Disclaimer: I don't own Elder Scrolls and Gladiator. They belong to their respective owners.
Chapter 10: Tracking the Dawn
The Imperial City was busy like any other day when Juba and Cicero arrived in the evening. In the Market district, shop owners was just finished from their business and get ready to go home. The stalls were emptied and the night guards started their shift. The mage and the fighter quickly strolled through the district until they reached Luther's Broad where their informant was waiting for them. It's a quite big inn compared to another ones in Cyrodiil, the only inn bigger than this one was Tiber Septim Hotel in Talos Plaza where the most wealthy and powerful people in Imperial City resided.
Juba reach the door handle of the inn and came in, Cicero quickly followed. The Redguard assessed the situation, looking for possible escapes should anything went wrong. It looked like there was only one access point, which was the same door where they came from.
He scanned the room and saw several people in there, the bartender, two male Imperials who were chatting at the side of the bar table, a Nord woman who was drinking alone at the table near the entrance, a Redguard at the bar table, and another male Imperial who was reading a book at the corner of the inn. Someone in this room must be their informant, he thought, "The bar is quite busy this evening, don't you think, Cicero?" He asked his travelling companion.
Cicero gave him a silent approval, "If I remember correctly, Jauffre said the informant was a Redguard, and I am only seeing one Redguard in this room, and he bring a curved sword, just like those Blades." He stated the fact.
"Let's not forget he's a Blade as well. We don't want to be at his bad side." Juba said as he came to the bar.
When he was two feet away from him, the man stared to him, "Sit down, don't look at me."
He sat down next to the Redguard, and Cicero sat down next to him. "How do you know you're expecting us? How do you know we're not with the enemy?" Juba asked him with a poker face.
"Our mutual friend sent me a heads-up:
An Imperial and a Redguard will come to meet you tonight.
Wait at the usual place.
-J-
I believe my guess is right."
Juba didn't answer him, but he ordered two drinks for him and Cicero, Tamica wine, for he knew they wouldn't do anything until the commotion died down. After 30 minutes of waiting, the Nord lady and the two Imperials finally left the building, leaving five people in there, including the bartender. Juba decided to open a conversation, "Do you know anything about the assassins? Where-"
"Not now, please. Listen to me, do you see the man behind me, reading a book?" The Redguard asked him without turning his head. Juba tried to see the person he was talking about with his peripheral vision.
"Yes, so what?"
"I will stand up and walk away in a minute. He will follow me. I want you and your buddy to follow him. I want to see what he'll do. Get it?"
Juba gave him a 'yes' and then he talked to Cicero, "I won't bring my sword to this. I only have my dagger for now. I want you to back me up with your magic, if everything goes south." Cicero gave him a nod, while preparing his spell.
The Redguard Blade stood up from his chair and started to walk towards the basement, passing the mysterious book reader. As soon as he passed him, the Imperial closed his book and tucked it beneath his robe. Just as he predicted, the man followed him down, so Juba and Cicero began to walk silently behind him, trying hard not to make a sound as their stepped on the stony floor.
In the dark basement, the incognito mission continued as Juba and Cicero were tailing the target. Having spent a good amount of time in the gladiator training room, Juba had a good vision in the dark, Cicero relied on the Detect Life spell he just learned before going with Maximus that day. Perhaps this was a best time to try it out, he thought. At first the Imperial was just walking innocently while maintaining a safe distance from the Blade. But then his pace became faster and Cicero could sense magicka flux when he casted a spell in his hand. Suddenly a dark red armor appeared from thin air and in his right hand was a Bound sword. Cicero heard about this technique from the conjuration school, but he never had time to think about it.
