Agents of the Queen Part 13: An Elder Scrolls Online tale

  • Corruption of the Ancestors

     

    Ian S. McClure

     

    The aristocratic Altmer turned to face me, frowning, as the large crowd of nobles milled about in the afternoon sun outside the ruins of Tanzelwil. I recognized him—he was Prince Naemon, brother of Queen Ayrenn. After a little while of studying me, he said, “You seem to be familiar. Vulkhel Guard, no?” he asked politely.

     

    I inclined my head. “Aye. I am the newest Eye of the Queen, Ardolan Larethbinder. My companions are Elereth, Suhr and Lilinastre Larethbinder,” I said, signaling at each of my companions in turn.

     

    The Prince nodded, stroking his chin. “Welcome to Tanzelwil, then. As I’m sure a mer of your stature knows, Tanzelwil is a site where the Altmeri elite come to pay their respects to our ancestors. It is a time-honored tradition. Which is actually more a bit of political theater if you ask me, but our Queen takes it quite seriously. Unfortunately, Her Majesty is seemingly under attack by the spirits.”

     

    I blinked. “Attack?” I asked, surprised. “Is she in danger?”

     

    Prince Naemon scoffed. “If danger doesn’t find her, she’ll seek it out and invite it to dinner,” he said. “She and the Battlereeve seem determined to complete the ritual. See to it that she survives, won’t you?”

     

    Suddenly, another Altmer approached. She, too, was nobility, if her dress was anything to go by. She looked at my group with disdainful eyes. “Come, husband,” she said. “Is it really necessary to speak with them?”

     

    “It is, my dear Estre,” the Prince responded with a sigh. “This mer here is Ardolan, the Queen’s latest agent. He’s quite important, believe it or not.”

     

    “I believe it’s best we go on our way. We have a Queen to save, after all,” I said quickly.

     

    “Indeed. Stars guide you,” the Prince responded, sounding rather bored.

     

    I met with my group, out of earshot of the nobles.

     

    “Charming group,” Elereth said, rolling her eyes.

     

    “Do you see why I abandoned Altmer politics?” I asked with a smirk, before growing serious. “Now then. Suhr scouted the area; the ruins are swarming with the spirits. If the Prince’s comments are true, they’ll be hostile. Are we all ready for combat?”

     

    Suhr sighed, looking at his belt, where his twin daggers were. “Yes, this one supposes so. He left Kismet nearby, tied to a tree, so he will not get in the way,” he said nervously.

     

    Lili looked at her hand, making magical electricity crackle in her palm. “I guess I’m ready,” she said hesitantly. “Though I’ll be testing a lot of spells for the first time. At least I won’t feel guilty about killing; these mer are already dead.”

     

    Elereth frowned. “Hang on a moment. I thought spirits could only be harmed by silver or enchanted weaponry?” she asked.

     

    My sister shook her head. “Usually, that’s not the case, no. Only specific kinds of wraith have that quality, and these seem to be ‘ordinary’ spirits from what I can see.”

     

    “Well, I’m ready then,” Elereth responded confidently.

     

     

    Luckily, we managed to avoid the aforementioned spirits—I did not have to draw steel just then. We traversed the ruin’s exterior, until we found our charge. Queen Ayrenn stood at an altar, eyes closed, as Battlereeve Urcelmo stood behind her, looking about in his wary manner. I noticed she had added a sword to her belt. Urcelmo briefly tensed upon noticing my group, but he soon relaxed.

     

    “Hail, Ardolan. I’m glad you could make it,” he whispered as I approached. “Stay quiet, if you please. Her Majesty is performing an important part of the rites.”

     

    I then looked at the Queen.

     

    “We call upon our honored ancestors to pass on their knowledge and wisdom,” she said. But she was soon interrupted—for a spirit appeared from thin air! He was translucent, but I could note the unpleasant look on his face.

     

    “Your ancestors disown you! You are not fit for the throne. And Norion shall end your pathetic reign!” he spat—before Urcelmo struck him with his mace. The spirit collapsed, then vanished.

