"We aren't safe moving our items!"
"I want my stuff back from those thieves!"
"We need the roads open to keep our city wealthy, though."
"Like that matters to any of you! You don't have to worry about getting robbed since you don't move your merchandise."
One after another, sentences were screamed back and forth with many voices trying to go over one another. It was a massive argument and the large room it was being held in only made the voices echo louder. The inside of the palace was incredibly detailed, a rare copper red stone leading from the door to the throne platform as well as branching off to other rooms. The border of the path had a thin intricate design and the rest of the area was a dark brown smooth stone. Guards were standing off the red stone, numbering at least ten just on the way to the Queen's platform. Speaking of, the arguing people were only doing it amongst themselves while the Queen didn't bother to speak, only observing the two sides scream points at each other. I wasn't even noticed by the crowd, but the Queen did glance at me before speaking up herself.
"I have heard your arguments and will take them into account, but I have another visitor. Please disperse and do not cause trouble." The citizens head shot around to all look around at me at once. It was sudden, and I froze walking forward. From the looks I was given, I had interrupted an important subject. The citizens did break up their argument, splitting up into smaller groups to talk amongst themselves while continuing to shoot glares at me. I couldn't bear socially awkward situations, but the concerned citizens were making the rest of the trip to the Queen's platform exactly that.
"Good day and welcome to Rihad. I cannot say you are familiar to me. Might I ask your name, ma'am?" As expected, the Queen was speaking in a friendly manner. Unfortunately, it wasn't helping to dissolve the uncomfortable feeling I was still feeling.
"T-Tenyin Mariner. I arrived not too long ago." I couldn't speak loudly or perfectly clearly, the aura in the room making it near impossible.
"Then Miss Mariner, welcome to Rihad once again and I do hope you enjoy your stay. I am Queen Blubamka at your service. What is your concern you wish to bring up to me or do you have a request from another city in our resilient province?" The way the Queen spoke was imposing but the way she dressed was entirely common for a ruler. She wore a beautiful silk dress that hugged her body with red and gold trimmings to show off the quality and value. On top of her head was a diadem with three jewels of excellent quality inlaid across the front. Unlike with the Altmer's white dress from before that accented her light-yellow skin, the silk dress of the Queen didn't do the same to the skin of the Redguard ruler.
"Actually, I…do not have that kind of problem. I come with a more…personal question that may lead to a request, if I may be granted the opportunity to ask such a thing of you." I was more than expecting her to deny my request, for me to be escorted out without getting any closer. I have seen multiple people and even entire parties ushered away from an audience with the Emperor if the subject concerned me. If they got violent with the guards that directed them, they lasted only seconds before being forcefully thrown from the throne room.
"That is quite the request. What might this question of yours be?"
"Um…do you know the location of Fang Lair?" The Queen narrowed her eyes, looking directly at me, unmoving.
"How does that place concern you?" It was a sudden change in Queen Blubamka's tone.
"I have a…personal quest I have to complete." I wasn't ready to reveal what I had to do, especially since Ria said no one but myself had to know and wouldn't understand. I wasn't sure if the Queen would be curious or leave the question alone. It was a few moments before the Queen continued, but she didn't stop looking at me the whole time.
"If you want to know about the Fang Lair, then you will get the location out of me only if you can complete something for me. Not long ago, a band of goblins ransacked our palace and grabbed whatever they could get their gnarled hands on. Despite our best efforts, a number of them escaped and took with them some of our treasure. Most consisted of currency or equipment but there was a more important item that was stolen. A simple looking parchment that had on it the location to the very place you are looking to find. The person who was to decipher it arrived a couple days ago and is waiting while I wait for it to arrive." It was a long explanation, but I understood what she was asking me to do. I had to retrieve the stolen items. Though I did have questions that needed answered as well.
"Why can you not find a place as large as Fang Lair by scouting areas around Hammerfell?" It was to be assumed that a place that Jagar Tharn deemed as safe was to be large and protected.
"It has been era's, Miss Mariner. We very much have tried along with help from other large cities, yet have come up with nothing. We feel like the old stronghold is protected or has a barrier of some sort. It is not to be unexpected with a place like that."
"Of course, there is an obstacle like that. Why not send a detachment to hunt down the thieves?" One thing I prided myself in as a Redguard was my military experience, but also my expertise in leading soldiers and giving advice in that area as well. I felt at home speaking of combat.
