The Saga of Joan of Arkay, A Morrowind Main Quest Story Options

[SubRosa]

Don't tell me that someone might be skulking inside the Skulk Egg Mine?

Leave it to Stendarr, and leave it to Talos

This is a great phrase!

"You n'wah! Now you die!"

That will be the skulkers then...

Poor Joan is learning that the skulkers are not so easily reasoned with. Methinks that this will only be solved with the might of Talos, rather than the mercy of Stendarr.

No more poached eggs for those two. More like scrambled...

[Acadian]

Those two poachers seemed very determined to commit suicide by Holy Knight. That Joan wrestles with being forced to kill them shows the spirit of a noble soul. One that is still learning when to wield words and when to wield steel. Nicely done!

[Lena Wolf]

This is not the way Joan had wanted things to go. Had this woman really needed to fall to her death just now? Perhaps it was my initial calling upon Stendarr and Talos which had apparently caused an aberration of process, thinks she in so many thoughts. Perhaps I shall call upon the personal fortifying aspects of Dibella as I arrive to meet Sevilo.

I think Dibella might have helped! But I don't see Joan as a Dibbellan though... perhaps she needs some inspiration first. I hear the House of Earthly Delights is not too far away.

"Perhaps my choice of words to pacify Sevilo upon being assaulted were unwise," Joan mutters to herself before rolling into bed. She makes an aside, a promise to herself, and to the Gods, not to give in so firmly to violence. She'll need to try harder with words next time.

Think: Dibella! A little dance might have helped as well.

[Renee]

Hey everyone, good to see you. I had a death in my family this week and it's been tough. Today I got back into some gaming just because I'm a gaming addict, and after over a week of not gaming I was starting to suffer... my mind was beginning to feel a little too neurotic. I think I saw an imp today as I went to Safeway to buy groceries. Wait, was it an imp? Maybe it was a scamp. Whatever it was, I made sure to steer clear of it.

I miss you father. My father was never a videogame addict like I am, but it's mostly because he did not grow up with gaming. I think if he had, he definitely would have adored the Elder Scrolls.

That's the typical set-in-their-ways Dunmer for you.

True, very true. Unfortunately, the Nords of Skyrim also have a lot of typical set-in-their-ways ways, and so do the multi-racial humanoids of Cyrodiil. All them never, they never learn.

Leave it to Stendarr, and leave it to Talos

1). This is a great phrase!
....
2). Poor Joan is learning that the skulkers are not so easily reasoned with. Methinks that this will only be solved with the might of Talos, rather than the mercy of Stendarr.

3). No more poached eggs for those two. More like scrambled...

1). Thanks. It's just silly paladinesque language.

2). Yes, she does focus upon Talos toward the end. I am wondering how she comes to identify most with Arkay. How does she become Joan of Arkay? Even though she is my character, I actually don't know the answer. But it happens some time during her stay in Morrowind so we'll find out eventually .

3). Pass the salt.

Those two poachers seemed very determined to commit suicide by Holy Knight. That Joan wrestles with being forced to kill them shows the spirit of a noble soul. One that is still learning when to wield words and when to wield steel. Nicely done!

Thanks Acadian. Yes, some characters go in for the loot, the glory, the fame, whatever. Joan is trying to go for the altruism, it seems. Probably won't work very often! She'll learn, though.

I think Dibella might have helped! But I don't see Joan as a Dibbellan though... perhaps she needs some inspiration first. I hear the House of Earthly Delights is not too far away.

Ha yeah, wait'll she gets to the Earthly Delights bar, that'll be a hoot! She'll be fuming at all the decadence going on there, I expect.

Think: Dibella! A little dance might have helped as well.

Yes, she just might call upon Dibella in the future, but I don't think Joanie's a very good dancer. Right now she's too busy trying to increase her Blunt Weapons skill, as well as build her Strength. She'll make time for beauty tips and ballet some time when all of this is over, perhaps.

Have some cake, y'all.

[Renee]

1 Heartfire (Day 17), 5 a.m.




Joan Marie of Cheydinhal rises early. She pays a young maiden to assist as she dons her suit of armor. She and her guard then leave the Fighters Guild. Outside, it's a warm and rainy morning.

