[hider=Detailed Map of Cyrodiil]
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/57/33/e1/5733e112c93c3fff7505086d83073402.jpg
Detailed map of Cyrodiil
[/hider]


The same door that Daro’Vasora, Brynja, and Judena entered creaked open, and through it slunk Meg, which the Khajiit was somewhat surprised about. While she had kept an eye on the door in case of others arriving, she honestly hadn’t expected anyone to make it; partially because no one had seen the building before, and mostly because of the chaos outside. She ushered the Nord through towards the library where the passage was located and returned to her post, which was accompanied by a bottle of wine that Daro’Vasora hadn’t asked permission to commandeer. Within the hour, other arrivals had made it, including Solandil, Alim, Raelyn, and Gaius.

Soon, the group was gathered in the library, where the curtains had been drawn to prevent anyone or anything from peering in. Rhea had gathered the supplies with Judena and Brynja, and a few travel packs were laid out with the supplies divvied up evenly between them; if something happened to one member of the party, it wouldn’t mean a total loss of provisions, medical supplies, survival gear or even a change of clothing. In total, there were 4 packs and 2 satchels, and there was a fair deal of jewelry and coin, along with a few other small valuables that Rhea reasoned could be bartered in a worst-case scenario, and it was hard to argue this didn’t qualify. The Imperial woman seemed rather conflicted about the whole ordeal; it was her family and her life’s work that was being plundered and subsequently abandoned, but she had to save these people and do the right thing, knowing full well a lot of what filled the halls of the manor were the result of exploiting people in need. She wasn’t going to be like her parents, as much as she loved them. This was a challenge in her life to do better as she always wanted to, and so Rhea buried the doubt that nagged the back of her mind and stepped up to lead; she had a job to do. People lost a lot more than a few valuables today.

“I’m glad to see you’ve made it safely, it stills my heart.” Rhea said to the newcomers with a tired smile. “This isn’t quite what I had in mind for the gathering this afternoon, but we are alive and that is what matters. It should serve as some form of reprieve for us to know that there is a way out in this very manor, which will get us to the harbour, but from there I fear we are stepping into the unknown.” She said, heading to a table where a map was laid out, its corners weighed down by books in the library. She gestured to where the manor was located. “We are here, and the tunnel exits here…” she said, tracing her finger southwest towards a point almost halfway between the large gate that barred the port from the city proper and the great Western bridge that connected the island to the mainland to the small hamlet of Weye on the other side of the bridge, which mainly housed an inn for those who didn’t want to pay the full price of accommodations in the city proper.

“The exit is connected to a storm drain that’s fallen into disuse since the Great War, but the passage is clear. We will make our way to the grate, and hold there until nightfall, when we have the best chance of making it across the lake without being seen. Don’t worry; we’ve kept a row boat in the tunnel for the smuggling days and the grate has been secured by locks from the inside that have kept the manor protected from prying eyes. Once night falls, we will land South of the ruins of Fort Virtue on the Western banks. There we will head into the forests where we can lose ourselves in the night from patrols and anything from the sky. From there, we make our way towards Skingrad, and pray that our luck holds against the Dwemer having not made their way down there. Any questions?” Rhea concluded, looking at those gathered around the table.

Judena was the first to pipe up, “I am sure with enough wit we can safely cross, perhaps we can make use of some minor illusionary spells to help cloak ourselves. I am rather worried they would train light on the bay surrounding the city to discourage such escapades. I hope they are more focused on raiding than cutting escape.”

Judena’s nails tapped across the table. “What lies in Skingard, Rhea? If I remember correctly it is a town famous for its wine and cheese. A good spot for shoring up on supplies, but… I hate to ask because our escape is what we should be focusing on…” Judena said, hesitantly peeking at the others. “What then after Skingard? With the Imperial City raided where do we take what we know? Surely there is someone who we need to tell of our discoveries. Jerall Mountain-”

Looking to Rhea, “Jerall Mountain [i]is[/i] connected to this invasion.”

That caused a bit of a silence, a speculation that everyone feared that they were somehow responsible for this, and none more so than Rhea. As much as she wanted to refute it, deny it, wash her hands of the ghastly truth, it rang true and ate away at her ever since the first night at camp after the situation during the expedition. It wouldn’t do to have anyone see how much it bothered her, so she decided to focus her attention on more pressing matters. “One step at a time, Judena. My main concern is getting everyone to safety. Skingrad is the closest city, other than Chorrol, but it’s closer to the Southern border, close to Valenwood. The Dominion isn’t exactly friendly, but it’s my hopes that it can act as a deterrent for the Dwemer, and it gives us some flexibility for our next step… which I don’t rightfully know yet.” she admitted. “For all I know, there is no next step, we are not a military Legion, fighting a war. We are a group of survivors who happened to work together to escape peril and now we’re faced with something truly incredible and horrifying. Let us get to safety first, then we can as individuals decide what’s best. Until we know what’s going on and learn more about the invaders, we cannot take action.”

