BOOK TWO- NIGHTINGALE

For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul.

Judy Garland

CHAPTER SIX

Riften.

I had seen it from afar many times, and I had listened to my mother's tales. I had spoken to villagers and merchants who had been there, and I had conjured up a thousand different images in my mind of what it might be like. But no story or far-off glimpse of it could possibly have prepared me for the reality.

It wasn't that it was particularly impressive, exactly. I had heard tell of cities like Solitude, Whiterun and Markath, all staggeringly stunning to look at and amazingly awe-inspiring. Riften looked more like a drowsy little village that had somehow grown in its sleep until it became a town. It wasn't remarkably beautiful, either. Though not unattractive at all, the simple wooden houses and the calm water of the canal had a sort of tired air to them, a run-down feel that made it seem like the entire city was sighing in exhaustion. Even the striking beauty of the autumnal forest that surrounded it couldn't lift the weary look from the place.

But if the scene appeared worn and tired, the city itself most certainly did not. From the top of the hill where I stood, overlooking the town, I had a bird's eye view of the hive of activity that was Riften. The streets were packed with people swarming about them and up and down the alleyways like a bustling colony of ants. The small cargo boats wound their way up and down the canal, stocked with goods bound for every corner of Skyrim- mostly, I knew from what I'd learned through my mother's patient teaching, mead and fish, the principal exports of the city. At least, I thought with a wry grin, the principal official exports. There was no avoiding the fact that, though the Jarl was loath to admit it, stolen goods were what Riften produced better than any other town in Skyrim.

And that, of course, was why I was here, I thought to myself as I started to make my way down the hill. I knew that there was an underworld beneath those busy streets, a city under the city. Down in the darkness of the ratways, the true rulers of Riften dwelt. The people I had come here to find. The Thieves Guild. They were where the true power in Riften came from, the backbone of the city, an invisible monarchy that nobody ever saw. The simple thought of becoming one of them was enough to send a quiver of excitement through my body, and I subconsciously started walking faster.

It wasn't long before I was in view of the city gates. I couldn't help a feeling of trepidation creeping over me as I approached. I had lived all my life in a tiny village with no more than a handful of people around me. Would I be able to cope with the sudden transition? The relentless stream of people flowing in and out of the gates didn't encourage me. I had never seen so many people in my life. There was a caravan of Khajiit making their camp outside the city gates, singing a song in their native language of Ta'agra as they built up a fire and pitching their tents. They were the first of their kind I'd seen, and I stared at them for a few moments before turning my attention to the others. There was an entire platoon of Imperial soldiers, their Legate shouting them into order as they marched away from the walls, probably to some camp in the woods. There was a crowd of travelling merchants, bent double under the weight of the heavy packs of goods they carried. A pair of Argonians bearing baskets of fish walked past me, chatting in voices that made my ears prick with curiosity at the sound of their strange accents. I jumped back as a huge cart rolled by, pulled by a pair of stormy grey horses and laden with barrels and crates with the insignia of the Black-Briar family stamped on their sides. Buzzing around the throng of people like bees were the harassed looking guards, desperately trying- and failing- to impose some kind of order.

I swallowed as I approached the two standing watch over the gate, who looked at me through narrowed eyes as I approached. Since most of their faces were invisible behind the visors of their helmets, it was impossible to tell what they were thinking as I neared them.

'Hold there, elf.' One of the two stood up from where he had been leaning against the wall. 'What's your business in the city?'

Somehow I had a feeling that saying I was there to join a Guild of criminals wasn't the best idea. 'Trading,' I said simply. It wasn't a complete lie. It was just I would be receiving the goods without having to pay for them, that was all.

'Then you'll have to pay the visitor's tax.' Though I couldn't see his face, I knew that he was smirking and I frowned.

'Tax? Why in Azura's name would I have to pay a tax to go into the city?'

'For the privilege of carrying out your… trading. Why else?'

I put my hands in my pockets and fixed him with a withering glare. 'I don't suppose you've realised, but this is the most obvious hoax that's ever existed in the history of Nirn.'

