Irkngthand loomed high and proud ahead, its towers nestled right underneath the snow-capped mountains west of Windhelm. I gazed in awe at the fronts gate, blown away by its size.

"By the gods," I muttered under my breath, repositioning my cowl so it covered my frostbitten nose. Growing up in Dawnstar, people would have assumed I was used to the cold. That was not the case at all. Growing up in Dawnstar made me hate the cold that much more.

"And this, lass, is a perfect example of a Dwemer ruin," said Brynjolf beside me. Karliah had said before we left Nightgate Hall that she would meet us inside, so it left Bryn and me to take our time getting to Irkngthand. I had no doubt she was already inside, just waiting for us to get here.

"I have a bad feeling that worse things await us inside."

"You'd be right." He motioned for me to get into a crouch when we came closer to the gate. I saw why only seconds later. Bandits patrolled above and below. I had never seen so many scantily-clad thugs in one place before. This place must be a magnet for thieves and outlaws of all kinds.

"Get your bow," whispered Bryn as we crept closer to the gate. "Two on the walls, three on the ground. Kill as quickly and quietly as you can."

"I thought we were against killing," I said as I retrieved my bow and one arrow from my back. I put the arrow in my mouth, then grabbed another one.

"We don't have time to discuss it, I'm afraid." Brynjolf pulled out his golden Dwarven sword and a smaller Dwarven dagger. I tried not to think about how similar his blade looked to the one that Mercer had stabbed me with. "They'll kill us on sight if we don't strike first."

I did not like resigning to the "kill or be killed" strategy, but Bryn was right. We had no other choice if we wanted to stay alive long enough to eliminate Mercer. With a sigh, I notched the arrow I had in my hand, pulled back on the bowstring, then let it loose. My arrow flew straight into the first bandit's exposed gut. He clutched the shaft buried into his flesh, then fell off the wall. He landed only a few feet in front of me, embedding the arrow deeper within his body. The tip stuck out of his back. I suppressed a shudder and nocked my second arrow. His partner on the wall had not seen what had happened, but he would soon. I could not let him spot me.

The next man went down just like the first, and Brynjolf and I moved forward. He sneaked up behind one of the three patrolling at the foot of a ramp leading to the entrance of Irknthand. With a careful and silent lunge, Bryn had sliced the first man's throat. I took down the other two with arrows.

By then, the alarm was raised. Many men and women of varying species moved towards us with murder in their eyes. Two stayed perched on a nearby wall, arrows aiming right for us.

"Lass, take out the archers first!" yelled Bryn as he engaged the first of the many bandits on the ground.

Heart thudding in my chest, I took out the archers like Brynjolf had told me to. One of them had nearly hit me with an arrow, but by some matter of luck, it whizzed harmlessly past my ear. I could not help but think that Nocturnal had something to do with that.

I suppose I owe you a thank-you, don't I, Mistress?

I did not have time to think it through, for Brynjolf still needed my help. Hurriedly slinging my bow over my back, I ripped my sword from its sheath and raced to help Bryn. Just in time, I stopped a blow that would have killed him. The impact made my sword vibrate and my arm quiver. I groaned and pushed against my Orc opponent. He gave me a tusked smile, then pushed me right into the snow. He kicked my blade aside and pressed his foot into my wounded shoulder. I screamed and tried to push the brute of a mer off of me, but my lithe form was nothing compared to his muscle-packed frame.

"Time to die, little thing," he said in his gruff accent, sword held high above his head. The position he stood in left me with a window of attack. It was a dirty play, but I did not care. I was not about to let this oaf kill me.

With a grunt, I kicked my foot into the fork of his legs. The Orc dropped his sword and bellowed in pain. He moved his foot off my shoulder, and I lunged for my blade. Grabbing the smooth hilt, I swung it around and caught the Orc in the gut. Only deep enough to maim, blood spurted from the gash along his belly. He backed away and continued to howl. His howling stopped, however, when a golden blade was rammed through his chest. The Orc died with a small moan, blood seeping past his cracked lips and yellow tusks.

