LONG Hiatus

Posted by twistedcodex on

School ( I gotta make some crazy grades so I can get into Business School ), I don’t have a job and am currently struggling to find one, and my own personal inability to cross over a mental block I am having with writing. Expect several weeks of me being gone, maybe more than a month even. Sorry to everyone that enjoyed the journals, I promise they will be back as soon as I actually have time. Also for those of you that have amazing TES lore, I’ll try my hardest to learn more of it so I don’t make dumb mistakes like a Vigilant of Stendarr excited and happy with seeing the Dawnbreaker (im dumb, thats a deadra artifact, they dont like deadra *facepalm*) The novel is in the works, Ch.1 seems like its coming along relatively well but again I’m having a writers block (might be my ADD; idk). Everyone enjoy these amazing journals while I work out my issues and have a lovely day 🙂

Blogs I suggest (people that have guided me in my writings)

http://springinkerl.wordpress.com/

http://forgottenjournals.wordpress.com/

http://misadventuresofzander.wordpress.com/

—Last Seed, 31st, 4E 201—

Posted by twistedcodex on

I’ve decided to build a house in Falkreath to take my mind off of the horrible tragedies that befell me yesterday. I was sent a letter from the Jarl of Falkreath by courier that I received this morning when I awoke in Markarth. I shall speak with him once the carriage ride brings me to the village, hopefully I can avoid thinking about what happened and put that in the past… along with the forsaken mace I now carry with me… I feel it tainting me, I must quickly find a place to lock it away for good; so no mortal comes under its spell.

Official Winterhold College Story in the Works

Posted by twistedcodex on

Have you guys ever thought that the College of Winterhold quest-line was absolutely stunning, filled with all the magical prowess, enchanted adventure, and immersed dialogue? No? Good… pretty sure everyone doesn’t think the quest-line did the College justice. So I aim to fix that. In the works currently I have a very comprehensive story I am building up. I already have a fully developed back-story for a character. Their Race/Morals/Traits/Background/Training/Emotions, the whole nine yards has been developed for them, it will of course need refinement as any good story would need (you know… like ill write the story 20 times and maybe the 20th time ill get it right kinda thing). It will be long… like, an actual story, something I hope you can all proudly say is a true tale of the College of Winterhold and what happened there with the Eye of Magnus.

P.S.: The story is zero percent based upon anything involving the “dragonborn” I am trying to make a story about mages, ancient artifacts of the TES lore, and about a character that doesn’t have some “oh mighty conqueror of every single quest known to man and mer” sort of thing going on. This is a real story, and I hope it enraptures you all 😉

P.P.S: I’ll try to keep the journals coming as well, i have a good two weeks of journals already prepared so you’re good for two weeks, my game went a little haywire so i gotta catch a character back up to that point, shouldn’t ruin the story in any way, still playing the game the same style and everything, hope to keep you all coming back for that every other day as well. Love you guys, and every comment brings a big smile to my face, even when its someone critiquing me, i want to be critiqued, please do it, I’m not an English major… I’m a business major freshman, anything and everything constructive is welcome here ❤

—Last Seed, 28Th, 4E 201—

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Today has been far more relaxed than the few before. I awoke and read the letter the man had handed me the day before. It simply said to meet with him again at the Shrine of Talos in town… I decided it was reasonable to see what he wanted before I headed back to Whiterun so I geared up and started to head toward the Shrine when I happened across a Vigilant of Stendarr, he was a good looking orc; easy on the eyes holding himself with great honor. The vigilant asked me if I had seen anyone leaving or entering the house he was in front of. I told him I had just recently arrived in this town and had no knowledge of the house. Disappointed he said everyone around said the same thing, and that he feared there was Deadra worshipping being done in the house. He saw the blade I had sheathed at my side right after and looked at me for a moment, “is that… is that Dawnbreaker?” he whispered as I grasped the hilt….nodding my head, it was indeed the sword he spoke of. He turned around for a moment… thinking intensely then turned back to me. He wanted me to help him check the house, with Meridia’s blade at my side he said it would help greatly if any Deadra were in the house. I agreed… it felt far more urgent than meeting some man that more than likely wished to hit on me at the shrine.

