Private [ROF] Rise of the Falmer

[Gemini Sierra]

He turned back to Melee, smiled at her salute. "If you're not confident, you should get out while you can. Let the Empire and the Stormcloaks deal with the Falmer or some other faction like the Thalmor or the Mage College. I'm sure you'll make the right decision and come out on top. Best of luck to you too lass." He stopped as he was about to open the door. "I'll miss you Melee."

Opening the door he paused again and reached into his satchel. "Oh, before I completely forget, take these and divide them up amongst the rest if they come back." He tosses her a coin purse with the rest of the take from the fight. "Hadring, this ones for you and my tab." He throws another purse to the tavern keeper and steps out the door closing it behind him.

Walking over to his horse he sets his duffle on the back of the saddle and ties it down. Then mounting the horse he looks over to the little lake and sees the Orc standing there just staring off into the distance. "I wonder what that old Orc is thinking?" Turning the horse towards the path leading to the road, he leads it to the main road and heads west towards Solitude.

After about a half a days hard ride he stopped in Dragons Bridge and got a meal and drink while his horse rested. Then he proceeded to Solitude. Stopping at the stables he sold his horse to the stable keeper and walked up to the city and entered. He spent a few hours putting his house in order and stopped at the tavern for a meal. There he found there was a ship leaving for Imperial City on the evening tide. He went down to the docks and booked passage. As the ship was leaving the dock he watched the sailors go about their work making sure to stay out of the way. As the ship passed under the great arch of the city he looked back and said goodbye to Skyrim hoping to return someday in the future.

 

[Melee]

Melee smiles softly, looking down at the bar and running her fingertip across a particularly noticeable dent in the aged wood. She looked back up at Gem, shaking her head and crossing her arms. "I can't just leave. I've invested too much into this group already, and it's not like I have anything waiting for me back at Whiterun." She paused, thinking of what could have happened to Arcadia, and shrugged. "I'm not afraid. The odds just aren't exactly in our favor." She smiles and nods as he reaches the door. "I'll miss you too, Gem."

Melee catches the bag of coins that Gem tossed to her after he opened the door, watching as a similar bag flew by her head and landed in Hadring's outstretched hands. She made a mental note to head outside to find everyone else once she was done eating so she could split everything up between everyone. Looping the bags strings through the belt around her hips, she smiled and performed the mock salute again. "You'll know where to find us if you can make it back," she said, lowering her hand as he walked out the door and closed it behind him.

She sighs, running a hand through her hand and then quickly trying her best to smooth it down again. She finishes up her meal, thanking Hadring once again for the food. She then heads toward the door, weaving once again through the loud groups of people throughout the room. She opens the door, heading outside as she unties the bag of coins from her belt, looking around to see where everyone went.

 

[OriginOfAbsolution]

(Alright, Rolasa has been missing for an insanely long time, so I'm gonna treat her like an NPC for the time-being)

The tiny rabbit's small, beady eyes look out over the bloodied Falmer bodies and scan the figures of the others, searching as she listens-in on Emberlynn's conversation. She hoped the crazy woman would reconsider, that she would stay. Perhaps she was a bit insane, but she'd been good company, and Vaela was tired of being alone for so long. And she'd helped her. She'd led her to...

Rale.


There he was, lingering on the edge of what had minutes ago been a battlefield. It had only been a few days since she'd last seen him, but it felt like a lifetime. And... oh no. Was he hurt? Without another thought, the tiny animal hops as fast as her small, powerful legs can carry her toward her wounded love.

Just as Emberlynn finishes speaking, she hears the soft rustling of the leaves beside her. She looks down to find the mysterious rabbit bounding away from her. "Wait!" Emberlynn calls out. It couldn't just leave... not now. She was just starting to trust the strange creature, trying to understand what was going on. Trying to help it. For a moment, she remembers that soft voice she had heard on the breeze. "Wabbajack". Right... Something to do with Sheogorath... But what did it all mean?

The young vampire wavers for just a moment. She should really just leave, now that she had the chance. After all, that had been her plan... Going after the rabbit would put her right out in the sunlight, right in the view of the others, right in the vicinity of that unusual, intoxicating scent. But something compels her, and she knows she can't leave without taking along her small, furry companion.

With one slow, deep breath, Emberlynn runs out into the stinging, bright light of the sun. "Come back!"

 

[Gemini Sierra]

As the ship rounded the coast past the solitude lighthouse and started to make its way west, Geminus leaned on the railing and stared into the water, half watching the chunks of ice flow past. He thought they were getting thicker and made a mental note to ask the Captain about them. Pulling his orders out of his satchel, he read them again. He hadn't questioned them at the time he recieved them and blindly followed them, but he's had time to think about them on his ride from the Nightgate Inn the day prior. He wondered what consquence the rise of the Falmer could have in the other provinces. Sure the earthquakes that happened in Skyrim could probably be felt in the Imperial City, but from what he knew of the Falmer they have always been in Skyrim, except for way back in the Merethic Era when they were ousted to Solstheim. He was starting to believe there might be something else that the Priory wasn't telling him.