The guard didn't seem bothered, fiddling absent-mindedly with the hilt of his sword. 'Is that so? Well, I've got my orders, greyskin, and I'm keeping to them. One hundred septims. Now.'

The greyskin comment sent fury burning through my blood, but I pushed it down and gave a careless shrug as I drew my dagger from my belt. So, he'd decided to be arrogant and difficult, right? Well, two could play at that game.

'Do you see this?' I asked casually, holding up the weapon.

He jerked his head in response.

'What do you think I use it for?'

There was a trace of confusion in his voice as he replied. 'Stabbing things, I guess.'

'Almost. You're half right.' I spun it around in my hand. 'I use it for slicing open my kills after I go hunting so I can rip out their guts.'

I paused, waiting to see the effect on him. When he said nothing, I decided I might as well milk this thing for all it was worth.

'How about I give you a demonstration?' I pulled an apple I had taken with me for the journey from my pocket and threw it up into the air. As it soared upwards, I slashed up with my hand, splitting it into halves. As the two pieces started to fall, I sliced across, severing them neatly. Then I made a third quick flick with the blade, and in less than the time it took for me to blink, the apple landed on the ground in eight separate chunks.

I tossed the dagger from one hand to the other, threw it above my head and caught it again. 'But there'd be other things to slice, if you get my meaning, if I thought certain people were trying to cheat me out of my money.'

There was an extremely awkward silence as the guard shuffled nervously from foot to foot, staring at the pieces of apple and clearly trying to work out whether I meant my threat or not. 'Ok,' he said finally. 'You… you can put that thing away. I'm letting you in.'

'Thank you.' I threw him a winning smile as I tucked my knife back into my belt. 'And what race am I?'

'Dunmer,' he muttered sullenly, scuffing the ground with his boot.

'That's right. Call me greyskin again, and you'll regret it.'

I pushed past him and opened the gate myself, throwing a last parting shot over my shoulder as I entered the city. 'See you around. You know, if you want this hoax of yours to work, maybe you should stop sulking like that. You're so babyish that if I told you to act your age, I think you'd probably disappear. And what's more, you're so stupid you'd try to drown a fish.'

Before he could figure out what I'd said, I darted away out of sight. The gate swung shut behind me, and for the first time in my life I looked out over Riften.

Up close, there was no trace of the squalid feeling it had emanated when I had looked down on it from above. All of a sudden there was an intense beauty about it. Despite the throng of people pushing all around me, it had a lonely, separated feel, an air of secluded harmony. If felt so apart from the rest of Skyrim. The place was well named- it did indeed feel like there was an enormous rift that could not be crossed between this city and every other settlement in the land. Even surrounded by people, it was impossible not to feel strangely alone.

I started to walk into the city centre, unsure of what to do now that I was in. How did one go about finding the Thieves Guild? I doubted that I could just walk up to someone and ask. These people were a shadowy and secretive society. Their line of work demanded that they stay hidden from everything and everyone. If they were easy to find, each and every one of them would either be in jail or dead. How was I supposed to find them?

Maybe I wouldn't need to, I realised suddenly. Maybe they would find me. They had eyes everywhere in this city, I knew that well, eyes that were constantly on the lookout for assets. Any one of the dozens of people surrounding me could be Guild members on the lookout for recruits. From the guards marching up and down the packed streets to the merchants waving their wares above their heads in the marketplace, from the old beggar slouching against the wall next to me to the nobleman haggling with the armour trader- any of them might be my ticket into the Guild.

But first I would have to attract their attention…

The sky was beginning to darken, and I decided to leave any action until the dawn. The events of the previous day, coupled with the long journey and the various wolves, bears, sabre cats and brigands I had encountered along the road had left me exhausted. I turned in a circle, trying to find an inn of some kind where I could spend the night. I was rewarded by the sight of a wooden sign with a picture of a bee and a fishing hook painted on it, along with the name of the Bee and Barb. With a sigh of contented relief, I made my way over to it and pushed open the door. I was greeted by the soft strumming of a lute from nearby, and the calm glow of candlelight.

