Full Version: Clark in Skyrim
Woo, the Red Witch is in port! I’m looking forward to Clark meeting Captain Clarisse.
Acadian: Rise in the East is in the future, but will get hopelessly entangled with some other quests. As for Hélène, you just missed that, even if Clark didn't.
Grits: Soon, just not yet.
-----------
Previously: Clark has met Hélène, the First Mate of the Red Witch, apirate privateer ship with a bounty-hunting charter from High Rock. Stones of Barenziah keep turning up.
-----------
Part 66 - Thalmor Embassy
"Well, at least I get you to myself tonight," Jordis remarked as they watched Hélène head down to the docks in the morning. She turned to look at Clark, who wasn't saying anything. "I do, don't I?"
"I have an invitation to the Thalmor Embassy this evening. I can expect that I won't get back until tomorrow, at the earliest." Clark was genuinely disappointed. He'd have liked to keep it simple, too.
---
"You're Clark, aren't you?" the girl with the flute asked. "Jordis told me about you, but I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Yes I am, and you are...?"
"I'm Illdi, from the Bard's College. You know, next door to Proudspire. I get invited to these parties of Elenwen's to play music for the guests, I'm not sure why they picked me; it's not like I'm the best musician. But I guess Inge would turn down the invitation, so I'm next in line if they want instrumentalists. And they just want music, rather than singing, so that nobody stops talking just to hear the words."
"So you play, even though most people aren't really listening? That doesn't seem very rewarding."
"Oh, it doesn't matter. I need to practice my flute and lute anyway, and this gig pays me to do that. And if I make mistakes, it's a good thing nobody's really listening, isn't it?"
Illdi paused for a moment, and then changed the subject. "Could I borrow Jordis from you? I have a couple of tasks I need to do for the College, and they're more suited to her skills than mine. She's a good friend of mine, and she's already agreed to help, if she has your permission."
"Why does it need my permission? As long as her housecarl duties are met, she can do what she likes."
"Well, she might have to be away from the Manor for a few days. She's supposed to look after the place while you're away, and you when you're there. That means being in Proudspire every day, doesn't it?"
"I don't need as much looking after as she's telling you, although I suspect she'd like some herself. Of course she can take a few days off to help you. What do you need her to do?"
"Well, both Pantea, the singing teacher, and Inge Six-Fingers, the instrumental teacher, have had things go missing from the College. And because it's a flute and a lute, the instruments I play, they thought I'd like to get them back."
"Except that they're in nasty caves and dungeons somewhere, with who knows what guarding them?" Clark surmised. "If not, I'm sure they'd just go fetch them themselves."
"You got it," Illdi agreed. "And the places are both about as far from here as you can get. The flute's supposed to be in a cave up on the north coast near Winterhold, and the lute in a cave in the Rift. They both told me it was the distance involved that meant they couldn't go. Teaching schedules wouldn't permit. That didn't fool me. I know I need a good fighter for backup."
"I'd better get back to playing," she continued. "I can see Ambassasdor Elenwen coming over to check on me."
Elenwen wasn't interested in what Illdi was doing, but she was looking for Clark. She took a glass of brandy from the serving girl's tray and brought it over.
"You're from Cyrodiil, aren't you?" she asked Clark. "Can you taste this, and tell me if it's genuine? That Erikur swears it's real Collovian Brandy, but I don't exactly trust him."
"Aren't you concerned that I'll just denounce it as fake, so I can take over the contract? After all, we're both in the import/export business."
"You might, but you'd have to come up with a product to better it, so I don't see how I'd lose out."
Clark acknowledged the logic in that. You didn't have to be much of an expert to know a good brandy from an inferior one. He took a small sip. "It's Collovian. Maybe not as good as you can get, but genuine enough. You could serve this to your guests, but there are better ones for your private reserve."
"That you could supply if I asked?"
"Perhaps. The better they are, the harder to obtain, of course. Like Tamika's wine. You won't find that in Skyrim, unless you brought it here yourself. You might get Surilie Brothers, if you're lucky, but again, not the best years."
"Then I'm lucky," Elenwen replied. "I did get hold of a few bottles of Surilie Brothers. Perhaps you'd let me know if I got a good year. They're over in my Solar, in my own cellar."
---
Clark couldn't fault Elenwen's research. She knew he was a wine buff, and he could be counted on to take the opportunity to sample some Skingrad wine when it was offered. He'd avoided commenting on Erikur, when he'd been offered the chance. It was clear to him that she'd relish the chance to play the two merchants against each other, but she expected him to know that. He'd have to be careful later, as that had just been the opening gambit.
If she knew his tastes in wine, she'd probably have some idea what else he liked. And a few drinks together in private would give her an excuse for that.
"Can you open the bottle while I go and change out of this uniform?"
"Of course," Clark replied, pulling a corkscrew from his pocket. He had a number of useful little tools in there, that a merchant might use to sample wares. One for cutting a plug from a cheese wheel, a small balance for weighing things, and so on. Elisif had told him that Elenwen was expecting that her Thane was a merchant.
He'd noted the subtleties of her remark. Elenwen had in one simple statement told him that her outfit wasn't her own choice of style, and promised him something "more comfortable" without actually saying so.
Grits: Soon, just not yet.
-----------
Previously: Clark has met Hélène, the First Mate of the Red Witch, a
-----------
Part 66 - Thalmor Embassy
"Well, at least I get you to myself tonight," Jordis remarked as they watched Hélène head down to the docks in the morning. She turned to look at Clark, who wasn't saying anything. "I do, don't I?"
"I have an invitation to the Thalmor Embassy this evening. I can expect that I won't get back until tomorrow, at the earliest." Clark was genuinely disappointed. He'd have liked to keep it simple, too.
---
"You're Clark, aren't you?" the girl with the flute asked. "Jordis told me about you, but I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Yes I am, and you are...?"
"I'm Illdi, from the Bard's College. You know, next door to Proudspire. I get invited to these parties of Elenwen's to play music for the guests, I'm not sure why they picked me; it's not like I'm the best musician. But I guess Inge would turn down the invitation, so I'm next in line if they want instrumentalists. And they just want music, rather than singing, so that nobody stops talking just to hear the words."
"So you play, even though most people aren't really listening? That doesn't seem very rewarding."
"Oh, it doesn't matter. I need to practice my flute and lute anyway, and this gig pays me to do that. And if I make mistakes, it's a good thing nobody's really listening, isn't it?"
Illdi paused for a moment, and then changed the subject. "Could I borrow Jordis from you? I have a couple of tasks I need to do for the College, and they're more suited to her skills than mine. She's a good friend of mine, and she's already agreed to help, if she has your permission."
"Why does it need my permission? As long as her housecarl duties are met, she can do what she likes."
"Well, she might have to be away from the Manor for a few days. She's supposed to look after the place while you're away, and you when you're there. That means being in Proudspire every day, doesn't it?"
"I don't need as much looking after as she's telling you, although I suspect she'd like some herself. Of course she can take a few days off to help you. What do you need her to do?"
"Well, both Pantea, the singing teacher, and Inge Six-Fingers, the instrumental teacher, have had things go missing from the College. And because it's a flute and a lute, the instruments I play, they thought I'd like to get them back."
"Except that they're in nasty caves and dungeons somewhere, with who knows what guarding them?" Clark surmised. "If not, I'm sure they'd just go fetch them themselves."
"You got it," Illdi agreed. "And the places are both about as far from here as you can get. The flute's supposed to be in a cave up on the north coast near Winterhold, and the lute in a cave in the Rift. They both told me it was the distance involved that meant they couldn't go. Teaching schedules wouldn't permit. That didn't fool me. I know I need a good fighter for backup."
"I'd better get back to playing," she continued. "I can see Ambassasdor Elenwen coming over to check on me."
Elenwen wasn't interested in what Illdi was doing, but she was looking for Clark. She took a glass of brandy from the serving girl's tray and brought it over.
"You're from Cyrodiil, aren't you?" she asked Clark. "Can you taste this, and tell me if it's genuine? That Erikur swears it's real Collovian Brandy, but I don't exactly trust him."
"Aren't you concerned that I'll just denounce it as fake, so I can take over the contract? After all, we're both in the import/export business."
"You might, but you'd have to come up with a product to better it, so I don't see how I'd lose out."
Clark acknowledged the logic in that. You didn't have to be much of an expert to know a good brandy from an inferior one. He took a small sip. "It's Collovian. Maybe not as good as you can get, but genuine enough. You could serve this to your guests, but there are better ones for your private reserve."
"That you could supply if I asked?"
"Perhaps. The better they are, the harder to obtain, of course. Like Tamika's wine. You won't find that in Skyrim, unless you brought it here yourself. You might get Surilie Brothers, if you're lucky, but again, not the best years."
"Then I'm lucky," Elenwen replied. "I did get hold of a few bottles of Surilie Brothers. Perhaps you'd let me know if I got a good year. They're over in my Solar, in my own cellar."
---
Clark couldn't fault Elenwen's research. She knew he was a wine buff, and he could be counted on to take the opportunity to sample some Skingrad wine when it was offered. He'd avoided commenting on Erikur, when he'd been offered the chance. It was clear to him that she'd relish the chance to play the two merchants against each other, but she expected him to know that. He'd have to be careful later, as that had just been the opening gambit.
If she knew his tastes in wine, she'd probably have some idea what else he liked. And a few drinks together in private would give her an excuse for that.
"Can you open the bottle while I go and change out of this uniform?"
"Of course," Clark replied, pulling a corkscrew from his pocket. He had a number of useful little tools in there, that a merchant might use to sample wares. One for cutting a plug from a cheese wheel, a small balance for weighing things, and so on. Elisif had told him that Elenwen was expecting that her Thane was a merchant.
He'd noted the subtleties of her remark. Elenwen had in one simple statement told him that her outfit wasn't her own choice of style, and promised him something "more comfortable" without actually saying so.
"Oh, it doesn't matter. I need to practice my flute and lute anyway, and this gig pays me to do that. And if I make mistakes, it's a good thing nobody's really listening, isn't it?" - - Well, can’t fault Illdi’s logic. In fact she’s quite clever to recruit the aid of a Sword-Maiden for her Bard College fetch missions.
Clever of Clark to ensure his ‘merchant’ cover is deep enough and suitably prop-supported to stand up to reasonable scrutiny.
Something tells me that the likely frolics between Elenwen and Clark will be primarily about information gathering by both of them, and any passions that surface merely a pleasant by product.
Clever of Clark to ensure his ‘merchant’ cover is deep enough and suitably prop-supported to stand up to reasonable scrutiny.
Something tells me that the likely frolics between Elenwen and Clark will be primarily about information gathering by both of them, and any passions that surface merely a pleasant by product.
Acadian: Clark may gather information, Elenwen will gather something that isn't quite...
--------------
Previously: Clark has met Illdi at one of Elenwen's parties, and she's asked for Jordis's help with some fetch quests. Elenwen has set her sights on Clark.
--------------
Part 67 - Elenwen's Solar
The robe she re-appeared in wasn't anything dramatic, yet. It was tied simply with a cord around the waist, and was currently wrapped around her enough to conceal everything but a slender outline that wasn't lacking in curves. Her hair hung a little looser than it had before, making her look a bit more relaxed.
The robe was Taminwe's preferred garment for these situations, Clark recalled. It would naturally work itself loose, and could be allowed to do so, or re-adjusted, as needed. Fastened only at the waist, it could reveal whatever she wanted it to, and when she wanted it to.
It was inevitable that he'd compare the two Altmer, and equally inevitable that Elenwen couldn't quite match up. She certainly was everything another Altmer would dream of, but Taminwe had all the best of a mixed heritage. Not just the endless legs of the High Elves, but the breasts of a Nord, the rounded rear of a Redguard, and enough facial contributions from Breton and Imperial to be quite stunning. Add to those the insatiability of a Dunmer, and the inexhaustible stamina of an Orc, and you'd just be getting close.
Not only had Clark trained with the best in that game, he'd also learned to keep up with Nords and Orcs when it came to drinking. He knew that Elenwen needed to keep enough of her own faculties, so he just didn't need to drink any more than her, and he'd have no problems in that regard.
She, however, would want him to think she was just a little more inebriated than the reality. That was part of the whole charade of letting her robe reveal "more than intended". Which should be happening around now, he thought.
Except that the subject of their conversation had wandered to the Dragonborn, Diablita. She wouldn't want him making comparisons there. He'd admitted having met her in Whiterun, but not before. That much would be common knowledge, as his position as Thane would have made it inevitable. Clark was curious as to what, if anything, she'd worn when she came to the Embassy. He knew she rarely had anything on but her chains.
Elenwen decided that it was an opening she could use. "Just her chains," she replied. "It made me wonder whether some piercings would suit me. I was more than a little curious what it would feel like, too. So I had just one done, to find out. Do you prefer this one, or the other?"
---
Clark wasn't sure what made him think that Elenwen was trying to read his mind, but his earlier memories of Taminwe had made him conceal his thoughts. Both of them had had some telepathic ability, and Medora had helped them develop it as far as they could. Since it made it difficult to do anything that surprised her, he'd spent some time learning how to hide what he was thinking, even from Taminwe, or Medora. It just became a habit to do so in situations like this.
After a moment when he wondered if Elenwen was noticing the block, he let a few inconsequential thoughts escape. Ones that were relevant to what they were doing, so he could see if she was really 'listening'. It took a few attempts to determine the limits of her ability that way, and in the process he got a few helpful stray thoughts from her.
"I wonder if she'd like this," he thought in her direction, before actually doing it. When he picked up her mental enthusiasm for the idea, he put it into practice. Confirmation was clear.
As he played with Elenwen's pierced nipple, it reminded him how Diablita (of the many piercings) had unfortunately become trapped in Hermaeus Mora's realm of Apocrypha to replace Miraak. By this time, he could read her mind well enough to know that she was believing him. It was apparent that she'd trust anything she got this way, as she truly considered her telepathic abilities to be unusual, if not unique.
So the other side reminded him of Elisif. He wasn't sure if telling Elenwen that there was a relationship between them was a good idea, but it didn't seem to be news to her. More important was that she now believed that Elisif was a staunch supporter of the Imperial-Thalmor alliance, and its benefits for Skyrim. The sort of person that they needed to help maintain her position as Jarl, as a counterweight to Ulfric Stormcloak.
The mention of Ulfric revealed a whole raft of memories from the Altmer. He had been her greatest success before Clark, and her proof that this mind-reading really worked. She'd taken him over after the interrogator had finished with his more painful methods, and had acted sympathetic. She'd quite enjoyed the results, as well as the promotion it got her. Ulfric had turned out to be quite a talented lover, as well as a source of information.
Clark let her relive some of the best parts. No point in missing anything, was there? Especially as she thought she was having the same success again. That pleased her, and a happy woman is always better at what she's doing.
What she got from him was a well-crafted mixture of facts and lies. The facts could be checked, but weren't anything she could use. They would, of course, confirm that he was a reliable source. The untruths were more vague. Solstheim was essentially divided between the Dunmer in the south, now free of Miraak's influence, but in constant tension with the Rieklings in the north, who were a bit fiercer in Clark's account than in reality. Elenwen wondered if they were the reason that she hadn't heard from Ancarion, and Clark let her believe it was likely. At no time did he think about the Skaal, as Elenwen didn't seem to know about them.
The mention of Ancarion revealed her concern that she was losing agents. Ancano and Estormo at Winterhold, Lorcalin at the Whiterun hold shrine. The undercover ones, too: Valmir at Forelhost, Shavari in Riften, Gissur right here in the Embassy. She didn't have one in Whiterun, which is why Clark could be so useful. And he can do this, too. She'd better be more careful that Clark didn't find out what she was getting from him, or he'd turn against her, like Ulfric did.
---
Back at Proudspire the following day, Clark asked Jordis about helping Illdi. "Is she intending to go with you? She's not going to be much help unless you need inspiring music to keep you fighting."
"Don't underestimate her," the housecarl replied. "She's quite a competent mage, especially with her healing, and wards. Almost all Restoration school, but that's what I find the most help. I think that concentrating on the one area has helped her advance faster, too"
"Have you been out with her before? Remember how I took you out to see how you fought when I bought this place. You need to know how you'll work together. You were a bit too likely to jump in the way of my spells when we started."
"Yes, we went and fetched Noster's helmet together. He showed me a thing or two about sneaking, so it wasn't a waste of time, even though we were doing it mainly for the practice."
"So when do you want to go? I'll be around here for a while, as I have palace duties to catch up on, as well as some business deals to attend to."
"When you've caught up on the other business you've been neglecting," she replied, pulling him up the stairs towards the bedroom.
--------------
Previously: Clark has met Illdi at one of Elenwen's parties, and she's asked for Jordis's help with some fetch quests. Elenwen has set her sights on Clark.
--------------
Part 67 - Elenwen's Solar
The robe she re-appeared in wasn't anything dramatic, yet. It was tied simply with a cord around the waist, and was currently wrapped around her enough to conceal everything but a slender outline that wasn't lacking in curves. Her hair hung a little looser than it had before, making her look a bit more relaxed.
The robe was Taminwe's preferred garment for these situations, Clark recalled. It would naturally work itself loose, and could be allowed to do so, or re-adjusted, as needed. Fastened only at the waist, it could reveal whatever she wanted it to, and when she wanted it to.
It was inevitable that he'd compare the two Altmer, and equally inevitable that Elenwen couldn't quite match up. She certainly was everything another Altmer would dream of, but Taminwe had all the best of a mixed heritage. Not just the endless legs of the High Elves, but the breasts of a Nord, the rounded rear of a Redguard, and enough facial contributions from Breton and Imperial to be quite stunning. Add to those the insatiability of a Dunmer, and the inexhaustible stamina of an Orc, and you'd just be getting close.
Not only had Clark trained with the best in that game, he'd also learned to keep up with Nords and Orcs when it came to drinking. He knew that Elenwen needed to keep enough of her own faculties, so he just didn't need to drink any more than her, and he'd have no problems in that regard.
She, however, would want him to think she was just a little more inebriated than the reality. That was part of the whole charade of letting her robe reveal "more than intended". Which should be happening around now, he thought.
Except that the subject of their conversation had wandered to the Dragonborn, Diablita. She wouldn't want him making comparisons there. He'd admitted having met her in Whiterun, but not before. That much would be common knowledge, as his position as Thane would have made it inevitable. Clark was curious as to what, if anything, she'd worn when she came to the Embassy. He knew she rarely had anything on but her chains.
Elenwen decided that it was an opening she could use. "Just her chains," she replied. "It made me wonder whether some piercings would suit me. I was more than a little curious what it would feel like, too. So I had just one done, to find out. Do you prefer this one, or the other?"
---
Clark wasn't sure what made him think that Elenwen was trying to read his mind, but his earlier memories of Taminwe had made him conceal his thoughts. Both of them had had some telepathic ability, and Medora had helped them develop it as far as they could. Since it made it difficult to do anything that surprised her, he'd spent some time learning how to hide what he was thinking, even from Taminwe, or Medora. It just became a habit to do so in situations like this.
After a moment when he wondered if Elenwen was noticing the block, he let a few inconsequential thoughts escape. Ones that were relevant to what they were doing, so he could see if she was really 'listening'. It took a few attempts to determine the limits of her ability that way, and in the process he got a few helpful stray thoughts from her.
"I wonder if she'd like this," he thought in her direction, before actually doing it. When he picked up her mental enthusiasm for the idea, he put it into practice. Confirmation was clear.
As he played with Elenwen's pierced nipple, it reminded him how Diablita (of the many piercings) had unfortunately become trapped in Hermaeus Mora's realm of Apocrypha to replace Miraak. By this time, he could read her mind well enough to know that she was believing him. It was apparent that she'd trust anything she got this way, as she truly considered her telepathic abilities to be unusual, if not unique.
So the other side reminded him of Elisif. He wasn't sure if telling Elenwen that there was a relationship between them was a good idea, but it didn't seem to be news to her. More important was that she now believed that Elisif was a staunch supporter of the Imperial-Thalmor alliance, and its benefits for Skyrim. The sort of person that they needed to help maintain her position as Jarl, as a counterweight to Ulfric Stormcloak.
The mention of Ulfric revealed a whole raft of memories from the Altmer. He had been her greatest success before Clark, and her proof that this mind-reading really worked. She'd taken him over after the interrogator had finished with his more painful methods, and had acted sympathetic. She'd quite enjoyed the results, as well as the promotion it got her. Ulfric had turned out to be quite a talented lover, as well as a source of information.
Clark let her relive some of the best parts. No point in missing anything, was there? Especially as she thought she was having the same success again. That pleased her, and a happy woman is always better at what she's doing.
What she got from him was a well-crafted mixture of facts and lies. The facts could be checked, but weren't anything she could use. They would, of course, confirm that he was a reliable source. The untruths were more vague. Solstheim was essentially divided between the Dunmer in the south, now free of Miraak's influence, but in constant tension with the Rieklings in the north, who were a bit fiercer in Clark's account than in reality. Elenwen wondered if they were the reason that she hadn't heard from Ancarion, and Clark let her believe it was likely. At no time did he think about the Skaal, as Elenwen didn't seem to know about them.
The mention of Ancarion revealed her concern that she was losing agents. Ancano and Estormo at Winterhold, Lorcalin at the Whiterun hold shrine. The undercover ones, too: Valmir at Forelhost, Shavari in Riften, Gissur right here in the Embassy. She didn't have one in Whiterun, which is why Clark could be so useful. And he can do this, too. She'd better be more careful that Clark didn't find out what she was getting from him, or he'd turn against her, like Ulfric did.
---
Back at Proudspire the following day, Clark asked Jordis about helping Illdi. "Is she intending to go with you? She's not going to be much help unless you need inspiring music to keep you fighting."
"Don't underestimate her," the housecarl replied. "She's quite a competent mage, especially with her healing, and wards. Almost all Restoration school, but that's what I find the most help. I think that concentrating on the one area has helped her advance faster, too"
"Have you been out with her before? Remember how I took you out to see how you fought when I bought this place. You need to know how you'll work together. You were a bit too likely to jump in the way of my spells when we started."
"Yes, we went and fetched Noster's helmet together. He showed me a thing or two about sneaking, so it wasn't a waste of time, even though we were doing it mainly for the practice."
"So when do you want to go? I'll be around here for a while, as I have palace duties to catch up on, as well as some business deals to attend to."
"When you've caught up on the other business you've been neglecting," she replied, pulling him up the stairs towards the bedroom.
It was great fun listening to Clark’s thoughts about the sensual components of Taminwe’s mixed race. I guess ‘the short legs, small bewbs and big ears of a Bosmer’ didn’t make the list. 
Wow, the telepathic aspect of his encounter with Elenwen added a whole new dimension to their ‘mind games’!
Good to hear that Illdi has some restoration skill. That should help keep the Sword Maiden in peak condition.
Wow, the telepathic aspect of his encounter with Elenwen added a whole new dimension to their ‘mind games’!
Good to hear that Illdi has some restoration skill. That should help keep the Sword Maiden in peak condition.
Goodness, what a brain-bending encounter with Elenwen! The Taminwe games served Clark well with this other telepathic Altmer.
I chuckled at the thought of Illdi singing Jordis to victory. Wards and healing spells sound like a better backup for Jordis’s skill set. Very enjoyable as always, ghastley!
I chuckled at the thought of Illdi singing Jordis to victory. Wards and healing spells sound like a better backup for Jordis’s skill set. Very enjoyable as always, ghastley!
Acadian: That Bosmer's not trying to do Elenwen's job. 
Grits: If Bethesda feel that combat needs musical accompaniment, who am I to disagree?
-----------
Previously: Clark has told Elenwen a convincing bunch of untruths, and let Jordis go with Illdi to retrieve instruments for the Bards' College.
-----------
Part 68 - Red Witch
Clark was looking forward to a few days of relaxation once Jordis left with Illdi. Unless, of course, Elisif needed him,or Gilda made another of her unannounced appearances. But the knock on his door was from someone else. First Mate Hélène had come ashore with an invitation for him to visit the Red Witch and meet Captain Clarisse.
The Redwave was docked in Solitude, and Clark had imagined from the names that the Red Witch would be a sister ship. He wasn't prepared to find a vessel more than twice the size looming out of the fog as the rowboat approached. Nor for it to be armed with catapults taken from Dwemer ruins, and mounted on the fore and after decks. Each of them looked capable of putting a hole in a ship's hull, and sending it to the bottom.
Clarisse was as impressive as her ship. Tall for a Breton, and dark-haired, with piercing blue eyes. Clark guessed that half her ancestry might be Nord, at least. She wore a blouse of fine silk and lace, that he couldn't quite see through, but it was apparent that she was wearing nothing beneath it. A short kilt hovered tantalisingly over tall leather boots, and a long red sleeveless tailcoat overall.
She took Clark to her large cabin aft, and dismissed the First Mate. "I can handle things from here," she told her.
"Erikur tells me you prefer wine to ale or mead," she continued, once the cabin door was closed. "I'd imagine an Imperial would favour Skingrad wines, but those are hard to find up here in the north. I hope you'll find the Illiac Bay wines a close second."
Clark tasted the clear golden liquid he was offered. Tamika's and the Surilie Brothers wineries generally made reds, and this was quite different. A little sweeter, and with a flowery overtone that brought a name from his memory. "Bretony, isn't it? I can't recall how long ago I tasted this, or even where I was at the time."
"Yes, but which side of the island?"
"They only grow the grapes on the south side, so it had better be from there."
"I thought that was Balfiera."
"It's both. And it's probably true for some of the other islands in the bay, not that the others produce much wine. You need a south-facing slope to grow decent grapes, and some protection from the wind helps, too. The mainland on the High Rock side of the bay produces more wine than the Hammerfell side, for the same reason. Once you go any further south, you're getting into the desert."
"We've only taken the Witch south to the Bay once. Most of the time we've sailed the northern coast of High Rock. But we did pick up some wine while we were there, direct from the islands."
"I presume your charter is from Farrun, as that was the pennant I saw you flying." Clark continued "Is that where the Red Witch comes from?"
"The ship's as much a mongrel as its crew," Clarisse responded. "She started life as a cargo vessel, and we think she used to work the West coast until the Aldmeri Dominion cut off the trade. Then she moved onto the northern routes, and we-refitted her with the current weapons, which came from the East Empire Company when they left Solstheim."
"That was some time ago," Clark noted. "They must have been used for another purpose in between."
"Farrun tried using them for shore protection, but they really needed more of them for that job. It made more sense to mount the few of them on a ship and make them mobile. But that takes a large ship, like the Red Witch. We made a deal with the port authorities, which included our charter."
"That was made possible by the re-opening of Raven Rock mine. Now there's trade with island again, the shipping routes are viable once more, and of course, there's a new crop of pirates. The East Empire Company used to handle all that, and of course the Morrowind routes, too, but the Red Mountain all but put their Windhelm operation out of business, so now there's nobody keeping those pirates in check."
"So why are you here, rather than Windhelm, if that's where the pirates are?"
"Because we're on more than the one commission. And we're open to more. We have the pirates to deal with where we find them, but we're also tracking some bounties, and even carrying some goods that need the extra protection. Erikur, here in Solitude, often has items he needs carried discreetly."
"I'm sure he wouldn't indulge in smuggling, so I'll assume you're just keeping things quiet from his competitors. Which would include me, so why are you telling me this?"
"To see if you make any counter-offer, of course. Whether it's for information, or similar services, it's all part of the game. And if you believe that Erikur wouldn't smuggle, then I've totally misjudged you."
"Erikur would never admit that the smuggling was his intent. There would be back-up documents to show that duties had been paid after all. Or it would be your fault, not his, that they hadn't."
"No, he wouldn't try to pin blame on me for anything," Clarisse replied confidently. "I know things that Erikur wouldn't like revealed."
"Are any of the bounties for Erikur?" Clark asked. "It would not surprise me if he's made himself unpopular in the other ports he trades with."
"Remarkably, no. But there are a few interesting ones among them. For example, we're hunting a pair of fugitives from Hammerfell, and one of them is hunting the other. Iman is a noble from one of the prominent families that live near the Alik'r Desert. She made the mistake of pointing out that the family feuds, which date back to the Crowns and Forebears of centuries past, are aiding the cause of the Aldmeri Dominion. Another family took that as an accusation that they were on the Thalmor's side, and promptly accused her of treason, in retaliation. When Kematu, (a sadistic bounty-hunter who likes to capture his female targets alive, so he can be nasty to them,) heard about it, he went looking for her. There's a bounty on him, too. We'll definitely want to collect that one if we can, but the one on Iman we might not. Especially if she offers anything for keeping quiet about her."
Clark had seen some of Kematu's men sniffing around Whiterun. One of them had got himself arrested, and was rotting in a Dragonreach dungeon. The rest of the Alik'r were now banned from entering the city. It was reasonable to assume that Iman would have taken advantage of that refuge, if she wasn't in Whiterun before the Alik'r arrived.
"She has quite a distinctive scar on her cheek that she got during her escape from Hammerfell. It won't be hard to recognise her when we find her," Clarisse added. "We know where Whiterun is, of course, but can you show me the best route to get there? I see from my map that there are forts on the roads, and I have no information which might prove hostile."
Clarisse took off her coat and tricorn hat and hung them on the back of a chair. She led Clark over to a map table in the corner of the cabin, and took a roll of parchment from the shelf. She unrolled it across the table, and revealed a map of the north-east of Skyrim, with Whiterun in one corner, and Solitude near the opposite one.
"The forts are usually in the hands of one side or other in the Civil war," Clark explained, "but sometimes the battle to take it leaves the victorious side too weak to defend it from bandits. Possession tends to be transient, but last time I passed, this one was held by the Empire, so travelling from Solitude, you'd have no problems." He pointed to a location on the chart, and she leaned over to look.
Sailors know their knots, so it probably wasn't an accident when her blouse fell untied, and Clark was presented with an impressive display of Clarisse's assets. She started to tie it back up, but "changed her mind".
"You've seen them now, so what's the point. And they might help me persuade you to come with us to Whiterun. Since you know the place, and the people, it will make it easier to ferret out Iman, if you're there."
Clark was always amenable to being persuaded, and he'd already decided he'd want to be there, so he let Clarisse have her fun. She quickly realised that he was playing her along, but by that time, she didn't care.
She wasn't wearing anything beneath her skirt, he found out. And the high heels on her boots lifted her to a comfortable height for all sorts of interesting positions. "When you start out on a small ship that only has hammocks for the crew, you learn to adapt," she told him. "Don't try making love in a hammock."
