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talldarkandroguesome · 4 years ago

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1st of Frostfall, Fredas

Well, it was certainly a day full of surprises.

First, while Seryn and I were discussing how she witnessed a terrible misunderstanding with a Hlaalu trader who was convinced that one of the Ahemmusa wise women was, in fact, the most handsome man he had ever seen and he was trying, in the most humoursless pathetic ways to woo her, we saw three figures approaching in House Dunmer attire. No armor, so likely not soldiers, but clearly in clothing typical of someone associated with life in a House city.

Of course, the first time we finally manage to get Seryn off the subject of her concern over her brother’s strange behavior and here comes trouble with the House mer. I had finally managed to get her to really relax and enjoy herself since we arrived, and now this!

As they drew closer, I realized there was something familiar about one of them. As they neared further, I immediately recognized the red hair of none other than Tel! I could easily guess that the two with them were Nenet and Gethan.

Knowing that they would be up to something, I made my approach, with Seryn along with me. I began to explain to Seryn that I knew them and that they were not planning any harm, though they were the type of House mer who was foolish enough to believe their own culture superior and blinded to the value of others. I made some comments about their naive and blind adherence to Almsivi, who they served, and how as long as you left matters of personal belief out of it, there were really of no harm.

Of course, we had approached during my explanation of this, but I had felt no compulsion to hold back, since I was speaking in Velothis. I knew that Tel knew none of the language, most House mer do not bother learning any Velothis at all. Not even those studying Chimer history and religion. Then there was Nenet and she just did not seem the type. It is rare enough for a Dunmer outside of the Velothi to speak Velothis, so a Redguard, even were she to have been raised within Morrowind, was even less likely to understand. So I felt rather confident in speaking freely in Velothis.

Which it turned out, Gethan was able to understand, as he explained immediately upon my finishing to speak.

It was all rather embarrassing, but Seryn took it as a good laugh and Gethan did not make a scene over it all, so really it was just my own shame I had to contend with. Only made worse by the fact that Gethan had been so very polite about the whole thing, making me the seeming arse of the whole affair. Which, of course, I was.

Nenet asked, well, more demanded, to know what I was doing here. I told her I was here on business and asked her what brought her here. She replied in kind, it was business, to which I assured her that there were no cults to be found here. I was immediately defensive of what actions she might be about to take.

To her credit, Nenet said she was not there for cultists. So I asked then what she might be there for. She said they were looking for the Red Exiles, but that the group had been hostile, so they were coming to learn what they could about them.

I inquired what it was about them she would want to know. And so we continued this slow needling of ask and response until it was mentioned that they were interested in a staff that the Red Exiles had acquired from some cultists.

Now it was all beginning to make sense. Sensing there might be more to this than meets the eye, I suggested we take the conversation away from the growing number of eyes that befell us.

Seryn invited the whole lot of them back to her yurt and I am sure she was soon as thankful as I was that we were not where all could see and hear us.

And it was a good thing that we did. For Nenet began to push more and more about the staff and asked if I knew anything about such a thing. I asked if she might describe it for me, noting that Seryn was happier to have me speak, though I looked to her expression to temper my responses, not wishing to divulge anything she was not prepared to share. I kept my answers mostly vague for that reason.

Nenet held out a paper with a drawing of the staff on it. I did think it looked rather familiar. More familiar than the drawing, however, was the handwriting upon the page. I knew it, for I had in my possession another page authored by the same hand. It was Chodala’s.

I read the writing on the page aloud, as if to myself, wanting for Seryn to be able to hear it. I wanted her to know I wanted to share as much with her as possible, while also not needing to make it a whole production. They need not know if she could read or not, nor did I want her to have any cause for embarrassment. The writing mentioned needing to have the Red Exiles get the staff and of its great power. I watched Seryn’s expression out of the corner of my eye, seeing that she was certainly putting together the pieces for herself.