'Welcome to the Bee and Barb. What can I do for you, land-strider?' The voice was a gentle hiss. I turned to see a male Argonian hurrying over to me, wiping mead from his hand onto his apron. 'We have plenty of free rooms, and if I could interest you in any food or drink, then be sure to let me know.'

'I'd like to rent a room for tonight, please,' I told him.

'Of course.' He and clapped his hands at a young Argonian, probably his son, who was standing nearby sweeping the floor. 'Go and prepare a room for our guest.'

The boy nodded and scurried off. A group of rowdy Nords sitting at the nearest table struck up a loud drinking song, and it was then I realised how thirsty I was. 'You mentioned drinks?' I inquired, looking at the Argonian.

He rubbed his hands together, smiling. 'Ah, yes. We serve all the usuals here- ale, mead, wine… or perhaps I could persuade you to take an interest in some of our… special... drinks?'

'Special?'

'Indeed. My son invented them. He has a particularly inventive mind. First, the Velvet Lechance, which is a mixture of blackberry, honey, spiced wine and a touch of nightshade... perfectly safe, I assure you. Second, we have the White-Gold Tower, which is heavy cream with a layer of blended mead, lavender and dragon's tongue on top. Last, and only for the bravest of souls, we have the Cliff Racer, which is a delightful mixture of Firebrand Wine, Cyrodiilic Brandy, Flin and Sujamma.'

I stared at him, unsure of whether or not he was teasing me. 'I'll pass,' I said firmly. 'Just wine for me, please.'

The Argonian looked slightly disappointed, but dipped his head obediently. 'Very well. That will be ten septims for the room, and seven more for the wine.'

I nodded and counted out seventeen coins. As the Argonian took them and hurried over to the bar, I allowed myself to sink into the nearest free chair with a sigh of exhaustion. Tonight I would rest, and tomorrow, I would find the Thieves Guild- come what may.

'All meat cheap and guaranteed free from Rockjoint!'

'Jewelry with legendary Argonian craftmanship!'

'Armour guaranteed to stand in the way of any assassin's knife! If it doesn't, you can find some way out of Sovngarde and come back for a refund!'

The calls of the traders blended in with the cacophony of other noises to make a soundscape that was almost like a piece of music. There were the angry yells of the merchants arguing prices with their customers, the pleads of the beggars, the smashing of the blacksmith's hammer, the gentle splashing of the boats making their way down the canal, the scrape of the smith's assistant at the grindstone, the thunk of the woodcutter's axe. It was a melody of mortal life, one that was unlike nothing I had ever heard before.

I shook my head. I had no time to stand around. I had a Guild to find and join by the time the sun set. So, the first logical step was to try and find the ratways, the undercity. Being a sewer of sorts, it made sense for the entrance to be low down… so should I look down by the water's edge? Or would it make more sense for me to try and find someone who looked like they were connected with the Guild, and ask them for help? I knew the Black-Briar family had ties with them, but then I had no idea who was Black-Briar and who was not.

At a loss for anything else to do, I decided to wander around the marketplace for a while. The day was still young, and I was confident of success, so I might as well browse the goods for sale. The weapon stall naturally drew my eye first, and I found myself attracted to it like a moth to a flame.

'You gonna buy something? If not, move on.' The Nord woman selling the deadly items lying on her counter glared at me as I approached.

I frowned. 'You say that to all your customers?'

'Look, people have been rough with me for as long as I can remember. So I'm rough with people. Got a problem?'

I shrugged and was about to start examining her collection of daggers when, without warning, a young Bosmer dressed in dark leather armour raced up to the stall and snatched up the coin purse that rested upon it. The Nord woman gave a shout of fury and tried to grab him, but he slipped through her fingers easily and darted away into the crowd. A few guards looked up with expressions of bored curiosity, then looked back down again as the thief vanished. Not a single one of them made any move to go after him.