Negotiating just when they'd make the trip continued for some time, and concluded in her bed. Clark needed to wait until Jordis was back at Proudspire, although Clarisse was eager to start out for Whiterun as soon as she could. They'd be accompanied by the first mate, and some of the crew. It wasn't clear to Clark if they'd be coming to keep Hélène occupied, or to help deal with Kematu's men. Maybe both, he decided.
Grits: If Bethesda feel that combat needs musical accompaniment, who am I to disagree?
-----------
Previously: Clark has told Elenwen a convincing bunch of untruths, and let Jordis go with Illdi to retrieve instruments for the Bards' College.
-----------
Part 68 - Red Witch
Clark was looking forward to a few days of relaxation once Jordis left with Illdi. Unless, of course, Elisif needed him,or Gilda made another of her unannounced appearances. But the knock on his door was from someone else. First Mate Hélène had come ashore with an invitation for him to visit the Red Witch and meet Captain Clarisse.
The Redwave was docked in Solitude, and Clark had imagined from the names that the Red Witch would be a sister ship. He wasn't prepared to find a vessel more than twice the size looming out of the fog as the rowboat approached. Nor for it to be armed with catapults taken from Dwemer ruins, and mounted on the fore and after decks. Each of them looked capable of putting a hole in a ship's hull, and sending it to the bottom.
Clarisse was as impressive as her ship. Tall for a Breton, and dark-haired, with piercing blue eyes. Clark guessed that half her ancestry might be Nord, at least. She wore a blouse of fine silk and lace, that he couldn't quite see through, but it was apparent that she was wearing nothing beneath it. A short kilt hovered tantalisingly over tall leather boots, and a long red sleeveless tailcoat overall.
She took Clark to her large cabin aft, and dismissed the First Mate. "I can handle things from here," she told her.
"Erikur tells me you prefer wine to ale or mead," she continued, once the cabin door was closed. "I'd imagine an Imperial would favour Skingrad wines, but those are hard to find up here in the north. I hope you'll find the Illiac Bay wines a close second."
Clark tasted the clear golden liquid he was offered. Tamika's and the Surilie Brothers wineries generally made reds, and this was quite different. A little sweeter, and with a flowery overtone that brought a name from his memory. "Bretony, isn't it? I can't recall how long ago I tasted this, or even where I was at the time."
"Yes, but which side of the island?"
"They only grow the grapes on the south side, so it had better be from there."
"I thought that was Balfiera."
"It's both. And it's probably true for some of the other islands in the bay, not that the others produce much wine. You need a south-facing slope to grow decent grapes, and some protection from the wind helps, too. The mainland on the High Rock side of the bay produces more wine than the Hammerfell side, for the same reason. Once you go any further south, you're getting into the desert."
"We've only taken the Witch south to the Bay once. Most of the time we've sailed the northern coast of High Rock. But we did pick up some wine while we were there, direct from the islands."
"I presume your charter is from Farrun, as that was the pennant I saw you flying." Clark continued "Is that where the Red Witch comes from?"
"The ship's as much a mongrel as its crew," Clarisse responded. "She started life as a cargo vessel, and we think she used to work the West coast until the Aldmeri Dominion cut off the trade. Then she moved onto the northern routes, and we-refitted her with the current weapons, which came from the East Empire Company when they left Solstheim."
"That was some time ago," Clark noted. "They must have been used for another purpose in between."
"Farrun tried using them for shore protection, but they really needed more of them for that job. It made more sense to mount the few of them on a ship and make them mobile. But that takes a large ship, like the Red Witch. We made a deal with the port authorities, which included our charter."
"That was made possible by the re-opening of Raven Rock mine. Now there's trade with island again, the shipping routes are viable once more, and of course, there's a new crop of pirates. The East Empire Company used to handle all that, and of course the Morrowind routes, too, but the Red Mountain all but put their Windhelm operation out of business, so now there's nobody keeping those pirates in check."
"So why are you here, rather than Windhelm, if that's where the pirates are?"
"Because we're on more than the one commission. And we're open to more. We have the pirates to deal with where we find them, but we're also tracking some bounties, and even carrying some goods that need the extra protection. Erikur, here in Solitude, often has items he needs carried discreetly."
"I'm sure he wouldn't indulge in smuggling, so I'll assume you're just keeping things quiet from his competitors. Which would include me, so why are you telling me this?"
"To see if you make any counter-offer, of course. Whether it's for information, or similar services, it's all part of the game. And if you believe that Erikur wouldn't smuggle, then I've totally misjudged you."
"Erikur would never admit that the smuggling was his intent. There would be back-up documents to show that duties had been paid after all. Or it would be your fault, not his, that they hadn't."
"No, he wouldn't try to pin blame on me for anything," Clarisse replied confidently. "I know things that Erikur wouldn't like revealed."
"Are any of the bounties for Erikur?" Clark asked. "It would not surprise me if he's made himself unpopular in the other ports he trades with."
"Remarkably, no. But there are a few interesting ones among them. For example, we're hunting a pair of fugitives from Hammerfell, and one of them is hunting the other. Iman is a noble from one of the prominent families that live near the Alik'r Desert. She made the mistake of pointing out that the family feuds, which date back to the Crowns and Forebears of centuries past, are aiding the cause of the Aldmeri Dominion. Another family took that as an accusation that they were on the Thalmor's side, and promptly accused her of treason, in retaliation. When Kematu, (a sadistic bounty-hunter who likes to capture his female targets alive, so he can be nasty to them,) heard about it, he went looking for her. There's a bounty on him, too. We'll definitely want to collect that one if we can, but the one on Iman we might not. Especially if she offers anything for keeping quiet about her."
Clark had seen some of Kematu's men sniffing around Whiterun. One of them had got himself arrested, and was rotting in a Dragonreach dungeon. The rest of the Alik'r were now banned from entering the city. It was reasonable to assume that Iman would have taken advantage of that refuge, if she wasn't in Whiterun before the Alik'r arrived.
"She has quite a distinctive scar on her cheek that she got during her escape from Hammerfell. It won't be hard to recognise her when we find her," Clarisse added. "We know where Whiterun is, of course, but can you show me the best route to get there? I see from my map that there are forts on the roads, and I have no information which might prove hostile."
Clarisse took off her coat and tricorn hat and hung them on the back of a chair. She led Clark over to a map table in the corner of the cabin, and took a roll of parchment from the shelf. She unrolled it across the table, and revealed a map of the north-east of Skyrim, with Whiterun in one corner, and Solitude near the opposite one.
"The forts are usually in the hands of one side or other in the Civil war," Clark explained, "but sometimes the battle to take it leaves the victorious side too weak to defend it from bandits. Possession tends to be transient, but last time I passed, this one was held by the Empire, so travelling from Solitude, you'd have no problems." He pointed to a location on the chart, and she leaned over to look.
Sailors know their knots, so it probably wasn't an accident when her blouse fell untied, and Clark was presented with an impressive display of Clarisse's assets. She started to tie it back up, but "changed her mind".
"You've seen them now, so what's the point. And they might help me persuade you to come with us to Whiterun. Since you know the place, and the people, it will make it easier to ferret out Iman, if you're there."
Clark was always amenable to being persuaded, and he'd already decided he'd want to be there, so he let Clarisse have her fun. She quickly realised that he was playing her along, but by that time, she didn't care.
She wasn't wearing anything beneath her skirt, he found out. And the high heels on her boots lifted her to a comfortable height for all sorts of interesting positions. "When you start out on a small ship that only has hammocks for the crew, you learn to adapt," she told him. "Don't try making love in a hammock."
Negotiating just when they'd make the trip continued for some time, and concluded in her bed. Clark needed to wait until Jordis was back at Proudspire, although Clarisse was eager to start out for Whiterun as soon as she could. They'd be accompanied by the first mate, and some of the crew. It wasn't clear to Clark if they'd be coming to keep Hélène occupied, or to help deal with Kematu's men. Maybe both, he decided.
I love how Clark had to, once again, display his ‘wine merchant bonefides’ to the swashbuckling Captain Clarisse before things could proceed.
Wonderful job of tying lots of things together, ranging from Erikur’s operations, to bounties, to the ship’s history/armaments, and finally to the Alikr’s hunt for the scar-faced Redguard woman.
Nit: ”I see from my map that there are forts on the roads, and I have no information which mught prove hostile." - - Spelling of 'might'.
Wonderful job of tying lots of things together, ranging from Erikur’s operations, to bounties, to the ship’s history/armaments, and finally to the Alikr’s hunt for the scar-faced Redguard woman.
Nit: ”I see from my map that there are forts on the roads, and I have no information which mught prove hostile." - - Spelling of 'might'.
How fun to meet the captivating Captain Clarisse. Clark’s knowledge of wine confirms his identity better than a carriage driving license. I love how the Captain’s doings involve various game quests. Poor Clark thought he was getting a day off when Jordis left, but nope. Work, work, work! 
Acadian: More storyline entanglement coming up. Clark needs to keep up his merchant persona, in case it gets back to Elenwen.
Grits: Clark will be getting some help with all that work in this episode.
----------------
Previously: Clark met Captain Clarisse aboard the Red Witch. Jordis went instrument-hunting with Illdi.
----------------
Part 69 - Saadia
Jordis was looking unreasonably pleased with herself when she returned. "So your trip with Illdi was a success, and you recovered the instruments, I take it?" Clark inquired.
"That's not all we recovered," Jordis replied. "We brought back something for you, too."
She brought her hands from behind her back, and in each one was a small box with a Stone of Barenziah.
"There was one in each cave. Just how many of these things are there?"
"Twenty-four in all. And I've lost count of many that makes. Gilda will know, she's keeping them at the Guild in Riften. There can't be more than about four or five left to find, and then we'll find out what they all do."
---
There were five men from the Red Witch's crew with Clarisse and Hélène when they rowed into Solitude docks. "Kematu will have as many men with him, if reports are accurate. And two women to six men is the way we like it."
The two women rode on Clark's wagon, and the men followed behind. His horse was slow, so they needed to make a couple of overnight stops on the way. After the first night, he understood why the women got to ride, and it wasn't just pulling rank.
"Is it like that every night on the ship?" Clark asked Clarisse.
"No, there's almost a balance in the crew, so we only get the chance to indulge on trips like this. The cook, the smith and the quartermaster are all men, and they'll be making the most of our absence, I'm sure."
---
As they rode the wagon the following day, Clarisse explained how things worked on the Red Witch. She'd decided that it would be a bad idea for the captain to show any preference among her crew, and having a rule that officers only sleep with officers would not have been popular with the First Mate. That would be much too restrictive for her. So there were institutional measures to encourage the opposite.
Loredas evenings were an all-hands deal, where it was expected that everyone would have as many partners as possible. Sundas, there was a lottery, with all the men's names in one hat and the women's in another. The stated purpose was to ensure that all the men got an equal chance with the Captain, but it also served the same for the rest of the crew. When there was an imbalance in the numbers, the rules called for three names to be selected as many times as needed.
Shore parties like this disrupted those arrangements, so they'd be made up of female officers and male crew, or vice-versa.
"The crew are content with those rules?" Clark asked her. "Don't they have favourites that they'd prefer to stay with?"
"Most of the week, they can if they want to," she replied. "But you don't become a pirate, I mean privateer, if you're the settle-down-with-one-partner type. You'd probably become a farmer, or an inn-keeper, instead. No, my crew are all adventurers that work well as a team, and that carries over to a lot of other things."
---
By the time they reached Whiterun, Clark had a pretty good idea who Iman was.
Hulda owned the Bannered Mare, but she was getting on in years and ready to retire. So she'd started to let other people do the work around the tavern. Olfina Gray-Mane helped out with the bar duties, as the place could get pretty packed on some evenings, but couldn't do it all. Ysolda had hopes of taking the place over if she could raise the gold to buy it from Hulda, but she was spending all her time on trading, rather than learning the tavern business. So Hulda had hired a Redguard woman as cook and assistant barmaid some time back.
Saadia wore her hair short, unlike Rayya, and it was cut to cover the sides of her face, where Clark suspected it was hiding the scar that Clarisse had mentioned. He suggested that he'd investigate Saadia alone, so that the number of people suddenly looking for her didn't make her run off again. He was a regular patron of the Mare, although not a frequent one, so she wouldn't be alarmed if he spoke to her. He sent the others off to Dragonreach to see if they could get anything from the Alik'r prisoner.
---
Saadia was in her room, off-duty. Clark wasn't sure if he'd be welcome, but he knocked on her door, and she opened it. To his surprise, she wasn't wearing the bar-keeper dress she normally wore, but a traditional Alik'r outfit like Rayya sometimes wore. The same voluminous pants, fitted only at the waist and ankles, with a sash around her waist. A headscarf or hood was wrapped around her head. It covered her hair, and all of her face except the eyes.
Clark was unsure what this all meant, and he needed a reason for interrupting her off-duty time alone. He improvised, and asked for her advice on a suitable present for his housecarl. Something to remind her of her origins, for preference. That gave him an excuse to ask Saadia about her own.
He remarked on the headscarf, when he got the chance. Rayya had told him that it was to conceal her hair from strangers, but of course Saadia didn't wear it when she was working downstairs. And the housecarl didn't hide her face like that, either.
She admitted that she'd got a bit paranoid about hiding her scar, especially when the Alik'r mercenaries showed up. That confirmed that this was really Iman, and Clark managed to address her by that name a couple of times before she noticed.
"Would it help if you didn't have that scar?" Clark asked. "I think I could re-heal that for you. But I'd need to make a couple of Fortify Restoration or Magicka potions first, over at my lab in Breezehome."
Saadia wasn't prepared to leave the Mare, so he'd have to come back with the potions. It only took a couple of minutes, and she was waiting, with the headscarf removed, when he returned.
"I'd heard that there was a face-sculptor in Riften, who could do things like this. But I'd also heard that you needed to join the Thieves Guild first. And I don't want to change my whole face. I like the one I have."
"I can see why. Especially without a scar to spoil it. Now hold still while I work. I don't have enough magicka to use paralysis as well."
Clark had brought his hand-mirror over from Breezehome, as well as the potions. She wasn't unfamiliar with the device, like Gilda had been, but she'd come from a prominent family who could afford things like that. She was just as pleased with the result; and relieved, because now she could prove she wasn't the one the mercenaries were hunting.
He pointed out that although Kematu's men would only know about the scar, she still had other bounty-hunters looking for her, such as Clarisse. That would continue as long as the bounty remained uncollected. They'd need to come up with some story that would close that chapter.
Grits: Clark will be getting some help with all that work in this episode.
----------------
Previously: Clark met Captain Clarisse aboard the Red Witch. Jordis went instrument-hunting with Illdi.
----------------
Part 69 - Saadia
Jordis was looking unreasonably pleased with herself when she returned. "So your trip with Illdi was a success, and you recovered the instruments, I take it?" Clark inquired.
"That's not all we recovered," Jordis replied. "We brought back something for you, too."
She brought her hands from behind her back, and in each one was a small box with a Stone of Barenziah.
"There was one in each cave. Just how many of these things are there?"
"Twenty-four in all. And I've lost count of many that makes. Gilda will know, she's keeping them at the Guild in Riften. There can't be more than about four or five left to find, and then we'll find out what they all do."
---
There were five men from the Red Witch's crew with Clarisse and Hélène when they rowed into Solitude docks. "Kematu will have as many men with him, if reports are accurate. And two women to six men is the way we like it."
The two women rode on Clark's wagon, and the men followed behind. His horse was slow, so they needed to make a couple of overnight stops on the way. After the first night, he understood why the women got to ride, and it wasn't just pulling rank.
"Is it like that every night on the ship?" Clark asked Clarisse.
"No, there's almost a balance in the crew, so we only get the chance to indulge on trips like this. The cook, the smith and the quartermaster are all men, and they'll be making the most of our absence, I'm sure."
---
As they rode the wagon the following day, Clarisse explained how things worked on the Red Witch. She'd decided that it would be a bad idea for the captain to show any preference among her crew, and having a rule that officers only sleep with officers would not have been popular with the First Mate. That would be much too restrictive for her. So there were institutional measures to encourage the opposite.
Loredas evenings were an all-hands deal, where it was expected that everyone would have as many partners as possible. Sundas, there was a lottery, with all the men's names in one hat and the women's in another. The stated purpose was to ensure that all the men got an equal chance with the Captain, but it also served the same for the rest of the crew. When there was an imbalance in the numbers, the rules called for three names to be selected as many times as needed.
Shore parties like this disrupted those arrangements, so they'd be made up of female officers and male crew, or vice-versa.
"The crew are content with those rules?" Clark asked her. "Don't they have favourites that they'd prefer to stay with?"
"Most of the week, they can if they want to," she replied. "But you don't become a pirate, I mean privateer, if you're the settle-down-with-one-partner type. You'd probably become a farmer, or an inn-keeper, instead. No, my crew are all adventurers that work well as a team, and that carries over to a lot of other things."
---
By the time they reached Whiterun, Clark had a pretty good idea who Iman was.
Hulda owned the Bannered Mare, but she was getting on in years and ready to retire. So she'd started to let other people do the work around the tavern. Olfina Gray-Mane helped out with the bar duties, as the place could get pretty packed on some evenings, but couldn't do it all. Ysolda had hopes of taking the place over if she could raise the gold to buy it from Hulda, but she was spending all her time on trading, rather than learning the tavern business. So Hulda had hired a Redguard woman as cook and assistant barmaid some time back.
Saadia wore her hair short, unlike Rayya, and it was cut to cover the sides of her face, where Clark suspected it was hiding the scar that Clarisse had mentioned. He suggested that he'd investigate Saadia alone, so that the number of people suddenly looking for her didn't make her run off again. He was a regular patron of the Mare, although not a frequent one, so she wouldn't be alarmed if he spoke to her. He sent the others off to Dragonreach to see if they could get anything from the Alik'r prisoner.
---
Saadia was in her room, off-duty. Clark wasn't sure if he'd be welcome, but he knocked on her door, and she opened it. To his surprise, she wasn't wearing the bar-keeper dress she normally wore, but a traditional Alik'r outfit like Rayya sometimes wore. The same voluminous pants, fitted only at the waist and ankles, with a sash around her waist. A headscarf or hood was wrapped around her head. It covered her hair, and all of her face except the eyes.
Clark was unsure what this all meant, and he needed a reason for interrupting her off-duty time alone. He improvised, and asked for her advice on a suitable present for his housecarl. Something to remind her of her origins, for preference. That gave him an excuse to ask Saadia about her own.
He remarked on the headscarf, when he got the chance. Rayya had told him that it was to conceal her hair from strangers, but of course Saadia didn't wear it when she was working downstairs. And the housecarl didn't hide her face like that, either.
She admitted that she'd got a bit paranoid about hiding her scar, especially when the Alik'r mercenaries showed up. That confirmed that this was really Iman, and Clark managed to address her by that name a couple of times before she noticed.
"Would it help if you didn't have that scar?" Clark asked. "I think I could re-heal that for you. But I'd need to make a couple of Fortify Restoration or Magicka potions first, over at my lab in Breezehome."
Saadia wasn't prepared to leave the Mare, so he'd have to come back with the potions. It only took a couple of minutes, and she was waiting, with the headscarf removed, when he returned.
"I'd heard that there was a face-sculptor in Riften, who could do things like this. But I'd also heard that you needed to join the Thieves Guild first. And I don't want to change my whole face. I like the one I have."
"I can see why. Especially without a scar to spoil it. Now hold still while I work. I don't have enough magicka to use paralysis as well."
Clark had brought his hand-mirror over from Breezehome, as well as the potions. She wasn't unfamiliar with the device, like Gilda had been, but she'd come from a prominent family who could afford things like that. She was just as pleased with the result; and relieved, because now she could prove she wasn't the one the mercenaries were hunting.
He pointed out that although Kematu's men would only know about the scar, she still had other bounty-hunters looking for her, such as Clarisse. That would continue as long as the bounty remained uncollected. They'd need to come up with some story that would close that chapter.
Jordis and Erdi had a productive adventure after all!
How clever (and nice) of ‘Doctor’ Clark to offer to fix up Saadia’s scar. Now she’ll be able to wander Skyrim and get out of the Alikr harassment the same way all the rest of the Redguard women do in those random encounters – no scar! I look forward to learning what Clarisse and Clark come up with to permanently end the bounty.
That is one quest Buffy’s never done. The Alikr dudes ask her to find the Redguard. Buffy asks why. The dudes say none of her concern. Buffy says, ‘Fine’ and walks away.
How clever (and nice) of ‘Doctor’ Clark to offer to fix up Saadia’s scar. Now she’ll be able to wander Skyrim and get out of the Alikr harassment the same way all the rest of the Redguard women do in those random encounters – no scar! I look forward to learning what Clarisse and Clark come up with to permanently end the bounty.
That is one quest Buffy’s never done. The Alikr dudes ask her to find the Redguard. Buffy asks why. The dudes say none of her concern. Buffy says, ‘Fine’ and walks away.
Acadian: Many of my characters have done the quest. Mostly it's prompted by the number of encounters with two Alik'r and a Redguard woman without a scar. And a few times, I just wanted a few spare Scimitars for Rayya. 
When they do it, it's always on Saadia's side. You get much more experience by taking on the folks in Swindler's Den, and the rewards are similar. I generally give Saadia a change of outfit once it's over, and she doesn't need to hide any more.
Bounty-clearing is coming up.
---------------
Previously: Clark has healed Saadia's scar, so that she won't match Iman's description. But that may not be enough...
---------------
Part 70 - Planning
The mention of Kematu had Saadia worried again. There were people in Whiterun who'd seen her with her scar, and could give her away. She needed Kematu eliminated, too.
"Already under way, I suspect," Clark reassured her. "Clarisse and her crew want the bounty for killing him, much more than they want to collect yours. I sent them over to Dragonsreach, to see if the prisoner there could tell them where to find him. Since they haven't come back to report failure, I suspect they're on the way to his hideout now."
"Saadia, can you come down to the bar? There are more people here looking for you," Hulda called out.
"I'll go first," Clark told her. "Hopefully it's the Red Witch party returning."
It was, but they'd lost one of the men. Kematu's warriors hadn't been the only ones in Swindler's Den and the bandits he was hiding with had proved more trouble than the Redguards. Hélène held up a sack that was stained with blood. "Kematu's head," she announced. "We need that to collect the bounty."
"And what about Iman?" Clark asked.
"If we wanted that one, we'd need her head, too."
"Complete with scar?"
"Of course."
"In that case ... Saadia, you can come down now."
Saadia had changed into her bar-keeper dress, rather to Clark's chagrin. And she'd pulled her hair back, so you could see both of her cheeks, neither of which now had any scars.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is Saadia, not Iman. No scar, so not your quarry. Now we just need to determine what happened to Iman."
Clarisse had caught Clark's meaning, even if she was mystified as to how he'd achieved it. "We don't really need the bounty for her, but if we knew that Iman was no longer alive, then the bounty would be cancelled. So how did she die?"
"It would have to involve magic, or there would be a corpse left behind," Saadia suggested.
"Or she could have been eaten by a dragon," Clark added, "although the legends tell us they prefer virgins. It just so happens that the Dragonborn knows a couple of dragons that owe her a favour, or at least could be persuaded to co-operate with my plan."
"I'm not sure Iman wants to be eaten," Saadia pointed out.
"Anybody else will just see a dragon swoop down, and leave again. Those closer to the event will report that Iman was taken, never to be seen again."
"And those will be us?" Hélène suggested.
"Exactly. That bounty was as good as in your hands, when the dragon took it away. If you're not claiming the reward, why would you lie?"
"What's in it for the Dragonborn?" Clarisse wanted to know.
"Diablita was promised a reward if she'd call Durnheviir to Tamriel, and I'm pretty sure she hasn't collected. He'd be the ideal one to do this for us. He's an impressive-looking beast, not that any dragon isn't. And he returns to the Soul Cairn after he's summoned, which helps our story that Iman is no more. It's one more possible reason for taking her. My experience is that a story that has a lot of unknowns gets believed, if the outcomes are all what the listener wants to hear."
"So you're saying that we don't explain exactly how Iman perished, just that the dragon took her?"
"And whatever his reason, she no longer exists. Which is true, because now there's only Saadia."
"When would all this happen?" Saadia asked Clark.
"Any time we can get the parties together. The only one not here is Diablita, and now you have more freedom to travel, we can find a suitable location for everything. Outside the city of Whiterun, but somewhere close enough to witnesses. Maybe near Rorikstead, or the eastern tundra in view of the farms. I'll send a message to Solstheim, and we can do it as soon as the Dragonborn shows up."
"And what do we do while we're waiting? Hélène wanted to know.
"We've got Kematu's bounty in the bag, or at least his head's in one," Clarisse pointed out. "I think we could have a bit of a celebration, and a tavern's not a bad place for one."
"Let me contribute to that, too. I think I have something to celebrate as well," Saadia added. "I believe we can get the guards' complicity in letting things get a bit unrestrained, and that will give my friends Olfina and Jon a bit of cover."
"Olfina Gray-Mane and Jon Battle-Born?" Clark queried. "Not a pairing either family would approve."
"And it's showing the strains of their disapproval. Jon wants to leave town, and go to the Bards College in Solitude to study. Olfina wants to stay here, even though that means she can't be with Jon as much as she'd like. I'm hoping that the chance to really get together will help them decide what to do next."
Clark wasn't sure that was a good idea. They'd both be presented with a lot of alternatives, and almost obliged to sample more than each other.
"They probably already have. Neither family would have anything against that. And if they disappoint each other, better they do so sooner than later. Can't imagine that happening, anyway."
"They'd both want to be seen with someone else," Clarisse pointed out. "So if anyone asks who Jon was with, it was me. And Olfina was with Clark, right? And in both cases, a number of others who have escaped our minds. Now my crew don't know either of them, so they won't be able to tell anyone. Who needs to be distracted, so they don't let on?"
"Ysolda, Uthgerd, and Mikael are the main ones. I don't imagine any of them giving us any problems, although Uthgerd will probably get into a brawl with one of the sailors before she starts enjoying herself properly. That's just a habit of hers. She likes tough men, and it's hard to persuade her that there are better ways to prove it." Clark continued that he'd be bringing Lydia along to help out. "If there are men around she hasn't slept with, she won't forgive me for not telling her. She'll even take care of Mikael, if he's the only one available."
"What about Hulda?" Saadia wanted to know. "She normally doesn't mind leaving Olfina and me in charge of the Mare, but if she thinks there might be trouble, I don't know what she'd do."
"There won't be trouble, any more than Uthgerd's usual brawl. And Hulda's never had any issue with those. Sure, a few drinks get spilled, but that just makes people buy more to replace them," Clark responded. "I can convince her that it will be good for business."
When they do it, it's always on Saadia's side. You get much more experience by taking on the folks in Swindler's Den, and the rewards are similar. I generally give Saadia a change of outfit once it's over, and she doesn't need to hide any more.Bounty-clearing is coming up.
---------------
Previously: Clark has healed Saadia's scar, so that she won't match Iman's description. But that may not be enough...
---------------
Part 70 - Planning
The mention of Kematu had Saadia worried again. There were people in Whiterun who'd seen her with her scar, and could give her away. She needed Kematu eliminated, too.
"Already under way, I suspect," Clark reassured her. "Clarisse and her crew want the bounty for killing him, much more than they want to collect yours. I sent them over to Dragonsreach, to see if the prisoner there could tell them where to find him. Since they haven't come back to report failure, I suspect they're on the way to his hideout now."
"Saadia, can you come down to the bar? There are more people here looking for you," Hulda called out.
"I'll go first," Clark told her. "Hopefully it's the Red Witch party returning."
It was, but they'd lost one of the men. Kematu's warriors hadn't been the only ones in Swindler's Den and the bandits he was hiding with had proved more trouble than the Redguards. Hélène held up a sack that was stained with blood. "Kematu's head," she announced. "We need that to collect the bounty."
"And what about Iman?" Clark asked.
"If we wanted that one, we'd need her head, too."
"Complete with scar?"
"Of course."
"In that case ... Saadia, you can come down now."
Saadia had changed into her bar-keeper dress, rather to Clark's chagrin. And she'd pulled her hair back, so you could see both of her cheeks, neither of which now had any scars.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is Saadia, not Iman. No scar, so not your quarry. Now we just need to determine what happened to Iman."
Clarisse had caught Clark's meaning, even if she was mystified as to how he'd achieved it. "We don't really need the bounty for her, but if we knew that Iman was no longer alive, then the bounty would be cancelled. So how did she die?"
"It would have to involve magic, or there would be a corpse left behind," Saadia suggested.
"Or she could have been eaten by a dragon," Clark added, "although the legends tell us they prefer virgins. It just so happens that the Dragonborn knows a couple of dragons that owe her a favour, or at least could be persuaded to co-operate with my plan."
"I'm not sure Iman wants to be eaten," Saadia pointed out.
"Anybody else will just see a dragon swoop down, and leave again. Those closer to the event will report that Iman was taken, never to be seen again."
"And those will be us?" Hélène suggested.
"Exactly. That bounty was as good as in your hands, when the dragon took it away. If you're not claiming the reward, why would you lie?"
"What's in it for the Dragonborn?" Clarisse wanted to know.
"Diablita was promised a reward if she'd call Durnheviir to Tamriel, and I'm pretty sure she hasn't collected. He'd be the ideal one to do this for us. He's an impressive-looking beast, not that any dragon isn't. And he returns to the Soul Cairn after he's summoned, which helps our story that Iman is no more. It's one more possible reason for taking her. My experience is that a story that has a lot of unknowns gets believed, if the outcomes are all what the listener wants to hear."
"So you're saying that we don't explain exactly how Iman perished, just that the dragon took her?"
"And whatever his reason, she no longer exists. Which is true, because now there's only Saadia."
"When would all this happen?" Saadia asked Clark.
"Any time we can get the parties together. The only one not here is Diablita, and now you have more freedom to travel, we can find a suitable location for everything. Outside the city of Whiterun, but somewhere close enough to witnesses. Maybe near Rorikstead, or the eastern tundra in view of the farms. I'll send a message to Solstheim, and we can do it as soon as the Dragonborn shows up."
"And what do we do while we're waiting? Hélène wanted to know.
"We've got Kematu's bounty in the bag, or at least his head's in one," Clarisse pointed out. "I think we could have a bit of a celebration, and a tavern's not a bad place for one."
