I am grinning as I read this. Kill that scurvy dog!

Lol yeah, Festus is a prick. Guess we never noticed. Astrid is smug and disapproving sometimes, but it's the way Festus speaks to Mych that bothers her. So yeah, at some point, Festus will probably be 'disappeared'.

Mycharonna just arrived in Dragon's Bridge. And fed on Olda. Yummm. Nice strong Nord blood. She's spending the day at the Four Shields Tavern, and then heading toward Solitude, where she is to play a certain role for her part in the Dark Brotherhood.

Sometimes the guards say, “I fear the night, because the vampires and werewolves don’t.” That always makes me think of Mycharonna!

Aww. That's a compliment to Mych.

Because the night belongs to us....

D'oh! Wrong thread.

I always did love that song.

Middas, 5:26 PM, 5th of Last Seed, 4th Era 202

Days Passed: 353
Days as Vampire: 332

Necks Bitten: 64
Locations Discovered: 147
Hours Slept: 2444
Hours Waited: 2074





Mycharonna is in Druadach Redoubt Cave, which is Forsworn territory in The Reach. She just kicked some major @$$ here. In the poem above she is describing what it's like to awake to a room full of carnage; dead bodies all around, and how she finds comfort in this.

She leveled up to 46, and I gave her the Magic Resistance (1/3) perk. She is a great character offensively, but her defense is horrible. She can only cast Stone Flesh at best, does not use Restoration at all (except potions) which means she doesn't use Ward spells. She usually has to flee, or at least move to a faraway place, if a wizard starts throwing Firebolts or Chain Lightning. Time for that to change!

Oh, nice. She didn't spend too much time as a vampire but she's sure making great progress.

Level 46! Few of my characters have ever reached such rarefied heights.

Yourcharonna Mycharonna might try dabbling some in alchemy and create a supply of Resist Fire potions. They won't be much at first, but if she puts some perks into it, they could really take the edge off those fireballs.

This actually happened yesterday, but I haven't had time to post . . .

Anyway, I have this mod that lets me set the dispo of various animals and enemies as Allies, Friendly, Defensive, or leave them as vanilla. It lets me walk past bears and sabre cats. However, I noticed that if I run past them, they turn around and follow me, often to the nearest settlement, where they then proceed to pick fights with guards, blacksmiths, etc.

So yesterday Alise rides into Ivarstead, relishing the lovely autumnal sun after a freezing ride over the pass near Haemar's Shrine. Next thing she knows, guards are running past her and Rayya, weapons drawn, and she hears a bear roaring and snarling. She gets down and turns around to run back and lend her aid. The guards already there are getting beat up good by the bear, and for a moment there is a slight pause in the brawl. This tiny little calico cat runs over the bridge straight at the bear, swats it on the nose, and the big beast keels over dead. Little Posie then sits down and licks her paw nonchalantly.

It was the funniest thing and I couldn't help laughing out loud! BTW, Posie is from Pets of Skyrim I love the adorable huskies and shibas it adds to the game, as well as the kitties that I keep coming across. Wish I could bring them all home!

Ha hahahaaaa a cat got the bear! No way! Amazing. Can only happen in a Bethesda game.

SR: Yes, she makes Resist Fire potions. I am drawing a blank what ingredients are needed to make these, but Mycharonna knows them by heart. She always picks such ingredients. She also wears boots that resist fire 40%.

DE: Yes, my vamp has come a long way. One year in Skyrim!

After more than one year and a half, I decided to join the "Skyrim crew". I'll more frequently read the updates thread, because I have a rather "impolite" habit to read only forums of the game I'm currently playing so for now I was mostly centered on New Vegas.

-----

Neither Tullius nor Hadvar nor the Imperial Captain with a shrieking voice knew, why was a long-haired, bearded Redguard captured together with Stormcloaks. Was he a rebel just like them (though unlikely because of his race), or did he just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Except one "Unnghh!" sound, which he made when an Imperial soldier hit him in the head, he hasn't said a word. On a long way to Helgen he didn't complain about his fate, nor did he prattle about Sovngarde like other prisoners.

Hadvar felt a pity for him but the Imperial Captain and Tullius certainly didn't. He was captured together with the Stormcloaks and he was supposed to face the same fate as the rebels. When the sad caravan arrived to Helgen, and after Lokir's unsuccessful attempt to escape, Hadvar ordered him to step closer.

"You there! Step forward! Who are you?"

The skinny Redguard stepped closer and stared at Hadvar.

"Your name, Redguard," politely said Hadvar. "We need it...for a list."

The Redguard said nothing.

"As you wish. What are you doing here, Redguard? You a sellsword? A sailor from Stros M'Kai?"

