Chapter 11 - 'One School' Theory
It has been 3 years since I started learning magic, Nurina was always supervising me like I am some sort of a kid, I am a kid though.
This year is 4E-191, ten years before the start of the game events.
I am not sure if I am the Hero of the game or not, I don't have a skill system neither I can use the hero's power. Still, I would rather have a quiet long life, but if I am not the hero then I should hurry up and gather the good stuff before he/she collects them.
Artifacts and rare treasures are out there in dungeons and ruins. Still, I lack the strength to survive.
I am 10 years old which mean I have only 5 years left in the orphanage, I need to make sure Nurina is alright and keep her safe from that hag Grelod harm.
Nurina is a mage and a strong one at that, but Nords hate magic and they are racist so if anything happened to her I will lash out at those people hard.
These days I could find my way to the market square without anyone noticing, I sometimes accompany and Vex in there runs around the city. These two are from the NPCs in game, they belong to the thief guild and they are older than me.
I learnt how to pickpocket and unlock easy locks from them, I also learned how to sneak to. I should say it just to be honest that these skills are much complicated than the game.
Pickpocketing in game is to sneak behind a target and use 'action key' unseen, but in real life I have to take care of what I am about to steal, the target must be moving and not slowly, there has to some crowd to cover and the target has to be a bit careless. Once the conditions met it would be easy.
I've once seen Vex cut someone's pocket from outside and took the money purse with no one even feeling her actions. How scary! Be glad they are the thieves' guild and not the dark brotherhood.
Picking locks is a pain, you need a thin blade to act as a base and some lock picks, lock picks are bigger than needles with a hock-like end. The point is to make both the picks and the thin blade that act as an all door key, and watch for the picks because they break, or that's what it should be like in game.
In real life it's another sort of pain, picks don't break that easily, atop of that it seems like everyone has a different way to open a lock, Vex uses two picks at a time and Brynjolf only uses one.
The problem doesn't end with just the lock quality and the picks vulnerability, unlike the game you can get caught, and if your hand slip while unlocking, a sound comes from the pick that might attract attention to you.
I remember I added a mod called 'Life Takes Time' or something that makes every time pausing actions like picking a lock or reading a book in game to actually go along with time.
Sneaking is another story, it doesn't just work like the game where you press 'Ctrl' and you become a ghost. Brynjolf told me that first I need to be in control of my body from the inside to the outside.
To sneak one needs to breath slowly to let his heart beat not to be heard, also not putting too much power in muscles other than the ones needed is fundamental in sneaking, one also needs to blend with the surroundings and know every in and out of where he is, in day walk among people in night walk with the shadow.
I really like this part about sneaking. It's known that thinning one's own presence and reading the surroundings are most fundamental skills for 'Hunters' and 'Dungeon Raiders'.
As someone whose aim is to be an adventurer I need lots of skills and knowledge.
After asking Brynjolf and Vex how to be better at it they told me "To live daily as a thief, every step must be calm and quiet, everything must be noticed and analyzed."
Damn! being a thief is cool! where do I sign up? ah right in few years big bro Brynjolf will handle the recruiting and there are requirements I haven't met yet.
Big sis Vex is as beautiful as ever with her silver hair and sharp features, especially when she tries to act dangerous, she is the most skilled junior in the guild after all. Once the 'Hero' of the game joins the guild she would already become a master and a quest giver at that.
Following the master trainers from young age is sure a good thing. I mean, I don't need to buy hard-earned gold for training.
Money in this world and the world of game are totally different too, I mean in game you use only gold coins. These coins are called 'Septims' and they are named after the Emperor who founded the last Empire in Cyrodiil 'Tiber Septim'.
Septims in the game are mainly gold but that's didn't stop mods and modders for creating some coin overhaul mods like 'Immersive Currency' or 'Coins of Tamriel'.
The one I installed was 'Coins of Tamriel' despite its terrible naming sense but that didn't affect the world that much.
Anyway in this world there are gold, coin and copper coins, they are the empires official coin system.
And when you go into a Pre Third Era dungeon in game, why do you find septims in the treasures you ask? No hay problema, mi amigo. In reality you get to find old coins from the ancient civilizations such as Nordic and Dwemer.
And the Jarls exchange these coins from adventurers for a very satisfying ratio.
Thinking about that I've already arrived at the orphanage, only to find Wulfur waiting for me at the entrance.
"What's up?" I spoke nonchalantly.
"You are late, Grelod will have you head." Wulfur said.
"I would like to see her try." I couldn't hold back my grin.
Normally that hag would nag at me whenever the chance arises but cornering someone who was a lawyer in his past life with just words is a bit overestimating oneself.
Walking past the entrance room up to the second floor Grelod is waiting for me as far as she could from Nurina's room.
I knew she could hold it no more as her eyes were blazing with fury.