Behind the Orc, Bryn stood and kicked the body into the snow. His mask and hood had fallen sometime during the battle, and a death glare bent into his handsome features. "No one talks to my lass like that," he growled, using the Orc's mismatched fur armor to clean off his sword.

"How'd you do it?" I asked, hand pressed to my aching shoulder. "How'd you stop all the others?"

He shrugged. "It was like I had eyes in the back of my head. I knew where attacks were coming from before they got to me."

"I think that Nocturnal is watching us."

"Aye, you're probably right." Bryn extended a hand and helped me to my feet. "Your shoulder okay?"

I nodded. "It'll be fine. Come on."

Holding my right arm close to my chest, Brynjolf and I began to trek up the improvised, snow-laden ramps that led to the entrance of the ruin. The bridges creaked ominously, making my heart jump to my throat with every squeal of wood. I grabbed onto Bryn's arm as the bridge swayed too far to the right.

Bryn chuckled, then pulled me onto solid ground. "They didn't build these bridges to last, did they, lass?"

"No, they didn't." I placed my hand on the imposing, cold, bronze door in front of us. "Is this it?"

"Yes, this is it." Bryn put his hand on the door next to mine. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

Together, we pushed our way into the ruins of Irkngthand.

The smell of death hit me as soon as we stepped into the damp and cold ruin. I blinked to adjust my eyes to the dimness, then walked down some stone steps leading to a lower circular level. Someone had started a fire in the middle of the area, like someone had set up camp. All around the campsite lay bodies of various species, man, mer, and beast. Bloody and mangled, some were even mauled beyond recognition. Their armor and skin were stained faded red, and by the smell, they had been dead awhile.

I gagged and tried to keep my lunch in my stomach. "Who in the world could've..."

Brynjolf's eyes hardened under his hood. "Mercer. He had to have done this. Let's get moving, lass. Nothing we can do here."

He led me by the shoulder away from the gruesome scene and up another set of stone stairs. All around, short stone braziers were lit, as well as odd, blue-flamed lamps on the walls. We followed the lit path past more carnage, although this time, it was only Dwarven constructs that had been destroyed. We crept past a still-steaming bronze sphere—which Bryn informed me was a Dwarven construct in disguise—and into the next, slightly darker, room. It also had some spheres, but we managed to sneak past them and down a set of stairs.

Passing under a cracking and crumbling archway, we came into a large, derelict cavern filled with spinning flame traps. Bryn and I stood in shock, unable to figure out how to get past. If we were dark elves, we might have had a chance to get through without being burned. But we weren't Dunmeri, and we weren't carrying fire resistance potions with us.

"Lass, look," said Bryn after a few minutes of studying the traps. "They're all moving in the same direction. If we were to travel in the same direction they're spinning, we may be able to get past. But we have to move quickly. Ready?"

I nodded, trying to calm my racing heart. "Let's do it."

Linking my arm around his, we moved in sync to the first flame trap. Walking carefully, we managed to keep between the fire streams and pass to the next trap. And the next one, and the next one, until we made it safely on the other side.

Standing behind a bronze gate that overlooked at room of death, Bryn and I inspected each other for any scorch marks or burns. Somehow, the flames never touched us. We had been spared.

"Eventually, our luck is going to run out," I said as I dusted off my cape.

Brynjolf chuckled behind his mask. "Let's hope not, Femke." He gestured to a circular room with a lever set in the middle of the stony floor. "It's an elevator. Plenty of Dwarven ruins have them. It'll probably take us down, deeper, and to wherever Karliah is waiting for us. Shall we?"

We both stepped into the small room, and Bryn threw the switch. Immediately, the massive bronze gears on the walls began to grind, steam hissed, and the floor descended. My stomach flipped, and I felt as if my head were about to float off my shoulders. I grabbed onto Brynjolf to steady myself, which earned a laugh from him.

"I know, it's no fun," Bryn patted my arm, "but it won't last long."

