Tamrielic Extremes (Patreon)

From
Igrid Graymane
Graymane Hall, Whiterun, Skyrim

To
The Imperial Geographic Society
℅ Grants and Finances Office
12 Green Emperor Way, Cyrodiil, Cyrodiil

Most esteemed members of the Grant Committee,

I am writing to request additional funding necessary for the completion of my guidebook: The Extremes of Tamriel: Myths and Realities of the Highest Heights and Deepest Depths of our Land. Allow me first to explain what was done with your first grant, as well as the subsequent emergency funds transferred to me. 

While I was correct in believing that I would be able to leverage my family's influence to climb the Throat of the World, I did not anticipate needing to make so many treks. My first ascent brought me only a third of the way up the mountain, at which point I was forced to turn around and abandon the bulk of my survey gear when I encountered a troll. After replenishing said gear and hiring a bodyguard, I was able to reach the monastery of High Hrothgar. While speaking with the Greybeards was impossible, I was able to interview a couple of students and a few parishioners about the various myths of the mountain’s peak. All spoke of a gateway to heaven and/or the underworld, and described it as an endless storm of time and matter where the gods slumbered until they were woken by Alduin for the final battle. Other rumors on my list (that it is dragon’s eerie, that by going there one would be transported into the past, that it was Nirn’s belly button, etc.) were unfamiliar to them. 

I was unable to reach the peak to see for myself. I could not convince the Greybeards to grant me entry, so we attempted to go around the back, only to be beset by a fearsome storm. My bodyguard then became superstitious and forced us to turn around. Upon returning to Rorikstead I dismissed him and hired another, a Dunmer this time, and tried once more. Again we ran into the storm, but this time proceeded through… only to become hopelessly lost in the endless swirling snow. After seemingly hours of climbing upwards, we somehow found ourselves back at the foot of the mountain.

After these misadventures, I found myself nearly out of funding. Not wishing to disappoint the IGS further, I nonetheless proceeded to my next destination: the great caverns that are said to span Skyrim’s frozen north. Were they really the realm of the mysterious snow elves, long lost to history? Or were they the kingdom of the Dwemer, disappeared from the face of Tamriel but still thriving in its depths? Or perhaps, as suggested by Tildse (my half-elven guide), they were the veins that run to the heart of the world. Having failed to reach Skyrim’s tallest point, it was imperative that I reach its lowest. 

Alas, disaster struck again. I had selected a small ruin near the mining camp of Stonehills as the ideal location of entry, and used the remainder of my funds to purchase climbing gear and lanterns for the descent. We had made it only a floor or two down below the ground when I slipped on a patch of ice, tumbling downwards into my guide and causing the rocks to collapse beneath us. When I awoke, Tildse was dead and I had broken my arm, leg, and several ribs. I had nearly resigned myself to death when I was “rescued” two days later by a passing group of brigands. It was then that I was forced to petition the Society for an emergency cash infusion to buy my freedom. 

With all that in mind, I hope you understand why my current ask for funding is much larger than my last. I have learned my lesson, and will be much better prepared to explore the rest of my book’s locations, which are as follows: 

1. The Scar, Elsweyr. A geological wonder, this canyon runs nearly the length of the province, neatly separating the wastes of Anequina from the wilds of Pelentine. Among some tribes of Ne-quin-al, it is seen as the vulva of Nirni, the Khajiiti mother goddess. Others believe that it is the remnant of the violent birth of a god in Rimmen, far in that city’s future. 
2. Eton-nir, Summerset. Alinor’s highest point may also be the lowest. While the mountain itself is well mapped (and forbidden to anyone who does not have ancestors entombed on its slopes), rumor has it that beneath it lie labyrinthine caverns and ancient Aldmeri ruins from before the dawn of mortal civilization. While the Altmer themselves do not seem to have any myths concerning Eton-nir, I have uncovered ancient Chimeri legends about it being the place where the Daedra first sowed doubt in Veloth’s mind. What passes for goblin mythology also mentions Eton-nir, claiming that it is where their golden god turned blue for the first time. 
3. Sorrow, Wrothgarian Mountains, High Rock. The highest point in High Rock, Sorrow is home to the tombs of ancient Orcish chieftains and shamans, as well as numerous adventurers who sought to reach its deadly summit. The aboriginal humans of the region, long since extinct, believed that the Wrothgarian mountains were the body of a sleeping god, and that the peak was his nose pointing to the heavens. To local orc tribes, it is alternatively a pathway to Malak’s underworld and the place from whence The Trinimac surveyed his kingdom following his killing of “the Adversary”. 
4. Red Mountain, Vvardenfell, Morrowind. The Tribunal-worshiping House Dunmer prevent entry to the caldera of this volcano. As such, I will need to hire Ashlander guides to take up up and over the northern slopes, instead. Though numerous historical and legendary accounts exist of the mountain’s role in the conclusion of the War of the First Council, none say what lies there now, save that it is a great evil. 

In the interest of ensuring my own safety and preserving the Society’s money, I have decided to abandon my planned expeditions to the depths of Black Marsh (due to general conditions in the region) as well as the reefs at the Blue Divide (at least until the recent hostilities have ceased). 

Please see the next page for exact funding figures. I look forward to your approval of my request so that I may resume my explorations. 

Most sincerely yours,
Igrid “Big-Head” Graymane
Member at Large