Kyne ' s Challenge : A Hunter ' s Companion / Skyrim Content . Cold Comfort at the Top of the World FROST ATRONACH . Dappled light danced through the slowly swaying trees of larch ; occasional leaves of yellow and orange drifted down to the forest floor . Sunlight in Skyrim was something of a novelty , but it was a welcome respite before the hunt ascended to higher climbs . A day out from Riften , our convergence with Kishra - do and first delivery for the benefactor was over ; we were scouting the Autumnal Forest for wolves , wildcats , and other creatures to deliver to Kyne . So far , only a few bandit trophies . The Orc was mildly peeved we hadn ' t faced anything more troublesome . Fang and Mauler shook themselves free from a thicket of brambles , and bounded over to their master . Fenrig examined a singe on one of the dogs ' hind legs . " We have an elemental Daedra in these woods . Bound to frost . " Through the briars , the Nords silently crept , to view a small clearing close to the edge of a sulfur pool . A small cave entrance with a few old bones . A small wooden table upturned , bottles and herbs spilled all over and sitting in the low grass . A lantern snuffed . The collapsed form of a robed Nord , the maggots already at her . Five wolf corpses in the glade , all pierced by freezing ice . Dominating the glade was a towering giant of sharp ice shards , congregating together into a statue of magic and cold brutality . Four Argonians tall , jagged tree - trunk - sized limbs , and a pyramid head with eyes of gleaming white . A glacier came to life , standing motionless in the woods . We were close enough to spot a piece of charred parchment , and Fenrig crept to retrieve it . An incantation scroll of a mage . It read : " Nomeg Jrool , I summon you from Oblivion to do my bidding . Defeat my adversaries , and … " " A consort to the mage , " Fenrig said , without finishing the script . " Remember the atronach we bettered near Ivarstead ? " Ingjard prompted me . " Yes , " I replied , " continuous pummeling from every one of us . No resting . A barrage from all angles . If we split our attacks — " I was interrupted by a great crashing sound , as a bulky form clutching an oversized mace stumbled through the brambles with the agility of a wounded troll . Bashnag had decided to face the atronach himself . His idiocy allowed us time to scramble into safe positions around the glade , and watch as the Orc swung mightily , catching the atronach with a crushing strike to the leg . But without an immediate follow - up , the Daedra whipped the air around with its gigantic arm club , and made a violent offering of ice shards directly into the face of the Orc . Back he staggered , slowing as the frost took hold , and the atronach walloped the ground , sending a wave of ice shards directly at Bashnag , who toppled over with a crunching thud . Ingjard ' s arrow found its mark . Mauler darted between the atronach ' s giant feet , as further arrows assailed the ice titan . This afforded our unsubtle friend the time to stagger to his feet , eyes burning red with a rage I ' d not seen before . He emitted a roar that almost traveled to Windhelm . His mace broke the leg of the frost atronach , and it swayed on one unsteady trunk before crashing and bringing down a twenty - year - old pine on its way to the forest floor . Arrows both Nord and Argonian in origin pockmarked the craggy carcass until there was nothing left but a few piles of ice . Footfalls - in - Snow promptly picked up the melting remains to secure frost salts , while I sat Bashnag down to explain how abandoning our pack wasn ' t part of Kyne ' s plan . SNOW BEAR . The Pine Foothills of Eastmarch were the ideal hunting grounds for the snow bear . As the smell of sulfur pools left our nostrils , the ground became steeper , and the whistling winds more blustering . Ingjard chanced a smile over to Fenrig as the first precipitation melted on our faces . We ' d be rosy cheeked in no time , and we stopped to listen for the soft patter of falling snow on the forest path , as the storm slowly grew in strength . We heard the chirrup of a wandering thrush , and a faint call of a felsaad tern , away from its Solstheim feeding grounds . Mauler pranced off as the snow deepened , intent on a meal of raw rabbit . He wasn ' t happy to be sternly whistled back to heel as the snow bear tracks were found . We were overjoyed to be hunting in our own lands . Bashnag ' s rudimentary tracking