Skyrim Day 036 - The Joys of Literature

21 Heartfire, 4E201

Winterhold

~~~

Morthal has its charms, if you find the constant stench of swamp to be attractive. The inn was comfortable enough, but I was already a day behind on my self-imposed schedule and left earlier in the morning than I was perhaps expected to.

'Hanging Gardens' was located somewhere north of Morthal, according to Urag. How the book came to be in such a book-unhealthy place is a mystery to be pondering alongside how Urag knew it was there to begin with.

The marshland was as pleasant as I expected it to be and a man walking into town as I was leaving warned me to not go into the swamps at night, advice I did not need to be told in this case. Surprisingly there were few monsters about, mostly just elk and the occasional mudcrab.

I came upon a cave marked with a lit brazier and could only guess that it might be the location of the book I was seeking. Inside I was greeted by two giant spiders, each of which fell to my bow. I thought I was facing ordinary bandits until the first one I killed started dissolving into black dust. Vampires. Terrifying to most people, the trick is in making sure they never bite you as you stab them to death.

Further inside the cave I heard someone talking to himself and watched as a vampire dragged three bodies from his cart into a nearby pit. He was so intent on his grisly task that he could not hear me creeping up behind him with my axe. One more body for the pit.

Those two were the only to die in their cave today. There were three more vampires sitting together in a small common area set with a table and chairs, but I stayed against the cavern wall, in the shadows, and passed by them with no notice at all. I am evidently becoming very skilled in not being seen, but I do not really live a life that greatly requires that. Perhaps I would make a good burglar if I was the kind of Khajiit everyone in Skyrim seems to expect.

'Hanging Gardens' was tucked into a chest underneath a a Dwemer warhammer and an Ebony mace, making the origin of the book even more mysterious. Whatever its journey, I stole the book back from the vampires and quietly exited their den.

Urag's second volume was south of Morthal, along the river. The weather was, once again, quite nice and the walk along the river peaceful, even with mudcrabs stolidly crawling at me every couple of seconds to defend their portion of the mud bank. I met a Redguard fisherwoman at her shack and paid her a few Septims for some dried fish.

The entrance to the bandit hideout was a great deal less ambiguous than the vampires'.

I suspect the bodies to have been dug up, for the bandits were organized more as a blacksmith's shop than a group of dangerous outlaws. Four of the six bandits died with smithing tools in their hands, not weapons. 'Shalidor's Insights' was also in a chest underneath a collection of valuable armaments.

With that I began the walk back to the College. Nothing interesting happened and I stepped into the icy courtyard just after midnight. As expected most of the instructors and students were still awake, toying with whatever experiments allowed them to ignore the rest of the province. 

Arniel was happy to receive his ten Dwemer cogwheels and Urag to have a copy of 'Hanging Gardens' and the unreadable' Shalidor's Inights'. He assured me that the latter could be translated if I gave him a day or two. I have no interest in such a thing, but I thanked him anyway.

I need to get rid of the stone plaque I found underneath Bleak Falls Barrow. I think I will simply prop it against something in the Arch-Mage's room and invite everyone in to see if they know what to do with it.

Oblivion Day 36 - Counter-Assault on Oblivion, Finale

3 Frost Fall, 3E433

Bruma

~~~

I set out for Bruma after a short nap, riding past the Imperial City through the seemingly ever-present rain. I suppose it is better than blood-red clouds and lightning, but I do not think a simple sunny day is too much to ask for.

A group of well-armed bandits accosted me outside of a ruin not far from Cheydinhal, each of them wielding Dwemer blades and wear Dwemer armor. Where they got these things is a mystery, but they were not well practiced in the use of their equipment and proved easier foes than I anticipated. Perhaps they had hoped to appear intimidating enough to avoid having to use their apparently new-found equipment, but a Khajiit who regularly fights her way through Oblivion needs more than a few extravagantly attired thugs to give herself pause.

The wet greenery of the forest gradually gave way to the wet grey of the northern mountain region as I approached Bruma. Given my nap and the melee with the trio of bandits, it was well into the evening when I dismounted before the gates of the Cloud Ruler Temple. I wasted no time in finding Martin, who seemed to have not stirred from his books since the last time I spoke with him.

