Valleri didn't expect the cave to be so spacious. The ceiling rose up several hundred feet and opened up. Stars glittered above her as she stared upwards for only a moment. As much as she wanted to look up at the sky, Valleri had to move on. The walls were close together and was starting to make her feel claustrophobic.

The first thing Valleri noticed when she entered was the giant hole dominating most of the first room. A small ledge was on other side of the hole, decorated with an old table and chair. Valleri narrowed her eyes and looked closer. The remains of an old bridge were still tied to the ledge, hanging loosely in the hole. Valleri peered over the edge. Her hands gripped the wall instinctively as she realized she couldn't see the bottom of the hole.

She was groaning when Aicantar and Vilkas found her. The elf was white as ghost, probably still processing what he learned about Vilkas. Vilkas for his part looked around the cavern with curiosity, eyes finally landing on the hole.

"This bodes well, doesn't it?" he muttered. The Nord was standing right on the edge, arms crossed.

"Don't fall in quite yet,' Valleri warned. Nervousness filled her stomach as she still clung wall, "There might be a better way down."

"We can only hope."
She turned around when she heard the clattering behind her. Aicantar was poking his head into a hidden nook. He looked over his shoulder to Valleri, "There's a way over here. A bit of a squeeze though."

Valleri went to meet him. The Imperial could understand why she didn't find the path earlier. The entrance was covered in moss and the shadows created by the rocks made it indistinguishable from the rest of the wall. Still, it was a path rather than a gaping hole in the floor. Without a word, Valleri stepped on through with Aicantar following close behind.

The tunnel wound downwards for only a few feet then ended abruptly. Valleri tapped on Aicantar's shoulder, signaling for him to summon up a light. The spell burned the Imperial's eyes before they adjusted. She sighed again; it really was a dead end. But whoever was here last made themselves a nice little camp. Valleri was most surprised to find a pillow amongst the bedding. It was covered in cobwebs, but it looked comfy nonetheless.

Aicantar looked down to Valleri, "Down the hole?"

"Down the hole."

The Altmer grumbled a little more before heading the way they came. Valleri stared at the small encampment in dark for another moment. With another sigh, Valleri turned back with disappointment still lingering. She stopped when she heard Aicantar and Vilkas talking.

"No way back there?"

"Yeah, just a dead end with some musty old bedding."

"That's not concerning at all."

"Do we have a rope at least? We could get down that way."

"Didn't think to bring one."

"How about the ladder over there? We could tear it apart…"

"It's on the other side of the hole. Are you gonna teleport over there or something?"

"You're right, dumb idea. Can you see the bottom?"

"Of the hole? Not at all."

The Imperial stopped next Aicantar and glanced downwards. She still felt unsettled as she looked down. Shaking her head, Valleri looked back to her friends, "we don't have much of a choice."

Aicantar tilted his head with a drawn smile, "Well, we could always just leave."

"Technically we could," Valleri murmured before her face turned serious, "But that's not the point."

"Once we go down, there's no coming back up," Vilkas said. He was still looking down the hole with a grimace. "At least not this way."

Valleri smirked and crossed her arms. Vilkas and Aicantar looked over at her with confusion. "I'm going down."

"Wait really?"

"Why not?" Valleri asked, glancing over to Aicantar. Her stomach still felt uneasy about making the leap, but the determination was there. She stole one last look at Vilkas, noting the look of mild entertainment on his face.

Valleri didn't waste her breath with an explanation before backing up to the wall of the cave. She started sprinting towards the hole. Her eyes shut right before she made it to the edge of the hole. Finally, Valleri sprung the edge.

She almost didn't realize she was falling until Valleri opened her eyes. In less than a second, Valleri couldn't see Vilkas and Aicantar any longer and darkness enveloped her. Before she knew it, Valleri was on her back, still falling weightlessly down the hole. There was another moment before Valleri scrunched her eyes together and felt herself scream. Her hand went out, attempting to grab onto a vine, anything to slow down her fall.

There was nothing around her but air.