Nenet pressed me again about if I knew of the staff. I told her that I had seen a mer, who was not a Red Exile, carrying the staff away from the Red Exile camp. She tried to push me for more, but I asked her instead if the staff was dangerous.

She was cagey, not wanting to show her hand. So I knew there was something big to be learned and I continued to ask, as though I were very concerned, not that I was not, but I played it up as though perhaps it was a friend of mine.

Still she only tried to dig deeper. I knew that this was going to take a long time and though Tel was there, I felt it was best to use my birthgift to get straight to the point. I told her to explain everything to me.

To say it was a surprise, would be the understatement of an era.

As it turned out, things in Vivec were bad. Very bad. The tremors we had been feelings, simply the warning of things to come. As it turned out, the situation was rather dire. For the staff they were search for had the ability to siphon off Vivec’s power to the wielder. That it had been making Vehk weak and if left as it was, the Warrior Poet would be unable to keep Red Mountain slumbering.

It was interesting to note the look of surprise on both of the out of uniform Armigers. So apparently Nenet was in close association with Vehk. I could not guess why. As Seryn and I exchanged glances, Nenet turned to Tel and Gethan and apologized for not telling them. She said that only the arch canon and one other serving under Vivec knew and that she had been told to stay quiet, lest it alarm Vivec’s followers.

Well, a bit late for that, Nenet. Gethan looked pale and gave a series of whimperous cries, clutching his heart and looking about to faint. It was all a bit over the top and I had to try not to do anything but looked alarmed myself.

In truth, my mind was racing to the consequences this would have, not so much on Housemer religion, but rather, the horrifying realization that if it came to light that the Ashkhan of any Velothi tribe was stealing Vivec’s power it would insight the Houses to arms. Already there is a very tenuous peace in Vvardenfell between the Houses and the tribes, with the Houses wanting to take all of the tribal lands for themselves. This would be all the excuse needed for my bloodshed. If one thinks what happened to the Zainab outside of Balmora was bad, this would be more than just a singular massacre, it would be a holocaust against the Velothi people. They would be far outnumbered and I do not even want to think of the devastation it would cause.

I knew that Seryn, being a diplomat herself, would be thinking much the same as I. Not to mention that, with Ald’ruhn so close to Red Mountain, its eruption would affect this sacred gathering place more than most anywhere else.

Seryn, overcome by emotion, eventually just said she could not believe that her brother would be stealing Vivec’s powers. At that point, I knew that she was going to show her hand as well, so I let her be the one to share her brother’s ambitions, his change in personality, her apprehensions, and even the things which I had discovered at the Red Exile camp. I offered the page I found at her behest.

By the end, Nenet and the others knew about as much as we did. Seryn was clearly upset, though her face did not show it, the change in her posture was clear, so it did not surprise me when she made to leave.

Nenet went after her and I followed her, with the others behind me.

So the whole group of us made our way to the wise woman’s yurt. Only to find that the wise woman and Chodala both had been there while we were all in Seryn’s yurt and had since left. Chodala to prepare for his Nerevarine trials and the wise woman to convene with Azura.

Seryn made to go after the wise woman and Nenet demanded to go with. Seryn said she could not come and Nanet would not take no for an answer. The whole situation digressed into an argument about who was going to be seeing the wise woman and I could not take the aggression. It was too likely to lead to violence. I have no idea how capable or not Nenet is, since Vehk has put confidence in her.

Besides, there are some aspects of Velothi life that are secret outside of those in particular roles within society. As a wise woman in training, I can only assume that much of what Seryn would want to discuss would need to remain secret from all.

All the while, the bickering continued, Seryn was clearly getting very frustrated by the fact that Nenet would not listen to her reasons for needing to go alone and Nenet was refusing to not do as she was asked of.

So I interceded.

With my birthgift.

I do not know how often I have made use of it on so many people at once. still, I bade everyone to calm down, stock bickering, and to have a proper meal and drink together before further discussion. I figured that some of the nerves might be eased by a rest and nourishment. I felt like I was with the children again when nap time is close and a meal well needed.

