Skyrim: The Faces of Death

by Blackdrag-rose

Dragon: Madman's Knowledge

Upon reaching the front of High Hrothgar, which took a few minutes to reach and they found that there was no need for Za'kera to use her new Clear Skies Shout on the weather, Amaryllis, Lydia, and Kya quickly climbed into their carriage, with Lydia at the front once more while Za'kera remained in the back with them, before they turned around and headed down the path that had brought them to the home of the Greybeards, heading for Ivarstead once more. As they made their way down to the small settlement, however, Amaryllis was happy to see that her friend wasn't weighted down by the worry she had felt when she revealed that there were multiple ways for them to interpret Alduin's Wall, the possible variations that might happen in the very near future, depending on which path her friend wanted to pick out and walk down, but the talk with Paarthurnax had cleared her mind and she was thankful for that. Still, she was surprised to learn that the Shout that the ancient Nords had created hadn't been enough to defeat Alduin, meaning that even if Za'kera walked down that route, not that she wanted to anyway, they would have to find something else that would help them take down the World-Eater, which was another reason for them to be looking for the Elder Scroll the ancient Nords all those years ago, as it just might have the information they were after. In the end she decided not to worry about anything, as she could start that once her friend had taken enough time and was ready to make her decision on which path she wanted to follow, as in uphold the written version of the prophecy to destroy Alduin, abandon her role as the world's savior and join the black dragon, or join forces with him and his dragons, to build an army to take the fight to whoever their true foe was, which had to be the rest of the Aldmeri Dominion, before she focused on the scenery and less on what the future held.

They were able to get back to Ivarstead in no time at all, thanks to the path being cleared of enemies, though since it was getting close to night Za'kera had them stop in the settlement and checked out the inn's rooms for them to use, that way they could rest up and be ready for whatever else the future held for them, and Amaryllis was grateful for it since she had no desire to sleep in the back of the carriage, though she made sure to keep her power up in case someone who wanted to do them harm tried to sneak up on them during the night.

As it turned out no one tried to harm or attack them, allowing the group to have a light breakfast after everyone woke up after morning broke, though once that was done Za'kera made sure to get a few more supplies from the innkeeper before they headed outside and made sure the horse was ready to go, finding that it had rested during the night and had gotten some food as well, which Amaryllis suspected that Lydia must have done it while before they went to sleep last night, but it hardly mattered as they climbed onto the carriage and started heading toward the north. Amaryllis knew from both the map and her own flights around parts of Skyrim, that the path to Winterhold would take them by a fort, bring them close to Windhelm, passed the mill that she killed one of her targets by, and then bring them close to another old fort, before they reached their destination, where Za'kera would be happy to speak with the mages and learn where the ancient Nords might have hidden their Elder Scroll. She knew that there was no reason for her or her companions to worry, as with all of the traveling Za'kera must have done the first fort should be learned of enemies, and with all of the other wanders they knew were using the roads of Skyrim, wandering heroes who cleared out bandit camps and whatnot, Amaryllis knew that the fort near Winterhold would be learned out as well, meaning they should be able to reach their destination in due time and not have to worry about ambushes, though she kept her guard up, just in the off chance she was wrong. Of course she could see that Kya seemed to be distracted by whatever was on the road ahead of them, no doubt looking for a new set of enemies to kill and send to her mysterious mistress, someone she either didn't want to talk about or was waiting for something to happen before she said anything, which was fine with her since it meant she could focus on making sure the road was safe and that there were no enemies waiting to ambush them.

Of course her thoughts appeared to be correct, they were able to pass the first fort, which had been taken over by a force of Stormcloaks, head down the road that brought them close to Windhelm, quickly pass by the mill without anyone even seeing them pass by, and then turned up the hill that let them pass by another cleared out fort, which had also been taken by Ulfric's faithful followers, before they made their way towards Winterhold, a ruined town that had suffered some time ago, leaving a few buildings and the College.

