I'm trying to post a new chapter every couple of weeks, so probably this coming Monday. Sadly, boring stuff like 'work' and 'social life' prevents me from spending the whole time thinking up new ways to torture Ada

Ah okay that sounds good, how is having a social life boring lol.

It was a joke

Ah I see .

Hey just out of interest, when you played Morrowind did you actually attack Crassius Curio when he asked you to strip off in front of him ?

No. However, many other things are actually based on my own first playthrough of Morrowind, such as the part where she brings the wrong type of sword for the Puzzle Canol pilgrimage.

Okay, first of all - great story so far. I like your character, and I think you've given all the NPCs a good, fair amount of depth. I'm currently busy with another writing project, but this has inspired me to write a similar story once that's done. Probably not based on my first playthrough, though since I barely remember any of that... it was in 2004.

Now, a question that has nothing to do with the story... what mods are you using in those screenshots, and where might I get them? They look great.

Oh, boy... listing all the texture replacers I use would take all day. I'll just give you the basics: The backgrounds are http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=2915, along with some others such as http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=3088. Ada's face comes from http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=1146 by Golgotha, and the hair from http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=5883 (it's actually a Nord hair mesh; I swapped a few of them around). I also use http://www.psychodogstudios.com/betterbodies/, http://www.psychodogstudios.com/betterclothes/, and Darknut's http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=119915&id=5882, http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=119915&id=6143 and http://planetelderscrolls.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Mods.Detail&id=119915&id=7401 retextures. Finally, I recently installed the latest version of http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=239453&package_id=291185 and some custom shaders.

Chapter 12: You're In The Army Now

I didn't want to delay my Redoran mission any longer, as I could imagine that whoever needed the Cure Disease potion was feeling pretty miserable right now. I returned to Ald'ruhn and bought passage on that evening's silt strider to Gnisis, hoping fervently that we wouldn't run into any ash storms along the way.

Just around dawn we arrived in Gnisis, a large village in the West Gash. It was surrounded by mountains and built in the same style as Ald'ruhn, though I could see the stone towers of an Imperial fortress in the distance. The caravaner told me that many Gnisis citizens were 'Velothi', the descendants of Ashlanders who had abandoned their nomadic lifestyles and settled in the area.

Two more of the Temple pilgrimage sites could be found near to Gnisis: the Shrine of Justice in the Gnisis Temple itself, and the Shrine of Valour in the Koal Cave a short way south. I decided to visit the Temple now and the other shrine when I returned from Ald Velothi. The Shrine of Justice required a Cure Common Disease potion as a donation; luckily I always carried a spare one with me on my travels, just in case. After visiting the shrine and stopping by the tradehouse for some breakfast and supplies, I left for Ald Velothi on foot.

I wasn't too pleased at the thought of yet more walking, but the journey went reasonably smoothly up until I was quite close to Ald Velothi. Then I rounded a corner and came upon an attractive Breton woman (why is it always Bretons?) standing by the side of a small pool and looking vaguely flustered and helpless. Glutton for punishment that I am, I stopped to ask if I could help.

"Why, thank you, m'lady," she simpered. "You see, I dropped my ring and I just can't seem to find it. I think it must have rolled down into this pool here." She pointed down into the murky water.

I suppose I ought to have known something was wrong when she called me 'm'lady' rather than the usual 'miss' or 'madam', but right now I had other things on my mind. "Look, I don't mean to be unkind," I said with a sigh, "but I'm on a fairly urgent mission right now. Is there any reason why you can't go in there and get it yourself?"

She blushed. "I can't go in to get it because I am expected at the keep shortly. You see, I'm a... dancer...and I can't very well smell like muckwater now can I?" I raised my eyebrows. "Please could you get it for me? I'd be forever in your debt."

I was tempted to tell her to speak to me next time she had a real problem, but I was in a relatively good mood that day and kindness won out. "Well, okay," I said, after a moment's hesitation. "I can't stay too long, but I'll have a look for you."