The Blade quickly turned around when he heard crunching sound from behind. A sword slashing the air, definitely aiming him, but dodged it at the last second. Juba drew his dagger and stabbed the man in his back. The assassin was crying out in pain, then he realized he was facing not one, not two, but three opponents. He roared as he charged Juba with his sword, but Cicero casted a frost spell at his legs, stopping him in his position. The armored conjurer tried to hit Juba by swinging his blade, but Juba was too nimble. He avoided it with ease and stabbed him again in his stomach. The attack brought him down to his knees and the Blade finished him quickly by thrusting his curved blade through his back until it appeared on the other side of his body.
The assassin fell down with a thud and the armor magically disappeared, revealing the previous look, a male in a robe. The Blade sheathed his sword as he looked at Juba and Cicero, "Thanks."
"No problem, Blade. But what was that all about?" Juba asked him.
He let out a sigh, "I've been following the group of assassins who murdered the Emperor. They called themselves Mythic Dawn. A cult of daedra worshipper and this guy was one of them. He had been following me since yesterday."
Cicero look at the dead killer before him with his blood on the basement floor. "So what do we do now? Are we going to leave him down here?"
The Blade shook his head, "Of course not, this inn is the hangout place for the Blades, but that doesn't mean we can leave a dead body to be found later. Search his body for anything suspicious, I'll go back up to see of his friends are looking for him." Then he walked back upstairs to the bar.
Cicero kneeled next to the assassin and pulled a book from his robe. The cover was purple with the symbol of rising sun. He carefully made a fire in his hand and the light shoned upon the book. He opened the first page and read the title, "The Commentaries on Mysterium Xarxes Book 1 by Mankar Camoran". He knew knothing at all about this book, but something told him that it might be useful. So he decided to keep it for a while.
When they were back at the inn, the Blade whose name is Baurus, just like Jauffre told them in Cloud Ruler Temple, told them to go to his room in the second level. There, they discussed about the next step in this investigation.
Cicero, after sat down next to Baurus, handed over the book, "I think you might want to look at this." He said as he laid the book.
Baurus took it and read the pages, "This is just a rambling nonsense to me." He closed the book, then continued, "Look, I may be a Blade, but I'm no scholar. You should take it to someone, an expert, I believe."
"And who might that be? We managed to kill that assassin, but if we don't know what's he reading about, then I afraid we have a roadblock here."
Cicero was thinking as he looked upon the book. If that guy, who was a member of daedric cult read it, then it must be some sort of a guide. One that only an expert on arcane knowledge may understand.
"Um, if I may, I thing I know someone who knows this kind of stuff. Her name is Tar-Meena, she is a scholar in Arcane University. She teaches us once in a while, but not too often, I must say." Cicero suggested his idea.
"Yes, that's right. That reminds me, she also working with the Blades from time to time." Baurus suddenly felt excited. He turned to Cicero, "Knowing you are a mage apprentice there, I think you should bring this book to her. Tell her I send you, she will understand."
Juba was leaning back to his chair, "But what should we do in the meantime?"
"There's nothing we can do but waiting. It's too risky going outside, especially after what we did, they'll be looking after me when they missed their friend. You too, Juba, since you look like a decent fighter." Baurus explained the plan.
"I guessed you're right, Baurus. There's a slight chance they may recognize Cicero, but we should take it. He is known in the University, unlike us. And I reckon we don't have anyone else to send?" Juba asked the senior Blade.
Baurus shook his head, and then he urged Cicero to leave the inn in the dead of night for his chance to escape undetected was higher at the time than during the day.
Xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox
Arcane University was looked tall and proud from the afar with the purple fire and battlemages guarding her at all times. Cicero walked pass one of them after showing his student pass, into the lobby. Then he went through the garden and proceed to Mystic Archives. He knocked the door and waited for a moment. An Argonian opened it and greeted him, "Good evening, fellow mage. Ah, if it isn't Cicero, my boy. Long time no see, how have you been?"
"I'm well, Tar-Meena, apologies to meet you in such an uncomfortable time." He said with a slight bow.
"No need to apologize. I'm glad to have a company in this hour. Have a sit, please." They both took a sit near one of the bookshelf.
