Clark - Second Era Options

[Acadian]

Clark manages to take care of the invisible/not invisible one and the Illuminated One as well.

Finally, back to hunting for those attuned Keepers. A little help from Raz and the first one is found – along with where to likely find the other.

[ghastley]

@Acadian: Well, it was his intent to go find the other one...

-----

Previously: Clark found the first Keeper of the Resolute Diamonds, and set off to find the other.

Next a brief interlude that helps Clark understand non-linear time, ... or not.

------

Ebon Stadmont

I set off along the base of cliffs, looking for a cleft in the rock, maybe a set of steps, that would lead me to the pass. I didn't find one as soon as I'd expected, based on them telling me it was "close". Instead I came across a Mages Guild scholar standing outside the entrance to something surrounded by hedges. She introduced herself as Andewen, and told me that the mercenary she'd hired to protect her had just quit at the first sight of daedra. Now she had nobody to assist. "You're armed, and I presume also armoured, can you help?"

Before I agreed to anything, I asked about the King's Haven pass.

"You didn't see the door?, It's just outside the Academy."

Of course, I'd seen it, but assumed it led back into another part of the Academy, and kept going. It had a door, so it could be locked if needed, she informed me.

Since I'd come this far, I might as well assist her before turning back. I noted a staff on her back, and inquired why she couldn't handle the daedra herself.

"Because I'll be busy collecting notes, and won't want to be interrupted. I can't write and fight at the same time."

That seemed reasonable. We went in together.

---

The interior resembled a hedge-maze that had been abandoned long ago, and become overgrown. Paths no longer lead where they probably were intended to go, and it likely didn't have daedra wandering around before. She told me we were looking for a temple or similar building that was at the centre of the maze. That was her objective, to study whatever secrets it held. She had an account from a much earlier expedition, that had found the temple, but not explored that fully. There were ancient inscriptions that presumably explained how to get entry to the inner parts, but nobody on the earlier team was able to translate them. "I've studied Ayleid languages, so I believe I can succeed where they failed.

"That's assuming we can find our way to the building, of course. Adventurers are always getting lost in here. Most just find themselves coming back out the way the entered, without finding anything. Others never come out, possibly because the daedra got the, or maybe they never found the exit again. Apparently the path ... shifts, as you go. At least that's how the ones who came out described it."

I began to understand what they meant when we found that the only ways out of the first part were the entrance or a portal that we couldn't see through. We stepped through, and found ourselves in another section of the maze. That was promising, as it wasn't a desert, or a cave, so we hadn't gone far. But I had a suspicion, and told Andewen I'd like to check it. So we stepped back through the portal, and were not back where we just came from.

"I imagine these portals will all take us somewhere different each time we use them," I suggested. "So if we don't find the temple, we can just keep stepping through the nearest portal until we're back in the firat section."

"Could we do that to find the temple?" she asked.

"Perhaps, but only if it's visible from the nearest portal. To be certain of finding it, we'll have to search each new area we come to ... and fight the daedra," I added as some came up the path towards us.

---

It wasn't just daedra. We encountered welwa and other wild beasts, and because their bodies remain after they're killed, they proved useful in knowing where we'd been. If we saw a dead welwa when we stepped out of a portal, we'd just go back through to another part of the maze.

"Over there. There's an inscription on that rock!" she exclaimed.

Of course, as soon as she stooped to read it, more daedra spawned nearby.

"Hold them off while I take a rubbing, then I can translate it even if we have to get away from the daedra," she requested. She finished doing so in time to help me with the Ogrim that spawned at the end of the fight, and I was grateful for that.

The inscription apparently just told her to look for a second one, and implied that the temple was to the east. That latter part was of no real help, with the portals taking us every direction at random.

