The Light and the Shadows Pt. 1: Imperial City
Elisif the Fair glanced across the Elder council table at the empty chair that should have seated Karis Hassuldor.
Ever since the first day of Council meetings, she had been a no show. It aggravated Elisif more than she wanted to admit since there were so many mundane and even ridiculous things that came up on the agenda as the week drew to a close.
It seemed as if the longer the Council was in session, the more ridiculous things came up for vote. Elisif could hardly believe some of them.
They had collectively just denied a motion put forth to invest treasury funds into research on the properties of troll hair.
Elisif had felt compelled to be at every session, performing her duty as a member of the Elder Council, but these last two days of motions were filled with things advocated by people that seemed to have no regard for the other troubles going on in the world.
She supposed it was to be expected that not every part of the land had any idea what went on elsewhere, and some people would always be too consumed with their own pastimes to care about others.
More and more of the council members had been absent as the week went on. A few, like Karis Hassuldor, had been absent since the first day.
Elisif looked around, unintentionally huffing out loud, realizing so few were left they barely had enough for a quorum to vote. There was so much more she could have been doing.
It had taken three days of letters and visits to persuade the High Chancellor to meet with her and despite the note from Karis Hassuldor that she would find Elisif when the time was right, there had been no sign of her since the first day of Council sessions.
Elisif sighed with relief as the much more patient Imperial Battlemage Izmo Ledora finally finished reading the last summary of the motion for whether to agree to open negotiations into a horse breeding alliance with some merchant in Hammerfell.
Since none of them there felt indebted to improve their horses for any reason, the motion was unanimously defeated and they all collectively sighed, stretched, and rose to depart after Ledora called the meeting to adjourn.
As they were leaving the Council chambers, Janora Umbranox gently touched her elbow while whispering in her ear.
"It's the last night you'll be in the city. Please tell me you have time for at least ONE party"
"What time?" Elisif queried only half attentively, wondering if there was anything more she could do in one night before the trip back to Skyrim began on the morrow.
"I'll pick you up at the mid evening hour" Janora grinned back, not giving a chance for Elisif to accept or refuse.
"But-"
"Wear something ravishing" Janora whispered before she vanished into the throng of attendants and guards outside the Council chambers.
That afternoon found Elisif seated nervously in the High Chancellor's chambers in the Imperial Legion Headquarters.
She wasn't quite sure what to think of Magnus Olaren. No one really spoke badly about him, then again, no one really spoke of him at all, at least not anymore.
Between ten and twenty years ago had been his heyday. He had been in the thick of every major Imperial engagement, resulting in a victory. In fact, it was likely his martial skills as a fighter and general that had kept the Empire from fragmenting after the White Gold Concordat.
Elisif knew he'd sustained too many injuries to ride into battle anymore. So she wondered how involved he could stay in the military activities.
She had immediately noticed the large table with full size land feature map of Tamriel when she was shown in. Now that she had time to sit for a while, she took in the large, lush tapestry paintings of battles that lined the walls.
Slowly, she walked around the room gazing at each one, marveling at the detail of them. She had gotten so enthralled in them that she didn't hear Magnus Olaren come in initially, only turning with a start when he cleared his throat slightly to interrupt her musings.
"Oh! My apologies, High Chancellor. I didn't hear you come in" she nodded in courtesy.
"You can call me Magnus. I think we've both had enough formality after a week of Council meetings" replied Olaren, walking up next to where she stood by one particular tapestry painting.
"Thank you" replied Elisif, wondering how to start the discussion she knew would probably get unpleasant.
"They're impressive. Aren't they?" Olaren mused, stroking the gray stubble on his chin as he eyed the tapestry painting.
Elisif was caught off for a second, wondering if he meant the victories in the paintings, most of which were his accomplishments, or if he meant the paintings themselves.
"The paintings, that is" Magnus clarified as he pulled a glass of what smelled like apple cider off a nearby table and took a swig.
"Oh, yes they are quite striking" Elisif agreed, glancing back at the painting.
"Of course, they can never do those battles justice" he chuckled "I should know."
