Different from the ordinary spells and schools of the Mages Guild, one of the magics of the Psijic Order on Artayum Island is never shared with outsiders, and that is divination. Despite this (or perhaps because of it), Tamriel has never been short of omens and prophecies, some of which are well-founded, others that are pure nonsense, and still others that are too obscure to be verified. In addition, there are still secret prophecies, from Drorgizard in Elsweyr, to the Nerevarine in Morrowind, and even the Elder Scrolls themselves.
But sometimes prophecies purposefully mislead listeners, as if they were traps set by Boethiah.
——Tulil Neris
*****
The sky on a winter night is dark and starless. Black clouds were stirring in the roaring wind. There seemed to be some kind of power hidden in the thick clouds, and the air was filled with an unsettling atmosphere.
Qualanir raised his head, his sharp eyes unable to be concealed by the thick hood. The strong wind made the hail and snow flakes hit like arrows on the robe made of special magic weave cloth. The mysterious and amazing spells on it effectively isolated the cold air, so that the 'weak' magician would not be blown away by the sky. This biting cold freezes the soul and blood within.
The boots on Qualanir's feet are made of fine deerskin, supplemented by thick fur, making them comfortable and light. Most importantly, the magicians also attached anti-freezing spells to their shoes, so that they would not be frozen while walking on ankle-deep frost, snow and muddy roads.
In fact, the Psijic Order is very good to its members. Most of the equipment and spell-casting materials will be given sufficient support within the order. Therefore, even though Qualanir came out in an extremely hurry this time, he, Nerion, and Gribros and the others still prepared the necessary equipment and supplies for their trip.
After all, in Skyrim, if you are not a Nord, protection from cold and frost is the first thing you must do.
But whether it was Qualanir or the one who was clearly protected by magic, he was still sniffing unaccustomedly. The trembling Nairion couldn't help but stamp his feet, making the already deep ice and snow even more muddy. .
Qualanir stretched out his right hand, and a crystal ice flower fell into his palm.
According to legend, these beautiful creations are gifts from the storm goddess Kaine {Kaina, Gine, Ginales} among the locals. This goddess (so they thought) was the protector of travelers and sailors, the master of the sky, the elements, and the storms. In Skyrim, Genaleth is generally believed to be Lorkhan's widow. Her tears in memory of Lork Khan turned into raindrops, blown by the storm, or condensed into frost, falling to the ground, nourishing the Nords living here, and making the harvest in the coming year more abundant.
Only a skilled magician like Qualanil understands that the so-called gift from the goddess is nothing but the overflow of the earth's bones according to the fluctuations and collisions originally designed by the creator who descended from the light world and finally returned to the light world. A... law phenomenon is the transformation of matter and energy, which represents a kind of nature and balance.
Moreover, Qualanir is a high elf and does not believe in the Holy Spirit as spoken by humans. Summerset's economy, culture, and beliefs have a very different system from Tamriel. Moreover, Qualanir is also a highly skilled spell caster, a magic master from the secret magic holy land of Atayum Island. They are born with a different but novel perspective on mysterious things. I will never easily think that everything in the world is destined by the gods. However, after many days of exhaustion and exhaustion, Qualanir could not help but feel a little shaken.
"Qualanir, Qualanil!" Nerion's slightly sharp voice reached Qualanir's ears through the howling wind. "This is very wrong! Did you hear that? We -" Even without looking back, Qualanier could guess that his companion must be twisting his fingers uneasily at this time. This is Nellion's habit when he encounters problems and questions. His uneasiness always makes him want to destroy something or be overwhelmed by pressure. Qualanir discovered this while studying magic in Sepolata.
"Oh?" Qualanier rubbed his fingers and let the snowflake melt in his palm.
Over the centuries, Nordic religion has actually undergone many transformations. The earliest beliefs of these humans from Atmora revolved around animal totem worship. These animals—dragon, eagle, she-wolf, snake, moth, owl, whale, bear, and fox—seem to correspond to the Eight Holy Spirits and Lorhan. Later, the status of the dragon rose, and the Dragon Worship Cult was born. During or after the move to Tamriel, the Cult of the Dragon became more vicious and imposed its will everywhere. Later, the Dragon Wars overthrew the dragons and their priests, but that's another story.
In fact, when the Nords’ own religion, culture, economy, etc. led the slave uprising in Alesia (1E242) against the Ayleid Elf Empire that occupied Cyrodiil at that time, the Nord First Empire sent Mo Rihaus led the army to assist, and after the death of Empress Alessia (1E266), the empire gradually expanded northward, and there was a violent collision and mutual influence.