     

    The Queen sighed as she opened her eyes. “Damn it,” she swore, surprising me. She then said, “Maybe it’s all that royal ‘we’ nonsense that’s making them angry. ‘We call upon our ancestors’ and such… Ah, but I jest. I’m glad you and your team could make it, Ardolan. We have a situation here.”

     

    I nodded. Suddenly, Suhr said sarcastically, “I think we noticed, Your Majesty.”

     

    I immediately felt a mixture of dread and anger. You don’t address royalty like that! I spun on my heels, glaring at Suhr, but before I could say anything, Queen Ayrenn began to laugh.

     

    “Hah! Suhr, was it? I applaud you. Too many are afraid to speak their minds in my presence,” she said, amused. I noticed my mouth was slightly agape with shock, and I promptly closed it.

     

    “But—you are a Queen,” I said, turning back to her. “Surely you demand respect.”

     

    She snorted. “Don’t remind me. I’ve never been one for politics—I took the throne out of necessity, not pleasure. I believe that’s something we have in common, Ardolan; I know you’re an heir to Ralodoren Larethbinder, in Shimmerene,” she said, stepping down from the altar. “But you crave a different path… That’s part of the reason I chose you for the Eyes. We have much in common, believe it or not.”

     

    I fell silent. If what she said was true, then my Queen was a more interesting person than I had originally assumed.

     

    Eventually, Elereth said, more respectfully, “Well. I think we should return to the problem at hand, Your Majesty. These spirits are an issue.”

     

    The Queen nodded. “That’s true… The spirit mentioned Norion, my advisor. He’s a capable wizard. If he’s turned against us, I fear for the safety of the priestesses here. Look after the two of them, make sure they complete their tasks safely. Then return here,” she ordered, her voice regaining the tone of authority.

     

    I gathered my group after we left. “Well, if there're two priestesses,” I said, “then it’s best we split up. I’ll take Lilinastre and find one, so Suhr and Elereth can handle the other one. Deal?”

     

    Elereth looked at me. “I want to be with you, Ardolan,” she said simply.

     

    Lili grinned. “I can handle Suhr for a bit,” she said jokingly. “You should take your little lover with you. Wouldn’t want her getting hurt, would we?”

     

    I blinked. “Wait—how’d you know about that? You were asleep,” I said, confused.

     

    She shrugged. “I was awake enough to notice you two getting feisty,” she said, grinning. “But that’s not important now. You taking her?”

     

    I smiled at Elereth. “If she insists, then I shall.”

     

    Suhr sighed, still nervous. “Aye. Hopefully this one and Lili will not encounter any spirits,” he said in a low voice.

     

    “Pfft, come on, Suhr,” Lili said, playfully punching the Khajiit’s arm. “You’re good with those daggers.”

     

    “Then let us be off. Good luck, you two,” I said, before leaving with Elereth.

     

     

    “Somebody, protect me!” the young Altmeri woman cried, shielding herself with a ward as a large group of spirits with swords closed in. Elereth sniped two of them, their forms vanishing as they hit the ground. As the rest turned, I emerged from the bushes, felling three of the ghosts with strikes of my sword.

     

    Though they were seemingly unarmored, the sheer size of the group was daunting, and if I did not have Elereth watching my back I would’ve certainly hesitated at engaging them so. Many were the times I was surrounded, but my foes were felled by arrow or blade in short order. After a bit of fighting, the last phantom fell. I quickly turned as another spirit appeared from thin air behind me, ready to strike it down—but her face was benevolent, and her voice soft.

     

    “We are honored by your humble prayers. Thank you for freeing us,” she said, before vanishing.

     

    The priestess slumped against a pillar, wiping sweat from her brow. “I’m done here. You can report back to the Queen, if you like.”

     

    Just then, Suhr and Lili returned. Both looked quite tired, and Lili had a rather large burnt spot on her shoulder. “We… are done as well,” Suhr said, panting. “The spirit that menaced the other priestess was… challenging to fight. A skilled mage.”

     

    “Will you two be alright?” I asked, worried.

