A/N: This past week has been exhausting. It took me days to write this because I barely had any time to write. On top of a bunch of chaos at home, I went back to work this week, so my time has been limited. I still can't make any promises about an upload schedule but I'll try not to let more than a week pass between updates.

This chapter is a little shorter than the previous ones and is the last of the prep chapters before the expedition begins, so you can probably guess what's going to happen in the next chapter.

Thank you so much for the comments and reviews, they are very much appreciated. If you would like to comment on this chapter, please do. I welcome it. I've answered a few questions at the bottom.

Hearthfire

Chapter 13

Loki

Loki thumped the back of her head against the wall repeatedly, lost in thought. In front of her sat Riveria, Finn, Gareth, Ais, and Lefiya, who were all looking at Lefiya's status. Ais and her three oldest members had returned not too long ago with Riveria clutching a book tightly to her chest.

Her fierce protection of the book had been explained when Loki learned that it was a special grimoire that Torrhen of the Hestia Familia had given them with the promise that Lefiya, the girl Riveria had suggested read the book, would do so as soon as they returned. After a quick explanation about 'magic skills,' bypassing the spell slot restrictions, and a possible new branch of magic, the six of them had holed up in Loki's office.

Sure enough, when Lefiya cracked the book open, she'd fallen unconscious just like with a normal grimoire. That should not have happened, but it was a good sign. Normally, when a person with maxed spell slots like Lefiya opened a grimoire, nothing happened. They wouldn't fall asleep or learn new magic. Lefiya falling asleep after opening the book was a good sign. Once she'd come to, Riveria had kicked the boys out of the room so Loki could update Lefiya's status.

Now, they were all gathered around the status sheet. Lefiya and Riveria were chatting excitedly about what had appeared there. Just as Riveria, Hestia, and Torrhen had speculated, something new had been added to Lefiya's Falna. Under the magic section, beneath Lefiya's other spells, it now showed

Tamrielic Magic

Restoration: 20

Lesser Ward: A Tamrielic shield spell. Sustained cast. Casts a round shield that will protect the user against magical or elemental damage. Physical damage can be blocked with training. Will continuously block damage until the damage threshold is reached. Spell will then shatter. Mind cost: 34/second (Mind cost will decrease as Restoration level increases. Use Restoration spells to increase Restoration level)

It was an interesting spell, and it made Loki feel much better about sending Lefiya into the Dungeon. They'd have to test it to see just what it could block, but it would definitely be helpful for the girl. There was just one thing that was bothering Loki.

'Tamrielic.'

She knew that word, she was certain of it! She just couldn't remember where she'd heard it before. It had been a long time, but she was certain it was something she'd heard about before she'd come down to the lower world. Loki continued to thump her head against the wall, trying to dislodge the memory.

With a sigh, she reached for her glass of wine… Wine! She remembered now! She'd heard the word 'Tamriel' from Sanguine and Sheogorath the last time they'd gone out partying…pranking…same thing! Sheo had shown up wearing a hat made of cheese, ranting about wanting to feed it to his servant, Haskill, when he wasn't looking. She couldn't remember if they'd managed it. She'd drunk too much of Sanguine's best wine and couldn't remember anything else… something about an hourglass, three goats, wiggly fingers, and a boat? Had she played the trumpet at one point?

Loki wasn't sure, but she remembered 'Tamriel!' It was one of the regions of Nirn, the world created by Lorkhan, Akatosh, and the others! The only question now, was how they'd gotten their hands on a grimoire from Nirn. Torrhen… he'd given it to them, and Riveria said that he used that magic almost exclusively. That pretty much confirmed that he was from Nirn, which explained a great deal. The only question was, which god sent him here and why he felt like he had divine energy.

That triggered another memory of Sheogorath. He'd mentioned that he and Jyggalag had finally separated when some mortal hero on Nirn had mantled Sheo. Before that, the mortal had been caught up in a conflict of some kind with Dagon over a demigod connected to Akatosh. She couldn't remember what it was called… "Dragonkin?" She thought. "No, it was Dragonborn!"

Torrhen had to be Dragonborn! That was why he had divine energy. She'd never heard of any other demigod-like being from Nirn that had divine energy like that. If she was right, then what was a demigod from another world doing here? Weren't the Dragonborn supposed to be mortal champions? Now she knew the source of Torrhen's strength but still had a ton of questions!

"Should I take a look at the guild files?" Loki thought. She shook her head. "No, I promised Hestia I would wait two months. I don't break promises. If she takes any longer though, I'm gonna start digging."