skills extended to the snow bear , and his previous experience training them as guard mounts in the Strongholds of Wrothgar extended to teachings , focused on the Argonian . Strange , given his earlier reluctance to learn from Ingjard . " Pretend to be dead ; a bear devours your head . We learned that rhyme on my first hunt , " the Orc told Footfalls - in - Snow . " You are a babbling brook of knowledge ! " the Argonian replied with a nodding grin . His increasingly sarcastic enthusiasm is more becoming of a Khajiit . A long , rumbling roar brought our trek to a halt and the forest to silence . The only sound was the thumping of blood between my ears . Fenrig had returned from his tracking , and gestured for us to split apart . A sliver of darkness in the rocks . A pile of scattered bones . The bear ’ s lair appeared through the pines , up a steep and slippery slope , which Fenrig navigated with almost wolf - like agility . The noise was from within the den ; branches and debris cracked as a huge white mass of fur bounded out into the blizzard . Fenrig sat on his haunches , a dagger and shield at the ready . We instinctively knew how to end this hunt . The snow bear rose to its hind legs as Fenrig advanced with his blade , bringing both paws down on him with a downward swipe that would buckle a shield of lesser quality . Instead , Fenrig used the momentum of the attack to shove the bear off balance , deftly leaping to the bear ' s side , and cutting a tendon in its leg . Again the beast howled , turning the thrash the air where Fenrig had been . More savage thrusts with sharp , furred claws , sinking not into Nord flesh , but the ghost of his previous position . Silent prayer to Kyne finished , Fenrig rode the bear ' s back , nicking the throat with an incision that would quickly bring the beast down . As its cut jugular drained the bear of life and blood ( and the snow stained a deep red ) , Footfalls - in - Snow clapped politely at the antics . DWARVEN SPIDER , SPHERE , AND CENTURION . Holgunn One - Eye ' s directions to the hidden Dwarven ruins were impressively exact . Both Fenrig and Footfalls - in - Snow returned to our camp at Cragwallow bearing enticing news : a strange stone edifice was indeed visible through the undergrowth in the Velothi foothills a short distance away . Treasure hunters and despoilers hadn ' t the fortitude to venture to such a dangerous place . Many deemed this ruin cursed , and stories of golden demons boiling the hapless and the curious enhanced Mzulft ' s reputation as a place to be rightly avoided . Yet here we were , cutting through bramble thickets to reach a strange , bronze - roofed outbuilding , resplendent in its ornate decay . Ingjard unfurled Holgunn ' s ancient map , and we both studied it as Fenrig scouted the area . If we listened carefully , we could hear a faint hissing and metal grinding , a sound seemingly from deep underground . But otherwise , there was nothing to disturb us , not even a bird or a small animal rustling . Fenrig soon returned , throwing a smooth , fist - sized rock for me to inspect . " If we had Roggvir ’ s pickaxes , " Fenrig said , as I turned the white ball of moonstone over in my hand , " we ' d make out like bandits . Ore veins over there , by the escaping steam . " But this exploration wasn ' t dedicated to Zenithar , so I made it clear that an entrance should be found . Ingjard ' s thorough inspection of the maps and Bashnag ' s boulder clearing soon revealed a massive but finely carved metal door . The Orc broke two daggers trying to pry it open , until Ingjard told him to stop . " Perhaps try inserting this instead ? " she said with a wry smile , handing him and equally ornate key . " That ' s the property of Holgunn One - Eye , and he wants it back . " We ventured up sloping stone corridors and immense connecting rooms , slowly examining the hundreds of wall slabs and running fingers over the large bronze pipework . This was astounding : mechanical cogs grinding with life , periodic blasts of steam , clanks , faint rumbles … It was as if we were exploring within the belly of a giant , living beast . Ingjard pointed up to a gate of thin , golden bars . " This is where Holgunn ' s footprints end . " Bashnag pushed forward , spotting red marks on the ground . A small puddle of dried blood behind which a thick metal rod was protruding from a punctured pipe . " This ground plate . What if I step on it ? " The Orc was naturally curious , but lacked