A Daedra in the Dark

**Quest ID** | 3DMCue2

*A Daedra in the Dark* is the second quest in the *Darkened Steel questline*. Players continue to unravel the mysteries surrounding an ancient brotherhood of nightblades, diving into a world of unconventional characters and intertwining debts.

**Deeper Into Danger**

A Daedra in the Dark can be started by speaking to Gancielo after finishing Darkened Steel. He will mention notes stashed away by Lorne and suggests to the player investigate the shack in Falkreath where Lorne lived. The ramshackle cabin is found north of Cracked Tusk Keep. On a nightstand, the player can find Lorne’s notebook and a locked strongbox.

Pick up the notebook and read that Lorne obtained most of his information on the Darksteels from the writings of Elandir, the one Deneris claimed to have been his chooser. Lorne managed to track down Elandir’s diary that was being kept by an elf named Deirdre. She gave Lorne the diary which he then transcribed into a manuscript he had planned to publish. Out of paranoia, he has burned the original diary and locked the manuscript away in his strongbox. Lorne notes that the key was given to Deirdre.

A khajit assassin, Nasrin, appears outside of the shack looking for Lorne just as the player is about to leave. Initially mistaking the player to be Lorne, he quickly comes to the conclusion that Lorne is already dead and happily remarks that he can easily cross off a name from his “list”. It’s evident that the list he is referring to is some sort of hit list, and that Lorne has acquired a sizable debt to an unsavory character.

**Debts and Desire**

The player should be able to find Lorne’s debtor at Ironheart Cave, a somewhat secluded grotto tucked away in the northwestern corner of Skyrim, in between Mor Khazgur and Volskygge. Ironheart Cave is the home of a wolf fighting and prostitution ring. While not a large establishment, the place attracts a decent number of seedy characters, including a priest with questionable motives and a dunmer obsessed with the facility’s most popular siren – Deirdre. Her room in the back of the cave will be locked so she is inaccessible at this point.

The head of the operation, Hrokkar, and his dead daughter can be found behind the main hall through a narrow passage on the left. Regardless of what the player says, the deranged crime lord assumes the player to be Lorne, there to repay his debt. However, instead of asking for money, he solicits the player to kill a wolf that has bitten his daughter, Vjola. Evidently, this pit wolf injured his daughter, who subsequently died of an infection. Whether due to grief or psychosis, Hrokkar is in denial over her death. He is convinced that she is simply ill and killing the wolf will square his debt with the gods by trading life for life.

Find and kill the wolf in the field west of Mor Khazgur and bring the pelt back to Hrokkar. He will reward the player up to 200 gold and the key to Deirdre’s room. Finally meeting Deirdre, she will tell the player that both Elandir and Lorne were her patrons. She describes Elandir as someone blinded by his love for his pupil and failed to see the deadra in the shadows. Deirdre claims she was able to convince Elandir to stop chasing a dead man, abandon his brothers, and give her his diary. Lorne sought out the diary but rebuffed Deirdre’s offer of intimacy. She will hand over Lorne’s key to the strongbox and offer the player her services.

Lorne’s strongbox in his shack can now be opened. In it, his manuscript on the Darksteels can be found. Reading the book will end the current quest and start the next one: *Cat and Mouse*.

Notes:

– Since she is a call-girl, Deirdre will proposition the player after giving Lorne’s key, which the player can accept or decline. If accepted, she undresses and goes to sleep on the bed.

**Video Walkthrough**

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Stages 10, 30, 50, 60, 70, 75, 80, 100, 130, 150, 155, 160, 200 are scenes and triggers used to progress the quest.