"Are you alright, Loki?" Finn's voice interrupted her thoughts, startling her. Loki looked around for a moment, then answered him.

"I'm fine, Finn! Just trying to remember where I've heard 'Tamriel' before."

"You've heard of this, Loki?" Riveria asked.

Loki nodded. "It's a very long story, and I don't think I should share until I've spoken with Hestia. I'm sorry about that, but I don't think it's anything to worry about."

"Torrhen and Hestia refused to share more until they'd spoken with you as well," Riveria said with a nod. "We will simply have to trust your judgement. In any case, this spell will prove very useful in the Dungeon."

"You said that Mr. Torrhen will be teaching me how to use it tomorrow, right?" Lefiya cut in.

"He insisted that he be the one to teach you," Riveria replied. "The cover of the book called it a 'Novice' spell. It is likely a weaker version of the spell he used to protect you during Monsterphilia."

"All we can do for now, is wait until he teaches you how to use it" Finn added. "Don't try to use any magic until he does, Lefiya." She nodded. "Until then, we still have quite a lot of preparation to get done if we are to start our expedition on time. If you'll excuse us Ais, Lefiya, we should probably get started on that."

The two girls made their exit while the heads of the Loki Familia made their way to Finn's office to discuss the finer points of their coming expedition.

Lefiya

Lefiya resisted the urge to grunt from the strain of keeping the Lesser Ward spell active, walking slowly around the training yard. It was not an especially hard spell to cast, with her only difficulty being getting used to the activation method and the odd sensation of feeling her Mind constantly being drained. 'Magicka' as Mr. Torrhen put it. She had to admit, she preferred that word to using Mind.

Mr. Torrhen and Lady Riveria stood nearby, watching as she kept the spell active. This was the 10th time she'd cast it, trying to keep it up for several minutes each time, and was only just starting to feel any strain. Once she'd gotten the hang of the activation method, Mr. Torrhen had helped her work on keeping it up for longer periods. It required constant concentration and had a steady Magicka drain, but she had gotten used to it by now. The only real problem was holding her concentration while moving.

"That's enough, Lefiya" Mr. Torrhen said. Lefiya let the shield drop with a sigh of relief. She could actually feel herself getting closer to going Mind Down and was relieved that he wouldn't make her hit her limit.

"You've done very well, Lefiya" Lady Riveria said, walking over. "Here," She held out a blue bottle. It was one of the new types of potions. Like the ones the Captain had ordered for their coming expedition.

"Thank you," Lefiya said, gratefully. She popped the cork and quickly drank the potion. Once again, she experienced an odd sensation as she quite literally felt her Magikca rapidly refill itself. Once it was done, she turned to Mr. Torrhen.

"You're doing very well, Lefiya" he said. Mr. Torrhen was a very nice man and so far, had been a very good teacher. "Now that you've gotten the hang of sustaining the spell, it's time we moved on to blocking attacks with it."

Now Lefiya was nervous. He'd mentioned that earlier. "How are we going to do that?" She asked, timidly.

"Simple," Mr. Torrhen said. "I'm going to throw some spells at you." She'd been afraid of that. "We'll start with a simple Flame spell. It produces a continuous stream of fire, but it is a Novice spell, just like your Lesser Ward. Eventually, using them against each other will become a battle of attrition, but it is very useful for learning to block using a magic shield."

"What about impact attacks?" Lady Riveria asked. "Many monsters that use elements in the Dungeon use short burst attacks, instead of continuous ones."

"We'll move on to impact attacks once Lefiya gets used to the blocking sensation." Mr. Torrhen said. He moved to the center of the field, opposite her. "Now cast the ward spell and keep it up." A sudden flame appeared in his hand.

Lefiya brought up the ward, bracing herself. Mr. Torrhen let the spell go, a small stream of fire flowing from his hand and impacting the shield. She could feel the spell blocking the flames. It was similar to blocking with a normal shield, but the strain was on her mind rather than her muscles. Mr. Torrhen let the fire spell drop.

"Well done, Lefiya" he said. "We'll do this a few more times, and then move on to impact spells." She nodded. It was perhaps 10 minutes later that Mr. Torrhen called them to a stop. "Have you gotten used to the feeling now?" He asked.

"I think so," Lefiya said. It was a strange feeling, but it wasn't overly uncomfortable or distracting. "I'm ready to try an impact spell."