"The hell were you been you little swine, it's already past the curfew time?" Grelod was spouting hatred with every word she could utter.
"Energetic as ever, old witch." The mocking me said inwardly.
"I was practicing magic." I knew this answer will turn her anger on.
"And now she is teaching the brats witchcraft." Grelod said in with a wicked smile.
"There is a wicked witch in this orphanage, everyone knows that." I said it with no care in the world.
Grelod eyes were already turning red with anger and I added more oil to the flame. Dammit my old habit kicked in again, I am as stubborn as Grelod herself and I am a troublemaker of my own league so I don't hold back with that hag.
"You DARE mock me you pig? Do you think that dark elf will prote…" Grelod was already at her peak.
"First of all her name is Nurina, and you are to call her 'Headmistress'. And I do dare, 'Dare' is my surname." I spoke sharply meeting her eye to eye. You want some, come get some.
Before I could say anything more we could hear Nurina's voice coming from her room "Jon, apologize."
You see who is boss here? I grin while saying "sorry" as soon as Nurina's words ended, one must be that shameless to make a statement.
"My room." Nurina's voice sounded again. That was my holy summon, can't make the goddess wait.
I walked past Grelod while making a 'got my eyes on you sign' with two fingers, I couldn't help myself. After all the kids were looking at me with eyes full of admiration, a cute Khajiit girl was waving her tail left and right as she witnessed the exchange of the powerhouses in this orphanage.
That was Akara from our wing. She was sent to Grelod's wing when she came a year ago and Grelod treated her like how Nords normally treats non-Nords. Nurina stepped in and put an end to it, now she is at our wing.
The poor thing was so broken when she came, apparently her parents were from one of the Khajiiti trading caravans and they got attacked by bandits between Riften and Shor's stone. The guards found her a week after the attack and she was in a bad shape, for Grelod to be mean to such a girl is the far-reaching end of cruelty.
For a cat person such as me Khajiit folk are so wondrous, Akara on top of all Khajiit was so beautiful to my eyes, she had grey fur and black lines like that of a tiger but her head was of a little kitten, her dark grey hair was braided in cornrows, and her eyes were radiant green, Just shoot me dead already I am barely resisting every urge to kidnap that girl and pat her somewhere desolate.
Resisting my inner cat lover urges, I am already entering Nurina room with a victor walk.
Nurina was holding a letter and reading it in a bad mood.
I couldn't help but wonder what would make Nurina in a bad mood, one must say that as a 'Mer'(Elf), these guys are long livers so annoying them must take some effort.
"This is a letter from my cousin Savos, he screwed up again." She said with annoyance on her face.
"Savos Aren?! The Arch-mage of Winterhold?" My amazement couldn't help but leek out.
"How do you know of him?" Nurina asked with a questioning look.
"Isn't the Arch-mage supposed to be a famous?" I acted with no effort.
"He only became an Arch-mage a week ago." Nurina kept cornering me.
Opsss! What a blunder, now let's make up something. I walked to the chair opposite to hers and finally had an idea.
"I saw a human mage with some college robes at the inn, He was so drunk and was talking ill of the new appointed Arch-mage Savos Aren, and he said that he won't work under some a Dunmer conjurer. Sounded like a Nord to me." Perfect covering up even if I say so myself.
Nurina's expressions looked like she didn't even care at all and burned the paper on a plate with fire controlling spell.
"You won't help him?" I wondered.
"His mess is his own doing, Nord mages abandoning the college is only because he perused that meaningless position for so long and they don't like it." Nurina said.
"Forget about that. I didn't even know your surname was Aren. Like the famous Dunmer conjurers." I seemed to have hit the nail on its head as Nurina noticed where she slipped out such information.
"*sigh* I cut all ties with these thick skull fools." Nurina said with.
"A beautiful Dark Elf mage, specialized in Conjuration school, doesn't work in the college and says that other conjurers are thick skull only means one thing." I pause for a bit while looking at Nurina's eyes that started to shake, "You are a necromancer."
I dropped a bomb indeed, it was my first time causing Nurina to be taken aback and I must hold on to such achievement.
Nurina was having an urge to beat me up, I am sure of it.
"Sometimes I regret teaching you anything, you rascal." Nurina paused for a second and said, "What do you think?"
"Necromancy is just another tool, you can be an evil mage using even restoration magic." I said like it was natural.
People think of necromancy as evil yet they just look at the undead as evil without realizing it is just magic. Even the large magic powerhouse declare that, not because their ignorance but just to keep their public image.
"I know, Right?" Nurina was in bafflement to my understanding, I am not just a 10 years old you know, my total age now is 35 years you know.
"My research was not on necromancy itself, I was aiming to understand how to conjure the Undead." Nurina turned to teacher mood, thank goodness I downloaded 'Realistic Eyeglasses' mod, it added so much of 'Sensei' air to Nurina.
