"Dammit!" June yelled as she was thrown against the wall. She was fighting a Dwarven Sphere, an enchanted Dwarven Sphere that had lightening bolts. Neloth was sitting on some stairs across the room examining the map of the ruin. June quickly drew her blade blocking the Sphere's next attack. "Are you almost finished over there?" Neloth asked getting rather impatient. "You could help me you know!" June yelled at him. "Help?" Neloth laughed. "What could I possibly do? Besides electrocuting it with one bolt of lighting." Neloth continued to study the map.
June quickly glared at him as she tried pushing the Sphere's blade away from her. "Yea, you could do that ass hole!" June yelled at him again. "Name calling? How childish." Neloth rolled the map up and stood up stretching his back. "Are you sure you want me to electrocute it?" He cocked an eyebrow at her. "Yes! Do it!" She yelled as the blade of the Sphere got closer to her. "Alright." Neloth shrugged. He summoned lightening in the palm of his hand and quickly cast it out at the Sphere. The lightening worked, it electrocuted it but it also got June too.
The room was filled with water and the moment the lightening touched the Sphere it sent shock waves through out the room and shocked June badly. June's body stiffened and began to shook, she could feel the hairs on her arms and the back of her neck stand up. She tried to moved to get out of the water but the electricity kept her in place. Any normal person would of been killed by it but luckily June was not a normal person. She was able to handle it. Barely.
Once it finally stopped she went limp and fell into the water unconscious. "Well..I did try to warn her." Neloth sighed as he placed his bag on the steps to keep it dry. He carefully walked into the water and grabbed June pulling her out before she drowned. He pulled her up the steps and laid her on her back. He healed whatever wounds she had and put a blanket on her. He than sat back down and pulled the map back out studying it once again.
A couple hours went by and June was finally starting to wake up. She slowly opened her eyes and groaned in pain as she tried to move. Her head felt heavy and her body ached. She blinked the blurry vision away and looked around. She didn't see Neloth anywhere. She sat up and looked around some more. She didn't realize it at first but once she did she almost freaked out. The water that once flooded room was now gone. She quickly got to her feet and looked around the room some more. "Neloth!" She called. No answer. "Great.." She mumbled to herself as she quickly grabbed her bow and arrows and walked down the stairs.
A door that was locked before was now open, it seemed obvious that Neloth had gone through it so June went in that direction. As she walked down the long hallway she saw that there were dead Dwarven machines laying around. It looked like Neloth could handle himself after all. Which only annoyed June because for a long time since they got here he's been making her do all the fighting. 'Ass hole..' She sneered at the thought of his smug face. "Neloth!" She yelled again but with more aggression in her voice. Now she was just annoyed that she couldn't find him.
"Neloth!" She yelled louder. "Over here!" She finally heard him reply. June sighed and quickly followed the direction where his voice came from. She found him a small room that had work tables against the walls and decorated vases in the corners. "I see you're finally awake." Neloth spoke without looking at her. "How long was I out?" She asked. "About two hours." Neloth answered. "Two-! How come you didn't wake me up!" June raised her voice. "Because you were unconscious it was unclear if you would ever wake up. You took a nasty shock." Neloth still didn't look at her. "Yea, thanks for that by the way." She spoke sarcastically. "Mm-hm." Neloth replied.
June scoffed at him and walked up beside him. "What are you doing?" June looked over his shoulder. "Examining the cubes, I have found the last one." Neloth answered still not looking at her. He was too focused on the work in front of him. "You what!? We still had two more to find!" June quickly looked at the table and saw that he wasn't lying. They were all there, right in front of him. "It wasn't that hard. I honestly don't know why you made such a fuss out of it." Neloth sighed as he stood up straight and finally looked at June.
June was glaring at him, he raised an eyebrow in question at it. "Is there a problem?" He asked. "We've been here for three days and you found the last two so easily! It makes me wonder if you could of just done it on your own and only wanted me here to keep the machines distracted." June quickly turned away from him and walked a few steps away. "Yes, you did help with that." Neloth nodded. June scoffed at him and started walking away. "Where are you going?" He asked turning around. "Back to the main room, if we have all of the cubes now we can get the book." June spoke with a heated voice. It was taking all of her strength not to land an arrow between his eyes.
"I suppose you're right." He said with a sigh as he collected all the cubes. "The sooner I can get away from this crazy bastard the better..." She mumbled to herself as she walked a head not even bothering to wait for him. He could clearly handle himself so he didn't need her to stick around him. It took awhile but they eventually made it back to the main room.
Neloth carefully placed the cubes in their slots, when the last one latched in they both suddenly heard a clicking noise. "I believe it would be best if we stepped back." Neloth advised. June nodded and they both distanced themselves from the book. The floor around the glass case that contained the book began to open. They than heard a loud squealing sound as the glass case slowly rose from the floor. The case slowly opened and lowered itself away from the book leaving it open. "At last!" Neloth quickly rushed to the book. He stood in front of it and looked at it in complete awe.
June slowly walked over examining it closely. She had to make sure that it was no trap. Neloth slowly picked up the book. "I can the power pouring from it.." He whispered in a creepy sinister voice. 'Power is the exact opposite of what this guy should have...' June thought to herself as she watched him. "Here, I believe you wished to use this." Neloth handed her the book. June slowly took it, the moment she touched it she felt sick and had shivers going down her spine. "I'm surprised you're not the one wanting to open it." June looked up at Neloth.
"I'd rather observe than plunge into unknown danger." Neloth took a few steps away from her. June sighed and slowly looked at the book again. 'Here goes nothing...' She slowly opened the book and once the pages were revealed they glowed and tenticals came flying out grabbing a hold of June and taking her to gods only know where.
