Ah, back to stupid things that children do. Uh oh, it was a dare! Well, she had to go and pull that big cat's tail now, didn't she?

She never got to even pull the cat's tail. Doh! At least she survived, and apparently learned to not do something like that again.

Sten has a much more amusing - if less life-threatening - story to tell!

Some nice bonding as the pair travels Skyrim's snowy wilds.

I was interested to learn about Bosmer maturation in Lili’s world. The thought of so many toddler years gives me a shudder. I imagine that the whole community would have an eye out keeping their children safe. I loved Lili and Sten swapping stories as they walked.

It sounds like they are well prepared to ride out the storm whenever and wherever it hits. I’m looking forward to seeing what’s inside this cave!

I see what you're saying, how you picture each chapter as a series of scenes. Like in the first sentences, Sten can hear Susanna clearly but not Lili so much. Wow, look at that armor set.

Lili has a feather spell! The Nord is right, pack that fur cloak, this is Skyrim.

It reminds me of zombies and other necromantic entities,” Lilisfina’s voice grew soft, as if to speak of such things aloud would summon them. ---- Agreed. In a world where kitty-cat people walk around and it's possible to call beings from other planes to perform your bidding, certainly it could be possible to speak words which could cause the deceased to rise. You never know.

Conversation about Talos had me smiling. The way it's a touchy subject.

They're getting to know each other on their journey to Forsaken Cave. The Medieval version of us in our modern world, taking a train perhaps, sitting next to someone we don't know (or don't know so well, maybe a co-worker) and filling time with conversation.

... Sten tried to ride a cow at 5 years of age!

Gasp at the view, heck yes.

It’s getting colder, should I pull out the fur cloak? --- Yes.

@Acadian: Yes, Lili and Sten will eventually progress to "I'll show you mine if you show me yours!" I remember your dissertation of Bosmer fertility and reproduction in previous Buffy books. However, I found in the Lore that Bosmer are the most prolific of the Elven races when it comes to offspring - it is not uncommon to have as many as 12 - 15 children! As I see it, life in the forest is hard, and the survival rate is relatively low, so few children actually survive to reproductive age. Between the senche, the carnivorous plants, and the (occasional) Wild Hunts, I suspect Valenwood can support only so many at a time. And yes, the trio is prepared for camping should they be caught out! Though actual camping won't happen for a while.

@SageRose: I spent a bit of time thinking how they would bond, and realized swapping childhood stories would be a good start for the two. It's a way to highlight how different their early experiences were, yet how similar. More bonding of a different nature coming up! Though not quite what you may think . . .

@Grits: It's interesting that you would point out that the toddler stage is prolonged in the Bosmer world, and that it would take more than just two 'rents to keep an eye on them. I've always pictured those smaller settlements we come across in ESO Valenwood as "family" units - they're all related to each other in one way or another, and all take part in child rearing duties. After all, it takes a village graht-oak . . .

@Renee: Yes, Lili has a feather spell! That, along with her little flame spell and healing touch, are part of her mage's repertoire. As she grows her skills, we'll see that spell list expand over time. As we've come to see, Lili hardly goes anywhere without that fur cloak . . .

And now we enter a cave - or is it a cave?

***********************************

Middas 20 Last Seed - Into the Forsaken

It was an interesting walk from Windhelm up to Forsaken Cave. Boss told a funny tale about pulling a big cat’s tail when she was a kid, and I told her about trying to ride Thistle. Lots of laughter - she has a sense of humor unlike most mages I’ve met. Almost like the Khajiit. We got to the cave without any problems, and even though the weather was threatening to storm, we had good luck with it and got inside before snow started flying.

Wolf howls and barks greeted them as soon as they entered the cave proper. The ice passage twisted to the right out of sight. So that’s where that wolf pack went. Sten shrugged his backpack to the ground beside the entrance and silently drew his zwei-hander. Lilisfina slid ahead of him toward the crook in the corridor, where a ramshackle cart rested. She knelt beside the cart and turned her face deeper into the cavern. Star stood stiffly at her side, silently bristling. Sten eased up to the corner, his eyes on the Wood Elf. She had that distant gaze he had noticed before on the reavers’ wreck. Her hands came up to lower her hood to her shoulders, and he caught the flash of fire in her left palm.

Those brilliant green eyes flickered up at him. She held up four fingers and pointed down the passageway. Four wolves. Sounds about right. He started to move around the corner, but Lilisfina flung her right hand out at him. Sten regarded her curiously, and she held up two fingers, then indicated a small size. Young. They have young. She motioned for him to wait with Star, and moved down the passageway out of his sight.

After a moment the barking and yipping stopped, and Star stepped forward warily. Sten peered around the corner to see her waving him up. Her left hand, empty of fire, motioned silence. Sten moved to join her, and peered into the cave.

Off to the right, gathered around a pile of fresh bones, two wolves, black against the ice, stood tensely watching the Wood Elf. Behind them two smaller forms - cubs, really - hunched against the far wall. Lilisfina waved Stenvar and Star to move behind her deeper into the cave at the left. The hairs on Sten’s nape rose when he realized Lilisfina had used the same calm spell on them as she had on the horkers. She won’t kill animals? Got to ask her about that - the Green Pact is all about eating meat! Later.

He moved westward through the cave, and spotted two immense carved stone columns familiar to him from Yngol’s Tomb. This is more than just a cave. Did she know that? As if his thoughts summoned her, she materialized at his side, already looking further into the depths of the cave. As they moved between the stone columns, Star nosed the large burial urns stacked around the chamber ahead.

They came to an iron door, cast in the ancient Nord style similar to those of the Halls of the Dead. Lilisfina paused before the door, her gaze traveling over the half hidden Nordic facade before them. Sten saw that look of discomfort on her features.

“Looks like a crypt,” he spoke softly. “It’s very old. They say ruins like these are filled with treasure. Of course, they’re filled with traps, too.”

That lopsided smile flickered across her face as she nodded silently. Sten watched a swallow move down her throat and her lips thin. She looked at him.

“Stennvar, let me go first, look for traps. If I find any enemies in there, I’ll let you know. You can fight them all, but
you must let me lead the way.”

“Like we did on The Winter War?” Sten asked. She nodded. “Duck behind me if you see anything.”

“Of course,” Lilisfina reached for the door and eased it open. Loud creaks and groans echoed around the cavern, and they heard yipping behind them, but the wolf family did not follow. Sten pushed the iron panel far enough to admit his bulk, and they slipped into the darkness.

