nycdaug Chapter 143: Einberjorn
Chapter 143: Einberjorn
I was not the only one who realized Sebastian's suicide attempt. Eric stepped in front of him, Wilkas held his shoulders from the side, and Krako simply took the axe to his bedroom. Ella was almost fainted by the willful old man.
"When will you think about your daughter? If you die like this, Madeline will really not be able to live!"
Old Lot grabbed his hair and cried in despair.
"Then what should I do?"
Who told you to keep talking about Skoyue? Most people looked at Sebastian helplessly, but Angie and Helgi looked at me.
"Brother, you need to find a solution!"
I cleared my throat, waited for everyone to quiet down, and old Lotte stopped trying to commit suicide, then I began to analyze my opinion.
"Everyone, what I am about to say involves the confidential information of the Companions. Of course, it may not mean much to the people in this room."
Krako winked at Ella, and the huntress immediately stood up, looked around outside, and then closed the door carefully.
"I was also in Whiterun on the day Madeline was injured. Scoyue and Eric were exhausted at the time, and I helped send her to the Temple of Ginalace and handed her over to Danica for treatment. Afterwards, I asked Eric about what happened that day, so I know a little bit of the inside story."
Eric and Ella, the parties involved, nodded slightly, agreeing with what I said.
"I have already told Mr. Lotter everything I know on the way. What is certain is that this is not the first time that the Silver Hand has troubled the Companions. This organization should be held responsible for the tragedy of the Madeline couple. Forgive me for saying that it is unfair to blame everything on Scoyue, as you did."
Sebastian lowered his head and acquiesced to my accusation. In fact, this truth is not difficult to understand, but in his heart, he has already attributed all the mistakes to Sco Yue kidnapping his daughter. As for this mysterious Silver Hand organization, he is unwilling to delve into it.
"Regarding the Silver Hand, I have heard about it from Stendarr's Sentinel Cassidy before. According to her introduction, this is an organization that specializes in hunting werewolves, and is very good at making money. You may have heard that the warlord Skuna sent by General Tullius to Falkreath is a werewolf - of course, he has nothing to do with the Companions - we hoped that the Sentinels and the Silver Hand could hunt him down, but the Silver Hand refused to help. According to Cassidy, they were making a big move in Whiterun at the time. Looking back now, this so-called big move should be a series of attacks on the Companions."
Krako had a wry smile on his face and shook his head slightly.
"I don't know much about the Silver Hand. They should be a mercenary group that has suddenly risen in recent years, but I don't know when this organization was founded. As everyone knows, the Companions is the oldest and largest mercenary group in Skyrim, but it has never been the only mercenary group. Some employers cannot afford a high price, or their missions violate the principles of the Companions. For thousands of years, there have always been other organizations that will meet their needs. Not to mention the distant past, among the Skyrim legions that rushed to Cyrodiil thirty years ago, one-third of them were mercenaries. I thought the conflict between the Silver Hand and the Companions was for business, so I tried to contact them through the channels of the mercenary world and strive to resolve the problem through negotiation, but the other party refused to communicate."
Ella looked disapproving, but she soon noticed that I was observing everyone's reactions, so she shrugged and turned her face away.
"So, can we draw a conclusion that Silver Hand is deliberately targeting the Companions? Although we still don't know their motives for doing so."
"You can say that, but that's exactly what I don't understand. Because most of the emerging mercenary groups will maintain friendly relations with the Companions, and we will also introduce them to the missions we are unwilling to accept. It is definitely not a wise choice to offend the Companions."
Krako's words made everyone in the room think.
"But what does this have to do with Madeline's suicide?"
Sebastian looked a little anxious.
"I think this is no longer a private matter between Madeline and Scorpio, but a public matter between the Companions and Silver Hand. If this matter cannot be resolved thoroughly, more people will suffer similar misfortunes in the future. In other words, Scorpio's revenge will not be complete before Silver Hand is dealt with. He sacrificed his life to avenge Madeline. Doesn't Madeline want to die and not want to do anything for him?"