Stepping below to his cabin, he took a quill and inkwell out of the table and started his report back to the Priory. In it, he told them of the setup of the requested outposts and all they needed were reinforcements. He went on to say that he believed he could better gather the information they wantd by being in Skyrim and Solitude since the Imperial Legion was headquartered there. After that he told them about the group of adventurers he had come across that seemed to know something about the Falmer events that have occurred. He referred them to a book he had read while waiting for the evening tide by Ursa Uthrax titled "The Falmer: A Study" where the author describes the Falmer history, their recent incursions above ground and a theory of their reconquering the land. He further described his two encounters with the Falmer and his belief that they were being organized some where and by someone, possibly in the underground region known as Blackreach that the adventures he was with believed and were on a quest to gather more information and possibly put a stop to the uprising.

He continued his report with the descrition of this "Voice" of Lorkhan and that it was possibly some kind of Dwemer artifact. He reminded the Priory that it was the goal of the Order to secure such artifacts and anything related to them. He reminded them also of the past issues with the artifacts known as "Kagrenac's Tools" and that one of them, the Keening, was rumored to be in Skyrim at this very moment in the College of Winterhold in the hands of Arniel Gane.

He ended the report by telling them that he had decided to remain in Skyrim and attempt to gather more information on this new artifact and help quell the Falmer uprising. It would be his quest to resolve. In addition he would try to locate the Keening and return it to Warehouse.

Folding the letter and sealing it with wax and the seal of the Order, he packed up his gear and sought out the Captain. He found the Captain at the helm and asked how they were progressing. The Captain said not so good and pointed out a storm that was coming from the west. He also pointed out that the storm was driving the ice flows together and since they didn't have a mage aboard to break the ice, they might have to turn back if they couldn't make the coast by the Northwatch Keep where there was a good place to weather the storm.

Hearing this, Geminus got an idea, he offered the Captain a small sum of gold to turn around, but instead of returning to Solitude he asked that they go to Dawnstar which had a nice safe port. The captain looked at the gold that was offered and then at his first mate and thought about it for a moment. That was more gold than they'd make for the trip alone. After a quick conference with the first mate the captain agreed to the offer and moment's later the ship turned around and headed east. With the winds of the stern quarter of the ship the trip went really quickly, only having to zig and zag around a few large ice flows on the way. Within a few hours the ship rounded the breakwaters of the Dawnstar port and anchored in the harbor.

Once ashore, Geminus made a quick stop at town store for provisions and then the tavern where he knew a courrier would be waiting. Hastily writing a note to Melee he told her that he would be in Dawnstar for another day and that if the group was able to get there he'd meet up with them to continue with their adventure.
Handing the note and the report to the courrier with a few extra septims over his normal rate, he told him where to start looking for Melee. Then, getting an ale and bowl of stew he sat down at a table to wait for news and listened to the conversations going on in the tavern.

One of the conversations caught his attention. It was about the recent attack of the Falmer. It seems that after the attack a bunch of the town residents went into the quicksilver mine and the mine called Iron-Breaker in an attempt to locate the Falmer and get their people back. What they found was that the tracks lead to the deepest part of the mine and a dead end. Apparently the Falmer had dug through to the end of the mines and when they retreated and caved in each of the mines and it would take months of combined labor to break through the rubble. Neither mine could afford that though and with sad hearts they had quit working. There was even talk of closing the mines permanently by caving them in but dissent was raised by others saying that would ruin what economy they had left.

Another conversation by a mage and a Nord sitting behind Geminus caught his attention. The Jarl was apparently killed in the recent attack. The mage, Madena he learned, said that the death didn't seem right. The sword that was driven in to Jarl Skald's back was not Falmer although it looked remarkably like it. Jod, the Jarl's housecarl, agreed but then said there was nothing that could be done aobut it because they didn't have the resources to protect the town and find the real killers.

There was other talk of a strange dark door up the coast that was recently unearthed from the earthquakes and others talked about a so-called museum for the Mythic Dawn and that the owner was a Deadra worshiper. They even passed around pamphlets about the musuem.

The only other conversation was from a few sailors from the ship called The Sea Squall. Apparently the captain needed someone to retrieve a shipment of Void Salts that some drunk sailors took to a nearby cave and left it behind. None of the sailors wanted to leave the ship with the recent attacks.

 

[Geel-Kajin]

Geel groaned, muttering "We will never get this guy on his feet in time and we have to leave soon." Geel wondered how he would carry him gently enough to prevent further damage.

