A trip down memory lane

The trip to Morvunskar had been mostly uneventful. They had been able to get directions from a nice farmer transporting some of the largest cabbages Rictus had ever seen. He had given the farmer a couple gold for some of his stock and even received some tips on growing food which could be helpful for the base.

There was a spot of trouble when two thieves jumped out and tried to extort them for money. A quick paralyze was enough to persuade them not to try and rob the group. That and Roluth pushing them down while paralyzed and stomping on their hands. Hard to threaten someone with a dagger if your hands are broken.

Morvunskar was a bit of a dump. The fort had potential, but it was quite run down. The evidence of fighting could also be seen, and it was clear mages had damaged a lot of the fort. It was in a great overlook position, especially for Windhelm. If properly maintained and garrisoned, it would be a great defensive bonus to Windhelm as a lookout station and a deterrent for any invading forces since they would have to capture it first before moving on to Windhelm if they didn't want the fort to raid their supply lines.

Rictus was not sure what the reception at this fort would be like. He was very hopeful to persuade some of the mages to join his group. They had to know they were not safe in this location. The stormcloaks were not so incompetent as to leave an enemy force so close to their main base, especially with the war getting more violent. Rictus gave the mages inside a few days longer at the maximum before a large attack happened. They could make it costly, but they would lose to the attacking stormcloaks.

For some reason, Rictus was getting a bit of an uneasy feeling as they got closer to the fort. He didn't know why, but there was something about this place which set his nerves a bit on edge. An ice spike landing in front of him brought him out of his thoughts. As a sigh escaped his lips.

"Stop right there or the next one goes through your chest!"

A slightly disheveled man was standing on the crumbling fort wall. Rictus could tell there were 3 more mages coming towards them and one went inside, presumably to warn the others. The greeting by ice spike was starting to get a little old though. It wasn't like they were really surprising him either. He was not so oblivious to get completely carried away in his thoughts all the time. It may happen occasionally, but he still was able to react to threats. Especially when the threat was such a blatant magical construct he could feel being prepared. Only experienced mages were able to stealthily use magic in the presence of a stronger mage.

Deciding to make a more impactful entrance this time, Rictus caused the ground to swallow up the ice spike. He then made a stone throne to sit on as he raised himself up on a pillar of stone to look down on the offending mage. This should be more than enough to get their attention. Besides, he was getting tired of having the low ground in all these kind of situations, even if they did underestimate his power.

The mages all stared in amazement at this random stranger. Power over the earth was very rare and not often seen. Most mages were not well versed in a wide variety of magics. Destruction magic was the most common type learned compared to the other schools. Fire magic was always the most popular followed by ice then lightning. Utilizing stone usually took more mana and effort than it was worth and incorporated alteration magic which was one of the least popular schools of magic for an average mage.

"Uhmmm…..why don't we take you inside to see the boss."

The poor mage stuttered out looking and feeling the magical pressure Rictus was giving off. He decided this was out of his league and needed someone else to deal with this problem.

"I think that would be a great idea. I have come here to see if any of the mages here would rather join my followers instead of staying in this doomed fort."

Rictus casually informed the mages as he created a platform connecting the walls of the fort. He then made some additional stairs for his 2 followers to accompany him up. Once they were there, he dismissed the earthen constructs. The rogue mages were impressed by his magical ability and control. Such mastery over magic was rare, and it was even rarer in one so young. Usually, it was older people who have had more time to dedicate to magic. Young master mages were usually prodigies and went on to become the most powerful and famous mages around.

The group quickly made their way into the fort as they followed the mage. It was amazing how sloppy this group was acting. One mage had already run inside when Rictus approached. Now, two more had run ahead while the original mage that spoke was leading Rictus's group. This left only a single mage outside the fort. He knew it was a strange occurrence for a powerful mage to suddenly appear, but it was no excuse for their lack of discipline. A single guard in a fort this large was not enough. If any of these mages joined him, they would have a lot to learn.

As they were going down the halls, there was intermitted banging coming from ahead at what seemed to be a forge. A man's grumblings to a colleague could be heard.