Mr. Torrhen nodded. "This is the Firebolt spell," he said. His hand was suddenly alight with flame, but it was concentrated into a ball as opposed to the stream the last spell had been. "It's the same spell I gave Bell, the Captain of my Familia. As an Apprentice level spell, it won't be powerful enough to shatter your shield with one hit, so it should be a good test."

"I'm ready," Lefiya nodded, determined. She brought her shield up, bracing for the impact. The ball of flame shot from Mr. Torrhen's hand, crashing into the shield. Lefiya let out a grunt, feeling the force of the spell trying to knock her off her feet, and could tell that the ward wouldn't stand up to much more.

"Well done," Mr. Torrhen said. "Don't let it fall. You need to see what it's like when it shatters before it happens in live combat." He raised the Firebolt spell again and fired. This time, Lefiya felt the impact overwhelm her ward and, with a sound like braking glass, the magical shield shattered. The force of it breaking caused her to take a step back, trying to keep her footing.

"I didn't expect it to shatter with that much force," she said. "What happens if it gets hit with something wildly more powerful?"

"The ward will protect you from the damage to some extent, even if it shatters, but it won't be able to block everything. You'll likely take some damage, but it will be far less than if you took it head-on. Higher level ward spells will block more, but at the price of an increased Magicka cost."

"Why not just start with the more powerful shield spells?" Lefiya asked.

"Because of your proficiency with the school of magic," Mr. Torrhen said.

"What do you mean?" Lady Riveria cut in.

"Did you notice that once Lefiya learned the spell, under 'Tamrielic Magic' it said 'Restoration,' followed by a number?" He replied.

"Yes," Lefiya said. "It said 20."

"Tamrielic magic is divided into schools. There's Restoration, Destruction, Illusion, Conjuration, and Alteration." Mr. Torrhen explained. "Ward spells are part of the School of Restoration. The number indicates your proficiency with that school. Similar to your status levels, using Restoration spells will increase that number. The higher your level in Restoration, the more powerful spells from that school you'll be able to learn. Starting with the stronger spells is possible, but the Magicka cost of casting powerful spells at a low level is astronomical compared to casing them once you've reached the right level of proficiency."

That certainly made sense to Lefiya. "So, I just need to practice with the spell and eventually I will become proficient enough to move on to stronger ward spells?"

"Yes," Mr. Torrhen nodded. "Once your level with them has gotten high enough, we'll talk about you learning the stronger spells. Weaker ones still have their uses though, even after progressing that far."

"They do?" She asked.

"Once your level is high enough," Mr. Torrhen explained, "the Magicka cost goes down significantly for lower level spells. When going through the Dungeon, it is more efficient to cast the lower level ward spells while on the upper floors than it would to use a high level spell to block an attack from a simple hellhound."

Lefiya nodded, but Lady Riveria cut in before she could say anything else. "What other spells are contained within the 'School of Restoration?'" She asked.

"Restoration primarily deals with protection and healing spells," Mr. Torrhen replied. "I can't do anything about it now, but perhaps we can look into teaching one or two of your members a few healing spells after you return from the expedition."

"You're coming with us, right Mr. Torrhen?" Lefiya asked. She'd heard the Captain and Lady Riveria talking about it yesterday.

"Only until the 18th floor," he said. "I'm Semi-retired so that's as deep as I can go." Lefiya nodded. "Now, we should move on to blocking different elements," his hand was suddenly filled with a crackling, electrical energy. "It can feel a little different to block different elements, so you should get used to it now while you have the chance."

Lefiya gulped.

Naaza

Naaza stood in her laboratory, her hair pulled back from her face by a simple headband. She'd learned the hard way that the new potion formulae did not react well when unintended substances were introduced. Even just a single strand hair falling into the potion could change its effects.

As the last of the liquid dripped from her alembic into the bottle, Naaza doused the burner. Putting a stopper in the bottle, she moved over to put it in the crate that was sitting on a table nearby. This was the last of the Draught's of Vigor that Captain Finn of the Loki Familia had asked for. She was nearly finished with the entire order, with only a few of the higher level potions still on their brewing stands. They would be done in a few hours, and it was good that she was so close to finishing. Tomorrow was the last day before the Loki Familia set off and by the terms of her contract, she needed to deliver the potions by mid-day. If she could get everything finished and labeled in the next couple hours, she might just be able to get some sleep tonight.

Naaza and her god, Miach, had been working night and day to get the order filled. Miach had been thrilled when he heard that she'd landed such a big contract and had enthusiastically offered his help. Naaza did have to make sure he didn't try to sneak anything extra in or try to give anything away for free, but his help was appreciated. She loved his generosity, but sometimes it got in the way of earning money and getting things done.