"Let me contribute to that, too. I think I have something to celebrate as well," Saadia added. "I believe we can get the guards' complicity in letting things get a bit unrestrained, and that will give my friends Olfina and Jon a bit of cover."
"Olfina Gray-Mane and Jon Battle-Born?" Clark queried. "Not a pairing either family would approve."
"And it's showing the strains of their disapproval. Jon wants to leave town, and go to the Bards College in Solitude to study. Olfina wants to stay here, even though that means she can't be with Jon as much as she'd like. I'm hoping that the chance to really get together will help them decide what to do next."
Clark wasn't sure that was a good idea. They'd both be presented with a lot of alternatives, and almost obliged to sample more than each other.
"They probably already have. Neither family would have anything against that. And if they disappoint each other, better they do so sooner than later. Can't imagine that happening, anyway."
"They'd both want to be seen with someone else," Clarisse pointed out. "So if anyone asks who Jon was with, it was me. And Olfina was with Clark, right? And in both cases, a number of others who have escaped our minds. Now my crew don't know either of them, so they won't be able to tell anyone. Who needs to be distracted, so they don't let on?"
"Ysolda, Uthgerd, and Mikael are the main ones. I don't imagine any of them giving us any problems, although Uthgerd will probably get into a brawl with one of the sailors before she starts enjoying herself properly. That's just a habit of hers. She likes tough men, and it's hard to persuade her that there are better ways to prove it." Clark continued that he'd be bringing Lydia along to help out. "If there are men around she hasn't slept with, she won't forgive me for not telling her. She'll even take care of Mikael, if he's the only one available."
"What about Hulda?" Saadia wanted to know. "She normally doesn't mind leaving Olfina and me in charge of the Mare, but if she thinks there might be trouble, I don't know what she'd do."
"There won't be trouble, any more than Uthgerd's usual brawl. And Hulda's never had any issue with those. Sure, a few drinks get spilled, but that just makes people buy more to replace them," Clark responded. "I can convince her that it will be good for business."
So Kematu’s bounty is in the bag! 
“Here, Durnie! I brought you a nice Redguard snack!”
A clever plan to close out the Iman bounty once and for all!
Party at the Mare!
Nit: "if we wanted that one, we'd need her head, too." - - You want to capitalize ‘if’, of course.
“Here, Durnie! I brought you a nice Redguard snack!”
A clever plan to close out the Iman bounty once and for all!
Party at the Mare!
Nit: "if we wanted that one, we'd need her head, too." - - You want to capitalize ‘if’, of course.
In the bag! I love the plan to have Durnehviir ‘disappear’ with Iman.
Uthgerd’s warmup brawl habit reminded me of my favorite of her lines: “Keep walking, soft gut. I’m more woman than you can handle.”
I love the plan to have Durnehviir ‘disappear’ with Iman. Uthgerd’s warmup brawl habit reminded me of my favorite of her lines: “Keep walking, soft gut. I’m more woman than you can handle.”
Acadian: The Jon/Olfina thing never gets developed in the game. I wonder if it was a quest that never got completed? Anyhow this party will start to sort that out.
Grits: Uthgerd gets handled in this one.
-------------
Previously: Clarisse and crew have dealt with Kematu, and have his head for the reward. Now they need to ensureIman Saadia is safe.
-------------
Part 71 - Bannered Mare
It all went better than anyone could have planned it. Uthgerd issued her usual challenge and one of the sailors accepted. Clarisse winked at Clark and told him to watch the fight.
The sailor was unarmored, and very quick on his feet. He just danced around the Nord, who was slowed by her steel plate, and she couldn't land a single blow on him. "Take off the armour, silly," Hélène goaded.
"Do it. I can wait," her opponent agreed.
Uthgerd wasn't wearing a lot beneath the plate, and the men were all appreciative when it was removed. She got a lot of requests for a wrestling contest from the sailors, most of whom would help her apply the oil, too.
"I want a fist-fight, dammit. And that's what we're doing." She took a swing at the sailor, who had been expecting it, and ducked underneath.
A loud slap made her straighten up quickly. "That's put some colour in your cheeks!" a voice called from the crowd. Two more cheeks reddened in response, and the caller found himself flat on his back with a sore chin before he realised his mistake. That made Uthgerd feel a lot better, even if Sinmir probably didn't right now.
"That's good enough," Uthgerd decided. "Now maybe a bit of wrestling is in order. Who wants some?"
Of the many offers, she picked the sailor who was supposed to be her fisticuffs challenger. It was strange for her to be doing this without a few bruises to consider, but she didn't mind that. She just wanted to let off a bit of steam first, so she wouldn't overdo things.
And she seemed to have set an example for everyone else tonight. Clark and Olfina were on one side of her, and Jon Battle-Born on the other, with her sailor's captain. Everyone in the bar seemed to have found someone to play with. And she couldn't hear the bard singing, so he must have been distracted too.
---
"So how did you get on last night?" Saadia asked Ysolda, who was sitting at her usual table near the door.
"I didn't have to," she replied. "I don't think my feet touched the ground all night. When those two sailors picked me up and both ... Well, let's just say that apart from a brief spell when I was completely upside-down, ... " she just couldn't describe it all properly. Saadia laughed and took the tray back to the bar.
Clark and Lydia were sitting at the bar, listening to the chatter around them. Nobody had mentioned Jon and Olfina being seen together, and most were recounting their own experiences, which obviously didn't include either. When either name did crop up, Clark and "that captain woman" were mentioned, too. A few of them knew Clarisse's name, generally the ones she'd favoured.
The couple were at Breezehome, and the next order of business was getting them back out.
"I'll just let Jon out the front door," Lydia suggested. "That shouldn't look unusual to anyone who knows me."
"I don't know. If there's only one man leaving, won't people remark on that?"
Lydia gave Clark that look. "What about Olfina? will you be seen letting her out the back door?"
"We don't have a back door," Clark reminded her. "No, Saadia can come down with a crate of wine, and she and Olfina will leave together with the empties. Everyone will assume they missed Olfina bringing the other crate. That means Jon has to leave first, so that Olfina's missed arrival was after that. If I accompany Saadia, then it was you and Jon at Breezehome, while Saadia and Olfina were here with me."
"Do we have enough bottles to fill a couple of crates?"
"Saadia and I will be bringing mostly empties. Just a few full ones in case anyone asks. The important thing is that we have an empty crate for Olfina to return."
---
Before Olfina left Breezehome, Saadia got the chance to ask her how things had worked out.
"Jon told me that Clarisse was much better at it than I was. And then he suggested that we needed a lot more practice, because I was the one he wanted. We couldn't do that if we didn't go away together, and I know he meant to Solitude."
"Your family will never let you leave with Jon, but they might let you go away if there wasn't any connection. Clarisse and her crew will be moving on soon, maybe there's a way you could go along with them?" She asked Clark what they would be doing next.
"We're all going to Windhelm, to look into the pirate situation. The privateers have a charter to wipe them out, and let the East Empire Company get the Morrowind trade going again. Some of that trade will be mine, so I have an interest in their success. Since Olfina's been seen with me already, maybe I'm the decoy again." He paused for a moment, considering what else he had going on. "The Dragonborn should be arriving soon, and we won't be leaving until she does. We need her to tidy up Saadia's issues, and you can help with that, Olfina. You'll be another reliable witness."
"To what?"
"To Iman's being taken away by a dragon."
"Who's Iman? And how do you know what dragons are going to do?"
"Iman's a woman who looks a lot like me," replied Saadia, "except that she has a scar on her cheek, and I don't."
"But you do have ... or I thought you did, but I don't see one now."
"Exactly. You're starting to understand. And the Dragonborn has a closer affinity with dragons than anyone knows," Clark continued. "There will be a dragon, a friendly one, seen to the east of the city when we leave. You'll see it, too, because you'll be with us. You'll be able to tell everyone that Iman's no longer among us. And then we'll continue our trip to Windhelm."
"What happens in Windhelm?"
"Once you've been seen there, either I, or Diablita, will escort you to Solitude. I have a house there, and you can stay there until you and Jon sort out other arrangements. The others will deal with the pirate problem, which is real enough."
"I think it will work. My family won't mind me going to Windhelm. That's just about as opposite to Solitude as you can get." Olfina pondered a bit more. "If they ask me about my involvement with the Thane of Whiterun, I'll avoid answering, and they'll think whatever they want to. I'm not going to tell them any lies, but I don't have to tell them anything."
"You could probably tell them the truth, and they'll think it's a joke." Saadia told her. "Maybe you'd say 'Mother, I'm going to Windhelm so I can be with Jon Battle-Born, who's in Solitude.' Sounds credible to me."
Olfina laughed. "You're right there. Put that way, I could do it."
Clark thought it better just not to mention Jon. "This trip has nothing to do with him, remember."
Grits: Uthgerd gets handled in this one.
-------------
Previously: Clarisse and crew have dealt with Kematu, and have his head for the reward. Now they need to ensure
-------------
Part 71 - Bannered Mare
It all went better than anyone could have planned it. Uthgerd issued her usual challenge and one of the sailors accepted. Clarisse winked at Clark and told him to watch the fight.
The sailor was unarmored, and very quick on his feet. He just danced around the Nord, who was slowed by her steel plate, and she couldn't land a single blow on him. "Take off the armour, silly," Hélène goaded.
"Do it. I can wait," her opponent agreed.
Uthgerd wasn't wearing a lot beneath the plate, and the men were all appreciative when it was removed. She got a lot of requests for a wrestling contest from the sailors, most of whom would help her apply the oil, too.
"I want a fist-fight, dammit. And that's what we're doing." She took a swing at the sailor, who had been expecting it, and ducked underneath.
A loud slap made her straighten up quickly. "That's put some colour in your cheeks!" a voice called from the crowd. Two more cheeks reddened in response, and the caller found himself flat on his back with a sore chin before he realised his mistake. That made Uthgerd feel a lot better, even if Sinmir probably didn't right now.
"That's good enough," Uthgerd decided. "Now maybe a bit of wrestling is in order. Who wants some?"
Of the many offers, she picked the sailor who was supposed to be her fisticuffs challenger. It was strange for her to be doing this without a few bruises to consider, but she didn't mind that. She just wanted to let off a bit of steam first, so she wouldn't overdo things.
And she seemed to have set an example for everyone else tonight. Clark and Olfina were on one side of her, and Jon Battle-Born on the other, with her sailor's captain. Everyone in the bar seemed to have found someone to play with. And she couldn't hear the bard singing, so he must have been distracted too.
---
"So how did you get on last night?" Saadia asked Ysolda, who was sitting at her usual table near the door.
"I didn't have to," she replied. "I don't think my feet touched the ground all night. When those two sailors picked me up and both ... Well, let's just say that apart from a brief spell when I was completely upside-down, ... " she just couldn't describe it all properly. Saadia laughed and took the tray back to the bar.
Clark and Lydia were sitting at the bar, listening to the chatter around them. Nobody had mentioned Jon and Olfina being seen together, and most were recounting their own experiences, which obviously didn't include either. When either name did crop up, Clark and "that captain woman" were mentioned, too. A few of them knew Clarisse's name, generally the ones she'd favoured.
The couple were at Breezehome, and the next order of business was getting them back out.
"I'll just let Jon out the front door," Lydia suggested. "That shouldn't look unusual to anyone who knows me."
"I don't know. If there's only one man leaving, won't people remark on that?"
Lydia gave Clark that look. "What about Olfina? will you be seen letting her out the back door?"
"We don't have a back door," Clark reminded her. "No, Saadia can come down with a crate of wine, and she and Olfina will leave together with the empties. Everyone will assume they missed Olfina bringing the other crate. That means Jon has to leave first, so that Olfina's missed arrival was after that. If I accompany Saadia, then it was you and Jon at Breezehome, while Saadia and Olfina were here with me."
"Do we have enough bottles to fill a couple of crates?"
"Saadia and I will be bringing mostly empties. Just a few full ones in case anyone asks. The important thing is that we have an empty crate for Olfina to return."
---
Before Olfina left Breezehome, Saadia got the chance to ask her how things had worked out.
"Jon told me that Clarisse was much better at it than I was. And then he suggested that we needed a lot more practice, because I was the one he wanted. We couldn't do that if we didn't go away together, and I know he meant to Solitude."
"Your family will never let you leave with Jon, but they might let you go away if there wasn't any connection. Clarisse and her crew will be moving on soon, maybe there's a way you could go along with them?" She asked Clark what they would be doing next.
"We're all going to Windhelm, to look into the pirate situation. The privateers have a charter to wipe them out, and let the East Empire Company get the Morrowind trade going again. Some of that trade will be mine, so I have an interest in their success. Since Olfina's been seen with me already, maybe I'm the decoy again." He paused for a moment, considering what else he had going on. "The Dragonborn should be arriving soon, and we won't be leaving until she does. We need her to tidy up Saadia's issues, and you can help with that, Olfina. You'll be another reliable witness."
"To what?"
"To Iman's being taken away by a dragon."
"Who's Iman? And how do you know what dragons are going to do?"
"Iman's a woman who looks a lot like me," replied Saadia, "except that she has a scar on her cheek, and I don't."
"But you do have ... or I thought you did, but I don't see one now."
"Exactly. You're starting to understand. And the Dragonborn has a closer affinity with dragons than anyone knows," Clark continued. "There will be a dragon, a friendly one, seen to the east of the city when we leave. You'll see it, too, because you'll be with us. You'll be able to tell everyone that Iman's no longer among us. And then we'll continue our trip to Windhelm."
"What happens in Windhelm?"
"Once you've been seen there, either I, or Diablita, will escort you to Solitude. I have a house there, and you can stay there until you and Jon sort out other arrangements. The others will deal with the pirate problem, which is real enough."
"I think it will work. My family won't mind me going to Windhelm. That's just about as opposite to Solitude as you can get." Olfina pondered a bit more. "If they ask me about my involvement with the Thane of Whiterun, I'll avoid answering, and they'll think whatever they want to. I'm not going to tell them any lies, but I don't have to tell them anything."
"You could probably tell them the truth, and they'll think it's a joke." Saadia told her. "Maybe you'd say 'Mother, I'm going to Windhelm so I can be with Jon Battle-Born, who's in Solitude.' Sounds credible to me."
Olfina laughed. "You're right there. Put that way, I could do it."
Clark thought it better just not to mention Jon. "This trip has nothing to do with him, remember."
Wild night at the Bannered Mare! From Uthgerd’s red cheeks to Ysolda spending time upside down, sounds like a fun time was had by all.
Nice of you to expand some on Olfina+Jon. Too bad the game didn't do more with that - like perhaps have it as one of the Mara quests for the temple.
Looking forward to Diablita and Durnie showing up.
Nice of you to expand some on Olfina+Jon. Too bad the game didn't do more with that - like perhaps have it as one of the Mara quests for the temple.
Looking forward to Diablita and Durnie showing up.
What a party! Uthgerd’s reddened cheeks, lol. I love that Olfina and Jon will get to be together, though Olfina has to take the long way around. Maybe after all of that time with Clark she will have some skill increases that will make Jon forget all about Clarisse!
Acadian: All I can find with Jon and Olfina is the involvement of her letter in a single quest. I'm sure more was intended. Durnheviir will show up once or twice in this one.
Grits: Olfina's getting some "time" with more than just Clark in this episode. And she'll be showing of her bar-keeping skills in the next.
-------------
Previously Clark has concocted a plan to account for Iman's disappearance. Now it's time to carry it out.
---------------
Part 72 - Journey to Windhelm
Even the weather cooperated with Clark's elaborate plan. When Diablita called Durnheviir's name, and he materialised on the tundra, the sky was clear and the view of the scene from Whiterun could not have been better. The grateful dragon delivered Diablita the first word of the Soul Tear shout, shared a chuckle with the humans about the Iman deception, and took off in search of a tasty goat. "A fresh one, of course. I hope I can remember what they look like."
"Are they all that big?" gasped Olfina when it flew off.
"I bet you ask all the guys the same question," Hélène countered, to cover her own amazement.
"How long does your summoning give him to enjoy his freedom here?" Clark asked Diablita.
"He didn't tell me, but I need to call him three times to get the whole shout. That must mean he goes back to the Soul Cairn after a while. I can call him again already, and I can still see him in the distance, so that's no indication. Didn't he tell you when you he told you his name?"
Clark thought back to when Serana, Valerica and he had frst encountered Durnheviir. He'd told Clark that he couldn't survive in Tamriel without the support of the Dragonborn. Perhaps he stayed as long as she wanted, which really meant as long as she was thinking of him.
That was going to be quite a while, as the dragon was the topic of conversation for most of their journey. He re-appeared to help them when the party encountered a hostile dragon and a dragon priest at Shearpoint, but they really didn't need that much help. Diablita's Dragonrend shout had already grounded the dragon, and Diablita and the pirates dealt with that. Meanwhile Clark showed Krosis that he could maintain his ward indefinitely, and spells alone just didn't do anything. Diablita came over, swung her Bloodskal Blade just once, and picked up the mask he dropped.
"What did you get from the word wall?" Clark asked. "Anything new?"
"Not much," said a voice behind him, which sounded a lot like Diablita's.
"Was that you? It sounded like it came from a completely different direction."
"Yes, that's what I learned this time. I have no idea what use that is, but it's something new, and I'll find out later what to do with it, I guess."
---
The second dragon encounter possibly extended Durnheviir's stay in Tamriel quite a bit longer, if Clark's theory was the right one. It certainly kept dragons in mind until they reached the Nightgate Inn.
Hadring was most apologetic that he only had one room available, not enough for nine guests. He showed it to them anyway, and Clark rented it. It had only a single bed, but there were pelts on the walls and floor, and Hadring had a few more down in the storeroom in the basement.
"Olfina should have the bed, as she'll be saving herself for Jon," Diablita suggested. "The rest of us will just fall in a heap when we finish tiring each other out."
"That's the way I see it, too," replied Clarisse. "The rest of us are used to standing up until we fall down."
"Fetch that, if I don't know how to do it standing up, I need to learn," Olfina replied. "The bed's for whoever falls in that direction."
"You won't get to fall until there isn't a man left that can hold you up," Hélène added. "And I've trained these well."
"Close the door. We'll need all the room we can get." Clark was always the practical one.
---
When Clark awoke the following morning he was sitting on the only chair in the room. Clarisse was still on his lap, covering him like a warm blanket. He couldn't see if anyone had ended up on the bed, as Clarisse's head was on his shoulder on that side. By the time she'd woken, too, and lifted her head, the rest were standing up and stretching themselves.
Getting dressed in the small room was diffficult, as you couldn't move without getting an elbow in the ribs. Everyone needed a turn sitting on the bed, or the chair, to get their boots on, which meant a lot of jostling around as one got up and another sat down. It hadn't been this awkward getting undressed the night before, had it?
There was plenty of room to sit down and eat breakfast, however. Clark couldn't help but wonder why the inn didn't dedicate more space to bedrooms, and less to dining.
---
They reached Windhelm about noon that day. The Candlehearth Hall had more rooms, and Edla assured them that extra beds could be added where needed.
"You'll want to take Olfina to Solitude now, won't you?" Diablita asked Clark. "And I'm sure that's what your housecarl will want, too, especially as you haven't been there for a while."
"My housecarls can survive without me. But I will be the one to take her. There's no point you travelling all the way there, just to come back here on your way back to Solstheim."
"I wasn't planning to go back just yet. I also have to go and see Brelyna, and see how she's getting on. She's been cooking up some kind of plot with Vicuña, and I want in on it, whatever it is. I think it has something to do with Neloth, but I'm not sure."
"And I'm not going to Solitude yet. I need to be here to arrange things with the East Empire Company, and make sure I get a fair piece of the Solstheim trade. I need their ships, and they need my goods."
"And everyone needs the pirates out of the way," added Clarisse. "How do we keep Olfina out of the fighting? You know there's going to be some, whatever else happens."
"We need to know where it's going to happen, before we know the answer to that," Clark replied. "So I think our next call should be at the EEC office at the docks."
---
The Company's entire operation seemed to consist of an empty warehouse, with one employee sweeping the floor. Clark knew that they weren't doing any business with Solstheim, as he'd got that covered himself, with Gjalund Salt-Sage and the Northern Maiden doing the only run. There wasn't enough traffic to sustain another vessel, and it was well-known that the Dragonborn favoured the Northern Maiden. Anyone trying to interfere with that route might get an unpleasant surprise.
However, the Morrowind mainland should be producing some flow of goods. Who was handling that? Orthus Endario, the floor-sweeping one, told Clark that the only other shipper in the port was Clan Shatter-Shield. Somehow, their ships got past the pirates, and the East Empire Company's didn't.
Clark and Hélène went next door to visit the rival office. While Clark chatted to the clerk, a Dunmer named Suvaris Atheron, Hélène lifted the logbook from the table at the back.
"It says in here that Suvaris travels regularly to Dawnstar to meet up with someone called Stig Salt-Plank, of the Blood Horkers." Orthus told them when he read the journal.
"Those are the pirates we have the charter for," Clarisse told them, "but I don't know that man's name."
"I do," Olfina interjected. "I remember him coming in to the Bannered Mare not all that long ago. He got into a fight with Uthgerd, and I had to rescue him."
"So let's all head for Dawnstar tomorrow, and see if that gives you any leverage with Stig Salt-Plank. It looks like he'll be there, and we can reach him before Suvaris does."
Grits: Olfina's getting some "time" with more than just Clark in this episode. And she'll be showing of her bar-keeping skills in the next.
-------------
Previously Clark has concocted a plan to account for Iman's disappearance. Now it's time to carry it out.
---------------
Part 72 - Journey to Windhelm
Even the weather cooperated with Clark's elaborate plan. When Diablita called Durnheviir's name, and he materialised on the tundra, the sky was clear and the view of the scene from Whiterun could not have been better. The grateful dragon delivered Diablita the first word of the Soul Tear shout, shared a chuckle with the humans about the Iman deception, and took off in search of a tasty goat. "A fresh one, of course. I hope I can remember what they look like."
"Are they all that big?" gasped Olfina when it flew off.
"I bet you ask all the guys the same question," Hélène countered, to cover her own amazement.
"How long does your summoning give him to enjoy his freedom here?" Clark asked Diablita.
"He didn't tell me, but I need to call him three times to get the whole shout. That must mean he goes back to the Soul Cairn after a while. I can call him again already, and I can still see him in the distance, so that's no indication. Didn't he tell you when you he told you his name?"
Clark thought back to when Serana, Valerica and he had frst encountered Durnheviir. He'd told Clark that he couldn't survive in Tamriel without the support of the Dragonborn. Perhaps he stayed as long as she wanted, which really meant as long as she was thinking of him.
That was going to be quite a while, as the dragon was the topic of conversation for most of their journey. He re-appeared to help them when the party encountered a hostile dragon and a dragon priest at Shearpoint, but they really didn't need that much help. Diablita's Dragonrend shout had already grounded the dragon, and Diablita and the pirates dealt with that. Meanwhile Clark showed Krosis that he could maintain his ward indefinitely, and spells alone just didn't do anything. Diablita came over, swung her Bloodskal Blade just once, and picked up the mask he dropped.
"What did you get from the word wall?" Clark asked. "Anything new?"
"Not much," said a voice behind him, which sounded a lot like Diablita's.
"Was that you? It sounded like it came from a completely different direction."
"Yes, that's what I learned this time. I have no idea what use that is, but it's something new, and I'll find out later what to do with it, I guess."
---
The second dragon encounter possibly extended Durnheviir's stay in Tamriel quite a bit longer, if Clark's theory was the right one. It certainly kept dragons in mind until they reached the Nightgate Inn.
Hadring was most apologetic that he only had one room available, not enough for nine guests. He showed it to them anyway, and Clark rented it. It had only a single bed, but there were pelts on the walls and floor, and Hadring had a few more down in the storeroom in the basement.
"Olfina should have the bed, as she'll be saving herself for Jon," Diablita suggested. "The rest of us will just fall in a heap when we finish tiring each other out."
"That's the way I see it, too," replied Clarisse. "The rest of us are used to standing up until we fall down."
"Fetch that, if I don't know how to do it standing up, I need to learn," Olfina replied. "The bed's for whoever falls in that direction."
"You won't get to fall until there isn't a man left that can hold you up," Hélène added. "And I've trained these well."
"Close the door. We'll need all the room we can get." Clark was always the practical one.
---
When Clark awoke the following morning he was sitting on the only chair in the room. Clarisse was still on his lap, covering him like a warm blanket. He couldn't see if anyone had ended up on the bed, as Clarisse's head was on his shoulder on that side. By the time she'd woken, too, and lifted her head, the rest were standing up and stretching themselves.
Getting dressed in the small room was diffficult, as you couldn't move without getting an elbow in the ribs. Everyone needed a turn sitting on the bed, or the chair, to get their boots on, which meant a lot of jostling around as one got up and another sat down. It hadn't been this awkward getting undressed the night before, had it?
There was plenty of room to sit down and eat breakfast, however. Clark couldn't help but wonder why the inn didn't dedicate more space to bedrooms, and less to dining.
---
They reached Windhelm about noon that day. The Candlehearth Hall had more rooms, and Edla assured them that extra beds could be added where needed.
"You'll want to take Olfina to Solitude now, won't you?" Diablita asked Clark. "And I'm sure that's what your housecarl will want, too, especially as you haven't been there for a while."
"My housecarls can survive without me. But I will be the one to take her. There's no point you travelling all the way there, just to come back here on your way back to Solstheim."
"I wasn't planning to go back just yet. I also have to go and see Brelyna, and see how she's getting on. She's been cooking up some kind of plot with Vicuña, and I want in on it, whatever it is. I think it has something to do with Neloth, but I'm not sure."
"And I'm not going to Solitude yet. I need to be here to arrange things with the East Empire Company, and make sure I get a fair piece of the Solstheim trade. I need their ships, and they need my goods."
"And everyone needs the pirates out of the way," added Clarisse. "How do we keep Olfina out of the fighting? You know there's going to be some, whatever else happens."
"We need to know where it's going to happen, before we know the answer to that," Clark replied. "So I think our next call should be at the EEC office at the docks."
---
The Company's entire operation seemed to consist of an empty warehouse, with one employee sweeping the floor. Clark knew that they weren't doing any business with Solstheim, as he'd got that covered himself, with Gjalund Salt-Sage and the Northern Maiden doing the only run. There wasn't enough traffic to sustain another vessel, and it was well-known that the Dragonborn favoured the Northern Maiden. Anyone trying to interfere with that route might get an unpleasant surprise.
However, the Morrowind mainland should be producing some flow of goods. Who was handling that? Orthus Endario, the floor-sweeping one, told Clark that the only other shipper in the port was Clan Shatter-Shield. Somehow, their ships got past the pirates, and the East Empire Company's didn't.
Clark and Hélène went next door to visit the rival office. While Clark chatted to the clerk, a Dunmer named Suvaris Atheron, Hélène lifted the logbook from the table at the back.
"It says in here that Suvaris travels regularly to Dawnstar to meet up with someone called Stig Salt-Plank, of the Blood Horkers." Orthus told them when he read the journal.
"Those are the pirates we have the charter for," Clarisse told them, "but I don't know that man's name."
"I do," Olfina interjected. "I remember him coming in to the Bannered Mare not all that long ago. He got into a fight with Uthgerd, and I had to rescue him."
"So let's all head for Dawnstar tomorrow, and see if that gives you any leverage with Stig Salt-Plank. It looks like he'll be there, and we can reach him before Suvaris does."
Great to see Diablita and Durnie again! That must have been a magnificent sight for Whiterun as she summoned him out on the tundra. 
"The rest of us are used to standing up until we fall down." - - Sounds like good lyrics for a Nord drinking song!
Great fun in tight quarters at the Nightgate Inn. Too bad they didn’t invite the orc downstairs – that might have opened up some more room.
I love the East Empire Company quests! Heh, sounds like Stig needs some more salt in his plank to stand up to Uthgerd.
Nit: ”I have no idea what use that is, but it's something new, and I'll find out later what to do with it, i guess." - - I vs i.
"The rest of us are used to standing up until we fall down." - - Sounds like good lyrics for a Nord drinking song!
Great fun in tight quarters at the Nightgate Inn. Too bad they didn’t invite the orc downstairs – that might have opened up some more room.
I love the East Empire Company quests! Heh, sounds like Stig needs some more salt in his plank to stand up to Uthgerd.
Nit: ”I have no idea what use that is, but it's something new, and I'll find out later what to do with it, i guess." - - I vs i.
Acadian: I'm lashing some very unrelated quests together here with chewing gum and baling wire. I hope it doesn't all fall apart. I still haven't determined how to bring Durnheviir back two more times, for example.
----------
Previously: Clark and party discovered that the East Empire Company in Windhelm has been virtually
shut down by a band of pirates called the Blood Horkers. There's a group in Dawnstar waiting for contact.
----------
Part 73 - Dawnstar
Stig Salt-Plank was more than a little embarrassed to see Olfina in the Windpeak Inn at Dawnstar. He had his crew with him, and he just knew that Olfina would bring up the Uthgerd incident. They tried to ignore her, but Karita, who was thoroughly annoyed by the pirates, saw a sympathetic colleague in Olfina, and called for her help to eject them.
So it wasn't long before a brawl got started, with Stig on one side and Olfina on the other. Clarisse's crew kept Stig's people from interfering, and they cleared a space for them to go at it.
Stig swung a haymaker at Olfina and she ducked, coming back up with a vicious uppercut to the point of Stig's chin. He fell back senseless into the arms of his crew. Clark brought him round by throwing the remains of his ale in his face.
"Prepared to tell us something more about the Blood Horkers?" he asked. "Don't tell me this collection is the entire operation."
"No, most of 'em are at Japhet's Folly. That's where Haldyn is, our 'secret ingredient' that makes us such a success."
"Who's Haldyn?" Clarrisse demanded.
"He's a battlemage. Keeps the island in fog, so we can't be found, and throws some nasty fire spells when
we needs 'em. Seen him sink a ship single-handed, I has. Of course, we only does that once we've taken off anything worth taking."
Clark noticed Clarisse's glare when Stig mentioned sinking ships. "You don't get a second cargo from a ship that's on the bottom," she pointed out. "And it's too easy to put the shippers out of business, and lose all your income. Don't these idiots understand how it works? Keep them prosperous, and take your slice from a bigger pie. That's what they do with the legal taxes and duties, too. Too much, and you lose the trade."
