FSE

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The morning light comes early, and I awake in an empty, cool bed, the thick curtains pulled aside already. I'm naked- we always sleep naked now, it's become habit- but the room is chilly and I grab the clothes I had laid out next to the bed. Quietly I go downstairs, but the males down here are already up, checking the animal tracks left overnight. Makari is stirring the pot over the fire, cooking corn, beans, and chicken in a rich herby sauce, and I distract her until she chases me away with the spoon.

"This is an important trip, silly man. I haven't been to the old city before, and it's something a clan mother needs to do."

"I'm aware of that, which is why I'm interested too." I grin cheekily, and she squints at me. Then the others come in, and we're busy eating and discussing plans.

Then we organize: I have my light armor, a few basic potions, some trail mix and jerky, water, and a journal and writing tools to make maps and notes. Makari has her Khajiit bow and arrows, as well as darts, stars, bola, and a few smoke bombs, which all the other cats were using. She still had her Khajiit style armor, and plenty of lockpicks and small useful items like needle and thread.

I wasn't sure if we should wear armor so I checked with Radirr-

"I wanted to travel light, do you think it is safe enough to not wear armor?"

"It should be safe enough to not be needing the armor, but we will be needing to be careful when we reach the great ruins, there were sakh'tajirr, the Imperials call them terror birds, nesting there last year."

"Terror birds?"

"Yes, giant angry chickens having nasty claws and beaks. We can sneak past them, but if not, if we can kill them first they are tasty."

"What do they eat in the desert?"

"They mostly live on the grasslands, but are endangered now- the nobles think them a trophy worth bragging about- so they have been moving into wild lands to nest. This one thinks their babies have been hatched now, as the dry season is near."

Satisfied, I leave my armor packed but easy to retrieve, and my ax on me.

The water skins slosh with the camel's gait, and as we pass southeast along the road taking the easy path, there is soon just wind, footsteps, and breathing. We round the ridge and head northeast, towards the high hills with their steep slopes. Radirr knows the way, and we trudge in the growing heat, sweat dripping down, evaporating in the air swirling under our robes.

It's not like anything can sneak up- that valley is open, thick bushes along the arroyo, but open grass with small bushes and acacia trees beyond. A herd of struthio (a herbivorous flightless bird) is grazing near the hills to the north, when they scatter and a great cat lands on the back of one, bringing it down. Radirr pauses, staring, then moves on, grumbling "That's one of the wild cats, I've seen her around before. We should be safe for now... but to be safe we'll scout ahead- come with me, Nord."

The two of us trot ahead through a pass into another valley. It is narrower and steeper, and as we move northeast we see a great cliff to the right, and then ruins along the base. They built a great half-circle with the open side against it, like so-

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-enclosing a small plaza, and enough of the city had fallen into rubble to see that the cliff face itself had been carved with windows. A few pine trees line the edges of the canyon, apparently they get enough concentrated rain there, as the bushes are thicker here. There are more snakes and scorpions than in the open wasteland, but we ignore those harmless creatures and look for the terror birds.

We crouch and trot closer, skirting the edge of the city for a few minutes, and eventually he says-

"We should be going back, it is hot yes, and I do not see or smell any fresh sign of birds here. Wait back there, that spot looks good to scout from, and it'll be in the shade of the cliff soon. I'll bring the others, I'm much faster than you."

He wheels around, speeding back to the party, and leads them back to the observation point. He gives orders- "Hrothmund, Jindargo- we'll clear the path- the rest of you prepare a temporary camp... and look for some big rocks you can climb up on."

We pull out bows to creep closer to the ruins. He growls at us- "Good, stay low, keep the arrow ready- they are usually in packs of three or four, so prepare to loose all at once- they will call others to their aid, so make your shot count!"

The outer ruins are less than knee high, long destroyed and covered in blowing sand. There is no sound other than gritty sand and my breath, and we reach the inner plaza safely. Old nests made of branches and bones and big enough for me to sleep in are scattered around. Radirr grumbles "Ah, darn, I felt like chicken tonight. We should be able to relax now though."

We reunite with the others and look around- as this is their ancient home they were curious about their ancestors. Not much is left except pottery shards, but Makari digs up something and says "Look at these little statues!"- her claws scraping at dirt on crude clay sculptures in various feline forms, either primitive idols or children made them. I don't see any other artifacts but there are elaborate waterworks, diverting the arroyo and iron-stained gulleys running down the cliff faces. Up close I can tell this is all limestone, not too hard to carve, and they used as the bricks to build the city, which is why so much of the center is still standing.

As the sun descends from the zenith, we head into the great cavern, creeping with weapons ready. Radirr is on point, and Makari brings the camel at the rear, as we can't leave it alone. I see some mushrooms and pick them for alchemy later.

