Foreword:

Fifty years after the Oblivion Crisis and nearly eight years since the events of the Infernal City, the story continues. At the heart of the Empire of Cyrodiil, a time of celebration takes place. At that same time, an ill wind blows, serving to remind that the one constant of all is that everything changes.

Authors note: With some artistic license, all reasonable effort made to maintain general parity with existing canon established in Oblivion, The Infernal City/Lord of Souls, and Skyrim.

Rated M for mild adult content.

Although it should go without needing to be stated, let it be said: Bethesda owns The Elder Scrolls and all related materials. I am merely contributing my own interpretations in a public forum and no profit is derived or intended from my work.

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Additional note: This story follows on from "Under Autumn Skies: An Elder Scrolls Novel". Some effort has been made to allow this story to function as stand-alone. However, I still recommend reading the previous story for a more complete perspective. Of course, 'to get the heart of the story, you oughta go back to the beginning'. ;-)

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Winds of Change: An Elder Scrolls Novel

Greg J Miller

~O~

Chapter 1

Loredas the 29th of Frostfall 4E50 Early Afternoon

It seemed that the persistent cloud cover of the past several days had finally given way to relatively clear blue skies. There were still more than a few white fluffy white clouds drifting across the firmament overhead, but it was nothing at all like that dreary rain cloud that seemed to blanket all of northern Colovia during the earlier portion of that week.

A fresh southerly wind blew up from the Niben Valley, but under the warming rays of the afternoon sun it didn't make things seem at all uncomfortable. In fact, for that late in the autumn, the day really seemed quite pleasant.

Alexander Pinewatch slowed his stride along The Black Road, almost stopping completely. He turned partway to look back uphill as the southerly breeze whipped at his light brown locks. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Monika Northwind tensed slightly as she came to a proper halt, her hand shifting to the hilt of her mace. She couldn't see or hear anything of immediate concern.

The clean-shaven Nord strained to listen as he looked upward and off toward the forested hills above. "That sounded just like a northern seahawk."

The fair-haired woman shrugged with a crooked grin. "Sounded pretty much like any regular hawk to me."

Shading his dark brown eyes, he returned a slight frown. "Not the same. A different tone to the call".

Monika again noticed how some of the lines on Alex's face were beginning to grow more obvious when he frowned like that. It might have been more the case that she'd only started noticing it more since he'd passed the mark of thirty years, just recently. Given that his features remained otherwise mild and perhaps even just slightly boyish, she thought those subtle lines added more than they took away.

Most other men of his age often appeared far more rugged and worn. Alex's features were only just beginning to gain some measure of maturity or character. It would still be quite a while before his features began to vaguely reflect those of her departed father.

Having stalled their southbound progress along the road, Alex continued with his hawk-related comments. "I used to see northern seahawks over Lake Ilinalta sometimes. I think they were supposed to be fairly common up in the north of Skyrim, but we only ever saw them around Falkreath during colder winters."

Monika shrugged again, nearly causing her shield to slip from her shoulder. "I s'pose I must've seen up them in Solitude, when I was real young, but I don't remember. Probably different from those seahawks around Wayrest." Just a little of her High Rock accent crept back into her voice at the mention of her former home at the top of Iliac Bay.

He tilted his head slightly. "Yes, those are different kinds of hawks. Either way, I have never seen any kinds of northern hawks on this side of the Jerall Mountains. Not since I have been in Cyrodiil. Maybe, there is a really cold winter on the way?"

Alex's accent didn't really reflect so much of his northern origins. That was one lasting affect of his grandmother's Imperial heritage and her influence over the family. Even the Pinewatch family name was really her doing. Like most Nords, grandfather Erik originally carried no family name, not until after they'd married and settled at that farm outside of Falkreath.

Considering the suggestion of a cold winter ahead, Monika glanced off toward the sun. It wasn't all that far from the apex of its arc across the open sky above. "Dunno about that cold winter. Maybe. Wouldn't think so, looking at the weather today."

