Author's note:
My dear readers, after a brief break here I am with a new update. First things first, I must thank all of you for your patience. Also, I thank Guest 1, Guest 2 and Valtieri for their reviews. Guests' impatience gave me the boost I needed to end this chapter; Valtieri's instead provided me with the usual excellent remarks. In particular, I do thank them for their kind and constructive critics about Erandur: I believe the priest to be a very interesting and complex character, so it was very useful to know that I didn't do him justice.
While playing the Vaermina's quest in Skyrim, I actually noticed that Erandur sometimes seems to get angry at the Dragonborn; I wanted to exploit that fact for my story, but unfortunately I overdid it - like Valtieri pointed out, the words I had him use weren't actually very appropriate. As a consequence, over the next few days I'll take another look at chapter 44 and change at least a few out-of-character comments. So, once again thank Valtieri for your remarks!
Today's chapter is a rather long one and describes Steinarius' search for Ancano. There are many characters involved, but hopefully it won't be too chaotic. Also, this instalment will hopefully provide you with some fun after all the sadness from the previous updates.
Enjoy!
14th of Hearthfire, 4E 202
As he approached Winterhold, Steinarius tiredly rubbed his eyes. Ever since his chat with Agda, the man hadn't slept at all; as a consequence, the efforts from the previous hours were now catching up on him. His argument with Erandur, his anger after he'd discovered that Agda had been abused by her torturer, his worry at the fact that the girl still couldn't remember her journey to Dawnstar… All of that was preventing Steinarius from thinking straight. Nonetheless, the Imperial knew that he couldn't allow himself any rest: he needed to avenge Agda, and he needed to do it quickly. In order to achieve his goal, however, he first needed to find Ancano.
Steinarius had never been fond of Winterhold. In his opinion, the seat of the College was nothing but a skeever-hole ruled by one of the worst Jarls in Skyrim. Unfortunately, the man had no choice: if he wanted to help Agda, he needed to spend at least a couple of hours in that pathetic excuse for a city.
Upon reaching the main street of Winterhold, Steinarius immediately headed for his destination. When a guard ordered him to stop, the Dragonborn ignored him - he had important matters on his mind and didn't want to lose time with a zealant idiot who probably detested him just because he was an Imperial. Yet, when a dagger was pointed at his throat, Steinarius was forced to stop dead in his tracks.
"I told you to halt, stranger! Hands where I can see them, now!"
Groaning in anger, Steinarius ignored the order.
"Let me go", he snarled, his eyes golden with pure rage and irritation. "Let me go or..."
Before Steinarius could end the sentence, the guard's dagger was pressed against his neck.
"Shut up, Nord, or I'll kill you", the sentry hissed. "Now, if you don't want to end up in a prison guarded by two Storm Atronachs, you'd better do as you're told: raise your hands and stay still while I search you".
Sighing in exhasperation, Steinarius eventually followed the orders. A moment later, when that zealant guard started groping him through his breeches, the Imperial rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"You know, you should be more careful when you address someone by their race", Steinarius hissed while stifling the temptation of shouting that sentry to the other side of the street. "Also, you should be more careful with those hands of yours. I'm an Imperial, not a Nord - and as such, I highly value personal space".
Surprisingly enough, Steinarius' complaint caused the guard to straighten his spine. Moreover, it caused the stranger's rigid behavior to be replaced by a wide smile.
"By Mara, it's been ages since I last came across a countryman!", the sentry unexpectedly grinned. Now that he could look at him, Steinarius realized that the stranger had the tanned skin and the dark eyes of the inhabitants of Cyrodiil. "I'm sorry for mistaking you for a Nord. Actually, I should have realized that you're not from Skyrim: your accent clearly gives you away as an inhabitant of Kvatch, or maybe Chorrol; also, you don't smell like a dead horker at all".
Steinarius was deeply surprised by the fact that an Imperial like him had ended up patrolling the coldest city of Skyrim; yet, he was even more surprised when the guard - Herius, as he later discovered - told him the reason why he'd stopped him in the first place.
"I'm sorry if I annoyed you, but I needed to search you for hidden weapons and ask you a couple of questions", the sentry namely revealed. "You came from Dawnstar, therefore I want to know you whether you happened to meet a girl on your way here. She's not very tall and not very thin, has dark blond curls and big brown eyes. Also, she is probably wearing Restoration robes".
