Rales makes me long to return to Morrowind.

Acadian and SubRosa both have better editorial eyes than I, but this:


is just filled with subtext. Nicely done!

I haven't caught up with reading all of this story yet, but Rales is moving through life and up the ladder quickly! One thing that gets me though is how quickly he seems to travel all around. Things like sinking items in the Sea of Ghosts, then hanging out in Sedya Neen soon after make things move too quickly I think. Treat the island as if it was much larger, and that he would have to plan his trips out and rarely return to the same places unless he needed to.

Thank you for reading!

Planning isn't really Rales' thing. He's a bit chaotic, like I am. It's a bit of my own character reflected onto him.

ARGH! I thought you had posted another chapter, lol.

Chapter 8: Zerina

Day 97

'You're leaving, aren't you,' Zerina said matter-of-factly from behind me while putting her arms around my waist. I nodded slowly, broke my gaze from nowhere in particular outside and turned around.
Gently I kissed her forehead. 'I don't want to but I have to. But believe me; I will come back for you.'
She smiled, her eyes filled with sadness and looked into my eyes. A wry smile formed around her lips. 'You better. When?'
'Soon.' I just wasn't sure when. Events had been spinning out of control; I had a feeling it was about to get worse but didn't want to worry Zerina.
I think she felt my inner struggle. She clenched my hands in her hands and took me upstairs.

Zerina was still asleep when I carefully slipped from underneath the covers so she wouldn't wake up. For a minute I remained utterly silent and just watched her. I had to pinch myself to make sure this wasn't some dream I'd wake up from any moment.
Dawn was breaking just when I had packed my gear and headed to Gnisis on foot. My heart was heavy and I felt my eyes burning as I turned around and looked at the house where I had been nursed back to health and where the woman I loved lived. I made a vow to come true to my promise I had made to Widow Vabdas and Zerina. I would return when I had a safe place for us to stay.
It would have to wait until I had de-briefed with General Darius and tell him the dirty job was done.

Of course the General already knew what had taken place in the mine. Even though I hadn't been the one that had ended the Orc's life, Darius congratulated me on a job well done, promoted me to spearman and gave me an Imperial shield. I thought the congratulation was rather un-approriate but didn't say anything about it.
My next orders were to cure the Kwama Queen in the egg-mine. To cure the queen from the blight disease she had contracted I could buy a scroll from Hetman Abelmawia.
He didn't tell me those things were very expensive! I knew no spell of my own with the same effect so I had no choice.
To make sure I didn't have to walk all the way back should the spell miss, I bought two and went up the trail leading to the mine. Hopefully for the last time.

Like with Lugrub, I knew exactly where to go. The mine's production had been halted due to the Kwama Queen being sick so there were no distractions. I raced down the mine, drank one of my home-made healing potions just in case and went to where I thought the Queen's lair was located. I had a faint idea where it would be. I assumed the Queen would be guarded by Kwama warriors, the ill-tempered ones I had encountered weeks ago. Logic dictated the Queen wasn't far away from her gaurdians, the Kwama warriors.

My assumption was dead on. As soon as I entered the part of the mine where Lugrub and I had fought, I was attacked by Kwama warriors. Behind them, I could see the gigantic Kwama Queen. With the healing potion still active, anything the warriors threw at me was healed instantly. I ignored the warriors and headed straight for the Queen. The moment I cast the spell to heal her, a warrior struck me in my back. The spell singed the Queen as it flew past her, missing her by a fraction of an inch.
Annoyed, I cast an invisibility spell on myself, temporarily confusing the Kwama warriors and allowing me to cast the spell on the second scroll. This time I didn't miss. Having completed my mission, I felt much better. At least now I was doing some good and was actually helping people. The kind of thing I had joined up for.

Darius thanked me for curing the Queen. Now the mining operations could be continued and bring some good to Gnisis. The mine was the only real income for the town.
Many residents counted on it to make their living from mining the eggs.
'I need you to rescue someone,' Darius replied when I asked what my next assignment was. This sounded just like something for me.
'A pilgrim called Madura Seran has gone missing nearby Ald Velothi, see if you can locate and rescue her.'
I saluted and headed north, to Ald Velothi.