Turning around, he strode back to the inn. A rough sack lay in the corner of the inn, filled with frozen potatoes to survive the winter. He emptied out the vegetables, dragging the huge sack the way he came. Hopefully this would work.

Carefully, he took the man up and placed him legs first into the sack, which he propped against a tree. It was impossible for Geel to carry the whole man, so he and Alistar each held an arm and placed him in. Geel had never been incredibly muscular, and if anything was rather a wimp in physical endurance. This had already caused great strain on his arms, and by the time they pulled the sack back, his breath came short and rasping. This style of transport was also not the safest for the man, with chances of him bruising, but they had no choice but to use it.

Seeing the old man wake up slightly from the brittle cold, he passed him a chunk of fish meat before the man tried to speak. Hopefully that would keep him from planting even more seeds of doubt into Geel's confused brain. He looked around, before telling anyone left in the inn,"We need to go soon, are you ready?"

Taking a piece of coal from the hot fireplace, he danced it between his fingers, attempting to make as little contact with it as possible while it cooled. When the embers finally burnt themselves out, he brought the coal outside along with a sheet of paper he tore out of an empty page in Farengar's journal. He brought it to the battleground which they fought, and smeared the tips of the paper with Falmer blood. That way, at least the recipent of this letter would smell it.

Emberlynn,
Hope you see this. We are going to Dawnstar. We know you helped us today, hope to see you there. If anything, know this : Most people fear you, but that doesn't mean we will. Give us a chance to prove that.

Weighing it down with a Falmer helmet, he decided to collect some "ink". Having regained his sight, he now required a new writing method. Pulling up a falmer, he hung it by it's legs on the branches of a tree using twine. Then, he cut it's neck and let it's blood ooze into a empty vial. He felt rather uncomfortable in doing this, and the glassy orbs of the falmer seemed to stare at him in accusation. He forced himself not to look in their directions, fearing their gaze to petrify him forever. Stoppering the red ink, he placed it beside several sheets of paper in his bag.

he returned for the last time to the inn. His new sword swayed upon his belt, the cruel winds letting it's malice shimmer in the weapon.

He returned for the last time into the inn, taking the potatoes from the sack he emptied with him. Hopefully nobody saw them going. He felt guilty doing so, a trait which never left him. Whether it be assassinating people with the Dark Brotherhood or insulting Rale, he felt slightly bad after doing it. He was trying to be rational, telling himself that they had more use for the potatoes, but this was one time it did not work. He hastily placed them in after a few nervous glances, and opened the door to the inn.

He let himself sit for a while,idling in the sunshine which streamed through the cracked windows.

 

[Gemini Sierra]

[Riften, Bee and Barb Tavern]
Vorman BeastBlood sat in the corner of the tavern nursing a mug of mead watching the crowd. Most of the crowd would ignore him but sometimes one would look over at him and scowl at him. The didn't like the Nord/Elf mix breed. They thought he was trouble because of the horrible scar on his face and the paint under his eyes. They tollerated him though, because his father was a Thane of the city and he had money.

As Vorman sat there, he listened to the various stories being told and rumors being circulated. One caught his attention and his wanderlust flared, the need to hunt grew strong. There was talk of a Falmer uprising in Whiterun and the earthquake that shook Skyrim before it. Naturally some where blaming the mages in the College at Winterhold, but some others said it was an unnatural occurance. There were stories talking about how a Legion army swept in from Solitude at just the right moment and force it back, and stories even mentioned a band of intrepid adventures that had helped out and eventually went on a mission together to find out where the Falmer came from and what caused the massive earthquake. When one storyteller stepped up and told of the Falmer attack on Dawnstar, Vorman knew he wanted to help. He was getting antsy hanging out in Riften and the Beast in him wanted to be on the hunt, it was at that moment he decided he was going to see if he could help just so he could get out of Riften for a while.

Later that evening he told his father his plans. His father was hesitant at first saying that he wasn't ready for an adventure like that, but the cold look from Vorman, the fire of his Beast-blood showing in his eyes and the fact that he was nearly finished packing his backpack changed his fathers mind. They sat down and had a meal together and that night his father gave him a prized possession, a steel sword imbued with flame magic.
After a few drinks together they went to their separate beds and Vorman fell asleep dreaming of the hunt.
The next morning he was up early and after a harty breakfast he gathered his things, said goodbye to his father and went out to the stables. There he hired the carriage for the trip to Dawnstar. He had decided that night this was a good place as any to start the hunt for Falmer.

[Whiterun, Bannered Mare Tavern]
Edwyn Strongheart, a Breton, sat by the fire listening to the bard tell his stories and his songs. He had just recently gotten to Whiterun and saw some of the damage done by earthquake and the attack by the Falmer.