He looked up as I approached, a rare smile stretching across his face. Excited, he told me that he had deciphered the second ingredient required for him to open a portal to Camoran's so-called Paradise: the blood of a Divine. Jauffre solved the mystery of where to find such a thing, suggesting that the blood of Tiber Septim himself, who became one of the Divines, might be acquirable. The secret to doing that lay with Jauffre himself and Martin asked me to talk with him.

Martin accepted my gift of Daedric artifact Spellbreaker with some surprise, stating that many would not give up such a useful thing. When I pointed out that it weighed more than the armor I was wearing, he laughed and conceded that usefulness is very much in the eye of the wielder. He had nothing more for me to do and asked again that I speak with Jauffre about two problems that needed solving.

The first problem was the blood of Tiber Septim, which Martin and I had briefly talked about. Jauffre provided me a key to a hidden catacomb known as 'Sancre Tor' where the armor of Tiber Septim was enshrined. Formerly a holy place, it became cursed with an evil presence a long  time ago and no one had returned from visiting there in many years. My task, of course, is to visit the catacomb, find the armor, not die, and return with the blood of the Divine Tiber Septim. But that had to wait in lieu of completing a second task, first.

The second problem was the expected (by me) opening of an Oblivion Gate outside of the city. Jauffre's request for this issue was a little different though: he did not want me to merely enter the Gate and close it, instead he wanted me to lead a contingent of city guards into Oblivion so that they might learn how to close the Gates themselves. 

I certainly would welcome a little show of self-sufficiency in the Oblivion matter, but I am no leader of soldiers and rode back to the town with no small measure of trepidation. Fortunately the Captain of the Guard, Captain Burd, was tasked with the actual leadership role. I was to be a sort of armed adviser as he led his men through Oblivion, a role I was perfectly happy to take.

I was also happy to have four other men at my back, for this particular plane of Oblivion was the most difficult one I have yet faced. Outside of the Sigil Tower wandered a dozen Flame Atronachs and inside were more Dremora than I ever hope to see in one place. The battle inside the Sigil Stone's chamber was frantic and bloody, us five against seven Dremora and one summoned Daedroth, a foe I have not seen in many years. Captain Burd had accounted for one Dremora before the Daedroth was summoned and quickly hacked the beast's head off with his two-handed sword.

Sadly, we suffered our only casualty as this was happening to a surprise attack from behind by a Dremora. The mace's blow caved in the guard's helmet and he died instantly. For whatever reason, the Dremora then charged past me to engage the Captain, leaving me open to drive my short blade into its back, ending its life just as it ended the poor man's.

We quickly dispatched the remaining Dremora and I took the Captain with me to steal the Sigil Stone from its pedestal. 

The two guards that Captain Burd had stationed outside the Gate had been busy, the corpses of Clannfear and Atronachs lay scattered about when we emerged from the closed Gate. Apparently I have somewhat underestimated the guardsmen prowess, but perhaps the guards of Bruma are made of sterner stuff than elsewhere.

I was informed that it was one in the morning and that a room at 'Olav's Tap and Tack' had been reserved for me courtesy of the City Guard. The ten Septims would not have hurt my purse, but I do appreciate the thought. Tomorrow I have two tasks ahead of me: the acquisition of the blood of Tiber Septim and the finding of the Draconian Madstone. One of these tasks is more important than the other, but I have given my word that both shall be completed.

I suppose this ends my counter-assault strategy on Oblivion. All of the city Gates have been closed and several agents of the Mythic Dawn have been exposed and killed. My priority now is to gain entrance to this Paradise of Camoran's and re-secure the Amulet of Kings. I have accomplished much, but there is yet more ahead of me that needs doing.