The daedra that spawned when we found the next inscription were different. No Ogrim this time, but several Mazken, including one 'Nikalia the Beguiling'. To me, at least, that suggested Sheogorath had something to do with this confounding maze. Andewen agreed. The Mages Guild and the Daedric Prince seemed to be having an ongoing battle and if she was paranoid, she'd think ...

But the second inscription had helped, and she knew the temple was nearby. We shouldn't need to go through any more portals. Just around the next bend, we could see it.

Andewen ran ahead. When I entered the Ebon Sanctum, I couldn't see her, but found a note she'd written, telling me to use the stone next to it to open the door.

I heard Andewen shriek from the top of the stairs "More daedra!" as she ran to hide. I was surprised to find the only daedra present was one of Nocturnal's shrikes, who just shrugged and disappeared when she saw me. I went up the stairs to find Andewen.

"Is it gone?" she asked, but ran back down the stairs before I could answer. I followed, and found her tending to a wounded man I hadn't noticed before, who had presumably fallen to the shrike.

The man, Fletch, was a member of the House of Revelries. His troupe were here with Maestro Forte, their leader, whose hobby was Ayleid studies. He needed to warn him about the presence of daedra. "They should be through there," he told us, struggling to his feet and leading us to a door to the Ebon Sanctum Garden.

---

"Fletch! what happened? The whole troupe has been looking for you." the tall mer exclaimed.

"Grand Maestro Forte? Why I had no idea you were in Ebon Stadmont," Andewen interjected.

"I'm simply Maestro Forte. Hardly worthy of Grand as yet."

I talked to the Maestro, and passed on Fletch's warning about daedra. I didn't understand why they hadn't encountered any on there way in, but perhaps they were luckier than we were with the portals, and bypassed the spawns Andewen and I encountered. That seemed likely as he hadn't needed to translate any inscriptions, either. Fortunate, as translation was beyond his knowledge. "Do you suppose Andewen could translate the Northern Stone?" he asked."It's at the end of that path, you can't miss it."

Well, he and his troupe might have avoided the daedra, but they showed up for us. As if they were attracted to us, in particular. Banekin, winged twilights and ogrim, but they didn't stop us reaching the stone.

"Future's door," Andewen read, translating the inscription on the stone. "It's starting to make some sense now. There were a few things that disturbed me back there that are falling into place.

"The room where we found Fletch was identical to the one where we came into the Ebon Sanctum, but without the cobwebs and broken pews. As if the door in between wasn't into a different room, but a different time. And with Grand Maestro Forte insisting he wasn't Grand yet, I'm thinking that's exactly what happened. We're in the past. The research I read to find this place was probably written by the Maestro, after they left."

"So the inscription is telling us that this door here will take us back to the future, our present?" I asked.

"Yes, and we'd better do so as quickly as possible, before we do anything more that could affect past events. I'm worried already that I might have so by healing Fletch. There was a skeleton the first room right where I found Fletch wounded in the second one. Perhaps he was supposed to die, and I've broken time!"

I opened the door and stepped through, expecting her to follow, but instead I heard her voice ahead of me in another room.

The Andewen I found looked very old, and Altmer live a very long time. More time had elapsed for her than just a return to her present. My head was spinning trying to work out what that meant for me, as I was more than an elf's lifetime into my own past.

"Finally you've arrived! The door wouldn't work for me. I tried to follow, but it wouldn't open. So I had to wait. I tried to find a way out through the portals, but they just lead me back here.

"For decades, I've been studying the language of the inscriptions, trying to find a way out, and I've finally managed it. I must stop myself from ever going back in time, and that means warning myself not to even enter the Ebon Sanctum. I can't do that, as I'm already there, but you can. Give me this diary, and make sure I read it.

"Go to the southern stone, and use the words "baneaweh tendell" to activate it. That should get you back to the right time and place."

---

The door by the southern stone took me into the room where we'd first entered the building, as I could tell by the cobwebs. Except that Fletch was there, and his skeleton wasn't. He told me to go out and talk to Andewen, who was waiting for me to catch up.

