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The Elder Scrolls V : Skyrim

Chapter 4 : Bleak Falls Barrow

Farengar, the court wizard of Whiterun, apparently kept his quarters in a large room off to the side of the open grate Hall. As Kassim was led into the room by Jarl Balgruuf, he couldn't help but wonder just what he was getting himself into. From having just delivered a simple message requesting help, he was now being roped into assisting a wizard. And he couldn't help but feel that the Jarls threats although minor, were in fact real.

The wizards room was dominated mostly by a very large and very detailed map of Skyrim, not unlike the one he himself carried. This map was covered in the Magic ink markers that meant you had visited one of those places. There were so many markers sprawled across the map, that Kassim had little difficulty believing that so much was available to explore in this open land.

Between the detailed map markers was the wizards handwriting, written in large loopy letters that made absolutely no sense to him. Notes and diagrams and symbols were written in ink all over the maps surface, and lines connected the various markers with more markers, creating an even further confusing mass of intricate scrawl.

"Farengar, I think I have found someone who can help you with your Dragon project" Balgruuf said as he stopped in front of the large and wide wooden desk, his hand still firmly on Kassims shoulder. Kassim stopped as well and said nothing, although he remained very calm about the whole situation. He figured he could at least here them out, and then refuse.

The desks surface was covered in open books and littered with notes, quills and various plant specimens. He could also see various empty wine bottles and half full cups, and a lot of what looked like stale crumbs from various meals. Kassim had to wonder what kind of wizard this was if you lived like a slob.

The wizard himself was bent over another large table against the back wall of the room. The table was covered in glowing runes and mounted with a bright glowing orb perched on a skull with wide horns. Farengar was a skinny man, and his dark blue robes seem to simply hang off his almost stick thin figure. when the Yarl addressed him, Farengar looked up and turned around, and pulled his hood from his face. Kassim was surprised to see a very young looking man, albeit with a very long beard, looking at him as if he was intruding on something important.

"Farengar, why don't you go over the details of your project with our new friend here?" Balgruuf said as he gave a very obvious and very heavy push on Kassims shoulders to make the argonian step forward against the desk.

"And just who are you?" Farengar asked, as he placed his hands on his hips and gave Kassim a very annoyed look. his voice was young and cultured as he stepped away from the table he had just been bent over. a pair of steel gauntlets and several large glowing crystals was sitting on the surface of the table, but they stopped glowing when the wizard stepped away.

"my name is Kassim Sunder-Wolfbane" Kassim said as he looked the wizard over. the moment he finished speaking, he became suddenly aware of just how quiet the room has suddenly got. Farengar immediately looked surprised as he scrambled towards the desk, almost tripping over an empty wine bottle on the floor.

"did... Did you say Sunder-Wolfbane?" He asked, his face immediately lighting up with a newfound curiosity that was almost scary. "are ... are you serious?" He asked as he got up close to the argonian and looked up with at Kassim with a slight desperation.

"yes I am" Kassim said in a slow and careful voice, as he had not seen anyone really act that way to his name in the longest of times.

"Roka Sunder, and Kasalerath Wolfbane?" Farengar asked as he pushed himself away from the desk and moved up to Kassi'm close enough that he could almost study him. He almost tripped over and stumbled against a large and very full bookcase filled with tomes, books, papers and scrolls. As he scrambled to right himself, the bookcase groaned with its over cluttering and threatened to spill its contents on him. You Are Related to Them?" he asked again, as he gazed at Kassi'm as if he was a juicy specimen.

"They, were my ancestors, Yes" Kassim Said." Do you know of them?" He asked, feeling slightly uneasy.

"Farengar, why are you looking like he is a rare specimen from another land?" Balgruuf asked as he seemed somewhat impatient by the wizards questions, but also confused by the wizards puzzling behaviour. Farengar immediately righted himself and appeared to try to make himself look presentable before his guest.

"Roka Sunder and Kasalerath Wolfbane, the heroes who helped Martin Septim seal the realm of Oblivion and stopped Mehrunes Dagon from fully invading our world. Their entire family are honourary members of the Blades, and they reside in Wolfbane Hall. You are the Ancestor to legends'' Farengar said as he took a deep breath, having just spilled his words out in a single breath.

"by Ysmir" Balgruuf said as he looked at Kassim, almost as if he was seeing him in a different light. "you are related to those heroes, and you are here in Skyrim?" He said before he quickly grasped Seems hand and shook it is so hard he almost tore Kassim's arm off.

"you must forgive me for the way I behaved" Balgruff said as he stopped pumping Kassim's arm so roughly. "These are very troubling times, and I am afraid I was not in the best of moods when you arrived." Kassim quickly wrenched his hand away and he had to hold onto it as he felt it had almost been crushed by the Jarls grip.

"well I'm glad you apologised, finally" Kassim said as he rubbed his fingers to make sure everything was working in order.

"why is someone with your family's legacy here in Skyrim?" Farengar asked as he looked over Kassim like he was trying to study him. "you were... You are living legends in your family. I cannot believe that one of them is here, in my room." the wizard looked like he had just been given a very special birthday gift.

"I have no family legacy left" Kassim said, and he said it in such a flat and cold manner that both farengar and Balgruuf stopped looking at him like he was something special, and more like he was someone mad. "and I have no family left. we lost everything in the war with the Thallmar" Kassim continued."I tried joining the Mages Guild back home, but they refused to have anything to do with my family. So if you're wondering why I'm here, I came to join the College of Winterhold and start my life over."

"But you're family are heroes" Balgruuf said in complete surprise as the way Kassi'm was talking as almost as if he didn't care he had a rich legacy.

"While I'm glad you think I'm so special" Kassim said he looked at Balgruufe. "But I'm really here looking to start my life over. now since I'm here by your 'invitation' " he said, glaring at Balgruuf on the last word, "why don't you tell me what you want me to do so I can decide wether to leave or not."

"well, I suppose that I can give you this task, although I am saddened by your bluntness on your family " the wizard said as he stepped back around the desk and began searching through the debris that was scattered on top. Balgruuf did not look impressed either, as he seemed somewhat insulted by Kassi'ms behaviour.

"I may not look it, but I am considered something of an expert on Dragons" Farengar said as he looked up, pulling several pieces of paper from under several large bottles. "My research into them began long before they started to return. Call it a childhood interest. I have been searching for answers into their past, their history, their very existence. And through all my research, there is something that I need to continue and find the answers."

"Let me guess, I'm supposed to go fetch this thing for you? Is that the job I'm so suited for" Kassim asked as he looked over at Balgruuf. "why not go yourself, or send a guard?"

"allow farengar to continue" Balgruuf said as he crossed his arms. Kassim did notice that whatever admiration and Joy that the Jarl had a moment ago, had now disappeared.

"there is a stone tablet that I need someone to fetch. It's a ... delicate task, not exactly suited for a mere gaurd" Farengar said as he laid the papers over the desk and pointed to one of them. Kassim looked down at it, and saw there was a diagram of what appeared to be a large flat and pointed stone tablet. the other papers consisted of more drawings of the tablet from different angles.

"this is called a dragonstone.it is said to be a tablet containing lost information about the Dragons, and why they disappeared" Farengar continued as he drew his finger over the papers. "Like a key to the puzzle that I'm searching to solve."

"okay so I go somewhere and pick up a stone" Kassim said as he looked up at the younger wizard. It sounded simple enough. "and where am I supposed to get it from?"

"It is in a ruin overlooking Riverwood. It is called Bleak Falls Barrow" Farengar said as he went over to the map and pointed to a marker on it. Kassim noticed that it was indeed near Riverwood, and he suddenly remembered the old ruin resting on the mountains the previous day. "it used to be a Nord burial temple, although they stopped using it quite a few years ago. Although I would say more than quite a few" he added.

"for someone with your lineage, it should be a simple enough errand" Belgrove said as he gave Kassi'm a rather curious look. "Although someone with such a lineage to speak so bluntly and unfavourably about it, I have to wonder if you are even part of it?"

"My Jarl.. how can you...well, now that you mention it" Farengar said as he looked like he had a moment of clarity. "There is a book, called the Oblivion Crisis. It's not common, but you can find it easily. The names of the heroes are listed in teh book. Anyone could simply walk in and claim to be part of the lineage."

"Unless of course, the ...'powers of the family' that is mentioned in the book, are actually real as well" Balgruff said as he kept his arms crossed over his chest. "it should be easy enough to prove it" he pointed out.

Kassim looked over at Balgruuf for a moment, and narrowed his eyes slowly. This would be easy enough to prove, and this was part of his power that he would not suffer for it later.

Something slammed on the bookshelf nearby, and a large storage box flew off the shelf, bringing several papers and books with it. the box landed with its lid open on the floor, spilling its contents on the floor. A display case behind the large map suddenly had its lid suddenly blown off, the glass case cracking as the lid was violently wrenched open seemingly by nothing.

the door they had just entered suddenly slammed shut and the locks slid into place so violently that the door actually cracked. the lock was suddenly wrenched open and the door flew open so hard the doors banged against the walls with loud cracks. the drawers on the desk suddenly wrenched open as their locks were forced open one by one.

"okay okay" Farengar said very quickly as he realised what was going on. he looked up at Kassim with an imploring look. "that's proof that is proof enough" he said. Kassim relaxed a little as he saw the surprised and shocked book on the Jarls face from everything that had just happened within a few moments.

