Chapter 73: The Gold Road and Skingrad

[1st – 2nd of Evening Star 4E 202]

Time to move on! Reluctantly – in particular the girls would have loved to stay in and around the lovely manor for a longer period of time – we took our leave from Uncle Valerius on the next day and left Red Rose Manor after breakfast, just as the sun was coming up. The Gold Road started right south of the house, and we took it to hopefully get to Kvatch sooner or later. Of course, knowing our talent to stumble upon all kind of adventures and distractions, it might be rather later, but we would see.

After a few bends of the road and an hour or so of walking we could see white stones and walls shining through the trees to our right. After checking with my map I explained that we were seeing the ruins of the Ayleid city of Ceyatatar, or at least a small part of what had been on the surface. The girls wanted to have a look, and so we took the small side road leading there. Not quite unexpectedly the ruins were occupied by a small group of conjurers, but Deborah and Pammy took care of them. I was not our habit to attack people without provocation, but the conjurers appeared to be very protective about 'their' ruin, and we did not even get a chance to ask them politely whether we could camp out here for an hour or so.

While standing on some of the whitish remains, I asked around if everybody knew about the Ayleids, and it turned out that most of our party did not. Neither our housecarls nor the two girls had been in Cyrodiil before, and they also knew very little about the history of Tamriel and previous eras. T'mara had passed Cyrodiil on her way to Skyrim before she had encountered Alduin for the first time, but had not paid much attention to environment and lore. Thus I provided a short explanation:

"The Ayleids, also called Heartland Elves or Wild Elves, are believed to be the first sentient race to settle in the center of Tamriel, already in the First Era. We know that they had a number of cities in Cyrodiil and adjacent regions, mostly underground, and Imperial archaeologists have found more than fifty Ayleid ruins in Cyrodiil alone. They must have been very skilled in magic, as we can find Welkynd stones and Varla stones in most ruins; the former can restore magicka, and the latter refresh weapon and armor enchantments. We do not know exactly how the Ayleids looked like, and in their ruins there are still active and quite dangerous traps, after all of those years, similar to the traps we encounter in Nordic and Dwemer ruins in Skyrim. There is a book named 'The Wild Elves' from a certain Kier-Jo Chorvak, and I know that my parents have a copy; once we are in Kvatch, you can read it for more information."

"Are there still some of them living down there?" Lucia asked. "Like, are they going to emerge from the ruins and haunt us?"

I smiled and shook my head: "No, certainly not. The Ayleids have been gone since hundreds of years ago, and none of them have been seen since the second era or even before. Like with the Dwemer, we do not know exactly why they are gone; maybe we will never know."

"So," Yumi asked now, "the ruins are all empty?"

"Not quite" Deborah took that one. "Sometimes bandits, necromancers or conjurers claim the upper parts of one of those ruins as their lair. However, when they venture down to the lower levels, they are frequently stopped by traps, ghosts, skeletons and such, and I believe that there are still sections in those ruins nobody has been in for many centuries."

"Have you ever been in such an Ayleid ruin, Papa?" Lucia asked again.

"No, my dear, I have not. When I grew up in Cyrodiil, I was too young to explore Ayleid ruins, and there are none, as far as I know at least, in Skyrim. From what I heard, the ruins are still dangerous, and I do not really feel a desire to explore down there. Although, I assume that with the experience your mother and I have in searching Nordic crypts, we should also be able to survive an Ayleid ruin."

We had a small snack at the border of the ruin, but not too close to the entrance into the underground area; the girls insisted that we keep some distance, just in case. At some other time I might have been actually tempted to explore the inside of the ruins, but certainly not today, with the girls around.

Thus, after relaxing for some time and listening to the sounds of various birds and insects, we went back to the Gold Road. On our way towards Skingrad we passed two caves, and both of them had a few imps outside lurking and waiting for unarmed travelers. The ones guarding the first cave noticed too late that we did not really fit into this category, and we disposed of them very quickly. When we got closer to the second cave, we could see one of the imps from a distance, and Yumi eagerly conjured her puppy; Newton rushed ahead, attacked the imp, and naturally failed, being too small yet. While Pammy killed the injured imp, Yumi was in tears when seeing her familiar dead and gone, until I explained that this was not an issue, as she'd be able to conjure it again, fully intact and healed. The tears did not stop until her magicka pool had refilled and she could cast the spell once more. Yumi snuggled with her Newton, and then she asked:

"What is such a small familiar good for if it cannot even defeat such a weak creature?"