Diablita remarked that she knew a shout to clear fog, or any other weather problems, and she knew that Clark's ward was equal to anything that Haldyn might be able to throw. "Let's get back to Windhelm, and see if we can figure out where this Japhet's Folly is."
---
Back at the East Empire Company, Orthus was being berated by his superior, an Imperial woman in legion armour. He introduced the party to Adelaisa Vendicci, who'd just arrived on a small ship to collect the cargo he didn't have.
Adelaisa knew where Japhet's Folly was, or at least she had a chart that showed it. "I've never been there," she told him. "There's always too much fog in that area for safe sailing."
"Don't worry about fog," Diablita told her. "We know why that's there, and I can do something about it."
"Is your ship large enough to take us all there?" Clarisse asked.
"Yes, since I don't have any cargo, there's plenty of room. How many of you will be going with me?"
"All of us," Clarisse answered. She turned to Clark and continued "I stopped worrying about Olfina when I saw how she handled Stig Salt-Plank."
Adelaisa lent Olfina a spare suit of her armour. She was reluctant to wear Imperial gear, especially here in Windhelm, but as Clark reminded her, she didn't have to put it on until they boarded the ship.
---
At the island, Diablita cleared the fog for long enough for them to anchor near the shore, but it appeared that Haldyn could replace it as fast as she dispelled it. "We'll need to deal with him as soon as we can."
"I think I saw a dock before the fog came back," Adelaisa told them. "If we can get a party ashore in a rowboat, and they deal with Haldyn and the fog, the main force will be able to reach the dock and join them. Now who should go?"
"Adelaisa should stay and command her own ship," Clarisse decided. "And I should leave her to it, and go in the longboat. If I stay on board, I'll want to take over. Being a captain does that to you."
"And I need to be there, as the counter to Haldyn," Clark pointed out. "We're counting on my ward to block whatever he has."
Diablita wasn't going to be left out either, and that didn't leave much room in the small boat. Hélène reluctantly stayed on the ship, as did Olfina.
---
The trio threaded their way through the ice and tied the boat up outside a small cave. "Looks like this is the way in," Diablita remarked. "I wonder if we're expected?"
Clark thought it unlikely. "But they'll have this route guarded, just in case. And probably trapped, too."
There was a single guard in the cave itself, and he hadn't seen them yet. "Does anyone have a bow, or a quiet ranged spell?" Clarisse asked.
Nobody did, but there was one possibilty. Diablita pulled the Bloodskal Blade from her back and positioned herself carefully. It wasn't the most accurate of ranged attacks, but a strong swing would unleash a magical force of some kind that cut like a blade. She swung sideways, so that she had a better chance of connecting and was delighted to see the guard's head go rolling off into a corner without calling out.
"We're bound to run into more inside, but at least they won't be expecting us, now."
"More chance to sneak and backstab once we're in the building," Clarisse reminded them.
---
"Haldyn's probably at the top of the tower," Clark deduced. "He'd need to keep watch for ships, so he doesn't have to keep this fog in place when there aren't any around. I'd expect his quarters have a view of the docks."
"We'd want to get up there to signal to the ship, too." Clarisse added.
"So what are we waiting for?" asked Diablita.
---
Haldyn was indeed at the top of the tower, and ready to greet them with shock spells. Since Clark had his ward up before they opened the door, they didn't have much effect, except to keep Clarisse and Diablita behind Clark, until they got fully into the room.
Once they cleared the doorway, they headed in opposite directions to flank the battlemage. Clark had a mean-looking sword in his other hand, so Haldyn was reluctant to take his attention off the nearest opponent, and kept the torrent of lightning headed towards him. Nobody could keep a ward up for that long, could they?
Yes, Clark could, even if nobody else had the capacity. Soon Haldyn's ribs had a visit from swords on each side, and Clark could finally let his ward down.
Clarisse opened a window and sent up a flare spell to signal to the ship, and they headed back down towards the docks. The East Empire Company had brought along a battlemage of their own, and the area in between the tower and the docks was currently being hit by fiery explosions raining from the skies. That certainly thinned the ranks of the remaining Blood Horkers, but they still had to fight their way through a number of them before they met up with the rest of the crew.
----------
Previously: Clark and party discovered that the East Empire Company in Windhelm has been virtually
shut down by a band of pirates called the Blood Horkers. There's a group in Dawnstar waiting for contact.
----------
Part 73 - Dawnstar
Stig Salt-Plank was more than a little embarrassed to see Olfina in the Windpeak Inn at Dawnstar. He had his crew with him, and he just knew that Olfina would bring up the Uthgerd incident. They tried to ignore her, but Karita, who was thoroughly annoyed by the pirates, saw a sympathetic colleague in Olfina, and called for her help to eject them.
So it wasn't long before a brawl got started, with Stig on one side and Olfina on the other. Clarisse's crew kept Stig's people from interfering, and they cleared a space for them to go at it.
Stig swung a haymaker at Olfina and she ducked, coming back up with a vicious uppercut to the point of Stig's chin. He fell back senseless into the arms of his crew. Clark brought him round by throwing the remains of his ale in his face.
"Prepared to tell us something more about the Blood Horkers?" he asked. "Don't tell me this collection is the entire operation."
"No, most of 'em are at Japhet's Folly. That's where Haldyn is, our 'secret ingredient' that makes us such a success."
"Who's Haldyn?" Clarrisse demanded.
"He's a battlemage. Keeps the island in fog, so we can't be found, and throws some nasty fire spells when
we needs 'em. Seen him sink a ship single-handed, I has. Of course, we only does that once we've taken off anything worth taking."
Clark noticed Clarisse's glare when Stig mentioned sinking ships. "You don't get a second cargo from a ship that's on the bottom," she pointed out. "And it's too easy to put the shippers out of business, and lose all your income. Don't these idiots understand how it works? Keep them prosperous, and take your slice from a bigger pie. That's what they do with the legal taxes and duties, too. Too much, and you lose the trade."
Diablita remarked that she knew a shout to clear fog, or any other weather problems, and she knew that Clark's ward was equal to anything that Haldyn might be able to throw. "Let's get back to Windhelm, and see if we can figure out where this Japhet's Folly is."
---
Back at the East Empire Company, Orthus was being berated by his superior, an Imperial woman in legion armour. He introduced the party to Adelaisa Vendicci, who'd just arrived on a small ship to collect the cargo he didn't have.
Adelaisa knew where Japhet's Folly was, or at least she had a chart that showed it. "I've never been there," she told him. "There's always too much fog in that area for safe sailing."
"Don't worry about fog," Diablita told her. "We know why that's there, and I can do something about it."
"Is your ship large enough to take us all there?" Clarisse asked.
"Yes, since I don't have any cargo, there's plenty of room. How many of you will be going with me?"
"All of us," Clarisse answered. She turned to Clark and continued "I stopped worrying about Olfina when I saw how she handled Stig Salt-Plank."
Adelaisa lent Olfina a spare suit of her armour. She was reluctant to wear Imperial gear, especially here in Windhelm, but as Clark reminded her, she didn't have to put it on until they boarded the ship.
---
At the island, Diablita cleared the fog for long enough for them to anchor near the shore, but it appeared that Haldyn could replace it as fast as she dispelled it. "We'll need to deal with him as soon as we can."
"I think I saw a dock before the fog came back," Adelaisa told them. "If we can get a party ashore in a rowboat, and they deal with Haldyn and the fog, the main force will be able to reach the dock and join them. Now who should go?"
"Adelaisa should stay and command her own ship," Clarisse decided. "And I should leave her to it, and go in the longboat. If I stay on board, I'll want to take over. Being a captain does that to you."
"And I need to be there, as the counter to Haldyn," Clark pointed out. "We're counting on my ward to block whatever he has."
Diablita wasn't going to be left out either, and that didn't leave much room in the small boat. Hélène reluctantly stayed on the ship, as did Olfina.
---
The trio threaded their way through the ice and tied the boat up outside a small cave. "Looks like this is the way in," Diablita remarked. "I wonder if we're expected?"
Clark thought it unlikely. "But they'll have this route guarded, just in case. And probably trapped, too."
There was a single guard in the cave itself, and he hadn't seen them yet. "Does anyone have a bow, or a quiet ranged spell?" Clarisse asked.
Nobody did, but there was one possibilty. Diablita pulled the Bloodskal Blade from her back and positioned herself carefully. It wasn't the most accurate of ranged attacks, but a strong swing would unleash a magical force of some kind that cut like a blade. She swung sideways, so that she had a better chance of connecting and was delighted to see the guard's head go rolling off into a corner without calling out.
"We're bound to run into more inside, but at least they won't be expecting us, now."
"More chance to sneak and backstab once we're in the building," Clarisse reminded them.
---
"Haldyn's probably at the top of the tower," Clark deduced. "He'd need to keep watch for ships, so he doesn't have to keep this fog in place when there aren't any around. I'd expect his quarters have a view of the docks."
"We'd want to get up there to signal to the ship, too." Clarisse added.
"So what are we waiting for?" asked Diablita.
---
Haldyn was indeed at the top of the tower, and ready to greet them with shock spells. Since Clark had his ward up before they opened the door, they didn't have much effect, except to keep Clarisse and Diablita behind Clark, until they got fully into the room.
Once they cleared the doorway, they headed in opposite directions to flank the battlemage. Clark had a mean-looking sword in his other hand, so Haldyn was reluctant to take his attention off the nearest opponent, and kept the torrent of lightning headed towards him. Nobody could keep a ward up for that long, could they?
Yes, Clark could, even if nobody else had the capacity. Soon Haldyn's ribs had a visit from swords on each side, and Clark could finally let his ward down.
Clarisse opened a window and sent up a flare spell to signal to the ship, and they headed back down towards the docks. The East Empire Company had brought along a battlemage of their own, and the area in between the tower and the docks was currently being hit by fiery explosions raining from the skies. That certainly thinned the ranks of the remaining Blood Horkers, but they still had to fight their way through a number of them before they met up with the rest of the crew.
Yay for Olfina, popping ol’ Stig right on the chin!
Fun and sound logic you provide us as theAway Team Shore Party composition is selected.
Gosh, Diablita, with her weather-clearing shout and Bloodskal ‘ranged attack’ sure was handy! As was Clark’s super duper ward spell.
Good teamwork all around taking down Haldyn and his Bloody Horker goons.
I love all the East Empire Company related quests. Happily, after all the quests are done, the Blood Horkers occasionally send a couple of their goons to attack you as you travel – providing more fun. (Luvs random encounters on the road.)
Nits:
- - ’... but Karita, who was thorough annoyed by the pirates, ...’ - - Thoroughly vs thorough.
- - ’...so Haldyn was reluctant to to take his attention off the nearest opponent, ...’ - - A redundant ‘to’.
- - ’Soon Haldyn's ribs had a visit from swords on each side. and Clark could finally let his ward down.’ - - There is a period instead of the intended comma after ‘side’.
Fun and sound logic you provide us as the
Gosh, Diablita, with her weather-clearing shout and Bloodskal ‘ranged attack’ sure was handy! As was Clark’s super duper ward spell.
Good teamwork all around taking down Haldyn and his Bloody Horker goons.
I love all the East Empire Company related quests. Happily, after all the quests are done, the Blood Horkers occasionally send a couple of their goons to attack you as you travel – providing more fun. (Luvs random encounters on the road.)
Nits:
- - ’... but Karita, who was thorough annoyed by the pirates, ...’ - - Thoroughly vs thorough.
- - ’...so Haldyn was reluctant to to take his attention off the nearest opponent, ...’ - - A redundant ‘to’.
- - ’Soon Haldyn's ribs had a visit from swords on each side. and Clark could finally let his ward down.’ - - There is a period instead of the intended comma after ‘side’.
Acadian: And Diablita just happened to be there because we called her over for the Durnheviir/Saadia situation! I couldn't have planned that if I tried.
-------------------
Previously: The Blood Horkers were successfully shut down, so Clarisse and her crew ae in line for a bounty.
--------------------
Part 74 - Windhelm and Solitude
"Did you need to collect any grisly trophies for this mission?" Clark asked the privateers, as they set off for Windhelm.
"No, the East Empire Company know all about it, and their office in Farrun will pay out when we return. We'll be getting a retainer fee for keeping the trading routes safe after this, which is just a little less than we might have taken ourselves, but it should be less effort, too."
"So it's back to Solitude, now?" Olfina asked, hopefully. "Jon will be waiting for me."
"We'll want to visit a few places along the way, so that you can tell the tale of Iman and the dragon," Clark reminded her. "And make sure the bard in each place gets to hear about it, so it gets repeated. By the time Jon hears it, I'd prefer that it's not just your story, but common knowledge."
"Good point," Olfina agreed. "And Luaffyn here in Windhelm should be the first to know. That way they'll know I was travelling East, not West. If we can get her to add a tune to the story, it can become hers."
---
"We're not entirely finished with our bounty-hunting here in Skyrim," Clarisse told Clark. "There's a woman, called Maven something, who's wanted in a number of cities in High Rock. We have several warrants, each under a different family name, but we're convinced that it's the same person. They're all related to political assassinations, dealing in illegal arms, and other major crimes that most would shy away from. There's little direct proof of her guilt in any of the cases, but it all adds up to enough suspicion to send her into hiding. We're pretty sure she came to Skyrim, probably with her family. We have warrants for her son and grand-son, too."
"Is there a grand-daughter? If so, it all sounds like someone I know," Clark told her.
"Possibly. There isn't a bounty for one, but how old is she? They fled a few years ago, so maybe she was too young to get involved in the family business."
Clark thought that Ingun Black-Briar was twenty, at most. And from what Gilda had told him, she was more into her alchemy than crime. He described the Black-Briars to the privateers, and it appeared to be a very good match. No proof, of course. Maven would have been careful to cover her tracks.
"We can't just accuse her without anything concrete to connect her to the other Mavens, so we'll need to bide our time and wait for something to crop up. You say that the Riften Thieves Guild is investigating her, too? I hope they won't want a share of the bounties, although there's plenty of gold involved."
"They just want to be rid of her," Clark reassured them.
---
Jordis opened the door to Proudspire Manor and saw Clark coming up the steps with a young woman she didn't recognise. "Not again," she thought. "It's bad enough that Elisif and Elenwen seem to have first option whenever he's here, but now he's bringing home someone else."
But this was Olfina, and she was eager to find Jon Battle-Born, the new bard at the college. Jordis, naturally, had already ... met him. Illdi and Ataf had taken him to the Winking Skeever, and somehow they'd all ended up at Proudspire that night. Jon was fun, but he was obviously keeping something in reserve, and it turned out it was Olfina who'd be the beneficiary.
"Can Olfina use your room for a couple of days, while she and Jon sort out some other accommodations?"
"Does that mean I'll be sleeping upstairs?"
"Don't you always, when I'm in town?" Clark replied, thinking "and whenever you have company, which is whenever I'm away."
Jordis managed to work out that this meant Clark wasn't intending to bring anyone else back here. Not that he did that with Elisif or Elenwen. And if Gilda turned up again, well last time was fun, so that wouldn't be bad either.
Just in case, she inquired if he had any plans to be anywhere else tonight. "Not yet, but neither Elisif nor Elenwen know I'm back. Let's keep it that way."
Jordis thought that was a good idea, too.
---
"Jordis has a point," Clark was thinking as he left Proudspire on his way to the Blue Palace. "It's only here in Solitude where my housecarl doesn't get first call on my time. Well, maybe Riften, too, but Gilda's more likely than not to be somewhere else when I arrive. She's also forgetting that it means I have more reason to be in Solitude these days. Rayya hardly ever sees me down in Falkreath Hold. And if the Morrowind trade picks up now, I'll be here a lot more often because the East Empire Company prefers to operate from the capital."
The elimination of the Blood Horkers and the restoration of the Morrowind routes was what he wanted to discuss with Elisif. It would mean increased trade for the city, too, and that might have an effect on Tullius' desire to replace her. She'd probably already know from her own sources, such as Erikur, what had happened.
It turned out that Clarisse was there in the foyer, waiting for an audience with the Jarl. She had the same thing on her mind, too. The increased trade with Morrowind was something she'd like a slice of, and since the Red Witch was responsible for the altered state of affairs, she had a good position from which to negotiate.
They met with Elisif together, and she turned to Falk Firebeard and told him to hold any further business until the following day. "We'll continue this discussion in my chambers," she told them, "just in case Erikur wanders in and feels left out."
"And why would he feel left out?" Clarisse asked.
"Because he will be," Clark replied.
---
"That's more than you're getting from Farrun," Clark interrupted, as Clarisse made her opening bid for the privateer contract she wanted.
"How do you know? I've not told you what they're giving us."
"Because firstly, you'd be stupid not to ask for more than you expect, and haggle down, and secondly, because of the over-innocent look on your face when you said it. Believe me, you just don't have a face that does a convincing innocent!"
"And a gentleman will never tell a lady she talks in her sleep. Right, Clark?" Elisif added, with a huge grin.
"What makes you think he knows me that well?" Clarisse demanded.
"Because I know him well enough to know that he wouldn't miss an opportunity. Since I already know that you journeyed all the way across the province together, I'm sure he found one."
"And how...?"
"From my contacts in the East Empire Company, not to mention a few in Farrun, too."
Clarisse changed her tactics, and pointed out that it was in Elisif's interest to be paying a little more than Farrun, as it would mean that Solitude would be the preferred client if there were any conflicts of interest.
"So now we need to find out what you mean by 'a little', don't we?" Elisif replied.
"I think ten percent more would be enough, don't you?" Clark suggested.
"We could agree to that. The actual sum to be put in writing once we have proof of the terms with Farrun?"
"Whose side are you on?" Clarrise asked Clark.
"Both," he replied. "I want you two to come to a fair deal, that you'll both want to keep. I have my own reasons for wanting you to work together, and we'll get to that next."
Elisif raised an eyebrow. Clark's plans were often interesting, to say the least.
-------------------
Previously: The Blood Horkers were successfully shut down, so Clarisse and her crew ae in line for a bounty.
--------------------
Part 74 - Windhelm and Solitude
"Did you need to collect any grisly trophies for this mission?" Clark asked the privateers, as they set off for Windhelm.
"No, the East Empire Company know all about it, and their office in Farrun will pay out when we return. We'll be getting a retainer fee for keeping the trading routes safe after this, which is just a little less than we might have taken ourselves, but it should be less effort, too."
"So it's back to Solitude, now?" Olfina asked, hopefully. "Jon will be waiting for me."
"We'll want to visit a few places along the way, so that you can tell the tale of Iman and the dragon," Clark reminded her. "And make sure the bard in each place gets to hear about it, so it gets repeated. By the time Jon hears it, I'd prefer that it's not just your story, but common knowledge."
"Good point," Olfina agreed. "And Luaffyn here in Windhelm should be the first to know. That way they'll know I was travelling East, not West. If we can get her to add a tune to the story, it can become hers."
---
"We're not entirely finished with our bounty-hunting here in Skyrim," Clarisse told Clark. "There's a woman, called Maven something, who's wanted in a number of cities in High Rock. We have several warrants, each under a different family name, but we're convinced that it's the same person. They're all related to political assassinations, dealing in illegal arms, and other major crimes that most would shy away from. There's little direct proof of her guilt in any of the cases, but it all adds up to enough suspicion to send her into hiding. We're pretty sure she came to Skyrim, probably with her family. We have warrants for her son and grand-son, too."
"Is there a grand-daughter? If so, it all sounds like someone I know," Clark told her.
"Possibly. There isn't a bounty for one, but how old is she? They fled a few years ago, so maybe she was too young to get involved in the family business."
Clark thought that Ingun Black-Briar was twenty, at most. And from what Gilda had told him, she was more into her alchemy than crime. He described the Black-Briars to the privateers, and it appeared to be a very good match. No proof, of course. Maven would have been careful to cover her tracks.
"We can't just accuse her without anything concrete to connect her to the other Mavens, so we'll need to bide our time and wait for something to crop up. You say that the Riften Thieves Guild is investigating her, too? I hope they won't want a share of the bounties, although there's plenty of gold involved."
"They just want to be rid of her," Clark reassured them.
---
Jordis opened the door to Proudspire Manor and saw Clark coming up the steps with a young woman she didn't recognise. "Not again," she thought. "It's bad enough that Elisif and Elenwen seem to have first option whenever he's here, but now he's bringing home someone else."
But this was Olfina, and she was eager to find Jon Battle-Born, the new bard at the college. Jordis, naturally, had already ... met him. Illdi and Ataf had taken him to the Winking Skeever, and somehow they'd all ended up at Proudspire that night. Jon was fun, but he was obviously keeping something in reserve, and it turned out it was Olfina who'd be the beneficiary.
"Can Olfina use your room for a couple of days, while she and Jon sort out some other accommodations?"
"Does that mean I'll be sleeping upstairs?"
"Don't you always, when I'm in town?" Clark replied, thinking "and whenever you have company, which is whenever I'm away."
Jordis managed to work out that this meant Clark wasn't intending to bring anyone else back here. Not that he did that with Elisif or Elenwen. And if Gilda turned up again, well last time was fun, so that wouldn't be bad either.
Just in case, she inquired if he had any plans to be anywhere else tonight. "Not yet, but neither Elisif nor Elenwen know I'm back. Let's keep it that way."
Jordis thought that was a good idea, too.
---
"Jordis has a point," Clark was thinking as he left Proudspire on his way to the Blue Palace. "It's only here in Solitude where my housecarl doesn't get first call on my time. Well, maybe Riften, too, but Gilda's more likely than not to be somewhere else when I arrive. She's also forgetting that it means I have more reason to be in Solitude these days. Rayya hardly ever sees me down in Falkreath Hold. And if the Morrowind trade picks up now, I'll be here a lot more often because the East Empire Company prefers to operate from the capital."
The elimination of the Blood Horkers and the restoration of the Morrowind routes was what he wanted to discuss with Elisif. It would mean increased trade for the city, too, and that might have an effect on Tullius' desire to replace her. She'd probably already know from her own sources, such as Erikur, what had happened.
It turned out that Clarisse was there in the foyer, waiting for an audience with the Jarl. She had the same thing on her mind, too. The increased trade with Morrowind was something she'd like a slice of, and since the Red Witch was responsible for the altered state of affairs, she had a good position from which to negotiate.
They met with Elisif together, and she turned to Falk Firebeard and told him to hold any further business until the following day. "We'll continue this discussion in my chambers," she told them, "just in case Erikur wanders in and feels left out."
"And why would he feel left out?" Clarisse asked.
"Because he will be," Clark replied.
---
"That's more than you're getting from Farrun," Clark interrupted, as Clarisse made her opening bid for the privateer contract she wanted.
"How do you know? I've not told you what they're giving us."
"Because firstly, you'd be stupid not to ask for more than you expect, and haggle down, and secondly, because of the over-innocent look on your face when you said it. Believe me, you just don't have a face that does a convincing innocent!"
"And a gentleman will never tell a lady she talks in her sleep. Right, Clark?" Elisif added, with a huge grin.
"What makes you think he knows me that well?" Clarisse demanded.
"Because I know him well enough to know that he wouldn't miss an opportunity. Since I already know that you journeyed all the way across the province together, I'm sure he found one."
"And how...?"
"From my contacts in the East Empire Company, not to mention a few in Farrun, too."
Clarisse changed her tactics, and pointed out that it was in Elisif's interest to be paying a little more than Farrun, as it would mean that Solitude would be the preferred client if there were any conflicts of interest.
"So now we need to find out what you mean by 'a little', don't we?" Elisif replied.
"I think ten percent more would be enough, don't you?" Clark suggested.
"We could agree to that. The actual sum to be put in writing once we have proof of the terms with Farrun?"
"Whose side are you on?" Clarrise asked Clark.
"Both," he replied. "I want you two to come to a fair deal, that you'll both want to keep. I have my own reasons for wanting you to work together, and we'll get to that next."
Elisif raised an eyebrow. Clark's plans were often interesting, to say the least.
Great idea to use the bards to publicize Iman’s draconic fate.
Oooh! Any foe of Maven is a friend of mine!
I see Jordis has been keeping Proudspire warm. I had forgotten that Jon was an aspiring bard – so I just made the connection of having him come to Solitude. Good thinking!
"And a gentleman will never tell a lady she talks in her sleep. Right, Clark?" - -
Oooh! Any foe of Maven is a friend of mine!
I see Jordis has been keeping Proudspire warm. I had forgotten that Jon was an aspiring bard – so I just made the connection of having him come to Solitude. Good thinking!
"And a gentleman will never tell a lady she talks in her sleep. Right, Clark?" - -
Clarisse’s bounty on Maven made me grin. It sounds like Jordis is making good use of Proudspire for the Winking Skeever after-parties. Much better than rattling around in there all alone!
Acadian: I think there's actually some dialogue where Jon says that he'd like to go to the Bards College, but it may only happen in the one quest.
Grits: Jordis may bounce nicely, but she'd never rattle!
----------
Previously: Clarisse has revealed that she has a bounty for someone called Maven, if only they can prove it's that Maven. Meanwhile, Clark has something for her and Elisif.
----------
Part 75 - Baubles
"Do you have items hidden away in the Blue Palace that you'd be happy to have stolen?" he asked Elisif. "Things you've been given by visiting dignitaries that are just too awful to put out on display?"
"But I can't sell them, or give them away, because they were an official gift? Yes, there's plenty of those. Tasteless baubles, and paintings of ugly relatives - theirs, not mine."
"It's an idea of Karliah's, or perhaps Nocturnal's. The Thieves Guild found that they often stole the same items multiple times. They were always useless things that people bought just to show off their wealth. So they got stolen on commission from others who wanted the same thing. The new owners couldn't complain when they went missing again, because they were stolen goods in the first place. The price the Guild asked when they didn't have a commission should have told anyone that they were stolen."
"Madesi made a few things like that for them, but he's busy on other projects. So now they're looking for new items to add to this system. Gaudy and tasteless seem to be main criteria. The items need to say 'I was bought because I was expensive, not because I have real value' for the best effect. I suspect much of what you'd like to dispose of matches that description."
"Madesi's the one that made that toy you brought me, isn't he?" Elisif pondered for a while. "I'd get a bit of storage space back, but what else is in this for Solitude?"
"Tax revenue, if the stolen art market is at least semi-legitimate. The idea is that a trader in fine art, myself for example, honestly sells the items at a large discount, with the caveat that the provenance is uncertain, and the buyer may have not any rights if the item is found later to have been stolen. If the buyer is happy with that, then the transaction provides income for me and the Guild, tax for the city, and the purchaser gets a reasonable amount of time with the item before it disappears again."
"So it's basically a rental arrangement, that looks like a purchase?" Clarisse asked.
"You've got it. We spice it up with a few seizures of stolen property, where the current holder is able to avoid jail because he has a bill of sale. They lose out on a bit of time with their purchase, but it provides everyone with the security of knowing that the doubtful goods aren't too hot to handle. There's a risk, but the gambling aspect is more likely to be a draw than to put people off."
"So where do I fit in?" Clarisse wanted to know.
"If we can spread the scope of the scheme to other provinces, the items can be more diverse, and the chance of individual ones turning up again in the same place is diminished. That will improve the perceived chance of someone holding on to their 'purchase' for a time. Which makes it a more tempting proposition for the buyer. That takes secure shipping, and you've told me that you've done it in the past."
"And of course, the ones doing all the buying, are the ones that have more gold than they need. It's fairer than taxes, and less likely to raise complaints," Elisif agreed. "So when's the break-in? Maybe the next time Elenwen has a party, and I'm out of the Palace?"
"Actually, we were wondering if you might lend a few things to Erikur, and they'd be stolen from there."
"Most of what I want gone, even he wouldn't want," Elisif replied. "But I'll certainly keep that idea for later. I have enough leverage with him for now."
---
"Clark, you know a bit about Daedric Princesses, don't you?" Jordis began.
"Well, Azura and Nocturnal prefer that term, but Prince is the right one for most of the others. Which one did you want to know about?"
"Meridia, and she sounded female when she spoke to me."
"She spoke to you? When?"
"When I found this in a chest in a cave. It was on the way to find those instruments with Illdi. There were just a few wild animals in there when we went in, but it looked like hunters had sheltered there in the past. We just wanted to get out of the rain, too."
"Tell me more about her speaking to you. Was there a shrine to her in the cave?"
"No, but when I picked this gem thing out of the chest, I heard her voice." Jordis showed Clark a round piece of what looked like quartz, the same material that crystal balls are made from. This was cloudy, like the ones Uzgash and Taminwe used for the flash telegraph machines they'd invented, back in Cyrodiil. It was easy to enchant, and quite versatile in the things it could do, but he'd never heard of it carrying anyone's voice before. Still, this was a Daedric Prince, and they could project through their shrines, so it seemed possible.
"What did she say? Does she want you to do something for her?"
"Yes, something about cleansing her temple at Mount Kilkreath. That's just up the road, half-way to Dragon Bridge, so it wouldn't be far for us to go."
Clark thought back to what his boss, the Champion of Cyrodiil, had told him about Meridia. She apparently really hated necromancers, and they had an equal disaffection for her. He'd cleared out a cave full of them for her, and received a useful ring with a Chameleon enchantment for his troubles. That was one of the artifacts he'd delivered to Nocturnal for return when the old Count of Kvatch died.
"There will doubtless be necromancers there, so it's something we'd want to do for ourselves, anyway. They're a nuisance even without getting a Daedric Prince riled up."
"So does that mean we can go there? Together?"
"All right, but we'll leave first thing in the morning. Even though it's close, I doubt that clearing the place will be quick and easy."
---
Clark knew that a Daedric Prince's powers in Mundus were limited, but even so, this was a situation that Meridia couldn't handle by herself, so it wasn't going to be a simple job. Still, Jordis and he should be a well-balanced team. Neither was much of an archer, but this was to be a temple clearance, with everything at relatively short range. He was sure there would be some complication they hadn't foreseen, but that would just have to work itself out.
When they arrived at the shrine, he was surprised to see a word wall just up the path from the temple. There was no dragon perched on this one, and he wondered if Diablita had been here before him. And if she had, why hadn't Meridia asked her for help?
Whatever had happened in the past, the present was full of surprises, too. When Jordis placed the "beacon" in the hands of the statues at the shrine, it glowed brightly and rose into the sky, taking Jordis with it. He could hear a voice far above him, but it was too far away for him to hear what it said. Jordis told him when she floated gently back down a few moments later.
"Meridia says that there's a necromancer in her temple."