Since distraction had interrupted the pace of their march, the tall woman took hold of her water flask, prompting her companion to do the same. The breeze whipped at her hair, exposing her slightly pointed ears. That was one of the few observable indications of her mixed heritage. At a glance, Monika looked much like any taller Nord. The changeable amber hue of her eyes was only slightly unusual. Her mother's Altmer blood manifested in other less obvious ways. Though she appeared no older than Alex, she had a good twenty years on him.

Sipping from his flask, Alex shifted his gaze back toward their destination. He couldn't quite see from there, but further downhill from their position, toward the south-east, The Black Road from Chorrol joined up with a section of The Red Ring Road. As implied in the name, that other road completely encircled all of Lake Rumare. In one way or another, all the major roads of Cyrodiil connected to that ring road, leading to the city at the heart of the Imperial Province.

Of course from where they were standing, the most prominent features in clear view were the Imperial Isle, the towering stone bridge that crossed the waters to that isle and those tall pale stone walls of the Imperial City. The turrets and towers of the city might have seemed impressive enough on their own. However above all of that, the White-Gold Tower rose from the centre of the city to seemingly impossible heights. Gleaming in the bright sunlight, that structure appeared to proclaim clear dominance over all else in the land. Given a clear line of sight and fair weather, the top of the Imperial Tower could be seen from many leagues away across several parts of Cyrodiil.

More than two years had passed by since Alex gained his first glimpse of the capital city and the Imperial Tower. Having previously lived all of his life within the confines of southern Skyrim, it was firstly Chorrol that redefined his notion of a city when he'd arrived from the northern lands. He had been more than somewhat surprised by the density of structures within the city walls. He'd never before seen so many people all living in the one place.

Then, his first visit to the Imperial City shifted his perception even further afield. The ruling city of the Empire, seemed more than six times the size of Chorrol, holding a populace in number far beyond his previous imaginings.

Of course even from Falkreath, Alex had been generally aware of the great cities of Cyrodiil and the bustling populations. Still, merely hearing the stories and actually seeing for himself had been two things that stood worlds apart.

With a mild sigh, Monika prompted. "Comon, that's enough standing around. We oughta keep moving."

Alex returned an agreeable nod. "Okay, then."

Since there was no urgent business at hand, there was no great rush. Nevertheless, Alex understood that Monika disliked standing about on the road like that when they had some place to be. He fell into step at her side as they continued the journey.

Though the past spring and summer had seemed fairly busy that year, available work had become progressively slower as the autumn progressed. That was a bit different from the activity of the previous year. Not just for Monika and Alex and the others based in Chorrol, but also for several of the other Fighters Guild's guildhalls of Cyrodiil, or so they'd heard.

Given that Fighters Guild contracts around County Chorrol had recently slowed to almost nothing ahead of the coming winter, the Orcish Guild Master with the unusual given name held no particular objection over those that wanted to take some time away from the guildhall. Karl gro-Baroth had other more important Guild matters to consider.

Taking full advantage of that lull in activity, Monika and Alex intended to pass a week or so away from Chorrol. With the Emperor's Day festivities taking place in the Imperial City on Sundas, they'd made tentative plans to meet up with friends for that. Monika also had some personal business to see to just outside of the city.

Not everyone at Chorrol's guildhall ventured so far afield. Young Vinnus Odiil had briefly considered coming along with them, but instead decided that he really should help out at the family farms just a few leagues south of Chorrol. Assisting with preparing the winter feed supplies for the livestock would probably keep him busy for at least a week.

Some hadn't left the guildhall at all. Unless they had anything more important to do, the two newest recruits to Chorrol's Fighters Guild were encouraged to hang about and get in some more training while things were fairly quiet. The Guild Master's second, Montrose, saw to it that Catius and Henrik assisted with that task, since neither of them really had anything else to do anyway.

Of course being one of the senior members of that guildhall, Monika had already participated in the training of the Guild's newest members and knew well enough that she'd probably be tasked with more of that if she didn't have something else to be doing, important or otherwise.

Even though their personal relationship remained vaguely defined, Monika's privilege of seniority with the Guild still extended in Alex's favour often enough. Accordingly, he was tagging along with her during the down time.

At a fairly casual pace, Monika and Alex had set off on foot from Chorrol on Fredas morning. Though the cloud cover still carried some threat that day, the skies showed some promise of the weather clearing. It looked like it might not even rain at all. There was no sign of that at all by the next morning. That was a notable change from the earlier part of the week.