'Only in Riften!' The armour trader picked up a knife and drove it into her wooden counter. 'Only in this godforsaken hole of a city do people get clean away with stealing just about gods-damn everything! Only in this dump do the guards not give a skeever's ass! Only in this filthy hellhole can your life savings be snatched out from under your nose and nobody could be less bothered! Only in Riften!'

I watched the dark blob that was all I could see of the thief duck and weave through the crowd, and an idea occurred to me. A feeling of insuppressible mischief stole over me as I turned on my heel and dashed away from the irate Nord's armour stall, following the Bosmer's progress through the throng. It wasn't long before he rounded a corner into a mostly deserted street. I ducked into the shadows, using them for cover as I crept towards him. He tossed the purse into the air, clapped once and caught it again, grinning delightedly. He tucked it into his pocket and strolled off casually, clearly completley unaware that I was never more than three paces behind him.

As he turned into an alley where the two of us were completely alone, I acted with the speed of a striking snake. Fast as lightning, my hand dipped into his pocket. My fingers closed around the little cloth bag. In the space of half a second I had whipped it from his pocket and placed it in my own. The elf kept on walking, completely oblivious, and I had to suppress a spurt of laughter. Quickly, I dashed away into another dimly lit side-street, and waited until I was definitely out of anyone's earshot before I allowed myself to burst out laughing. Such barefaced robbery was so exhilarating it made me feel like a child again. And to have pickpocketed a pickpocket… the mere thought had be doubled over with mirth. Even better, I had gained myself a decent amount of money. Maybe I could indulge myself. I grinned at the idea of buying a knife from that grouchy Nord with her own money…

I gave a final, self-satisfied smirk, and prepared to return to the marketplace.

'Nicely done.'

I leaped at least a foot into the air as the soft, smooth voice sounded without warning from the shadows. My head whipped from side to side, desperately trying to find the source of the noise, but all I could see were the stone walls of the empty street. I felt my hand straying to my bow.

'Although,' the voice continued, sounding somewhat amused, 'your footwork needs a bit of work. You've got it half right, but you need to balance your weight in exactly the right way, otherwise you put yourself at risk of pulling on the target's purse. And that, as I'm sure you know, is fatal.'

'Look,' I snapped, 'I'm not in the habit of talking to the air. If you're going to lecture me on my thieving skills, at least do it from where I can see you.'

A heartbeat later, I jumped backwards in shock as a man stepped forwards and melted out of the shadows only a metre away from me, chuckling gently. 'No need to ask who you are,' he said in a warm voice. 'With a technique like that, and that feisty way of speaking, you can only be Dralsi's daughter. Karliah, I believe?'

I nodded slowly and warily. With a wide smile, he held out his hand, and, after a moment's hesitation, I took it. 'Gallus,' he said by way of introduction, his dark brown eyes sparkling. 'Gallus Desidenius. Guildmaster of the Riften Thieves Guild.'

He took a half-step backwards, and I swept my eyes over him, examining him. He was an Imperial- tall, dark haired, a few years older than me, startlingly handsome, and with an intelligent face that looked more as if it belonged on a scholar than a thief. He had an air of quiet wisdom and cleverness that would have made him seem out of place in his dark leather armour, if not for the roguish, mischievous glint in his eyes. It makes him look as if he has the nerve, daring and cunning to accomplish just about anything if he put his mind to it.

'How do you know my mother?' There were a thousand questions buzzing around in my mind, but that was the one slipped out first.

There was an enigmatic twinkle in his boyish eyes as he replied. 'It's a long story. Your mother and I go back. Way back.'

'In what way?'

He chuckled again. 'I could never forget that style of pickpocketing. I learned how to steal in the exact same way, from the exact same person.'

I stared at him in disbelief. 'You… you were taught by my mother?'

'For a time, yes. A brief time, but time enough for me to learn more from her than I had from anybody else.'

I let my doubts and suspicions fade away. Any friend of my mother's was a friend of mine. 'Then it's an honour to meet you,' I told him.

