We traveled for five days. Bruma lay at the end of the Silver Road, which we were quickly closing in on. Soon enough we'd be there and then at least some of my worries would be over. Jauffre kept Martin occupied most of the time, filling him in on exactly what was happening far better than I had. Martin and I barely talked during the journey. Isolation was something I was used to, having lived with it for so long, but from him? No. It was strange, to say the least. Every so often, though, I felt him watching me, and I wondered what he was thinking. It wasn't my job to talk, though. My job was to get both him and Jauffre to Cloud Ruler Temple in one piece, and I planned to do just that.

Thunder rumbled ominously overhead. I frowned and looked up. Before there hadn't been a cloud in the sky, but thunderheads were quickly rolling in. More bad weather meant even more delays. Great. I rolled my eyes.

After a few minutes the rumblings intensified. From behind me Martin called, "Mara?"

I looked over my shoulder to see him staring up at the sky with dread. I lifted my eyes to see what the matter was. The storm clouds above us were roiling with red fire. Cracks appeared in the sky, blazing out to the horizon.

"No," I gasped.

"What is that?" I heard Jauffre ask. I whipped my head around, looking for the source. Over the hill beside the road, I saw smoke and the flicker of fire that could only mean one thing.

"No. No!"

I leapt from my horse and stumbled up the hill. Martin shouted after me. I didn't pay attention; I was too focused on getting up there. At the top I skidded to a halt and stared ahead in horror as my worst fears were confirmed. An Oblivion Gate belched fire out onto the hillside. Daedra climbed out, clawing and roaring at the air. I was frozen, too shocked to even move. The sound of footsteps behind me a moment later told me that Martin and Jauffre had caught up with me.

"Talos preserve us," Jauffre whispered.

"Both of you stay here!" I hissed, righting myself and drawing my bow. As I crept in a circle around the Gate, watching the daedra that came out, I fired an arrow at one that was getting too close to where Martin and Jauffre were hiding. It fell with a screech and suddenly all eyes were on me. Flames scorched the ground where I'd been only moments before as I ran. Right then I couldn't stop to get another shot ready; I had to get in and close the Gate. I was almost there, only feet away, when I felt claws rake my shoulder. Then a blast of frozen air whistled past my ear, taking the daedra with it. I whirled, my eyes wide.

"Martin! Get back!" I shouted at him.

But he was too close, and the daedra were coming at us from all sides. I had no time to draw my sword. Without thinking, I grabbed his arm and pulled him with me through the fiery portal.

I didn't let go of Martin's arm until we were safely hidden behind some craggy boulders near the Gate. The daedra had followed us in, but quickly gave up pursuit. Once I couldn't hear them anymore, I turned on Martin with raw fury and spat, "What is wrong with you?"

"You would have been killed. I couldn't let you–"

"Don't you understand? This is Mehrunes Dagon's realm, and I've just let you walk right into his filthy claws!"

"I'm not dead yet, am I?" He asked.

Unable to think of a response, I snapped, "Go back. Now."

He shook his head. "I won't leave you here alone."

"I can close Gates by myself!"

"You closed one, and once does not make you an expert. Please, Mara. For once, let me help you."

I couldn't stand to see his pleading look, and quickly turned my gaze away. In my head I weighed the odds of our survival in here. He wasn't dead yet, which most likely meant that Dagon didn't know he was there, and the Deadlands were probably the last place he'd think to look for Martin. Two people meant that we'd be noticed more easily, but it also meant we'd have a better chance of survival in a fight. And, really, he couldn't go back. They'd notice him.

"Fine," I groaned. "But you have to do exactly what I say."

I peered around one of the boulders. In the distance I could see the Black Tower, surrounded by a lake of fire. There was a closer, smaller tower on this side of the lava. I squinted. Was that a bridge up there? It looked like it.

"We need to get up there," I said, pointing to the shorter of the two towers.

"What's your plan?"

I looked over at him with a grim smile. "Exactly what it was last time; don't get caught."

We crept out from our hiding place and headed for the tower. I climbed the ledge leading up to the door and, once I was sure that we were clear, helped him up beside me. Together we pulled open the heavy door leading to the tower. I put a finger to my lips. When he nodded I nocked an arrow and slunk into the shadows of the tower. The dark room inside was lit only by the pool of fire in the center. It illuminated a lone scamp on the other side of the room. I fired my arrow, striking it at the base of its skull. It fell, crumpling on the other side of the fire. I stepped forward, keeping my back to the wall, and circled around the room. So far the only sign of life was that lone scamp.

"I think we're good," I whispered. "Let's move."