No answer, just a blank stare.

"What should we do with him, captain? He's not on the list."

"Forget the list, he goes to the block," angrily said the captain and the executions could finally begin.

However, things didn't turn out as expected for the Imperial Army. Not only was Helgen ravaged by a harbinger of the end times, Ulfric Stormcloak and his rebels escaped as well. The silent Redguard joined Ralof and together they made their way through Helgen Keep. Although he never said a word, except occasional "Aaargh" when hit, the Redguard knew how to wield a weapon. Ralof was afraid that he'll have to take care of him as well but fortunately this didn't happen. While he was busy killing the annoying Imperial Captain, the Redguard killed her subordinate. While Ralof was thinking whether to kill spiders from up close or from a safe distance, his silent companion ran amongst them, hastily yet precisely waving late Gunjar's axe at poisonous creatures, running in circles and jumping over them like an acrobat.

When they made their way out of what was once Helgen's prominent keep, Ralof offered him a shelter at his sister in Riverwood.

But the Redguard shook his head.

"Come with me, friend," said Ralof, "I wouldn't have made it without your help today."

The Redguard shook his head once again and then raised his right hand and waved insecurely.

"You want us to part ways?" asked Ralof and crossed his arms.

The Redguard nodded.

"So be it then. May Talos guide you, friend. Perhaps we will meet again."

-----

Some time later three bandits at a lone camp south of Helgen spotted a dark man watching them from the rocks above. He was staring at them, without saying a word. The bandits readied their weapons and so did he. In the next second he jumped in a middle of them. "By Ysmir, you won't leave here alive!" The bandits thought that the man in a worn roughspun tunic doesn't have any chance against them, yet they were wrong - a few minutes later all of them were dead and one of them was stripped of his fur armor and a backpack - both of them were now carried by the Redguard.

He took some food, a hunting bow and some arrows and headed back north, to the cave beneath Helgen Keep. There was a bear, he saw it earlier while escaping, and the Redguard was hungry. Very hungry. One precise shot straight to the cave bear's head was enough to end the beast's life. The Redguard then approached it and pulled an iron dagger from his backpack. The task ahead was messy and bloody yet he was used to it. After one hour of precisely cutting the beast's remains, the Redguard took its bloody lungs, intestines and some other eatable organs from the body.

As he tasted fresh raw meat and animal's still warm blood ran from his mouth and down on his dirty fingers, the Redguard finally began to regain his strength.

Welcome to Skyrim!! It's so satisfying to kill that Legion Captain, even when it's Ralof who gets the honor. Armor, food, and weapons, it sounds like your silent Redguard is off to a good start.

Your Redguard is silent but deadly, yet more welcome than gas...

WHOA heh heh I know who this guy is!!! Mutavi, the Mute Guy! Sweet!... Awesome start, and good to see you have returned to Skyrim, even if your new one prefers not to eat from the hearth.

Chances are I'm going to return to Lord Haaf-Mersey here and there, now that my Ice Witch has passed, so we'll all be one happy family up in Skyrim.

Thanks for a warm welcome to the cold northern province.

Renee, you're on to something here, except that Mutavi is of course not his real name.

Right now I'm busy downloading several mods. I already started the game with around 30 mods but as I browse Nexus, I find more mods that I want. It's a rather long process, checking whether mods are updated and working and whether they aren't too difficult to uninstall if they don't work as intended, etc. - a process definitely known to most players who mod their games. I also have to edit some things in the Creation Kit so tonight and tomorrow I'll be busy to get everything working as I want.

Mutavi is better than Silent But Deadly, which could easily have become his name!

A hearty welcome to the silent Redguard as he begins to make his way in Skyrim. It looks like he'll be forging his own path. He seems quite at home with weaponry and hunting.

Thanks Acadian. You're right about "forging his own path" and for now it doesn't seem that he'll be very social.

-----

Charred corpses, burned buildings, ruined towers...a town that welcomed almost every traveler coming from Cyrodiil to Skyrim, has now been completely ravaged. There wasn't anyone alive in Helgen. Or was it? Footsteps could be heard in a clear night but there was nobody to hear them except the one making the sound...

...a ghost?

No, but a survivor. "The Redguard in the rags" as he was called by the now dead Imperial Captain. He didn't come to seek answers or look for survivors. No, he came because there was fire. And where's fire, there's warmth. As he laid down beside fire, he felt relieved that there was nobody around. Sometimes dead were a better company than living.

