance: Do'Zabka is a tall and lithe Suthay-raht Khajiit, with grey fur and spots of black. He is sporting a leather chestpiece and traveling clothes underneath, and has a wisened face matching his age and blue eyes. He is an unarmed warrior, with many scars to show; the most notable is a self-inflicted "X" on his arm, made as a memento to his fallen friend Cassius.

Age: 42

Skills: Hand-to-Hand (master), Light Armor (expert), Acrobatics (expert; naturally acrobatic as a Khajiit), Athletics (adept), Whittling (novice)

Personality: A Khajiit of few words, Do’Zabka prefers to act rather than speak, as he has learned through his years training and traveling. He keeps few possessions and prefers to live a simple life, eating and training simply. When provoked, his first instinct is to jump in and fight, which is something he has been trying to quell; he has been learning to be more diplomatic. He speaks Ta'agra and heavily accented Tamrielic, which is just good enough to hold a conversation in; he can write in the former, but is illiterate in the latter. He has a dislike for Dunmers, which has been toned down from his former hatred; he's been trying to correct this failing.

Bio: Born in Riverhold to two fighters, Do’Zabka learned from a young age how to fight using his body, especially in the Goutfang Claw-Dance. He had many sparring battles with his mother, who often went all-out; this steep hill to climb made him a vastly better fighter for his age, and fueled his ego. It wasn’t until a Khajiit his age came along and gave him a run for his money that he started to mature and slowly wean out of that mindset. When he turned 18, he went on to serve in the army, staying for 10 years and gaining experience as a fighter against many different kinds of weapons; he tempered both his mind and body, solidifying the lessons he was taught as a child into truth. During this service, he met and bonded closely with an Imperial named Cassius, who was his main reason for putting more effort into learning Tamrielic. They shared a mind on personal restriction and honing of the body to it’s limits, and undertook many missions together.
On one such mission to scout out an enemy camp, however, Cassius fell in battle to a Dunmer archer, who Do’Zabka killed in an uncontrollable burst of anger (the lack of control being something he would dwell on to this very day.) In the Imperial’s dying moments, he expressed his wish for wanting to explore Tamriel, and hoped the same for Do’Zabka; through tears, Do'Zabka promised to make it his life goal. Cassius died in his arms with a soft smile, despite the pain he had been in.
The Khajiit warrior left the service shortly after, staying with his family for a few years to rest and work through the effects of war and losing Cassius. There were many long periods of depression, where he would not leave his room, and many nightmares of Cassius' last moments. Through extensive meditation and soul-searching, Do'Zabka was able to learn to live with these feelings, as he found it was a scar no magic or potion could ever fix. Once he was at peace with that, he properly mourned his friend and set out, exploring Tamriel and hoping to fulfill the dream he had inherited.

Do’Zabka’s life before the Hidden Militia

Do’Zabka was born on the 15th of Midyear in 4E126. His parents were Do’Atir and Dro’Jahka, both of whom had been in the Manesguard. Once Dro’Jahka was with child, they retired to raise him; once she recovered, they started offering training to earn money.
From the moment he could walk, Zabka was taught how to fight in the Goutfang style, his only opponents being his parents. They had a harsh style of sparring, in which they never went easy on Zabka. Once he learned the basics, it was up to him to figure out a way to win.
In the beginning, it was hopeless, as he was not strong or skilled enough. But this helped to speed up his progress immensely and, combined with constant ki manipulation and katas, helped him match them at the age of 12. It wouldn’t be until he was 15 that he would finally beat them, which was an impressive feet.
An unfortunate aspect of this growth was his ego, which inflated. Ja’Zabka became a bully; he was powerful for his age and he knew it. But one faithful day in his 16th year would change that. Ja’Zabka had been bullying someone when another student of his parents’ pushed him away, telling Ja’Zabka how disappointed his parents would be in him. Ja’Zabka got angry and fought him, but the student was a match for him in skill. It was a long fight, but eventually Ja’Zabka was defeated in both body and mind.
After this, the student went to tell his parents what he had been doing, and they were so furious. They put him through a one-sided battle, reminding him how it felt to lose, and how all of his victims must’ve felt. He was grounded, forced to meditate and apologize to all he had wrong.
He had been doing this for about two years, and Ja'Zabka decided to enlist in the army, to serve others and repent for what he had done. When he went to thank the student, who had moved on from his parents too a year prior, he found out he had died protecting a child from burglars. This set a heavy weight on Ja’Zabka’s heart, as he would never get the chance to thank him for putting him on the right track. He paid his respects at the grave of the fighter, gaining a lifetime respect for the warrior in dying for his beliefs.
Ja'Zabka enlisted, and found he wasn’t very good with weapons, avoiding them as much as possible. This would persist to the current day, as he felt using weapons was too unwieldy and lethal. He preferred to hone his body to its limit, which was a goal he shared with Cassius, another soldier he had met two years in on a guard patrol. Cassius, however, didn’t share his views on weaponless combat.
Over the eight years of friendship, they would push themselves to new limits, shooting to the top of their squad in combat ability. Things would take a turn for the worst win, on a scouting mission, Cassius was fatally shot by a Dunmer archer. Ja'Zabka flew into a murderous rage, killing the Dunmer in a fury, and taking his first life. Rushing over to Cassius, the dying imperial shared his dream of traveling the world, and passed it on to Ja’Zabka.
Shortly after, Ja'Zabka retired and went back to Riverhold to stay with his parents. For the better part of a year, he was heavily depressed, only taking time to practice, eat, and sleep. His parents, seeing the state he was in, asked him to teach a few classes. Slowly, but surely, seeing the optimism and excitement of the kids lifted his own spirits, and pushed him to truly come to terms with his loss and the stresses of serving. Continuing to teach for three years, he thanked his parents and bid them farewell, heading out on his own to explore him and fulfill his promise to Cassius.
From Riverhold, Ja’Zabka traveled into Cyrodiil and went to Skingrad, where he had been stationed with Cassius once. After staying there for a few days and meeting up with some old army mates, he left and headed towards Kvatch, heading to Rihad from there. He had never been in Hammerfell before, so the culture and sights were a pleasant surprise.
Ja’Zabka traveled around Hammerfell for a year, going clockwise from Rihad and ending in Dragonstsr, where he crossed over into Evermore. His service to the Empire allowed him free crossing in their territory, which he used liberally.
It wasn’t evermore that he would partner with Morgane Belaine, a Breton scholar-priest, to retrieve stolen history books on Saint Pelin. Here he faced against Beran the Strong, a Breton bandit chief. He nearly died, but scraped out of it, barely and defeated the bandit. Once healed up, he did goodbye to Morgane and headed east into High Rock.
Staying on the outskirts of the Wrothgarian Mountains, he made his way to Wayrest next. From there, Ja’Zabka went north east and stopped at Alcaire, before continuing southeast into the Cambray Hills. Stopping at Camlorn, he then made a straight shot for Daggerfall, where he stayed for a few months to rest.
Once done there, he took a boat to Sentinel, where he figured out he was severely seasick. This would be the last time he ever set foot on a ship. From here, he shot back to Riverhold and visited his family, getting certified as a Goutfang master. From there, he headed into Blackmarsh and then into lower Morrowind before receiving a missive from his old commander, asking for his presence in Chorrol. It was here he met with the Confessor, who briefed him on a mission with the Hidden Militia.

