Ahalivia Thief Fic

Disclaimer: All familiar characters belong to Bethesda Studios. I own Ahalivia.

Chapter 4: Exploring

A dense fog had rolled into Chorrol, which gave me ample opportunity to explore the town undetected. I had to admit, there did not seem to be anything of value, except probably in the castle. However, I was not ready. I had ambitions, but I also knew of my limits. I wanted to be better, so I had to train first.

I skulked quietly through the nightly fog, jumping over fences and stone walls silently. I saw some people were still out in the dead of night, so I casually walked around, pretending to be simply passing through. I looked around and saw that some people were just returning to their houses. As much fun as it would be to break in, now was not the time. So, I decided to head out of Chorrol and explore the surrounding area.

I came across an entrance to a mine. As I slowly opened the door, I got my bow ready for trouble. I see a bandit near a camp fire and quickly dispatch him with two arrows. He is dead and I sneak up to the fire. I could feel it warming me up from the cold night, but I had to stay focused. I checked the treasure chest he was guarding and continue onward through the surprisingly well-lit mine.

I tried to stay in the darkness as best I could, and outline where the bandits were. One of them even had a dog. Luckily, the owner was asleep and I shot him twice so he would stay down. As for the dog, I shot it with my bow, but it did let out a yelp. I froze and ducked into the shadows, waiting until there was movement. For a few minutes, I could feel the muscles in my body tensing, staying in such a state for too long can be bad, especially for a nimble thief like me.

When I was satisfied that I was safe, I continued on, skulking through the mine. That was when I came across some traps. Both were tripwires and I activated them and stood to the side. One was a spiked ball and chain and, further up, near the bandit ringleader, was a trap that had logs fall on top of someone. I smirked to myself when I heard one of the bandits said that some fool had fallen into their trap. I slinked into the darkness and fired my bow at what I thought was a bowman. He went down hard. I then targeted the ringleader, but he was stronger and came at me with a claymore. I dodged and flipped out of the way, but I could feel the sword graze me and my armor. I kept firing my bow, hoping to drop him fast.

The ring leader went down hard, but I was not so lucky. I healed some of my wounds and looked around for any loot that the bandits may have taken. I found an interesting book called the Dance with Fire. It was only chapter 7, but it was a fascinating book and maybe worth some money to someone. I pocketed it and was about to leave when I noticed a small crack in the wall. I peered in and saw the bandits were attempting to tunnel underneath the wall of the castle to get in. Clever, I thought. Time-consuming, but clever.

I exited the mine and looked at my map. I thought about exploring some more before returning to Chorrol and continued down the road, running at top speed. I saw an Imperial Legion guard on a horse patrolling the area and, as I went by, I saw the body of a bandit he had just slain. I quickly looked around, to make sure he was not watching, and then looted it. She had very little of value on her, except for some lockpicks. Those are always helpful.

I found that, despite it being pre-dawn, the road was still sort of dangerous. Wolves had been pacing about and I managed to keep my distance, firing my bow and, once the wolves were down, I skinned their pelts. They are worth some money to someone in town, however.

My eye caught a bridge on a pass above me on the road. I scurried up the hill, feeling the dew on my legs. As I got to the top, I noticed it was a mountain trail. I smirked and began exploring it. The ground was hard, and it looked to be well used. I walked across the bridge and began stalking the area.

The dawn air was crisp as I felt the warm sun kiss my skin. I also could see my breath. Apparently, this particular trail took me to the Jerall Mountains, near Bruma. I figured there had to be some ruins or some caves that had gone unexplored or something, so I continued onward.

In the dawn's light, I saw a fortress ruin called Sancre Tor. The place was huge, and I eagerly began to go in, but a skeleton began chasing me! I was frightened and ran away. After some time, I came across a ruin called Ninendava. Hopefully, there would be no undead here, so I skulked inside. It was dark and I carefully stalked the place, my bow at the ready. That was when a zombie and spirit came at me. I screamed and ran, not wanting to fight. I dashed out of the ruins, and onto the trail. In a desperate and panicked state, I used my Moonshadow ability and ran like the wind down the mountain trail toward Bruma. I was closer to that town than I was to Chorrol at that point.

I ran until my legs were sore and I was catching my breath. I could see my breath in the cold air, and feel the cold air burn in my lungs. I decided to continue on with all my strength to Bruma. That way, I can get to an Inn and rest. It was morning, and all I wanted to do was go to sleep…

Next Chapter:
Bruma, the city of cold…