Today shall be a big day for both of them. Today, they head to Arkngthand, to find the mysterious puzzle box described by Hasphat Antabolis. Joan has heard Arkngthand is a rather large Dwemer ruin, and she has no idea what to expect. Neither does her guard. Will the place be filled with working traps and contraptions as the rumors and legends suggest? Joan's guard guesses the answer is "yes", coming to this conclusion only because others have said the rumors, the legends, are true. But he has never actually been inside such a place.

Back in Cyrodiil, Joan had explored just a couple Ayleid ruins: Belda, and Kemen, but she'd done so with a group of others. Both of these ruins were within a day's walk from Cheydinhal, and since they were located on Cyrodiil's Heartland plains, both were easy to approach, while keeping wary of enemies. Most other ruins near to Cheydinhal were simply too dangerous for young Joan to explore on her own. Caves located deep within forest, or Imperial forts inhabited by actual daedra, and so on. She'd only gone to Belda and Kemen for training purposes, learning from others much more experienced.

But now, she's by herself. Sure, she travels in the company of an Imperial soldier, but Joan has decided it shall be her who'll be spearheading the actual exploration into Arkngthand. It shall be her who risks whatever lurks within this supposedly formidable Dwemer lair.

Joan and her guard walk past the Balmora's gigantic silt strider, leaving the town behind. Next, they turn east. The sky above is a dark gray blanket overhead. Joan feels the rain driving down her face, despite the chain helmet she's been wearing lately.

They walk toward Fort Moonmoth. There's a fork in the road here, and they take the left tine of this fork, heading past this location.

"At any time," Joan tells her guard, pointing toward the fort where she had convinced him to follow her a few days ago, "you may proceed and return to your post."

The guard says nothing. So they continue walking, while the sky continues drizzling.

"Very well. But do not let me assist with any possible neglections of thy duties, sir. I know others of your faction might very well and eventually step up to position within your garrison," Joan says as the road they walk upon begins to climb upwards. "I must inform you however that to follow me is to follow into a path of uncertainty. For I do have my beliefs. But my beliefs are my callings. And my callings are to possibly right the wrongs of malignity. Of heinousness, of malice, and of menace. Have you seen fit to follow? Or not follow? These decisions are to be yours at any time, forthcoming."

"By all means," the guard finally says, leaving Joan to wonder which facet of her sermon he refers to.


Mid Morning
After an hour of walking, the pair of travelers come to a bridge. Joan consults her journal, trying to see if she's headed in the right direction. Sure enough, she is. The bridge before them is apparently Dwemer technology. It is large, sturdy, and dully-golden in color. Amazingly, it has suffered hardly any signs of aging over the years and decades. As they walk across it, their footfalls echo softly and metallically. Across the bridge and off to the right the hill continues to climb steeply. Joan thinks she can see the outline of Arkngthand up there. One of its towers looms in the gloom, thinks she. A cliff racer, large and predatory, flies in the distance.

As they continue to cross the bridge, Joan and her guard are attacked by a man, a bandit, who rushes toward them! The bandit had apparently been schooled in magic, for he casts some sort of spell right away. He then brandishes some sort of weapon. He seems confident that he's in the right. Like this is his bridge, and nobody is to ever cross it alive.

"Surrender now, and I might let you live!" says the guard as he readies his poleaxe. Without hesitation, Joan's guard bustles straight toward the bandit while the bandit (whoever he is) summons a skeleton. The guard is faster than Joan; he reaches the bandit and his summon before she does. But Joan's guard makes the mistake of attacking the skeleton first, instead of attacking the bandit.

"Arkay! I call upon ye!" Joan shouts as she closes in, hoping Arkay will somehow hear her, and prepare the enemy's soul for its coming retribution. For this time, there shall be no point in negotiating words. The magical bandit before them shall fall, of this she is sure. She unsheathes her sword while preparing her mind for a possible healing spell.