We all headed back to Seryn’s yurt. As the host, Seryn went to cook. The others, I kept an eye on as I began to write.

I know things will wear off soon, but I am hoping food and drinks and some time in silence will help them all to understand that cooperation is the only way forward.

#ESO #TES #RP #Dunmer #Elder Scrolls Online #The Elder Scrolls

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soulstealer1987 · 7 years ago

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Arc 2, Chapter 6

Ziist Grozein

Erandur and Gallus stop by the Shrine of Azura before heading out, and I should mention this now... just because Gallus doesn't see Karliah, doesn't mean she's not there. In fact, you should probably just always assume Karliah's around unless it's explicitly stated she's not. Of course, Gallus wouldn't know, so... just assume she's around.

Crossposted from AO3. Masterpost is here.

Arc 2: A Dream of Despair

Arc 2, Chapter 5 ~ Arc 2, Chapter 7

When Gallus and Erandur reach the Shrine of Azura, Aranea’s sitting on the steps waiting for them. She glances up as they approach, gets up, and smiles in greeting.

“You found the mage?” Aranea asks, although it’s clear from the way she asks it that it’s something of a rhetorical question. Gallus nods anyway. (Then again, she can see the future, apparently, so…) “Good. While you were gone, you should know that I received a vision from Azura.” The way she says that gives Gallus pause, but not Erandur.

“What was the vision about?” Erandur asks, quietly. Aranea smiles again, although this time sadly.

“Azura requested for me to accompany you on this quest, when you returned,” Aranea says in a small voice. “She assured me that the Shrine would not come to any harm while I was gone, but I…” She trails off.

“I know what you mean,” Erandur says, stepping up and offering Aranea a comforting smile. (Actually, come to think of it, they’ve been smiling a lot while they’re around each other… but Gallus figures that could be just because they’re close friends. There might be nothing more going on. And Gallus might be a Restoration mage.) “After Nightcaller Temple was cleansed, I had no plans to move on. But I’d agreed to help Gallus with something, and here we are.”

“I will come,” Aranea says with a sort of finality in her words. Even so, she sounds partially excited and partially miserable. Gallus couldn’t say which one’s more evident if he tried. “I just- I need some time. This will be the first time I’ve left the Shrine since escaping Morrowind.”

Erandur nods.

“Take as long as you need, Aranea,” Erandur says gently. “We’ll wait down the path a bit.”

She nods, gratitude in her eyes before she turns. As she takes the steps back up to the shrine, Erandur and Gallus go back down the path just far enough for the Shrine of Azura to pass out of view. Erandur takes a seat on a rock, and after a moment, Gallus takes a seat next to him.

Later, Gallus might come to regret getting involved in his friend’s love life but, considering that it’s painfully obvious that these two have feelings for each other and he highly doubts either of them are going to make a move, he might as well try to help things along. Assuming priests of Mara and priestesses of Azura are allowed to have love lives.

(Well, considering that Mara is one of the two goddesses of love in the Imperial pantheon, and Azura is widely considered to be one of the more benevolent Daedric Princes, Gallus thinks there’s a pretty good chance this could work.)

“So,” Gallus begins, glancing Erandur’s way with a knowing look crossing his features. Erandur meets his gaze with one of confusion, and Gallus realizes far too late that maybe he was far too vague. He quickly adds, “You like her, don’t you?”

“Well, yes, she’s a close friend of mine and I…” He trails off as he realizes what Gallus actually means, and groans. “Damn. Is it really that obvious?”

“I’m pretty good at reading people, so it might not be,” Gallus shrugs.

“That’s encouraging,” Erandur mumbles, then glances back the way they came. “She’s coming.”

Fortunately for Erandur, she is indeed coming, but this is not going to be the end of this, not if Gallus has anything to say in the matter.

(He’s not actually sure why he cares so much about someone else’s love life, to be honest.)

(Maybe it’s because he can’t remember what his own was like, or if he even had one.)

(Maybe it’s because they remind him of someone, subconsciously, although it’s not like he would have any idea who.)