That was Awesome! - (reminded me of a quest in Fallout 3) - The details you add make it personalized, really great job!

Yet another wonderful installment! A very smooth and natural transition as Rales leaves his love and continues his quest. I hope he is a young man of his word. Everything I like about your stories is on display here. :foodndrink:

:whisper: Just a couple minor things to consider:
-'Waiste' {waist}
-'I bought two and went up the trail leading to mine.' {I think you mean 'the' mine?}
-'Prduction' {production}
-'causing the spell to singe by the Queen, missing her by an inch.' {I don't understand 'singe by' }

You must have eagle-eye sight. I proof read the damn thing 3 times and I still missed the "the mine" and "production" entirely.
Waiste was deliberately. I wasn't sure of the spelling. Waiste means garbage right?

Singe isn't a word? It is now :rofl:
I used "singe" in context like "almost scorched".

Waist = around your beltline at the top of your pants/skirt // Waste = garbage

Yes, singe is to lightly burn or scorch. I would still say that this is awkward though: 'causing the spell to singe by the Queen, missing her by an inch.'
You could certainly say something like: 'The spell singed the queen as it flew by, missing her by an inch.'

Please don't let my nits detract from the fact that you have a real gift for storytelling that I thoroughly enjoy!

@AcadianThank you for the kind words! Your suggestion was a big help. I've re-phrased the two awkward sentences.


Since there were no travel accomodations leading to Ald Velothi, I got to stretch my legs a bit. A small trail leading through the mountains was the quickest way getting there.
The scenery was stunning, I couldn't help thinking I should take Zerina here once. From the high cliffs you could see the sea to the north and west and steep, white-tipped mountains, reflecting the last light of the day, dotted the area. I was sure she'd be delighted.
Several hours later, I had ran most of the way, I arrived at the Ald Velothi outpost.
Almost everyone had heard of Madura gone missing but strangely enough no-one had any idea where she could be. After running around in circles for what seemed like hours and having asked nearly every villager I ended up back at the outpost.
I realised this was the only place where I hadn't inquired yet.

And, of course, this was the place I got directions to where she might be.
Often you hear someone saying:'It's always on the last place you look.' That's a pretty dumb statement if you think about it. Of course it's on the last place you look. There's not really a point in keep looking if you already found what you've been looking for, right?
Orero Omothan suspected she had been captured by Ashlanders in a camp nearby.
He told me I could find the camp south-west of Velothi, just past a hill with a lighted tree. I remember distinctly raising a brow. 'Lighted tree? What's that supposed to mean?'
Orero shrugged and said I'd know what he meant as soon as I saw it. Couldn't miss it, he assured me.
I thanked him and headed south-west.

Shortly after I had left from the outpost, I saw what Omothan had meant; a tree with some kind of travel-lantern in its branches lit the way.
The small camp was easy to find. Outside two Ashlanders looked at me with suspicion.
In an effort to break the ice, I approached them and asked them politely about the pilgrim. They simply pointed towards the biggest tent in the camp.
The hint was obvious. I pulled away the hide that functioned as a door and entered the yurt. Inside were two people; a proud looking Ashlander, holding a fearsome looking axe, I preferred not to get into a fight with and a Dunmer woman. In broken Dunmeri the Ashlander asked me what I was doing inside. I explained him I had come to take Madura Seran back home, to Ald Velothi.
The Ashlander shook his head and said he needed a tribute before he'd release her. I sighed and dug up several hundred gold Drakes and handed them over. I could see the common language ? greed ? glistening in his yes.
'That will get you somewhere, Outlander. You can take her.' I couldn't help noticing the gold had an educational value as well. Suddenly he could speak accentless Dunmeri.
Madura nearly sprinted out of the yurt, I had to chase her just to catch up.
We arrived safely back to the Ald Velothi outpost shortly after.

