Excerpt from the Journal of Erik the Slayer

 

 

Dear reader, the book you have in your hands is the journal of the legendary adventurer, Erik the Slayer. Doubtless you know all about me from the many bards’ tales and songs detailing my many exploits, but it may interest you to hear about my humble beginnings.

 

 

I was born and raised in the small farming community of Rorikstead, in the Whiterun Hold of Skyrim.

 

 

My father, Mralki, runs the local Frostfruit Inn. He is a former Legionnaire who served in the Great War before retiring here.

 

 

I started this journal under the advice of my dearest childhood friend and super secret crush, Ember.

 

 

Ember is the only other person here my age and as such we grew up with only each other as playmates and have always been the closest friends.

 

 

Ember lives just outside Rorikstead at the Shoal Rest Farm her parents left her after their deaths a few years back.

 

Even from a very young age it had been obvious the Ember was more than a little strange. Keeping a journal she constantly updated whenever something happened to her,

 

 

Ember: “Sweet, sidequest complete!”

 

Incredibly skilled at anything she tried, always performing odd training,

 

 

Erik: “Ember, what the hell are you doing up there?”

 

 

Ember: “I'm training in light armour and restoration!”

 

 

Ember: "Wheee!"

 

Erik: “Holy shit!”

 

 

Ember: “Ooowww!”

 

 

Ember: “My restoration’s gone up again!”

 

The way she could learn magic spells just by looking at the cover of a spell tome,

 

 

Ember: “Oh, a spell book! Flames, huh? I wonder what this one does…”

 

 

Ember: “Mwahaha! Burn!”

 

 

Erik: “Damn it! Not inside!”

 

How she would always know the way to places people had told her about even just in passing,

 

 

Ember: “Red Eagle Redoubt’s that way, huh? Erik, it’s time to go sword hunting!”

 

And also how she would occasionally blank out looking at the sky and then suddenly demonstrate a new skill.

 

 

 

Ember: “Now I can do this with both hands! You have fire! You have fire, too! Everyone can have some! Bwahahaha!”

 

 

 

Also worth noting about Ember is that she lives up to her name and is a bit of a firebug.

 

Another odd thing about Ember was the way people reacted to her, often asking her to perform all sorts of tasks, despite having never met her before,

 

Random Fugitive: “Can you hold onto this for me? I’ll be back for it later. Kthxbye!”

 

 

Ember: “Wha-“

 

How she always knew people’s names before they could introduce themselves,

 

 

Kleppr: “Welcome to the Silver-Blood Inn, my name is Kle-“

 

 

Ember: “Kleppr. Yeah, yeah, I know. Did you have any convenient rumours to set me on to any sidequests?”

 

Kleppr: “Well now that you mention it…”

 

And how every courier in Skyrim always knew where she was.

 

 

 

Ember (whispers): “Sneaky, sneaky, sneak. Gonna steal all your stuff!”

 

 

Courier: “I’ve been looking for you. Got something I’m supposed to deliver. Your hands only.”

 

 

Ember: “You idiot...”

 

Bandit Outlaw: “What! Who’s there?!”

 

Despite all the oddities about Ember, she was one of the sweetest people I have ever known, provided you kept her away from fire

 

 

 

And ignored her kleptomania.

 

 

 

There was just something about that girl,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was seriously in love with her.

 

 

So when Ember decided to head out to Whiterun to join the Companions I was on board.

 

 

And despite distraction,

 

 

 

 

 

After distraction,

 

 

 

After distraction,

 

 

 

 

We finally arrived in Whiterun,

 

 

And that's were my adventures began...