"Now, what is the urgency? Perhaps you can tell me what were you doing these days? Your classmates have been asking questions about your disappearance." Tar-Meena asked while pouring some tea.
Cicero took a sip, "I'm afraid it's a long story, Ma'am. But there's a more pressing matter. Well, you see, recently I came across this book and I'm curious what this book is all about." He placed the book on top of the table.
Tar-Meena's gills were wide open when she saw the said book before her eyes. "Ah, The Commentaries on Mysterium Xarxes. Written by Mankar Camoran, the leader of Mythic Dawn, the daedric cult who worship Mehrunes Dagon, the Daedric Prince of Destruction, Change, Revolution, Energy, and Ambition. What do you want to know about it?"
"Baurus from the Blades sent me to you, he said you would know of these things." Cicero answered.
"Hmmm, so it's Blades' business, huh? They often ask me as a consultant, but I have no intention to dive deeper than what I should have."
The Argonian took several books from the bookshelf, mainly the ones about daedra. She put them on the table, then she went back to her seat.
"I have to tell you this, Mythic Dawn is unlike any other deadric cults in Tamriel. They are very secretive, very little is known about them, and most of their activities are underground." She advised her apprentice.
"I see, Master Tar-Meena, let's not get our hopes too high. But do you know anything about this Mankar Camoran?"
"Well, he is a very charismatic leader and his teachings are remarkable and revolutionary. Not that I admire him, I'm just stating the facts, you know." She finished explaining, then the two mages started to examine the book.
But after almost an hour and a few more glasses of wine, the words within the book began drifting further and further. It didn't make any sense.
Cicero was pinching his nose out of exhaustion, never before he faced something so cryptic like this mysterious book. He doubted even the brightest apprentice in the university could decipher the message. Then he saw the ornamented letter at the first of the paragraph, he turned the page and found another letter written in the similar style. He flipped the pages real quick and found out that every single letter in the head of the paragraph was stylized. He went back to the first one, and the second, and the third, and so on. Those letters created some sort of a phrase, G-R-E-E-N-E-M-P-E-R-O-R.
He slammed the table with his fists that made Tar-Meena jolted, "That's it!"
"What happened? Do you get anything, Cicero?" Tar-Meena asked with her drowsy eyes.
"Yes, it's absurdly simple and right behind our nose the whole time. We are so idiot, we were too focused at the content. The answer lies in the first letter of each paragraph. Look for yourself."
Tar-Meena looked the letter closely for the any clue, "Green Emperor?" She spelled the word. "But that doesn't mean anything, as if it's incomplete."
"But Master Wizard, there must be something else, this is just the first volume. Do you know about the others?" Cicero begged her.
"It's funny when you said it, it's true there are other volumes to this book, its continuation. In fact, I have the second volume here in my archive." She rose from her seat and walked towards a bookcase in the back of the room. She pulled a book from the dusty stacks, its cover was purple as well.
"See? This is Commentaries on Mysterium Xarxes, Book 2." She showed Cicero the book, he received it and opened the pages immediately, looking for additional clue.
"Master, look here. It says, W-A-Y-W-H-E-R-E. Let's combine it with the phrase from the first book."
The two mages put down their notes and read the hidden words, "Green Emperor Way Where…" They look at each other, sharing confused looks.
"The sentence seems incomplete, perhaps we need the other two book, Master." Cicero shrugged
"I think you are right, but unfortunately, I only have the first two edition. You must try to find the rest of them."
"But where do I should look? Do you have any idea?"
"There's one place I can think of. Have you heard about First Edition?" Cicero gave her a nod. "The proprietor, Phintias, has a nice collection of books, sometimes the rare ones. Maybe you can start there, young one. And I hope for your sake, he doesn't give you much trouble."