'Did you find the missing pilgrim?' General Darius inquired after I had returned to Gnisis from my mission.
'Yes Sir, she was captured by some Ashlanders.'
'You didn't wipe them all out, did you,' General Darius asked with a wink.
'No Sir,' I said with a toothy grin. 'All it took was some gold to persuade them to let her go. My gold to be precise.'
Darius cocked his head. 'You'll be wanting a refund then, I guess?'
'That would be nice.'
'Fair enough, report with the Drillmaster and he'll repay you your professional expenses. I don't have any orders for you at the moment. Return to me in a few weeks, maybe I'll have work for you then. Meanwhile, enjoy your new rank, I am honoured to call you Trooper Sarethi from now on. The Drillmaster will also give you the armour belonging to your new rank, don't forget to ask him about it.'
I saluted and went to the Legion Barracks to retrieve my gold and new armour.

Since I had nothing on my hands for a while, a return to Balmora and finishing the task Caius had given me would be in order. I had another, more selfish, reason to return to Balmora. Rumours of a recent assassination of a prominent Hlaalu member had reached me and had given me an idea.
Puuting words to deeds, I took a stiltstrider to Balmora and started with the investigation. I was getting quite proficient in investigating murders. This was going to be the third one. The thought of starting a business crossed my mind but soon cast it to the side, dead people can't reward you. Besides, my alchemy trading was lucrative enough.

I re-read this twice to make sure I didn't miss anything - Riveting! Great job on this!

@mALX1: Flattery will get you anything, like an update. Thank you for the support. :foodndrink:

Day 99

The first thing I did when I arrived in Balmora was to proceed to the scene of the crime, Haalo manor in the north-west of town, nearby the White Haven alchemy shop. Unfortunately, the door into the manor was locked. Breaking into a house in broad day light wasn't the best course of action ? especially considering the area was crawling with Haalu guards ? so I started asking around if anyone had heard anything.

Most ignored me, some said they didn't even know Ralen. I found that rather hard to believe, some had been standing next to his house while stating that. To me it felt like the crime was being covered up. Apparantly, I had to dig deeper to get to the bottom of this. Soon, I had asked practically every citizen in Balmora. It wasn't until I asked Caius about it that I was starting to get somewhere. The Spymaster pointed out there was only one organisation capable of such a major scale cover-up, the Camonna Tong.
'I thought you told me the Camonna Tong are on the Haalu payroll? Why would they murder one of their beneficiaries?'
Caius shrugged. 'Beats me. You could try with the Thieves' Guild. The Tong and the Thieves' Guild have been in a blood-feud for years. Most of the members will be in the South Wall Cornerclub. Just be careful Rales! The Camonna Tong are a ruthless bunch.'
Just before I left, Caius suddenly remembered an old friend of his, Larrius Varro, was looking for me. I could find him in the nearby Legion fort, fort Moonmoth.

The South Wall Cornerclub was nearby Caius' house so it didn't take me long to find it. A Khajiit called Sugar-Lips Habasi greeted me. After having introduced myself I came straight to business and asked her if there was anything she knew about the murder of Ralen Haalo and about the Camonna Tong. As soon as I brought up the Tong, Sugar-Lips refused to answer more questions. It seemed I was getting close but no further either.
It was the same with every one else I asked about it. When I brought up the Tong, everyone acutely lost their tongue. An Argonian had mentioned "bad people" before he realised he had said too much.
Putting one and one together, bad people could only refer to the Camonna Tong.
I had found a suspect, now I needed proof.

Later that day, well after dark, I returned to the Haalo manor, waited for the few guards - who were still patrolling the area - to be out of sight and picked the lock.
The victim was lying on his face in a huge pool of his own blood. A familiar looking wound ? you can hardly mistaken the awful wounds axes make for anything else ? covered most of his back. He had not just been murdered, he had been struck down cowardly from behind. Disgusted I looked around for clues. I could tell it hadn't been a professional job, red foot prints led from the victim to the door. I couldn't imagine a professional assassin would have stamped through his victim's blood, leaving such an obvious trail.
Upon inspection, I noticed something weird with the trail, the prints of the right shoe showed a discrepency compared to the prints from the left shoe. It seemed as though there was a part missing from the sole from the right shoe. All I needed to do was to find the footwear that had the same strange flaw and I had found the killer.
How I was going to pull of that feat was a different story. It wasn't like I could ask every single person in Balmora to show me the sole of their right shoe.