Realizing that Herius was talking about Agda, Steinarius frowned. Why was that man looking into her disappearance?
Willing to be careful, the Dragonborn decided to find out more about the guard's task.
"The poor thing is an apprentice from the College who disappeared about ten days ago", Herius explained as soon as Steinarius asked him who the missing girl was. "I don't usually investigate into this kind of things, but Agda is a true sweetheart: she treated me when I came down with Ataxia and believe me, she's the best healer this horrible city has ever had. As a consequence, I'd like to find out what happened to her".
Those words caused Steinarius to realize that, during her short stay in Winterhold, Agda had likely become Herius' favourite healer. Well acquainted with the girl's kindness, the Dragonborn wasn't surprised at all.
Overjoyed by the presence of another Imperial, Herius spent many a minute talking about how much he hated Skyrim. The guard explained that he'd moved there after getting married to a Nord girl who'd later dumped him, then began a long rant about Agda's disappearance and Jarl Korir's disinterest for the matter.
"The other guards and I would love to find Agda, but Korir doesn't want us to look into the problems connected to the College", the sentry namely complained. "The Jarl hates the mages and thinks that they want to destroy his city. Actually, he even went so far as to fire one of my colleagues – according to him, that woman was investigating too much into Agda's disappearance. Ever since then, that friend of mine is the only one who's still looking for that poor girl - and I'm the only one who's willing to help her".
Steinarius frowned: he was well aware of Korir's paranoia, but he'd never expected it to influence Agda's life; also, he was keen on finding out more about the mysterious woman who'd been fired because of her dedition to the healer's case.
In the hope that he was doing the right thing, the Dragonborn eventually confessed that he had some news about Agda's fate, thus convincing Herius to introduce him to his former colleague. Steinarius ardently wished that woman to turn into an ally and help him with his plans for revenge.
As soon as he discovered that the Dragonborn had some news about Agda, Herius immediately led him towards the Frozen Hearth Inn. The cozy tavern was empty but for the owner's wife, a beautiful woman by the name of Haran. Much to Steinarius' surprise, the innkeeper reacted to his appearance with a pleased cry.
"I so hope you came across our little Agda!", Haran said as soon as Herius told us that his countryman probably knew something about Agda's fate. "She's the sweetest person I've ever met, therefore I'd be very sorry if something had happened to her".
Once again, Steinarius was taken aback by the affection the people of Winterhold seemed to nourish for Agda. His surprise increased as soon as he reached the basement of the Frozen Hearth Inn, the place where the mysterious woman who'd been fired because of her interest in the girl's disappearance had set up her headquarters.
The first thing Steinarius noticed upon reaching the basement was a strong smell of cheap ale. Making his way through the poorly lit room, the man tried not to stumble on the empty bottles scattered all over the place. Unfortunately for him, Herius had immediately closed the door to the staircase, thus leaving the Dragonborn alone in that dark room.
For a moment, Steinarius thought he'd fallen head-first into a trap organized by Ancano. When a woman emerged from the shadows, however, the Imperial understood that his fears had been completely ungrounded. Shocked by the sight of the beautiful Redguard in front of his eyes, the Dragonborn couldn't help but let his jaw drop open.
"Adaeze?!"
"Steinarius?!", the Redguard asked in disbelief.
Before the Imperial could overcome his surprise for that encounter, Adaeze did something completely unexpected: she grabbed a nearby bottle of mead, then she threw it at the man's head. Steinarius dodged the attack, but that sudden movement had him lose balance. Adaeze chose that moment to charge him with all her rage and her force and her fury.
The young Redguard was slightly shorter than Steinarius, but she was almost as strong – besides, she was much faster. As a consequence, by the time the Imperial could even understand what was happening, Agda's best friend had already pinned him to the ground and punched him twice in the face. Cursing at the way his lips split open after meeting Adaeze's fist, Steinarius miracolously scraped back to his knees. For a puzzling moment, his opponent just looked at him and smiled; then, taking advantage of the man's confusion, Adaeze used her knee to hit him very hard in a very private place. As he fell back to the ground, Steinarius felt as though the stars of Tamriel were making a crazy dance behind his closed eyelids. A second later, he realized that Adaeze had allowed him to stand up just because she wanted to give him that low blow in the nethers.
