Cearbhail:
This chapter...top of my favorite's list. I worked pretty hard on it, and I think it came out great. Got some great backstory in and it ends Neloth's chapter of back character development. Oh...and we meet Mjoll for the first time. Enjoy the end of the past exposition.
Oh...and enjoy. ^^
Book of Shadows, date: 4e198 22 Sun's Height
It's been a rough two days but I've found myself in Riften. One day out at sea was rough for my little Veselle. I had no idea she got seasick, but then again it's not like we ever had to travel by ship before. She spent the majority of her time staring out at the waves while sipping a sickness healing potion. She loved watching the Lamia as they swam alongside us. Having some contacts with the Lamia, they promised to watch over us while we sailed to Skyrim. I thought about taking Veselle to Morrowind to be protected, but House Telvanni is all but defeated. While I am the one of the remaining Lord, I must not put too much attention on my family. If I put my daughter under protective care, everyone in Morrowind will know, and more enemies will follow to claim my throne using her as leverage.
So, I have decided to take her to Skyrim. I am certain Savos Aron is more than capable of watching over her, perhaps even training her in proper use of Magicka but I've already sent Brelyna to him for safe watching. I have another daughter here in Skyrim, her name is Karliah. She lives in Riften, and I'm at the gates now. Perhaps she will watch her sister for me, even though our family relations are pulled thin as it is. I must try. The longer I stay with my daughter, the more danger she is in. That witch is looking for me, and I'm doing everything I can to keep myself hidden. But that is impossible for too long. I must be as far as away as possible. At least until I can make sure that blasted witch is dead.
Lord Neloth Maryon
…
"Hold." A Riften guard said as he held up a hand to me. The young guard looked just out of his teen years. "If you wish to enter Riften, you must pay the visitor's tax."
Hmm…
I studied the guards standing next to the doorway. There were two of them, the gate was closed. The guards looked official enough but their stance told me that they fashioned themselves as the sneaky types. They had strong looking thighs that looked used to be held in a crouched position. The swords on the belts of the guards looked brand new, never used for actual combat. The knives attached to their belts, on the other hand, looked sharpened repetitively. Aside from the mud on the knee plates, I didn't have much more to go on, but I was sure that these guards were some sort of rogue class, much like our own House Hlaalu, which fell from power some time ago.
"What's the tax for?" I asked him.
His stance hardened for a second. "For the glory of entering Riften, hold capital of the Rift. Why else?" His voice took a hardened response, a little defensive…too forced. He was lying.
I prepared a truth spell on my fingers and flicked it at him without him even batting an eye. His partner didn't even see the spell, so she didn't move from her spot. "Is this some sort of shake down?"
The guard stood there for a second before he nodded. "Aye." He said defeated. "The Thieves Guild has us shake down all new people to help search for new members for the Thieves Guild."
"So, you know the Guild pretty well, then?"
He shrugged. "I know one of the thieves: Brynjolf."
"Where can I find him?"
"He's usually in the Bee and Barb."
I nodded to the guard. "Thanks for the tip. May I go inside?" I pushed a little Charm spell on him.
The guard took to the Charm pretty easily. He smiled as he nodded and turned towards the door. His partner looked from him over to me. She scowled as she shook her head. "What did you do to him?"
I shook my head. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"The hell you don't." She replied but she didn't push the issue further. She looked from me over to my little girl. "You better watch yourself while you're in town. The guards will not protect you from the Guild." Veselle pulled on my leg, whimpering a little.
I smiled as I let my aura brighten. A thick mist started seeping through my shoulders, drifting over to the ground. I thought it created an ominous atmosphere. "I promise you this." I said as clearly to her as possible. "If this…Guild even tries to mess with me, I will make this Guild and anyone else that interferes with me pay with interest. I have no qualms with this Guild, but if they start something, you can be sure that I will make certain they never crawl out of whatever hole they bore themselves into." I put a little more effort into my Magicka aura, which caused lightning to crackle around my body. It seemed to have the desired effect on the woman.
The woman continued to lean against the wall of the town's entrance, but she noticeably looked away from me. "Whatever, do as you please. I don't care if you get rid of the Thieves Guild, nor do I care if they kill outsiders like you." She pushed off her wall to look at me. "But, if you cause any innocent people in this town harm, you can be damn sure that I will come after you myself."
I nodded to her. "I plan to be in and out. I do not wish to linger any longer than I have to." I walked past her, holding onto little Veselle's hand as I pulled her with me into town.