"Stonekeep, the place that the goblins retreated to and make base at, is not a place that a large number of soldiers could traverse and fight effectively. I could send a smaller amount, but they would need commanded as well and I cannot spare anyone who could fit that role currently. It is embarrassing, but I need help from outside the palace to get one item back: An older parchment. I only care about that parchment, everything else only being a menial loss in comparison. If you were to get that back for me, it could be translated. A courier will to come to you immediately with the information I get from it. I am not one to believe in fate, yet here you are asking about the very thing that plagues me. It cannot be a coincidence, I believe that now." I shared the Queen's belief about the Divines, certainly not thinking they had any effect on my life. Yet, it was true that this all did seem to happen exactly when it needed to. Whether the Gods had an effect on that or not, it could never be proven without a large amount of doubt.
"That isn't mentioning the problems you have internally as well that need to be dealt with. If you agree to give me the location of Fang Lair when I return with the item, then I will leave immediately." The Queen nodded and soon, I was stepping out of the palace with a new quest to complete. The next day would commence with true first step in destroying Jagar Tharn and rescuing the Emperor, assuming he was still alive.
The morning came quickly, and I had to take every minute I could to get to my destination as quickly as possible. I had made the decision to leave my steed in the care of its current caretaker. It would be much quicker if I had taken her, but until I got out, she would be vulnerable to getting stolen or even worse, killed. I didn't feel like I could get attached to a horse like when I was a soldier but after being alone with her for so long, it simply happened.
The total time of the trip to Stonekeep took less than ten days but much more than one or two. Queen Blubamka showed me directly on my map where Stonekeep was, though she said it would be hard to miss when I came close. The group of mercenaries before me have been sent weeks ago, but they didn't return with any news or items. It was assumed that every member died while searching. I couldn't help but chuckle at that detail. As a well-experienced soldier and a survivor of countless battles, I had the feeling these individuals were either unprepared or far too headstrong. The first thing one learns in true combat training is if one goes in with the expectation to win or succeed, they will have a massive disadvantage. One must always expect to have a challenge and put everything they have into their battles.
While thinking to myself, I came across Stonekeep. It was probably wrong to say I came upon it, seeing as its size would mean any number of people would come across it by accident. Just from the view I was getting at the side I was looking at, I could tell the area it covered was massive. It looked to be larger than even a palace, completely made of solid, layered stone blocks. Its size and color could only be compared to that of a stronghold for an army. It was impossible to think that this came under siege from the outside to start with, no doubt in my mind believing something inside had taken control. Either the goblins I was told to exterminate had done so or something hidden or worse…undead. I shivered at the thought of such things walking the world anywhere.
The entrance to the stronghold was as one would expect, a large and fortified iron gate that looked no less than impregnable. Even the crest that decorated it, entirely unknown to myself who it was meant for or represented, was still vibrant. I was not taking any chances, equipping my armor and weapon in preparation for what was lying inside. The rising sun reflected on my newly enhanced equipment. Even now, I could not thank the Craftsman enough for what he let me do despite it using his materials and time.
The brightness seemed to get sucked away when I took my first steps into the defiled stronghold. The banners still hung from the walls, but they were worn and slowly being decomposed by having no care done to them. It was near impossible to see too far in front of me as well as only some of the braziers and stands that held the candles were still burning. Battered statues also decorated the large halls this place held. I took time to inspect all the details I could see without being stabbed in the back, amazed at the history of a place even as common as this. I was always extremely curious in history from anywhere in Tamriel. My foot tapped a broken sign that almost proved this building was controlled by an impressive military force.
"Welcome to Stonekeep. Surrender all weapons to the guards, for we are the keepers of peace. One can't get any friendlier than that." I chuckled at the irony of what was said and what was actually meant. The brief moment of calmness was broken by the sound of door opening not too far away from me. I immediately crouched down slightly and my buckler was in front of me as much as it could cover. I wasn't about to let the enemy attack me first, taking large steps to close the distance between myself and the sound. I was disappointed when all that came at me was an overgrown rat. It didn't open the door, so it was easy to assume the door was already open enough to let the rat push it the rest of the way. One swing and the rat was dead. Unfortunately, the death of the rat seemed to attract a few more and they came at me all at once. One by one, the rats were killed while the ones attacking were deflected by the reinforced buckler. It took but seconds for the weak enemies to fall before me. It would be absurd to think any members of this mercenary group to be taken by simple creatures such as these.
