Sunset's Adventure in Skyrim

by Blackdrag-rose

18: Madness Incarnate

Sunset and her companions stood over the ruined area that was Kynesgrove for some time after Tirek vanished, watching the poor people who had lost their inn collect whatever remained of their possessions. Alduin and his underling Sahloknir were still resting where Sahloknir had been resurrected, allowing the wounded dragon to rest and heal before they took off. Delphine, on the other hand, was more than pissed off that Sunset wouldn't kill either of the dragons, but she also knew of the threat that Tirek now posed to the whole of Nirn. Sunset was glad that the women had seen that Tirek was the true threat to Nirn, though Delphine was still insisting that the Thalmor were to blame for Tirek coming here and painfully bowed to Sunset's desire to attend the upcoming party.

Sunset needed to speak with the leader of the Thalmor forces in Skyrim, to see if they might aid her in her efforts to defeat Tirek before he decimated anything else in the province. While they watched the people Alduin inquired as to where he might meet Sunset and her companions again, once his underling's wing had healed up. It took her a moment to answer him, but when she figured out the answer she almost laughed out loud, though she restrained herself and mentioned Labyrinthian. Morokei and Krosis were still waiting for her to return, but she knew that they would be somewhat grateful for their master to return to them and inform them of what was happening.

An hour passed before Sunset was actually able to get back onto her legs and walk without falling over, such was the price from using so much condensed magic, when she wasn't used to channeling so much power. Just three blasts of such power was enough to make her dependent on her friends, which was why she wanted them to wait before they moved on. It gave them time to help the people of Kynesgrove, which Fiona had chosen to do while the others stayed near Delphine and the dragons. As they walked down the road to Windhelm Fiona told Sunset about how she offered an area outside Fellglow Keep to the people, which would add an inn to their already growing city.

Once they reached the stables outside the city they acquired a ride from the carriage driver and, not a few minutes later, the five of them were on their way to Solitude, where Delphine had said that she would be a few hours behind them.

"So Sunset," Bjorn asked, knowing that they had a variety of topics to ask the unicorn about, but knew one that he really wanted the answer to, "what type of magical attack was that? I mean, you used it three times and you suddenly looked like you were about to fall over and go to sleep for a week."

"Condensed magic," Sunset replied, a small smile appearing on her face, "its what happens when someone in Equus mixes their own magic with a powerful emotion, such as like what I did when I mixed my magic and my anger. Different emotions can do different things when mixed with magic, though it has been recorded that some unicorns can, when infuriated to a certain point, turn their manes into pure fire. I've done it a few times before today, as its not something that every magic user can accomplish, but never before have I managed to pull it off three times in a row.

The problem isn't how much magic or how much emotion you pour into this type of magic, as it can drain even the most experienced unicorn of their magic with ease. Now this doesn't mean that this magic cannot be controlled, it just means that it will take some time to actually learn to not be so drained when I use it."

"Well, it actually harmed Tirek," Fiona commented, crossing her arms before glancing down the road, "so maybe, just maybe, if we hit him before he gets his full power, and strike him with that type of magic, we might be able to shatter his chances at destroying Nirn. Still, it wouldn't hurt to wander the streets of Solitude for an hour before we move on to the party, as I'm positive that there was someone wandering the streets, looking for someone to help him get in touch with his master."

Sunset nodded and pulled out the journal that Fiona had given her, flipping through the pages until she spotted a reference that she believed that her friend was talking about. It was on the page for Sheogorath, the Daedric Prince of Madness, which only made her think about Equus' very own Discord, the Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony. She wondered how she was going to come into contact with this Prince of Oblivion and what she would have to do to acquire his artifact, the Wabbajack. She sighed after a moment and closed the book, before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep, so she could recover the energy she had lost to combat her enemy.

She was sure that she would find out whatever Sheogorath's quest was, whenever they happened to arrive in Solitude and found the man that Fiona was talking about.