After a few more sickening seconds, the floor came to a shuddering stop, and a pair of bronze doors swung open. I took a shaky step off the elevator, trying to remember what solid ground felt like.

"Glad you finally decided to show up," said a snarky voice ahead. I looked to the bottom of a flight of stone stairs, and I spotted Karliah standing by a bronze door.

"Don't be so hard on us," said Brynjolf as he sauntered down the steps ahead of me. "The lass has never been in a Dwemer ruin before. This is all just a bit overwhelming for her."

"It is not overwhelming," I snapped, stomping down the stairs to meet them. "I am perfectly fine, thanks."

Bryn hummed in response, a cheeky gleam in his eye. I scowled at him.

"Karliah, we saw some bandits on the way in." I swallowed and tried to shake the horrid memory away. "They..."

"I found them like that. No doubt Mercer's doing. He knows we're here, and he's going to try to ambush us. We'll have to be wary. There's no telling what he's rigged since he's been here."

"I'll lead," said Bryn as he pushed open the door in front of us. He jumped out of the way almost instantly when a spiked ball on a chain came swinging down to hit him. He trod on my toes when he jumped back, and I uttered a few choice curses.

"Sorry, lass," he said when I pushed him off my foot. I could tell, even with his mask on, he was blushing. "I didn't mean it."

"I know, but be careful next time. Your big, Nord heel probably just broke my toes."

With a nervous chuckle, he led the way through the door and down the adjoining hall.

We came into a room dimly lit by soft blue light. Golden grates lined the stone walkway and overlooked the cavern floor far below. I approached the closest grate and looked down, seeing several pale shapes moving.

"Are those—"

"Falmer, aye." Bryn stood next to me. "Distant cousins of yours, aren't they?"

I nodded weakly. "Very distant."

"Look!" called Karliah in a soft tone. "It's Mercer! Down there!" She pointed to the darkest shape creeping below. Sure enough, I recognized the golden sword he had drawn.

Bryn drew his own sword. "I'm on it, lass!"

I laid a hand on my forearm and stopped him. "No, wait. Look."

We watched in tense silence as Mercer killed several Falmer with ease.

"He's baiting a trap," I murmured.

"He wants us to follow," said Karliah in an equally low tone.

"I hate to give that jackass what he wants, but we don't have much of a choice. We have to tail him."

"You're right, lass." Brynjolf sheathed his sword again. "You take the lead."

I nodded and led the way through another dim hallway.

We came into another decrepit room almost as cavernous as the one we had just left. Several Falmer scuttled around on the floor of the cavern and on the walkway we stood on. I looked down and saw that our way through was blocked by a gate. We would have to open the gate and slip past the Falmer before we could catch up to Mercer.

"Lass, there are two switches, you see?" Bryn pointed to one on our left, and one on the other side of the chamber. "No doubt they open the gate. I bet we have to flip them at the same time."

"Okay. I'll slip over to the next one. You and Karliah stay here and watch this one. When I get there, I'll give you a signal, and we'll both pull the levers."

"Be careful."

I grinned, even though he could not see it, and pressed my hand to his cowl-covered cheek. "Of course."

Without another word, I slipped my bow off my back and started to move. I bent my knees and crept in the shadows. That would not affect the Falmer, since they were blind anyway. I hoped, though, that Nocturnal would hide me in the darkness, making it impossible for even the Falmer to find me.

I made it to the other side without being seen. Across the chamber, Bryn raised a hand over his head and waved. I waved back and grasped the switch. We pulled ours almost simultaneously, and the gate below opened. Again, I signaled to Bryn, pointing him to the stairs leading down. He and Karliah began to shuffle towards them, and I did the same.

I had to use my bow when we got to the cavern's floor. Two of the Falmer had sniffed us out, and they lunged to attack. I put an arrow in the first one's head, and Karliah finished off the other in the same manner.

