The atmosphere has become much more somber and tense ever since they've returned from Saarthal.
It turned out that Aeyrin has in the end been the only one with any knowledge of healing spells among the mages at the ruins, including Tolfdir. It did not bode well for Darren. When it became clear how hopeless her attempts were, Tolfdir ordered a few of the students to take him back to the College.
It wasn't certain whether he would survive the journey.
The orb, however, still required the mages' attention. All of them have gotten under the same effect as Bishop, Aeyrin and Darren did – somewhat mesmerized and losing some consciousness of passing time. None of them, however, tried to touch it after what happened to Darren.
Tolfdir asked Bishop and Aeyrin for an exact recounting of what happened and he studied the orb as well as the amulet with palpable curiosity. Eventually, he asked them to escort the students safely back to the College while he stayed behind, still studying the ruins.
Not even Brelyna and J'zargo had commented on the events. Everyone was oddly silent.
At least until they knew what happened to Darren.
In the morning, they were all greeted with unexpected news.
First of all, Darren actually survived, but he would need a lot of time to recover, even with the help of Colette – the Master of the restoration school at the College.
Secondly, Tolfdir made the decision to study the orb further. And for that to happen, he concluded that the best option was to… move it. It seemed ridiculously dangerous, but none of the Masters even batted an eye at his decision. Now there was an unidentified extremely powerful and dangerous magical orb, surrounded by the spiral staircase right in the middle of the main College tower. The mages seemed more than intrigued by what was uncovered and the risk seemed acceptable to them.
Bishop and Aeyrin decided to, at least, have something good come out of the deal with the mages and so they made use of the College's services.
Aeyrin approached Colette about her training, but with Darren's condition, the woman was unable to pay much attention to her. In the end, Aeyrin only ended up with a spell book and a very rough lesson on how a basic ward worked. She hoped that she'd eventually be able to cast it properly. When she tried at the College, she had a lot of trouble keeping it up for long.
The Enchanter Sergius agreed to enchant their weapons for free after their service, but he refused to work on Bishop's shortsword, saying that he will not waste his talents on a crappy weapon that will shatter after only a few more uses. With a substantial amount of grumbling, Bishop eventually purchased an ebony sword from the enchanter to replace his iron one. They did save a lot of money on the enchantments after all.
"Still think they had nothing to do with the city collapsing into the sea?" Bishop smirked, but he was pacing rather nervously while they waited for Sergius to finish his work.
"I don't know… Maybe they know what they're doing. Tolfdir said something about placing protective wards around it…" Aeyrin sighed and leaned on the wall near to the room with Sergius's workstation.
Bishop only scoffed at that.
Hopefully, they'd be long gone by the time the orb inevitably turned the College into an imitation of the Deadlands or something like that. They still had to look through the library and see if there was anything useful there. They weren't certain how long it would take, but it was starting to look like they would be spending one more night in these halls.
The door to the workshop swung open and Sergius finally stepped out with a smug look on his face.
"You better appreciate the special treatment, but I suppose such discovery merits it. I have used my very best soulgems on your weapons," the Imperial beamed and handed them Bishop's new sword and Aeyrin's crafted mace. The tingle of magic was palpable in both of them. They should have done this before the ruins. Maybe the weapons would even affect the mage draugr. But then again… they would have actually had to pay before the ruins.
They thanked Sergius for what looked like quality work, but without testing the weapons, they really couldn't be sure.
A few moments later, they made their way to the library.
…
"No, you cannot 'just look around'. Or did you spend years devising the perfect arrangement and assortment system to keep my books from getting misplaced and lost?"
The old Orc in white robes folded his arms over his chest stubbornly and some of the mages around raised their noses from their books and snickered a bit.
"W-we're gonna put everything back!" Aeyrin protested. How was a librarian this intimidating?
"You will not. You say that, but nobody ever does. If you need something, I will get it for you and I will personally make sure you return it in the same condition that it was lent to you, got it?!" the Orc raised his voice menacingly, making her recoil.
"At least we don't have to spend hours searching through the shelves. Just let him do his thing," Bishop shrugged with an amused smirk. He probably didn't even realize that some of the books that she was interested in were kind of… illegal. She was really hoping to avoid talking to anyone here about them, but then again, shouldn't the mages favor the pursuit of knowledge, even forbidden one?
