"How far is it to Raven Rock?" she asked as they exited the cave. It was late morning and even the shrouded sun caused her to shield her eyes.
"It's a couple hours' walk, not too far. Those reavers had been harassing this area for a while so we accepted the request to eliminate them, seeing as it was on our way," Teldryn replied. He was always glad to rid the land of a few of those degenerates.
"I'm sorry," the woman said. "I forgot that you weren't going this way. Your friends went on?"
"Roggir is my employer, and Erik is certainly not my friend." The young upstart of a nord really got under his skin with his incessant questions and inane comments. "And I'm claiming the bounty for the reavers while I'm there. It's not just for you." He felt a pang of guilt for sounding so brusque. He was more annoyed with himself than her. What in Oblivion had made him risk his employment with the Dragonborn like this?
She seemed to pick up on his mood and walked silently beside him, nibbling on the contents of her satchel. She had some bread, cheese, and dried meat that looked like horker. She looked as if she'd not been fed well and he did not need much imagination to figure out what they'd been doing with the poor woman. With her distracted by her meal, he took the opportunity to observe her in the light. She had the skin of an imperial and was quite tall, perhaps only half a head shorter than him. If she had any Nord in her it did not translate to her reed-thin build, though it was likely the starvation had contributed to that. He wondered how long she'd been in that cave. He hadn't heard about a missing woman, but then again he had never heard of this 'Chicago' she had mentioned.
As they cleared a rocky outcrop and made their way down the beach the woman gasped, stopping suddenly. "What is that?"
"What is what?" he said, his hand on his sword as his eyes darted around them.
"That smoking mountain!"
Now his interest was really piqued. He turned to her. "Where are you from that you do not know of Red Mountain?"
She swallowed the last bits of food in her mouth and looked up at him. "This is Sol- Soltheim?".
"Solstheim," he corrected.
"And where is Solstheim?"
"It's north of Morrowind- and Skyrim." As he answered he tried to imagine where she could be from to not have an idea where she was.
"No, I mean...what is this world called?"
He stared at her in disbelief. "Nirn."
There was no recognition in her eyes as she looked away, her voice quivering, "Where I'm from the world is called Earth." A tear rolling down her cheek as they both came to the same realization. She was hopelessly lost.
Nirn? Where is Nirn? Where is Earth? Her appetite was gone, her head swimming as her mind attempted to wrap itself around the information she'd just learned. How would she ever get back to her family- to Samuel? Was there anything to go back to?
"We need to keep moving," she heard Teldryn say. She looked to him and felt fear rising in her chest. She had trusted him so easily, just as she had trusted the bandits. How did she know he was not going to lead her to an even larger camp of rapists and thieves? She took an unsteady step back, her terrified gaze not leaving his bony helmet. She could not escape him, and if she did she could not survive. She was going to die out here. Her breathing was erratic and Teldryn was speaking but she comprehended none of it as she trembled in full panic.
He raised his hand and a soft green light suffused from it, surrounding her body. Her blood pressure lowered and she could hear the tail end of his sentence, "...have time for this, you need not fear me. I'm going to Raven Rock either way now, come or do not." The light flickered out and he turned and began walking away.
It could not be denied now. There was some sort of magic in this world. She stared at his back as he left. He'd just calmed her with a wave of his hand. As he gained distance from her she quickly reasoned that if his intentions were evil, he could have simply knocked her out and carried her. She weighed her options and concluded that the risk of following him was better than certain death out here. She trotted after him.
He heard her footfalls as she caught up to him. He had lost his patience when it looked as if she would run. He had not wanted to leave her for dead in the cave, but he was certainly not going to chase her around to convince her to follow him. His frustration grew along with the curiosity he knew he would not have the time to satisfy. If what she said was true, she was from a whole other realm. She could have also gone mad in captivity, but he felt that was not likely. He was relieved when she rejoined his side and decided that perhaps when he returned he could ask her about Earth and Chicago.
They again walked in silence, though he noticed she kept a little more distance between them. She had been taking sips from her wine bottle when she finally spoke, "Ugh, this stuff is not helping. I wish I would have looked for some water. Do you have any?"
He slowed his pace and reached for his waterskin. Even as he handed it over he thought about how he hated letting others touch their mouths to it, but again his body had moved seemingly without his direction.
She let out a gasp of excitement as she lifted it from his hand. She uncapped it and, much to his appreciation, raised the waterskin above her lips to pour into her mouth. After she'd had her fill, she handed it back to him with a sublime look on her face. "Thank you," she said as she raised her eyes to his. "They never gave me clean water."
