Chapter CXXV – Blood and Silver

"There. Finally, all done. Thongvor better appreciate this imbecilic busy-work!"

Calcelmo grumbled as he closed the book he had been scribbling into for ages and finally turned back towards Aeyrin with a rather eager look on his face.

She had explored the museum through and through. The second she spotted one of the all-too-familiar holes, hiding the deadly spinning blades, she was adamant about really not touching anything. But she did find out about what a lot of the things that they had collected in the ruins before were used for.

And she found out that most of them were worthless.

She even found the very metal circle that Brynjolf once tried to sell her. It was useless, of course. At least now she knew better.

She's been waiting for Calcelmo to finish his work after she had returned for at least half an hour. But it was better to keep an eye on him, just in case. Aicantar was there too, still making piles of metal, which was fortunate. No one would catch Bishop off guard.

"Did you find something of interest?" Calcelmo's expression got much less morose, now that he put aside the work that he'd been doing. He took a chair by his desk and turned it around before he sat himself down on it, facing her.

Aeyrin made herself comfortable on the stone ground and she slung her back beside herself before she gave Calcelmo a brief smile. "Yes. Thank you for letting me into the museum. It turned out that we collected a lot of junk on our excursion," she chuckled briefly. "We tried to gain access to the College by bribing them with one of those 'dynamo cores' and we just got laughed at."

Instead of laughing alongside her, Calcelmo frowned ponderingly. "The mages at the College are dismissive of Dwemer culture merely because of its now latent magical properties. If those ignorants weren't too afraid to dig deeper, who knows where our magical skills would be now? Losing Dwemer arts, their tonal magic and their skills with power distribution is a tragedy which men and mer still haven't recovered from. There are too few who still see this," he shook his head somberly. "Do you still have the dynamo core?"

"Sorry, no. We sold everything to the College," Aeyrin shrugged, but she got a little nervous when he looked at her in confusion. She didn't specify how they got access to the College after their artifacts have been denied. But she was not about to tell him.

"No matter, no matter. But, if you continue with the explorations, I would reward you generously for anything that you could offer. My museum is hardly complete and there's always more to study," Calcelmo gave her an eager, somewhat pleading smile.

"Sure. Why is the museum closed anyway?" Aeyrin pried. The contact said that the museum was usually open to the public, but that it closed a few months ago for unknown reasons.

"Our dear Jarl believes that it is too dangerous for the public," Calcelmo explained through gritted teeth. "I specifically made it clear that nobody is to touch the exhibitions. How hard is that to comprehend?! You didn't touch the exhibits, correct? You didn't get cut in half! How hard is it?"

Aeyrin stayed quiet. She bit the inside of her lips, turning them into a thin line nervously. Hopefully the guard wouldn't tell on her. Although she may have been more disturbed by the implications of a visitor getting 'cut in half'.

"And now he forbids me to send more expeditions to Nchuand-Zel! Just because of a few deaths and disappearances! These things happen in Dwemer ruins! If you're incapable of handling the dangers, you shouldn't volunteer to explore them! You understand this, correct?" he continued to fume.

Aeyrin only nodded in response. She should probably adjust her story about their own exploration, before he starts calling her an incompetent imbecile too.

"Apologies for master Calcelmo. He gets… passionate about his studies," Aicantar chuckled briefly without even raising his eyes from the piles of metal.

"Yes, yes. Now, my dear, why don't you tell me about the ruins that you have explored? I want to hear every detail." The eager smile returned to Calcelmo's face and he leaned forward, clasping his hands together in anticipation.

…

She's been recounting their adventure for quite a while, describing every detail, every trap and every piece of treasure that they had come across. She didn't really mind that she took so long to tell him everything. The man was positively enthralled and it only gave Bishop more time to sneak through his laboratory undisturbed.

"And how did you defeat the centurion?" Calcelmo peered at her curiously.

Before she could answer, heavy footsteps startled her, echoing from behind her. A jolt went through her when she thought for a brief moment that it was Bishop, but she quickly realized that he wouldn't stomp like that. She turned to see the intruder – a Nord, bald with a rough stubble, clad in a fancy embroidered dark brown coat.

She turned back to Calcelmo, unable to hide the mild disappointment. She knew that it wasn't Bishop, but she still hoped that he was already done.

"We didn't. The Falmer did and we didn't get the chance to see how. We were surrounded by them," she shook her head regretfully at the wizard.

"That is… too bad. I was hoping that you could share some design flaws, some weaknesses," Calcelmo sighed as he placed his notebook on the desk for a while. He's been taking meticulous notes throughout her whole recounting.