"all right, whatever issues you have with your family I will leave it at that" Balgruuf said as the wizards quarters fell silent. "I am still disappointed by the way you speak of them thought" he thought to point out.

"I don't care what you think" Kassim said as he looked at Balgruuf. "I've made up my mind. I will find this stone few, and then you will leave me alone. I didn't come here to serve you, so once my this job is done, I will take my leave."

"if you get me the stone, I will give you something in return. I will give you a written commendation for you to take to the College of Winterhold" Farengar said. "A court wizard's commendation is worth a great deal to them" he said. Kassim looked at Farengar for a moment before he gave him a nod. it sounded fair enough. truthfully, if the wizard hadn't recommended that, he would have changed his mind and simply walked out solely from the way Balgruuf was looking at him.

Without a further word to either of them, Kassim left the court wizard's room through the now battered doors. he did feel like a headache was starting to come on, but he refrained from touching his head in front of anybody.

"What in the world am I getting myself into now?" He thought as he exited Dragonsreach and the doors were closed behind him. Only outside did he allow himself to hold the side of his head. "this is a lot different than what I thought I would be doing" he admitted to himself as he started to walk down the path towards the main street of Whiterun.

"I guess it would be easier to get into the College with a court mages commendation" he thought to himself as he continued down the path, past the other townsfolk who were still walking around doing their daily chores and shopping. "although why do I have to do this anyway? I could have just walked out and not done it" he thought to himself.

"I could just leave Right now" he thought to himself as he found himself standing outside the front gates to Whiterun. "Go to Winterhold right now. I could get in that carriage at the stables and just go there without interruption." the thought was very tempting, and he actually found himself starting to walk down the long stone path from Whiterun towards the stables.

"but then again" he said to himself as he stopped walking. "somehow I don't think the Jarl will let me get away with it quite so easily" he said as he stopped and turned his gaze towards where he knew Riverwood was located.

with a sigh and slight realisation of defeat in the situation he was in, Kassim started to walk back down the path that he knew led to Riverwood. at least the only good thing that he could see coming out of this, was that he would get into Winterhold a lot easier.

He walked at a brisk pace, keeping his momentum going as he thought about what to do. going into an unknown ruin with no knowledge about it or what would be inside it did make him worry a little.

but it wasn't like he couldn't handle himself. there were plenty of ruins littered around Cyrodiil, and where he used to live back home. it wouldn't be the first ruin he had explored. Although he had to admit, it would be the first ruin he would explore alone.

without taking the time to indulge in the scenery around him, he actually made it back to Riverwood quicker than he had done going the other way. he found the path that led into the mountain range easily enough, although he could have only seen it had he been going into the town instead of coming out of it. the pathway just beyond the stone bridge that ran over the river, and he turned and forced himself to go into that direction.

"eep" he let out as he felt the first flakes of snow hit his head, and he looked up to see that more of them were following. he held his hand up against his eyes as he saw the sky above him, the clouds had darkened and turned grey without him even noticing.

Kassim resumed walking, and walked past what looked like a rotting trapdoor set into the ground along the path .Kassim had a sudden urge to simply open it up to look into it, but he thought against it. Tempting as it was, Kassi'm continued walking, letting the mysterious trapdoor stay in the ground behind him.

going uphill was harder than walking across an open plain. the path was not an obvious one, and it was littered with broken branches, rocks and dirt that were starting to become slippery with the snow. more than once he had to clamber over rocks that were barring his way, and more than once he had to push back a very prickly bush that seemed to want to cling to his clothing.

further up high he went, as he kept walking he kept glancing upwards to see if he could actually see the ruin. a couple of times he did glance back along the path, and saw that Riverwood was actually viewable. but the small town was starting to get smaller and smaller the further he climbed up.

panting, becoming tired, and feeling hot despite the fact he was now wiping snow of himself every few minutes, he found himself reaching the towering ruin. Turning around a large series of rocks, the path seem to simply open up towards the side of the ruin. Farengar had been right, if it had been a temple many years ago, it still looked like one. the outside was the formation of stone pillars and overhead beams, and a giant flooring of black stonework.

a set of snow covered steps lead up to the side of the floor, and as Kassim walked up he couldn't help but think that this was actually the exterior of the Barrows. He brought his hand up and traced a line in the air, drawing imaginary connections to the pillars and the beams. The area he was facing could have been a grand hall from the design of it.

he had barely stepped onto the stone floor before he heard a cry from around one of the pillars. quickly turning, Kassim saw a dark skinned male step out into view, dressed in accumulated leathers that seemed to hang from his body like he had scavenged them from the forest. and there was a bow in his hands that was already primed with a steel tipped arrow.

"you should not have come here" the raggedy man shouted as he pulled the string on the bow and the arrow whizzed through the air at Kassim. Kassim took a step back, and the arrow whizzed into the ground next to him, just missing his right knee. He looked up to see the bandit was starting to load up another arrow onto the bow. Without a second thought, Kassim thrust his hand forward.

blue lightning exploded from his fingers, and streaked through the air with a sharp crackling sound. the bandit looked up as he pulled the string back in his bow, and barely had time to cry out he was struck in the chest with the blast. he dropped the bow on the ground as he was slammed backwards through the air.

His voice was a garbled scream as he was slammed into the stone column behind him. his body shook violently, every nerve shaking and burning as his limbs flailed and shook as the lightning caused through him over and over again.

"this is not going to be as easy as they made it out to be" Kassim thought to himself as he put his hand down and the lightning died away. the bandit slumped to the ground and white blue sparks of lightning twitched over his body for several moments before the body stopped moving.

Kassim walked up to the bandit, although cautiously and he looked around a few times. There didn't seem to be any more of them outside, so this one must have been the Scout of the party inside, assuming there were more inside. Then again, bandits rarely travelled alone.

"I guess you won't need this anymore " Kassim said as he took the bow from where it had fallen and collected the quiver of arrows from the dead bandits body. he swung the quiver around his shoulders where it settled against his backpack, and strung the bow over his arm. he felt a little over encumbered, but he figured it was just because he was carrying another weapon.

he found the entrance to the ruin rather easily. it was a large ornamental door that seemed to be cut straight into the wall it was set in. Two large doors stood side-by-side matching in design, they looked like they required more then his strength alone to open. But there was a gap between the doors as one of them looked like it had been forced open.

The gap was was big enough for Kassim to carefully slip through, although he had a bit of trouble since with the backpack on the quiver on him he was now wider than the gap itself.

but the inside of the ruin was surprising. it looked more like it had been carved out and into the mountain itself, rather than the inside of an actual Temple. he took a moment to gaze around the moss covered walls and smell the dark and dank and damp that came with caves, when he heard a noise.

He realised he was not alone, and Kassim crouched to the floor and ducked behind a nearby stone. He waited a moment to make sure that he wasn't seen, and that no alarm or yell was given which meant he had been seen. He carefully peered from around the side of the stone. A large glow came from the other end of the cavern, and the glow itself was actually a campfire.

Kassim knew that the man outside was a bandit, and the proof that he was not alone was apparent because there were two more of them sitting around the campfire, obviously eating something. nothing else had been set up other than the campfire, and Kassim figure that they weren't going to be staying long.

The argonian had had his share of encounters with bandits, and none of them had been pleasant. Bandits he knew, were ruthless cold-blooded violent killers on the best of days. Their idea, if they had any to begin with, was kill first and collect valuables, then worry about who they just killed.

Kassim remained crouched as he pulled the bow from around his shoulders and into his hand. He carefully drew one of the steel tipped arrows from the quiver and settled it into place on the bow before he lifted the bow and pulled the string back. The bow itself was made out of plain wood with a basic string attached. Not exactly a lethal weapon, but it was still a weapon

with a louder than expected 'twang', the arrow took flight and flew through the air. it found its target in the back of one of the bandits head and buried several inches of its shaft through his skull. The male bandit let out a gasp as the force force of the arrow slammed into his head and he pitched forward. He was dead before he fell face first into the fire.

"by the gods... Who's there?" The other bandit, a female cried out as she saw her partner was dead before she even stood up. Dropping whatever she was eating, she drew a dagger from her belt and quickly turned away from her now on fire dead partner. Kassim already had a second arrow ready in his hand and he had already lined up the shot before the bandit even took a step forward.

the arrow flew forward with a twang of his bowstring and flew through the air. It found its target and slammed slammed into the females chest with a heavy thump.She staggered back a few steps, a look of complete and utter disbelief on face as blood blossomed through the open wound. She let out a final gasping noise before she fell onto her knees and then lurched forward dead on the ground.

"that takes care of them" Kassim thought as he waited just a moment or two to see if any more of them were coming. but if there were any other bandits they were probably too far into the barrows to be heard. Sure that he was alone for the moment, he stood up with his bow in his hand. Keeping his eyes forward, Kassim carefully made his way forward to where the dead bandits lay.

ignoring the one on fire, he checked the other did bandit to see if there was anything of use she was carrying. aside from a few gold coins and the dagger in her hand, there wasn't anything worth taking. the only way out of the cave system from that point was the hallway that was leading into the ground. Pulling another arrow from his quiver, Kassim kept the bow loaded as he slowly walked forward.

someone had already lit the torches on the walls on their way through and Kassim didn't need to cast magelight to see his way. he felt a little eerie to be walking through an already lit passageway, but at least he didn't have to worry about anyone sneaking up on him. Something slimy suddenly grabbed at his face, and he almost jumped out of his shoes.