For a moment, Elisif felt utterly overwhelmed. How could she talk to a man who'd seen and triumphed at the art of war for so long and convince him about anything when she had never seen battle or even so much as lifted a blade.
Elisif could only fidget as the awkward silence grew longer, but Magnus finally decided to have pity on her by starting things off.
"So tell me. What is a beautiful noble woman such as yourself wanting to talk to an old war dog like me for? My undersecretary says you were quite insistent, to the point of impertinence" Olaren grinned slightly as he limped over and took a seat at the large map table with his glass of cider.
Elisif flushed with a mixture of anger and humiliation. Anger over having to go to such great lengths just to TALK to Olaren, and then have him chuckle about it like it was some quirk of her own.
Determined to not be cowed by the circumstances, she took a deep breath and began.
"I assume you're aware of all of Tullius' letters concerning the campaign in Skyrim?" she stated more than asked.
"Of course" he replied.
"Well...It's just, I'm not aware of them" she felt like she blurted out.
"How do you mean?" asked Magnus, taking another sip of cider.
"Tullius doesn't tell me half the time what's going on. I only hear rumors or second hand accounts of how the war's going. That letter read in the Council on the first day...I had no knowledge of any of that" Elisif tried to sound rational and concerned.
"Have you talked to him about this?" Magnus replied absently, toying with the edge of his glass with a finger idly.
"Of course" Elisif replied.
"What was his response?"
"That I had enough on my plate as Jarl and didn't need to be 'burdened' with military tactics and information" Elisif replied with restraint, wishing at that time that she'd had better sense to challenge Tullius on his thinly veiled attempt at cutting her out of matters.
"Ruling is not easy and neither is keeping up with a military campaign. To try to do both is even harder" Magnus continued to mutter in a nonchalant manner.
"Even if I'm not running the campaign, if I am to rule Skyrim, I need to know what is happening out there" She declared, leaning on the map table with both hands, both eyes fixed on Magnus.
"So you DO intend to rule?" snapped Magnus surprisingly fast, his gaze snapping back up to focus on her, those hazel eyes of his intensely scrutinizing hers.
"Let's not play games about it. Surely Tullius told you about it in one of his letters. You know full well Idgrod is unwell, Siddgeir only cares about what happens in his own hold, and Igmund has mental imbalances that will likely force his removal. All the others are treasonous or in exile. What other choice do you have?" Elisif railed more intently than she meant to, trying to assert to most likely the second most powerful man in the Empire that she should be the one they looked to.
Magnus raised an eyebrow in surprise for a moment before leaning back in his chair and a ghost of a smirk appearing on his features before he took another sip of his cider.
"Well...if Balgruuf wasn't so damn stubborn, he would most surely be the likely candidate" Olaren mused as he absently looked off at nothing in particular, tapping the map table.
Elisif was aghast.
"You would pick a man who refused to ally himself with the Empire as the next King of Skyrim, a Jarl decreed in exile by the Council, a motion you yourself voted in favor of?" Elisif snapped in disbelief.
"He is well liked in Skyrim, occupies a hold of significance, is a military veteran and has many friends and connections here in the Imperial City. And if we're not going to play games about it, just remember you quite vigorously supported the Dragonborn, a man who also refused to ally himself with the Empire and in fact did quite a lot to help Ulfric's cause" Magnus replied back in a measured but intense tone.
"I...supported him...as the one the gods chose to end the Dragon threat" Elisif stumbled over herself, taken aback momentarily "not as a tool in a war between men."
"If he really is as powerful as the claims say, then eventually, he will have to choose a side. A man cannot be both influential and neutral" Magnus replied with finality before taking another sip of cider.
"Why did the Legion make him no offers then?" Elisif replied tartly, remembering Tullius' attitude of simply assuming he could order Arn around as if he was an armor bearer.
"Tullius tells me he rejected the one put forth to him" Magnus replied with a wave of a hand.
"All Tullius ever tried to do was order him around as if he was some footman in his regiment" Elisif answered with a raised eyebrow.