Even though there was just a little more traffic out on the roads than usual, there hadn't been much likelihood of hitching a ride on any loaded wagons. It seemed that any transport or trade wagons headed in that direction had already been booked in advance by other travellers. That was another sign that the Emperor's Day festivities of that year would probably be far busier than it had been in recent times. Still, that hardly mattered. So long as they managed to make it to the Imperial City for Sundas, there was no great need to hurry.

Just as intended, Monika and Alex arrived at the Fort Ash settlement during that afternoon and were able to secure a modest room at the tavern for the evening. The partially renovated ruins of the old stone fortress roughly marked the halfway point between Chorrol and the Imperial City.

Of course on a fast horse or the like, the journey from that northern city to the heart of the Empire could reasonably be made in a single day. Otherwise, whether travelling on foot or by slow wagon, it would be necessary to leave before sunrise and still not expect to reach the destination until long after the sun had set. It was always far easier to just stop at Fort Ash, making for two days of relatively relaxed travel.

After taking a morning meal in the tavern, they'd left Fort Ash behind that morning in no great rush and maintained a moderate pace along The Black Road. Just a short distance from that settlement, they'd passed by a slow moving Legion rider ambling along the road on patrol. About an hour later, they'd passed another rider patrolling in the opposite direction, evidently headed back toward the small garrison at the settlement.

Only about an hour before they'd paused along the roadside to listen for unseen hawks, a pair of faster moving riders passed by on horseback, headed southbound. That was followed by an open wagon piled up to capacity and moving along just a bit faster than seemed safe for the precarious load of passengers.

Though the roads seemed relatively busy that Loredas, the journey remained otherwise uneventful. No dangerous animals or beasts had wandered close enough to the main thoroughfare to give rise to any sort of threat. Nor had there been any sneaky bandits trying their luck along the more isolated stretches of road. The greatest challenge of the journey had been negotiating muddy patches along the road and dodging the fresh horse shit, both of which certainly seemed to be somewhat more prevalent than usual.

Given that they'd eaten quite well back at Fort Ash that morning and that they could expect a hearty meal at their immediate destination, they hadn't bothered with stopping along the road to take a proper lunch break. Aside from pausing briefly to drink from their flasks a few times, they'd only taken a couple of apples from Alex's backpack and eaten them as they walked the road.

It wasn't so long before Alex and Monika neared those old ruins of stone at Fort Nikel. That place was just another one of those aged relics from the second era, long since abandoned and fallen to ruin. Unlike Fort Ash, which had been relatively recently returned to some sort of functional use, housing a small Legion garrison and serving as a conveniently positioned settlement, the ruins of Fort Nikel remained as more of a liability than an asset.

Most of the main aboveground structures of that ancient fortress were broken and crumbling. However, even though it was partially flooded, the underground portions of the fortress remained relatively intact. Upon repeated occasion, that place needed to be cleared of bandits or other kinds of troublemakers.

In the shade of the trees between the roadside and the old stone ruins, a pair of Legion riders were resting their mounts and chatting quietly. Aside from casting passing glances toward the travellers on the road and offering nods of acknowledgment, the soldiers appeared disinterested.

Just downhill a short distance from that point was where The Black Road connected to The Red Ring Road. Another pair of Legion riders ambled along the circuit road, coming from the direction of the northern side of Lake Rumare. Some other travellers could be seen off in the distance behind them. Some were on foot, walking alongside a larger sized wagon with another two smaller carts trailing along behind that.

Heading in from that particular direction, those travellers might have come from Aleswell or one of the other smaller farming settlements north of the Imperial Isle. They might have even come all the way from Bruma or Cheydinhal.

Following The Red Ring Road southward, there were further signs of busy activity in view as they crested that last rise and made their way through the outskirts of the village of Weye. Off to the south, another two Legion riders were slowly approaching along the road from that direction. It did seem like there were more patrols out on the roads that day than might be usual. It could also have been more the case of some coincidence that placed them in the same general locations at the same time.

An elderly woman watching the passing traffic from her front porch had given Alex and Monika a friendly wave as they passed her by. Though they'd seen her often enough, they didn't really know her, other than by name.