The two had traded off sleep times so that there was always someone working in the lab, 24 hours a day. That had been the only way to get things done on time, but Naaza hoped that it would be worth it. Not only would they get a massive amount of money from this contract, but they might just gain a new reputation. Maybe even a few new members!

Naaza's new mentor and research partner, Mr. Torrhen had given her one of his special adventurer packs to store the finished products in. Once Captain Finn had taken delivery, she would be using it to bring their payment straight to the bank. Walking around carrying that much money, even in a magic bag, was not a good idea.

Naaza sighed, exhaustedly, as she started labeling a bottle. One of the Ultimate Healing potions was almost finished, and she needed to have the bottle ready before it was done. She had barely been getting any sleep at all over the last week. She'd barely been averaging 3 hours a night, but once the order was delivered and their money was in the bank she would sleep like a baby.

Finn

"I have something to show you, but you need to swear to keep it a secret and give it back once we return from the expedition" he said. Finn was sitting in the forge of Tsubaki, Captain of the Hephaestus Familia. The dark-haired Half Dwarf was sitting at her forge, hammering away. She was still working on the order of indestructible weapons he had commissioned, so it made more sense for him to come to her rather than trying to get her to come to him.

"Oh?" Tsubaki looked up from her work with a cheeky grin. "You gonna let me in on some secret of the Loki Familia?"

"Not exactly," Finn said. "We were recently given something extremely valuable by a potential ally. Since you will be coming with us as a smith, we agreed that it would be a good idea for you to have one."

"Well now, you've gotten me all curious." She set down her hammer and turned towards him. "What is this 'valuable' thing?"

"This," Finn said, placing one of the magic adventurer packs Torrhen had given him on the floor in front of her.

"A bag?" Tsubaki asked in a deadpan.

"Open it," Finn said, smugly.

With a sigh, Tsubaki flipped the top of the bag open and froze. Finn could not see the display since it only appeared to the one who opened the bag, but he had experimented with the packs enough to know what she was seeing. He'd deliberately placed his own weapon in the bag to showcase its features. He watched as Tsubaki tapped the air, obviously interacting with the display.

Her jaw dropped as the shaft of his Fortia Spear, suddenly appeared out of the bag. She grabbed it and pulled the spear, obviously far too long to be held in the bag, out with no resistance.

"What the hell is this?" She asked, her single remaining eye going wide.

"A magic bag," Finn said, taking his spear from her. "We were given three by a new friend. They are enchanted to hold 30 times their size and will never weigh more than they do now. The display you saw is intended to make storing and removing things easier."

"This is nuts!" Tsubaki said, staring at the bag. "I've never heard of objects being enchanted like this," she turned to look at him. "You've gotta introduce me to the person who made this!"

Finn shook his head. "He's coming with us for part of the expedition so you'll meet him then."

"Really?" Tsubaki grinned widely. "That's perfect. I can ask about how he did the enchantments. What are you using the other two for?"

"We'll be using them to store the normal things a supporter carries, as well as a bevy of potions we have ordered." Finn said. "The potions are new, and very powerful but you'll get to see them in action during the expedition. We thought you should have this pack, since it will let you carry your smithing gear and pick up any drop items you want on the way down, instead of having to try and grab them on the way back up."

"Ha!" Tsubaki's grin got even wider. "You're gonna spoil me, Finn! I won't want to give this baby back. I guess I'll need to convince this new friend of yours to make one for me!"

Finn shook his head. "You can certainly try," he said. "If nothing else, I'm sure you can get him to talk about his process." Finn stood. "I'll let you get back to it. Will you be finished in time?"

She gave him a thumbs up. "Not to worry, Finn. Your new weapons will be ready on time." Finn smiled and nodded as he walked out the door.

Now that he was done with Tsubaki, he needed to get back to his office. He wasn't finished going over the final reports on the current status of his Familia members. He was still trying to work out the party divisions they would use once they passed the 18th floor. On the upper floors, they would typically split into two parties with the executives making the initial charge to clear anything too dangerous on the upper floors and deal with Goliath. The rear group would follow after, with most of the supplies. The lower level members of the Familia would handle any monsters the executives missed and bring most of their gear down.

Once they passed the 18th floor, they would have their Level 3 and 4 members divide into teams with an executive nearby to assist as needed. They would make their way down to the 50th floor this way, with the stronger members taking a more active role the deeper they went. Finn fully intended to have Torrhen join the executive group for their run through the upper floors.