"Just one?" Clark asked. "Presumably a powerful one, if Meridia needs our help."
"I don't know if it's that, or he just knows how to block her power from reaching him. He's buried himself at the bottom of the crypts, with a lot of dead soldiers as fuel for his arcane activities, and Meridia said something about using the power of her own artifact against her."
"Did she give you any clue what that artifact was?" Clark wanted to know. If it was the same ring the Champion had won, they might be dealing with an invisible foe.
"None at all. But you see that light? Meridia says it will guide us to him, and open the doors for us. We have to help her send it through the temple, but she didn't explain how. It's supposed to be obvious, I guess."
Grits: Jordis may bounce nicely, but she'd never rattle!
----------
Previously: Clarisse has revealed that she has a bounty for someone called Maven, if only they can prove it's that Maven. Meanwhile, Clark has something for her and Elisif.
----------
Part 75 - Baubles
"Do you have items hidden away in the Blue Palace that you'd be happy to have stolen?" he asked Elisif. "Things you've been given by visiting dignitaries that are just too awful to put out on display?"
"But I can't sell them, or give them away, because they were an official gift? Yes, there's plenty of those. Tasteless baubles, and paintings of ugly relatives - theirs, not mine."
"It's an idea of Karliah's, or perhaps Nocturnal's. The Thieves Guild found that they often stole the same items multiple times. They were always useless things that people bought just to show off their wealth. So they got stolen on commission from others who wanted the same thing. The new owners couldn't complain when they went missing again, because they were stolen goods in the first place. The price the Guild asked when they didn't have a commission should have told anyone that they were stolen."
"Madesi made a few things like that for them, but he's busy on other projects. So now they're looking for new items to add to this system. Gaudy and tasteless seem to be main criteria. The items need to say 'I was bought because I was expensive, not because I have real value' for the best effect. I suspect much of what you'd like to dispose of matches that description."
"Madesi's the one that made that toy you brought me, isn't he?" Elisif pondered for a while. "I'd get a bit of storage space back, but what else is in this for Solitude?"
"Tax revenue, if the stolen art market is at least semi-legitimate. The idea is that a trader in fine art, myself for example, honestly sells the items at a large discount, with the caveat that the provenance is uncertain, and the buyer may have not any rights if the item is found later to have been stolen. If the buyer is happy with that, then the transaction provides income for me and the Guild, tax for the city, and the purchaser gets a reasonable amount of time with the item before it disappears again."
"So it's basically a rental arrangement, that looks like a purchase?" Clarisse asked.
"You've got it. We spice it up with a few seizures of stolen property, where the current holder is able to avoid jail because he has a bill of sale. They lose out on a bit of time with their purchase, but it provides everyone with the security of knowing that the doubtful goods aren't too hot to handle. There's a risk, but the gambling aspect is more likely to be a draw than to put people off."
"So where do I fit in?" Clarisse wanted to know.
"If we can spread the scope of the scheme to other provinces, the items can be more diverse, and the chance of individual ones turning up again in the same place is diminished. That will improve the perceived chance of someone holding on to their 'purchase' for a time. Which makes it a more tempting proposition for the buyer. That takes secure shipping, and you've told me that you've done it in the past."
"And of course, the ones doing all the buying, are the ones that have more gold than they need. It's fairer than taxes, and less likely to raise complaints," Elisif agreed. "So when's the break-in? Maybe the next time Elenwen has a party, and I'm out of the Palace?"
"Actually, we were wondering if you might lend a few things to Erikur, and they'd be stolen from there."
"Most of what I want gone, even he wouldn't want," Elisif replied. "But I'll certainly keep that idea for later. I have enough leverage with him for now."
---
"Clark, you know a bit about Daedric Princesses, don't you?" Jordis began.
"Well, Azura and Nocturnal prefer that term, but Prince is the right one for most of the others. Which one did you want to know about?"
"Meridia, and she sounded female when she spoke to me."
"She spoke to you? When?"
"When I found this in a chest in a cave. It was on the way to find those instruments with Illdi. There were just a few wild animals in there when we went in, but it looked like hunters had sheltered there in the past. We just wanted to get out of the rain, too."
"Tell me more about her speaking to you. Was there a shrine to her in the cave?"
"No, but when I picked this gem thing out of the chest, I heard her voice." Jordis showed Clark a round piece of what looked like quartz, the same material that crystal balls are made from. This was cloudy, like the ones Uzgash and Taminwe used for the flash telegraph machines they'd invented, back in Cyrodiil. It was easy to enchant, and quite versatile in the things it could do, but he'd never heard of it carrying anyone's voice before. Still, this was a Daedric Prince, and they could project through their shrines, so it seemed possible.
"What did she say? Does she want you to do something for her?"
"Yes, something about cleansing her temple at Mount Kilkreath. That's just up the road, half-way to Dragon Bridge, so it wouldn't be far for us to go."
Clark thought back to what his boss, the Champion of Cyrodiil, had told him about Meridia. She apparently really hated necromancers, and they had an equal disaffection for her. He'd cleared out a cave full of them for her, and received a useful ring with a Chameleon enchantment for his troubles. That was one of the artifacts he'd delivered to Nocturnal for return when the old Count of Kvatch died.
"There will doubtless be necromancers there, so it's something we'd want to do for ourselves, anyway. They're a nuisance even without getting a Daedric Prince riled up."
"So does that mean we can go there? Together?"
"All right, but we'll leave first thing in the morning. Even though it's close, I doubt that clearing the place will be quick and easy."
---
Clark knew that a Daedric Prince's powers in Mundus were limited, but even so, this was a situation that Meridia couldn't handle by herself, so it wasn't going to be a simple job. Still, Jordis and he should be a well-balanced team. Neither was much of an archer, but this was to be a temple clearance, with everything at relatively short range. He was sure there would be some complication they hadn't foreseen, but that would just have to work itself out.
When they arrived at the shrine, he was surprised to see a word wall just up the path from the temple. There was no dragon perched on this one, and he wondered if Diablita had been here before him. And if she had, why hadn't Meridia asked her for help?
Whatever had happened in the past, the present was full of surprises, too. When Jordis placed the "beacon" in the hands of the statues at the shrine, it glowed brightly and rose into the sky, taking Jordis with it. He could hear a voice far above him, but it was too far away for him to hear what it said. Jordis told him when she floated gently back down a few moments later.
"Meridia says that there's a necromancer in her temple."
"Just one?" Clark asked. "Presumably a powerful one, if Meridia needs our help."
"I don't know if it's that, or he just knows how to block her power from reaching him. He's buried himself at the bottom of the crypts, with a lot of dead soldiers as fuel for his arcane activities, and Meridia said something about using the power of her own artifact against her."
"Did she give you any clue what that artifact was?" Clark wanted to know. If it was the same ring the Champion had won, they might be dealing with an invisible foe.
"None at all. But you see that light? Meridia says it will guide us to him, and open the doors for us. We have to help her send it through the temple, but she didn't explain how. It's supposed to be obvious, I guess."
Great fun hearing the intricacies of highbrow thievery at its best. So who knew that disposing of white elephant gifts could be so elegantly resolved via thievery? It was likewise interesting learning how modern concepts that we take for granted (‘rent- to-own’ and ‘secure shipping’) got their start from the TES TG!
"Meridia, and she sounded female when she spoke to me."
Sounds like a quest coming. . . .
"What did she say? Does she want you to do something for her?"
Does a big bear poop in the woods?
Oh, it will be great fun to see Clark and Jordis adventuring together for a time!
"Meridia, and she sounded female when she spoke to me."
Sounds like a quest coming. . . .
"What did she say? Does she want you to do something for her?"
Does a big bear poop in the woods?
Oh, it will be great fun to see Clark and Jordis adventuring together for a time!
Acadian: If Uzgash and Taminwe can invent the telegraph, then why shouldn't Karliah invent Sotheby's?
As for bears, apparently not in Skyrim. But then, all the buckets are empty, too.
------------
Previously Clark had explained the "art" market to Clarisse and Elisif, and then gone to Meridia's Temple with Jordis to find out what she wanted her to do.
------------
Part 76 - Meridia's Temple
Once they got inside, it did become a bit clearer. The light was shining on a pedestal with another of the crystal orbs in it. When they activated the pedestal, the orb was raised into the light and reflected it onward. Apparently they needed to do that a few more times to let the light continue its path.
"And this necromancer we're after just shut these down on his way in, I'd imagine," Clark mused. "There must be a reason they're moveable. Presumably there's more than one path for the light."
"Malkoran," said Jordis. "That's the name of the necromancer. Meridia didn't tell me much about him, just his name. I don't even know what race he is, so we don't know if he resists Frost or Fire."
"They usually don't resist Sword, so use that," Clark replied.
After the first door opened, it was obvious that it wasn't just going to be one man against them. Malkoran had raised a number of skeletal warriors in his service. Not the usual walking bones, but ones that floated in a dark cloud unlike anything he'd seen in Tamriel. But not unlike something he'd seen briefly in the Soul Cairn, when he went with Serana to fetch Valerica. Serana had quickly dispatched it with an Ice Spike before he got a good look, so they had their vulnerabilities, if these were the same.
Jordis' sword seemed to work well enough against them. They weren't using spells, and even though a few were archers, they weren't the problem they could have been outdoors. Corpses were everywhere, most wearing the armours of Imperial and Stormcloak troops, so it was clear where Malkoran was getting his recruits from.
At one point, the path of the light beam left the building and crossed a balcony above the road to Solitude, so they followed it outside, and back in again. They were climbing up and down stairs, and crossing bridges, and jumping from one pillar to another to reach all the pedestals and their light-guiding crystals, all the time being harassed by Malkoran's undead minions.
Finally a door they'd passed several times opened at last, and the path lead downward to the crypt. Would they finally meet Markoran, and put an end to all this?
"If this is Malkoran up ahead, he'll be a spell-caster," Clark reasoned. "Get behind me and I'll use my ward. You can use your bow from back there, so get it ready."
"It seems odd putting the heavy armour at the rear, but I guess against magic, it's all back to front," Jordis agreed.
---
So naturally, the first opponents in the crypt itself were more of the corrupted shades. Jordis' arrows took them down almost as effectively as her sword would, and then it was just Malkoran left.
His ice storm spell was blocked by Clark's ward, but the wall of ice it produced blocked Jordis' view, and she couldn't see Malkoran to shoot at him. Clark pressed forward, and the ice crumbled out of his way.
Malkoran was running off to one side, trying to get an angle where he could use his spells around the ward, as penetrating it seemed impossible. But he couldn't run and aim a spell at the same time. Jordis hit him in the knee with an arrow and slowed his progress.
Clark didn't have time to make any guard jokes before another frost wall formed on his ward. Now would he try and move back the other way, or stay where he was? The knee would slow him, so Clark just pushed the ice out of the way again, and kept moving into the room. Once they got close enough for them to use their swords, it should all be over.
If they got close enough. Malkoran appeared to have healed himself and was almost to the other side of the room before they could see him clearly. Clark was wondering how he managed to keep casting those high-magicka frost spells, but Malkoran was probably wondering the same about his ward.
He left Jordis safely behind a pillar, and moved around to try and close on Malkoran from a different angle. The necromancer didn't dodge in the direction he expected, but it brought him closer to Jordis. She leapt out of her hiding place and swung hard at the black-robed figure. He staggered and burst into flames, as the enchantment on her blade kicked in. She didn't let him recover, and kept up the attack. Just as she had little defence from his magical attacks, he had no way to resist her blade, and he died.
But before they could celebrate, another shade took his place. They'd have to kill him twice, it seemed. This time, however, they were already in sword range, both of them, with Fiery Soul Trap on each.
The shade went for Clark, seeing a choice of an armoured foe with a shield, or one with neither. Fortunately for Clark, its shock spell fizzled uncast as it was overwhelmed. It wouldn't have killed him, of course, but it would have been quite unpleasant.
And now both of them could hear Meridia's voice, telling them to take Dawnbreaker from its stand. This obviously wasn't the ring that Clark had expected, but something larger. It wasn't until they got close that they could see what it was. A bright glow surrounding it dazzled them in the dim room.
Clark told Jordis to take the sword, and when she did so, the light grew even brighter, and they both had to close their eyes.
---
When Clark could open his again, he was standing on the platform in front of the statue. Jordis was nowhere to be seen, but a bright light was shining down, from right above where they'd placed the beacon. It gradually lowered, dazzling him again as it approached, and then faded somewhat after the orb that was its source landed. Now he could see Jordis again. Had she been up there with the orb?
Yes, she had. Meridia had told her about the enchantment on the sword. It was all about power against the undead, making them burn like her other sword, but also having a chance to make them explode, dealing further damage to any others around them, and making them flee.
"Does it always glow like that?" Clark asked.
"Yes, I couldn't imagine trying to sneak while I was using this. So I don't see it replacing my other sword, but I'll probably carry whichever suits the situation. There are enough draugr out there to make this really useful."
"Meridia wants me to go and kill more undead with it," she continued. "Am I supposed to do what she said, or keep being your housecarl?"
"Your choice," Clark replied. "Which do you expect to be more rewarding?"
"Let's go back to Proudspire and give that some consideration, shall we?"
As for bears, apparently not in Skyrim. But then, all the buckets are empty, too.
------------
Previously Clark had explained the "art" market to Clarisse and Elisif, and then gone to Meridia's Temple with Jordis to find out what she wanted her to do.
------------
Part 76 - Meridia's Temple
Once they got inside, it did become a bit clearer. The light was shining on a pedestal with another of the crystal orbs in it. When they activated the pedestal, the orb was raised into the light and reflected it onward. Apparently they needed to do that a few more times to let the light continue its path.
"And this necromancer we're after just shut these down on his way in, I'd imagine," Clark mused. "There must be a reason they're moveable. Presumably there's more than one path for the light."
"Malkoran," said Jordis. "That's the name of the necromancer. Meridia didn't tell me much about him, just his name. I don't even know what race he is, so we don't know if he resists Frost or Fire."
"They usually don't resist Sword, so use that," Clark replied.
After the first door opened, it was obvious that it wasn't just going to be one man against them. Malkoran had raised a number of skeletal warriors in his service. Not the usual walking bones, but ones that floated in a dark cloud unlike anything he'd seen in Tamriel. But not unlike something he'd seen briefly in the Soul Cairn, when he went with Serana to fetch Valerica. Serana had quickly dispatched it with an Ice Spike before he got a good look, so they had their vulnerabilities, if these were the same.
Jordis' sword seemed to work well enough against them. They weren't using spells, and even though a few were archers, they weren't the problem they could have been outdoors. Corpses were everywhere, most wearing the armours of Imperial and Stormcloak troops, so it was clear where Malkoran was getting his recruits from.
At one point, the path of the light beam left the building and crossed a balcony above the road to Solitude, so they followed it outside, and back in again. They were climbing up and down stairs, and crossing bridges, and jumping from one pillar to another to reach all the pedestals and their light-guiding crystals, all the time being harassed by Malkoran's undead minions.
Finally a door they'd passed several times opened at last, and the path lead downward to the crypt. Would they finally meet Markoran, and put an end to all this?
"If this is Malkoran up ahead, he'll be a spell-caster," Clark reasoned. "Get behind me and I'll use my ward. You can use your bow from back there, so get it ready."
"It seems odd putting the heavy armour at the rear, but I guess against magic, it's all back to front," Jordis agreed.
---
So naturally, the first opponents in the crypt itself were more of the corrupted shades. Jordis' arrows took them down almost as effectively as her sword would, and then it was just Malkoran left.
His ice storm spell was blocked by Clark's ward, but the wall of ice it produced blocked Jordis' view, and she couldn't see Malkoran to shoot at him. Clark pressed forward, and the ice crumbled out of his way.
Malkoran was running off to one side, trying to get an angle where he could use his spells around the ward, as penetrating it seemed impossible. But he couldn't run and aim a spell at the same time. Jordis hit him in the knee with an arrow and slowed his progress.
Clark didn't have time to make any guard jokes before another frost wall formed on his ward. Now would he try and move back the other way, or stay where he was? The knee would slow him, so Clark just pushed the ice out of the way again, and kept moving into the room. Once they got close enough for them to use their swords, it should all be over.
If they got close enough. Malkoran appeared to have healed himself and was almost to the other side of the room before they could see him clearly. Clark was wondering how he managed to keep casting those high-magicka frost spells, but Malkoran was probably wondering the same about his ward.
He left Jordis safely behind a pillar, and moved around to try and close on Malkoran from a different angle. The necromancer didn't dodge in the direction he expected, but it brought him closer to Jordis. She leapt out of her hiding place and swung hard at the black-robed figure. He staggered and burst into flames, as the enchantment on her blade kicked in. She didn't let him recover, and kept up the attack. Just as she had little defence from his magical attacks, he had no way to resist her blade, and he died.
But before they could celebrate, another shade took his place. They'd have to kill him twice, it seemed. This time, however, they were already in sword range, both of them, with Fiery Soul Trap on each.
The shade went for Clark, seeing a choice of an armoured foe with a shield, or one with neither. Fortunately for Clark, its shock spell fizzled uncast as it was overwhelmed. It wouldn't have killed him, of course, but it would have been quite unpleasant.
And now both of them could hear Meridia's voice, telling them to take Dawnbreaker from its stand. This obviously wasn't the ring that Clark had expected, but something larger. It wasn't until they got close that they could see what it was. A bright glow surrounding it dazzled them in the dim room.
Clark told Jordis to take the sword, and when she did so, the light grew even brighter, and they both had to close their eyes.
---
When Clark could open his again, he was standing on the platform in front of the statue. Jordis was nowhere to be seen, but a bright light was shining down, from right above where they'd placed the beacon. It gradually lowered, dazzling him again as it approached, and then faded somewhat after the orb that was its source landed. Now he could see Jordis again. Had she been up there with the orb?
Yes, she had. Meridia had told her about the enchantment on the sword. It was all about power against the undead, making them burn like her other sword, but also having a chance to make them explode, dealing further damage to any others around them, and making them flee.
"Does it always glow like that?" Clark asked.
"Yes, I couldn't imagine trying to sneak while I was using this. So I don't see it replacing my other sword, but I'll probably carry whichever suits the situation. There are enough draugr out there to make this really useful."
"Meridia wants me to go and kill more undead with it," she continued. "Am I supposed to do what she said, or keep being your housecarl?"
"Your choice," Clark replied. "Which do you expect to be more rewarding?"
"Let's go back to Proudspire and give that some consideration, shall we?"
It was nice to see Meridia’s quest, as that is one that Buffy does not often do.
"They usually don't resist Sword, so use that," Clark replied.’ - - So I’m told. And they don’t resist arrows well either.
"It seems odd putting the heavy armour at the rear, but I guess against magic, it's all back to front," Jordis agreed. -- I love her astute observation here!
Go for theeyes, Boo! knees, Jordis!
My ending advice for Jordis? Go home with the one what brung ya.
"They usually don't resist Sword, so use that," Clark replied.’ - - So I’m told. And they don’t resist arrows well either.
"It seems odd putting the heavy armour at the rear, but I guess against magic, it's all back to front," Jordis agreed. -- I love her astute observation here!
Go for the
My ending advice for Jordis? Go home with the one what brung ya.
Acadian: It seems to be a difference between Oblivion and Skyrim, that they've now completely separated physical and magical damage, and armour resists physical only, and wards resist magical only. Even the mage armour spells only resist physical attacks. That's one reason Rayya loves her pair of enchanted scimitars, they deal both sorts.
------------
Previously: Clark helped Jordis do Meridia's quest, so she now has a choice of swords.
------------
Part 77 - Housecarls
"No, being the housecarl doesn't mean you can't leave the house, and you already know that, or the Winking Skeever would be wondering where you are. So why do you get the idea that you can't go off adventuring when you get the urge to do so?"
"Because that's dangerous, or it wouldn't be any fun. And I have to look after myself, because I'm your housecarl. I can go out with you, because we'd both be taking the same risk. Or would be, if you weren't immortal. Still, you're looking after me, so it's less risky that way, isn't it?"
Jordis still seemed a bit confused about her duty to Clark. She'd sworn the standard oath when she took the job, but it had all taken a twist she wasn't expecting after that. She was sworn to protect him, but he didn't really need that. And he wasn't all that worried about Proudspire, because he was rich enough to replace just about anything. Besides, with his connections to the Thieves Guild, nothing was going to walk off without him knowing all about it, probably in advance.
The bit she did understand wasn't going the way she'd planned it, either. Becoming a housecarl was a calculated gamble. There was a good chance for a woman to get her position upgraded to spouse, and you knew you'd be getting a Thane, who'd already proved himself worthy. And they were usually well-off, too.
She'd given that idea up, and if she was honest with herself, housecarl was a better job for her than housewife. She had all the benefits, (at least when Clark was in town, which wasn't enough in her opinion,) and she didn't have to give up adventuring completely. She just wasn't sure how to play the role she found herself in.
---
Clark understood that, and reflected on how his other housecarls were dealing with the same situation.
Rayya had been made steward of his Lakeview Manor, so she was even more prone to feel herself house-bound. That property didn't have city walls around it, and giants, bandits and wild animals were always wandering by. He'd found it hard to convince her that it was well-enough built to be safe when the doors were locked, and she could go into town whenever she felt like it. But she enjoyed those unpredictable skirmishes, and the house itself was definitely comfortable, so she did her adventuring at home.
Iona had thrown herself into learning to smith. She'd decided that developing a useful skill was the best way to serve. It let her look after her Thane's friends, when he wasn't around to need her, and serve him by proxy. She'd become friendly with Mjoll, and was generally helping to balance out the Black-Briar influence on Riften, which was also in her Thane's best interest.
Lydia was just living in his house and having fun. She appeared to have the balance of concern for his property and treating it as her own about right. Of course, she'd look after his home; it was her home. She'd looked after Gilda for him, too, and that had all turned out well.
Clark decided that Jordis really didn't want the responsibility for making her own decisions. It hadn't taken long for her to decide that she preferred being a housecarl to being Meridia's Champion, although she'd happily use that sword on draugr when she found them. She just wasn't going hunting them unless Clark took her. He suggested that she ask the city guard to let her know when they came across any necromancers, as dealing with those would keep Meridia happy, too.
---
He set off back towards Riften, as he needed to coordinate the expansion of the stolen art trade with Gilda and Karliah. It only made sense to drop in to Whiterun on the way, and see what Lydia had been getting up to while he was gone. He wasn't expecting her to have found another of the Stones of Barenziah, right there in the city.
"I was surprised, too," she told him. "I'd agreed to clear the catacombs beneath the Hall of the Dead for Andurs. He'd left his amulet of Arkay down there a few weeks back, but when he went looking, he'd heard noises that made him think the dead were getting a bit restless."
"I thought it was his job to make sure they didn't," Clark asked.
"Me too, but I guess he can't do that while they're already up and walking around, especially as a lot of them were put down there with their weapons. So he asked me to make sure they were really dead, before he did the rites again. He'd use the stronger ones next time, he assured me."
"And the Stone was down in the catacombs, I assume."
"Yes, just sitting in an empty alcove. It did make me wonder if the Stone had anything to do with the skeletons getting back up and walking around, so I showed it to Farengar, and asked him. He didn't think it could do that on its own, but since crystals often focus any magic that's around them, he couldn't rule out it having had an effect."
"Did you get a reward from Andurs?"
"Only fifteen gold, but I found a book while I was hunting skeletons, that taught me to block better, so it wasn't a waste of time, even without finding the Stone."
---
In Riften, Mjoll and Brelyna were waiting with two more of the gems. They'd found them while retrieving the staff for Arniel, or rather Enthir.
"And that's not all," Mjoll told him. "On our way from Rannveig's Fast to Sunderstone Gorge, we came across an Orc who'd just killed a couple of Sabre Cats. We were quite impressed, as he was only wearing fur armour, and carrying an iron sword."
"He told us that he'd been hoping that the cats would have killed him, but it didn't happen that way," Brelyna added. "He even asked us if we'd kill him. He wanted a good death, as he was too old to live."
"Well, after a bit of persuasion, we discovered that he'd propositioned one of the Chief's younger sisters, and she'd put him off by telling him he was too old for her. Apparently that had hit a raw nerve, as he'd been feeling that he'd missed his best chances when he was younger."
"He'd have done better if he'd chosen someone else," Mjoll remarked. "Younger sisters are usually in line to be married off to other chiefs, and have to stay, how shall I put this? Eligible? He'd have done better with the hunts-wife, or even the wise woman."
"I'm not sure he really understood how the strongholds operate," Brelyna offered. "Sure, the chief is the only one who's allowed to have children, but that really means only his wives can have them. I'm convinced that at least half the kids have other fathers. And the older sisters, aunts, cousins and so on who stay with the tribe, have decided not have children, not to sleep alone. They all know that spell, even if it's the only one they use."
"Where is all this story leading?" Mjoll resumed. "We managed to convince him that he still did have something to live for, and that he wasn't told old for it. He gave us a spell tome, as a reward, and Brelyna's been checking it out."
"I don't want to learn the spell myself, but I've been doing a bit of research on it," Brelyna told Clark. "Apparently, it will let the caster transform into a larger than normal Orc, with extra two-handed skill, and the equivalent of my Ebonyflesh spell. Quite a formidable option, for someone who's basically a magic-user, and doesn't go toe-to-toe with their enemies on a regular basis."
"I'm thinking of giving it to Aerin," Mjoll added. "He's really only skilled in Restoration, and wouldn't think of fighting anybody. But that means that bully Maul picks on him, whenever he feels like it. I think it would be very amusing if he got a nasty surprise next time."
------------
Previously: Clark helped Jordis do Meridia's quest, so she now has a choice of swords.
------------
Part 77 - Housecarls
"No, being the housecarl doesn't mean you can't leave the house, and you already know that, or the Winking Skeever would be wondering where you are. So why do you get the idea that you can't go off adventuring when you get the urge to do so?"
"Because that's dangerous, or it wouldn't be any fun. And I have to look after myself, because I'm your housecarl. I can go out with you, because we'd both be taking the same risk. Or would be, if you weren't immortal. Still, you're looking after me, so it's less risky that way, isn't it?"
Jordis still seemed a bit confused about her duty to Clark. She'd sworn the standard oath when she took the job, but it had all taken a twist she wasn't expecting after that. She was sworn to protect him, but he didn't really need that. And he wasn't all that worried about Proudspire, because he was rich enough to replace just about anything. Besides, with his connections to the Thieves Guild, nothing was going to walk off without him knowing all about it, probably in advance.
The bit she did understand wasn't going the way she'd planned it, either. Becoming a housecarl was a calculated gamble. There was a good chance for a woman to get her position upgraded to spouse, and you knew you'd be getting a Thane, who'd already proved himself worthy. And they were usually well-off, too.
She'd given that idea up, and if she was honest with herself, housecarl was a better job for her than housewife. She had all the benefits, (at least when Clark was in town, which wasn't enough in her opinion,) and she didn't have to give up adventuring completely. She just wasn't sure how to play the role she found herself in.
---
Clark understood that, and reflected on how his other housecarls were dealing with the same situation.
Rayya had been made steward of his Lakeview Manor, so she was even more prone to feel herself house-bound. That property didn't have city walls around it, and giants, bandits and wild animals were always wandering by. He'd found it hard to convince her that it was well-enough built to be safe when the doors were locked, and she could go into town whenever she felt like it. But she enjoyed those unpredictable skirmishes, and the house itself was definitely comfortable, so she did her adventuring at home.
Iona had thrown herself into learning to smith. She'd decided that developing a useful skill was the best way to serve. It let her look after her Thane's friends, when he wasn't around to need her, and serve him by proxy. She'd become friendly with Mjoll, and was generally helping to balance out the Black-Briar influence on Riften, which was also in her Thane's best interest.
Lydia was just living in his house and having fun. She appeared to have the balance of concern for his property and treating it as her own about right. Of course, she'd look after his home; it was her home. She'd looked after Gilda for him, too, and that had all turned out well.
Clark decided that Jordis really didn't want the responsibility for making her own decisions. It hadn't taken long for her to decide that she preferred being a housecarl to being Meridia's Champion, although she'd happily use that sword on draugr when she found them. She just wasn't going hunting them unless Clark took her. He suggested that she ask the city guard to let her know when they came across any necromancers, as dealing with those would keep Meridia happy, too.
---
He set off back towards Riften, as he needed to coordinate the expansion of the stolen art trade with Gilda and Karliah. It only made sense to drop in to Whiterun on the way, and see what Lydia had been getting up to while he was gone. He wasn't expecting her to have found another of the Stones of Barenziah, right there in the city.
"I was surprised, too," she told him. "I'd agreed to clear the catacombs beneath the Hall of the Dead for Andurs. He'd left his amulet of Arkay down there a few weeks back, but when he went looking, he'd heard noises that made him think the dead were getting a bit restless."
"I thought it was his job to make sure they didn't," Clark asked.
"Me too, but I guess he can't do that while they're already up and walking around, especially as a lot of them were put down there with their weapons. So he asked me to make sure they were really dead, before he did the rites again. He'd use the stronger ones next time, he assured me."
"And the Stone was down in the catacombs, I assume."
"Yes, just sitting in an empty alcove. It did make me wonder if the Stone had anything to do with the skeletons getting back up and walking around, so I showed it to Farengar, and asked him. He didn't think it could do that on its own, but since crystals often focus any magic that's around them, he couldn't rule out it having had an effect."
"Did you get a reward from Andurs?"
"Only fifteen gold, but I found a book while I was hunting skeletons, that taught me to block better, so it wasn't a waste of time, even without finding the Stone."
---
In Riften, Mjoll and Brelyna were waiting with two more of the gems. They'd found them while retrieving the staff for Arniel, or rather Enthir.
"And that's not all," Mjoll told him. "On our way from Rannveig's Fast to Sunderstone Gorge, we came across an Orc who'd just killed a couple of Sabre Cats. We were quite impressed, as he was only wearing fur armour, and carrying an iron sword."
"He told us that he'd been hoping that the cats would have killed him, but it didn't happen that way," Brelyna added. "He even asked us if we'd kill him. He wanted a good death, as he was too old to live."
"Well, after a bit of persuasion, we discovered that he'd propositioned one of the Chief's younger sisters, and she'd put him off by telling him he was too old for her. Apparently that had hit a raw nerve, as he'd been feeling that he'd missed his best chances when he was younger."
