JoS/Henriette/36th Journal - Boat to Solstheim

Midyear, 25th, 4E 203

Isran is a boneheaded prick. Excepting a rational discussion from him was a mistake on my part, but at least I tried, and at least we made it out unharmed.

When I approached one of the guards, he didn't recognize me. Wondering why I had come to this castle when they aren't actively recruiting anymore, only accepting new members by invitation, I told him my story. I warned him not to freak out, insisted that I only came here in peace, and said that I just want to talk to Isran, and then I told him that me and the friends I brought along are vampires. He was hesitant, asked why should he listen to what we wanted? Well, that's when Serana introduced herself and explained just who she is, and we told him about Harkon. Besides, if we did come here to cause trouble, we would've killed him already. He finally budged, and said that he'd go get Isran. You know, because we weren't gonna let ourselves walk into their castle to be ambushed.

Isran recognized me immediately, and he was beside himself. A certain woman working with the Dawnguard, a woman we spared once to deliver a message to Isran was there as well to confirm that I was indeed the one who I claimed to be. There was nobody else present though, I made sure of it. We could proceed with our discussion.

He chastised me, saying that I make him sick. I approached him once in a past, and he's disgusted with the fact that he let a damn Vampire slip through his fingers back then, saying that he'd want nothing more than to just kill me because ain't no way he'd let the same vampire slip through his fingers twice. However, he also recognized what we had done. He knows of Harkon's demise too. He may be blindly committed to ridding the world of vampires, but that doesn't change the fact I - and my friends - did a great favor to him and all of mortalkind.

So, that's why, instead of blindly attacking us, he decided to hear me out.

"I'm looking for a certain vampire clan based in High Rock."

"Why?"

"They… They're the ones that turned me into a vampire to begin with. They prey on children. My own mother is part of them, and raised me for the whole purpose of being a slave. I learned this recently, and I want answers, maybe even revenge. That's why I need to find them."

"I've never heard of such clan", he admitted. "Not that it matters to me. We don't discriminate based on the motivations of our targets."

"Even though our interest could align?" I asked him.

"No, not even then", he said firmly. "Your petty clan feuds and politics are irrelevant to me. All vampires are my enemies on principle, and you're all equally scum."

"This isn't a feud, and it isn't about politics. We're talking about a clan that preys on little children to turn them into slaves, Isran. Do you seriously think that all vampires are equal? Do you think that I, a girl who was turned into a vampire against her own will to serve as a slave is equal to those who force innocent children to become like me against their own will?"

He rubbed his beard for a moment with narrow eyes and an expression as serious as he's ever had. It's almost as if he didn't want to admit I was right, while simultaneously not wanting to shoot me down either, because it would've reflected badly on his moral character. "You may be right", he finally admitted, "but you had your chance for redemption, and it's already long past that. I cannot ignore your crimes against humanity, even if you may have originally been a victim."

He's right about that. I have a long list of victims I've killed, many of which were completely innocent and undeserving. My list of sins is too great for him to just forgive, especially when you consider that I'm the kind of creature he's sworn to destroy. "I just did what I had to survive", I tried to reason. "I, no… We have a right to exist in this world as well."

"That right shouldn't come at the expense of innocent people", he said. "Is that all? Is that why you came here, to seek help from your enemy?"

"Yeah, that's right. It was stupid of me to try."

He surprised me one final time, as he turned his back to me. "Stupid, yes, but also brave. I respect that, and I do hope you succeed in finding that clan."

Like, he seriously wasn't gonna attack us. Even the two of his allies told him that we're vampires, and that more innocent people are just gonna keep on dying, but Isran had already made his mind and decided to walk away. He had one final message for me. "You warned us to not interfere when you were feuding with Harkon, but as far as I see, that time is over. Next time we meet will be a fight to the death."

Sofia tried to mock him by calling him scary, and probably a lot more, but me and Serana both managed to shut her up before she got around saying something she would regret. We were allowed to walk out without a fight, so there's no need for us to get bloody. Not today. We should be happy with that even if we didn't get what we wanted.

So, that's that. Now, I really have two possibilities here: I can either continue to search for my mother without clues, or I can wait until someone at Castle Volkihar finds out about them. I think I'll go with latter, as there's the need for me to visit Solsteim as well. Besides, I can also get help from my other friends, and it might also be that they might be coming for me in retaliation to what me and my friends did to Movarth and his allies in their little hideout.

I think it's time to start packing and travel to Morrowind. It's a good thing I don't have to travel alone.