I removed my boots, rolled up my sleeves and the legs of my pants and waded into the muddy water. For a minute or so I wandered around the pool, until at last I felt something small and hard touch my foot. I bent down and scrabbled around in the silt, finally managing to retrieve the ring. "Ta-da!" I exclaimed, holding it up high. "Here's your ring, Miss ? "

She interrupted me with a harsh laugh. "No good deed goes unpunished, outlander!"

Moments later I heard the unmistakeable thwack of an arrow against my helmet ? which, luckily, I'd kept on. If I hadn't, I'd probably have been killed then and there.

I leapt aside, raising my shield to block the arrows as another one whizzed past my head. The Breton rushed at me with her dagger drawn, but I was ready for her and caught her a heavy blow across the ribs. As she staggered back, screaming, I shoved her down into the water before turning to look for the archer. No one was there.

I rushed forward, zigzagging to try and avoid the arrows, and ran straight into an invisible figure standing in front of me in the path. Since I couldn't see him/her at all, I could only slash around wildly with my sword in the hope of hitting something important. When my opponent finally fell dead, and the enchantment faded to reveal a Dunmer woman in light armour, the results were not pretty.

So much for helping people, I thought with a sigh. I couldn't see why they'd even bothered with the whole 'ring' business if their only intent was to rob me and kill me. As I bent to examine the woman's body, I noticed that she was wearing an amulet with a very powerful Chameleon enchantment, engraved with the words 'Amulet of Shadows'. I don't usually like to steal from my fallen foes, but this was simply too useful to pass up, so I took it and slipped it around my own neck before continuing on my way.

On reaching Ald Velothi, a tiny coastal village that was really no more than a hamlet, I delivered the Cure Disease potion to Theldyn Virith, the local Redoran sheriff. As I left the outpost, I heard a couple of locals discussing some rogue Ashlanders who'd set up camp nearby. "They took Madura Seran!" one of them exclaimed. "She was but a simple pilgrim. Someone needs to rescue her."

Ah, now this sounded a bit more like it. When I asked if I could help, they directed me to the Ashlander camp on top of the hill. I walked to the camp, where a man and a woman in rather bizarre clothing were standing outside a large tent. "Excuse me," I said to the woman, hoping she understood Tamrielic. "Would you be Ashlanders, by any chance?"

She gave me a distinctly unfriendly look. "Yes, I am Rawia Ashirbibi, wise-woman of my Ashlander tribe."

"Would you happen to know anything about a kidnapped pilgrim?"

She pointed towards the tent. "You will have to talk to Abassel. He's inside."

I entered the yurt, where a frightened-looking Dunmer woman was sitting on a bedroll, guarded by a male Ashlander. "Are you Madura Seran?" I asked her.

She nodded, too afraid to speak. I turned to the man. "Why have you kidnapped her? What do you want?"

"So, this pilgrim has value?" he said with a grin. "I will give her to you for 500 drakes."

I didn't want to start a fight, but I don't approve of paying ransoms to kidnappers ? it only encourages them. "Give me some time to think about it," I told him, and left the camp.

We Imperials like to say that we always prefer to handle things non-violently if possible (though I must admit that our massive continent-spanning army makes this slightly suspect). Regardless, one of our inborn 'racial powers' ? in addition to the Charm spell I'd used for my final Hlaalu mission ? is the 'Star of the West', a handy stamina-draining spell that can be used to knock someone out quickly and cleanly. After a few minutes' thought I slipped on the Amulet of Shadows and cast the enchantment, then returned to the camp and re-entered the tent I'd just left. Inside, I quickly cast the Star of the West spell on Abassel and watched him slide to the ground before Madura's astonished eyes.

"Shhh," I whispered, as she shrank back in fear. "It's only me. I'll be back in a minute."