Sure enough, when they got closer to the city, Amaryllis was able to see the damage that had been caused in the ancient past, as off in the distance rested a massive circular structure, made of stone, that had to be the College of Winterhold, an area that she had planned on coming to before changing her mind after meeting Festus, before she noticed a couple of nordic buildings resting outside the College, even though there was some distance between the two areas. The reason for that thought was due to the fact that there was nothing around the massive College, which she knew made sense due to an event called the Great Collapse, a topic of debate interestingly enough, and the only thing that collected the College to Winterhold was a stone bridge that looked like it might collapse at some point in time, leaving the building on its massive stone pillar, and the city itself was essentially like Riverwood. There was an inn, a building that looked like a Jarl's house, a larger one that seemed to be the general good's store, and another building that had to be another house, though she did see a few ruined buildings, which had either caught fire before being put out by the snow or had been broken by the snow that was currently falling on this area, something that made her somewhat grateful that she stuck with her Khajiit form, as it offered some protection against the colder elements. Lydia, seeing that the bridge leading to the College happened to be smaller than their carriage, came to a stop and made sure the horse was facing the small path that seemed to go all the way around the stone ramp in front of them, something that caused Amaryllis and her companions to climb off it before Za'kera started to walk up the stone path and headed for the College, as it was time for them to figure out what their next move was and if there was anyone here who could help them find the Elder Scroll they were after.

It took them a few minutes to walk over the stone bridge that was in front of them, especially since they had to be careful due to some broken edges of the bridge, though it didn't take Amaryllis long to find that the middle section of the College was a circular courtyard and happened to have a rather impressive stone statue of a mage, likely a powerful one that had been immortalized by someone carving this piece of art, resting in the middle of the large courtyard, with two towers, one to their right and left, and a massive tower behind the statue. In front of the statue she spotted three figures, all female based on what she could see, and the first one that caught her attention was an Argonian that happened to have a very odd color to her scales, as they were nature green, and she wore steel plate armor, gauntlets, and boots, though that was when she noticed that the Argonian had a pair of sharp looking deer antlers, instead of the usual horns that her kind had on their heads. Standing across from the Argonian was someone who caused Amaryllis to pause, as it was a Changeling who was dressed up in the robes of a mage, likely the robes of an apprentice, who wasn't bothering to hide her true self at the moment and allowed her to see the rose colored hair that was styled in the manner that Twilight Sparkle wore her hair all the time, and she happened to have a book in her crossed arms, almost like she was hugging it, meaning she had, against all odds, found the other missing Changeling. Of course that was when Amaryllis noticed the third figure and found that she was floating above the ground, levitating to be exact, while her robes, looking more elegant and impressive than what all of the other mages wore, meant she had to be the Arch-Mage, though her face was covered by a light blue mask of some kind, even though she could tell it was a Khajiit thanks to the dark gray tail and ears, but that was when she found a few other important items, like the ancient staff with a glowing green orb at the top, a golden sword that shined like it held the power of the sun or light itself, and a dark orb that floated near her at all times.

Amaryllis considered the fact that all mage robes, no matter how they looked, were enchanted in some manner, to boost the power of the one wearing them, meaning that the Arch-Mage had to be incredibly powerful, especially since she was also sure that her mask had some sort of enchantment on it, something that told her that they were standing before one of the strongest mages in the entirety of Skyrim, though that was when the trio turned and glanced at them, something that quickly caused the other Changeling to rush over towards where they were standing.

"Amaryllis!" the Changeling stated, her tone revealing that she was incredibly happy to see her again, and for good reason when she considered what happened in the past, before their kind was revealed due to their former Queen's actions, but it was followed by her throwing her arms around Amaryllis, as in giving her a hug, though it gave Za'kera a chance to see that the newcomer was slightly smaller than her friend was, "Ma'jera told me that someone else had breached the barrier between worlds, but that she had no idea who might be coming to Nirn... I'm glad to see that you were the other one who came to this world."

"I'm glad to see that you're alright, C... Wind Rose," Amaryllis replied, though she caught herself before she said the wrong thing, especially since the Changeling in front of her disliked the name she had been given at birth and preferred a name that she had come up with on her own, even if it might have made someone in Equestria assume she was a Pegasus and not a Unicorn, given her previous disguises, before she considered the fact that the other Changeling happened to be in her true form and not another shape, "I take it they know about you?"