appropriate wariness or basic common sense . As his boot touched metal , a rod shot from a golden crossbow ( cunningly hidden from view ) and missed Bashnag ' s head by a beard ' s whisker . He dropped his mace in surprise ; it landed with a clatter enough to wake the dead . But no draugr appeared . Instead , a circular shutter in the far wall expanded to reveal a hole , from which fell three metal carvings . They righted themselves , for these were animunculi : wolf - sized spiders constructed from metal and powered by magic , which Holgunn had mentioned . Sharp single claw toes scraped the stone , propping up a weighty central core with a rotating single eye ( although Ingjard ' s later examinations revealed it to be a crystalline power source of some kind ) . There was little time to ponder the mechanism of such contraptions , as the central Dwarven spider began crackling with purple arcs of shocking energy . Fenrig and the Argonian reached for their bows . The other spiders seemed to bathe in this static field . Then one scuttled forward , unnatural front claws stabbing Bashnag ' s legs . It backed up , avoiding a pendulum - like mace swung from the off - kilter Orc , before slamming into the ground and exploding by Bashnag ’ s feet , who writhed in the lightning discharge before collapsing to the floor . Dead ? Footfalls - in - Snow fired an arrow , and it nicked the second spider , whose bronze body turned independently of its legs to find the source of the attack . Out crackled a massive gout of purple and white light , hitting the roughly hewn stone chair the Argonian was hiding behind . " Enough ! " shouted Fenrig , charging at the two Dwarven spiders , who advanced immediately to meet in the middle of our stone combat chamber . Our Nord tracker exhibited the force of a werebear , using his favored axe to split the first spider down the middle . It sparked with unnatural energy and collapsed in two equally sized heaps . Ingjard ' s arrows found their mark , as the final spider tripped back over its own legs at the force of each shot , before stopping completely , immobilized in a corner . Bashnag regained consciousness , but remained embarrassed at being caught out " by such a feeble and toothless runt . " As our exploration passed into a larger chamber , resplendent with huge bronze heads peering down with lifeless eyes , the Orc would have the chance to prove himself . " Kinetic energy , steam - powered resonators , wondrous species of luminous fungi … a place almost as magical as Grahtwood . " Footfalls - in - Snow was talking to himself again as he inspected a row of leering faces carved from metal , which stretched the length of the chamber . " Aha ! An opening . " The Argonian tapped the mouth of one face , and a circular hole expanded , the mouth now wide in a silent shout . " Wait … I hear movement within the walls . " We backed up as a scraping sound uttered from the face , which spat out two strange balls of heavy bronze . Then , through magic or incomprehensible means , the spheres seemed to hatch , each expanding and unfolding to reveal a dead - eyed creature of bronze , beautifully sculpted from metal , but aggressive and unwavering . An aroused and dangerous warrior — an animated artifact working in tandem with the rumbling ruin itself . Perhaps Bashnag might have prayed to Mauloch before our assault on Mzulft . Once again he drunk his luck from a thimble , staggering back with a crossbow bolt embedded in his shoulder . The Dwarven sphere reloaded its projectile and fired again ; this dart missed the Orc , who wasn ' t waiting for a third attack and closed the gap with impressive speed . As Bashnag closed , his adversary span its torso around , revealing a long blade molded into its arm . The second sphere retreated ; its rudimentary intelligence was intent on keeping one animunculi at close quarters , the other at range . It was an impressive tactic , and one we used ourselves , yet it was strangely odd to see mechanical beasts copying our tactics so succinctly . But the time for discussing stratagems was later . Bashnag parried a whirling blade as the sphere span around , and returned with a huge overhead pummel , breaking off the machine ’ s crossbow arm . Fenrig was knocked back by a charged bolt from the retreating sphere , the attack coating his shield in the same writhing energy that had consumed our Orc . Seeing Fenrig wasn ' t stopped , the sphere suddenly leapt into the air , contracted into a