"You will need to provide plenty of exercise for your familiar, and eventually it will get bigger and stronger, as I had mentioned earlier. Besides, even while being very small, it can already serve as guard and warn you when danger approaches."

Yumi nodded, dried off her last tears, and we walked on. Every ten minutes or so, just as her magicka allowed, she re-summoned Newton and cast the candlelight spell, training diligently; Deborah smiled when seeing that and nodded approvingly.

Just before we took the last few turns down to the east city gate, we were about to pass a small mine, and a very short side road lead up to the mine entrance to our right. I had just started to explain about goblins, triggered by seeing some signs of them outside, like arranged skulls, and I was happy to see that no goblins were lingering outside as they sometimes did. However, a bandit or highwayman had been hidden in the bushes, and he got a sword out and got close to T'mara, who was leading our group, saying:

"Your money or your life!"

My wife had been a little ahead of the group, and maybe the bandit had not seen us coming around the bend of the road. Pammy, though, was at my wife's side in an instant; she growled and the highwayman changed his mind very quickly:

"On second thought, maybe you better keep both..."

A few seconds later, he – being a Khajiit – literally had his tail between his legs and ran away as fast as he could, shouting out something like "Times are hard when a robber can't even make an honest living". We could not keep from laughing.

Dusk was not far when we finally got to enter Skingrad, main city of the county with the same name, located close to the center of the region called the 'West Weald'. Alessia Ottus had written on the city two hundred years ago:

Located in the heart of the West Weald highlands, Skingrad is the gem of Old Colovia, and a model of the Colovian virtues of independence, hard work, and tough-mindedness.

Skingrad has three districts: the Castle, Hightown, and Chapel. A low road runs east-west under the walls and bridges of the upper town. The guilds and West Weald Inn are in the west of Hightown, while many shops and upper class residence are arranged along a street in the north. The southern half of the town includes the chapel at its east end, with Skingrad՚s other lodgings, the Two Sisters Inn, on a street in the center, with other residences, modest and mean, scattered through the rest of the district. Gates and bridges cross the low road to connect Hightown and Chapel in several places. Castle Skingrad is completely separate from the town, standing on a high prominence to the southeast. A road from the town's east gate leads from town to the castle.

I am certain where you should go to purchase your sweet rolls – to Salmo the Baker in Chapel District! They are delicious. As for where to sample the other tasty treats of Skingrad – its cheeses and tomatoes – I must leave that to your discretion. I am sure you are not interested in Skingrad՚s wines, for drinking leads to disorderliness, and disorderliness leads to sin.

From my personal point of view, I could not agree more with her last sentence, although many citizens in Cyrodiil would disagree, as I knew quite well. A 'true' Nord might have responded with something like "what's wrong with drinking, disorderliness and sin?".

Naturally, when the girls were told about the bakery, they demanded that we go there first, and we willingly complied. The bakery was still there and it was open, although it was of course operated by one of Salmo՚s offspring. They did sell sweetrolls, and each of the girls got one. Now it was time to look for dinner, and I went straight to the West Weald Inn.

When we sat in the hall for dinner, the innkeeper, a female Imperial, joined us at our table for some time and told us that she was happy to see such a large group buying food in her inn. She was not related to the Jeranus family who had owned the inn during the Oblivion crisis, and she was not familiar with Sinderion, who had been a resident in the basement in former times. She told us that a lot of thefts had been happening lately in the city, as recently as the night before. Valuables of all kind had not only been stolen from the inn, but also from some of the local shops and even from the chapel. In one case, when thieves attempted to rob a wealthy citizen's home, two people had even been murdered.

"The guards are clueless" the innkeeper told us with a sigh. "They are quite competent fighting against beasts, normal bandits and highwaymen, but most of them do not have the slightest idea how to track down an organized gang of thieves. So far, at least as far as I know, they have not even tried to find out where the thieves might have retreated to."

At this time our meal was served and we focused on it for some time. I knew it had been a mistake to allow the girls their sweetrolls just before dinner; they only managed to eat part of their servings now. Regarding the innkeeper's report, I was not sure if we should get involved or rather ignore the situation, but I suggested to visit the chapel on the next day; it was dedicated to Julianos, Deity of Wisdom and Logic, which was along my way of thinking. T'mara agreed, and it was time now to find our beds, which we did in Rosethorn Hall, my family's residence in the northern part of Skingrad. Eyja, the maid, was happy to get some company, and she had the bedrooms ready for us in minutes.