After a moment’s pause, Lilisfina cast a ball of green light ahead of them. It floated a short way ahead, pushing the ancient darkness back. A few steps into the corridor brought them to a rickety wooden spiral stair that ran downwards. Lilisfina peered past the planks, then followed the mage light to the bottom of the stairs. She waited while Sten cautiously tested each creaky step behind her. When he reached her side, they glanced back up to see Star tentatively work his way down to join them. Just then, the mage light vanished. Sten bit down on a gasp and Star whined shortly, but Lilisfina refreshed it easily and sent it down the corridor that stretched away from the stairs. They followed the mage light through the twisting corridor. Lilisfina indicated a floor tile that was slightly more ornate than the rest. Trigger plate. Sten looked past her to see a carved statue at the end of the corridor, small holes barely visible in the crevices. Likely a dart trap. Poison, too. Might still be active after all these years. Even Star avoided it as they worked their way along the wall toward the bend in the hallway.

Lilisfina paused before they reached the bend. Again, Sten saw that distant look on her face, then she gagged and turned away. He watched in alarm as she retched into the nook between two carved stone wall ribs. “Are you all right?” he whispered, touching her shoulder briefly.

She fumbled out a small vial from her belt purse and gulped the contents down. After a moment, she took a deep breath and straightened up to face Sten. Her face didn’t look so discomfited. “There’s undead just up there,” she murmured softly. “Not moving, but I can still smell them, feel them.”

“Show me,” Sten moved back to the bend in the corridor. Lilisfina held up one finger, then pointed to the right. Then she gestured a greater distance away, and pointed to the left.

“I’m going to sneak as close as I can get,” Lilisfina whispered into Sten’s ear as he crouched down. “Let me hit them with my flare first, that will weaken them for you.”

At his nod she refreshed the mage light and sent it around the corner. She slid after it, still moving silently. After a few steps, they heard the sound of a stone slab clattering to the floor, then steps approaching them. Lilisfina slid to the wall opposite Sten and Star as the skeletal form of a draugr appeared beneath the green glow of the mage light. She was nearly within touching distance when she sent a flash of fire into the shambling undead.

Before it could turn toward her, she had skipped back behind Sten, who was already rising to strike an overhead blow with his zwei-hander. As his blade sank into the draugr’s left shoulder, Star dashed forward and seized the undead’s right leg in his jaws. His forward momentum spun the draugr off balance, and Sten made quick work of the burning corpse. Star returned to Lilisfina as the flames flickered out, leaving a charred form on the floor. Sten nudged it with his foot, his blade ready for any last movement. That worked well. Setting it on fire makes it easier for me to see it in the dark. But both Star and I have to be careful not to catch fire ourselves!

Off in the distance they heard another stone slab crash into the floor, followed a few breaths later by more footsteps. The mage light moved forward as Lilisfina passed him into a large open space. Its dim green light showed signs of collapsed stone berths and cracked sarcophagi around the area before it went out again. Sten froze in the darkness, listening as the steps drew closer. He held his breath, and heard nothing from his companions.

Again fire outlined the shape of another draugr, and again he was able to use its light to attack and destroy the undead being before it could find something to hit. Again, Star leaped in and assisted in his own unique way.

As the flames died down, Lilisfina sent up another mage light, and turned toward Sten and Star. “Are you all right?” she whispered, touching Star’s ears as he sat beside her.

“Yes, I’m good,” Sten responded. “You?”

“I’m as well as can be expected,” Lilisfina’s voice caught briefly. “I just hope this potion holds up long enough - my gut and experience is telling me this is only going to get worse the further we go.”

“Hmm, you’re probably right,” Sten responded. “This place hasn’t seen any activity in years, if not centuries.”

“Nurelion did say this Curalmil is a crafty one, even in death,” Lilisfina responded. “That makes me think we’ll need to get past him to find the White Phial.”

“And he won’t be alone, either,” Sten could hear the grimness in his voice. “Well, taken alone, these draugr aren’t so fearsome. They are far more dangerous in numbers.”

“Then we’ll have to try and take them on separately,” Lilisfina declared softly.

Great thoughts you have on Bosmer longevity. I love that we can take differing approaches and still effectively keep those pesky elves from overtaking the humans.

*

Very clever to open this episode with an ‘In our previous episode. . . ‘ review via a letter from Sten.

Nice touch to bypass the wolves. They were there first and simply being wolves.

Love Lili’s mage light.

Setting a target on fire to make it easier to see in the dark – brilliant!

These two – er, make that three – are working together wonderfully. Sten is protective but realizes Lili is better equipped to lead the way. And Lili is wise enough to hop behind her armored companion once the fighting starts. Even Star is waiting until the fight starts instead of charging in ahead as dogs are sometimes wont to do.

Methinks Lili’s going to need a fair number of those antinausea potions while dungeoneering in Skyrim.

Uh oh, it looks like the cave already has occupants of the four legged variety. Let's see if Lil has some sort of Wood Elf magic that might obviate the need for hacking the wolves to pieces.

There it is, the same spell she had used on the horkers. It has been so long since that episode that I had forgotten about that.

So the cave is more than meets the eye. Tombs, treasure, traps, and of course the undead. I could not think of a word that starts with the letter "T" for the last.

Lil has an incredibly uncomfortable undead detector, even worse than Buffy's vampire cramps.

I am hoping that Star rips off the draugr's leg and then runs off with it and uses it as a chew toy...

Lil and Sten once more make for an dynamic dungeon delving duo. Vomit aside. It looks like Lil might want to look into acquiring a magical form of Pepto to settle her stomach if she is going to continue with fighting undead. Puking in every tomb is pretty awful way of making a living.

They're sneaking by the den of wolves, very nice. NICE, that's awesome she uses Calm. Several of mine do the same, or try to. As the proud (owner?) of Star, she's going to consider the lives of canines, I'd imagine. Especially those with cubs. 🐺

That's also a definite strategy, telling followers to stay behind while "I traipse forward". Not just in Skyrim but earlier games as well. Because if our person gets in trouble, he/she merely needs to return to where the follower is, who is going to still have his/her full health.

There's the trap. This is creepy, the fights with ancient draugr!!!

@Acadian: Those written snippets from Sten's missives home serve two main purposes: one is, as you say, to catch the reader up on the story periodically; secondly, it's to help the reader see the POV switch between Sten and Lili. It definitely seems it is serving at least one of those purposes! Speaking of light in the midst of darkness, it has regularly occurred to me that if these ruins have truly been abandoned and forgotten for generations, why are there torches still burning? One may say magic! And we will see such torches as we progress through this story. But for this particular location, and for another one coming up, it makes little sense to have torches. Hence Lili's mage light, and draugr torches. And I suspect Lili will reconsider her long reliable recipe for her anti nausea potions soon.

@SubRosa: Finally a good use for that Calm spell - I've never used it in game but in Lili's story it fits with her Green Pact philosophy - no unnecessary killing. Uncomfortable undead detector, indeed! I'm sure by the end of this adventure Lili is happy to be out of that place! And I laughed at your reference to Sai's practical approach to undead skeletons in Miscarcand! I thought of him when I wrote Star's take, but draugr tendons are a lot tougher.

