To Windhelm to see an alchemist
4th Hearthfire Between Shors Stone and Windhelm.
It feels like we have really begun a great adventure. We've spent the shelter near an ancient tomb. First there was a witch with fire to kill. I managed to put an arrow in her before Erik brought her down.
We left the road for a track through the forest, the perilous heights above us. We can still see mountains across in the distance that have always been just outlines on the skyline. Now we can catch glimpses of great structures, I find it hard to look away.
Yesterday I followed Erik to a bandit lair, but we failed to do the job. One had a sword of flame, burning as it touched. We were so lucky they didn't follow us into the forest. What awaits us today.
6th Hearthfire. Kynesgrove
A day of testing and measuring.
The track seemed to climb higher towards the rock and snow of the peaks, it remained within the forest. We came across a lesser bandits lair on the far side of a small lake, not far from an Imperial camp, as it happened. There were only four vagrants there to kill, though possibly there was another cave system, or cave that opened near the roof of the one we were in. I found some moonstone in the rock, and we caught fresh salmon in the pool.
Past the soldiers, over the next rise we saw the first of several towers of metal rising from the flank of the mountains. Erik knew straight away, and then I knew.....dwemer ruins, soon close enough to see, and enter. We opened a door, a hall with grid gates, not so hard to open because I've been practising.
There was no one around, no firepits or bedrolls or food stored. It seemed like a gigantic shed that had been abandoned. So I took the dwemer ingots that were there, a lot. And loaded Erik up with a lot of scrap metal, I'd like to see if I can deal with that in an ordinary mines smelter. Then there was in one corner a deep blue crystal, like a blue quartz or ice stone, blue to its depths but not the lustre of polished sapphire, not that any sapphire could be that big.
And a book. That Erik won't allow out of his sight. He says we must go to Arkintham, another dwemer ruin I think. Not that either of us has a clue where it is. I tell him one day it will find us. Oh, and a great war axe of dwemer metal for Erick, lightning touched.
And still above, amongst the peaks themselves, are the shape of the Dwemer wroughtings.
We pushed our adventurer's luck, that day. The next side path brought us to sunlit caves and tunnels that held only witches with fire in their hands and flames summoned from Oblivion. Not for us to face.
It was dark, Secunda was clearing the peaks above us and the sky fires were blue when we descended to a village in the wild. Not just huts, but an inn. Hot food and mead and a bed clear of the floor. Kynesgrove, and nearby Steamscorch Mine
This morning is fine and cool, we have left the damp forests behind us, I think. We've spent the morning in the mine and at the smelter, a strong seam of malachite here. I have never worked glass or ebony, but when we get to Windhelm I'm going to try and forge my moonstone into arrowheads.
Roggi Knotbeard, a local tavern bard and miner, has asked us to look for his ancestors shield. The cave he has given name to, Craghollow Slope, looks to be the place full of witchery fires. It is no use trying. I wish I had the craft to meld a fire shielding into the armour I make.
Erik's finished his bottle, time to go. I hope he behaves among the Stormcloaks. I bet he will be talking of mysterious crystals and of dwemer Deeps all the way there.
7th Hearthfire Candlehearth Hall, Windhelm.
Windhelm is crawling with Stormcloaks. We just kept our head down, mostly. I worked with the moonstone, not just for arrowheads, but a new bow also for myself. I won't ask Erik to use an elf bow, but he has our orc bow now.
I sold a lot of stuff like staffs and jewelry to a High Elf, Niranye, and then I saw an enchanting table at the back of her stall. I've been dying to lay my hands on one, especially thinking about that fire shielding. She helped me with it, she said she has seen mages use it from time to time. We watched as each colour was released as the weapon or armour is destroyed. She's politer than most elves.
Talking of elves, we found the alchemist, a grumpy old bastard of an elf, he makes his imperial's live miserable, I can see. Never the less, we are going to do something for him, I'm too soft, or Erik is. No, not soft, just an adventure has fallen into his hands. Sounds like it's not far from here, in the snowy wastes to the north. One more night here, then we trek into the coldest north.
Level 9
Smithing Meric Smithing (elven, chitin)
Enchanting Mastery 1/2
9th Hearthfire. Nightingale inn
It was almost dawn of the following day that we emerged from the ice that encased the Forsaken Cave, ann underground tomb of endless seeming passages that loop through the rock. No witches, so only a few guardians to challenge, we do try not to wake the sleeping, or steal from the ancestors, apart from our needs. Erik seems at home in these places of the Ancients' carved stone, more than at home sometimes, as if he never was a farm boy from Rorikstead.