"You mean that I'm the Changeling Princess and everything? I told Ma'jera all that when I first met her," Wind answered, which told Amaryllis all she needed to know, that maybe there were more open minded people in Skyrim and that there was a good chance that no one would have chased her out of the cities if they saw her true form, but that was something for later as the younger Changeling, who was three years younger than Amaryllis, pulled back and moved some of her hair out of her eyes, "a lot has happened since I landed outside Winterhold, around the same time that she came to the College to find something important... I'll have to tell you the story some other time."

"You will have some time for that later. For now, I'm interested in why the Dragonborn has decided to visit the College, not to mention the arrival of another special guest," the Arch-Mage, Ma'jera based on what Wind Rose told them, said, where she floated over to where Za'kera was standing and lowered herself a little, that way Za'kera didn't have to strain her neck by looking up at her, though as she did that they watched as she raised her right hand, which was covered by a dark gray glove, and pulled off her mask for a moment, revealing a young Khajiit, likely twenty years old, who had dark green eyes, though Amaryllis could have sworn that she saw something in them and a second later whatever it was disappeared as if she had seen nothing, "I am Ma'jera, the new Arch-Mage of the College of Winterhold, following the death of Savos Aren, who died at the hands of a Thalmor agent, and this is Diane Wildborn, a follower of Kynareth who has decided to offer her aid to the Dragonborn... why she came here, instead of tracking you down, is what I was about to ask her when you four showed up."

"Its simple: I was told to come here." Diane spoke up, where Amaryllis found that she carried a greatsword on her back, a green one with a yellow handle, meaning it had to be one of the glass weapons some of the people carried, which weren't made of glass but were designed to sort of look like glass, meaning if she got into a fight she would be ready for whatever she faced, even though Amaryllis had to wonder why she had antlers, because that was something unusual and she could see that her companions were surprised as well.

"Arch-Mage, we came here seeking information on the Elder Scrolls," Za'kera stated, deciding to get back to the topic that was needed for her to come to an understanding of which path she wanted to walk down in the near future, even though she was interested in learning more about Wind Rose, her connection to Amaryllis, figuring out who Diane was, as this was the first time she had seen an Argonian with antlers, and how she could have found two different Thalmor related events in such a sort period of time, "it is relevant to my current quest, if that helps."

Ma'jera tilted her head for a few seconds, clearly thinking about the information that had been shared with her, before she moved the mask back over her face and beckoned for them to follow her as she headed for the large tower, floating while Amaryllis and her companions walked, where she headed inside and opened a door on her right, even though Amaryllis did find a large circular chamber on the other side of a metallic gate, with no one inside it, before she headed up a set of stairs and brought them to another large chamber that she called the 'Arcanaeum'.

"Urag, you have some information seekers," Ma'jera stated, where they found that the Arcanaeum was a massive library, full of bookcases that were no doubt packed full of tomes and had books resting all over the place, before they found a male Orc sitting behind what appeared to be a rather official looking table, who happened to also be wearing mage robes, and that her voice caused him to glance up from whatever he happened to be reading, though as he stood up the Arch-Mage gestured to Amaryllis' group as they came to a stop near his work station, "This is Za'kera, the Dragonborn that the Greybeards called to High Hrothgar some time ago, these are her comrades, those aiding her in whatever mission she's trying to fulfill, and Diane Wildborn, who arrived earlier to aid the Dragonborn."

"Dragonborn? Well, you and your companions are now in the Arcanaeum, of which I am in charge." the Orc, Urag, said, his tone revealing much to Amaryllis, that he didn't seem to care that much about newcomers, no doubt until they proved that they could take care of their books or something, and that he likely respected Ma'jera much more than what she thought, no doubt due to her ability to take down a Thalmor threat to the College, before he glared at them, "It might as well be my own little plane of Oblivion. Disrupt my Arcanaeum, and I will have you torn apart by angry Atronachs, regardless if your the Dragonborn or some visitor looking for whatever aid you can get. Now, what can I help you find?"