Despite Steinarius' pained whines, the woman's hunger for violence still wasn't sated. She namely forced her opponent to roll on his back, then she straddled him and resumed hitting him. Each of her slaps was punctuated by rageful shouts.
"HOW. DARE YOU. COME HERE. AFTER ALL. YOU DID. TO AGDA!"
When Adaeze's fist met his face for the umpteenth time, Steinarius growled in annoyance. Part of him actually agreed with the punishment the Redguard was inflicting on him; nonetheless, another part of the Imperial (the very same part that actually cared about his pretty face) thought that he'd already suffered enough at the hands of that rabid woman. Willing to find a way out of that situation, Steinarius relied on his special powers.
"Fus!", the Imperial said with as little strength as possible. Although that Shout had been meant to be very weak, it caused Adaeze to lose balance, thus allowing Steinarius to swap their position and pin the woman to the floor. As soon as the Dragonborn straddled her, the Redguard reacted with very loud protests.
"Get off of me, you psycho!", she cried out in rage. "If I ever get up from here, I'll make your eyes as black as a skeever's butt! And now leave me alone, you atrocious troll, you nasty horker, you…"
"Adaeze, you need to calm down, otherwise I won't free you until the end of the Fourth Era!", Steinarius hastily told the woman who was desperately writhing underneath him. "I didn't come here to get beaten: I came here because we need to talk about Agda. Actually, I'm here on her behalf".
Confronted with that unexpected news, Adaeze immediately stopped fighting. Steinarius was glad for that: his groin was still throbbing painfully, just like his face. The man was sure he'd gotten himself a black eye, a bloody nose and a split lip. Combined with the welt left by Hermaeus Mora's tentacles on his cheek, those marks probably made him look like a beaten up bandit.
"What do you mean that you're here on Agda's behalf?", Adaeze asked with a suspicious frown. Apparently, Steinarius' bruised face had temporarily calmed her need for violence. "After you broke up with her, that girl didn't want to talk to you anymore, let alone give you some tasks to fulfill. Why would she change her mind all of a sudden? And most of all, why did she leave Winterhold without telling anyone about her plans?"
Sighing, Steinarius got off Adaeze's body and helped her up to her feet – after all, the man wasn't at ease speaking to her while straddling her hips.
"I'm afraid we need to talk", the Dragonborn announced. Unlike him, Adaeze had escaped their fight completely unscathed and was now looking at him with a mixture of disgust and suspicion. "Agda has been tortured by someone who didn't show her any mercy. I'm here because I want to track down and kill the bastard who did that to her".
To Steinarius' relief, the news made Adaeze forget about their past misunderstandings. Fueled by worry and anger and astonishment, the woman visibly paled and asked him to explain everything he knew about Agda's troubles. As he began speaking, the Dragonborn secretly rejoiced: Adaeze had finally stopped using him as an overgrown punching ball.
Adaeze eagerly listened to Steinarius' tale. Impressed by the rageful tears that soon gathered in the Redguard's eyes, the man chose to spare her the most gruesome details.
"I can't believe someone did that to Agda", Adaeze shivered when the Dragonborn stopped talking. "She's the sweetest girl in Tamriel, who could be so heartless as to torture her?"
"Apparently, that bastard is a man called Ancano", Steinarius replied. Adaeze's question had meant to be rhetorical, but in that situation the finest points of speech were utterly lost on the Imperial. "I was wondering whether you had any information about him".
Adaeze hissed in anger.
"That pig! I knew he was up to something!". Confronted with Steinarius' confusion, the woman scoffed. "Ancano is your usual pompous Thalmor. Unfortunately for us, he left Winterhold two days ago to visit the Thalmor Embassy near Solitude. He won't be back before the end of the week".
Steinarius cursed: he'd neglected sleep in order to avenge Agda as early as possible, but his target had escaped his reach. His bad luck was definitely limitless.
For a moment, the man entertained the crazy thought of slaughtering Ancano inside the Thalmor Embassy. Although right then he was overcome with rage and disappointment, however, the Dragonborn immediately realized that he couldn't follow his instinct. Ever since his leisure stroll across the Embassy during one of Elenwen's parties, the amount of sentries in that place had namely been redoubled. In those circumstances, killing Ancano was going to be very difficult.