Edwyn was looking for something to do, his recent excursions into the depths of Bleak Falls Barrow netted him some souls from the ancient Druager and he had some fun re-animating them to make them fight each other while he stood back laughing. The power of magic pleased him and making the dead fight each other was an just plain fun. He had collected all the gold and gems off the dead and scoured a few tombs before leaving and coming to Whiterun. He sold off the gems making a nice little profit and went to the tavern for some much needed drinking.

Most of the tavern was weary of the Breton mage sitting by the fire. There was something dark about him. The last mage in the city, Farengar Secret-Fire, was killed during the Falmer attack. There were rumors going around that the blind Argonian apprentice had actually killed Farengar when he used a Thu'um and had then run off with a band of adventures. Still others said that wasn't possible because the Argonian rarely left the wizards study in Dragonreach.

Edwyn heard the talk of Jarl Balgruuf's death too, valiantly fighting the Falmer in the market only to be slain by a magic weilding beast of a Falmer. The burial was set to be in a few days, a Pyre atop the Skyforge.
Edwyn considered for a few minutes making an appeal to be the new Jarl's court wizard. The pay could be good and he could practice his dark arts out on the plains without anyone interfering. "The bandits would make great thralls," he thought. Then another rumor caught his attention. It was about a Falmer attack in Dawnstar and how the Jarl there was killed under mysterious circumstances. Some said that he wasn't actually killed by the Falmer, just made to look like it.

Edwyn watched the person telling the story and when the man got up to relieve himself, he followed him out of the tavern. As the man finished his business Edwyn approached him "I heard you talking about the Falmer attack and Dawnstar Jarls death. Tell me more, it intriques me."
"Who in Oblivion are you?" the man asked "An interested party is all. Actually, I'm seeking some work at the moment," replied Edwyn. "Well in that case, you should head up to Dawnstar and talk to Barina Merillis. I've heard she has taken over as Jarl and is looking for someone to help out with the investigation. She's got to much else to do in rebuilding the town after the Falmer attack."
"How did you come by this information?" asked Edwyn. "Oh, uhm well, I was a guard in Dawnstar before... well, before the attack. I'm on leave now," replied the man. "I see, well thanks, maybe I'll look into it." With that the Breton went back into the Tavern and requested a room for the night.

The next morning Edwyn, at age 35 awoke slowly and checked out. He went to the Whiterun Stables where the stable keeper told him the carriage from Riften was do in any time now on its way to Solitude. As promised the carriage arrive with one other occupant. After paying the carriage drivers fee, he boarded and they were off.

 

[skyrimbeast]

"Where are you off to friend"? Asked the Wood elf mutt, noticing he wasn't the only non normal Skyrim citizen." You know, we're not so differant are we, we're both foreigners to this land", he said in an attempt to make a little friendship with this breton. "Oh, dont be shy friend let me start us off, well I'm off to Dawnstar to do a little bit of buisness but that's not important to you anyway, so where you heading"? He said as he took in the breath-taking views of Skyrim.

 

[Geel-Kajin]

"We need to go. I shall go see if there is any means of transport around here" Geel said. He had worried that since the inn was on a small road, there might not be any form on transport,making carrying the old man as well as belongings difficult. The innkeeper quickly told him what he had to know: Go straight and reach the main road. A carriage passes by in two hours, then it doesn't reach us for at least 3 days.

Informing his companions in the inn of his plan, he went out in search of Einarr. To his surprise, the woods had totally hidden him, and no ammount of searching would reveal him from the undergrowth. Perhaps he had even gone too far in. Walking to the Falmer site,he placed a second sheet of paper on the floor, informing Einarr they were going to his destination in an hour. He hoped the boy would find it in time.

As he wrote upon paper, he realized how painstaking it was to write. The quill was scratchy, the paper uneven. He thought of Farengar, and how hard it must have been for him to write a journal. He had counted the number of pages back then, with resulted in at least 200 sheers of parchment bound in that leather book. He had gone through the book several times now, but never thought of it that way. But what chilled him was he had not felt remorse after Farengar's death. Striking, but true. He had often forced himself to mourn, but for some reason never felt like it.

What kind of person am I, to not be sad when my teacher for many years died? How do I not feel the will to mourn? Geel had often attributed this to the fact that Argonians rarely felt anything for other races, but knew it wasnt a case, especially after meeting this group. SHrugging off the nagging thoughts, he began a slow walk towards the main road, dragging the old man carefully behind.

 

[Skyrimosity]

"Interesting" thought Edwyn. I am also on my way to Dawnstar for some business. Maybe I should ask this Wood Elf, or was he a Nord, about why he's on his way there as well. "I am also travelling to Dawnstar. I have a cousin who died there and I'm off to the funeral." He cannot know the true reason, yet. "May I inquire why you are heading to Dawnstar? What sort of business will you be doing in a nearly destroyed city?"