I slipped back out through the tent flap and crept up behind the male Ashlander warrior, then raised my sword and struck him as hard as I could on the head with the flat of the blade. He fell to the ground unconscious with no more than a grunt. Unfortunately this alerted the wise-woman, whom I probably ought to have attacked first, as the 'wise' part turned out to be all too accurate. After staring at her companion's body for a couple of seconds, she realised what was going on, and instantly flung a bolt of magicka in my direction.

I didn't have time to dodge the blast, and a moment later I felt my knees buckle under the crushing weight of a Burden spell. It wouldn't incapacitate me completely, but it would keep me rooted to the spot. I tried not to panic as I realised that the Chameleon spell would wear off within seconds, leaving me exposed and helpless. Since I wasn't close enough to the woman to attack her with my sword, my only option was to quickly take down the bow I carried and fire off an arrow.

I'm not that great a shot at the best of times, and my hastily-fired arrow only managed to hit her in the arm. She let out a cry of agony and stumbled back a few steps, clutching her arm, until my second poorly-aimed shot whizzed past her ear. Finally realising that she didn't have much chance against an invisible archer, she turned and fled.

Once the Ashlander woman was out of sight, I dashed into the tent and grabbed Madura by the arm. "Come on, let's get of here. Follow me."

We ran back to the village together, only stopping for breath when we were inside the Redoran outpost. "Thank you, outlander," Madura wheezed, as I handed her my water canteen. "I'm very grateful to you."

Theldyn Virith was quite impressed as well. "I believe the Imperial Legion was planning to send agents to rescue Madura," he told me. "I will write a message for you to take to General Darius, the fort commander, telling him that it's no longer necessary. Perhaps he may reward you."

There was no inn in Ald Velothi, but one of the locals very kindly offered to put me up for the night after hearing how I rescued Madura. Unfortunately, whilst staying there I must somehow have contracted the disease that had been troubling people in the village ? because next morning, as I was walking back to Gnisis, I started to feel seriously ill.

It began with a mild headache and sore throat, both of which grew steadily worse. An hour or so later, when I stopped to rest and eat, I found myself coughing and feeling unusually chilly. Another hour and the chills had turned to a raging heat, which had me gulping water from my canteen as if I'd just run a mile. I fumbled in my pack for a Cure Disease potion, and realised to my horror that I'd forgotten to buy another one after the Gnisis pilgrimage.

I struggled on for half a mile or so, but it was useless; soon I was feeling so fevered and weak that I simply couldn't go any further. I sank to the ground, coughing heavily and violently cursing my own idiocy. I'm going to die here, I thought. Five years of battling monsters, bandits, necromancers and even Daedra, and I'm going to die of a common disease ? just a few miles from the nearest town ? because I was too stupid to keep myself properly supplied with potions.

I don't remember much of what I thought after that. I'm not even sure how long I lay there, drifting in and out of consciousness and hawking up various unpleasant bodily fluids. Someone must have been watching over me, though, because no storms blew up, and I wasn't robbed by bandits or attacked by wild animals.

In the early evening I woke to find myself lying in a pool of muddy water, drizzly rain pattering down on my face. I still felt like utter crap, but the fever had broken and I was just about able to stand and walk. After refilling my water canteen at a dirty stream, I tried to eat some food, but only managed to swallow a few mouthfuls before throwing up.

I was just wondering how the hell I was going to get back to Gnisis when I remembered what I'd been too ill to think of earlier in the day: my Almsivi Intervention scrolls. It says a lot about how rotten I was feeling that I didn't even have the energy to be annoyed with myself.

When I re-materialised in the Gnisis temple courtyard, one of my heavy coughing fits attracted the attention of a passer-by, who looked at me in horror. "Please kill me," I croaked.

She shook her head impatiently. "Don't be foolish, outlander. You have a common disease, that's all. Go and find a healer before you infect others."

I staggered into the Temple, where the resident healer took one look at me and immediately backed away. "Oh, dear." He cast a Cure Disease spell from a safe distance, and I instantly felt all the symptoms vanish like ? well, magic.

"Thank you so much," I said gratefully. "You have no idea what it was like trying to walk back from Ald Velothi in that state."