"By the gods... Not spiders. Anything but those disgusting little things" Kassim said as he pulled the horrible webbing from his face. It was thick and sticky and wet and he had to shake his hand several times to throw it off. he felt a shiver run down the back of his neck and down his back as he thought he heard the scurrying of a lot of feet.

"Do'nt think about it" he said to himself as he regained his composure. "you start thinking about spiders and then you think you see one bigger then a dinner plate....oh by the nine I hope they don't get that big" he thought to himself before he shook his head from the thoughts. It was probably just his imagination after all. Although...

He continued forward keeping his bow at the ready as he made his way through the lit hallway. He found himself in a large open room and he carefully stepped into it. Farengar had said that the Barrows had once been a temple for the dead, and he found what he thought was a preparation room. A long large table was in the middle of the room, covered in Linen wraps and embalming tools. Steel tongs, knives, hammers, a saw and other sharp impliments were spread across the table surface, covered in dust and webbing.

bookshelves lined the room, visible from the lit torches. the bookshelves were covered in old books, scraps of old parchment and dried out herb filled bowls. Kassim walked up to a shelf and placed his hand on one of the books, and it simply fell apart. he felt the pain of regret and sadness as he realised that the information in the book was truly now lost forever as the pages simply crumbled.

Kassim put the arrow back in its quiver and reslung his bow over his shoulder as he grabbed one of the torches from the wall and proceeded to the other end of the room. there were two doorways, but only one of them was open. the other had caved in, and with all the spiderwebs that covered it, it had obviously caved in a long time ago. Kassim looked down and saw footprints in the dust on the floor, and with more than one set heading down the doorway, more than one bandit had gone down that way.

Kassim went forward, keeping the torch in his hand held high as he walked on. Long thick roots had grown over the walls and through the flooring, suggesting that the wilderness outside was trying to retake the inside. The floor gave way to a set of stairs, and more than once he almost tripped over as the steps crumbled under his feet. the steps lead to a large doorway, and Kassim had to stop as he heard a voice up ahead.

Carefully, Kassi'm pressed up against the doorway and peered as carefully into the room ahead as he could. He saw a large room ahead and there was a single bandit standing in the middle of the room who appeared to be looking around for something. the room was different to the previous one, as this one had three pillars on the left side of the room in three small archways. above the doorway out of the room were two large stone heads against the corners and ceiling. there was a gap between them, and Kassim's eyes travelled to the floor on the right side of the room where he saw another stone head peering back at him.

"I'm fed up with waiting while that stupid cat goes ahead and gets all the gold. If that thief can get past some stupid trap like this that I can't see why I can't" the bandits said as he looked angry and shook his head out of frustration. "Alright fleabag, I'm coming after you. I'm not waiting any longer for my money" he called out through the other doorway. Kassim saw that the doorway was barred shut by a large metal grate.

the bandit walked into the middle of the room, and placed his hand on a large wooden lever that had been set up in the middle of a large stone circle on the floor. With a big grin on his face, the bandit pulled the lever back. There was a loud grinding noise as hidden gears moved under the flooring.

Kassim watched as the eyes of the statues suddenly opened up and began to eject a barrage of projectiles. very small but very sharp metal spikes shot through the air, all pointed at the stone circle on the ground. The bandit let out a cry of pain and anger as the spikes pierced through his flesh. His cries got more high pitched and panicked as he tried to swat the spikes and prevent them from hitting him. But he was spiked over and over as blood began to run down onto the floor like red ribbons.

"well, that wasn't very smart was it?" Kassim said as the bandit fell to the ground, bleeding from more than 100 holes in his body. He tried to crawl his way off the circle, but he stopped moving after stretching out his arm. Kassim waited a few moments, as the eyes in the statutes closed over and the room fell silent once again. He waited a few moments more before he felt it was safe to enter the room, and then carefully walked through the door.

He took a look around the room to see if he could find any indication as to where the bandit had failed. The alcoves with the three large stone pillars intrigued him and he made his way over. They were triple sided and had images engraved on them. He walked up to one and knealt down to study it.

He reached out and placed his hand on one to rub over the intricate engraving with his fingers and brush the cobwebs away. He stepped back as the pillar suddenly spun with a grinding noise and clicked into place, revealing a second image.

"Okay, so the pillars spin" he said to himself as he looked around to see if there was another clue. With the three pillars each having three separate images on them, it was obviously part of the puzzle. his eyes travelled to the broken statue head on the floor. in the mouth of the statue was an image of a snake. Kassim looked up to where the statues head had fallen from this all the head on the left had a snake, and the one on the right had finished.

"well, that's not that hard now is that?" He said as he looked down at the dead bandit on the floor."I guess too hard for you" he added as he walked up to the pillars and pressed them with his hand. The pillars each spun around until they portrayed the same three images as the stone heads, in the same order.

he walked up to the lever in the middle of the room, stepping over the dead body in the process and closed his hand around the handle. He took a breath and prepared to run just in case he got it wrong, he gave the lever a pull. There was a grinding noise somewhere beyond the wall and the grating on the doorway suddenly lifted upwards. Kassim realised he had been holding his breath, and he let it out in a sigh of relief as he survived the trap. With a satisfied smile on his face, he continued onwards through the open doorway.

The new hallway went downward, and curved at an angle as he walked down the steps. the dust on the floor was disturbed so somebody had obviously recently went through. Probably this thief that the bandit had mentioned. Rocks and roots covered the steps as he carefully made his way down, the torch in his hand lighting up to reveal more that grown through the walls. His feet found even footing and he found himself stepping into another wide looking room.

he took a look around and noticed the middle of the floor had a large circular gap, with a set of steps leading downwards. The walls of the room were lined with more bookcases and shelving, but it was all nothing more than broken pottery and disintegrating books. he didn't really feel like searching through those rubbles, as he saw they will all covered in cobwebs. And he swore he saw beady eyes reflected in the torchlight.

Kassi'm took a look at the steps in the middle of the room, and they looked rotten. made of wood and spiralling downwards, the footsteps in the dust led down as well. Taking a breath, Kassim carefully stepped onto the rotten wood. he placed a hand on the wall beside him and gently eased his way down.

"No sign of that stone thing yet. Guess it must be further down in the Barrows" Kassi'm thought to himself as he carefully made his way downwards. The wood started to creak underneath his feet with each step, but although it did creak and snap a few times, the boards did not give way.

it was the sound of squeaking that gave Kassim a shiver down his spine and he looked downwards almost instinctively. he could see the bottom of the stairs leading to another doorway, and in the doorway was the body of a female bandit. from the angle of her neck, it look like she had fallen to her death.

but there was a very large pool of blood spreading out of her side, and it looked like her legs had been attacked by something. Long gashes and slash marks were covering her legs, and parts of her flesh seemed to have been literally ripped apart. And, as Kassim looked more closely, it looked like it was caused by a pack of...

"skeevers" Kassim said in disgust as he took a step backwards out of instinct. several of the large shaggy coated rat like rodents were chomping on the side of the bandits body. the sound of their squeaking and the rendering of flash was sending chills down Kassims spine. he took another step back and the board underneath his foot cracked loudly. one of the rodents looked up at him, and then reared on its hind legs as it suddenly leapt into the air.

Kassim brought his hands together and didn't hesitate as the air around his fingers shimmered and wavered, before the air ignited into an orange haze. then the haze erupted and surged forward. The skeever was engulfed in the stream of liquid fire and let out a squeal as it was ignited. and the fire continued downwards towards the body on the floor.

The skeevers at the bottom of the stairs were ignited as well as the fire spread along the stone floor like a pool of water had cascaded downwards. Shrieking squeals lasted only momentarily as the furry rodents were roasted to cinders within a moment. Kassim took his hands apart and the stream of fire cut off at once. the flames died down and all that was left was a now charred bandit body and several small roasted rodents.

"disgusting" Kassim said as the air was noticeably hotter around as he carefully stepped past the still glowing remains. the disgusting smell of burnt fur and barbecued meat invaded his nostrils and he had to cover his nose as he stepped past. the combined smells were enough to almost make him vomit.

the hallway was short and the cobwebs were starting to get worse. someone had obviously made it this far as there were gaps in the thick blockades of spiderwebs, and the dust on the floor had been disturbed. the gaps have been sealed over a little, as if the spiders were desperate to retake their work.

Kassim brought his torch up and brushed spiderwebs aside, watching as the very fragile strings burned away and fizzled into nothing. he felt a shiver run down his spine before he heard another scattering of little feet, and he had to reassure himself that he was thinking of it and he didn't actually hear it.

His ears picked up a noise ahead and he paused for a moment to listen. it took a few moments for his ears to register what the noise was, and he realised that it was someone calling for help. It was coming from the end of the hall, and it was the only direction Kassim could go. somebody was still alive, and Kassim started to move quicker past spiderwebs.

"someone... Someone help" called the voice as Kassim hurried forward. knowing he couldn't use his bow and the torch same time, he slung his bow back over his shoulder and pulled out one of his daggers. he was not going to simply rush forward just because somebody was calling for help without being prepared.

