The Vianto Diaries - Entry 14

• Posted by Andrew Shepherd July 15, 2015 - 702 views

   Entry 14  Arkay knows what day it is now...
  

  I have just awoken in the Moorside Inn in Morthal. I'm so groggy I can barely write but I need to get this down before I forget. The local apothecary, Lami, has just told me I have been laid up in the inn for the past two days, semiconscious and delirious. She found me out in the swamps north east of the town, sitting half frozen in the mud and slushy ice, off my head on Arkay knows what having a conversation with a dead mud crab. 

  I am covered in cuts and scratches, dart-wing bites, fang marks on one arm and a burn mark on my other arm in the shape of gripping fingers. Apparently when I was found in the marsh, there were numerous dead beasts lying around me such as frost bite spiders, some wolves and a swamptroll,all of them cleaved and burned. 

  My head is swimming, Lami just gave me some stinking herbal tea and its really affecting me. 

  So what I remember is this. One minute I had passed out in my room in Riften from too many Argonian cocktails, the next I awake to the stench of blood and bowels, lying on a crimson-stained floor, in a freezing hut full of broken furniture, tattered body parts and three terrified captives, bound and gagged.  

  And a dark brotherhood assassin. 

  For some reason, this woman thought that I had stolen a contract from them by killing an old woman in Riften. I have NO idea of what you are talking about, lady. I responded. Oh, I think you do Vianto. You're a real pro. You made it look like an accident but you're a killer through and through. But I've never killed anyone in my life I said. Oh, wait a minute. There was Madanach with the pick axe in Markarth. And I probably caused JarJar to get pounded unto death. And I accidentally shot Durak with his own crossbow, but I swear, I can't remember anyone else! 

  So anyway, she told me that the debt had to be repaid in blood, indicating the three shivering captives. You want me to murder one of them in cold blood? I'd asked. Yes, she replied. Someone here has to die today. She looked pointedly at me. 

  No way was I going to take on a dark brotherhood assassin, but neither would I kill someone in cold blood. And neither did I want to die myself!  

  Now a couple of times in Skyrim when I have been really angry or under extreme duress, I have cast the flame cloak spell that I learned from the tome on the frozen northern coast. This time I was really stressed about what decision to make and I inadvertently cast it again. Except this time it wasn't a cloak, it was a fiery holocaust. 

  A wall of flame rippled out from my body, blew the roof off and the walls outwards and incinerated everything in between except me. I ran screaming from the burning building and watched as the flames burned down, which happened quickly due to the cold. 

  With some trepidation I stepped back into the smoldering ruins. The three captives were nothing but ash piles, but the assassin lay breathing shallowly on the ground with severe third degree burns to the entirety of her body. Amazingly, she spoke to me in a croaking whisper: 

  "Well done. Now take the blade of woe and finish it," she wheezed. 

  "I can't do that!" I exclaimed. "You're in serious need of medical attention! How can you even TALK! Your lungs must be severely burned, you shouldn't be able to breathe! Even inhaling hot steam can damage the airways and cause massive bronchospasm leading to death. I mean, your whole BODY should have just melted..." 

  "There's no saving me, fool." she whispered. "End my agony!" 

  "No no, these are terrible burns, I have to try and help you!" I cried. I had a couple of bottles of skooma that I had picked up from an Argonian junkie in Riften. I poured half of one of them through the charcoal rictus that was left of her face and then as an afterthought downed the rest of it. Then with all of my effort that left me panting I cast a healing spell on the charred assassin. Her body shuddered violently for a second and then lay still. I watched on for several minutes. There was no sign of respiratory function so I sighed and took up the curved blade that lay near her scorched hand, fingers burned off. 

  I walked back into the marsh and then the skooma hit me. My whole body went hot and sweaty and then a huge adrenaline rush overtook me and I ran blindly into the marsh, laughing the whole time. 

   

  Whew, that bit of writing took effort and the herbal tea that Lami has given me is sending me to sleep. I'll write again soon... 

   

  … I just had the most bizarre dream. I was running through the marsh, with my heart in my mouth when I came across a clearing with a frozen pond in the middle. The pond was ringed with various herbs and plants, and in the middle of the pond was this huge mudcrab. 

  "Hello Mr mudcrab," I said to it. "How are you?" The mudcrab scuttled from side to side and clicked his claws. 

  "Hello Vianto," it replied. "I'm fine thank you. How are you doing?" 

  "Not so well, I've been having one constant horrible experience since coming to Skyrim. I hate it here and I can't go home." 

  "Ahh, you need a different perspective Vianto, you need to step into a separate reality. Here let me help you,"  The mudcrab sidled over to some stangely colored plants at the side of the pond, grabbed one in its claw, picked it, apologised to it for picking it and then scuttled over and handed it to me. "Eat," he said offering me the plant.  I put it in my mouth and chewed it. Within minutes the sky had begun to oscillate between different colours of the spectrum, Masser and Secunda shrank and expanded, and a flock of ravens with human babies heads flew over, wailing. 

  He gave me several other plants and before I knew it, all semblance of the previous reality had disappeared and a new, indescribable one had taken its place. I was visited by all kinds of creatures imparting their wisdom: trolls, wolves, spiders, even a chaurus. All of them split in half and burned afterwards. Eventually, a wavy green plant came along, propelled on massess of writhing roots. It began slapping me about my head with its soft branches. 

  Then I heard a screeching, wailing sound. It was music! From oblivion! A Redguard approached through the mist playing a lute which was making the horrendous noise. He was singing " Purple haze, all in my brain. Lately things don't seem the same!" He then smashed the lute on the ground, set it on fire and said: 

  "its time to wake up brother," 

  Then I woke up here and wrote this! I need to sleep again... 

   

  … Its morning now. I have just been visited by the town wizard, Falion. He looks exactily like the Redguard in my dream. He just told me that he helped Lami drag me out of the marsh and into Morthal. I thanked him profusely. And then he told me that the drugs were the least of my problems and that I was under a terrible curse. What kind of curse? I asked. It is old and it is new. He replied. Arkay wizards are such cryptic bastards! I asked if he could help me with it. Perhaps, he replied. But I have my hands full with the town. Bad vampire problem, you see. 

  Vampires? I am outta here. There's one thing about Skyrim that I could never really stomach. All the damn vampires... 

   

  … later that day, sitting around a campfire somewhere along the trail towards Dragon bridge (although I'm not going there, they probably remember what I did in Solitude...). I've just conjured Narhaz and had an interesting conversation. It went something like this: 

  Narhaz: "You again!" his voice like a steel sword being tortured. "I swear by all the princes mortal scum, if it weren't for the Rose I would leave Oblivion, hunt you down and eviscerate you!" 

  Me: "What's wrong Narhaz? What happened to me?" 

  Narhaz: " Fool. You sat for a day and a half talking to beasts, which I had to kill because they were trying to eat you. You stuffed your mouth from the filth of the ground and sat in your own stench. At one point I tried to lift you to your feet but the bonds the Rose places on me prevented it. I even summoned Arthur to get try and drag you but he craves only attention!" 

  Me: "Sorry Narhaz and thanks for looking after me," 

  Narhaz: " I don't want to look after you scum. I WANT TO KILL YOOOOUUU!!" he screamed and then disappeared.  

  I promise, Narhaz, the next time I encounter a real foe, I will let you rend and tear them, you faithful old pal...