The entry room that the rats were inhabiting made it clear the stronghold was traveled by many, both of the one that stayed or passed through. Despite the age and many struggles that happened both in the early and late past, this place showed it had quite a history. The red carpets over the stone floor was ripped or entirely gone in places showed the direction that no doubt led deeper, although I wasn't sure if I had to go there or if where I was heading was hidden somewhere. Doors both to my left and right could lead to the scroll and goblin I was searching for. I started my adventure by going left to the first door I had encountered.
The next room made me eat my words, as a dead body was partially consumed by the rats or other inhabitants of the ruins. From the looks of how much of the body was remaining, this was a member of the group that was tasked with retrieving the item from the goblins. They didn't look well-prepared after all and barely looked to be organized either. If one died so soon after just arriving at their destination, it would either mean this one broke from the group or was picked off. I would completely ignore the corpse at any other point, but something drew me towards it, a bright blue glow surrounding the item and illuminating the dark room by a bit. I wasn't sure if the group knew about enchanted item, especially seeing as their experience would prove otherwise, but I did know the difference between such items and regular equipment. It wasn't a big item, the item only being a belt that the mercenary had on him, but at the very least it would give me great funds to start with.
"Bless the Divines, I really am turning into one of them. I had better not keep this attitude after this whole thing ends, even if this is partially exciting." I removed the belt from the corpse and it disappeared, moving to whatever void held my items. Beside the body was also a sharp blade, a tanto. It wasn't special in quality or enhancement, but one could never go wrong with making a market on weaponry. I would at least feel good about selling items, seeing as I was not embarrassed with knowing how to make money from largely useless items.
I continued to follow the left wall, leaving from the other door of the square room, to come to an area that led to many other rooms. It only took a few steps into the area for the doors around me to squeak open, although it wasn't the hinges that were making such noises. A wave of rats flooded into the area, fighting to get in front of each other to get to their target: Myself. My buckler came up and my sword raised as the fight started, the numbers not in my favor but the skill advantage certainly was.
A couple minutes later and the enemies were cut down around me. It was a hard fight, the rats at least knowing to circle around me, but I was well-trained enough to know how to keep myself from being surrounded. Though it was much easier with targets that matched my size, it was possible for me to keep them from being able to enclose me. I did come out with injuries, many scratches and bites to my lower leg area. I had some protection for my lower body, but it didn't reach the entire distance, the rats seeing their only means of attack and taking advantage of it. I could see why a member of the group was dead before, although I doubt the rest of the group was around at that time. That meant that he probably died due to too many rats and being unprepared for such a large number, thinking exploring on his own would be better for him. It was a common thought for mercenaries to have, even if they were hired by royalty or for an important mission.
Before I could start exploring the rooms to see if anything else waited inside or if any other bodies could be found, an enemy found me instead. This time it wasn't a large number of weak enemies but one single, difficult enemy. I had made it close to the end of the series of rooms when a minotaur broke through the door at the other side! The hulking, discolored beast with the body of a large man but the head of a full-sized animal wielded a meat cleaver, starting with trying to ram me through with its horns. I was caught entirely off-guard and my instincts reacted before my mind, my legs pushing me out of the way of the impaling horns. The beast continued past my location, the force not letting it slow down easily. When it was at a stop, it stood at its full height that put even my tall race to shame. The beast was easily two heads above me and not even slightly amused.
'Why is there a minotaur in a place like this?! Damn thing is hard to kill even for me alone!' I haven't fought many of beasts of this level even within the presence of a trained company of soldiers, which even then did not go well at all. The beast struck again, this time using its cleaver in a strike straight down. It was easy to move from the basic attacks and the second strike was not well-aimed. The diagonal strike that followed the first brushed past my buckler on my right arm, yet the force was still enough to stagger me. The beast relied on hitting hard rather than hitting accurately, that I knew for sure. It continued to try to hit me one time after another relentlessly. I was not going to get a break and I would not outlast it with stamina. My only option was to injure the beast in a way that would give me the upper hand, the key being his attacking arm.