The hallyway opened up into an elongated room with several arched doorways in it, but they were barricaded with stonework and thick webbing, as if something had blocked them up on purpose. one of the arches looked like it had been forced open, and Kassim brushed the cobwebs aside as he walked through the open arch.

the room was wide open, and the walls were covered in thick webbing that looked like it had just simply melted onto the rubble. rocks and broken columns, chairs and tables, bookcases and shelves had perhaps once been set up in the room. But something had rearranged the room, pushing everything against the walls and covering it all with cobwebs.

Kassim noticed that the floor was free of debris, but the dust had been disturbed so badly he couldn't tell how many people had actually gone through the doorway. another large circular grate lay the middle of the floor. Kassim stepped forward a few steps carefully, and was able to see a deep pit underneath the metal framework.

he looked up and saw the other way out of the room was through a doorway on the far side opposite him. but it was sealed shut with webbing and something that was unidentifiable was wrapped inside.

"look out" came the voice again. Kassim looked back at the trapped bundle as he saw that it was moving. he realised it was a person and it was covered from head to toe in thick webbing like it was binding it. the figure was unable to do more than struggle, and Kassim could not tell exactly what it was.

"what happened to you?" Kassim arcs as he took a cautious step forward. something moved up ahead, and Kassim slowly brought his gaze upwards as he looked up to the ceiling. the ceiling was covered in large web covered sacks, hanging from thick strands like ropes. Like mummified bundles on string, he couldn't tell what they were as they were wrapped too tightly for him to see into.

"look out. it's still here, it's still in the room" the figure in the doorway called out. Kassim looked up as he waved the torch around, trying to see what the figure was talking about. something scurried overhead, and from the sound of its footsteps, it was big.

"what's still here?" Kassim asked as he stepped forward again. something fell from the ceiling and crashed onto the floor in front of him. Kassim jumped backwards as the body of a bandit landed on the floor in front of him. for a moment, he thought that the bandit may have been still alive. When he took a step forward, he wished he hadn't looked.

"It sucks you from the inside, it drinks you" the figure said as Kassim could see that the bandit's skin was gaunt and grey, and it stretched over the skin like tightly wrapped paper. Kassim could see every bone through the almost translucent skin, and on the bandit stomach were four giant holes that looked as if something had sunk its teeth into it.

"it's here" the figure screamed as Kassim slowly brought his gaze up once again.

"oh... Crap" Kassim said as something very big, and very ugly, began to crawl down the wall from the ceiling. shivers ran down Kassim spine as he counted eight thick long legs that were covered in shaggy wirey hair. Legs pushed the sacks aside as it slowly descended downwards.

Kassim stood and dropped the torch as he grabbed his other dagger from his waistband. two large and onyx black eyes focused on him as a huge spider slowly reached the floor. it seemed to blink at him, and Kassim could see those two huge eyes were actually made up of hundreds of smaller ones.

something ripped from underneath those two huge eyes and Kassim saw it opened its mouth, four very large ivory coloured fangs protruded and dripped slime that splashed onto the floor. obviously, the spider was hungry and it was looking at Kassim like it was its next meal.

"Shit" Kassi'm said as the spider suddenly lurched forward, shockingly fast for its size. Kassim ran to the side to avoid it. the spider ran across the floor, barely missing the argonian and for a moment Kassim thought it was going to crash into the rocks, but the spider is simply moved on the wall and avoided a collision as it turned on the spot.

Kassim looked up as the spider opened its mouth, its fangs dripping with slime as a stream of thick white webbing erupted outwards. Kassim ducked and the thick ropey webbing struck the wall behind him. the spider closed its mouth and the stream splattered over the wall, the webbing seeming to melt on the already covered debris.

"I'm not going to beat you with just my daggers" Kassim said as he brought his hands up after sheathing both his weapons into his belt. his hands crackled as the area around his fingers turned blue, before he thrust his hands forward he let forth a stream of lightning at the spider.

the spider jumped, and leapt through the air as the lightning struck the wall where it had just been. Kassim tried to follow the spider and send the lightning towards it, but the huge beast was simply too fast. it landed with a heavy thud on the wall opposite and the room shook slightly, the huge web covered sacks above swaying and threatening to break.

Kassim broke the lightning, as the spider spat something dark green at the argonian. Kassim rolled forward to dodge, and the thick slime flew overhead and struck a chair encased in webbing. the green slime began to bubble and sizzle on impact and the chair to melt on the spot.

Kassim thrust his hands out again and the area around his fingers erupted in an orange haze as he lit the air on fire with a stream of liquid red. The spider shrank back a little into the corner of the room, the liquid fire in the year of reflecting ins giant eyes, Kassim wasn't aiming for the spider.

the fire roared into the air, boilling through like oil on water as the fire began to burn at the webbing holding the sacks in the air. several of the web strings burnt through and a few sacks fell to the ground. the sacks broke open on contact, revealing the dead bodies of several skeever, another bandit, a jar filled with dust, and several books.

Kassim stopped as the fire sent several rocks tumbled from their web sacks onto the spider. the spider didn't move as it was suddenly struck from above, leading out of a long piercing scream as the rocks struck it on the legs and across its huge body.

"it can't see from above" Kassim realised as he saw that the spider wasn't dodging the falling rocks. it gave him an idea, but he realised he only had one shot it he had to put himself in harms way. but if he was going to finish this quest, he had to deal with the giant spider, and so he decided to go for it.He was low on magicka, and he wasn't going to get a second chance if he screwed up.

Kassim ran into the middle of the room and stopped just on the edge of the iron grating.his hands glowed, one with fire and one with lightning. Staring at the giant beast as it shook itself from the pain of the rocks, Kassim thrust his hand forward as the blue lightning sailed into the spider's face, and he thrust his other hand upwards, and the liquid fire flooded the ceiling above him.

the spider let out shrill piercing screech as the lightning struck it in the face, but the lightning was weak and did little more than sting. The spider shook its shaggy body and the crackling magic was tossed from its body and it focused its attention to Kassim. the fire left Kassim's hand and he took a step backwards as the spider began to scurry forward, its fangs dripping and ready to devour him.

Kassim had seen that there was more than just small rocks covering the ceiling, and the spider was unable to see anything happening above. The liquid fire cascaded over the ceiling and over several large boulders, burning through the webbing that held the huge rocks above. the threads burned through easily and with nothing to hold them up, the boulders fell.

The beast was so close to him that Kassi'm saw the spiders open mouth as it looked ready to devour him, and for just a brief moment he wondered if he had been too overconfident in his own abilities. He could see the huge fangs dripping with green slime and he could see the tunnel in the back of its throat that led into its stomach.

But at the next moment, the spider was crushed as the giant boulders above slammed onto the huge body. Kassim regained his senses as he rushed backwards, another boulder striking the huge spider. The grating groaned as the metal gave way and it collapsed with a shrill grinding sound, and the spider fell with a shrill painful cry into the pit below. more boulders crashed heavily on top, filling the pit one by one as rocks plummeted downwards.

the room was shaking from the repeated impacts, rocks and jars falling from the ceiling as the dying flames burned out what it could. Kassi'm huddled against the wall as best he could to avoid the falling objects as rocks shattered and bowls crashed around his feet.

Slowly the room began to grow still as the pit was filled. Kassi'm brought his hands down from his eyes and found himself panting, drained of energy and suddenly glad the whole thing was now over.

"oh thank the gods, you killed it" the figure in the doorway said. Kassim nodded in agreement as he walked up to the now filled pit in the middle of the room and he looked down on it. he heard nothing come from underneath all the rubble, and he could safely assume the giant beast was now dead.

"and just who are you?" Kassim asked as he pulled one of his daggers from his Bell and walked up to the figure bound in webbing.

"look, just cut me down and I will explain everything" the figure said as he struggled a little more, and Kassim looked over as he seemed to toy with the idea of cutting down.

"why should I cut you down? You're with the bandits. and bandits like to kill people" Kassim said as the patted the side of his cheek with his dagger as he looked over the struggling figure. "So, maybe i should just put an arrow through you here without worrying about you stabbing me in the back?" he asked.

"you just killed that giant spider, do you think I'm going to risk my life by making you angry?" the figure said as he continue to struggle. "just cut me down and I swear I won't do anything" he said again. Kassi'm thought it over a few times, then decided he could risk it.

"okay, I'll cut you down. But try anything, and you'll end up like the damn spider" Kassim said as, with a few quick slices with his dagger, the webbing fell away easily and the figure fell forward.

Kassim stepped back as he watched the figure tear the webbing away from his body. The figure was a khajiit, with dark fur that seemed almost black in the dungeons lack of light. he was young looking, almost barely of age, and his bright red eyes seemed young and inquisitive. An amulet made of several Golden Circles hung around his neck, and he was dressed in a leather kilt that hung around his slender looking waist.

a dark green dagger kept against his hip seemed to be the only weapon he was carrying, but the empty quiver on his back suggested that the boy must have carried a bow at some point. Although by now it was probably lost.

"oh thank the nine" the cat said as he picked himself up, brushing the last of the ropey strands of webbing of his body. "that spider... Sucked the insides out of him, while he was still alive. Oh Gods, the sound... I'd never heard anything like it. he was going to drink me next..." He said as he seemed to panic a little as he stood up.

"it's dead now. you can calm down and relax" Kassim said as he looked the boy over as the khajiit seemed to collect himself and stand up, starting to calm down. He looked over to the pit for a moment or two, and then visibly relaxesd as he realised that Kassim was indeed telling the truth. And that the battle he had managed to witness was not in fact a fantasy.

