Smiled at Star Trek reference. Heating of the rocks, that is. Good friend of mine is a Trekkie; I'll ask him to elaborate, so as not drag off-topic here.

Alright, they're going into the fortress. Nice, seems like Buffy took them all out, bam bam crash, just as she predicted. See, being an experienced adventurer helps at times like these. She sized those foes with ease. But does this mean Drodda knows some adversaries, the adversaries she's perhaps been expecting for quite some time, are here to take her down?

Mirri calls the next foe "snowman", oh goodness, what a taunt!

Cool, another foe is down. I like that Mirri's eyes are the color of rubies. "Red" sometimes has a bit of connotation, imo.

I liked the verbal taunt, too. The game should let you do that.

And the introduction of boss skills that didn't exist back when Direfrost came out. The game should do that, too.

Having your non-combat pet warn you about traps wouldn't be a bad addition, either. If companions can point out heavy sacks, why not?

Buffy and Mirri have their work cut out for them after that battle! I dread to see what obstacles will stand in their path next.

A great scene, thoroughly enjoyed the clash between mages. Poor Snowman should have agreed to help the Ladies.

Looks like the members of the Direfrost clan suffered a fate worse than death. But maybe some of them can still be rescued? Maybe the ledger will provide some information.

I enjoyed the showdown with the scythe-wielding frost mage. He was quite dangerous, it seems. Despite their best sneaking attempts, the mage noticed them and his cold, threatening greeting is my favorite part of this story.

Yay for Willow. She's a natural-born trap seeker.

Previously- Making their way deeper into Direfrost Keep, Buffy and Mirri discovered several hostile undead ice soldiers wearing the crest of the Direfrost Clan. After they defeated a powerful mage, Mirri found a nearby journal that the pair of elves hope might contain clues about the fate of the Direfrost Clan.

*

Rider- Thanks for your endorsement of using Drodda and Direfrost Keep more for inspiration than nuts and bolts. Thanks also for your kind words about having been on the receiving end of Buffy’s buff/heal skills in ESO. I think the ledger will shed quite a bit of light on what Drodda’s been up to since running away from the guild.

Grits- I really wanted Willow to add some value and have been pleased with the idea of her being a tracker, lock picker, trap detector as well as the utility she can provide via her size and ability to fly. I’m so glad you enjoyed Mirri’s sassy comment to that boss. Thanks for your kind words about Buffy’s obsession about trying to plan out and control fights – Boderi Farano back at the Arcane University wisely drilled that into her to help keep her dragon spirit from getting her butterfly butt hammered.

SubRosa- Yes, it's looking more and more like Drodda's quite gone to the dark side. Buffy’s seen hints and evidence but the journal she and Mirri are about to read will add a layer of depth I think. Neither Mirri nor Buffy could ever hope to perform the other’s role – and I think that’s what leaves them rather in awe of each other.

Renee- Buffy can sense that Drodda is siphoning Phantom’s corpse of its residual magicka – she can feel it in the dragon-mare’s spirit. She suspects that Drodda wants to ensure no one interrupts her and the witch has apparently somehow frozen and enslaved the Direfrost Clan to guard her new lair. Hopefully, Drodda is overfocused on her task and overconfident in her minions. Heh, I couldn’t resist the snowman taunt.

ghastley- As you can tell, we’ve taken quite a few liberties with ‘non-combat pets’ and Direfrost Keep overall. It would be nice if you could choose from a list of simple utility skills that you could assign to your non-combat pet like our fiction has done with Willow.

Kane- I think you're right; the ladies will have several more challenges ahead before they finally reach Drodda.

macole- Your comment that ‘snowman’ made an unwise choice reminds me of a line Mirri will often say in game after a successful fight: "Would it kill them to run away? Well, no, I guess it wouldn't. Maybe they should try that." It’s a real hoot when she sometimes says that after killing a strangler - a carnivorous plant that can magically pull you to it but cannot move or ‘run away’.

Lopov- I think the ledger will provide some answers, but I fear they won’t be good. I’m glad you mentioned that mage’s greeting – meant to be a frightening surprise to the sneaking pair of elves. Was Mirri’s quick response pure moxie, or an intentional tactic to divert interest from her fragile healer? I’d like to think both.




Side by side, we opened the leather-bound journal and both read as I turned the pages for us. . . .



- 2E 582, Sun’s Dawn the 4th. An unusual visitor arrived at Direfrost Keep. A young Nord named Dreanna. The poor thing was a half-starved refugee from her pursuers – apparently an evil coven of witches anxious to claim her as their own due to her skill with ice magic. I confess my heart went out to her as, with tearful eyes, she informed us that the witches had killed her family. It was only her own skill with ice magic that enabled her to escape to Windhelm where she was forced to live in hiding as a beggar. Eventually, the coven learned her whereabouts, and she was again forced to flee. We assured her that she had come to the right place and would be safe within our keep of witch hunters. We fed then cleaned her up and found a dress to replace the rags she wore.

- 2E 582, Sun’s Dawn the 18th. Though skittish and fearful at first, Dreanna has begun to reveal quite a charming nature and captivating smile. In fact, cleaned up and fed well, she is quite a beautiful young woman.

- 2E 582, Sun’s Dawn the 27th. I am amazed how Dreanna passes by the younger lads of our clan, preferring to spend time with me. At first, I thought her interest was purely in learning about necromancy – and I happily indulged her. Yet. . . dare I imagine there is more to the interest in her eyes and occasional brush of her hand against mine? Don’t be foolish, Vladgeir. What interest could such a lovely young woman possibly have in a man of twice her years who uses necromancy to hunt witches?

- 2E 582, First Seed the 6th. While I was guiding Dreanna’s hands to reanimate a dead rat, she turned her face up to me. I could not resist her mesmerizing gaze and lowered my face until our lips met. Rather than recoil in disgust or slap me, she responded to my kiss. Tentatively at first, then fully and with passion.

- 2E 582, Midyear the 12th. Dreanna and I have become inseparable. Not only does this beautiful woman return my affections and possess an affinity for necromancy, but she is truly gifted with ice magic. I am the luckiest man in Skyrim.

- 2E 582 Midyear the 19th. When Dreanna came to me today, her blond hair had turned the color of newly fallen snow. I told her it looks quite becoming.

- 2E 582, Hearthfire the 19th. My love told me that she can sense an immense source of energy frozen beneath this very keep. She believes that absorbing this power could enable her to ward the entire keep with ice should our clan come under attack, perhaps from the evil witches pursuing her. I assured her the concept is brilliant, for the clan has never suffered a shortage of enemies. All she asks is some strong backs to clear the ice and expose the way below. I shall talk with my clansmen.

- 2E 582, Frostfall the 28th. Digging progresses well. Dreanna continues to impress with her necromantic aptitude and how she can blend it with ice magic. I’ve noticed that her skin has become paler and cooler to the touch. . . . Today, she used ice to kill a rat, then reanimated the frozen creature. The result was a surprisingly powerful rat that she claimed could live perpetually in undeath and never deteriorate like zombies or most other undead do. Her results are exciting. . . and somewhat disturbing.

- 2E 582, Sun’s Dusk the 12th. Our workers have reached an area in the lower reaches of the keep that is intensely cold. Upon examination, Dreanna informed us that the source of power she seeks rests beneath only a few more layers of ice. Compassionate soul that she is, she has asked for a pause in the digging for now. Tomorrow she will cast a massive spell, warding everyone in the keep from the dangerously lower temperatures she expects we will encounter when we break through to the lowest cavern. I believe in her growing mastery of the cold to protect us, for even her eyes have become the color of ice.

- Dates have surrendered their relevancy. My clan is not only warded from cold, but the passage and ravages of time as well. My Mistress is more brilliant than I could have comprehended. Only with Her gift of icy undeath can I now fully appreciate that we shall endure forever in Her service. Some of my clansmen foolishly did not trust the spell she planned to cast upon us and tried to flee. They are now statues of ice, serving as reminders to other fools who might resist or challenge Her wisdom.



We closed the book. Mirri let out her breath with a low whistle. “Poor fetchers. By the time some of them began to realize. . . it was too late.”

“It seems more than Drodda’s ice magic has blossomed,” I said as I briefly summoned my magic chest and stored the journal within. “She’s clearly mastered feminine wile and developed a taste for necromancy as well.”

“Interesting,” commented Mirri, “that she gave them the name Dreanna instead of Drodda.”

I replied, “Drodda is known as a dangerous ice witch – a name I should hardly think she’d use to introduce herself to a clan of witch hunters as she sought their sympathy and support until she could enslave them.”

“You’re starting to shake, Buffy. I’m feeling colder too. Let’s drink another of those resist frost potions. They seem to work quite well.”

Mirri pulled a potion from her thief satchel as Willow disappeared into my mage pouch long enough to retrieve one for she and I to share. “Four left for each of us,” I noted to Mirri. Once we were again fortified against the cold, I added, “Let’s continue.”

“Through that narrow passage or up the wide staircase?” asked Mirri.

