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sonsofbal · 10 days ago

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IX. Chaurus Eggs

After weeks of silence, Alicent's attempt to reconnect with Seth leads to a tense encounter in the potion shop, where she discovers that his birthday is coming up. Determined to win back his attention, she embarks on a perilous quest to find the perfect gift. The journey will test her courage and wit as she faces unknown dangers in the hope of rekindling their bond. Immerse yourself in a tale of bold determination and fragile hope as Alicent navigates both her fears and the dark, mysterious world around her.

If you want to read the book from the start, here's the INDEX. You can also read it in AO3.

Alicent separated another snowberry from the bunch and tossed it into the bowl where she already had a pile of them. Someone cleared his throat in front of her, causing the alchemist to jump in place. So lost in her own thoughts, she hadn't noticed anyone else in the shop until then.

Once she met his eyes, Alicent looked down.

"Hello?" Seth greeted, confused.

It took Alicent a moment to get her feelings back in order.

"Welcome," she finally said in a subdued tone of voice, without taking her eyes up from the display.

She wanted to look at him again, but felt that if she did, she would start to cry. For the past few days, knowing that Idgrod and Joric would be back soon had been the only thing keeping her from breaking down. Being with them again was exactly what Alicent needed. Surely Idgrod would find the explanation why Seth ignored her, pushing away the uncertainty that killed her, and Joric would make her laugh with his nonsense. She needed her friends to remind her that the world hadn't come to an end just because Seth had had enough of her.

Alicent smiled at the mere thought of her friends, and Seth snorted.

“Where are the Chaurus eggs?” he demanded, his confusion replaced with anger. “Did you get them or not?”

Alicent sank a little deeper behind the counter and looked up at last, a little pout on her face.

"I'm sorry," she muttered.

Seth smacked the wood with his open hand. A few branches of snowberries flew. Alicent jumped again, and Seth looked to the side in a frustrated look.

"Just great."

"Some bandits held up the wagon," she explained. As soon as she finished, a lump formed in her throat.

I'm sure he thinks I'm no good. That's why he no longer wants to spend time with me. It wasn't fair that he took it out on her, but Alicent couldn't blame him. If she couldn't do something as simple as get some ingredients when that was literally her only job, how could she expect him to waste his time with her?

"And when does the next delivery come?"

"Maybe in a few days..." she mumbled.

"Well, I'll be gone until next week." He complained. I was hoping for before my birthday," Seth added, making Alicent's heart skip.

“I didn’t know it was your birthday,” Alicent said, surprised. For some reason, this seemed to irritate Seth even more. Had he told her at some point and she didn't remember? That was unlikely. She had replayed all their conversations a thousand times. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to..." she added, almost crying.

The expression on Seth's face relaxed.

"It's not your fault," he replied, softening his tone. "I didn't tell you."

Seth mentioned his birthday, but Alicent was still focused on the wagon. Not wanting him to think she didn’t care, she nodded with a hesitant smile.

Should I give him a gift? The way things were going, she didn't know if he would want it. But at the same time, he seemed really annoyed that she had forgotten.

"Well, see you next week." Seth told her abruptly.

Alicent took a deep breath, trying to disguise her sniffles. It was the first conversation they had had in weeks, and it hadn't even gone well.

"See you next week..."

Seth turned to leave, but stopped halfway and looked at her.

"Alicent, I..." he began, hesitating.

"Yes...?"

"Nothing." She felt disappointed when he replied. "Just..." Alicent pressed her hands against the countertop. "Take care of yourself while I'm gone, okay?"

Alicent nodded, at a loss for words. Seth nodded and left.

A few days later, Lami stood in front of her, hands on hips, a worried look on his face, when they finished eating and it was time to reopen the shop.

"How about you take a walk first?"

"Huh?" Alicent blinked, puzzled. "Why?"

"You've been in the clouds for hours."

"It's not..."

"Yes, it's true. I spoke to you three times and you didn't say a word during the meal."