We entered the building and started to investigate. No wood rot… fresh food… people had been here, frequently and recently. He looked at me for a moment before we heard sounds coming from farther into the house. Quickly we pulled out our weapons, Dawnbreaker illuminating the Dwemer molding across the room, and went farther into the house as items around started to shake and lift off the ground. We came across a door farther in that wouldn’t budge and immediately realized we were against more than a simple Deadra, quickly we made for the front door only to have it held shut like a boulder. We turned to each other… then the voice came…. Deadra, demanding we kill each other to survive. I refused the voice as it yelled more and more into my mind, but the vigilant fell to its demands. Begging for forgiveness he turned on me… only to get Dawnbreaker straight through his chest. The poor Vigilant could not hold against the Deadra’s influence… and now he lay dead at my feet…. Meridia would be displeased with her blame bathed in mortal blood of this kind. Then the voice came back… applauding me for my kill, and proclaiming a reward awaited me farther within the house.

Not caring for the disgusting prize when I had a been forced to kill a Vigilant of Stendarr I pushed farther into the house hoping to face the Deadra and kill the damned monster with the fire of Meridia’s light. Deep into the house a wall was taken down with a small cave continuing on farther into the mountain of Markarth. I followed it a short distance before arriving at an altar. As I investigated the altar that had a floating mace above it I became trapped in front in a cage of thorns that rose up out of the ground beneath me. Then the voice spoke again, but now it claimed a name to itself. Molag Bal, Lord of Domination…. this…. this was not a Deadra I could face, even with the Dawnbreaker; even if I was Dragonborn. He spoke, asking what I saw, I told him I saw an altar and he agreed. It was his altar, that once had sacrifices made at it regularly before Boethia, a competitor to Molag Bal had a priest desecrate the altar. I asked what it had to do with me and he claimed the priest had not made his recent visits to pray for Boethia at the altar, and Molag Bal wanted him to visit one last time, so that he may capture the priest and demand him relinquish his soul to Molag Bal. He offered me freedom if I found and released the priest who he said was captured somewhere… and with no way to face Molag Bal… I had to agree, divines forgive me.

After that I rushed out of the house, disregarding the man that was waiting for me at the shrine and started searching for the priest. Now after a day’s search I’ve tracked him to a redoubt near Solitude. I shall prepare my equipment and set out for the redoubt in the morning. So that I may rid myself of any connection to Molag Bal and his damned existence.

—Last Seed, 27Th, 4E 201—

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By the Nine I have some of the most absurd luck, good and bad. I’ve hardly sat down long enough to even eat these past three days… finally after far too long I can get some rest… and write down what happened these past few days.

Several mornings ago everything was as planned. I woke up early at the inn in Rorikstead, wrote the letter to Kodlak and had a courier send it off to him. After some breakfast I hired a carriage to take me to Solitude where I had learned Meridia’s temple resided. About a days travel and we arrived in Solitude, when the moon was high in the night sky. I stopped in at the Winking Skeever, the inn for the town and rested there for the light.

 

Next morning I gathered my gear and headed just south of solitude where the temple was located, coming across it maybe ten minutes down the road from Solitude. Upon arriving at the steps Meridia spoke of how glorious the temple once was, when mortals came to worship her frequently. She told me to place her beacon upon the pedestal in front of her statue and as I did I was lifted high into the skies above Skyrim. There, closest a mortal has possibly ever gotten to the realm of the Nine Meridia spoke to me of what my task was. A necromancer had barred himself in the inner-most chamber of the temple and was enacting dark magic and research upon the bodies of the dead. Meridia proclaimed to me that I was to guide her light through the temple to open the way to the inner sanctuary, and kill the necromancer, where upon I would be given her great blade forged by her light; Dawnbreaker. I complied and was lowered back to the grounds of Skyrim far below. As I regained my balance after landing Meridia herself sent a great light down from above that transferred through her beacon and down into the temple below. I followed the light down and headed into the temple, ready to bring back the glory of her temple.

