Akemmi part 25 - From Riften to Winterhold
" Hofgrir told me to come and warn you that there are Thalmor soldiers waiting up the road for you, you won't make it past the last watchtower and only that far because they aren't really welcome here and you are. Your horses are at the farm on the other side of town, saddled and ready to go. If there are Thalmor there I did not see them."
I grabbed some gold from my pack and handed it to Signar, who thanked Shadr and asked him to wake Nelthas and let him know. I hurried into my armor while Signar got into his, being done first I helped him into his plate and had our packs ready to go. Nelthas tapped on the door and said that he was going to scout ahead of us and take out any spies. When we walked out the door Tex was nowhere to be found either.
As we walked down the stairs, Signar put his hand on my arm and stopped me, "My Lady, can you get to the farm without being seen?". I nodded
"But not without you, Love." He leaned over and kissed me.
"Do it, they are probably looking for three of us and at the very least, you." I gave him a quick kiss and said alright. I got to the bottom of the steps and looked around, but no one was there, I cast the spell for invisibility, then waited for Signar to open the door, slipping out around him. Once I was out and in the deeper shadows I cast two other spells, one to mask my life force the other would allow me to be one with the shadows, while in them.
I slipped down to the lower level, keeping pace with Signar as I went. I caught movement on the roof of the building across the canal and above. I enhanced my vision with a spell and watched for a minute. He stepped into a shadow but pulled down his mask and I saw Nelthas's face, then he disappeared into the shadows. I chuckled to myself... So Signar had two watchers, perhaps three if Tex hadn't gone straight to the farm.
Before I started up the stairs I cast a small spell that was useless in crypts but allowed for the detection of the heat from a live body. I had found over the years that it was harder to master, but much more reliable than detect life, which with the right masking spell, could be thwarted. The muffle spell I used would keep anyone from hearing me.
I went quickly up the stairs and looked around, only the regular guards, so I hurried to the gate, staying to one side and when Signar went through, passed right behind him. Once outside the gate, I kept close to the lake, figuring Nelthas would have the mountainside. I cast my detect heat spell again and saw three men hiding in bushes, as that wasn't something the guards would do, I looked around to make sure no one else was near and then got closer to them. I drew my bow and pulled out the small vial of paralytic poison that Nelthas had given me.
When they started making the tiny movements of men that were getting ready to attack but wanted to stay hidden a bit longer, I put a few drops of the poison on two arrows. As one of the men started to draw his bow, I drew mine and shot him then targeted one of the others. Seeing a tiny blur, I hesitated and moved on to the next man. As I let loose that second arrow, Nelthas became visible as he slit the second man's throat, then disappeared again.
Signar had never slowed down in his walk and was almost to the farm. I circled above him and cast my spells again. This time I saw no one, Signar was getting on his horse and leading the other two away from the farm. I finally saw Tex who was laying next to the road, slightly above the farm. I snaked through the woods as quietly as I could, getting ahead of Signar and the horses.
It wasn't till I got to the split in the trail for the mill, that I stopped casting and looking for Thalmor, if they were around, we would run into them on the road now. I waited for Signar to catch up, when he got to me, Nelthas was already on his horse and Tex was out to the side.
" Did you run into anyone else, Nelthas?"
"No, Muthsera, I did not, you?" I just shook my head and got on my horse. "The spells you used, you can teach them to me?"
"You can do Illusion spells?" at his nod I continued, " 'One with the Shadows", it's a master-level spell, but using an object will not break your cover and it is only cover, in the shadows. The other is a plain invisibility spell so that when I wasn't in shadows I wouldn't be seen anyway, but that one broke as soon as I dug into my pouch."
On the way to Winterhold, I taught him the spells I knew for invisibility, some would need more power than others. For an Assassin, Chameleon would come in handy, an apprentice spell, that probably hadn't been taught in a few hundred years. An assassin in the Imperial city had taught me the spells, in return for a couple favors.
It took us the better part of two weeks to get to Winterhold. The stop at the Shrine of Azura didn't take long and the Priestess asked for a small favor in return for the help Nelthas was asking of her. We got stopped at the gates to the College by an over-eager member, who would not let us pass without proving that I had an aptitude for magic. I was sorely tempted to cast a levitation spell on her, but I didn't think the reception to that would go over well. So I just asked if a Dragonborn would be allowed entrance to speak to the Librarian?
Not it seemed without demonstrating my Thu'um, which would probably bring the wrath of the guards down on us or not since it came from the direction of the College. She welcomed me as an Apprentice and said to speak to the Headmistress about a bed and classes. Both men gwaufed and Tex snorted, I just shook my head and kept walking.
In the courtyard, we passed a woman that I took to be the Headmistress who was talking to a Thalmor, who seemed to have issues with the way no one was answering his, probably, intrusive questions. The woman was dressing him down about it, telling him he was only here at the goodwill of the Arch-mage and he needed to tone down his questioning.
We walked past the two and headed inside and then up to the library, where to my surprise there was an Orc behind the library desk. He had information that I needed and gave me a couple pieces of advice, about how to find his old friend, who was an expert on Elder Scrolls.
From the Library, we went up to the roof of the college and I scanned the area for the highest peaks that would give me a clear view of the ice flows and the islands. I pointed out to the men the barrow and that is where we would be going, I needed a high spot. We bought as many supplies as the general goods store had, including firewood as there probably would not be any in the Barrow and we would not be going in unless we had to.... then again old tables and dressers would burn as well as chopped wood, so if needs be we would.
We rode out to the barrow and set up camp, after clearing it of the inhabitants. I warned both men that after casting the two spells I needed to look, I would end up flat on my back, I was not yet powerful enough to cast two master-level spells back to back. So after waiting till nightfall, when most animals would be off the ice flows, I drank a potion to regenerate health and another to regenerate magic and caste both spells.
I staggered as the cost of the spells hit me, but stayed standing, the master-level Clairvoyance spell lit up the best path to take, the Spirit Walker spell allowed me to follow it. I flew behind the spell and found the cave entrance and turned to look for two landmarks that I could triangulate from. Having them in hand, I rushed back to my body, watching as the landmarks changed.
We spent the next day right there, as I was weak enough not to want to chance a fight on the ice flows. When I was ready to go, Nelthas stayed at the barrow with the horses, and Signar, Tex, and I went to see the Librarian's old friend Signus.
He had more good news for me, it seemed we would need to go through a Dwemer city to one of their deepest places a place called Blackreach.
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