Alicent looked at her apologetically. Earlier in the morning, the wagon had arrived with the ingredients, but without the chaurus eggs. When Alicent asked the merchant about them, he confirmed her worst fears; they would not have a new supply for quite some time. From then on, all she could imagine was how Seth would take the news.

“Why don’t you go see Falion?” her mother suggested.

"Falion?" Alicent tilted her head sideways. "Why? If I don't have class today..."

"I'm sure he knows when Idgrod and Joric arrive tomorrow."

Alicent bit her lower lip. She hadn't really remembered her friends since she'd seen Seth, but as soon as her mother brought up the subject, she couldn't forget them. She wanted them back, among many other reasons, because the sooner they were back, the sooner Idgrod would be able to help her figure out if she should give Seth something or not. So, smiling a little, she said goodbye to Lami and went to see Falion, where she knew he would be.

Falion opened the door shortly after knocking. He looked overwhelmed, and barely mumbled a "Come on in" before turning back to the table cluttered with papers. Alicent followed him with unsteady steps; it was clear that she had not arrived at a good time.

"What are you doing?" she dared to ask.

"Nothing that matters to you," Falion replied gruffly. It was a rude answer, but Alicent didn't take it because it was his way.

He walked over to the table and stared down at what he was doing.

"Your book is broken," Alicent said in surprise, leaving aside the original reason for her visit. "How did that happen?"

"Spell cast. It backfired and bounced off of him." Falion's voice sounded annoyed. When Alicent saw the cover, she knew why: it was one of the books he used for his lessons.

"What did you want to hit?" she asked. Falion snorted, and she held up a page, looking at the number with the intention of helping him.

“What page do you have there, girl?”

"Seventy-third.”

"Give it to me. And search for the seventy-four."

Together they sorted through the pages until they reached one hundred and fourteen, and Alicent held the sheet in her hand, studying it intently.

"What is this?"

"This is a Chaurus. It's normal that you don't know them, even though you have their eggs in your store," Falion replied in a better mood. "They're not usually seen on the surface."

This is a Chabrus, she repeated mentally. Alicent held the sheet up to her face to get a better look at drawing and describing.

"It's horrible!" She blurted out, for lack of a better word. Alicent couldn't remember ever seeing anything like it.

It was like an enormous bug. It had four legs and a thick, rough shell that, according to the book, it used to camouflage itself among the rocks. It also had huge, dangerous, serrated claws from its jaws and two stiff tails ending in a pincer-shaped tip.

"And stronger than they look, I assure. Fortunately they do not come out of their caves, although we have some colonies nearby."

Alicent's stomach churned.

"Are there any chabrus caves around here?" The question came naturally, with no hidden agenda, but once she absorbed it, her torch was lit.

What if she chased them herself? It would be like killing two birds with one arrow. Seth would finally have his eggs, and Alicent would have a birthday present. Besides, Seth would definitely want to spend time with her again when he found out that she had been the one to collect them.

"A few." Falion took the page from her hand, tired of the wait. "The closest is the swamp, north exit of town."

"Which way?" Falion did not suspect anything because he was so busy stacking the pages.

"I'm not sure about that right now. But I have a map there." Saying this, he pointed across the room, right near the door. There, in a corner, there were several different maps of the region piled up on top. "If you want to take a look at them, go ahead, but be careful. I have much more important maps than this."

Alicent went to the maps and started rummaging through them until she found the one she wanted. She opened it and studied it for seconds, frowning. She didn't quite understand what the drawing was. Was it a mountain or some kind of ruin? She glanced to the side at Falion, who was trying to glue the left corner of the pages to the cover of the book.

He certainly wouldn't lend it to her if she asked. Alicent hid the map behind her back, because he would rightly assume that she wanted to go there, even if he didn't know why.

"I'd better go," she said, raising her voice. It's just a waste of your time if I don't keep my mouth shut." The wizard nodded: at times like this, it was a good thing that Falion was so awkward with people that he did not notice anything odd about the question. "See you in town."