The path through the tower took us up through dark and winding halls that were eerily still and silent. No signs of daedra of any kind. It sent chills down my spine even though the air around us was hot and musty. Surely we should have seen something else by then. More than that one scamp in the entry, anyway. But even the chamber at the very top of the tower was empty. I frowned.

"Where are they?" I murmured.

"Maybe we got lucky."

"Not here," I told him firmly. "Never in here."

The room was bare, save for a door and some kind of clawed mechanism on one of the walls. There was nothing else. As I turned back toward Martin, I saw him open the door.

"Don't!" I shouted, reaching for him. Beyond the open door was nothing, nothing but the empty fall towards the lava field below. Some part of me realized that he was going to fall. He'd already started to. Then I was there, grabbing the back of his robe and hauling him backward into the relative safety of the tower. We fell down, side by side, and hit the floor. I winced and quickly pushed myself up on my elbows.

"Are you alright?" I asked Martin. He looked at me, obviously startled, and nodded. With that taken care of, I crawled over to the doorway and looked out.

"Be careful." Martin called from behind me. "It's strange; why would they have a door that leads to nowhere?"

I stared out at the black tower. It was so close, yet so far. Reaching down, I felt along the side of the tower.

"That's because it doesn't lead to nowhere."

"What?"

I got to my feet and hurried across the room. Grabbing the lever, I yanked it down. The gears whirled and its red metal fingers clicked against them with a loud grinding and clanking that echoed off the walls. Moments later, the bridge began to slide out from our tower. I looked at it stretching out towards the Black Tower with some satisfaction.

"They'll have heard that," I told Martin as I helped him to his feet. "We need to hurry."

"Lead the way. I'm right behind you."

I stepped out onto the bridge first. It was narrower than would have liked, but I didn't doubt that I could cross it. Martin, however…

"Take my hand," I said, reaching back to him.

"Why? I'll be fine."

"Please, Martin. This is dangerous even for me. If you fall, I don't want to–"

He gripped my hand in his own. "I won't fall," he told me.

"You know it's not that I don't trust you," I said.

He smiled softly. "I know."

As we inched across, I kept my eyes fixed straight ahead. The door was so close… so close…

There was a rumbling sound and the bridge beneath us started moving. I whipped my head around. A Dremora was waiting for us at the doorway in the tower that we'd just left. And the bridge was sliding back towards it.

"Run!" I shouted, pulling Martin along. "Run!"

Somehow we managed to keep our balance as we dashed over the receding strip of stone. As we neared the Black Tower, and I saw the gap between the bridge and the door, I knew we'd never make it. Not unless we did something crazy. As the distance shortened between us and our goal, I saw the door open, another Dremora ready with a morningstar. Perfect.

"We need to jump!"

"Are you mad?" Martin cried.

"Just do it!"

If I timed this right, we'd be fine. We'd make it.

"On my signal," I said. His hand tightened around mine as we put on speed. "Ready… set…"

The Dremora cackled and shook his head. My eyes narrowed.

"Jump!"

I pulled Martin along behind me as I launched myself from the bridge and through the doorway. The Dremora couldn't get its mace up in time to stop us as I crashed headlong into him. The momentum sent the three of us sprawling. I was up first, standing over the Dremora while it tried to struggle to its feet. I stomped down on its exposed throat, crushing its windpipe. It shuddered, choking as it tried to breathe, before it lay still.

"Let's go," I told Martin. "We're almost there."

The top of the tower was built like the one that I had closed in Kvatch, with a gray tunnel leading up to the roaring chamber at the top. I peered around the doorway into the main room. Leaning back against the wall, I whispered to Martin, "There are three of them that I can see, and maybe more up top. We'll have to be fast."

He nodded and wisps of frozen mist dripped from his hand as he prepared his spell. I drew my sword.

"Now."

I whipped around the corner, racing straight for one of the Dremora. It spun to face me, but I was faster. I dodged its swing and lashed out with my blade. With a wet crunch its head went flying. I heard a shattering sound and a roar of pain; Martin had hit one of the Dremora. It fell back with wickedly-sharp shards of ice buried in its chest. The final daedra fired a spell at me. I jumped to the side, dodging that shot and its next. A blast of ice from Martin threw it off balance, long enough for me to stab my blade through the weak spot under its arm. It collapsed, snarling, as I slid out my sword. I had barely heard it hit the floor when I dashed up to the next level.

"Watch the stairs," I called to him over my shoulder. "They're slippery."