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

When they finally arrived at Solitude it was the early morning, giving them plenty of time to scour the city for the man that Fiona had mentioned and acquire the artifact of Sheogorath before Sunset had to attend the Thalmor party. When they ventured into the city they stopped by the inn and got a light breakfast in them, though that was when Sunset heard several guards talking about the recent execution they had. She sighed and ignored them, knowing that whoever they had put down must have done something wrong to deserve the fate that he had been given.

When they were done with their meal they picked themselves up and walked out of the Winking Skeever, where the others turned to Sunset for direction. She glanced around the market area and, when she didn't find anyone that looked like the description in the book, continued onward past the market.

They then spent the next hour searching the entirety of Solitude, wandering around by themselves until they determined that the area they were in didn't have the person they were looking for. It was at that point that Sunset wondered if Fiona's notes had been right about this particular artifact, until she passed by someone who was constantly muttering to himself. At first she thought it was a simple madman that people were ignoring, but once she realized that she was actually looking for a madman she turned around and ran up to him.

"Please, take pity on an old madman!" the man cried when Sunset approached him, though she was surprised that he hadn't said anything to her when she first passed him by, "You! You'll help me! You help people, right? That's what you do?"

"Yes, I help people," Sunset replied, hoping that the man was what she really needed and not a distraction to get to Sheogorath, "What is it that you need help with?"

"My master has abandoned me!" the man cried once more, as if that was the only way he knew how to speak, "Abandoned his people. And nothing I say can change his mind. Now he refuses to even see me. He says I interrupt his vacation! It's been so many years... Won't you please help?"

"Sure," Sunset answered, wondering where his master could be and who it could possibly be, "just tell me where I can find your master and I'll go have a talk with him."

"Last I saw him, he was visiting a friend in the Blue Palace," the madman replied, calming down to a level that wasn't near screaming, "But no one as mundane as the Jarl. No, no... such people are below him. No, he went into the forbidden wing of the palace, to speak with an old friend. Said it had been ages since they had last had tea. Oh and you'll need the hip bone... it's very important. No entering Pelagius' Wing without that."

Once the madman had finished informing her of where his master was supposed to be, and giving her the 'very important' hip bone, he continued down the street as if they had never talked. With the knowledge in hand Sunset returned to the area in front of the Temple of the Divines, where she found her friends waiting for her arrival. Bjorn and Lydia welcomed her back to the group, though Cicero seemed to be staring at the seating area before them and Fiona was just leaning on a wall.

"So, did you find him?" Fiona asked, noticing Sunset return to them before everyone gathered around her, "The madman that's supposed to lead us to Sheogorath?"

"I believe so," Sunset replied, holding up the hip bone for a moment, "He said that I needed to take this to the Pelagius Wing of the Blue Palace, but why I needed this he never told me. So here's the plan; we go into the palace, ask around for someone who'll give us the key to the wing, and then I'll go in and speak with Sheogorath... if that's who this madman's master really is. With any luck I'll be back out in no time with his artifact and we can prepare for the Thalmor's party... which I'm sure will involve Delphine constantly telling me that I should destroy the place myself."

Sunset knew that if Tirek had gone to the party he would have shattered the entire place, just to demonstrate that he wasn't someone that they could mess with. He was so careful not to leave any clues as to his whereabouts that she knew that she needed to acquire the artifacts and make sure that they stayed out of his hands. Getting the Wabbajack would push her to three Daedric Artifacts, though she knew it would take some time before she had the remainder of them collected as well.

Once she had informed them of how she wanted to acquire this artifact they immediately made their way to the Blue Palace, though it gave Sunset a few minutes to wonder how she'd get her hands on a key into the wing she needed to enter. The answer, it seemed, resided in Fiona's ability to talk to people, as when they entered the palace she tracked down one of the maids and started speaking with her. After a few minutes Fiona returned to the group and beckoned them to follow her, leading them to the door to the wing they needed to enter and unlocked the door for them.

The moment they were inside the Pelagius Wing Sunset summoned her chest and stored the Staff of Magnus, the Dawnbreaker, and Azura's Star inside before banishing the chest for the moment, which made Bjorn ask her about that.