He frowned. "You walked back from Ald Velothi? Why did you not go to Khuul?"

"Cool?" I mumbled, searching for a piece of rag to wipe my nose on.

"Here, I will show you on your map." He placed a small dot to mark the location of Khuul, a short way up the coast from Ald Velothi. "There is a silt strider there that could have carried you to Gnisis."

I don't think I actually have words to express what I was feeling at that moment. In the event it's probably a good thing I didn't, as it would almost certainly have got me arrested.

By this point I was so utterly filthy that I didn't even want to enter the tradehouse, in case I was mistaken for a tramp and thrown out. Instead, I went straight down to the river and simply stripped off my armour and waded in. The water wasn't particularly clean, but at least it would wash away some of the grime ? and the smell.

It wasn't until I heard a voice calling to me that I saw the man standing a short way upstream. He was waist-deep in the water and shivering. "You okay?" I asked, wading towards him.

He shook his head angrily. "Hainab stole my pants!"

"What?"

"I said, he stole my pants!" The man scowled. "My name is Hentus Yansurnummu. I was just taking a bath and Hainab Lasamsi came along and stole my pants. I can't come out of the water until I have them back!"

Young men, eh? I sighed. "Well, I guess I could talk to him, but first I need to go to the tradehouse and change, and have a bath. Or possibly three."

"Could you not go to him first, outlander? I am freezing!"

"I am not going to wander around the village looking like this," I told him, hands on hips.

Hentus glared at me, muttering something about 'Imperials' under his breath. I was rapidly losing patience with this guy. "Do you want those pants, or not? Because I'm having a really bad day, and frankly, you can stand here in the river all night for all I care."

I waited for him to mumble an apology and then, after squeezing the water out of my clothes as best I could, left for the tradehouse. I really, really wanted to get myself properly clean, but out of kindness to Hentus I held off taking a bath for the moment. After changing into clean, dry clothes and tidying myself up a bit, I went to one of the open-air stalls just outside the inn and bought some cheap cotton pants that were roughly his size. I wasn't about waste time searching the village for this Hainab person.

Was Hentus grateful? Was he hell. "Those aren't my pants," he said, when I offered them to him. "Hainab Lasamsi has my pants."

"They are now," I told him, trying to keep my patience. "I am donating them to you out of the kindness of my heart."

"I want my own pants back."

I don't think anyone has ever come so close to being strangled with a pair of pants. "Go and get them yourself then!"

"I can't. I am naked below the waist."

"Okay," I said slowly and clearly, as if addressing a very stupid child. "But if you put on these pants which I have brought you, you will no longer be naked below the waist, and you will then be able to go to Hainab and ask him to return your pants. Correct?"

"I can't."

"Why not?" I roared.

Hentus lowered his eyes. "I am afraid of him."

Oh, for Mara's sake. I stomped out of the water and back into the village, where one of the traders told me where to find Hainab Lasamsi. I didn't waste any time trying to sweeten him up; I just marched straight up to him and grabbed him by the shoulder.

"You stole my friend Hentus' pants," I said. "I have just been through the most hellish day of my entire life, and I am not a happy mudcrab. Give them back now or I will kill you."

I didn't mean it, of course, but Hainab seemed sufficiently unnerved by the crazy Imperial woman to hand over the pants straight away. I took them back to Hentus, who was, surprisingly, quite grateful. He even gave me some Hackle-Lo as a reward (I was beginning to wonder if this was what they used as the local currency before the Empire came along).

It was getting dark by now, and I was far too tired to think about trying to join the Legion that evening. Instead, following a bath, a hot meal and several glasses of ale, I went straight to bed. I hadn't had any more dreams about mask-wearing, loincloth-sporting madmen the previous night, and I hoped that they were gone for good.

After breakfast the next day I found the local Legion commander, General Darius ? he had his offices in the tradehouse, as it happened ? and handed him the note from Theldyn Virith. He read it through and gave a pleased grunt. "Sounds like you got what we need here at the Legion, young lady. You ever thought of joining up?"