"All they do is drink all day and night, and what do I do?"

"You work the forge."

"I work this daedra damned forge. Why do then even need me to do this? We use magic, not weapons. I swear, they're making me do this for a laugh….At least they don't make me deal with the prisoners."

"Yeah. I'm not to sure how I feel about what goes on down there."

"I bet Naris gets a kick out of it. Nasty Fella there."

"Shh…Be quiet before you end up there. Then I'd have to work the forge."

The mage leading them seemed to flinch a little at the portion about Naris. Seemed everyone was a bit afraid of this man. Needlessly torturing and inflicting pain was not something Rictus supported. There may be a time and place for such things, but people who did it for fun were just messed up in the head. These were the kind of people who gave mages such a bad reputation and caused some of the fear and distrust of mages in Skyrim. The mages at the forge did seem dissatisfied, which was promising for recruitment.

It did not take long until they entered a large chamber. There were stairs leading down into the room proper. A few tables and chairs were scattered around the left side of the room. Quite a few were overturned, and it just seemed messy. Why did all the bases of other people always seem so messy? Did no one care about keeping a nice space to live in?

The right side of the room was much more dramatic. A wide flight of double stairs led up to a couple of throne like chairs. There were troll skulls along the pathway for either decoration or intimidation, maybe both. Fiery torches lined the walls near the stairs giving a shadowy ambiance in the flickering lights.

A handful of mages were lounging around the tables eating and drinking while watching Rictus and his group appear. They were not really alerted but did seem interested to see someone new here. A couple of mages were waiting at the bottom of the stairs acting as additional guards. They were decently powerful, but they seemed more interested in joining their fellows drinking than being a guard. The main two people of note were standing near the thrones while talking in a hushed tone. Both mages had a large mana signature.

---{[A/N]: Just so you all know, I will not always describe the actual color of magical aura that Rictus can detect. Sometimes I will use descriptions of how it appears as well instead of just colors because that can be boring. Ex. A magical signature which seems to move around and not wanting to be bound or observed would indicate illusion. So, if it is ever not clear what is going on with it, please just let me know.}

One was an older looking Nord with grey hair and a long beard. He was skinny and appeared as an iconic old man mage with electric blue eyes. Rictus had a feeling he was not quite as hold as he appeared though. The Nord had the largest magical signature which seemed to be mostly dominated by destruction with a bit of conjuration mixed in. The chaotic movements of his mana seemed to denote a preference and aptitude for lightning magic. Rictus inferred his conjuration preference would probably be a storm atronach.

The other was a mature Dark Elf woman who seemed to be in her middling years. It was difficult to tell exact age with elves, at least for Rictus. She was somewhere between old and young and in the prime of her life still. She had dark grey-blue skin, shoulder length black hair, and the typical red eyes found in her people. Her magical signature was smaller than the old mans but larger than any of the others. It seemed to be flickering like a fire with additional elements of alteration and illusion around the edges. She seemed to be a bit more versatile than many mages.

The two leaders seemed to be in a quiet discussion about something as Rictus and his group was lead partially up the stairs to them. Once they got closer, the two mages abruptly stopped talking to stare at them. The older man was the one to speak first.

"Ah so here is the little upstart trying to take my people away. I can tell you now that nothing you say would be able to take me away from this place."

The woman gave an exasperated look at the man's words. She spoke for the first time after sending a glance to the old man.

"My fellow mage, why have you come here? We would like to hear the words from your own mouth first before we decide on any actions."

Rictus happily nodded at this. Seems this woman was the reasonable one of the group.

"Well, I am glad you asked. You see, I have come with a fantastic proposition which will not always be available to you. I am offering anyone here the chance to join me and the rest of my followers. We are a quickly growing faction which already has a defensible base, and we are on good terms with the major players of Whiterun and Winterhold. We are lacking a bit in the magical department at the moment, so those who join us now would be fast tracked to being a high ranking member of the magical branch. You should act fast because these deals will not last!"

He finished with a big smile that would put any used car salesman or infomercial speaker to shame. He definitely did not use magic to make his smile shine brighter or a sparkle to appear in it.

