The Year 2920 , Vol . 10 Content . 11 Rain ' s Hand , 2920 The Isle of Artaeum , Summurset The initiates stood quietly in a row along the arbor loggia , watching the long , deep , marble - lined trench ahead of them flash with fire . The air above it vibrated with the waves of heat . Though each student kept his or her face sturdy and emotionless , as a true Psijic should , their terror was nearly as palpable as the heat . Sotha Sil closed his eyes and uttered the charm of fire resistance . Slowly , he walked across the basin of leaping flames , climbing to the other side , unscathed . Not even his white robe had been burned . " The charm is intensified by the energy you bring to it , by your own skills , just as all spells are , " he said . " Your imagination and your willpower are the keys . There is no need for a spell to give you a resistance to air , or a resistance to flowers , and after you cast the charm , you must forget there is even a need for a spell to give you resistance to fire . Do not confuse what I am saying : resistance is not about ignoring the fire ' s reality . You will feel the substance of flame , the texture of it , its hunger , and even the heat of it , but you will know that it will not hurt or injure you . " The students nodded and one by one , they cast the spell and made the walk through the fire . Some even went so far as to bend over and scoop up a handful of fire and feed it air , so it expanded like a bubble and melted through their fingers . Sotha Sil smiled . They were fighting their fear admirably . The Chief Proctor Thargallith came running from the arbor arches , " Sotha Sil ! Almalexia has arrived on Artaeum . Iachesis told me to fetch you . " Sotha Sil turned to Thargallith for only a moment , but he knew instantly from the screams what had transpired . The Nord lad Wellig had not cast the spell properly and was burning . The smell of scorched hair and flesh panicked the other students who were struggling to get out of the basin , pulling him with them , but the incline was too steep away from the entry points . With a wave of his hand , Sotha Sil extinguished the flame . Wellig and several other students were burned , but not badly . The sorcerer cast a healing spell on them , before turning back to Thargallith . " I ' ll be with you in a moment , and give Almalexia the time to shake the road dust from her train , " Sotha Sil turned back to the students , his voice flat . " Fear does not break spells , but doubt and incompetence are the great enemies of any spellcaster . Master Wellig , you will pack your bags . I ' ll arrange for a boat to bring you to the mainland tomorrow morning . " The sorcerer found Almalexia and Iachesis in the study , drinking hot tea , and laughing . She was more beautiful than he had remembered , though he had never before seen her so disheveled , wrapped in a blanket , dangling her damp long black tresses before the fire to dry . At Sotha Sil ' s approach , she leapt to her feet and embraced him . " Did you swim all the way from Morrowind ? " he smiled . " It ' s pouring rain from Skywatch down to the coast , " she explained , returning his smile . " Only a half a league away , and it never rains here , " said Iachesis proudly . " Of course , I sometimes miss the excitement of Summerset , and sometimes even the mainland itself . Still , I ' m always very impressed by anyone out there who gets anything accomplished . It is a world of distractions . Speaking of distractions , what ' s all this I hear about a war ? " " You mean the one that ' s been bloodying the continent for the last eighty years , Master ? " asked Sotha Sil , amused . " I suppose that ' s the one I mean , " said Iachesis with a shrug of his shoulders . " How is that war going ? " " We will lose it , unless I can convince Sotha Sil to leave Artaeum , " said Almalexia , losing her smile . She had meant to wait and talk to her friend in private , but the old Altmer gave her courage to press on . " I have had visions ; I know it to be true . " Sotha Sil was silent for a moment , and then looked at Iachesis , " I must return to Morrowind . " " Knowing you , if you must do something , you will , " sighed the old Master . " The Psijics ' way is not to be distracted . Wars are fought , Empires rise and fall . You must go , and so must we . " " What do you mean , Iachesis ? You ' re leaving the island ? " " No , the island will be leaving the sea , " said Iachesis , his voice taking on a dreamy quality . " In a few years , the mists will move over Artaeum and we will be gone . We are counselors by nature , and there are too many counselors in Tamriel as it is . No , we will go , and return when the land needs us again , perhaps in another age . " The old Altmer struggles to his feet , and drained the last sip of his drink before leaving Sotha Sil and Almalexia alone : " Don ' t miss the last boat . "