Winds of the Ashfall: An Elder Scrolls Tale
Greg J Miller
~O~
Chapter 3
Fredas the 26th of Last Seed 4E71 Late Evening
Doing his best to ignore the persistent sounds from the noisy tavern below, Alaron Suvaris returned to pondering the events of the past few weeks since he'd departed Cheydinhal.
After having safely escorted the Faryon family to Kragenmoor, his intent returned to his previous plan and soon enough Suvaris was resuming his roundabout eastward journey toward his intended destination.
Travelling the road from Kragenmoor to Andrenthis for the second time passed just as easily as before. To his thinking, that path was already beginning to become a little more familiar than he'd expected. Even so, upon that second attempt he managed to get only a little further before he'd been presented with yet another unanticipated delay.
With the River Thir finally in view, Suvaris came upon another troubling set of circumstances ahead. Upon the rough road, laid two bloodied bodies in rather poor quality leather armour. Weapons were on the ground nearby. One of the bodies had been partly disembowelled and the stench on the wind seemed notably distasteful. The reason for the carnage was not immediately obvious.
His attention had been swiftly drawn toward strange animal noises coming from a copse of giant mushrooms just off the northern side of the road. It wasn't a tall fungal forest like in some places. Though broad across the caps, the largest of the mushrooms were barely taller than a head's height.
The animal noise had firstly confused him. He'd not heard the like in years. He spotted a two-legged reptilian creature of brown and grey colouring. It was facing away from him. With that short and stubby tail, it was obviously not a guar. It took him a moment to properly realise that it was not just a large alit, which was his first assumption. As it turned a little, he spotted the mottled bony crest upon its huge head and the large tusks protruding from its toothy jaws. Kagouti were even more dangerous than alit.
His first instinct had been to evade the creature, if at all possible. However, he soon observed the reason for the beast's rowdy behaviour. A pair of seemingly unarmed and helpless Dunmer were precariously perched upon the top of one of the large mushrooms. That was how he came to meet that Atheron lad and his pregnant wife.
Quickly dismounting his horse, Suvaris drew his blades in preparation of dealing with the kagouti. The creature had spotted him right away. Before he had the opportunity to properly plan his engagement, the beast had fully turned about and charged. Suvaris managed to dodge aside and land a slicing blow upon the creature's rugged hide. To his mild surprise, the kagouti did not persist with the confrontation. It just kept running and soon disappeared over the hill on the other side of the road.
Unfortunately, his dark mare had not been so quick to get out of the way. Though evidently only a glancing strike, it appeared that a tusk had left a nasty gouge along his mount's hind leg. It hadn't seemed enough to cripple the horse, but swift treatment would be required.
As Suvaris examined his agitated horse and applied some basic healing magic, those other two scrambled down from atop the mushroom, then retrieved their abandoned packs from the bushes before approaching him.
The Atheron lad appeared enthusiastically grateful. His pregnant wife remained somewhat more apprehensive. In order to alleviate any possible concerns, Suvaris immediately identified himself as Cheydinhal Fighters Guild. They appeared only slightly confused over that declaration, but mostly at ease.
After introducing themselves, the youthful husband went on to quickly relate the broad strokes of what had occurred. They'd been accosted along the road by those two ruffians, when that kagouti emerged. What followed appeared obvious enough. The bandits had evidently fared poorly against the beast. The other two running for safety had provoked the creature to give chase, instead of remaining with the fresh kills upon the road. Of course, the young couple got no further than where they'd been perched when Suvaris arrived.
Beyond introductions, nothing else was discussed at first. Once he was satisfied that the kagouti wasn't immediately returning, with the assistance of the Atheron lad, Suvaris shifted the bloodied bodies of the raiders a short distance off the side of the road.
Given that they'd been no more than roadside bandits preying upon the innocent, they hardly deserved any further consideration. Nature would take its course, either with the assistance of that kagouti or some other predator or scavenger.
Suvaris hadn't been at all surprised when Atheron and his wife tried to persuade him to accept payment to escort them on their journey. He remained a little reluctant at first, but found it difficult to ignore the plea. Much like the previous occasion, he'd firstly only agreed to escort them to the safety of the nearest town, Andrenthis.
Given her mild injury, he elected not to ride his mare along the road back to town. His efforts at healing had closed the wound, but the horse wasn't as young as she used to be and it seemed that the gash had extended a short way into muscle. Even with healing spells, he'd expected that it might take at least a day or more for the horse to fully recover.
That evening at the town, Suvaris wasn't so surprised when the Atherons tried to convince him to accept payment to escort them further on their journey. The lad didn't seem to have a lot of gold, but he was willing to pay whatever it would cost to secure his protection. His wife seemed slightly more reluctant to part with their modest savings, but was equally concerned over the journey ahead after the experiences of that day.
