Memoirs of the Abyss | Follower & Quest Mod for TESV: Skyrim (Round Two)
mbeth for The Haruspex
The Haruspex is a female Nord shieldmaiden and former Stormcloak soldier. Upon inspection, she seems like an ordinary woman, flanked by her loyal animal companions - only, in truth, she has a visitor upstairs, and they don't often leave her in peace. She is withdrawn and brooding in rest, but focused and ruthless in work. Her unique gift affords her an unparalleled information-gathering ability, yet what she truly seeks is what she's been denied ever since that fateful day; silence.
Her voice should be calm, curious and somewhat sinister. She is powerful and knows it, and is quick to remind others of their comparative inadequacy in the eyes of her 'visitor'. Her accent should feature either a Nord twange or a real-world Norwegian, Swedish or Belgian accent.
"I'm just curious. We're all running from something, aren't we? So, dragon, I'll ask again - what do you fear? What makes a king of the sky spasm and quake?"
(The Haruspex is asking deliberately provocative questions, but in a manner that suggests she is genuinely very interested in the true answer. Contrary to her words, she is not speaking to a dragon, but a person.)
"You think so?" [soft, light laughter] "I think she saw something in those men. Like coins - two sides, vastly different, but one can't be without the other. They rotted and wept, threading their plague through pores clean and clogged alike. Equally, they were.... a family. A community of men and women who understood the same pain, the same awful fate that awaited them. Maybe they even liked spreading it. Maybe it grew their family. Maybe an identity like that is worth suffering for."
(The Haruspex is talking in a slightly unnerving and stilted manner, but is not hostile, and actually seems very open to an academic conversation.)
"I reached into black, but only gold and silver and ruby and charm flowed back, into my veins. It is harsh, but fair. It is cold, but watchful. It loves me. It always has."
(The Haruspex is talking in an eerily calm tone as she approaches somebody she is about to commit some rather brutal acts against.)