To say it all, there was another reason why Steinarius didn't feel like facing that wizard inside the Thalmor Embassy. The Dragonborn wanted Ancano to suffer as much as possible before being killed – and since Elenwen's house was full of guards, there was no way Steinarius could torture his victim as long as it pleased him. No, the Imperial realized: he would wait for that arrogant mage to return to Winterhold, then he would torture him until he eventually begged to be killed. After all Agda had suffered at the hands of Ancano, Steinarius thought that violence was the only way to avenge that poor girl.
Despite the hatred that was clouding his judgement, the Dragonborn hadn't forgotten the other reasons why he'd headed to Winterhold. As a matter of fact, Agda had never asked to be avenged – according to Frida, she'd simply asked Steinarius to enquire about her mysterious journey to Dawnstar and to warn the Archmage of Winterhold about an unspecified danger that was threatening the College. Deeming the latter request to be the most important, Steinarius asked Adaeze how he could speak to the leader of the only magic school of Skyrim. When the woman mentioned the admittance test of the College, the Imperial realized that his task was going to be much more difficult than predicted.
As he walked towards the seat of the only magic school of Skyrim, Steinarius couldn't help feeling impressed. The College of Winterhold was probably the most fascinating structure in the country: it was much bigger than Jorrvaskr, much more charming than Castle Dour, much more imposing than Dragonsreach. Also, it was one of the most guarded places of the land; as a consequence, there was no way Steinarius could get inside it without facing its sentries.
Painfully aware of that, the Imperial let out a sigh and took a step towards the bridge that connected the College to the main land. As a tall Altmer approached him, Steinarius nervously began chewing on the inside of his right cheek.
"Who are you, and what do you seek among these ancient walls?", the High Elf asked.
Steinarius furrowed his brow in surprise. He'd expected the woman to ask him to cast a spell, therefore he didn't know how to reply to that question.
I'm the former lover of one of your apprentices and I've come here to seek for revenge – worry not, however: I'll clean the mess after I'm done, he briefly thought.
Confronted with the man' silence, the Altmer began massaging her temples. She was likely used to people behaving that strangely.
"Let's just pretend that you answered my question", the woman sighed after waiting for Steinarius' reply for more than a minute. "Judging from your armor, I don't think you to be a wizard. As a consequence, you're here just because you probably want to talk to some of my colleagues inside the College. Am I right?"
Steinarius nodded – yes, more or less, that was what he actually wanted to do.
"I must talk to the Archmage", the Dragonborn eventually confessed. "It's a very important matter".
Much to his annoyance, the Altmer scoffed.
"Slow down, cowboy: the Archmage is very busy these days. Besides, he doesn't talk to just anyone".
Steinarius frowned. He could have told that woman – Faralda, as he later found out – that he had precious information about Agda, thus making everything easier for the two of them; nonetheless, the Imperial still didn't know whether he could trust her. As a consequence, he needed another way to enter the College and talk to the Archmage.
After a very brief brainstorming, Steinarius decided to reach his goal by taking advantage of his position as the Last Dragonborn. Years and years at the Blue Palace came very handy in that moment, as Steinarius simply had to imitate Erikur in order to look like a self-important maniac with a weird tendency for drama.
"You know, friend, I'm not just anyone", he said while pulling a rather offended expression. "Actually, I am but the mighty Dragonborn of legends. Let me talk to the Archmage, or I shall unleash my wrath on you".
Despite Steinarius' best dramatic tone, Faralda didn't look impressed at all - actually, the Altmer simply raised an eyebrow and let out an amused chuckle. Realizing that his plan had been a complete failure, Steinarius sighed: when it came to playing self-important politicians, he still had a lot to learn. Much to his dismay, the Imperial realized that there was only one way to prove that he was the Dragonborn: since he didn't know any spell, he had to rely on the power of the Thu'um. That was going to grant him an angry letter from Arngeir, but right then Steinarius couldn't care less.
"Yool", the Imperial whispered after coming to terms with that decision.
When a column of fire left the man's lips, Faralda couldn't stifle a surprised gasp. Steinarius grinned at her amusement, but that only caused him to misdirect the flames, thus setting a nearby banner of the College on fire. Despite his worries, Faralda didn't even notice that: she was completely, utterly fascinated by the legendary warrior in front of her eyes.
"I believe this is enough", she faintly whispered after Steinarius' display of power was over. "Savos Aren will speak to you immediately".
Steinarius nervously tapped his foot against the stone pavement of the stairs.
"The Archmage will receive you soon", Faralda told him upon noticing his distress. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting".