Midyear, 27th, 4E 203

It's gonna be tough being from home for such a long time, not only for me and my travel companions, but also for Sissel who's staying behind. We're not gonna be leaving Skyrim quite yet, got some due diligence to do like visit the sanctuary and the cistern. Got to come here a few more times as well. Aliya and Sissel both promised to look into some books about the vampire clan I talked about, trying to figure out if they could learn about one that matches the description.

That's it, those are the plans. Not much writing today, I wanna spend time with my friends in peace instead.

Midyear, 30th, 4E 203

I'm not going to get too deep into what I did in Dawnstar, but luckily they're all fine with me being absent. Three separate people have prayed to the Night Mother so they'll have new contracts while I'm gone in addition to two other jobs they've had in planning stages for quite a while.

I also visited Riften due to once overhearing Delvin talk to Brynjolf about some job in Solsteim some time ago, like months ago or something. I didn't think much of it back then, but since I had to visit Riften for business anyway… Well, it just made sense to bring it up. Unfortunately, it isn't as much of a job as it's a plea for help. We already have a base of operations in Solsteim, which is only down to one man, Delvin's younger brother - Glover - who lives in Raven Rock. He's gotten into some trouble and might appreciate help. The problem is, there's not much money to be made, so traveling there simply for the sake of some odd job is unfortunately more costly than it's worth. Delvin told us to mention who sent us and he might even offer us a roof over our head for free, which sounds like a great deal.

Then, I visited home for one last time and told Sofia and Serana to get ready to move, because it's time to leave. We all hugged Aliya and Sissel separately, had them wish us a safe trip, all that happy stuff. Aliya also told us to say hi to Neloth, whatever that's supposed to mean. We should mention Aliya to her by name or something, she didn't specify why. Probably an old friend? Whatever.

That brings us to today. We weren't sure how to get to Solsteim, and when I asked around in Dawnstar few days back, I was told that nobody's willing to sail that far. That has brought us to Windhelm, where there's a much bigger harbor. After asking around for a while, we did in fact find a sailor who's been doing frequent visits there, at least in the past. Not anymore.

"No way", he said. "Never again." He talked about some weird, masked guys coming to him demanding to be boarded to Skyrim, and about how he's been losing his memories, entire days' worth of them. Well, the masked men must be also the ones who attacked me, not sure about memories though… Maybe there's some strange Illusion magic at play? Unfortunately, he's not willing to help me for any price, and he said he'll notify the guards how bothering him if I press the issue.

At this point, I thought that I wasn't going to find help in this city… That's at least until I talked to one last man. He was the one to approach me, apologizing as he said he couldn't help but to overhear me talking about wanting to travel to Solsteim. Thinking I could convince him to get me there for a price, I said yes, but turns out, what he needs isn't actually money, but rather help. In fact, he said there's money here to be made for me.

He's an independent trader who mostly does shipments for the East Empire Company, but he's fallen on hard times, first because of Stormcloaks who have completely driven out the Company's business from Windhelm thanks to their anti-imperial sentiments, and now later thanks to pirates, namely a clan called the Blood Horkers. He brought us to speak with Orthus, the last remaining worker for the Company in Windhelm.

Orthus and his sole sailor are suspicious of Torbjorn Shatter-Shield because his business has not only come out unscathed in all of this, but also boomed. Pirates conveniently ignore his ships, allowing him and his cargo free passage.

Sorry for going on a bit of a rant, but that family just can't catch a break, can it? I mean, I can't say I didn't have anything to do with that… Nilsine's corpse must've been a sickening sight for her already mourning family to discover, and I was the one who killed her. Apparently Torbjorn's wife committed suicide shortly after that day. Yikes, makes me kind of feel bad about murdering her… Looking back at that contract, it wasn't like she was deserving of death or anything, she was simply a bonus to be taken down because Muiri was bitter at her…

Torbjorn is still alive and kicking though, although he hasn't been himself at all. Rich as he is, his business is too. He employs quite a lot of people, and apparently these pirates are on his payroll as well. Orthus needs evidence though. I'll leave finding that evidence for later.

We decided to rest at the New Gnisis Cornerclub, where I came across a curious little sight: Malborn and Brelas. I didn't recognize them at first, but they were in the Thalmor embassy that one time. Malborn was supposed to help me, while Brelas is the server I inadvertently got into trouble… They're both still alive and in Skyrim? Anyway, like the curious little bugger I am, I discovered them in the middle of steamy, passionate sex in their own room next to mine. They're lovers? Those two elves were fucking like rabbits! Made me horny just looking at them. They weren't lovers when we escaped the embassy, so this has to be a more recent development. I didn't want to bother them though, but I'll probably approach them tomorrow if I get a chance.