-----

Can't-Catch-His-Tail came to Skyrim many moons ago. At first the "business" was good - he and his crew were making enough gold merely by robbing travelers south of Helgen but when almost all of his gang were arrested or killed by Imperial soldiers, he fled north towards Cyrodiil. There he met a group of like-minded individuals, bandits who allowed him to stay with them at Fort Neugrad, but in return he had to patrol its walls during daytime. Can't-Catch-His-Tail knew that he deserves better and he also knew that almost nobody comes in this region so being on guard all the time was completely unnecessary. Just when thinking about how boring his life became, he saw a Redguard approaching Fort Neugrad. Orders were clear - nobody was allowed to enter Fort Neugrad. And it seemed to Can't-Catch-His-Tail that the stupid Redguard intended to do exactly this.

The Redguard stopped a few feet away from the fort's entrance, looked the Khajiit above him and raised his right hand. First he slowly waved, then pointed at himself, then raised both hands like he was surrendering, then pointed at himself again and gestured with his index and middle finger to go in the fort. Then he made one step back, crossed his arms and stared at the Khajiit.

"What is this idiot doing?" thought Can't-Catch-His-Tail, not understanding what the Redguard tried to "say". He pulled out his bow and showed it to the Redguard.

"Here, see this? This one will show you how to use it unless you go. Shoo, Redguard! Shoo!"

The Redguard was staring at him a few seconds, then turned around and headed back the way he came.

"Good for him. This one wouldn't mind some action but this one isn't in a mood to bury another corpse either."

Can't-Catch-His-Tail was satisfied with himself that he managed to scare the traveler away. Hence why his surprise was much bigger when half an hour later, he turned around and saw the same traveler on the other side of the fort, having just climbed its walls.

"It can't be! This idiot found another way! To arms, to arms!"

The Khajiit was joined by a mage and two more bandits and all of them felt excited to finally see some action in the fort.

"By Ysmir, you won't leave here alive!" a Nord hurled at the intruder.

"You picked a bad time to get lost, friend," said a Breton mage, warming up his fingers.

"Whatcha gonna do? Huh? Whatcha gonna do?" shouted a wild Elf, readying her bow.

----

It was already past 8 PM yet four bandits, tasked to patrol the fort's exterior, didn't come to eat. Bandits, led by a mage named Brandish, came out to see what happened that they didn't come to drink ale and eat some meat as usually. But they realized that their four friends won't ever drink ale again. Or eat meat, either. All of them were dead.

Brandish immediately sent some bandits to scout the vicinity of the fort and ordered a few more to patrol the walls. Then he took a good look at the fallen bandits...something was missing.

"Hmmm...odd," he said to one of his closest bandits, "someone stripped Erik of his fur coat and hood."

"And arrows," added the bandit.

"What?" asked Brandish, confused.

"Arrows are missing from Lelka's quiver, boss," said the bandit. "And look, the Khajiit's quiver is empty too."

"Damn, what do we have here? Someone killed our guards to take a coat, a hood and arrows?! And he didn't even touch gold."

"Well, looks like he was hungry too," said the bandit.

"Huh?"

"Look at these salmons, boss. Someone cut them and took meat out. But hey, boss, this time it won't be me catching fresh salmons again, I caught cold the other day when..."

"Shut up! Join the others and patrol the walls. Now!"

Despite the fact that bandits, sent to scout the vicinity, returned alive and reported nothing suspicious, Brandish ordered double more bandits than usually, to be on the lookout.

It was unnecessarily, though. The one who killed the bandits, was already far away. He got exactly what he came for - some warmer clothes, some arrows and some food. But If they were nice to him in the first place, they'd still be alive.

Bravo Lopov, awesome. I Love all the conversation, even your Redguard who doesn't speak, and doesn't take gold from enemies.

Lovpov, I see the Raggedy Redguard has already eaten and gone, leaving without much of a trace. I wonder where he's headed?

*

Buffy and Jordis left Solitude this morning. They skirted the horses just off to one side of Dragonsreach Dragon's Bridge and were almost at the foot of the bridge when they heard someone yell. Turning the mounts, they saw a young boy cowered down and the guards involved in a disturbance up the street. The ladies drew bow (Buffy) and claymore (Jordis) and charged their mounts into town. Just in time to help kill a cave bear that was terrorizing the town.

Always concerned about named NPC's I asked Buffy to scan for casualties. Her detect dead spell revealed a dead chicken, two dead goats and two dead NPCs. At that point, we resurrected the NPCs - there are too few named NPCs in Skyrim as it is and it is not as if folks are wetting themselves to immigrate to the war-torn frozen tundra province. . . .

The day was still young though, so the pair saddled up and continued over the big bridge, headed for Morthal.

A cave bear in the middle of the city? What are those Companions up to now?

I suspect that was Dragon's Bridge, not Dragonsreach, if they just left Solitude for Morthal.