@Renee: Lili is friend to more than just canines and horkers - as we will see as the story winds on. And no, she doesn't consider herself to be Star's owner, as will be clarified later in the story. Considering that most of my pre-ESO characters are bow users, I've always been irritated by followers' tendency to run ahead and spoil the shot. That was the one good thing about Killer Jack, the killer bunny that would bring down dragons one angry nibble at a time. He was too small to spoil my shots! So in my stories I give these "followers" more sense.

Now we puke progress further into Forsaken Crypt in search of the big bad.

**************************

Middas 20 Last Seed - Curalmil

Lili peered through the doorway into the large hall. Parts of its walls had disappeared behind rockfalls, and a dim light shone down from cracks in the high arched ceiling. She could see tiny white flakes drifting in and out of the light beams. Ahead the damaged floor rose a few steps to a large stone structure. Her instincts indicated four more of the undead beings in upright sarcophagi around the walls, and one more within that stone bier ahead of them. This one was larger, and she had a sense of greater rage and lethality from that being.

Stenvar crouched beside her, his zwei-hander upright before him, and scanned the hall with his vision. “What do you see, boss?” he whispered.

“Four of those - draugr, you called them?” Lili pointed them out to Stenvar. “And one more in that stone thing up ahead - bigger and more lethal than the others.”

“That’s a Dragon Priest sarcophagus,” his tone turned grim. “All the draugr serve a Dragon Priest somewhere, and these are very tough baddies.”

“Curalmil was a Dragon Priest?” Lili turned in time to see him shrug.

“If the age of this place is right, of course.” He answered. Lili shuddered.

“How’s your stomach?” Stenvar asked softly. “Do you need another potion?”

“I’m out,” Lili responded. “I’m going to have to make stronger potions. These draugr are worse than any undead I’ve encountered before.”

“Can you get through this?” Lili could see the concern in Stenvar’s gaze. “It’s not going to be easy.”

“I’ll have to,” Lili replied. She fished out a silken square from her belt pack. She shook it into a folded triangle and tied it around her lower face, making a rough mask. “Ready?”

“Will that work?” Stenvar gestured dubiously at the green fabric.

“I’m hoping it takes the edge off that stench,” Lili responded. “Maybe next time I’ll chew some mint so I’m smelling that instead of these,” she jerked her head toward the large sarcophagus. “Let’s do this.”

“I’ll focus on the big bad guy,” Stenvar pointed at the stone bier. “You hit as many of these draugr as you can to keep them off my back.” He looked down at the dog. “And maybe Star will make himself useful where his teeth would be most needed.”

“I trust him to do so,” Lili gritted her teeth in a grin beneath her makeshift mask and moved out into the half-ruined chamber. She slid right along the perimeter and headed for the nearest alcove. Within she recognized the dormant form of a draugr bearing a sword. She hit him with her strongest fire spell and moved on to the next one.

Stenvar moved out into the room as the fiery undead staggered out of its slumber. He moved barely five paces toward the center before the great slab of the sarcophagus flew up with a boom. Lili turned her back on the center and glanced back to see her first draugr stumble forward a few steps before it collapsed. Already the other three were moving out of their alcoves, heading toward the center.

Lili lit up the second draugr then retraced her steps back toward the entrance. She heard Stenvar’s grunt as he attacked the huge being that towered above him. The creature carried a sword almost as massive as Stenvar’s zwei-hander, and thin, curved horns rose above its helm, adding to its height.

Two other draugr approached Stenvar from the opposite side, their eyes glowing blue in the dimness. Behind her Lili heard Star growl briefly, then the second draugr clattered to the broken floor with a sense of finality. He dashed past her toward the other two, but she caught his attention and pointed him to Stenvar and the large being - Curalmil, has to be - indicating he should support the big Nord.

As Star changed direction and beelined toward Curalmil, Lili dashed across the chamber to circle around behind the two draugr. She hit first one, then the other, from behind with her flame spell. As they staggered in confusion, she skipped back out of their range and turned her attention back to Stenvar.

The two combatants were fairly matched, with Curalmil’s greater size and reach offset by Stenvar’s quickness and agility. In spite of his muscular appearance, Stenvar proved able to dodge the blows from Curalmil’s ancient blade. But his own zwei-hander was slower in recovery, and Curalmil was easily able to parry Stenvar’s strikes.

Star dashed into the fight, ducking the flying blades and zeroing on Curalmil’s right calf. He seized the big draugr’s leg in his jaws and whipped around, feet braced. He tugged fiercely on the undead’s limb, shaking it as he would shake a rat.

This threw Curalmil off balance just enough for Stenvar to close in and slam the pommel of his zwei-hander hard into the other’s jaw beneath the helm. Curalmil staggered back, but managed to stay upright. He raised his sword high and brought its hilt down hard on Stenvar’s back. As the big Nord groaned and fought to keep his feet, Lili leaped forward and threw all of her magicka into a fireball. It sailed the short distance and engulfed Curalmil’s right side in flame. The blue eyes flared toward her as Star gave a final tug before releasing his grip. A spine tingling screech rang around the chamber as Curalmil turned for Lili and that sword went up again.

She skipped back, desperately trying not to trip on the broken floor and still fighting the overpowering nausea. Just as she expected that sword to fall, the flames reached Curalmil’s right hand and the sword spun out of his grip and fell to the floor in a great clatter. Stenvar took advantage of the ancient undead’s distraction to take a huge swing with his zwei-hander into Curalmil’s left side. He disengaged the blade with some difficulty as Curalmil dropped to his knees, then forward onto his face. The blue glow of his eyes faded as flames consumed the rest of his form.

Lili met Stenvar’s gaze over the smoking ruins of the one once called Curalmil. Both crouched breathlessly on the broken ground, and Lili could see Stenvar shaking from the fight. Then the nausea won, and she managed to pull her mask away before retching again. She closed her eyes and waited for her stomach to settle uneasily.

“Here,” a touch on her shoulder drew her head up. Stenvar held out his water flask. “Rinse your mouth with this, get rid of the taste. That’ll help your stomach some.” He rose to his feet when she took the canteen, and turned to look around the hall. As she spat the bilious taste out, he stretched his spine until he winced, then shrugged his armor to sit more comfortably. Lili rose to her feet and returned the water flask to Stenvar, then touched him lightly. She could sense the massive bruise in his back, the strained muscles, the cracked ribs. She reached into her magicka again, and sent a wave of healing from her fingertips into his body.

“What? Hey,” he shrugged again, more easily this time, “that feels great. Thanks, boss.” He took the canteen back from her and took a gulp from it. Star yipped once from his seated position near the ashes of Curalmil. Lili stepped up to him and ruffled his ears in gratitude. He leaped to his feet and started quartering the chamber.

Lili moved to the sarcophagus, and examined its interior. Empty. She glanced back at the remains of the ancient alchemist. Hmm where should I use that potion Nurelion showed me? She looked around the chamber, and peered into the shadows at the rear.

“There’s stairs leading down,” Stenvar joined her and pointed them out. “Hard to make it out, but there it is.”