Before Falion turned to say goodbye, Alicent pulled the map from behind her back, taped it to her chest, and walked out without Falion noticing.

The Sundas arrived, and as planned, Alicent set off for the swamp after studying the map. It was a relief to discover that she actually knew the location of the cave. She had passed near the mound countless times during her summer adventures with Idgrod and Joric, neither realizing there was a crevice.

Evening had fallen by the time she arrived. Though the place was less than an hour from the village, the fog was thick in the swamp and Alicent had real trouble finding her way. Once there, it was not difficult to find the entrance. The hard part was finding the courage to cross it. Knowing she was lost, Alicent couldn’t stop thinking how reckless she’d been—venturing into danger without Magnus’s protection and an ominous feeling looming over her.

I can't back out now. She unhooked her leather pouch from her shoulder and rummaged until she found the first vial containing a blue liquid. It had been a while since she had rationed her supply of frost potions, and though well wrapped, the cold was becoming unbearable. She took it out with trembling hands, opened it with her teeth, and gulped it down. It tasted pleasantly minty, and she felt relieved almost instantly as the icy sensation caused by the wet swamp climate left her. Then pulled out two more bottles. She repeated the same process, pouring the yellowish liquid into her mouth. The stealth potion tasted like nothing, and after drinking it, her hearing and eyesight became sharper and her body lighter. Finally, she drank the tonic of invisibility, a whitish, thick liquid with a nasty taste that fell into her stomach like a stone into water, or so she felt, as a wave of power rose from within her and passed through her, making her body invisible in its wake, as well as her clothes and bag. She had an hour to get those damned Chaurus eggs with which she hoped to regain Seth's affection.

Alicent interlocked the fingers of both hands at the level of her face, resting her nose on them and mentally reciting a prayer as soon as she entered.

Magnus, please hear my words. I know you must be angry with me because I didn't bring you the offering this year, but I need you to take care of me. I promise that if I get out of the cave alive, I'll make the best offering in the village next year and pray to you every day until the Mist Festival.

Perhaps it was foolish, and the Aedra were too busy to heed mortal pleas, but the gesture gave her hope and courage to continue.

The entrance to the grotto was a narrow, muddy passageway.Her boots were soaked from trudging through the swamp, and now each step sank into thick mud, forcing her to pull her feet free with every move. This part of the journey took forever until the ground hardened and she could advance to the first gallery without much difficulty. There, light filtered through the cracks of the mound; her enhanced senses suffered for a few moments at the clarity that contrasted with the previous darkness.

Alicent looked between the rocks and saw that it was not easy to get down. She would have to descend cautiously. Fortunately, there was still no sign of Chaurus. They were nocturnal creatures, so they must be sleeping in their nests, according to Falion's book. Alicent moved carefully to make no noise, leaning on the walls to keep her balance and taking her time moving from one rock to the next. She managed to touch the ground without falling or making a loud sound. The muddy soles of her boots had almost tricked her a few times, and she was sure that the stealth potion had helped her in some way, for she knew herself well enough to know that on any other occasion she would have cried out in terror, which would have been fatal. Her plan was relatively simple: she just had to remain unnoticed until she found the eggs and leave before the creatures woke.

She proceeded along a corridor descending into the depths from the main gallery. Alicent began to notice a strong, foul odor as she moved deeper into the cave. Though unpleasant, it was also a sign that she was getting closer to her goal. She walked slowly, as slowly as necessary so that the sound of her footsteps was even fainter than her heartbeat, something she could not avoid out of fear.

Then Alicent came to a new gallery. No daylight reached it, but small echoes of bluish light scattered on the floor illuminated the abyss. She recognized them immediately: They were the eggs she was looking for. Alicent sharpened her eyes and studied the area around her. It was wide, and there were several karst pillars supporting the structure. The nearest egg cluster was at the base of one of those pillars, but a group of chaurus dozed nearby.