In another few moments, Valleri felt her back hit water. Her eyes shot open as the cold liquid splashed around her. She took in a deep breath of air before her head was sucked under water.

Vilkas watched with amazement as Valleri leapt off the side. She disappeared in a moment, leaving him and Aicantar looking down in awe. He didn't actually think she was going to do that. Vilkas knelt down at the edge of the hole and stared down. All he could see was darkness.

"Shit, shit, shit," Aicantar muttered, suddenly pacing. "What just happened? Did Valleri just die?"

Vilkas felt his chest tighten as he continued to stare. He gulped, "I have no idea. I thought I heard a splash but I'm not sure." Taking a deep breath, Vilkas shouted Valleri's name down the hole. He could hear nothing but an echo.

By now, panic began to cement to itself in his stomach. Maybe she did just kill herself. If not, she was most likely injured and needed help. Anything could have happened.

"Vilkas, we gotta do something!"

The Nord whipped around to face Aicantar, "You don't think I realize that? We gotta jump down there."

Aicantar expression turned to shock in only a moment. "Wait, what? No. Absolutely not. No, no, no," the Altmer stammered out finally. He waved his arms in opposition as Vilkas tilted his head. "Look, there's gotta be another way down."

"You and Val literally just checked. This is the only way. Look, I can go first if you're not willing to."

"Nope." Aicantar shook his head and dug his heels into the ground. "I refuse to go down that hole."

Vilkas threw his head back in frustration. Without warning, he grabbed Aicantar's arm roughly and drug him to the edge of the hole. The Altmer screamed when Vilkas tossed him over the edge. Vilkas waited another few seconds before jumping in himself.

He would have to apologize to Aicantar when he saw him at the bottom.

Valleri took another deep breath as she surfaced. A strong current pulled her forward into the darkness, but Valleri 's eyes were adjusting quickly. Panic still rooted in her, the Imperial flailed her arms around in a half-baked attempt to grab hold of a rock or root. Not that it would have really helped in any case.

Valleri's eyes went wide when she noticed the small tunnel opening out into a sider chamber. Strange shapes hung from the ceiling, blocking what little light was filtering in. they moved like wriggling fingers, making Valleri go even colder in the water. She almost stopped breathing entirely when she realized they were giant spiders.

She flailed around in the water, reaching around for anything she could grasp onto. Those spiders were the last things she wanted go near. Finally, her hands grabbed hold of a root. The wooden tendril was cold and slimy in her grasp but it was something. Water splashed in the Imperial's nose and mouth making it almost impossible to breathe. In another moment her head was enveloped in water again. The current was too strong and Valleri's hand quickly lost its grip on the root.

Screaming, Valleri started to swallow more water as the river carried her closer to the edge. Valleri almost didn't realize she'd gone down the waterfall until she opened her eyes again to see spiders crawling up and down the cave walls. Within seconds, she was submerged again after landing in more water.

Valleri's eyes shot open. Her vision was cloudy n the water, but she was still alive. Legs kicking against the bottom, Valleri shot up to the surface of the water. Relief filled her when she found the pond to be shallow and calm. There were no strong currents to pull her further into the darkness.

Quickly, Valleri swam to the side and hauled herself up on to the stony floor. She coughed violently; her body's attempt to flush out the water she swallowed in the way down. The Imperial allowed herself another moment to catch her breath before getting up. She tossed her cloak and pack to the ground where it landed with a wet thud. The cold was already creeping up on her and seeping into her bones. Valleri looked over her shoulder to the water fall. The fall wasn't as horrible as she thought now that she was able to look at it properly.

In the background, Valleri heard a scream. Not a moment too soon, another figure fell down into the pond with a splash. Whoever it was surfaced and started flailing around in the water. Valleri rushed to the edge and narrowed her eyes for a better look. She sighed and called out, "Aicantar! This way! There's a ledge!"

As she predicted, Aicantar started kicking towards the shore. He clasped onto Valleri's hand and climbed up.

Valleri furrowed her eyebrow in concern, "Aicantar, what happened to Vilkas?"