"He'd have done better if he'd chosen someone else," Mjoll remarked. "Younger sisters are usually in line to be married off to other chiefs, and have to stay, how shall I put this? Eligible? He'd have done better with the hunts-wife, or even the wise woman."
"I'm not sure he really understood how the strongholds operate," Brelyna offered. "Sure, the chief is the only one who's allowed to have children, but that really means only his wives can have them. I'm convinced that at least half the kids have other fathers. And the older sisters, aunts, cousins and so on who stay with the tribe, have decided not have children, not to sleep alone. They all know that spell, even if it's the only one they use."
"Where is all this story leading?" Mjoll resumed. "We managed to convince him that he still did have something to live for, and that he wasn't told old for it. He gave us a spell tome, as a reward, and Brelyna's been checking it out."
"I don't want to learn the spell myself, but I've been doing a bit of research on it," Brelyna told Clark. "Apparently, it will let the caster transform into a larger than normal Orc, with extra two-handed skill, and the equivalent of my Ebonyflesh spell. Quite a formidable option, for someone who's basically a magic-user, and doesn't go toe-to-toe with their enemies on a regular basis."
"I'm thinking of giving it to Aerin," Mjoll added. "He's really only skilled in Restoration, and wouldn't think of fighting anybody. But that means that bully Maul picks on him, whenever he feels like it. I think it would be very amusing if he got a nasty surprise next time."
What a fun collection of housecarlian musings. Clark has a fun little crew there to keep his holdings in order and carry his burdens. Wow, those mysterious gems just keep mysteriously turning up. And your Hulk up spell is perfect for Aerin!
Gosh, so often it happens that Buffy wishes she had the same luck that Mjoll and Brelyna did with an old orc. She’s never been able to talk them out of their deathwish – not even with an offer to hire them as a follower to guard her horse. And fighting one is out of the question as well. If the orc wins, well Buffy’s dead and that’s bad. If Buffy wins, the orc will have been killed by a tree elf one third his size and that is hardly a good death. The best she has ever been able to do is lure any nearby capable foes to the old orc. The only time it has ever worked is when she (astride Superian of course) managed to taunt and lead three snow trolls to an old orc. That resulted (finally) in a good death for the old fellow.
Clark has a fun little crew there to keep his holdings in order and carry his burdens. Wow, those mysterious gems just keep mysteriously turning up. And your Hulk up spell is perfect for Aerin! Gosh, so often it happens that Buffy wishes she had the same luck that Mjoll and Brelyna did with an old orc. She’s never been able to talk them out of their deathwish – not even with an offer to hire them as a follower to guard her horse. And fighting one is out of the question as well. If the orc wins, well Buffy’s dead and that’s bad. If Buffy wins, the orc will have been killed by a tree elf one third his size and that is hardly a good death. The best she has ever been able to do is lure any nearby capable foes to the old orc. The only time it has ever worked is when she (astride Superian of course) managed to taunt and lead three snow trolls to an old orc. That resulted (finally) in a good death for the old fellow.
My latest meeting was with Kothet, who's a very large Dremora dressed in Legendary Daedric with matching set perk, and carrying an enchanted Daedric Warhammer. He has maxed out Barbarian, and 100 skill in two-handed.
I think the kill-cam was started even before the conversation.
That quest never made sense to me. The "Old Orc" is apparently much younger than a lot of other Orcs you meet in the game, as the grey hair shows up on a lot more than Urag. And he had nothing as a reward until I added the spell tome with my mod. I always felt it must have been part of some cut content we just have no clue about.
And several of my characters have killed his twin brother, or triplets, ...
I think the kill-cam was started even before the conversation.
That quest never made sense to me. The "Old Orc" is apparently much younger than a lot of other Orcs you meet in the game, as the grey hair shows up on a lot more than Urag. And he had nothing as a reward until I added the spell tome with my mod. I always felt it must have been part of some cut content we just have no clue about.
And several of my characters have killed his twin brother, or triplets, ...
Previously: Lydia found another Stone of Barenziah in Whiterun, and Brelyna and Mjoll found two more.
---------------
Part 78 - Riften
Clark now had three more of the Stones to deliver to Gilda, so went down to the Ragged Flagon, to see if anyone knew where she was. He ran into Sapphire, who had a disgusted look on her face.
"Vipir's hitting on me again," she explained. "You'd think he'd have given up by now, the number of times I've turned him down."
"Well, there's two reasons he's doing it," Clark told her. "The first is the obvious one, that he'd like you not to turn him down, and the second is that he knows all about your past, and why you're saying no."
"But if he understands, why does he keep on doing it?"
"Because every time you decline his generous offer, you're a little bit more confident that you're in control. He's helping you recover, and of course, he wants to be the beneficiary when you do. It's a lot of effort, but he thinks you're worth it."
"I'm not so certain he'd get what he's hoping for. I mean, I might panic, and cut his throat, like the last lot."
"I take it that was the traumatic part of it all, killing them all afterwards? And you joined the Thieves Guild because they don't kill, but are outside the law, so you felt you belonged with them?"
"I guess so, but I never really thought about it that way. I just needed another family, because mine were all dead, I thought. I never knew that my father and uncle were members, that's just an amazing coincidence."
"So the Guild has become more family than ever. Doesn't that help?"
"No, I'm still haunted by what that all made me do. I just can't trust myself in any - um - intimate situations, not to over-react."
"And of course, you can't find out how much intimacy is comfortable without taking the risk that you'll harm him, so you don't even get started."
"Yeah, that just about sums it up. It's not that I don't like Vipir, but I'm not letting him get close enough to like him more. Does that make any sense?"
"Of course it does, and doesn't. Yes, it makes sense that he's stuck at arm's length, but it doesn't make sense that you have to keep him there. We need to do something about that."
"But what can I do? I like him enough not to want to harm him, but that's not enough for what he wants. If I start to let him get closer to me, I don't know when he'll step over some line and I'll do something I don't want to."
"You could start by telling him why you're saying no. Give him the hope that it won't always be no, if he helps you work through it. Apologize for teasing him, and ask for understanding."
"And then he'll give me a big hug, and I'll stick a dagger in his ribs."
"Not if you're careful. Like telling him when there's a table in between you, so he can't, and you can't. And maybe I should take your dagger away, just in case."
"Then I'd feel nervous all the time. This is part of feeling that I'm in control. If I had something else that would do the job, then I could do without the dagger, but I don't."
"Hmm, maybe there is an alternative. Something a bit more specific to your fears. I need to talk to Brelyna about this, but I'll get back to you soon."
---
Gilda was in the Cistern when Clark went in, discussing mundane business with Brynjolf. She was delighted to see the three extra Stones of Barenziah, and rushed off to count how many they had now.
"That makes twenty-two! There's only two more that we haven't found."
"Well, judging by the recent finds, they could be at bottom of distant dungeons, or right here in Riften. There doesn't seem to be any pattern in where they all were hidden. So the chance of finding them all remains slim."
Clark wasn't holding out too much hope of the complete set. It was even possible that the others would be in shipwrecks at the bottom of the sea, or taken out of the province entirely. He'd asked Clarisse if she'd ever seen one, and she hadn't, but that meant little. She hadn't been everywhere in High Rock, any more than Clark and his associates had been everywhere in Skyrim.
"I'm not giving up," Gilda affirmed. "With only two left, it might be time to actively look for them, instead of just letting them turn up. I'm going to mark the places we've already found them on a map, and then all the places we've been where there weren't any."
"Or where they were, but we just didn't notice them," Clark interrupted. "They could have been buried in rubble in most of the tombs I've seen, and we'd never know."
"It's still worth telling a few more people that we're looking for them. More eyes can only help."
---
"Brelyna, do you know anything about a spell that ..." Clark described the one that Morgiah had told him about. The one that would let a man pretend he wasn't interested in a naked Rinalla, or her mother for that matter. He'd learned one he could cast on himself, but that wasn't quite what Sapphire needed. Neither Morgiah nor Rinalla had actually used it, so he'd not even seen that version working.
(link to story)
"Wait, are you talking about the Queen of Firsthold, and her daughter? When did you get into those circles?"
"A long time ago, of course. I have no idea what happened to either of them much after they reached Mournhold. We lost contact when the Red Mountain erupted, and the events after that made it impossible to re-connect. But don't forget that Morgiah is also Dralsi's half-sister, and Karliah's aunt."
"I didn't know that. But I do know the spell you're talking about, at least the version you cast on others, which is the one a woman would use. Why do you want it? I assume it's not for yourself."
"I think Sapphire, one of the Thieves Guild members, would benefit from knowing it, even if she doesn't have to use it. It would make her feel safer, knowing she has an extra option for awkward situations."
"I'd agree with that. I just wish that there was one that worked the other way."
"You're supposed to do that without help. And there is a potion for it, if there isn't a spell." Clark described Miranu's potion #9 and his part in testing it. Including Falanu, and her unique ointment.
"I'm not sure you should have told me that, but the academic in me is fascinated, even if the Dunmer is appalled by it. You know how the departed are revered in Dark Elf society. If there's a potion, then there's a magical effect, and it ought to be possible to create a spell. Maybe I need to recruit you as an experimental subject again."
"I'd recommend you use Minotaurs, instead. And I'll save that story for later, because I may need Miranu's permission to tell it."
Now Brelyna was totally intrigued, and wanted to know more, but Clark changed the subject back to the spell for Sapphire. "We already know that one exists, and she needs to learn it."
"Are you volunteering to help with that? She'll need to cast it on someone, and confirm the results. She's not going to believe that it works, until she sees it."
Clark hadn't thought of that. She was going to need a target, wasn't she? However, until she knew the spell, and believed in it, she might be a bit dangerous. Maybe this was a job for Vipir?
---------------
Part 78 - Riften
Clark now had three more of the Stones to deliver to Gilda, so went down to the Ragged Flagon, to see if anyone knew where she was. He ran into Sapphire, who had a disgusted look on her face.
"Vipir's hitting on me again," she explained. "You'd think he'd have given up by now, the number of times I've turned him down."
"Well, there's two reasons he's doing it," Clark told her. "The first is the obvious one, that he'd like you not to turn him down, and the second is that he knows all about your past, and why you're saying no."
"But if he understands, why does he keep on doing it?"
"Because every time you decline his generous offer, you're a little bit more confident that you're in control. He's helping you recover, and of course, he wants to be the beneficiary when you do. It's a lot of effort, but he thinks you're worth it."
"I'm not so certain he'd get what he's hoping for. I mean, I might panic, and cut his throat, like the last lot."
"I take it that was the traumatic part of it all, killing them all afterwards? And you joined the Thieves Guild because they don't kill, but are outside the law, so you felt you belonged with them?"
"I guess so, but I never really thought about it that way. I just needed another family, because mine were all dead, I thought. I never knew that my father and uncle were members, that's just an amazing coincidence."
"So the Guild has become more family than ever. Doesn't that help?"
"No, I'm still haunted by what that all made me do. I just can't trust myself in any - um - intimate situations, not to over-react."
"And of course, you can't find out how much intimacy is comfortable without taking the risk that you'll harm him, so you don't even get started."
"Yeah, that just about sums it up. It's not that I don't like Vipir, but I'm not letting him get close enough to like him more. Does that make any sense?"
"Of course it does, and doesn't. Yes, it makes sense that he's stuck at arm's length, but it doesn't make sense that you have to keep him there. We need to do something about that."
"But what can I do? I like him enough not to want to harm him, but that's not enough for what he wants. If I start to let him get closer to me, I don't know when he'll step over some line and I'll do something I don't want to."
"You could start by telling him why you're saying no. Give him the hope that it won't always be no, if he helps you work through it. Apologize for teasing him, and ask for understanding."
"And then he'll give me a big hug, and I'll stick a dagger in his ribs."
"Not if you're careful. Like telling him when there's a table in between you, so he can't, and you can't. And maybe I should take your dagger away, just in case."
"Then I'd feel nervous all the time. This is part of feeling that I'm in control. If I had something else that would do the job, then I could do without the dagger, but I don't."
"Hmm, maybe there is an alternative. Something a bit more specific to your fears. I need to talk to Brelyna about this, but I'll get back to you soon."
---
Gilda was in the Cistern when Clark went in, discussing mundane business with Brynjolf. She was delighted to see the three extra Stones of Barenziah, and rushed off to count how many they had now.
"That makes twenty-two! There's only two more that we haven't found."
"Well, judging by the recent finds, they could be at bottom of distant dungeons, or right here in Riften. There doesn't seem to be any pattern in where they all were hidden. So the chance of finding them all remains slim."
Clark wasn't holding out too much hope of the complete set. It was even possible that the others would be in shipwrecks at the bottom of the sea, or taken out of the province entirely. He'd asked Clarisse if she'd ever seen one, and she hadn't, but that meant little. She hadn't been everywhere in High Rock, any more than Clark and his associates had been everywhere in Skyrim.
"I'm not giving up," Gilda affirmed. "With only two left, it might be time to actively look for them, instead of just letting them turn up. I'm going to mark the places we've already found them on a map, and then all the places we've been where there weren't any."
"Or where they were, but we just didn't notice them," Clark interrupted. "They could have been buried in rubble in most of the tombs I've seen, and we'd never know."
"It's still worth telling a few more people that we're looking for them. More eyes can only help."
---
"Brelyna, do you know anything about a spell that ..." Clark described the one that Morgiah had told him about. The one that would let a man pretend he wasn't interested in a naked Rinalla, or her mother for that matter. He'd learned one he could cast on himself, but that wasn't quite what Sapphire needed. Neither Morgiah nor Rinalla had actually used it, so he'd not even seen that version working.
(link to story)
"Wait, are you talking about the Queen of Firsthold, and her daughter? When did you get into those circles?"
"A long time ago, of course. I have no idea what happened to either of them much after they reached Mournhold. We lost contact when the Red Mountain erupted, and the events after that made it impossible to re-connect. But don't forget that Morgiah is also Dralsi's half-sister, and Karliah's aunt."
"I didn't know that. But I do know the spell you're talking about, at least the version you cast on others, which is the one a woman would use. Why do you want it? I assume it's not for yourself."
"I think Sapphire, one of the Thieves Guild members, would benefit from knowing it, even if she doesn't have to use it. It would make her feel safer, knowing she has an extra option for awkward situations."
"I'd agree with that. I just wish that there was one that worked the other way."
"You're supposed to do that without help. And there is a potion for it, if there isn't a spell." Clark described Miranu's potion #9 and his part in testing it. Including Falanu, and her unique ointment.
"I'm not sure you should have told me that, but the academic in me is fascinated, even if the Dunmer is appalled by it. You know how the departed are revered in Dark Elf society. If there's a potion, then there's a magical effect, and it ought to be possible to create a spell. Maybe I need to recruit you as an experimental subject again."
"I'd recommend you use Minotaurs, instead. And I'll save that story for later, because I may need Miranu's permission to tell it."
Now Brelyna was totally intrigued, and wanted to know more, but Clark changed the subject back to the spell for Sapphire. "We already know that one exists, and she needs to learn it."
"Are you volunteering to help with that? She'll need to cast it on someone, and confirm the results. She's not going to believe that it works, until she sees it."
Clark hadn't thought of that. She was going to need a target, wasn't she? However, until she knew the spell, and believed in it, she might be a bit dangerous. Maybe this was a job for Vipir?
"And then he'll give me a big hug, and I'll stick a dagger in his ribs."
What a fun conversation with Saphire!
And they're into the home stretch – or perhaps point of diminishing returns – on Berenziah’s stones.
Eeep! I should think that dear Bre’s spell crafting record is a bit. . . unpredictable.
Nit: ’Clark now had three more of the Stones to delver to Gilda,...’ - - Deliver, of course.
What a fun conversation with Saphire!
And they're into the home stretch – or perhaps point of diminishing returns – on Berenziah’s stones.
Eeep! I should think that dear Bre’s spell crafting record is a bit. . . unpredictable.
Nit: ’Clark now had three more of the Stones to delver to Gilda,...’ - - Deliver, of course.
Oh my gosh, the Old’s Orc’s Hulk spell is perfect for Aerin! I love it!! Your solution to the old orc encounter is so much more satisfying than the game’s. Most of my characters who could best him in combat would rather take him adventuring to find his good death than just kill him themselves, and the others can only leave him there waiting.
Great solution for Sapphire to have a safety spell on hand when she warms up to Vipir. I wonder what will happen to him if Sapphire actually has to use it?
Your solution to the old orc encounter is so much more satisfying than the game’s. Most of my characters who could best him in combat would rather take him adventuring to find his good death than just kill him themselves, and the others can only leave him there waiting.Great solution for Sapphire to have a safety spell on hand when she warms up to Vipir. I wonder what will happen to him if Sapphire actually has to use it?
Acadian: Brelyna's rather like Ancotar. When she's experimenting with new spells beyond her knowledge, they don't always work. She's perfectly safe with known ones, unless she's your follower, and she has an AoE spell. But all follower mages do that.
In this case, it's a well-known spell with a single target. However, you'll perhaps note that I have Gilda learn it as an intermediary. Clark's not taking too many risks!
Grits: Sapphire has to learn it first. Vipir will probably prefer the spell to the dagger.
---------------
Previously: Clark has decided to help Sapphire deal with Vipir's attentions. They're also getting close to completing the set of Stones of Barenziah.
---------------
Part 79 - Spells and Paintings
It took a while to get all the pieces in place. First Brelyna taught the spell to Gilda, and of course she practised on Clark, whether he liked the idea or not. It was going to be her job to teach it to Sapphire, as she could use her authority as Guildmaster to persuade Sapphire and Vipir to co-operate.
They all met in Honeyside for the next step. Gilda told the two thieves that she was aware of their interactions, and she needed to resolve the situation for the good of Guild discipline.
"And despite the need for that, we're going to take our clothes off," she announced. "Now, you'll notice that Clark is dutifully acknowledging my magnificence, as he should. Observe what happens when I cast this spell."
"Now I'll show you how to do the same, Sapphire. Fortunately it appears that Vipir thinks just as much of you, and I'm sure he won't mind assisting."
"Er, how long does the effect last?" Vipir wanted to know.
"Long enough for anyone to get the magicka back and cast it again," Clark told him, as much for Sapphire's benefit as his. "But not so long that it spoils things if she changes her mind."
"Do I have to get close to cast it?" Sapphire asked.
"No, but I'm also going to teach you how to use it without using your hands, in case anyone tries to stop you that way. I'm afraid that Vipir's going to have to put up with a lot of demonstrations before we're through," Gilda replied. Clark suspected it wouldn't just be Vipir, as he couldn't be expected to be ready every time Gilda had something more to show Sapphire. And naturally Gilda would be making the most of the opportunity for having some fun herself, and she could be totally wicked.
---
"I don't think it could have gone much better," Clark told Gilda. "I wasn't expecting her to get near to him, let alone make any contact."
"A lot of that was because we were there with them, so Sapphire had support. And she was obviously trying to make up for what she'd just done to him with the spell."
"Next time it might be more than just holding hands, don't you think?"
"It was holding hands naked, this time. And he managed to look into her eyes, with all the other distractions. I think she appreciated that."
Clark didn't say anything. He knew that Gilda was particularly aware of men's wandering eyes. But then, she had plenty of reason for them to wander.
"What do you think the next step is for those two?" Gilda asked. "Do you think they need any more help from us, or can we leave them to it, now?"
"You'll be in a better position to observe how they're getting on. They'll have their ups and downs. Maybe I should have phrased that better, but you know what I mean. Hopefully Sapphire can act normally again, and sometimes that's going to mean that he'll say something unguarded and she'll over-react. But she shouldn't kill him, and I'd expect them to enjoy making up after it happens."
"So do I get properly rewarded for all my efforts? This was your idea, Clark."
"Only if I get proper compensation for your casting unpleasant spells on me."
"I could start by making sure the effects have worn off, couldn't I?"
---
"Remember when you told me that the other Stones were just as likely to be in Riften as anywhere else?" Gilda asked Clark a few days later. "You're not clairvoyant, are you? Mjoll just got back from a chat with Wylandriah and she knows where they are!"
"Really? Are you sure Wylandriah wasn't mis-remembering something? She does do that, when she's deep in her experiments and not listening to what people are telling her."
"No, she's seen them. Jarl Laila has one in her chambers, and Wylandriah recalls her giving another to Maven. Unless Maven went off and hid hers in a cave, and we've already found it, those will be the last two."
"I hope they both think of them as worthless trinkets, and it won't be hard to obtain them. Those are probably the hardest places for the Thieves Guild to retrieve them from."
"I think if Laila really valued it, she wouldn't keep it in her chambers. She probably knew what it was worth, which even when you had a pair of them, wasn't much. If she thought Mjoll would like it, she'd probably give it to her. I know she appreciates what Mjoll does for the city."
"But then there's Maven, isn't there?" Clark mused. "She's probably more than aware that the Thieves Guild is collecting them, so she'd hold out for way more than reasonable compensation."
"But we still might be able to trade for it. What have we got in the stolen art line she might like?" Gilda suggested.
---
"I was expecting this to be stolen goods," Maven told Clark, "but I wasn't expecting you to be quite that dumb about it. Who could be so stupid as to try and offer me a portrait of my own father?"
"Well," said Clarisse, from the doorway behind her, "I'd say the prize for stupid goes to Maven of Shornhelm, for admitting her identity in front of so many witnesses, when she has a bounty on her head that would make your eyes water."
"You don't have any sisters, do you?" Clark reminded her. "There was only one daughter, and no sons. As I recall, the subject of this painting would have taken his elder brother's place as heir apparent, if the assassination had been successful. And the king was rather old, and your father not in the best of health either, so it wouldn't have been long before somebody here got a new job."
"It's a long way back to High Rock, so you'd better get used to the shackles as soon as possible," Clarisse continued. A sailor stepped forward with the irons, as several more moved in behind her.
Maven leapt at Clark and tried to scratch his eyes out with her fingernails. When he caught her by the wrists, she dug them into the palms of her own hands and went limp.
"Poison!" Clarisse gasped.
"And probably a trick," said Karliah, moving swiftly into the room. "I suspect it's the same as I prepared for Mercer Frey."
"And used on me," Gilda added from behind her. "It almost stops the heart, so you'd think she was dead. But as long as the antidote is administered soon enough, she'll survive."
"The antidote's nothing like as hard to prepare as the poison, so I've been carrying some around with ever since Snow Veil Sanctum. Help me pour this into Maven, and stay clear of her nails!"
Before Maven came around, her wrists were shackled behind her, and the residue of the poison had been washed off. Needless to say, the shackles would also prevent her from trying to cast any spells. Her legs were also immobilised, and they put her on a stretcher to take her the Red Witch.
"Ugly, isn't he?" Clarisse pointed at the painting. "Do you think he actually was her father?"
"Well he did marry her mother, so there's some chance of it. And he thought she was his daughter, which was the important part," Clark replied. "It really doesn't have any bearing on the crime, does it? Maybe it adds a little extra deception to the whole plot, but Maven still plotted to kill the heir to the throne, whoever she really was."
But all follower mages do that.In this case, it's a well-known spell with a single target. However, you'll perhaps note that I have Gilda learn it as an intermediary. Clark's not taking too many risks!
Grits: Sapphire has to learn it first. Vipir will probably prefer the spell to the dagger.
---------------
Previously: Clark has decided to help Sapphire deal with Vipir's attentions. They're also getting close to completing the set of Stones of Barenziah.
---------------
Part 79 - Spells and Paintings
It took a while to get all the pieces in place. First Brelyna taught the spell to Gilda, and of course she practised on Clark, whether he liked the idea or not. It was going to be her job to teach it to Sapphire, as she could use her authority as Guildmaster to persuade Sapphire and Vipir to co-operate.
They all met in Honeyside for the next step. Gilda told the two thieves that she was aware of their interactions, and she needed to resolve the situation for the good of Guild discipline.
"And despite the need for that, we're going to take our clothes off," she announced. "Now, you'll notice that Clark is dutifully acknowledging my magnificence, as he should. Observe what happens when I cast this spell."
"Now I'll show you how to do the same, Sapphire. Fortunately it appears that Vipir thinks just as much of you, and I'm sure he won't mind assisting."
"Er, how long does the effect last?" Vipir wanted to know.
"Long enough for anyone to get the magicka back and cast it again," Clark told him, as much for Sapphire's benefit as his. "But not so long that it spoils things if she changes her mind."
"Do I have to get close to cast it?" Sapphire asked.
"No, but I'm also going to teach you how to use it without using your hands, in case anyone tries to stop you that way. I'm afraid that Vipir's going to have to put up with a lot of demonstrations before we're through," Gilda replied. Clark suspected it wouldn't just be Vipir, as he couldn't be expected to be ready every time Gilda had something more to show Sapphire. And naturally Gilda would be making the most of the opportunity for having some fun herself, and she could be totally wicked.
---
"I don't think it could have gone much better," Clark told Gilda. "I wasn't expecting her to get near to him, let alone make any contact."
"A lot of that was because we were there with them, so Sapphire had support. And she was obviously trying to make up for what she'd just done to him with the spell."
"Next time it might be more than just holding hands, don't you think?"
"It was holding hands naked, this time. And he managed to look into her eyes, with all the other distractions. I think she appreciated that."
Clark didn't say anything. He knew that Gilda was particularly aware of men's wandering eyes. But then, she had plenty of reason for them to wander.
"What do you think the next step is for those two?" Gilda asked. "Do you think they need any more help from us, or can we leave them to it, now?"
"You'll be in a better position to observe how they're getting on. They'll have their ups and downs. Maybe I should have phrased that better, but you know what I mean. Hopefully Sapphire can act normally again, and sometimes that's going to mean that he'll say something unguarded and she'll over-react. But she shouldn't kill him, and I'd expect them to enjoy making up after it happens."
"So do I get properly rewarded for all my efforts? This was your idea, Clark."
"Only if I get proper compensation for your casting unpleasant spells on me."
"I could start by making sure the effects have worn off, couldn't I?"
---
"Remember when you told me that the other Stones were just as likely to be in Riften as anywhere else?" Gilda asked Clark a few days later. "You're not clairvoyant, are you? Mjoll just got back from a chat with Wylandriah and she knows where they are!"
"Really? Are you sure Wylandriah wasn't mis-remembering something? She does do that, when she's deep in her experiments and not listening to what people are telling her."
"No, she's seen them. Jarl Laila has one in her chambers, and Wylandriah recalls her giving another to Maven. Unless Maven went off and hid hers in a cave, and we've already found it, those will be the last two."
"I hope they both think of them as worthless trinkets, and it won't be hard to obtain them. Those are probably the hardest places for the Thieves Guild to retrieve them from."
"I think if Laila really valued it, she wouldn't keep it in her chambers. She probably knew what it was worth, which even when you had a pair of them, wasn't much. If she thought Mjoll would like it, she'd probably give it to her. I know she appreciates what Mjoll does for the city."
"But then there's Maven, isn't there?" Clark mused. "She's probably more than aware that the Thieves Guild is collecting them, so she'd hold out for way more than reasonable compensation."
"But we still might be able to trade for it. What have we got in the stolen art line she might like?" Gilda suggested.
---
"I was expecting this to be stolen goods," Maven told Clark, "but I wasn't expecting you to be quite that dumb about it. Who could be so stupid as to try and offer me a portrait of my own father?"
"Well," said Clarisse, from the doorway behind her, "I'd say the prize for stupid goes to Maven of Shornhelm, for admitting her identity in front of so many witnesses, when she has a bounty on her head that would make your eyes water."
"You don't have any sisters, do you?" Clark reminded her. "There was only one daughter, and no sons. As I recall, the subject of this painting would have taken his elder brother's place as heir apparent, if the assassination had been successful. And the king was rather old, and your father not in the best of health either, so it wouldn't have been long before somebody here got a new job."
"It's a long way back to High Rock, so you'd better get used to the shackles as soon as possible," Clarisse continued. A sailor stepped forward with the irons, as several more moved in behind her.
Maven leapt at Clark and tried to scratch his eyes out with her fingernails. When he caught her by the wrists, she dug them into the palms of her own hands and went limp.
"Poison!" Clarisse gasped.
"And probably a trick," said Karliah, moving swiftly into the room. "I suspect it's the same as I prepared for Mercer Frey."
"And used on me," Gilda added from behind her. "It almost stops the heart, so you'd think she was dead. But as long as the antidote is administered soon enough, she'll survive."
"The antidote's nothing like as hard to prepare as the poison, so I've been carrying some around with ever since Snow Veil Sanctum. Help me pour this into Maven, and stay clear of her nails!"
Before Maven came around, her wrists were shackled behind her, and the residue of the poison had been washed off. Needless to say, the shackles would also prevent her from trying to cast any spells. Her legs were also immobilised, and they put her on a stretcher to take her the Red Witch.
"Ugly, isn't he?" Clarisse pointed at the painting. "Do you think he actually was her father?"
"Well he did marry her mother, so there's some chance of it. And he thought she was his daughter, which was the important part," Clark replied. "It really doesn't have any bearing on the crime, does it? Maybe it adds a little extra deception to the whole plot, but Maven still plotted to kill the heir to the throne, whoever she really was."
Things go up. Things go down. Just like magic.
A happy ending for the Viper as Sapphire learns how to become a snake charmer.
An absolutely brilliant plan to ‘out’ Maven.
And how funny when Maven poisoned herself!
Nit: "I don't it could have gone much better," – missing word before ‘it’.
A happy ending for the Viper as Sapphire learns how to become a snake charmer.
An absolutely brilliant plan to ‘out’ Maven.
And how funny when Maven poisoned herself!
Nit: "I don't it could have gone much better," – missing word before ‘it’.
Woo, nice trap for Maven! Fun to see her hauled out of town on a stretcher.
I’m sure Vipir was a great partner for Sapphire to learn that spell. He is after all Vipir the Fleet.
I’m sure Vipir was a great partner for Sapphire to learn that spell. He is after all Vipir the Fleet.
Acadian: Maven poisoned herself deliberately to feign death. If she'd actually been about to die, I'm sure the others would have let her do so. Administering the antidote was to mostly to let her know she'd failed.
Grits: One hopes that Sapphire will learn to just slow Vipir down a little. I suspect that Brelyna is already researching that aspect.
----------------------
Previously: The Black-Briars are starting to fall. Maven inadvertently admitted her identity before witnesses and was arrested for treason. It's time to round up the rest.
-----------------------
Part 80 - Black-Briars
"Jarl Laila let Mjoll have her Stone of Barenziah, so the only one we have to find is Maven's. Do you think it will be in her home in Riften?" Gilda asked.
