The Connivers of Bosmora, (a redo) Options

[redsrock]

The following will be a remake of the last one. The previous story was rushed and I just hated it. This one will be much better. Expect the first chapter to either come out tonight, or tomorrow.

[redsrock]

CHAPTER ELEVEN


The “Lucky Lockup’s” owner had indeed given Sirius the correct directions, step by step, and in no time he arrived at a very large building decorated with the usual sumptuous decorations you would find at any given Hlaalu structure. It was this that reassured Sirius that he was for sure at the right place. The Dunmeri designs told him that, not to mention a shining iron sign next to the entrance to the building, reading, “Hlaalu Council Manor”.

And also next to the entrance, on each side respectfully, were two guards decked out in full Bonemold armor, a preferred battle-uniform worn by most guards and warriors of the tree Great Houses. The two sentries stood as still as a statue, not paying paying any attention to anyone unless they were attempting to enter the Hlaalu compound. Sirius had dealt with their kind before, and many of the encounters had not been pleasant ones. In Sirius’s experiences, Hlaalu guards, or rather the majority of House guards in general for that matter, were usually on the arrogant side. He just hoped these two particular guards would be an exception.

“Good evening,” Sirius said to the guards, and ‘evening’ was definitely an understatement. It was now a little after ten o’clock at night, and that was probably why the streets were so deserted. Sirius was thinking about then when the guard on his left replied, “be gone, outlander, these offices are closed for the night.”

“My name is Servius Silverfane,” Sirius continued, totally ignoring the guard’s rude comment. He was, and likely along with his partner as well, of course a Dunmer and Sirius could easily tell by his raspy and hostilely tone. The Elven races, especially the Dunmer, absolutely hated the Empire and their Imperialistic ways. But of course that was expected, since the Empire had invaded their homeland of Morrowind in the first place. “I have come to investigate the disappearances of the four members of House Hlaalu. King Helseth sent me himself, from Mournhold.”

“Yes, yes, we obviously know who the King is and where he resides,” The guard replied in a very rude tone. “But that doesn’t change anything. The compound is still closed for the night, and you will simply have to come back tomorrow. Good night.”

Sirius knew he wasn’t going to get far with the stubborn elf, not that he expected to anyway. The guards were very loyal to their Houses, plus it was likely that whoever was in charge of Balmora’s Hlaalu compound had already retired for the night. So he nodded to the guard and then left, heading straight back to the “Lucky Lockup” for some much needed supper.

Back at the inn, it was still just as crowded as before, if not a little bit more somehow. The Nord owner was still cleaning mugs when he saw Sirius enter his place. “Ready for food yet?”

“Sure, why not?”

Sirius walked up and sat on one of the tall wooden stools in front of the counter. The owner finished cleaning the glass he had already been working on, then sat it on shelf with the other clean mugs and walked over to Sirius. “What can I get ‘ya this evening?”

Sirius pondered the question for a few seconds because in all honesty he really didn’t know what he wanted. He wasn’t too hungry, and he wanted some alcohol more than anything. It had been a whole since his last drink, or at least to him that is.

“I think I’ll just take s a small cut of venison, and an order of cooked carrots.”

“Anything to drink?”

Sirius smiled and replied, “Yeah, give me two bottles of brandy.”

After he had finished eating Sirius thanked the man, whose name was Albert, took a key from the man and then went to find his room upstairs. It was a small space, but Sirius didn’t mind. It wasn’t like he had bags and bags full of crap to store. He only had what clothes he had on and what money he was carrying, which was now a little more than two hundred septims. He then closed the door, flopped onto his bed, and fell asleep almost in an instant.

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

What woke Sirius up the following morning was the smell of something good cooking from downstairs. So he seemingly drifted down the staircase outside of his bedroom, because he was still half asleep, and he realized that Albert was cooking breakfast, which Sirius should have known anyway.

“Good mornin’ there, lad. Wakin’ up early, eh?” Albert asked with a wide and friendly smile.

Sirius asked him what time it was and the Nord answered ‘five forty-five in the morning. “Geez, to be honest I wish I was still in bed, but then I smelled something good and decided to see what it was.”

“Sorry fer wakin’ ya’ up with my food, but some of my customers like to come in extra early. Can I get ya’ somethin’ to eat?”

Sirius thought for a couple of seconds, a ‘couple’ only because he couldn’t deny the offering of delicious smelling food, and said yes. “Yeah, what are you fixing right now?”

“I’ve got just about everything, but what I’m fixin’ now is Kwama eggs, Kagouti sausage, and fresh baked biscuits with Scrib jelly.”

“That sounds great. I’ll take that with a bottle of brandy.”

“Brandy? This early in the mornin’?” Albert asked with a confused expression on his face.”

Sirius simply chuckled and replied, “Fine, I’ll take a bottle of milk instead.”

The food was fixed and brought to Sirius within minutes, who himself was sitting on the same stool from last night. “Say, Albert, how’d you learn to be such an excellent cook?” Sirius asked after taking a bite of his sausage.