     

    Lili nodded. “Yeah—burn’s not as bad as it looks. I’ll get my shoulder back to normal when my magicka reserves are replenished.”

     

    I hummed. “If you say so… Back to Queen Ayrenn?” I asked the group.

     

    Elereth nodded. “Seems best.”

     

    We went to the center of the ruins, where we found a set of descending stairs leading to a stone door, similar in style to the Ayleid doors I had seen in ruins back in Cyrodiil. The Queen and Urcelmo were outside, clearly waiting for us.

     

    “Good, you've returned,” the Battlereeve said. “For the final rites, the Queen must enter the catacombs of Tanzelwil—where, we imagine, the strongest spirits await. I can’t accompany Her Majesty, for there’s still unfinished business to attend to on the surface. Go with her, make sure she returns unscathed.”

     

    Queen Ayrenn scoffed. “Excuse me, Urcelmo, I was a warrior before I was a queen. I’m perfectly capable of defending myself,” she said, slightly annoyed. She then glanced at my group. “Still, a few extra hands would be helpful. I would welcome your groups’ company down below, Ardolan. Besides, Norion is probably down there—to be able to control the spirits so utterly, he’d have to be nearby. And if we can kill a traitor today, so the better.”

     

    “We’d be honored to assist,” I replied.

     

    She nodded, beckoning us to follow her through the large stone door. Inside, Tanzelwil continued to resemble the ruins of the Wild Elves—which I suppose makes sense, but I still found it quite interesting. I didn’t have time to truly think about this, however; two more spirits appeared from the shadows beyond the glowing stones. Elereth and Lilinastre quickly took them out with arrow and spell, but despite my expectations, more didn’t appear.

     

    “Strange,” Suhr whispered. “You’d think this Norion fellow would try harder.”

     

    I hummed again, scanning the area. I noticed a stone that glowed differently—a dark shade of purple, rather than the normal light blue. “Lili,” I asked, pointing at it. “Shatter that, would you?”

     

    She nodded, focused, and released a fireball, which struck the crystal and broke it. The Queen nodded in approval. “Good,” she said, “I think Norion used that to harness his necromantic powers. Without that stone, he won’t be able to torment our precursors anymore.”

     

    Elereth grumbled. “I don’t know much about Altmer society,” she told me, “But you mer adore your ancestors, right? Not to the level of the Dark Elves, of course, but it still seems like most of you wouldn’t do this to them. This Norion mer has to be pretty evil to stoop so low.”

     

    “You’re correct about how we venerate our forerunners,” I told her as we continued walking through the ruins, “but then, if Norion is with the Veiled Heritance—a group that attempted regicide—I imagine he has the stomach to do whatever he feels necessary to stop our Queen.”

     

    Our conversation was interrupted by our arrival at another stone door, much larger than the one outside. “Alright,” Queen Ayrenn said in a low voice, “he's probably in the room ahead. Brace yourselves.”

     

    I glanced at my group, looking at each of them in turn. Elereth seemed unfazed, Suhr seemed frightened, and Lilinastre seemed courageous, yet cautious.

     

    “We’re ready, my Queen,” I replied, equally low. “Let us end this traitorous advisor.”

     

     

    Norion stood in the center of the large stone altar, awaiting our arrival. Though he seemed unarmored at first glance, the subtle flow of magicka coursed through his skin—clearly, he had protection. In his hands was a massive, two-handed mace, which crackled with a lightning enchantment.

     

    “Ah, the errant Queen,” he spat. “After I kill you, the Heritance will reign supreme! No longer will we have to deal with the likes of foul-blooded Elves and walking cats. The Altmer will have their rightful place as the masters of the Isles, and of Tamriel!”

     

    Lili scoffed. “You rehearse that?” she cried, defiant yet somewhat scared.

     

    Norion responded with a bolt of lightning! My sister rolled away at the last moment, as Elereth nocked an arrow. Suhr and I rushed at the former advisor, weapons drawn. Through the corner of my eye, I saw the Queen do the same.

     

    “Your Majesty! I think we should handle this!” I shouted, too occupied with the fight to be polite.