But the battle is over quickly.* The guard chooses his stance, then thrusts and swings his polearm, destroying the man's summon and then skewering the man. Just like that. Within ten seconds it's all over, leaving Joan without much to do, once again. Though his swift tactics and hostile barraging impress her, Joan finds herself (once again) dissatisfied by the encounter. Might there have been some other way to resolve what had just occurred, here upon this bridge of golden metal?

The pair continue to the other side of the bridge, and make a right turn where the second hill starts. All the while, Arkngthand imposes itself before them. Once they reach its exterior avenue it is time to change strategy. Joan consults her journal. She then finds the special crank which opens the door to the ruins, and turns it. This causes a circular orb of metal located a few dozen feet away to begin grinding and rotating. Joan and her guard walk toward the rotating orb, and step inside. Here, they find a door.

"I shall handle whatever may twitch within," Joan informs her guard as they enter. Her voice is true and steady, which is not entirely how she feels. Once they are inside, she says more. "If you do not mind, my preference is that you might stand watch," she says as she points to the ruin's dim golden floor. "That you may stand watch, and protect against any menaces who might invade from up here. That they will not be making any assaults, as I surreptitiously search for this aforementioned puzzle box."

"As you wish."

As stated, Joan has no idea what to expect as she begins her delve. If the place is full of the Dwemer automatons she'd heard about in her studies, the guard could then be fetched for assistance. But if it's merely inhabited by typical humanoid enemies, she thinks perhaps she can persuade any of these to hopefully see things her way. Perhaps persuade them, and guide them toward righteousness.

Arkngthand's interior twists and falls deep into the mountain below. Joan of Cheydinhal, given the name Joan Marie at birth, walks deeper into golden-colored darkness.

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

Arkngthand UESP Page

Looming Ruins

"Arkay, I call upon ye!"

Bridge Runic Detail -- (I love the intricacy)

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* Note: Whenever we fight this bandit on the bridge, whose name is Snowy Granius, he literally kicks my characters' asses if they don't come prepared. I've had a couple low-level characters (such as Ana Khannda, my Dunmer archer lady) retreat from the guy. However, Joan's guard is quite a toughie. Though he slew Snowy in a matter of seconds, I promise in the next chapters Joan will be more on her own.

[SubRosa]

Joan is laying down some tenets to live by. The Joan Doctrine.

Looks like unlike Arnhem, this was not a bridge too far.

Joan plumbs the depths alone now. If I remember Arkinthingergardy, she's not going to find anyone she can talk to at all. But plenty to smite nonetheless!

[Acadian]

Joan’s guard is neither communicative nor reassuring in his manner, . . . yet, he seems to swing that polearm pretty effectively.

I’m with SubRosa in suspecting that the optimistic knight’s attempts at verbal negotiation shall not find purchase in this dungeon.

[Lena Wolf]

The guard stole the show for me in this episode, I must admit. "Whatever you say, lady, as long as I don't have to man my post!"

Ooh - you left us hanging off a cliff! She goes into the ruin and...

[macole]

Morrowind guards; stoic pillars of strength, light on conversation, quick with the polearm.

[SubRosa]

Morrowind guards; stoic pillars of strength, light on conversation, quick with the polearm.

That is almost a haiku!

[macole]

Morrowind guards; stoic pillars of strength, light on conversation, quick with the polearm.

That is almost a haiku!

Oh, Morrowind’s guards:
Stoic pillars of power,
Light banter, quick sword.

Sorry, I'm not a Haiku guy so I hope I got it right. Reguardless it is my last try.

[Lopov]

I remember that name - Snowy Granius - now that you mentioned it.

Nice references to some locations from Cyrodiil.

It's good that Joan brought some help to Arkngthand.

Good luck with finding that puzzle box.

[Renee]

Hey thanks you all, I really appreciate it. Have some cake. Do we have any comments or questions tonight? Yes, you in the first row...

SubRosa: Joan plumbs the depths alone now. If I remember Arkinthingergardy, she's not going to find anyone she can talk to at all. But plenty to smite nonetheless!

This is very true. Not a whole lot of talking, but plenty of smiting will carry on. Yes, you, sir over in the second row.

Acadian: Joan’s guard is neither communicative nor reassuring in his manner, . . . yet, he seems to swing that polearm pretty effectively.

