D.P.F. 18: A new hat for the Second Arc ...

D.P.F. 18: A new hat for the Second Archivist

Apr 17, 2022

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Last time, Skavild persuaded Eldaline not to become a lich yet.

The staff of the Bureau of Advanced Communications left Scourg Barrow through a tunnel on the 27th of Morning Star. Eldaline had found a hat she liked more than the one she had arrived in.
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The others stood around, freezing feebly, as they had noticed she was glaring back towards the barrow.
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"You coming, Eldaline?" said Skavild. "Let's get started before sunrise. It'll help us keep warm."
"The Second Archivist is making certain that we have not left anything behind." said Agent Aralina, hopping to keep warm.
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But Skavild waited for her. Eldaline was leaving behind her hopes of becoming a powerful lich, at least for now, and he felt this merited more patience on his part.
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"That is correct, Flopsy." said Eldaline.
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And she turned away from the barrow tunnels and they made their way around the mountain back towards the courtyard.
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Aralina was overjoyed to be correct.
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The front garden of Scourg Barrow was very much as they had left it, populated by wonderful magic skeletons who liked to rise up from the ground and then bury themselves again to recover from having their limbs thrown about by Aranwen, and similar people.
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"This place has become sleepier over the centuries." said Eldaline. "No doubt, the greatest of the Necromancer's servants would once spring out to greet visitors."
Skavild said, "Are we waiting to see anybody else?"
"No." she said. "Let us return to the path. I never thought of wearing a woollen hat before, you know. Do you think it shows my eyebrows to best advantage?"
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"You look very nice, Eldaline." said Skavild. "All youthful and bright-eyed and alive."
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"Well, you do not need to rub my nose in it." Eldaline said. "I was talking about my new hat. It is not better than immortality, but that does not mean I cannot appreciate it."
"Your eyebrows look very nice." said Skavild.
Aranwen became excited. "Ooh, look! The servants of the barrow are trying to rewards us with death again. I am going to go over and say No Thank You."
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"Second Archivist." said Aralina. "I think that your new hat provides a frame suited to your magnificent and enviable bone-structure. Surely the hat was preordained to belong to you even before your birth, and placed here awaiting its proper place on your head."
"Yes," said Ondolemar. "and it means I can have a new hat."
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"Well, I appreciate your hat too, Eldaline."
  "Thank you, Skavild."
"I notice you've already cut some holes in it for your ears to pop out of."
  "Strangely enough, they were already there, in the right place."
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"Do you not wish for the comfort of dark repose?" said the rising skeleton.
"Nyeh!" shouted Aranwen. "No thank you!"
"That's very polite of you, Aranwen." said Skavild.
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"Aranwen learned to be polite on her Strategic Politeness course in Sun's Dusk." said Agent Aralina.
"Get buggered, Agent Aralina, I knew how to be polite before!"
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Aralina hurried to join in with the politeness, and Ondolemar watched them for now. Having new things to wear made him feel less violent.
"Does this hat make me look silly?"
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"Rejoice! The eyes of the Necromancer are upon you!" wailed a wonderful risen skeleton.
"Will you get over here and help, you elegant blockhead?" demanded the Second Archivist.
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Eldaline thought of the unlife of the immortal servants of the barrow. They felt better after a short rest, with no pulled muscles, no wheezing and no early morning bleariness. They awoke with an understanding of where they were to do and where they were to go. Their hearts were never wounded. Their ambition, where present, knew no pity.
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As she turned to find the path, she found Skavild watching her. Skavild was determined that the dead would not trouble her, at least for the rest of the day.
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"I understand now, Second Archivist." said Aralina. "They truly mean well. To the people of this barrow, murder is the highest possible compliment."
"These hats must look very good." said Ondolemar. "Everybody was trying to murder us. Almost as many people as when I am wearing my official robe."
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Eldaline led the way from the front garden as the distant sun lit the sky beyond the peaks. "Come along. I do not want a reputation as a bad house-guest."
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There were five in the party on the way back through the far Dragontail Mountains, but this time, all five could agree on their number.
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A wolf was trotting about in the cold morning, but neither party approached the other.
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"I realise we haven't had a chance to talk about your idea." Skavild said quietly, as they passed the brow of the last hill before the narrow pass ahead of the bridge.
"I did not think you wished to talk about it."
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"Well, I think I don't always try to understand your ways as much as I should. You've been wanting to improve yourself since I was a daft young drunk. Tell me would life would be like... well, not life, but, you know. Would your Ambassador get shirty about it?"
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"Now, those are sensible concerns, at last." Eldaline said. "No, there are spells to make it less obvious. Illusion spells."
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"Like the spell the Sload used when he trapped us in that pretend city? Not that I'm admitting I believe in Sload." said Skavild.
"Illusion spells are more common than you can imagine. My mother used to cast one my appearance, and those of my siblings. She said people would like us more. I do not cast it these days. My vast magicka reserves are not employed in grasping for trivial things like youth and beauty."
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The bridge, as interesting as it was, was too tall and swayed too much for Skavild to ask more.
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The sun was fully risen as they crossed, but fierce snow clouds were beginning to gather overhead. They hurried on their way as cautiously as they could.
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By the evening, they had reached the little hamlet where they had sheltered on the way to the barrow.
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Though there was no inn, there was a hunter and trapper, who sold them some venison.
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They made a short detour, avoiding Heldorn Mount. This is because Aranwen had nutted one of the guards and Eldaline had stolen his shrine to Arkay and ground it to dust to make a potion of Unlife.  Around Heldorn Mount, the pine trees were turning to leafy oaks, or at least their nearest Nirnly equivalent.
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Less than a day later, the leafy trees had become the palms and moss-covered rocks of the long pass at the southern edge of the near Dragontail Mountains.
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The pass was still unguarded.
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Eldaline knew this, as she had checked herself.
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This was after she had sent Agent Aralina up to the top of a hill to watch for soldiers of Hammerfell.
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But Agent Aralina was not offended that Second Archivist Eldaline had gone to make sure.
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The pass took three hours to navigate, but the route was fairly straight.
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The air was hotter now than it had been in the trees, and the warm sand began to blow towards them down the valley.
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"Do you suppose we can get back into Cyrus' House without 'em noticing?" said Skavild.
"That is a question for later." Eldaline said. "When I shall answer it by saying 'Yes, because I intend to turn us all invisible on the way in'."
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"Then, where are we going now, Second Archivist?" said Aranwen. "Somewhere else exciting and secret?"
Aralina said, "Aranwen, you must ask me first, and then I shall relay your questions to the Second Archivist if I deem them important enough."
"We are making our way back through Satakalaam, where we found the Ansei Ward, where we will be putting it back." said Eldaline. "Agent Flopsy, relay this information to your soldier."
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Concludes... next time!

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