Author's note:
Here's the second part of the previous chapter. This week I've managed to publish two instalments at once, but I'm not sure whether this will happen again any time soon. By the way, it's time for our little Agda to face her first true adventure.
Enjoy!
22nd of Last Seed, 4E 202
The first thing Agda noticed inside Saarthal was the smell - a smell of dust and dampness and decay that caused the girl to cough violently. The only time she'd come across that smell, Agda had just been attacked by a vampire - and in her opinion, that was a very bad coincidence.
Despite that first unpleasant impression, Agda soon realized that she felt safer inside the ruins than in the wilds - in Saarthal at least there were some signs of civilization. Also, the teachers of the College soon reassured her with their smiles.
Ignoring Onmund's complaints and J'zargo's enthusiasm, Agda remained close to Tolfdir for most of the guided tour of the burial site. When the older mage gave each student a task, the girl panicked: there was no way she was abandoning her teacher to venture in those ruins alone.
Agda's frightened expression didn't go unnoticed. Tolfdir chuckled, then grabbed her by the elbow and led her towards Arniel Gane, who was going to be her tutor for that morning. As she walked past Enthir, Agda could hear him mutter something about gutless healers. Luckily for him, the young mage was too shocked to reply.
Once Tolfdir bid Agda goodbye, Arniel asked her to look for enchanted objects scattered inside the ruins. The girl was reassured by that task: not only was her job very easy - her working area was also very close to her teacher's.
After a few minutes of explorations, the young healer eventually relaxed: she was inside a Nordic ruin, but nothing had tried to kill her yet. Tolfdir was probably right: the place was completely safe.
As time flew by, Agda started noticing the fascinating structure of the ruins, the beauty of the magic rings she'd found until then, the feeling of greatness and power radiating from those ancient stones. Right after the girl admitted to herself that Saarthal wasn't such a bad place, however, an unexpected fact had her change her mind.
Arniel had looked pleased when Agda had shown him the rings she'd found until that moment. Willing to impress him even further, the girl discovered a little jewel hanging from a weird stone structure encased in a wall. Fascinated by its elaborated decorations, Agda grabbed the necklace in order to study it more carefully. As soon as she heard a loud noise, the Nord immediately understood that something was wrong, deeply and horribly wrong.
All of a sudden, Agda noticed Arniel and Tolfdir's worried voices. At first she didn't understand why the teachers sounded so upset, but then she understood that she'd just got trapped in that part of the ruins. That realization was enough to make her panick: had something attacked her, she wouldn't have been able to run away. Also, the room she was trapped in was too narrow for her to defend herself with a spell.
"GET ME OUT OF HERE, NOW!", the girl squeaked in a very shrill voice. "I AM SO DONE WITH ADVENTURING, I AM SOOO-"
"It always happens to the most nervous students", Tolfdir sighed as soon as he was confronted with Agda's terrified expression.
Arniel instead snorted and went back to his room, leaving Agda alone with the older wizard.
When the girl produced another high-pitched scream, Tolfdir chuckled: he was used to leading terrified students across Saarthal and was actually amused by Agda's horrified expression.
After looking at the weird stone structure where the necklace was hanging before Agda got trapped, Tolfdir suggested she used a spell on that wall. Agda wasn't sure whether the plan was going to work, but had no other option; as a consequence, she calmed her nerves and did her best to follow Tolfdir's instructions.
There was an explosion, then the spikes preventing Agda from reaching the older man disappeared. Without caring for her reputation, the healer ran past Tolfdir and made for the exit of the ruins.
If the College needed any further proof of her inclination for healing, there they were.
Sadly for Agda, Tolfdir wasn't simply used to dealing with nervous students - he was also used to helping them overcome their fears. He therefore cast a calming spell on the girl and grabbed her by the elbow, thus convincing her to go through the corridor that had appeared in place of the weird stone structure that had caused Agda to get trapped in the first place. Influenced by his spell, the young healer followed him without complaints.
The two mages ended up in a small room with a few coffins along the walls. Before Agda could realize what was going on, one of the coffins burst open and a very menacing creature walked out of it.