We kept going to the doorway out of the room, coming into a winding hall, then a massive cavern filled with crumbling Dwemer towers. All around, glowing mushrooms lit the room in their eerie blue-green glow, and several Falmer scurried over the pathways and ruins. There was no easy way across.

"All right, looks like we have two choices," said Bryn, gesturing to the path on the cave floor and the ramp leading higher. "We can take the high road or the low road. Whatever you choose, lass, we'll follow."

Choosing the low road would offer cover overhead, but it meant not being able to see where the Falmer were. The high road offered a bird's-eye view of the cavern. Perfect for picking off our enemies with my bow.

"High road," I said and led the way to the ramp. We had just stepped onto it when the entire room trembled. A deafening crash louder than the strongest thunder pealed through the cavern, echoing between the towers and stony walls. I almost lost my footing as the earth lurched under me.

"What in Oblivion?" I asked, regaining my footing after a few moments.

"I don't know," said Karliah. "We should keep moving."

We followed the path leading higher up, crossing the chamber as silently as possible. With the Falmer patrolling everywhere, it was not easy. My gut clenched every time one of us stumbled, or when I kicked a pebble into a bronze brazier.

When we came to the end of the chamber, we saw what had made that racket: somehow, an entire tower had collapsed, closing off our route.

"Shor's beard," whispered Bryn, "he... pulled the whole tower down. How?"

"It's the Key, Brynjolf," said Karliah. "This is what it does to someone. That's why we need to get it away from him. Let's hurry."

After sneaking past the Falmer, we found our way out via another doorway on the upper level. We came into the hall, having to avoid lots of bear traps. Mercer, no doubt, trying to slow us down even more. I skirted past them with ease. Bryn, however, nearly lost a couple of his toes.

The room at the foot of the stairs smelled of death. A Falmer body lay on one side of the room, close to a smoldering fire. To the right was an open door leading into a small room of some sort. I walked over to it, seeing several small chests that had been looted, a couple scrolls left of a shelf, and the words, "One step ahead. - Mercer," scrawled into the wall. I growled under my breath and stomped out of the room.

"He just likes to toy with us, apparently." Bryn sounded just as angry as I felt. "It's not enough that he duped us. No, he has to play with us, too."

I sighed and closed my eyes. Keep it together, Femke. "Let it go, honey. He's not worth it. The sooner we get rid of him, the sooner we can go home. Let's keep moving."

As we moved towards the next door, Bryn chuckled behind me and gave my elbow a nudge. "Honey, eh?"

"You started it with all the 'lass' talk. Don't laugh at me."

We dropped it when we entered the next room. It was the one where we had last seen Mercer, the cavernous chamber where he had killed several Falmer right in front of us. We were close, it seemed, to catching him.

"Lass, you see that?" asked Bryn, pointing to a tall, bronze construct just ahead. "That's a Dwarven Centurion. Nearly impossible to defeat. We can fight it, if you want, but I would strongly urge you to lead us past it."

"What's the matter, Bryn? Afraid of a lump of metal?" I crept down the stairs leading lower, stepped off the path and into a small, shallow stream.

"Only when the lump of metal fights back."

I suppressed my laughter and led us away from the Centurion. I trusted Bryn when he said it was nearly impossible to defeat. We did not have time to tangle with it, not when we still had to catch up to Mercer.

Up yet another flight of stairs we went, around another corner, and up we climbed to a platform overlooking the entire chamber. We crossed the stone bridge leading to the other side, came into a narrow hall, and started down a long ramp leading to the door we had seen Mercer go through. I was leading still, but that changed as soon as I heard spiders coming.

I nearly shrieked as I hid behind Bryn. He startled and glanced at me over his shoulder. I squeezed his arm tightly.

"What's wrong?"

"You know how I had those weird spots on my face after the Honningbrew job?"

"Yes...?"

"Well, that was spider venom. I've never liked spiders, but I... I..."

The idiot had the nerve to actually laugh. "What's the matter, lass? Scared of a little arachnid?"

"It's not little! And there's more than one. I am not facing off with them."