Magnus was quiet and simply shrugged as if there was nothing he could do about it.
"I can't help if you two are not on the same page" he sighed after Elisif fixed him with a glare of reproach.
"Maybe not then, but in the future I expect a little more deference from an Imperial General who sleeps, plans, and rides out to battle in MY city" Elisif snapped, determined to show this man that she was not the weak ruler Tullius had made her out to be.
"And what do you expect of me, then?" Magnus replied with seeming little concern, taking up his glass to sip from it again.
"Some support, for one. I have supported Tullius nearly without question for over a year now. I can't do that anymore if I am going to rule Skyrim like I ought. A word, or better yet, an order from you to insist his...cooperation would go a long way to...keeping us on the same page" Elisif finished, carefully choosing to use Olaren's own words.
"Are you asking to direct the campaign? For you surely know I cannot grant that" Olaren asked much like a scolding teacher.
"I am not asking to be made general. I am merely asking to be given the respect due my place" Elisif implored, wondering if she had chosen the right words.
"I suppose I can write something up. You are leaving the City on the morrow?" Magnus queried before snatching up a blank parchment from the edge of the map.
"Yes, too many things need attention for me to stay here long" she answered, leaning harder against the table as the tension in her body relaxed.
Elisif tried not to sigh aloud with relief as she watched Magnus scribble away on the parchment for awhile, eager to read what the fruits of her stubbornness had wrought.
"Is this the manner of order you're looking for?" He asked, deftly rolling the parchment and rolling it across the table to Elisif, who fumbled with it for a moment before opening and reading it.
Official Dispatch from Office of the Lord High Chancellor Magnus Olaren,
General Tullius, I am certain your tireless efforts on our Empire's behalf go well. I also ask that you cooperate fully with Elisif, Jarl of Solitude and earnest supporter of our great Empire. I am confident you will continue the campaign in a victorious manner, but keep our Lady informed and be willing to take her concerns into account. We need the support of all our allies.
On behalf of Emperor Titus Meade II,
Magnus Olaren
"Yes...I think this will do" Elisif muttered as she rolled it back up and handed it to Olaren after walking around the table.
"I have done my part, but handling Tullius once you get back will be your task" Olaren sighed almost with resigned indifference as he dribbled wax and placed his seal on the rolled up orders.
"I am sure things will have a marked improvement if we can work together" Elisif tried to sound reassuring as Olaren blew on the wax to help it cool.
He nearly handed it to her but then yanked it back from her grasp suddenly.
"You must keep in mind that Tullius is a military man, and will see all things in that light and that light only. I sent him to Skyrim with the Legions for the sole purpose of quelling a rebellion. Remember that" Olaren chided before returning the rolled orders to her empty hand that had been left sitting there.
"Of course" Elisif nodded after breathing a sigh of relief to finally have the orders in hand.
Later that evening found Elisif staring at the mirror with worry, trying to get her hair finished before Janora arrived to retrieve her for whatever party she'd coerced her into attending.
Erdi appeared with the silver pin they'd been looking for.
"Here it is, my Lady. This should keep it in place just fine" she cheerfully announced as Elisif removed her hands and let Erdi pin the braids in the back up into place with the pin.
Elisif winced a little as she glanced into the mirror. She didn't normally wear a green frock, but felt for some reason that she should try something besides the blues and reds she'd been wearing all week.
She sighed as she wrapped a silk green chiffon wrap around her shoulders.
The green gown would show off plenty of cleavage if she allowed it to. That was what the wrap was for. The frock's material bunched a little at the waist, but it helped her get around easier than some of the more slim ones did.
"What is it, My Lady? would you like the flower brooch pin instead?" asked Erdi with concern, clearly happier than Elisif that she was attending a party.
"No, no nothing like that" Elisif muttered, trying to put her finger on the reason for her unrest "I suppose I just feel a little uncomfortable not knowing what I'm walking into."
"Oh, it's a party, a party in the Imperial city no less. I'm sure it will be splendid. There will be terrific dancing and magic, and maybe even some wild animals. Who knows, maybe even a dashing nobleman to whisk you off your feet?" Erdi finished giddy with excitement, arranging some of the curls dangling off Elisif's pinned braids.