Oops! You're right of course. Thanks!

Thanks!


It will be revealed soon.

--

I'm glad that Buffy (and you) resurrected the NPCs because unique NPCs are really rare in Skyrim. On the other hand, I like it when random attacks such as this one, occur, because they show us that not everything is scripted. But losing two named NPCs is too much of a loss, and I'd probably resurrect them too. There aren't any consequences of overusing this command in Skyrim, are they?

Lopov, I really enjoy the NPC-view in the stories about your silent Redguard. Regarding your question the only consequence I know is that resurrected NPCs sometimes keep their dead status for the purpose of quests and such. For example if you resurrect a child’s parent the child will still think they are dead and if possible will ask you to adopt them.

I tend to resurrect dead NPCs in my long-running games but not for my DiD characters. Some of my characters (Jensa!) insist upon resurrecting all of the dead chickens. In Jensa’s game the dead NPCs stay where they lie despite my interest in reviving them. I suppose she thinks the people have earned their good deaths, but the only place in Sovngarde for chickens is on a spit.

I smile to think of big blonde Jordis and little blonde Buffy wandering the wilds.

Lopov, I think Grits is right. If an NPC dies it can permanently make the game think they are dead as it may relate to quests - even if you resurrect them. No problem 'overusing' it however. Our game confines dragons to their lair's/word wall areas so we don't have any urban dragon attacks. But we do get the occasional vampire attack in town. Buffy does the same thing after those - scans for bodies with detect dead and we resurrect any named NPCs.

Thanks, Grits. We've got Jordis decked out in Solitude guard armor - that seems pretty appropriate for her and looks pretty good (and comfortable). Heh, they are an odd couple. Buffy likes occasionally traveling with NPCs/followers. . . but generally prefers to keep her posse limited to Superian, Acadian, herself and a KynarethKritter.

Thanks, Grits & Acadian!

I'm used to writing in 3rd person ever since I was writing about Falador. Now my stories consist of actual games events, added by some obviously fictional ones.

I use a mod (Timing is Everything, IIRC) that lets me configure when do vampire attacks start in towns - right now I have them set to a relatively high level but if necessary, I'll increase it later.

--

Was there any assignment more boring than telling travelers of borders being closed? Guards at the Skyrim-Cyrodiil frontier certainly didn't think so. They've been stationed at far south of Skyrim for weeks and it didn't seem likely that they will get reassigned anytime soon.

"Greetings, citizen. Borders are closed until the civil war resolves. Now please leave this area. Goodbye."

This and many similar sentences could be heard when loyal Imperial soldiers were telling travelers to head back the way they came. Some obeyed them immediately, some complained and some tried to bribe them. There were also some that tried to pass the border by force and some so brave that tried to climb the deadly mountains and pass the border illegally. Most of these "brave" travelers were killed on spot because orders were to execute any that don't obey, on sight. They could be rebels, after all. Those that tried to pass over the mountains, were usually intercepted by skilled Imperial Legion foresters who didn't have mercy for them either. Still, it happened from time to time that someone successfully sneaked over the border, be it by bribing, sheer force or pure luck.

Just a few days after Helgen was destroyed by the harbinger of the end times, a young Imperial soldier spotted a traveler approaching the frontier. It was snowing as it usually did in these parts, and the soldier envied the coming traveler - he was wearing a warm black fur cloak with a matching hood so he certainly didn't feel cold as much as he did. As he came closer, the young soldier stepped ahead, cleared his throat, and said:

"Greetings, citizen. Borders are closed until the civil war resolves. Now please leave this area. Goodbye."

The young soldier was ready. If necessary, he'll repeat what he just said. If necessary, he'll repeat what he just said with a louder voice. And if necessary, he'll unsheathe his Imperial sword to show the Redguard that he's serious.

The Redguard stared at him for a few seconds, a blank look in his eyes. Then he looked upwards, to the high snowy peaks of the Jerall Mountains, as if observing them.

"Don't even think of trying to pass the border over there, citizen," said the young soldier. "Not only are there are many experienced foresters stationed, it's unlikely that you'd be able to climb them and survive. I suggest that you..."[/i]

The young soldier didn't finish the sentence because the silent Redguard already turned around and headed back.

"Huh? That one was a talkative, for sure."

The soldier's friend cautiously stepped outside the Imperial tent, approached his mate and and said:

"I've seen that one before."

"Have you? Where?"

"Can't tell. But I've seen him...I recognized his face despite his hood. Wait...I know...I know...he was on that carriage that passed through here just a few days ago! He was with Ulfric Stormcloak! He was unconscious but I remember his dirty face!"