Lili could only make out a faint grey glow, like mist, in that direction. As she stepped past the sarcophagus, she became aware of a faint, rhythmic sound. She paused warily. “Do you hear that, Stennvar?”

“Hear what?” Stenvar stepped past her toward the stairs. He looked up and around, then glanced back at her with a question in his blue eyes.

“Like a chanting, but it’s barely audible . . .” Lili followed Stenvar. As she did so, the sound grew stronger. “It’s coming from up there,” she pointed to the right. A refreshed mage light showed another flight of stairs, this time heading up past the ones leading down. Another upward flight barely showed off to the left. With a flick of her fingers Lili sent the mage light floating slowly up the steps on the right. She followed slowly, warily. Her instincts showed nothing up there, but that chanting . . . It’s old, whatever it is. And apparently neither Stennvar nor Star can hear it. That’s powerful magic, I wonder what it is.

The mage light reached the top of the stairs to show a wall that curved around the space above the mist filled chamber to the opposite stairs. Lili could see carving on it, carving in a lettering she did not recognize. Above this wall towered an immense relief depicting a frontal view of a dragon’s head. She recognized the shape from her time in Elsweyr.

“That’s - that’s - wow,” Stenvar’s awed voice reached her from below. He followed her up the steps as she drew nearer the wall, her eyes on the carved lettering. At a spot on the right side, a couple of the carved figures began to glow at her approach, and the chanting grew louder. She felt a presence flow into her as the lettering burned into her vision, then her eyes blacked out.

The chanting stopped suddenly and she could hear Stenvar’s voice again. Her sight cleared to show the carved lettering again, now inert beneath her hand. “You didn’t hear anything?” She turned to meet Stenvar’s concerned gaze.

“No, but I saw something -” he muttered. “Looked like some of those letters were glowing, and a faint stream of white from them into your eyes.” He drew back warily. “I’m not sure what happened there.”

“Neither am I,” Lili shook her head, surveying the wall again. “But I know that’s a dragon head up there,” she indicated the carving.

“Shor’s bones!” Stenvar exclaimed. “I’ve heard of these, but never saw one. I think this is a word wall.” He traced his fingers over the carving. “These are written in the Dragon language. I can’t read them.” He looked at Lili. “You mentioned chanting?”

“I couldn’t make out the words, but one stuck in my head. Krii? I’m not sure what it means.”

“Hmm, me neither,” Stenvar shook his head. “Maybe those mages up at the College may know something about this.”

Lili scoffed. “Yet another reason to head up there, where it’s even colder than here!”

“You got that right,” Stenvar chuckled. “You feel all right?”

“Yes, I do,” Lili shook herself. “Let’s head down and see what’s in that mist below.”

Years back I took the Voice of the Sky effect and turned it into a spell, which I called Kyne's Peace. I made it a simple Illusion spell with a large area effect, that makes wildlife friendly. I also applied it to the amulets of Kynareth, so that their wearers were always safe from animals.

I had a heck of a time working with through the various faction dispositions for it. For example, my first pass made wolves friendly, which also made vampires friendly to the player, since wolves are friendly to the vampire faction. I had to do a lot of tinkering to keep the wolves friendly, but the vampire still hostile, without making the vampires hostile to all wolves.

A Dragon Priest? Whoa, they are stepping up in the threat chain to one of the big bosses of the game. Cural does not disappoint. It took all three of them to bring him down in a knock down, dragon out brawl. Sten does his job as the party tank, tying down the enemy, while Lil is crowd control with her spells, and Star the team rogue sneaking in for a backstab (or in this case, bite).

Lil can hear the dragon wall chanting? Shor's Bones, we all know what that means!

I continue to really enjoy how Lili’s mage light works and how helpful it is.

Sometimes it seems like there’s more dead foes to fight in Skyrim than live ones. . . so Lili is definitely going to have work on something for that undead-induced nausea. Well, Sten didn’t hold back Lili’s hair while she threw up, but at least he offered her his canteen.

Subrosa is right. That was a big, tough fight and the trio did a great job of working together to lethal effect.

When we heard the chanting, I was thinking to myself, oh no, sounds like a whole choir of more draugr to deal with! A surprise indeed that the word wall chose to share its insight with Liii!

She paused warily. “Do you hear that, Stennvar?”

Uh oh, a word wall. Good to have Stenvar on her team to help her with what’s coming.

What a great dungeon crawl and fight with Curalmil. I could hear Stenvar’s voice in my head when he said some of my favorite lines. Lili’s magic, Stenvar’s might, and Star’s excellent leverage were fun to see in action. Not so fun for Lili with her nausea issue. I hope she can resolve it before Stenvar gives her a Nord-style nickname, like Iron-Gut or Wise-Nose.

I am enjoying Lili’s story so much!

@SubRosa: I remember reading about how difficult it was managing all those factions, not just how they interacted with the player but also with each other. So complicated, like endocrinology! As for a Dragon Priest, I felt Curalmil deserved the highest rank of boss you could get in those dungeons, though I always played that at lower levels and got a lesser draugr. So we're playing pretty fast and loose with the game's leveling system.

@Acadian: Lili agrees that her usually effective anti-nausea potions are not working against the draugr, and is already thinking of ways to improve on her recipe. As this story goes on, you'll get to see the different ways she tests out a stronger, more effective version of her potions. As for the chanting, yes, Lili thought there were MOAH DRAUGR COMING!! Then she discovered the word wall, though it took Sten's local knowledge to identify what it is. See, he's not "just the muscle", he's also the "local flavor"! Hee!

@Grits: I've been thinking about how Lili would fight dragons - in game I've always gone to ranged tactics and let Sten/Argis/Housecarl of the Month get into melee as soon as I ground them. But Lili's aim, as we all know, sucks. I'm so happy you could hear Sten's voice in my writing - he speaks very clearly when I write him, especially his sections. I knew you would recognize his lines from the game!

*********************

Middas 20 Last Seed - A Crack in the Phial

Ma, it wasn’t just a cave - there was an old Nord crypt buried deep in there. Full of draugr too. Boss has a weak stomach around them - apparently they have a stench that makes her sick. Gotta hand it to her though - took a couple of potions and kept going. Both she and the dog were really useful in a couple of bad fights, and she healed me afterward. I guess what I mean is I don’t mind working for this particular mage.

Give my love to Halla and Old Fang. I’ll write more tomorrow.

Sten

Sten gave the word wall one last look as they descended the side stairs back to the chamber floor. Lilisfina moved slowly, as if blind, and he regarded her with concern. “Are you really all right, boss?”

She glanced back at him, her face pale beneath that light tan. “Just tired,” she responded. “Too much magicka, not enough rest.”

“I should have done more,” Sten moved to the central stairs leading further downward below the word wall.

Lilisfina touched his arm lightly. “You did just enough, Stennvar,” she murmured. “It’s just that I did not expect the undead here to be so . . . “

“Potent?” Stenvar supplied. She nodded, smiling slightly. “You have encountered undead before, yes?”