“Well, lad, I guess it’d be me dad that taught me everything. He died a few years back, but let me tell ya’, he was one of THE best cooks in all of Vvardenfell, or at least that’s what he’d tell ya’,” Albert said with a hearty laugh. “He even cooked for the Duke several times. Boy, do I miss him dearly. But anyhow, I learned everything me father. What a great man he was…”

Albert seemed to drift off for several seconds, but then he turned back to Sirius and asked, “What about y’self, Sirius? What are ya’ doin’ here in Balmora?”

At that point Sirius couldn’t help but laugh, for he knew this question was bound to come up sooner or later. It’s a good thing for him that he had been preparing a story on the boat ride from Mournhold.

“Nothing important, really; Just to see the sights around the city I suppose. I’ve heard the place is magnificently beautiful, especially at this time of the year.”

“Aye, that they are, lad. I personally would suggest that ya’ visit the Temple if ya’ get the chance. I’m not much on the Dunmeri religion, but I hear the place has some fascinatin’ artifacts if you’re interested.”

Soon the meal and conversation was over with, and Sirius began pulling out some gold coins from his sack, when Albert announced, “Don’t worry, lad, all meals are on the house since yer rentin’ for a whole week.”

Sirius, pleasantly surprised by the offer, replied, “Are you sure, Albert? That’s a lot of money you’re not going to be making.”

“Not a problem, lad. I am here to serve, not make as much money as possible,” he said with a wink.

So Sirius thanked him and left the building, heading again for the Hlaalu Council Manor. It was now about seven o’clock in the morning, and Sirius was almost positive that he’d be able to finally enter the compound and begin his investigation.

At that moment he started to think about what was going to happen, and how desperately excited he was about getting back to work after five years of drinking and lying around doing nothing. The thought donned on him so suddenly that he literally stopped walking and just stood there, thinking.

It was true that Helseth was only using him to do his dirty work, but Sirius couldn’t help but feel a tad bit grateful all the same. If it wasn’t for Helseth, Sirius would still be in Caldera, drinking his life away and spending money he didn’t even have. True, he was still drinking, but at least for the time being his life actually meant something again.

Once the ‘trance’ was finished, Sirius walked up the stairs to the Hlaalu compound. The same guards were standing by as before and Sirius asked, “May I enter the compound now?”

“Yes,” said the same guard Sirius had talked with yesterday. “I spoke with Lady Nileno Dorvayn, the high-ranking member here in Balmora. I told her of your presence, and she had instructed me to guide to her office. Please, follow me.”

The tone of the guard was totally different from what Sirius endured yesterday. It was likely that whoever this ‘Nileno’ was, she had probably instructed the guard to be polite and respectful. Sirius didn’t really mind that.

So the guard opened the door and led Sirius into the building. There were many plants, paintings, and portraits spread throughout the entire first level. It was a beautiful place, but Sirius didn’t get a long time to gander, because the guard quickly took him down a hallway and into a medium-sized room where an exhausted-looking Dunmer was sitting at a desk, with her head in her hands.

“Excuse me, Lady Nileno, but the investigator has arrived,” the guard announced.

The Dunmer quickly looked up, and her tiresome expression was replaced by a fake cheerful smile. “Thank you. You may return to your post.”

The guard took a bow, and then left the room, closing the door behind him.

“Good morning, how are you today? King Helseth mentioned in a letter yesterday that you would be here. I would like to thank you for taking time out of your likely hectic life to help us. The situation unfortunately hasn’t gotten any better, I’m afraid.”

Sirius studied her face, and as he did he could see how much she was hurting inside. Even though she was not a ‘true’ councilor of House Hlaalu, Sirius could sense the leadership that she held. She cared for her people, and it was tearing her pieces that some of them were disappearing, seemingly out of thin air.

“Not a problem, m’lady, I am here to help in any possible. Just tell me everything that has happened so far, from beginning to end, please.”

She gave Sirius a quick overview of the events that have taken place in Balmora, though none of it was any different from what he had gathered from Sirius and the other Councilors. After Nileno was finished Sirius asked for the addresses of the victims, so that he can officially start the investigation.

“Here is a list with the addresses; um…what is your name?”

“Servius…..Servius Silverfane.”

“Alright, Servius, here are the address to the members who have disappeared. I would suggest you ask around the city as well, but you have probably already figured that out.”

“Don’t worry, m’lady, I will do everything I can to find out what has happened here in Balmora. Now if you’ll excuse me, I will take my leave and begin the investigation. Shall I return later and give my results my results for the day?”

“Yes, that would be great. I leave here at eight o’clock, so if you get here and I am present, here are directions to my house.” She then handed Sirius the addresses and then directions to her house as well. “Good luck, Servius, and be careful out there…”

Sirius thanked her and then left promptly. First on his list was a middle-aged Dunmer male named Norvo Milande. He was apparently the first to have disappeared, so Sirius decided to start with him first.