Oblivion Day 28 - Counter-Assault on Oblivion, Part 3

24 Heartfire, 3E433

Skingrad

~~~

I woke very early again, intending to finally make it to Skingrad before dawn broke. Having closed three gates around Chorrol I felt confident that the journey between the two cities would be relatively peaceful.

Skingrad's Oblivion Gate was on the side of the road, obliterating a shrine it had been opened on top of. Clannfear were sauntering out of the Gate as I dismounted and approached on foot.

Clannfear are easily dealt with so long as you remember to sidestep their initial charge. Having their target seemingly disappear from in front of them momentarily confuses them and allows for a strike at their unarmored backs.

The Gate was the smaller one with the two small towers connecting to the one large one after unlocking the bridge locks atop the small towers. It was weakly defended and I quickly claimed another Sigil stone, closing the Gate and temporarily securing the city of Skingrad.

As I stepped inside the city I was accosted by an Orc who congratulated me on closing the Gate. He was not the only one either. The proprietor of the local alchemy shop, a Dunmer with the telling name of Falanu Hlaalu also thanked me for closing the Gate, then asked me if I knew what the punishment for necrophilia was. I had to admit I did not and she seemed a bit irritated by this. I hesitate to speculate why.

Strange interests aside, she had an excellent selection of potions and I spent quite a sum on twenty flasks of healing draught of various potency. They will surely come in handy for the Gates I no doubt have yet ahead of me.

I left Skingrad without much expectation that I would be able to reach Anvil without incident. I was correct. I had ridden for only a few minutes before two Oblivion gates loomed before me on either side of the road.

Both Gates were both strongly guarded and every floor of every tower felt like it was teeming with Dremora. In one room of a tower within the second Gate I faced three of the armored Dremora at once, dispatching them only after a punishing melee.

When I finally emerged from the second Gate it was far too dark to ride any further, so I retired back to Skingrad and took a room at the West Weald Inn. It proved to be a fateful decision. As I was walking into my room a Mythic Dawn assassin burst out of one of the adjacent rooms, swinging a two-handed sword.

The woman looked to be a resident of the town and the Gates were likely her doing. This was the first assassination attempt made against me and I do not think it will be the last. If the Mythic Dawn 'Commentaries' volume is anything to go by then I suspect that each town has at least one agent within it to open the Gates and subvert any attempts to close them. I shall have to be on higher guard following today's attempt, but I will not let it deter me from doing what needs to be done.