"A rebel, you say? Huh? What shall we do? Go hunt him down? He can't be far by now."

"Let's go. Maybe we'll earn a promotion and be reassigned back to warm Cyrodiil."

Two soldiers ran down the snowy path yet after only a few steps they stopped, looking in every direction. The Redguard was nowhere to be seen.

"Odd," said one of them,"we should already see him. He couldn't have gone so far by now."

"He just...vanished," said the other one."Should we go after him or return back?"

"Now that I think of it...let's head back. Who knows where did he go? And I didn't like his face at all. Could be he's hiding somewhere, waiting to ambush us. Not that we wouldn't be able to defeat him, of course, but..."

"I agree. I didn't like his dark eyes either. Not that I'm afraid of him of course."

As the young soldiers were returning back to their outpost, a dark figure was watching them, hidden under a snowy spruce.

Nice! And the thing is 'a dark figure' could be anyone, or anything. Might be that Redguard, or maybe not.







Yikes. So the parent can walk around in front of the child and they'll still think they're .... Wow, that's creepy.

Turdas, 11:00 AM, 12th of Sun's Dusk, 4E 202

Today it is a lazy Sunday, and I returned to Lord Haaf-Mersey. It'll be fun to run around with him for a month or so before switching to PC. I have this vision of going from Xbox to PC, really getting to know this game again, and so this way I'll have a list of things I'd like to see changed or added.

But besides all that, it's just fun to RP my Crusader. It will be easy to get back into his RP.

We arrive in his home, Proudspire Manor. Lucia's room is looking girlier than ever (forgot about all the flowers we've placed up there) and I forgot all about her 'bug collection'. She's got a drawerful of things that she apparently adds to from time to time. I am assuming she does this automatically? I don't remember. Anyways, her clothes drawer is packed with dead dragonflies and bees and butterflies.

Rayya the Overkiler is bored and eager for her Thane to decide to get back on the road again. And Motormouth Mjoll is practicing her Moonwalk. She's got a weird glitch that causes her to walk backwards.

Right now, Haaf-Mersey is wandering around his house, looking at all the stuff he's accumulated. All sorts of cool weapons in their racks. All sorts of armor sets too. But he's really wanting to do some smithing. I forgot all about Smithing. Yeah, who needs high-priced enchanted crappe when we can just make a cheap iron sword, and then sharpen / harden the heck out of it until it's much more dangerous than it was. Haaf-Mersey has three items he can wear (a medallion, a ring, and a circlet) to improve his smithing skills even more. Once he does this, he and Rayya are off to... who knows where? .. Lots of evil is afoot though, and Haaf-Mersey has little time for chatter.

Good to read about Lord Haaf Mersey! Looks like he's married to a crab.

Being without the laptop for some time, I now have an urge to game and write. So here's another story.

--

Ranger Angi left Helgen years ago, when her family was killed by two drunken Imperial soldiers. With her bare hands she built a small shack south of Helgen, high in the Jerall Mountains. There she lived lone yet peaceful life, away from the Imperial law. She was well-versed with a bow so obtaining food for survival wasn't a problem. Occasionally she got some "visitors"...most of the time it was bandits yet some of them didn't even make it to her shack alive because they stepped into one of Angi's traps, placed on a path leading to her camp. Those bandits, that made it to her shack, either left fleeing or ended with arrows in their necks. Occasionally she was visited by pilgrims or common travelers and while Angi allowed them to stay and refresh, she wasn't very hospitable, so travelers quickly left. That was the life she chose and she liked it - alone, her bow being the best company.

As she was cooking a venison stew outside her shack, she heard footsteps behind her. She quickly turned around, her right hand ready to pull out her trusted bow if necessary...there was a Redguard standing a few feet away from her, clad in black fur armor, hiding his face under a hood. Though the first thing she noticed was a hunting bow on his back. He was supposedly an archer like herself.

"Name's Angi and if you try anything stupid I won't hesitate to put in arrow in your head!"

Was he a bandit? Could be. But a bandit probably wouldn't hesitate to attack her. Unless he was one of those sadists that preferred to capture their victims alive.

The Redguard slowly raised both hands like he was surrendering, then lowered them and put them in front of himself, gesturing her to calm down. Then he slowly pulled his hood back, revealing long black hair and a thick beard.

"Sorry but a girl can't be too careful out here. Who are you and what do you want?"

He said nothing but pointed at a campfire behind her.

"Alright, you can warm yourself by fire if you like. But you haven't answered my first question - who are you?"

The Redguard looked at her for a few seconds, then put his right index finger to the left mouth corner and slowly moved it to the opposite side.