The Nord man approached them in the meantime and he gave a curt nod to the wizard before he took a brief look at Aeyrin. He continued without a word towards Aicantar and his piles of metal and he promptly began studying them critically. Aeyrin only watched him curiously. She was dying to know what those piles were for. It just looked like Dwemer junk, as she had already learned from the museum.

"So you took the weapons, the armor, the ingots and the dynamo core. Did anything else catch your attention?" Calcelmo continued, interrupting her pondering.

"Well…" she turned her gaze back to the wizard, "there was this… contraption. Like a slot for some small sphere. But we didn't find anything that would fit inside."

"Really? Are you certain? Of course you're certain, why else would you… never mind. How big would this sphere be?" There was an excited glint in his eyes and he leaned even further forwards. If he continued like that, he would fall off of the chair soon, flat on his face.

"Like this, I think…" she made a ball-shape with her hand, raising it towards him.

"Remarkable! It… it may have been the legendary entrance… hmm… I will need to ponder on this, cross-reference it with some records. If only I had any indication where the key could be, you could return and… never mind," he shook his head before he grabbed his notebook again and started scribbling vigorously.

That's right 'never mind'! She wasn't eager to go back to that place. Although now it may have been still empty.

Suddenly, she could feel someone watching her and she jerked her head towards the source immediately. The Nord didn't even flinch as his eyes roamed over her with an unreadable expression. The piles of metal were now completely forgotten by him.

Aeyrin gave him a weak smile, trying to stop the uncomfortable scrutiny, and he returned the gesture with a polite nod. He still didn't take his eyes off her though. She flushed in her discomfort and she quickly turned back to Calcelmo, hoping that the man would avert his gaze again.

She could feel that he didn't.

"Please, dear, describe the contraption to me," Calcelmo didn't even look up from his notes as his quill hovered over the parchment in anticipation.

She tried to describe the thing to the best of her ability, but the constant knowledge of the man's stares flustered her more than she'd like. She stammered, at times, and her eyes kept darting towards him in discomfort. He was now leaning against one of the enchanting tables with his arms folded across his chest as he watched her intently. Occasionally he moved his hand to rub his chin, as if he was trying to ponder on a puzzle.

"I'm all done, sir!" Aicantar interrupted the Nord's stares at last when he gestured towards the piles proudly.

The man turned his head to look over the metal critically, but a second later his eyes returned to Aeyrin.

Why was he watching her like that?! Ugh… Bishop would surely have a clear answer for that! He thought that every man was just trying to sleep with her. But this didn't feel like it. She felt like a little mouse being studied by a hungry cat.

"Don't slack off, boy! The girl wanted her weapon enchanted!" Calcelmo called out to Aicantar while he still continued scribbling and even sketching in his notebook.

"Right. Of course. Come over here, miss. We'll get to work," Aicantar gave Aeyrin a weak exasperated smile. Poor man, he likely needed a break after all that mindless sorting.

Aeyrin got up from the ground unceremoniously and she took out her new mace from the overflowing pack with some difficulty before she handed it to Aicantar by the enchanting table.

"I'd like some fire on it," she smiled at him, before she considered her next words. "Uhm… how much would that…?"

"Give her some discount, boy! She's been most helpful," Calcelmo murmured.

"Alright, two hundred fifty for the best enchantment that I can make," Aicantar smiled at her. Two hundred fifty… that would barely leave her with enough funds for dinner, but she could always take some of Bishop's money.

"Give her the best you've got, boy. It's on me," the Nord suddenly spoke as he gave Aicantar a resolute nod.

What? Why would he do this? He didn't even know her and now he would pay so much for her weapon? What was that about?

"Umm… t-thank you… but that's not necessary. I can pay," Aeyrin looked at him nervously. This was just too strange. She wouldn't have hesitated if Calcelmo offered such a thing, after she helped his research, but this was a very different story.

"Nonsense! There's no reason to refuse. I'm always glad to help anyone assisting Calcelmo," the man smiled at her.

"I… I don't want to be in anyone's debt. Really, it's fine," she shook her head. She was too wary of accepting a stranger's help, especially after their experiences with the Guild and their 'favors'. There was nothing for free in Skyrim.

"There's no debt. Think of it as an investment. I know a good one when I see it." He didn't give her more chances to protest as he took out a very thick coin purse and dropped it onto the enchanting station.

Uhh… that didn't sound any better.

But… it would be helpful. And it was not like she couldn't refuse if he asked her for any counter-favors. He said that there's no debt himself. He couldn't force her to do anything.

She nodded slowly, uncertainly and she kept avoiding the man's eyes. She knew that he was still watching her intently and his stares were making here even more uncomfortable now.