Sun's Height, 1st, 4E 203

I infiltrated the Shatter-Shield office by the docks as it seemed like the best place to start looking for evidence, and wouldn't you know it, I found exactly what I needed. It was a logbook or a journal written by Suvaris Atheron, who's a Dark Elf working for Tobjorn. No idea why she would keep such sensitive secrets about criminal activity in a journal that's so easy to find. Sure it was behind a locked door, but it wasn't exactly hard to pick!

Blood Horkers according to it mostly deal with stealing shipments, but that's not to say they don't participate in other activities as well. Slave trade, which is still prevalent in Morrowind, for example is a highly profitable business for them. Tobjorn funnels money to the pirates because it's more profitable to his business than having to deal with these pirates is, but there's no evidence in this book of him actually reaping any other rewards.

Orthus was saddened to learn that his theory was correct, but also hopeful about being able to put this matter to rest somehow. The problem is, this evidence is still not enough as it doesn't actually solve anything. Where to go from here?

First I asked, would confronting or even getting rid of Tobjorn work out? Well, no. It's unlikely he would serve any time due to his wealth and influence in this town and the fact that him and Ulfric are on good terms, and killing him would be too risky as well. Going after him wouldn't harm the pirates in any way either, so the problem would remain unsolved. Orthus is also insistent on doing this "the right" way and avoid illegal activities like assassination or blackmail, as he doesn't want to be "as bad as him". Really the only way to move forward here is to land a blow on the pirates, but getting a hold of them is really, really tricky. I mean, we don't even know where their base of operations is! We only have one clue to go by.

The logbook mentioned that Suvaris does frequent visits to Baan Malur to discuss business with a man called Stig Salt-Plank, captain of a ship in the ranks of the Blood Horkers. If there's one place to start, it's there. The problem is, where exactly is Baan Malur? Well, that just happens to be the Dunmeri name for the capital of Morrowind, Blacklight.

It's kind of easy to forget that there's a huge city like that just around the corner when there's a border and a mountain range between us. I've never even thought about visiting that place, but I guess I have a convenient excuse now. I hear it has some amazing landmarks like the Palace, the Rootspire, the grand temple of Azura, and even a famous arena for gladiatorial combat, similar to one you have in the Imperial City. Now, what's the easiest way to get there? Well, for that we needed to return to the inn for tips, and fortunately we're not the only people looking to travel across the border.

We spoke with Malborn and Brelas. I didn't want to tell those two Bosmer that I watched them going at it. Didn't want to embarrass them or anything. I just acted happy and surprised to see them, while they had mixed feelings about seeing me. They first asked how things have been with me, did the information I find in the embassy prove to be worth anything, or was the trouble all for nothing? Well, I'm not sure anymore, but it led me to Esbern, and I eventually killed Alduin too, so it wasn't for nothing, that for sure. They were happy for me, but not so happy about their current situation.

They've been hiding in this city for a long time, mostly due to Thalmor want them executed as traitors to the Aldmeri Dominion. As I suspected, they're planning to marry, but their first priority is leaving Skyrim. They've been wanting to do it for some time now, but they can't just waltz across the border with no money. That's why they've been working here in Windhelm, saving money. Now they have the money, but traveling is too dangerous for them because of their lack of combat experience, and the costs of proper bodyguards.

Malborn was also going on about the Thalmor surely knowing of him being here in Windhelm. He even suggested that that they have hired Khajiit caravans to spy on him, but I think he's just being paranoid. Sure, there are a lot of Khajiits who hail Thalmor as saviors, but not the caravans!

So, since I'm also looking to travel to Morrowind, I did the most sensible thing I could think of and offered to escort them free of charge. They couldn't believe I would do that, and they even seemed hesitant, but I insisted. Like really, I feel like I owe them a little… Part of the reason why Thalmor are after their asses is because I got them into trouble, so I have to take some responsibility. They're not that bitter at me, at least not Malborn who has always hated the Thalmor, but I feel like Brelas doesn't trust me at all…

The reason they're going to need bodyguards isn't only because they've got no combat experience, but also because the only way to reach Morrowind by road from here is through Dunmeth Pass, which according to them as well as Ambrarys - the Innkeeper - is dangerous for travelers.