It was hard to get my chance and I had to skirt around the room, making sure I was either against a wall with both of my sides clear or in the middle area of the room. If I were to get stuck in a corner or in any of the rooms along the border, I would no doubt be killed for sure and Ria would not be able to heal me after what the minotaur would do to me. While the beast was rearing up for another straight strike down, I moved my sword so it crossed my buckler at the bottom. The beast mindlessly came down on me again and I naturally let the cleaver run against the worn metal. With all the strength I could muster in one swing, I pushed my blade upwards in an arc against the arm that collided with it. If the edge were dull like it was before, the blade would have done nothing more than give the beast a small cut. The craftsman made sure I was prepared when I left Belkarth Guard, the edge being sharpened extremely well. It sliced through the monster's arm, not only damaging it but taking the entire arm off and the detached part to make a nasty thump as it hit the ground behind me.
When the situation had registered with the monster, it roared loud enough to cause my ears to ring. It was enraged and even more dangerous than before, but I knew the damage I had caused was substantial. It countered with a hard hit to my buckler with its undamaged arm, pushing me feet away from where I was with pure strength. The last mistake it made was when it lowered its body to ram me again. The shock being washed from my body and replaced with adrenaline meant I was thinking in a battle sense much better now. When the beast sprinted towards me, my reaction was much better than before. I dodged so my blade was inches from the beast when it reached me at full speed and I thrusted it directly into the beast's head when it was easiest for me to get a clean strike. The sword stuck in easily, but it didn't stop it right away. It pulled me along a little until I was able to pull my weapon out again, stumbling to get a distance between myself and the monster. My strike seemed ineffective until the beast tried to stand, instead falling directly to the ground. Adrenaline kept me from calming, my body still ready to plan for another way of felling this enemy. Even when the corpse had no movement, still didn't completely consider the beast killed. It was not uncommon for injured animals and even some people to play dead, only to use that advantage later on to kill their opponent.
It was many minutes of staring at the corpse for me to be convinced it was dead for sure. A minotaur would not stay on the ground if it were still alive, but I wasn't ready to admit that things were safe even now. I stood completely still, slowing my breath as best I could do hear what was around me. It sounded like silence but that was the worst thing I could have was absolute silence. When the heavy tension dissipated, and I felt my body loosen again. The small sounds returned slowly, thankfully nothing coming from close to me again. The room I was in already had enough bodies, many rats as well as a minotaur now.
'Okay, that is enough for now…' I fell to one knee, the arm holding my buckler falling to the ground. I couldn't feel it before, but the constant attacks from the minotaur giving me serious pains in that arm. The adrenaline got replaced by a growing pain. I moved without thinking, instead trusting my body to know where it could go for safety. I ended up in one of the rooms, closing the door immediately behind me. I dropped my weakened body on a raised piece of concrete, putting my back to the corner of the room and facing the door. It made no difference since I had fallen into a light rest.
I expected an interruption during my rest, but I was thankfully undisturbed until I woke myself up naturally. I yawned, slowly stretching my arms and legs to get my joints moving. I fell asleep, but nothing was moving in the room or outside of it. With broadsword in hand and buckler in front of me, I pulled the door inwards to the room I recovered in, only to see that the bodies that were left from the battle before were still lifeless. The minotaur was definitely killed, and relief let me lower my equipment. The door the minotaur busted through only showed me that there was empty air farther into the stronghold that way. Hesitantly, I willed my equipment I was holding to whatever void held my items. I figured I was alone for now, enough to fully explore the area closer and see if I could get any other information on what had happened to either more of the mercenary band or the stronghold itself. This would be a magnificent history piece to add to any Mage's Guild Hall, assuming it wasn't already documented.
"Maybe next time, I should do my research before I jump into action. I still haven't broken my habits as a soldier." The silence was only broken by my remarks to myself as I carefully inspected around the rooms. In once, I had found leftover gold either from a previous visitor or before the stronghold became a monster filled deathtrap. In the same room, an expensive looking belt hung off of a raised concrete slab similar to the one in the other room. The last item of interest was something I could actually use, that being a dwarven helm carelessly thrown into a corner. It was still in good enough condition, not too effected by the years of wear. The glistening, gold colored helm was produced with care, having holes in the front for breathing and very little space for skin to show other than the eyes. The original owner made it clear it was not meant for me, rather someone with a bigger head than my own. It was not snug and moved very slightly when I turned quickly. It was good defense against most attacks, though, especially if another minotaur or something worse decided to try and take a swing at me. I would not be completely defenseless. It might have been from the mercenary band seeing as it didn't have a layer of dust on it and looked to be previously disturbed.
