[i]12th of Midyear - 4E208 Three Crowns Hotel - Gilane After the meeting discussing the plan to rescue Daro'Vasora, nighttime. [/i] Nanine was sitting outside of the Three Crowns, where she and Anifaire had talked before, her journal and inkwell left untouched by her side. She had come out to draw what she could by moonlight as a way to relax and control her roiling thoughts and emotions. It hadn't helped her do either of those things in the slightest, and now she was simply staring into the empty street, hands tightly clasped in front of her. Frost began to gather on them as she unconsciously reached for magic. [i]They released the Dwemer.[/i] The thought was at the forefront of her mind, and with it a surge of anger. Her companions were at least indirectly responsible for the potential collapse of the Empire and the massacre of hundreds, if not [i]thousands[/i] of innocents. They had gone into a ruin and fumbled around with things that they did not understand, and brought death and destruction to the Empire itself, Hammerfell, and who knew how many other nations. They were indirectly responsible for the sacking of the Imperial City, the situation in Gilane, the resurgence of the Dominion, and the Nine above only knew what else. And they did it for survival, without trying anything else. Because of their desperation, they released a storm upon the world that shows no signs of weakening anytime soon. The blood of all of the slain was on their hands. If they had just stood their ground, found another way, fought their way out, this would not have happened. Some or all of them would have died, sure, but... But. Could she honestly say she would have done anything different? Nanine sighed, relaxing her hands, the frost disappearing. It wasn't fair to blame them like that, especially when she would have done exactly the same thing in their situation. They had no control over the actions of the Dwemer, and they certainly couldn't have had any idea that saving their own lives would result in all that it did. And they were trying to make it right. Everyone of them was willing to fight against the Dwemer they had released, in an attempt to stop the suffering they felt responsible for. Now they had to rescue one of their own from the stronghold of the Dwemer. Nanine grimaced in annoyance at the thought of that upcoming operation, standing up and pacing back and forth. She didn't like it. Any of it. There were too many things she couldn't account for. They were relying too much on strangers who they knew next to nothing about, and on the discipline of some of their members. Nanine was sure that Mazrah was going to ignore her and charge into the Palace without so much as a sash over her face, and the Breton couldn't be certain that the others wouldn't be just as brash and reckless in their own way. None of them were legionnaires. None of them had the discipline of the Legion to fall back on. Nanine couldn't be everywhere to make sure things went smoothly, and given how the other two missions had gone, she sincerely doubted this one would go any better. It would descend into chaos, and she hated that. [i]I could just leave.[/i] The thought sprang unbidden to her mind, and she paused. She could leave easily. The Dwemer didn't have the slightest clue who she was, and there was doubtless many ships who wanted to leave the port as soon as possible, with all the rising tensions in the city. She could go into the hotel, pack her things, and be gone before Gilane truly woke up. Gone and away from the Oblivion cursed mess this was rapidly turning into. Then where would she go? The Dwemer and the Dominion had control over much of Cyrodil, and likely Skyrim. High Rock was on the verge of total chaos, if it hadn't already descended into that. To even get to areas that weren't on the brink of all out war or occupied, she'd have to go through at least one of the areas that were. It wasn't like she would just ignore any injustices or suffering she would pass along the way either. Some how or another she'd get herself stuck in a similar situation to this, only with complete strangers or even by herself. Nanine shook her head, sighing again. No, she couldn't just leave. She was already committed to try and help the situation in Gilane and with the dwemer in general as best she could, and this group she was with seemed like the best bet she had at it. She'd have to accept the chaos that was going to come, and try to make the best of it. The very thought of that made her grimace again, and she headed back to the bench and collected her untouched journal and ink quill. She needed to head to bed and get what rest she could. It was going to be a long couple of days.