"Young man, living on hatred is not a meaningful thing."
"Oh? Then the Prophet must have a better reason to convince Madeline to live?"
Krako was not angry when I refuted him, but just shook his head and sighed. I also took a deep breath to calm myself down.
"I think I didn't make myself clear. We can use this excuse to dissuade Madeline from committing suicide. Solving the hostile relationship between Silver Hand and the Companions will probably take time. Time may heal the wounds, or it may give Madeline new hope to survive. In short, things will be better if we take it slow. In this situation, we can only take it one step at a time. Of course, if you have a better way, please share it and discuss it."
The comrades were good at fighting, but they were not good at thinking. Sebastian was so confused that he wanted to end his life. Everyone in the room was silent for a long time. No one came up with a better idea, so they had to accept my suggestion. After telling old Lotte to be careful with his words, everyone returned to Madeline's room.
After being poked by Helgi without a word, Sebastian sat beside his daughter and apologized to her softly. Others also echoed him and brought up his friendship with Skoyue in the past to prove that the old man was just confused by his daughter's situation. Seeing that Madeline's mood had stabilized a little, Ella suggested that she take care of her body so that she could find the hiding place of Silver Hand in the future and avenge Skoyue. As soon as she finished speaking, everyone in the room fell silent, patiently waiting for Madeline's response. The Green Axe Wolf Girl pulled the corner of her mouth and sighed deeply.
"I am already a useless man. Ella, I leave the matter of revenge for Scoyue, Lamarcos and Kailin to you."
Madeline turned her head to the wall, not even looking at Krako. She obviously knew the attitude of the prophet of the Companions on this matter.
"How can you be a useless person? Dad can teach you magic, and you can cast spells with one hand. You..."
Sebastian panicked immediately, but before he could finish his words, Helgi poked him again and he shut up in anger. Madeleine's answer was a desperate silence. For a moment, everyone's eyes were on me again.
"Well, I have an immature idea, but I don't know whether I should talk about it or not..."
Ella glared at me fiercely, expressing her dissatisfaction with me keeping the secret at this time.
"Have you ever heard of dwarves?"
The hunter's full chest rose and fell noticeably. I knew that if my next words did not satisfy her, she might drag me to the underground furnace and bite me to death. Although Old Lot and everyone else were confused, he continued to speak as I said.
"The official name of the dwarves should be Dwemer, or deep elves. This race once established a brilliant civilization and invented many incredible machines. According to legend, they all suddenly disappeared at some point in the ancient times."
I nodded slightly, thanking Sebastian for his support.
"Although the dwarves have disappeared, the relics they built and the machines they invented have survived. What's even more amazing is that these machines can still continue to work after such a long time. As far as I know, many of them are modeled after humans. We can probably call them robots."
My words seemed to be far off the point. Madeline kept her face to the wall, showing no interest at all. Krako and Wilkas couldn't understand it either, but they kept their composure. As for the huntress Ella, her nose wrinkled like a she-wolf about to get angry. But Helgi jumped out at the right time and took over my words.
"I understand! My brother means that we can make a mechanical arm for Sister Madeline like the dwarves did."
Seeing my approving smile, everyone showed surprised expressions.
"But, Mr. Lotte just said that the dwarves have disappeared. Even if we can find those robots left by the dwarves, we can't simply remove an arm and attach it to Madeline, right?"
"Of course not. That's why I said this idea is immature. But I heard that there are still some scholars in Skyrim who are studying the heritage of the dwarves. The two most famous ones are Arnel Gan from the College of Winterhold and Kasemmer, the court wizard of Markarth."
Sebastian also showed an excited expression at this time.
"Arnel is not good enough, his research is more theoretical. But Kasemer... that old guy... never mind, I'll go and beg him for the sake of my reputation."
"Father, if it's too much trouble, forget it."
Madeline turned around at some point. Old Lotte wiped his face with his hand, smiled and waved.
"It's not a problem. How could it be a problem? We are old acquaintances. He held you in his arms when you were a child, but you didn't remember it at that time."
