The Phantom
Consulting Criminal
Chapter 1: Come My Champion
"Go now, find the Elder Scroll, deep in the bowels of Blackreach. The two objects, one edged, one round shall open the path through Alftand." The Mage exclaimed, a tone of unearthly insanity to his voice "And know that our master will be watching. You can do it for Septimus knows you can succeed!" The other man in the cavern conversing with Septimus was tall and with good posture. The expression on his face showed his respect for the incessant wizard, that is to say none. The tall man was dressed in long flowing robes with an obviously dark demeanour, his hair jet black and well kept, his eyes were a piercing blue but recently a few black spots had appeared on the whites. The Dark Mage picked up his staff which was propped against the wall for most of the conversation prior and said dully "Very well then, the Elder Scroll will be in my possession soon and then III mean WE... will open the cursed lockbox." And with that he left Septimus' Outpost, beginning the long trek to his manor house east of the Thalmor Embassy given to him by the Thalmor themselves.
2 Days Later
As the Dark Mage entered his manor he sat down contemplating how he should approach the situation. He knew even with all his power he couldn't do it on his own, he needed a team. There were others. Others whom he viewed as almost his equals, known only by their reputation. He knew some of them were from the peasantry and others were more..... Un-savoury characters but they were his best chance of getting through Blackreach and he needed the Scroll. The Book. The knowledge. The power. He decided to compose a series of letters, each addressed to a renowned hero or "villain" some where harder to track down than others. He wrote a specific letter for each of them and gave it to his courier.
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The man now referred to only in myth dubbed "The Timeless One" was walking the roads when he happened along a dying man. The man revealed himself to be a courier working for a very rich noble and pleaded the Timeless One for assistance. The Timeless One grabbed the courier and used his powers to see the Couriers point of death, that time was now. He shook his head "Remember the name Cronus in Aetherius, and know that he gave you a quick death." He then took his scythe off his back and impaled the Courier, absorbing his life energy and causing the corpse to age rapidly. Cronus pushed the late Courier off the blade, feeling refreshed. Taking the Couriers satchel; he opened it and read the letters one by one, these interested him very much. He felt like he had a purpose again. Cronus decided to take the Couriers place and deliver the letters personally, under the guise of being the Courier. On his way he read the last letter.
"Dear Anwrise Harr
You were very tough to track down so if you could please hear me out. I am recruiting a team of skilled adventurers. The best of the best to go through a Dwemer ruin known as Alftand. This ruin holds to gateway to the fabled "Blackreach" deep within. The long lost capital city of the Dwarves, home to a very valuable treasure. An Elder Scroll. Now don't disregard this and go searching on your own, you won't be able to make it to Blackreach without my key. I need your.... skills on my team, a Mage skilled in the arts of Black Magic, especially a vampire would be an extreme asset to the team. We may be able to teach each other a thing or two about the Dark Arts? I do hope you consider my request, the rewards will be bountiful and the glory, known for time immemorial. Meet at Alftand.
Yours Sincerely, Vahlok Cairn"
"Go now, find the Elder Scroll, deep in the bowels of Blackreach. The two objects, one edged, one round shall open the path through Alftand." The Mage exclaimed, a tone of unearthly insanity to his voice "And know that our master will be watching. You can do it for Septimus knows you can succeed!" The other man in the cavern conversing with Septimus was tall and with good posture. The expression on his face showed his respect for the incessant wizard, that is to say none. The tall man was dressed in long flowing robes with an obviously dark demeanour, his hair jet black and well kept, his eyes were a piercing blue but recently a few black spots had appeared on the whites. The Dark Mage picked up his staff which was propped against the wall for most of the conversation prior and said dully "Very well then, the Elder Scroll will be in my possession soon and then III mean WE... will open the cursed lockbox." And with that he left Septimus' Outpost, beginning the long trek to his manor house east of the Thalmor Embassy given to him by the Thalmor themselves.
2 Days Later
As the Dark Mage entered his manor he sat down contemplating how he should approach the situation. He knew even with all his power he couldn't do it on his own, he needed a team. There were others. Others whom he viewed as almost his equals, known only by their reputation. He knew some of them were from the peasantry and others were more..... Un-savoury characters but they were his best chance of getting through Blackreach and he needed the Scroll. The Book. The knowledge. The power. He decided to compose a series of letters, each addressed to a renowned hero or "villain" some where harder to track down than others. He wrote a specific letter for each of them and gave it to his courier.
____________________________________________________________________________________
The man now referred to only in myth dubbed "The Timeless One" was walking the roads when he happened along a dying man. The man revealed himself to be a courier working for a very rich noble and pleaded the Timeless One for assistance. The Timeless One grabbed the courier and used his powers to see the Couriers point of death, that time was now. He shook his head "Remember the name Cronus in Aetherius, and know that he gave you a quick death." He then took his scythe off his back and impaled the Courier, absorbing his life energy and causing the corpse to age rapidly. Cronus pushed the late Courier off the blade, feeling refreshed. Taking the Couriers satchel; he opened it and read the letters one by one, these interested him very much. He felt like he had a purpose again. Cronus decided to take the Couriers place and deliver the letters personally, under the guise of being the Courier. On his way he read the last letter.
"Dear Anwrise Harr
You were very tough to track down so if you could please hear me out. I am recruiting a team of skilled adventurers. The best of the best to go through a Dwemer ruin known as Alftand. This ruin holds to gateway to the fabled "Blackreach" deep within. The long lost capital city of the Dwarves, home to a very valuable treasure. An Elder Scroll. Now don't disregard this and go searching on your own, you won't be able to make it to Blackreach without my key. I need your.... skills on my team, a Mage skilled in the arts of Black Magic, especially a vampire would be an extreme asset to the team. We may be able to teach each other a thing or two about the Dark Arts? I do hope you consider my request, the rewards will be bountiful and the glory, known for time immemorial. Meet at Alftand.
Yours Sincerely, Vahlok Cairn"