She seemed surprised that I wasn't behind her, but did as I asked, and read the diary. And then we went back through the maze, too.

"I suppose I did succeed here, after all," she said. "I have these notes, written in my own hand, that I can take back to the Mages Guild, and let them figure it all out."

"And it will tel them that this place is a trap. Baited for mages, and probably devised by Sheogorath, and most of the daedra seemed to be his," I replied.

With one exception, I thought to myself. After I watched Andewen walk away, and I was sure she wasn't about to change her mind and go in anyway, I asked Nocturnal.

"The shrike? Just backup in case you two didn't sort it out. Andewen could have gone in without you, after all."

"And how did I manage not to overlap with myself in all that?" I added. "After all, I did go in, so it all happened to me."

"You went back in time to a point before you'd arrived in Vvardenfell, so there would be no issue there anyway, even if it wasn't all happening in Sheo's realm, where he controls the time. And the same for the future part. You won't be in your past long enough for that.

"Besides, you're only here in your past to fix anomalies like this. Vile and Mephala's interventions could have much worse consequences than Andewen's mistakes."

"I'd better get back on track for the King's Haven pass, then," I responded.

[Acadian]

Great job capturing the confusion within Ebon Stadmont. A quest designed to make your head hurt methinks. Nice job saving Andewan.

Now back to finding that second Keeper of the Resolute Diamonds.

[ghastley]

@Acadian: the entire quest line is that confused. Not even the participants understand it, and if they do, it was an illusion induced by a Daedric Prince or their agent.

-----

Previously: Clark got a detour and a lesson in non-linear time.

-----

King's Haven

Since I had already found the door once, it wasn't hard to find again. And as soon as I'd gone through the short stretch of tunnel beyond it, I could understand why it was there. Instead of a long underground passage like I was expecting, there was a large area open to the sky. Judging by the number of cave entrances I could see, this part of the massif had been riddled with caves, and had collapsed a long time ago. The local wildlife had moved in, and there were a lot of creatures being blocked by that door.

The Reef Vipers and Welwa seemed to have divided the place among them. The Reef Vipers preferred the floor of the basin, near the river, presumably the same one that carved all the caves. The slopes were infested with Welwa, and there would probably be something else in the caves when I reached them.

The abundance of predators hadn't stopped someone from building walkways and ramps, so this area had been
inhabited by people (or at least goblins) in the past. If they were still here, they'd have kept the numbers of the critters down, wouldn't they? Presumably they'd left other signs of their past habitation in the caves, if Imredil found anything of interest here, it was likely to be in those ruins.

I followed the walkways as much as possible, on the assumption that they would be more likely to lead to places of interest than the other trails. I soon found myself going into caves at the higher levels, which is where I encountered the goblins. Now, did they build the walkways, or just take them over when they moverd in? And had they occupied the ruins as well (if there were some,)?

There didn't seem to be any of the outside creatures inside the caves, so apparently the same territorial agreements that I'd noted outside applied. I did at one point come out to an area with a Gryphon's nest, but went back inside and left it alone.

Finally, after a few encounters with hostile goblins, I started to see evidence of Elven construction. Old, and crumbling, but this was most likely where I'd find Imredil.

I did not expect to find daedra, however. Perhaps I should have, because this one was definitely one of Mephala's, a Spiderkith with her summoned spider cohorts.

When she went down, she gloated that she'd delayed me enough. "My mistress has already claimed her prize."

I hoped that didn't mean Imredil.

In the room beyond her, I found Imredil being dragged into a portal, and a knight in glowing golden armour trying to prevent it. He looked suspiciously like the one that had been trying to contact Valsirenn and myself earlier, but now he was actually here, and taking part.

I joined him in defending Imredil, and burning the webs, but the portal changed its focus, and captured him instead. I soon discovered why.

Imredil was no longer a valuable hostage. He'd been poisoned, and was dying fast. He gave me his Resolute Diamond, and another gem, which he didn't have time to explain before he passed.