Once we are past the entrance I see there are paintings on all of the walls, in a flat geometric style, some are simply ornamental but there are animals and scenes of daily life with various kinds of Khajiit and elves. There is writing, the alphabet appears to be closest to Ayleid, which I studied some in my Dwemer research, and we all try to translate as I scribble down notes of the formal inscriptions:

-in those days great herds thundered across the grasslands, we feasted on them, but the rains died and the dust blew-

-our great warriors fought the monster Pelinal and the men who thought us Altmer, as they took our lands along the lake and river-

Makari quietly tells me "Once southern Cyrodiil was a mix of the native Khajiit and the Ayleid elves, and the tribes of Men that they allowed in- mostly as slaves. Then the first human empire conquered all of it and drove them out. That was the First Age though."

And then there was graffiti:

-all the king's wizards and all the king's warriors can't put the egg of time back together again-

-they say it is the Thrassian Plague, so many have died, find us to the west-

-Cities everywhere lose half their people to death and the rest flee into the wilds. Potions, spells, and shrines are in short supply, and those suspected of hoarding meet their end in the dark or in the street. The Queen prayed to Azurah but received no words of comfort as the canyon walls rang with wails and panic. There is nowhere to go, everyone you meet might carry death, if it has not found you already-

I check my notes- "Wait, don't tell me- the Thrassian Plague the was over 2000 years ago. Before the Khajiit had 16 kingdoms, but after were only the two."

Makari nods- "This city is Samar'khan, our ancestral home- well, we've had a lot of outsiders join since then, like I told you. Adoption still counts as family."

"So how is this still intact?"

"The desert preserves them well, but also we have been protecting it, keeping bandits and vandals out."

We continue, passing through a gateway into a great grotto with a sandy floor in front and small pools in the back. There are shafts going up, some sort of lighting system, perhaps they had mirrors once as well. In the middle is a primitive statue of Azura, elven faced and topless with a long skirt, holding aloft a crescent moon and eight pointed star.

Krinrah inspects it and says "We should be able to summon her, if anyone wishes to."

I snort "Would that be a good idea?"

"It is nearly her hour, twilight is upon us, so..."

Makari pinches me- "You wanted adventure, dear, and there's not much else here..."

I grumble "I have not heard much good coming of such things..."

Dar'Shadirr agrees- "We can try in the morning, better to sleep on it first."

Makari shrugs "Fine, but there is still enough light we can explore, just use night eye... oh, right, you can't, dear... well hold onto my tail."

Radirr grumbles "Some of us will need to stay here- and Jidargo and I are the only ones who have been here before, so one of us will need to stay."

Jidargo says "I will stay unless you want to."

Krinrah and Dar'Shadirr want to investigate the murals, so Jidargo stays with them, and Radirr leads us off into tunnels.

I ask "Is it normal for Khajiit to dig like this? It doesn't look much like the Ayleid stuff in Cyrodiil, and it's definitely not Dwemer, I've seen plenty of that, and Calcelmo's book insisted they stuck to an angular style- this is all loose and flowing, feels more Khajiit."

Makari says "You have seen that we were more numerous and settled in ancient times. We were the first people here, thousands of years to build and fall again..."

Radirr says- "I have been wanting to resettle these places for years, even as seasonal camps, but our people keep going to the city instead."

I ask- "Is there anything to keep them here? You just seem to farm and hunt."

He grunts- "There are old mines with jade, turquoise, silver- but they are played out, some veins go deeper but the mines flood too easily, which is ironic, but you noticed we have been two places where water is not far underground."

I say "I have something that might help- Dwemer machines that can pump water, so you can mine deeper, into places that they weren't able to before. They're the one useful thing I've gotten to work."

"Oh? Fortuitous, I am starting to appreciate my niece's perculiar choice of friend."

We climb many stairs, and come into a room that overlooks the grotto below. We light torches so I can see in here, and realize it is a library. There are no books left, but there are more paintings, and delicate carvings in the pillars. Some of the carving is similar to Ayleid, but different styles are mixed in, like it was reworked over centuries.

"Why did you bring us here? There are no books."

Makari sniffs "The room is a book itself." and studies various murals intently. I have no idea what to look for, I barely know enough Ta'agra to talk to living Khajiit, and that is a mishmash of dialects. I pass the time by copying various bits that look interesting, until Makari says "Vehi _'__ it ahzirr adro marrasich, garlath_ a'da'kheb... 'In our ancient clan mother's seat, a wet cave.' Or is the seat in the cave?"

Radirr rises- "Come, I know where the seat is."

I sudden;y realize I'm sore from the long day of travel, but we go along the same level, twisty passages meant for defense, into a large room with a throne facing a great balcony overlooking the cavern, with a direct view of Azura's moon and star.

She reads inscriptions that are flaking off the wall-

"Ahzirr abi marrasich... vosaab _'h__ i pallah mukeri... kha'jay ya varla, Khajiit ya Varliit..._ what!?"

Radiir helps- "Our clan's throne... warming the red seed you carry within... moon and star... hmm, interesting."

"This is full of old words I barely recognize."

I say "Even I can see the play on words."