By some unexpected stroke of luck, the group - now comprising of Gallus, Erandur, and Aranea - makes it back to Winterhold just in time to catch the carriage heading back to Whiterun. The driver’s not particularly happy about taking passengers from Winterhold, and says as much, but a little extra coin as well as some well-placed flattery on Gallus’ part helps to improve his disposition quite a bit.

(Gallus isn’t at all certain why he’s so good at influencing people when he actually wants to and actually tries to - which isn’t actually all that often - but considering that he’s been at least decent at getting on people’s good sides as long as he can remember, and there’s certain other skills that come a little easier than they should… he can take a guess.)

He'd hoped they'd be able to keep making as good of time, but unfortunately they'd just missed the outgoing carriage to Falkreath, and the Winterhold driver seemed to be getting antsy.

“Look, I like you lot, I really do,” the driver says. “But taking you three back to Whiterun with me when I'm already going that way is one thing. Falkreath is not just way out of my way, but it's on another driver’s route. You’re going to have to get off here.”

“We understand,” Gallus says smoothly. He gets up, then looks to the others. “Erandur, Aranea?”

Erandur nods, then leans over to shake Aranea’s shoulder. Her head’s buried in her arms, and she's clearly asleep. Gallus wishes he was that relaxed.

“Aranea?” Erandur says gently. Aranea lifts her head, blinks back sleep, and looks particularly confused until her gaze falls on Erandur. “We’re here.”

“I- right,” Aranea stutters, and offers Erandur a smile. “Thank you.”

Gallus is the first out. While Erandur quickly turns and helps Aranea down - not that she needs it, but he hears her whisper a thanks - Gallus walks around to the front of the wagon.

“I really can't thank you enough for helping us get here,” Gallus says genuinely. The driver doesn't say anything in return, not yet, but Gallus catches a hint of a smile as he leans over and pats his horse on the flank. “But we’ve still got a long way to go. You have any advice?”

“Well,” the driver still doesn't meet Gallus’ gaze, instead reaching into the saddlebags and pulling out an apple, which he promptly gives to his horse, “you lot do look like you can take care of yourselves. Am I wrong?”

“No.”

The driver smiles, “Mages?”

“Kind of,” Gallus shrugs. “They are. I know a little magic, but I mostly use it as a backup.”

“A spellsword, then. Nothing wrong with that.”

“Well, I- sure, I'm a spellsword,” Gallus says, despite having no idea what a spellsword even is. He’ll ask Erandur about it later. “What does this have to do with-”

“Right, right, just curious,” the driver says. “Well, if you follow the road and stop overnight in Riverwood or Helgen, it’ll take you about a day and a half to make it to Falkreath. The carriage would take only half a day, but I doubt it’ll get back for a few days, there's not a lot of traffic on the Falkreath route.”

“So you’re saying we’d be better off walking.”

“If you’re careful, and if you don't mind tangling with the bandits that tend to target travelers. There's three of you, so you might be okay, but keep your guard up once you’re past Helgen.”

The driver grins crookedly, and adds, “Of course, you didn't hear it from me.”

Getting to Falkreath is the easy part. Getting directions to Ilinalta’s Deep is significantly harder, and while Gallus pretends not to be unnerved by the prevailing local belief that the place is cursed, he's… definitely unnerved by it. He sincerely doubts that the place is actually cursed, but considering that travelers passing near have been known to disappear without a trace, there's definitely something going on.

“Necromancers,” Erandur concludes as they draw close to the shores of Lake Ilinalta. He sounds disgusted, and it's not hard to see why. “It all adds up.”

“Sounds like our friend Malyn Veren is continuing his ‘work’,” Gallus agrees. Before he can say anything else, Aranea whispers something under her breath in a language Gallus doesn't recognize - Dunmeris? Daedric? - and rushes forward.

