Chapter 60: Interlude thirteen

[4E 526]

"Why are the girls so curious about what we are doing?"

"Not sure, but we're not having a choice any longer, as it appears."

"Right, and I guess it was about time, too."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it is difficult to keep secrets here in our house, and I would have expected to be caught much earlier."

"Good point, but still, the girls should look into their own business instead of spying on us!"

"Yeah, but maybe this is their business as well?"

"What do you mean, Bha'jhan?"

"If those diaries are real and are about real events, well, mostly at least, the girls have the same right to learn about it as we have."

"Maybe, yes, but it was still more fun when it was just our secret."

"No longer an option now; let's get Irzaba and go up again."

A few minutes later the three teenage boys were in the attic again, and this time there were two girls with them as well – Irzaba, the Half-Khajiit, and Nadira, a Redguard; they were also in their teenage years. Jomund carefully retrieved the second volume of the diaries from its hiding spot behind a lose board and said:

"I hope that you girls realize that we trust you a lot by showing you this hiding spot! Please promise that you're not going to tell anybody about it!"

The two girls nodded, and apparently this was good enough for now. Once the book was open, Alander asked:

"So, where did we stop last time?"

"Balu traveled to Ivarstead once more, right?"

"Ah yes, with Fiona and party."

"Indeed, they decided that she needs to train more and learn more shouts."

"And the Greybeard will teach her more?"

"I don't know", Jomund shrugged, "but let's read on and find out."

"Wait!" Irzaba chimed in. "How did it all start, and what happened earlier?"

"We read all of that before, starting many months ago!"

"But we don't know anything about that" Nadira objected. "That's not fair!"

"Hey, we found the books, not you!"

"We can always tell our parents…"

"You promised not to!" Jomund almost shouted.

"What about that" Alander suggested. "Why don't you read this one chapter together with us today, and if you like it, we'll give you some extra time to catch up with the previous volume and chapters before we move on together."

The two girls looked at each other and, after a few seconds of deliberation, nodded. Irzaba responded:

"All right, we have a deal."

For some time there was silence, only occasionally interrupted by pages getting turned and an occasional gust of wind outside. Eventually Alander mumbled:

"The steps always seem to bring some dangers; this time it's wisps above and beyond the normal wolves."

"And look, there is one of those scribbled comments again: 'Ugh, wolves – them and bears are a nuisance in Skyrim xD Maybe they like to attack Balu because he's a Cat?', followed by: 'Also, the Saber Cats probably saw the Wisps as balls to play with – as Cats do'."

"Both make sense, don't they?"

"Have you seen the same, Bha'jhan, with you being a Khajiit?"

"Haven't had an encounter with wisps yet, but yeah, wolves seem to attack me and another Khajiit in the group more than Nords or Imperials. Not really sure why, but that seems to be a general concept. Wonder why."

"No idea either. But now, let's see what they do at High Hrothgar."

"High Hrothgar?" Irzaba asked, not knowing the previous events in the diaries. "This place way up on the big mountain southeast of here?"

"Yes, indeed; they were there before, visiting the Greybeards."

"Ah, yes, the Greybeards; they were mentioned in our lessons some time ago. Are they still alive?"

Nobody had a reply for that, and once again there was silence for sometime, until Jomund mentioned:

"Hm, some training as it appears."

"Yes, sure, and for Balu and Fiona both."

"Seems fair."

"And at least they get a suggestion where to go to find another Word Wall."

"Yes, and Balu has some ideas about more of those."

"Word wall?" Nadira was getting curious. "Isn't that one of those odd places where a Dragonborn can learn a new shout?"

"Have one of you ever seen one of those word walls?" Irzaba wanted to know in addition that.

"Yes to both" Bha'jhan replied. "It is a rounded stone wall where a Dragonborn can, as people claim, learn a shout, and I have seen one of those, too. Recently a small group of junior Companions were guided on a field trip through Dustman's Cairn, and we all could look at the Word Wall in the crypt there."