Aicantar got to work promptly, taking out a grand soul gem and some other components. She had no idea what those could be used for at all. The complexities of enchanting had always eluded her.

"Thongvor Silver-Blood," the man extended his hand to her, tearing her attention away from Aicantar's work.

"Aeyrin," she nodded at him before she took his hand and shook it very briefly. He looked like he had expected a different reaction from her. Should she know his name?

"So… you explored an entire Dwemer ruin?" he looked her over curiously again and there was a little hint of doubt in his eyes.

"Not alone… I had my companion with me," she smiled demurely. She didn't mention her second companion – talking about Karnwyr would only raise too many questions and she didn't include him in her recountings to Calcelmo anyway, now it would just be strange.

"Companion? A man? Nord? About this tall, dark short hair?" Thongvor gestured, making her raise her brow at him.

That was so creepy! How did he know? Did he see them together? Did he watch her even before now?

"Y-yes…" she answered quietly.

"No one enters this city without my knowledge, dear," he chuckled surprisingly amicably. He did look like someone important, but it just reminded her of all the military leaders or the Guild members. All those people watched everyone in their cities, scrutinizing any newcomers, and it never boded well for her.

"So, where is your companion?" he asked after a while.

Did he know something? He didn't see them in front of the museum, right? No one was there!

"I… I don't know. The inn, probably. He's not… into all this… research," she stammered a little nervously.

"At least one of you has some sense! Ignorance is no excuse for depriving me of information!" Calcelmo exclaimed suddenly, but he returned back to his notes right away.

Thongvor chuckled at the Altmer heartily before he turned his curious gaze back to Aeyrin.

"You must be quite capable to survive that," he stroked his chin ponderingly. She merely shrugged in response. How was one supposed to answer that? "I was wondering if you'd be willing to do a little job for me. The mercenaries around here are horribly incompetent."

Here it comes… the favor.

But he did say 'job'.

Maybe there was no harm in it. Maybe he would even pay.

"What kind of job?" she asked with a palpably guarded tone in her voice.

"How about we discuss this later. I still need to deal with all this metal. Wait until your weapon is ready, we can grab a drink at the inn after and talk about my… proposition," he gave her a sly wink.

So… now it was a 'proposition'? He was being very strange, but at least he suggested a public place like that. She was likely just getting paranoid after her experiences in Skyrim. A few months ago, she wouldn't have batted an eye at an offer like that. She wasn't sure if her suspicions were good for her in this case, or not.

She nodded slowly and uncertainly before she quickly turned her eyes to Aicantar to watch him work again.

…

Aeyrin walked towards the inn, side by side with Thongvor.

Bishop was probably not there yet. She hoped that it wouldn't raise too many questions, since she already said that he would be around, but she was probably just overthinking this. Why wouldn't he be anywhere else? He could have been exploring the city or out hunting. Why was she so unnecessarily anxious about this?

Finally she and the Nord entered the inn together.

She noticed that many people stared at Thongvor on the way and now the entire tavern seemed to quiet when he entered. Soft murmurs and whispers were echoing from all the corners. Thongvor didn't pay them any mind though, and he ushered Aeyrin to one of the tables before he snapped his fingers at the barmaid.

The people slowly started to talk amongst themselves again when the young Nord barmaid placed two tankards of mead on their table with a slight bow. She didn't say a word the entire time and she hurried off as if she wanted to be anywhere else as soon as possible.

People were certainly treating Thongvor oddly. He must have been a powerful man. Powerful and terrifying, most likely.

"Any signs of your companion?" he asked her curiously as he looked around the tavern, likely trying to locate Bishop.

"No… I don't see him here. Maybe he's out on a hunt," she murmured. She was worried that Thongvor somehow knew. He was all too concerned about where Bishop was. She needed to discuss this with Bishop later, but she was terrified that somehow, she'd misstep, that somehow she'd say something that revealed their plan to the man by accident. She really didn't want to mess up this mission too, especially since she barely had anything to do with it. That would have been beyond humiliating.

"Well… looks like I've got you all to myself," Thongvor smirked, eliciting an uncomfortable cringe from her. But he only chuckled at her reaction, without paying it any mind whatsoever.

"So… the job?" she quickly broached the subject. She was very eager to get this strange meeting over with already, if only for her own peace of mind.

"Yes, the job. First, I need to explain some circumstances to you. You are new to the city, so I assume that you do not know the extent of my… responsibilities," he let out a slight sigh. Right then, she could have sworn that there was a hint of weariness in his voice. "The Silver-Bloods are a very powerful family, as you may have noticed already. We oversee a lot of operations in Markarth, we ensure that the coin and the silver flow in and that the citizens are well treated and have enough work. So if anybody threatens this stability, we are the ones who need to take care of it."