The Elder Scrolls: Before the Great War

@swordandpens, I'd insist on one more paragraph because I want to read more of what you've written, but if you really want, I'll give Approval One.

I do want to see more of your writing, though. For personal reasons.

@Letter Bee

I have expanded his bio and switched some awkward word choices, trying to stay in line with the foundation I set out before. I hope it's satisfactory!

The Elder Scrolls: Before the Great War

Name: Do’Zabka

Race: Khajiit

Appearance: Do'Zabka is a tall and lithe Khajiit, with grey fur and spots of black. He is sporting a leather chestpiece and traveling clothes underneath, and has a wisened face matching his age and blue eyes. He is an unarmed warrior, with many scars to show; the most notable is a self-inflicted "X" on his arm, made as a memento to his fallen friend Cassius.

Age: 42

Skills: Hand-to-Hand (master), Light Armor (expert), Acrobatics (expert; naturally acrobatic as a Khajiit), Athletics (adept), Whittling (novice)

Personality: A Khajiit of few words, Do’Zabka prefers to act rather than speak, as he has learned through his years training and traveling. He keeps few possessions and prefers to live a simple life, eating and training simply. When provoked, his first instinct is to jump in and fight, which is something he has been trying to quell; he has been learning to be more diplomatic. He speaks Ta'agra and heavily accented Tamrielic, which is just good enough to hold a conversation in; he can write in the former, but is illiterate in the latter. He has a dislike for Dunmers, which has been toned down from his former hatred; he's been trying to correct this failing.

Bio: Born in Riverhold to two fighters, Do’Zabka learned from a young age how to fight using his body, especially in the Goutfang Claw-Dance. He had many sparring battles with his mother, who often went all-out; this steep hill to climb made him a vastly better fighter for his age, and fueled his ego. It wasn’t until a Khajiit his age came along and gave him a run for his money that he started to mature and slowly wean out of that mindset. When he turned 18, he went on to serve in the army, staying for 10 years and gaining experience as a fighter against many different kinds of weapons; he tempered both his mind and body, solidifying the lessons he was taught as a child into truth. During this service, he met and bonded closely with an Imperial named Cassius, who was his main reason for putting more effort into learning Tamrielic. They shared a mind on personal restriction and honing of the body to it’s limits, and undertook many missions together.
On one such mission to scout out an enemy camp, however, Cassius fell in battle to a Dunmer archer, who Do’Zabka killed in an uncontrollable burst of anger (the lack of control being something he would dwell on to this very day.) In the Imperial’s dying moments, he expressed his wish for wanting to explore Tamriel, and hoped the same for Do’Zabka; through tears, Do'Zabka promised to make it his life goal. Cassius died in his arms with a soft smile, despite the pain he had been in.
The Khajiit warrior left the service shortly after, staying with his family for a few years to rest and work through the effects of war and losing Cassius. There were many long periods of depression, where he would not leave his room, and many nightmares of Cassius' last moments. Through extensive meditation and soul-searching, Do'Zabka was able to learn to live with these feelings, as he found it was a scar no magic or potion could ever fix. Once he was at peace with that, he properly mourned his friend and set out, exploring Tamriel and hoping to fulfill the dream he had inherited.