I shrugged. “I’d imagine that staircase leads somewhere important. Let’s try that?”

Dreanna shows up telling lies, it seems in the journal. Uh oh, she's getting flirty. Yup. Vladgeir Direfrost succumbs to her wiles. And over a dead rat, of all moments! Love blooms in the weirdest of moments, sometimes...

Yikes, this is fascinating. So in just under a year, she's taking over the place, and Direfrost doesn't see it coming, even after finding some of her actions "disturbing".

Some of my clansmen foolishly did not trust the spell she planned to cast upon us and tried to flee.

"foolishly"... It's not mentioned, but I can only imagine some of these workers complaining to Direfrost when his beau isn't around. Him scoffing at their concerns. "Get back to breaking the ice, or I'll [fill in punishment here]!" -- So now, after reading that entire process, I now believe the original Dreanna is gone. She's completely within the Dark Side.

"Let's drink another frost potion," Mirri says. And see, that could be the trick. Drodda isn't really doing anything so far but waiting. Like a spider who's in the middle of a very frosty net.

As I read the diary (ledger?) I was reminded of Nabokov's Lolita . . . the young girl seducing the older gentleman. Classic. Dreanna/Drodda is clearly cunning beyond her years. Now I wonder if Drodda was the survivor of that attack on that farming family - the last Witch left standing? I'd have to reread the earlier posts to confirm the details in my hazy memory.

The conclusions drawn from the book are certainly spine chilling - and flesh chilling as well! Brrr! Poor ladies - the only warm blooded creatures in this icy fortress!

I could say I'm looking forward to the next post, but I'm also dreading what lies in wait for our intrepid trio.

Reading the journal is quite a journey. It starts with Dreanna using whatever tools she can to insure herself a safe and secure place in the fortress, namely by manipulating the emotions of others, especially the man in charge.

Then it takes quite the left turn at Albuquerque with the immense store of energy beneath the keep. We know what that is. From there on out it lines up really well with what we have seen in the keep, and explains how its occupants became Drodda/Dreanna's undead henchmen.

Oh no, any hope of redemption for Dreanna is gone. She showed up ready to manipulate from the beginning. What a creeping sense of dread as I read the slow seduction of Vladgeir.

The need for another potion gives a handy sense of time passing. I wonder how close they will have to get to that intensely cold source of power.

I’m on the edge of my seat!!

Well, that certainly does make it seem like Dreanna has become irredeemable. I wonder if the love interest yet lives, or is another victim of the ice!

Poor Vladgeir. He fell for Dreanna's charms and not even the wisest witchmen of his clan could bring him back on the right path. At the beginning of his journal she still addresses her as Dreanna, later on she'll be referred to as "my Mistress".

It's time to bring down the ice siren!

Since the 'immense source of power' has its connections to Buffy,, I am starting to wonder how that will factor in. Can't wait to find out!

Previously- The journal of a defeated Direfrost Clan mage revealed how Drodda had presented herself as Dreanna - a refuge being pursued by a coven of witches - and worked her way into the sympathies of the Direfrost Clan. Using her growing ability to manipulate others, she worked her charms on the journal’s author to learn his skill with necromancy which she was able to combine with her powerful ice magic. It is clear that Drodda managed to first manipulate, then enslave or kill the entire Clan to help her access the source of power she detected beneath the keep.

Renee- It seems the Dreanna we learned about from the Windhelm guild has come a long way – and none of it good. Buffy and Mirri will continue to hope that Drodda is too overconfident and distracted by her task of siphoning magic from the corpse of Acadian’s dragon to realize that her keep is being infiltrated.

Rider- Fascinating consideration that perhaps Drodda actually is part of a coven of witches who deliberately took down the family’s farm instead of the tragic accident that precipitated Dreanna's downward spiral. Though that is not the case here, it certainly could have provided some wild twists and turns!

SubRosa- It seems Vladgeir’s journal shed quite a bit of light on what Drodda’s been up to. Her interest in Direfrost Keep is finally revealed, for Buffy knows exactly what that cold source of power is.

Grits- ‘Creeping sense of dread’ is exactly what I was hoping to achieve in showing how skillfully Drodda manipulated an entire clan of witch hunters. Thanks for noting those potions as a means of showing the passage of time.

Kane- I think you are right about Drodda – as was Hreinhilde when she said, “Even if you find her, she won’t cooperate, you know,” Hreinhilde said to both of us. “In fact if you anger her, she’ll try to kill you. The Dreanna I once knew is gone.”

Lopov- Thank you. My hope for the journal included showing the gradual descent of Vladgeir into the web of Drodda’s wiles.

ghastley- Very astute about that the ‘immense source of power’ and its connection to Buffy. When the combined spirit of Phantom and Superian that Buffy carries within gets close enough to its frozen corpse, might the dragon be able to exert some beneficial influence?



Up the wide stone steps we crept. As we got to the top, we found ourselves at the junction of a large ‘L’ shaped area. Mirri pointed to a door ahead and slightly to our right. As we crept toward it, we could now see down both wings of the chamber.

To the left, at some distance, we could see another door and numerous patrolling Direfrost undead ice soldiers.

To our right, sections of the roof had caved in and much of the floor was covered with resultant debris and drifts of snow that were eerily illuminated by shafts of sunshine. That wing appeared to be a dead end with no doors.

Mirri quietly asked, “What could have caused this much fetching damage?”

I shrugged. “Perhaps even the keep itself objects to the nature of Drodda’s activities and magicks.”

We decided to focus on the door ahead of us for the moment. As we crept up to it, Mirri turned to watch our backs. I examined the door to find it slightly ajar. I pushed against it to no avail. Mirri added her strength to my effort, but we were only able to coax it open enough to see stone debris blocking the other side. Willow slipped through the narrow opening to investigate but returned after a few moments shaking her head.

Mirri pointed to our left. The other – and guarded – door. She frowned and whispered, “Those ice soldiers are well-dispersed and I count fully a dozen of them. I can see a pair of mages and at least one archer among them. I could taunt one and thereby draw all the melee defenders to me, but the ranged ones will keep their distance. And all of them except the one I taunt will be just as likely to attack you as me.”

I scratched my head for a moment. “How about if we open the fight from the top of the steps and retreat back down? That should channel all of them onto the stairway. If we back up all the way to the bottom, even the ranged ones will have to come at least part way down the steps.”

Mirri rubbed her chin. “That might work. You’ll have to stay close to me so I can protect you.”

“When the ranged attackers get close enough to engage us,” I said, “that means I’ll be able to attack them as well. But you may end up with quite a few melee fighters in your face depending on how quickly I can kill some of them before I have to shift fire to the ranged ones.” I then added, “I can certainly keep the healing and shielding of my spells in effect while we make our stand.”

We crept back to the top of the stairs. I smiled. The archer was within range and would be my first target. Damage from mages was unpredictable, but archers could generally attack faster so they were my priority. I spiked my staff to cast Regeneration – it’s healing would activate Spell Power Cure and thereby boost my damage. I then launched a Blazing Spear at the ground close to the archer and, even before it landed, cast Radiant Glory. The Blazing Spear exploded almost the same time my beam of Holy Light hit the archer. She instantly fell dead.

I cast another Blazing Spear where I estimated our foes would very soon be. Mirri grabbed me by the back of my robe and ordered, “Down the stairs!”

As we rapidly backed up, I was pleased to see that my Blazing Spear damaged and briefly stopped the advance of several foes. I cast another, trying again to estimate where our foes would be as it impacted. I repeated this all the way down the stairs, grateful that Mirri still held the back of my robe to control how fast we retreated and make sure I didn’t trip on the stone steps while moving backwards and casting. Our efforts resulted in death or damage to several enemies as they charged after us.

Once the stairs ended, we continued retreating for another couple of horse lengths before Mirri commanded, “Make our stand here.”

I claimed the ground around us with my Cleansing Ritual and continued casting Blazing Spear closer and closer to our position. Among the chaos of my bursting Spears and number of enemies – some of them now engaged with Mirri - it was the appearance of a globe of frost slowly headed our way that alerted me the mages had closed to engagement range. I quickly cast Healing Ward on Mirri as I stepped behind her and launched a Blazing Spear at the ground between the two mages.

The frost spell impacted the ward I had placed on Mirri and fanned out harmlessly. My two target mages, however, were not warded and a second Blazing Spear killed them both.

I wasted no time dropping another Blazing Spear on the ground at our feet, damaging the remaining three ice soldiers. Though two were engaged with Mirri, the third turned toward me and raised his battle axe. I lifted Carsomyr to block, but Mirri turned toward me and interrupted his attack with a shield bash. I cast Healing Ward on her again as the other two fighters raised their weapons to exploit Mirri’s exposed back. Their blows fell harmlessly against the brief ward. I then cast Blazing Spear on the ground at Mirri’s feet again as I backed away. It kept all three weakened foes close to Mirri, allowing me to safely recast the spell.