"I seek the Elder Scroll that was used to defeat the World-Eater all those years ago," Za'kera replied, once more telling the mages of this place exactly what she needed and what she wanted the information for, even though Amaryllis felt a slight change in Ma'jera's emotions, almost like she found Urag's comment about Oblivion amusing, why she had no idea, but she said nothing about it as she found her friend continuing her statement, "we came here due to the fact that you might have information regarding where it might be located, or at least a clue that might lead us to where it was stored away, so we can use the knowledge of the Scroll to bring down those who seek to end our world."

"I don't know what lead you to that decision, or who you have been talking to, but I'll do what I can." Urag said, where they watched as he turned towards the numerous bookcases that were scattered around the massive chamber that happened to be his domain, not to mention all of the tomes that rested on the tables, walls, and other furniture he or the previous watchers of this place had set up, "What we do have are plenty of books. Give me a few moments, I'll bring you everything we have on the Elder Scrolls, but be warned, there isn't much on them and most of what we have is lies, leavened with rumor and conjecture."

As Za'kera nodded her head, to show him that she understood what he was saying, Urag started to move and walked over to some of the bookcases that were around the Arcanaeum, no doubt checking his memory as to where the tomes on the Elder Scrolls were located before bringing even one of them over to where they were standing, before he pulled out two books, just the two, and walked back over to the table, where he placed both on the wood and beckoned for them to have a look at them, causing Za'kera to pick one up while Amaryllis did the same... only Amaryllis quickly discovered that there was something wrong with her book, causing her to look at the cover before glancing at the Orc.

"Um, Urag? This Ruminations book looks like its incomprehensible." Amaryllis said, where she found that the first lines of it seemed to refer to creatures who lived under the water, not fish since it mentioned moving cloth over gills, which she felt was odd and held no relevance to the Elder Scrolls, despite what the following lines seemed to talk about as she glanced all over what the tome had to share with her.

"Aye, that's the work of Septimus Signus. He's the world's master of the nature of Elder Scrolls," Urag replied, where they found the Orc nodding his head for a few seconds as he thought about something, no doubt recalling what he knew about the author who wrote the tome in question, all while Za'kera looked at the book Amaryllis had been reading and found it was as odd as her friend said, "but... well, he's been gone for a long while... too long, in fact."

"He's missing? Where did he go?" Ma'jera inquired, something that caused Amaryllis to raise an eyebrow for a moment as she felt something in her emotions as she spoke to the Orc, as it didn't feel like she cared all that much, which she figured might be due to the fact that she had only recently become the Arch-Mage and likely had no idea who worked all over the College, but she did seem interested in where Septimus might have gone, "What could he have discovered that would stop him from returning to the College?"

"Somewhere up north, in the ice fields." Urag answered, informing those that weren't familiar with Skyrim that there was next to no ground passed where the College rested, meaning they would likely have to jump across slabs of ice if Za'kera wanted to track down Septimus, before he considered the other part of the Arch-Mage's question and what he knew of the missing staff member of the College, "I remember that he said something about finding some old Dwemer artifact of some kind, but... well, that was years ago. I haven't heard from him since that day."

"Is it possible that he's dead?" Kya asked, which was possible scenario when Amaryllis thought about it, because if no one knew what had happened to Septimus, and he hadn't said anything to anyone for a long time, there was a chance that he was dead and no one would ever know the truth, meaning that finding the Elder Scroll they were after would be far more difficult than one would originally assume and might cause Za'kera to walk down another path.

"Oh no... at least, I hope not." Urag stated, showing them that he cared for the man in question, meaning there must be a bond of some kind between the two of them and he had been holding onto it for some time, before he sighed for a couple of seconds as he considered everything that had been said and what hadn't be said yet, which was followed by him taking a moment to glance at them, "But like I said, even I haven't seen him in years, and we were close. Becoming obsessed with the Dwemer was the worst thing that happened to him."