"Yes...I noticed that you are...hmm...silent. Do you speak at all?"

The Redguard shook his head.

"Oh..."

Angi felt sorry for being rude with him. It could be he was pretending, but it was unlikely. Something in his eyes convinced her that the stranger was honest.

"Go ahead and warm yourself by fire. I'm making some venison stew - want some?"

She was convinced that he'll nod but once again he shook his head.

"As you wish."

The silent stranger sat down by the campfire and to Angi's surprise, pulled some raw meat, looking like liver, from his backpack. Without bothering to cook it, he bit into it like he was used to eating raw food.

"By Talos!" said Angi," do you want me to cook this for you?"

The Redguard looked at her and once again shook his head.

"A-a...as you wish."

The Redguard was eating slowly and when he finished, he kept sitting by the campfire. Angi also eat her delicious venison stew and afterwards returned to her daily chores. But she always made sure to know what the Redguard was doing. It's good to trust but it's even better not to, she thought.

From time to time he stood up and walked down to her target practice field, watching the skies and snowy peaks of the Jerall Mountains. Angi couldn't figure out what exactly was he watching, but with time he didn't bother her anymore as much as he did when he arrived. He seemed to live in his own world, and this suited her just fine. Though she had to admit to herself that she found the silent stranger...intriguing.

...

Sometime later, when Masser and Secunda were high in the sky and Angi was slowly finishing repairing one of the shack's windows, the Redguard approached her.

"Mhmm. What do you want?" she asked and looked into his dark eyes.

He put his hands together and moved them to his right cheek, gesturing to sleep. Then he pointed at her shack.

He wants to sleep here. Should I allow him or not? He doesn't look harmful but one can never be too sure. On the other hand, I can't really force him to return to wherever he came from...

"You want to sleep here?"

He nodded.

"Fine. But not in my bed."

He shook his head forcefully, like he didn't even intend to. Then he pointed through the window at a cooking place in her shack.

"You can sleep there, if you want, yes."

The Redguard nodded and wanted to head inside but Angi stopped him.

"Wait. You must have a name, don't you? How I should call you? Can you write?"

He nodded insecurely.

"Come inside."

She led him inside, opened a drawer in her end table, pulled out a piece of paper, an inkwell and a quill.

"Here, what's your name? Mine is Angi, as you already know."

The Redguard hesitated, then took the quill, dipped it in ink and slowly wrote something. When he finished, Angi took the paper and read the inscription:

Silence

Angi got a puzzled look on her face.

"Silence? Your name is Silence?"

He nodded.

"Huh...I see. Did your mother call you like this?"

Silence shook his head.

"I thought so. So write me how did she call you then?"

The Redguard shook his head, looking annoyed because of the question, then dipped the quill in ink once more and started writing. This time he was writing longer, and Angi was anxious what will he write. Surely his mother couldn't give him such a name. When he finished, he showed the paper to her.

I dont know mother.

"Oh...I'm sorry. Well, then...Silence...ehmm...make yourself comfortable here by a cooking place. It's warm and if you want to eat something, don't hesitate to take it, alright?"

He nodded, but then pointed at his backpack and tapped it twice, probably gesturing her that he has a backpack full of food.

"Raw, no doubt," said Angi and smiled.

Silence didn't smile back.

"Oh, I didn't mean to imply anything. Well…I’m going to sleep. So are you, I assume. Good night."

He nodded and then sat by the cooking place.

Angi went to bed, watching mysterious Silence for some time.

Who would have thought this? A mute Redguard in my camp! I think he's harmless...unless...unless he's a very good pretender.

She decided to watch him for some time, just to make sure that he won't try and attack her when she falls asleep. He was sitting by the campfire, looking into it all the time, not even once turning his head in Angi's direction. But she was very tired after a working day, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't let her eyes open anymore. As she fell asleep and her breathing became slower and deeper, Silence slowly turned his head in her direction. Now he was watching her, his dark eyes fixed on her beautiful, pale face.

Wow his name is Silence! I love that. Silence.



Very wise. The way it ends is awesome, like something out of a movie.

----------

Day 453
I am having a blast with Haaf-Mersey. So far he went to Falkreath and sold a ridiculous staff Rayya was carrying. I mean, she already overkills whatever she finds, but she's carrying a Wall of Ice staff??? ... Anyway, he sold this, and a few other things. Then they went to Helgen, which apparently hasn't respawned since the last time they visited there. And now they are in a vampire lair.

LHM decided to go towards Riften, and then to visit the Dawnguard castle. There are occasional vampire attacks in his game still, even though we 'beat' Harkon. This is good though, I like them because they are purely random. Never know when they will show up.