The upper floor was empty. I ran around towards the ramp up to the platform with the Stone. Nothing jumped out at me, so I quickly sheathed my sword and ascended. As before, the roar of the flame and the orb was nearly deafening, but this time I was prepared for it. I ignored the buzzing in my skull as I walked towards the orb. I reached out for it, bracing myself for its heat. But before I could reach it I heard the roar of flame behind me and I leapt aside. The fireball intended for me exploded against the platform. I whirled around to find myself facing a creature made entirely of flame. It hovered a few inches above the ground, its burning face turned towards me. I saw it lunge at me, felt its hands grasping. I screamed and wrenched myself away. From somewhere below I heard Martin shout my name. Right then, I had no thoughts to spare for him. I was barely able to do more than fumble with the hilt of my sword before another ball of flame came hurtling towards me. I threw myself to the ground to avoid being hit. The atronach bore down on me, both hands obscured in fiery halos. I crawled away from it, but I knew it was too late. It raised its arms high above its head as it prepared to cast an inferno down on me.

"No!"

The daedra turned fast, barely blocking Martin's swing with and upraised arm. With a metallic shriek, half of the forearm fell to the ground. Its fire fizzled out, leaving the amputated limb as nothing more than ash. The atronach lunged at him, and he dodged the attack. Then he pushed forward again with the daedric sword he wielded. While they were busy, I crawled out of the way and scrambled to my feet. I had to get the Stone. That was the only way we'd make it out now. I reached out and snatched the Stone from the air. Behind me, I heard the sounds of roaring fire and shattering ice, then the sound of a blade clattering against the platform.

"Mara!"

I spun, wild eyed, to see the daedra cast Martin down. His sword lay out of his reach. I ran at them. The orb was tucked under one arm while I reached for my sword with the other. He couldn't die. Not now.

The beam of fire that had been supported by the Stone exploded, rocking the whole tower. I fell to my knees beside Martin, barely keeping hold of the Stone. The atronach winked out of existence as the tower began to collapse beneath us. I felt Martin pull me into his arms as if trying to shield me. I braced myself against him and squeezed my eyes shut.

The next thing I felt was Martin's arms loosen around me. Somehow we weren't dead. I opened my eyes and looked around. The rubble of the Gate lay all around us in black, broken pieces. I stared at him, suddenly at a loss for words. We weren't dead. I started laughing and so did he.

"My Lord, are you injured?" Jauffre hurried over to us, looking frantic. "I saw you go into the Gate, and I feared the worst."

"No, we're both fine," Martin reassured him.

Jauffre's eyes snapped onto me. Was that disapproval I saw in them? Did he blame me for Martin going into the Gate? I looked away and said quietly, "We should keep moving. Pray that we don't see any more of these cursed things."

I heard Jauffre walk away. Beside me, Martin got to his feet. He held out his hand to me and, after a moment of hesitation, I took it and he pulled me up.

"You know," he said thoughtfully, "I don't believe I've ever heard you laugh before."

"And I don't think you ever will again."

I adjusted my grip on the Sigil Stone and followed Jauffre's lead back toward the road. Martin followed, quickly coming up beside me and matching my step.

"Did I do something wrong?" He asked.

I refused to look at him. "No. I just want to get to Cloud Ruler Temple without any more surprises. If we do run into another Gate I'll get you out alive, Divines willing."

"What about you?"

"This isn't about me."

He stopped me with a hand on my shoulder. "Yes, it is. You've gotten us this far, haven't you?"

"I hate to say it, but we've been very, very lucky so far. By all rights, we should both be dead." I turned and looked him square in the eye as I told him, "I'm not sure if I can get both of us out alive if we go into the Deadlands again. But if we do, believe me, I will make sure that it's you who survives."

We stopped before the gates of Cloud Ruler Temple. I stared up at the high stone walls and wrapped my arms tighter around myself to ward off the cold. Snow covered the ground all around us. The frigid wind didn't help. Luckily it wasn't long before the gates swung open and a man rushed out to meet us.

"Grandmaster, is this…"

Jauffre nodded. "Yes, Cyrus, this is the Emperor's son, Martin Septim."

"My Lord! Welcome to Cloud Ruler Temple. We have not had the honor of an Emperor's visit in many years," Cyrus said, finishing with a bow.

Martin, I could see, wasn't quite sure how to respond. His brow pinched together and he said uncertainly, "Ah, well, thank you! The honor is mine."

Jauffre steered him away, hurrying him through the gateway and up the stairs into the courtyard. "Come. Your Blades are waiting to greet you."

Martin shot me a look plainly saying, "help." I shrugged and gave him a sympathetic grimace. There wasn't anything I could do.

On the other side of the courtyard was a long building with a low, slanting roof. Before it stood two lines of men and women in armor; the Blades, all in full uniform. I walked to stand at the end of the right line, behind Cyrus. Jauffre pulled Martin onto the building's front steps and turned him to face the crowd. To them he called, "Blades! Dark times are upon us. The Emperor and his sons were slain on our watch. The Empire is in chaos. But there is yet hope. Here is Martin Septim, true son of Uriel Septim!"