Oooh! This is going to be great, I can't wait to see how Rales figures out how to see their shoes! I have learned more about Morrowind reading your story than anywhere else!

I was too slow! I just caught up though, and read your last two wonderful stories!

*The first one (post #110)*

I love how you mentioned Zerina at the beginning. It would be natural for Rales to miss her and for her to be on his mind. I was a little sad at the end, with the hint that Rales had some time, that he did not run off to see her. Oh well, duty calls, and he did have a murder to solve.

I loved this! Yep! 'Ol Rales is pretty smart!

The only little typo thing I noticed was this: '?a proud looking Ashlander, holding a fiersome looking axe?' {fearsome}

*The second one (Day 99)*

Just another delightful day as Rales shows mALX and I more about Morrowind! :nod:

This is so 'Rales'! I wanted to say "Ya think!?!" Wonderful!

'?have been in a blood-fued for years...' {feud}

@Acadian: Fearsome is derived from "fear"? I wasn't sure. I thought it was derived from "fierce". That's why I made it fiersome rather than fearsome.

@mALX1: He's not going to look at everyone's shoes. :rofl:


In stead of simply following that single clue, I continued searching the house for more.
The only additional clue I found confirmed my suspicion about it not having been a professional hit. I actually found a witness, Ralen Haalo's servant had seen everything through the keyhole of her door. She told me she had seen a red-headed Dunmer with a very peculiar hairdo and a huge axe. Unfortunately, she hadn't seen his face but at least now I had some descriptions I could follow. For a brief moment I wondered why she hadn't done anything but then again; what could a frail old woman have done except getting killed herself?
How many red-head Dunmer men with a very peculiar hairdo could there be? I was considering paying a visit to the Council-Club to see if my suspect hung out there. I had to start somewhere. Why not at the most likely place for my suspect to be?

Finding a suspect is one thing; confronting a suspected murderer who is presumed innocent until proven otherwise is something else. Especially when the suspect is an aggressive Camonna Tong member. How was I going to subtly interrogate him while not directly making accusations?
Let me start at the beginning: as soon as I walked into the Council Club top floor entrance a Dunmer exactly fitting the description was banging away at some armour with a hammer. Apparantly Thanelen Valas was a smith. That would certainly explain how he was able to handle the gigantic axe strapped to his back. Until now, the only ones I've seen being able to, were Nords and Orcs, not a relatively ? compared to Orcs and Nords ? small Dunmer, even though he was huge for one.
In stead of being blunt I decided to show interest in his profession and admire his handywork. I even bought a dagger from him to get in his good grace. I, on purpose, overpayed Valas for it.

After some small talk, about politics and such, I asked him what he knew about Ralen Haalo's murder. Surprisingly, he said he had heard about it and that Nine Toes, a local Argonian ? one I knew to be a fellow Blade ? had done it. I couldn't believe it. He actually denied being the murderer. I couldn't be blowing Nine Toes' cover by saying I knew for a fact he wasn't the murderer and how I knew that. Even if I hadn't known him, Argonians weren't very likely to be mistaken for a Dunmer ? unless you're blind as a bat.
My patience had run out. 'You're a liar,' I blurted out. 'There was a witness to the murder. You are the only one in whole Balmora fitting the descriptions the witness gave.'
'Alright, I killed him!' he growled. 'So what? People get killed all the time.'
'Not if I can help it,' I retorted.

He made an insult directed to my mother, I refuse to repeat, and drew his axe. I think he should've stayed at his smithy. He was useless as a warrior. Sure, his hands were as big as spades and he swung his axe like it was a feather ? albeit a heavy one ? he wouldn't have been able to hit a Stiltstrider if it had been in front of his nose. I couldn't resist taunting him. 'A lot harder to kill someone when he's fighting back isn't it?' I growled in contempt.
He wasn't able to form decent words in between his panting. I soon had enough of this facade and made a move he never saw coming. With a resounding thud his severed head dropped on the wooden floor. Bloody justice but justice none-the-less.
His right shoe's sole had the exact pattern cut out I had seen in the bloody trail in the Hlaalo manor. The only two regrets I had were that I hadn't been able to extract his motives and having bought the dagger from him. What a useless piece of scrapmetal that was!