"Fine… I was hoping for anything about the Dragonborn or Shouting or just anything relating to dragons. And…" she leaned in a little closer to the Orc so that the other mages wouldn't overhear her. "Do you have any books on… Talos?" she cringed a little, asking that.
"You don't have to look so guilty, girl. The man didn't disappear from history. I have plenty of books on Tiber Septim. It's only the religious texts that got banned," the Orc snorted before he stepped away from behind his large counter and walked towards one of the bookcases.
"I was… kind of hoping for those…" Aeyrin whispered nervously, making the Orc stop in his tracks for a while.
He turned to her and gave her a pondering look. Was he wondering if she was a spy too? They were technically in Stormcloak territory, weren't they? Ulfric told her that Winterhold belonged to him. But she couldn't really imagine him leaving the mages alone to conduct their business and even endanger the town like this. If Winterhold really belonged to Ulfric as much as he claimed, wouldn't his men be everywhere, monitoring everything the mages did?
The war was complicated…
"Girl, we don't really get banned books. I know why you'd think that, but… let's just say there's plenty of people here who wouldn't be too ecstatic about that," the Orc sighed. He was obviously bothered by something. Was the Empire the one monitoring the mages? Or the Thalmor? There were plenty of Altmer around, that was for sure…
"And before you ask, no, I don't have a secret stash somewhere hidden from prying eyes. But if you're really interested, you might want to make a trip to Windhelm. And if you're interested for reasons other than gaining knowledge, let me assure you that those books are currently somewhat legal there…" he grumbled before he turned on his feet again and headed back towards the bookcases.
Well… that was a dead end. But at least she already had the books from Windhelm and she'd already met Jora and made plans with her. Even if she wasn't allowed back there, she could always stay in touch with her through letters.
A few moments later, the Orc was done scouring his shelves for the appropriate books. He brought a large stack of them to Aeyrin and Bishop as both of their eyes went wide. That was a lot more lore than they have expected.
"Here's your stuff on dragons. And no eating or drinking around the books! If I see one stain, tear or a Divines-damned dog-ear you will not live long enough to regret it!" the Orc growled while he passed the stack of books to Aeyrin. He gave them one last nod, somewhat threateningly, before he went back to his counter.
He was… disturbing.
"I like that guy…" Bishop smirked before he sank to the ground by the bookcases and opened one of the books with an exaggerated sigh.
This was going to be so boring.
…
"Look at this!"
Bishop turned his book towards Aeyrin and pointed to a rather detailed drawing of a familiar figure. It was the draugr mage, with its metal mask and tattered rags – the label said 'dragon priest'.
"It says that these things were like the most important worshippers of the dragons, that they raise the other draugr and make them guard their tombs or something."
Aeyrin peered at the picture with interest, pondering on the information.
"It says that they were some high priests or something, that their metal masks are powerful artifacts. Might be the one we got on that mountain," Bishop grinned at her. Good thing they didn't sell it off as junk yet. "It also says that it was likely them who made the Walls. They're just thought to be some writings to communicate stories and shit. There's nothing about them teaching Shouts to people," he shrugged before he took back the book and resumed to peer into it.
"Makes sense, I guess. Not like the scholar who wrote the book had a Dragonborn handy to know that…" Aeyrin sighed. Maybe if people like the Greybeards weren't so reclusive and stingy with sharing knowledge, they could have already learned much more useful information.
"Wait… if the Walls only shine for me… how did people like Ulfric learn to Shout? He's not Dragonborn… no matter what he likes to claim," she asked after a while.
"Didn't he train with the old fossils? They taught you some of the Words too, right?"
She nodded, deep in thought. "But… who taught them? The last Dragonborn has been dead since the Third Era…"
"Maybe the previous fossils… I don't know…" he shrugged.
It made sense… somewhat. She wasn't sure how any of that information helped her though.
"Did you find something?" Bishop turned to her when he closed the book on dragon worship. He rested his head on her shoulder and peered over it into the pages of her tome. They've been there for so long already, going through all the books meticulously. But nothing seemed actually helpful. Interesting, sure, but not really helpful.
What were they actually expecting anyway? It was not like a book would tell them how to defeat the dragons, should they rise up again. From what Delphine has told them, the previous dragon 'overlords' were simply killed one by one. There didn't seem to be much else to do.
And none of the books would know who was to blame for their resurrection anyway.