The path widened quite a bit where each of the branches of the circuit road converged at the main thoroughfare leading directly to the large bridge that crossed over Lake Rumare to the city. Along either side of that broad roadway was the main part of the village of Weye. Aside from the inn and the ramshackle stabling facility, there were just those five modest looking houses. Including the small houses back by the branches of The Red Ring Road and two other farmhouses further out, there were no more than twelve structures in the entire settlement.

Along that main road, there were even more signs of busy activity in view. There was certainly a great deal of traffic on the large stone bridge that afternoon. Some were on foot, some on horseback, along with a few wagons and carts piled up to capacity. Almost all were headed toward the city.

Just by the western end of the bridge, Flaenia, the elderly wife of one of the local fishermen was operating her roadside stall. Just behind her, her husband worked on his nets in the company of two other fishermen.

Under the open thatched roof that served as a roughshod stable of sorts, a young local lad sat dozing against one of the posts. There were seven horses stabled in the shade that afternoon. Though the sight of the boy lazing about at the stables was perfectly familiar, it was unusual to see more than one or two horses there on most days.

Approaching the Wawnet Inn, another somewhat familiar sight was in view. That old man snoozing on the bench outside the inn was there most afternoons around that time. It might have had something to do with his wife not wanting him idling around the house. Or it might have been that he knew that he wouldn't be able to remain idle, if he actually returned to the house. Either way, after tending his farming plots during the mornings, the old farmer often passed his afternoons by the inn. He rarely came inside, unless it was raining or something like that. Mostly, he just sat outside on that bench seat watching the world go by, in between taking short naps. His tobacco pipe had gone out and fallen down into his lap. Just as usual, he did not stir at all at their approach.

From the outside, the Wawnett Inn appeared rather run down compared to some of those better-looking establishments of Chorrol like the Oak and Crosier, the Empire Inn, or Arborwatch Tavern. The place was quite old and probably in need of a great deal more regular upkeep. It wasn't as though the roof leaked or the like. The stonework was still in good condition and even most of the timber was in fair condition. It was more that it was just really showing its age and that it looked a bit shabby.

Even so, with the periodic internal repairs of previous decades and those ground floor extensions along the northern wall, it was still in fair shape. The inn certainly appeared far more inviting from the inside than its outward appearance would initially suggest. Of course, that was really only obvious from the inside.

Though the Wawnet Inn generally saw enough passing trade to keep things ticking along, it really would've benefited from a lot more business. Outward appearances aside, there was one notable problem with being located so close to the Imperial City. A great many people passed by, but not nearly enough actually stopped there. Not on most days anyway.

Monika had previously suggested that the front side of the inn really needed to look a lot better to encourage more trade. Even though she had little to do with the general running of the inn, her vested interests extended a bit further than her longstanding friendship with the owner of the establishment. By then, that particular circumstance had been the case for just over two years.

Without breaking stride, Alex spoke up. There was a notable touch of surprise in his voice. "They have done something with the main road here. It was not like that a few weeks back."

"Yeah, looks like." She could see that some of the flat stones of the roadway had been replaced here and there. It was only that last part of the road from the inn to the bridge. It wasn't quite like the paving of the city, but it seemed that some effort had been put in to improve the road. It was a fair call that it was only done just ahead of the upcoming festival.

Just by the front entrance to the inn, Alex paused to turn his head and look back toward the west. The southern branches of the ring road were the focus of his interest. "I wonder how far off they might be?"

Turning to look the same way, Monika noticed that the wind had picked up quite a bit and shifted direction. It seemed to be blowing more of a south-westerly. She understood what Alex had suggested. She responded in a casual tone. "Yeah well, unless they were already here earlier today, probably wouldn't expect to see them until later. Probably after dark."

"They did say that they would meet us here today?" He sought confirmation again.

She released a little sigh. "Said so, in the last letter." She nodded toward the door.

In response to the nearby voices, the old man on the bench stirred briefly, but didn't actually wake. Or if he did, he didn't open his eyes.

It was easily past the mark of mid-afternoon as Monika pushed open the wooden door to the inn.

~O~