As the last one fell something struck my left shoulder with a searing pain, violently spinning me around and slamming me into a nearby pillar. My legs collapsed and I ended up on my rump with my back against the pillar, still facing the battle. There was an arrow protruding from my shoulder, my hand had come open - dispelling Carsomyr - and the contingency casting of my Cleansing Ritual spell had been activated.

Mirri had located the hidden archer and, after sprinting behind her shield part way up the steps, used her gap closer spell to smash into our foe. The archer was no match for my partner’s skill in close combat.

Mirri raced back and fell to her knees beside me. “Buffy! How do I heal my healer? Tell me what to do!”

“M-my Cleansing Ritual is helping, and keeping me conscious,” I managed to say, “but. . . spell won’t last long. . . .”

The next thing I remember was the somewhat fruity and unmistakable taste of healing potion as bare fingers rubbed the stuff inside my mouth. When I opened my eyes, Mirri said, “As soon as you passed out, Willow dove into your mage pouch and came out with this red potion. I didn’t want you to choke but I tried to get some into you. Now that you’re awake, try to drink some.”

Mirri brought the vial to my lips. As I sipped, I noticed she had removed her gauntlets and somehow managed to find some pieces of broken furniture and start a small fire nearby while I was unconscious.

Shortly, I felt able to control and channel my magicka. “Kynareth, I need your help.” I placed both hands on my shoulder around the protruding arrow shaft and was able to call enough magic to dissipate the arrow then mend most of the internal damage. “I need to rest a few minutes,” I said weakly.

Mirri helped me lie back, cradling my head in her lap. “It’s safe here for now, partner.”

I closed my eyes. I felt Willow gently land on my uninjured shoulder and rub her little hands on my cheek. Before long, I was able to lay hands upon myself again and finish healing the wound. I slowly got to my feet. Mirri handed me her waterskin and Willow hopped from my shoulder into a hover.

The water helped. “Thank you, my friends – Kynareth, Mirri, Willow – all three of you.”

We then started back up the steps.

No, sneaky archers was (will be?) a Skyrim thing.

I suppose they are in that part of Tamriel, and the meme has to start somewhere. Just tell Buffy to mind her knees.

First, a couple of nits:



I admit I had to scratch my own head Buffy style and re read it a few times because that one word hit me wrong. Then I realized, did you mean well-dispersed?



This one resulted in a bit more Buffy style head scratching too. Did you mean damage as a noun, MMO style? In which case the 'and' would be unnecessary. However, if you meant it as a verb, then it's fine as it stands. I must get my head out of that gaming space and read it as a verb, yes?

What a wild mage fight that was! Mirri didn't do much until they hit that open space near the foot of the stairs except keep Buffy from losing her balance. Good job, sellshield! But once they made their stand, here is where our intrepid Dunmer truly shone. Shielding Buffy from a battleaxe while fighting two others! It's clear to me where her priorities stand. And here it becomes clear once again Buffy's priorities aren't so different.

And the healing afterward was well done - good for Willow for identifying the right potion to help Buffy, and for Mirri to actually take her gauntlets off to rub some of it on our Bosmer's gums as if she was a teething child.

And a brief rest, and onward we go! Getting closer now!

It looks like Drodda is not much for housekeeping. I wonder if Buffy and Mirri are not the first to come for her, and the damage in the abandoned wing is the result of a battle?

Ah, its the attack, feint a retreat to pull the enemy out after you, followed by a counter-attack once you have them on ground of your choosing. This is one of my preferred tactics in tactical, team-based games like Pillars of Eternity. I typically send the rogue ahead to make a single sneak attack at range. Then they run back around a corner where the rest of the team awaits. The monsters all follow and Bam! Fireball in the face from my wizard.

That went well. At least until the glass cannon received a crack. Thankfully she had that contingency spell prepared. Also, thankfully she had a pouch fairy to fetch out a healing potion when she needs it.

Very handing healing spell, that also removes the need for physically removing things like arrows. That is very economical, and sensible to develop.

In the end Buffy gets by with a little help from her friends. Just like the song.




haute: I did not have trouble with the term "well-disbursed". I am used to seeing "disbursed" or "disbursement" being associated with money, specifically allocating specific amounts to people or projects. But I have also seen it used to refer to other resources as well. In the case of the undead soldiers here it implies a deliberate will behind their placement, rather than a perhaps accidental spreading of them about the castle. It also implies that they are not regarded as people, but rather objects, such as quantities of steel or grain.

Hmm, I don't know. Drodda is supposedly busy with the siphoning, and the Snowman sentries who could've at least informed the Ice Witch she's got company didn't bother to send any signals, magic or otherwise, which could've warned her. Warned her, but also caused any other snowmen to become aware as well. But no. The initial snowmen simply attacked the visitors because they assumed they could just shrug them off.

But I don't know.... Suspicious about Drodda's knowledge here.

Either way, whether she knows the elves are here or not, that's a disadvantage of living in such a huge fortress, while also ridding most of its residents. Drodda hasn't got the communication from lowly assistants she could've had. Place is mostly empty, lots of void areas.

"fetching!"

Well never mind, this room they're in now has a lot of combatants. Maybe they'll also make the same assumptions as the initial snowmen. "Nah, don't bother Drodda, we got this. We can defeat these puny elves!"

I like all the strategy Buffy & Mirri are discussing beforehand. See? Communication.

Mirri's grabbing the rear hem of Buffy's robe! You were in the military, Acadian; I'm guessing this is an infantry strategy. Making sure your buddy doesn't get lost or overwhelmed?

Lots of spell-casting on Buffy's part! Please don't run out --- oh no, she's been hit. Hit, then healed then back at it. Alright. These chapters are super-short!

That is an excellent use of the staircase! The image of Mirri guiding Buffy down backwards makes me grin. These two are great partners!

Once the stairs ended, we continued retreating for another couple of horse lengths before Mirri commanded, “Make our stand here.”

I claimed the ground around us with my Cleansing Ritual and continued casting Blazing Spear closer and closer to our position.

I love this. “Make our stand here” could be the Templar catchphrase. I can picture the two elves defending their field of golden light, Spears blazing under their foes. Whoop!

Yikes! Spinning someone around with an off-center arrow was one of Buffy’s past tricks, now used against her! Hats off to Mirri for finding that archer. It took all of Team Buffy to get her back on her feet. A grim reminder of how fragile she is, despite the power she just displayed.

What a fight!!

Thank goodness an arrow didn't find Buffy sooner or Miri would have had a tough go of it! "How do I heal my Healer?" is indeed quite the conundrum.

I wonder if Drenna already knows that "her" keep has been invaded and is sending her undead ice soldiers on the front line to weaken the invaders.

Even the best healers need healers sometimes. Or at least good friends.

Previously- Buffy and Mirri found a door they hoped would lead deeper into the Keep. The door, of course, was well guarded. The pair executed a retreating attack down a wide set of stone steps to channel their foes – including archers and mages – into a killing zone. Buffy was knocked out of commission by an arrow to her shoulder near the end of the fight, but Mirri managed to defeat the last foe. Using a healing potion, Mirri and Willow were able to revive their healer enough that Buffy could lay hands on herself and mend her wound.

ghastley- You’re right! Buffy would never live it down had she taken an arrow to the knee!

Rider- I did mean ‘dispersed’ and do appreciate you pointing that out so I could correct it. I believe my intent/use for ‘damage’ was correct but can see the potential for confusion, so I clarified it. That was certainly their wildest fight to date. Mirri’s role quickly changed from babysitting Buffy down the stairs to superbly managing several foes in her face while protecting her healer. A potion is the limit of what Mirri and Willow can manage when it comes to healing but, happily, Willow knew which type to grab and Mirri knew how to get some into Buffy without choking her.

SubRosa- I’ve already taken heavy liberties with the Direfrost Keep found in ESO. I did want to at least acknowledge the mysteriously significant degree of structural damage found in the dungeon though. That said, by the end of the dungeon crawl there should be some suggestion that it is probably not wise to try and steal the residual magicka from the corpse of an ancient ice dragon who was created by Kynareth. . . . Thanks for your kind words about how Buffy and her crew were able to manage healing the healer.

Renee- Thank you. Buffy has always tried to plan her attacks in advance. Happily Mirri seems to agree. Mirri was trying to make sure her healer didn’t trip over the hem of her robe while trying to backpedal down stairs and cast spells. That episode was about 1350 words which is really my ‘target’ and average. It looks like there will end up being 46 episodes for this book and they range from just under 1000 to just over 1700 words.

Grits- As we have and will continue to see, Mirri is not above physically moving her pocket healer out of danger. ‘Make our stand here’ was exactly as you envision – Blazing Spears going off within the golden radius of Buffy’s Cleansing Ritual. I’m so tickled you remember Buffy’s tactic of offsetting her arrow impact to spin her foe and help conceal her firing position!

Kane- Thanks! Buffy is very glad she grabbed a few normal healing potions back in Windhelm and that Willow was clever enough to remember.