"It's just something about the history of their society. It says that they were wild animals before one dragon started to lead them, making them into the society with worshippers, slaves and such. It says that its name was Alduin. I think I've heard that before, it's supposed to be the firstborn of Akatosh or something like that. The book says that, because of that, it can… 'eat the age of his victims'…" she shuddered uncomfortably. She had no idea what to imagine from those words, but it sounded horrific nonetheless.
"Is there a description?" Bishop looked over the book in her hands, but he wasn't able to make himself concentrate on the words anymore. At least his book had pictures. In fact, he's been purposefully picking those that had pictures in them. At least they provided some rest from all the incessant words.
"No… no descriptions. There's a lot of vague doomsaying such as that Alduin is the harbinger of the end of times or things like that," she sighed.
"Yeah, all these fucking books are like that. Scholars love to be dramatic about this shit. It's just a dragon. Maybe even a dead one already… like the one near Solitude. It had weird powers. You even said you felt… death. That could have been it," Bishop gave her a half-pondering and half-hopeful look
That was true… maybe he was right.
That was somewhat uplifting.
And he was definitely right about the scholarly writing – the books were needlessly exaggerated. They were full of legends and theories, comparing them and theorizing on their merit, but with no actual definitive answers. The scholars just constantly elaborated upon old stories and tried to find connections in them, but in the end, none of it really helped.
"I hope the lore-master will know more…" she sighed. She closed the book and leaned her head on his in turn.
"Yeah…" Bishop nodded slowly before he disentangled himself from her and started picking off the various books scattered around them and piling them into stacks again. "Now we have more immediate problems though. If you ever needed to pray for something, pray that the Orc doesn't find anything wrong with the books," he laughed cheekily.
…
They've returned to the Hall of Attainment, where the students resided, rather later than expected.
At least they got everything they wanted at the College – they had their weapons enchanted, their loot sold and plenty of money raised for their travels. They even found some new information about their enemies, although there wasn't much practical information that could actually help in dealing with the dragons, ease absorbing of souls or point them towards new Walls.
Finally they were free to head to the dining room where several students have already been indulging in their meals.
The atmosphere seemed a little better ever since the word spread that Darren would eventually be alright. He definitely wasn't very liked among the students, but still, having one of them almost die on the expedition obviously rattled them all.
After they've finished eating their dinner in silence among the students, they walked back towards their room. Who knew that a day spent peering into books was just as exhausting as one spent in battle? But just as they were about to retreat into the room and fall onto the bed, they were interrupted by a cheery voice.
"There you are! I was hoping to talk to you," Brelyna rushed over to them with a wry smile on her face. "You see… I could use some help with some new spells I need to practice. And I was thinking… well… you two are adventurers! You're… resilient…" she bit her lower lip with a slight chuckle.
"Yeah, that doesn't sound daft and dangerous at all…" Bishop smirked at her and shook his head. The reason they were still capable of adventuring, was avoiding suicidal shit like magical experiments.
Brelyna giggled a little in response but she gave them a hopeful look nonetheless: "It's just some alteration magic I need to perfect. It's not like I'll be testing my fireball spell! It's just that… this place is kind of competitive and the others aren't very eager to help. And even if they do help, they hold it over your head as an eternal debt…" she sighed in frustration.
"Not even J'zargo? You two looked close…" Aeyrin asked her curiously. They seemed to be joking along and whispering every time she saw them together.
"Yeah… but he wants me to test his scrolls in return. I wouldn't mind but… they're destruction scrolls. Flame cloak I think. And he needs them tested on the undead. I mean, where am I supposed to test these? Not like I can waltz into a ruin and hope to survive!" she sighed before she gave them another pondering look. "Hey, maybe you can help him too!"
"That sounds even worse…" Bishop rolled his eyes. They were just students – regular mages were dangerous and unpredictable, let alone ones that had no idea what they were doing.
"I don't mind… I'll help you two," Aeyrin smiled at her kindly.
Of course she fucking would…
"Princess, this is fucking idiotic! Who knows what'll happen!" he creased his brows at her.
"No! They're safe spells, I promise! Alteration is not harmful magic…" Brelyna retorted pleadingly. She was still looking at Aeyrin with hope in her eyes.
"It's alright. You can go ahead," Aeyrin nodded.
Bishop rolled his eyes with an annoyed groan but he stepped out of the way. This was gonna end badly, he just knew it.