Agda had already seen draugrs - at least, she'd seen them painted on the many books of the College. Yet, those paintings couldn't convey their smell of dried blood and rotten flesh, the way their junctures and armors creaked when they moved, the way their lifeless eyes scorched her own with a look that was entirely made of hatred and evilness and death. Although once upon a time those creatures had been living beings with thoughts and dreams and desires, they were now reduced to an empty shell made of revulsion and rage.
Agda was taken aback by her first encounter with a draugr; yet, the fear forced a rush of adrenaline to run through her, causing the young Nord to cast a powerful spell against the enemy. Although it was on fire, the undead said something and launched another attack. Even if she wasn't proficient in the language those things used, Agda could tell the draugr had just insulted her; also, her Nordic instict had her dodge the sword that was slowly moving towards her head. A second later, the healer cast another firebolt. With a horrible gurgling sound, the draugr died for the second time in its existence.
When the fight was over, Agda was left panting in the aftermath of her efforts. Tolfdir had dispatched two draugrs, but before the girl could realize it, everything around her began to spin. The air seemed to become thicker, whereas the colours of the room swayed in front of her eyes. A second later, a weird mage appeared in front of Agda and looked at her with his piercing gaze. He was an Altmer and was wearing exotic, old-fashioned robes. Before Agda could overcome her surprise, the man spoke.
"Hold, mage, and listen well: know that you have set in motion a chain of events that cannot be stopped.", he said with his booming, mysterious voice. "Judgment has not been passed, as you had no way of knowing. Judgment will be passed on your actions to come, and how you deal with the dangers ahead of you. This warning is passed to you because the Psijic Order believes in you. You, mage, and you alone, have the potential to prevent disaster. Take great care, and know that the Order is watching".
The air shifted again and Agda found herself blinking in confusion at the now empty space in front of her eyes. Her mind was full of questions: who was that Altmer mage? What judgement was that weirdo talking about? And most of all, for what damned reason was he talking about her actions rather than Tolfdir's? It was the older wizard who had insisted on going through that passage, not her!
Despite her absent-minded personality, Tolfdir immediately noticed that something was off. Prompted by his questions, Agda told him about the vision she'd just had. The man frowned, then said that members of the Psijic Order hadn't been spotted in Skyrim for more than a century. Agda took those words as a kind way to let her know that she was losing her mind.
Despite the girl's nervousness, Tolfdir insisted they ventured further in the ruins. When the older wizard not-that-secretly made to cast another calming spell, Agda agreed to follow him without protests.
For the first time in her life, she deeply regretted joining the College.
The following room was much bigger than the ones Agda had seen until that moment. Also, it had an impressive amount of coffins lined up along the walls.
Before Tolfdir could walk into that chamber, the girl tried to stop him with a gesture. Nonetheless, the man simply chuckled and ventured further in the room. There was a moment of perfect silence, then all the coffins burst open at the same time.
Wonderful, Agda thought with a snort. At first the girl had the temptation of hiding in the shadows and let Tolfdir do the hard work - after all, he was the one who'd dragged her along in that adventure. Yet, when four draugrs attacked him at once, the young healer changed her mind - after all, she didn't want the man's death to haunt her for years to come.
With a shrill scream, Agda abandoned her place behind the door and cast a firebolt against the nearest enemy. The draugr immediately moved towards her and tried to kill her with his heavy sword. Luckily enough, the long inactivity made the creature slow and inaccurate in his movements; as a consequence, Agda easily dodged its attacks and killed the draugr with another spell.
When a second undead turned towards her, the girl was surprised - and she was even more surprised when the creature cast a very strong frost spell. Agda had expected ancient Nords to hate magic as much as their grand-grand-grand-grandchildren, but that clearly wasn't the case.
Taken aback by that unexpected attack, Agda only managed to summon a weak ward. The magic barrier lessened the strength of the frost spell, but it didn't prevent Agda from falling to the ground as a consequence of the collision between the ice and the ward. Before the draugr could attack her again, Tolfdir beheaded it with a conjured axe.
"That was a good fight indeed!", the old wizard said with a smile. "I'm old, but I can still kill my enemies!"
Agda couldn't understand why Tolfdir was so happy. Yet, one thing she understood: there was no way she was going to proceed in that crazy mission.