 

[Gemini Sierra]

[Blackreach - War Quarters]

Sitting at a table, looking over a map of Skyrim, the lone figure pulled a pin out of the cushion off to the side and he placed it a location on the map. Windhelm. He looked over the map and smiled. "They'll never know what hit them," he thought. He stood up and paced around the table looking at the map. He stared hard at a pin near the marker for the Great Lift of Alftand as if he willed something to happen. He'd sent a patrol out there the day before to discover what they could find about this group of adventures that were looking for the machine. They haven't returned yet and he presumed they met their end at the hands of these adventurers.

He picked up his goblet of Snowberry Mead and sipped it. The taste was tart but refreshing a brew of his own making something he loved to do. He took another sip and called for his lieutenant. When the ugly beast of a Falmer entered the room it reeked of Charaus and sweat. He would be so grateful when these creatures would be bred out of the Elven linage and the Snow Elves would once again take over Skyrim. In the meantime, these creatures would do his bidding because he controlled the machine and they recognized him as an Elf that would lead them to a new world. Well, almost controlled the machine. He needed a few parts to make it work properly. His ancestors in the Falmer race had stolen them from the Dwemer machine so long ago and none knew where they were.

"Yes, my Prince. You called?" said the wretched Falmer. "I did, you miserable whelp. Send another patrol out the Lift at Alftand and find out what has happened with the previous patrol. Make it quick!" "You're wish is my command, my Prince." The large repulsive Falmer backed out of the room and ran off into Blackreach towards the lift.

After staring at the map a few more minutes, the "Prince" picked up the goblet of mead and finished it off. Striding to the door of the War Quarter, he opened it and looked outside. The eerie glow of Blackreach sent a chill down his spine and he longed to see the sun and moons above. He dared not go outside yet lest he be discovered and his secret revealed.

 

[Rale]

The fight had taken a lot of energy out of Rale, but it was what he needed after so much boredom in the past few days. He took of his mask and hood and sat by a the road and took in a deep breath, it was windy today, so the air was cold and refreshing after that heated battle. He wiped the sweat off of his fore head and cleaned the blood from the sword in the grass which was covered in dew. He then lay back onto the grass and stared up at the sky.

He sat there in the wind for a while, thinking of his past, as usual, taking in the environment and not arguing or scowling at anyone. Relaxing was a nice change from that. He was disturbed when he heard a loud rustling in the bushes besides him. He picks up his sword and stands up, ready to fight whatever comes out of the leaves. A white ball of fluff hopped out and ran over to Rale, rubbing against his leg. It was that damned rabbit again.

He shook his head, how was it able to track him this far, its just a rabbit. Then, he heard the bushes rustle again. Out came a pale, Imperial woman who started shouting at the rabbit. Rales eyes widened and he stared in disbelief. His amazed expression turned into a frown, then a furious face. "Emberlyyn!" He shouted angrily, and charged towards her with his sword above his head, blinded by rage.

 

[Melee]

Melee walks out into the bright sun, her eyes adjusting from the previously comfortable darkness of the inn. She shields her eyes with her hand, looking in the direction she assumed Gem had gone in. As she looked further down the road, she could see a small number of people (Is that Geel and Alistar? Who are they with?) kneeling next to a figure lying on the ground, presumably because he was injured or weary from traveling. Probably both.

As Melee walked closer to them, she started to get a better view of Geel and Alistar (So that IS them) tending to an older man who looked like he had been in quite a fight. Even from the distance she was at, she could see some very visible marks and wounds covering his body. He was laying on what appeared to be a sack, as if they had already moved him from his original location. Probably trying to get him to the inn, she thought as she looked around.

When looking around, a couple of things registered in Melee's mind. The first was Rale laying on the ground a short distance away, just under the cover of the shade the trees were giving off. He had his hood and mask off, and was surprised when she actually found herself somewhat happy that he wasn't injured, and looked like he actually might be relaxing.

The second thing she saw was a carriage, far down the road from them. It looked like it would be making a stop at the inn, and she decided that they could ask for passage to Dawnstar once it arrived.

The last thing she saw, as she was turning back toward the rest of the group to tell them of the nearing carriage, was two flashes, one light and one dark, moving quickly off the side of the road near the forest. Once she actually stopped and looked to see what had caught her eye, Melee realized that the flashes were Rale and Emberlynn. Rale had his sword drawn, charging toward Emberlynn, who, much paler since the last time Melee had seen her, was shielding her newly-sensitive skin from the sun. She froze; it felt like she was moving in slow motion, her feet taking hours to completely plant themselves on the ground. She looked worriedly (And so slowly, too! Damn it!) from Rale to Emberlynn, yelling for him to stop. Out of all the times she had been able to prevent something like this from happening however, she would not be able to stop this one; she was simply too far away, and could only hope that either Rale would stop or Emberlynn (or someone else) would be able to defend herself.