Renee, glad that Haaf-Mersey and Rayya are having fun in Skyrim, smithing gear and selling staves.

Lopov, Silence is a good name for your Redguard. I think it's very fun how you are working with the (vanilla) game's enforced silence regarding the primary character (except for grunting and shouting). Lol.

Buffy, on the other hand (thanks to mods) is more of a chatterbox than Mjoll the Motormouth.

Thanks! I was going to ask whether that vampire lair is Bloodlet Throne because it's close to Helgen but since you said that they're going to Riften, I assume it's the lair on the main road from Helgen to Riften? Hemar's Shame or something like that?

I wonder what'd happen if Silence ran into Motor Mouth Mjoll...


Thanks! It's something I've never tried before, so it's fun. Besides, I'm never satisfied with Beth's forced answers / limited options in dialogues so this time I don't have to create imaginary answers that fit my characters.

Renee, yay for LHM! I’m sure there’s plenty of evil in many forms for him to smite.

Lopov, great to know your Redguard’s name. “Silence.” It sure suits him!

Thank ye thank ye. What mod is that, Acadian? The mod that makes Buffy speak? I am putting together a list of changes I want to see. Not that I'm going to get this talking mod, but I am curious about it, at least.



"I reeely meess traveling like these. Walking da breadth of Skyrim has always filled my heart with exciddement", said Mjoll as she traveled like this, walking the breadth of Skyrim.

The Redguard known as Silence raises his left hand, gestures toward his face, and slams his left palm upon his brow, covering his eyes.

Hi, Renee. The mod is called Additional Player Voices. You can add your own wav files to customize the voice that is used. There are about a dozen 'voice cue' situations (enter sneak, mount horse. . . ) and you can customize each voice cue with up to about 10 random responses. In Oblivion, Buffy used a voice that is called 'Innocent' and, thanks to lots of help from SubRosa, I was able to get those wav files into the APV mod. Naturally, I have her frequency of talking set all the way up to chatterbox. It is so nice to have her Oblivion voice now in Skyrim!

Oh wow, so it already has some pre-set voices? Interesting. I might look into this in the future. I might see if the Oblivion version might fit my Renee Gade character. I was assuming ... I don't know... I was thinking it worked in a different way.

I think the existing voices that come with the mod are just three 'filler' voices. I believe they are Japanese. The beauty of the mod is importing your own wav voice files.

Yes. The base mod only comes with actual sounds for one of the three available sets, and that one is all Japanese. So its a fixer upper mod, where you have to add your own. It is not difficult to do. Just time-consuming. So far I have made packs for Imoen, Viconia, Innocent, and a Sassy soundset, all imported from the Baldur's Gate games.

There are several voicepacks for it that people have posted on the Nexus. None of them have done anything for me though.

Thanks!




--

When Angi woke up, Silence was still sleeping by the fire at the cooking place. As she silently passed him, careful not to wake him up, she noticed something unusual on his neck. She didn't see it before because of his thick beard but while sleeping, his head was slightly bent backwards and she saw it clearly. There was a scar on his neck, hidden in Silence's black beard. It was long and straight, as if someone cut his throat long ago.

Could it be that someone cut his throat, hurting his vocal cords?

Angi once again felt sorry for the mute Redguard yet decided not to show her compassion. She had bad experiences with being too friendly and trustful in the past, and she didn't intend to repeat her mistakes.

--

They both preferred silence, so they went along well. While Angi was doing her chores in and around her shack, Silence was practicing his archery skills at her makeshift targets. Afterwards he would wander around, sitting by the outside campfire or sitting on a tall ledge, overlooking almost entire Skyrim up to Lake Ilinalta. He could sit for hours, watching in the distance. What was he thinking and watching, Angi didn't intend to find out, yet she was curious nonetheless.

They "talked" for the first time when having a dinner - Angi had some venison stew from the previous day, and Silence had some raw pheasant breasts.

"So have you been in Skyrim long?"

He shook his head and continued eating.

"It's odd they let you through. Borders are closed. Unless you..."

He shook his head, then clenched his right fist, touched his right cheek as if hitting himself, pointed to the Jerrall Mountains and then pointed behind him.

"You...were beaten and brought to Skyrim?"

He nodded but shook his hands, probably "saying" that she's only partially correct.

"I see...you didn't come to Skyrim willingly?"

He nodded. Then he pointed at himself, made a walking gesture with his index and middle finger and pointed at the Jerrall Mountains.

"You...ehmm...were walking in the Jerralls?"

He shook his head, pointed at himself forcefully, then repeated the gesture from before.

"You want to go back? Pass the Jerralls?"

He nodded.

