In the fifth part of the Redguard Storyline, I spoke with the Necromancer N’Gasta and was given an amulet to deliver to Governor Richton.
Before going to the Palace, I went and spoke with Dreekius.
Dreekius: Do you have it yet?
Cyrus: Yeah, I got it from the Necromancer myself.
Dreekius: Then deliver it, and perhaps while you are there you can ask a few questions about your sister.
I went to Palace’s entrance and spoke with the Guard there.
Palace Guard: What do you want?
Cyrus: I need to speak with Governor Richton.
Palace Guard: What business do you have with him?
Cyrus: I have an item he is expecting from the Necromancer.
Palace Guard: Very well. Hand it over.
Cyrus: Sorry, but it comes with a message for Richton’s ears only. I’m going to have to see him.
Palace Guard: That’s not going to happen.
Cyrus: Then he’s never going to see this amulet again.
Palace Guard: All right, Redguard. You win. I’ll signal you in.
I went into the Palace – In the first room there were two Guards, besides the one that had escorted me inside. A cutscene began. Amiel Richton and his assassin, Dram, entered the chamber.
Palace Guard: This man insisted he deliver the amulet to you himself, milord.
Amiel: A certain amount of persistence is admirable, isn’t it, Dram? Very well. Your job is done. Give the amulet to one of the Guards.
Cyrus: Hold on, Governor. I have a few questions to ask you first. About a woman named Iszara.
Dram: He’s no Courier.
Amiel: This is not an audience, sir. You forget yourself.
Cyrus: She’s been missing for a few months and people think she may be in trouble. They also say you might have something to do with it.
Palace Guard: Milord?
Amiel: No, no. I’ll handle him. I know of this Iszara, young man. Her troubles are of her own making, I’m sure. When you mix with thugs and murderers–
Cyrus: Like I said, you might have something to do with it.
Amiel: Under Imperial law, the Restless League, and this Iszara woman, a known consort and confederate of the League, are guilty of piracy, sedition, and treason, and subject to summary execution. In my capacity as Governor, such executions are my responsibility. But… This Iszara has not come to my notice, and if she has disappeared, she has done so without my help. And now, I have other pressing affairs.
Cyrus: Are you saying she was part of the Restless League?
Amiel: You are dismissed, Courier.
Cyrus: We don’t seem to understand each other, Governor. Iszara is my sister and this isn’t an audience, it’s an interrogation. Tell me all you know or I’ll give you more trouble than the League ever has.
Amiel: You would threaten an Imperial Governor? Are you simple? Threaten me, and you prove yourself a traitor… And must die for it. Guards, seize that man.
The three Guards in the chamber attacked them, but I defeated them without too much trouble.
Amiel: So this is the Redguard fire I’ve heard so much about… Young man, you’ve the markings of a fine swordsman… But, by your actions, you condemn yourself, and forfeit your life. Dram?
Dram: No. Let me question this one. He is a fool… But fools can be useful.
Dram cast a spell at Cyrus, which made Cyrus unconscious. That’s when the cutscene ended. Right after that, I found myself in a cell.
The first thing I noticed was that I no longer had any stuff. There was a rope in a hole in the ceiling, but it was unreachable. There were also two torches and a dying Redguard in the cell. While looking around, I saw a loose block in the wall on the side of the hole.
Cyrus: Looks like this block is loose. Maybe I can pry it out with something.
Cyrus’ Logbook
Delivered amulet to Richton. Confronted Governor concerning Iszara. Richton says Iszara was a known consort of the outlawed Restless League, but denied knowledge or responsibility in her disappearance. Threatened Richton. Governor’s Dark Elf agent, Dram, cast a magic spell. Woke up stripped of possessions and imprisoned.
Prisoner: Just another League hero. But no execution for me… A little torture, interrogation, then left to die in this hole. Hehehe… Fooled ’em, though. Swallowed the key. Got it right here. See?
He put his hand on his pocket.
Prisoner: Bit nasty when it came out the other end. Not looking forward to swallowing it again… Though. Can’t leave it around when they hault my corpse outta here.
Cyrus: The League… What about the League?
Prisoner: The League? We’re a dying breed, man. Like everything else in this town since Richton came. We may not be much… But we’re all that’s left.
Cyrus: Was there ever a young woman in here?
Prisoner: Who knows? Not since I came here, weeks ago.
Cyrus: Richton said Iszara is in the League. Is it true? I must know.