"More likely out at her lodge. She has that place guarded round the clock, inside and out. I'll take Iona and Mjoll over and see if we can't persuade the guards to leave. Now they don't have anyone to pay them, they might not feel so employed any more." Clark responded.
"And if not, you've got Iona and Mjoll, both in fully improved Ebony Plate, to help them decide. I think I know what I'd expect them to do."
"Exactly. Karliah doesn't want to move on her home in town yet. She doesn't think Hemming or Ingun know Maven's been taken yet, so we'll have the chance to catch them doing something illegal without her to cover up for them."
"What about Sibbi?"
"He's already convicted, isn't he? The only reason he wasn't executed was that the headsman suddenly quit his job, and there was nobody to swing the axe. I think we might be able to find a volunteer now."
"You've got someone in mind for that, haven't you?"
"Yes, Karliah tracked down Svidi, the woman whose brother Sibbi murdered, to the tavern in Ivarstead. She's been working there under an assumed name, fearing that the Black-Briars would come after her. Now that's not going to happen, I think she might like the chance to get revenge for her brother."
---
"Sibbi was saying the only thing he's missing in prison is a woman's touch." Clark remarked to Lynly Star-Sung, the bard in the Ivarstead tavern.
"Sibbi Black-Briar? I wouldn't touch that man with a ten foot pole."
"Understandable, but how about with a six-foot axe, headsman issue? The 'only reason' they didn't execute Sibbi was that the executioner suddenly felt that he needed to be somewhere else, and there was nobody to carry out the sentence. You could volunteer to fill that post temporarily."
Lynly/Svidi liked that idea.
---
Clark and his friends managed to smuggle Svidi into the Riften prison. They handed her the executioner's outfit and she started to put it on. "Wait a moment, where's the top half?"
"On the table - the black hood."
"That's not going to cover me. I'll be showing the whole world what a good mother I'd make!"
"Well, you will have the crowd on your side. And that's not a bad thing. Besides, nobody will recognise you with the hood on. They won't even see if you're blushing."
"Sibbi might; he's seen these before."
"Then, if he does, chop his head off!"
"And if he doesn't, he ought to, so chop his head off!" Mjoll laughed. That seemed to convince Svidi to do it.
"Iona, stay in here while the execution's going on. You're about Lynly's size, so some of the townsfolk will assume that it's you. Mjoll, same for you. And of course Gilda can go and watch."
---
"We need to deal with Hemming next," Karliah told Clark. "Any idea how?"
"I have an idea," Mjoll interrupted. "Wylandriah's always complaining about him propositioning her, so she might like to help us."
"Do you think she'd be prepared to act as bait for trapping him? If so, we can probably use her help to lure him out of town. We don't want to tip Ingun off, or she might try to interfere."
---
Wylandriah didn't just want to help, she had her own ideas on what to do. "I sometimes go out collecting ingredients and things for my experiments, and it just so happens that last time, I left a few items in various places that I need to collect. So I'll have a predictable route that Hemming could follow, if he knows about it. That can easily be arranged."
"How are you going to protect yourself?" Karliah wanted to know.
"Well, I'm not without a few defensive spells, and they include the one Brelyna taught Gilda, to teach to Sapphire. Yes, we mages do gossip among ourselves, but mostly it's just about the spells, not the menfolk." She smiled at Clark as she said that.
"So Hemming won't be able to do anything, but his heavy-handed associates might try something else."
"Then they'll get a nasty shock. Rather literally, as I do prefer the lightning over the flames or frost. But I doubt that they'll be allowed to try to hurt me before Hemming gets his turn. I'm quite looking forward to humiliating him in front of his own thugs."
---
It didn't quite work out the way she'd planned it, as most of the mercenaries were left outside the cave they took her to. Their leader paid them off for the successful job of capturing Wylandriah, and they left. So just the three of them, Wylandriah, Hemming and the mercenary boss, entered the cave.
Or so they thought. Clark, Karliah, Mjoll and Iona crept in behind them, muffled and invisible.
Wylandriah let herself be shackled to the wall of the cave, and didn't do anything when Hemming undid the belt of her robe. She wasn't wearing anything underneath it.
"She looks a lot younger than I imagined," Clark whispered to his daughter.
"She's an elf. We don't age as fast as humans. She's older than me, but not much."
Hemming was taking off his clothes. "Now, he does look his age," Karliah whispered back.
As he stepped towards Wylandriah, they could see his expression change from triumph to surprise, and he looked down. "I think she just cast the spell," Clark announced.
The mercenary boss was beginning to laugh uncontrollably. "Stop that, and do something," Hemming demanded. But before anyone could move, a wall of lightning formed around the mage, blocking anyone from reaching her.
"That's not what you paid me for, so think again." He made no move to leave. This was too good a show to miss, and he wanted to see how it worked out.
The invisible crew felt that it was an appropriate time to reveal themselves. Hemming's one-time henchman's hand went to his sword, but he didn't draw it. And he didn't intervene when Mjoll and Iona grabbed the naked man, and put irons on his wrists.
"Go ahead and take him. My contract's fulfilled, so unless you need help taking him in, this has nothing to do with me."
Wylandriah released her wrists from the shackles. "Yes, I could have done that at any time, but I wanted Hemming to think I was at his mercy. After all, you needed proof of his intentions, so you could press the appropriate charges. It's pretty clear what he was after."
"It's still clear, and it's still pretty," Clark pointed out. "Don't you want to cover yourself up?"
"Not while I'm being appreciated. And I think this man deserves some reward for doing the right thing, and not siding with Hemming. You go on ahead, while I do that. I think I can remember how," she said to Mjoll with a wink.
Grits: One hopes that Sapphire will learn to just slow Vipir down a little. I suspect that Brelyna is already researching that aspect.
----------------------
Previously: The Black-Briars are starting to fall. Maven inadvertently admitted her identity before witnesses and was arrested for treason. It's time to round up the rest.
-----------------------
Part 80 - Black-Briars
"Jarl Laila let Mjoll have her Stone of Barenziah, so the only one we have to find is Maven's. Do you think it will be in her home in Riften?" Gilda asked.
"More likely out at her lodge. She has that place guarded round the clock, inside and out. I'll take Iona and Mjoll over and see if we can't persuade the guards to leave. Now they don't have anyone to pay them, they might not feel so employed any more." Clark responded.
"And if not, you've got Iona and Mjoll, both in fully improved Ebony Plate, to help them decide. I think I know what I'd expect them to do."
"Exactly. Karliah doesn't want to move on her home in town yet. She doesn't think Hemming or Ingun know Maven's been taken yet, so we'll have the chance to catch them doing something illegal without her to cover up for them."
"What about Sibbi?"
"He's already convicted, isn't he? The only reason he wasn't executed was that the headsman suddenly quit his job, and there was nobody to swing the axe. I think we might be able to find a volunteer now."
"You've got someone in mind for that, haven't you?"
"Yes, Karliah tracked down Svidi, the woman whose brother Sibbi murdered, to the tavern in Ivarstead. She's been working there under an assumed name, fearing that the Black-Briars would come after her. Now that's not going to happen, I think she might like the chance to get revenge for her brother."
---
"Sibbi was saying the only thing he's missing in prison is a woman's touch." Clark remarked to Lynly Star-Sung, the bard in the Ivarstead tavern.
"Sibbi Black-Briar? I wouldn't touch that man with a ten foot pole."
"Understandable, but how about with a six-foot axe, headsman issue? The 'only reason' they didn't execute Sibbi was that the executioner suddenly felt that he needed to be somewhere else, and there was nobody to carry out the sentence. You could volunteer to fill that post temporarily."
Lynly/Svidi liked that idea.
---
Clark and his friends managed to smuggle Svidi into the Riften prison. They handed her the executioner's outfit and she started to put it on. "Wait a moment, where's the top half?"
"On the table - the black hood."
"That's not going to cover me. I'll be showing the whole world what a good mother I'd make!"
"Well, you will have the crowd on your side. And that's not a bad thing. Besides, nobody will recognise you with the hood on. They won't even see if you're blushing."
"Sibbi might; he's seen these before."
"Then, if he does, chop his head off!"
"And if he doesn't, he ought to, so chop his head off!" Mjoll laughed. That seemed to convince Svidi to do it.
"Iona, stay in here while the execution's going on. You're about Lynly's size, so some of the townsfolk will assume that it's you. Mjoll, same for you. And of course Gilda can go and watch."
---
"We need to deal with Hemming next," Karliah told Clark. "Any idea how?"
"I have an idea," Mjoll interrupted. "Wylandriah's always complaining about him propositioning her, so she might like to help us."
"Do you think she'd be prepared to act as bait for trapping him? If so, we can probably use her help to lure him out of town. We don't want to tip Ingun off, or she might try to interfere."
---
Wylandriah didn't just want to help, she had her own ideas on what to do. "I sometimes go out collecting ingredients and things for my experiments, and it just so happens that last time, I left a few items in various places that I need to collect. So I'll have a predictable route that Hemming could follow, if he knows about it. That can easily be arranged."
"How are you going to protect yourself?" Karliah wanted to know.
"Well, I'm not without a few defensive spells, and they include the one Brelyna taught Gilda, to teach to Sapphire. Yes, we mages do gossip among ourselves, but mostly it's just about the spells, not the menfolk." She smiled at Clark as she said that.
"So Hemming won't be able to do anything, but his heavy-handed associates might try something else."
"Then they'll get a nasty shock. Rather literally, as I do prefer the lightning over the flames or frost. But I doubt that they'll be allowed to try to hurt me before Hemming gets his turn. I'm quite looking forward to humiliating him in front of his own thugs."
---
It didn't quite work out the way she'd planned it, as most of the mercenaries were left outside the cave they took her to. Their leader paid them off for the successful job of capturing Wylandriah, and they left. So just the three of them, Wylandriah, Hemming and the mercenary boss, entered the cave.
Or so they thought. Clark, Karliah, Mjoll and Iona crept in behind them, muffled and invisible.
Wylandriah let herself be shackled to the wall of the cave, and didn't do anything when Hemming undid the belt of her robe. She wasn't wearing anything underneath it.
"She looks a lot younger than I imagined," Clark whispered to his daughter.
"She's an elf. We don't age as fast as humans. She's older than me, but not much."
Hemming was taking off his clothes. "Now, he does look his age," Karliah whispered back.
As he stepped towards Wylandriah, they could see his expression change from triumph to surprise, and he looked down. "I think she just cast the spell," Clark announced.
The mercenary boss was beginning to laugh uncontrollably. "Stop that, and do something," Hemming demanded. But before anyone could move, a wall of lightning formed around the mage, blocking anyone from reaching her.
"That's not what you paid me for, so think again." He made no move to leave. This was too good a show to miss, and he wanted to see how it worked out.
The invisible crew felt that it was an appropriate time to reveal themselves. Hemming's one-time henchman's hand went to his sword, but he didn't draw it. And he didn't intervene when Mjoll and Iona grabbed the naked man, and put irons on his wrists.
"Go ahead and take him. My contract's fulfilled, so unless you need help taking him in, this has nothing to do with me."
Wylandriah released her wrists from the shackles. "Yes, I could have done that at any time, but I wanted Hemming to think I was at his mercy. After all, you needed proof of his intentions, so you could press the appropriate charges. It's pretty clear what he was after."
"It's still clear, and it's still pretty," Clark pointed out. "Don't you want to cover yourself up?"
"Not while I'm being appreciated. And I think this man deserves some reward for doing the right thing, and not siding with Hemming. You go on ahead, while I do that. I think I can remember how," she said to Mjoll with a wink.
A nice romp through Riften!
Lynnly the topless executioner! Priceless.
I had visions of someone sticking theirfinger bits into an electrical Wylandriah socket and getting the shock of their life. The shock wall was a great idea though.
Lynnly the topless executioner! Priceless.
I had visions of someone sticking their
The shock wall was a great idea though.
Acadian: I probably wouldn't have thought of the shock wall if I hadn't just encountered Otar the Mad who lays one down with his staff, and uses Lightning Cloak. Nasty when they combine.
---------------
Previously: Sibbi and Hemming have been dealt with, the former rather permanently. Lynly and Wylandriah are satisfied.
---------------
Part 81 - Riftweald Club
"We stil have Ingun to deal with, not that she's ever done anything. Her love of alchemy, especially poisons, has me worried that she might, though." Karliah said, when they got back into town.
"And we just removed all her family, so if she is going to do anything, it might be now." Clark agreed. "But I think we're just going to have to wait for things to work out. Gilda needs to find out from Vex what to do with the Stones of Barenziah, now we have them all, and we also need to do something with Riftweald Manor. It's a waste having a property like that lying empty in the middle of town."
"Did you have any ideas?"
"Well, we could make a start on moving the Guild back into normal society. You've run games of chance before now, dice, cards, that sort of thing. Run them fairly, and people will pay for the entertainment, even if they know the odds are against them."
"So we open a gambling club?"
"Maybe not just gambling. The Guild of Prostitutes might want to join in, and add their services to the mix. Though I suspect most of the profit will come from selling drinks."
"Won't the Bee and Barb object to having extra competition?"
"They'd get a different crowd. Keerava prefers the renters and diners to the drinkers. And they'd probably welcome the loss of Maramal's diatribes. He'd be one of Riftweald's regulars, for certain."
"You've run a brothel or two before, haven't you, Father?" Karliah asked. "What does it take to get one running?"
"First thing is a licence from the Guild, and I can get Vicuña to come here from Markarth and do the official inspection. We'll need staff, and I know a few likely recruits. Security is less of an issue, and the Thieves Guild will provide that for the gambling side anyway."
---
Threki was all for the idea. "I'm innocent, not naive. You get me out of this jail, round up some customers, and of course I'll do it."
"What did they put you in here for, anyway?" Clark asked.
"Supposedly being an Imperial supporter, but probably for Sibbi's benefit. I think they were supposed to put me in the cell next to his, so there would only be the bars in the way, if you get my drift. I did have a bit of a reputation, so ..."
"And if they had...?"
"Not with Sibbi. A girl does have standards, you know."
Svana Far-Shield wasn't hard to recruit either. Her aunt Haelga was just a slut, because she didn't ask for money. Letting men have it for nothing was just wrong. Didn't she think she had any value?
Clark was a little worried that Svana had an inflated idea of her own fair price, but she was apparently content to accept Guild guidance on that. She knew that she wasn't allowed to trade without their licence, so she hadn't tested those waters yet.
"But you have ...?"
"Well I had to thank the man that brought me here to Riften when my parents died, and before that, there were a few young men who taught me how. That's before I knew there was gold to be made, or I'd have saved myself, and got a premium."
Niluva Hlaalu would have to do something about her skooma habit before she'd be suitable, but Clark let her know it was a possibility. That might be the only incentive she needed. She did seem surprised that he thought her attractive enough for the job.
"You're not, but that's because of the skooma. Nobody looks their best after doing that to themselves. I think you could be, once you're clean."
---
When the Riftweald Club opened, nobody was expecting the first applicant for a job. Ingun wanted to know if they had an opening for a bar-tender. "I mix a really good variety of cocktails, and no, they're not poisonous."
Brynjolf was suspicious. "How did you find the time to learn that side of things? You seemed to be spending all your time learning to create poisons."
"Well, if you're going to make poisons, you need to make the antidotes first, in case you have accidents. And so you learn to make to make beneficial potions at the same time. There's also the issue of taste. A successful poison is one that the victim drinks completely, not something he spits out because it tastes foul. So you learn what flavours go together, and what makes something taste innocuous, when it isn't," she responded.
"My grandmother naturally thought that everyone should be drinking her mead, so she didn't exactly encourage me in any of it, although she did pay for my alchemy training. Now she's not around, those funds have dried up, and I need to put my skills to use earning my keep."
"Ah, so Elgrim and Hafjorg have kicked you out?" Brynjolf asked.
"No, but they weren't paying me, and I can't afford more lessons if I don't have an income. They don't need anyone else to help run the shop. It barely does enough business to support the two of them."
"Hmm, we weren't actually planning to have a bar as such. It takes up a fair bit of space, and we want as much as possible for the gaming tables. All the rooms upstairs will be in use for other services, of course. Drinks would be brought out on a tray from the back room, so we could use a waitress to do that."
"So I'd be taking the orders, making the drinks out back, and then bringing them out and delivering them?"
"Right. That way the gamblers don't have to get up from the games to go fetch their own drinks. They'd never leave their cards behind, and the others wouldn't trust them not to come back with a better hand, so they'd only be able to do that between rounds. And you couldn't deal another until they got back, so it would slow play down."
"Won't the gamblers think a waitress is just another of the ... upstairs women?" she asked, slightly worried about where this was leading.
"I won't try and pretend that won't happen. But it's your choice whether you play it that way or not. If you choose to join the Guild, and I don't mean the Thieves Guild, then you'd be allowed to combine the jobs. If not, you're strictly serving drinks, and we'll make sure the customers know that. Maybe give you a uniform, so they can easily tell the difference."
---------------
Previously: Sibbi and Hemming have been dealt with, the former rather permanently. Lynly and Wylandriah are satisfied.
---------------
Part 81 - Riftweald Club
"We stil have Ingun to deal with, not that she's ever done anything. Her love of alchemy, especially poisons, has me worried that she might, though." Karliah said, when they got back into town.
"And we just removed all her family, so if she is going to do anything, it might be now." Clark agreed. "But I think we're just going to have to wait for things to work out. Gilda needs to find out from Vex what to do with the Stones of Barenziah, now we have them all, and we also need to do something with Riftweald Manor. It's a waste having a property like that lying empty in the middle of town."
"Did you have any ideas?"
"Well, we could make a start on moving the Guild back into normal society. You've run games of chance before now, dice, cards, that sort of thing. Run them fairly, and people will pay for the entertainment, even if they know the odds are against them."
"So we open a gambling club?"
"Maybe not just gambling. The Guild of Prostitutes might want to join in, and add their services to the mix. Though I suspect most of the profit will come from selling drinks."
"Won't the Bee and Barb object to having extra competition?"
"They'd get a different crowd. Keerava prefers the renters and diners to the drinkers. And they'd probably welcome the loss of Maramal's diatribes. He'd be one of Riftweald's regulars, for certain."
"You've run a brothel or two before, haven't you, Father?" Karliah asked. "What does it take to get one running?"
"First thing is a licence from the Guild, and I can get Vicuña to come here from Markarth and do the official inspection. We'll need staff, and I know a few likely recruits. Security is less of an issue, and the Thieves Guild will provide that for the gambling side anyway."
---
Threki was all for the idea. "I'm innocent, not naive. You get me out of this jail, round up some customers, and of course I'll do it."
"What did they put you in here for, anyway?" Clark asked.
"Supposedly being an Imperial supporter, but probably for Sibbi's benefit. I think they were supposed to put me in the cell next to his, so there would only be the bars in the way, if you get my drift. I did have a bit of a reputation, so ..."
"And if they had...?"
"Not with Sibbi. A girl does have standards, you know."
Svana Far-Shield wasn't hard to recruit either. Her aunt Haelga was just a slut, because she didn't ask for money. Letting men have it for nothing was just wrong. Didn't she think she had any value?
Clark was a little worried that Svana had an inflated idea of her own fair price, but she was apparently content to accept Guild guidance on that. She knew that she wasn't allowed to trade without their licence, so she hadn't tested those waters yet.
"But you have ...?"
"Well I had to thank the man that brought me here to Riften when my parents died, and before that, there were a few young men who taught me how. That's before I knew there was gold to be made, or I'd have saved myself, and got a premium."
Niluva Hlaalu would have to do something about her skooma habit before she'd be suitable, but Clark let her know it was a possibility. That might be the only incentive she needed. She did seem surprised that he thought her attractive enough for the job.
"You're not, but that's because of the skooma. Nobody looks their best after doing that to themselves. I think you could be, once you're clean."
---
When the Riftweald Club opened, nobody was expecting the first applicant for a job. Ingun wanted to know if they had an opening for a bar-tender. "I mix a really good variety of cocktails, and no, they're not poisonous."
Brynjolf was suspicious. "How did you find the time to learn that side of things? You seemed to be spending all your time learning to create poisons."
"Well, if you're going to make poisons, you need to make the antidotes first, in case you have accidents. And so you learn to make to make beneficial potions at the same time. There's also the issue of taste. A successful poison is one that the victim drinks completely, not something he spits out because it tastes foul. So you learn what flavours go together, and what makes something taste innocuous, when it isn't," she responded.
"My grandmother naturally thought that everyone should be drinking her mead, so she didn't exactly encourage me in any of it, although she did pay for my alchemy training. Now she's not around, those funds have dried up, and I need to put my skills to use earning my keep."
"Ah, so Elgrim and Hafjorg have kicked you out?" Brynjolf asked.
"No, but they weren't paying me, and I can't afford more lessons if I don't have an income. They don't need anyone else to help run the shop. It barely does enough business to support the two of them."
"Hmm, we weren't actually planning to have a bar as such. It takes up a fair bit of space, and we want as much as possible for the gaming tables. All the rooms upstairs will be in use for other services, of course. Drinks would be brought out on a tray from the back room, so we could use a waitress to do that."
"So I'd be taking the orders, making the drinks out back, and then bringing them out and delivering them?"
"Right. That way the gamblers don't have to get up from the games to go fetch their own drinks. They'd never leave their cards behind, and the others wouldn't trust them not to come back with a better hand, so they'd only be able to do that between rounds. And you couldn't deal another until they got back, so it would slow play down."
"Won't the gamblers think a waitress is just another of the ... upstairs women?" she asked, slightly worried about where this was leading.
"I won't try and pretend that won't happen. But it's your choice whether you play it that way or not. If you choose to join the Guild, and I don't mean the Thieves Guild, then you'd be allowed to combine the jobs. If not, you're strictly serving drinks, and we'll make sure the customers know that. Maybe give you a uniform, so they can easily tell the difference."
The Clark Casino, makes preparations to open on the world famous Strip of Las Riften!
As ever, your ideas are well and creatively thought through. I especially liked Clark’s understanding of why casinos prefer to bring drinks to gambling customers, thereby keeping them at the tables while loosening any inhibitions regarding their coin purses.
As ever, your ideas are well and creatively thought through. I especially liked Clark’s understanding of why casinos prefer to bring drinks to gambling customers, thereby keeping them at the tables while loosening any inhibitions regarding their coin purses.
Acadian: Did someone say strip?
-----------
Previously: Clark had recruited some staff for the new club, and one of those who applied was Ingun Black-Briar!
---------------
Part 82 - Ingun
When Ingun came back the next day, Brynjolf handed her an apron, and a small starched hat. "Try these on, and we'll see how you look."
He was a bit surprised when she took them into the next room to do so, but even more when she came back wearing nothing else!
"You really want this job, don't you, lass?"
"I really NEED this job," she replied.
"That's a nice bribe she's offering," said a voice behind him. Clark and Gilda had just come in from Honeyside.
"But accepting it would be corrupt, wouldn't it?" Gilda mused, giving Clark one of those looks.
"Certainly, if there's a quid pro quo involved. And that would get her in trouble with the Guild of Prostitutes, too. She's not a member," Clark pointed out.
"So she's not offering you anything, Brynjolf," Gilda resumed. "Just letting you know what kind of talent she has. In case it influences your decision to hire her."
"I'm not?"
"No you're not," Clark agreed. "If you've got the skills you say you have, they'll be enough without resorting to this sort of thing. So no cheating; go mix a few drinks, so we can check out the results. That's what the job requires, and not what you're showing us now, informative though it is."
Ingun re-appeared a few minutes later with a tray of wineglasses. She'd put her dress back on, under the apron.
"This one is flavoured with Snowberries, which means you can't taste much else," Ingun explained. "It can be as weak or as strong as you need, ... or even poisonous." She looked over at Brynjolf as she said that. His glass was already half-empty.
"You wouldn't, because you need this job," he decided, and finished the glass. "And if you did, it would be Gilda's, not mine," he continued, grinning at the Guildmaster.
"I'm tasting something else, even past the Snowberry," Clark remarked. "What else is in it?"
"Some Jazbay, which doesn't cause any reaction with the Snowberry, just smoothes out the taste a little. The base is a light wine, which doesn't contribute a lot, just makes it a bit alcoholic. You can mix in brandy if you want it stronger, and it will taste about the same."
"So you can make them progressively stronger, or weaker, and nobody would notice?" Brynjolf inquired. He could see the advantages of doing that.
"The other thing that would be useful is a drink to sober someone up in a hurry," Gilda added. "Do you have one for that?"
Ingun nodded. "The pale green one. If he's really far gone, he might have trouble keeping it down, but that can help get the cure started. Flush out the stomach and then this gets a chance to work without competition."
Clark took a small sip. It didn't taste bad, but then, he wasn't drunk, either. Again, some of the flavours were familiar. "Some of this is a regular Restore Health, isn't it? What did you add?"
"There's a bit of a Resist Poison effect to counter the alcohol, or skooma. I use both Blue and Yellow Mountain Flowers, which is why it comes out a bit green."
"Where do you get Yellow ones from?" Gilda wanted to know. She'd seen Red, Blue and Purple just about everywhere, but not Yellow.
"Serana found them in Dayspring Canyon, which isn't far from here. There's isn't a large supply of those, but they are useful for the special potions.
Ingun had a number of other mixtures, all of them good to drink. Well, except one. As she explained, only Argonians like the Nightshade tea. Its effects on the other races were unfortunate, to say the least. Mostly just nausea-inducing, but apparently High Elves had a particularly bad reaction to it, perhaps because of their weakness to magic in general.
"So do I get the job?" Ingun asked.
"You've impressed me as much with your clothes on as you did with them off, lass," Bryjolf replied. "But it's the Guildmaster who has the ultimate decision-making authority. I just advise."
Gilda looked over at Clark. "So, which do you think? Better with them off, or with them on?"
"I think she deserves the job," Clark replied, avoiding the question. "She'll have to keep her clothes on until Vicuña gets here and signs her up, or her motives will be suspect, anyway. However, if she really wants to clinch it, I have one more thing she could do."
"What's that?" Ingun asked.
"You know Niluva Hlaalu? The Dunmer with the skooma problem? If you can help her clean up her act, you both get jobs. Mix her up a batch of Fortify Resolve potions, because that's what she needs."
---
Gilda and Clark had just returned from visiting Vex, to find out more about the Stones of Barenziah. Her story about the thief breaking up the Crown to cover his tracks seemed a bit suspicious. How did she know about that? Did she have any connection to that thief? Best not to ask. It can't have been long ago, and it might have been a member of the Thieves Guild. Mercer Frey came to mind, although they couldn't see any reason for Vex to cover for him.
Whatever the truth was, Vex had pointed them to Tolvald's Cave, not far to the north, which was reputed to be full of Falmer.
"Not unlike Irkngthand," Gilda noted. "I'm getting even more of an echo of Mercer Frey here."
"And so it's going to be a job for the sneaky, rather than clanking tanks like Iona and Mjoll. Neither of them are Thieves Guild members, either, so there's no reason for them to help."
"Other than Iona being your housecarl, and Mjoll her best friend," Gilda reminded him.
"Still, it might be better to ask Brynjolf and Karliah to accompany you again," Clark reasoned.
"Aren't you coming?"
"Yes, of course. This whole collection is as much my project as yours. I just meant that I wasn't there the first time, in Irkngthand."
"It would have been much easier if you were," she replied, ruefully. "We really could have used some wards when Mercer was tossing his Illusion spells. The Falmer mages were a major pain, too."
-----------
Previously: Clark had recruited some staff for the new club, and one of those who applied was Ingun Black-Briar!
---------------
Part 82 - Ingun
When Ingun came back the next day, Brynjolf handed her an apron, and a small starched hat. "Try these on, and we'll see how you look."
He was a bit surprised when she took them into the next room to do so, but even more when she came back wearing nothing else!
"You really want this job, don't you, lass?"
"I really NEED this job," she replied.
"That's a nice bribe she's offering," said a voice behind him. Clark and Gilda had just come in from Honeyside.
"But accepting it would be corrupt, wouldn't it?" Gilda mused, giving Clark one of those looks.
"Certainly, if there's a quid pro quo involved. And that would get her in trouble with the Guild of Prostitutes, too. She's not a member," Clark pointed out.
"So she's not offering you anything, Brynjolf," Gilda resumed. "Just letting you know what kind of talent she has. In case it influences your decision to hire her."
"I'm not?"
"No you're not," Clark agreed. "If you've got the skills you say you have, they'll be enough without resorting to this sort of thing. So no cheating; go mix a few drinks, so we can check out the results. That's what the job requires, and not what you're showing us now, informative though it is."
Ingun re-appeared a few minutes later with a tray of wineglasses. She'd put her dress back on, under the apron.
"This one is flavoured with Snowberries, which means you can't taste much else," Ingun explained. "It can be as weak or as strong as you need, ... or even poisonous." She looked over at Brynjolf as she said that. His glass was already half-empty.
"You wouldn't, because you need this job," he decided, and finished the glass. "And if you did, it would be Gilda's, not mine," he continued, grinning at the Guildmaster.
"I'm tasting something else, even past the Snowberry," Clark remarked. "What else is in it?"
"Some Jazbay, which doesn't cause any reaction with the Snowberry, just smoothes out the taste a little. The base is a light wine, which doesn't contribute a lot, just makes it a bit alcoholic. You can mix in brandy if you want it stronger, and it will taste about the same."
"So you can make them progressively stronger, or weaker, and nobody would notice?" Brynjolf inquired. He could see the advantages of doing that.
"The other thing that would be useful is a drink to sober someone up in a hurry," Gilda added. "Do you have one for that?"
Ingun nodded. "The pale green one. If he's really far gone, he might have trouble keeping it down, but that can help get the cure started. Flush out the stomach and then this gets a chance to work without competition."
Clark took a small sip. It didn't taste bad, but then, he wasn't drunk, either. Again, some of the flavours were familiar. "Some of this is a regular Restore Health, isn't it? What did you add?"
"There's a bit of a Resist Poison effect to counter the alcohol, or skooma. I use both Blue and Yellow Mountain Flowers, which is why it comes out a bit green."
"Where do you get Yellow ones from?" Gilda wanted to know. She'd seen Red, Blue and Purple just about everywhere, but not Yellow.
"Serana found them in Dayspring Canyon, which isn't far from here. There's isn't a large supply of those, but they are useful for the special potions.
