Every city of every hold in Skyrim had something that made it differ from the rest. Whiteram had Dragonsreach, Winnterhold had the college, Windhelm had the Palace of Kings and so on. However there was something about Riften that set it apart even more. At least that was how Seth felt. There was something that would made his skin crawl every time he walked through the gates.
Apart from the temple dedicated to the goddess of love there were no other memorable buildings, no monuments, no palaces inside the walls of the city. Most of the houses and shops were made of wood, which seemed to suck in its core all the humidity that came from the river below them. It only made the life of the residents more difficult that it already was .The only thing that could cause some kind of admiral was the ratways, the labyrinth that lay under the city. Only few dared to set foot at any of the tunnels that consisted them. He didn't even know it existed when he had first come.
So back then it had made no sense, that uneasiness he had felt. It had made him wonder what more was hidden in that place. He knew better now.
What made Riften so infamous was its dark secrets. And that wasn't a reference to the thieves guild. Everyone was aware of the band of thieves whose headquarters were located in the heart of the city of crime. What stopped the Jarl from destroying it was that no one apart from its members knew where exactly that was.
No, it was something much bigger. It run deep into the city, only few could feel it and even fewer comprehend it. Seth was one of those and only because of the things he had been told and had seen with his own eyes only months ago. Since then every time he moved through the streets he was on the lookout. During the dawn and the dusk he would always search for that familiar figure of that man, that shadow.
Because the shadows were alive in Riften.
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He hadn't expected to find anyone in the Cistern that early in the morning, at least not anyone conscious. All of his friends who called the guild their home were fast asleep at their bunks and they and they had every right to. He was the one who had decided to drop by before the sunrise, since the job Vex had given him had really lasted more than he had expected.
But that wasn't the only reason why he was so surprised to see her there. The day they revealed together the betrayal of Mercer Frey to the guild was also the first time she had walked through the cistern after twenty five years of exile and honestly he had thought that it would also be the last. There was simply nothing left to keep her there only the memory of a dead lover and a lost brother.
He made sure to call her name before he approached her or more precisely to call her with a whisper in favor of his sleeping guildmates.
"Karliah"
When she turned to face him he had already reached her side. She looked better than the first time they had met, but still not well enough. She was less tired, more content, but not at peace with herself. The grief was there more obvious than before, probably because there was no more thirst for revenge nor burning hatred that could cover it.
"Guildmaster" she said with a tone that made it the title sound more formal than it actually was, so he hurriedly commented that such etiquette was not appropriate for their kind. Then he voiced his concerns that were caused by her appearance.
"Has something happened to the nightingale hall?" The last two words were said even more quietly, he almost didn't hear them himself.
She saw the worry in his eyes and almost smiled. It reminded her of the time when she was first inducted to the nightingales. She remembered it very well indeed, the whole new burden on her shoulders, the pride and the rapture. She understood.
"No, nothing has happened. I came here just so as to pass to Delvin the loot fron the job he gave me."
"That early in the morning?"
He noticed that, his question made her finger fidget with nervousness.
"Yeah, I see now that it was a bad idea. He probably won't be awake till noon."
"Taking into consideration all the mead he drunk yesterday I think that I will second that."
Karliah joined him when he laughed with his joke but the smile left her face when her eyes fall again on his desk.
The giuldmaster's desk.
And then it hit him.
"It's today, isn't it?"
She only nodded. "It has been exactly twenty five years since his death and the beginning of my exile."
"You didn't come all the way here just for the job, did you?"
She moved closer the desk and touched the hard wood with her hand as softly as a mother would stoke her child's forehead.
"No, I came here searching for some good memories of my old life. Instead i ended up looking at everything I've lost."
Seth didn't dare to utter a word for some full minutes. He had no idea of what he could possible say anyway.
His mind wondered back to the day that plan had been formed into his mind. He believed that it had been a week ago. He had quickly dismissed it thinking that it would never work. But now that she was standing in front of him lost into her own thoughts he reconsidered and made his choice.
"Karliah, walk with me."