"I've thought about it," I said hesitantly, "but I don't have the time to be a full-time Legionnaire. I already work for the Fighters' Guild and House Redoran, you see."

Darius rubbed his chin. "Well, maybe we can find you some other work. You up for it? Or do you want to hear what we're all about first?"

I was pretty sure I knew what the Legion was 'all about', having grown up in the heart of the Empire, but I nodded anyway. "Your duties are to the Empire and to your commanding officers - in that order," he told me. "Carry yourself with dignity and uphold the law; you are the face of the Empire to the common man. Respect all members of the Imperial Legion. Do you swear to adhere to what I have stated?"

I took the oath, refraining for once from making any sarcastic comments. I knew that discipline in the Legion was a lot stricter than in any of the Guilds. Seconds later, Darius announced that I was now a Recruit in the Imperial Legion.

"You'll have to stay in uniform, so take this," he said, handing me a chain cuirass with Imperial insignia. "You better be wearing a Legion cuirass of some kind in the presence of a higher ranking member."

My heart immediately sank, not because I minded being in uniform, but because I didn't really like chainmail armour. It was a lot lighter and more mobile than iron or steel, but not nearly as good in terms of protection. Still, it wasn't like I had much choice.

"Ready for orders, Recruit?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Well, first off, let's see if you truly are loyal to our cause here in Morrowind. There's a little issue of a land deed here in Gnisis I need you to take care of."

"Sir?" This wasn't exactly what I'd been expecting.

"Mansilamat Vabdas is a miner who died recently," Darius continued. "He was survived by his wife, who now owns a parcel of land we could use for another dock. Talk to the Widow Vabdas and get the deed to her land. Don't take 'no' for an answer ? get me that land deed!"

Such tact and sensitivity, I thought. No wonder the Empire's provinces welcomed the conquering Legions with open arms, singing hymns of praise and strewing rose petals beneath our feet.

After selling my own steel cuirass to the local smith ? I didn't have much use for it now, after all ? I set out on my rather unpleasant errand, finding the Widow Vabdas' hut a short distance from the village. As I had rather expected, she was anything but pleased to see me ? but what I really hadn't expected was the reason why.

The moment I mentioned the land deed, her ashy skin turned pale with rage. "My husband was murdered by a Legionnaire, and now you come asking for his land? You will never get his land. I will fight you, and all of Gnisis will fight you, until all you foreigners leave us in peace. Now get out of my house!"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Darius hadn't mentioned anything about a murder. "You think a Legionnaire killed your husband?"

She nodded angrily. "My husband went to the eggmine and never came home. He ? "

"Eggmine?"

"Yes, the eggmine! The one on the hill on the east side of town!" She looked at me as if I were an idiot. "He knew the mine was closed by you foreigners and guarded by the Legions, but we had no fresh kwama eggs. If you want to help me, go the mines and find out the truth!"

I didn't know what to say. I knew perfectly well that not all Legionnaires ? or perhaps even most ? always lived up to the code of conduct that Darius had recited to me, but I couldn't believe they would kill an innocent miner just for trying to feed his family. Or perhaps I just didn't want to believe it.

"Okay, I'll help you," I said softly, hoping to calm her down a little. "I? can't believe a Legionnaire would murder your husband. There must be some other explanation."

The widow just snorted and turned her back to me. I decided I'd better inform the General of her accusations against the Legion, as he didn't seem to know anything about it. Of course, I had to face a much more unpleasant possibility ? that he did know about it, and didn't care.

"Well, Recruit?" barked Darius, when I entered his office in the tradehouse. "Did you speak to the Widow Vabdas?"

"Yes, sir!"

"And do you have the land deed?"

"No, sir!"

"What part of 'Bring me the land deed' did you not understand, soldier?"

I took a deep breath. "She thinks the Legion murdered her husband, sir."