As soon as I left the ruins, a projection of Valsirenn summoned me back to Artaeum, so I made my way there, hoping for some explanation. I especially wanted to know what use a Resolute Diamond was to us without its keeper.

---

Iachesis took one look at the gem Imredil had given me (not the Resolute Diamond, the other one), and told me it was a Dawnstar gem, associated with Meridia, and it was her Golden Knight that had probably dropped it, or given it to Imredil. He took me down to the Dreaming cave, where there was a portal to Oblivion, blocked by a glowing barrier of daedric origin (or so Iachesis informed me). He'd recovered some of his lost memory, and now recalled bringing the Heart of Transparent Law down here, and going through that portal. Of course, he couldn't retrace his path with that barrier in place.

"Hold the Dawnstar gem near the barrier, and see what it does," he requested.

I did so, and the barrier recoiled a little, but not all the way.

"We'll need to reunite the gem with Dawnbreaker before we can get through," Iachesis proclaimed. "And that means finding the Golden Knight who bears it. We will need Meridia's assistance in locating him, but using the Dreaming Cave to contact her is too dangerous with this barrier here. It will most likely relay everything to Mephala, Vile and Nocturnal."

I went outside to find Leythen and Valsirenn, to see if they had any idea how to contact Meridia. I'd already asked Nocturnal if she knew anything, but Mephala hadn't shared any information with her. Meridia was our only option.

Leythen informed me that Mephala's cultists had attacked Meridia's cultists wherever they could find them, and there were not likely to be many left to ask for directions to any of her shrines. He suspected that Vile's cultists and Nocturnal's had taken similar actions, including against the cults of any other Daedric Princes that had got involved in the conflict.

"The cultists are at war with each other?" I asked. "I always assumed they just ignored each other, as a lost cause."

Leythen responded that he'd been informed by Mephala that this was the case now, because the Daedric Princes themselves were in conflict. The Court of Bedlam, the direct agents of the the triad, had nothing to do with the cults, but were kept informed as the cultists could be dangerous in times like these.

I decided at this point to let Razum-Dar know of the cultist war, and at the same time, I could ask if he knew of any Meridian shrine on the island.

---

That was a good call. Not only did he know of a shrine, but one of Raz's personal friends was a member of her cult there. He'd like to make sure she was safe.

We travelled together to Eton Nir Grotto, which was the site of the shrine. We found Sadara-do (Raz's friend) outside. She fled from the attack, and was afraid to try and go back in, with all the daedra the Mephala cultists had summoned still in there.

"Raz and Sadara-do will try and enter through a side-entrance. You go in the regular entrance, and attract their attention away from us," Raz decided.

I didn't like to admit it, but that was actually the best plan. If we all tried to sneak in, we were more likely to give ourselves away as a larger group. Two could do so, while three might not. And a distraction would certainly make it easier for Sadara-do to get through. Nocturnal also reminded me that I was the only one here who was immortal, even if the others didn't know that.

I probably had her help fighting my way in. The daedra never attacked me as large groups, and seemed oblivious to battles that they should have been able to hear. And although I didn't know the way, I seemed to take the most direct route.

I reached the shrine as efficiently as I could, it seemed. As I approached, a light began to shine at the top of the statue of Meridia, between her upraised hands. It lit up her face, and also let me see that Raz and Sadara-do had made it here safely. Sadara was dismayed by the state of the shrine, with dead bodies strewn around, amd furniture broken everywhere, but the re-appearance of the light gave her hope.

"Meridia is still here, and wants to talk with us," she proclaimed.

"The statue wants to talk? To Raz?" Raz said, puzzled.

"My followers murdered. My shrine desecrated. The other Daedric Princes must answer for these insults. But I sense a question in your mind. Speak. Ask what you will of the Prince of Light."