"Where are we going, daddy?" She asked up to me as she jogged alongside me trying to keep up with me.
"Talk to your sister, if she's here." I told her.
"Brelyna?"
"No, Karliah." I replied to her. As soon as we entered the town, I could feel the slight tension of being watched and judged. The people that I've seen already looked more or less afraid or tired. There was this constant air of tension and despair. It was so thick that I could barely feel any significant energy signatures here. It was like this town was alive with energy that fed on the fears of others. It was a thick mask…right where someone would want to go if they were running away from a crazy witch looking for an emotional person.
"Where are you going, Mjoll?" A door right in front of me slammed open, and out walking was a teenage girl clutching her side as if she were in a lot of pain. She was wearing nothing but bandages and a loose shirt, her hair short and matted. She looked like a normal adventurer.
"Where do you think?" She didn't look back at him as she walked towards me. "I'm going back for my sword."
"Mjoll, you aren't in good enough condition to go out there!" A teenage boy rushed out the door, running in front of Mjoll. He was dressed like a typical royal, well-dressed with a perfect haircut. As soon as he stepped out in front of Mjoll, he spread his arms out, halting Mjoll from going any further. "I don't let you leave just yet!" He said firmly.
Mjoll stopped and rounded her shoulders. "You think a puny non-fighter like you can possibly stop me?"
The boy stood his ground. "I…well…I don't know." He said as uncertainly as possible. "But…I will try if it means you continue to rest until you've healed."
She groaned. I stood there next to them as they stared each other down. Veselle pulled on my arm but didn't say anything. I looked at the girl, Mjoll. She looked tough, built. I didn't really know much about her, but I could tell she had a powerful aura of pure intention. She would do whatever it was she wanted to do. And she was strong, a proud knight. If anyone could protect my daughter, it would be someone like Mjoll.
The boy, who I still didn't know a name for, seemed to be just as idealistic as anyone I've ever met. He seemed like a good sort. Perhaps this city wasn't as bad as I thought it would have been.
Mjoll stepped up to the boy, gripping her side in pain. "You have three seconds to step aside, boy."
"You're no older than I am." He replied.
"I'm 19, you little guttersnipe. Three"
"Yeah, well I'm 17, so we're not so different."
"You haven't seen the world like I have. Two."
"Just rest for a couple more days. After that, you can do whatever you like."
She scoffed. "One…" She started to snap her arm out.
"STOP!" Veselle cried. I was nearly thrown away from her as the air around us erupted into flames. I managed to step away as my tiny girl engulfed herself in flames. She looked mad, and she was directing that anger to the two confused teens. "You're supposed to be friends. Now, kiss and make up."
Mjoll looked down at my little girl. First, she looked mad, but then she cracked out into a smile. "What? Really?"
Veselle nodded. "He is only looking out for you. You shouldn't hurt him for that. You should be friends."
Mjoll looked from Veselle over to the boy still standing his ground by the gate. She held her glare for a second before her leg gave out under her. She cried out in slight pain as she fell to her knees, grabbing her side. I could see a slight blotch of red starting to form under her bandages. Shocked, the boy ran up to her, rushing to help her onto the floor. "See, Mjoll…you're just not ready to leave yet. You'd be too far away to crawl back by now…and I wouldn't know where you were."
"And then a wolf would get me…" She surmised as she lay there in the street. Some locals came around to watch her as she lay there. Mjoll looked around for a second before sighing. "Ok, fine. I'll rest a little longer."
"Well, you opened your stitches. Now you'll have to rest for even longer…" The boy started to say.
Mjoll held up her hand to silence him. "Don't push your luck, boy. And don't try any funny stuff on me, or I'll make you regret it."
I started to pull Veselle to follow me. "Come, Veselle. We should go see this Brynjolf."
"Brynjolf?" She looked up at me. "I thought we were looking for Karliah?"
"Karliah?" Mjoll asked as she looked up at me. She tried to push herself up off the ground, but she went back down with a painful groan.
I turned to face her. "You know Karliah?"
Mjoll nodded. "Yeah…but she isn't here in Riften. She's away, but I can get word to her if you need to speak to her."
"I do. Tell her that her father is here to negotiate with her." I said to the downed Mjoll.
Mjoll scoffed. "Oh…it's you." She looked at me and then to Veselle. "Should have figured. You seem like the Telvanni type." She started to chuckle, but it was quickly drowned out by groans of pain and coughing. "But…don't think I'm being disrespectful, just surprised. The things she told me about you, I figured you didn't give a crap about her."