For her part, Meg had been silent, simply listening to the others, almost reveling in the simple sound of their voices, despite the fact that they were conversing about something very important: how to escape and survive. Still, there was nothing that would erase the relief she felt when she saw the Khajiit and then reunited with the others. They were alive which was more than what could be said for the poor souls strewn about the city like fallen leaves from a tree.

"I havta agree with Rhea." She finally broke her silence, casting a glance over the others before looking back at the table with the maps, scrutinizing the map of Cyrodiil in particular. "But Judena’s gotta point too. Even if we don' go an make a long detailed plan, it'd be comfortin' to know there's another direction we can think in, in case things ain't what we expect in Skingrad." 

Gaius tched, clearly displeased at the idea of going anywhere near the Aldmeri Dominion. For all that, though, there was little for him to debate; it was most definitely the best option. He put his chin in his hand, thinking for a moment before stubbing a heavy finger upon the map, a little ways south of Skingrad. “If Skingrad proves inhospitable, then the Strid River is our next best option. It winds through a fairly difficult-to-climb canyon, so monitoring it isn’t the greatest use of resources. Get to it, and we could boat down to Anvil and into the Abecean.” He paused for a moment. “If we must, at least. Let us hope that Skingrad is safe.”

He pondered for a moment before sliding his finger several inches across the table, to an unlabelled bit just east of Cyrodiil. “It might be wiser, though, to head for Morrowind. More space to get lost in, and as long as we hug the southern border and cross the Niben at Bravil, we should be as safe as we can get.”

Brynja grunted, “Out of the time we’ve wasted shooting the shit, we could’ve made it out of the city by now. Skingrad, Morrowind, Bravil, who gives a rats ass? We need to get a move on before it’s too late.”

Gaius tossed her a sour look. “Brynja, you do not succeed by running out and hoping you can construct a plan as you go. Yes, we want to get out of the Imperial City as soon as we can, but before we do, we need to know where we’re going. Calm down, and think before you speak.”

She scoffed, and grumbled under her breath, “Can’t construct a bloody plan if we’re all dead.”

Daro’Vasora, silent up until now, cleared her throat obnoxiously to cut off the argument. “As much as I admire your Legionnaire calves and the prospect of marching around Lake Rumare and Northeast to Morrowind, I’d like to point out that that much of Morrowind is either filled with hostile Argonian forces in the South that aren’t too fond of the Empire, increasingly desperate Dunmer in the North, and a climate disaster that’s keeping people from surviving off the land. On top of that, we can all agree that it’s Dwemer, correct? Morrowind is absolutely filled with Dwemer ruins, and that’s where they were last seen at the Battle of the Red Mountain.” her eyes darted around for something to chew on, her teeth grinding. “I can’t say I want to march all that way, exhausted and probably starving, to find that they set up camp there. There’s no way to know where they’re coming from past conjecture that they’re spilling out where we activated the device.” 

Gaius winced, nodding slightly. “That’s true. Going to Morrowind would be entirely counterproductive, wouldn’t it?” He sighed, dropping his head slightly. “I’m no tactician. Skingrad it is.”

“It’s temporary, I assure you.” Rhea cut in, trying to wrangle in the group before they lost focus. “I’m not going to pretend to be your fearless leader, I’m just someone who hired you for a job that went horribly wrong, so allow me to try to get you all out of this in one piece. Just follow my lead until we get to safety, then we can all do what we feel is best.” she glanced at the window, light still trickled in from the drawn curtains. “We have some time to plan this all out. Let’s get to it.”

[hr]

Hours had passed, and while they had discussed the plan a half-dozen times, covering exactly what each person was to do, there was still an uncomfortable amount of waiting in the tunnel’s mouth, waiting for the sun to dip below the horizon and allow the group to slip into the lake hopefully unnoticed. Most of the group would be clinging to the raft, half-submerged in the water while kicking with their legs only as to not break the surface of the water to create splashes. At the bow on either side would have Brynja and Gaius leading, with Rhea behind them, and Judena and Alim at the back. Daro’Vasora, being the only one who could see in the dark, would act as look out at the bow, and Meg, being light and nimble, would be keeping everyone instructed and aware of what direction they needed to head in. Raelyn, the newcomer, simply got a free ride to head off protest. The gear was secured in the boat, and while there doubtless was some grumbling about the two who didn’t need to swim, it was simply too risky to switch up. Daro’Vasora volunteered to lead the group through the forest and find somewhere to camp for the night, and her and Meg would find material for a fire and hopefully something to eat. With the plan more or less agreed upon, the group had set out through the tunnels, the excitement of escape quickly tempered by the tedium of waiting. Everyone waited on either side of the row boat for the sun to vanish. And after a small eternity, it eventually did. 