     

    She expertly dodged another lightning bolt. “Duly noted!” she shouted back, before slashing at Norion with her sword as Elereth’s arrow struck. Both bounced off his body, not causing the mer any harm. Norion smirked as his weapon swung towards the Queen, who dodged again.

     

    “Hah! Are all of your ‘Heritance’ such sluggish fighters?” she taunted, as Suhr and I attacked.

     

    Norion scowled, swinging the mace in a circular motion. Suhr leapt acrobatically, but I could not do such a feat in heavy armor. I managed to block it, barely, the shield and plate taking most of the force of the blow. I grunted.

     

    “Your magic won’t last forever. Surrender,” I growled.

     

    “Pah. You’re all fools. And soon, you’ll all be dead,” he responded, lifting his mace for another blow at the Queen.

     

    Lilinastre suddenly fired a purple spell towards Norion, which struck him. At first, it seemed to be another ineffective attack—until the Queen’s sword pierced his chest! As he collapsed, dying, Queen Ayrenn smiled at my sister.

     

    “Dispel magic, correct? Nice work,” she said. At first, Lili’s face was horrified, clearly shocked, but she soon sighed and shook her head.

     

    “Thank you, Your Majesty,” she replied simply.

     

    We sheathed our weapons, then the Queen stepped to the center of the altar, casually shoving Norion’s corpse aside with her foot. She then closed her eyes, clasping her hands together.

     

    “We call upon our honored ancestors to pass on their knowledge and wisdom,” she said, echoing her earlier rite.

     

    Golden spirits surrounded her, weaponless and peaceful. One of them, who looked like a quite old mer, said, “We are honored by your prayers. Go forth, and reign with our blessings, Queen Ayrenn."

     

    She smiled again, as the spirits dissipated. “Thank you, ancestors,” she whispered. She then turned to us, beckoning. “Come with me. It’s time to leave Tanzelwil.”

     

    Outside, the Queen met up with Urclemo. “Are you hurt, Your Majesty?” he asked, concerned.

     

    Queen Ayrenn shook her head. “No. My protectors performed marvelously.”

     

    “‘Tis our duty, my Queen,” I said, grateful at her words.

     

    The Battlereeve nodded. In his usual gruff voice, he said to us, “Then I will ask that you perform another task, once you feel ready. Razum-dar has been investigating the Veiled Heritance. We believe he’s found something in Mathiisen, a town famed for the quality of their smiths. They supply the armed forces of Auridon with weaponry and armor. But if it’s fallen to these ruffians, we need to act quickly. You should find the town without much effort—just follow the roads.”

     

    “Yes, sir,” I replied.

     

    “Then Stars guide you,” the Queen said.

     

    Later, as we returned to the noble entourage, Elereth pulled me aside. “So, Ardolan,” she said with a sigh. “You think we’ll be able to have some time for ourselves at any point?”

     

    I shrugged. “Well, we are agents of the crown now, Elereth,” I explained. “Our duty is to serve our Queen. Still… perhaps we’ll have some leisure time in Mathiisen. And if not, I know the town is not far from Skywatch, one of the major cities on Auridon. If possible, we’ll head there after our investigation.”

     

    She grinned. “I’ll hold you to that, Ardolan. Don’t keep me waiting too long, eh? We still have some… business to settle with each other, if you catch my drift,” she said, before winking and rejoining the group. I blinked, then smirked, yet again amused by her eagerness. Shaking my head, I followed her to the others, to prepare for our departure.

     

    I believe that will suffice for this entry. Until I write next…

     

    -Ardolan Larethbinder

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Comments

2 Comments   |   Karver the Lorc and 1 other like this.
  • Tenebrous
    Tenebrous   ·  June 24, 2016
    The Tanzelwil quests were interesting, though I do wish that they'd kept Norion's villainy a bit more ambiguous, at least for a little bit. But oh well. Also, I play alone, so I don't get the problem of being left behind by others. Of course, that makes w...  more
  • The Long-Chapper
    The Long-Chapper   ·  June 24, 2016
    I remembered this quest. Karver and Mirric left me behind twice in that tomb.