"How does it feel?"

"Nothing special, really. We were told that only a Dragonborn can feel it, hear the chants and learn the word. Nonetheless, they radiate something mysterious, and just by looking at such a word wall, I got the feeling that there is something great and ancient about them. But there was something else in there, in the cairn, which I found really fascinating."

"And what was that?" Jomund wanted to know.

"In the big crypt there there are more than a dozen niches with something like upright sarco…, you know, those stone coffins where draugr sometimes come out when you approach."

"Sarcophagus, plural form sarcophagi" Nadira suggested.

"Eager beaver!"

"Yes, maybe, but what about the sarcophagi and the draugr?"

"Draugr and undead live and hide there, and in many places other draugr return to the hiding spots when the previous ones are defeated. No idea how that works, but it can be used for training, if you visit such a place like once a month or so. The Harbinger tried to explain it, but I did not understand all of it; he called it something like 'respawning'. But anyway, when we were in there with a Circle member, we were all given a spell tome with a lightning rune, and we all could experiment with that by placing one right in front of one of those niches."

"I don't know much about runes, but don't they go off only if somebody steps on them?"

"Yeah, or when somebody gets real close. Now, apparently, when one casts such a rune right in front of a niche and a draugr hides in there, it is close enough to set it off; the draugr comes out and is already hurt."

"What's the big deal?"

"Well, before we entered the cairn, we were told what can happen in such places. Sometimes there are special triggers placed, like a very valuable item, and picking up such an item may cause all draugr to emerge at once."

"With more than a dozen? This may be quite tough!"

"Indeed, and by forcing individual draugr to come out early, triggered by such a rune, you can fight them individually instead of all together."

"Oh, that makes sense."

"Yes, it does. Companion training does not just imply superior fighting skills, but also careful planing."

"Sure – it doesn't help you if your tombstone has a writing 'He was a brave and good fighter, but there were just too many draugr at once'."

"All right, back to the story. Now, they are done in High Hrothgar and go back down to Ivarstead again, right?"

"And off to go towards a place called Arcwind Point, at it seems."

"Where is that?"

"Somewhere in the mountains?"

"The Jerral Mountains, I believe."

"And south of those mountains is Cyrodiil, right?" Nadira asked.

"I think so, yes."

The three brothers and two sisters read on and digested several more pages, until Alander smiled and said:

"Those Imperials never stood a chance."

"No, not with the Stormcloaks joining forces with our heroes."

"And Balu did not want to go first."

"Yes, as a supersized guy like him would stick out."

"But one of the notes writers seems to believe that Fiona going first might also not be good: 'Kinda interesting that they're letting Fiona take the lead on this sort of thing. For that matter, it's also remarkable that the Imperials haven't put a hit out on her yet, like with their own branch of the Dark Brotherhood, considering she's literally a threat to the Empire. A small Bosmer should attract much more attention, especially one who's clearly aligned against them.'

"Well, but she does stick out much less when approaching the camp, as she can hide better between bushes and such."

"Hm, but when they first talk to the Imperials?"

"Then it did not matter any longer, I guess. But look, it get more interesting now; they encounter another dragon."

"They do, indeed, and Balu does something stupid again."

"Seems to be a habit for him."

"I guess nobody is perfect."

"True. Hey, what's that? Another Ayleid ruin?"

"Looks like it, but they don't go in. One of the comments indicates that one of the readers seems to know more about it: 'Ooh, Rielle! ~ Does this mean Balu is going to be caught in the midst of the Vigil/Mythic Dawn skirmish?'."

"Skirmish between Mythic Dawn and Vigils? Like in Vigilants of Stendarr?"

"Maybe, but I have no idea what that is about. Mythic Dawn? Those were the guys who murdered Emperor Uriel Septim VI, right?"

"No, Uriel Septim VII" Nadira knew better, once again.

"Ah, I always get those numbers wrong."

"I get the feeling that some of those readers know much more about the context and the background than we do."