And to think they were almost safely away from the College…
"Alright. Thank you, really. So… this is just a waterbreathing spell. We'll test it in the washbasin in my room once I cast it. Ready?"
Just as Aeyrin nodded, Brelyna's hand lit up with light blue light, aiming at her. The light hurled towards her a second later and it enveloped her whole being in the same-colored aura.
It only tingled a little, but a second later, Aeyrin noticed the aura turn bright green. Wait… was everything turning green? Everywhere she looked… everything had an odd green hue. That must have been more powerful than Brelyna originally thought if it affected everything around them! Now things seemed even… blurry.
"What in the fucking Oblivion?! Undo this!" Aeyrin heard Bishop yelling at Brelyna. Her head was starting to spin a little. Why would a waterbreathing spell make the world spin?
"Yes, yes! Just give me a second! This should work!"
Bishop scowled at the Dunmer fiercely.
'Should work'?! Perfect, just fucking perfect! He knew this was a terrible idea! And now Aeyrin was all… green. He sighed with barely subdued anger and pressed his fingers against the crease between his brows exasperatedly. This better be fucking fixable! Not that she didn't look good even green. But he would really hate not getting to see her gold hair and olive skin anymore. Not to mention… she looked like she wasn't feeling well.
Brelyna's hand lit up again, this time bright yellow.
"I'll just dispel this…"
Another spell hit Aeyrin while the world kept spinning wildly all around her.
Finally the dizziness stopped a few seconds later, but now her skin felt odd… itchy. She looked down on her arms, only to see the color changing from the greenish hue to her regular one. But there were some small spots… golden spots.
They were moving and getting bigger, crawling over her skin. They made her whole body jerk as they itched and tickled all over her.
"Oh shit! Sorry, sorry! I'll fix it!" Brelyna was starting to panic. She instantly weaved her hands together into another spell.
"Like fuck you are, Brelyna! I'm taking her to the old man before you mess her up fucking permanently," Bishop's angry yells filled Aeyrin's ears, but she couldn't concentrate on anything but scratching away the golden crawling spots.
"No! Please! I promise I know what to do! I know exactly where I made a mistake! Please don't tell Master Tolfdir!" Brelyna pleaded. She quickly started to weave the spell again before Bishop managed to interrupt her.
Aeyrin felt another twinge of magic course through her and the itching slowly subsided. She wasn't sure but… she was starting to feel more… normal.
Bishop rushed towards her the second it seemed like the effects dissipated.
"Are you alright? Do you feel any different?" his brows were permanently creased in both worry and anger.
"N-no… I think I'm fine…" she sighed, although she was still a little rattled from the experience.
"See? All fixed. No need to panic," Brelyna smiled but the considerable relief in her voice was painfully obvious.
Bishop turned to the Dunmer sharply and threw her a murderous look. She recoiled quickly from him and the panic returned to her eyes. "I-I-I'm really sorry…" she stammered nervously. Her eyes kept darting towards Bishop with wary glances.
"It's… it's fine, Brelyna. I think I'm alright now… Just… maybe do this with one of the instructors next time…" Aeyrin sighed while she grabbed Bishop by the arm and dragged him a bit closer to herself to rein him in a bit. He really looked ready to punch Brelyna.
"Yes… yes I promise I will. Just… one more question… Would you still be willing to test J'zargo's scrolls?" the Dunmer squirmed nervously, but in a minute, she started to frantically explain herself when she saw the anger rise in Bishop's eyes again: "He's much better at this, I promise! He just doesn't have a place to test them himself! You're the only ones we know who are even capable of clearing out ruins like that. Well… the Masters could but… they don't really help with testing the spells we make ourselves. Something about life being too short already…"
"Alright, Brelyna. Tell him I'll test it. But it's a scroll right? It's got limited duration?" Aeyrin smirked at her a bit. At least with scrolls, it was relatively certain that the effects wouldn't be permanent.
"Yes! Of course! Thank you so much! He'll be ecstatic!" Brelyna grinned at her and ran off to find the Khajiit.
"Seriously, ladyship?!" Bishop's scowl probably couldn't get any deeper at that point as he glared at her incredulously.
"Come on, it's just a scroll. How bad could it be?" she giggled a bit with a wry smile.
"Again, sweetness, stupidest last words ever."