"I just want to appear before Sheogorath unarmed," Sunset told her friends, who were going to wait by the door until she returned, "I mean, Azura didn't seem to mind when I walked up to her alter carrying Meridia's Dawnbreaker, but you never know which of the Daedric Lords will snap at you if your carrying a artifact of one of their rivals. Better for him to see that I'm not carrying one and get the quest, rather than carry one in and have him turn me away for having it there to begin with."

What she didn't tell her friends was that she believed that there wasn't going to be any need for the Staff of Magnus or the Dawnbreaker when she found Sheogorath.

"Fine, have it your way," Bjorn replied, sighing as he took up a seat near the door, "We'll be waiting for your return."

Sunset nodded and continued into the rotting wing of the palace, pushing away the cobwebs and clearing her throat of dust several times before she walked down a passageway, only for the world around her to fade. When her vision returned she found herself in what appeared to be a forest like area, with three arches going in three separate directions, and a table that had enough chairs for four guests, plus whoever sat in the throne like chair. She also discovered that her robes had been replaced by some fine looking clothes, not that she minded at all, and that she wasn't alone in this realm, as there were two people already sitting at the table. One of the men seemed to be dressed almost like she was, which told Sunset that he had to be some type of high ranking person, maybe a Jarl or a King.

The second person, on the other hand, was dressed in a suit that was split right down the middle, the right side colored orange while the opposite was colored purple.

"More tea, Pelly my dear?" the strange suit wearing man said, holding out a hand to gesture to the cup in question.

"Oh, I couldn't." the other man replied, though he sounded as if he wasn't getting enough sleep, "Goes right through me. Besides, I have so many things to do... So many undesirables to contend with. Naysayers. Buffoons. Detractors. Why, my headsman hasn't slept in three days!"

"You are far too hard on yourself, my dear, sweet, homicidally insane Pelagius." the strange suit wearing man countered, glee filling his eyes before he continued, "What would the people do without you? Dance? Sing? Smile? Grow old? You are the best Septim that's ever ruled. Well, except for that Martin fellow, but he turned into a dragon god, and that's hardly sporting... You know, I was there for that whole sordid affair. Marvelous time! Butterflies, blood, a Fox, a severed head... Oh, and the cheese! To die for."

"Yes, yes, as you've said, countless times before..." the other man said, apparently getting tired of the conversation, which only made his companion cross his arms.

"Well then, if you're going to be like that..." the suit wearing man said, almost as if he was thinking of a way to punish his sadder companion, "Perhaps it's best I take my leave. A good day to you sir. I said good day!"

"Yes, yes, go. Leave me to my ceaseless responsibilities and burdens..." the depressed sounding man said, before he vanished into thin air, as if he had never been there to begin with.

Sunset looked around, wondering what she had gotten herself into by agreeing to help the madman that was wandering the streets of Solitude, before she took a deep breath and approached the table where the other man was still sitting in his chair.

"How rude!" the man said the moment he spotted her, which made Sunset wonder if he was going to punish her as well, "Can't be bothered to host an old friend for a decade or two."

"Um...who were you talking to?" Sunset asked, wondering if this would calm the man down enough to learn if he was Sheogorath, or if she was actually wasting her time here.

"Emperor Pelagius III." the man replied, almost as if he expected her to know who he was talking about, "Now surely even you know about Pelagius' decree? On his deathbed - oh, and this was inspired - he forbade... death! That's right! Death! Outlawed!"

"So... your telling me that we're in the mind of an Emperor?" Sunset remarked, not really knowing how to follow up on such a reveal, though she suspected that Discord might be able to think of something.

"Correct!" the man shouted, his voice echoing across the landscape for a moment, "Oh. Is it your... first time?"

Sunset shook her head for a moment, seriously wondering what had possessed her to help the madman out, before staring into the man's eyes and getting on with why she was here in the first place.

"I was asked to deliver a message to you..." Sunset began, only for the man to jump to his feet and turn to her, with what she could describe as a look of joy on his face.