"Your Golden Knight was captured and his sword damaged. We seek you guidance on how to repair it," I responded.

"They dare to steal my vessel? To hold prisoner the agent I put in place to foil their despicable plans? My light will not be snuffed out! You must set Darien Gautier free!"

"Darien is the Golden Knight's name?" I asked.

"He thinks of himself as the mortal Darien Gautier, but he is the vessel of my power in your realm. You and he will need to work together to end this. You must enter Mephala's realm and retrieve him."

"I have the Dawnstar gem from the sword. Will that help?" I added

"You can use it to locate Darien. Now return to the Ritemaster and tell him what I said."

[Acadian]

Too late to save Imredil so I guess that breaks the Resolute Diamond attuned pair. And who is this golden knight who keeps appearing?

It seems a chat with Iachesis, Raz and Meridia is in order – and fruitful. So the golden boy is actually the handsome but incorrigible skirt-chaser Darien Guatier. And Clark has instructions on how to repair Dawnbreaker.

Yup, time to update Iachesis.

Random but slightly related tidbit: Though she has explored the vast depths and breadths of ESO, Buffy can count on the fingers of one small hand the number of men she has been attracted to in the Second Era. One of those was Iachesis. If only he’d been a few centuries younger and not destined for. . . well, Clark will find out.

[ghastley]

@Acadian: Yes, that Darien.

-----

Previously: Clark had visited Meridia's shrine, and talked to her statue.

-----

Finding Nemo Darien

Iachesis would have preferred that I return with the Dawnbreaker, but this was at least progress.

"I would rather have Meridia, Daedric Prince of Light, as an ally, so rescuing Darien for her would be a beneficial move. He'll no doubt want to assist in finding the sword, too. And she is correct about the gem. Its connection with Darien will allow me to use his awareness of his location to place a portal. Normally, I'd need to have visited the other end before, but just holding the Dawnstar gem should be enough."

Valsirenn and I stepped through the portal he opened, expecting to encounter Darien's guards. What we did not expect was to be separated. So my first task was to find her, rather than Darien. I could hear her, and the Dawnstar gem was guiding me, but whether that was towards her or Darien wasn't clear. Hopefully, it would be both.

When I found her, she had been captured, and cocooned in spider silk. Her guard was no tougher than the other daedra I'd had to deal with along the way, and she was soon free.
Now to find Darien.

---

That wasn't too hard, as he was a noisy prisoner, and we could just follow the sound of the cursing. The difficulty was the number of daedra we had to deal with on the path. And when we reached him, there were a couple of Ogrim, and a Spiderkith between us.

After we cut them down, we cut him down, from the webs. He seemed ungrateful fior the rescue, or at least annoyed that we'd taken so long. Valsirenn was not amused, and suggested leaving him here.

I spoke with Darien. "So you're the golden knight that's been trying to contact me?"

"Guilty as charged! Meridia was trying to send me earlier, but something prevented that. Look, we can talk about it later,. Right now we need to get out of here."

He continued anyway. "How did you find me, by the way? Mephala specifically told me she'd put me where nobody would ever look."

"I have the Dawnstar gem. It lead us right to you."

"Oh, right, the gem. That makes sense. You need Meridia's champion, so I can restore Dawnbreaker. But not right now. I'm in no condition to do much, especially not fighting. Let's get out first."

Valsireenn was looking for a safe spot to open a portal back, and she thought she'd found one. Of course, more daedra turned up while she was opening it, perhaps attracted by the magicka, and I had to deal with those myself. Valsirenn was busy opening the portal and Darien was too exhausted to help.

---

Back on Arteum, Valsirenn took Darien off to be healed, while I discussed progress with Iachesis. He'd made some of his own. A little more of his memory had returned. He could hear a woman's voice, repeating the same words, over and over, in a langage he did not understand. Just a whisper, but always there.

"What do you think it means?" I asked.