ball , and shot downwards at the ground . This crash sent Fenrig flying against the wall , but he landed lithely , and was back to a fierce sprint before the sphere had even finished expanding again . Subsequently , a dull - eyed metal head landed at my feet , still pulsing with strange , crackling light . Bashnag finally got back into the swing of things too , crushing his sphere under mace and boot , until he was politely asked to stop as Footfalls - in - Snow sifted through the debris . A mass of cogs , struts , and other parts collected , the Argonian tied up his roughly woven sack , and leaned up against a large , golden pipe , then arched his back . " Ah ! this enkindles my aching scales , like the warm winds from Hammerfell , " he cooed . " That ' s no pipe , " Bashnag commented , pointing at the Argonian with the bolt he had just removed from his shoulder after a swift tug and a grunt . " That ' s a leg . " Footfalls - in - Snow looked up , and met the gaze of an immense golden head peering back down . This wasn ' t a wall carving ; it was attached to a powerful , steam - powered body which let out a terrifying hiss and creaked into life . The startled lizard disappeared from view in the escaping vapor . " Shields out ! " I shouted . " Nimble - footed to the walls ! " Bashnag joined me in the center of the chamber . Ingjard and Fenrig fled to the perimeter while the dogs growled and coaxed the slow - moving behemoth of bronze away from the spluttering Argonian . Every ponderous step the giant statue took was accompanied by grinding , whistles of pistons , and further belching clouds . " Shields up top ! " The Dwarven centurion rotated its hefty hammer arm , before a stilted spin around on its torso , bringing the arm down with a force that could crack steel . Bashnag took the brunt of it , and I saw him wince as he pushed back with his shoulder , now seeping blood from the sphere ' s previous strike . Nord and Argonian arrows clattered off the steam giant ' s back ; one particularly precise in its flight entered the centurion ' s armor plates , piercing the innards . I dove forwards as the machine bent over , mouth agape , and spewed a steam - filled roar so deafening , it rattled two of my teeth loose . I dove at the creature ' s feet , hacking and tumbling around its base as it brought a twirling axe arm down , cutting deep into the stone where Bashnag had left a moment earlier . Another mighty mangle from my axe , and I almost severed the knee joint . The centurion ' s balance suddenly became precarious ; it twisted and its leg gave way . It fell like a seventy - year spruce , filling the room with a thunderous clang and a final expulsion of effluvium . Footfalls - in - Snow was up on its chest , slicing apart metal tendrils , and finally plunged an arm through a chest cavity , struggling for a few moments before wrenching out a weighty golden contraption , spherical with a red , pulsing center . He held it aloft , in triumph . " Dynamo core ! " We investigated Mzulft no further ; our hunt now concentrates on flesh and blood , not bronze and fog . DRAUGR . " Precisely what does ' fresh bone and meal ' mean ? " Ingjard asked , reading over Zagun - ra ' s long parchment of ingredients . " I haven ' t a recently slain Nord brother to inter and desiccate , and I will not despoil this barrow . " I replied that perhaps the Khajiit ' s request was inaccurately translated , but I understood her concern : She was already at odds with collecting the remains of Nords , especially as her ancestors were buried in this crypt to honor Nahkriin the Priest . I was inclined to agree too ; Skuldafn was a sacred place , and sealed for a reason . " We could journey to Bleak Falls , " I pondered . " None of us share the bloodline of the Nords entombed there . Kyne wishes our hunt to include all beasts , including the offspring of man and mer . I take that to include draugr . In fact , didn ' t Fenrig ' s tribe have a dispute with Riverwood a few generations back ? He might enjoy it . " Fenrig climbed down from his vantage point atop the henge on the outer - rim gathering grounds , and smiled . Possibly for the first time on this hunt . " I ' ll hunt bear , wolves , and spiders . Trolls and atronachs too . But I choose not to slay my own dead . " Ingjard was usually pliable , but on this subject she remained as unforgiving as the journey to High Hrothgar . It would not be long before her obstinacy was truly tested . " Where ' s the