Darius seemed slightly rattled by this. "Murdered? She said that, did she?" He paused. "Well, you'd better go and investigate. Search the mine, and if you find evidence he was murdered, don't come back until you can bring me proof."

"Sir." I was relieved that he seemed to be taking the matter seriously, rather than dismissing it out of hand. That said, I was still confused ? not least by the very idea of an eggmine. How could you mine eggs?

The entrance to the mine was half-way up a cliffside, and only reachable by means of a narrow mountain pass. It was guarded by a single very bored-looking Dunmer Legionnaire, who stepped in front of the door as I drew closer. "Halt! The mine is closed, Recruit."

"I'm here to investigate a murder," I said. "General Darius' orders."

"A murder?" He looked skeptical, but finally relented. "Well, since you're in the Legion, I'll let you in. But be careful ? the queen is blighted."

Was that some kind of code? "Um? the queen is blighted?"

"The kwama queen, I mean." He smiled at the look of bewilderment on my face. "Never been in an eggmine before, have you?"

"I haven't," I admitted. "I hate to sound ignorant, but? what the heck is an eggmine?"

"The kwama live inside the mines," he explained. "The queen lays eggs, and the miners harvest the eggs and protect the colony from poachers and predators. You'd better be careful when you go in there ? the kwama workers won't harm you, but the foragers and warriors may attack you if they don't recognise your scent."

"How do I tell the difference?"

"You'll know when they start trying to kill you," he said with a grin. Oh, very helpful.

I took the key from the guard and cautiously entered the mine. It was well-lit by torches, but only a few miners and guards patrolled the upper level; I noticed that most of the guards were Orcs, like those in the village. As I made my way through the mine, I was attacked by several creatures resembling very large worms, which hurled themselves against my legs and squirted a nasty green substance at me. Luckily my armour protected me, and they were easy enough to kill.

At last I found a door leading to the lower level of the mine, which was closed due to the kwama queen's sickness. The moment I entered, a hefty-looking Orc guard strode towards me with a distinctly threatening gait.

"You're not supposed to be here," he growled. "I'm gonna count to ten. And if you're still here when I'm done, you're gonna be in big trouble."

"Hold on a minute," I said. "I was sent here by General Darius. He's asked me to investigate a mur- "

The guard didn't wait for me to finish; the moment he heard the word 'murder' he lunged at me, brandishing an axe. I dodged his clumsy swing and grabbed my sword, preparing for a fight ? but as it turned out, it wasn't him I needed to worry about.

Suddenly I heard a loud growl from further down the cavern, and heavy footsteps pounding towards us. The Orc lowered his axe and swung round, cursing loudly. "Damn kwama warriors! Now look what you've ? "

His voice was cut off as two huge beasts bounded out of the passageway behind him, barrelling into him and sending him sprawling to the ground. I shrieked as one of them leapt at me, butting its head into my stomach with such force that I was almost knocked backwards myself. As I lashed at its tough hide with my blade, the horrible thing blasted me with shock magicka, and I felt its huge talons rip through the mail on my chest. The pain was so hideous that I nearly dropped my sword.

For the second time in the past two days, I honestly thought for a few moments that I was going to die. If the second kwama warrior hadn't been too busy mauling the Orc to worry about me, I might not have made it. As it was, a well-placed blow from my sword managed to take off the first warrior's head before it could do any more damage, and I was able to lop off the second one's head from behind before it spotted me. With the mental focus that comes from pure terror, I cast the only healing spell I knew, and sagged with relief as I felt my wounds close up and the pain fade away.

I checked the Orc's mangled body for a pulse, but he was already dead. Looks like I've probably found our murderer, I thought, remembering how he'd reacted when mentioned the word to him. But how was I going to find any proof now?

Down the passageway I could see a huge, bloated insect-like creature surrounded by egg sacs, presumably the kwama queen. It was buzzing angrily, so I decided to leave it well alone. I searched the guardsman's body and the bedroll where he slept, but they were annoyingly devoid of helpful clues such as a note saying "Yes, I killed the miner. May the Divines have mercy on my soul." My only chance now was to find Vabdas' body and hope that it had some axe-marks on it.