1E361 - Approximately 95 years after Alesia's death, the Order of Alesia became the dominant political factor in the Alesia Empire. Their teachings were enforced in Cyrodiil and throughout northern Tamriel. Maluka's extremely strict teachings were further strengthened. The prophet Maluka claimed to have received revelation from Alessia. He began to question the dominance of the elves and called for the suppression of the elves in the temple of the Eight Holy Spirits. The remaining Ayleid elven nobles in the Alesian Empire were also purged.
The faith of the Alessian Order was supported by Bogas, the High King of Skyrim. Bogas spread the teachings of the Eight Holy Spirits in Skyrim and banned his own Nordic pantheon. The spread of the Alessian Empire's faith also intensified the conflict between the Human Empire and the Valen Forest (Venwood Province). Bogas went to Cyrodiil in person, but was assassinated.
As a result, a war broke out between the two sides that lasted for nearly a hundred years. The Nords in Skyrim and the Nibenai in Cyrodiil declined at the same time.
It is precisely because of this war that the religions, cultures, and economies of both sides have been assimilated to a great extent after experiencing a series of tragic wars, negotiations, quarrels, and evolutions. Eventually, the animal totem gods became the Eight Holy Spirits that the Nords and Imperials generally worship today - namely, Akatosh, Dibella, Arkay, Zenisal, Mara, Standel, and Gina Les, Yurianos, Shezar.
Of course, the local people's view of them is still slightly different from that of Cyrodiil in the south. They call them by different names (that is, the well-known Alduin, Dibella, Okai, Sun, Mara, Stuen, Kaine, Junal, Shull). Their temples adapted again and again to suit the needs and desires of their current rulers, unaware that there were limits to what mortals could observe of those great and divine beings.
They are and are not; they exist and they do not exist, and their mystery and multifacetedness would take an entire volume as long as the Oxford Dictionary to describe.
But that’s not what makes Qualanier uneasy. Days in Tamriel when the stars are dim and the sun and moon lack light are rare but not impossible. The most recent one was 4e98, when the Night of the Void occurred, and the twin moons in the sky, Sekunda and Mather, disappeared at the same time. It was not until two years later that the double moon appeared again. According to Thalmer's claim, they restored the Twin Moons and saved the Khajiit (also known as Khajiits) who were most affected by the Twin Moons. So in 115, Elsweyr was merged into the Aldmeri Continent in the form of two kingdoms, and the empire once again failed to stop the Thalmor expansion.
But unlike the sudden occurrence decades ago, tonight's double moon begins with a cold but comforting sky high in the sky, with silver and faint red light falling from among the stars, giving people a particularly peaceful feeling. .
But soon, a huge dark cloud blocked the moon.
Both Qualanir and Nerion felt very uneasy, as if something terrible was about to happen. The air was filled with a restless and chaotic magical atmosphere, and the earth trembled slightly, as if there were some terrifying demons lurking underground and ready to come out. The mountains in the distance are like twisted shapes in a nightmare, and the sparse cold shrubs on the skyline are like demons with their teeth and claws showing, which is intimidating.
"I can't tell what it is, but everything is too weird." Nairion said. He finally couldn't help but cast a spell - a circle of flames swirled around him rapidly, and the falling snowflakes in the sky were covered by invisible magic. The force blows them away - the cloak of flames. Qualanir recognized the spell.
A sudden burst of flames illuminated the surrounding area. Qualanir also saw the hesitant and uneasy expression on his companion's face. "In other words, Master Serlarus shouldn't have summoned us in one of the coldest months of the year, and then casually sent us away from Sepolata to find something in this disgusting world of ice and snow— —”
During these days, my companions have been complaining and seem confused and dissatisfied with the purpose of their trip. But Qualanir couldn't help but said: "Nerion, Master Silarus has never made a mistake! Maybe this can make you feel better. Or maybe you are willing to go back and explain to the master face to face how you made the secret society Did you leave the task aside?"
Nailion curled his lips, with a trace of dissatisfaction in his fiery red eyes. This made his thin face look more unruly and sinister. But in the end, the reputation of the Master of Knowledge made the Dunmer sorcerer shut up.
They are all one of the seven mages who accepted the order of the leader of the Eleven Force Conclave, Serralus (The Eleven Force Conclave is the council of the Psijic Order, based in Artayum, so it is also called The Council of Artayum. This group was initially led by Lachesis and subsequently disappeared along with the Isle of Artayum during the Second Age. When it reappeared, many of its members were missing. Most recently, the Conclave was led by the Master of Knowledge Serra Led by Russ. This is an extremely powerful mage. No one knows how old he is, but one thing is certain. He is proficient in various spells and is a true master of magic. In addition, he is also proficient in prophecy. ). Knowing the importance and urgency of their trip to the Secret Society.