green - tinged one ? " Ingjard asked . " Back at the camp , whittling something intricate and pointy out of snow bear bones , " Fenrig replied . " No , the other one . " Ingjard jumped up and looked around . Our two foreign friends were cloaked with invisibility . But this was no spell . " Do you think … ? " Fenrig ' s voice trailed off as we all three realized our predicament . " Check the hidden entrance ; the one Holgunn One - Eye told you about when you were hunting with that idiot from Bravil . " Ingjard was already bolting up the snow - laden steps like a startled elk . Fenrig turned to me with a furrowed brow , and spoke with foresight and resignation : " I fear her ancestors may not be asleep for very much longer . " The doors into Skuldafn ' s ceremonial embalming chambers flew open , and out scampered the Argonian . He was closely pursued by one of our dead : a wight clad in the armor of a warrior from our first age . A bony finger pointed at the ground and out shot a blast of frost , covering the steps out of the grounds . Footfalls - in - Snow slipped on the gathering ice , but lived up to his name and remained upright . He increased his pace , managing to keep a large funereal jar within his webbed grasp . As he reached us , the jar was placed onto the snow at our feet . " Bone meal . Freshly excavated ! " Ingjard sat , seething , as we set about the draugr stumbling out of the crypt . Skeletons long since summoned to Sovngarde , now raised and wrapped around transparent flesh , rags of leather half rotted away , and helms from another age , many horned and all of fine craftsmanship , adorning some of the tougher , heavily armored draugr . Pale blue , lifeless eyes , bathed in eerie mist , hovering in black sockets . Gruff shouts as warrior of yore rose from their slumber . A pitched battle at Skuldafn , now spilling out onto the snow . Precisely what Ingjard had feared . We could hear a din of clanks , the crunch of old bones against older walls , and finally Bashnag appeared , one hand clasping the thin neck of the restless dead . He snapped it easily ; it crumbled in his hands , the head still scowling and teeth chattering as it hit the chamber steps . A more solid foe , writhing with magical energy , brought down a Nord axe into the Orc ' s helm . It was blocked just in time , as Bashnag retaliated with his mace , pushing it through the draugr ' s knotted beard and helmet , and halfway through the ceremonial altar wall . This was an impressive display , and one to applaud if it hadn ' t resulted in such wanton devastation . A scourge leapt to stall this defiler , and I was put in a strange position of wanting to applaud the enemy . Bashnag reached for his belt . " No frost , no poison , little leaf ! " yelled Footfalls - in - Snow . " Torch the gray tree with fire ! " The Orc lit his torch , embedding it in the musty torso of the scourge , who went up like oil - soaked kindling , and staggered out in a blaze before being dropped by Ingjard ' s arrow , to quicken his journey from this realm . Bashnag was out and sliding down the steps , as the draugr retreated back into their tomb . Fenrig ran to the door and bolted it shut , as the Argonian sifted through the piles of dust , fragments of bone , and loose armor . " By Stuhn ' s beard , you ' re lucky we didn ' t disturb a deathlord , you intemperate goathead ! " Ingjard was uncharacteristically emotional , and lashing out with unwritten fury at Bashnag . The Orc sat with a grin like an idiot wallowing in dung . " Or a lich ! Did you fall and hit your head on every one of the Seven Thousand Steps ? I ' ve seen ogres with more battle mastery than you ! " Bashnag ' s smile lessened , and he shrugged . " We needed bone meal . I needed a battle . I killed two Reachmen with one mace . " " Remind me to slap your forge wife the next time I ' m in Wrothgar , you lumbering simpleton . " Ingjard lowered her voice to a tone most threatening . It had the desired effect ; Bashnag apologized , and we attempted to settle down to sleep . " When do we set the husks alight in Bleak Falls Barrow ? " the Argonian inquired . GIANT AND MAMMOTH . We almost had to drag Footfalls - in - Snow from the sulfur pools of Eastmarch ; the Argonian seemed overly reluctant to leave the hot water , wrap up in pelts , and trudge on into the snow . He was happy to ignore the wafting smell from the gases bubbling up from the fabled underground lava beds ( that only the Dwarves are said to have