I made my way through a second door into a dimly-lit passage, close to an underground stream. As I rounded a corner, I found myself standing by a deep pool and ? to my horror ? a ghost similar to the one I'd seen while robbing that enchanter's tomb, hovering by the waterside. I hastily backed away, conscious that my steel blade couldn't do anything to harm a ghost, but it didn't seem to want to attack me.

"Do not fear me, Imperial," it said in a quavering, echoey voice. "Listen, and I will tell you how I was murdered by Lugrub gro-Ogdum."

"Okay," I said nervously. "Whatever you say."

"I came to the mines to get fresh kwama eggs for my family," he whispered. "Lugrub gro-Ogdum was sleeping, and I snuck past him. When I came back he was awake, and he murdered me so that no one would know he failed his duty. He dropped the broken axe he used next to my body in the water behind me."

I edged my way over to the pool and peered down into the water. It was still and clear, and I could see a body lying at the bottom ? presumably Vabdas'. "Take the axe from the water behind me as proof of Lugrub's crimes," the ghost whispered in my ear. "Do not let them take my lands. Avenge my death and let my wife live in peace."

I didn't know if I could trust him, but I wasn't in any mood to argue with a ghost. I removed my armour ? noticing that the mail was ripped and my shirt soaked in blood ? and dived into the pool, wishing I knew a Water Breathing spell. The head of Lugrub's axe was lying on the bottom by Vabdas' body. It took me a few tries to reach it, but I finally managed to grab hold of it and make my way back to the surface just as I felt my lungs were about to burst.

The ghost had vanished. I left the mine as quickly as possible and made my way back to the tradehouse, hoping the axe-head and Vabdas' dead body would be evidence enough for Darius. "I saw a ghost" probably wasn't going to cut it.

"What the hell happened to you, Recruit?" Darius snapped when he saw my dripping-wet clothes and hair. "Fall into the river?"

"No, sir," I said. "I found out who murdered the widow's husband, sir ? it was an Orc named Lugrub gro-Odgum."

"And do you have any proof?"

"Well, I spoke with the ghost of Vabdas ? "

"I don't care if you saw the ghost of Tiber Septim!" he exclaimed. "I can't tell the Legion officers in Cyrodiil that I condemned a soldier to death because you talked to a ghost!"

I decided to get straight to the point. "He's already dead, sir. He attacked me as soon as I saw him."

I explained what had happened, and showed Darius the axe-head. "Hmph. Yes, this is Lugrub's axe," he said. "And I can see how it's been damaged from hitting bone here and here. You say he's already dead?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Then justice has been served," he said with a sigh. "Let's hope this doesn't do too much damage to the reputation of the Legion."

"Ah, sir," I said hesitantly. "About the land deed??"

He shook his head. "I won't try and get her land. Not after what happened."

Relieved, I went to my room to change and eat and then went out to Widow Vabdas' hut to tell her the news. When I returned, I found that the story had spread around the village and some of the other Legionnaires were making a fund for the widow. "Would you like to contribute?" one of them asked me.

I gladly handed over 50 septims, feeling for the first time that I truly belonged in the Legion after all. Maybe this would show the people of Gnisis that we weren't all bad. Unfortunately, it was too late for the Widow Vabdas; no amount of money would ever bring her husband back to her.

There's someone who'll never be saluting the Dragon banner, I thought with a sigh. Since coming to Morrowind, I was gradually starting to comprehend what I'd never really understood growing up in Cyrodiil ? why the people of the Empire's provinces resented the Legions so much. After all, we were just there to keep the peace and uphold the law. Weren't we?

Thanks... I'll be checking all of those out as soon as I get Bloodmoon to work on Vista. I'm tempted to just say "screw it" and go buy the GotY edition, but alas, I'm too stubborn.