"Reeaaaallllyyyy?" the man said, before one of his hands moved up towards his face, "Ooh, ooh, what kind of message? A song? A summons? Wait, I know! A death threat written on the back of an Argonian concubine! Those are my favorites... Well? Spit it out, mortal. I haven't got an eternity! Actually... I do. Little joke. But seriously. What's the message?"

"I was just asked to tell you that you need to end your vacation," Sunset replied, still wondering if this was the Prince of Madness, or only someone designed to be a doorman for the Prince himself.

"Were you now? By whom?" the man asked, before snapping his fingers and continuing, "Wait! Don't tell me! I want to guess! Was it Molag? No, no... Little Tim, the toymaker's son? The ghost of King Lysandus? Or was it... Yes! Stanley, that talking grapefruit from Passwall. Wrong on all accounts, aren't I? Ha! No matter! Honestly, I don't want to know. Why ruin the surprise? But more to the point. Do you - tiny, puny, expendable little mortal - actually think you can convince me to leave? Because that's... crazy. You do realize who you're dealing with here?"

"Apparently I'm dealing with a madman," Sunset replied, not really knowing what else to call the man.

"Jolly good guess! But only half right." the man said, waving a hand in the air before staring back at her, "I'm a mad god. The Mad God, actually. It's a family title. Gets passed down from me to myself every few thousand years. Now you. You can call me Ann Marie. But only if you're partial to being flayed alive and having an angry immortal skip rope with your entrails. If not... Then call me Sheogorath, Daedric Prince of Madness. Charmed."

Sunset's eyes widened after the man introduced himself, as she could have very well insulted the Daedric Prince of Madness, but he seemed completely fine with being called a madman... enough so that he didn't appear to be in a state of wanting to kill her.

"Well, I am Sunset Shimmer of Equus," Sunset told the Prince, not really knowing how it was going to help her in the long run, but figured it was better than 'mortal'.

"I knew I smelled the aura of Equus on you the moment you walked up to my table," Sheogorath replied, slapping his knee for a moment before turning back towards her, "which means that you know about my old pal Discord. We used to be roommates at the University of Chaos and Madness, but I missed him when he didn't come for the nine hundredth and ninety-ninth anniversary of years since we graduated."

"Seriously?" Sunset asked, not knowing if Sheogorath was pulling her leg or being truthful with her, though she suspected that she wouldn't believe the truth anyway, "Look, will you end your vacation and return to your kingdom?"

"Now that's the real question, isn't it?" Sheogorath said, becoming serious for a moment, "Because honestly, how much time off could a demented Daedra really need? So here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to leave. That's right. I'm done. Holiday... complete. Time to return to the hum drum day-to-day. On one condition. You have to find the way out first. Good luck with that."

"And what's the catch?" Sunset asked, knowing from experience that there was always something someone wanted in exchange, whether it was an ordinary person or a demented god.

"Ha! I do love it when the mortals know they're being manipulated. Makes things infinitely more interesting." Sheogorath replied, the old look of joy filling his eyes once more, "Care to take a look around? This is not, I dare say, the Solitude botanical gardens. Have you any idea where you are? Where you truly are? Welcome to the deceptively verdant mind of the Emperor Pelagius III. That's right! You're in the head of a dead, homicidally insane monarch. Now, I know what you're thinking. Can I still rely on my swords and spells and sneaking and all that nonsense? Sure, sure. Or... you could use... The Wabbajack! Huh? Huh? Didn't see that coming, did you?"

The moment he finished speaking a staff, made of a black wood that Sunset had never seen before, with three faces at the top, each baring a different expression, appeared before her. She realized that it was the artifact she had come for, but now she knew that it was also the only thing that would allow her to escape from the mind of a dead emperor. She took the staff in her left hand and stared at Sheogorath for a moment, waiting for a remark from him, before his eyes moved to one of the three arches that she had seen. The single glance told her that she had three problems to deal with before she would leave, hopefully with the artifact that she now carried in her hand.