"Times change." I said to her. I walked over to her, bending down to look her in the eye. "Would you like to walk by the end of the day?"
She nodded. "Yeah, that'd be great."
"Then I will bargain with you. I will heal your wounds…and you will listen to my story."
Mjoll laid there, her expression empty. "Yeah, ok. I'm cool with that."
I stuck out my hand towards her wound. I closed my eyes as I felt the pain in her side, the damage that didn't need to be. Illusion Masters and Alteration Masters believe that Restoration and Destruction are nothing but Alteration and Illusion put together. I would love to see an Alteration Master bring a dead flower back to life. I'd love to see an Alteration Master patch blood cells. Sure, an Alteration Master may be able to transform water into blood cells, and an Illusion Master may be able to numb the mind from experiencing pain and replace it with ecstasy and bliss. But what I did…I made pain and wounds disappear. Restoration is a great ally for the Telvanni Master, but so are Illusion and Alteration. I used all three to heal wounds. I feel it's best to make the host feel better while the body healed. Alteration helped the healing process while the Restoration fought the infection and rebuild body parts.
Mjoll continued to lay there while I healed her. "So, are you going to speak, or are you just going to sit there and heal me?"
"What I have to say is not for common ears to listen."
"Ah." She exclaimed, smiling. "I think I see where this might be going."
"I guarantee you do not." Another few minutes passed while I patched her wound. When it was finally finished, I reached down to take her hand. "Now, where can we talk privately?"
She looked over at the boy. "Aerin's house." She pulled me to follow her. Aerin, the boy, followed behind us. Veselle continued to hold my other hand as we traveled into Aerin's house.
When we were inside, Aerin closed the door behind us. He locked it behind him. He awkwardly cleared his throat and then presented himself to me. "Well…Mr…"
"I am Lord Neloth." I announced to him.
He nodded. "Lord Neloth…would you like some tea?"
"Do you have canis root tea?" I asked him.
He shrugged. "I…I think I do." He struggled to dismiss himself as he walked away from the door into the kitchen.
Mjoll watched him leave as she sat herself down in a chair. She shook her head, saying, "He's a fool, but a nice fool."
I looked from the disappearing boy over to Mjoll, who now had my full attention. "He seems like a charming lad. How long have you known him?"
"I didn't…not until I woke up ten minutes ago in his bed…wearing this bandage." She scoffed. "When I screamed, he ran in telling me his name and how he found me bleeding outside some gateway leading to some Dwemer ruin…" She shook her head. "how he dragged me all the way to here…with whatever he could find to keep my wound clean and sealed. When I tried to get up, he tried to push me down…afraid I'd hurt myself or something stupid…"
"And yet…you ended up in the street bleeding out until I healed you."
She smirked at me, glaring at me. "What do you want from me?"
"Just a story…and a helping hand."
"I do love to help people." She said blandly.
"You see…my daughter here, Veselle, as you may have noticed, has grown into her Magicka aura. She is able to summon fire Magicka now." I looked from Mjoll over to Veselle. Veselle just stood next to me, holding my hand. She looked up at me and then over to Mjoll.
"Nice story. Are we done here?" Mjoll asked as if she already knew the answer.
"The night my daughter awoke to her abilities, my home was attacked by a witch. A witch that wanted to harness my daughter's powers to use for her own gain. I was barely able to send the witch away without losing my daughter to her. The witch claimed that she would come back to get my daughter, and would not end her quest until she did so. My other daughter, Karliah, is good at not being found. She is very good at evading detection from Telvanni Lords…as I already am quite experienced in."
Mjoll nodded. "So…you're hoping your daughter can hide you and your daughter."
I shook my head. "I cannot remain with my daughter. My aura will only attract the witch back to me…and then to my daughter. No, I must be as distant as possible until I can find this witch and kill her. So…I wanted to ask Karliah to watch Veselle for me."
"What?" Veselle asked as she tugged on my arm. "Daddy? You're going to leave me?"
I sighed as I waved a hand over her head, forcing a Sleep spell over her. Veselle's eyes drooped and she slowly fell to the floor, her silent tears already silencing themselves before they started to fall. I didn't need to hear her cry in front of me. I didn't need to see her explode with Magicka either. I looked back up at Mjoll. "Every time she gets emotional, she causes an outburst. Now, I can do something to keep her contained, but it will require a regular dose of Magicka Silencing potions. Now…my Veselle loves honey, so using a some chicken's eggs and some Frost Miriam will help reduce her Magicka output."