((Oh my gosh this is a horrible post and it took me so long to write it and I'm not happy with it but I just wanted to get caught up with everything and it's 1 in the morning and I just kind of wrote this really quickly so I hope it works and bunny better save Emberlynn.))

 

[skyrimbeast]

"Well, I am going to investigate a bit but I am also expecting to find a group, but I dont even know much of that group yet so dont even bother asking, lets just say I have got some private buisness to do with the uprising of the Falmer". Vorman tried to change the subject, he asked the driver, "Hey, drive where are we and how far are we from Dawnstar"? And then the elf cross nord sat back down and took a look in his satchel.

 

[Gemini Sierra]

[Blackreach - Sinderion's Laboratory]
The Prince decided to take a stroll over to the laboratory of Sinderion, an Altmer from long ago. His skeleton was found in there along with his journal and notes on the Crimson Nirnroot. The Falmer had pushed it all aside and when the Prince was old enough to read the journals he soon realized the skeleton belong to the journal and the journal had a name in it. Sinderion. So, the Prince named the facility after him.

Sinderion had been an alchemist and his notes made for interesting reading. The Prince want to learn about everything there was in regards to the world above. Now the facility was used as a house. There were several Falmer captives there now too. Altmer women from the villages around Skyrim. They were his wives, willing or not, they didn't try to escape. Maybe they didn't know where they were and the Falmer scared them enough to make them stay. Maybe they were fascinated by him. He was rather attractive to them. Nothing like a Falmer and very much like an Altmer except that his skin was very pale in contrast to their golden hued skin
He didn't know. He asked them once and they only said they were grateful to be alive. Several were pregnant now too. He hoped the offspring would be nothing like the Falmer and that in generations to come the Snow Elves would return. He felt like a god seeding a new race, the machine helped that feeling too.

He knew that Falmer used to be called Snow Elves because he'd read about them in the books his minions gather on their raids. The Hall of Ruminations was full of books now. He'd read them all. Spellbooks, skillbooks, storybooks, everything that he could get his hands on.

The Prince looked around the Laboratory at the women and at the work they were doing on his armor. It would shine like the one in the story about the Snow Prince... Fall of the Snow Prince by Lokheim. It was one of his favorites and saddest ones. He loved two passages out of it:

From whence he came we did not know, but into the battle he rode, on a brilliant steed of pallid white. Elf we called him, for Elf he was, yet unlike any other of his kind we had ever seen before that day. His spear and armor bore the radiant and terrible glow of unknown magicka, and so adorned this unknown rider seemed more wight than warrior.

and this one:

"The Snow Prince is come! Doom is at hand!"

He so named himself Prince and has become on too! He closed the door and continued his walk around Blackreach stopping at the Farm Overseer's House.

 

[Geel-Kajin]

Geel dragged the potato sack along the dusty road, annoyed by the rustling sound the fabric made. He felt somewhat self-conscious at this point, for anyone who looked at him would believe he was a farmer. Hoping not to convey the message that he was a pitchfork-holding-wheat-picking small brain, he tried to at least look dignified while dragging the sack.

As he rounded the bend to the main road, he caught sight of a blur of movement, a shifting in the snow. Squinting at it, he realized what, or rather who, it was. With a shock, he accidentally let go of his side of the sack, making Alistar stumble at the other side and nearly trip due to the sack's weight. Emberlynn, Rale and Melee? Surely....

 

[Skyrimosity]

"This is a strange one" thought Edwyn. Clearly hiding something, he's jittery and avoids the question. Not to mention a certain... emptiness in his eyes. He's likely going to Dawnstar for the same reason as I, but he likely has a different contact. And he so quickly and pathetically tried to change the subject. "Ah, the investigator are we? I'm more of the warrior type myself. I don't use the steel-plated armors or fancy heavy weapons like some of these Nor... locals." Edwyn restrained himself from accidentally insulting the man because he at least was part Nord. He also appeared to be part Wood Elf, but there was something else. "Aside from my cousin's funeral, I also have a bit of business in Dawnstar. Something about the Jarl. Heard anything about it?" Edwyn wanted to make some sort of connection with the man. Feared Necromancers are not exactly welcomed as a friend in Skyrim, and he had noone to talk to besides the occasional visits with his Aunt in the middle of the forest outside Ivarstead.

 

[Gemini Sierra]

[Dawnstar - Windpeak Inn]
Geminus had listened to most of the conversations going on near him. He was getting a little tire... or was it bored... after a moment of thought he realize it was boredom... he missed the group of adventures no matter how strange they were.

He thought for a moment, there was Geel - the Argonian mage that was blind and a skooma addict until just recently, how he survived so long without killing someone or himself with his magics was amazing. He seemed to have a lot of knowledge though... how he got that was a mystery too.