 

Once within the temple I understood what foul necromancy had been cast upon the temple. Dark energy hovered in the air like fog and corrupted shades from the desecrated bodies walked the halls of the temple. Slowly but surely I pushed onward, silently into the temple guiding Meridia’s light throughout as to open the path to Malkoran, the dark necromancer tainting my ancestors bodies. After some time of leading the light through the dark rooms, tortured souls of my ancestors, and destroyed temple Meridia spoke once again to me. We had arrived at the inner sanctuary where Malkoran was chanting the unholy words to the necromantic rituals. Meridia opened the door to the sanctuary and I was met with a rush of dark energy as swarms of shades collapsed on my position, Malkoran laughing as he rose more of the dreadful beings. Asking for strength from Meridia herself I cast a great nova of ice across the room, freezing the shades and Malkoran in place. The room, now filled with silence was a place of peace… as I shattered the shades of each fallen soldier, and made my way slowly to the necromancer himself. Once I was upon him I cast yet another spell and melted the ice around his body… giving him the ability to see me before he died. In terror he uttered words of forgiveness…. like all shameless mortals do, and promised to never set foot in the temple again. Without a second thought, I grabbed the Dawnbreak from the pedestal just beyond him, and shattered the frozen body below him, bringing his final moments, to a brutally painful end, as was deserved for the atrocities he had committed to the fallen. Meridia, pleased with my deed, named me her champion and asked of me to spread her light throughout all of Skyrim to which a honorably complied.

Done now, with helping the god I made my way back to Solitude, with the warm blade Dawnbreaker glowing at my side. Some of the guards recognized me from the morning and saw what I now had in my possession eyes filled with wonder. A priest in the streets of Solitude bowed to me… a follower of Meridia no doubt, and thanked me for what I had done. I bowed back, and spoke to the man, that I was simply doing what all mortals should do, and honoring the gods that have helped us through the ages, and my ancestors. We exchanged farewells, and I returned to the Winking Skeever for some well-earned rest.

 

Later as I was relaxing at the inn, having my fill of food and drink, a man at the bar came up to me and asked if I would like to have a little contest. I declined at first, but he told of a magic staff unlike any other that he was in possession of, and if I could beat him in a drinking contest It was mine. Now with my fancy struck by the promise of a great magic staff, I agreed to the contest as he walked back to the bar. He arrived back at my table, moments later with several tankards of a strong beverage. We shook on the contest and started off, he downed one, then I; him once more, then I. After two of the absurdly potent drinks he told me he was done, and that one more would be my win. Without a second thought I downed the drink…. then everything became a blur.

 

I awoke… in a temple, a priestess yelling at me and calling me a blasphemer. Confused I asked her where I was and she laughed at me. I had come here in the night drunk speaking of a marriage and a goat, I had fondled the breasts to the statue of one of the Nine… and I had thrown trash all about the temple. Bowing the lowest I have ever done in my life, I asked for forgiveness and promised to pay for the damages and clean up the mess. She saw that I was not one for being so rude and forgave me after I had cleaned, telling me that I had blabbered about Rorikstead or something when I had arrived. I thanked her and left the temple shameful of what I had done, and how it had all started because of my desire for that staff. As I left the temple I searched myself for any answers as to what had happened the night before and found a note with some materials listed that were needed to repair the staff it would seem. At the bottom it had a name, Sam…. that must have been the man at the inn’s name. I studied the note as I walked around Markarth looking for an Inn to rest at… I may have slept when I was drunk but I was certainly not in any better condition to continue searching for the answers to last nights events. Finally as I came about what I think was an inn by the name of Silver Blood, near some merchant’s stalls close by I heard screaming and when I turned I saw a man stabbing a woman in the back. Moments later guards filled the area and killed the man as he shouted something about the Forsworn…. oh gods not the Forsworn. I turned away quickly trying to avoid being part of whatever was going on and ran straight into a man with tattoos across his face. He asked me what had happened and I told him, trying to speed the conversation along so that I could go rest. He sulked for a moment about the poor woman and then handed me a note… saying I had dropped it. Without even questioning the man I took it and went into the inn, paying for a night and going to my room…. I haven’t even read what that note is about…. I will in the morning, but now I wish for rest… and plenty of it.