He didn't know, but he'd asked Oriandra to research the words, and see if she could translate them. He asked me to check with her, and see if she'd made any progress.

---

She had eliminated Ancient Ayleid, and found evidence of Daedric language patterns, but that was getting beyond her scope. She'd received help from Grand Master Forte, who had sent her his notes from Ebon Stadmont. The language of the inscriptions there seemed related.

"I just wish Leythen was still one of us," she told me."He's the expert on ancient languages."

I took her notes to Leythen.

---

As I expected, his curiosity got the better of his reluctance to help us. Still, he didn't know that particular language either. The Ebon Stadmont connection seemed to be our best hope, and of course, he couldn't go there to examine the inscriptions.

However, I could take a rune with me, and go there myself. He'd be able to see through the rune, and use the inscription to help decypher Iachesis' memory. The rock bearing the inscription was too large to bring back, so this was the only viable method.

Since the rock was outdoors, and the whole time-distorting issue was inside the Sanctum building, there shouldn't be any of those problems this time. But the portal maze was still going to be a nuisance.

"Refer to Forte's notes," Leythen told me. "He seems to have solved that problem for you."

---

When I got back there, it started to make sense. The stone archways surrounding the portals were distguishable by the number of crows carved into them, and the right sequence was in the notes.

Crows. That suggested someone I knew had created this maze, and I wondered what its purpose really was.

When I reached the inscribed rock, Leythen's image was projected by the rune, and he began to examine the inscription. But his image began to flicker, and the connection was being lost. Soon, it was replaced by one of Nocturnal's agent, Veya, or Lord Tundilwen, as she now prefers to be known.

"Nocturnal can't risk this information getting back to Mephala," she told me. "At this time, it is sufficient for Iachesis to know that the words are a spell. He'll know the right time to use the, and reveal the Heart."

And she disappeared again. Apparently, she hadn't remembered me from Morrowind, and also didn't know of my association with Nocturnal. The Daedric Princess was holding her cards close to her chest, and as one of them, that was a nice place to be.

---

When I returned to Ceporah Tower, Leythen was annoyed that he hadn't had time to finish his analysis of the inscription, but Iachesis was satisfied with the news. It meant that he probably didn't need any more information at this time, and could proceed with the next step. We would need Darien's help with that.

---

I found Darien outside, doing push-ups. He appeared to have made a very rapid recovery from his injuries. I knew that the damage could be repaired almost instantly with sufficient magic, but you still needed time to undo the other effects, like learning that doing <i>that</i> wouldn't hurt any more.

"This may seem like a strange question," he began, 'but do you know me? I'd never seen you before, but you seemed to be aware of who I am, as if you knew me before."

"That's probably because my Seryn knows you and Gabrielle, and she told me to look out for you," I replied, leaving out Nocturnal's part in it. "And that golden armour is rather unique, isn't it?"

"Fair enough," he replied. "I thought maybe we'd met in Coldharbor. That was a hectic, if short campaign, and it didn't end up the way I'd have liked. Meridia's all right, but she's not big on free will, so I don't get to choose my battles. She sent me here to help you, but hasn't explained much about how I 'm supposed to do that."

"I take it that you'd have preferred to return with Gabrielle," I told him."She'd have preferred that, too. But at least I can let her know, through Seryn, that you're safe."

"For now," he replied. "If Meridia doesn't consider me disposable. Who knows what we're about to get into."

We talked a bit more, and some things began to make more sense. Those times he'd appeared and gone away again, in Shimmerene, and near the sinkhole in Relenthil. Meridia had tried to send him here too soon, before he'd gone off to Coldharbor, and was still somewhere else in Tamriel. I knew that wouldn't work, but did Meridia not understand, or had she just got the timing wrong?

I made sure Nocturnal and Azura were aware of everything we discussed. Seryn needed to tell Gabrielle, and Nocturnal might not know of Meridia's limitations.