Lopov- While we’ll find Drodda to be a formidable foe, I suspect she is somewhat lulled by the idea that no one would consider looking for a witch inside a lair of witch hunters. I also suspect she is quite preoccupied with her task down in the bowels of the keep.




Once back up those troublesome and now corpse-littered steps, we investigated the remaining door. It appeared operational but its heavy handle would not budge. After careful examination, I reported, “It’s a special lock and won’t open without the magical artifact that fits – like a key - in that little star-shaped recessed area.” I pointed. “That’s the size and shape of the item we’re looking for.”

“Drodda values her privacy, it seems,” remarked Mirri. “Check the area around here. I’ll see if any of the ice soldiers we just killed carry such an object.”

Our search yielded no key.

“Damn,” said Mirri. “How about we double check the corpse of that necromancer downstairs and more carefully around his altar?”

I was about to agree when I noticed Willow quite purposefully hovering in front of the area where the star-shaped object would go. She stuck her face into the recess and inhaled deeply. She then ran both tiny hands around the inside of where the item would fit. Finally, she turned away from the door and pointed to the top of the stairs.

I smiled. “I almost forgot about your tracking.”

Mirri said, “By examining the keyhole, she can track the key?”

We both looked at Willow who nodded and did an aerial pirouette.

Mirri urged, “Lead on, little one.”

We followed Willow back down the stairs, past the dead necromancer and his altar over to the other passage leading out of the chamber. There, she stopped and pointed down the unexplored corridor ahead of us. She then maneuvered behind us, making it clear she expected us to lead the way into whatever danger might lie ahead.

As we crept through the passageway it soon widened and we found ourselves at the head of a bridge. Five undead corrupted Direfrost ice soldiers guarded the far end. My Blazing Spear spell was able to immobilize the group, and two more casts killed them in place.

“I feel badly having to kill these Direfrost clansmen,” I lamented as we searched their bodies.

Mirri replied, “I suspect the fate we’re giving them is better than the perpetual undead mindless slavery that Drodda has forced upon them.”

I sighed. “I suppose you’re right.”

As we crossed the bridge, we could see that it passed over what appeared to be a bottomless glacial crevasse.

Our path then narrowed again. Eventually we came to an area where the passage widened into a small chamber. After dispatching the handful of foes within, I illuminated myself with Holy Light so we could better search this area. None of the corpses in our wake had yielded the star-shaped artifact we sought. Searching the various chests and crates in this small chamber also did not uncover our elusive key. At the end of the chamber, the passage ahead had collapsed and was unpassable. On the right side of the chamber, however, was a tunnel. Its opening was blocked by the vertical bars of a metal gate. We could see through the gate and, where the icy corridor turned sharply to the left, stood an ice troll.

“Is this gate to keep us out or him in?” asked Mirri.

I examined the gate more closely. There was no keyhole, latch or handle suggesting how to open it. Then I saw it. Along the wall, half a horse length beyond the gate was a lever as long as my arm. I pointed to it. “Obviously the gate is meant to be opened only from the other side. Perhaps we could use our rope and try to cast a loop over that lever so we could pull it from here?”

“I’ve tried roping wild guar before but with little success,” said Mirri. “Probably even worse trying to do it with my arms stuck through these bars. After a moment she added, “But. . . maybe I do have an idea.”

“I’m all ears,” I said hopefully.

She grinned and teased, “Yes, though covered by your hood at the moment, I’ve seen how they rival Superian’s in size.”

I blushed but couldn’t resist returning her grin.

Mirri extinguished her grin and continued, “If you can hit the troll with a spell, he might charge up here and open the gate to attack us. Maybe. I’m not sure how smart trolls are.”

“Worth a try,” I replied. I slid the end of Carsomyr between the gate’s bars and cast Blazing Spear out as far I could. It impacted the ground short of the troll but its burst radius did damage him. He made a show of thumping both fists against his chest then charged with a roar.

Mirri pulled me back until we were at least a horse length from the gate.

Rather than activate the lever, the beast reached between the bars of the gate and flailed his long arms at us in furious frustration.

We backed up a bit farther and I cast Blazing Spear on the ground at the troll’s feet followed by a heavy attack from Carsomyr. After two such combinations, the hapless creature fell.

Mirri shook her head. “Not very smart at all, are they?” She clearly felt no more satisfaction at the hapless beast’s death than did I. “Now what?” she added.

“Back to the rope idea, perhaps,” I offered as I summoned my storage trunk and retrieved our rope. “Can you tie a loop in the end of it?” I then turned and said to Willow, “You can easily fit through these bars. Do you think you could place the loop of our rope over that lever?”

Willow nodded, climbed through the bars and hopped into a hover on the other side. By now, Mirri had finished her task and handed the looped end of the rope through the bars to the little nixad who deftly placed it over the lever.

Mirri then routed the rope under the bottom of the gate so that pulling it from our side moved the lever down. The gate creaked and groaned until it was fully raised.

After stowing the rope and dismissing my storage trunk, we climbed over the troll and entered the narrow passageway. Once we turned the first corner, the stone walls became ice and the passage was more of a tunnel through what appeared to be an ancient glacier. The tunnel opened up some and we had to dispatch another ice troll. The ice beneath our feet sloped gently downward as we continued to what looked like a wall of ice ahead.

Rather than a dead end, we were able to turn sharply to the left. Here the floor and walls once again become stone. At the end of this short passage, we encountered another barred gate, beyond which I could see firelight.

Nice, so Willow's got some Thief skill as well. More than Thief. In fact she's got a Skill not mentioned in any game I've ever played. Tracking was a skill in the table game we played, but it involved the ability to discern where friends or foes had been, especially if they'd trekked through some underbrush or forest.

Hmm, maybe that's not a skill. Just an intuition.

I agree with Mirri. Better to free these monsters of their undead-ness so they might continue into some other afterlife which is more appropriate. So yeah, don't feel bad, little elf.

Trolls and troll-like enemies always "make a show" of some sort, usually beating their chests, right?

Another shorty chapter! I like short chapters but this week I'm hanging over the cliff!

Mirri makes an excellent point that in killing the Direfrost soldiers they are ending their undeath. Buffy’s concern for them sheds an interesting light on her thinking. While they did try to harm her and her friends, they didn’t want to.

“I’m all ears,” I said hopefully. Love it, and love Mirri’s reply!

Neat solution for a lever that’s on the other side of a door! That worked much better than punching the bars and cursing.

Firelight! Who’s there? Maybe a mortal? :edgeofseat:

Some neat sympathetic magic by Willow, as she is able to track down the mate for the lock to the remaining door.

There is always a bottomless pit...

Well, it was worth a try with the troll, but I am not surprised that it did not open the gate. They will just have to get more resourceful. I wonder if Willow could fit through the bars? She probably could not move the lever, but she could tie a rope around it.

I see great minds think alike!

This is turning out to be quite a dungeon delve as Buffirri venture deeper and deeper into the depths of Direfrost.

Willow is almost running the show now. I hope she remains a non-combat pet, as she is probably even more fragile than Buffy.

Does Drodda know what the magicka source is, or just where? You have suggested that she is getting access to more power as she gets closer, but the rules aren't clear. Does the team benefit from luring her away from it? And is she running out of ice zombies?

While I echo what everyone else has pointed out, there is one thing I noticed . . .

Mirri changed from speaking of Willow as an object to speaking to Willow as a fellow adventurer. That endeared her to me even more than ever.

Willow is a handy companion. She'd be very useful in point'n'click games as well, where searching for micro-sized or pixelated objects can be very difficult.

Firelight? Maybe there are some Direfrost soldiers ahead that haven't yet been turned to undead. Because if the door, behind which the troll was, was meant to be opened from the other side, maybe they wanted to prevent someone from entering their area. Maybe they wanted to keep Dreanna away? In any case, it's an enjoyable cliff hanger and in a few days we'll see if I was at least partially right.

Willow has indeed become a vital part of the team. They would have had a much tougher time without her aid.

Previously- After encountering a magically locked door requiring a special key, Mirri and Buffy discovered that Willow, after examining the keyhole, could track the key. The nixad led them back down those pesky steps and into another corridor. After figuring out how to raise a gate blocking their progress, they were able to continue until they encountered another similar gate of bars.

Renee- I borrowed the concept of a tracker from the Rylee Adamson urban fantasy series of books by Shannon Mayer. I like how SubRosa describes it as sympathetic magic. I made up Willow’s skills to make her more useful as a familiar but keep her out of direct combat. Having hands and being able to fly give her a level of utility that make her pretty useful.

Grits- Thank you for pointing out that Buffy seems to have gradually softened the hard edge on her ‘doctrine’. I suspect that evolving into both paladin and healer has evolved her compassion as well. Thanks also for the big ears comment; I think it shows Buffy has developed a bit more self-confidence and, also that she and Mirri are getting more comfortable with each other. While there are plenty of times when the ‘bigger hammer’ approach of Jerric is helpful, Willow proved her worth with that gate.