Cicero wasted no time and thanked the master wizard before went out of the university complex and headed back to Luther's Broad.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To say it was a sleepless night would be an understatement of the year for Baurus and Juba. Their minds filled with uncertainty and doubts after their run-in with the undercover Mythic Dawn agent in Imperial City. They locked their bedroom because who knows who might come and knock their door, it might be one of those assassin bastards.
Then they heard someone knocked. Juba asked their guest from behind the door, "Who is there? What business do you have with us?"
"It is I, Lord Molag Bal, and I have come to claim your soul in my Coldharbour."
Juba sighed a little and opened the door. Cicero came inside and gave him a scowl.
"What kind of question is that? Do you suspect me to be someone else?" Cicero spat at his friends.
Baurus tried to calm him down, "We must be on our guard at all times. If I can find an assassin posing as a commoner, Talos knows how many more of them?"
"It's alright, Baurus. I understand." said Cicero when he sat down beside the bed. Then he continued, "Anyway, my trip to University was fruitful, my mentor and I together managed to find the hidden code from the book, well, at least part of it."
He explained the discovery to the two warriors, flipping the pages, then he told them about his plan to come and see First Edition.
"So we just need to ask this Phintias guy if he has the other two books, right? It sounds simple." Baurus said after having the explanation.
Juba nodded in agreement, "It is quite simple. The thing is what will you do if he doesn't have it?"
"Then I guess I have to go back to Tar-Meena and make the plan B." Cicero answered him.
"I wouldn't count on it. Let's hope this bookseller is on our side and not helping the Mythic Dawn." Baurus murmured loud enough for them to hear.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
They arrived at Market District soon after. It's around 9 o'clock in the morning, so most of the shops were just opened and people from every part of Cyrodiil, if not Tamriel, cramped together on the streets.
First Edition was not so hard to find. It's just in front of the main street where the action happens. Cicero and Juba pushed the door and went inside. The first thing that welcome them was the distinctive aroma of books, lots of them. Juba opened his mouth in awe for he never saw any bookshops or libraries of that magnitude, while Cicero kept his composure. He once came to First Edition to look for some books in the past as an assignment from Arcane University.
Someone cleared his throat to interrupt their fascination, he is a Redguard in his 40s, and he wore a quite fancy clothes. "Welcome to First Edition, gentlemen. How may I serve you? I can give you what you're looking for, if I have it."
Cicero walked past Juba to the counter and faced the seller. "Good morning, Phintias. How are you doing in this fine day?"
The proprietor smiled to him just like what he did to his other customers. "Um, Cicero, if I'm not mistaken?" Cicero nodded.
"Long time no see, young man. I'm so happy to see you again. What brings you here? Looking for academic writings, or some history of a famous wizard?"
Well, actually, there are something I need. Do you happen to have Commentaries on Mysterium Xarxes Book 3 and 4?"
At hearing the question, suddenly Phintias changed his expression. "I hate to break the news, kid, but those books you're looking for are super rare and I'm afraid you'll walk out of here empty handed. I tell you what, there are four books in the series of the commentaries. The first two are quite common. The third book is very rare, but the fourth book is impossible to find."
Cicero felt a bit disappointed at the comment, also felt intimidated by the fact they were so rare, they were out of their reach at the moment. But he didn't intend to give up yet.
"But I know your store houses a number of rare books in Cyrodiil, it even gives the Arcane University library a run for his money, and that means something. I wonder if you have the third book, Phintias." Cicero tried to pull Phintias on his good side using sweet words and compliment.
Phintias bit his lips and planned his next words. "Oh, let me be honest with you. I do have a copy of the third book right now, but I'm afraid it is reserved for someone else. Sooooo sorrryyy…"
Cicero struggled real hard to fight the urge to roll his eyes. He knew exactly this man was not sorry and he's just mocking him.