Iona and Valdimar were going to take the girls for a tour through and around the city, whereas Deborah, T'mara and I were going to visit the Great Chapel of Julianos; this was what we decided and announced at breakfast in the next morning. The others were leaving the city through the western gate, to first hike around via the vineyards and stables and later on taking the scenic road turning north around the city, whereas my sister, my wife and myself entered the southern city district and soon found ourselves in front of the chapel.

Inside, a couple of priests were busy taking stock, and when I asked one of them, they told us that quite a few valuables had been taken in the last night by the thieves.

"Almost everybody respects the chapel and does not touch items belonging to it, but this is different. We are not used to theft here at all, and the city guards apparently have not seen anything."

We introduced ourselves, and the priestess told us that her name was Marie Abor.

"Lots of my ancestors were priests here in the Great Chapel of Julianos. I love my job and my work for the Nine Divines and specifically for Julianos, but a theft like this is almost too much to take in. They even took our valued 'Crystal of Julianos', which had been in the chapel for centuries. You may not know that, but that crystal is our most holy relic, and that loss really hits us hard. We all grieve for the loss."

We expressed our sympathy, and the priestess continued:

"When I prayed to Julianos this morning, he sent me a vision of a dragon who would help me to retrieve the crystal. I was supposed to use a special spell he instructed me to cast to trace the crystal and its whereabouts, and that spell would work only if that dragon was with me. I must have misunderstood that part; dragons are extinct, aren't they? Indeed, when I tried before, nothing happened – see, like this..."

Marie raised her hands and cast a spell, which emitted a strange green light. The light wavered for a few seconds, and then a kind of a beam radiated outwards, roughly to the west. The priestess looked totally stunned and stuttered:

"How … is that … possible? It … did not work in the morning, and … I have not seen … any dragon … around since!"

I thought of my wife being Dragonborn; this might have been what Julianos was planning. I looked at T'mara, and I noticed right away that she had the same thought. It appeared that we were being booked for yet another divine mission.

Carefully I phrased my words and told the priestess:

"Look, maybe there isn't a real dragon around here, but have you heard stories about dragons in Skyrim?"

Marie nodded, but claimed: "Yes, I have heard some rumors, but real dragons? Come on."

"Well, real dragons indeed. My wife and I have seen and fought quite a few of them in Skyrim. You see, my wife is called Dragonborn, and she is able to shout like dragons and communicate with them. Dragons call her 'dov', as one of their own."

"Dragonborn, really? Well, normally I would not believe such as thing, but as my spell works now, there must be something behind it; Julianos really works in mysterious ways. So, it appears that we may be able to trace the crystal now, but we still need a group of people willing to find and overwhelm the thieves."

Once more T'mara and I looked at each other and at Deborah, and it was clear to us that another tasks waited for us. I offered:

"Well, my wife, my sister and I are willing to go with you, but I am not sure if this shouldn't be also coordinated with the city guard."

"The city guard!" the priestess snorted. "They have done nothing so far, and I doubt that they'll help. But you are right; we need to tell them at least."

Marie joined us to walk over to the town guard house on the other side of the main street, and when we were allowed to enter after being questioned by a wary looking guard, a surprise waited for us. A bulky Imperial officer had his back to us, and he looked somewhat familiar. When he turned around to see who had come in, I exclaimed:

"Captain Brutus! I did not expect to see you here in Cyrodiil again!"

"T'mara, Timotheus, it is good to see you, too; what a surprise! And, by the way, it is Legate Brutus again."

"Congratulations! May I ask why we find you here?"

"I am assigned a new post, but maybe we should talk about that in a more quiet place."

Indeed, talking for a longer time with the chatter and clatter of the soldiers around us might be difficult; so I suggested:

"If you have some time, we can go to Rosethorn Hall, which belongs to my family. Our maid can prepare lunch and we can talk; what about that?"

"Sounds good, but before you go, who is the lovely young lady next to you?"

"Oh, sorry, I forgot to do the introductions. Debby, meet Captain, no Legate Brutus. Brutus, this is my sister Deborah."

"Nice to meet you, my lady." Brutus turned to me again and asked: "I hope that it's all right to bring my trusted aide?"

"Of course – who would that be?"

"Hadvar, a word please." Brutus called out.

Hadvar? The one T'mara had met at Helgen years ago? The one who had, according to what she had admitted, at least tried to be polite, and who had tried to talk his superior officer into not sending her to the block?