Madeline nodded weakly, closed her eyes, and stopped talking. Hearing what Old Lotter said, it was obvious that my suggestion was feasible, and everyone was relieved. Since Madeline had given up the idea of committing suicide, Krako suggested that she rest and wait until her body recovered before going to Markarth with her father.
Sebastian and Leah were left to take care of Madeline, while the others got up and left. Helgi helped me stand up and limped to the door, but Sebastian called me back.
"Lord Locke, please excuse me for a moment."
This old man is so tactless. Do I look like someone who can help me now? Sebastian turned his back to the door, took out a booklet from his arms and handed it to me.
"Aren't you curious about why General Tullius sent me to the Rime Rock Cave?"
He pointed to the book. Instead of reaching for it, I looked into his eyes.
"If I read it, will it cause trouble for you, sir?"
Old Lotte smiled.
"This is the copy I transcribed. The original is submitted to Durr Castle on a monthly basis. The small cave where I am hiding overlooks one of the most important strongholds of the Thalmor in Skyrim: the North Tower Fortress. Young man, I know that you have different political views from General Tullius. But I want to say that the Empire has never trusted the Thalmor. They are our common enemy. If possible, I hope you can use your influence to promote the unity of all forces and drive the Thalmor away together. As for this thing, it has nothing to do with the deployment of the Imperial Legion. You can rest assured to take a look. I hope it can provide you with some help."
The two lame men shook hands, and the older one turned and went back into the house.
I put the book in my arms and went to Krako's room again. As soon as I entered the room, Eric slapped me hard, almost knocking me to the ground.
"Good boy! No wonder Angie said you have the most clever ideas. You can even find a way to do this."
Ella and the others came forward to thank me one by one, and I returned the greetings one by one. However, I was not here to accept everyone's thanks. I had something to ask the prophet Krako of the Companions. The old man also knew why I came. He helped me sit down, sent Ella and Wilkas away, and only left Eric and his wife to accompany me.
"Child, feel free to ask any questions you have, but I can't guarantee that I can answer you."
"I would like to ask you if you know why Silver Hand is targeting the Companions."
The Silver Hand, this organization is very poorly explained in the game. Not only did they inexplicably provoke the anger of the Companions, they also magically sneaked into Whiterun, killed Krako with only a few people, and were finally uprooted by the angry Companions. If the plot of the game can be barely explained by plot killing, then in the other world where I live, can the Silver Hand still accomplish such a "feat"? And why do they do this?
I am not a member of the Companions, but I am as close as a brother to Eric, so I naturally don't want anything to happen to my good brother. Moreover, I vaguely feel that there must be a big force behind the Silver Hand. Otherwise, how could a small and unknown organization be so wealthy as to equip its subordinates with silver weapons? And how could it quickly grow into a ruthless character that could cause the Companions to suffer big losses? Moreover, the werewolf bloodline of the Circle members is not known to everyone even within the Companions, so how could the Silver Hand know about it?
I have a bad feeling that Silver Hand is just an agent who was pushed to the front. Their backers have other plans, and their plans must be very big. But there are some things that I can't say casually. For example, I certainly can't speak directly now and predict that Krako will be killed by Silver Hand. Then I have to use indirect methods to find out his attitude towards Silver Hand first.
"I don't know the answer, kid. But I can tell you my guess."
Krako's face was solemn and he spoke slowly, as if he was choosing his words carefully.
"As you can see, the Silver Hand used the excuse of hunting werewolves to target the Companions. But how did they know there were werewolves among the Companions?"
"You mean, there is a traitor in the comrades group?"
Krako smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"I still trust my brothers and sisters. But you know, a large organization with a long history like the Companions will inevitably accept the wrong people. Some people have even become members of the circle and then were found to be acting inappropriately. If such a person is expelled from the Companions, will he bear a grudge and seek revenge in every possible way?"
"From what you said, is there anyone worthy of suspicion?"
"About twenty years ago, the Companions expelled a member of the Circle. His name was Einberjorn."