I like the 'not communicative' part most of all. See, this is due to Joan being a youngster, on her own. It's not easy for her, trying to learn as she goes. She also is very cheery, very talkative (yet serious) as she talks to a lot of people. I'm always using Admire (Speech option) as she speaks to shopkeepers, guild-mates, random town-goers, and so on.

Despite this, she has problems once she begins to get closer to people. She does not know how to address her guard properly, does not even know his name! So their relationship is pretty odd right now.

Anybody want some water? Yes, miss. You with the blonde hair.

Lena Wolf: The guard stole the show for me in this episode, I must admit. "Whatever you say, lady, as long as I don't have to man my post!"

Ha ha yes there's some humor there, right? He doesn't know what to say about her long-winded lectures, but as long as he gets to play Adventurer, that's a good thing.

macole: Oh, Morrowind’s guards: Stoic pillars of power, Light banter, quick sword. Sorry, I'm not a Haiku guy

No, this is great! *audience applauds* Maybe Joan should befriend an Ordinator so you can write a poem about one of them! *laughter*

Lopov: Good luck with finding that puzzle box.

Yeah... luck. My gosh this quest was hard. Yet also NOT really that hard.

[Renee]

1 Heartfire (Day 17), 9 a.m.

Arkngthand


Deeper down a steep rampart she goes, as the ruin around her occasionally squeaks and groans. Joan feels herself going rigid as she moves slowly downward into Arkngthand. As a supposed Novice for the Blades, she assumes she is to be vigilant. To walk in representation (somehow) for the Emperor himself, and all the Elder Council members.

She tries to call upon her Nine as she walks quietly downward, but cannot quite say the words this time. Truth is, at this point she is no more than a devout, but somewhat confused young woman. ... The fright she feels as she steps deeper into the ruins causes her to slow her pace. But she does not stop altogether. Determined she is, for whatever is to come.

She finally calls quietly upon Stendarr, and calls upon Arkay. Stendarr for resilience, and Arkay for what's likely to come, assuming any humans or elves inhabit the ruin. Assuming if such folks do inhabit the ruins, that they'll choose not to hear what she has to say.

The acolyte takes some time to have a good look at what's below. She then continues to motion down the lage spiral of earth below her. This spiral is just wide enough for one person to walk upon. It hasn't got any rails to guard from falling. One misstep into darkness and she will not be leaving this place. Ever.

She stops and looks again. There's a large chamber below, and it's got some sort of light source illuminating. Bright and orange. The spiraled path she's on continues to a stone landing. To her left is what appears to be a very structured set of stories, open to the middle, obviously built by the Dwemer. Impressive. Joan takes a moment to take it all in.

But ... something is moving! Not a contraption, and not an automaton. It's an ordinary man, or woman. He or she is quite some distance away. Joan freezes, trying not to alert the person before her. Despite the distance between them, the person below immediately notices somebody is here in Arkngthand. Somebody who does not belong!

It's a man. He brandishes his weapon, says something, and begins running toward the landing. Whatever it was he said, Joan could not hear. He was too far away.

Joan waves her arms about, not raising her shortsword. "Please, do not fear!" she calls as she tries to make her face look friendly. "I come toward you on the condition of neutrality, that we might drop our weapons, and..."

But the man (a Redguard) does not bother to listen. It takes him several seconds to figure out how to get where to Joan is, and then the fight is on! ... Joan swings and blocks, the man slashes and parries. clash! clish! crash! He's got a blade of some sort. Joan wonders if the Gods see any of this, as she hits the bandit twice, swings down low but misses, and her aggressor quickly gains the upper hand. *SMASH* She blocks a thrust across her shield, then another! These bashes and blows begin to wear at her as she cannot get a swing to he man in return. Joan's health seriously wanes. And how long have they been fighting? A half-minute or so?

"I've got you now!" the bandit says smartly.

Fortunately, her magical powers are at their zenith. The Redguard swings, but misses, and then loses his balance. Joan uses the moment to make a hasty retreat, back up the huge spiral walkway, back to a slightly plateaued area where she can stand and focus, and cast a healing spell. Joan knows she can just continue running upward to her guard if she has to. But this does not need to happen. She feels she's now able to finish the battle herself. Back to full strength, she stands her ground.