"As you know when we conjure something we conjure it from a realm called 'Oblivion', it is the realm where many dark creatures reside and also where the Daedric Lords who are considered evil gods also reside.
By conjuring Daedra creatures we are known as 'Conjurers', but Daedra creatures have many flows, look at the Atronachs for example, they are elemental being that lack diversity as their attacks is mainly focused their respective element.
Some figures recorded their adventures out of Nirn as they traveled to Oblivion, They recorded the appearance of undead creatures in their journeys, which means as conjurers can summon Undead, who are easier to Bound and control and have more diversity in attacks."
She gave a long lesson filled with passion and her crimson eyes were giving off light.
"And I chose Skyrim as one of the places that is filled with old tombs that has many sorts of undead to study, of course along with my work on conjuring." Nurina made a dramatic ending to her speech.
"So why are you living in an orphanage?" I asked the question that was on my head for some time.
"Eh? Haven't I told you? Normally people wouldn't think that a Dunmer necromancer would live in an orphanage as a headmistress, I am also good with children." She answered while laughing.
Damn! She has a disorder in priorities as usual of her.
"Anyway have you succeeded in you research?" I asked while trying not to reason with her.
"Yes, Last year I finished my original spell to conjure some undead." As she answered that she checked outside the room then she came back and stood in the middle of the room.
I stand on and focus on what she was doing, she is clearly going to show her result.
She moved her left hand and performed the spell, it caused the void to emerge in the room and from it, a figure appeared, once the void disappeared a black skeleton stood with a bow in its hand and its eyes glowed blue.
That was a Skeleton archer with passing marks but why is it black?
"The skeleton came from a daedric realm so it should be different, clearly it belongs to a being called Dremora. Dremoras are beings with human appearance but are all black, they are alive but they are Daedra so they are as mean and wicked as their lords, and they are hard to bound as their wills are much stronger, so unless you worship a Daedric Lord, they won't obey you and you will end up being their target.
Undead of Oblivion on the other hand are as strong as Dremora and as easy to bound their wills as the Atronachs." Nurina boasted about the Undead she can summon.
In the future, the hero of the game will enter a realm of Oblivion called the 'Soul Carin', and he/she can collect three spells to conjure the same sort of undead.
Amazing! Nurina could recreate such a rare spell without even visiting the 'Soul Carin'.
"Can I take a look at the tome?" I asked.
Without even answering she handed it to me, was it ready here?
I looked at her notes in the tome and discovered something strange.
These Effects are rather familiar, seeing my frowning Nurina giggled, "So, have you noticed?" she asked.
Of course, I noticed. I noticed my theory being applied in this spell.
This thing I call theory is my understanding of magic, I read many books about the schools of magic and I summarized what I understood and edited some parts that were unrealistic to me.
Something like Necromancy is Conjuration school is hoax, it clearly belonged to Mysticism, that was my opinion.
Also, the effect of 'Bound' when it comes to the target 'Soul' is clearly my theory, not that I am the only one to come up with it but these are stuff I know because I once read the Wiki in my past life.
There are also stuff I made as my original opinion such as 'The Mysticism School is the original school of magic and other school serve it as Effects, understanding all Mysticism Effect is a must for anyone to become a full flagged mage'. This is a slap on the face to every mage in existence but it sounded natural to me.
Mysticism is about the full manipulation of the force that originated from Sun and Stars known as Magic. I mean you can't practice marksmanship to its most skillful form unless you know how to handle bow as a second nature.
In olden days in Hammerfell, warriors of the way of the sword known as Sword-Dancers reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship by starting their training in forging weapons and living their lives in a way that resembles the sword.
So manipulating magic must be done this way in my opinion. You can't live to resemble magic power but you can train every effect in magic as a row power without associating it to a certain school.
I made a note on this subject and Nurina copied it for herself. She said it's worth researching.
And now it has been applied in a spell. I see many effects from many schools, 'Bound' from Illusion, 'Call' from Mysticism, 'Enforce' from Alteration.
"I get it. Such a splendid undead can only be conjured by using many effects" I muttered.
"Exactly, if you used your theory of 'One School' and combined many Magical Effects in existing spells, you can upgrade them and be a genius mage in many schools." Nurina declared.
I handed her the book and made a big sigh, so I made something that absurd?
"I am not sure this is a good thing or a bad thing though." I said trying to think of how many trouble may this cause me.
"Of course it's good as long as you keep it a secret, mages are secretive by nature and they respect other secrets so other respect theirs, it's a mutual understanding in the mage community." She said to me while setting back on her chair.
"Fine, is there anything else?" I ask while leaving.
"Before I forget, Stop looking at Akara in such creepy way or I will hand you your ass." She said will opening a book.
What a scary woman!