"So I'll lead us past. Just stay behind me."

And so he led the way down the ramp and past the spiders' nest. We slipped through the door undetected, much to my relief.

"See? There's nothing to sneaking past a few spiders, lass."

I slapped him in the chest. "Shut up, you smug ginger."

He chuckled. "I'll lead for awhile, all right?"

Karliah and I followed right behind Bryn as he sneaked down corridors and through cave-like rooms. Despite his Nordic body, he was one of the quietest thieves I had ever seen. He slipped past unsuspecting Falmer and clanky Dwemer machines like it was nothing. His skill made me realize I still had quite a bit to learn before I became the Guild Master.

We wove through what seemed to be the Falmer's hive. Many of their odd, chitin-like tents and chests filled the glowing mushroom-illuminated room. We hugged the far wall and slipped past undetected. Sticking to the shadows, we were invisible to everything, Falmer and their bug-like pets known as Chaurus alike.

We stepped onto a bronze pipe that led towards the roof of the chamber we were in. In single file, we followed the pipe maze over the Falmer hive and safely to the other side. I heard something gushing through the pipes. It must have been water.

"We must be under a lake," remarked Karliah as we stepped off the pipes and into the last room. This was it. We had found him.

We jumped down a short ledge and headed to the doors. Under his hood, Brynjolf shot me a worried look. I knew he was concerned about the fight. But what was there to worry about? With Nocturnal at our backs, and among the three of us, we possessed enough skill to win this fight and end Mercer once and for all.

With one last look passing among us, we pushed open the door.

The door swung open without a sound. The room we came into was huge, made entirely out of stone, and filled with one thing only: the Statue of the Snow Elves.

I could not believe what I was seeing. The last known visual representation of the snow elves, my long dead kin. It was incredible.

But I did not come to admire the statue. I came to stop Mercer from stealing the Eyes.

He was there, hanging from the statue's eyebrow as he pried one of the Eyes out of its socket. The other one was missing, presumably in the bulging brown satchel he had at his hip. He had his back to us, and he did not seem to know we were watching him.

"He's here, and he hasn't seen us yet," said Karliah in a hushed tone. "Brynjolf, watch the door."

Bryn nodded. "Aye, Karliah. Nothing's getting by me."

She returned his nod, then motioned to me. "Climb down that ledge and see if you can—"

"Karliah, when will you learn you can't get the drop on me?"

Before we could react in shock, the platform under my feet trembled and fell, taking me with it.

"Lass!"

I groaned as the stone and I struck the floor. I had fallen off my feet, landing hard on my backside, but was otherwise unharmed.

Mercer had climbed down from his previous spot and now stood at the statue's feet. He crossed his arms over his chest and sneered. "When Brynjolf brought you before me I could feel a sudden shift in the wind. And at that moment, I knew it would end with one of us at the end of a blade."

I stood and dusted myself off. "Give me the Key, Mercer."

He scoffed. "What's Karliah been filling your head with? Tales of thieves with honor? Oaths rife with falsehoods and broken promises? Nocturnal doesn't care about you, the Key or anything having to do with the Guild."

"This isn't about Nocturnal. This is personal."

"Revenge, is it? Have you learned nothing from your time with us? When will you open your eyes and realize how little my actions differ from yours? Both of us lie, cheat, and steal to further our own end."

I fumed. How dare he compare himself to me! "The difference is I still have my honor."

"It's clear you'll never see the Skeleton Key as I do... as an instrument of limitless wealth. Instead you've chosen to fall over your own foolish code."

"If anyone falls, it'll be you, Frey."

"Then the die is cast, and once again, my blade will taste Nightingale blood!"

He raised his sword arm, then conjured some sort of red light in his left hand. He threw the light towards Bryn and Karliah, then cast another spell. This one rendered him invisible.

"Brynjolf, what are you doing?!" screamed Karliah. I turned to see Bryn with his sword drawn. My heart leapt into my throat.

"I... I don't know, Karliah," he said, voice strained. "I... I can't stop myself!"

