"Lookout!" Ariel shouted and began to charge a spell in each hand as soon as she saw the Dwemer sphere. The pack gave her a sudden glance, but by the way the guards did not seem to mind the sphere, there was no need to defend themselves. Meesei's comment and an awkward moment had Ariel relax and make her spells fade.

She was thoroughly abashed, though she regarded Meesei with worry. "The automatons...working? What do you mean? Why isn't it attacking us?"

[hr]
As Gallus had taken the land route back to Skyrim, it had not been an especially long time since he had returned before Meesei's pack arrived home. Of course, no one knew that Meesei had returned yet. Everyone was going about their daily routine around him.

For the past week since Gallus had returned, he had been acting strangely. His outward behaviour was just the same as always; willing to help and prepared to command. He continued supporting Uthri, Tzirret, and Peiter just as he had before while going about the duties that the ruling council had for him. However, whenever asked about his experience in Black Marsh, he darkened and avoided the subject. Cuts-Canes-Faster had shed light to those that asked about the series of events, but he had a more traditionally Argonian perspective that did not understand why Gallus reacted the way he did.

In addition, every day since he arrived back in Blackreach, Gallus had spent about an hour late every night training his hammer blows against a training mannequin. He played off everyone else's questions about such behaviour as 'just training,' but the way he struck the dummy had such anger behind the blows that he evidently wasn't using the time to refine technique.

Even Uthri, firm and direct as she was, couldn't get much out of Gallus than the desire not to talk about it. In desperation, she confided in Ri'vashi and requested that she try to help. She was not only Gallus' friend, but a peer and -- in a pinch -- his superior. By Uthri's reasoning, Gallus was least likely to try and front a strong face to Ri'vashi if pushed about what happened.