“Oh, yes, I have,” Lilisfina nodded. “Ghosts, wraiths, zombies, bog blights, shambles, and the odd lich here and there. But nothing like these . . . “ She cast her gaze around the chamber one last time before heading down. “Draugr. I wonder why they’re so different from the usual necromantic undead.”

“Another thing to ask the mages at that College, I suppose?” Sten suggested. Lili chuckled and led him into a small circular chamber filled with a pale grey mist. For some reason the mist itself provided a dim light and drew their attention to a stone bowl carved into a plinth. He moved around the small chamber, tapping on the stone walls in search of a hidden door. “Dead end?”

“Hmm,” Lilisfina gazed at the bowl. At her side Star raised himself up on his hind limbs enough to sniff at it. He whined and sat back down, his expectant gaze on the Wood Elf. She ruffled his ears with a soft smile and continued to study the bowl. “Nurelion did give me a potion - said it was key to gaining access to the White Phial. I wonder . . . “

Sten returned to the central plinth. “It’s a bowl. You have a potion. Curalmil - if that was Curalmil - is dead. Really dead, right?”

Lilisfina cast her unfocused gaze up the stairs toward the chamber. “Yes, really dead.” She fumbled through her belt pack and drew out Nurelion’s small vial. “So the logical next step is to pour this potion into this bowl.” She met Sten’s gaze. “I hope this is what it was intended for.”

Sten shrugged. I understand why she’s hesitating. If we’re wrong, we’ve wasted a rare and valuable potion, and our client won’t be happy.

Lilisfina took a deep breath and removed the stopper from the vial. “Here we go,” she poured the scant liquid into the stone bowl. It shimmered briefly in the bottom of the vessel, then drained away into invisibility. Rumbling shook the room, and dust drifted down as the wall opposite the stairs split crookedly down its center. Sten moved to stand between the plinth and the new door, pulling his zwei-hander into ready position.

After a long breath, the two sides of the wall gaped open wide enough to admit them. Beyond Sten saw a room with a central dais, but no sign of enemies. He glanced back at Lilisfina to see if she could sense anything ahead. Her gaze focused on him, and she shook her head.

“No one in there,” she said softly. “Unless there’s traps, it’s safe to enter.”

Sten scanned the floor in front of him for any distinctive tiles or plates, then stepped forward cautiously. He paused just within the room and scanned the walls. Light glowed from arcane crystals scattered around the room, as well as a few bioluminescent alchemical stuffs resting on various shelves and tables. He could see no dart traps, or crevices that could conceal swinging blades. He returned his zwei-hander to his back sheath and moved aside to let Lilisfina and Star enter.

Sten turned toward the central dais. Toward the rear of the room, he could see a small white vial on a stone plinth, similar to the one which supported the offering bowl in the previous chamber. He drew closer to it, continuing to search for hidden traps. Behind him, he heard Lilisfina exclaim and looked up to see her pick up one of the crystals and hold it over the shelving. She began sorting through the alchemical ingredients excitedly.

“Is that your treasure, boss?” he asked, amused. “Alchemical ingredients?”

“For being locked away in a damp crypt for so many centuries,” Lilisfina flashed a delighted gaze at him, “these are in incredible condition. And some are quite rare.” As her eyes returned to the alchemical treasure, she exclaimed again. “Oh, an alchemical table!” She moved toward it and brought out the three vials she had emptied. “Hmm, I wonder if I can make a stronger potion against these draugr?”

“Right now?” Sten turned to see her crouched over an alchemy table, already starting the retort bubbling. She assembled a few ingredients and drew out a mortar and pestle from the same pouch as her potion bottles. Wait, that pouch is too small! How? Later.

“Of course, before we run into any more draugr,” Lilisfina retorted. “Vomiting every time we run into one isn’t fun. My stomach is still aching.”

“I bet,” Sten moved to stand before the plinth again. He leaned forward to peer at the vial. Is it the White Phial? The white glass gleamed softly, except where a large crack ran down the side of it. Uh oh. “Say, did Nurelion say anything about getting this Phial intact?”

“Not exactly, but . . .” the sounds of the mortar stopped as Lilisfina looked around at him. “What is it?”

“Well, it looks like this Phial is cracked.” Sten answered. “Badly.”

“No!” Lilisfina left the table and darted to his side. Like him, she leaned forward to visually examine the relic. “Oh dear, that’s not good, not good at all.” She sighed. “And all that work just to get here . . .”

“All that barfing,” Sten agreed. Lilisfina whacked his biceps, then stepped around the plinth. “Should we bring it back to Nurelion?”

“Of course,” Lilisfina responded firmly. “The issue is how to get it back without further damage to the Phial.” Sounds of boiling reached them and distracted her. “Oh, my retort!” She dashed back to the alchemy table and adjusted the heat on the retort, then returned with the mortar in her hands. She continued grinding while her eyes evaluated the artifact.

“If we can wrap it up in something soft before we take it off the plinth,” Sten suggested, “that might keep it from falling apart on us.”

“Good point,” Lilisfina nodded. She pointed at her backpack on the floor near the entrance. “I think there’s more of that silken fabric in there, take a look.” She turned back to the alchemical table. “I’ve got to finish this potion so we can leave without any more barfing.”

“Right, let me see what I can do,” Sten rummaged in her pack, surprised at what she had managed to collect on their trip through the crypt. Gravedust and gravetar? Gems? Where did she find those? And is that amber? And I remember her harvesting these snowberries on the way out. He shook his head. “So much stuff in here, boss - I doubt your pack was this full when we left Windhelm.”

Her laughter made Star bark and dance in place, his white tipped tail wagging furiously. “How do you think I paid my way around Tamriel? And of course, you get half of what we sell!”

“Oh, no complaints there,” Sten found a few scraps of the green silk and pulled them out. “I was just wondering how you found the time to collect so much loot.”

“Well, I just focused on the small, expensive items. Gravedust and gravetar have high value to alchemists, now I know why. They’re damned hard to get!” Again she laughed. “When I was in Elsweyr and in Black Marsh, I learned how to pilfer on the move. You don’t waste time with the heavy weapons and armor, unless they have real value. Jewelry, gems, alchemical ingredients bring a lot of value for their weight.”

“Umm, there’s a few books in here that smell quite old, too,” Sten closed up the pack and moved back to the plinth with the silken scraps.

“There, that’s done,” Lilisfina declared in satisfaction. “I’ll set this aside to cool a bit.” She moved back to rejoin Sten at the plinth. “Let’s figure this out together. Do you have any spare laces for your armor?”

“Yes,” Sten dug them out of his belt pouch. “I was thinking about using them to tie the pieces of the Phial together before we take it off the stand.”

“Great minds really do think alike,” Lilisfina approved. Sten offered her the laces. “I’ll use one of them to just secure the pieces, then we’ll wrap as much of it as we can before taking it off.” She met his gaze. “How does that sound, Stennvar?”

