2920 , vol 09 - Hearth Fire A part of the twelve volume set " 2920 " . The book is titled Hearth Fire , despite the name of the month being Heartfire . Contents . 2 Hearth Fire , 2920 Gideon , Black Marsh The Empress Tavia lay across her bed , a hot late summer wind she could not feel banging the shutters of her cell to and fro against the iron bars . Her throat felt like it was on fire but still she sobbed , uncontrollably , wringing her last tapestry in her hands . Her wailing echoed throughout the hollow halls of Castle Giovese , stopping maids in their washing and guards in their conversation . One of her women came up the narrow stairs to see her mistress , but her chief guard Zuuk stood at the doorway and shook his head . " She ' s just heard that her son is dead , " he said quietly . 5 Hearth Fire , 2920 The Imperial City , Cyrodiil " Your Imperial Majesty , " said the Potentate Versidue - Shaie through the door . " You can open the door . I assure you , you ' re perfectly safe . No one wants to kill you . " " Mara ' s blood ! " came the Emperor Reman III ' s voice , muffled , hysterical , tinged with madness . " Someone assassinated the Prince , and he was holding my shield ! They could have thought he was me ! " " You ' re certainly correct , your Imperial Majesty , " replied the Potentate , expunging any mocking qualities from his voice while his black - slitted eyes rolled contemptuously . " And we must find and punish the evildoer responsible for your son ' s death . But we cannot do it without you . You must be brave for your Empire . " There was no reply . " At the very least , come out and sign the order for Lady Rijja ' s execution , " called the Potentate . " Let us dispose of the one traitor and assassin we know of . " A brief pause , and then the sound of furniture scraping across the floor . Reman opened the door just a crack , but the Potentate could see his angry , fearful face , and the terrible mound of ripped tissue that used to be his right eye . Despite the best healers in the Empire , it was still a ghastly souvenir of the Lady Rijja ' s work in Thurzo Fortress . " Hand me the order , " the Emperor snarled . " I ' ll sign it with pleasure . " 6 Hearth Fire , 2920 Gideon , Cyrodiil The strange blue glow of the will o ' the wisps , a combination , so she ' d be told , of swamp gas and spiritual energy , had always frightened Tavia as she looked out her window . Now it seemed strangely comforting . Beyond the bog lay the city of Gideon . It was funny , she thought , that she had never stepped foot in its streets , though she had watched it every day for seventeen years . " Can you think of anything I ' ve forgotten ? " she asked , turning to look back on the loyal Kothringi Zuuk . " I know exactly what to do , " he said simply . He seemed to smile , but the Empress realized that it was only her own face reflected in his silvery skin . She was smiling , and she didn ' t even realize it . " Make certain you aren ' t followed , " she warned . " I don ' t want my husband to know where my gold ' s been hiding all these years . And do take your share of it . You ' ve been a good friend . " The Empress Tavia stepped forward and dropped from sight into the mists . Zuuk replaced the bars on the tower window , and threw a blanket over some pillows on her bed . With any luck , they would not discover her body on the lawn until morning , at which time he hoped to be halfway to Morrowind . 9 Hearth Fire , 2920 Phrygias , High Rock The strange trees on all sides resembled knobby piles crowned with great bursts of reds , yellows , and oranges , like insect mounds caught fire . The wrothgarian mountains were fading into the misty afternoon . Turala marveled at the sight , so alien , so different from Morrowind , as she plodded the horse forward into an open pasture . Behind her , head nodding against his chest , Cassyr slept , cradling Bosriel . For a moment , Turala considered jumping the low painted fence that crossed the field , but she thought better of it . Let Cassyr sleep for a few more hours before giving him the reigns . As the horse passed into the field , Turala saw the small green house on the next hill , half - hidden in forest . So picturesque was the image , she felt herself lull into a pleasant half - sleeping state . A blast of a horn brought her back to reality with a shudder . Cassyr opened his eyes . " Where are we ? " he hissed . " I don ' t know , " Turala stammered , wide - eyed . " What is that sound ? " " Orcs , " he whispered . " A hunting party . Head for the thicket quickly . " Turala trotted the horse into the small collection of trees . Cassyr handed her the child and dismounted . He began pulling their bags off next , throwing them into the bushes . A sound started then , a distant rumbling of footfall , growing louder and closer . Turala climbed off carefully and helped Cassyr unburden the horse . All the while , Bosriel watched open - eyed . Turala sometimes worried that her baby never cried . Now she was grateful for it . With the last of the luggage off , Cassyr slapped the horse ' s rear , sending it galloping into the field . Taking Turala ' s hand , he hunkered down in the bushes . " With luck , " he murmured . " They ' ll think she ' s wild or belongs to the farm and won ' t go looking for the rider . " As he spoke , a horde of orcs surged into the field , blasting their horns . Turala had seen orcs before , but never in such abundance , never with such bestial confidence . Roaring with delight at the horse and its confused state , they hastened past the timber where Cassyr , Turala , and Bosriel hid . The wildflowers flew into the air at their stampede , powdering the air with seeds . Turala tried to hold back a sneeze , and thought she succeeded . One of the orcs heard something though , and brought another with him to investigate . Cassyr quietly