“This is it,” Aranea says when the others catch up, although Gallus isn't certain if she's talking to him, Erandur, both of them, or maybe just herself. She turns to Gallus, and adds, “I've seen this place before, although I didn't realize its significance at the time. It's mostly dry inside, there should be a trapdoor somewhere on top.”

Ilinalta’s Deep, as it happens, is what results when an Imperial fort is built on the shores of a lake and part of the fort inexplicably collapses into said lake. The Imperial Legion abandoned the fort long ago, but as the group soon discovers, the interior is still very much intact. Aranea’s right, there is a trapdoor on top that they could use to get in, and did.

Unfortunately, Erandur’s hunch is also right: the place is crawling with necromancers.

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ttaikattalvi-blog · 8 years ago

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[rules: repost. always post the rules. answer the questions asked, then write 11 new ones. tag 11 people to answer your questions, as well as the person who tagged you]

Tagged by @thedalishbloodmage. Tagging everyone because I just chugged half a bottle of wine. 1) What was the last movie you saw? Was it any good? The last movie I saw in cinema was Wonder Woman. I went to go and see it with my mom, which was sort of odd—my mom and I don’t typically agree on movies and that sort of thing so we don’t often go and see them together. However, I did enjoy it. It was awfully nice to see David Thewlis in a big role again. Even though there were some flaws (nothing is perfect or exempt from analysis!), I’ll definitely watch it again and may even purchase a physical copy.