Sorry my ass, Steinarius thought. Although Faralda had warned the Archmage that she'd just found out more about Agda's destiny, Savos Aren had completely ignored the news and kept on discussing Illusion magic with two of his colleagues. That fact filled Steinarius with rage: how could the Dunmer care so less about his missing apprentice?
Before the Imperial's nervousness got out of control, the door to the Archmage's burst open. Without waiting for Faralda to introduce him, Steinarius made his way into the den of that arrogant mage. Under other circumstances, the Dragonborn would have been fascinated by the unnatural atmosphere of Aren's living quarters. By then, however, the long wait had made him unsensitive to that kind of details.
When Steinarius hastily stormed into his room, the Archmage of Winterhold was deep in conversation with two other wizards. One of them was an old mage with a long grey beard, the other one was a Breton woman with a rather stern expression. Upon seeing Steinarius, the three mages pulled very confused expressions.
"Faralda, who is this man?", the Breton wizard immediately asked her colleague.
Confronted with the careful gaze of that stern mage, Steinarius realized that he probably looked like a drunkard in fine armor: right then his eyes were partially golden because of his irritation, whereas his face was bruised because of the many slaps he'd received from Adaeze. Nonetheless, the Imperial was keen on being taken seriously.
"I know something about your missing apprentice", he said before Faralda could reply to her colleague's question.
There was a very embarrassing pause during which all the mages blinked in confusion. Confronted with Savos Aren's clueless expression, for a dreadful moment Steinarius thought that the Archmage was about to ask which of his many missing apprentices he was actually talking about. Luckily enough, Mirabelle Ervine prevented that from happening, thus sparing Steinarius the effort of keeping his werewolf in check.
"You have information about Agda?"
Steinarius nodded. The moment he'd been waiting for had finally arrived.
"The girl is currently in Dawnstar", he announced. "She's alive, but she couldn't travel to the College because of some injuries she's recently sustained; as a consequence, she asked me to give you a warning on her behalf".
As he tried to recall everything Frida had told him, Steinarius paused. Then, he cleared his throat and cast a very unconfident glance at the expert mages inside the room.
"The Eye of Magnus is dangerous and, should it be misused, the whole of Winterhold will be in danger", the Dragonborn said with its best stern tone. "At least, that's what the Augur of Dunlain thinks".
There was a long moment of silence, during which Steinarius nervously chewed on the inside of his cheeks. He didn't know what the Eye of Magnus was, just like he had no idea as to the identity of the Augur of Dunlain; nonetheless, he ardently hoped the mages had understood what he was talking about.
For an endless minute, Steinarius feared that Savos Aren and his colleagues believed he'd just made fun of them. Before one of the mages turned him into a skeever, however, Mirabelle Ervine shook off the surprise caused by the Imperial's words.
"You say that Agda couldn't travel here because she got injured", the Master Wizard of the College said while furrowing her brow. "What does that actually mean? And why did she leave Winterhold all of a sudden?"
Confronted with the green eyes of that observant woman, Steinarius was tempted to tell her the whole truth about Ancano. Mirabelle looked smart and clever and sympathetic; besides, according to Adaeze, the Breton had been the only member of the College to look into her pupil's disappearance.
Despite that pleasant impression, the presence of the other mages forced Steinarius to go against his instinct - for all he knew, Faralda and her colleagues might be Ancano's allies and prevent him from getting his vendetta. Scared by that simple thought, Steinarius decided to lie to them about Agda's fate.
"Your pupil sprained her ankle while she was collecting alchemy ingredients on the road to Dawnstar", he said while hoping the wizards to believe him. "I helped her with her injuries and she told me to come to Winterhold at once. However, I'm here to talk about the Eye of Magnus, not about Agda".
The mages in the room exchanged very skeptical glances. A moment later, when Mirabelle asked him what he knew about the Eye of Magnus, Steinarius candidly admitted the truth.
"I'm only here as a deputy on Agda's behalf: I can't cast a spell to save my life, so I have no idea what that Magnus thing is".
Steinarius' words raised another little discussion. The Imperial didn't understand any of it, a fact he blamed on the muffling spell the mages used in order to hide their conversation from him.
Eventually, Mirabelle Ervine stood up from her chair and took some steps towards the Dragonborn.