When she informed the older teacher of her decision, Tolfdir chuckled.
"Let's just see what lies behind that corridor", he said after activating a weird mechanism that opened a new passage in a nearby wall. "Then I promise I'll let you return to the College".
Rolling her eyes, Agda followed her teacher in the next room - after all, she felt safer with him rather than alone.
A few seconds later, the young healer and Tolfdir came across a big black door.
"Go and have a look at it, Agdy", Tolfdir said with enthusiasm. "I'll join you immediately".
Sighing, Agda followed her orders - perhaps, if she was stealthy enough, she could walk past draugrs without waking them up.
After opening that old black door, the young healer waited for Tolfdir to join her. She waited a minute, two, three, four, then she finally understood that something was off. When she tried to open the door again, Agda's face went blank: something was preventing her from fulfilling that action. The girl cast every single spell she knew, knocked on the door for a countless amount of times, wrestled with its handle for a couple of minutes, tried to knock it down with a particularly powerful (at least for her standards) kick. Yet, the door didn't give in - and from the other side of it, Agda could hear no sounds at all.
With a shiver, the young healer realized that she was alone in the depths of Saarthal.
Agda waited for someone to rescue her for what felt like a lifetime. She even tried to call Tolfdir's name, but no one answered her. Eventually, the girl understood that she was completely on her own. In that situation, she could only go one way - and that way was forward.
Sighing, Agda took her head between her hands. She didn't know what time of the day it was, just like she didn't know how long it would take Tolfdir to realize that she was missing and unlock the door. She only knew that she was very likely to die in that place.
After cursing herself for her stupidity, the girl began insulting many people she knew - she insulted Tolfdir for getting her in that situation, she insulted Delphine for convincing her to join to the College, she even insulted Steinarius because, if he hadn't gone full psycho on her, she would have been able to resume her life in Riverwood immediately after her short trip to High Rock.
When Agda was done insulting half of the population of Skyrim, she tried to get a hold of herself - and surprisingly enough, right then the thought of Steinarius managed to make her feel better. If even a clumsy guy like him could waltz through ancient ruins and make it out of it unscathed, perhaps she had a chance at it too.
Agda of Anvil, in your young life you already faced a vampire and you even killed a Thalmor, a voice on the back of her mind encouraged her. Draugrs are just rotten corpses with threatening eyes, you can kill them too!
Agda didn't know whether the voice in her mind was right, but she decided to follow its encouragement. Perhaps she'd be lucky enough to find a key to the door in the nearby corridors.
Sighing, Agda got up from the floor and tentatively ventured in the rooms in front of her. Necessity is the mother of invention, people in Cyrodiil often said - and when she came across a chamber full of coffins and draugrs, Agda had a very good proof of it.
When she heard the undead say something in their weird language, the young healer tried to keep her cool and think about all the spells she knew. A second later, she came up with a strategy.
Furrowing her brow, Agda increased her health with a stoneflesh spell, then she muffled her movements with another spell. At that point, the girl ventured inside the room.
Thanks to her strategy, Agda could take a few steps without anyone noticing her. Luckily enough, that allowed her to prepare a series of fire runes leading to the place where she was planning to hide. At that point the girl summoned a Frost Atronach and forced it to face the draugrs gathered inside the room.
Agda' strategy was very successful: as soon as they saw the Atronach, all the draugrs followed it towards the entrance of the room. The creature led them to the runes its conjurer had previously created, thus causing the undead to roast to death in a matter of seconds. Hidden behind a huge burial urn, Agda killed the remaining draugrs with a few more spells.
When the room stopped shaking in the aftermath of the explosions, Agda grinned: when it came to exploring old burial sites, cleverness was as useful as sheer force.
Agda walked through Saarthal for what felt like ages. She killed every draugr she saw by relying on her usual combination of traps, spells and atronachs, a fact that had her take a very important decision: if she got out of that place alive, she would beg Phinis to train her in conjuration magic.
Along the way Agda was careful enough to avoid the many traps her ancestors had prepared for adventurers and possible enemies. Also, she had the chance to come across a pair of very rare Nordic puzzles. The girl had read about them in some books, but had never thought she could actually see one of them.