There was Rale, broody fellow, has a penchant for killing and doesn't seem to care who... hot tempered too. Seemed to enjoy ridiculing and insulting everyone. I think he's sweet on Emberlynn, well, until she turned vampire... she was the focus of most of his insults in the time he knew him and it's always been said you hurt the ones you love.
He nearly laughed out loud at his own joke...

There was Emberlynn, young rich Imperial girl, probably spoiled as a kid, wanted to be a mage and a warrior, she seemed good at the mage part from what she saw that night she completely turned, and fairly adept with the sword she had, but then was turned by a vampire. He didn't quite know how he felt about that situation. He wanted to cure her of the disease because vampirism was unnatural and evil, and yet, he felt that he should ultimately let her decide and if she chose to remain a vampire, help her survive. If she could survive, control the urges... as a vampire, she could be a powerful ally, but, when has he heard of a vampire being good? Of course, there was the consideration of the Divines, they weren't exactly friendly towards Daedra types.

Who else, ah yes, Alistar, another broody fellow. Said he was the last of the Rangers, The Order used to work with them until they disappeared or disbanded long ago. He couldn't remember the whole story. He's good with a sword and bow.

There was also Einarr, timid young boy from this town, Dawnstar,said he grew up here. Lost his mother at childbirth and looked after his drunk abusive father. Frail too... wanted to be a warrior like his dad used to be but could barely swing his mace. With a lot of dedicated training and conditioning he could probably make a decent soldier in a few years. Then there is the magic that he's developed. Strange, different... dark. Hope he can control it. He might make a better mage with his physical conditioning.

Last but not least is Melee. The High Elf with the short unkempt hair... purple hair. He wondered how she got it that color. Easy on the eyes too... he smiled at that thought... She was good with a bow and a calming force with the group. Not sure if that's her nature or just how it worked out. He wondered what it would be like to be in a relationship with an Altmer. That thought brought a smile, and he buried his face in his tankard, draining it in one long gulp.

He hailed the barmaid, Karita was her name, and ordered another tankard of ale. "I think I'll have several more of these tonight," he thought.

There were others along the way since he met the group... Asgar, seemed like a nice enough fellow but he disappeared somewhere along the trek to Nightsgate Inn. There was an Orc early on, strange one that guy. He left after running into the group at that tomb... that had the vampire. Maybe the Orc knew what happened and what was going to happen and didn't want to be a part of it. Actually, I think Asgar was pretty upset about Emberlynn being turned and also didn't want to be around a vampire.

A priest came into the tavern at the moment, he looked worried, he looked like he wanted help, but the towns people didn't want anything to do with him... there was some quick talk about nightmares and rumors about them getting worse since the priest showed up. This might be something he could do while he waited for the others... maybe I should've just hiked back to Nightsgate... nah, probably would have missed them and then felt even worse. Tracking them though, that wouldn't be hard, just follow the dead Falmer.

He watched Karita sashay around the room getting drinks and flirting... most of the folks seemed to have already put the attack behind them... but he could tell from the whispers that some were still scared.

 

[Gemini Sierra]

[Blackreach - Farm Overseer's House]
He opened the door and stepped through. The place was a mess. The farm used to be run by the Dwemer and then the Falmer when they farmed the food the Dwemer gave them, a staple of their lives which caused them to go blind. It wasn't in any use anymore since his mother died long ago and the farm isn't being used since the Dwemer no longer exist andthe Falmer raid Skyrim for what they wanted and needed. He came back here often though because he'd grewn up here. He was a mistake, a surprise really. Many years ago a Falmer raid had gone to the area around Solitude, there an Altmer woman was abducted and instead of the usual torture, then feeding them to the Charaus one of the Falmer mated with the High Elf. She was kept as a slave in this house and forced to help prepare meals from the foods that were scavenged. To the surprise of the Falmer and the Altmer woman she had gotten pregnant and after a grueling pregnancy the child was born. He had all the features of an Altmer except he had the pale grey skin of the Falmer and he had his eyes.



He looked around and remembered his youth. His mother wouldn't hold him at first but after a while the mothering instinct took hold and she nursed him until old enough to take solid foods. She had insisted that he be fed foods from the farms up above in Skyrim. She wanted him to learn about Skyrim and Tamriel and had convinced the Falmer to gather books and regular elven clothing. He grew up healthy and strong. He was alone though and he didn't have the childhood life of regular Elves. He'd read about them in the books and his mother kept him away from the Falmer children. She didn't want their grotesque ways to be inflicted on her boy.

His mother was a mage and taught him about magic and alchemy and he grew adept in all the forms of magic. Eventually because of the stories he wanted to fight too. He watched the Falmer practicing and learned how to use a sword and shield. He hated the ones that the Falmer used. The stank of the Charaus. He was starting to realize he was better than the Falmer.