—Last Seed, 24Th, 4E 201—

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Today another contract came in from a man in Rorikstead. His father had been kidnapped by a group of Forsworn… some cult group that claimed they had the true ancestral right to the reach, the western province of Skyrim. Kodlak spoke to me of the contract and agreed upon me being free for some time after the contract was completed… good thing considering what I found at the Forsworn camp later that day. I set out for Rorikstead and arrived by carriage around noon when the sun was highest in the sky.

After speaking with the locals I learned the encampment was just south of Rorikstead, and that usually the Forsworn kept to themselves considering Rorikstead was not part of the claim they said was theirs…. least, until they decided to kidnap the innkeeper here, seems they’ve had a change of plans. I started the hike south and came across the encampment only a little ways south of the village. Keeping low I was able to see maybe eight forsworn in the encampment… several sleeping in their tents, but one female shaman was chanting around the camps fire. I decided to wait and see what she did, if she was chanting she would need herbs, and when she went out to gather them I would take her down… sure enough only a few minutes later she stopped and gathered a bowl from a tent nearby. I watched her as she walked a ways away from the camp and then notched an arrow taking aim; silently I dispatched her and went to check her body.

The Forsworn armor… if it can even be called armor was made of the furs of many animals raggedly put together, her headdress made of spriggan wood and hagraven feathers. After looking over her body I saw that they were very tribal, more than likely poorly equipped for a one on one fight with anyone other than a female Breton but decided it best I kill the rest silently. I crept into the camp and slowly started to slit the throats of each of the sleeping Forsworn, arriving after a bit at the tent with my contracted kidnappy in it. A much larger Forsworn was guarding him, back to the entrance… and as I looked over him, I could see a faint glow coming from where his heart was… a subtle pulsing aura, I had seen something of the sort back in the books at the Mage’s Guild in Cyrodil and tried to recollect what exactly it had been before it finally hit me. He was a Briarheart, a forsworn in tune with the primal ways of the wilderness, supposedly the aura was a contract with a hagraven, the heart… less flesh and more plant than anything else was filled with amazing herbalistic properties, and; if you could sneak up on a Briarheart, you could use a small force of magic to rip it out of their chest, instantly killing them and keeping the Briarheart itself intact for creating potent potions. I took this into practice and as I came up on the Briarheart I casted a small incantation and forced the heart streak out his backside, him dropping immediately to the floor.

Mirlak, the innkeeper turned around at that moment to see me… astonished at what he was witnessing as I held in my hand the heart of the man that only moments ago had a sword to his back. He was quite an older, balding man. I told him not to fear, and that I was a Companion that had come to rescue him. I came around behind him… making sure to put the briarheart in my pack out of his eyesight as to not scare him…. I would research its properties later. Removing the bindings on the man he got up after and thanked me for saving him, saying he could make his way back to Rorikstead with it being so close, I told him I wasn’t about to let him die on the way back when he stopped me and told me of something more pressing for my attention. Farther up the hill he said, down into a small pit was a door leading into a ruin the Forsworn had setup in. Inside there was a hagraven that had a contract with the Briarheart I had just killed… and a several more Forsworn that would not simply let the deaths of their fellows make them leave the area. He asked me to clear them out so as to keep other villagers of Rorikstead safe. I agreed; handing him a dagger as insurance for him to survive the trip back, I would reclaim it once I was done with the ruin. We separated and I searched for the door he spoke of, finding it like he said, at the top of the hill in a dugout pit.