She nodded quietly, waiting for him to continue. She was curious if it was actually true, if he really cared about the wellbeing of the citizens. He almost sounded sincere.

"There's been some trouble at one of the mines outside the city. We suspect that the Forsworn have taken it over and killed all the miners as well as their families in the nearby settlement. The city does not have enough soldiers to send to investigate, with the war on, and the two groups of mercenaries that I have already sent have not returned. And wouldn't you know my luck, then I run into someone like you. Someone capable of exploring an entire Dwemer ruin," he gave her an approving smile.

Did the Forsworn really do this? Slaughter families and defenseless miners? For what? To cripple Markarth's stability?

"You want me to investigate?" she asked him.

"I want you to investigate with me. I cannot rely on the incompetence of mercenaries any longer. I'm a capable warrior myself, but I still do not dare to attack the Forsworn alone. I need someone just as skilled with me," he nodded. That was somewhat commendable, that he was willing to risk his own life on behalf of the people. She had no illusion about his noble intentions though. He was probably losing a lot of money with the loss of this mine.

"You will, of course, be well compensated for your help," he smirked a bit, as if he just figured out a sly way to appeal to her. That wasn't what caught her attention about this job, but it was certainly a nice bonus that she wouldn't complain about.

It sounded like a good cause. It sounded like something that she would have done just a few months back without so much as a question. She still had her vows and her values. Why did she let herself grow so suspicious?

"Alright. That… sounds like a worthwhile effort. I can tell my companion when he gets back and we can…" she started to plan, before she was interrupted by Thongvor quickly.

"Actually, I was hoping that we could head out now. I'm sure that together, we will manage with no trouble, just the two of us. And the sooner that we resolve this, the better. I have to admit, I have been anxious about this for some time. The incident happened only two days ago, and we already have reports of groups of Forsworn, scouting another nearby settlement."

She got a little uncomfortable about that. But… Bishop might take some time yet and it was a rather nerve-racking idea of her sitting in the tavern, worrying about him. She needed something to do. And as much as she loved that he watched her back diligently, she needed to be able to get by without him. She knew that she needed to get used to that for her own safety with how many enemies she has accumulated here.

And Thongvor seemed surprisingly sincere. There was no upside for him if they failed in their effort. His confidence somewhat reassured her.

"It's not far and the mine isn't large. We should be back by nightfall. But the Forsworn often attack at night and I'd be glad if we could get rid of them as soon as possible. For the sake of the people," he gave her a kind smile with a hint of a worry on his face.

"Alright," she nodded resolutely.

It would take her mind off things and it was a good cause, even if he only cared about his profits. If the Forsworn really planned to attack another settlement, she needed to help prevent this. Even after their attack and the insinuation about the hagravens, she still didn't believe them to be the ruthless barbarians everyone claimed they were, but this…

This was really barbaric.

The two of them finished their drinks quickly and she rushed to her room to unload some things from her pack – Bishop's pack and other stuff that she didn't need for the excursion. Not only would it make it considerably easier for her to move, but it would let Bishop know that she went out to battle, if he returned before her.

She was sure that he wouldn't be exactly ecstatic about her running off towards danger on her own, but it was much better than moping at the inn, thinking about what he was doing and whether he was alright.

She quickly stuffed herself with some dried meat instead of a proper dinner and she promptly hurried back to the common room to meet Thongvor.

They walked out of the inn together and she excused herself for a while again when she noticed Karnwyr peering at her from one of the more shadowy spots by the tavern. She hurried towards him and even a few steps away she could hear that his whines were low and almost worried at seeing her with the now fully armed Thongvor, clad in his massive Dwemer armor.

She patted the wolf's head in reassurance and she gave him a gentle smile.

"Wait here for Bishop. I'll be back soon, I promise." She ruffled his fur affectionately before she ran off to Thongvor again without waiting for the wolf's reaction. The sooner this was done, the sooner she could see Bishop, hopefully. She was still so anxious whenever she thought about him on his mission.

The two of them left the city soon after and they headed north right after they walked out of the gate.

"It's not far. We should be there within half an hour," Thongvor nodded determinedly.

She only gave him a smile in response and returned the nod.

If things went smoothly, she might even be back before Bishop, as unlikely as it was.

She was a bit wary of potentially being forced to Shout in front of Thongvor, worried about keeping her identity a secret, especially from someone so influential, but hopefully, she'd be able to control herself.

She needed to.

She was not about to be played as a pawn in another political power struggle.