[Acadian]

No surprise that none of the Daedric Princes trust each other one bit. Hopefully that will be their undoing.

[ghastley]

@Acadian: I don't think Daedric Princes know what trust is, especially if they're asking you to trust them.

-----

Previously; Clark brought Darien back from Mephala's Spiral Skein.

-----

Locating the Heart

Darien and I joined Iachesis and Valsirenn down in the Dreaming Cave. With Dawnbreaker reunited with its gem, we could now use it to open the portal, and see where it lead. Iachesis still didn't remember where that was.

Once we stepped through, it was obvious to all of us.

"Why are we in Evergloam?" Iachesis asked. "I don't understand why I'd have chosen to hide the Heart here, of
all places. But it's here somewhere, I'm sure of that. Perhaps I'll recall more as we travel."

"Which way?" I asked, "Do you remember anything from the last time you were here?"

"Follow the path, I presume. There seems to be only one," he remarked.

I was initially surprised that there was opposition to our passage, but of course that was for Darien's (and Meridia's) benefit. I didn't know any of the shrikes we encountered (and yes, I do look at their faces) but it was mostly gloom wolves, wraiths and the like anyway. Every so often, a crow would show up, and pass comment on our progress, and reminding Iachesis of his prior visit. Nocturnal wanted him to remember everything by the time we arrived at wherever we were going.

"I remember that portal!" Iachesis announced. "I remember going into it, carrying the crystal, and coming back out without it. I just don't recall what happened on the other side. But that must be where I hid the Heart."

We all went through the portal, weapons at the ready, but there was nothing waiting for us on the other side. Just a ruined building that looked familiar to Iachesis. We climbed to the top, and the Ritemaster walked to the middle of the platform. Crows had arrived, and perched all around the walls. "Recite the spell," they chanted.

That convinced Iachesis he'd found the right place. "My friends, prepare yourselves. The Heart will soon be back in our hands."

"Heart, reveal yourself! Gar Noro berri, vo rah Larow e javeel!"

The Ritemaster's chest began to glow, and a few additional spectators arrived.

"Look, Mephala, the mortal hid the Heart inside himself."

"Yes, Clavicus, but why did Nocturnal hide this from us? She must have known."

"No matter, we'll take the crystal now, Ritemaster."

That's when the troops arrived. We were attacked by Skaafin, Spiders, and all the usual light attack enemies in the first wave, with more, and heavier foes arriving later. Iachesis began to doubt he'd survive this onslaught, and told Valsirenn to take his place if he didn't.

Then Nocturnal arrived, and banished the "visitors" from her realm. "You are no longer welcome. The Heart belongs to me! We made a deal, didn't we, mortal?"

"Yes, and the only way to retrieve the Heart is to kill me."

"Very well, I accept those terms."

Everyone else was shocked at this, but Nocturnal had forewarned me, and I was expecting the charade. When the Ritemaster seemingly exploded, and disappeared, I knew what she'd actually done.

Before anybody could do anything about it we found ourselves transported back to the Ceporah Tower, and Oriandra.

"Where's the Ritemaster?" she asked.

"Where's my sword? I just fixed that!" asked Darien. It hadn't come with him.

Valsirenn explained to Oriandra that Nocturnal had killed Iachesis, and taken the Heart of Transparent Law for herself, betraying the other two Daedric Princes. A slight simplification, so I didn't correct anything. The Ritemaster was not coming back, so it didn't make a difference here.

I did repeat what he'd said about Valsirenn taking over, as Nocturnal and I both thought that was a good idea. She was the only one who had the right overview of the current situation to deal appropriately with it. No doubt internal Psijic politics would change things later, but what happened now was important. We still had the problem of the sealed Crystal Tower, and the Resolute Diamonds missing a Keeper. I knew that Nocturnal could access the interior, as she now had Iachesis' knowledge of it for a portal in, and Veya as a mortal agent to go there. I was sure she'd make a start on repairing it right away, but unsealing the entrance would still be a requirement.

