Day Eleven

I was jolted out of my sleep by a horrendous noise. My sleep-muddled mind drove me into action. I leapt from the bed in only my smallcloths and landed flat on the floor. I scrambled on all fours, confused, looking for my sword. It was gone, as were my clothes. I looked up, realizing the noise was in the room.

A group of men, farmers by their rank smell, were standing in the doorway being led in song by Lydia. I picked myself up and stood there bewildered as they finished with an off key crescendo that would make a hagraven wince. They laughed and clapped each other on their backs as they filed out. The last man out turned to me.

"Don't blame us, lad, the lady paid us well to wake you for the Harvest's End Festival. Oh, and you might want to wait until you're outside before you go pitching tents." More laughter from the men.

Lydia closed the door. "Sorry, I had to do that." She cleared her throat and looked down, again.

I sighed and adjusted my loincloth. "What in the Nine's is going on, and where is all my stuff?"

"Don't you celebrate Harvest's End where you're from?"

"What? Of course we do. Is it that time already?"

"I took your clothes to be washed and your weapons to be sharpened. I was on my way to pick them up when I ran into those revelers showing up to drink.

Quite the singers, aren't they?"

I grimaced, "They're as talented as they are clean, I'll give them that. My clothes?"

"All right, I'm going, just quit pointing that thing at me."

I glanced down.

"Made you look." Lydia left and I could hear the men cheer when she reached the downstairs.

It was going to be one of those days. It might call for three skooma before it was over. I took my traveling pouch from the bedpost and reached for a bottle. I searched for a bottle. I dumped the contents out on the bed and saw everything there but skooma. My heart was racing and my head was pounding by the time Lydia returned.

"They got the bloodstains out," she said, "but as far as the smell... what's wrong?"

"Did you check your belongings?" I asked her, "I think we've been robbed."

"No, but the door's been locked. Why? What's missing?"

"Uh... something, that I was holding for someone."

Lydia noticed the empty pouch. "Oh, you mean the skooma?"

"You saw..I mean, you..what did you do with it?"

"Well, I figured someone like you wouldn't use stuff like that so you must have been saving it for a special occasion like a party or festival. What's more festive than Harvest's End?"

"You mean you...wait, those farmers? All of it?" I could feel sweat beading my forehead and my stomach cramping.

"Of course. Four bottles, four singers. Worked out perfect, wouldn't you say? Now wash up and get dressed, you look a mess. Be quick. Drinks are free today but if you want to get to Riverwood we better hurry."

Lydia dropped my clothes on the bed next to me and left. It took me a few moments to realize she had actually gone.

"All of it?" I asked to no one in particular.

The Winking Skeever was already packed to the rafters by the time I went downstairs. I saw Lydia laughing with a group of armed women and decided to get a drink first. I passed a table and recognized the four farmers. They raised a bottle of skooma each and toasted me before emptying them down their throats. I briefly think of slitting their throats so they would not get to enjoy it but instead I just turned and stalked out of the place. Lydia caught up to me outside.

"Is there a problem, Thane?"

"No, let's just get going. I want to unload some of this crap we picked up and get the Hells out of here. And stop calling me Thane. My name is Ralos."

We visited different places in Solitude to get the best offers but in my mood I was willing to accept most offers just to leave. At one place, some high-brow elf critiqued my clothes a little too haughtily for my liking. Before I could respond, however, Lydia had her dagger to the woman's throat.

"Perhaps a splash of red would help your outfit?" she said.

The elf backed off and we finished up quickly before any guards could be summoned.

Outside the walls, I nearly skipped to a Khajiit caravan set up off the road. I discreetly whispered to the leader, Ma'dran if he had any skooma. He apologized and said he had some but sold it. Then he saw Lydia and said she was the one who bought it. My eye began to twitch. Why would she do that? I wondered.

"Let's go, Lydia," I called out as I briskly walked away from Solitude.

