I languished in the depths of the cave for 3 days, wandering around, looking for clues to a possible antidote for the corprus that Dagoth Gares had cursed me with. I encountered more victims of the disease, but nothing in the cave gave me the impression that anyone had even desired to create a cure potion for it.

I finally decided to head back to Balmora and report in to Caius, then trundle off to some remote place to die.

I noticed that I had a very hard time concentrating on what I was doing. I tried finding the door to the Bitter Coast region, and I'd find myself wandering in the deeper parts of the cave instead. It was as if the disease was trying to keep me in the cave, away from help.  

Once I made it to the outer door (and into a very bad thunderstorm), I tried heading back to Gnaar Mok. My sense of direction was fading out, but I just followed the lay of the land (and the little wooden bridge that someone had put out).

On my way back to Gnaar Mok, I encountered a dark elf in the wilderness. He turned to speak with me, as if he knew who I was, even though I had never seen him before.  

As he turned towards me, a bolt of lightening flashed in the sky, giving him a freaky appearance, startling me.

"We have you in our discerning eye, Eldorf Dragonmeal. We see you, waking and sleeping."

"Who are you?" I demanded. "What do you mean about a discerning eye?"

His answer made no sense. "My starkest madness seeming is divine sense." he said. "Come! Grasp the chain, and prove you're sane!"

I asked him if he knew anything about blight diseases, and corprus, in particular. His answer was pure cult-follower spew.

"Lord Dagoth has sent the blight to destroy the foreigners, and to chasten those Dunmer who bend to the foreign will. Those who oppose Lord Dagoth shall wither and die, while those who join Lord Dagoth shell be healed and strengthened, filled with the power and glory of Red Mountain, and inspired by the dreams of Dagoth Ur!"

No help there, other than the reference to Red Mountain.  

"Listen," I said, trying to ask him about a possible cure to corprus, "do you know any rumors..."

"It is NO RUMOR!" he shouted, without waiting for the end of my question. "It is the truth. Lord Dagoth, Dagoth Ur, Lord of the Sixth House, and savior of the Dunmer people, has awakened. And with him shall all sleepers awaken, and Morrowind shall be cleansed of the stain of the false gods and foreign rule!"

This person seemed to have a one-track mind. "What is so special about Red Mountain?" I asked him. His eyes grew wide, with a glaze, as if the lights were on, but no one was home.

"Red Mountain is the heart of Morrowind." he shouted. "There, Lord Dagoth Ur dwells, and from Red Mountain he shall come to drive out the foreigners and restore the ancient glories of the Dunmer. Leave while you can, or die!"

With that, I decided he was going to be of no help to me at all. I was disturbed, however, that he knew me by name.   

I figured corprus must have been affecting my mind already. As I left the strange Dunmer wildman, there was another flash of lightening, and the next thing I remembered was wandering across the ashlands towards Ald'ruhn. I had to have gone through Gnaar Mok and headed up the road towards a point where I would have headed to Caldera and then Balmora, but here I was heading across a small ridge and heading right towards Ald'ruhn for no reason I could think of.

And, how had I made it this far without remembering anything? I certainly hadn't followed the road signs, as I was apparently heading straight towards...

That's when I realized something odd. I was probably not heading to Ald'ruhn. The town was simply in the middle of the path I was taking. After Ald'ruhn, heading east, would come the Ghostfence, and then...Red Mountain.

I didn't enjoy thinking of myself as a common moth, being drawn to a firelight.  

My original plan was to simply go to the Mage's Guild offices and teleport to Balmora. Apparently, I blanked out and walked right past their offices and into the heart of Ald'ruhn. I looked around and saw some kwama eggs that someone had stored outside their house.

Now, I know better than to steal something, especially with a dozen guards walking around the place, but the next thing I remembered was holding the egg in my hands and some guard talking to me about paying a fine, fighting to the death (over an egg???) or going to jail.

"Jail?" I said, just coming into the conversation. It was as if I was just waking up.

"Ok, if that's what you want, thief!" he said. He took the egg from me, and lead me away to the fort by the edge of my robe.  

I must have sat in the Fort Buckmoth jail for several days, though I must say, I barely remember them. My case of corprus was getting worse, producing patches of colored skin on various parts of my body, fading out, then coming back in different areas.  

I didn't even remember what day it was when I was let out of jail. I just knew I had somewhere to go. Someone would miss me. Some girl, I think.

If I could only remember....Laurenna!

I was having trouble remembering my wife's name. I laughed, thinking that if forgetting an anniversary date is bad, imagine forgetting your wife's name.

I set out once again for . . . (I had to think about it for a few moments) . . . Balmora.

At least, I though I headed for Balmora.  

I seemed to remain awake enough to make it nearly all the way to Caldera, site of my former cottage.

At least, this was the last thing I remembered. It seemed to fade out before me, followed by yet another scene.  

The next thing I remembered was becoming aware that I was somewhere in the Molag Amur region, and walking right towards a small pool of lava.

Two more steps and I would have walked right into it, blissfully unaware that it would have fried me to death in less than 3 seconds.

What had happened to Caldera? Did I walk through it? Around it? Why didn't I stop in the Mage's Guild offices there for teleport to Balmora. Why didn't I do that in Ald'ruhn?

I wasn't thinking straight. It was as if I was sleepwalking on-and-off.

What's-her-name would be angry with me for coming home late.  

I wandered out of the path of the lava pool and continued east, not sure of where I really wanted to go.

I came upon a smuggler's cave but it was abandoned. I decided to stay for a bit, since a really bad ashstorm had come up, making it hard to see in the dark.

In the cave, in one of the boxes they had left behind, I found 250 steel arrows. I put them into my quiver and decided I would try to catch something to eat the next day.

Hungry! That's why I felt so weak. I hadn't had anything to eat in days, and I didn't even realize it until now.  

The next morning found me still wandering east (I assume it was east), when I finally found a big, fat nix-hound. I got out my new steel arrows and shot one at the creature.

It missed, glancing off a rock near the hound's head. Naturally, it charged at me. I got off another shot and hit it, somewhere, a leg, I think. The hound let out a shout of pain, then continued to run towards me as I got off a third shot. This one did the trick, and it fell dead in it's tracks.

I must have blanked out again, but the next thing I remember was disposing of the corpse.

At least I didn't feel hungry anymore.

My case of corprus was getting worse.  

I became aware of things in what must have been a few days after my last meal, based on my pocket-watch.

I used my arrows to catch a few more creatures for meals, but some of them were cursed with blight diseases, adding to my already bad situation.

Along with corprus, which was killing off my intelligence, willpower, and speed every day, I had also gotten a bad case of helljoint, affecting my agility and speed even more, and a nasty case of ash-chancre, giving me a very bad odor.

I didn't even care anymore.  

I continued east until the path I was taking ended up going south.

I didn't remember much about the turn, I just assumed I was going that way when I woke up in mid-stride, and noted the sun setting to my right.

After walking around a few steam vents, I finally came upon a very familiar site.

I had somehow managed to reach Uvirith's Grave, the site of my Telvani stronghold, Tel Uvirith.

The stronghold managed to break through the ashstorm currently in progress, and I breathed a sigh of relief. If I could remain awake long enough, I could get inside, where there would be food, water, and a warm bed.

I could also have one of the people there contact. . . .my wife (Laura, Lucy, or something like that) and tell her I was ok (or not ok, depending on how one was looking at the situation).