1 Heartfire, 3E 433

Evening

So much has happened since I last wrote that I cannot believe it's only been two days. I don't even know where to start. I hardly remember my trip to Kvatch, other than that it was most likely uneventful. As I approached the town, I saw a man zooming towards me, and I assumed he was a bandit or something, so I crouched down and got off the road. But when he went right past me, I realized he was running away from something.

Immediately, I knew something bad had happened so I stopped him to ask what had happened. I couldn't get anything very coherent out of him. All he said was something about fire, and everyone being dead and the town being destroyed. Afterwards, he just kept running down the road, screaming about how all was lost. At this point, I was very concerned and confused, and made it as quickly as I could to the town. But when I arrived, there didn't seem to be a town.

Most of the townsfolk were huddled up in a camp far from Kvatch itself. I got about as much information out of them as I did the man who had run down the road. They all spoke of destruction, and Daedra pouring from some sort of gate. Quickly, I made my way up to the town proper, and saw the gate for myself. A huge red fiery thing that poured monstrous creatures from its mouth. They were everywhere, and they were attacking all the guardsmen who were trying to hold them off. I found the one in charge, Savlian Matius, and told him I would do what I could to help.

Well, that ended up meaning I was charging through the… Oblivion Gate, is what it's called. Inside… inside was terrible, and frightening. Everything was red and fiery and horrible. I found a soldier, and we worked together to try and shut down the Gate. I nearly died at least a dozen times, and the soldier, whose name I never found out, died while helping me. A lot of soldiers died…

Eventually, I found the big red beacon of fire that was somehow keeping the gate open, and I took the magical spinning orb from its center. Don't ask me how I knew what to do. Something just told me that taking the orb would shut down the Gate, and it did. After I took it, though, everything went blurry and the walls started to cave in. I have no idea how I got back outside. The next thing I knew, I was standing safely with Savlian and the Gate was gone.

Oh… I remember now, the man I had to leave in that cage inside the Oblivion Gate. I tried to get him out, even as he was yelling that there was no time. I tried. But the gate had no door. No lock to pick or smash open. He's dead now. At least, I hope he is. Because if he isn't, that means he is still at the mercy of those creatures in Oblivion. I'm just sorry I couldn't get him out.

I found Martin Septim, inside the Chapel of the Divines. We had to fight through hordes of Daedra to get to him. And at the time, I didn't even realize he was there. I didn't have any time to talk to anyone. We had to immediately go secure the Castle of Kvatch and rescue the Count inside. He, unfortunately, didn't survive. But we cleared all the Daedra from the town and the castle, so now maybe these people can rebuild.

I went back to the refugee camp and found my way to Martin. I explained to him that he is the son of the Emperor. Of course, he doesn't believe me, but I guess he saw the sincerity in my face, because he has agreed to follow me back to Weynon Priory to talk to Jauffre. We didn't leave immediately, though. It had been over 24 hours since I had last had a decent meal to eat and more than a few hours of restless sleep. But, it seemed, more trouble was to find me.

Not an hour into my exhausted sleep at the camp, a man in black robes woke me up and, I must say, scared the shit out of me. I thought he was going to kill me, and I saw a flash of those assassins in red who killed the Emperor. But he let me up and explained himself. His name is Lucien Lachance. He told me he knew I was a murderer, which immediately put me on edge. I do not recall ever killing anyone innocent, unless he's talking about the bandits and creatures I've killed. I told him I was no murderer. He seemed to ignore me and go on to explain that he was with the Dark Brotherhood and that if I was interested in joining them, I could go to some inn somewhere and murder someone as a test.

As you can guess, I kindly told him to shove off and leave me alone. I had a mind to kill him, in fact, but he vanished from my sight within seconds. I'm not sure I'll ever truly feel safe again… Not that I don't already have enough to worry about, what with Daedra pouring into this world and destroying towns. And my armor has gone to crap since my escapade into Oblivion. I don't have anything to repair it with, either, so Martin and I will have to make a few stops in Skingrad on the way to the Priory.

A few words on Martin: He seems genuine, and kind, if quiet. The events of Kvatch have torn his belief in the Gods, which I can completely understand. I only hope he is still strong enough to lead us when the time comes. Whether he likes it or not, he is the only heir left to the throne.