"I guess we have no choice, we'll have to investigate the ice fields and see if we can find him, or his notes," Za'kera said, as she had been hoping for more than this when she decided to head to the College in the first place, where Amaryllis knew her friend must have been hoping for them to stop at the College for a few minutes, ask a few questions and get a couple of answers, before leaving to figure out what the next stage of their plan was, even though now she had a path to take and she wasn't looking forward to jumping over slabs of ice.

"And we're coming with you... I'd like to see Septimus with my own eyes," Ma'jera added, though Amaryllis knew that she meant that she and Wind would be coming with them, and likely included Diane since the Argonian seemed interested in helping them out, all while she knew that the Arch-Mage was more interested in whatever Dwemer object Septimus might have found in the ice fields and what sort of knowledge they could gleam from it.

With that done Za'kera headed down the stairs that they had used to reach the Arcanaeum and made her way back to the entrance of the College, as she needed to find a way down to the ice fields so she could start the search for where Urag's missing friend might be located, and as she did that Amaryllis and the others followed after her, most of them walking as Ma'jera floated with her magical spell in effect. While they walked towards the carriage Ma'jera informed Za'kera of a path beyond where the carriage rested, one that did head downward, which just so happened to be what they were looking for, though before Za'kera was even able to reach the carriage a trio of fireballs rushed through the air and seemed to zero in on where she was walking, only they didn't hit her as Ma'jera held a hand out and a barrier surrounded them, cancelling out the attacks as they focused on who dared to attack them. Amaryllis found that there were three odd individuals that were wearing brown robes, an odd mask that made her think they were cultists of some kind, and it looked like the pair of gloves they were wearing had been designed to look like dragon scales, though the cultists were ignoring the guards, who were swinging their swords at them since they were attacking citizens of Winterhold, and seemed focused on her group for some odd reason. While that happened Wind actually gathered her magic for a few seconds and loosed an ice spike at her target, hitting one of the cultists in the process, leading to the other two cultists to break away as they rushed toward the area Za'kera was standing in, where Diane sighed and swung her greatsword, with a single hand, cutting one foe down as Amaryllis noticed that the last the last cultist loosed a powerful fireball at their target, where Ma'jera floated in front of them and raised a hand, absorbing the spell like it was nothing, before allowing Za'kera to cut the cultist down with both of her blades so they could get a move on.

While Za'kera found the path leading down towards the ice fields, however, Amaryllis investigated the cultists and found a note on one of them, which talked about the cultists taking a boat that was called the 'Northern Maiden' from Raven Rock and head to Windhelm so they could begin a search for the 'false' Dragonborn, to kill Za'kera before she reached an area called Solstheim, and if one of them was able to kill her than Miraak would be most pleased, causing her to raise one of her eyebrows before pocketing the note, as Za'kera would need to see it at some point.

With the note in hand Amaryllis followed after her friends and their new companions, where she found that Za'kera was interested in learning who Wind Rose was, something that caused the two Changelings to explain things to them, that she had been the Princess of the Hive, back in their home world, and that her true name was 'Crudelis', as her mother wanted a warmonger or powerful leader to take her place in the future, but instead Wind discarded her own name, forged a brand new identity for herself, and left the Hive. The only reasons Amaryllis knew about her was firstly due to the fact that all of their kind were connected like bees, a hive mind to be exact, so she was able to learn about Wind's existence thanks to her innate connection, one that was no longer present, while secondly one of her missions had been to watch over Wind, even though certain events caused some disruptions to the Hive, especially when Wind's mother ended up dethroned and she vanished at the same time as her mother, leading to her looking for both of them and ended up in this world. It was then that Amaryllis learned that Wind, following her mother being dethroned and disappearing rather suddenly, had found her way to a cave that held a crystalline tree at the end of it, just like she had found before blacking out, and some form of odd magic had sent her to this world, giving her a new form to work with, even though she found that she didn't have to use her disguises all that much, even though she did have an Imperial form she used from time to time. Amaryllis had to guess that Wind's disguise continued to have Twilight Sparkle's hair style, since it fit her personas as a bookworm and mage, just without the coloration or either her target's form or her own unique hair, though for now it didn't matter as Za'kera took a moment to nod her head in understanding, knowing that there would be more time to talk about this, so she turned most of her focus towards traversing the ice fields and tracking down Septimus.