"Son of a bitch!"

The Imperial stepped back with a grimace, "Wait, what?"

"That fucking Nord tossed me down!" Aicantar grasped her shoulders and shook Valleri, "I'm gonna hit him if he ever comes down here!"

Valleri stepped out of the Altmer's hold, glancing past him at the waterfall. She smirked when she saw Vilkas being carried towards them by the current. He yelled as he was tossed down the waterfall and landed with another splash. "You can do that now, Aicantar," she muttered.

Aicantar grumbled as he made his way to the shore. Vilkas was breathing heavily as he pulled himself up out of the water. He took a moment to rub the hair back out of his face, revealing a harried expression. "By Shor, I thought there was good possibility we might have drowned." Vilkas paused and met Valleri's eyes, "I am never, ever doing that again."

"Well, now what?" Aicantar huffed, crossing his arms.

Valleri rubbed some water from her eyes before squinting further into the cave. "I don't see any point in stopping for too long right here. I'm not sure if you saw those spiders up there, but I'd rather not risk having them come down to snack on us."

"She's got a point," Vilkas agreed with a nod of his head. "We'll probably dry out a little faster too if we're on the move."

The Imperial sighed, "I can't see anything down here. We'll have to stick close."

"Oh, give me moment," Aicantar whispered. Before either Vilkas or Valleri realized it, the cave was lit up with white light emanating from an orb floating above the Altmer. He grinned, "I'm useful for something."

"Well, stay close to Aicantar then."

Without another second wasted, the trio moved on. A smaller stream of water wound its way through the cave while smaller tunnels stemming off. Every once in a while, Valleri would see the shadows move form the corner of her eyes. She tried to put it out her mind as she followed Vilkas and Aicantar ahead of her. Sooner or later, the stream ran into the cave wall and they could follow it no longer. The tunnel then turned sharply upwards. Valleri felt like they were close to the end. But then again, she could be wrong.

The farther they climbed, the more distracted Vilkas became. Eventually, Valleri stopped and turned to him with narrowed eyes, "Is everything okay?"

"No," the Nord stated plainly, staring over his shoulder downhill. "I think we're being followed."

Valleri and Aicantar exchanged a worried glance. "Do you have you any idea what it might be?"

"Can't say for sure. This place is so musty I can't tell anything apart," Vilkas said. He scrunched his nose with distaste and walked to catch up to his friends. "This is not a good place for a fight. Regardless of what might be trailing us, we need to find an open area."

Valleri felt her heart beat faster as Aicantar quickened his pace. Vilkas lagged behind, determined to keep watch. At the top of the hill was a junction. Aicantar's magical light filled the small area and Valleri spun around to see that tunnels split in all directions. There was another small camp in a forgotten corner, destroyed by rats and moss.

She grimaced as Vilkas came up behind her. "I can't believe somebody actually decided to live here."

"Probably not for long," Vilkas whispered. He tapped Aicantar on the shoulder before gesturing to one of the new tunnels. "Head down that way. We'll be right behind you."

"Is that thing still after us?" the Altmer asked with a concerned grimace.

Vilkas stole another quick look down the way they came. "It's still down there. Best to just leave."

Valleri gasped lightly as she grabbed onto Vilkas' collar. "We need to go now!" the Imperial hissed as she dragged him and Aicantar down the next tunnel. After a steep incline, the floor leveled out into a massive cavern. The walls were lit up with glowing mushrooms, masking the room with a faint glow to see by. Valleri stopped running when they reached the side of another stream, panting heavily with wide, spooked eyes.

"Valleri! What in oblivion are you doing?"

"There's a fucking troll back there!" she yelled. Almost on cue, Aicantar yelled something nobody could make as a deep, carnal scream echoed from the tunnels. Valleri breathed deeply through her nose, "Why didn't you say anything?"