"I suppose" Elisif sighed, for some reason not excited about the prospects Erdi mentioned, even though years before, she would have done just about anything to go to one.
An hour later, Elisif was escorted out of her carriage and into a large estate well ensconced in the Talos Plaza District or simply the Nobles District as it was known now.
Fine marble pillars adorned the massive main hall filled with long tables of all manner of food and drink.
Elisif stood on the steps and gawked for a moment at the sheer amount of food, guests, and servants all mingling noisily in the main hall while Janora Umbranox sauntered up to her left shoulder, leaning in to whisper in her ear.
"I told you, you wouldn't be disappointed. A far cry from the banquets of Skyrim, eh?"
"Yes...it is" Elisif murmured as Janora tugged her by the arm further into the main hall.
Elisif was so awed that thankfully Janora was there to introduce her to the particular nobles putting on the party. Elisif was trying to remember exactly their names as they walked further in, but all that stuck in her mind was that the Lord of the house was nephew to Magnus Olaren.
Elf dancers leaped and twirled in barely there sashes of colorful clothing, both male and female, galloping gracefully from side to side of the hall to the orchestrations of some musicians off to one side.
Party mages cast spells of illusion and conjuration to the applause of the guests as they went round performing tricks and casting effects for the dancers and nobles upon request.
As they walked around, Janora whispered names into her ear as they walked past one guest or another. She knew she wouldn't remember them all, though she noticed Janora was walking her past an awful lot of unmarried men. They seemed to be aware of this fact as well.
Elisif had caught several pairs of eyes watching her as soon as she had made her presence known in the main hall.
Many of the young men from noble families were quite good looking, and one or two immediately dropped what they were eating or doing to stand and bow gracefully before Elisif. One named Bomann was even so bold as to plant a kiss upon her hand, making her blush with embarrassment, even gave her heart a flutter.
After walking around the entire length of the main hall, Elisif spotted a vast garden of hedges out the one end.
"And what is out there?" she asked Janora, finally getting over her reluctance and becoming more curious.
"Oh..that is the gardens. Guests are free to walk them, though at night there is not a lot of light there" Janora grinned knowingly.
"They don't really- I mean" Elisif tried to whisper at Janora by way of clarification, who simply shrugged as if it was nothing
"It is loud and stuffy in here" Janora indicated in the hall "If some guests wish to converse more...privately, what better way than to take a walk in the gardens?" she smiled again before cutting off Elisif's further questions.
"Now, now, I've gotten you here and paraded you before some of the best bachelors in Cyrodiil. I trust you remember how to flirt properly" Janora chided her.
"I'm not sure if my Nord ways will be appealing" Elisif protested weakly, realizing Janora meant to leave her on her own.
"You have a fine figure and an outfit to match. Of course they find you appealing" Janora reasoned, eyeing her outfit over for a moment.
"But it just doesn't seem-" Elisif started to protest again.
"I didn't bring you here tonight to find a King. I brought you here to find a man. Please tell me you'll at least try. It would be unseemly for me to hold your hand all evening" Janora urged, giving her another knowing grin.
"I suppose I-"
"Good! I have a few acquaintances of my own I'd like to catch up on before I take my leave as well. I'll meet you back here just before midnight" declared Janora with finality before sauntering off into the throng of revelers, leaving Elisif alone.
Elisif wandered around the main hall for awhile. She didn't lack for attention. Several young men came up to her and offered either a seat at their side or at least to give her a drink. She politely declined them all, continuing to gaze at all the different races, nobles, and entertainers on display with varying degrees of wonder.
After the first hour, Elisif found she was starting to enjoy herself. She'd finally found a good company of mixed visiting merchants and local nobles and was enjoying the conversation as well as the food and drink.
Since few of them had ever been to Skyrim and discovering Elisif ruled Solitude, Elisif was delighted to answer their questions about the weather, customs, the war, and anything else that came up as they chatted the night away.