Can't you loot the body and get your money back? ARGH! Riveting! My fave line: If I had a drink in my mouth I would have spewed it on my keyboard. Great Write!!

Looting a fallen opponent's body is not the Redoran way. It's considered dishonourable. Creatures, Bandits, smugglers etc are already dishonoured so those don't count.

Ah, - I am going to have your story up on the PC when I try to play Morrowind the next time, it will be my walk through guide!

Ah yes, I must agree with mALX (always a wise idea by the way). As I have told you, I do not play Morrowind, so Rales is my guide.

I had to look up the perpetrator in UESP wiki to check out this red hairdo out of curiosity - Yep, peculiar all right!

You definitely have your own unique style of storytelling and I continue to really enjoy it. It is quite simply, FUN to read.

I think in the game his hair style is called Mohawk but I think that's hardly Lore friendly. I've never seen a Mohawk Indian in Tamriel. So I called it peculiar in stead for lack of a better way to call it.


You couldn't have given me a better compliment. Thank you!

Last week I got a little stuck, I was writing a part I wasn't happy with the course it was taking. Today I was inspired and got a lot of work on it done. You guys sticking with my story has been a huge drive for me. Thank you again for the awesome support!!


A chance to learn of the killer's motive arose soon. His friends downstairs had heard the unmistakable sounds of combat. Two of them came upstairs to see what it was all about.
They asked me what the reason was their friend had lost his head. I explained the situation. Strangely enough, they completely understood. They even revealed to me it had been about a petty squable concerning a payment the Haalu noble had refused to make. Valas hadn't been much of a smith either, Ralen Haalo had refused to pay because the repairs were far below standard.
After having explained the circumstances of the murder, they said that even though it was perfectly understandable I had killed Valas, they couldn't allow some Outlander to get away with killing their friend ? a Camonna Tong member.

The consequential battle drew in two more Camonna Tong members from downstairs. After I was done basically tearing them apart, five maimed bodies and several body parts were strewn around the club, its walls painted red with their blood. They hadn't posed a much bigger threat to me than Valas alone had posed - as a matter of fact; the fights had been fairly easy because we had been inside a building with narrow corridors. Had we been fighting outside they would've been able to surround me and I wouldn't have stood a chance - and the Council Club ended up without customers of the criminal kind.
A turn for the better in my, slightly prejudiced, opinion.

Ralen's servant, Uryne Nirith, had entrusted me with the knowledge the other Hlaalu nobles offered a reward for finding the murderer and bringing him, or her, to justice when I went to inform her she needn't be afraid of the murderer anymore. I assured her he wouldn't come back to get rid of loose ends.
Finding the local Hlaalu noble was easy for a change. The council manor was right across the street. The noble I needed to speak to receive the reward, Nileno Dorvayn, was thankful I had solved the most foul murder and had put the murderer to justice. She was puzzled why someone not belonging to the same great house would go through so much trouble. I explained I had a problem with people getting killed for no good reason. (I wondered what a good reason would be, except self-defense, to kill someone anyway)

The reward was a thousand gold Drakes but I offered Nileno an alternative.
Ralen Hlaalo wouldn't be needing his house anymore and I could do with a roof over my head. I suggested she'd keep the reward. In stead, I asked her to allow me renting or buying the house. I promised I'd get the place cleaned up and keep the servant employed. She could use the reward for a decent burial for the victim.
Nileno acted as though she had to give my proposition some thought but her eyes betrayed her true emotions. I could clearly see the thought not having to give me the reward appealed to her. After some ? obviously faked ? consideration she agreed on letting me rent the place. Selling a Hlaalu house to a Redoran wouldn't be appropriate she said but making a profit is something the Hlaalu always strive for. We agreed on a rent of five hundred gold Drakes per month, six months to be payed in advance. It was a lot of gold to hand over at once but I could easily afford it.