SubRosa- After the troll failed to open that gate, I’m glad you were struck by the same idea that Buffy had of using Willow. It is indeed a large dungeon dive! We’ll reach Drodda in today’s episode, then one more episode to deal with her before getting somewhere warm!

ghastley- Willow’s defenses are limited to staying out of the way, hoping to be being mistaken for just part of the environment, speed/agility and tiny size. I suspect Drodda didn’t know exactly what the source of power she sensed was until she actually found it – that would have been around the beginning of the book because that’s when Buffy began sensing the drain on her dragon-mare. I figure this entire book probably spans not much more than a month or so and would guess that’s about how long Drodda’s been draining Phantom. As Kynareth advised Buffy, it would take Drodda a very long time to fully drain the dragon corpse’s residual magic.

Rider- As one who so fully and skillfully incorporates animal companions into your own work, you can appreciate how Willow tends to write herself into scenes and sometimes steal them. Thank you for noticing how even Mirri is growing attached to the useful nixad.

Lopov- I can see how Buffy’s mention of firelight would imply possible warmth and survivors, and it may have been unwise on my part to end the previous episode with mention of it. I’m afraid we’ll find that the firelight is from a meager source and, unfortunately, does not harbor potential allies.

Kane- Thanks! It’s been fun building Willow into a little utility familiar who can generally earn her keep.



We crept up to the gate of vertical bars blocking our way. The chamber beyond was about three horse lengths across. Magical glow stones provided most of the illumination but in the center of the chamber was a brazier that hosted a small fire. One wall was dominated by an altar and guarded by another undead Direfrost ice soldier. He wore a full panoply of heavy armor and a daedric maul rode upon his back. He was accompanied by a banekin. . . but this small daedra was covered in frost. Another anomaly enabled by Drodda?

Through the bars, I could also see a large lever like we had encountered with the previous gate. This one was similarly beyond our reach. Still undetected, we backed away to plan our next step.

Willow pointed toward the gate and nodded.

“She believes our key is in there,” I whispered. “That armored defender looks important – and strong. I don’t know what to make of his . . . frostkin? Clearly this foe has some skill with daedric magic.”

“I say we use the same tactic we initially tried on the troll,” began Mirri, “only this fetcher looks smart enough to open the gate for us. Just stay behind me after you get his attention.”

I nodded. After loosing a light attack from Carsomyr through the bars of the gate then immediately branding the ground around us with my Cleansing Ritual, I backed up well behind Mirri.

Our foe ran to the lever and lowered it. As the gate began to raise, his banekin suicidally exploded right at the gate. While doing no damage to the ice soldier, the detonation dropped Mirri to one knee.

By now, the gate was up and his maul filled our opponent’s hands. I cast Healing Ward on Mirri as our foe raised his long, heavy weapon. Rather than landing squarely on the back of my partner, the blow glanced harmlessly off the ward around her. The spell’s brief but strong healing allowed Mirri to get back on her feet. She wasted no time using her blade to taunt our foe and her shield to block his next attack.

Finally, I was able to shift my focus from trying to keep Mirri alive to contributing some damage. I began alternating Blazing Spear with heavy attacks from Carsomyr. This foe had no magical warding and my attacks cut through his armor quite readily. He raised one hand and, to my horror, a small cloud of conjuration magic appeared quite a ways behind me.

The frostkin was still materializing as my Blazing Spear impacted at its feet and I channeled the beam of my Radiant Glory into its small body. Thankfully, my damage was strong and fast enough to detonate the suicidal daedra before it could get within burst radius of me.

By now, my partner had bashed and maneuvered our opponent back in his chamber and into a corner. By staying within an arm’s length of him – as she had with the scythe-wielding necromancer - she ensured his longer weapon was at a distinct disadvantage to her short sword and shield.

I repositioned into the room and continued my attacks, refreshing Cleansing Ritual as needed. Once I could see our foe was flagging, I switched to Radiant Glory and he quickly fell.

After ensuring the soldier was dead. . . or perhaps, fully undead, Mirri stood still as I laid hands upon her.

After allowing the healing bond to fade, I reported, “You are one sturdy mer!”

She smiled. “I had help with this one. Lots of it.” She then added. “That soldier’s weapon and armor will fetch good coin. Let me strip them from him while I search his corpse for the key.”

“I think Willow’s already found it for us,” I said as I noticed the nixad had already picked the padlock that secured a small chest.

Sure enough, the star-shaped key was soon in our possession. I then summoned my storage trunk.

Mirri stowed our loot while I quickly checked the rest of the chamber. “No journals or other clues.” I then moved close to the central brazier to warm my hands, but its small fire did little against the cold.

“Let’s get back to that door and try this fetching elusive key,” suggested Mirri.

Our trek back through the large altar chamber and up the stone stairway to the locked door was uneventful.

Sure enough, the star-shaped key fit perfectly into the recess near the handle and we were rewarded as the heavy door swung open. I removed the key and gave it to Willow to stow in my mage pouch before we proceeded into the passage that beckoned ahead of us.

Eventually, we came to a long series of stone steps leading down. “This is hopeful,” I said. “That necromancer’s journal said Drodda was seeking a source of power beneath the keep.”

“Finally, an encouraging sign,” agreed Mirri. After a moment, she added, “Buffy, your teeth are starting to chatter again. We need to drink another potion.”

Mirri pulled one from her thief pouch while Willow retrieved another from my mage pouch. I said, “That leaves three more for each of us.” Willow seemed to agree that the potions were helpful as she impatiently waited for me to give her the last of mine. Once fortified against the cold again, we started our descent deeper into Direfrost Keep.

We dispatched several small groups of undead ice solders as we progressed through more passages and stairways leading down. Eventually, all stone construction ended and we found ourselves moving through tunnels of ice, sloping ever downward.

“How big is this fetching place?” pondered Mirri.

“I believe we’re getting close,” I replied. “I sense the presence of evil – different and stronger than what we’ve encountered thus far.”

The ice tunnels eventually widened into a cavern. Another tunnel led off to the right but the large chamber ahead of us seemed to be a natural pocket within an ancient glacier. The center of the area was dominated by a large, circular patch of shining ice.

We crept around the large chamber’s perimeter. Once satisfied that we were alone and there were no additional tunnels or exits, we headed back toward the one tunnel we had noted when we first entered the chamber. Before we could step out onto the central patch of ice to cross the chamber, Willow darted in front of us chittering and waving her arms.

“She believes this large patch of smooth ice is trapped,” I said.

“Traps usually guard something,” replied Mirri. “Perhaps the ice is hiding something we should know?” She rubbed her chin for a moment. “Buffy, move back against the wall.”

Though apprehensive, I trusted my partner and did as she bid.

Mirri grabbed a chunk of loose ice the size of a footstool and tossed it out onto the ice before sprinting over to where I crouched at the edge of the chamber.

Pale blue magic began to rise from the center of the large patch of ice and quickly rose to three times our height. The creaking and groaning of shifting ice could be heard as it materialized into an atronach of ice.

Fortunately, our distance and stealth kept us unseen. I whispered, “This creature is not evil, simply a powerful minion. Likely created by Drodda as a guard and triggered by stepping upon that ice. I say we gain nothing and lose time if we engage it.”

“I agree,” replied Mirri. “It’s too large to enter the next tunnel so I’m not worried about it trying to follow us.” We sneaked around the perimeter and back to where we had entered the chamber.

We then entered the only tunnel in the chamber besides the one that had brought us to this point. It too, continued sloping gently downward until finally ending in a small cavern. There were pickaxes and shovels strewn about amid piles of excavated ice. In the center of the chamber was a makeshift trapdoor of wooden planks.

“I can sense evil from Drodda and the magicka of my ice dragon. Both are very close.”

Willow nodded and pointed at the trapdoor.

Quite unsure what to expect, I watched as Mirri slowly lifted the wooden hatch.

Magical light shone up through the opening. The trapdoor’s frame hosted the top of a ladder.

“I want to get a better look at what’s below before we go down there,” I said. “Don’t let me fall.” I quietly leaned over the opening and, using my arms on the ladder’s rungs, started climbing down headfirst. Mirri had a firm grip on each of my ankles. Once I could see enough of what awaited us below, I paused to look around. I then began trying to push myself back up with my hands. Mirri easily retrieved me.

Once we got the hem of my robe sorted out from above my waist and back down to my ankles where it belonged, I was able to report, “It’s a very large, roughly circular cavern. Along the back wall, I can see the frozen corpse of Phantom. I can also see streams of the dragon’s residual magicka being siphoned into several crystals arrayed around her, presumably to amplify the magic or perhaps make it easier for Drodda to absorb. Each crystal is channeling its power into our ice witch who is standing in the center of the chamber – and quite focused on the process. I think we can climb down without her noticing.”

“Good scouting,” said Mirri. “I’ll go first.”

Once Mirri got about halfway down, I started down as well, feet first this time.

