Chapter 311: Low-Script
Things weren't really any different after Michael and the other apprentices returned from their task. They were rewarded what they were owed of course, so aside from the gold, reputations, and stories that were only really worth anything to the Nords, nothing had changed from the usual routine.
The Arch-Mage had taken Malyn's research and had begun to investigate his goals and motives further, but Michael and the others weren't really included in this. There were a few procedures that new and old Masters had to take to ensure that another 'Malyn incident' wouldn't occur... Perhaps the Arch-Mage was rethinking his stance on Conjuration and the allowance of undead within the institute?
A week passes with two news-worthy things making it to Wintehold... The first was the 'official' revelation of the Stormcloak's existence, who were taking a hard stance against the Thalmor and Empire influences taking hold of Skyrim.
They had been operating before this of course, with more than a few people being aware of their actions in Markarth years ago in which his troops held Markarth hostage after liberating it from the Reachman, eventually forcing concessions out of the Empire. Indeed, to the Nords of Markarth, Ulfric Stormcloak was the Hero that forced the Empire to allow the worship of Talos within its walls.
News about the incident was quickly covered up by both the Empire, who saw it as an embarrassment and a break of the 'White-Gold Con' as Nords had begun to call it. This could lead to another war with the Thalmor, one that the Empire was hardly ready to fight.
The Thalmor also made great efforts to cover it up, seeing it as the first tremors of a rebellion that could have Skyrim mustering its children to fight in a manner that'd make the Legendary Ysgramor proud.
Still, the Stormcloak's liberation of Markarth was the only known incident where Ulfric had shown his true forces. But, now that he'd announced his attentions to the whole of Skyrim, it was obvious to all that a full-blown rebellion was but a few steps away.
Standing armies weren't disallowed by the High King, but one as large as Ulfric was purported to have certainly wasn't normal...
Michael knew this was only the beginning, as even a few Nords in the College had left to go join under Ulfric's banner. He had no doubt that the man had started making more blatant offers to other Holds in an attempt to form alliances.
Regardless, it didn't really matter to Michael or the others, as they had no intentions whatsoever in getting involved. Indeed, this was one of the main reasons they had wanted to join the College, as it would remain neutral throughout the Civil War.
Jarl Korir would probably support the Stormcloaks, but he had neither the troops, influence, nor the gold to do anything. Indeed, the only resources he had was the College, which the Arch-Mage lead... Who just so happened to not care about the approaching war.
The other news that was something less public, an Apprentice named Enthir had delivered a letter to Michael... Well, actually, two letters. One was filled with nonsensical scribbles that you'd expect a child or madman to draw, while the other was just a sequence of numbers.
When asked about it, Enthir just shrugs with a knowing smile and says, "I was told you'd get it. Or not, either way it's none of my business."
Fortunately, Michael was quickly able to recognise what he'd been sent... His time with Riki hadn't only been fighting, after all. If he wasn't able to recognise a cipher then Riki would somehow kick his ass from inside the book...
The scribbles and sequence of numbers correspond with one another, but it was more complicated than simply shifting the alphabet one letter down. That was only the first step, in this case, A was swapped with Z, but B was swapped with J through another elaborate, almost nonsensical method. He was helped along with his skill [Language Comprehension], which for some reason also affected Codes and Ciphers, something about them being a language in their own right he assumed...
Regardless, an hour later, Michael had completely translated the letter;
"Greetings my mysterious fellow. You've been quite the task to follow, that disappearing trick you pulled after revealing Mercer's true colours was definitely something. While I and a few others would have liked to deal with him ourselves, you did save us a lot of trouble.
And yes, we know you took your compensation from Mercer's own property. Along with your short 'discussion' with a certain someone... If I hadn't already asked, I'd have thought that those blokes in Black would have had a 'Hand' in it.
To be certain, this is not a castigation, but an honest invitation to explore this relationship of ours further. We may not be friends or even acquaintances, but we're as Thick as Thieves as it is... Whether or not you do anything with this letter is up to you. The fact that you can read it is enough to prove your worth.
Speak to our mutual friend for more, or burn the letter. As far as we're concerned, no response is a justifiably wary response.
- Brynjolf"
Huh, so the Thieves Guild had found him... And they aren't angry about him stealing most of Mercer's shit... Plus the Skeleton Key... Or had they not realised it yet?
None of the current members were Nightingales yet, come to think of it, so they wouldn't have a reason to know. Maybe that one that Mercer betrayed would come back though, if she did, she'd probably demand the Key...
Hmph, he still had lots of ideas regarding its use. The reason he hadn't tried researching it yet was that he had nowhere to do it safely. Malyn was a great example of what Daedric Artifacts did to people who started fucking with them. He had no doubt that Nocturnal would send an army of Nightingales after him if he actually managed to do shit to it, so first he'd need to find a way to isolate the artifact from the Daedric Prince's influence. That, or at least shield it from their gaze.
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