Silently I crept in to be greeted by a small hallway with a senseless amount of traps in it… not even well placed. Avoiding all of them I could see that it was a very small room, with only 3 Forsworn, but like the innkeeper had said, at a ritual table on the lower level there was a Hagraven fiddling with some dead animal. Quietly I killed off the forsworn guards that were stationed at opposite ends of the room, now it was time for the hagraven. I’ve never fought a hagraven before and didn’t think it would be anything different from a normal creature, it had a head, and it hadn’t sensed me yet so I crept up from behind and tried to slit its throat…. but hardly scratched the damn creature as I quickly pulled away from its grasp. The damned thing had known I was there the whole time and let me sneak up on it, I could see a faint glow around its body, a ward to protect itself from any physical harm. Without anytime to think the hagraven’s hands ignited with flame, quickly I dived out of the way as it hurled fireball after fireball at where I had just been standing. Thinking quickly on how to dispel the ward it had placed on itself I dove into the hallway leading back to the upper level and dodged the traps laid out yet again. Praying to the Nine that the beast would trip on of the large traps and have it come crashing down on it, killing it; or at the least, removing the ward from its body.

Luck was on my side as it stumbled on the poor flooring and tripped a large trap I had avoided at the beginning. Suddenly a massive log came barreling downward on the creature as it was crushed between the preceding wall and the massive tree. Now with my life no longer in danger I decided to search the rooms that I had seen behind the hagraven. There was a small hallway that lead to an intersection, to the right a room, that appeared to be where the creature had been nesting, and left a way back outside the ruin. I investigated the nest gathering some herbs from around its nest before coming upon a large chest in the corner. The chest had a strange glow coming from inside and as I opened it I saw what looked like a large carved opal. Dazzled by its radiant glow I picked the item up, only to be met with a great voice from within my mind.

The stone I had just picked up I learned from the voice was none other than Meridia’s Beacon, an ancient artifact from one of the gods. She told me of a terrible darkness that had swept over her shrine and claimed me the new instrument of her will. I would go to her shrine and wipe away the darkness that had harbored itself in her shrine and become the great prophet of her radiant light. Seeing as it was a god… I assumed declining wasn’t an option for this task and agreed to cleanse her shrine immediately. Her voice stopped and I waited a moment for her to speak again… hearing nothing I put away the beacon and headed out.  Back at Rorikstead I met with the innkeeper at his inn. Informing him that the Forsworn threat was no more, he saw how tired I was an offered me a room for the night, which I gratefully took after having a meal and some ale. Tomorrow I shall set out for Meridian’s Shrine after I write a letter to Kodlak of the completed contract and what I have been tasked to do.

—Last Seed, 23rd, 4E 201—

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—Last Seed, 23rd, 4E 201—

I awoke this morning to some commotion coming from the dining hall as Aela, Kodlak, and a Vilkas talked back and forth about some fragment of something or another. After gearing up I walked up to the hall and asked what all the commotion was, Kodlak looked at me and said a man had come to them with information regarding a fragment of their founders great axe. After some intense thought Kodlak looked at me and asked if I wished to retrieve the piece as the final trial for my acceptance into The Companions. Still unsure of the history of The Companions I decided it would be good to take the chance and learn some history during the trial.

After some deliberations with the other leaders Kodlak assigned Farkas as my Shield-Brother to follow me along on my trial and watch over how I held myself during it. I greeted Farkas, learning a little about the man that would be by my side for some time. He was Vilka’s brother and had the strength of an ox. Unlike his brother who had a great head on his shoulders Farkas was a bit lacking in smarts, but was honest and good willed as well as a great warrior, one of the best The Companions had to offer. After a moment of preparing the necessary supplies we headed out to the location just north of Whiterun, about an hour’s hike. When we arrived at the location we say it was an ancient nord tomb…. seemed befitting of ancient weaponry like the one we were searching for. After a moment of checking over our equipment Farkas and I entered the ruins, once inside we noticed something wrong…. much of the tombs were already open, and many a dragr lay dead on the floor. Farkas and I met gazed for a moment, then crouched down before heading farther in…. someone had been here, recently.