Brynja had removed every last bit of steel from her body, stripping down to her leathers with a bit of apprehension. She didn’t quite like the idea of swimming across Lake Runemare in the dark, but if that’s what it took to get out of this forsaken city with its endless mazes of structures, then she wasn’t going to complain about it. As she tossed a canvas over the armor, to help keep water off it, she looked back to Rhea, gesturing at the boat, “I follow you.”

The grate was opened, oiled by Daro’Vasora well before opening to prevent it from creaking, and despite years of being unused, it still managed to move freely. She held it up as the others took a hold of the rope tied around the boat and carried it out, everyone stepping carefully to avoid cracking branches and twigs underfoot. The soft whirring of the engines of an airship were heard, but it was impossible to tell how close they were, save for a distant searchlight not unlike what they had encountered down in the ruins. Soon they were crossing the beach, the sand muffling their steps, allowing them to move more swiftly before reaching the edge of the water unimpeded. Taking careful steps to not disturb the water more than necessary, the group stepped into the cool water, the waters still fairly chilled from the winter months prior. With great effort and each unintentional splash sounding like a thundercrack to their ears, eventually the boat was floating and most were in the water up to their chests, allowing Meg and Daro’Vasora to climb aboard, carefully moving across the benches to avoid rocking the boat. Now that everyone was aboard and ready, and at Meg’s instruction, the group began to kick off, the combined effort of several feet helping propel the row boat fairly quickly. Surprisingly, it was an effectively quiet way to traverse the water. 

Daro’Vasora, once the group was well out into the water, chanced a glance backwards and noticed that other survivors in the city had a similar idea of escaping in the cover of night. However, only a few seemed to take the same precautions they did to avoid making noise. A few eager souls hit the water too fast, and the noise they made might as well have been children playing. Shouts were heard, although from who it was impossible to hear at this distance. It didn’t matter for long because a cascade of shots came from the upper walls, raining down upon the beach and water, and people fell where they stood. Several of the other groups had managed to get out into the water, and caution was thrown into the wind as they tried to get out of range, and it became a race to avoid the approaching searchlight as the airship began to make its way treacherously towards the ruckus. 

Brynja shivered from the cold waters, but also from the paralyzing thought of being discovered. She struggled to quell her trembling limbs as she kicked her legs. Brynja clenched her jaw hard, it almost felt as if her teeth would crack. She didn’t even want to breathe a sigh, fearing that quietest of sounds would bring them all their death.

The airship had reached its destination, as evidenced from the periodic shots coming from the bottom of its hull and the telltale twang of crossbows. By now, those in the water were scattering, but it was encouraging to see that some were at least slipping through the net they found themselves caught in. Others, however, weren’t so lucky. Screams began to fill the night, some getting cut short after each report. Some of the more brave souls who happened to be mages begun to fling spells up at their attackers, and while it was likely a suicidal gesture, their act of defiance was emboldening. Those brave souls had probably bought the group, as well as many others, their escape. Mage lights were flung up at the hull of the ship, and some of the shot was silence, the gunners silenced as the bright lights temporarily blinded them.

As the group paddled, far enough away that Meg and Daro’Vasora took over with the oars so the others could rest, the walls of the city grew smaller and the sight of the airship was gone completely. Some of the other boats were out in the water with them, keeping roughly abreast, but it looked as if a number of people managed to escape from the Imperial City. It was a start, at the very least. Soon, feet touched silt below, and the exhausted group began to pull the boat ashore. The boat was quickly unloaded and the group geared up, those who had been in the water were quickly wrapped in blankets. Not needing the boat any longer, it was left where it was, and the group set out into the dark woods, relying on Daro’Vasora’s nighteye to see them through the dark.

From the positioning of the twin moons and that exhaustion had begun to take its toll, it was agreed upon that it was time to take up camp. There was no sign of pursuit, and they’d long since lost sight of anyone else. And so, with the two tents that were packed, a camp was set up hastily and a fire started and a very late supper was prepared by Meg and Daro’Vasora, who elected to dig into the rations rather than trying to forage in the dark. 

The city was behind them, and Skingrad waited ahead.