Makari says "Yeah but 'Varliit' would mean 'person of the star' then, an elf right?" but Radiir replies "Ayleid. It's apart from the rest, it must be talking about diplomacy, I am guessing they allied with some Ayleids as you said earlier."

I say "What's the red seed- blood? Warm your blood- dance? You do a magic dance?"

Makari sighs "We don't have a magic dance to sit on a chair! Wait... it's the throne... we have forgotten any ceremonies to do with it, since obviously normally they would have a new clan mother only once a generation. Not like hunting dances and such."

"Well it mentions moon and star, which is Azura, and I can see Azura right there, so why don't you just sit in it and think, you've been on your feet for hours."

"Ah, right, relax...." and she sits, a bit small in the great throne of elder queens, and I look out- "Speaking of moon and stars, those shafts might not be accidental- what if they are meant to channel light onto the statue? Why else would you place it in a cave?"

Radirr perks up- "Yessss, that one is right- I will go down and look- you can find the way back, yes? You marked the path with charcoal? Good, I can leave you kids on your own."

After he leaves, I see a bit more light, but can't recall the exact phase of the moons. I shrug, and turn to Makari, who is puzzling over the paintings still. I get an idea, and walk over, sitting on the arm of the chair and rubbing her shoulder.

"You know, I was thinking, there's more than one way to warm the blood."

"Hrothmund! This is a sacred place, devoted to Azurrah and Marrah, not Dibella or Sanguine!"

"Yes but how do you become a mother?"

She makes a face "This chair is not comfortable enough for that! If sex was part of the ceremony, it would probably be in some sort of wedding... hmm... a ceremonial wedding? We just don't remember enough- and like I said, our line is not the unbroken female line."

"Maybe, but you are of the line, regardless. Do you think it remained unbroken for thousands of years?"

She frowns, and I rub her thigh, but she bats my hand away and I go back to the window, where moonlight is teasingly close to the statue... and I see something gleam.

"Hey, come look- there is something there!"

"Alright, wait... yes, a shiny yellow thing, inside the star... it will take a Khajiit to reach it!"

I peer over the ledge- "Are you going up, or across? We have rope, right? Who goes dungeoneering without rope?"

She leans over and shouts "We need rope!" and Dar'Shadirr, being the tallest and strongest, ties a long strand to a grappling hook, and whirls it up, catching on the ledge. Then Makari pulls it up enough to toss it up to a stone loop, apparently left for that purpose, and tugging on it a few times, kisses me- "For luck!"- then rashly swings across, lightly touching down in Azura's arm, plucks the object up and secures it in her bag, then swings back over. I stand aside, then grab her once she steadies herself.

I squeeze her waist- "I was almost worried, for a second."

"Hmph- saying I'm fat huh?"

"I am saying I'm a pessimist- our luck has been too good... so what is it?"

"Idunno, let's go down and see the others. You can use a rope right?" as she climbs up on the ledge and slides down the fifty or more feet to the floor. I cautiously pull the rope in, then rappel down the wall. She pulls out a bronze box with a funny dial and some small gems on one side.

She turns it- "Is it an arcane astrolabe?"

Krinrah rubs his chin "I think so, though a different model- of course, it was probably left here when they left this place... yes, see it says something like 'reference model'."

"Oh of course, they put it in an obvious but hard to reach spot."

I ask "So what does it do? Compared to a mundane astrolabe."

Makari twitches an ear "I'm not sure, we will have to see what spells are on it- it isn't for navigating ships, but reckoning horoscopes and moon phases- each one tends to have a certain purpose."

Krinrah says "This one looks like it tracks the moons and certain stars- appropriate given where they kept it. I think the clan mother should see it, and then we should put it back."

I think it's a bit hasty and say "Well, it interests me- could I make a copy first?"

Makari nods "Oh yes, we have a couple, but I don't see why not."

Radirr yawns, a bit frightful to see, and says "Well, it is getting late, we should make camp..."

We explore a bit more, not wanting to sleep down near the damp, but found a way up the cliff outside to where there was an apartment built into an overhang that was big enough for all of us.

As we get settled into our bedrolls, we are still chatty as it is still a bit early to sleep and I mention-

"This is interesting- ancient civilizations destroyed by disease, the survivors becoming nomads... Khajiit are far from simple."

Dar'Shadirr agrees- "Indeed- don't you know, warm sands are found on tropical beaches, not just in deserts! And the food- up here everything is wild game or vegetables, and is dried to preserve it. In the southern jungles we eat lots of fish from the oceans, and fruits, and everything is pickled because we have plenty of salt."

"So how did you wind up marrying a northern girl?"

"We are still in Elseweyr, regardless of minor details, ha ha!"

Makari props up on an elbow- "Romance is important too- a wife isn't traded, a husband is allowed to join her family- the woman rules the tent!"- and as she moves her breasts flop toward my face, and I says "As long as I can rule your tits!"- which causes some giggling, then Radirr coughs- "You kids go to sleep- we're getting up early tomorrow!"