"Looks like that, yes, and not for the first time either, but none of them is around to ask, so let's just read on."

For a few minutes they all read on, and their faces showed that they were fascinated by the diary. Eventually Jomund shouted:

"Wow, she tricked them!"

"Yes, and Balu reacts quickly and correctly, for a change!"

"That he does, yes."

"And one of the readers like that as well, specifically how they work together afterwards to get everybody out of the pit: 'I thought that scene where they put Nymeria in a harness to lift her up was cute xD Balu may be in a videogame world, but unfortunately they don't have automatic ally-teleportation-to-player here. It adds a bit of realism to the story, details like that :)'."

"What is that supposed to imply? Adds a bit of realism? Is that supposed to mean that all this is mere fantasy instead of real events?"

"Hey, we may never know. Who knows what really happened at that time?"

"True, and also I have no clue what a 'videogame' is supposed to be."

"And they move on to, what's that, Angarvunde?"

"Yes, looks like that. And they encounter the usual situation that a place which was probably raided many times before still has treasure to find - 'You know, these ruins have been around for millennia, yet they're still packed with riches. Even counting the monsters infesting them, you'd think they'd have been cleared of anything valuable long before now, like the pyramids in our world.'."

"Yes, like with the draugr, what did your Harbinger call it, they respawn?"

"Yes, this is the word he used. But what is that comparison to 'like the pyramids in our own world'?

"Hey, didn't Balu write that both Fiona and he are from another world? So, maybe, one or several of those who wrote comments come from another world, too?"

"The same one Balu is from or a different one?"

"As they write 'our world', maybe the same one."

"Good point."

"So, let me bet: This overeager Meresi isn't going to make it out alive!"

"Medresi, not Meresi, but yeah, I wouldn't bet against you."

"And they show nice fighting here, with runes and frequently sending Balu's familiar ahead.

"One of the readers seems to be somewhat upset abut the latter and writes: 'If Balu ever makes it to Aetherius, Spirit is going to hunt him down and torture him as retribution for him constantly throwing her into traps.'."

"So, what's wrong with the concept of sending one's familiar ahead in dangerous situations?"

"Nothing, really, assuming that those familiars do not have a soul and real feelings. If they do, though, they might get mad at you?"

"But they always appear fully intact when conjured again!"

"Yes, and I have been told that this kind of usage is very sensible; but some people apparently disagree, or they are just joking."

A few pages later Alander shouted:

"And here we go: Medresi is no more!"

"No surprise here, but she really did not pay attention – same as one of the comments here suggests: 'The oldest trick in the book, and she fell for it, hook, line and sinker.' "

"Hook, line, and sinker? Hey, she wasn't fishing in there!"

"One of those strange expressions, likely. But anyway, I have to admit that the traps attached to some chests are sometimes easy to miss" Bha'jhan admitted. "Another Companion whelp almost triggered one during one of our training expeditions recently, and we learned to always be careful, even when looting what looks like harmless chests or dressers. Medresi really was too eager to find treasure."

"Right, and no surprise for at least one of the readers either: 'No sympathy for Medresi, though. Stupidity doesn't get you pity. Seems even the protagonists agree, since they were just like, Huh. Sucks for her. Alright, moving on.'."

"Well, one has to admit that they barely knew here."

"True."

"And another reader – handwriting is different, I think – likes Fiona's direwolf: 'Nymeria is a fascinating Wolf – I wonder if she's like Korn in some way?'."

"Who or what is Korn?"

Nobody had an answer to that question, and so they read for some more time.

"Finally they get to Riften!"

"Have you ever been there?"

"No, not yet, but I've heard some stories about the city."

"Such as, Jomund?"

"There are some rumors that the Thieves Guild there still exists, and there may be a lot of corruption in the city."

"So, let's what our heroes find."

"First, they look at the Temple of Mara, as it seems."

"And Balu wonders about bells – one reader as well: 'The thing about Church bells ringing every hour – it kind of reminds me of Sunday Mornings before Mass, you hear the sound of the bell ring over the city.'."