“Like a plan,” Sten responded. “I’ll have the fabric ready for you.”

“You don’t want to do it?” Lilisfina smiled again at him, mischief sparking in her green eyes.

“I’ll likely knock it over trying to save it.” Sten grinned back. He watched as Lilisfina grew somber and turned back to the Phial. She evaluated the crack again, then created a loop with the lace around the globular base of the Phial. A neat slipknot pulled the pieces together, then she took the long end and created a second loop around the slender neck. This she tied off snugly, then reached for one of the fabric squares in Sten’s hands. He handed it to her, and spread the other scrap flat on the surface of the plinth beside the artifact.

Gently Lilisfina wrapped the silk around the vial, completely enclosing the gleaming glass. She left enough of the fabric to slip beneath it as she lifted it up. Sten found himself cradling it in his large palm as she began wrapping the second scrap over the first, then tied the entire bundle off with another of his laces. “There, that should do it,” she said finally. “Let’s tuck this into my belt pouch so it doesn’t get bumped around too much.”

Sten realized he had been holding his breath when he exhaled slowly for several beats. He watched as Lilisfina suited actions to her words, carefully slipping it into her belt pouch among several of the botanical samples she had already collected from around the room. “All right, let’s clear the rest of this stuff to bring back for Nurelion. We should at least bring him something.”

“Agreed,” Sten said as he stepped past Star to start the suggested task.

“Just a moment,” once again Lilisfina moved back to the table and carefully decanted her cooled potion into her three bottles. After nestling them next to the White Phial, she joined Sten in clearing the rest of the alchemical ingredients. They found a book titled A Game at Dinner, which made Lilisfina very excited with the discovery. She tucked that into her backpack as well.

Sten cast a final glance around the room. “Should we collect those crystals too?” Are they even worth anything?

“They do have some value, but not as much as these ingredients,” Lilisfina replied. “Only enchanters seem to like them, and do you know of any outside of the College?”

“Nope,” Sten shook his head. “What makes you think I would know of any enchanters?”

Lilisfina arched her right brow at him. “Why wouldn’t I think that?” She poked his biceps in that teasing manner he’d come to know well. “You’re smarter than you look, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”

Sten found himself laughing at her backhanded compliment as they stepped out of the room back toward the large chamber. He glanced up to see Lilisfina pause at the top of the stairs. “Are they still dead?”

“Still dead, and smelling better already,” Lilisfina responded.

“Good. I’d rather fight bandits than draugr. At least bandits know when to stay dead.”

Whew, the undead are still dead. Some good detective work gets that last chamber open and voila – the White Phial! Ah, but cracked. Damn. Nice care in packaging it up. Not sure if it will be of any value now but I guess we’ll find out.

So we learn that Lili is an alchemist of some skill, as she excitedly brews up some hopefully more potent antinausea potions.

’She assembled a few ingredients and drew out a mortar and pestle from the same pouch as her potion bottles. Wait, that pouch is too small! How? Later.’
Woot! Lili has a Bag of Holding! Every mage surely needs one of those. Every thief too I’m led to believe.

More nice give and take exchanges in the gentle dance between Stenvaar and his boss.

Neat, like Kaelin, Lil has an alchemical bag of holding! I love the idea of these specialized containers that are specifically geared for people to use within their chosen disciplines.

I suppose that Lil will always stay skinny so long as she continues to fight undead... Hopefully she can get an advanced form of that potion brewed to keep her insides from spewing outside.

Ah yes, the old weight vs. value calculation in looting. As a skinny wood elf, carrying the lightest and most valuable valuables is more important than ever for Lil.

Good thing neither of them is a Khajiit. They would have pushed the phial off the edge of whatever it sat upon, and shattered it on the floor!

There is some subtle cues here that Lil and Sten are becoming more and more comfortable and familiar with one another here, such as brushes against arms, and the like.

And bandits do know when to stay dead. That is one good thing about them.

She began sorting through the alchemical ingredients excitedly.

I love how Lili went right to work with her new ingredients. And she has a magical alchemy pouch!

Now that the danger is over it’s fun to see Sten and Lili being playful. And having Sten rummage through her purse pack is a real act of trust from both of them!

Nice handling of the cracked phial. I recall at least one Nord of mine tossing into their pack with the skill book and a fresh Daedra heart, not to think of it again until the civil war had ended.

Love Sten’s line about the bandits! Hmm, I believe that when they entered the cave, a storm was brewing. Looking forward to the next installment!

Stenvar appreciates Lili's sense of humor. I love the hand-gestures they use. Communication at all times.



I approve! I dislike that part of lore, especially the cannibalism. If ES6 drops the Green Pact lore, I won't mind at all.

Good idea, to forge ahead, looking for traps, but then to let Sten lead the way if combat occurs. This scene is creepy, by the way. The feel of danger as imminent.

Urrgh, the Candlelight spell goes out! That's always a scary moment, especially since enemies can hear, when the spell needs to be recast. Good job, found a trap.

Yeesh, draugr!! 🧟‍♀️ (Yikes, I already commented on the initial delve into Forsaken Cave! It's okay, a second read is good sometimes.)

-------------------------------------

Eesh, dragon priests. Hate the things. Lili can't stand the smell of all these corpses! Sten and the dog aren't bothered.

Ooh boy, here it comes. Yikes, Curalmil's got some moves.... Lili assists with her flame spell. Even Star gets involved. Good boy! Teamwork makes the dream work.

Phew, the boss has been defeated! I love the way the aftermath is written. That's my fave part of adventure in these games (in a way) the afterglow of adrenaline dying off. Stenvar's shivering, his heart's BPMs soaring, most likely. For just a moment, it seems Lili's nausea went away, as combat comes to an end. Yeah, she really needs some spearmint! 🌿



Nice, this is what some Males often say, word for word, as they get healed!

A Word Wall, cool. They are so epic, right? Especially the chant, which is moves along in 6/8 timing (I think). Sounds like Lili's first experience with one of these. Her "eyes blacked out!" Love that. Even for my characters who aren't canon-Dragonborn, I can't help but relish the moment as wall's magic gets absorbed.

I'm behind a chapter! It's okay. I'll catch up eventually.

This post has been edited by Renee: Oct 23 2024, 05:28 PM

Aha! Generalissimo Franco was a bandit!

@Acadian: Considering how many ingredients mages, alchemists and healers go through, a Pouch of Holding, while discreet, is a required essential! I'm glad you are enjoying the growing relationship between Sten and his "boss" - it's gentle, fun and easy. No drama! Plenty of that elsewhere, as we know!

@SubRosa: Yup! Or that Lili doesn't have a cat following her! (As she will in a couple of days . . . )

@Grits: Yup, a winter storm was blowing up when they ducked into the cave; however I tried to show that the weather had cleared in a later installment when they entered Curalmil's chamber. Maybe that needs to be rewritten to more clearly show that the weather had - ummm - cleared. That line of Sten's about the dead reminds me of Julian's thoughts about what to call the undead once they are dead - umm - really dead. Be sure that our Bosmer will not forget about the White Phial in her Pouch of Holding!