"Bryn!"

Karliah looked to me before drawing her own blade. "Catch Mercer! We'll be all right!"

"She's... she's right, lass! Go!" With that last pained word, he engaged Karliah in a deadly duel.

I forced myself to turn away, trusting that Bryn would outlast the spell, and that he would not force Karliah to hurt him. Pulling the Nightingale blade from its sheath, I mounted the stairs leading to the feet of the statue. I listened for the sounds of running footsteps, although it was hard to hear that over the sounds of swords clashing, shouts of pain, and my own racing heart.

Something slipped behind me, and I spun just in time to see Mercer come out of his invisibility spell and take a swing at me. I blocked the blow with my blade and growled at him.

"Why did you choose Brynjolf?" asked Mercer as he put all his weight behind his blade. "Why did you fall for him? He's a Nord, one of the very same race that hates you."

"Why do you care?! You tried to kill me. You lied to me, you lied to him, you lied to the Guild. Why would I choose you over him?"

"They'll waste your talent. They'll have you standing behind the desk, doing nothing but read ledgers and sign papers. Is that what you want to do forever?"

"It's better than spending my life like you!"

"You had a chance to be richer beyond your wildest imagination, but you wasted that chance when you let your heart be stolen by Brynjolf."

I cried out as sharp pain spliced across my left fingers. I drew back from Mercer and looked at my hand, seeing a deep cut marring each of my fingers just below the second knuckle. I could see the white of my bones past the blood.

Mercer grinned at me and waved a Dwarven knife at me. "Still easily distracted, I see. Karliah isn't the only one who can brew clever potions. Only this time, the poison that now courses through your veins won't save you; it'll kill you. Quite slowly, if I don't finish you off myself fir—"

I drove my blade forward, embedding it all the way to the hilt in Mercer's gut. His eyes grew wide, jaw dropping, and the blades in his hands fell away.

"This is the end of your scheme, Frey. May Nocturnal have mercy on you."

I yanked my blade from his belly, and he dropped like a rag doll. "Shadows... take me," he whispered as blood dripped from his lips. His eyes rolled back in his head, and his breathing halted.

I shook my stinging hand out and knelt over his body. "And just to be clear, I will never choose you over Bryn." With that, I pulled the satchel off his shoulder and looped it over my own head.

"You have the Eyes!" called Bryn as he climbed down. He was unharmed, thankfully. "We have to figure out—"

The room lurched, and we were all thrown off our feet. I stayed on my hands and knees as rocks began to fall from the ceiling. One almost hit me in the head, but I had managed to roll away just in time. Then, water rushed in, pouring into the chamber at an alarming rate. By the time I had found my footing again, the water had risen to my knees.

"We have to find a way out of here before the chamber fills with water!" said Karliah as she ran towards me. Bryn was not too far behind her.

By the time she reached me, we were treading water. Mercer's body floated for a few moments, then began to sink below the surface.

"What do we do, lass?" Bryn's eyes were wide under his hood.

"Split up and look for a way out." My legs started to tire, and my fingers no longer moved like they were supposed to. Was it from fatigue, or was Mercer serious about his poisoned blade? I really hoped not. "Go!"

He and Karliah swam off in different directions, Karliah to the middle of the chamber, and Brynjolf to the far side. I stayed where I was and watched for falling rocks. It was becoming a struggle to keep my head above water. I tilted my chin up as the cool liquid lapped at my nose.

If we did not find a way out soon, I feared I would drown. But if we found our way out, I was probably going to die, anyway. The poison was spreading, making my arms go numb and my head spin. I felt as though my life were being drained.

"Bryn—" I gasped as water filled my mouth. I spat it out and kicked harder. "Bryn! Help—"

Another rumble made the room shake, and more rocks fell from the ceiling. This time, I could not move out of the way, and a large stone struck me in the head. My last conscious thought was a prayer to Nocturnal, a prayer that Bryn would reach me in time to save me.

And then everything went black.