"Sunday mornings?"

"Mass?"

"Why are there sometimes words and terms we do no understand?" Nadira wanted to know. "Did this also happen in previous chapters?"

"Yes, this happens all of the time" Alander explained. "Maybe those terms are from this other world Balu came from; we simply do not know."

They all shrugged and read on, until Alander smiled:

"Looks like they are not only enjoying the sounds and sights, but also the smell!"

"What?"

"Have you heard about Riften? There's a canal in the city, and supposedly it stinks."

"Oh yes, right, and one of the readers seems to agree: 'Well done including the stench of the canal. It's a little thing, but often writers will forget to use senses other than sight and occasionally sound to describe settings. Also, modern readers often likely forget how foul ancient cities smelled, given modern sewage has solved quite a bit of that problem.'."

"Ancient cities?"

"Modern sewage?"

They all shook their heads, and Bha'jhan suggested:

"Maybe the Ayleids or the Dwemer had a concept to make cities smell better?"

"We may never know – both are gone."

"But they left some of their stuff behind, specifically the Dwemer!"

"Right, and Balu wants to use some of that for his house."

"All right, back to the diary. Let's read some more before we're going to be called to dinner!

Again they all fell silent and turned to the next page; in the background one could have heard the noise from some small rodents, but none of the boys paid attention to that.

"What's the big deal about Inigo?" Alander asked.

"Don't know, but Balu had written a couple of times that he seems to know him, or at least of him."

"Not only Balu, but also some readers, as comments like this one seem to show: 'Hooray, Inigo! :) Always a pleasure, my blue kitty friend!', and another one: 'This truly is the start of a beautiful friendship. Also, imagining Inigo bonking Balu on the head makes for a funny mental image.' "

"So, he's really there and like Balu imagined him?"

"Guess so, yes."

"Wait, Balu imagined him?" Irzaba asked. "Did he write about him earlier?"

"Yes, he did" Alander replied, "and he kind of seemed to know or at least expect to find him there."

"But the Alchemist also told him about him!"

"Right, this Mia girl said that she had seen him, too."

"Anyway, you know, this is really weird, with Balu pretending to know Inigo already."

"Yes, it is, but the story has been weird many times before. True or not true, it's fun to read at least."

"Right, and now they move on from Riften."

"To find the Dawnguard, right?"

"Dawnguard?" Irzaba asked. "What is that?"

"Some time ago a few people met Balu in Whiterun and told him about a growing vampire threat. He seemed to know about that already, and it looks like he wants to talk to those people at the place where they live now."

"Vampire threat? Seriously?"

"At that time, it appears like that, yes."

"So, based on what that looks like, with Inigo around, what can go wrong, I guess."

"I get the feeling that this is the idea, indeed."

They read on for some more minutes, and then Alander exclaimed:

"A dragon is guarding the vampire hunters?"

"No, not really, look here, it looks like the dragon is attacking them!"

"Oh yes, right, and this Inigo seems to be quite funny."

"I wonder if we'll hear more funny comments from him."

"Anyway, the group gets a chance to work on their fighting skills."

"And how to properly work together."

"Right, and there's another comment: 'I do like that they spent a few days training and preparing, especially since Balu likely knows that the vampires aren't getting into the crypt anyways. Still, I would find it hilarious if they open the crypt, Serana pops out, and Balu greets her with, Oh, hello Serana! prompting a very confused, How... do you know... have we MET?!'."

"What the…?"

"Remember? Balu knows something about what's happening?"

"So, is it going to work out like that? Seriously?"

"I don't know" Jomund chimed in, "and we won't find out today. It's about time to get down again, before anybody wonders where we've all gone. Let's read on next time."

"Only once we girls have had a chance to catch up!" Nadira emphasized. "So far, this is quite interesting, and I sure want to be in!"

"Oh, yes, right, of course."

[Author's Notes: Now two girls are in, too, and get a chance to add their own point of view.]