We made it to the cavern’s floor undetected and quietly backed behind a pile of ice near the base of the ladder. “Buffy,” whispered Mirri, “the journal spoke of dangerously low temperatures down here but it doesn’t seem much colder than the rest of the keep.”

Acadian silently provided the explanation which I quietly shared with Mirri, “Though long dead, Phantom still has a bit of protective magicks that enable her to amplify the cold against those who would defile her corpse. It’s only Drodda’s prodigious skill with ice magic that allows her to survive against those defenses. You, I and Willow are no threat to Phantom of course so, for us, it remains no colder than the bowels of any other three thousand year old glacier."

Mirri slowly shook her head then gave me a crooked smile. “Well, I’ll not look a gift dragon in the maw. Thank you, Phantom.”

We both stuck our heads out just enough to get a better view of she who would harm the spirit of my dragon.

So looks like there won't be any allies for Mirri and Buffy in the Direfrost Keep - I like the twist actually and I don't find mentioning warmth was unwise on your part. I'm fan of twists in stories.

The coldness of the Keep is almost palpable.

Looks like the final battle is about to begin. Good luck, girls! May Acadian be with you!

I like your description of the room being x number of horse lengths across. Using terms like feet - while accurate - can feel artificial and antiseptic. Given the fantasy setting, and Buffy's horse-girl nature, equine units of measurements feel much more organic.

So these banekins are little kamikaze fetchers. Looks like they are quite effective at unbalancing their foes, so that the real baddies can follow up and finish them off. They remind me of Super-Mutant Suiciders from Fallout 4. Except the banekin don't use mini-nukes. In any case, thankfully Buffy was there to shield her tank while she was vulnerable.

I love that Willow was on the case even as they thought of searching for the key.

I hope Mirri does not shake Buffy by the ankles to see what falls out of her pockets!

So we finally come to the Boss Fight. Given my experience with such things, I would hazard a guess that they will have to destroy or disable those power crystals before they can defeat Drodda.

Yikes, that exploding frostkin could have been the end for Mirri, but Buffy’s focus and composure got her back up. What beautiful teamwork as Buffy and Mirri take down the undead soldier summoner and his minions!

That ice atronach was majestic. I love that Buffy could sense it was not evil, just dangerous. Great idea to leave it alone!

Mirri easily retrieved me.

I bet she did. What a charming mental picture! Buffy’s head-first climb reminded me of her archery acrobatics. Was that at the Tournament of Archers?

And here we are. Being in the presence of Phantom’s remains is a shivery feeling that has nothing to do with cold. How depraved would you have to be to defile the corpse of an ice dragon? Do I hear boss music? Watch out, Drodda, the boss team is coming!

Yes, that was going to be my guess: Willow would eventually find the key. Really happy they were able to get past this soldier with a huge weapon. Mauls. Really ineffective I suppose, unless you're BIG and have a lot of ST. Still, the undead warrior was just bested by a couple of elves, hee hee.

Tunnels of ice, cripes. As I read the "teeth-chattering" part a vent somewhere above started blowing air into the room I'm in. My teeth didn't chatter but I did shiver just at that moment. How many potions have they got left at this point?

Mirri, doing an "Imoen+" to trigger that trap!

"I say we gain nothing and lose time if we engage it.” -- Plus, sounds like they're getting pretty close to Drodda. Yet another fight at this moment could alert the Ice Witch. I know I keep saying that....

Yep, looks like they're here.

Banekin! or Frostkin in this case. I hate the tiny little buggers - they're hard to see in a dungeon, and it's like death by a thousand paper cuts.

Once again the fight brought back memories of my Orc fighting bosses with your Buffster in ESO. Best partner a berserker can have!

Uh Oh! That patch of shiny ice sets my warning bells tingling - such a distinct characteristic usually suggests a trap!

I was right - "it's a trap!"

Nice job scouting with a little assist from Mirri. Good thing Buffy's a little thing, barely heavier than a butterfly . . .

Love that Buffy considers the corpse "her" dragon!

Previously- Buffy and Mirri finally fought and navigated their way to the lowest chamber of Direfrost Keep. They managed to enter undetected and confirm that Drodda was indeed siphoning the residual power from Phantom’s corpse.

Lopov- Thank you! Yes, time for the big battle!

SubRosa- Thanks, I do prefer using either Buffy-friendly terms for measurement (like horse lengths) or at least old world units (stones, leagues, etc). Hee! If Mirri had really shaken Buffy by the ankles, that darn robe would have ended up over her head!

Grits- Those darn frostkins can be dangerous! Glad you approved of bypassing that ice atronach for the reasons the ladies stated. Heh, it sounds like the image of Mirri pulling Buffy up from that ladder feet first came across as I hoped. One more reason to adventure with pants instead of a robe!

Renee- I’m glad the cold is coming across. The team has six of those potions left so it looks like they brought more than enough. Luckily, it seems Drodda is still too distracted by her task to take note of Buffy and Mirri. I expect that's about to change.

Rider- I’m glad that suspicious patch of ice set off warning bells as a likely trap. Heh, Buffy’s a good scout but some help recovering from her inverted perch on that ladder was certainly welcome. Thanks for noting Buffy’s mention of ‘her dragon’; I like to think it shows her protectiveness of those she holds dear.



Drodda was easy enough to recognize after reading the Direfrost necromancer’s journal. Her robe was the same pale blue color as the glacial cavern’s ancient walls. With skin that was covered in frost and hair the color of snow, she wielded a staff that was capped with what appeared to be a shard of ice.

Before we could plan our next move, we heard, “Who disturbs my concentration?” The words carried a strong Nordic accent and sinister tone. The beams of Phantom’s residual magic she was absorbing from the amplification crystals faded as Drodda lifted one hand, and spilled frost magic over herself. A ward of ice blossomed around her. She then slowly turned to face us and hissed, “Your frozen souls will haunt this place forever!”

I knew she could freeze foes solid, so I instantly placed my Cleansing Ritual on the ground around us, mostly for its ability to purge curses.

Mirri and I both drew weapons and advanced, with me recasting my Ritual as we did so to remain protected as we moved.

“Your dragon sucking days are over, witch!” retorted Mirri. More than bravado, I realized my partner was trying to buy a few seconds to close some distance as well as focus Drodda’s attention on her – instead of me.

As Drodda raised her hand again, Mirri was close enough to use her gap closer and propelled herself into the ice witch – interrupting the spell and causing Drodda's magicka to fizzle harmlessly into the air.

I charged forward as well until I was close enough to again brand the ground around both Mirri and I with my Cleansing Ritual. I then cast my first Blazing Spear and immediately chased it with a heavy attack from Carsomyr.

Mirri slashed, taunted and was able to interrupt several of Drodda’s spells.

Drodda’s ward absorbed much – but not all – of our damage and I could see we were inflicting small cracks in her ward. She laughed. “The chill of ice runs through my veins!” With that she suddenly vanished.

A moment later, Drodda reappeared a short distance away from us.

Before Mirri could use her gap closer to interrupt and reengage our foe, Drodda pointed a finger at Mirri and cast a pulse of ice magic into my partner.

To my horror, Mirri turned the color of ice and froze solid in mid stride.

All I could do was continue my attacks and hope that my Cleansing Ritual would do its job. Sure enough, within a couple of very long seconds, the ice was purged from Mirri and she immediately gap closed into Drodda.

I ran close enough to recast Cleansing Ritual so it would encompass our new position and resumed dealing damage.

Drodda was wounded now, but not seriously so. Her ice ward, however, now hosted numerous cracks. I hoped it would fail soon and that we could finish her before she could recast it.

Our opponent managed to block Mirri’s next taunt with her staff. Before my partner could try again, a beam from the witch’s staff reached out for me. I found myself lifted slightly off the ground as my limbs flailed helplessly. Unable to maintain my grip on Carsomyr, the weapon disappeared. The contingency feature of my Cleansing Ritual activated, automatically recasting the spell below my feet. I realized the spell she channeled into me was continuously renewing her curse faster than my Ritual could purge it. The good news was that maintaining the spell required her full focus, which allowed Mirri to attack with impunity and continue wearing down Drodda’s ward.

The beam seemed to target my very essence or spirit, attempting to siphon both my life and magicka into Drodda. I recognized it as necromantic magic and, likely, similar to the spell she had been using to drain Phantom. That explained her fairly recent interest in necromancy. Though my body was rendered helpless, my ability as a paladin to resist evil directed against my spirit thwarted Drodda’s attempt to recharge her resources from me.

Thankfully, Mirri was soon able to bash the end of Drodda’s staff and disrupt the beam. I dropped to the ground but managed to remain on my feet. I thought of Carsomyr and closed my fingers around the materializing weapon. I recast Cleansing Ritual and resumed dealing damage while Mirri successfully retaunted our foe.

Drodda suddenly disappeared again, quickly reappearing several horse lengths away. She used the brief respite from Mirri to cast another spell before Mirri slammed shield-first into her again.

Once again, I raced forward and repositioned my Ritual on the ground.