As they carefully moved over all of the large ice fragments, as no one wanted to fall into the ice cold water and freeze after a few moments, Amaryllis found that some wolves approached them and Diane smiled as she petted them, as none of the wild animals wanted to fight them, once more making her wonder who the Argonian was, before the pack departed and they found their way to a large iceberg that looked like an opening had been cleared out and a door placed inside it, but once they had climbed down a ladder, however, they found a decent sized area with an old man, a Nord, walking around a large Dwarven cube of some kind.

"When the top level was built, no more could be placed. It was and is the maximal apex." the old Nord stated, something that sounded like it might be similar to what was inside the book Amaryllis had read back in the College, meaning they had found the missing member of the College, not to mention discovering the odd artifact that Septimus was interested in, an odd box that didn't seem to have any apparent openings, save for a circular area that was facing the old Nord, one that had all sorts of rings, like a lock of some kind.

"Septimus, we heard that you know about Elder Scrolls." Za'kera said, deciding to get to the point so they could get out of here and not spend too much time in the madman's presence, as she had a feeling that he had been broken mentally and it had been reflected in his writing, while at the same time most of their ground stood on the carved out ramp that linked the upper exit to the lower section that Septimus and the cube were in.

"The Empire, they absconded with them... or so they think." the old man, Septimus, replied, something that caused many of them to raise their eyebrows for a few seconds, as his statements were going over their heads and they were trying to focus on what he was really trying to say, where Amaryllis assumed that he was talking about the Empire's vast collection of Elder Scrolls that went missing according to something she ready previously, "The ones they saw. The ones they thought they saw. I know of one, forgotten and sequestered. But I cannot go to it, not poor Septimus, for I... I have arisen beyond its grasp."

"Okay, so where is the Scroll?" Amaryllis inquired, because that was the reason they were here, as it sure sounded like the old Nord knew where she and her companions might be able to find the Elder Scroll that would allow Za'kera to figure out which path she wanted to take, while at the same time she found that Ma'jera floated in front of the cube and rested one of her hands on it, no doubt because she was curious as to what might be inside it.

"Here... well, here as in this plane." Septimus answered, though while one might assume that the Scroll was nearby, as in inside the cube or possibly one of the various caves that had to exist nearby, before he tilted his head for a moment as he considered something that they needed to be told, or what he assumed they needed to be told, before glancing at them with a mad smile on his face, reminding Amaryllis of the madman she encountered, "Mundus. Tamriel. Nearby, relatively speaking. On the cosmological scale, it's all nearby."

"So can you help find the Elder Scroll or not?" Kya asked, where Amaryllis could tell that she was getting annoyed with the old man and might be considering swinging her scythe in his direction, especially since it looked like the Argonian was just itching to do some fighting, since she had been deprived of a chance to fight one of the cultists, but for now she made sure not to grab the handle of her weapon, showing that she had some restraint.

"One block lifts the other. Septimus will give you what you want, but you must bring him something in return." Septimus replied, something that caused Amaryllis and Za'kera to glance at each other for a second, as his words made them take a moment to wonder what in the world he could ask for, especially since they wanted an Elder Scroll that would help them figure out which path Za'kera walked to walk down.

"What is it that you want?" Ma'jera asked, speaking before anyone else had a chance to say anything, though Amaryllis had a feeling she was far more experienced than what Wind had told them so far, even if the former royal Changeling hadn't said much about her Arch-Mage since they encountered them and Diane, given that most of their time was spent on their hunt for the Elder Scroll.

"You see this masterwork of the Dwemer. Deep inside their greatest knowings." Septimus stated, where he beckoned to the massive cube once more, causing them to glance at it as they wondered what might be resting inside it, though based on Ma'jera's interest in the man and his discovery that meant there had to be something important on the other side of the surface that was resting in front of them, before he turned towards them again, "Septimus is clever among men, but he is but an idiot child compared to the dullest of the Dwemer. Lucky then they left behind their own way of reading the Elder Scrolls. In the depths of Blackreach one yet lies. Have you heard of Blackreach? 'Cast upon where Dwemer cities slept, the yearning spire hidden learnings kept'."