She wasn't sure how long it had been, but it must have been awhile because nearly without warning the lights in the hall began to be dimmed.
Elisif thought at first it was just torches running low on oil, but then she saw servants were putting out the lights on purpose.
"What is the meaning of that?" she asked the surrounding group.
"It means it's the start of the last hour before midnight. Here in the Imperial Capital, some parties do it. It's called the...dark hour" grinned one of the men in such a manner that Elisif wasn't sure she liked since the man was sitting right next to his wife.
"Wh-why is it called that?" Elisif wondered aloud as she saw the torches had all been extinguished and in their places, a few cauldrons of blue flame had been lit, casting the hall in a dark blue glow for its only lighting.
"You'll see soon enough" laughed one of the merchants, the others joining in with a giggle or two that put Elisif in an even more worried state.
Deciding it might be a good time to see if Janora was awaiting her, Elisif excused herself and slowly meandered her way back toward the back opening of the main hall.
At first, Elisif didn't think there was any difference to the party once the hall was quenched into the dark blue of "dark hour", but as she moved further down the hall, she stopped and looked around, beginning to see things changing.
The thing that caused her to stop was when she realized that the dancers from before were still running to and fro, but now they really wore no clothing at all.
She stared around the room.
The food was being removed and replaced with bowls filled with hideous looking insects and other food that didn't look like it was fit for consumption. Still other servants carried in pitchers that reeked of ale fumes so strongly, Elisif wondered how anyone could stomach the contents.
Bowls of unknown powders and liquids were placed on all the tables.
This caused more puzzlement in Elisif than alarm until she heard a nearby woman gasp.
Slowly walking forward in the bluish haze, Elisif stared at a Mer woman, probably Dunmer.
She was naked and sitting on a man's lap, grinding herself against him.
Elisif was shocked. Surely they weren't...here in front of...
Then she noticed others, a man and woman practically tearing each other's clothes off under a table, a khajjit merchant suckling from another noble woman's now unclothed breast.
Elisif slowly backed away before she turned and saw an even more shocking sight.
The Count of Bravil, a Breton named Dorian Lerus had one of the dancing girls leaning over a chair as he thrust into her from behind, her hand over her mouth to muffle the yelps of pain she uttered.
At that angle, he couldn't even be in her...Elisif gasped in shock, causing Lerus to look up at her for a moment before grinning lasciviously and thrusting harder into the woman bent over in front of him.
Elisif felt like wretching on the floor, stumbling away from the sights and sounds beginning to surround her, she rapidly made her way to the end of the hall by the gardens.
Breathing heavily, she looked in vain for Janora, realizing she'd caught the gaze of several men on the way out to the exit and began to fear being followed.
The hall was dark enough where if you weren't in proximity to someone, you couldn't make out details. All Elisif could see from the doorway was a bunch of moving blobs or general dark shape along with accompanying din of noise.
A sharp shriek from the hall of either pain or ecstasy jarred Elisif and she grew more fearful of remaining there. She wanted to leave, but to do so would mean venturing back inside and through the blue darkness in the main hall.
More laughing and another scream echoed in the hall, and Elisif involuntarily backed out of the Hall exit and hastily hid behind the only lighting in the area, the twin torch towers at the beginning of the Gardens.
It only took her a short while to realize hiding by the lights were a bad idea.
When she saw two men come out the door and immediately make for the Gardens, she panicked and slunk away from a torch and around the corner into the hedges of the Gardens.
The cool night air calmed her a little as she quietly moved away from the opening, glancing carefully behind her for anyone following.
She decided taking a few turns in the maze would get her out of sight enough while making sure she didn't get lost, but she had only made the first bend in the hedges before an impossibly strong hand grabbed her by the arm, yanking her into another opening and another hand clamping over her mouth.
Her scream into the hand was muffled and she would have fought and bit at her supposed abductor if the smooth voice of Karis Hassuldor, Countess of Skingrad, hadn't immediately whispered in her ear.
Author's notes:
1. Didn't mean to end on a cliffhanger, but adding in Karis' meeting would have doubled the chapter length.