"So, you're with those bandits, aren't you?" Kassim asked as he looked the boy over. if he was with the bandits, he didn't look like it. He looked more...civilised and a lot less rough around the edges then most bandits Kassi'm had dealt with.

"yes, yes I am" theboy said. "the others... are they...?"

"Dead" Kassim said. "they didn't seem too happy to see me, and it was either me or of them" he said. the boy didn't look overly surprised to hear that, nor did he seem angry that Kassim killed his comrades. "so what's your name?"

"It's Alto" he said. The boy looked Kassim over a few times, before he spoke again. "and your name? I'd like to know the name of the person who just saved my life."

"Kassim. what are you doing here anyway?" Kassi'm asked. "what could you possibly want to find an old burial temple anyway?"

"I heard there was treasured here" alto said as he walked over to the pit, and kicked at one of the stones. "you know, these places bury their dead with all their possessions, and I guess the lure of Treasure was too much, so a group bandits teamed up with me. They were supposed to protect me while i helped them get the treasure" he said as he looked over at Kassim again. "well that's one of the reasons. Guess they aren't much good now that they're dead. Why are you here?" He asked.

"I'm here to fetch something. do you know what a dragonstone is?" Kassim asked. Alto put his hand on his chin as he seemed to think about it, but after several moments he shook his head.

"no, I can't say I know what that is. is it something very important?" He asked. "cause if it is, you would not have found it yet. They don't put the good stuff out in the open" he pointed out.

"it's important to somebody" Kassim said as he folded his arms over his chest. "So yeah, i'd have to agree with you. If it is really important, i doubt I've passed it already." Alto nodded as if he suddenly realised something.

"it must be in the main burial chamber. all the best stuff is always kept at the end" he said. "maybe its in there." Kassi'm thought about it for a moment, then nodded, as it seemed to be a good reason, but then he looked at the boy.

"Let me guess, you're going to come with me?" He asked. Alto nodded.

"no" Kassim said instantly."I don't need some kid following me through this place. You've already got yourself into trouble once, and you almost got eaten because of it. why don't you go back home where you probably safer there than you are here?"

"I'm not going anywhere" Alto said as he glared back it Kassim, as if he was outraged that Kassim was suggest such a thing.

"I got caught off guard by the dam spider, and yeah I could have been eaten but I'm not. I'm not as useless as you might think I am. I'm here to fetch something as well, and were both heading the same way" he pointed out.

"so what are you going to do about it?" Kassim asked as he slowly placed his hand on the handle of his dagger just in case. The reaction that Alto had just given, was the same kind of one that Kassi'm had given to people who had already judged him, like the Thallmar and pretty much everyone he had met so far. "are you getting kill me so I don't get there first?" Alto surprised him by shaking his head and holding his hands up, as if in surrendering.

"I'm not going to fight a guy that just took down a giant spider and saved my life" the boy said. "I don't want to fight you, i'm not going to win anyway. But I'll come with you instead and help you out. Truce?" He said as he held out one of his hands.

Kassim said nothing as he looked over the boy. The youth seemed to be genuinely honest, and he didn't feel as if hewas in any danger from the inexperienced boy. he thought about it for a moment. A little further. he didn't really want a kid following him, but it would be better to travel the rest of the way somebody else. especially if somebody else actually happen to know something about this place.

"all right. Truce" Kassim said as he extended his hand and gave Altos hand a shake. Alto nodded as his hand was shook, and he let go after a moment.

"all right. now that's out of the way, how do we get to this treasure room?" Kassim asked Alto. "assuming that one exists, and that is where everything is" he added.

"It's this way" Alto said as he pointed to the doorway that he had been trapped in. "it's not far from here, just the main preservation chamber, and then the burial chambers after that" he said as he pointed the way.

"Main preservation chamber?" Kassim asked as he let Alto lead the way through the door. "I thought I already passed one?" He said, remembering the first chamber that he had passed in the barrows.

"that's not the main one. Probably one where they clean the body up" also said, as he pulled a set of flints from his kilt pocket and struck them against a torch on the wall. the torch flared to life within the hallway. "all the old Nord ruins are different from each other, so no-ruins are the same" he said as he picked up the torch from the socket on the wall.

"I see" Kassim said, as he allowed alto to lead the way. the torchlight was welcoming in the darkness, and he felt a bit better from the light. the cobwebs were still thick in this area, as well as the multiple amounts of dead rodents and the brittle carcasses of who knew what else that littered the floor.

"I guess this is the main preservation chamber you mentioned?" Kassim asked as they entered the next chamber. alto nodded as he touched his lit torch to a dead one on the wall. the dead torch flared to life, and alto went to light up another one further along the wall. Kassim got a good look around the chamber as light slowly passed over the room.

the chamber resembled the first one that he had passed through, except in this one there were four tables instead of one. the outer tables were covered in the same kind of tools that he had seen on the first table, and just as covered in dust.

one of the middle tables was empty, save for a few bandages that looked like they were covered in drive blood.the other table was covered in a strange white powder. It looked like a giant pile of dust, but when Kassim brushed his fingers over it, he discovered that it was salt.

"salt preserved bodies" alto said as he finished lighting the torches on the wall. "Nords really respect their dead, and they do everything they can to preserve them so their bodies will last" he added. Kassim nodded as he understood, and he took a moment to look around the room for anything further. there were more shelves lined with goods covered in cobwebs lining the walls.

"I haven't seen any personal belongings yet" Kassim said as he went over to one of the bookshelves. He carefully lifted down one of the ceramic jars that was on the shelf, and blew the dust off. inside were several dark blue flowers, that still had a faint scent about them. he recognised them as the deathbell flower, but they were far too old to be of any use anymore.

"that is because the dead get buried with their things" alto said. he didn't seem very interested in anything in the room, possibly because there wasn't much in it. " A Nord gets buried with the last things they were wearing and using."

"makes sense" Kassim said as he put the bowl back. Alto indicated the door off to the far side of the room. Kassim nodded and decided to follow, the two of them left the preservation chamber behind them.

Through the doorway it was dark and felt empty, and Kassim expected yet another long hallway, but instead he found himself staring into a wide open area. This one seemed to go on for a while, and there were multiple grooves set into the walls, the interiors dark and hidden from view.

"What is this place?" Kassim asked as he walked over to one of the grooves, and knealt down to look into it. Alto walked over and brought the torch with him, and Kassim almost jumped when he saw the dead face staring back from behind a wall of cobwebs.

"The halls of the dead" alto said. "They stretch on for a while. most of these ruins were devoted to an old nor warlord or leader, so when he died, they buried his subjects along with him. sometimes whether they were alive or not" he added.

Kassim let out a shudder, as he thought about that last comment Alto had made. What was it like to be embalmed alive? He looked back at the dead face that was staring back at him, and decided he didn't want to find out. The Nord body was still wearing old armour, its skeletal arms stretched over its armour plate clutching an ancient sword in its dried and brittle fingers.

Alto took a step back and light another torch on the wall. The glow from the second torch lit up more of the room, and Kassim saw that every groove along the walls, was filled with an ancient and dead body. some were in armour, some were wearing faded clothing. One or two of them were bound head to foot in thick linin wrappings.

"So, the mean burial chamber would be past this hall?" Kassim asked. Alto nodded and began to lead the way again. he didn't get very far when he felt a hand grab him on the shoulder with a tight grip. He began to let out a cry of surprise, but another hand clapped over his mouth.

"shut up" Kassim said in a low voice against Altos ear. Alto froze in place, as he wasn't sure what else to do. For a moment, silence was all around them, and Alto began to wonder just what Kassim had heard to make him hold onto his mouth so hard.

"keep quiet" Kassim said in a quiet voice as he held the khajiit in place. Alto wanted to ask him what was going on, when he heard a noise in the silence. there was a rustling shifting noise, like the noise something made when it hadn't moved in a long time.

Kassim slowly let go of alto's muzzle, and he felt a shiver run down his spine as he saw movement in the room. A withered hand clutched at the edge of a groove nearby, and slowly the arm began to pull itself outwards. In another groove, two skeletal arms were dragging the attached torso through the opening, followed by a horned helmet that looked up, a scowling hollowed face glaring up at the two intruders.

"Oh crap" Alto said in a small voice as he realised, along with Kassim, that the bodies of the long dead nords were beginning to wake up again. Gravelly low guttural growling noises were coming from the bodies as they pull themselves from their final resting places. They fumbled for their weapons, grasping the handles of the ancient weaponry as one by one they began to straighten themselves up.

"zombies?" Kassim asked, as they found themselves surrounded by the slowly moving bodies. He couldn't help but notice the heavy looking weapons that they held, even though their bodies were ancient and dried out, they were lifting them with skill and ease.

"draugr" Alto said as he slowly lowered his hand to grab the hilt of his dagger. The noise of the blade as it left its sheath was surprisingly loud, but he didn't even get it out of sheath when Kassim grabbed his wrist.

"That is not going to do us much good" Kassim said as he looked around. The draugr were starting to shuffle forward, lifting their ancient weapons into the air. "There are too many of them to fight off at once" he pointed out.

"What do you suggest?" Alto asked as he kept his dagger in his hand. He turned around and saw that even more of the draugr were pulling themselves from their grooves, marching slowly towards them. they were indeed outnumbered at a serious disadvantage.

"on the count of three, we run" Kassim said as he pointed down the hall. There was still a clear path to run down, as the draugr were moving so slowly they had yet to fill up the hall. Alto nodded as he slid his dagger back into the sheath and slowly placed the torch on the ground.

