Northbound Pilgrimage II

Chapter LXXXV - Within Her Grasp

The ship was slowly disappearing beyond the horizon, sailing past the lighthouse and towards Morrowind.

Karnwyr was constantly running circles around Aeyrin and Bishop, getting underfoot or burying his face in the snow playfully. It was no wonder. He was not the only one grateful and relieved to finally be on dry land again.

"I told you that I used to be afraid of traveling on water, right?" Aeyrin shivered as they made their way through the deep snow towards the mountains to the south. "I think that fear just came back," she let out a deep sigh. She wasn't sure if it really had come back – she used to be terrified of even taking a ferry across Lake Rumare to the Waterfront. Hopefully it wouldn't be that bad. But she certainly didn't want to undergo any other long sea voyage again.

It was horrifying for so many reasons. Unstable ground, nowhere to run or even move and all that onslaught of the elements and the beast without a moment's respite. The ship could have been destroyed any time, although at least they were moderately close to the coast. But would that even matter in a storm? She'd rather not think back on any of it.

"Yeah, I'm not exactly eager to get back on another ship anytime soon," Bishop let out an exasperated sigh. "Fuck, what a shitstorm. Imagine meeting Alduin like that." He hated being tied up like that in a fight. He couldn't stop imagining all those times when it would have been his end if he couldn't move and dodge. That particular encounter, when they were at the mercy of the World-Eater's onslaught, really stood out.

"Please don't say that," Aeyrin groaned. That was something she didn't even want to imagine. That was just... no. She really didn't want to imagine it.

They waded through the snow in tired silence then, further and further. They didn't get much chance to catch up on sleep for the rest of the voyage either. Aeyrin got about two hours of shut eye and Bishop barely a half an hour since he had been allowed into their cabin only significantly later. The brief rest seemed to have made them even more tired, but they had to go on. There was nowhere to rest now anyway and Karliah's coordinates were only a short distance away.

Hopefully they really were there early and whatever Karliah had planned for them wasn't too time-sensitive. She would never rely on their assistance if it had been, right? She had no way of knowing on which end of Skyrim they currently were or what they were involved in. Their time wasn't easily predictable.

So... Karliah probably wouldn't mind if they rested a bit before they jumped into whatever she had for them, right?

They finally made it to the designated spot – a decrepit old farmhouse with no roof and practically half of the walls missing. It was only a foundation by now with a few planks on the side, completely empty.

"Ugh... guess we should look around," Bishop groaned tiredly. He really wasn't in the mood to go searching around the area for some secret hideout, tired as he was, but what else was there to do? Karliah must have been here somewhere.

"Noo," Aeyrin whined with palpable exhaustion in her voice. No more waiting. No more drifting through snow. These were the coordinates. Why wasn't she here?

"KARLIAH!"

Aeyrin's voice echoed through the area and Bishop instantly flinched at her shout. He gave her an alarmed and kind of a chastising look in an instant, but she only gave him a small wry smile in return. Nobody was around. Why waste time looking for some hidden entrances without even trying this first?

With a resigned sigh, Bishop began to look around the small structure regardless, but after he had only made a few steps, a creak of old hinges echoed through the place suddenly.