He nodded and decided he'd take a drink as well. He pulled his cowl down and took a swig, then recapped the waterskin and fastened it to his belt.
"Come, not much further and you can rest," he said as he brought the cloth back up over his mouth.
Vanya was startled at the sight of his skin. His armor and scarf completely covered him so she'd had no idea what he looked like. His skin was like ash! She walked apprehensively beside him as they continued, wondering what he was. That skin color was definitely not human. The pointed eared man in the cave was a dark golden shade, and the orc was a mossy green. Teldryn did not have teeth like the orc, but the skin color caused her a fair bit of alarm. She kept silent, not wanting to upset him by asking about it.
Finally, the town came into view and she was further alarmed by the sight of the residents. Most of them had the same ashy skin, some with a tinge of blue, and now she could see their long pointed ears. Even more terrifying were their large, blood red eyes and stern brows. She was gaping openly and earning some disapproving looks from passers-by. Despite her earlier unease, she now walked closer to Teldryn.
The residents aside, Vanya was fascinated by her surroundings as she trailed him. The buildings were low and dome-like and the doors recessed into archways, likely designed to prevent ash from building up on top or going inside. It occurred to her that the structures reminded her of large beetles though, to her relief, they seemed to made of a type of man-made material and not the actual carcasses of giant bugs. They were crossing an open marketplace with a large well in the center when someone called to them.
"Oy, Teldryn! Back so soon?" A gruff looking man walked toward them from a blacksmith's forge. Vanya was slightly relieved that he looked to be human.
"Only returning for an errand, Glover. "
"Ah, is that willowy maid part of this errand?" Glover asked as he approached. "She looks scared as a baby netch. What's your name, lass?"
"Vanya."
The man nodded and looked as if he'd ask another question when Teldryn cut in. "You'll have to make small talk later, I have business to attend to if you don't mind."
He stepped back and waved them off. "Aye, I'll let you be then. Give my regards to the Dragonborn. " He gave Vanya a friendly nod before returning to his work.
"Come, this way," Teldryn directed and they continued. A very large building came into view that looked like the rest only it was above ground and built into the cliff-side with a huge platform and stairway leading to it. Perhaps this is a government building. Then she noticed the wall. It was a hundred feet tall at least with parapets and guards walking along the top. It was like something from a storybook. She was gazing so intently at the massive spectacle that she nearly walked into Teldryn, only he held out his hand to catch her shoulder.
"The wall is called the Bulwark. It keeps the ash out." he said matter-of-factly. Vanya blinked at him then noticed they were standing in front of a rather normal looking two-story building constructed of rough-hewn gray stone. "I must speak with the Second Councilor about the bounty before I take you to the inn."
She nodded and followed him inside.
Vanya waited on a bench as Teldryn spoke with another ash-colored man, noticing that he seemed taller than most others of his kind. She observed a tapestry on the wall of the building. It was red with what she could only describe as a scarab designed on it. First the armor and buildings and now this? What's with these people and bugs?
She jumped when Teldryn's shadow fell over her. She stood to face him giving a weak smile, taking a deep breath through her nose to try and steady her heart rate. Then she noticed the small bag in his outstretched hand.
"What's this?" she asked.
"There are one-hundred septims here," he replied in a low voice. "It's ten a night at the inn, and you can get some food and clothing."
She wouldn't normally accept charity and she liked the idea of borrowing money from a stranger even less but she knew her situation was desperate. She took the bag gingerly, tucking it into her satchel. "Thank you, Teldryn."
"Don't thank me just yet," was his reply as he motioned toward the door. "This will last but a few days, you'll need to find work to keep out of the street."
As they left the building Teldryn continued, "Keep your coin close, this town is small but the occasional drifter comes through and you don't want to lose it to a pickpocket."
They walked back toward the marketplace and approached the first of the domed buildings.
"Here you are, just through these doors. Tell Geldis I sent you."
She nodded, eyes wide as she anticipated being left alone.
"You'll be safe here, just stay in town. I need to be off." He stepped back from her. "Farewell."
"Bye," was all she managed as he turned and walked away. She watched him leave for a moment before turning to open the door.
Teldryn glanced back and saw her form disappear through the doors of the Retching Netch. Her name was Vanya, he'd not even thought to ask it himself. As he walked back the way he'd come, he hoped she'd be alright.