Authorities in Skyrim don't care too much about defending or keeping check on the border thanks to the civil war, which has allowed outlaws to keep tabs on who's traveling through it. Like seriously, bandits love that place because of all the smuggling that takes place there. "Kids like you", he said, "are a prime target for an ambush, so if you intend to travel to Baan Malur, be careful."

We hope we don't have to deal with bandits. Even if we do, once we get to Blacklight, we'll be fine. House Redoran, which controls the city, spares no expenses for keeping the filth out from their city. I hope that "filth" doesn't include us.

Sun's Height, 2nd, 4E 203

We began our journey across the border in the dead of night. Thought it could be easier to travel when there's less worry about being discovered by bad guys. Our journey was also blessed by a blizzard to cover our tracks. This all but meant a day off for smugglers and slavers keeping watch of the pass!

Our journey wasn't without problems though.

First of all, there was actually something to Malborn's ramblings about Thalmor being out for his life. I should've just believed him because he has so much more experience with dealing with them, but whatever. We managed to protect her and Brelas from being killed by Thalmor assassins. We also had proof they were after those two because on one of their bodies were orders of execution, which instructed the Thalmor to, quote, "destroy them with extreme hatred".

Does that not sound a little excessive? And pompous to the boot. Those two are lovely people. Hating them sounds just about the most disagreeable things I can think of, at least from the top of my head. In the end, we never found out any Khajiit who could've been working for them though.

Our problems didn't stop there. Refugees' Rest is a tower just by the road near the crossing, which the Dunmer built during the Red Year when the first wave of refugees fled their homeland when it was being destroyed by the forces of nature, but unfortunately the tower has fallen into disrepair. It hasn't been occupied since the civil war broke out, and no refugee or their descendant has been able to come here to pay respect to their ancestors who lost their lives during the eruption. These days, only bandits live there, which meant that if there ever was going to be a place during our route where we could've been discovered, it was there. We had to find another route, a route that was gonna be a lot longer, a route that moved up the mountain.

There we mostly ran into just wild animals, but there were ice wraiths too. I've never talked about them, I think? Never liked them. I mean, have you ever tried to strike one with a bow? Doesn't matter how great of a marksman you are, you're not gonna get a clean hit in! Luckily both Sofia and Serana know some fire magic.

Then, past them, we made it to the actual borderlands where an ancient Nordic outpost hosted a nasty surprise. Our journey was interrupted by a Dragon who had claimed this mountain peak as his own, and deemed my presence a challenge. Of course we beat him, but at this point the civilians we were guarding weren't happy at all. Sure, we had been able to protect them, but we were running into so, so many freaking enemies! Our plan was, and for all intents and purposes is safe in my opinion, but if we, and I quote, "subject ourselves to deadly dragon attacks in the dead of night", can it really be that safe in the night either!?

Such whining… Can't Malborn and Brelas see we're doing them a favor?

Anyway, this weather's been freezing my flat tits off, so it's good to be back to warmer climates. Dunmeth Pass, so damn cold all the time, just like all of these glacier-filled hinterlands!

First settlement you get to when you travel down the road is the town of Mandul, maybe about the size of Riverwood. The pine forests here remind me of Skyrim, but the town itself is nothing of sort. Traditional Redoran architecture is well on display with their houses of mud bricks and brown stone in opposition to wood, logs and grey stone. For a town this small, the inn is real big and nice though. The two owners, a married couple running a business together are also very welcoming.

Tomorrow's journey should be a lot easier. We're just gonna rest our feet and sleep for the reminder of the night - or early morning - and maybe depart after a lunch.

Sun's Height, 3rd, 4E 203

The land directly on the other side of the border continues to resemble that of Skyrim, so you can't really tell you're in another province until you come across actual civilization. This place honestly reminds me a little of Falkreath with all of its hills, trees and creeks, and even wildlife. The entire place was in beautiful summer bloom too with butterflies, chirping birds, y'know… Like, we knew that we're on the other side of the Velothi mountains, we know this is Morrowind, but it's like we never even left Skyrim at all!

As soon as we knocked on the gates of Blacklight though, it became apparent that the city that stood ahead of us was not built by humans. That city is something else. It's a coastal city and quite a lot bigger than any of the major cities in Skyrim. Given that it has experienced rapid growth following it given the status as the capital, it really has two larger districts, which include the old town by the shore where you'll find all of the famous landmarks, and the new town with a lot of newer buildings further inland towards and even outside the city walls. These two areas can further be chopped down to smaller districts too, but the area we're most interested in lies on the shores of the city.