2) Is there a genre of books you like the most? What about when it comes to video games? This is an interesting question. For me, at least, it really depends on what an author is trying to accomplish. I’ve always been a voracious reader and will read nearly anything I can get my hands on. What it really boils down to whether or not the book or video game is an effective medium for whatever literature is being composed. For me, satire and world-building is incredibly ineffective when placed in a book only format. It takes a while for me to get into it, if I can manage to at all. As far as videogames go, I’m down for almost anything. My undergrad program treated their undergrads as if they were grad students and we had to essentially write thesis arguments and pick thesis projects. Mine was videogames as ultimate forms of literature and my big end project was over the original Mass Effect trilogy. My main downfall with videogames is that I’m pretty cock-eyed so I don’t have the best depth perception and I get motion sick super easy. As long as I don’t get sick, I’ll usually give any game a chance. 3) Is there something that everyone hates that you love, like a book or a movie that bombed? There are definitely movie and book and videogame characters and pairings that Tumblr seems to truly hate that I really like. However, I tend not to take Tumblr seriously on some things because I think that any and all sorts of social media sites are the worst kind of echo chambers. I mean, it doesn’t keep me from having them or using them for my own means but I’m still aware of it. I can’t really think of any books or movies off the top of my head, but what I can think of is food. I absolutely adore black licorice��-especially strong black licorice—-and salted black licorice. Some of this is likely a cultural thing, but some of it definitely isn’t. I don’t have too much of a sweet tooth, but I will down an entire package of salmiakki faster than you can blink. 4) Do you have a special hobby? If so, what is it? I tend to always need something creative to do with my hands, or I’ll get bored and get myself into trouble. Anything artistic, I probably do. I sew, crochet, draw, cosplay, paint, and so on. Lately I’ve been coloring in adult coloring books, but before I did summer school for work, I was on a drawing and colored pencil kick. 5) Outside of BioWare games, what are some of your favorites? I’ll always have a soft spot for BioWare. The first game with a campaign that I ever remember “beating” (really, my uncle beat it and handed me a mouse that wasn’t plugged in while he played because I was about four) was Bauldur’s Gate. I also love Bethesda games. Morrowind was the first big RPG that I ever really got into. I like a lot of tabletop RPGs too, but I haven’t played them in ages and likely wouldn’t remember anything. I like card and board games. As a kid, I played a lot of Reader Rabbit and Jump Start games. They were educational and since both my parents are teachers, I’m fairly certain they got them from their schools. I also played a lot of Zoo Tycoon and turn-based civilization building games, like 1602 AD and Pharoah. 6) When roleplaying, is there anything else you do like listening to music or drinking something in particular? Not particularly, no. I’ve always been more of an opportunistic writer—doing things quickly or in-between tasks. The most that can be said is that I have to be entirely comfortable and sort of in a mode where my brain is refreshing and not actually trying to work. That being said, the majority of my writing tends to come out when I’m watching something stupid on Netflix or when I’m in bed and trying to fall asleep. 7) If you could choose between mind reading and teleportation, which would you choose and why? Teleportation, definitely. I could go see friends and travel for no cost and when it was time for bed I could just go home. Also, I would have absolutely no qualms about teleporting into a bank vault and getting enough cash to pay off my student loan debt, tuition for grad school, my sister’s and parents’ student loan debt, replace my car with a decent used one, and move out or even to a different city. I would literally be a world class thief in order to pay off debt, keep myself mildly comfortable, and then likely to donate money to no-kill animal shelters and charities. 8) Do you like ancient mythology? If so, what culture is your favorite? I think it would be more appropriate to ask what I don’t like. In general, I’ve never been incredibly fond of ancient Roman or Greek mythology. I find it to be far too overdone. My favorites overall are likely Egyptian, Norse, and Slavic. There are several kinds of myths that I have an overall fondness for. I especially like mermaid and siren myths. Most kinds of mythologies have some variation on fae or elven courts, and I enjoy those as well. And, as should surprise absolutely no one, I have a huge soft spot for tricksters. 9) If you could meet anyone, alive or dead, who would it be and why? That’s a damn good question, and I nearly always change my mind each time I’m asked it. There are so many interesting historical figures that I would love to meet, good and bad, that I’m not sure I could choose just one. The top of the list includes more historical figures (Thoreau, Whitman, Poe, Hatshepsut, Elizabeth I, Lovecraft, Tesla, Jefferson) than live people (Rowling, Jennifer Hale). The people who I would like to meet generally are people that I would like to actually sit down and spend time with. They're people I've admired or found fascinating since I was young. There are, of course, two people who have passed in my personal life who I would give anything to see one last time. I would like to see my great grandma, who passed when I was in eighth grade, and tell her that I managed to get through college and that I have a decent job---she was so, so fond of all her grandkids and great-grandkids and she wanted to see us all go to college so badly. She was older when she went and I'm okay with that now, but she was such a nice lady and I think she'd be just so pleased. The other person I'd like to see would be my second momma who passed away from leukemia not even a year ago---I had known her since I was five and she was such a tough woman and never put up with my shit and pushed me to do my best and she was such a good, proud person. The job I had at the time wouldn't give me time off when I finally got word that she was in hospice care or when she passed and I asked to go to the funeral. She did get a college graduation invite and even though she didn't get to actually see me in person, she did get to see the live stream. I never really got to say goodbye or give her a hug or anything, and I know she basically considered me her kid.

10) What about your blog is your favorite thing you've done?

I have a lot of headcanon that I haven't published yet. I need to get on that. There's one in particular, about elves and elvhen and footwear, that I really like.

Roleplay on Tumblr is a lot different than on other sites, which is interesting.

I like the friends I've made on here most of all. I know that is awfully altruistic, but I do value them immensely.

11) What drew you into roleplay? What made you stay?

Honestly? I was bored.

I've been roleplaying off and on since Xanga and GaiaOnline, which is hella sad.

As for what drew me to Solas? Honestly, when I started I hadn't even finished a playthrough where I had romanced him yet. A friend jokingly said that he and I have quite a bit in common so I started sort of as a laugh.

Joke was on me, I suppose. They were right---Solas and I do have a lot in common, which has made writing for him a deliciously difficult challenge---and I'm still here two years later.

Don't get me wrong, I've learned a lot about myself while writing for Solas. It is immensely relaxing to write as him. Which has helped me stick around, too.

Questions:

1) who?

2) what?

3) when?

4) where?

5) why?

6) how?

7) Lannisters or Starks?

8) Who did 9/11?

9) Tell me about it, stud.

10) How would you do it?

11) Who was phone?

#mun

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