A great pressure slammed itself on June and than the next thing she knew she was slammed against the ground hard. She groaned in pain as she slowly got up to her knees. The air was filled with a foul smell and it had a sick feeling to it. She slowly looked around and grew pale seeing that she really was back in Oblivion. Surely mortals weren't suppose to cross the border from the land of the living and into the pits of Oblivion but June had no choice so she tried not thinking about it.
She slowly got to her feet and began to look around some more. She noticed that she was in a different part of the Oblivion than she was before. The sea of black ooze still surrounded her but instead of being on a single island she was surrounded by black shelves of books and in front of her was a pedestal with a sinister looking book opened on it. She looked at it and could see the foul energy surrounding it.
June slowly approached the book but before she could touch it a great portal appeared above her sending great winds towards her. She covered her face from the hot winds and tried standing her ground but they were slowly pushing her back. Right when she thought she was going to be sent into the black ooze the winds suddenly stopped making her loose balance and fall to her knees.
It took her a moment to regain her mind, it also took her a moment to realize that the air around her had become still. As if everything had frozen in place. She slowly lifted her head and saw that that is exactly what happened. Everything around her had frozen. Except for the giant mass of tenticals and eyeballs staring right at her. She quickly jumped to her feet and grabbed her bow drawing an arrow right at it.
Instead of fearing her arrow it only laughed at her. "Are you going to shoot me Dragonborn." A deep echoing voice came from the strange being. June furrowed her eyebrows down at it. "Suprised that I know you? You shouldn't be Dragonborn. I have been watching you for some time now mortal." All of the eyes blinked at once. June frowned at it and felt like she was going to be sick. "Who..What are you.." June slowly asked managing to keep her food down.
"I am the riddle unsolveable. The door unopenable. The book unreadable. The question unanswerable. You stand before Hermaeus Mora, keeper of forbidden knowledge." Mora's voice grew loud as he spoke his name. June froze once she learned who this creature was. Was he going to strike her down for pursuing one of his own or for trespassing in his realm? Her fear started to overwhelm her but she did not let it show. 'How am I going to kill a Daedric Prince if he attacks me?' She quickly examined his form. She had no idea where to even begin or how to attack the creature.
A low chuckle came from Mora as all of his eyes blinked once again. "I can sense the fear and adrenaline rising in you Dragonborn but do not fear me. For I will not attack you. No, in fact I wish to help you." His eyes slowly blinked again. June furrowed her eyebrows down at it. "Help me? You do no know what I'm after." She kept her arrow pointed at it. "I know everything mortal, have you not realized that yet?" He sounded annoyed.
June just blinked and continued to stare at him. "I know you seek Miraak my...former champion.." He spoke with another annoyed sigh. "You wish kill to him, I want to help you." All of his eyes blinked again. "Why?" She asked slowly lowering her arrow. "Miraak has betrayed me and is using my power to regain entrance to your world. Besides I grow tired of him and his...ambition." He sighed again. "You will fail though mortal, if you pursue him now." He pointed out. "But I have too, I have no choice." June furrowed her eyebrows down.
"He has something that you don't Dragonborn. Something that gives him an advantage and you a disadvantage. Besides that you will not be able to reach him with out it." All of his eyes looked away from her. "Just tell me what it is already!" June spoke annoyed. Mora looked back at her and just laughed. "I love how impatient you mortals can be." He spoke with amusement in his voice. "It is a shout that he has, a shout that you have begun to learn but won't learn all of it unless you find it here. In my realm." He explained. "You mean..the Bend Will shout?" June furrowed her eyebrows down. "Yes, you sadly used it on the stones to free the controlled. I did enjoy that little scene. I will credit him for that." He chuckled.
"Anyways, you need the rest of the shout if you hope to even reach Miraak." He explained more. "Where do I find it?" June asked impatiently. "Approach my book of knowledge and it will take you where to begin." His eyes looked down at the giant book on the pedestal. June looked at him and than slowly approached the book. "Be warned mortal, my realm is non like any other and the creatures here...hunger.." He sounded a little amused and than disappeared. June slowly looked back at the book. She took a deep breath and placed a hand on the page of the book. Once she touched it a ray of light busted from the pages and quickly took her away.
Three days, it had been three days since June and Neloth left to only gods know where. Three days was enough for Vilkas. Actually it was only two days. He found one of Neloth's notes explaining where he believed the book was and that was good enough for Vilkas. It took him a day to reach the Dwarven Ruin and when he did he saw all the dead bodies of bandits laying around. They were definitely here, he recognized the arrows.
Vilkas slowly walked into the Ruin and saw Neloth sitting in them middle of the floor writing in his journal. Neloth heard the doors open and quickly jumped to his feet getting ready for anything. A frown appeared on his face when he saw that it was just Vilkas. "What are you doing here? How did you find this place?" He asked Vilkas furrowing his eyebrows down. "I found some of your notes." Vilkas answered looking around for June. "Where is June?" He asked noticing that she was not around.
Neloth looked down to the side and pointed at the closed black book. "Oh.." Vilkas frowned as he walked over. "How long had she been gone?" Vilkas asked looking at Neloth. "About six hours." Neloth spoke casually as he sat back down. "Six-! Six hours!?" Vilkas yelled. "Yes, six hours." Neloth nodded as he started to write more. "You're not even remotely concerned!?" Vilkas yelled some more. "Nope. Though I am wondering why it is taking so long." Neloth said with a sigh.
Vilkas let out a worried but frustrated sigh as he rubbed his forehead. "I knew this was a bad idea." He whispered in a low voice. "Have some faith in our Dragonborn boy, I'm sure she will be back...Eventually..." Neloth cleared his throat. Vilkas blinked and than groaned as his stomach started to twist. He hated not being able to do anything, all he could do was wait. And he would wait for weeks if he had too. He wasn't going anywhere till June got back., h