Lydia caught up, "Is there a problem, Ralos?"

"No. Walk. In silence, please."

That did not last long.

"That stuff is poison, you know?"

I stopped and turned on her. "What I know is it helps keeps me level-headed and in good spirits. If I had a problem I wouldn't be trying to conquer all of Tamriel, I'd be in a den rolling in a bed of bottles. When we get to Whiterun, you can stay there at Breezehome. I need a follower, not a nursemaid."

"And the jarl doesn't need a skooma-addicted Thane. If you won't get help, then you won't have a title, either. People care what a Thane tells them. You know they don't give a Skeever's piss what Ralos has to say."

I wanted to yell back but even I knew she had a point.

"What you need is help," she said, "The priestess of Kynereth can help you but you will have to stay there a day and do as they say, perhaps do them a favor."

I turned back down the road. "I'll think on it."

"That's all I ask for now."

"Either way, you're still staying in Whiterun."

I headed for the docks and asked around for a boat to go across the harbor, or maybe closer to Riverwood, if possible. No one knew anything about the boats so I lost my patience and swam back across. On the other side I saw smoke from a fire and headed for it, hoping to dry off before going further. Instead of a fire, all I found was an abandoned camp. A bloody carcass laid strewn among the smoldering fire I had seen from the water. Whatever happened must have been recent for it to still be smoking. All I found worth keeping was a book titled, 'The Exodus'. Guess someone should have taken the title to heart. After I read it, I felt I had a better grasp of summoning my healing power, just a little.
The rasp of Lydia's axe brought me out of my reading trance. A large mudcrab was attacking the camp, its claws snapping at her ankles. It could not have been a mudcrab that killed this person, could it? We both gave its shell a crack then divided up its claws for eating later. All this was done in silence between us.

We moved on, more wary of the burrowing creatures. A grove of dead wood revealed a stone standing in the middle. Carved into its side was the picture of a mage with a staff and pointy hat. Whatever it did, I was content with my warrior's blessing and passed on it, as did Lydia. Being wary of the mudcrabs left me blind to the numerous pods of smelly fungi laying in wait. I would definitely need new boots by the time I got back to Whiterun. While searching for a rag to clean my boots off, I came across two small soul gems I had forgotten about. I grabbed my dead bow and tried to recharge it using the gems. It turned out to be easier than I thought but the power of the bow felt weaker, even after the second gem. Hopefully it would last the rest of the trip.

We finally reached a road and decided to stop for a lunch of cold beef sandwiches, apples, and ale. After eating, I was in a little better mood but I was still resentful of Lydia for getting rid of my skooma. Who did she think she was, anyway? She was sworn to protect me and my property, not dictate how I lived. What if all my followers and companions were like that? Perhaps it was just the women.

Before I could get myself too worked up again, a man passed by on the road, but kept his distance. He apologized for seeming rude, but he was afflicted and on his way to seek healing. I noticed his sickly appearance and gave him all the room he wanted. I almost pitied him until he suggested I seek a healer myself, by the look of me. He took his leave and Lydia just looked at me with her eyebrows raised.

"Not a word," I said and continued heading southeast.

After exchanging words with a pompous noble on his way to a wedding, I stopped at the foot of a large hill with some sort of stone fortress on top of it.

"Labyrinthian," Lydia said, backing away.

"This? I've heard of it, actually. Some temple built long ago to worship dragons, wasn't it?"

"Yes. The dragon priests would come here and do the worst of their rituals. We should not go into it."

"Dragon priests? Yeah, I think I'll definitely avoid that mess. If I'm finding Deathlords in abandoned ruins, I can imagine what's waiting in there. We'll go around."

