Althea herself was used to dealing with wild creatures, having done nothing but hunt and kill her whole life, alongside her father. She had been ambushed by wolves along the way, but never more than one or two at a time. She had a close call with a cave bear as she was passing a dark cave off a side road, less traveled. Incredibly, Althea sensed the creature before it sensed her. She thanked the gods that day for the lucky wind that had probably saved her life.
Now, Althea put away her water container in her satchel and mounted her horse, Myrna, to continue her journey. The large, muscular horse made Althea feel tiny in comparison. The grey horse huffed and bent to munch some fresh greens. If it hadn't been for the traveling, Myrna would have gotten fat from all the food she found in Skyrim. Back in Valenwood, Althea had to forage weekly for fresh greens for Myrna as a treat instead of her usual stack of hay.
Althea snapped out of her homesick thoughts and set her sights, once again, forwards, north, towards Whiterun. Her last stop before then was to be Riverwood, a small village south of Whiterun. There, Althea could find a place to set up camp and rest for the final days' journey to the big city.
As they set off, Althea checked her quiver to be sure she had at least a handful of arrows. Then secured the strap that held her dagger to her hip. One could never be too wary in foreign lands. Her father had been smart enough to teach her how to make her own arrows if hers ever got broke or lost, and also how to enchant them to make them stronger using magic. Her dagger had been enchanted once she had caught her first soul. She didn't want just any weak, old enchantment, so she went hunting. As a natural explorer and adventurer, Althea knew where all the caves and predators and dangerous creatures resided in the forests in which she grew up. She also happened to know of one bear, so old her dad didn't even remember when it had first appeared.
>flashback<
Althea had the gem, safely strapped to her side in a small satchel, her bow, with plenty of handmade arrows, and of course the spell. It was the first Spell Tome she had ever read. And she had learned surprisingly fast. Now, crouching at the side of a rock on top of a hill, she stared down at her right hand, which glowed a dark blackish purple. Magic. In her hands. A soul trap spell, to be exact. she had it planned out. she would wait at the top of the entrance to the bear's cave for it to wander in or out, shoot it dead with her bow, then trap it's soul as it died. Althea sometimes wondered at the injustice of this. How often did people do this? Do they do it for a living? Will the animals ever run out? What then? But she pushed those thoughts aside and stood up, ready to do what she had to just to be strong enough to survive in the world she lived in.
Crouched low to the ground, stepping lightly, Althea made her way to the edge of the rock that was the roof of the old bear's home. It was evening, the sun was starting to change colors on the horizon, and there was no sign of the bear. Althea was prepared to wait hours, even days. But, to her surprise, she had to wait only minutes before the bear lumbered towards its lair. Althea had her bow ready in a second, the arrow pierced the bear's heart in the next. Before she even had time to blink, the bear was dying, and she was charging her spell and leaping off the rock she had been perched upon. She approached the bear, and with a flick of her hand that she had practiced on rabbits so many times, the spell was cast on the dying animal. Althea placed her bow in her quiver and took out her only soul gem, a larger common one. The creature went completely still, and the elf felt the magic as it captured it's soul inside the gem.
>flashback end<
Althea was snapped out of her reverie when she saw guard towers and people and buildings up ahead. Riverwood. Althea had expected the trip to be boring, riding on the back of her horse for hours and hours. However she found that the land made her daydream even more than usual, and dwell on things she hadn't thought of in years. She could already tell there was something for her here.
As the wood elf approached the gates, and guard setpped into her path to talk with her. She slowed Myrna to a stop in front of the guard, and pulled her cowl down, revealing her long silver hair and light purple eyes. The guard regarded her weapons and packs, assessing her as a traveler. "Just passing through, elf?" He asked brusquely.
Althea regarded him as well. "Yes, guardsman. I planned to stay a night and restock my supplies, then heading off for Whiterun in the morn. Will your village admit me for the evening?"
Upon arrival in Skyrim, Althea had to communicate with several new types of people. The further inland she traveled, the more Nords she spoke with and observed. She had grown accustomed to seeing Imperials, for she had to trek through Cyrodiil for weeks before coming close to Skyrim. She had seen few elves, but what ones she saw were usually Bosmer like herself. Althea wondered how diverse Skyrim actually was.
The guard had moved her along, and pointed her in the direction of the inn and trader store. She headed to the inn first. She tied Myrna to a post outside the building and went in. Few people occupied the meager place. There were two Nordic innkeepers, the woman was sweeping under tables, and the man behind the counter appeared to be slicing bread and cheese. She approached the woman and asked for a room for one.
"Very well, that will be ten Septims. You can have the one on the right, and if you're hungry, Orngar at the counter can cook you up something decent. Thanks for coming to the Sleeping Giant." The woman resumed her sweeping, and Althea continued to her room, which she found quite large and much too extravagant for the price she had paid. Disregarding this simply out of exhaustion, she shut the door behind her, kicked her boots off and fell on the bed, happy to be able to rest in a bed instead of a cot on the ground.
Unfortunately, her stomach disagreed with her wish to sleep, and she eventually got up to get something to eat. She bought a bit of bread and cheese from Orngar, then munched on an apple she found in the end table by her bed. She realized this was stealing. But thieves were everywhere, doing worse things than stealing apples. Even so, the girl's curiosity led her to search every cabinet in her room, with her door locked tight. She found a bit of gold, some charcoal and paper, and a book.
Then she went over to the wardrobe. She lifted the latch and tugged, but it was apparently locked. She examined it and noticed a keyhole hidden in the carvings. Checking the lock on her door a second time, Althea pulled her old lock pick she had had for months and had yet to break on her. In second the lock clicked, and the doors swung open to reveal.. nothing. It looked as if its back were missing and it was just up against the wall. Althea wasn't convinced. She rapped on the center of the 'wall' and discovered that it wasn't a wall, but a false back panel. She found the notch in the corner, and slid open the back to reveal a hidden staircase leading down into a darkened room. The elf's eyes widened in amazement. Her first night in a town in Skyrim, and she had already discovered something incredible.
She started downwards but hesitated, considering what could be down there. Or who could be down there. But she figured it look be lit and look inhabited if there were someone hiding out. FInally, she pushed those thoughts from her mind, determined to continue on bravely.
She shut here eyes, concentrated for a moment, and when she opened her eyes, the stairway was lit by the glowing orb in Althea's palm. Magelight. This was another of her first spells. She unsheathed her Dagger of Shocks, and proceeded down. What she found wasn't dangerous, just old. It appeared nobody had been in this room for hundreds of years. There was dust covering everything, wilted ingredients for potions lie dead on the shelves next to an alchemy table. A bookshelf that looked like it was about to collapse, and an old chest off to the side, also appearing to not seen human contact in ages. Realizing quickly that there was no threat, Althea sheathed her weapon and lit a torch to light the room.
The young elf had a fun day and night there, in that room and at that inn. She decided the room had a special purpose, and chose to put everything she had looked at back where it was. She felt that history had been made in this room, and it should be left untouched and sacred in its own.
The Bosmer and her horse got good rest, food, and company in the little town of Riverwood, but Althea was ready to continue to Whiterun the very next day. As she packed her fresh goods, strapped herself and her horse up, she looked once more at the lovely little town and thought to herself, When I get what I initially came to Skyrim for, whatever it might be, and if I live through it. I'd like to marry and live here, comfortably. She then mounted her horse and rode away, excitedly awaiting the next step.