She spotted a new group of eggs a bit more distant, along the eastern wall of the cavern. Alicent would have to go deeper than she wanted to, but they were the only ones she could find that were far enough away that it would not be too dangerous to pick them up. Alicent approached them close to the wall, careful where she stepped. When she arrived, she was pleased to see that the animals were still asleep. However, she saw something that puzzled her. There, Alicent could see the bottom of the gallery. Before the wall, a pair of poles with pelvises tied to their ends decorated the entrance to another passageway. She squinted to see what those strange decorations were and discovered, with both surprise and horror, that they were bones. But it made no sense. Insects didn't do crafts.

Whatever it was, she had no intention or interest in finding out. Alicent crouched beside the pile of eggs, opened her backpack, and began plucking them. If it weren't for the unpleasantness of their smell and their texture, one could even say that they were pretty. The shiny part was soft and slimy, protected by a kind of hard black netting. They were about the size of chicken eggs, and Alicent began placing them in his pocket, careful not to break any.

Alicent had already collected a dozen when she was alerted by a sound. It was a discreet sound, very subtle. She stopped and sharpened her hearing. It was footsteps, and they were close. Alicent turned to look, and what she saw took her breath away. A small, wiry, stooped man approached her from one of the karst pillars.

She inhaled slowly through her nose. Instinctively, she glanced down in the direction of her hand, a check that the invisibility potion was still in effect. He must have seen the Chabrus eggs float and disappear into my bag. Alicent straightened up cautiously and placed the bag on the ground. It was open, and despite the invisibility spell protecting the fabric, the glow of the eggs shone from inside. Alicent cursed inwardly as she gave up the prize for lost.

The stranger advanced stealthily but swiftly; she retreated, also stealthily but with slow, clumsy steps. Quickly, Alicent made a plan: she had used just over half the time the potion gave her, more than enough to retreat to the first corridor and stay safe while the mysterious man searched her belongings. But he diverted his course to her new position against all odds.

It can't be. He can't have seen me at all. How...? Then Alicent's heart began to beat wildly with fear as she better understood his form. More than a man, he was a being. Bald, with teeth as sharp as nails, his face was disfigured. He had a pile of thick folds of skin where his eyes should have been, and it looked like someone had cut off his nose, leaving two large pits crossing his face from below his forehead to the birth of his upper lip. His ears were pointed, like those of the elves, but they were much larger. As if it could hear her heart beating, its huge ears twitched and sniffed sonorously. Then it growled angrily, echoing through the cave and waking some of the chaurus.The rustling of the insects' shells as they sat up was the last of Alicent's worries. I need to get out of here, or this is the end.

Alicent ran off in a desperate attempt to get to safety, pushing the creature in her path, but failing to achieve her goal of throwing it off balance in order to gain some distance. Whatever the thing was, it tried to grab her, but she was able to dodge it. Alicent grabbed hold of the skirts of her dress as best she could to try to gain some mobility. She didn’t look back, running as fast as her legs could carry her. Hope surged when she squeezed through the stone walls toward the exit tunnel. Without stopping, Alicent took a deep breath.I can do this. If I don't stop, I can get away. I just have to keep on running. I must keep running. This mantra looped in her mind as she moved forward between the rocks. Then everything happened very fast. First she heard a sizzling sound behind her. Immediately, a searing pain shot into the back of her neck and through the rest of her body. Her muscles ceased to obey and she fell to the ground, hitting her head on a rock. Alicent blinked a few times, disoriented, and tried in vain to catch her breath, causing several choked moans to escape her mouth as the world became a blur. She tried to move, but the parts Alicent tried to move disobeyed, while others seemed to take on lives of their own; her neck tightened several times in violent spasms. The creature reached her. She did not see it, but felt a cold hand grab her ankle and drag her across the floor. Alicent lost consciousness before they were out of the tunnel.

#skyrim #fanfic #ao3 fanfic #dark fantasy #morthal #tes art #tesblr #magic #chaurus #falmer #Lami #Falion #Alicent (OC Lami and Jorgen's daughter)

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