Vilkas grumbled as his eyes landed on the behemoth finally appearing at the end of the tunnel. The troll screamed once more and Valleri could have sworn she could smell it. Barely a moment passed when Valleri realized the Altmer at her side was gone, sprinting off in another direction. His magical light followed him down the cave like a bait. And sure enough, Valleri watched in shocked disbelief as the troll went straight for Aicantar.

Valleri ran after them almost immediately, following after Aicantar's mage light. She stopped when she saw Aicantar cornered against an old shrine in the middle of the cavern. Valleri didn't think and ran as fast as she could.

The troll brought its arms down to crush Aicantar but paused when its arms hit the floor. Valleri had already plunged the silver blade in the beast's back. Valleri pulled the blade out with a squelch and took a step back. Aicantar was able to scurry away and the surprised troll turned to face his sudden attacker. Valleri's eyes went wide as the troll's arms went up for another attack.

Again, Valleri barely realized she was swinging until she felt the edge of her sword eat into the troll's side. The creature only roared as it tottered back and forth until it regained its balance. The Imperial was out of breath. Her lungs burned as she tried to draw a breath. When she saw the troll lunging for a final attack, Valleri's eyes went wide with panic.

Before she realized it, a familiar yell rang in her ears and large sword plunged into the troll's chest. Valleri looked to her side to see Vilkas panting hard as he let the troll fall to the floor. He flashed a smirk when he pulled back.

"It's been a while,' he said, still smiling.

Valleri couldn't help but grin, "It has.' She paused and looked over to Aicantar. "You okay?"

Aicantar could only shake his head before he turned away and start hyperventilating. Valleri shook her head with a grimace and poked the troll with her sword. The troll didn't react. At least they didn't have to worry about that anymore. Valleri slid the sabre back into its sheath as a weight came off her shoulders.

Vilkas was already inspecting the shrine Aicantar found. The ceiling above them was caved in, allowing in enough light for them to see by clearly. The Imperial noted how similar the design of the shrine; the pale stone's silhouette was curved gently without any sort of fancy embellishments. If anything, it was much more Cyrodiilic than Dwemer. At least they were on the right track.

"Is it me or is this particularly clean looking?" Vilkas asked as he went around the back.

Squinting her eyes, Valleri leaned in for a closer look. "You're right. Usually there'd be some cobwebs at the very least. Someone must have been here recently."

"Cyrenial?"

Valleri grimaced, "Gods, I hope not…"

She sighed then gave the shrine another look. There wasn't anything unexpected about the exterior. But the inside of the shrine was opened up. At first, Valleri peeked in. All she saw was a small room with a fountain in the middle, surrounded on all sides by stony walls.

The Imperial just barely saw it.

The back panel seemed to be shimmering. Valleri narrowed her eyes in a sad attempt to look at it better. A second later, the dissatisfied woman walked in and approached the back panel with caution.

The wall really was shimmering, though just barely. A touch of rainbow colors swirled on a glass like plane just barely above the wall. Almost instinctively, Valleri put her hand through it only to watch it disappear. Her eyes shot open as she pulled her hand back in a final swift motion and spun back towards the opening.

"Aicantar! Vilkas! I found a portal!"

The Altmer turned to face her with a tired frown, "You're kidding."

Valleri shook her head with a grin, "Not at all! I think it's where we're supposed to go.'

Vilkas and Aicantar exchanged a harried glance before Vilkas walked over. The Nord scanned around the shrine, pausing only when he saw the portal. Valleri crossed her arms and leaned against the wall as he approached her. "At least you haven't gone crazy yet. I think Aicantar's about to hit a limit though."

Biting her lip, Valleri breathed out sharply. "Just a little bit further. Just a little bit further, then we can rest as long as we need to."

"That exciting, huh?"

"You have no idea."

The Nord sighed and called out to Aicantar, "We're going a little further to find a better place to camp." The Altmer groaned before plodding on over, noticeably less excited than before. Vilkas was right. He was going to hit a limit, but that wouldn't be for a while Valleri thought. She didn't wait for the other two before walking on to the other side. Luminescent purple swirled and clouded her vision and she could hear rhythmic humming around her.

Things were about to get a bit more interesting.