[quote=@Dead Cruiser]
Valenwood rather than Black Marsh?
[/quote]

What happens in Black Marsh and the east coast of Tamriel is no longer the concern of the Empire, nor does it count as 'enemy territory'. Valenwood is deep in the heart of the Aldmeri Dominion (much like Captain Willard had to travel through all of Vietnam to get to Colonel Kurtz) and Akhar strikes at the shores of Hammerfell and High Rock from there.