Aid for Bruma and the Great Welkynd Stone

Since I was right in the town of Chorrol, I went straight to the castle to see Countess Arriana Valga to ask for aid for the soldiers of Bruma. I announced myself at the entrance. One of the guards noticed me right away. "It's you!" he said. "The Hero of Kavatch". The other guard, hearing this, said told me to wait, and that he would announce me at once. He returned in just two minutes, waving me in towards the throne room.

Countess Valga smiled a greeting to me. "Ah, the Hero of Kavatch." she said. "What can we do for you?"

"Not for myself." I replied. "The last heir of Septim Empire is in danger." I said. "The forces of evil will strike at Bruma, and then at him directly."

"What can I do to help?" she asked.

"I have come to ask for aid for the soldiers of Bruma until a defense can be mounted against the evil which comes for us all." I replied.

Countess Valga thought for a moment. "In times such as these, I might have turned you down." she said. "But my guards have told me that you also closed an Oblivion gate just south of our main entrance. If answering such a call for aid is all that is asked in return, based on how just recently aided us single-handedly, how could I refuse?"

She stood up, putting her hand on my shoulder. "You may report to our new Emperor that he will have my aid."

I thanked her, bowing ever so elegantly, then headed to the entrance.

My next stop would be Cloud Ruler Temple to drop off the armor I had retrieved for Martin.

 

I returned to Cloud Ruler Temple in short order and reported back to Jauffre. He was very glad to see that I had retrieved the armor that Martin had requested.

"He keeps on those books." he said in a worried voice. "I hope he doesn't collapse. You should bring the armor to him immediately. I believe he has also found another piece of this puzzle to opening up a portal for us."

"I have received word from Chorrol that they will send aid." I said.

"That is a good start." he replied. "Check with the ruling council in the Imperial City. I can't guarantee anything, but if you have no luck there, the only alternative is to ask the city rulers individually."

I acknowledged my understanding, but hoped it would just be one stop to gain aid for Bruma. The last thing I wanted to do was bounce all over the Imperial province.

 

Martin was buried in a mound of books around two tables. There were notes and scratchings everywhere, crumpled paper on the floor. Martin noticed me as soon as I approached.

"Ah, Shakula!" he said. "I hope you have good news for me."

"I do." I replied, taking out the Armor of Tiber Septim and placing it on the table before him. He just stared at it for a moment, realizing that a piece of history was no more than an arm's reach from him.

"The Septim blood may flow through my veins," he said "but you have the soul of a hero."

Martin picked up the armor gazing at it. "Oh, you can reassure Jauffre that I will not destroy the armor. All I need is a scraping of Talos' divine blood. The Blades are as touchy as priests about relics of Tiber Septim, it seems!"

"What else is needed?" I asked. "I must go and seek aid for Bruma, so I cannot stay too long."

Martin quickly turned back to some of his notes. "Ah, glad you asked." he replied. "While you were gone, I had made some progress in deciphering the Mysterium Xarxes ritual." He shuffled through several of his notes until he found the one he was looking for. "The third item we need a a Great Welkynd Stone." he said. "You probably know of these Ayleid ruins all around Cyrodiil, correct?"

"Yes." I replied. "I have been in several of them, and nearly killed in at least two of them."

"And the lesser Welkynd stones found within them, no doubt." he continued.

"Yes, they can be used to re-charge magika." I replied.

"Well, those stones are fairly common in Ayleid ruins." he said. "But a Great Welkynd Stone will not be easy to come by. They have been plundered one by one over the years, due to their great value to mages and occultists."

"So they're pretty rare, I take it." I said.

"Exactly." he replied. "But there is only one place that is rumored to still contain one: The ruins of the Ayleid city of Miscarcand. They say that it's still there only because anyone that ever tried to retrieve it has perished. But nothing else will do, so you must succeed where all others have failed."

"It sounds pretty serious." I said. "Are you sure there is a stone actually in there?"

Martin thought for a moment. "Miscarcand is one of the most extensive Ayleid ruins in Cyrodiil." he said. "If any place had one Great Stone left, this would be it. It was the capital of one of the ancient Ayleid kingdoms which flourished in Cyrodiil before the rise of Men. It is said that the ruins are still haunted by the vengeful spirit of its last king."

 

I had Martin mark the location of this Ayleid ruin on my map, then headed back out into the wild. I figured my first stop would be at the Imperial City. I took it easy on my horse for a while, but once I spotted a bandit on the road, we rode at full gallop right past him, almost knocking him over.

I finally ended up at the Imperial City, but try as I might, Chancellor Ocato was just too busy to see anyone, including the Hero of Kavatch.

Disappointed and a bit sullen over this turn of events, I figured the only alternative was to check with the Count of each city to ask for aid.

 

It was not an easy road south to Bravil. I encountered not one but two Oblivion Gates along the way.

Lucky for me I had everything I needed with me, only using one or two healing potions to shut them down, since I could go essentially invisible through this plane. Still, each one had to be shut down, as they would still deliver any number of monsters to the countryside.

 

Once the second gate had been closed off, I jumped back on my horse and continued the ride south from the Imperial City to Bravil, only getting off track once, then re-locating the road and gaining my bearings.

 

It wasn't long after that I saw the city of Bravil in the distance. I had been here before to earn the Mages Guild recommendation for the University, but now my visit here was much more important.

 

I dropped my horse off at the stable and headed to the Mages Guild offices for a little rest and something to eat. Once that was taken care of, I would head to the castle and talk with the Count about aid for Bruma.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

COMING UP: "Yes, I'll help, but first there is a favor I need."

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