Back when the Empire had a proper hold of this province, the north-eastern area was known for its Imperialized city district with a large dock, a shipyard, East Empire Company's local warehouse and a lot of services. Nowadays with the Empire having all but pulled from this city, this area has turned into a slum where corruption is out of hand, and bandits and pirates roam freely. All those trendy Imperial taverns have turned into dens for local gangs of hooligans and reavers, and bands of brigands and pirates. If there's an area where we might find information about the Blood Horkers, it's there.

For now though, we're gonna get some proper rest. Malborn and Brelas have reached their destination and they now feel safe because, well, the Thalmor aren't exactly welcome in this city. Hopefully tomorrow everything'll go as planned with no unnecessary troubles.

Sun's Height, 4th, 4E 203

After some searching and asking around we found the tavern mentioned in Miss Atheron's journal, and waltzed in. No sneaking around required, for we were welcomed in as regular guests. As we were trying to figure out where to learn about rumors about the pirates were looking for, it seemed like someone found us instead.

An Argonian man I didn't recognize started talking to me, asking if we had met me anywhere before. I was quite sure that the answer was no, but he was becoming surer about knowing me. When he said he had seen me around in Solitude and mentioned once trying to recruit me on a little job to put out a fire in a lighthouse, I remembered him instantly.

His name is Jaree-Ra, and he could tell us about the Blood Horkers, for these days he's a member himself. We ended up having a little chat to get to know each other better, amongst which was the topic of exactly how did he end up in Morrowind when he used to be part of an different bandit clan in Skyrim.

It is indeed true that he was with the Blackblood Marauders who ran their little clan around the northern shores from Solitude to Jehanna, but their relationship soured exactly after the very mission I was once recruited for went wrong. They had found some gullible poor fool to do the job, but the marauders had underestimated the number of guards they would be facing on the ship. Jaree-Ra's sister died on the mission, which led to him being depressed for a long time.

When he returned to their hideout with the loot, there was a lot of drama regarding how to divide it. Captain demanded half of it, while the rest of it would be split between everyone else. That was not what was agreed on and considering that the captain had not even lifted a finger to aid in the mission, Jaree-Ra was getting angry at the whole situation, feeling like it was like her sister had died for nothing, and that he had just a bagful of drakes to show for it. It led to him leaving Solitude and heading east in hopes of finding new fortunes. This turned out to be a good move in a sense that Blackblood Marauders have been wiped out in Skyrim by the hands of some mercenaries.

That's how he got here. According to him, in the Blood Horkers it's not just the captains and the kingpins that prosper, but all the members lower down the totem pole as well. The captain of the ship he works in, "Stig Salt-Plank" as he's known, is especially one of the greatest people he has ever worked for anywhere, period.

Next, he wanted answers from me. "Why are you looking for us?" he asked.

Since he was being nice and polite, I thought it might be for the best to just be honest and talk about the job I'm on, so that's what I said. I revealed that some traders from Windhelm sent me to deal with these guys. It just made him laugh.

"Now I'm sure you're all perfectly capable adventurers, but you've got to be out of your mind if you think that three little kids can take on the biggest and the baddest fleet of pirates on the northern coast. Even now, you three are surrounded by our people, so if I were you, I'd think about my next move and words very wisely."

"Hold on", I thought out loud, trying to reel the situation back a little. Indeed killing these guys was always on the table, but that doesn't mean it has to be the only solution to this little jigsaw puzzle, is it? I said these words to him and said that all I care about is getting to Solsteim, but unfortunately nobody in Windhelm or Dawnstar is willing to help us. "Dealing with these pirates" were simply the terms that were given to me.

He got interested when I spoke about Solsteim, wondering why in the world would anyone even want to go to that "backwater heap of trash", and I decided to be truthful once again. Someone there's been sending some assassin cultists my way and I want to put a stop to it. To that, he had an interesting suggestion.

"Well you're in luck. Our main headquarters are situated on an island just west from Solsteim. How about we help you get there?"

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, but it won't be free, of course. And considering that we hold a small monopoly on what cargo passes through these waters, I don't think you have much of a choice."

Unfortunately he's right about that. I asked him "how much", but to that he simply said that it was not for him to decide. He suggested that I should come back tomorrow when their ship docks and talk to this Stig he spoke off.

So, I guess that's what we'll be doing. It sounds a whole lot less trouble than trying to take this gang of pirates head on. I mean, Jaree-Ra said that they have like what, three hundred members and a dozen ships in their fleet. It really would seem like they're not an enemy that we alone would be able to defeat.

Well, that's all for tomorrow.

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