Mjoll nodded. "Um…why are you tell me all this?"
I shrugged. "I thought it was obvious. I want you to watch her."
She burst out laughing. "Me? Watch her? And how exactly are you expecting that little bundle of fire to listen to me?"
"I'll wipe her memories away so that she believes she's your daughter, or sister."
Mjoll nodded. "I guess that's one way. But…I'm not that old, and I'm not a Dunmer. I'm a Nord."
"You are correct. I was hoping you'd watch her until Karliah would come back."
Mjoll shrugged. "I'd love to, but Karliah might never come back. Now, I can tell her what you told me, and she may try to return, but she's been run out of this town by the Thieves Guild leader, Mercer Frey."
I bent down to pick up Veselle. I carried her over to a couch to set her down. "There must be some way I can convince you to do this for me."
Aerin nodded as he walked into the room, carrying a teapot. "There is a Dunmer living here in Riften that is always talking about settling down and having a family. He's a good friend of mine…always wanted to be a father."
I looked over to Aerin. "Can you introduce me to him?"
He set the teapot down. "Sure, I can do that. He owns a little stall in the marketplace. Here, follow me." He led me out of the room, where Mjoll continued to sit on her little couch. He opened the door for me, ushering me out of the house. He closed the door behind him, nodding to me as he led me through the streets. "I can understand your reason for bringing her here, but…you do know that Riften is the hub of all sin in Skyrim, right?"
I nodded. "I noticed it when I came to the gates, but that is a good thing in this regard."
"Why?" He looked back at me.
"The amount of energy this place has will mask my daughter's energy signature from the witch pursuing her. She will be hidden." I said as I looked around. The city was literally sitting on top of a lake, which was impressive. It would also be useful to help deter some aspiring necromancers from attacking the town.
Aerin nodded like he understood as he led me to the busiest part of the town. People dressed as poor as dirt sat against the cobblestone as they raised their hands to anyone willing to drop a few coins in their general direction. As we walked past, I let a small pouch of 100 drakes fall from my pocket. The poor rushed over it like it was a miracle but they didn't look up at me.
Aerin came to a stop by a market stall where a notable Dunmer looked at me with curious eyes. He looked like a decent fellow, but he looked familiar. "Welcome to Riften, stranger. May I interest you in some traditional Dunmer goods?"
I paused as I looked at him. He looked just like a man I knew back in Morrowind. I just had to know. "Excuse me…do you know a man by the name Lynmdrenn Tenvanni?"
He paused. "That would be the name of my father." He said. "Why?"
I smiled. "You are a member of House Telvanni."
"I am indeed." He reported. He got a better look at me. "Are you?" He paused as he stood up. "A Telvanni Lord…" He stood there breathless.
I nodded. I knew exactly what to do with this. "I have a mission for you, Lord Tenvanni. Follow me."
He almost laughed but thought better of it. "Me? A Lord?"
"I proclaim, here and now…" I screamed loudly so that everyone could hear me. "that …" I gestured to the Dunmer.
"Um…Brand-Shei Tenvanni." He said proudly.
"That Brand-Shei Tenvanni is to become a Lord of House Telvanni." I nodded my head to him. "Congratulations are to be in order." There were a few rounds of applause from the other Dunmer nearby and some Nords joined in, even though I bet they didn't really understand what was really going on. I directed my gaze to him. "Now, Lord Tenvanni, I have a mission for you. Follow me."
I rushed back to Aerin's house while looking as noble as possible. I pushed the door open to see Mjoll throwing a backpack over her shoulders. She saw me looking at her and she scoffed. "I was hoping to leave before you came back." I walked into the room, letting Aerin and Brand-Shei come in behind me. Mjoll took a look at Brand-Shei, sighing. "Looks like you found someone after all." She looked at me. "Am I free to go?"
I shook my head. "I still have a request for you."
She nodded and threw the backpack off her shoulder. She slumped back down into her couch. "Well, you did heal me, so I guess I should at least listen to what you have to offer."
Brand-Shei looked over at me. "So…Lord? What do you require of me?"
I gestured to my daughter, who slept on the couch. "I need you to watch my daughter for me."
He looked confused. "That's my mission? Babysitting?"
"Guarding." I said to him.
"Guarding? From who?" He looked around the room.