"three" Kassim shouted and the two of them ran forward as quickly as they were able to. The dead behind them slashed their weapons in the air, but their blades and axes struck empty ground as the two fighters ran down the burial chambers hall.

While the dead were indeed formidable in size and in numbers, they were slow and clumsy. Dead joints that hadn't moved in centuries were slow and hard to react. However, they were slowly starting to get faster, as their movements loosened their joints as they began to stumble after them. And slowly, their stumbling was turning into running.

"hurry up" Kassim shouted as the two of them ran down the long hall as fast as they were able. Behind them they could hear the heavy pounding of the draugr that were chasing them. they could hear the heavy thud thud thud of boots hitting stonework as the dead gave chase.

"this way" Alto shouted as they ran past a corner and turned into another long burial hall. The dead lining the halls had already started to wake up, and they had to run quickly to avoid the weapons that were already in the air.

"Duck" Kassim shouted as he saw a couple of the dead were barring their way in front of them. Alto ducked without hesitation as Kassim brought his hands together and his fingers shimmered in a blue haze as he let forth a stream of lightning. The lightning cascaded through the air and struck the two draugr in the chest.

"Run" Kassim said as he grabbed Altos shoulder and pulled him to his feet. the two draugr were already flying through the air and they landed on the ground, the chest armour crackling with the lightning that had struck them. Kassi'm and Alto had to leap over the fallen draugr that were in their way, and the two dead were unable to move get up without doing more than squirming on the floor. The other draugr the hall ignored them and walked literally over them in their pursuit.

"The exits there" Alto shouted as he ducked a heavy axe that a draugr aimed to strike him with. It passed overhead and struck an opposite draugr in the chest. The axe broke through the ancient armour with a grating noise and it broke through the ancient flesh like it was made of paper. A sudden burst of rancid air burst out of the cavity with a loud hissing noise. The air was green and smelled of spiced rotten meat, but the Draugr did not stop its advancement.

Kassim could see that the hallway was quickly ending, and it was heading towards a set of large open double doors. The doors were open inwards towards what ever was beyond the door away, and the two of them ran straight towards it. Behind them they heard the grunting growling noise of the running draugr, and the thudding of the heavy plated boots was getting louder with each step that ran towards them. Kassim swore he actually felt that hot rancid breath on the back of his neck.

With a desperate cry the two of them burst through the door away into the new room. Instinctively they each latched onto one of the doors and pulled as hard as they were able until the door slammed shut with a heavy slam. The moment the two doors closed against each other, a heavy wooden beam on the side of the doors slid down and locked them into place to shut the doors closed.

Slowly, Kassim and Alto backed away as they heard a heavy collision on the other side of the door. the wood visibly shook and dust fell from its beams as they started to hear banging against it. Heavy thudding and growling emanated as the druagr piled onto the huge doors from the other side.

"Do you think it will hold?" Also asked as they watched the door thud and shake against its lock. Kassim shrugged and panted a little from all the running, as he was thinking the same thing. He had a horrible thought of the door breaking open and a flood of the undead pouring through. But the door did seem to hold, although the banging kept on going.

"So where are we now?" Kassim asked as he turned around to survey the room they had just walked into. He straightened a little and took a deep breath as he gazed forward. The hallway was long, heading to another doorway at the end of the hall. The walls were covered in engravings, although it was hard to say exactly what the engravings were about.

"The Hall of Stories" Alto said as he gestured towards the wall as he was bent over gathering his breath. "The history of these ruins... and the ones buried here are written for all to read. Unfortunately, it's a dead language, so we can't read them even if we wanted to" he pointed out as he took a deep breath.

"how do you know so much about this place?" Kassim asked as he brushed his hand along the wall. the engravings were worn and old, and the language was indeed something he had never seen before. Alto was right, he couldn't have read the history of this place even if he wanted to.

"Because I'm here to rob this place, and to settle a debt. I needed as much information as I could get about this place so I can actually survive it long enough to get what I need" Alto said as he walked down the path to the doorway at the end. Kassim watched as he passed, wandering briefly about just what drove the young feline, and what he meant by a debt. Although he didn't push it this time.

Kassim followed Alto towards the door at the end, and found that it was a door unlike one he had actually seen before. the doorway itself was a giant round doorway, made up of three large circular rings, with a circular indented plate in the middle of it all. At the centre of each of the rings, was a picture.

"It looks like a puzzle" Kassim said as he studied the pictures. The top and middle ring had an image of an owl, and the one at the bottom had a picture that looked like a bear. "maybe there is a clue around his somewhere, like that chamber with the statues and the pillars."

"if you have the key it's not that hard. Because then it's in the palm of your hand" Alto said as he pulled something out of one of the folds in his kilt. Kassim saw that it was a bright golden statue in the shape of a claw. A large three clawed hand with a fourth claw raised over the back like it was a tail.

Alto flipped the claw over and Kassim saw that there were three circulate images underneath. Kassim realised what Alto said and it made sense. The solution was literally on the palm of the hand. Alto took the floor over to the doorway and pressed his hand on the circular plates.

"Bear" he said as the top plate spun, moving an image of a bear to the top. "moth" he said as he spun the middle plate to reveal an image of a moth. "and owl" he said, the last plate moving to reveal the image of an owl.

Also then placed the claw into the indents on the circular plate in the middle, and Kassim saw that they fit perfectly into place. Alto grunted as he pushed on the claw and the plate moved forward.

The entire door began to vibrate as dust fell from the plates as all three suddenly spun around in circles several times and then stopped on the image of the owl. The door gave a low groaning noise and slowly began to slide downwards.

"and here is the main burial chamber" Alto said as he pocketed the claw into his kilt. "hopefully we'll find what we need in here" he said. Kassim nodded, wondering where exactly Alto had gotten the claw from. It seemed too good of a thing to have simply been left lying around, and he doubted it had been sitting anywhere in the barrows.

The main burial chamber turned out to be a naturally hollowed out cavern .Shafts of sunlight poured through holes in the ceiling, and the sound of rushing water was heard. As they took a few steps into the open area, Kassim saw a small stream of water running through a naturally worn trail on the ground.

There was a raised circular dias at the far end of the cavern, and a set of steps lead up to the large circular platform. They two were suddenly surprised by a cloud of bats that flew down from teh ceiling, circling the two intruders for several long and tense seconds before they flew out of the now open door.

"So, who was buried here?" Kassim asked as they walked up to the steps at the platform.

"I don't know" alto said. "it's hard to find out things like that. Unless you are very dedicated scholar, this sort of information is in exactly easy to find" he pointed out as they slowly made their way up the stone steps. Kassim noticed that this area was in much better condition than the other areas of the barrows.

The large circular platform was wide and dominated by a single very large stone coffin. The Coffin was made out of heavy stone, and carved with words and images on its surface. obviously, someone of great importance was buried here. Kassim was looking down on the coffin, when he heard Alto talking behind him.

"There is barely any Treasure here" Alto said as he had walked over to two large stone tables at the edge of the platform. He was bent over the tables and examining the dust covered relics laying on top. "looks like some embalming tools, a couple of soul gems... More dried out herb and some salts" he said. He sounded extremely disappointed.

Kassim wasn't listening. something was whispering to him.

There were whispers in his thoughts, the strangest whispers he had ever heard. it sounded like the voices were writing on the inside of his ears, whispering a language that was being spoken back to front and upside down. All at the same time. The voices were drowning out the sound of the water and Altos muttering around him.

Kassim looked around to try and see where those whispers were coming from, but there was only him and Alto in the room. For a moment he was concerned that the whispers were actually coming from the coffin, but then he realised that the whispers were coming from beyond the coffin.

beyond the coffin on the other end of the platform was a large stone wall. What made it stand out was that it wasn't actually part of the caverns wall, it had been carved into it. A large stone dragon head was perched above, and the wall almost seem like a pair of wings that stretch down to the ground.

The whispers seemed to pull Kassim forward as if they were licking his ears to encourage him, and slowly began to step up to the wall. the closer he got, the more easily he was able to make out the markings on the wall. He looked on in a curious wonder and saw that they looked like a language made out of claw marks, but not scratched, or was it written, in a fury. They were scratched in place almost like it had been done with a very delicate hand.

As Kassim walked up to the wall, he realised that one of those words, if that's what it could be called, was glowing. It seemed as if the whispers were becoming louder as ethereal streams of light were beckoning him forward like fingers curling in an invitation. Slowly, Kassim knelt down as he brought his face close to the wall. The whispers grew louder, talking faster talking slower talking quiter and talking loud all at the same time until his mind felt like it was going to explode from all the voices inside.

And then all at once the voices stopped, as if the fire that had sparked them into existence had suddenly gone out. And then one whisper, a single solitary word seemed to breathe itself into his mind.

Fus

something very hard and heavy struck itself on Kassim's back and he let out a cry as he was shoved forward. He slammed face first into the wall and almost blacked out from the impact as he landed on the ground. Something shattered around him and crumbled into pieces above and around him and he struggled picked himself up from the impact.

he looked up to see that alto was knocked unconscious, the khajiit laying on the ground and half of the coffin lid was covering him in crumbling pieces. The lid of the coffin had blown outwards and struck them both with half of its covering. Kassim picked himself up as he saw something slowly pull itself out of the now open coffin.

slowly, a draugr began to rise up from its final resting place. it was moving slowly at first, but it was starting to gain speed the further it pulled itself out. This one however, was different from the others. While the others had been dressed in half sets of armour and tattered clothing, this one was fully dressed in armour that set it apart.