The nature of Drodda’s spell became apparent as a pair of ice wraiths materialized. As flyers, I knew they would not be immobilized by my Blazing Spear. Instead, I closed the distance to Mirri and began casting and recasting Blazing Spear on the ground at her feet – where it damaged both ice wraiths as well as Drodda. With both of us bolstered by the healing and shielding of my Ritual, I trusted Mirri’s armor and shield to further protect her as I cast Healing Ward on myself. During the brief time it took for my Blazing Spears to finish the ice wraiths, their attacks against me fell harmlessly against my ward.

By now, Drodda's ice ward was badly damaged. When she grasped a potion from her belt, Mirri bashed it out of her hand. I imagined our foe was very low on magicka - likely from using so much of her power trying to drain my magicka into herself with no success and Mirri causing her to waste magcika by repeatedly interrupting her spells.

When I channeled Radiant Glory into her ward, it finally shattered. Without her icy protections, Drodda was just another fragile mage. Mirri’s next slash gruesomely laid her open from one shoulder to the opposite hip.

Drodda stopped. The staff fell from her hand and she looked down at herself in dismay. She crumpled to her knees then fell face forward.

Mirri turned the dying witch over with the toe of her boot and raised her blade in preparation for a killing blow.

“Stay your weapon,” I said, “for the evil within her has fled.” I opened my hand, dispelling Carsomyr.

Mirri lifted an eyebrow sharply and gave me a dubious glance but took a step back – her blade still at the ready. “Give me a reason, witch, and I’ll finish your fetching arse before your next breath.”

I knelt beside Drodda. Rather than the iced-hardened face with white hair of the witch we had just fought, I now looked into the soft features of a young blond woman. Her blue eyes drifted to the winter mage robe I wore and she reached out to clutch it. “I. . . my family. . . my guild.” Tears filled her eyes. “Hreinhilde. . . she was my friend. T-tell her I’m sor-“ Her eyes closed and her hand fell from my robe.

I laid both hands upon her but it was too late. “I will tell her. . . Dreanna. Be at peace, for you are free now.”

Acadian’s telepathic words reminded me of our purpose here. ’The power that Drodda managed to siphon from Phantom has been returned to the corpse of our ice dragon.’

I glanced at the amplification crystals Drodda had been using to enhance her efforts and noted they were indeed now inert. As my gaze turned to the frozen corpse of Phantom, I felt a gauntleted hand on my shoulder and heard Mirri say, “This is your dragon. And Kynareth’s. I’ll give you some privacy to say goodbye”

I nodded. As I drew close to Phantom, I was nearly brought to my knees by a massive surge of power transferring from the ice dragon’s corpse to the dragon-mare’s spirit within me.

As I recovered, Acadian silently informed me, ’The proximity of Phantom’s body and spirit has allowed what you just felt, Buffy. Her corpse is now devoid of residual magicka.’

“Wise,” I whispered, “given how close we just came to losing her.”

The massive dragon rested exactly as she had fallen some three and a half millennia ago. One wing was partially wrapped around her dislodged rider – Acadian. I knelt beside the body of the old paladin. He wore full armor and helm, but I saw no weapons . . . . Then I remembered he carried Carsomyr, which now served me. At his hip was a leather pouch from which protruded the furry white face of a small frozen. . . creature.

In answer to my unspoken but obvious question, Acadian offered, ’She was my familiar.’

“And might this familiar have had a name?”

There was a long pause before his silent answer. ’Buffy.’

“Me?” I replied as both hands found my hips. “You somehow thought it was fine not to have told me that in our previous life, I was a . . . a skeever?!?”

’You were not a skeever, Buffy; you were an ermine - a beautiful and clever creature, able to pick any lock and retrieve items from areas far too small for me to access.’

I knelt down to examine the ermine more closely. “Well, she was kind of cute I guess. It’s just that. . . I’ve often wondered what role I played in our last life together, Acadian. I had imagined that of daughter, sister, squire, adventuring partner, perhaps even lover. Certainly not a furry thief.”

I stood. It was subtle, but Acadian was in pain – and only now did I realize why. “I-I’m sorry, my old paladin. My self-centered preoccupation with this ermine allowed me to overlook your feelings. Though you try to conceal it, coming upon your corpse and that of your dragon mount must bring great sadness to you.”

There was an ominous sound from above – ancient ice beginning to crack.

“Buffy!” Mirri was running toward me. “We’ve got to get out of here – now!” A slab of ice the size of Superian reinforced her words by falling to the ground and exploding into frozen shards.

I urgently commanded, “Willow, into my pouch! Mirri, take my hand!” As my companions did as I bid, I beckoned to the frozen ground for the leaves of my tree. As they appeared and circled upward, a golden glow captured my feet, then legs while I swirled my free hand ever higher. Even as more massive pieces of the cavern’s frozen ceiling crashed around us the glow continued to rise. As it reached my fingertips, the collapsing frozen cavern disappeared to be replaced with shards of blue sky that penetrated forest canopy, the beautiful green of countless ferns and palms, the familiar stable outside Elden Root and a bewildered looking Mirri.

And blessed warmth!

When Mirri got covered in ice, I feared for a second that it's permanent.

At least before her death Dreanna "came to her senses" for a short time.

Definitely a special event in Buffy's life, seeing the corpse of her guardian paladin.

Buffy the familiar!

Time to warm up, time to rest and time to eventually return back to present times, I guess.

Mirri’s verbal taunts are a delight. If I ever play a tank, the experience will be enriched by the memory of Mirri’s trash talk.

Buffy and Mirri worked together beautifully. I love that Buffy’s inherent abilities as Kynareth’s paladin let her resist Drodda’s curse even though her body dangled in the air.

I’m glad that Dreanna had at least a moment to be herself again.

I was prepared for the emotional punch of Buffy’s encounter with Phantom’s corpse. And I thought that possibly Acadian might be there in the ice with her. But then…


Yeah, I’m still crying over this part. I seriously just had to stop and blow my nose again.

And then Buffy had me laughing over her reaction. Laughing through tears! *standing ovation*

“Who disturbs my concentration?”
I heard this in the Nord Female voice from Skyrim.

Buffy's anti-popsicle magic strikes me as being prudent. Between that and Mirri opener to close the distance between her and Droddy the Dragon Sucker certainly starts things out well.

Uh oh, things certainly changed quickly. I wonder is Drodda actually teleporting? Or is she somehow traveling through the ice, disappearing one place into it, and reappearing from it in another?

Thankfully Buffy's thawing magic does indeed work. Captain America could have used that for those decades he spent frozen solid after WWII...

Drodda sure is a handful. However, it seems that forcing her to focus her attention on one or the other members of the Dynamic Duo will likely be her downfall. She cannot defeat them both at once.

And that does it. It was kind of Buffy to give Dreanna the grace of a few last moments to ask for forgiveness, ala Darth Vader/Anakin and Luke.

Getting to finally meet the mortal remains of Phantom and Acadian was a real treat. As the kids today would say, it gave me the feels. And another Buffy too!

With this chapter closed, I forsee a whole new world for Buffy to explore.

And now the circle feels complete - Phantom, Acadian and little Buffy the ermine! I have to admit this gave me chills right here.

Too bad Buffy never met a real ermine - these are absolutely charming creatures, much like our Buffy herself!

A fitting end to a real boss fight - I admit to experiencing memories of the first few times I fought Drodda as part of my team in ESO - she was a tough one to figure out!

Previously- Buffy and Mirri finally engaged Drodda in a battle that required every bit of the teamwork the pair had developed to date. As the witch fell, Buffy sensed the evil within her flee. The dying words Buffy heard were those of Dreanna. The magicka that had been siphoned from Phantom, as well as what residual magicka remained in the dragon’s corpse, was transferred to Phantom’s spirit within Buffy. As Buffy examined the frozen corpses of Phantom and the dragon’s rider, Acadian, she noted a third corpse – that of a snow ermine. Acadian informed that the ermine was actually Buffy from their last life and that she served as his familiar. Their conversation was interrupted as the cavern began to collapse around them. Buffy managed to collect Mirri and Willow before using her ability to recall to Elden Root.

Lopov- Buffy’s relief was immense when the ‘purge’ ability of her Cleansing Ritual was able cleanse Drodda’s ‘turn to ice’ spell from Mirri. Yes, Buffy will have to decide whether to stay in the Second Era or return to the future.

Grits- It really did take everything Buffy and Mirri had between the two of them to defeat Drodda. Thankfully, Buffy’s paladin ability to detect evil allowed her to detect that the evil within Drodda fled when she received those mortal injuries. That at least gave Dreanna a brief respite to say farewell. The scene where Buffy – hands on hips - takes Acadian to task for not telling her she used to be . . . ‘a Skeever?!?’ has been planned for years. This was a perfect opportunity to share it.

SubRosa- I’m glad the ‘Who disturbs my concentration?’ line from Drodda had an impact. Between being unexpected and Drodda’s ominous tone, it nearly scared the pee out of Buffy! Buffy’s significant use of heavy attacks during combat does well at keeping her magicka topped off. Apparently, Drodda didn’t get that far in her guild studies.