I looked from him over to Mjoll. "This is why I want you to remain here. This witch that's looking for my daughter…there may be others like her looking for power. You have a strong noble aura of a true knight…one capable of protecting my Veselle from any necromages that would use her power for evil. You haven't seen her true strength, but if her power is ever harnessed, it could lead to the destruction of a town, of innocent lives…including hers."
Mjoll looked from me over to Veselle. She finally smiled and nodded. "I would consider it an honor." She stood up. "Do I have to interact with her?"
I shrugged. "If you feel it necessary. She will need a friend, a mentor."
Mjoll nodded. "I understand."
Brand-Shei looked from me over to Mjoll, then back to me. "What's this got to do with me?"
I looked over to him. I walked up to him, placing my hand on his shoulder. "You are a Telvanni Lord now. While you may not know much about your heritage, I will do what I can to help you learn about it. My daughter has awakened to her abilities as a Telvanni mage. She is so powerful that she has drawn an evil witch to my tower. That witch was powerful enough to make me work to fight her. And she wanted my daughter. She wanted to steal her from me, which is why I am here. My daughter needs to be hidden, protected. I have another daughter here in Skyrim; her name is Karliah. She should be back soon to take her, but until then my Veselle needs someone to watch over her. Which is why I need you."
He started to nod. "I think I understand where this is going."
"I am going to wipe her mind of ever knowing me, and replace her memories of living with you…as a Tenvanni of House Telvanni. I will be able to keep tabs on her through our weekly communications, while teaching you more about House Telvanni and perhaps teaching you in the ways of Magicka. I can prepare you to help her learn Magicka."
He stopped me right there. "Lord, perhaps it would be best to keep her training to a minimum…mine as well. If a witch is after her…wouldn't teaching her be dangerous? Like throwing hay on an already lit beacon, and then adding a second beacon next to it?" He gestured to himself.
I nodded. "You are correct. Are you ok with postponing your training until your mission is complete?"
He looked from me over to my little daughter. She tossed and turned on the couch, mumbling about Brelyna taking her favorite teddy bear in her sleep. Brand-Shei smiled and then looked back up at me. "I accept my mission, Lord…?"
"You may call me Neloth. We're both Lords of House Telvanni after all." I patted him on the shoulder before turning to look at my daughter. "Now… when she wakes up, she will believe that you are her father…always will have been."
He nodded. "Perhaps you should add those memories to me as well."
I shrugged. "Lie down next to her. I will make this as fast as possible. Let me tell you this now. When you wake, you will remember this moment, you will remember your mission. And you will know everything you need to know about my daughter…and how to keep her hidden. Everything from potions to charms. Understood?"
He nodded and lied on the couch next to Veselle. He closed his eyes. "I understand."
I stood there for a second while I tried to calm my own emotions. I very well might be losing my daughter forever. I would wipe my own memory of the events, but I had to remember for all of us. She would know one day…whenever it was safe to know. I took one final look at her as I placed my hand on her forehead; the other hand resting on Brand-Shei's. I started with her birth, keeping her mother's face since she'll never know her anyway. I changed my face and voice to match Brand-Shei's and changed the tower to Riften, just generic feelings and images to keep her able to see what her life was like before she wakes up. It took me a while to face her memories, and a while longer to manipulate them into something more tangible. The closer I got to the surface, the more intricate the memories had to become. I had to add more colors, more sounds, more vivid detail. Finally, after two hours of erasing my daughter's memories of me, I was done.
I stood up and looked over at Mjoll. "Tell Karliah my daughter is here and needs her to watch over her."
Mjoll nodded. "And until then, she will have me. And even afterwards. I will take good care of her."
"Me too." Aerin said, wrapping his arm around Mjoll. "We'll both watch out for her."
Mjoll slapped Aerin's hand off her shoulder. "Don't touch me."
I bowed to them. "You have done me a great honor by doing this. I will not forget it."
Brand-Shei started getting up, rubbing his eyes. "The honor is all mine, Lord Neloth."
"Lord Neloth?" Veselle said as she started waking up. She sat up from the couch to look over at me with curious eyes. She tilted her head to the side before looking over at Brand-Shei. "Daddy? Who's Lord Neloth?"
Brand-Shei looked down at her, smiling warmly to her. "He's my best friend, and a great person."
She looked over at me and smiled. "Nice to meet you, Lord Neloth."
I nodded but rushed for the doorway. "Nice to meet you too, young Veselle. We shall meet again…someday."
Cearbhail:
I promised myself I wouldn't cry!