Morrowind Day 36 - The Sewers of Vivec

20 Hearthfire
~~~

I left the Balmora Mages Guild early in the morning, intent on completing my friend's task before starting on my own. I had always passed through the Guild, having supplied myself with whatever I had needed at Balmora, or occasionally Caldera. It occurred to me that the Guild in Morrowind's largest city would be the best place to shop, so I visited briefly, talking with the other guild members and inquiring about wares and training. My travels seem to always elicit interest from the Mage Guild members, though I think this is due to most of them never leaving its walls.

Either I was not talking to the right people or the selection at the Vivec Guild is worse than Balmora's. The resident Alchemist, Craetia, did not have the wide range of ingredients I was expecting, nor did she have a large budget to purchase mine. Hints dropped during our small talk suggested that Trebonius, the Arch-Mage of the Guild, keeps the Vivec Guild's purse-strings pretty tight, limiting the Guild's ability to win business from the Telvanni canton's numerous non-guild practitioners.

The closet of my contacts was Huleeya, an Argonian whom I was told would be in the Black Shalk Cornerclub, whether due to habit or instruction, I don't know. The club was located on the the lower level of the canton and I was it was open to anyone wanting a little refreshment. Being the only establishment of its type in the Foreign canton, I expected it would be a busy place. However, the club was nearly empty when I arrived and the mood quite ugly. My contact was instantly recognizable, him being the only Argonian in the place,  but the three Dunmer arguing with him were not known to me.

Seeing me enter, he called me over, treating me as though I was a cherished friend instead of a complete stranger. He scolded me for showing up late without letting him know first, then said he had to finish his conversation with the three "gentlemen" he had just met. The three gentlemen took the opportunity to close ranks in front of us and the owner of the club was taking great strides in not looking in our direction. The three were not heavily armed, but Huleeya whispered to me as we all waited for someone to do something. He revealed that he was an open operative of the Morag Tong, a guild of assassins that operate legally in Morrowind via semi-judicial writs of execution Legal or no, I definitely do not want to be affiliated with a group of assassins, but my present circumstance left me little choice. Quickly, he told me that while he could kill all three of the men with no problem, they were all House Hlaalu retainers and he had no desire to be the reason for any bad blood between his Guild and the House. In addition, killing the men outside of a Morag Tong writ, even in self-defense, is a distasteful act within his organization and he wished to avoid bloodshed if possible.

Avoiding bloodshed was far easier than Huleeya had anticipated. Being House Hlaalu men, they were all willing to let myself and Huleeya leave the club peacefully in exchange for some coin. They got their insults in as we left, never knowing how close to death they had come due to their prejudice.

Huleeya was on good terms with Jobasha and led me to his shop before telling me what he knew of Dagoth Ur and the Nerevarine Cult. He was able to provide a great deal of information, but knew nothing about the mysterious 'Sixth Cult' or why the townspeople I've encountered were acting so strange. He did mention that House Dagoth was the sixth Great House, so it is likely the Sixth Cult is affiliated with the fallen House in some way. Revolutionaries or secret retainers perhaps.

He was most helpful with my questions regarding the cult of the Nerevarine and the beliefs of the Ashlander tribes. According to him, the Ashlanders believe that Lord Nerevarine will return as an incarnation, ending the persecution of the Ashland tribes and driving out the foreigners and 'unclean' Dunmer from their native land. Reincarnation or not, that seems a large order for an individual.

He gave me a sheaf of papers with his notes on them to deliver to my friend and I bade him farewell and luck with the Dunmer, which got me a lopsided grin and a wink. I have a suspicion that the three Dunmer may be disappearing quite soon.

My second contact was a Khajiit named Addhiranirr, the style of the name noting her as being native to Elsweyr, unlike myself. My friend had told me to look within St.Olm's canton, but had no more information than that to provide. But I remembered the skittish Khajiit I had encountered in the sewers, though I did not remember her name. My memory served me well, for when I entered the canton, a very well-dressed Imperial asked me if I had seen her, as "your type seems to stick together". Insulted, I told him I had never heard of her and walked past him. She was still where I had last left her: in a corner of one of the sewer's corridors, opposite the obvious Daedric cultist hideout.

After identifying myself as working for our mutual friend, she sheepishly admitted she was indeed Addhiranirr, but asked if I could do her a favor before she answered my questions. I anticipated this and readily agreed. To my delight, the favor was to get rid of the rude Imperial two floors above us, who was working for the Census and seeking to arrest her for 'misunderstandings'. She did not care much about how I planned on accomplishing this, but my luck had been good so far, so I took a small chance.

I found him still wandering the canton and hailed him, pretending to be very eager to be a good (Khajiit) Imperial citizen, telling him that I heard the thief, the shaver-of-fur (I made that up, quite proud of it), had caught a boat at Ebonheart towards the mainland. He thanked me and told me I was a prime example of the better sort of my people. So rude.