"Many things in your tale do not convince us, Imperial", she informed Steinarius. "Nonetheless, there is only one way to discover whether you're telling us the truth. If you'd be so kind to follow me, I'll talk to the Augur of Dunlain immediately: the oracle will know what happened to Agda".
Confronted with those words, Steinarius couldn't hide a relieved smile. Luckily enough, the mages of Winterhold had decided to give him a chance.
Steinarius' liking for Mirabelle increased after the woman fearlessly ventured into the Midden with him. While walking through that creepy dungeon, the two of them didn't encounter any enemy. Actually, the few creatures that dwelled in there had already been slain by someone who was apparently quite proficient with magic.
"These marks are usually left by fire runes", Mirabelle commented upon reaching a room where a few ice-wraith teeth were scattered on the floor. "It looks like you told us the truth: Agda did talk to the Augur about two weeks ago".
Confronted with those words, Steinarius deadpanned. The Midden was a dark and damp and dangerous place that gave the creeps even to a hardened warrior like him; as a consequence, he couldn't depict a fearful girl like Agda exploring it on her own.
"It looks like you don't know her very well", Mirabelle smirked when confronted with Steinarius' astonishment. "Agda is the best apprentice we've had in a while: she's an excellent healer, a good enchanter, a great alchemist; also, she's very skilled in Destruction and Conjuration. The last time I saw her, for example, she'd just summoned a Storm Atronach by herself. It doesn't surprise me that she ventured into the Midden on her own: after all, she was the one to discover the Eye of Magnus inside Saarthal".
Steinarius' eyes widened even further at that sudden revelation: in his opinion, Agda and Saarthal were the two most different things one could put together in the same sentence.
Despite his shock, the Dragonborn soon realized that Mirabelle was right: judging from the way her faint scent still reigned in most of the halls, Agda had really been inside the Midden – and upon reaching a weird room with a Daedric relic in its centre, all of Steinarius' doubts finally disappeared. It didn't take a werewolf to realize that the place was overrun by the strong scent of blood, just like it didn't take a genius to understand that the ruined clothes in the corner were Agda's Destruction robes.
Mirabelle let out a scared squeal at the discovery, then covered her mouth with her hands. Steinarius, on the other hand, began shivering in rage. As he walked through that little room, the man could almost smell Agda's desperation, could almost hear her desperate cries, could almost imagine what kind of tortures had caused her to lose so much blood; as a consequence, it took the Imperial all of his willpower to remain in control and not tun into a werewolf.
"It was Ancano, wasn't it?"
Steinarius nodded. He trusted Mirabelle and, when confronted with her horrified but hardened gaze, he understood that she loathed the Thalmor almost as much as he did.
"I'll make sure the bastard gets what he deserves", the Breton promised.
A moment later, the Master of Wizardry of the College left the room and finally met the Augur of Dunlain. Thanks to that ancient oracle and Agda's warning, she quickly discovered the danger Winterhold was running.
In the middle of the afternoon, a very determined Mirabelle reached an equally determined Steinarius in the courtyard of the College. The Breton had kept the information regarding Ancano to herself, then she'd enquired with the Archmage about the danger Winterhold was running. According to the experienced mages of the College, said danger could only be stopped by the Staff of Magnus. It took her almost two hours, but Mirabelle eventually managed to provide Steinarius with the alleged location of that item. Nodding in assent, the Imperial prepared to leave for Mzulft.
"I'll keep an eye on Ancano for you", Mirabelle promised him at that point. "He won't leave Winterhold unscathed".
Steinarius thanked the woman for her help, then walked back to the main street of Winterhold. Once there, he was welcomed by Adaeze. The Redguard was wearing her guard uniform and looked ready to spill blood.
"There's no way you're going to avenge Agda without me", the fierce warrior announced. "Therefore, if you're going to the Thalmor Embassy, I'm coming with you".
Steinarius frowned. He wasn't looking forward to retrieving the Staff of Magnus, and he wasn't looking forward to venturing into a dangerous ruin together with a helper.
"Adaeze, I need you to keep an eye on Ancano", he told the young Redguard. "And then, I'm not going to the Embassy".
The woman frowned in confusion.
"Where are you going then?"
"Mzulft".
"Bless you".
Shocked at the way Adaeze had mistaken the name of a Dwemer ruin for a sneeze, Steinarius rolled his eyes.
"Mzulft is a Dwemer ruin in the Rift", he explained. "I need to retrieve a weird staff hidden there".
