A TRIP TO SOLSTHEIM
Part. 1
While travelling through the Bitter Coast, http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/7334/solstheim00qenyafriends.jpg made a habit to stop at http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=7817 Inn, the only place in all Vvardenfell where one could buy a flask of absinthe.
It's on the occasion of one of those nights spent in the inn that they met Isadora Foxtail. Isadora was a tall Nord woman with a loud, infectious laughter and shady ways, a Dagon Fel native who spent some time on Solstheim. Apparently, she was forced to leave the island under circumstances she was not willing to elaborate on, but that Qenya and her friend the Dunmer Telania, both Thieves Guild members, could easily imagine.
A few drink later, Isadora decided they were close enough for her to ask http://img28.imageshack.us/img28/1420/solstheim01.jpg. She wanted Qenya and her companions to repatriate some "stashes" she left behind at the time of her hasty departure from Solstheim.
Qenya wasn't exactly thrilled to bits by the offer, but she and her friends were low on funds these days. The group had a quick discussion. The ones clearly willing to accept the job were Telania and Thaeleril. Especially the latter: the young Bosmer was always ready for a trip.
On the other hand, Kanomi the Mog − the most experienced of the group − was reluctant. She didn't trust Isadora Foxtail. And Marianne, their Breton friend, was clearly not interested. Mog (who actually was a Minimog, and incidentally the only male in the party) had no opinion on the matter.
3 votes in favor of Isadora's offer, 2 against and 1 abstention. The majority won: a few days later, in the chilly morning of Hearthfire 11, the 6 of them eventually landed on the docks of http://img22.imageshack.us/img22/3643/solstheim02.jpg, the imperial outpost which materialized the cyrodilic authority on the frozen wasteland that was Solstheim.
Inside the fort, no guard paid much attention to them. Following Isadora's instructions, the group had no difficulty locating the Nord's http://img687.imageshack.us/img687/8707/solstheim03.jpg: a compartment concealed behind a hidden door in the inconspicuous wall of a passage inside the southern rampart.
They gathered up the content of the compartment ? some snow bear pelt, an axe, a shield, 2 drinks, an enchanted talisman and a few gold pieces. Nothing impressive, really ? and shut the secret door. Then http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/3205/solstheim04.jpg, passing by a couple of guards apparently quite unconcerned about people coming and going.
Qenya and the team had just accomplished the first half of the mission they had been entrusted with. The second half was to retrieve the rest of Isadora's possessions from another hiding-place located in some village by the name of Skaal, somewhere north of Frostmoth.
Outside the fort they stopped to ask the way to some locals. http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/3113/solstheim05.jpg, but http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/4919/solstheim06.jpg was more precise about the whereabouts of Skaal than Isadora (who was quite drunk when they left her).
The group left the secure vicinity of Fort Frostmoth and ventured http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/2126/solstheim07.jpg.
The savage and frozen wasteland had a beauty of its own. Qenya and her friend became so absorbed in the contemplation of the scenery that they got caught by surprise by a hungry http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/8925/solstheim08.jpg. It took an amazing amount of arrows to kill it.
It wasn't long before they realized that wolves were thriving on the island. And all those predators seemed equally aggressive and though. One especially took almost 20 arrows and the http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/3784/solstheim09.jpg of a nearby imperial patrol to kill.
By noon, the group was exhausted. They had repelled several wolves attacks and survived an encounter with an insanely though bear. So, after hours of walking and fighting, they were relieved to see in the distance what looked like the comforting fire of a http://img28.imageshack.us/img28/3117/solstheim10.jpg.
Their relief was short-lived. http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/7928/solstheim11.jpg.
The http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/3009/solstheim12.jpg that ensued was intense, but the hostile locals were eventually defeated.
However, this was only the first in a string of http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/5182/solstheim13.jpg. It soon became obvious that the human inhabitants of Solstheim were as hostile and unwelcoming as its wildlife. That first day on the island, nearly every encounter in the wilderness ended in a fierce http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/3481/solstheim14.jpg.
At nightfall ? after surviving a vicious attack by a wolf pack that left them with http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/7200/solstheim15.jpg ? the group gathered http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/8237/solstheim16.jpg.
- "Creatures in this place are something else", Marianne said. "We're out of our depth here".
- "At this rate", Thaeleril agreed, "we'll run out of restore potions by noon tomorrow. That Nord outside Fort Frostmoth said that Thirsk, the nearest village, is at least a 3-day walk. There is no way we can make it there alive".
- "Yeah, Isadora tricked us. She sent us to our death.", Telania said. "I say our deal is over! Let's go back to the Sable Dragon and kill her!"
- "Well, it's not like she didn't warn us about the danger", Kanomi objected. "I'm absolutely positive she mentioned the wolves and the bears?"
A heated discussion ensued. Telania and Thaeleril were willing to give up and return to Vvardenfell. Qenya, Marianne and Kanomi were advocating for the completion of the mission. Mog had no particular opinion on the matter.
Once again, the majority won. As a concession to Telenia and Thaeleril, everybody agreed to renegotiate the reward with Isadora once they're back to Vvardenfell. It was also decided that, in the meantime, everything would be done to try and avoid confrontation with Solstheim inhabitants.
The group spent most of the following days http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/8964/solstheim17.jpg past unsuspecting critters and making detours to avoid parties of Nord Berserkers spotted in the distance. There were of course some http://img704.imageshack.us/img704/2917/solstheim18.jpgs ? hence some http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/3783/solstheim19.jpgs ? they couldn't dodge, but overall their new strategy was a success.
Far into the night of the third day, Qenya and her companions eventually reached http://img716.imageshack.us/img716/9490/solstheim20.jpg.
(To be continued)
:unsure: Uhh...? I'm either taking too many drugs, or your taking too many...
Seriously dude, what have you been smoking?
» Thu Mar 04, 2010 1:27 am 
You really changed a lot since I last found you..