"My advice to you is to look for the book somewhere else. Gwinas would be most disappointed if he found out his book is missing…"
Phintias quickly put his hand in front of his mouth after he realized he spoke to much. Cicero gave him a nice, short thanks before he came to Juba who had been listening their conversation in the corner. Deep in his mind, he was smiling.
"I assume that went well, am I right? What do you have in mind now?" Juba asked him.
"You heard that yourself, Juba. Someone named Gwinas is going to come here for the book. I think it would be the best if we wait for him, and then I will ask him about the book." Cicero explained his plan.
Juba sat down at the nearest bench. "Alright, then. You can continue with your haggling if you want, but if this doesn't work, I'll handle the negotiation my way. The more we spend the time in this city, the more likely the enemy will follow our step and sniff our plan. We must act fast."
The next one and a half hours was spent in silence. Cicero was reading some books about Queen Potema, a powerful necromancer who rebelled against the Empire hundreds of years ago, while Juba was reading a book called Mixed Unit Tactics. He felt the need to broaden his knowledge about fighting, so he could help Maximus and gave him some inputs.
Then they heard the door being opened. They turned their head from the book they were reading to the source of the sound. A short Bosmer in red went in and walked towards the counter.
"Excuse me, I'm here for my book, Commentaries on Mysterium Xarxes Book 3, please." The Bosmer said nicely.
Phintias went inside for a moment and came back with a book covered in leather wrapper. He handed the book to the Bosmer and received a coin satchel for the price. Then as fast as he came, the Bosmer took the book and brought it with him outside. Juba and Cicero quickly followed him to a narrow street at the edge of the city wall.
Cicero took his chance first as he tapped the Bosmer's shoulder, "Excuse me, Sir. Mr. Gwinas?"
The Bosmer turned around to see the person who said his name. "What? What do you want? Do you want my book? I'm not giving it to you, nor will I sell it." He firmly stated his mind. He obviously saw Cicero and Juba in First Edition.
"If I may, Mr. Gwinas, I'm a scholar and I'm very interested in the daedric cult. If you allow me, I can help you understand the book together." Cicero said as he pointed the book in his arm.
Gwinas chuckled a bit, "Daedric cult? I don't know what you're talking about. I'm afraid you have the wrong man. Perhaps you think I'm somebody else…"
At the time, Juba's patient was running thin and this man was really getting on his nerve. Deciding the time for talk was over, he stepped over Cicero and grabbed the poor Bosmer by the collar. He lifted him up until his feet were dangling in the air and pushed him against the wall.
"Listen up, Bosmer. You don't know what you're getting yourself into. You think they are some kind of social club, don't you? If you do, you are more gullible than I think. Tell me, do you want to join the Mythic Dawn?"
"Please… If you want money, I can give it to you, but please don't hurt me."
"Just answer my question, do you want to join the Mythic Dawn?"
"No, I mean, yeah… So what, am I violating the law? There is no…"
"THEY MURDERED THE EMPEROR, DAMMIT!"
Cicero pulled away his Redguard friend from the Bosmer to avoid the unwanted attention. They're lucky they're in quiet space behind the buildings, but still sometimes, the Imperial guards were patrolling the area.
Gwinas couldn't believe what he just heard, Mythic Dawn killed the Emperor? That's outrageous! He realized he almost joined a band of murderers!
"I… I know they are daedra worshipper and I grow tired of the Aedra. But to think they killed the Emperor, Mara preserve us! I swear I don't know anything about that."
Cicero then tried to persuade him once again, "So what do you think, Mr. Gwinas? Will you give us the book in your hand?"
"Yes, of course! Here it is, the book is yours. I don't want anything to do with their crazy plot and I don't want to know."
Cicero took the book from him, then he asked him again, "Do you know where to find the fourth book?"
"Ah, yes, they gave me this note if I wish to join them. Do whatever you please with it. I'm outta here." He finished and stormed out to the street to who knows where.
Cicero looked at the book, then at Juba. They knew there's only one thing to do, going back at Luther's Broad.