And indeed, a capable looking Imperial officer stepped close to us; he wore captain's insignia, and he apparently recognized my wife. She teased him:

"Hadvar, it's been quite some time since you guys tried to chop my head off at Helgen."

He grinned and clapped her on the shoulder: "You may recall that I did not agree with my captain at that time, right?"

"Indeed I do; yours had been the only more or less friendly Imperial face I had seen on that day. No bad feelings; I am glad to see you again."

We made the introductions, and it turned out that Hadvar was now a captain in the Imperial army, and aide and deputy to Legate Brutus.

Lunchtime found us sitting around the large dining table in Rosethorn Hall. Our housecarls were still out with the girls, and we had time to talk after enjoying a superb lunch prepared by Eyja.

"My wife and I started to travel to Cyrodiil recently to visit my family in Kvatch, and we hope to get there soon. However, we seem to have a habit of finding distractions on the way. What about you?"

Brutus laughed and told us:

"General Tullius assigned me to escort a major transport to the Imperial City a few weeks ago, together with Captain Hadvar. In the Legions Headquarter there my former general found me, and he was happy to get me back. He made me legate again, and, believe it or not, he assigned to me to take command of the Legion in city and county Kvatch; Hadvar will be my deputy, and he and I get along with each other quite nicely. Tullius may not be happy to lose us, but orders are orders."

"That is wonderful – so we will see each other again!"

"Above and beyond the Kvatch legion command, though, I have a second assignment, which is related to the increasing amount of thefts which have happened in the last months in Cyrodiil, including and maybe even focusing around Kvatch county. The city guards are not capable enough to handle that, mostly not for lacking the spirit and the will, but lacking the proper training and also manpower, and Hadvar and I are going to help, if we can."

"That's quite interesting. We are concerned about that as well, and we have found hints mentioning a mysterious person called the 'Grey Badger'.

When that name was said, Brutus and Hadvar both looked surprised, and Brutus asked with a strange voice:

"What do you know about that name?"

I summarized our time in Red Rose Manor and our quest for Kynareth; Brutus relaxed again:

"Please excuse my attitude. Finding out more about that person is one of our secret assignments, and everybody who knows the name is suspicious."

That was quite understandable, and T'mara now mentioned the local thefts here in Skingrad and how the priestess of Julianos had been granted a spell to trace the stolen crystal:

"The spell has already worked when cast in the chapel, and the three of us have pledged our assistance, but we wanted to inform the city guard at least, hopefully to get a few guards with us."

Brutus looked at us and at Hadvar and said:

"I will check with the local commander, and I want Captain Hadvar and a few soldiers from his group to come with you, if this is all right."

"We will be happy to have them with us, sure."

So this was settled. On the next day the priestess Marie, T'mara, Deborah, Captain Hadvar with his soldiers and I would embark on our attempt to find the thieves. Iona and Valdimar and the two girls would have to spend another day together.

Later in the afternoon we still sat together to talk when the others came back. Valdimar hobbled and had his arm around Iona՚s shoulder for assistance. He explained:

"I still cannot believe that I was so clumsy, but I actually managed to stumble on a rock and sprain my ankle. I guess that I will have to take it easy for a day or two."

"Yes, and when this happened, he could not even walk at all. I helped with my restoration spell!" Yumi proudly stated.

"True, without that, I might be still sitting out there" our housecarl admitted.

I checked with a healing spell, and while Valdimar confirmed that his leg did not hurt any longer, we agreed that he'd better stay in the house for a day or two. We expected some rain coming up, so that Lucia and Yumi would be here as well, and our housecarl offered to read some books with them and Eyja. Iona asked to come with us when she heard what we had planned, and she begged:

"Please let me come. I really like Valdimar, but I think I prefer to be out in the rain rather than with him indoors on a rainy day. He gets cranky when he can't go out."

We laughed and agreed to her proposal. At the end of the day we asked Hadvar and Marie to meet us at the western city gate at sunrise. Before retiring to our beds we listened to Lucia and Yumi telling about their adventures of the day; they had collected some flowers and had had a good time. Apparently, they quite enjoyed being in Cyrodiil.

[Author's Notes: We meet Brutus again, and Hadvar is also going to be around for some time. I hope that you appreciate my effort to introduce a little background on Cyrodiil on the way.

Thank you for your reviews, Ted Hsu, and I am glad to see that you still enjoy reading. I do plan to build Lucia and Yumi more, but still as children and not as juvenile Amazon warriors or so.]