---

When I had some time alone, I asked Nocturnal what the "deal" with Iachesis had been.

"Essentially, three more centuries of mortal life, in return for a new heart, to replace the damaged one he had. The Sload had done something that was gradually destroying it, and he didn't have much longer. With the Sload being necromancers, it didn't matter to K'tora whether Iachesis was alive or dead when he wanted the Heart of Transparent Law handed over. He'd still be able to search through his memories, and find it.

"So the simplest way to kill two birds with one stone was to replace his heart with the crystal one. The Sload had already primed him to forget the hiding place, so he'd done half the work for me. I did amplify that a bit, to make sure the Sload wouldn't be able to undo it, either. Iachesis gets to spend eternity in Evergloam, instead of wherever Altmer are supposed to end up, but the shrikes have made him welcome, and I don't think he minds.

"I'm glad you passed on his wishes about Val taking over. Iachesis had always felt a bit guilty that he'd kept the job she should have stepped into 300 years back, even if he didn't remember why."

"How's Veya getting on with the restoration in the Tower?" I asked.

"Not as well as could be achieved if she didn't have to use magic for everything," Nocturnal replied. "It really needs a whole crew of stonemasons and other physical trades working on it. Do your best with that entrance, please."

---

I went to the Crystal Tower to find out what progress had been made there. I found Razum-Dar staring up at the top, where a purple haze had formed around the pinnacle.

"This one is concerned," he told me. "The tower should not be glowing like that. This one suspects Nocturnal is already at work."

"What's happening at the bottom?" I asked. "Have the Sapiarchs made any progress opening the seal?"

We walked over to take a look. Two new Sapiarch Keepers were there, holding new Resolute Diamonds, but they weren't completely attuned.

"It's not working," one complained. "I start thinking it will work, and then it all goes wrong again."

"Keep trying," the other told her. "It's all we can do."

Nocturnal didn't think so. A squad of summoned daedra came in and broke up the party. We fought them off, but the will of the Sapiarchs had been broken. "It's no use. We're not going to get this open."

"Perhaps the Psijic Conclave would do better," Valsirenn suggested. "Let me take the Diamonds back to Artaeum, and see what can be done to attune them."

The Sapiarchs felt that you needed to be here at the Tower itself, to do that, but it was worth a try. They were getting nowhere.

"I'm glad they stopped trying," Nocturnal told me. "You can mess up a lock, trying to pick it, so badly the key won't work any more. This may be a magical lock, but the same principle applies."

She didn't think the Psijics had any better chance. What the Sapiarchs had said was unfortunately true. Attuning the Diamonds needed to be done at the seal itself.

---

I wasn't too surprised when a talking dog approached me not long after that. Barbas had a proposition. Clavicu Vile would give us access to the seal in his realm, so that Nocturnal wouldn't interfere. We could attune the Diamonds there.

Sotha Sil had explained to me that it was the same Tower in all the realms, and if any of the Princes got control of the interior, they could cause havoc. That would have to be mortal cultists on the inside, as it remained part of Mundus. It wasn't clear if that was why the Sapiarchs had sealed it off, but nothing they had done really made sense.

This post has been edited by ghastley: Today, 10:14 AM

[Acadian]

"Yes, and the only way to retrieve the Heart is to kill me."
"Very well, I accept those terms."

Yikes! And sure enough, Iachesis is gone. Ahah, Nocturnal enlightens us quite a bit on the original deal she made with him and how/why it went the way it did. I’m also glad Valsirenn is now in charge – she’s a good psijic.

[Grits]

Darien! Whoop!

Jerric is my only character who has done this questline. He was confused throughout and went on a long vacation afterward. It's fun to see it through Clark's eyes, as he has some extra insight into the Daedric players.

Farewell, Iachesis. Congratulations, Ritemaster Valsirenn. Two of my favorite Altmer.