Expedition Day

Finn walked through the crowd towards the podium. Essentially, the entire Loki Familia was standing in the plaza in front of the Dungeon entrance. The last 24 hours had been a chaotic mess of packing, preparation, checks, re-checks, panicked moments of forgetfulness, and occasionally being distracted by Loki's screams of frustration as she tried to update the status as many members as possible.

Captain Naaza of the Miach Familia had come by just after breakfast the day before looking haggard but happy, with a pack slung over her shoulders. It had taken them the better part of an hour to go through all of the potions and make sure that everything was correct and accounted for. She'd left with her payment, grinning but exhausted. Finn had delegated the task of distributing the potions to Riveria, and she'd done a good job.

Raul, a brown-haired human that was Level 4 would be acting as one of the supporters for the executive group and had most of the potions in his magic pack. Only a few had already been handed out to the ones who would do most of the fighting. Several healing potions had been given to Lefiya, who had the other pack and would be accompanying Gareth and the second unit as they moved through the upper floors.

He could see Tsubaki speaking with Ais off to his left. The smiths of the Hephaestus Familia that were accompanying them were mostly congregated near to them. While the majority of the smiths would be heading in with the second unit, Tsubaki would be joining the first unit so that she could speak to Torrhen.

Speaking of Torrhen, Finn finally spotted him. He was standing by the podium speaking with Riveria and Lefiya. Finn had gotten the chance to see the new spell he'd given Lefiya in action yesterday and had been very happy with it. For a seemingly low level spell, it was strong enough to firmly block almost any elemental or magical attack that monsters on the upper floors could throw. It was a different story as they went lower down, but it would still be a huge boon. He didn't think there were many monsters that could easily shatter it above the 35th floor.

Finn observed Torrhen as he walked towards the group. The man was wearing the same sword that he had wielded during the spars with himself, Ais, and Gareth but this was the first time he'd gotten to see Torrhen's armor. He already knew that Torrhen wasn't wearing his 'battle armor' as the man had called it. Just going to the 18th floor didn't warrant it and Finn had to agree. At his level, going to the 18th floor was not exactly dangerous. It was little more than a long walk and Torrhen was even stronger than Finn.

Torrhen's 'travel armor' was made of blackened leathers and had quite a few pouches, with a bandolier wrapped around his chest and a knee-length duster. The chest plate seemed to be made of interlocking metal plates that were covered in a black leather. On his back was Torrhen's personal adventurer pack and his bow. There was a wicked-looking dark-colored dagger strapped to his right side and another, this one with a golden or brass handle, strapped to his thigh in a holster.

"Good morning!" Finn called as he walked over to them.

"Morning," Torrhen said with a nod. "Is it time?" he asked.

Finn nodded. "So long as everyone is ready then yes, it's time."

"Everyone is ready, and everything is accounted for," Riveria said as Gareth came over to join them.

"All set to go!" He said. "You just need to do your speech and we can set off."

"Then let us begin," Finn said with a grin and stepped up on to the raised platform, Riveria and Gareth behind him. With a shrill whistle, he got the attention of everyone who was waiting in the plaza. "Everyone! The time has come to set off on our expedition into the deep levels. We will be splitting into two teams to avoid causing any chaos on the upper levels. I will be leading the advance team, while Gareth will lead the larger second group."

He looked around at the crowd. Even the people nearby who were not members of the expedition were watching and listening attentively. "The smiths of the Hephaestus Familia will be with us the whole way, and a friend from the Hestia Familia will be joining the advance team for the first leg. We'll regroup on Level 18 and then make a straight run for Level 50." He paused again, watching as the determination in the eyes of the crowd grew. "Our destination is the uncharted ground of Level 59. Expedition forces, lets march!"

The crowd let out a thunderous cheer, weapons and clenched fists thrusting into the air.

A/N: Loki figures things out, Lefiya learns a spell, and the Expedition begins! Hopefully this chapter isn't too short. Let me know what you think, and if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions don't be afraid to leave a review.

Answers to questions:

On FFN

matheus009carlos: I don't think I'll be giving Bell or anybody else dragon shouts. For a normal person they take years to learn, so even if I did it would be ages into the story before it could be a thing.

VirusZyx: I would say that Torrhen's Voice is actually stronger than any normal human, even the Greybeards. He's had over a century to perfect it and has a dragon's soul. Unlike the Graybeards though, he can still talk. In my head, it's because he is part dragon and therefore, has fewer repercussions for using the Thu'um.