Skyrim:A Dying Wish

Quick Walkthrough
#Read the note in Dead Man's Drink.
# Travel to the Roadside Ruins.
# Choose a cup (Fortune, Power, Nothing).
# If you chose Fortune, find a bed and sleep. This quest will end and Fortunate Son will begin. If you chose Power, find a bed and sleep. This quest will end and The Pit will begin. If you chose Nothing, go back to Falkreath. The quest will continue.
# Locate a Ferryman to take you to Giant's Tooth.
# Recover the Iron Wood Fruit.
# Return to where you left from.
# Cook soup from Ironwood Fruit (Ironwood Fruit, Charred Skeever Hide, Salt Pile).
# Travel to Temple of Kynareth in Whiterun.
# Give soup to priestess.
# Wait a day to speak with Rulnik.

Detailed Walkthrough
The Choice
In Falkreath, go to the Dead Man's Drink and into the owner's room where you will find a note entitled Mysterious Altar. Read it to start the quest. Once read, you will be sent on to the Roadside Ruins. There, you will find several dead bandits and a Spriggan waiting for you. Deal with the Spriggan and in the center of the ruins there is a leveled chest and the strange alter with three cups on it.

If you chose Fortune, find a bed and sleep. This quest will end and Fortunate Son will begin.

If you chose Power, find a bed and sleep. This quest will end and The Pit will begin.

If you choose Nothing, this quest will continue and you need to head back to town.

Path of Nothing
thumb|right|Find an Ironwood tree
Upon returning to civilization, you will be approached by a courier with a Note from the Temple of Kynareth. The note instructs you to find a ferryman to take you to the location of the Iron Wood Tree to get the fruit, Giant's Tooth. Only Harlaug in Dawnstar will agree to bring you.

On arrival, there is a giant camp with two giants. You can sneak by them to the path behind the camp or kill them. Once done with the giants, follow the path to the Iron Tusk Cave. Find the Iron Wood tree and harvest the fruit from it. You will then be attacked by several Spriggans. Defeat them and head back the way you came. Three Ice Wraiths will spawn in the giant camp when you emerge and you will need to fight your way back to the boat to return to Dawnstar.

Arriving back at Dawnstar, you will need to prepare a bowl of Ironwood Soup using three ingredients: the ironwood fruit, charred skeever hide, and a salt pile. The nearest cooking station is in Silus Vesuius's house. You will already have been given a charred skeever hide when you received the letter from the Temple of Kynareth, so all you need to find is some salt. Once you have the soup, head for Whiterun and the Temple of Kynareth.

At the temple, give the soup to the priest/priestess that sent you the note. They will give the soup to Rulnik and you will be told to wait a full day before checking in on him. Wait a day and come back. Talk to Rulnik and you will receive your rewards: the Bittercup, and a note titled On the Bittercup. The Bittercup acts as a potion and will raise your highest attribute by 20 points at the cost of your two lowest. For choosing the path of nothing, you will also gain Rulnik as a follower. He is a powerful mage with a level cap of 75, and he can also be appointed as a personal steward.

Notes
No matter which path is chosen, Ironwood Fruit will sometimes be available from Khajiit caravans after completing this quest.

Quest Stages