For an hour we searched the ruins before coming across a large room with a closed gate on one side we hadn’t seen signs of anyone else since we entered so we took this moment to rest for a bit and relax our nerves. After a few minutes rest we started to look around for a way to open the gate and proceed onward into the crypt; finding a lever in a small enclave on the left side of the room. I crept into the small room and pulled the lever, to have the unsettling image of the gate come crashing down behind me, locking me into the room. Farkas chuckled for a moment, but told me the other gate had opened and he would look for a way to get me out farther forward. Just as he was about to turn around to head onward a group of people came out of the shadows of the proceeding hall, weapons of pure silver drawn. They laughed at us and spoke of how they would kill us like the dogs we were on site…. confused by the words they spoke Farkas glared at them menacingly, he knew what they were getting at it seemed.

I now know partly as to why The Companions may have obtained their name. As the group that had proclaimed themselves The Silver Hand started at Farkas…. he transformed into a great beast, a werewolf. In a flash the group fell to his mighty claws and fangs, and he rushed off into the next room. Moments later the gate in front of me rose back up allowing me passage and Farkas came walking back out of the next corridor… man again. Apologizing for the sudden transformation he told me that the inner circle of The Companions had the blood of Hircine in them, and were given the ability to change into a werewolf, the greatest of hunters, at will. Long had The Silver Hand been battling with The Companions to rid Tamriel of their existence, but the proud and strong group of warriors stood strong against there every attack.

We shook as new found companions with more knowledge of each other than we did before and set forth upon the trial at hand. We needed to find the fragment, but now we knew who to expect farther into the crypt. Silently from the shadows we dispatched the Silver Hand members as we went farther into the enclave and if something went wrong Farkas made quick work of those that survived my arrows.

After nearly three hours of traversing the darkness of the crypt we came across the main chamber where the fragment lay across a pedestal… but we both knew what would happen if we took it from its perch. All around the room closed tombs sat against the walls. Deciding to replace bow with magic, Farkas looked at me somewhat disappointed as I laid runes across the floor in front of each tomb. The Companions were a proud group of warriors, not clever mages… thus magic was usually looked down upon within their members.  After finishing up placing all the incantations I told him I understood it was cowardly but greater battles with living opponents waited over the horizon, and I would rather battle with an opponent that knows honor, than a dragr that merely swings his blade at the living. He agreed with me and as I lifted the fragment the room erupted in gouts of flame as the dragr stepped out of their tombs and into the runes laid upon the floor. Throwing up a great ward I protected Farkas and I from being burned alive as the room was engulfed in flames and the stench of burning flesh.

Once the smoke had settled all that was left of the room was embers and ash from the fallen warriors of old. We sat for a moment in the room, praying for the soldiers before making our way back out of the crypt. We arrived back in Whiterun later that night, fragment in hand, welcomed by our fellow companions as we entered the halls of Jorrvaskr. Bowing to Kodlak I presented him the fragment as Farkas spoke of our trial… excluding the bit about my great magical escapade at the end. With all companions gathered in the hall, Kodlak announced me officially as a member of The Companions, and welcomed me to the family before telling everyone to get a good night’s rest. Quite the day here in Whiterun…. quite the day for me even. I shake that I am Dragonborn though… it is inevitable that I face my fate at some point and meet with the Greybeards soon. Until I feel ready for such a responsibility however; I shall continue my Journey throughout Skyrim as not Dragonborn, but as myself until the dragons truly awaken from their slumber. Ever since the first dragon at Helgen and the second here at Whiterun the horizon has been silent, so I will bide my time and strengthen my skills.