A heavy horned helmet sat on its head, and its chest was covered in thick plates bound together with heavy wiring. Its gauntlets ran up its arms and its legs were covered in plates that resembled serpants skin. Boots thudded onto the stonework floor as the risen Druagr stood to attention. In its right arm it carried a shield that was bigger than its torso, and in its other hand, it held a sword that was longer than its own body.

"okay, this could get ugly" Kassim said as the risen Nord turned to face him, its withered face behind its helmet turned its gaze at him. the remains of a long shaggy beard hung down its neck and under the base of its helmet and its eyes glowed, literally, with life.

Kassim barely had time to grab his daggers when the draugr snarled out and opened its mouth, revealing cracked yellowed teeth and a dead tongue that rolled around in its mouth like a dead slug.

"FUS RO DAH" it shouted and a blast of something issued from its mouth and slammed into Kassim. it pushed him back along the floor until he slammed into the heavily carved wall behind him. the force of the impact cracked the wall behind him and he felt his breath blow out of his lungs as he fell to the ground.

He picked himself up, feeling his body shaken but not broken as he gasped to fill his empty lungs. He felt like he had been hit by a wall made of air. The draugr began to advance forward, holding its enormous sword above its head that seemed ready to strike Kassim down

Kassim stared at the draugr as he tried to focus his mind. He wasn't going to take any chances with this one, and he was going to be damned about the pain he would feel afterwards. This draugr was not like the others and would be tougher to bring down. And he had a way to do it.

But the latent power inside of him refused to respond, and his mind was pierced by a hard jolt of pain. He winced and shook his head before he tried to focus again, willing the power to rise so he could focus the world through time and space and end the draugrs life with but a single thought. He felt the power start to waken, and he felt his body slow down as if he was moving through thick mud.

The draugr began to slow down as well, and everything around him began to grow clearer as he watched. He could feel the moment he needed come within reach, but befor everything had a chance to fully stop, Kassim's head erupted in another heavy blow of pain as time resumed its normal flow.

He grabbed at his head and clutched tightly, his fingers digging into his flesh as his vision began to cloud with a blood red haze. His vision was so clouded he almost missed seeing the driver step up to him and stabbed downwards with that sword. He looked up just in time and pushed with his legs and rolled to the side as the draugrs sword slammed into the ground, the stonework cracking from the impact.

Holding onto his head with one hand, Kassi'm manouvered his bow and backpack from around his arms as he needed as much movement as possible. His vision started to clear properly as the pain died away, and he decided not to risk it with another forced attempt. The draugr raised its sword itno the air again and began to advance once more.

"okay, that won't work" Kassim said as he wrapped his hands around the handles of his daggers and pulled them from their sheaths. " Let's dance"

the draugr spoke again and another blast of hard air exploded out of its mouth. Kassi'm jumped to the side and the wall of air blasted past him, and Kassim pushed on his feet as he charged forward. The draugr slashed its sword down at him and missed as Kassim slashed upwards with his daggers, catching the draugr under its chest plate.

the sharp blades sliced through the dead stomach and the flesh tore apart like brittle paper. A blast of rancid dusty air was expelled, and the smell was so overpoweringly sickening that Kassim almost fainted from how rotten it smelled.

"Fus Ro Dah" the draugr shouted again and Kassim was knocked off his feet as he was blasted backwards by another wall of air. His back connected with the coffin, and he flipped over the top with a cry of pain. His hands lost the grip on his daggers and he collapsed on the other side on the floor.

Kassim picked himself up as the draugr began to advance towards him again, and he barely had time to roll away the dead warrior slashed its sword at him again. The sword hit the stonework and cracked it open again, and then it was easily pulled out of the new hole.

Kassim got to his feet and backed away several steps as he held his hands up. Blue light began to streak down his arms as if they were living tendrils and wrapped around his fingers. The tendrils of light solidified as they became two swords of light in his hands.

He rushed forward and slashed at the exposed flesh of the draugr, stabbing into its exposed stomach again with one blue sword, and stabbing through the arm connected to the hand holding its shield. More bursts of rancid air erupted from the open wounds and the dead beast staggered backwards with a long moan as its arms appeared to deflate.

Kassim kept up the pressure as he pushed forward, making the draugr start to stagger backwards as he twisted the blue sword in the warriors arm. With a twist the blue blade sliced its wrist and its shield dropped to the ground, its hand still connected to the handle. The draugr roared as a blast of air erupted from its stump as it lifted with its other arm, and the sword slowly began to lift upwards through the air.

The draugr twisted its torso and brought its arm up, its heavy gauntlet cracked Kassim on the side of the head. Kassim's vision swam as he was knocked too easily to the side, his grip on his swords broken. They faded away as he landed on the ground with a heavy thud.

The draugr looked poised to strike as it brought its sword up again, then let out a roar as a dark green dagger was planted in its neck. Another burst of rancid grey air erupted from the hole in its flesh and it roared in seeming pain as it swung its body around to try and knock the clinging feline from it.

"Kassim wake up" Alto shouted as he twisted the dagger in the draugrs neck. "I can't beat this thing on my own," he shouted as the dead warrior continued to twist .It planted its sword into the ground with a heavy cracking noise and reached up with its now free hand. With a roar it grabbed Alto around the back of his neck and pulled him easily off its back.

Alto landed with a heavy crash as he was cast over the side of the platform and onto the ground. He rolled a few times and landed on his side without further movement. Kassim looked up as the draugr reached up to pull the dagger from its neck. Another rancid burst of air erupted from the open hole, and its helmet seem to sink down on its head even further.

Kassim saw his chance and leapt to his feet as he brought his hands up. He was running low on energy and wouldn't last much longer against such a beast, so he had to put everything he had into the spell. He had to overcharge it.

The area around his fingertips thickened with a red haze as the air ignited in a fiery stream of liquid red. The stream poured through the air like oil on water as it struck the draugr in the chest. The flames burned brighter then it had before as he put everything he had into the spell as the flames poured liek water over the torso of the draugr.

The draugr roared as it felt the flames spread over its body and began to melt the metal of its armour. It roared over the flames as it brushed its stub over its armour in an attempt to try and wipe the fire off, but its armoured sleeve and flesh melted together. It didn't just brush the fire off, it brushed off its armour and its flesh in one large sticky mess.It dropped its sword and it landed on the stonework where it began to bubble and melt.

The draugr twisted its body around as it continued to attempt to put out the flames as it roared in seeming pain, before it fell to its knees. A burning gurgling noise came from its throat as it gave one last swing of its dripping arms before it fell forward.

"so, that's the lord of the manor" Kassim said as he watched the flames start to die down quickly. The body burned as the armor melted quickly, the remains of the draugr melting onto teh stonework in a giant puddle in the shape of a melted man.

"Tough huh?" Altos said as he slowly picked himself up. With a groan he pulled himself to his feet, looking a little worse for the wear, but still very much alive. he rubbed at his shoulder, and winced a bit in pain.

Kassim nodded, panting from the effort of how much magic and energy he had used up in the fight. Doing so much travelling, and fighting a giant spider, then running from the dead, and fighting a dead Nord Warrior, was definitely taking its toll on him.

Alto walked up the steps and reclaimed his dagger from the ground as Kassim picked up his own weapons. He walked up to his backpack and undid one of the front pouches where he kept the healing potions. He tossed one to Alto and uncorked one for himself. The cold red liquid had never tasted sweeter as it ran down his throat. Once he had drunk the entire bottle, he could feel his body relax as if he had just slept on a good nights sleep.

Together, once they felt better, they both stepped carefully over to the coffin and took a look inside it, peering over the edge carefully in case there was another dead draugr inside. However, they both were met with the Treasure that Alto had been looking for.

Gold coins littered the bottom of the coffin, scattered with several large jewels of assorted sizes. A few pendants on long golden and silver strings reflected the torchlight with a glow that was welcome. Kassim's treasurer, was at the head of the coffin. The Dragonstone was sitting where the draugr had been resting its head.

"Guess you have the treasure for that debt you mentioned" Kassim said as he grabbed the stone from its place. Alto nodded as he pulled a leather bag from the folds in his kilt, and began to scoop up the treasure rather quickly. Kassim let him take it all, since Alto deserved it more than he did, and Kassi'm wasn't interested in it anyway.

"Guess we have a long walk back to get out of here" Kassim said as he carefully placed the stone in his backpack. "Guess we have to go through the walking dead too" he added, remembering what was behind the sealed door.

"Actually, no" Alto said as he pulled the string on the bag and shut it tight. "The nords always built a secret passage out of these places" he said. "Though it is usually barred from this side to you can't get in that way. It so they could build from two ends of the same tunnel, if that makes sense" he added.

"okay, so where is it?" Kassim asked as he slid his backpack around his shoulders.

"Should be in here somewhere" Alto said as he took a look around. He only took a moment or two to find a set of stairs cut into the stone behind the carved wall. He quickly ran up the steps, and Kassim followed.

"Looks like this is it" Alto said as he found a small pedestal behind the wall. There was a skull on top of the pedestal, surrounded by a wreath of dried ancient flowers. Alto brush the skull off the top of the pedestal, and there was a low grinding noise as the pressure plate it had been sitting on twisted upwards.