As one, the Blades drew their swords and I jumped back in surprise. "Hail, Dragonborn! Hail, Martin Septim! Hail!" They roared, thrusting their blades towards the sky in a kind of salute.

"Your highness, the Blades are at your command," Jauffre went on. "You will be safe here until you can take up your throne."

He and the Blades watched Martin expectantly and silence settled upon them like a thick coating of dust. Martin's eyes flitted between them and, for a moment, I could see he wanted to be anywhere but there.

"Jauffre. All of you. I know you all expect me to be Emperor. I'll do my best. But this is all new to me. I'm not used to giving speeches." He let out a nervous laugh. Everyone was silent. I saw him clench and unclench his fists while his eyes roamed the crowd.

His gaze stopped on me, and I gave him a small smile, mouthing, "Go on."

He took a deep breath to steady himself. "But I… I wanted you to know I appreciate your welcome here. I hope I prove myself worthy of your loyalty in the coming days." Silence. "That's it. Thank you."

"Well then," Jauffre said after an awkward pause and cleared his throat. "Thank you, Martin. We'd all best get back to our duties, eh, Captain?"

The Blades dispersed. Once their focus was off him, Martin hurried through the throng, straight toward me.

"Not much of a speech, was it?" He asked shakily, running one hand through his hair. I bit my lip to keep from smiling. "It didn't seem to bother them, though. The Blades saluting me and hailing me as Martin Septim… I don't mean to sound ungrateful. I know I'd be dead now if it weren't for you. Thank you."

I just nodded, while silently thinking about how he'd handled himself on the road. He might have made it through all by himself if he'd been given the chance to fight. However, I was glad that he'd never had a chance to test it.

"… But everyone expects me to suddenly know what to do. How to behave. They want an Emperor to tell them what to do. And I haven't the faintest idea…" He trailed off.

"I hate to interrupt, but we've still got to get the Amulet back," I reminded him.

"Of course. The Amulet of Kings. So we… I…" he amended quickly, "… can take it to the Temple of the One and light the Dragonfires. And stop the Oblivion invasion."

"And then you'll be Emperor."

"The Emperor…" He laughed and shook his head. "That's an idea that will take some getting used to. In any case, we need the Amulet first. Maybe Jauffre will know where to start."

"I should go check, but if you want me to stay–"

"Don't worry about it, my friend. I know I'm in good hands here." Then, with a hint of a smile, he said, "Farewell. For now."

He turned and walked towards the Fort's main building, leaving me staring blankly after him. In that moment something changed. He thought of me as a friend and I… I didn't mind. What I did mind was the thought of having to leave. Suddenly I didn't want to. It hadn't just been an offer. I wanted to stay. Gods forgive me, I wanted to stay.

Jauffre approached me eventually and said quietly, "You have proven yourself a loyal servant of the Empire, as worthy as any of the Blades to stand by Martin's side during this crisis. As the Grandmaster of the Blades, I would be honored to accept you into our order. Will you join us?"

I looked at him in surprise. The Blades were sworn to protect the Emperor… but wasn't that what I was doing anyway? What could it hurt?

"Yes, I will join the Blades."

"Then kneel."

I did.

"Do you, Mara Fides, swear undying loyalty to those of the Dragon Blood? To protect and serve them to your final breath?"

"I do, sir."

"Then it is my honor to welcome you into our ranks as a knight sister of the Blades."

I got to my feet. "Cyrus, fetch this girl a blade. She's one of us now."

Cyrus looked my way, nodded, and went through a door off the main building.

"I don't mean to interrupt, sir, but about the Amulet…"

"You're right. We must try to recover the Amulet before the enemy takes it out of our reach." Jauffre walked into the main hall, and I followed him. "You should return to the Imperial City. Baurus may have learned something about the assassins."

"Baurus is still there?"

"Yes. I tasked him with looking into the matter of the assassins after you left to find Martin. You should find him at Luther Broad's Boarding House in the Elven Gardens district."

Cyrus returned a few minutes later, a sword in his hands. He held it out to me, saying, "Welcome aboard, ma'am. It will be an honor to serve with you."

I nodded and took the sword from him. It was the lightly curved kind that all of them carried. I drew it and tested its weight and balance. Satisfied, I sheathed it and strapped the scabbard to my hip.

"Give my warm regards to Baurus," Jauffre told me. "Tell him he should not blame himself for the Emperor's death. He did well to send you to me."

"Will do, sir."