ever discovered ) . Bashnag was less enamored , likening the scent to " rotting cabbage " and " the arse cloud of a dying Reachman , " two of the more accurate descriptions of this often pungent odor . But depart we must ; Fenrig spotted mammoths grazing on the far distant heaths . The hunt is incomplete without the trophies of the giant . We live in an uneasy truce with the giants of Skyrim . Some believe that they are our Atmoran ancestors , and the more backward villagers on the border with Wrothgar still breed cows specifically to paint with runes as offerings to these lumbering nomads . But the days of such superstition have passed in our circle ; they are now seen by more forward - thinking Nords as a nuisance to tolerate . They tend to their herds of mammoths with the care and attention a Nord farmer would display when rearing a prize goat . And judging by their equally sizable excretions , they subsist on milk , cheese , and curds from their mammoths . The meat they occasionally butcher ranges from carrion to easily trapped skeever ; a giant would sever his own finger to add to a stew before slaughtering one of his woolly beasts . But until provoked , giants are remarkably peaceful . The ground was uneven in this part of Bleakrock , with fields of heather , tufts of stunted gorse , and unremarkable bushes attempting to remain anchored to the windswept tundra . In the far distance , the sun had broken through a gap in the rain clouds , and lit up two huge and ungainly monsters ( it was as if Kyne herself had chosen our prey for us ) . Each four - legged beast wandered the moorland slowly , mottled fur draping off their damp backs , each with an ugly head of four protruding tusks and trunk . Appearances are deceptive , for these frightening forms feed only on grasses and the occasional honey and oats fed by their giant keeper . The herd master was between his animals , tending to their drinking habits . The giant was clad in a tapestry of fur armor ( three wolf pelts alone for each shin ) . Pale , creased skin over wiry muscle . Bones dangling from a belt of pouches . A necklace of large bird skulls . Bashnag was impressed by the size of his beard , and ( of course ) by the club he was carrying , which was twice the size of the Orc , with three particularly evil - looking claws protruding from it . Out in a wide arc we crept , intending to fell a mammoth from every angle . Initial success : all our arrows met their mark , and the mammoth we chose trumpeted in pained anger . Unexpectedly , both beasts and their shepherd chose to lumber directly towards Ingjard and Fenrig , the nearest mammoth lifting up its trunk and thundering into a long charge . A lithe roll , and Ingjard avoided a trampling , as further arrows concentrated on the other hairy creature . Rearing up on its hind legs , the mammoth brought its entire weight down towards her , but quick thinking and reflexes allowed her to thrust a vicious sword up into the beast ' s chin and across its throat . A great flood of deep red spurted out , as the mammoth wailed and thrashed , swaying its head back and forth in an attempt to send Ingjard flying . Again she deftly avoided a mauling , stepped out of the frenzied animal ' s path , and waited for it to slump forwards and bleed out . As Ingjard bettered her prey , Fenrig faced a foe four times his size , with only our ranged arrows ( and encouraging shouts from the Orc ) for help . The giant ' s gangly frame worked to Fenrig ' s advantage , as it attempted a huge kick which would have surely cracked a rib or two . But the giant struck air and grass as it slipped over , allowing Fenrig in with a swift pair of stabs . The giant pushed Fenrig back as it rose up to its feet , cleaving the area with a sweep of its club . This time Fenrig was on his back , but he sprang up , ran through the giant ' s feet , and thrust a dagger through the bridge of his foe ' s foot . Literally hopping mad , the giant struggled to remove Fenrig ' s embedded toothpick while taking swift cuts to the legs . Unhappy in the extreme , it lifted its colossal club , then dropped it into the heather , hitting the ground with such force I half expected Fenrig to be launched tumbling upwards , through the low clouds to a distant doom . But Fenrig was on the giant ' s back , puncturing the pale side flesh and scrambling to the head . A final dagger unsheathed , Fenrig plunged it through the giant ' s ear , and it fell forwards , dead before it