Skyrim: Band of Thieves

With their work in Labyrinthian complete, and the newly reborn were brought to their new home while the loot was moved into the Opulent Lands, Capper and the others returned to the carriage before heading back to Morthal, mostly so they could warp over to Winterhold. His plan was rather simple, they had given the Circle enough time to reach Ysgramor's tomb, so this would allow Azure and Tuk Ur to meet up with them and head into the depths, and this time Capper felt that it would be best if everyone else stayed away, since it was the tomb of such an important person. It was also due to the fact that he was sure the Companions would try to murder him or his kobolds if they tried to loot the place, so he was giving them space while also not subjecting the tomb's guardians to being turned into golden soul gems. At the same time Rarity and Mah Oh would be finishing up their business with the College, at least informing Savos of the Staff's existence before it was 'stolen by Midas', maybe even rat Ancano out while they were there.

After all that, however, Capper thought it was about time for them to return to Riften and see what the Thieves Guild had to say, since he was sure they had been restored to full strength with the completion of the four special jobs and the fact that they had convinced the wandering khajiit traders to work with them.

"So, you even brought Morokei back as one of your own... normally I would be surprised by the addition of a dragon being reborn, but I have learned to accept that nothing is too much for you." Mora commented, as she had appeared to see each of the newcomers and make sure each was brought to the proper area of the Opulent Lands, while Ithelia had come to see the new dragon humanoid, a dragon reborn into a form like her own, which was fascinating to her, "And you have created a second dracthyr, since Ithelia was the first. That's the name we came up with for this unique species."

"Hm, I like it. Has a nice ring to it." Capper remarked, as he knew that a name would have been required at some point, since he was sure he could get more dragon souls if Sharva actually fought and brought down dragons, but it was good to have a name for the species so when he did his work it would be easier for him, before he thought about something, "We'll have to give the force a name once we decide on their armor and whatnot... you know, like the 'Golden Saints'... oh well, something to look forward to once we're done with the guilds."

Mora nodded as she returned to the Opulent Lands, allowing the group to return to Morthal without wasting too much time, though once that was done Capper and the others used the gate to cross into his realm before using another one to step out into Winterhold once more. Following that Azure and Tuk Ur headed down the path that lead down to the icy water so they could head to the west, since the Tomb of Ysgramor was off in that direction, while Rarity and Mah Oh focused on the path in front of them, leaving the others to do whatever they wanted. Capper decided to follow after the mages, he wanted to see how Ancano reacted to what they had uncovered, as his agent had a letter in his robes that detailed an exchange between him and the annoying elf, a plan to steal the torc for Labyrinthian from Savos, as well as Ancano privately admitting that he was planning a massive theft. Of course Capper had asked the reborn Thalmor agent if all of the information was true, and he had learned that everything in the letter was true, something the Arch-Mage would be interested in learning about since it would give him a reason to expel Ancano from the College.

Sure enough they found that the mages they were looking for were in the chamber that the Eye had been moved to, before Capper stole it, and Mora joined them with a few new tomes in her hands, no doubt ones that would help spread the word of Midas, Ithelia, and Jyggalag to everyone else.

"Tell me you are doing something about this theft! Someone stole the Eye of Magnus from your College!" Ancano said, as if complaining would solve anything, while at the same time it was easy for them to tell that Savos was getting annoyed with the Thalmor agent, meaning he must have been at this for quite some time.

"For the last time, Ancano, a Daedric Prince stole it. You were there when we got the news... there's nothing we can do about the Eye." Savos stated, his tone suggesting that this conversation was over, before he noticed that Rarity and Mah Oh had finally returned from their journey, which was followed by the others stopping what they were doing before glancing over at the group as they entered the large chamber, "Oh, good, you've returned. So, what happened?"

"We found the Staff of Magnus, in the hands of a dragon priest, but it, too, was stolen by Midas. However, the information you provided was accurate." Rarity replied, where Mora nodded her head and slithered up the to Arch-Mage, handing over the tomes she had brought with her, causing Savos to look at the small bundle of books for a few seconds while the rest of the mages, especially Urag, focused on the tomes, "You now have tomes detailing the information Mora has on the three Daedric Princes you didn't know about, those being Midas, Ithelia, and Jyggalag. We also have something to share with you: a letter we found on a Thalmor agent near Labyrinthian."