On the road sometimes, I just turn to watch him, I would know him anywhere now, I think, no matter what armour he wore. How he carries himself and holds his head and the length and rhythm of his stride.
Our map showed an inn on the road to Winterhold, not so much further, so we headed for here, had breakfast and slept most of the day away. We went for a short wander along the lake shore, watched horkers and found a strange cave with Dwemer pipes encased in the rock and strange sounds like a hissy heartbeat. Who knows what is under there. I did find a small chest, with among other valuables, an amulet of Mara. Who owned it I wonder, was this a bandit or a hunters hideout for a time? It's mine now. One day, maybe ....and how right, if it did happen, that I should have found this here, hidden in a place only an adventurer would go!
10th Hearthfire A Dwemer Ruin.
We are at a bandits "camp" deep in a dwemer ruin. Erik was hurt bad, by a machine of this place. The bandits are dead, and the machine stilled and the door locked again, so I think we are safe, safe enough to stay until he is on his feet again.
Arrows just seemed to bounce off I didn't know if the steel ones or the elven ones were better as I watched him go down. I can't remember where I got it from some bandit hole but I had a firestorm scroll and I've never done it before but I read the words and it stopped it. I don't know how to do more I've just done the best I can with lots of snow water and mead and needle and thread and potion after potion. Now he sleeps and I write, and watch.
It started when we were walking in the forest, the sun shining through the iced trees, the headwaters of the river on one side, slopes of clean white snow on the other. This must be the most beautiful place in skyrim, even the air feels it carries life into our lungs at each breath. Erik spotted a dwemer tower halfway up the hill. When we got there ,the sides were just a gateless grid, but stone steps led up and up to the ridges beyond. To a great fortress spanning several levels, metal and also stone carved as our own ancestors do.
Fortress - and bandits of course.
We went in. Vast halls and massive pipes with the sounds loud that we'd heard in the cave yesterday. Bandits we hunted out, and then unlocked a door with their key and through another door this metal ball that rolled out and became weapons.
So these are the truth of Dwemer ruins, now we have seen ourselves the dangers they hold in their depths.
Of course I know that braving these places gives life to my Erik, for him it's like breathing the fresh air of the snow country.
So I've just got to try harder to keep him safe, like an archer watching a warriors flank.
To Windhelm to see an alchemist
4th Hearthfire Between Shors Stone and Windhelm.
It feels like we have really begun a great adventure. We've spent the shelter near an ancient tomb. First there was a witch with fire to kill. I managed to put an arrow in her before Erik brought her down.
We left the road for a track through the forest, the perilous heights above us. We can still see mountains across in the distance that have always been just outlines on the skyline. Now we can catch glimpses of great structures, I find it hard to look away.
Yesterday I followed Erik to a bandit lair, but we failed to do the job. One had a sword of flame, burning as it touched. We were so lucky they didn't follow us into the forest. What awaits us today.
6th Hearthfire. Kynesgrove
A day of testing and measuring.
The track seemed to climb higher towards the rock and snow of the peaks, it remained within the forest. We came across a lesser bandits lair on the far side of a small lake, not far from an Imperial camp, as it happened. There were only four vagrants there to kill, though possibly there was another cave system, or cave that opened near the roof of the one we were in. I found some moonstone in the rock, and we caught fresh salmon in the pool.
Past the soldiers, over the next rise we saw the first of several towers of metal rising from the flank of the mountains. Erik knew straight away, and then I knew.....dwemer ruins, soon close enough to see, and enter. We opened a door, a hall with grid gates, not so hard to open because I've been practising.
There was no one around, no firepits or bedrolls or food stored. It seemed like a gigantic shed that had been abandoned. So I took the dwemer ingots that were there, a lot. And loaded Erik up with a lot of scrap metal, I'd like to see if I can deal with that in an ordinary mines smelter. Then there was in one corner a deep blue crystal, like a blue quartz or ice stone, blue to its depths but not the lustre of polished sapphire, not that any sapphire could be that big.
And a book. That Erik won't allow out of his sight. He says we must go to Arkintham, another dwemer ruin I think. Not that either of us has a clue where it is. I tell him one day it will find us. Oh, and a great war axe of dwemer metal for Erick, lightning touched.
And still above, amongst the peaks themselves, are the shape of the Dwemer wroughtings.
We pushed our adventurer's luck, that day. The next side path brought us to sunlit caves and tunnels that held only witches with fire in their hands and flames summoned from Oblivion. Not for us to face.