"Where is this 'Blackreach'?" Wind inquired, because this was the first time she had heard of such a place, even though she was sure that Ma'jera likely had an idea of it due to the fact that she seemed to know far more about magic and history, as in far more than what she had found out so far, but for now they were going to have to see what sort of information the mentally ill man might share with them so they could aid the Dragonborn in locating the Elder Scroll she needed, before she asked Amaryllis what she had been up to since her arrival in this world.

"Under deep. Below the dark. The hidden keep. Tower Mzark. Alftand!" Septimus replied, his tone revealing that this part of his information was more exciting, to him at the very least, than anything else he had revealed so far, before he took a moment to think about what else he needed to share with them and then smiled once more, as if someone had nodded their head to confirm they were following his words, "The point of puncture, of first entry, of the tapping. Delve to its limits, and Blackreach lies just beyond. But not all can enter there. Only Septimus knows the hidden key to loose the lock to jump beneath the deathly rock."

"Okay... then how will we enter Blackreach, if you don't want to go there?" Amaryllis asked, while at the same time Za'kera resisted the urge to bring a palm to her face as they listened to the old man speak, as he was, in his own way, giving them all sorts of information and knowledge so she could track down and claim the Elder Scroll that happened to be down in Blackreach, though whether or not it was the one that the ancient Nords used to banish Alduin they would know once she brought it to the Throat of the World.

"Two things I have for you. Two shapes. One edged, one round." Septimus answered, to which he turned to his pack for a few seconds and opened it as he looked for something, even though his words caused the group to glance at each other for a moment before focusing on him once more, where he pulled out a perfect sphere made out of Dwarven metal and a perfect cube that was made out of the same material, items that he offered to them and Ma'jera floated over to her with a bit of her magic, "The round one, for tuning. Dwemer music is soft and subtle, and needed to open their cleverest gates. The edged lexicon, for inscribing. To us, a hunk of metal. To the Dwemer, a full library of knowings. But... empty. Find Mzark and its sky-dome. The machinations there will read the Scroll and lay the lore upon the cube. Trust Septimus. He knows you can know."

"Out of curiosity, why are you after the information of an Elder Scroll, but not the Scroll itself?" Ma'jera asked, causing the rest of the group to pause for a moment, as they were wondering why she would bother to ask such a thing now that both items had been given to them, but instead of leaving Za'kera turned to look at Septimus, curious as to what he might say to the question.

"Ooooh, an observant one. How clever to ask of Septimus." the old man stated, though as he said that he turned towards the cube for a moment and rested his hand against the metallic surface, despite the fact that all of them knew that it was part of the reason for everything he was doing right now, before he turned and glanced at the Arch-Mage again, who just floated in place while waiting for him to explain himself to them, "This Dwemer lockbox. Look upon it and wonder. Inside is the heart. The heart of a god! The heart of you. And me. But it was hidden away. Not by the Dwarves, you see. They were already gone. Someone else. Unseen. Unknown. Found the heart, and with a flair of the ironical, used Dwarven trickery to lock it away. The scroll will give the deep vision needed to open it. For not even the strongest mechinations of the Dwemer can hold off the all-sight given by an Elder Scroll."

Ma'jera chuckled and Amaryllis was sure that she muttered something about Septimus assuming that something special called the Heart of Lorkhan was inside the cube, though instead of saying anything to the mad individual they headed for the entrance and headed back outside, where Ma'jera suggested that they return to Winterhold and get on the road once more, as their destination was the Dwarven ruin known as Alftand and she knew exactly where it was, meaning it saved them a bit of time and Amaryllis was curious as to what might happen once they reached their new destination.

Comments

[PrismStrike]

I Wish, that as players, you could build up a party like that in game. I also have always wondered what was actually in the cube that septimus found as i cannot remember ever actually getting to see inside it

[Night_Moon60606]

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the Prince of Knowledge and Fate seeks to open the Box, to lose again upon Mundus three Paths to Forbidden Truths...