She stood before the table for a moment, glancing at the three paths she could take, before she sighed and headed down the one on her left, wondering what she would have to face.

"Oh, good choice." she heard Sheogorath say into her mind, just like the other Princes had done, "Well, good for me. I find everyone being out to get you so terribly entertaining. You might find it... less so. You see, Pelagius' mother was... well... let us say 'unique.' Although, I suppose in the grand scheme of things, she was fairly average for a Septim. That woman wielded fear like a cleaver. Or did she wield a cleaver and make people afraid? I never get that part right... Oh, but she taught her son well. Pelagius learned at a very early age that danger could come from anywhere. At any time. Delivered... by anyone."

She eventually reached what appeared to be a fighting arena, where there were two atronachs fighting each other with three people, one of whom she believed was Pelagius at a certain age in his life and guarded by two guards. She stared at the scene before her and glanced down at the Wabbajack, wondering what type of power it had and how she could use it to her advantage. She then recalled something that Sheogorath mentioned, that attacks could be delivered by anyone, and glanced at the two guards behind Pelagius, before leveling the staff at one of them. She channeled the power of the staff and released the power, sending a small red sphere forward until it smacked one of the guards in the chest, transforming him and his partner into a pair of wolves that assaulted Pelagius.

"Oho! I thought you'd never figure it out." Sheogorath spoke again, "With the threat gone Pelagius is under the delusion that he is safe, which means you've helped him out... sort of. And we're that much closer to home."

Sunset smiled to herself and returned to where the table was located, before she weighed her options and then, after a moment of debate, headed down the path on the right.

"Ah, now this is a sad path." Sheogorath commented once more, "Pelagius hated and feared many things. Assassins, wild dogs, the undead, pumpernickel... But the deepest, keenest hatred was for himself. The attacks he makes on himself can be seen here fully. They are always carried out on the weakest part of his fragile self. The self-loathing enhances Pelagius' anger! Ah, but his confidence will shrink with every hit. You must bring the two into balance."

Sunset stared at the two versions of Pelagius, watching one of them hit the other one repeatedly while the second one cowered, allowing itself to be smacked again and again. She spun the Wabbajack around and fired another sphere, hitting Anger in the back, which caused him to shrink to a smaller size for a moment. She then smiled and did it again, shrinking Anger to the size of Confidence, before spinning the staff towards the other version and forcing it to grow to the size that Anger had been before she messed with them. Once the two of them were in balance they disappeared, telling Sunset that it was time to return to the table and venture down the final pathway.

"Wonderfully done." Sheogorath spoke once more, which Sunset had been expecting, "Pelagius is finally ready to love himself... and continue hating everyone else."

Sunset returned to the table, wondering why the Price was still sitting there, before she moved down the final pathway, wondering what she would have to do this time.

"You've headed down the path of dreams." Sheogorath said, "Unfortunately for you, Pelagius suffered night terrors from a young age. All you need to do is find something to wake our poor Pelagius up. You'll find his terrors easy to repel... but persistent."

This time she found Pelagius sleeping in a bed, but thanks to the clue that Sheogorath provided her she knew exactly what she needed to accomplish this time. She spun the staff around and hit the young man with a sphere, to which a wolf appeared nearby and started to run towards the bed, but was stopped when Sunset hit it with another sphere, transforming it into a dog. She repeated the process, summoning a bandit chief, a hagraven, a flame atronach, and a dragon priest, before she zeroed in the recent summon and transformed them into a treasure chest, a young women, a glowing fire, and a young boy. When the last one succumbed to the changes the Pelagius that was sleeping on the bed woke up and climbed off the bed, joining the group that was waiting around the fire.

"Well now, that's something to crow about." Sheogorath said, almost sounding impressed this time, "With Pelagius up and about you're moving right along. We'll both be home in no time."

Sunset turned around and ventured up the path she had taken to reach this point, returning to the table where she found Sheogorath enjoying a sweetroll.

"I've fixed Pelagius' mind," Sunset told the Daedric Prince, hoping that he would abide by what he had told her before she had explored the insane emperor's mind.