On one of the raids, near Solitude again, the Falmer dragged back a Thalmor guard in full Elven Armor. The Prince took it and made it his. He hated the golden color though and painted it an off white color, with a slight purple tint. It matched the glow of Blackreach and his skin.

He went through several variations of the armor as he grew up and outgrew the armor. He stood well over six fee tall now and was nearly as built as the elven warriors that were dragged down to Blackreach.

He really wanted to go above ground. Maybe he'd risk getting caught and take one of the great lifts up. He'd stay near the lift. He wanted to see and feel the sun.

He left the farmhouse and went back to the War Quarters. He had plans to make. He needed to find those missing pieces to the machine. He needed a quality blacksmith to make his armor. He had an idea...

 

[Gemini Sierra]

[Skyrim - Great Lift at Alftand]
The Falmer Shadowmaster, the lieutenant the Snow Prince sent out looking for the previous patrol, opened the gate of the Lift and with the squad of Skulkers emerged into the daylight. He squinted at the harshness of the sun and envied the others because they were still blind, but he also enjoyed the sun. He was one of the few in his generation of Falmer that were regaining their sight.

It started happening a few decades back, when the supply of that nasty food stuff the Dwemer had made a staple of the Falmer food supply started dying off and then the reserve supplies ran out. Somehow they realized that they were no longer dependent on that particular nasty stuff for their meals and to enhance that realization the raiding of the above world started, and they began sampling those foods scavenged from the raids. Then it started happening, he didn't know the particulars of the why or how, he didn't care, but one or two out of every generation since then were being born with eyes. They were so sensitive to light though and rarely ventured beyond Blackreach. Some tried living in the Dwemer ruins but the magical lights of the Dwemer were to harsh for them. He was a lucky one though. He was born in a Dwemer ruin and grew up in the light and was used to it, but he still had difficulty going above ground, especially on clear bright sunny days. He liked it when he went above ground and it was snowing, raining, really cloudy out and at night when the moons were up.

A sudden gust of wind kicked up the snow around the lift and shook him out of his reverie. The gust was cold with the winter winds but they were used to it. The Shadowmaster moved around the lift and scrambled up the rocks on the hillside behind the lif to look down into the valley. Crouching behind a large boulder he could see the Nightgate Inn but not the road below because of the hillside. Signalling to the Skulkers to stay close to the lift, he scaled the rocks and moved closer to the road.

What he saw annoyed him. The previous patrol was laying dead all over the roadside. There was one stung up in a tree like a deer being drained after a hunt. He could just make out movement on the far side of the road. There were for of them... above worlders... three humans and an Argonian. Two of them were dancing, no, they were about to fight... the Argonian and the third human were dragging somthing large in a sack.. a movement from near the Inn caught his eye, an Altmer woman, started to rush down the hill towards the others, drawing her bow but hesitating... another movement back by the road, the Argonian had dropped the sack nearly tripping the other human who was still trying to hold it up... The Argonian ran towards the other two... Back down the road towards Windhelm, a carriage was slowly making its way up the steep road.

He'd seen enough, the Prince needed to know what happened to the Patrol... and that the band of adventurers that he was so worried about seemed to be falling apart... that had to be a good thing for the Prince!

 

[Melee]

Melee knew she couldn't wait for anyone else, or even Emberlynn herself, to do anything to stop Rale from swinging his sword down and taking her head off. She ran forward, pushing herself off as hard as she could as she shouldered her bow and adjusted it on her back. She glanced to the right for a brief moment, catching sight of Geel running toward them but still a fair distance down the road. Melee almost thought that she saw something pale and white behind some rocks beyond where he was, but the idea of actually having seen something didn't even register in her mind; it had probably been a trick of light, since she was now turning her head to look back at Rale.

As Rale reached Emberlynn and lifted up his sword to finally bring it down on her, Melee sprinted behind him, catching his arms while they were still above his head. As she ran to his left, she spun around and pulled down his arms, forcing him to not only reduce his swing so that it stopped just short of Emberlynn's shielding arm, but also to tumble to the ground in front of her. The force of executing her spin after coming in from a full on sprint caused her to slide a bit after she stopped, and she released Rale's arms and brought her own hands down to bring herself to a stop.

She looked up, letting out a large sigh, more so from the relief that she'd stopped Rale than from the amount of energy she had just exerted in doing so. She suddenly saw the bunny (is that the same one from a few days ago?) hopping madly in circles around everyone's feet, squeaking as it went. It must be pretty worked up, Melee thought as she watched it for a second before looking toward Emberlynn. "Are you ok?"


((I hope this is ok (especially for Rale, since I pretty much just took him down, haha). If not, let me know and I'll edit it!))