"Huh, that will be tough. Last I heard when I was down in Falkreath, borders are still closed. And with the civil war getting intense every day, they will stay closed for a long time. And you can't pass these mountains and hope to survive. Not only are they very steep, there are many frost creatures lurking up there. Who knows what you might run into."

He was looking at her yet didn't give any response.

--



Silence was getting ready to sleep at the warm cooking place when Angi came from her room, carrying a blanket in her hands.

Silence..."

He opened his eyes and looked at her.

"Do you...mind if I join you? It's very cold tonight in my room, I really have to repair windows tomorrow. And sometimes it's...it's easier to get warmed if laying next to someone."

His eyes widened and Angi saw surprise in them. Though looking confused, he nodded.

Angi laid down beside him and put the blanket over them.

"Good night," she said and turned away from him, towards the fire.

Now why did I do that? Was it really so cold in my room? Or was I just longing for some company. Whatever...at least I will feel safer tonight.

Angi felt his warm breath on her neck for a long time, and she wondered whether he's still awake or is he already sleeping. She was sure that she confused him with her action.

But Silence was a silent gentleman and he proved this by respecting Angi, and when she fell asleep, feeling safe and warm, he was still awake, watching her. He made sure that the blanket was more on her side than on his and then threw another log into the fire to keep it burning for the cold night.

Ah okay. That sounds complicated, maybe that mod can be for later.

So we see that Silence is a gentleman and that Angi has taken a bit of a shine to him.

You know, Acadian, you often "teach" me new English phrases. I had to look up what does it mean "to take a shine to" and some time back you mentioned a phrase "to get knocked up" when commenting a Blondie's story, and I had to look that up to. So just keep doing this, I'll learn many new English phrases / sayings from you.

--

"By Arkay, you were at that vampire-infested fort, have you not? The Bloodlet Throne?" angrily said Angi when she noticed two bite marks on Silence's neck.

He nodded.

"Hmph! Not to mention the smell. Well, don't just stand there! You have to get cured else..."

Silence gestured her with both hands to calm down and confidently nodded with his head, obviously aware of his disease.

"No, I won't calm down! You have to get cured now. There are already too many vampires in Skyrim, and I don't want another one in my...in my camp. Unless you have some curing potions or know how to brew them yourself, go to Falkreath - it's not far from here. There's a healer and a shrine next to a graveyard."

Silence nodded.

"Good. Just follow the path down, it's the only one, you can't get lost. It's the same path you walked some days ago, when I asked you to get some water from the stream below. Now go! Don't lost any minute more."

Silence nodded and silently wandered down the snowy path.

"Watch out for bandits!" she shouted behind him. Though she wondered where the warning was necessary. After all he just single-handedly cleared out a fort full of vampires.
--

Angi was woken up by footsteps.

Did Silence come back? She quickly checked the time on a magical hourglass on her end table.

Midnight.

The footsteps stopped not far from her room and she saw a shadow falling on the floor in the main room.

Bandits?

Angi silently opened a drawer and took her rusty iron dagger out. She silently stood up and tip toed to the main room. As she wanted to peek behind the corner, strong arms pulled her out, clenching her wrists until she dropped the knife.

Silence was there, standing in front of her, blood dripping from his mouth with two bloody fangs protruding out of it. The last thing she felt, was the Redguard biting his vampiric fangs in her pale neck.

--

"Noooo!"

Angi woke up, covered in sweat.

A nightmare.

Just a nightmare.

Silence woke up too, looking confused.

"By Talos, it was just a dream," she whispered.

Of course it was. Silence returned from Falkreath in a middle of the night, cured of his disease.

"It's alright. Everything's alright. Just a nightmare about you turning into a vampire. See, you shouldn't have gone to that fort! You sure that you killed every vampire there?"

He smiled briefly, then nodded confidently and lay back on his side of the bed.

"Good night," said Angi and lay down as well.

He exhaled loudly and Angi recognized this as a sign of saying good night.

They both slept calmly until the morning.

Actually the American "knocked up" and the English are very different. In English English it just means "woken up with a knock on the door or window".

Interesting, ghastley I didn't know that.

You had me fooled with that nightmare, Lopov!

Lopov, thanks! Please ask for clarification if we ever confuse you. English is an odd language and yours is so good that I forget that it may not be your first language.

Whew! You had me going for a minute there. . . until, like Angi, I realized it was a dream.

Another phrase we have in English (British and American) that you may not know is "silence is golden". In this case, this phrase can become quite the pun with your new character, Lopov.

People say "silence is golden" when they are sick of being around a lot of noise. Once this noise goes away, we say silence is golden because it's something which is treasured. But if Silence ever puts on a suit of Elven or Dwarven armor....