Chapter 1: The Citrine City
Vivec, the largest city in Morrowind, and the center of political and religious life for many of its inhabitants. Velothi-inspired architecture, with some of the largest man-made structures anywhere in the Empire fill the darkening sky. A truly complex city, as any of its numerous inhabitants would tell you. Home to some of the most important things in Morrowind, and yet not its capital. As the sun began to set, the twin moons of Masser and Secunda rose over the island of Vvardenfell.
Ilmeni Dren, as usual, was preparing for one of her nighttime strolls. The city was far too crowded during the day, and the peaceful night made for a much more relaxing environment. Her dislike of large crowds was a constant reminder that she was still new to the city. Vivec was a place bustling with people, hardly as quiet as the Ascadian Isles. She checked her mirror, same blue face as always, and headed out the door of her apartment.
The city of Vivec was made up of massive pyramid-shaped structures called "cantons" in which people lived, worked, and traded. These cantons were built in the waters of the Inner Sea, and were connected by numerous bridges. Ilmeni lived in the St. Delyn canton, named after the saint of glassmakers and potters, an interesting bit of history that was completely overshadowed by the fact that Ilmeni had an up close and personal view of all the sewage that flowed by whenever she looked out her window. A city planner would have marveled at how the sewers of the city directed waste away from its inhabitants. The nearby residents weren't as impressed. Ilmeni had bought the house, thinking that it was probably a good deal given the price and location. She had clearly underestimated the ability of the city's population to shit rivers, or in a few cases, shit directly into the river. Ilmeni slightly grimaced as she left her house, taking care not to breathe too much. She would have to buy some of the perfume Mevel had suggested, he had said that it helped with the smell.
Ilmeni made her way up to the top of the St. Delyn canton, stopping on the way to chat with one of the gondoliers. They had been a fixture of Vivec as long as any of its inhabitants could remember, although Ilmeni and others new to the city were discouraged from getting in them because of the ever-present smell of the canals. However, without the daytime crowds, Vivec was much easier to get around, and the Foreign Quarter was reached quickly, with the crossing of a few elevated bridges.
The Foreign Quarter was probably the friendliest quarter to "outlanders," meaning the non-Dunmer or non-native born inhabitants of Morrowind. The Dunmer, or the blue-skinned elves of Morrowind, had long resented domination by the Imperials, and had aggressively fought to keep control over Morrowind, in any way they could. Vivec, one of the centers of traditional Dunmer political authority was a party to these attempts. Any outlander entering Vivec would find immediate disdain from many of the locals. In fact, until recently, the Foreign Quarter was the only place in Vivec where outlanders were allowed.
That fact wasn't lost on Ilmeni as she headed to her friend Jobasha's bookstore, frequented by the surprisingly numerous aspiring book critics of Vivec. Jobasha was an interesting person. Being a Khajiit, the cat-like people of Tamriel, hadn't done him any favors in Morrowind. But he persevered, and rose in prominence in the eyes of the people of Vivec, collecting many rare books, which earned him many loyal customers. Ilmeni had met Jobasha one day, trying to find a copy of the "Antecedents of Dwemer Law," a difficult book to find for sure, but when she asked people where she could find it, she was surprised to hear that the book was in a small unassuming bookstore in the Foreign Quarter. Heading over there was an act of perseverance, as navigating the labyrinthine structure of Vivec was quite difficult even for people who'd lived there their entire lives.
Finally she found it, a small bookstore tucked in the corner of northernmost canton. As she entered, she noticed a plant with a tag reading "Charles the Plant." With that rather odd image in her mind she had met Jobasha, who had quickly located the book that she wanted, and recommended some others. As the weeks passed she'd talked to Jobasha about the Dwemer many, many times, there was a ton of information to go over, and was surprised to find him very knowledgeable on the subject. Sometimes, Huleeya, an Argonian, or one of the lizard-like people of Tamriel, stopped by to chat with Jobasha about what he was reading. Jobasha had become somewhat of a fixture of Vivec to many of its inhabitants, its well-read ones anyway, and it was quite a shock to Ilmeni when she saw a sign on the door to Jobasha's shop that said, "Jobasha is not here right now. He will be back soon."
This wasn't exactly unusual for Jobasha. He had often gone on trips to find more rare books, without telling anyone. So Ilmeni, as did many of his regulars, simply shrugged off the message on the door.
This was a bit of a short chapter, but I hope that it gives you a good idea of how I will use TES lore to develop the story.