Prisoner: Damn Informers! Yes. Iszara’s one of us. She’s on Richton’s list, all right.
Cyrus: We’ve got to escape. Do you know a way out of here?
Prisoner: I’m going nowhere. That rack… Must have broken something. Legs don’t move.
Cyrus: How do I find them?
Prisoner: Why? You wanta join?
Cyrus: Right. How do I find them?
Prisoner: Well, right after you bust out of here, you go to the Lighthouse and signal the League.
Cyrus: Lighthouse. Yes. Go on.
Prisoner: Lighthouse. Like I said, Whoo. Getting dark in here. Getting really tired. And here. Take this key.
He gave me the key.
Cyrus: Why? What about the…
Prisoner: Just listen! I think I’m losing… Take the damn key… Don’t leave it here! Go to the Lighthouse. Signal the League.
That’s when he died.
Cyrus: What’s the key for? What’s the signal? Hey! You…! Hey! Damn… Damn! He’s dead! I’ve got to find a way out of here. Or end up like him.
I spoke with the Redguard Prisoner.
Prisoner: Ehh — Ehhhh.
Cyrus: Where am I?
Prisoner: Beneath the Palace. Ancient Catacombs. Nice place to rot and die.
Cyrus: Who are you? Why are you here?
Cyrus’ Logbook
Dying Restless League Prisoner said something about going to a Lighthouse to signal the League. Received a rusty key.
Cyrus’ Description of The Rusty Key
A rusty key from a Restless League Prisoner. He mentioned something about a Lighthouse just before he died.
I went to the block in the wall and loosened it with the key. Eventually, it came out of the wall and I used it to get to the otherwise unreachable rope. The rope led to a hallway with a Guard and yet another hole in the ceiling with a rope. I avoided the Guard and grabbed onto that rope. It led to another corridor, at end of which there was an intersection. One way led to a locked room and the other led to a chamber with two Guards, three (out of which only two, one of these two being the way that I had entered the chamber, did not have locked doors) exits and a metallic platform hanging from a chain above a lava pit. I ran from the Guards and went through a doorway that led to a corridor, which in turn led to the room behind the locked door that I saw when I went left at the intersection earlier.
Here, I found all of my stuff. I also found another torch, three more health potions and one more strength potion.
Cyrus: Finally, my equipment. This should even the odds with Richton’s men.
I went and killed the Guards that I had previously avoided, after which I went through the previously locked (which had now opened magically) door in the room with the metallic platform, which led to a large chamber with lots of pillars, braziers, torches, pillars and like. After I went down some stairs and killed a Guard, I went back up and went through a doorway that led to a locked door (on the other side of this door, I could see the corridor where I encountered the first Guard after escaping from the cell), in front of which I found three health potions and a bag of gold. I went back to the large chamber and inspected it closely. There was one upper part, with two doors, one leading to the locked door with the three health potions and the bag of gold, and the other leading to the room with the metallic platform. In the middle of this upper part, there was a hole with a rope going through it. Going down some stairs led to the lower area, where there were four triangular pressure plates and three closed doors. A rope was hanging above the center triangular pressure plate, and there was a balcony above the center door.
Going around the upper part led to a locked door. From here, I could jump to a small area with a dial, a lever and a wall mural with runes (this is also where I would get by climbing down the rope mentioned earlier). Since I knew that I couldn’t solve this puzzle yet, I went back to the triangular pressure plates, where I discovered that activating the left and lower pressure plates opened the left door, activating the left and right pressure plates opened the center door and activating the lower and right pressure plates opened the right door. Standing on the center pressure plate reset the other pressure plates. I decided to go through the first door, which led to a lava-filled room, also full of ledges and large stationary rods with wooden platforms attached to them.
I went around the corner and saw two ledges with two statue heads in the walls on each side firing fireballs at the walls opposite to them. Also, the head on the right was farther away. I jumped on the right ledge exactly when the left head had finished firing its fireball and from there I was able to jump on the ledge at the end of the room. From there, I went through a corridor which led to a room with two Guards (which I easily defeated) and a rune on a pedestal, protected by a trap consisting of three spinning blades. There was also a bit of lava around the pedestal.
I managed to get on top of the pedestal, from where I took the rune. I returned to the triangular pressure plates and went through the center door, going through a corridor which ended in a small room with a rope hanging through a hole in the ceiling. I went up the rope, entering a corridor. One way led to the balcony above the triangular pressure plates, while one way led to a lava-filled chamber with several ropes hanging from the ceiling. To be able to grab onto the first rope, I had to jump from a ledge that receded into the wall as soon as I stood on it. Anyway, I jumped from rope to rope until I got to the other side.