It was dark, Secunda was clearing the peaks above us and the sky fires were blue when we descended to a village in the wild. Not just huts, but an inn. Hot food and mead and a bed clear of the floor. Kynesgrove, and nearby Steamscorch Mine
This morning is fine and cool, we have left the damp forests behind us, I think. We've spent the morning in the mine and at the smelter, a strong seam of malachite here. I have never worked glass or ebony, but when we get to Windhelm I'm going to try and forge my moonstone into arrowheads.
Roggi Knotbeard, a local tavern bard and miner, has asked us to look for his ancestors shield. The cave he has given name to, Craghollow Slope, looks to be the place full of witchery fires. It is no use trying. I wish I had the craft to meld a fire shielding into the armour I make.
Erik's finished his bottle, time to go. I hope he behaves among the Stormcloaks. I bet he will be talking of mysterious crystals and of dwemer Deeps all the way there.
7th Hearthfire Candlehearth Hall, Windhelm.
Windhelm is crawling with Stormcloaks. We just kept our head down, mostly. I worked with the moonstone, not just for arrowheads, but a new bow also for myself. I won't ask Erik to use an elf bow, but he has our orc bow now.
I sold a lot of stuff like staffs and jewelry to a High Elf, Niranye, and then I saw an enchanting table at the back of her stall. I've been dying to lay my hands on one, especially thinking about that fire shielding. She helped me with it, she said she has seen mages use it from time to time. We watched as each colour was released as the weapon or armour is destroyed. She's politer than most elves.
Talking of elves, we found the alchemist, a grumpy old bastard of an elf, he makes his imperial's live miserable, I can see. Never the less, we are going to do something for him, I'm too soft, or Erik is. No, not soft, just an adventure has fallen into his hands. Sounds like it's not far from here, in the snowy wastes to the north. One more night here, then we trek into the coldest north.
Level 9
Smithing Meric Smithing (elven, chitin)
Enchanting Mastery 1/2
9th Hearthfire. Nightingale inn
It was almost dawn of the following day that we emerged from the ice that encased the Forsaken Cave, ann underground tomb of endless seeming passages that loop through the rock. No witches, so only a few guardians to challenge, we do try not to wake the sleeping, or steal from the ancestors, apart from our needs. Erik seems at home in these places of the Ancients' carved stone, more than at home sometimes, as if he never was a farm boy from Rorikstead.
On the road sometimes, I just turn to watch him, I would know him anywhere now, I think, no matter what armour he wore. How he carries himself and holds his head and the length and rhythm of his stride.
Our map showed an inn on the road to Winterhold, not so much further, so we headed for here, had breakfast and slept most of the day away. We went for a short wander along the lake shore, watched horkers and found a strange cave with Dwemer pipes encased in the rock and strange sounds like a hissy heartbeat. Who knows what is under there. I did find a small chest, with among other valuables, an amulet of Mara. Who owned it I wonder, was this a bandit or a hunters hideout for a time? It's mine now. One day, maybe ....and how right, if it did happen, that I should have found this here, hidden in a place only an adventurer would go!
10th Hearthfire A Dwemer Ruin.
We are at a bandits "camp" deep in a dwemer ruin. Erik was hurt bad, by a machine of this place. The bandits are dead, and the machine stilled and the door locked again, so I think we are safe, safe enough to stay until he is on his feet again.
Arrows just seemed to bounce off I didn't know if the steel ones or the elven ones were better as I watched him go down. I can't remember where I got it from some bandit hole but I had a firestorm scroll and I've never done it before but I read the words and it stopped it. I don't know how to do more I've just done the best I can with lots of snow water and mead and needle and thread and potion after potion. Now he sleeps and I write, and watch.
It started when we were walking in the forest, the sun shining through the iced trees, the headwaters of the river on one side, slopes of clean white snow on the other. This must be the most beautiful place in skyrim, even the air feels it carries life into our lungs at each breath. Erik spotted a dwemer tower halfway up the hill. When we got there ,the sides were just a gateless grid, but stone steps led up and up to the ridges beyond. To a great fortress spanning several levels, metal and also stone carved as our own ancestors do.
Fortress - and bandits of course.
We went in. Vast halls and massive pipes with the sounds loud that we'd heard in the cave yesterday. Bandits we hunted out, and then unlocked a door with their key and through another door this metal ball that rolled out and became weapons.
So these are the truth of Dwemer ruins, now we have seen ourselves the dangers they hold in their depths.
Of course I know that braving these places gives life to my Erik, for him it's like breathing the fresh air of the snow country.
So I've just got to try harder to keep him safe, like an archer watching a warriors flank.