"Is that thing going to help Agda?"
Steinarius confirmed with a nod.
"Then I'm coming with you", Adaeze proclaimed. "I'll leave Ancano to Herius: he's a decent fighter and will make sure that the bastard doesn't escape our wrath".
Sighing, Steinarius gave in. After brawling with Adaeze, he namely knew that Oblivion had no fury like an angry Redguard.
It was well past midnight when Adaeze and Steinarius finally reached their destination. The woman had managed to find two horses they could ride until Mzulft, a fact that had made their journey much faster than predicted. As he reached those ancient ruines, Steinarius sighed in relief: he was glad he could finally kill some creatures in order to let off steam.
Eager to get down to business, the Dragonborn hopped off his horse and immediately climbed the stairs that led towards Mzulft. Steinarius hated Dwemer buildings, therefore he wanted his little trip throughout that dungeon to last as little as possible.
"We have no time to explore", Steinarius said when Adaeze stopped to take a closer look at a fascinating fountain. "The sooner we get in, the sooner we get out".
"Fine, Imperial, we'll do this your way", the woman snorted. By then she was downright irritated by Steinarius' despotic attitude. "By the way, Dragonborn, I hope that theory of yours doesn't apply to what you do in bed; otherwise, I pity poor Agda".
Steinarius rolled his eyes: during their journey to Mzulft he had noticed that Adaeze seemed unable to talk to him without making continuous references to sex. The woman knew that said references made him uncomfortable and had immediately started taking advantage of that.
Despite his irritation, Steinarius quickly got a hold of himself and headed towards the doors to the ancient city of Mzulft. Before he could push them open, however, Adaeze stopped him by laying a hand on his shoulder.
"If you expect me to wear this armor and survive a Dwemer ruin at the same time, you're deadly wrong", she said while pointing at the cuirass the Winterhold guards usually sported. "Me, I do my best with leather".
There was a moment of silence during which Steinarius furrowed his brow in confusion. Realizing that he hadn't taken the hint, Adaeze rolled her eyes.
"Men like you always need a woman to tell them what to do", she dramatically sighed. "I have my leather armor in my knapsack and I need some modesty to put it on. Would you please turn around, Steinarius?"
Embarrassed by that request, he Dragonborn obliged. He listened to the sound of Adaeze's armor falling on the ground, then he closed his eyes to fight off temptation. Part of his mind namely suggested he turned around and took a look at that stunning Redguard; another part of Steinarius, instead, reminded him of the ache he still felt in his groin. This morning we received enough kicks in the nethers for a lifetime, didn't we?, that part of the Imperial's mind whispered. Nodding in agreement, Steinarius immediately gave up his wicked plans about Adaeze.
"You've even closed your eyes, you really are a sweetheart", the Redguard said once she was done putting on her leather armor. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you're a virgin. Don't worry, however: Agda told me everything about your bedtime adventures, so I know that you're not as innocent and chivalrous as you look".
Steinarius snorted in exhasperation. When Adaeze walked up to him, however, his annoyance was quickly replaced by astonishment.
"A Thieves Guild armor?", he asked, his eyes wide with surprise. "Seriously?"
The Redguard shrugged.
"There are men who fall asleep every time someone strokes their hair for more than thirty seconds and there are women who steal for a living. I guess no one is perfect".
Steinarius scoffed. He could definitely relate to the men Adaeze had just described.
"Is there a tiny chance that Agda didn't tell you everything about my relationship with her?", he asked with a dramatic tone.
Adaeze gave the Imperial a wide, mischievous grin. Before she could talk, however, Steinarius stopped her with a gesture.
"Forget my question, I already know the answer", he sighed in defeat. The man made to push open the entry to Mzulft, but he changed his mind as soon as he placed a hand on the doors. "But seriously, Adaeze, a thief-turned-guard? You must be kidding me!"
The Redguard chuckled.
"I'm a woman of many talents, Crepusculus – and stealing is only one of them. Now, if you'd be so kind to wash that shocked expression off your face, I think we're ready to go".
Before Steinarius could reply, Adaeze opened the doors of Mzulft in his stead. As she did, every trace of amusement fell from her face. The time for playfulness was over: if they wanted to find the Staff of Magnus and make it out of that ruin alive, Adaeze and Steinarius needed to fight at the best of their skills.