"Your time has come, Breton!" her opponent says calmly as he closes the gap between them quickly.

Joan Marie says nothing. Instead, she remembers her training, and positions herself so that she's right near the edge of the walkway. Her feet go into a wide stance. She raises her shield. The man swings his weapon and connects...

"Rawr!"

But then he makes one huge mistake, and it's a fatal one. Unlike Joan, he does not keep a good watch of his feet! His stance is narrow, and his right boot is planted literally next to nothingness. He and Joan are warring on a large but narrow pathway, high above the chamber below. It's only a matter of time before he loses track of where his feet are, and falls to his death, twenty feet below.

"NO!"

The Redguard's loses his balance, and falls into the abyss. A second later, she hears his body crash upon stone! ... Joan only has seconds to gather her thoughts and catch her breath, before a second man hears the ruckus above, and comes running for Joan. Again, she attempts to speak some Truth to this second enemy, "Give up thine wicked ways!", who of course ignores her words.

This time, Joan is ready for him. She does not sheathe her weapon. She slashes and cuts, and manages to perform the same progression of events with this second enemy as she did the first. She chooses her stance, then lets the man attack hysterically, all while using her own body to rotate toward the wall. This causes the man to swivel inwards, toward the void. His feet step outward ... toward the edge of the path! But just as he's about to slip and fall, Joan thrusts with her blade, and downs him first.

These moments are the first ones which herald important changes to come. The adrenaline, it moves through her body. Her heart pounds wildly. Her muscles tense with vigor. Joan is sure she feels the vigilance of Stendarr, calling to her now, while Arkay takes his time to commence the circle of life into death. For the two miscreants she'd just fought? They have chosen their path into darkness. Arkay, he transcends this darkness to some degree. How far the souls of the men who fought her shall fall? And it's all for naught.

"For naught, they have chosen their path all for naught," she sputters in wonder.

For the rest of her delve into Arkngthand, Joan feels a mixture of caution and confidence as she encounters more enemies. All of them, thankfully humans or elves. Nords, Dunmer, and so on. Men and women of reason, one would think. Though she tries a few more times to convince with her voice, none of Arkngthand's bandits heed her words. None are persuaded to give up their "wicked ways."

Turns out, Arkngthand is a large place, much larger than Joan had anticipated. There are multiple rooms, multiple corridors, multiple intersections. It's easy to get lost in here. She does so, a few times.

So where is this Dwemer Puzzle Box? Hours go by as she searches. After several encounters, Joan decides it's time for her guard to join her.

After much exploring, they eventually comes to a quandary; an area which seems as though it's the location they seek. In one of the ruins' many directions to go, they find themselves in a chamber with a broken bridge. Molten hot lava bubbles and bursts from the depths of Nirn, and all of this activity lies beneath the broken bridge. The chamber they're in is a virtual furnace of heat.

Joan tries to find a way around the lava by grasping the chamber's walls, but nearly slips into the burning mantle below. It is only through a combination of grasping and scrambling that she is able to make her way back to safety, avoiding the fiery liquid below.

"Let us return to Balmora," Joan tells her guard. After so much time underground, she realizes their supplies are running thin. It also would not hurt to sell a few things she's found, and buy a few assorted sundries and potions.

"As you wish," says the guard.

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

Arkngthand Entryway

An Ornate Door

Maiming a Miscreant!

"Give up thy wicked ways!"

Another mess for Arkay

Molten Hot Magma

Dangit. I thought I had pics of that huge chamber they were in. Grr... Well I'll post 'em if I can find them.

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

Note: Joan ascended to Level 2! I put +2 points in Agility, +4 points in Endurance, and +5 points in Speed. Since she wears a few heavy armor pieces, she walks pretty slow, so Speed is really needed.

Note 2:: It took 6 (SIX) days before we found the Puzzle Box. In fact it's easy to find, but the way to find it is not so obvious. This will be described next chapter.