'Likewise.' Gallus gave me a winning smile. 'My Guild's been waiting a long time for you to come and join us. Your mother is practically revered among us. The acts she performed in the Guild's service will not be forgotten for centuries to come. When she told us it was her intention to send you here when you came of age…' He shrugged, still smiling. 'I think I can speak for all of us when I say we were quite excited, to say the least. Well, Mercer never lets himself get excited about anything, and I think Elandine would rather die than let anyone think she was looking forward to meeting anybody… but still.'

'Well, that's good.' I folded my arms. 'Because I came here to find you.'

'I know. We've got eyes everywhere in Riften, as I'm sure you're aware. I'm sorry my man on the gate gave you trouble, by the way, but I have to say that you performed admirably.' His smile widened. 'I enjoyed the bit about having other things to slice. Very effective.'

'Thank you.'

There was a moment of silence, before he turned and started to stroll away, beckoning for me to follow him. I obliged, hurrying after him as he made his way through several by-streets and into a cemetery. 'It's good to have a new recruit. I haven't been Guildmaster for long, you see. Our former leader, Draws-His-Blade, passed away recently. He died as he lived, fighting to defend what he held dear. His name will be honoured for as long as the Guild exists. He deserved a bit of peace after more than forty years of leadership, to tell the truth. But the downside was that I was flung into the job without much warning. Still getting used to it, to be honest. But having a capable new member in our ranks can only be an omen of good things.'

He led me down a flight of steps to a large slab of stone before standing to one side. 'Your first mission, should you choose to accept, is to find the way in.'

I frowned and examined the stone slab. My eyes instantly fixed on a symbol carved into it- a circle inside a diamond. The sign of the Thieves Guild. Looking carefully, I saw that the circle was actually a button built into the stone. I pushed it without hesitation, and was rewarded with the sound of rock scraping against rock as the slab drew backwards, revealing a short flight of stairs leading down to a trapdoor.

'Very nice.' Gallus smiled again as he pulled the wooden cover open and swung himself down onto the rickety wooden ladder that stretched down the hole. 'Extremely impressive, in fact. This way.'

He released his hold on the ladder and dropped out of sight without another word. A loud thud echoed up from the bottom of the ladder. Shrugging, I followed suit, clambering down into the darkness. The rungs quivered and buckled beneath my weight and I expected them to give way at any moment, but I gritted my teeth and forced myself to keep going. One rung, after the other, after the other…

My feet touched stone. I hadn't realized that I'd shut my eyes, but now I was opening them, so I must have done. I jumped down the short distance that was left and turned around.

My mouth dropped open.

Gallus stood slightly in front of me, still smiling that gentle smile, the smile that shone in his eyes as well as on his face. The amber glow of lanterns and candles illuminated the scene as I tried to take it in.

I wasn't quite sure what I had been expecting. But whatever it had been, it hadn't been this. When I'd been told that the Guild lived in the sewers, I guess I'd imagined dark, dimly lit tunnels and cramped passageways. But this place… this place was something else. It was vast, for a start. The enormous domed roof was so high that if three people stood on each other's shoulders, they wouldn't have been able to reach it. Bright sunlight streamed down through a hole in the ceiling, drowning out the lanterns and making the dark water in the large, circular pool shine like liquid ebony. There was a circular walkway around the pool, along with four stone bridges that stretched out over the water, meeting in a circle where the beam of daylight shone the strongest.

As I stared in awe at the scene before me, Gallus stepped over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder. Still with that same smile on his face, he whispered two words.

'Welcome home.'

I enjoyed writing that first meeting with Gallus. I hope you guys enjoyed reading it! If you can spare a moment, I'd really appreciate it if you could review and tell me what you thought. Please note that I had to use a LOT of artistic license with Gallus, as you never actually see him on the game except as a ghost. So his physical description was entirely made by me. Also, if you think the Flagon sounds slightly different to how it appears in game, that's mostly because of the time gap between the game and this part of the story.