It took her very long to understand the first puzzle, but Agda eventually found a way to continue her exploration of Saarthal. She'd gone back to the black door already twice, but then Agda had stopped looking at the path behind her. She was probably the first living being to set foot in Saarthal in the last hundred of years and she soon started to enjoy what she saw. The decorations on the wall, the offerings to the dead, the carefully elaborated traps... The girl had to admit that everything inside that old settlement was extremely fascinating.
Eventually, the girl reached a little room at the end of a corridor. When she saw the alchemy lab inside it, Agda couldn't stifle a grin: she was running out of magicka potions and was looking forward to brewing something with the mushrooms she'd found until that moment.
As soon as Agda got down to work, a sudden noise had her straighten her spine and cast a firebolt in the direction of the threat. When she realized that she'd almost incinerated Tolfdir, the young healer couldn't hide her surprise.
"I finally unlocked the door", the old mage told her with a smile. "Yet, it looks like you're doing well even without me".
In normal circumstances, Agda would have reacted to Tolfdir's amused expression by shouting an ungodly series of insults. Nonetheless, the surprise of meeting him prevented her from speaking.
"Come on Agda, let's see what else awaits us", the old mage said.
Sighing, the girl decided to follow her teacher. She'd made it that far on her own, so she thought she could go much further with Tolfdir's help. Also, now she was sincerely curious to find out more about Saarthal.
To Agda's relief, her exploration of that old burial site was finally over. She and Tolfdir namely reached the last chamber of Saarthal, which was much bigger than all the other rooms they'd visited until that moment. Yet, the two mages weren't taken aback by the dimension of that chamber - actually, they were mostly impressed by the globe of light in the middle of it. Agda had never seen anything like that: it was a mysterious orb wrapped in a beautiful blue light that vaguely reminded her of the banner of the College. As she walked towards it, the girl also felt the pure magic energy it was radiating.
Agda smiled: that thing was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen, and it had been uncovered thanks to her.
It looked as though her choice to venture in Saarthal had actually paid off.
Sadly enough, Agda's joy was short-lived. As Tolfdir touched the orb, a loud growl echoed through the room. A second later, a very threatening corpse arose from a throne in the middle of the chamber. Distracted by the mysterious globe of light, nor Agda, nor Tolfdir had noticed the danger.
The creature seemed to take a sharp intake of air, then it spoke in a very unnerving voice. When she was hit by an unexpected rush of wind, Agda understood what was happening: the draugr had just used the power of the Thu'um to swipe her off her feet.
By the time the healer could overcome her shock, it was already too late: the creature had shouted her to the other side of the room, causing her to collide against the wall. Wincing in pain, Agda fell to the ground and hit her head.
Everything began to move slowly, so slowly that the girl could clearly hear Tolfdir's screams and see the old man cast a series of spell towards the mysterious orb. Before Agda could scream at him that the enemy was the draugr, and not that globe of light, the older wizard shouted again.
"Agda, the undead is vulnerable now! Kill it with a spell, quickly!"
Spurred by that shout, Agda summoned her magicka and conjured a Frost Atronach. A second later, she cast a powerful fire spell that engulfed the draugr in high flames. The creature let out a screeching sound, then fell dead under the combined effect of the fire, of the Atronach's attacks and of Tolfdir' spells.
Agda was taken aback by the calm that suddenly reigned inside the chamber: Tolfdir was panting heavily beside the orb and her Atronach had crumbled to pieces, but everything else was completely, perfectly still.
Willing to find out more about the draugr that had attacked her, Agda tried to get up from her place on the floor. The collision with the wall had caused a sharp pain to run through her ribs, but the girl solved the problem with a strong healing spell. Right then, however, Agda used her hand to clean the sweat from her forehead. As she did it, she noticed the blood dripping from a deep cut on her pointing finger. Under a closer examination, Agda realized that one of her nails was broken and that there was more blood dripping from her thumb. Apparently, she'd injured her hand after falling to the floor.
That last surprise was too much for the young girl to take: she'd faced draugrs and Altmers and slaughterfish, but she still couldn't stand the sight of her own blood. As a consequence, as soon as she took in her broken nail, Agda gasped and fell once again to the floor.
For the first time in her life, she discovered what it was like to faint.