Though it seemed contrary to his purpose, Suvaris was more easily swayed than he might have expected. In part, he was feeling a little guilty over the relatively easier life he'd lived in the Imperial province over several decades. There were no travelling merchants at the town at that time and it seemed that the Atherons might not be inclined to wait around for any. Added to all that, he could not abide the thought of a pregnant Dunmer coming to harm because he refused to offer aid. Accordingly, he agreed to accompany them to the city of Kragenmoor, just as he'd done with the Faryon family.
Along the way to Kragenmoor, Suvaris learned more from the Atherons. They told him that they originally hailed from Davon's Watch. He was reminded that some locals still referred to that area by that ancient name. They came from the coastal farmlands about the small town of Darnim Watch, near where the larger township of Davon's Watch once stood, to the eastern side of Ash Mountain.
Given that the Atheron lad was so talkative, he'd heard quite a bit from him. The recent troubles affecting the seas about Old Ebonheart had brought notable secondary affects to all the coastal region of Stonefalls. There were no ships currently arriving at the old docks north of Darnim Watch. At that time, the only trade was coming overland and not in any great quantity.
Until fairly recently, the Atheron lad had been alternating between dock work and farming work. Of course, there was no activity at the docks at all and the opportunity of working the farms had been just as lean of late. They'd managed to stash away some modest savings ahead of time. However, it was not going to be nearly enough for what lay ahead.
With a child on the way, they'd firstly chosen to leave Darmin Watch behind and try their luck to the south at Mournhold. However, they'd soon learned that it hardly seemed a safer place for their purposes. Added to that, it seemed that there were no better work opportunities than what they'd just left behind.
From travelling merchants and others, they'd heard far more favourable mention of the state of affairs around Morrowind's newer capital. The dominant protection of House Redoran was said to have made it perhaps one of the safest cities of the land. It was certainly one of the furthest centres from the border with Argonia, not that there had been great concern on that matter over past decades.
Two other factors sounded directly favourable by Atheron's estimate. He'd heard that the farmlands located west of Blacklight did quite well most years. He also understood that the docks of that city were said to be the busiest of any port in Morrowind.
With all of that in mind, they'd set off for Blacklight before it became too difficult to make the journey. Trying to conserve their funds, they'd chosen to travel alone. The truly unwise aspect of that decision had become clear after crossing the Thir. They'd been quite lucky beforehand, but the events of that particular day near the River Thir had dramatically shifted their perspective.
All the way to Kragenmoor, the Atheron lad hardly stopped talking. His knowledge of matters regarding a broader spread of Morrowind seemed rather limited, but that didn't discourage him at all from speaking of what little he did know. The only small victory came with finally convincing Atheron to stop addressing him as 'Sera' or 'Muthsera' and instead use his name.
Suvaris would occasionally still hear such honorifics from other Dunmer in Cyrodiil, but it had become less common over the decades. Even though some number of his people had come to the Imperial province relatively recently, an increasing number had passed most of their lives there, if not their whole lives since birth. Many of the younger generation were less interested in maintaining the Dunmeri traditions of their parents.
Atheron had also asked Suvaris to tell them of the Dunmer living in Cyrodiil. He appeared particularly interested in hearing about Cheydinhal. He'd also inquired of the Dunmeri capital in the north. Of course, Suvaris knew little more of Blacklight than either Atheron of his wife. He'd not been there since long before leaving Morrowind.
After a while, Suvaris was really beginning grow weary of hearing the clipped rural accent. He'd not previously realised just how much his own accent had faded from several decades of living among the Imperials of Cyrodiil. He'd almost been hoping for some sort of trouble along the road, if only to necessitate a break from the constant chatter. However, aside from hearing distant animal noises upon a number of occasions, the journey to Kragenmoor passed without danger.
By the time that they'd finally reached the city that evening, Atheron had fully worn him down and Suvaris reluctantly agreed to accompany them all the way up to Blacklight. He understood that it would likely take three days each way to and from that location. At the same time, he knew that there little was urgency in his pursuit of a rumour. Added to that, he was actually somewhat curious to see what had become of the city of Blacklight after all that time. Nonetheless, he fully intended to make it to Mournhold in a more direct fashion afterward.
Departing from Kragenmoor before the dawn, they headed off northbound along the road. Given that his horse still appeared somewhat lethargic when he collected her from the stabling facilities, Suvaris thought it better to continue leading her by the reigns, rather than riding upon her back.
They'd walked perhaps five or six leagues northward when the black mare faltered and stumbled to the side of the road. She panted heavily for a few moments, then collapsed. A moment later, the horse was dead.
Suvaris knew well enough that she was old, but still strong and healthy. He would have thought the mare likely had another good three or four years to run. He concluded that the kagouti they'd encountered a few days before must have been diseased and that the infection must have been too much for basic healing spells. If he'd had any idea of it, other types of curative spells or potions might have made more difference, but it was too late for such consideration.