My god Helena that post was brilliant. It was bloody hilarious and I was laughing most of the way through it. The part with Hentus wanting his pants back was just classic. Man this has to be among the best of your posts. Actually I say this is one of the best Fanfics I have read.

Please never stop this until well it's finshed .

Good, although not hilarious - I would say the tone is more adventurous this time. But it is well crafted, and for me, that is praise...I would personally like to be praised as a good crafter of stories.

A small, perhaps off-colour point though - I'm sure if I was a young man (and even now, when I'm not so young) wearing no pants, staring at a girl soaked to the skin in a river, who had her hands on her hips (SUCH a classic pose - brings out the chest nicely!) I would be too preoccupied hiding what was happening below my waist than to wail about my lost pants!

:rofl:

er...please don't throw any vases at me, Helena L!

Ada mentioned that the water was dirty; I don't think she was able to see what was happening 'down there'.

Aha, mystery solved. But I suspect - from the way he talks - that the guy who lost his pants isn't the type to be interested in girls, anyway.

Pfff... That was a long read.
It's fun though :goodjob:

I really like this; it's fun, easy to read and combines just the right amount of humour and seriousness. Not to mention sixual references. I'm still not quite sure whether it was the former or latter that kept reading the whole thing through one sitting though. It's probably both

But very good work, I must say. As someone who's never actually played Morrowind *gasp, shock, horror*, I found trying to keep up with all the names of people and places a chore for my short-term memory, what with the fast-paced, constantly trudging from place to place thing. I thought the main character was pretty well-rounded - cynical, somewhat sensitive to the plight of others, and NOT with a sense of morality firmly rooted to the poles of Evil/Good. Although she could loosen up a little and have a sense of humour, but now I'm just giving advice to a person who doesn't actually exist. D'oh.

Oh and it's also nice to see a ginger (uhh...strawberry blonde!) heroine in a story for once

Really? I'm quite surprised to hear you say that, actually. In general, I've tried to portray Ada with a fairly humorous (if slightly sarcastic) outlook on life. Do other people feel the same way?


Yes indeed. *pats own ginger hair*

I've found Ada's ironic outlook on her situation quite amusing, personally, she's going along with all of this nonsense with a better humor than I would. Though I do think here demeanor can be a tad frumpy sometimes.

What do you mean by 'frumpy' exactly? (I'm not upset, just interested.)

lol, I'm saying she's very much a girls girl when it comes down to it, very prim . Sure she gets her hands dirty when she needs to, but not without complaints which are "girly." It's cute though, and funny so it's okay.

EDIT: "frumpy" may not have been the right word, lol, sounded right but now that I've looked it up it doesn't fit what I was thinking, sorry

I just finished reading each of these from start to finish. X_X My brain might explode..

Very well written, really nice. I'm liking the general personality of Ada. Very good job on that. The story is simple, yet you seem to make it exciting, which is also very good.

If you haven't noticed by now, this Fan Fic.. Is very good. =]

I'm sure there are better words to describe it, but after reading that much about Ada, my mind is hardly in the right mood to get into details.

Ah, well, that's her Imperial upbringing showing through. She thinks she's shaken off her very middle-class background, but at heart she's still a well-brought-up Nibenese miss.


Thanks, I'm glad you like the fic. It's always nice when people take the time to comment.

I don't see how you can say Ada comes across as humourles, I find her sarcastic views of the situation hilarious.

Haha, I don't think anyone's trying to say she's "humourless", just often taking the glass half-empty view of things. My comment was more in jest than anything, and criticising the character of Ada, rather than criticing what the author has written. The actual piece is full of humour and that's one of the reasons why I like it so much (:

Edit: Haha, I like how the other guy called the character "frumpy" xD. Yeah, maybe she should wear more flattering clothes >_>

But she's already changing clothes a lot, except when she's giving them away to nacked nords

But tell me, where does she find those bathtubs? I never saw any.

Hmm... probably in the same place as the toilets which are also mysteriously absent from the game.