Yes, Qualanir and Nairion were the first group of mysterious people they sensed when Turka came to this world.
Two months have passed, and Qualanir still remembers that when he cast the time-travel spell in an attempt to trace back everything that happened at the place predicted by Silarus, he found that all he sensed and saw was nothingness. This shocked the mages who participated in the mission at the time.
After discussion, the seven mages decided to search separately to track down the changes in time and space mentioned by the archmage. Among them, Qualanir was assigned to a group with the dark elf mage.
But their clues were so few that Qualanier and his companions' months of running proved to be in vain. They never imagined that Turka would actually stay in a simple farmer's house. But the barn was spacious enough for two months. The limitations of prophecy are clearly seen here. All precognition and induction are interpretations of the future, but when you look from top to bottom, from left to right, and from left to right at the same time, you will find that chaos is born.
The future is never a unilinear development, and the strong cannot be glimpsed by the weak.
The Psijic Order may have sensed (predicted) the arrival of Turka, but due to the complex CHIM attributes on his body, he is destined to be an existence that is not bound by Orbis.
And, much to Qualanir's disgust. He also had to endure the complaints of his companions. At a certain moment, he even felt a little sorry for himself, feeling that this mission might indeed be a mistake as Nerion said.
Suddenly, the bones of Tamriel—at least the Reach region—trembled violently, and magical winds roared and poured in the sky. Immediately afterwards, a beam of light as bright as a pillar struck a place to the west of them in Qualanir's shocked eyes, and disappeared after a few breaths.
"There is - Markarth!" Qualanir blurted out. Out of nowhere, Qualanier suddenly had an intuition that the 'thing' they had been looking for for two months might be there!
Nairien's expression became even more sinister.
The next moment, the terrifying power of heavenly magic, which was comparable to a powerful forbidden spell, roared past, blowing wind and frost all over the sky. Qualanir heard the Dunmer mage's curses coming from behind him.
He couldn't help laughing. The flame cloak on the companion's body became dimmed in this astonishing change of heaven and earth. Just like his complicated and obscure mood at the moment.
*****
At about the darkest moment before dawn, Turka and his party finally walked out of the endless deep tunnel of the Sidana Mine.
No one knows how they did it. People - some of the guards and miners guarding the Sidana Mine later swore that they witnessed the earth cracking in front of them, and several mysterious people ran out of the ground. Some of them were wearing mail, some had bare hands, some were elves with dark skin, and some were giants as tall as a half-adult male Nord (this is highlighted by most scholars) - crazy They used pickaxes, iron chains, and even stones on the ground and their teeth to fight with the guards holding long swords. The blood flowing from their bodies dripped onto the dry ground and gathered into disgusting streams.
"Spider, what's happening here!" Nargis, who was the first to come out of the shadows, raised his eyebrows and stared at the crazy scene in front of him in stunned silence.
Both the victor and the victim let out loud gasps, like wild beasts. Their eyes were filled with nothing but anger. The ground was covered with broken limbs and guards with their heads smashed. The torches on the stone wall were crackling and burning, and the erratic shadows were swaying back and forth.
A guard saw the one-eyed assassin. Regardless of his broken chest and livid head, he left his opponent who had turned into a corpse - the opponent was only wearing a very thin linen clothes and looked more like a prisoner - and turned around He rushed towards the new guy.
Nargis sneered. The assassin had no idea what was happening on the surface while they were deep underground, and he didn't care. He moved deftly to the left, avoiding this stupid guy's flawless attack with a few steps, and then a dagger appeared in his hand, the sharp edge even reflecting the light of the candlelight.
He drew the blade from right to left, and the dagger was delicately and fatally prepared to slit the throat of this reckless guy wearing the uniform of a Markarth guard. But at the last moment, he was slapped on the face with a dagger instead.
The power of this blow was beyond both his and the other party's imagination. Seeing that the other party actually stepped backwards, then fell to the ground weakly and lost consciousness, Nargis shook his head hesitantly, stopped the attack, and did not know what he was thinking. What.
"They... seem to be attacking indiscriminately." A voice came from behind Nargis.
Then there was a second voice.
"Is this also your employer's plan?" The owner of this voice is obviously incredibly charming. His voice is melodious, like the whispers of a lover, which is fascinating. But when you listen carefully, you will find that the voice is full of terrifying majesty, as if a king is scolding his ministers.
"We only received orders to deal with... targets in the fortress. The rest is not on the Brotherhood's radar," the first voice said. His tone sounded frightened and humble.
The owner of the majestic and melodious voice seemed to be thinking about something, and he did not speak again.
In the eyes of others who were either shocked, admired, confused, or disgusted, Turka Aracano faced the icy cold wind in the sky and walked out through the tunnel formed by magic.
(End of chapter)