@Renee: Thanks for the reminder about Sten's thoughts around Lili's apparent reluctance to kill animals and how that fits with the Green Pact. Sometimes a second read pays off. The dog is bothered by the smell, but unlike Lili, he doesn't throw up. Instead, he just doesn't roll in them. I agree, the chanting one hears at those Word Walls is pretty incredible. One of my favorite things about them, though I don't like losing my vision, even if it's only temporary. Comes from being deaf, I suppose, and being so reliant on my own vision since my hearing isn't so great.

@ghastley:

After fighting (and barfing) our way through Forsaken Cave, we discover that the White Phial, or what seems to be such, is badly cracked. Unsure of Nurelion's reaction but certain of his disappointment, they collect the high value alchemical ingredients and carefully pack up the Phial for transport back to Windhelm.

**************************

Middas 20 Last Seed - Nurelion

The lanterns at Candlehearth cast a welcoming glow through the falling snow as Lili and Stenvar entered the city, Star following in their footsteps. The Skyrim Husky reflected their mood, his head down and tail quiet with exhaustion. Gusts of freezing wind swirled around them, tugging on Lili’s fur cloak and hood. Just beat that snowstorm back to Windhelm. The snow, which had started when they first entered Forsaken Cave, had paused briefly to show them a peek of western sun beneath lowering clouds upon their exit. They had decided to take advantage of the calm and head home, rather than up the road to Heljarchen. A second snowstorm had blown up and chased them from Anga’s Mill all the way home.

Stenvar reached the door to Candlehearth first, and swung it open for Lili. He waved her and Star inside, before entering the warmth of the inn. “Warm up and eat first, then we’ll go to Nurelion’s shop,” he suggested softly. “Are you able to partake of food yet, ma’am?”

“What happened to ‘boss’?” Lili whispered back.

“Oh, that’s just between the two of us,” he responded, still keeping his tone soft as they moved toward Elda. “Around everyone else, it’s back to ‘ma’am’. Wouldn’t want folks to think we’re getting too familiar.”

“That doesn’t bother me Stennvar, just so you know,” Lili smiled at his startled expression. She turned toward the innkeeper. “Another two nights in your fine lodgings, please?”

The older Nord snorted. “Of course! How was your adventure?”

“Sickening,” Lili responded as she slid the drakes across the counter. “I’d like soup tonight, and maybe some of that healing tea instead of mead.”

Elda frowned at her. “Are you feeling all right, lass?”

“Getting better,” Lili returned with a smile for the other woman’s concern. “And hot baths for both of us -” she slid a glance at Stenvar. “Y’ffre knows we need it!”

“Which would you like first?” Elda glanced from Lili to Stenvar and back again.

“Bath for me,” Lili responded. “I’d like to give my stomach more time to settle. Big guy here, though, might want to eat first.”

“And the dog?” Elda leaned over the counter to regard the Skyrim Husky, who returned her gaze with a tired wag of his tail.

“Bone, of course! Then sleep, I’m sure,” Lili ruffled his ears fondly. Star licked her hand in return.

“I’ll eat first,” Stenvar remarked gruffly. “I’ll get Star his bone, too. Then he can sleep while you eat.”

“I’ll meet you upstairs in half a bell, then,” Lili responded, and headed for the rented room. Stenvar turned for the stairs to the common hall, Star trailing after him.

Nils appeared within a few moments with the copper tub on rollers. He parked it in the center of her rented room. “I’ll be back with the hot water,” he exclaimed. “You look about all tuckered out, lassie!”

The hot bath was just what Lili needed for her aching muscles. After a quarter of a bell, she reluctantly changed back into her woolen dress and headed upstairs.

Stenvar looked up from the remains of roast mutton and potatoes as Lili sat down at the table. Susanna appeared within a few breaths with a ceramic mug of hot lavender tea and set it down before Lili. “Sten tells me you’ve had a rough time in that crypt,” she said gently. “Drink this up, and I’ll bring up some apple cabbage soup in a moment!”

“Sounds wonderful,” Lili reached for the tea and inhaled the aroma. “Wait, is there a touch of imp stool in this?”

“Yes! Adds just a bit of oomph to the healing effects of the tea!” Susanna winked at her. “I’ll be back soon!”

Lili sampled the tea. It was just hot enough to warm her stomach, but not so hot to burn her tongue. “This is perfect,” she sighed. “Hits the spot."

Stenvar gulped his ale, then belched. “This hits my spot,” he remarked. Lili chuckled and drank more of the tea, savoring its rich flavor.

“I’m not looking forward to seeing Nurelion,” she rested her elbow on the table and her jaw in her palm. “I hate to disappoint him with a cracked Phial.”

“Assuming that’s the Phial,” Stenvar pushed his plate away. “Are you going to sell him all those alchemical ingredients we collected from that room?”

“If he’s interested, yes,” Lili responded. “And that gravedust and tar. Those are difficult to obtain, obviously, so he might want to purchase them.”

Before long Lili felt much better with a belly full of apple cabbage soup. Her stomach no longer felt queasy, and she felt warm again. “Well, better get this over with,” she sighed as she stood up and shrugged into her fur cloak. “I’m sure Nurelion is still open.”

“He should be,” Susanna said as she cleared the table away. “It’s still early enough. Though I hear he’s taken to bed, he’s become so ill.” She looked from Lili to Stenvar. “But his apprentice Quintus is competent enough, he should be able to help you.”

“Thank you,” Lili responded. Stenvar rose as well.

“Do you want me to come with you, ma’am?” he asked.

“I don’t think you need to,” Lili said and stepped toward the side door. She paused and turned back. “But I wouldn’t mind the company. It’s a horribly cold night out there.”

Star rose slowly to his feet and followed after Stenvar. Lili could almost hear him groan. “Star, we’re nearly done for today. Just a short walk to the market. You can stay in my room if you want to sleep.”

Star looked up at her, then stepped forward to her side and licked her fingers. Stenvar held the door open for the two of them, and they stepped out into the blowing snow.

“Y’ffre blast this snow!” Lili exclaimed as her feet slipped on the icy stones. “Why does it have to snow so much?”

Stenvar laughed. “Snow means it’s warm!” He dropped a blue glance at her. “Come winter, there won’t be much snow - it’ll be too cold!”

“I better be settled at the College by then,” Lili retorted. “I can spend all my days indoors then - studying restoration and alchemy in a warm lecture hall sounds appealing.”

“Hmm, not sure about that,” Stenvar remarked. “I’ve heard rumors that mages have been snooping around Saarthal. Mages in a burial crypt? No good can come of that . . .” He grinned when Lili groaned expressively.

“I suppose I’d better figure out how to make my potions more potent then,” she said finally. After much slipping and cursing, mostly on Lili’s part, they reached the door to The White Phial. Lili drew a deep breath. “Here we go . . .”