The mages and even his own followers stood their slightly dumbfounded by his little performance. At their silence, Rictus took a second to reflect how ridiculous he had sounded. He couldn't believe he went with the salesman approach. There was no way that would work.

"Did you really think that would work?"

The old man looked on in confusion. What kind of crappy argument did he just listen to? Surprisingly enough, the woman seemed slightly interested in what was just said. Rictus decided to continue in a more realistic manner.

"Here are the facts. I am offering you all a place to live and work if you follow me. We have a much nicer and defensible base compared to this place, which is in desperate need of repair. An enemy could simply walk in the fort if they came from the mountain side since a landslide has made the ground level with the wall. You will eventually be driven out by the stormcloaks due to the location of this fort, probably sooner rather than later. They will not let an enemy keep such a strategic position. If you stay here, you will all die. So, you can stay and die, run away and try and make it alone, or choose to follow me and prosper. It is up to you all."

Rictus had made sure to project his voice as he was making the statement. He wanted to make sure everyone could hear what he was saying, not just the leaders. He would accept whoever decided to come with him even if their leaders disapproved.

The old man simply scoffed at the speech. His eyes dulled as he seemed to be looking off into the distance.

"You are speaking as if we do not know the stormcloaks will come here. We know they will. In fact, many here are counting the minutes until such a thing happens. Things in Whiterun are different than Windhelm. If anyone here does not wish to stay, I would gladly send them on their way with my blessing. Even if I am the only one left, I will still stay here and await the cursed stormcloaks for a chance to take even one of them to the planes of Oblivion with me."

There was a gathering of the mages around them by this point. They all were looking upset at the old man's words. The elder looked back at Rictus.

"They took my wife and child from me. They told me they would watch over them as long as I helped their war effort. Despite the fact I was already on their side! When I tried questioning orders, they threatened my family. I did all they ever asked of me and more. Then one evening as a major storm was rolling in…."

The old man stared off into the distance as he stopped talking. Everyone was riveted to what he was saying at this point. Not a sound was to be heard except the flickering fire of the torches. The Dunmer woman placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. After composing himself, the man continued.

"One of the high commanders had a son who was part of my unit. The boy was killed by an imperial mage before I could defeat them. He always blamed me. To punish me, my wife and child were taken a tied to a large metal pole on the coast. People would always place them in the sands during storms to make glass. Their charred remains were delivered to me outside this very fort. I always had a knack for lightning magic and a fear of hurting my family with it…"

While talking, currents of lightning were seen roaming over the man's hands and around his body. When he got to the final part of his speech, the lightning formed a small ball in his hands as he snuffed it out. A desolate look in his eyes was all that remained as he looked at Rictus.

"I am waiting for the stormcloaks to come. I will show them my vengeance. Then I will hopefully be reunited with those I loved and lost. Not everyone's story here is as tragic as mine, but we have all suffered or had someone we cared for suffer at the hands of the stormcloaks. I do hope some here can let go of their anger and join you."

The old man patted Rictus's shoulder as he made his way down the stairs. He gave one more look over his shoulder to Rictus.

"You are more than welcome to stay here tonight. We have plenty of food and drink to spare. I am sure everyone here would enjoy some new stories from you and your companions. Not too many happy tales are being told here."

He started walking away, but Rictus still heard what was said under his breath.

"It is too bad you were not around before with your offer. My little Ana always loved our visits to Whiterun."

With that, the old man made his way back towards the entrance. Everyone else slowly started to disperse with most heading back to the table of food and drink. Rictus and his companions were left with the Dunmer woman. He was still shocked from the encounter. He had been expecting the normal old mage encounter with the mage being arrogant and controlling. He was not expecting to hear such a story and even get a recommendation for people to leave this place.

The woman was the first to break their silence.

"Norvold means well. He would never force one of the people here to do something they are not willing to do. He has been a steadfast leader and teacher to many of the mages which have lived in this area. The death of his family was too much for him. Him and his wife had tried for years to have kids before having Ana, their little miracle baby. She was quite talented at alteration and illusion magic. So excited and quick to learn, even from a foreigner like me."