struck the soil . Bashnag ' s ebullient whooping was probably heard in Hammerfell . We all ate well that evening . Fenrig sat with a painted smile , enduring numerous back slapping from an Orc impressed at our tracker ' s victory in combat . Only our Argonian was silent , spending his time nibbling a sweetroll and butchering the three corpses of their trunks , tusks , toes , teeth , and any other important appendages indicated on our benefactor ' s parchment notes . WOLF . Snow wolves are a bit trickier to hunt , as their tracks and form are easily obscured , while their habitat is difficult to traverse . Our benefactor requested a white pelt , so we avoided the abundance of forest wolves and continued our trek up through the icy volcanic tundra of Eastmarch Hold . Fenrig complained of a pain behind his eyes , and requested Ingjard conclude the search for our prey . He hung back with the Argonian as Ingjard took the lead , utilizing the talented nose of Fang while Mauler followed closer to his master . An overhang of protruding pine tree roots , ground hardened by the perpetual cold , and a bluff through the trees , upon which Ingjard had tracked an impressive specimen : the pack leader . It howled from its viewpoint , and Ingjard unbuckled her axe . Two subsequent howls to our right . The wolf pack was hunting together . While Fenrig looked on from a rocky perch further down the valley , Ingjard finally motioned to the flitting shadows behind the closer trees . Out padded a large white wolf , a fine specimen of Kyne ' s , snow - colored fur save for faint stains of blood around the jowls , which were peeled back in a seething growl . Back arched , with soft , padded steps , and a tail raised in prowling agitation . Fang responded in a likewise manner , the two beasts circling each other , readying to pounce with a vicious snarl of sharp teeth and flowing spittle . Ingjard ' s axe cut through the first snow wolf ' s side , and it twisted inwards , teeth bared as its blood coated the tree and her weapon . A second strike cut through the head swiftly , with the strength and precision of one well versed in animal combat . fang back away as Ingjard stepped across to confront the second snow wolf , which snapped viciously downwards , attacking her feet . Ingjard stumbled , but soon regained composure , as the wolf darted back into the woods . I motioned for the Argonian to bring out his skinning knife ; we had the single pelt we had come for . Kyne ' s bounty was plentiful , but as stewards we took only what we needed . FROST TROLL . Dawn on the foothills of the mountains south of Ironbind Barrow . The weather was unexpectedly clear as we waited at camp below the scree and sagging , but intricately carved , ruins . The air was crisp ; Kyne had provided perfect hunting conditions . I was thankful for her mercy after our previous mishap . Fenrig and his hounds returned from foraging . He waved his fist at me , which was clasping three large rabbits . Then he sat down , poured himself some broth , and began to skin them . The dogs jostled playfully to lap up the blood . True to his word , Footfalls - in - Snow arrived a few moments later , wiped his blade , looked up at Fenrig ' s breakfast preparation , and turned up his nose at the roasting meat . He took a carefully wrapped sweetroll from his knapsack and began nibbling at it . " Trolls , " the Argonian said , through tiny , pecked mouthfuls . " Smelt on the breeze since Dawnstar . Two saplings and a sturdy tree . " " Three of them ? " Ingjard asked . Footfalls nodded , but was otherwise focused on devouring his confection . " How are your feelings on the lizard ? " Ingjard took me aside and asked me , as we cleared the camp . " His knowledge of tracks and the wilderness is impressive , " she added . I told her I still had my suspicions . The following morn , we passed by the pines and snowberries glistening in the sun . As we approached a bluff of loose rocks and deep snow , the Argonian inspected and ran his tongue over found dung — a taste less appetizing than his breakfast , to be certain — and confirmed our prey was within the range of Ingjard ' s arrows . Fenrig followed the nearby footprints to a crack in the rocks with bones strewn about the entrance . We stayed upwind , and crouched down to listen . The grunting from within was unmistakably trollish . I readied my own bow , and motioned to Bashnag . He gleefully clambered to the cave , and poured oil across the threshold . Ingjard and Fenrig found vantage points at the flanks . Footfalls decided to watch the proceedings from the safety of a tree . " Now ! " Bashnag let out a resonating roar that echoed across the barrens . Out thundered a frost troll — a big brute , thick of fur , fists clenched and spittle frothing from between rows of uneven teeth , with three sunken piglet eyes , all wildly glaring at the Orc . The troll swiped twice with heavy hands , but Bashnag sidestepped quickly as the attack turned into ineffectual flailing . In the time it took Bashnag to raise his obscenely large mace , five arrows had struck the troll from three different directions . It tumbled forward , slipping on the Orc ' s oil , and cracked its head on the way to the afterlife . Bashnag ' s expression was one of disappointment , but this was short lived : He soon spilled blood as a second troll leapt upon him , hammering at his armor as he took it by the throat , slammed it into the rocks , and caved its skull in with brute force , a slightly smaller mace , and invocations to Mauloch . The ground shook as the third ( and substantially taller ) troll lumbered from its hole , pounding the ground with its anvil - like fists . Had it not been hunched , it would have been almost the size of a giant . Bashnag coaxed it towards the slick . The Orc ' s throwing arm was impressive ; he managed to cover the beast in oil from two more pots before Ingjard ’ s flaming arrows set the shrieking creature alight . Footfalls - in - Snow slid from his tree . The Argonian and I set about the unpleasant extrication of Zagun - ra ' s troll fat from the three burning corpses . The smell of the bubbling flesh was sickeningly sweet . As it wafted through the air , Ingjard stifled a wretch , and Fenrig kept curious wolves at bay . ICE WRAITH . The weather change was abrupt and dramatic ; clouds rolling in from the Sea of Ghosts brought light snow , then heavier blizzards , and in a matter of hours , the road back to the docks became impassable . We halted our journey , as Fenrig feared our less competent members might lose themselves down an ice crevasse , or wander off into the walls of gray that assaulted us from all directions . Thick fog , snow blindness , and a shivering Argonian were tests sent by Kyne for us to overcome . Spying a shelter of overhanging rocks , Fenrig pushed forward through the fresh snowdrifts . Then he stopped , yelled something indistinguishable over the howling winds , and fell backwards . He scrambled back upright , turned , and signaled to us , and we knew what he ’ d disturbed . A snaking skeleton of blue flame rose from the drift : a collection of ice bones bound together by nature magic , a sharp - ridged spine finishing at a malcontented jaw of bone and sharp teeth . Fenrig had awoken an ice wraith . Raising his shield just in time , Fenrig countered the wraith ' s lashing bite ; those icy jaws struck steel and wood instead of Nord flesh . The snake promptly vanished back into the snow . Fenrig waded into the drift up to his waist , parting the fresh snow with sword and shield . Too late , he stepped onto the ice wraith ' s waiting trap ; a hail of shards pierced upwards , exploding from the ground and cutting up and around his legs . By now , we had joined our brother , and the Argonian whipped up a concentrated funnel of wind that parted the drift , forcing the foe into the air , where it weaved back and forth . Then it shot past us , straight into Fenrig ' s bruised form . Perhaps these words aren ' t clear ; the ice wraith actually entered Fenrig , reappearing after a moment out of his back , where Ingjard cut it down with an expertly swung axe . Fearing his possession , all we could do was watch Fenrig , who began to shake and turn as pale as the snow around us . Suddenly his eyes widened , mouth hung agape , and a second , smaller ice wraith spat itself from within , sailing out of Fenrig ’ s throat and into my hammering strike , which shattered it into dozens of pieces . Fenrig dropped to a knee , gasping . Footfalls - in - Snow approached , letting us know the campfire was lit before gathering ice wraith teeth in a small , velvet - lined bag . As we huddled in a cave mouth , Fenrig and his dogs left us , after our tracker refused aid to limit a possible witbane infection . We heard faint howls over the gale throughout the night , and it wasn ' t until the next morn that Fenrig returned , his clothing ruffled , but his pestilence cured .