Rider- I’m glad the scene of Buffy encountering the corpses of Phantom, Acadian and herself had an impact. I feel as if it both opened and closed a piece of their past. The final fight with Drodda was, as you know, fairly close to in game. It pretty well supported what I was trying to show and didn’t really need significant changing.

*

We now begin the final part of our book, which consists of four episodes.




Our first order of business was a bath in the lake which fed the tree’s roots. We proceeded to the area of shoreline that served as Elden Root’s public bathing area. I reached into my mage pouch but was rebuked by Willow. I tried, “I’d like some soaproot please.” That worked better, and she quickly emerged with some. We then removed everything we wore and, kneeling in the shallows, washed it all. After piling our wet gear together on the shore, we swam out into the lake to wash ourselves and our hair.

Willow flittered over us for a time before diving in. After surfacing, she splashed and played in the water.

Once satisfied, we leisurely returned to the shore, where I summoned a pair of towels. All three of us basked in the sun, Willow slowly fluttering her wings to help them dry.

Mirri said to me, “You know, you’re even smaller without your clothes on.”

I replied, “And I think you’re going to carry those bruises around for a while. Would you like me to ease them for you?”

Mirri looked down at herself. “No, my skin tone hides them pretty well and they don’t hurt.” She then added, “Do you have a comb?” After I summoned one, she had me sit while she knelt behind me and combed out my hair. “Buffy, while you were paying respects to your ice dragon, I noticed she carried a rider?”

“That was Sir Acadian, another paladin of Kynareth – Kyne - at the time.”

Mirri was quiet for a few moments, then said, “If you carry the spirit of his mount, where did his spirit go?”

It was my turn to be silent.

Eventually, Mirri said, “Don’t tell me that his spirit resides within you as well? I mean it wouldn’t surprise me I suppose. You already carry the spirits of a butterfly, dragon, horse, probably your magical staff. . . there’s a lot going on inside that little body of yours.”

Finally, I said, “Very well then. I won’t tell you that I carry the spirit of the old paladin, Acadian, within me.” I got up to my knees and circled my finger. “Give me that comb, turn around and sit.”

As I combed out Mirri’s chestnut hair, she perceptively moved on to another subject. “So, what’s our next step? Collect a reward from the Arch Mage perhaps?”

“Mirri, I don’t think I mentioned a reward.”

“Well. . . you’re right I suppose. We did bring back some pricy equipment from our foes though. That’ll help.”

“Help what?” I asked. “Forgive me, Mirri, but your needs seem even simpler than mine. What do you do with the gold you seem rather keen on gathering?” Mirri’s hair was now fully combed out. Willow joined me in weaving it into a single plait.

“My father, back in Gnisis, makes a living running a small trading business. He refuses to deal in the slave trade though which is where the real gold is. I agree with and admire his choice, but it significantly hampers his ability to turn a profit. Mother’s an adventuress – when she’s not pregnant - but too flighty and disorganized to earn much more than her expenses.”

“So,” I injected, “you send a hefty portion of the gold you earn home to help them.”

She nodded.

“Stop moving your head,” I admonished. “We’re almost finished back here. Thank you for telling me, Mirri. Dagail said you have a noble heart and she’s right. There.” I got to my feet. “All done.”

Mirri stood as well and pointed at our jumbled pile of wet clothes and armor. “What about that?”

I filled one hand with alteration magic and spilled it over the pile. “All dry.”

Mirri knelt down and poked through our gear. “You’re right!”

I summoned my storage trunk, stowed my cold weather clothing, slipped into my silk and buckskin outfit, then helped Mirri with the rather involved process of armoring her up.

“So, Buffy. . . if that spell can dry our gear, why didn’t you use it to dry us?”

“I’m not the alteration master that Dagail is,” I began. “The only such spell I know removes entirely too much moisture to use on us. I’m afraid we’d end up resembling those dried figs we bought in Windhelm.”

“Oh. . . that would not be good,” she agreed. “Shall we turn that equipment we picked up into gold as we figure out what’s next?”

When we reached the second level of the tree and found the blacksmith, I retrieved the daedric armor and maul for Mirri. “Let’s split up,” I said, “I’ll go see if I can find a vendor interested in that star-shaped key to Direfrost Keep’s lower levels.”

Once we completed our tasks, we got back together to divide our proceeds. I offered to tilt the split in favor of Mirri, given her family’s situation, but was rebuked with a stern, “Right down the middle, partner.”

We then relaxed at the tavern near the tree’s wayshrine. Mirri enjoyed a goblet of wine while I sipped on bergamot tea and laid out my plans. “First, I’m going to Windhelm to inform Ciceri and Hreinhilde of Dreanna’s fate. Then I’ll keep my promise to visit Dagail in Leyawiin. Next I’ll seek out Praxedes Rousseau, palatinus of the Mages Guild, and let her know our quest was successful. She can advise the Arch Mage if she wishes.”

Mirri chuckled. “After hearing you and Ciceri talk about Arch Mage Galerion, he sounds like someone to avoid.”

I thought for a moment and tempered my reply, “Well, he is rather a challenge to deal with.” I continued, “Finally, I’ll consult with Kynareth, for she is already aware of our success.”

“Given your itinerary, this might be a good time for me to head back to Vvardenfell and visit my parents.”

“I’m sure they’ll enjoy seeing you, Mirri, and I bet you’ll enjoy that more than tagging along with me through various Mages Guildhalls.”

“Well, I was trying to be polite,” she joked.

“How about breakfast right here in a tenday?” I offered. “That should give us plenty of time to tend to our affairs. I mean. . . that is, if you still want to continue our partnership?”

Mirri looked surprised, then her blue-gray skin darkened in what I now recognized as a Dunmeri blush. “Am I that awkward with my feelings, Buffy? It seems like we’ve traveled together far longer than we actually have. I. . . I’ve never fought with someone that I so completely trust with my life, never having to look behind me to know you’re there. I don’t relish the prospect of trying to find another partner who understands and tolerates me as you do. I need a mage to complement my skills and you . . . well, you’ve become a dear friend. Of course, I want us to continue.”

“Likewise, my friend. It’s a date then. Oh, I have something for you.” I then turned to Willow and added, “Mirri’s gift, if you please.” The nixad retrieved a book from my mage pouch which I handed to Mirri.

“The Real Barenziah?!? You remembered both my love for books and even the quote I offered when we were talking about the difficulties elves have conceiving. Where and when did you find this?”

I smiled. “That’s why I split us up earlier. I got it from a book vendor next to the antiquities dealer to whom I sold our Direfrost key.”

“Thank you, Buffy. I’m afraid I didn’t get you anything.”

“You’re wrong, Mirri. The residual magic from Phantom’s corpse is now safely stored within her spirit that I carry inside. I expect her corpse is well-protected beneath an entire glacier. I told you there are secrets that I must keep but, be assured, the impact of what we have accomplished is much greater than simply stopping a rogue mage. I could never have completed Kynareth’s quest without you.”

“Let’s head our separate ways – for now – before you make me cry, Buffy.”

We walked together to the wayshrine. I said, “See you in a tenday then.”

Mirri nodded, placed one hand on the wayshrine and was off to Morrowind.

I then stepped up to the wayshrine. A few moments later, I was in Windhelm, making my way to the guildhall.

*

The following morning, it was another goodbye. This time to Guildmagister Ciceri.

“Buffy, I’ll make sure Windhelm’s magistrate learns the fate of the Direfrost Clan so he can make efforts to notify any kin.”

“Thank you, Ciceri,” I replied. “What will you do with that Direfrost mage’s journal?”

“I think I’ll burn it. Letting it be known that the Direfrost Clan perished at the hands of Drodda is enough. Neither the reputations of those clansmen nor of my mages need suffer further by publicizing the details of Drodda’s depravity.”

I nodded my agreement.

“Thank you for your concurrence, Buffy,” she continued, “and for letting us know that, at the very end, our sweet Dreanna returned. Her dying words that you relayed to Hreinhilde mean a great deal to her.”

“Hreinhilde has a gentle, caring spirit,” I replied. “She’ll make a fine healer. Farewell, Ciceri.”

All cleaned up after a long day of smiting.

I guess one advantage of being blue to begin with, is that when you are black and blue, no one notices half of it!

You can pack so many spirits into this one little Wood Elf!

I love that Buffy can't use her dry spell on people, because they would end up as mummies! Seriously though, it is good to have limits.

That was a nice temporary parting with Mirri. Given that Buffy deliberately left the door open to continuing their partnership, which Mirri took, I believe that she has already made up her mind to remain in the 2nd Age.

”You know, you’re even smaller without your clothes on.”

I can see how Mirri might have lost past partners to her rather blunt and outspoken ways.

It’s great to have Acadian’s presence be an open secret between them, rather than something Buffy must hide.

I am delighted to learn that Buffy, Willow, and Mirri plan to continue their partnership!