unsheathed his sword , mustering all the confidence he could . His skills , such as they were , were in spying , not combat , but he vowed to protect Turala and her babe for as long as he could . Perhaps he would slay these two , he reasoned , but not before they cried out and brought the rest of the horde . Suddenly , something invisible swept through the bushes like a wind . The orcs flew backwards , falling dead on their backs . Turala turned and saw a wrinkled crone with bright red hair emerge from a nearby bush . " I thought you were going to bring ' em right to me , " she whispered , smiling . " Best come with me . " The three followed the old woman through a deep crevasse of bramble bushes that ran through the field toward the house on the hill . As they emerged on the other side , the woman turned to look at the orcs feasting on the remains of the horse , a blood - soaked orgy to the beat of multiple horns . " That horse yours ? " she asked . When Cassyr nodded , she laughed loudly . " That ' s rich meat , that is . Those monsters ' ll have bellyaches and flatulence in the morning . Serves ' em right . " " Shouldn ' t we keep moving ? " whispered Turala , unnerved by the woman ' s laughter . " They won ' t come up here , " she grinned , looking at Bosriel who smiled back . " They ' re too afraid of us . " Turala turned to Cassyr , who shook his head . " Witches . Am I correct in assuming that this is Old Barbyn ' s Farm , the home of the Skeffington Coven ? " " You are , pet , " the old woman giggled girlishly , pleased to be so infamous . " I am Mynista Skeffington . " " What did you do to those orcs ? " asked Turala . " Back there in the thicket ? " " Spirit fist right side the head , " Mynista said , continuing the climb up the hill . Ahead of them was the farmhouse grounds , a well , a chicken coop , a pond , women of all ages doing chores , the laughter of children at play . The old woman turned and saw that Turala did not understand . " Don ' t you have witches where you come from , child ? " " None that I know of , " she said . " There are all sorts of wielders of magic in Tamriel , " she explained . " The Psijics magic like its their painful duty . The battlemages in the army on the other end of the scale hurl spells like arrows . We witches commune and conjure and celebrate . To fell those orcs , I merely whispered to the spirits of the air , Amaro , Pina , Tallatha , the fingers of Kynareth , and the breath of the world , with whom I have an intimate acquaintance , to smack those bastards dead . You see , conjuration is not about might , or solving riddles , or agonizing over musty old scrolls . It ' s about fostering relations . Being friendly , you might say . " " Well , we certainly appreciate you being friendly with us , " said Cassyr . " As well you might , " coughed Mynista . " Your kind destroyed the orc homeland two thousand years ago . Before that , they never came all the way up here and bothered us . Now let ' s get you cleaned up and fed . " With that , Mynista led them into the farm , and Turala met the family of the Skeffington Coven . 11 Hearth Fire , 2920 The Imperial City , Cyrodiil Rijja had not even tried to sleep the night before , and she found the somber music played during her execution to have a soporific effect . It was as if she was willing herself to be unconscious before the ax stroke . Her eyes were bound so she could not see her former lover , the Emperor , seated before her , glaring with his one good eye . She could not see the Potentate Versidue - Shaie , his coil neatly wrapped beneath him , a look of triumph in his golden face . She could feel , numbly , the executioner ' s hand touch her back to steady her . She flinched like a dreamer trying to awake . The first blow caught the back of her head and she screamed . The next hacked through her neck , and she was dead . The Emperor turned to the Potentate wearily , " Now that ' s done . You said she had a pretty sister in Hammerfell named Corda ? " 18 Hearth Fire , 2920 Dwynnen , High Rock The horse the witches had sold him was not as good as his old one , Cassyr considered . Spirit worship and sacrifice and sisterhood might be all well and good for conjuring spirits , but it tends to spoil beasts of burden . Still , there was little to complain about . With the Dunmer woman and her child gone , he had made excellent time . Ahead were the walls surrounding the city of his homeland . Almost at once , he was set upon by his old friends and family . " How went the war ? " cried his cousin , running to the road . " Is it true that Vivec signed a peace with the Prince , but the Emperor refuses to honor it ? " " That ' s not how it was , was it ? " asked a friend , joining them . " I heard that the Dunmer had the Prince murdered and then made up a story about a treaty , but there ' s no evidence for it . " " Isn ' t there anything interesting happening here ? " Cassyr laughed . " I really don ' t have the least interest in discussing the war or Vivec . " " You missed the procession of the Lady Corda , " said his friend . " She came across the bay with full entourage and then east to the Imperial City . " " But that ' s nothing . What was Vivec like ? " asked his cousin eagerly . " He supposed to be a living god . " " If Sheogorath steps down and they need another God of Madness , he ' ll do , " said Cassyr haughtily . " And the women ? " asked the lad , who had only seen Dunmer ladies on very rare occasions . Cassyr merely smiled . Turala Skeffington flashed into his mind for an instant before fading away . She would be happy with the coven , and her child would be well cared for . But they were part of the past now , a place and a war he wanted to forget forever . Dismounting his horse , he walked it into the city , chatting of trivial gossip of life on the Iliac Bay . The Year is Continued in Frostfall