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SPOILER INFO
This fanfic novel is largely based on the events that occurred in an actual game of Skyrim I played. Therefore, it's inevitably a spoiler.
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previous day
4-202-03-21 10:45
Gautierre Manor, Bruma County, Cyrodiil
I had planned to go to Bruma today, but looking at the map, I realize Fort Pale Pass is so near that we can go and give that innkeeper some motherworts he asked us to gather the last ime, see if we can find that Stormcloak agent whom Olaf mentioned, and find out what it is Legate Precilius Varro wants from us. Then we can travel to the city or, who knows, maybe even return to Skyrim? At least we ought to locate the border crossing which we somehow forgot to do the last time.
The weather is very nice. Without meeting anybody along the scenic mountain road, we reach Snowstone Rest.
We give the innkeeper the herbs, politely decline the elven bard's offer to sing for us, and move on northwards. As I had guessed, the Stormcloak agent is hiding in that citadel halfway between the inn and the fort. His name is Ungveir and he is quite friendly, as well as good-looking, except for the hairstyle. I tell him Olaf and I retrieved the Imperial secret agents' reports and I have them on me. However, I am going to bring them to Windhelm myself.
Ungveir is clearly not a fanatic who wants to continue the war. In fact, he's not at all happy being away from Skyrim. I ask him if he has a family. He says he hasn't but is looking forward to establishing one with his sweetheart in Riften.
I inform him I'm going to Bruma where I'll try to find the Imperial agent who was supposed to be the contact person for that courier who lost his life. I want to see if I can make him reveal something interesting. Ungveir should return to Skyrim or wait for me on this side of the border, whichever he believes to be safer. Under no circumstances may he fall into the hands of the Imperials.
Ungveir says he can easily hide in the Serpent's Trail and he'll wait for my return from Bruma. Then we can decide if he's going to return alone to the Falkreath Stormcloak Camp where he was stationed or we'll travel to Skyrim together. Technically, the Imperial soldiers in Fort Neugrad aren't supposed to bother him, but there's no way of telling if there may be more thalmors lurking north of the border.
If it wasn't so cold, I might stay a little longer with Ungveir, but now I just urge him to be extremely careful. The girls and I proceed to the fort.
To be honest, I haven't been quite sure we wouldn't find ourselves surrounded by secret police agents upon reaching Fort Pale Pass. But there is nothing of the sort.
All Precilius wants is for us to venture into the ancient Akaviri ruins in the ground below this fortress and try to kill the many frightening undead residing there.
I'm unsure if we should do it now. I've been rather keen to travel to the city today so we could actually get something useful done. At any rate, we'll go and find that official border crossing first. It shouldn't be far. We'd better not return to Skyrim without finding out more about that weird magical forcefield first, but I want at least to know where the border post is.
We follow the road north, slightly uphill. The border gate is just a few minutes away from the fort. The two soldiers guarding it are formally polite but evidently not allowed to chat with travelers.
After a brief stop at the Snowstone Rest, we run towards Bruma. We take the off-road route this time, more or less in the straight line. We encounter a mage who is reviving corpses of soldiers killed in a skirmish with the bandits or something. We kill her, after which the zombie she has just conjured dies by itself.
A little later we discover a tent with a campfire. There's a woman Ovacca who says she's an ex-bandit who quit, and now her former gang members led by a certain Cornelius are chasing her.
I offer to kill him. Maybe he's the same bastard who was harassing the blacksmith's brother.
Ovacca is doubtful, but evidently can't afford to turn down any help offers. So she marks the location of their base on my map. Maybe Cornelius is there, maybe he's somewhere else searching for her. She can't come with us, because she doesn't want her ex-comrades to have any clue as to her whereabouts. She's unsure if she should stay in the wilderness or try to disappear in the city. I have a better idea: why doesn't she come along to the Bruma Eastern Watchtower? Ereia owes me a favor. She can look after Ovacca and Ovacca can help the guards.
Ovacca remains silent for a long time and eyes us most thoroughly. Then she decides we are trustworthy enough, and comes with us.
After I've arranged things with Ereia, we go to the stables that are just outside the city wall. I want to say hello to Ila and ask how she's doing. After a little chat, I mention casually that I encountered a strange mage named Razzada and does she know him. Ila says the man's a fraudster.
Obviously, Razzada can't claim payment for merchandise that was not of the promised value and indeed caused harm. The man ought to be punished. I make a mental note to take it up with the authorities at a suitable moment.
Having wished Ila a pleasant evening, we proceed to the palace where I ask to see Adius's successor. The guard at the entrance wants to know what it's about, and I tell him about Alammu and her late accomplice in the Frozen Grotto. The guard says we can take care of that by ourselves right now.
I give the guad the package I got from that overarousable elven man, warning him about the curse. He says not to worry, they'll ask Synod to send them an expert mage and then let Alammu open it in a safe place.
But first we go to the inn, the five of us. Alammu is there in blissful ignorance of her upcoming downfall.