Inside, Quintus Navale greeted them wearily. Lili peered closer at his face. “You look like I feel, Quintus,” she exclaimed softly. “How is Nurelion? I heard he was quite ill.”

“He’s upstairs,” Navale replied. “He’s not doing well at all. Coughing so much he can’t keep much food down.”

“That’s terrible,” Lili commiserated. “What have you been giving him to help?”

“A Cure Disease potion, but I’ve run out of ingredients for it, specifically vampire dust and charred skeever hide.” Quintus shook his head, then met Lili’s gaze. Hope flickered across his face. “Did you find . . .”

“I’m not sure,” Lili responded softly. “I’ll have to show it to Nurelion.”

“By all means, go upstairs!” Quintus exclaimed. “He’s sitting by the fire.”

“I’ll show Quintus the ingredients we brought back, if you’ll let me have your pack, ma’am,” Stenvar volunteered. Lili handed him the backpack and headed upstairs. Behind her she heard Star sneeze as Stenvar removed the ingredients from Forsaken Cave and set them on the counter.

The aged alchemist slumped in the chair before the fire, which provided the only light in the room. Y’ffre! He looks a hundred years older than when I last spoke to him just yesterday! Lili noted the blood stained cloth clenched in one hand. “Nurelion, sir?” she stepped forward. “I’ve returned from Forsaken Cave.”

His head came up and Nurelion turned his face to peer at her. “Did you find it?” His hands reached out to her. “Do you have the Phial?”

Lili reached into her belt purse and drew out the green wrapped relic. She placed it carefully into his cupped palms. Laboriously he untied the laces and folded back the fabric. He gasped when he saw the cracked vial. “This . . . it matches every description of the Phial that I’ve found in lore. But if it can’t hold liquid, there’s no way of knowing. How did you manage to damage it then?”

Lili knelt beside the chair so she could see his expression. “I’m very sorry, Nurelion. It was already cracked like this when we found it. Is there any way it can be repaired?”

Nurelion shook his head. “Figures . . . I . . . I doubt you have sufficient knowledge to harm it if you wanted to. Either way, this is the end of it . . .” He coughed violently, and Lili caught the Phial as it slipped from his shaking hands. She set it on the small table beside the chair and cupped his hands in hers. There’s something dark in him - in his chest - something that’s been growing there a long time. He is dying - slowly. Nurelion freed one hand to fumble in his coin purse. He placed a few silver coins in Lili’s hand and managed to push her away firmly. “This is for your trouble. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m not quite in the mood to entertain guests. I trust you can show yourself out.” He turned his face away from Lili.

She rose to her feet and returned to Quintus and Stenvar, their heads together over the pile of ingredients. Quintus slid several silver coins to Stenvar, who closed up the backpack and left the botanicals on the counter. Together they turned to face Lili.

“Nurelion is not happy - he can’t be sure that’s really the Phial since it’s too cracked to hold liquid.” Lili looked down at the silver coins. Five drakes. I really don’t have the heart to argue with him about the value of our efforts in obtaining a cracked relic. “How do you like the ingredients we found?”

“Some of these are quite rare, so I’ve paid accordingly,” Quintus responded. “Stenvar should be holding a hundred twenty five drakes for these.” He moved to stand in front of Lili. “He also told me how difficult it was for you in that crypt.” His gaze fell to the coins in her palm, and he frowned. “I know my master can be short at times, but you’d think he’d show more appreciation for your efforts.” He moved back to the counter and opened the merchant’s drawer. He counted out more drakes, and handed them to Lili. “This should cover the work the both of you put in to obtain the Phial for my master.” He pulled down a few sprigs of greenery. “And also, add lady’s mantle and peppermint to your potions for upset stomach. Use our table to make fresh potions, and I’d recommend distilling them down to increase the potency.”

Lili slipped the coins into her belt purse, and the ingredients into her backpack. “Thank you very much, sir,” she responded. “I’ll return in a day or two to borrow your table, that’s much appreciated.” She looked at Stenvar, then back at Quintus. “Your master is dying, and it’s no disease that can be cured,” she added. “All you can do is keep him as comfortable as you can for the rest of his days.”

Quintus flinched at her words, and his brown eyes glimmered in the candlelight. “I was afraid of such,” he said finally. “Are you a healer, then?”

“I have some skill there, yes,” Lili admitted. “Enough to know your master is mortally ill, indeed. If it had been identified earlier, there might be a chance to slow things down. Perhaps he already knew and was self treating for that purpose.”

The apprentice alchemist lowered his gaze to the floor for a moment. “I suspect you may be right,” he said finally. “Nurelion’s been pushing me hard for the past year or two, harder than he’s ever done. His personality changed too - more impatient, more demanding, more exacting.”

“Sounds to me as if he wants to make sure you’re ready to take over after him,” Lili touched Quintus’s shoulder lightly. “You’ll be all right - just keep him as comfortable as you can for his final days.”

Quintus met her gaze bleakly. “Any suggestions? I hardly know where to start.”

“Something to ease his breathing, and to stop the bleeding in his lungs,” Lili paused to consider him. “And pain. Pain control is going to be essential to ease his suffering.” She cast her glance around the shop. “May I?” At his nod she began browsing through the shelves. “Mistletoe will help with the bleeding, cornflower, ginger and if you have it primrose seeds for congestion, poppy and vervain for pain.” She turned back to Quintus. “You may have to make more than one potion to get the maximum effects from these.”

“Thank you,” Quintus pressed both hands, one over the other, against his chest in gratitude. Star sneezed again as they left the shop.

So Boss and Ma'am are back to civilization, and hot baths and warm soup. It sounds cozy. Hopefully no one will be murdered (she says after watching all the recent Poirot movies in a row).

Sten makes a cute, topical joke about mages in burial crypts. Not only is it an example of the common gossip that is going around Skyrim, but it is also a nice nod at their own recent activities...

And the expectedly awkward meeting with Nurelion to report failure. For even though it was not their fault the phial was broken, it was still a failure. Lil handles it with grace. Honestly Nurelion does too, a lot of people would have simply blown up at her and blamed her for everything. He is dying after all, that's more than enough to make people act badly.

And finally Lil shows some of her alchemical chops, which apparently exceed Quintus'. Well, she has been doing this longer than he has been alive.

I love the mobile elf detailing shop copper tub on rollers. What a clever and perfectly logical arrangement! And I confess, one I have not really thought of. Buffy tends to encounter more fixed, communal bath facilities in her travels.

To analyze what ingredients are in a tea mixture from tasting it quietly proclaims great skill/experience with herbs – I’m sure that was your intent and you nailed it.

No surprise that Nurelion is irrevocably in his last days. The earlier imp stool remark from Lili did indeed foreshadow the alchemical skill she obviously has.

A sad tale but at least, mission complete.

You paint the weather throughout as the everpresent, powerful and unpredictable threat that it can be. I’m ready to reach for my furs and some hot tea.