She then turned towards him with a serious look.

"If you are serious about your offer, I would be curious to hear more about it. There are a few here I believe would be willing to join you as well, especially after having heard about Norvold's blessing. We can talk about it while we share one last drink with my fellow mages as we should probably leave as soon as everyone is packed up. By the way, my name is Reysera Maryon."

Rictus shook her hand as he introduced his followers to Reysera. They then all made their way to the tables with the other mages. It did not take long before Rictus was sharing stories and tall tales with the mages who were more than happy to be distracted for a time, even old man Norvold came back to listen. When he finally sat down, a large intricate mug with strange sharp black protrusions was brought to him.

Rictus stared at the mug for a little bit as he sensed some strange magical disturbance. Looking around revealed a totally different area than he was in before. He was suddenly outside in a misty looking grove with lights hanging around a table. Rictus's followers as well as some of the mages were sitting at the table as well and looking around disoriented. A strong gauntleted hand suddenly clapped down on his shoulder. A terrible pit formed in his stomach as he started to follow the red and black armored hand up to its owner.

"Ah you are finally here! I was beginning to think you wouldn't make it."

Rictus schooled his emotions as he came face to face with someone he had actively tried to avoid.

"Umm where are we?"

The intimidating mug which was sitting on the table was placed directly in his hand.

"I thought you might not remember your first trip here. You had quite the night. I think you still earned the staff despite seemingly forgetting about my promise. Maybe you had a bit too much last time?"

Rictus looked at the figure before him.

"You are Sanguine right?"

The Daedric Prince let out a laugh as he chugged the mug of ale which seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He was clad in full daedric armor which was covered in harsh edges and sharp contrasting blood red and midnight black. He stood towering over Rictus with horns on his head and a sharp angular face covered in red…paint?

"Haha I knew you were a good choice! I am indeed Sanguine, Daedric Prince of Debauchery! I know you must be feeling hurt about me lying to you. But how could I trust you until we shared a few drinks? It didn't take long for me to realize you'd make an interesting bearer of my not-quite-holy staff than any of these other wastes of flesh."

Rictus was still in a bit shock at the turn of events. He had been trying to avoid this situation! That was why he never followed through with finding out what happened. He cursed his lack of follow through now. If he had known the fort would lead him here, he never would have come here to begin with! He cursed his memory for forgetting the names of places so easily! The normal characters from a fanfiction would have easily remembered all this, why couldn't he?

He was in a difficult position now. Getting involved with the Daedra is not something to be taken lightly. It tended to end badly for those who made a habit of it. The last thing he wanted to do was offend a being who was basically a god.

"I am honored you chose a mortal like myself then."

Sanguine let out a snort.

"Let's be honest. I don't always think my decisions through. But you…you have some potential. At least more than I've seen in a while. Maybe a little influence from your old uncle Sanguine could help adjust your course a bit….or not. It's not like you have pledged your soul to me yet. I just like being entertained and I haven't had so much fun in years! How about a little drink for old times' sake?"

Rictus was relieved to hear that bit about his soul. He was not sure where he wanted to end up here, but it was definitely not with any of the Daedric Princes. The taste of alcohol made his eyes widen. He had not planned on taking a drink at all, but his mug was completely empty. Looking around, everyone there was already chugging down their drinks with smiles starting to appear on their faces. The power and influence of a Daedric prince in his own domain was ridiculous. He knew there was not much he would be able to do here without offending Sanguine which was a big no no. Rictus was able to pull something from storage and cast a couple quick spells before he felt Sanguine' s arm on his shoulder and another mug of alcohol appear in his hands.

"How about I tell you about a fun little mortal I met in Cyrodiil? I'll even show you this little spell I taught them to really Alter a party. I think you may find it comes naturally to you."

It may have just been the alcohol talking, but Rictus found himself interested in what the daedra had to say. He did like magic.

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[A/N]: Oooo finally coming full circle on this quest. Only took a few chapters to get here. Don't worry. The next chapter will explain what happened.