[SubRosa]

Joan journeys deep down into the depths. The dwarves delved too greedily and too deep. You know what they awoke in the darkness of Khazad-dum Arkenthingmajig... shadow and flame.

I see that just as in Star Wars, OSHA does not exist in Tamriel. Oh the number of safety violations...

Uh oh, a bandit. I forgot that there were bandits in here. I thought it was all dwarven robots. I am starting to remember it. I think this is the one with half a dozen interconnected levels? It was a bit of a maze if I recall. I have gone in there more than once, and then left after forgetting to get the puzzle box. Because I was in there for so long I eventually forgot why I was there to begin with, aside from just clearing the place.

Looks like that Redguard forgot that no matter where you are, there you are. Too bad Joanie did not have the Fus Ro Dah shout...

How far the souls of the men who fought her shall fall?
This was a truly glorious line!

Looks like Joanie is going to need to buy a Levitate spell to get past that lava. Ironically enough, Morrowind January will probably be venturing into Arknthingygard soon herself. While Literary January has been fighting against a fire/lava elemental in the scene I have been writing for the past week or so. She is getting really sick and tired of magma.

I say kill them all and let Akray sort them out...

[Acadian]

Great job of blending the picture of what Joan is seeing with what she is feeling as she descends into Arkngthand. The result is that we totally share the apprehension of the devout young woman.

Still the optimistic knight, her efforts at a diplomatic negotiation with the Redguard she encounters are for naught. And it seems the additional bandits she encounters are no more receptive.

Aww, a dead end with lava for now. I smiled at her guard’s comment. I’m beginning to like him – he’s very low maintenance and undemanding, yes?

[macole]

Six days, yeah that sounds about right.

[Renee]

SubRosa-- Yes Arkngthand is a huge place. Very confusing. I am glad it's not packed with robots and traps, honestly we're not ready for anything like that.

I assumed we'd have to search all over to find the Puzzle Box thingie, when in fact it is easy to find. I keep saying that, don't I? Well, it's easy to find, while being hard to find. Me, being a long-time player of these sort of games assumed Beth hid the thing in the most convoluted way possible. Not true. It's nothing but a mind-[censored].

Acadian-- Even though I wrote all this, I wonder how long the 'diplomatic negotiation' stuff lasts. I am six chapters behind her actual story with these finished chapters. There's so much editing and managing behind the scenes, I actually don't remember. Her guard is fun & funny to write. I like the fact that he's low-maintenance. Also, if he gets killed at some point (unlikely right now) I don't have to worry much about a Named NPC being gone from my game forever. Eventually, another guard will quietly show up at Moonmoth.

macole-- I wonder if there's ever been a thread called "How long did it take you to find the blasted Puzzle Box?" and if six days is average. There should be a poll.

[Renee]

2 through 6 Heartfire (Days 18 through 21)

Arkngthand part II



Over the course of several days, Joan of Arkay is uncertain what to do about the final room she'd found in Arkngthand. Full of hot lava it was, with a broken bridge to somehow cross. And the broken bridge? It was supposed to transport folks safely over the floor full of hot lava.

She eventually learns this room (and all the chambers and corridors directly to it) were named Heaven's Gallery. Not such an apt name; it does not seem such a heavenly place to her. But Joan figures it must be the location where the puzzle box is located, it has to be. For it seems she has looked everywhere else.

The box must be there. But how will she get deeper into Heaven's Gallery?

Joan has several pondering sessions between Heartfire 2 and Heartfire 4, as she travels this way and that. After leaving the underground lair on the second day, she spends the rest of Heartfire 2 resting in Fort Moonmoth, and then two more days in Balmora. Here she sells several Dwemer coins and gems which Arkngthand's bandits had stashed away. She uses her newfound earnings to buy several potions which resist fire, a couple more which shall fortify her health, and one which will allow her to walk on water. These potions are quite an expense. Joan has no idea if the water-walking potion will allow her to instead walk across lava. If she chooses to try this, she'll need to do so with much caution.

Finally, she buys a 'Hoptoad' scroll from Galbedir, the Balmora Mages Guild enchanter. The scroll has a spell which will allow her to jump far into the air, and then float like a netch for quite a few seconds. It will also slow her falls, promises the colorfully-robed Galbedir. Buying the scroll is quite a setback at 124 drakes, and it takes Joan some time before she makes this final purchase.

