The Speaker 4: Forward Unto Dusk

• Posted by Clement Bilhorn December 5, 2012 - 486 views

  Lisin and I set off down the ridge, toward the nearest town that'll give us a carriage. As usual, daytime excursions tend to weigh on me quite a bit, but taking some time off to kill a few trolls is always good for the soul.

  

  Also, watching Lisin in action is pretty interesting. I love combat, but that just means it's kind of fascinating to watch someone kill who's so cold and dispassionate. Not like in a psycho way--just clean. Almost bored.

  And also boring, so actually, I decided against letting her do most of the heavy lifting. 
  But Lisin and I briefly part ways when I try taking the shortcut down to the valley. Yes, yes, I'm a water-breathing Argonian, but you'd think the lady would know how to swim. Evidently not. Either that, or she's just scared of heights, which I find even harder to believe considering she spent most of her childhood living on the mountain.
  Maybe she just takes herself too seriously for this. But hey, not my problem. I'm sure she'll catch up once the sun does its work on me. 
  But it's long walks like these that remind me how much I'm looking forward to being over this whole vampire thing. It was nice for a whi--no, it really wasn't. I'm poor enough with magic that my innate vampiric powers don't really serve much of a purpose. Actually, I used to be pretty spry before all this, and now I'm a weak, limping wreck of an Argonian, spent after just a few minutes in the sun.

  So, yes, I'm looking forward to it.

  When nearing Whiterun, Lisin and I come across a familiar face. Well, familiar to me. And of course, it can't actually be the same thieving Khajit I've seen twice before--I killed both of those guys. Hand on hilt, I approach with caution. I can hear Lisin's hands crackling with magic as she readies herself for battle.

  But then, to my surprise--and my great embarrassment--the Khajit hands me a bit of money, recognizing me as one of the Nightingales. I suppose this should have seemed obvious in retrospect, but I'm wary of doing anything with the money. I almost feel like it should be given as an offering to Nocturnal, but I'll deal with that later. 

  

  So we get to Whiterun and grab a carriage for Morthal, after stopping to wait for Lisin to catch up again. She's a while coming.

  

  When she arrives, we grab a carriage for Morthal. The sun's going down when we arrive. I try to ascribe some poetic something-or-other to it about the sun setting on my vampirism, but it's all pretty confusing. In the end, I just settle for a quiet night under the stars as Lisin and I start looking for Farion.

  But I hear a familiar flap of wings and a roar on the air, and sigh. Honestly, I should've known this was going to happen precisely because everything was so peaceful.

  So I get ready.
  But then, the dragon just flies off as suddenly as it came with nary a Word between us. I mean, I'm not complaining, because I need Morthal not dead, but it's a bit odd. I can't help but feel palpably...ignored.

  We look around and find Falion, who's a pretty grouchy fellow. But he's happy to help with my vampire problem. Sort of. Okay, he's only helpful insofar as he tells me I have to murder someone and trap their soul.

  Lucky for me I'm the cynical type.