Going around, however, was no mean feat. We had to go around the entire walled temple which was basically built on top of a small mountain. We finally got around it enough to start heading south again when I heard a dragon roar. Judging by the sound of it, a big dragon. We climbed to the top of a wooded hill and suddenly the dragon's roar scared to chitins out of us. We prepared for battle, getting our bows out but to our shock, it landed and came after us on foot. It could not get through the trees, however and that was where I made my stand, peppering it with flaming arrows. Lydia stood on the edge of the trees, bashing it with her battleaxe. Finally it had had enough and bathed both of us in a gale of ice breath. Even being a Nord, the breath drained me of my stamina and weakened me considerably. The dragon took flight and I scarfed down three small potions to quickly heal. We both waited for it to return as it circled the peak. Lydia swung her arms in circles to loosen them up from the frost effects.

When the beast returned it stopped to hover and I knew it was going to attack with his breath again. This time I tried an experiment and hit it with my force shout.

"Fus Ro!"

The shock wave hit the dragon and its head reared back, stopping it from breathing down on us. It flew off. I now knew that I could stop those attacks before they started, like bashing an opponent in mid-swing. These dragons would soon be mine to control. The dragon must have known it had met its match because it refused to land again until we had damaged its wings too much for it to fly. Once it was grounded, we attacked it from both sides relentlessly. It died dramtically, looking up into the sky and spreading its wings before falling over. I soaked in its soul.

I realized it is getting late from all of our detours and we still had a way to go before we reached Riverwood. I told Lydia to keep an eye open for some place to stop. My destiny proved useful once again because at the bottom of the mountain we came across a cottage. The garden outside was well tended but no one seemed to be about. In the fading light I could just make out a name on the front door, 'Drela'.

I knocked but no one answered. Hopefully someone would be there and let us stay. All this mountaineering had kept my mind off my body's nagging for skooma but I could feel the weakness creeping into my muscles. I tried the door and it was unlocked so we went inside. No sooner was the door closed than I heard a sword being drawn.

"Never should have come here," a voice threatened. From around a corner came an elven mage.

"We didn't mean to intrude..." I started to say.

He launched an attack of ice against us before I could finish my sentence. His focus was on Lydia since she was closer so I charged in and pummeled him with a barrage of powerful downward slashes. He fell down but steadied himself against an enchanter's table. I was amazed he was still breathing. He turned his spell on me. His power was too weak now, however, and I was able to subdue the elf with two more stabs to the chest. Lydia turned his head into liquid cowl filler with one last blow.

Lydia was almost blue from the ice spell and breathing heavy, barely able to hold her axe. I called upon the spell I had bought from Farengar and laid my hands upon her arm. I tapped into my healing energy and allowed it to flow through my hands and into her. Instantly, she perked up and her color returned to normal.

"So are you a priest now?" she asked, too surprised to argue.

"Well, I do enjoy laying on hands," I said, relieved she was improving.

"Don't I know it. Thank you, Ralos. You can let go now, I feel better."

I helped her stand and together we searched the little home. We had not meant to raid the house but since we had been forced to defend ourselves, might as well make the most of it. We found no one else and nothing to warrant the elf's sudden defense of his house. He must have gone mad, living alone and so close to Labyrinthian and that dragon. Lydia did find a staff that she said looked like the kind that summoned familiars.

"Now how do you know that?" I asked. "I thought you were just a warrior housecarl?"

She actually blushed. "I just do, all right. I recognized it from somewhere."

I folded my arms and waited for more.

"All right, fine. I spent some time with a wizard friend and he had a collection of staves he let me practice with."

"So he let you handle his staff?"

"Pig."

I laughed but then stopped as a thought occurred to me. "Wait. You don't mean Farengar, do you?"

She paused then added the staff to her stuff, "Did you see any other wizards in Whiterun? It was a long time ago, besides."

"Yeah, but,...eww." I shuddered.

"Isn't there anything to eat in here?"

She walked off, grumbling about starving to death. I let it drop, for now.

I could not stand the thought of eating anything out of the mad mage's house so we had a dinner from our own stores then tried to sleep for the night.