Suvaris understood that leaving the carcass like that was likely to attract predators or scavengers to the roadside, but there was nothing to be done about it. It was just too heavy to shift and they didn't have the time to waste.
The Atherons expressed their sincere sympathies over the loss of his horse, feeling partly responsible. Suvaris had waved it off. As he'd told them, he'd owned many horses over the past decades. Several had not lasted nearly as long as that mare and her time ahead was already growing short. He lamented that he might have preferred that she had passed peacefully at the stables back in Cheydinhal, but it was not to be.
If nothing else, after the loss of his horse the Atherons had become far less talkative along the remainder of that leg of the journey. Though it was an uncomfortable silence, it made for more peaceful travel.
At one point they were briefly startled by a wild guar grazing near the roadside, but nothing else threatened to impede the travel of that day. Even so, it was still well past sunset by the time they'd made to the small town of Bodrum.
The next day, they passed by a couple of small settlements before finally making it to Silgrad Tower just after dusk. After passing the evening there, they set off again the next morning. They passed through the small town of Soluthis around the middle of the day, making it to the lumber mill of Cormaris View about two hours before dusk. From there, it was just a relatively short march to the southern outskirts of Blacklight.
During that last day on the road, Suvaris had been observing the skies to the north growing progressively darker. He'd thought that it had something to do with clouds of soot drifting westward from Vvardenfell. However, he soon learned that it was something else. An unseasonable series of storm fronts had just begun to sweep in from the Sea of Ghosts. It later became apparent that though the storms came from the north, they swept along the coastline from east to west, headed for northern Skyrim.
They'd only just made it to the first tavern by the southern approach to the city as the squally rain began that evening. With the rainfall only growing heavier and no sign of it letting up, that tavern became the best place to stay for the night.
Having made it to Blacklight, Atheron insisted upon providing Suvaris with promised payment. However given their greater needs, he steadfastly accepted no more than half of what the lad was offering, which he imagined was likely most of what they had left.
Though Suvaris understood the perceived value of accepting payment for services rendered, he really had no great personal need for the gold. He held far more Septims in reserve back in Cheydinhal than he could ever reasonably spend. Even the unanticipated loss of a horse represented no notable impact upon future expenditure.
After being advised that the bad weather was likely to persist for at least a couple of days, on the next morning Suvaris sought out a better place to stay in the city. During a period of slight easing, braving the windblown sprinkling, he headed for the main part of town. Atheron had come along, eager to look into signing up for work at the docks.
Given the currently inclement weather, there seemed very few people out on the streets of the city, save those who really needed to be on them. Suvaris didn't get to see much of the place, but it seemed relatively familiar, from what he recalled of the one time he'd been there before. He'd heard that Blacklight had fared far better than many other places during the calamities of earlier decades. At first glance, that did seem to be the case.
Only because it was quite near to where he was headed, Suvaris accompanied the Atheron lad to the warehouse by the docks. After declaring himself as Fighters Guild from Cheydinhal, he offered character reference for the younger Dunmer. The older and notably gruff Dunmer running the warehouse didn't seem particularly impressed with Suvaris, but told the lad to return in a few days, when he expected work to resume.
After Suvaris had found vacancy at the nearby Baan Malur Oad Inn, they parted company. Atheron was still thanking him, wishing that he could have provided more coin for all the assistance in assuring their safety. Suvaris graciously accepted the sentiment, wishing the best for the lad and his wife.
Since that time, what he'd expected to be only a day or two had turned into six as the storms continued to lash the northern coastline. With very little to do to productively pass the time, in his mind, it truly seemed much longer.
Noting that he'd grown weary, Suvaris snapped out of his wool gathering. With a sigh, he stood up from the chair and shifted his boots out of the way. A second sigh shifted midstream and became an insistent yawn as he began to remove the remainder of his armour. He started to lay it out atop the lockup chest, where his helmet, gauntlets and cache of coin had been previously stored.
After he'd finished stripping down to his underclothes and neatly laying out his ebony armour, he stifled another mild yawn and then set to putting out the candles and lamps about that modest rented room.
Though it remained audible, the noise from the tavern down below had eased somewhat as the hour grew late. He did his best to tune it out as he clambered into the barely acceptable bed.
Shifting uncomfortably beneath the covers, Suvaris gave passing thought to his intentions for the next day. From the look of the skies that afternoon, he remained somewhat hopeful that those storms of the past few days might have finally passed by that next morning.
He was certainly feeling that it was well past time to continue onward. Provided that the weather finally eased, he intended to set out again for Mournhold at first opportunity. If the investigation of that rumour proved fruitless, he would most likely resolve to accept the futility of the task that firstly brought him back to the homeland and return to Cheydinhal. Still at that point, he accepted that none of his intentions were truly set in stone. That notion served as his last cogent thought before drifting off to sleep.
~O~