Ingun had a number of other mixtures, all of them good to drink. Well, except one. As she explained, only Argonians like the Nightshade tea. Its effects on the other races were unfortunate, to say the least. Mostly just nausea-inducing, but apparently High Elves had a particularly bad reaction to it, perhaps because of their weakness to magic in general.
"So do I get the job?" Ingun asked.
"You've impressed me as much with your clothes on as you did with them off, lass," Bryjolf replied. "But it's the Guildmaster who has the ultimate decision-making authority. I just advise."
Gilda looked over at Clark. "So, which do you think? Better with them off, or with them on?"
"I think she deserves the job," Clark replied, avoiding the question. "She'll have to keep her clothes on until Vicuña gets here and signs her up, or her motives will be suspect, anyway. However, if she really wants to clinch it, I have one more thing she could do."
"What's that?" Ingun asked.
"You know Niluva Hlaalu? The Dunmer with the skooma problem? If you can help her clean up her act, you both get jobs. Mix her up a batch of Fortify Resolve potions, because that's what she needs."
---
Gilda and Clark had just returned from visiting Vex, to find out more about the Stones of Barenziah. Her story about the thief breaking up the Crown to cover his tracks seemed a bit suspicious. How did she know about that? Did she have any connection to that thief? Best not to ask. It can't have been long ago, and it might have been a member of the Thieves Guild. Mercer Frey came to mind, although they couldn't see any reason for Vex to cover for him.
Whatever the truth was, Vex had pointed them to Tolvald's Cave, not far to the north, which was reputed to be full of Falmer.
"Not unlike Irkngthand," Gilda noted. "I'm getting even more of an echo of Mercer Frey here."
"And so it's going to be a job for the sneaky, rather than clanking tanks like Iona and Mjoll. Neither of them are Thieves Guild members, either, so there's no reason for them to help."
"Other than Iona being your housecarl, and Mjoll her best friend," Gilda reminded him.
"Still, it might be better to ask Brynjolf and Karliah to accompany you again," Clark reasoned.
"Aren't you coming?"
"Yes, of course. This whole collection is as much my project as yours. I just meant that I wasn't there the first time, in Irkngthand."
"It would have been much easier if you were," she replied, ruefully. "We really could have used some wards when Mercer was tossing his Illusion spells. The Falmer mages were a major pain, too."
What a delightful delve into bartending, TES style! As ever, your detail is very well thought out and logical. 
Uh oh, looks like more Falmer Fightin’ ahead.
Uh oh, looks like more Falmer Fightin’ ahead.
I love the Skyrim-style magical cocktails! Clark is a genius to put Ingun to the task of cleaning up Niluva.
Ooo, I’m glad Clark is going to Tovald’s Cave. That’s one of my favorite locations. How fun to go there with Brynjolf and Karliah!
Ooo, I’m glad Clark is going to Tovald’s Cave. That’s one of my favorite locations. How fun to go there with Brynjolf and Karliah!
Acadian: Waitress/Cocktail maker is about the only thing Ingun can do now. Leaving her around saves me trying to re-purpose the Black-Briar house, too.
Grits: Clark may not think Tolvald's is fun by the time he gets out.
---------------
Previously: Clark, Gilda and Brynjolf interviewed Ingun for a job as waitress at the club, and then they set off for Tolvald's Cave with Karliah, to look for Barenziah's Crown.
---------------
Part 83 - Tolvald's Cave
The first part of Tolvald's cave was full of bears, but Karliah and Bryjolf succeeded in felling them before they even noticed the intruders in their den. Both archers shooting at the same bear made sure it died before it could alert the next one, and these two had obviously worked together before.
There were several dead hunters lying in the cave, who hadn't been so successful, and an even larger number of bear traps, most of which were curiously still set. Perhaps the hunters had relied too much on the traps, forgetting that bears can easily detect the scent of a human on one, and avoid it.
They encountered more bears (and more dead hunters) in the tunnel leading from the entry cave.
Before long, they started to see signs of Dwemer and Falmer construction in the rock passages, and it wouldn't be much further before they met some of the Falmer inhabitants.
"This room looks like a dead end," Gilda remarked. "You don't think the crown's in that chest, do you?"
"No, I think that's probably a trap," Clark replied. "We haven't seen any Falmer yet, but we know they're here somewhere. I'd guess that the way out is hidden, And the Falmer are waiting just beyond."
"You're right about a trap," agreed Brynjolf. "Look at these dart holes all pointed at the chest. I don't see any way to disarm it, though."
"Well, this chain will either do that, or open the door to go further," Karliah announced.
"Maybe both," Clark agreed. "just let us all get clear of the chest before you pull it."
Two hidden doors, not one, opened when Karliah pulled the chain. Clark checked for signs of life in each direction before picking one at random. They followed the tunnel round in a circle and came back to the same room with the chest, before doing it again, and taking a different turn half-way. The second time around there was a Falmer waiting for them, but Clark detected him before he could do anything and the archers made sure he didn't.
"And I'm detecting a lot more of his friends just up ahead. I'll go first, with my ward and shield. Archers right behind behind me, please, and Gilda, guard the rear. If there are any more hidden doors they could get behind us."
Clark rapidly discovered that he was the least sneaky of the party, especially when using his ward. That made him everybody's target, and when the shaman blinded everyone's vision with a cloud of frost, it was hard to see the incoming arrows, or to send ones back. Yes, Karliah and Bryjolf had taken two of the Falmer archers out of the picture, but just about all of them had a bow.
Clark already knew that arrows hurt you twice, as they needed to be pulled out before you could heal. He was reminded that cursing all archers wasn't a good idea when half your party used a bow.
"If we meet another group further in," he decided, "We'll try another tactic. Instead of using my ward to counter the shaman, I'd like you two to prevent the blinding spells before they get cast. Since this outfit also gives me a lot of magicka regeneration, I'll use fireballs to follow up your arrows. Hopefully it will make it hard for them to fire back with any accuracy. I know you can't blind a Falmer, but fireballs are also loud, so maybe they'll have the same effect."
It worked, but maybe not as well as he'd hoped. He couldn't send fireballs in all directions, and once the initial disorientation of the attack had passed, they were soon shooting at him again. However, now he could at least see the incoming arrows, and had a chance to dodge, or deflect them with his shield.
After passing under a waterfall, the passages were becoming more Dwemer ruin, and less cave, again. They were starting to see pipework, and the floor was paved, although more like a street than the floor of a hall. They were probably passing between buildings, rather than through them, although there's less of a distinction underground.
And Clark guessed that they were quite close to Morrowind, now. They'd been travelling East, as well as down, for some time. There were signs that this tunnel might have been used as a route between Morrowind and Skyrim. He recalled that Valus Passage, the cave where the Mythic Dawn had held Ystrel, had been used that way until it collapsed. That had lead from Morrowind to Cyrodiil, of course, but it was in part of the same range of mountains as this one.
He noticed a mouldy journal lying next to a skeleton near the path. It told him that the party had indeed come from Morrowind, fleeing the effects of the Red Mountain eruption. It looked like they'd run into Falmer, and their Chaurus pets. It was hard to tell a Falmer skeleton from a Dunmer one, but the empty shells of the Chaurus were unmistakable.
Another journal, perhaps written just before their final battle, noted that they'd decided to take a stand in the large room the party had just entered. There did seem to be enough debris to suggest a major convoy had been ambushed here, with broken carts and chests lying all around. A skeleton's outstreched hand appeared to be point to something.
"Is that the Crown?" Gilda exclaimed, noticing a glint of shiny metal in the heap of debris.
Karliah could see it too, and she was closer. Brynjolf lifted a big chunk of broken timber, and Karliah reached under and pulled the shiny object out. As she did so, three spectral figures appeared in the room, and attacked!
They appeared to be the ghosts of the caravan guards, as they were dressed in Elven Armour. At least one was a battlemage, and Clark was regretting his decision not to use his ward at all times. It took a few vital seconds to raise it, and they'd been taken by surprise.
But the Dunmer ghosts were out-numbered, and out-matched. Clark's shield served well enough, and everyone in his party had an enchanted weapon, and better armour than their adveraries.
"Now we have to find our way back out," Brynjolf reminded them, "without paying a visit to Morrowind."
---
"That went a lot easier than I expected," Karliah told her father. "Detecting the Falmer with that spell of yours meant they didn't get to drop down behind us, like they usually do."
Clark rubbed the sore spots on his shoulder that reminded him it hadn't been easy for everyone. "But Gilda and I wouldn't have been able to deal with them so easily without your bows. So bringing you and Brynjolf along was just as important."
"Having the right team for a job, always makes it easier, lass" Brynjolf concurred. "And that's why Nocturnal wanted us for her Nightingales."
"You were a Nightingale, once, weren't you, Father. Why did you give that up?"
"Because of you. Your mother and I retired to raise you. Dralsi went back to being a Nightingale after, but I didn't. I'd become one before I was made immortal, and it was part of the oath that you'd serve Nocturnal after death, which no longer applied. Since she was the one, or rather one of the two, who did that, I figured that she'd anulled my oath. Azura had an equal claim on me, too."
"So you're still bound to Nocturnal, but in a different way?"
"I wouldn't call it bound. She deserves my devotion, so she gets it."
"Do I deserve some?" Gilda asked.
"Not until we get home," Clark responded.
Grits: Clark may not think Tolvald's is fun by the time he gets out.
---------------
Previously: Clark, Gilda and Brynjolf interviewed Ingun for a job as waitress at the club, and then they set off for Tolvald's Cave with Karliah, to look for Barenziah's Crown.
---------------
Part 83 - Tolvald's Cave
The first part of Tolvald's cave was full of bears, but Karliah and Bryjolf succeeded in felling them before they even noticed the intruders in their den. Both archers shooting at the same bear made sure it died before it could alert the next one, and these two had obviously worked together before.
There were several dead hunters lying in the cave, who hadn't been so successful, and an even larger number of bear traps, most of which were curiously still set. Perhaps the hunters had relied too much on the traps, forgetting that bears can easily detect the scent of a human on one, and avoid it.
They encountered more bears (and more dead hunters) in the tunnel leading from the entry cave.
Before long, they started to see signs of Dwemer and Falmer construction in the rock passages, and it wouldn't be much further before they met some of the Falmer inhabitants.
"This room looks like a dead end," Gilda remarked. "You don't think the crown's in that chest, do you?"
"No, I think that's probably a trap," Clark replied. "We haven't seen any Falmer yet, but we know they're here somewhere. I'd guess that the way out is hidden, And the Falmer are waiting just beyond."
"You're right about a trap," agreed Brynjolf. "Look at these dart holes all pointed at the chest. I don't see any way to disarm it, though."
"Well, this chain will either do that, or open the door to go further," Karliah announced.
"Maybe both," Clark agreed. "just let us all get clear of the chest before you pull it."
Two hidden doors, not one, opened when Karliah pulled the chain. Clark checked for signs of life in each direction before picking one at random. They followed the tunnel round in a circle and came back to the same room with the chest, before doing it again, and taking a different turn half-way. The second time around there was a Falmer waiting for them, but Clark detected him before he could do anything and the archers made sure he didn't.
"And I'm detecting a lot more of his friends just up ahead. I'll go first, with my ward and shield. Archers right behind behind me, please, and Gilda, guard the rear. If there are any more hidden doors they could get behind us."
Clark rapidly discovered that he was the least sneaky of the party, especially when using his ward. That made him everybody's target, and when the shaman blinded everyone's vision with a cloud of frost, it was hard to see the incoming arrows, or to send ones back. Yes, Karliah and Bryjolf had taken two of the Falmer archers out of the picture, but just about all of them had a bow.
Clark already knew that arrows hurt you twice, as they needed to be pulled out before you could heal. He was reminded that cursing all archers wasn't a good idea when half your party used a bow.
"If we meet another group further in," he decided, "We'll try another tactic. Instead of using my ward to counter the shaman, I'd like you two to prevent the blinding spells before they get cast. Since this outfit also gives me a lot of magicka regeneration, I'll use fireballs to follow up your arrows. Hopefully it will make it hard for them to fire back with any accuracy. I know you can't blind a Falmer, but fireballs are also loud, so maybe they'll have the same effect."
It worked, but maybe not as well as he'd hoped. He couldn't send fireballs in all directions, and once the initial disorientation of the attack had passed, they were soon shooting at him again. However, now he could at least see the incoming arrows, and had a chance to dodge, or deflect them with his shield.
After passing under a waterfall, the passages were becoming more Dwemer ruin, and less cave, again. They were starting to see pipework, and the floor was paved, although more like a street than the floor of a hall. They were probably passing between buildings, rather than through them, although there's less of a distinction underground.
And Clark guessed that they were quite close to Morrowind, now. They'd been travelling East, as well as down, for some time. There were signs that this tunnel might have been used as a route between Morrowind and Skyrim. He recalled that Valus Passage, the cave where the Mythic Dawn had held Ystrel, had been used that way until it collapsed. That had lead from Morrowind to Cyrodiil, of course, but it was in part of the same range of mountains as this one.
He noticed a mouldy journal lying next to a skeleton near the path. It told him that the party had indeed come from Morrowind, fleeing the effects of the Red Mountain eruption. It looked like they'd run into Falmer, and their Chaurus pets. It was hard to tell a Falmer skeleton from a Dunmer one, but the empty shells of the Chaurus were unmistakable.
Another journal, perhaps written just before their final battle, noted that they'd decided to take a stand in the large room the party had just entered. There did seem to be enough debris to suggest a major convoy had been ambushed here, with broken carts and chests lying all around. A skeleton's outstreched hand appeared to be point to something.
"Is that the Crown?" Gilda exclaimed, noticing a glint of shiny metal in the heap of debris.
Karliah could see it too, and she was closer. Brynjolf lifted a big chunk of broken timber, and Karliah reached under and pulled the shiny object out. As she did so, three spectral figures appeared in the room, and attacked!
They appeared to be the ghosts of the caravan guards, as they were dressed in Elven Armour. At least one was a battlemage, and Clark was regretting his decision not to use his ward at all times. It took a few vital seconds to raise it, and they'd been taken by surprise.
But the Dunmer ghosts were out-numbered, and out-matched. Clark's shield served well enough, and everyone in his party had an enchanted weapon, and better armour than their adveraries.
"Now we have to find our way back out," Brynjolf reminded them, "without paying a visit to Morrowind."
---
"That went a lot easier than I expected," Karliah told her father. "Detecting the Falmer with that spell of yours meant they didn't get to drop down behind us, like they usually do."
Clark rubbed the sore spots on his shoulder that reminded him it hadn't been easy for everyone. "But Gilda and I wouldn't have been able to deal with them so easily without your bows. So bringing you and Brynjolf along was just as important."
"Having the right team for a job, always makes it easier, lass" Brynjolf concurred. "And that's why Nocturnal wanted us for her Nightingales."
"You were a Nightingale, once, weren't you, Father. Why did you give that up?"
"Because of you. Your mother and I retired to raise you. Dralsi went back to being a Nightingale after, but I didn't. I'd become one before I was made immortal, and it was part of the oath that you'd serve Nocturnal after death, which no longer applied. Since she was the one, or rather one of the two, who did that, I figured that she'd anulled my oath. Azura had an equal claim on me, too."
"So you're still bound to Nocturnal, but in a different way?"
"I wouldn't call it bound. She deserves my devotion, so she gets it."
"Do I deserve some?" Gilda asked.
"Not until we get home," Clark responded.
This was great fun to read because Buffy clears Tolvald’s cave for fun with some regularity (I have dungeons set to respawn every three game days), so it is pleasantly familiar. Always interesting to see how others deal with the same challenges she faces.
Poor Clark was kinda screwed at one point. He needed his ward vs that shaman, but enemy archers just love foes who toss up such a nice bright target (ward). Clark does have a talent, however, for choosing the right party with the right skills for the job – and this dungeon crawl was no exception.
Nice job!
Poor Clark was kinda screwed at one point. He needed his ward vs that shaman, but enemy archers just love foes who toss up such a nice bright target (ward). Clark does have a talent, however, for choosing the right party with the right skills for the job – and this dungeon crawl was no exception.
Nice job!
The gang may have seen the remains of my Riften guard Sergeant Gregor Gregorsson in there. Tolvald’s Cave is where he fell to a snow bear.
Clark’s dilemma of how to curse only certain archers made me chuckle. Jerric can relate. Ooo, Bear Riders reference!
I love following Clark’s reasoning as he thinks through the challenges. Definitely more fun for me than for Clark, as reading the adventure did not give me a sore shoulder.
Clark’s dilemma of how to curse only certain archers made me chuckle. Jerric can relate.
Ooo, Bear Riders reference! I love following Clark’s reasoning as he thinks through the challenges. Definitely more fun for me than for Clark, as reading the adventure did not give me a sore shoulder.
Acadian: Clark appreciates having choices.
Grits: Lots of remains in that place. It would be hard to distinguish fresh ones from older ones. Clark is used to being a pincushion when archers are around, but he doesn't like it.
---------------
Previously: Clark and Gilda had finished collecting all Stones of Barenziah, and then took Brynjolf and Katriah with them to collect the crown from Tolvald's cave.
---------------
Part 84 - Arkngthamz
Vex was delighted to see the Crown again. "I'll get Madesi to help put this all back together again, and we'll put it on display down in the Cistern. It will be just the thing to boost Guild morale."
"You've got quite a collection down there already, haven't you?" Clark inquired. Gilda had already told him about the things she'd gathered for Delvin.
Vex admitted that part of it was to restore the balance, so that Delvin wouldn't get all the glory, but the Crown was supposed to have magical properties in its complete state, that would be particularly helpful to the Guild. Something about the Crown attracting gems, so they'd find more in their loot.
---
"Doesn't it bug you that you did all the work, and Vex and Delvin take all the credit?" Clark asked Gilda.
"No, because I'm the Guildmaster, and they're doing it for the Guild. Each collection is their responsibility to organise, and who does the collecting is secondary. It's just a coincidence that I found everything in Delvin's set. Any of the others could have brought things in. And I only found a few of the Stones. I think you found more than I did."
"True, and Jordis, Brelyna, Mjoll and Lydia aren't even in the Guild. They all found stones for us."
"Exactly. Now, what I'm going to do next, I do expect full recognition for."
---
"Here's something we could do together," Clark announced. "I picked this old book up in Ilinalta Deep when we went looking for Azura's Star, and I haven't found the place it mentions. It's one of the Dwemer ruins, and I thought we might ask Mjoll if she's heard of it."
"What's the name? I might even know about it myself," Gilda replied.
"Arkngthamz. I hope I pronounced that right."
"Better ask Mjoll."
Mjoll didn't know where that one was either. "But I see the book says it's in the Reach. I haven't done much ruin-hunting there. I was working my way west when I got interrupted at Mzinchaleft."
"We could ask Calcelmo," Clark suggested.
"Or Aicantar," Gilda added with a wistful smile. "He's a lot more helpful than his uncle."
---
"I'll take care of Clark while you go and see Aicantar," Vicuña told Gilda. "Take your time. He needs to check the books, too."
Clark hadn't been back to the Markarth brothel more than a couple of times since he bought it. The last time, Rhiada had just had her baby, and now he was just starting to try and walk. He was called Eltrys, after his late father, but the name "Junior" had stuck.
"I'm still working hard on the books, but I do get to lie down from time to time, now." Rhiada laughed, as she steered Junior around the table.
"How's Betrid doing?" Clark asked.
"She's still a bit difficult. Letting the men spank her for a few extra septims has helped, but she still complains that half of them don't know how to do it properly."
"So should we give a class, and maybe charge a bit for the lessons? Betrid would be happier, and we'd make some more income out of the problem."
---
Gilda returned several hours later to find a semi-circle of men watching Clark, who was sitting on a chair with Betrid across his knees. When Clark had finished the demonstration, and let the first of the trainees try his hand, she finally got to pass on what Aicantar had told her.
"There's a ruin out past Dushnik Yal, that's probably this Arkngthamz. It's starting to cave in, with the rock it was built into being eroded by the river than runs through it. Calcelmo decided it was too unstable to investigate, and he was too busy with Nchuand-Zel, anyway."
"I presume there will be the usual automata and Falmer to deal with, or were they bright enough to move out?"
"He didn't say. We should probably assume there are still some left."
---
When they found the ruins, the ground outside was shaking. Presumably, deeper in, something had just collapsed. They went in anyway. The entrance building looked solid enough and they'd evaluate the risks when they could see them.
Not far in, they heard a woman's voice, advising them to turn back. Not surprisingly, they didn't, as now they wanted to find out whose voice it was, and maybe help her leave, too.
When they emerged from the first few corridors, some of which were leaning over at an angle, they found themselves in a large cavern that appeared to be the centre of the collapse. Where one wall of the hall would have been, was now a deep pit, and rocks were falling from the roof into water at the bottom. They could hear the splashes, even before they reached the edge to look down.
And a ghostly figure had just materialised in front of them. "You're persistent," she told them, "but if you keep going, you'll end up like me."
She pointed down at a rock in the middle of the river. A woman's body, dressed in the steel armour that all housecarls seemed to start with, lay on the rock. "That's where I fell to. You'll probably want to read my journal, if you're intending to keep going. It will explain a lot."
They could reach the rock by walking down a fallen column that had wedged itself between the rock and the edge of the platform they were on. From there, other pieces of masonry and pipework could be scaled to go further into the ruin.
Katria's journal held a sketched map of Skyrim with this, and a number of other Dwemer sites marked on it. There were notes from her research, and a diagram of the front of a building in the ruin.
"That's the tonal lock puzzle I was working on when the Falmer interrupted me," Katria added. "I ran away from them, back into the main chamber, but lost my footing on a wet log, and fell all the way down here. I was so close!"
"This is deeper into the ruin, but it's above us?"
"Yes, once we go into this part of the building, we go up some stairs, and come out again further up. Then there are ramps along the walls of the cavern, and you reach another chamber above this one. I can show you the way, but I won't be much help against the Falmer or the spheres and spiders in the buildings. The best I can manage is to distract them. They can hear me as well as you do, I assume."
It turned out that she was quite good at that. If she fired an arrow in their direction, they could hear it, just as if a more solid archer had fired it. Then Gilda could sneak behind them and strike more effectively.
It took a long time to climb up through the large cavern, but eventually they reached the upper chamber. The roof of that had obviously caved in a long time ago, and trees were growing in the light that poured in from above.
"There's my bow!" Katria exclaimed. "Out there, on the log. That's where I fell from, so be careful when you fetch it."
Since Clark didn't use a bow, and Gilda couldn't, they probably would have just left it there, but Katria was so insistent that it was a special bow. And when Clark finally did retrieve it, she was right. Zephyr had an enchantment for rapid fire, a unique one that neither Clark nor Gilda had seen before. Katria didn't remember where she'd got it, or if it had any Daedric connections. "I probably found it in a chest in a cave somewhere. You know how that happens."
Grits: Lots of remains in that place. It would be hard to distinguish fresh ones from older ones. Clark is used to being a pincushion when archers are around, but he doesn't like it.
---------------
Previously: Clark and Gilda had finished collecting all Stones of Barenziah, and then took Brynjolf and Katriah with them to collect the crown from Tolvald's cave.
---------------
Part 84 - Arkngthamz
Vex was delighted to see the Crown again. "I'll get Madesi to help put this all back together again, and we'll put it on display down in the Cistern. It will be just the thing to boost Guild morale."
"You've got quite a collection down there already, haven't you?" Clark inquired. Gilda had already told him about the things she'd gathered for Delvin.
Vex admitted that part of it was to restore the balance, so that Delvin wouldn't get all the glory, but the Crown was supposed to have magical properties in its complete state, that would be particularly helpful to the Guild. Something about the Crown attracting gems, so they'd find more in their loot.
---
"Doesn't it bug you that you did all the work, and Vex and Delvin take all the credit?" Clark asked Gilda.
"No, because I'm the Guildmaster, and they're doing it for the Guild. Each collection is their responsibility to organise, and who does the collecting is secondary. It's just a coincidence that I found everything in Delvin's set. Any of the others could have brought things in. And I only found a few of the Stones. I think you found more than I did."
"True, and Jordis, Brelyna, Mjoll and Lydia aren't even in the Guild. They all found stones for us."
"Exactly. Now, what I'm going to do next, I do expect full recognition for."
---
"Here's something we could do together," Clark announced. "I picked this old book up in Ilinalta Deep when we went looking for Azura's Star, and I haven't found the place it mentions. It's one of the Dwemer ruins, and I thought we might ask Mjoll if she's heard of it."
"What's the name? I might even know about it myself," Gilda replied.
"Arkngthamz. I hope I pronounced that right."
"Better ask Mjoll."
Mjoll didn't know where that one was either. "But I see the book says it's in the Reach. I haven't done much ruin-hunting there. I was working my way west when I got interrupted at Mzinchaleft."
"We could ask Calcelmo," Clark suggested.
"Or Aicantar," Gilda added with a wistful smile. "He's a lot more helpful than his uncle."
---
"I'll take care of Clark while you go and see Aicantar," Vicuña told Gilda. "Take your time. He needs to check the books, too."
Clark hadn't been back to the Markarth brothel more than a couple of times since he bought it. The last time, Rhiada had just had her baby, and now he was just starting to try and walk. He was called Eltrys, after his late father, but the name "Junior" had stuck.
"I'm still working hard on the books, but I do get to lie down from time to time, now." Rhiada laughed, as she steered Junior around the table.
"How's Betrid doing?" Clark asked.
"She's still a bit difficult. Letting the men spank her for a few extra septims has helped, but she still complains that half of them don't know how to do it properly."
"So should we give a class, and maybe charge a bit for the lessons? Betrid would be happier, and we'd make some more income out of the problem."
---
Gilda returned several hours later to find a semi-circle of men watching Clark, who was sitting on a chair with Betrid across his knees. When Clark had finished the demonstration, and let the first of the trainees try his hand, she finally got to pass on what Aicantar had told her.
"There's a ruin out past Dushnik Yal, that's probably this Arkngthamz. It's starting to cave in, with the rock it was built into being eroded by the river than runs through it. Calcelmo decided it was too unstable to investigate, and he was too busy with Nchuand-Zel, anyway."
"I presume there will be the usual automata and Falmer to deal with, or were they bright enough to move out?"
"He didn't say. We should probably assume there are still some left."
---
When they found the ruins, the ground outside was shaking. Presumably, deeper in, something had just collapsed. They went in anyway. The entrance building looked solid enough and they'd evaluate the risks when they could see them.
Not far in, they heard a woman's voice, advising them to turn back. Not surprisingly, they didn't, as now they wanted to find out whose voice it was, and maybe help her leave, too.
When they emerged from the first few corridors, some of which were leaning over at an angle, they found themselves in a large cavern that appeared to be the centre of the collapse. Where one wall of the hall would have been, was now a deep pit, and rocks were falling from the roof into water at the bottom. They could hear the splashes, even before they reached the edge to look down.
And a ghostly figure had just materialised in front of them. "You're persistent," she told them, "but if you keep going, you'll end up like me."
She pointed down at a rock in the middle of the river. A woman's body, dressed in the steel armour that all housecarls seemed to start with, lay on the rock. "That's where I fell to. You'll probably want to read my journal, if you're intending to keep going. It will explain a lot."
They could reach the rock by walking down a fallen column that had wedged itself between the rock and the edge of the platform they were on. From there, other pieces of masonry and pipework could be scaled to go further into the ruin.
Katria's journal held a sketched map of Skyrim with this, and a number of other Dwemer sites marked on it. There were notes from her research, and a diagram of the front of a building in the ruin.
"That's the tonal lock puzzle I was working on when the Falmer interrupted me," Katria added. "I ran away from them, back into the main chamber, but lost my footing on a wet log, and fell all the way down here. I was so close!"
"This is deeper into the ruin, but it's above us?"
"Yes, once we go into this part of the building, we go up some stairs, and come out again further up. Then there are ramps along the walls of the cavern, and you reach another chamber above this one. I can show you the way, but I won't be much help against the Falmer or the spheres and spiders in the buildings. The best I can manage is to distract them. They can hear me as well as you do, I assume."
It turned out that she was quite good at that. If she fired an arrow in their direction, they could hear it, just as if a more solid archer had fired it. Then Gilda could sneak behind them and strike more effectively.
It took a long time to climb up through the large cavern, but eventually they reached the upper chamber. The roof of that had obviously caved in a long time ago, and trees were growing in the light that poured in from above.
"There's my bow!" Katria exclaimed. "Out there, on the log. That's where I fell from, so be careful when you fetch it."
Since Clark didn't use a bow, and Gilda couldn't, they probably would have just left it there, but Katria was so insistent that it was a special bow. And when Clark finally did retrieve it, she was right. Zephyr had an enchantment for rapid fire, a unique one that neither Clark nor Gilda had seen before. Katria didn't remember where she'd got it, or if it had any Daedric connections. "I probably found it in a chest in a cave somewhere. You know how that happens."
Gilda’s attitude about who gets credit for TG stuff speaks highly of her character and leadership. 
When seeking an unknown Dwemer ruin, I like how they went to Mjoll who suggested Calcelmo for info. Then I laughed when it seems clear that Gilda finds Aicantar more. . . palatable.
Clark the spanking instructor.
Katria’s quest!
Leave it to Clark to figure out how to best use the combat skills of a ghost. I wonder if the ghostly Katria will tempt him into necrophilia.
Nits:
- ’...Crown was supposed to have magical properties in its complete state, that would be particuarly {particularly} helpful to the Guild.’
- "We could ask Cancelmo, {Calcelmo?}"
- ’Cancelmo {Calcelmo again} decided it was too unstable to investigate, and he was too busy with Nchuand-Zel, anyway."
When seeking an unknown Dwemer ruin, I like how they went to Mjoll who suggested Calcelmo for info. Then I laughed when it seems clear that Gilda finds Aicantar more. . . palatable.
Clark the spanking instructor.
Katria’s quest!
Leave it to Clark to figure out how to best use the combat skills of a ghost. I wonder if the ghostly Katria will tempt him into necrophilia. Nits:
- ’...Crown was supposed to have magical properties in its complete state, that would be particuarly {particularly} helpful to the Guild.’
- "We could ask Cancelmo, {Calcelmo?}"
- ’Cancelmo {Calcelmo again} decided it was too unstable to investigate, and he was too busy with Nchuand-Zel, anyway."
Oops! I've been spelling Calcelmo's name wrong since part 11. At least I was consistent!
This is a "lo-fi" version of our main content. To view the full version with more information, formatting and images, please click here.