Heartfire 4
Once back inside Heaven's Gallery, she tells her guard to wait behind, and in fact leaves him far away from the room full of lava. This way, he won't get tempted to try helping her if there's any problem, hidden enemies, and so on. Helping her, then slipping and burning quickly to his demise.

She makes her way back to the gallery's final hellish chamber, fiery waters of Nirn boiling below! The broken bridge is before her again, and unfortunately, nobody has bothered to fix it. Joan of Arkay hems and haws a bit as she tries to decide: Jump across via the magic of her expensive scroll, or walk on magma via potions? Scroll? Or potions? ... She finally chooses the scroll.

"O-la ... O-mah mah... Ga-ga O-la-la..." she reads aloud. And it works!

Amazingly, it works. She feels an odd combination of magic envelop her person, clouding her vision briefly purple. She then shudders, before giving a good leap across the end of the broken bridge like a light-footed rogue. Not only is she able to traverse the bridge with ease and competence, but the magic within the scroll does something to her weight as well, allowing her to stay suspended in midair for seconds at a time.


It's an eerie, yet wonder-filled moment for her. She can't help but float around a few seconds, this way and that, the bridge's surface a couple meters below, the heat from the chamber's magma falling almost to nil! Finally, she lands. The full weight of her armor, shortsword, and gear returns. A long, hollowed-out section of cave-rock is before her, which eventually bends to the left. She begins to walk. Occasionally, she passes by one of the Dwemer's odd cylinders of light. These cylinders glow, even without the help of fire or magic! How had the dwarves achieved this? Joan muses.

"You will die where you stand," somebody with a particular northbound accent says calmly.

It's a nord, who has somehow been living here in this section of Heaven's Gallery for however long. How had he managed to get across that bridge? ... The nord hasn't got any armor, but he's carrying a BIG axe. He comes after Joan, who does not bother to try convincing him not to.

"Yarrgh!"

Though she puts up a good fight, his axe deals a lot of damage with just two connects. Joan must quickly backtrack, cast her healing spell, and then return to the safety of the previous chamber.

She rushes back to the broken bridge, and risks a jump across. But by now the scroll's magic has completely worn off, and she's not any sort of an acrobat. So she falls several meters, landing momentarily right into the molten hot magma! There's a moment of pure panic; she must dash across to safety, which amounts to a smidge of bare earth beneath her boots. Just inches from her feet is the lava.

The acolyte is momentarily safe, so she quickly looks into her pack, and downs several potions, including the one which is supposed to allow water-walking.

Suddenly, Joan hears a splash! The nord with the BIG axe had really lost his wits it seems, and had tried to jump across the bridge as well. Like Joan, he's carrying too much weight, and also hasn't got the speed or agility to make it across. Unlike her though, he merely stands in the pool of lava once he lands. His priority is to kill her, not save himself from damage. It is only two or three seconds before he burns to a smelly, boiling crisp.

Joan of Arkay heaves a sigh, before cautions a couple steps over the gallery's hot liquid. Not a good idea. Her boots immediately sink into the mix. Water-walking potions apparently do not work over lava. Time for another potion of healing.

She makes her way carefully back to the chamber's initial causeway, running at full speed across an area where there's no land to step upon. Finally she is safe. But she also hasn't got any more special Hoptoad scrolls, which means there's no current way to get across that collapsed bridge. This necessitates yet another trip to and from Balmora. More Dwemer coins sold, and one more eerie jump across. Joan is hopeful.

Yet after all these trips back and forth, items sold and bought, jumps across the bridge, and hours of exploring, the puzzle box is still nowhere to be found.

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

Back in Balmora

Broken Bridge

Floating in midair

Joan landing

[Acadian]

What a frightening adventure, dancing with lava! It occurred to me not until Joan was midair on her first traverse of the lava, how's she gonna get back across? Fortunately the suicide-by-lava Nord encouraged her back across. Hopefully, when she returned, it was with back up scrolls. No puzzle box.