:dance: Aww.... Ditto, my friend!


I am so proud of myself that I clearly recalled the thud of his head landing on the floor in the previous story.... So I found this a real giggler. :lmao:


This started to concern me about my friend Rales sounding a touch uber... BUT, you instantly explained the reasons for his advantage in such a way that it made perfect sense. :toughninja:


Such a nice way of bringing out this honorable trait in Rales.


Now... When is that young man going to visit poor Zerina, who is patiently waiting for him?

He will be re-united with Zerina soon....

I actually missed one vital point. The stairs! Every sword fighter knows to take extra precaution when advancing on an enemy above you. I had intended to incorporate this into the story his opponents apparantly were never taught that important lesson but I forgot. Ah well...
I am glad the scene made sense, I was worried it would shove Rales to the "uber" dpt. which I want to avoid at all costs.

That was Awesome! I did not expect that fight upstairs, really great the way you tied it together with the last chapter, and made your personal touches that make it Rales - just Awesome!

(and thank you for the kind words, as Acadian said, "Ditto, my friend!")

Day 102

Uryne and I spend nearly two days cleaning and redecorating the manor. While she was getting rid of the awful stains on the floor the blood had made, I took several trips to Seyda Neen and back to retrieve all my goods from the shack I had been living in for the last months. A spell that enabled me to instantly teleport myself from the shack to the house in Balmora cut the travel time in half and made it possible for me to take far more items in one trip.
After my third and final trip, I had just got back to the manor, a Hlaalu messenger brought an invitiation to Ralen's burial ceremony. Uryne told me it was a rare honour for someone not belonging to the same house to receive such an invitation.
I instructed the messenger to inform the Hlaalu nobles I'd be more than honoured to attend and gave him some gold for his effort.

Wasting no time, I immediately ran to the Stiltstrider port and payed for a trip to Ald-Ruhn and from there to Gnisis. There was nothing I wanted more than having Zerina at my side with the ceremony. My heart was beating in my throat when I finally arrived at the Vabdas house nearly one and a half day later. Not from running but from pure anxiety. What if Zerina wasn't ready or even unwilling to leave Gnisis to come live with me? With soaking wet hands I knocked on the door.

Widow Vabdas opened the door and let me in. Zerina was out, feeding the Guar but would soon be back she informed me. I respectfully greeted Widow Vabdas and went outside to find Zerina.
Knowing the area well because of all the walks we had made, it didn't take me long to find her. I knew all the spots where she could likely be . Zerina was feeding a Guar, I was certain it had been the exact same one we used to try to mount. From the moment she spotted me, I knew my doubts and fears had been unfounded. She ran towards me and threw herself in my welcoming arms. 'You came back,' she exasperated.
For several minutes words were obsolete to express the feelings we had for eachother.

'How would you like to live in Balmora with me? If she wants, your mother can come too. The house I've rented is big enough.'
'I don't think mother will leave this place. It's where she has lived her whole life. Gnisis is her home. I would love to though,' she said and kissed me on my cheek.
I was extatic as we walked back to the house to ask her mother for permission.

Widow Vabdas made no objections. It was more than clear I could provide for her. The sparkle in Zerina's eyes was reason enough for her to grant us her blessing.
All she wanted was for Zerina to be happy. She wouldn't join us for the exact reasons Zerina had indicated but she did promise to come visit us soon.
Quickly we gathered all her clothing and typical woman things I didn't recognise.
There wasn't much to pack, half an hour later we were ready to walk to Gnisis if it hadn't been for the long farewell between daughter and mother. Tears and laughter were shed while I kept myself to the side.

'Who's the pretty lady at your side?' the Stiltstrider pilot in Gnisis asked. With all the trips I had taken recently I had gotten quite familiar with several pilots.
Zerina was blushing as I took a glimpse to my right.
He saw it too. Discretely he mumbled something like he understood, winked and took us to Ald-Ruhn and Balmora.

Oooohhh, I am loving this story line!! Great write!