Cyrus’ Description of The Rune On The Left
A rune with 2 lines and a dot on it.
On the other side, there was a room with a Guard (who I easily defeated) and an altar. On the altar, there was another rune, which I took. I went back to the room with the triangular pressure plates and went through the right door, into a corridor with two Guards, which I defeated. There was also a side corridor reachable through the main corridor – Here, I found two health potions, a potion of ironskin, two bags of gold and a chest containing yet another bag of gold. The main corridor ended in a room (where I found a torch) with stairs to a walkway connecting three doors.
Cyrus’ Description of The Rune On The Right
A rune with a line and a dot on it.
Standing on the pressure plate in the middle led to the three doors being opened. Two Imperial Guards came and attacked me, but I defeated them. After they were dead, I went in the chambers that they had come from, and I found a health potion and a torch in each. I then went through the central door and entered a room with a higher platform containing a strength potion, an ironskin potion and two bags of gold. From this room, I went through a corridor (where I fought a Guard) with a few lava pits (I jumped over them) that ended in a chamber with a Guard (who I defeated) and another rune.
Cyrus’ Description of The Rune In The Center
A rune with two lines on it.
Having all the runes, I went back to the mural with runes and examined it closely. There were twelve columns of murals, but the first six were identical to the last six. Each column had eight runes, two of which were red. From this I drew the conclusion that each column was separated into two different unrelated parts. All of the red runes were the runes around the dial. Of course, there were twelve red runes and just eight runes around the dial, which made me notice that some of the red runes on the upper parts of the columns were also on the lower parts. I had to turn the dial to point towards a certain rune and I also had to insert the three runes into the notch in a certain order. Only one of the twelve parts of the wall murals contained the three runes that I had in my inventory – The one with the red triangle rune. I pointed the dial towards the triangle and inserted the runes in the order described on the wall murals – First I inserted the rune with two lines, then the one with two lines and one dot and, finally, the one with one line and one dot. I pulled the lever and the nearby locked doors were opened.
I went through the doors that I had opened, going through a corridor that led to a large room, with several levels. After defeating the Guard on the ground level, I left the room and went through a corridor to see where it led – But it led to a locked door and a Guard (who I, of course, defeated). I returned to the large room and went up a couple of stairs and jumped on a platform, from which I climbed up on another platform. There, I jumped and grabbed onto a rope, from which I swung onto another rope, from which I jumped on a ledge. From there, I went through a corridor that led to the walkways in the room, where I fought a Guard.
I went through a corridor which led to the walkway above a part of the corridor that led to the recently mentioned locked door. Here, I found the lever that opened the locked door, pulled it and jumped down. I went through the corridor behind the door (fighting and defeating two Guards along the way) and eventually found myself in a chamber with a door with the Crown sign. Since there was no way to open it yet, I jumped over a lava trench, went through another corridor and found the way out of the Catacombs.
As soon as I left the Catacombs, a cutscene started that took place in a large room in the Palace. An Imperial Guard approached Richton.
Palace Guard: Governor! I have news of the Redguard!
Dram was standing next to Richton.
Amiel: Which bloody Redguard?
Palace Guard: The one recently put into the Catacombs, sir. The one named Cyrus. He has escaped!
Amiel: What?!
Palace Guard: He is nowhere to be found, sir. We are combing the streets for him now.
Amiel: But escape is impossible from the Catacombs? The traps and so forth, right, Dram?
Dram: I hear you.
Amiel: Thank you, Guardsman. Carry on. And keep me posted.
The Guard left.
Dram: I underestimated the Redguard.
Amiel: Bah! Overestimated the Dungeons of our enemies, more likely! Never trust another man’s deathtraps. Double the Guard, immediately, and increase the patrols in town and along the waterfront. The Redguard must not find his sister.
Dram: Leave him to me.
The cutscene ended and I found myself out of the Catacombs and in the city. Using the secret entrance, I could now return to the Catacombs whenever I wanted to.
Cyrus’ Logbook
Escaped from Imperial imprisonment in Catacombs. Imperial Guards will attack on sight.
My efforts would now be concentrated towards contacting the Restless League. And I would, eventually, contact it and speak with its leader.
But that is a tale for the next part of the Redguard Storyline.