They turned as a section of wall opposite them began to shudder before it slowly slid downwards. Kassi'm breathed a sigh of relief as they found the way out after such a hectic adventure. Without any further hesitation or any desire to stay any longer then they had too, they both started forward.

Neither of them said a word as they marched forwards, the hallway turning into a tunnel that looked like it was actually a cave system again. Kassim had a flashback to when he was walking through the underground caverns outside Helgen, and he wondered just how far these would go down.

The passage became more natural rather quickly, as if the builders had decided to stop building. And he noticed that the temperature was starting to drop rather quickly. He felt his scales start to prickle and his breath was beginning to fog in the air in front of him.

Alto though did not seem to be having any trouble walking the distance, as much as Kassim was. But Alto hadn't been fighting as hard as Kassim,so it made sense that the cat had more energy than the lizard.

One thing Kassi'm was thankfull for was that the passage was short, and Kassim breathed a sigh of relief as it didn't seem to take much time for the end to appear in their view. Snow was drifting through the open entrance, and the chilled sunglight that was filtering through was a very welcome sign.

"Well, we finally made it out" Alto said as he stepped out into the open air. Kassim walked out as well, and found himself with a good view of Whiterun spread out before them in the distance. Obviously, they had exited on the other side of the mountain, but even from this side it would have been hard to find the hidden exit.

the entrance itself was up high, and there was no real way they could have climbed upwards to reach it. the only way to get to it was from the way they had just arrived. The side of the mountain they were on was an almost sheer drop, and a misstep would most likely cost them.

Taking their descent carefully the two of them made their way downwards, literally dropping from short heights onto the snow banks below. There were up almost half way up the actual mountain, and the descending slope was lengthy enough that it took a bit of testing in trying to make their way down without hurting themselves.

"Well, I got the dragonstone. Now I have to go back and hand it in" Kassim said as he helped Alto to descend a rather large dusted boulder. With a slight oomph from the impact, they both ended up on solid ground.

"Well, there was treasure" Alto said as he dusted his shoulders free from snow that had caught on his fur from the descent. "Only its nowhere near enough for me to pay back what I owe. And, there are people looking for me" he admitted as he turned to Kassim. Kassim saw that Alto looked rather apologetic as he spoke, as if he didn't want to share his burden with Kassim. But he also looked like he wanted to talk to someone about it.

"And I really don't have anywhere else to go" he added with a light sigh. "And... You did save my life back there. I owe you" Alto said. Kassim said nothing as he regarded the young khajiit before him. He could tell what Alto was wanting to ask, but he could see that he didn't want to ask it at the same time.

He was also intrigued by this mysterious debt as well and just what was going on in the boys life. For someone as young as he looked to be mixing in with bandits and the living dead, there was something intriguing about it all. And if he wanted to find out what was going on, there was only one real way to handle it.

"well, I guess this means that you can have to follow me around until I decide your debt to me has been paid" Kassim said finally. Alto looked up at him, a little surprised that Kassim had said that. "so, if you want to pay back your debt to me, you have to come with me and do whatever I say without question.

"Really? Do you mean it?" Alto asked, as he brought his hands together like a little boy getting a treat. "I can really come with you, I don't have to look over my back every five minutes on to wonder if these people are going get me?" He asks.

"I'll help you with... Whatever problem you have with these... People, but yes. You are going to come with me from now on" Kassim pointed out. Alto let out a happy squeal and literally leapt at Kassim. Kassim suddenly found himself wrapped up in the arms of the younger boy, and he was wrapped up so tightly he almost had the air compressed out of his lungs.

"okay okay" Kassim said. "Air...need air.." he managed to gasp out. Alto looked a little startled and quickly unwrapped his arms. "I get you're happy, but no more hugs. I've only got one set of lungs" he pointed out. Alto gave an embarrassed look, and Kassim couldn't help but think that he looked rather cute, with the way he folded his ears back and kind of shrunk back a little. But he shook that thought from his head, as he realised they had a bit of a trek head of them.

slowly they began to make their way over the plains, as they walked their way back to Whiterun. On this side of the mountain, the treck wasn't going to take them very long, as it was only about half the distance between Whiterun and Riverwood.

They continued to walk together, neither of them stopping or wishing to take a break as they eventually found themselves at the road that led to Whiterun. They made their way upwards, Kassim noticing that the khajiit caravan had packed up and left, the space where they had camped now empty save for a dying campfire.

The streets of Whiterun seemed to be a bit busier this time around, although they didn't have any trouble walking through the streets. Alto seemed to have been to Whiterun before, as he didn't seem to have any trouble navigating the streets, or asking any of the guards the directions. Kassim did lead the way, but Also seemed to know the streets well anyway.

"So, the Jarls wizard was the one who sent you?" Alto asked as Kassi'm finished explaining to him what had happened as they walked past the still shouting preacher at the bottom of stairs to Dragonsreach. They ascended the stairs and made their way to the front doors, the guards open the doors for them and allowed them inside.

Farengar was in his study, which seem to have grown messier than the last time Kassim had been there that morning. Papers were scattered all over the floor, and the map on the board now had several daggers planted in certain points.

As Kassim and Alto walked in, he saw Farengar was deep in talk with a figure at the other end of the room. The stranger was wearing dark robes that were coloured a deep brown, and a cowl was wrapped around the figures face. When Farengar and his guest realised they were not alone, the figure turned before Kassi'm got a look at the face beneath the cowl and a hand pulled the cowl shut. Farengar turned his attention to Kassi'm, and looked somewhat taken aback to see that he had returned. But that look quickly disappeared and he rather eagerly hurried over.

"Well, you're back" the younger Wizard said as he stood on the other side of the desk between him and Kassim." well? Did you have any success?" He asked, looking like he was about to receive a very special treat. His open eagerness

"Did you know about the bandits?" Kassim asked him. "Because there were bandits at the Barrow's" he said as he folded his arms over his chest.

"Bandits?" Farengar asked, his eyebrow raised over his forehead in a rather convincing look of surprise."bandits are everywhere nowadays. If there were any there, I'm sure you managed to take care of them."

"and the dead?" Kassim asked as he pulled his backpack from his shoulders and placed it on the desk. "did you forget about mentioning them, or did you just decide not to tell me?" He said. "because i saw that look you gave me when i walked in. You're surprised i'm back."

"I uh..." Farengar said, as he reached up and scratched the back of his neck in a rather embarrassed action. "Well, the bandits, no. But the draugr, that I knew about it. But I felt if I told you, you wouldn't want to go ahead. And I really needed that stone" he pointed out.

"Well they weren't exactly dead, they did come to life and tried to kill us" Kassim said as he opened his backpack. "if I ever do decide to do another job for you, at least tell me what the hell I'm getting myself into. Especially if there are giant spiders and rodents and bandits and the walking dead involved" he pointed out.

"well, they weren't supposed to be walking" Farengar said as he clasped his hands in front of him, his eyes focused solely on Kassims backpack. "Normally, they never come to life, but there have been reports that they are, which seem to have happened very recently. I have a theory about it. I think they were preserved so well that they still have a spark of life inside them. And that spark contains a primal instinct" he said. "the instinct to attack intruders."

"well, maybe you theory is true" Kassim said as he pulled the stone carefully from his backpack. He then placed it on the desk and let go of it. "here is your stone" he said as he looked up at the Wizard."now, do you have a commendation for me?"

"Wait a moment, who's that? " Farengar said as he suddenly seem to notice the cat in the room. Alto had bent down and picked up a stray purple gem off the floor and had been looking at it, but he had dropped it out of surprise when Farenger spoke.

"he's a friend" Kassi'm said as he looked at Farengar. "and I won't ask any questions about who you're talking to, if you don't ask questions about my friend" he added. Farengar looked over his shoulder at the figure who was still hiding its face behind its cowl, and seemed to consider the option. He then nodded and opened a drawer in his desk.

"of course. Your commendation. The college will have no problem giving you admittance, but you will not gain a place amongst its students unless you can prove to you belong there" Farengar said as he handed the roled up piece of parchment to Kassim. Kassi'm nodded and gladly took it in his hand.

"well, thank you" Kassi'm said as he secured it into his backpack. "now, I will leave you to get back to your research" he said, just before he heard a commotion coming from behind. Kassim, Alto, and Farengar turned to look at the door as Irilith, the Jarls Thane and personal bodyguard walked in with a stride that gave the impression she owned the place.

"Farengar, the Jarl wants to see you right away" the dark skinned woman said as she looked straight at Farengar, and ignored the other two for a moment. Then she turned her attention to Kassim when she actually realised he was in the room. "You will come as well" she said in a firm voice after a moments consideration.

"Excuse me, I'm not going anywhere. I've done what I was asked to do, and now I'm leaving" Kassim said as he grabbed his backpack and slung it back over his shoulders. Irilith however shook her head and put her hand on weapons hilt.

"it doesn't matter. you will come with me, the Jarl wants anyone and everyone available" she ordered. She then turned to Alto, and studied him for a moment. "if you are with the lizard, you are coming as well."

"Irilith, what is the matter here?" Farengar asked, as the figure behind them slipped unnoticed out of view. "Why does the Jarl want to see us right way?" He asked. The dark elf woman narrowed her gaze at him, a very serious look on her face, that somehow made her look all the more intimidating.

"A dragon has been spotted."