However, Addhiranirr found the short exchange to be very amusing and regretted that she could not be much help. She knew nothing of the Nerevarine Cult or the Ashlanders, claiming that the Nerevarine legend was a "fuzzy tale for little kittens". I am apt to agree, but unlike Huleeya she knew a great deal about the Sixth House, because it impacted her business.

She said that she heard that a lot of the long established smugglers are suddenly working only for the Sixth House and she personally knew two smugglers, both long-time business people of Morrowind, who had accepted Sixth House contracts...then disappeared. After they vanished, she watched their people and confirmed that they were smuggling something, but she could not determine what, nor could she find out where her contacts had gone. Those who were working for the Sixth House and still visible were very quiet about their activities, which was atypical of the smugglers she was working with. She had hid in the canton sewers partially to elude the Imperial agent I misled, but also in an effort to escape the notice of the Sixth House. She said she was concerned for the Imperial Thieves Guild, as she noticed members quietly disappearing as well.

More than that, she could not say. She only knew that the Sixth House was involved in smuggling in a very big way, but did not know what goods they were actually moving. As I thanked her and prepared to go, she mentioned that she had seen a heavily armed guard outside of what used to be a storage area, hinting that if I was to go clean it out, I would be doing her a big favor and netting a fair profit for myself. I told her I would look into it and moved on.

True to her word, the sewer corridor opposite the one Addhiranirr was in was guarded by a Dunmer woman clad in full steel plate. She had not seen or heard me and a plan soon came to mind.

The arrow deflected harmlessly off the side of her armor just as I had planned and she yelled, charging at what she must have thought was a desperate thief or sugar-fiend. I stepped back into the tunnel connecting the corridors of the sewer and waited, spell at the ready.

My timing was perfect. I cast the paralysis spell just as she turned the corner and thanks to the training I undertook, the spell succeeded, freezing her in mid-step, though only for a few seconds...which was all I needed with my stabbing sword. Thanks to my sneakiness, her equipment was undamaged, but steel armor is not very valuable for its weight, so I rolled it and her into the depths of Vivec's waste.

I dealt with the inside of the shrine similarly, though making sure to have several protective spells active before I entered. I thought I would be able to enter the shrine under the guise of my invisibility spell, but the act of opening the door dispelled it. I'm sure I Looked quite foolish, standing there inside the shrine, flat-footed as I two Dunmer unsheathed their blades and charged.

Fortunately, I was able to cast the invisibility spell before they got too closed and I dashed behind their shrine as they assumed a back-to-back stance, warily circling the room together. What happened next was almost comical, had it not meant their deaths, of whom anyone's is not something I find amusing. The pair may have been father and daughter (was the woman outside a wife and mother?), so different was their age. The older Dunmer was wearing bonemold armor and wielding a very rare Daedric sword, while the younger woman had an ugly geometrical Dwemer stabbing sword.

My invisibility spell does not last long and if they both attacked me, I'd be in trouble, so I had to make sure to eliminate one of them while I still held the advantage. I judged the man to be more dangerous and quickly crept into their path, positioning myself so that the man would pass by me. The paralysis spell worked a second time, silently locking the man in place as his partner/daughter continued to pace the shrine alone, unaware that she was no longer accompanied. 

The man must have been furious at the injustice: the Daedric sword had to have been acquired at great risk and to face his end unable to wield it against his enemy had to have been frustrating, to say the least. As always, his death was instant and painless, and I caught the corpse as he collapsed, lying it on the floor as not to alarm the woman, whom was still unaware of her imminent fate.

She continued to circle the shrine, now on the opposite side of the body. I had no time to move it out of the way, so I hid behind a pillar and waited for her. After two invisibility spells and two paralysis spells, I did not have enough energy to cast a third paralysis spell, nor enough time to drink a restoration potion, so I used her moment of shocked realization to spring my trap and struck her twice with my spear before she could respond. The battle was mercifully short, fighting a woman whose father may have been lying dead at her feet did not sit well with me, even if they were cultists.

The Daedric sword was a very valuable and rare find, but too heavy to carry around with me and too valuable to sell. I dumped the bodies into the sewer and stored their weapons in a chest I found in the back of the shrine. 

The chest was in a fairly well-furnished bedroom, complete with armories, two beds, and several chests. The chests contained nothing of much value, save for what I stored inside one of them, but the beds are comfortable and I will be spending the night here. This would not be a bad place to call my own, a little out of the way, but not too much that I could not return here when I desired to. I will give it some thought before going to sleep tonight. Tomorrow I'll talk to my last contact and return the notes to my friend, after which I'll review my plan for acquiring the next Propylon Stone.