She protests her innocence, but the guard acts as if he's not even hearing. He puts her in irons. I release my followers and follow Alammu. I could impossibly deny myself the pleasure of walking unhurriedly with the guard and the deceitful bitch all the way to the prison.
Before she's led to a cell, I get a chance to whisper to her that next time she'd better tell her accomplices that if they want me to do something, they ought to ask me first, and sneer and threaten only after I've refused.
The guard thanks me and promises he'll take care of the investigation. I strongly suspect they knew something about Alammu already and I just gave them a welcome excuse for arresting her, but he won't tell me anything.
I catch up with an Orc serving girl Urma on the staircase and find out she's from Skyrim and her brothers would be shocked to see her here, but they can go to hell with their age-old traditions for all she cares.
Now I go to the steward Rignar and report on the destruction of those goblins, and he gives me my reward. I also catch Count Desilus at the dinner table and show him an Akaviri katana I have picked up somewhere. Remember, when I recovered his stolen collection from the bandits, the katana was missing. I ask if this katana is his. He says it's of the same kind but not the same katana, and would I sell it to him. I tell him he can just take it, and reward me now or in the future in whatever way he finds appropriate. He is almost touched to tears and assures me I can always turn to him, should I need anything. He asks me if I've already eaten. I'm not really hungry, but I agree to sit with him and eat a little. Sinja and Afanna join us after a while, but I can see that Afanna doesn't like me any longer. Clearly she was friendly with me only in the hope that I'll denounce Simund, and after I let him off the hook, she has no more use for me. Too bad, but I don't believe in forcing people into friendship, and neither do I think it's right to destroy a man just because he has rejected you. I hope she'll be able to get over this one day and we can be friends again. Maybe she hasn't a very commendable character, but she's amazingly interesting to talk to. You have no idea.
It's getting late. I had actually planned on doing my smithing and alchemy today, but I still have one call to make. I go to The Restful Watchman inn and let a man named Servus Vodaci chat me up. He asks if I've seen a guy called Caius or Claudius or something. He must be the agent the unfortunate courier was supposed to give the secret documents to.
I try to coax some information out of him. I have to be extremely careful, so he wouldn't guess I actually know something about the dead courier, and so I fail to find out anything. He's a professional and knows how to not blab. Therefore, I excuse myself after a while and leave the inn.
On my way to the blacksmith's shop, I walk past the Synod headquarters, the com... con... whatever they call the place, and I remember I wanted to tell them about those crazy experimenters up on the mountain.
The boss, Cadius, agrees that it's very serious and I did the right thing coming here. However...
I learn that the Synod isn't some kind of a magic authority as I had assumed. They are just one organization and the lunatics up in that Frostspire Crag or Cragspire Frost belong to another organization, and the Synod has no power to go there with a dozen guards and have them all arrested. They would have to go maybe not quite to the Emperor himself, but the official way of dealing with the outrage in the Cragfrag-tower would be long and complicated. Unsurprisingly, there is another way. Me and my followers could just sneak in there and destroy a device called "teleportation portal". Cadius explains me how to do it and warns me not to get caught.
Just teasing him. I know such reckless madness can't be allowed to go on.
Now I go and find Dumrag. This morning in the bath, I discussed the case of his missing wife with my followers and Atul herself, and I think we came up with a pretty good story.
I tell him Simund was actually attracted to his wife. He hesitated to hire Dumrag and Atul for that bandit job. He was torn between the reluctance to put her in danger and the fear that if he won't give them a job, they might decide to leave Bruma and seek opportunities elsewhere. Eventually he came to a decision to hire them. He was devastated when the bandits proved too strong and actually overwhelmed his task force of mercenaries.
Only several months later did another group of mercenaries hired by another of the nobles succeed in defeating those bandits. The surviving bandits told they had captured an Orc woman during that disastrous raid organized by Simund. They intended to sell her... well, after enjoying her themselves first, but somehow she succeeded breaking out of her cage and was killed while trying to escape. They buried her somewhere in the woods. Simund realized it had been Atul, but he wouldn't tell anyone, fearing that Dumrag would hear about it and accuse him of causing her death.
Dumrag asks to see Simund's journal. I tell him I had to give it back to the serving girl who had stolen it, because if Simund had noticed it missing, she would have been the most likely suspect. The truth is, of course, that I still have the journal on me, but there's no way I can show Dumrag what Simund really wrote about Atul.
Dumrag accepts with some reluctance that the only thing Simund is guilty of is desire for another man's wife, and that her grave will be impossible to find. He murmurs some more curses at the Bretons who are such swine. I suggest that Cyrodiil is generally a crappy place, with all the greed and corruption, and he might want to consider traveling to Hammerfell where I hear there is currently great demand in mercenaries. Dumrag agrees that this might be an idea worth considering.
This taken care of, I can finally get started working on our gear. That lasts several hours, so it's almost morning by the time I can finally go to sleep.
Lydia is already in our bed – without a man, fortunately. Jordis and Jenassa will be in their room. Or somewhere else.
next awakening