"Hmmmm... 'Fixed' is such a subjective term." the Daedric Lord replied, a smile appearing on his face, "I think 'treated' is far more appropriate, don't you? Like one does to a rash, or an arrow in the face. Ah, but no matter. Heartless mortal that you are, you've actually succeeded and survived. I am forced to honor my end of the bargain. So congratulations! You're free to go! I... have been known to change my mind. So... go. Really."

Sunset waited for a moment, wondering if there was anything else that the Daedric Prince might say or tell her, though at one point she wondered if her time here was done. That was until Sheogorath spoke once more.

"Pelagius Septim the Third," Sheogorath said, the happiness turning to disappointment, "once the Mad Emperor of Tamriel, now so boringly sane. I always knew he had it in him! Well, I suppose it's back to the Shivering Isles. The trouble Haskill can get into while I'm gone simply boggles the mind... Let's make sure I'm not forgetting anything. Clothes? Check. Beard? Check! Luggage? Luggage! Now where did I leave my luggage?"

At that point the madman that had sent Sunset to release his master from his vacation appeared beside Sunset, though she wasn't surprised to see him at this point.

"Master!" the madman cried, glad to be in the presence of his Lord once more, "You've taken me back! Does this mean we're going home? Oh, happy times! I can't wait to..."

"Yes, yes, that's quite enough celebration. Let's send you ahead, shall we?" Sheogorath said, cutting the madman off and sending him back to the Shivering Isles, before turning to Sunset, "And as for you, my little mortal minion... Feel free to keep the Wabbajack. As a symbol of my... Oh, just take the damn thing. You take care of yourself, now. And if you ever find yourself up in New Sheoth, do look me up. We can share a strawberry torte. OH, and if you see Discord, tell him that his former roommates are having a get together in a few months. He'll know exactly what I mean. Ta ta!"

With that said Sunset watched the forest area disappear until she was standing back in the Pelagius Wing of the Blue Palace, now wearing the robes she had been wearing before and carrying the Wabbajack in her left hand. She retraced her steps back to her friends, who were glad to see her again, though they were amazed that she was carrying yet another Daedric Artifact. She summoned her chest and, instead of taking her weapons out, she simply stored the Wabbajack with the other artifacts, all in preparation for the party.

"Come on guys," Sunset said, banishing her chest once more as she headed out of the Pelagius Wing, "We've got a party, and possible negotiations, to prepare for."

Comments

[HB_DS2013]

There's a university of Chaos and Madness?

[david bennett]

i wonder what ull do when sunset has to deal with the more unsavory deadric quests u know the ones

[Randablitz]

Good ol' Sheogorath has finally arrived in the story, and you completely captured the true essence of him in this chapter, and for that I tip my hat to you, please continue.

[Sonata Blaze]

Wow... I am at a loss... you have captured the Prince of Madness perfectly.

6905399 Apparently so. Maybe Sheogorath, Discord, and Loki were roommates for a while.

[calinjc]

Me after reading Sheogorath:

(I'm still reading this fic, though.)

[calinjc]

6905447
Like the Mehrunes Razor quest? That one always left a bad taste in my mouth.

[Cloverleaf]

6905447 honestly Molag and Dagon are probably gonna be trouble. They'd favor someone more like Tirek.

[david bennett]

those too also the namira quest

[breyercrazy]

6906438 Lets not forget Boethiah. That should be interesting.

[Vigilant of Stendarr]

Ah Sheogorath, the ever lovable and demented Daedric Prince.

[Supertoe]

6905784
don't forget cthulu

[HeartfireFirebrand]

"I knew I smelled the aura of Equus on you the moment you walked up to my table," Sheogorath replied, slapping his knee for a moment before turning back towards her, "which means that you know about my old pal Discord. We used to be roommates at the University of Chaos and Madness, but I missed him when he didn't come for the nine hundredth and ninety-ninth anniversary of years since we graduated."

Probably was locked in statue that's why.