Another room held just a short sword carelessly discarded without the original owner anywhere around. It was the last room that held the most interesting object, a piece of paper. It had faded wording on it, but it was still at least clear enough to read to a point.
"'The King and palace are lost. We, the last survivors of the court of Stonekeep, are heading south through the goblins' caves.' So, the King of this stronghold was killed and everybody who survived the slaughter was going into a network of caves, either made by or previously infested by goblins. That would explain why everything is strewn about with no care. They had no time to get what was special or even necessary most likely." I held a thought for a moment and the note vanished from my hands. In case the Mage's didn't have information on what had happened to this place, it would be good to bring something back. If they did, then it would just be burned and forgotten about.
The final room was the one that the minotaur had broken through, but it didn't house anything special besides a waterway in one of the corners. It was uncovered, and the water was completely still. The most that could come from that would be rats or some other disease carrying vermin. It would definitely not be worth my time to explore through nasty water, no matter the circumstances.
My only option was to come back the way I had originally come. I didn't have much time into the peace that I was thankful for when a horde of goblins attacked me. When the pests were dealt with relative ease, it was clear that the named goblin tunnels were still swarming with the troublesome vermin. Separately they were not dangerous to even a lightly seasoned warrior but a group of them could cut down a matched number of new recruits. They shared one thing with the minotaur and it wasn't the size: their aggressive nature. No matter how much they are damaged, the little things will fight until they are unmoving corpses.
While exploring more of the stronghold and eliminating the weak opponents that stood in my way, I had ended up finding more discarded gold and a mark, a basic looking one. The iron band had a rune inlaid in the metal, something I couldn't begin to understand. I wasn't a user of the arcane arts and this was something I had no experience in using, not even peaking my interest to use it now. I sent it to the void and continued not far from the entrance into a large room that, even in the low amount of light that was present, looked to be decorated better than the rest of the rooms I had come by. This was most likely the way to the throne room of this place, or whatever was presented as the most important chamber.
"I can't say I would have chosen the decoration so far." The most distinct section of the room was no doubt the large water pool that was placed directly in the middle. It was the first thing that was seen, and my statement held more merit in my opinion as well. Whoever originally ran this stronghold before losing it would have not enjoyed my company with how this place was set up.
Following the progressively more tattered carpet showed that there wasn't much fighting happening in this area. The damage to the floor was most likely much nicer when the building was cared for, but vermin and beasts have worn down the quality over the years.
My heart sank a bit when I noticed there was an odd area in the middle of the water, but not because it was a hassle to get to. I was able to swim but the last thing I wanted was to have to go through the stronghold soaking wet. Without a change of clothing, I wasn't about to run around either naked or without a layer underneath my armor. If I needed to get to the area, I would be putting whatever I could into a single leap. It certainly didn't look inviting, either. Posts with arcing energy were in each corner, topped with statues of fierce warriors. A large fountain also took up a large amount of platform, oddly still having a completely functioning water spout, but also an imposing dragon poised for battle.
The rest of the room was decorated with copper fountains, faces letting out streams of water. It was surprising they were still running, yet the streams were nothing more than drains for drips. One thing that stood out for sure and still in good enough condition that looked to be worth something, not that anybody normal could move it at all. Solid, bronze eagle sculptures stood in defiance of all their decaying surroundings. The condition of the metal goliaths was better than the entire stronghold itself so far.
More fighting and rooms greeted me as I finished exploring the remainder of the room, this apparent Goblin King throwing some of his 'warriors' at me but I wasn't about to let them get any hits on me like before. They couldn't get any hits on me and I wasn't even short on breath, tactics not being evident by the green beasts. My instincts told me that the room had to be housing something, especially because of the fact no bodies of mercenaries were found. They must have passed by without noticing anything, but my much more developed senses were too stuck on the fact I was missing something.
My thoughts were proved correct when my eyes landed on a glinting piece of metal laying on its own on the middle platform. I sighed in defeat at the prospect of having to successfully leap to the cramped area, especially with no idea on if anything on it was dangerous. I was stuck with only one choice, though. Whether the key opened something important or not, I couldn't let a mercenary have it. It deserved to be, at the very least, in the hands of someone who could guard it.