"Really?" Savos inquired, where he handed the tomes to Urag, who would take good care of them, he hated it when people ruined his books, before accepting the letter while Ancano seemed to freak out a little, meaning he wasn't expecting his ally to be found out by this point, before the Arch-Mage handed the letter to his second, allowing her to read it while he focused on the Thalmor agent, "So, you were planning on stealing from the College, both into the chambers of the staff members and my own residence, all to trade the secrets you uncovered with the higher ups in the Aldmeri Dominion, while keeping the Staff of Magnus for yourself. With the Eye you would have brought the entirety of the College down around us, just to show the rest of Skyrim and the Empire that your forces were superior to everyone else... tell me, Ancano, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"I... You... How?" Ancano remarked, the confusion on his face telling them that he had no idea how he had been found out, as he was sure that the letter didn't contain all of that, before he remembered how they had been introduced to Mora, as in Hermaeus Mora he realized, which was why he had been found out, a Prince was screwing with him, "That's it! I'm going to bring this entire place down and kill all of you!"

Rarity stepped forward instantly, her ice washing over Ancano's hands as he formed a fire spell, which one she had no idea, and when he paused to look at his frozen hands she appeared behind him and bit into his neck without delay, allowing her to drain him dry before killing him and setting fire to his body.

"One less Thalmor to worry about." Rarity remarked, though at the same time she collected the golden soul gem and passed it to Capper, who placed it into the endless bag he was storing all of them in, before she glanced at the stunned mages that were watching what was going on, as they were surprised by what they had just seen, "Yes, I'm a vampire, but I don't have the usual urges that define a vampire... I only drink blood when I really need it, and that means I can usually go a week before I need to feed."

"No need to explain. I'm sure you have your reasons for hiding this from us." Savos said, where his expression told them that he was wondering who the group was at this point, since they had unique creatures, a unique vampire, and had connections to at least one Prince of Oblivion, before he glanced at Mirabelle for a moment, who nodded in return a second later, which caused him to let out a soft cough as he focused on her, "Well, you have determined time and time again that you are one of the naturals when it comes to magic, and you have shown bravery and determination in tackling whatever challenges have come your way. Normally there is only one 'Master Wizard', but Mirabelle and I have decided to allow a second to exist, one that goes out into the world to delve into ruins and gather more knowledge for us to learn from, and we have decided to bestow this honor onto you... Master Wizard Rarity."

Rarity felt like telling them that she wasn't a natural, that this was all from her vampirism and the skills she gained from her blood diet, but in the end she decided to accept the honor, mostly because it seemed like the best thing to do, plus it meant whenever they went into the other provinces she would be recognized with respect. They also had a circlet and necklace to give her, both of which were designed to boost a mage's power and mana accordingly, though while they weren't in her style she knew that Capper could customize them to fit her, not to mention this could be the start of kobold jewelers. She and the others were basically doing their own thing and then found ways to improve the races of the Opulent Lands, bringing in new ideas and jobs for the kobolds, especially since some might not be suited for all of the harder work that they would face in the future. She also wondered if Capper might have intended for this to happen, to let them see other things and then use their newfound knowledge to benefit his realm, and if that was the case she was willing to do her part to help it grow, but for the time being she focused on telling Savos and the others that she'd be leaving for a time and she'd be back to check in once she had more to share with them.

After that she and Mah Oh caught up with Capper, Tri Ki, and Mora before departing from the College, where they found that Azure and Tuk Ur were coming up the path they had used to head down to where the tomb of Ysgramor was resting, which caused Capper to raise an eyebrow as they regrouped in the carriage.

"We were able to lay Kodlak to rest, as his soul was definitely hiding in the final chamber of the tomb." Azure said, though as they sat in the inside of the carriage he held out Wuuthrad and passed it to Capper, who smiled for a moment as he slipped the weapon into the area that he was storing all of the important relics in, while the others raised an eyebrow for a moment as the pair relaxed, "Using the head you let us take we were able to separate his wolf from his soul, and then we and Aela struck it down, thus freeing him from his bond to Hircine's realm and allowing him to travel to Sovngarde... Vilkas and Farkas are okay, but both ended up staying back near the entrance due to... reasons."

"Vilkas was confused by the vengeance still in his heart, and Farkas was afraid of spiders." Tuk Ur remarked, though he was smiling as he said that, because it was hilarious that the latter was so taken aback by the eight legged creatures, especially since Farkas was a werewolf and a powerful warrior, "Oh, and Kodlak named Azure as the new Harbinger. Aela has agreed to work as his second, keeping the others in line while we're not in Jorrvaskr."

"This is good news, and calls for a bit of a celebration." Capper said, because it was a good day for them, Rarity was situated high in the ranks of the College and now Azure was the Harbinger, both respected levels in their own fields, though it did cause him to think about what they needed to do in Riften as well, "Though I do believe it's time we returned to Riften so we can speak to the Thieves Guild... they've had more than enough time to confirm everything they need to confirm."

"So it's finally happening? You're going to take the Guild?" La'nari inquired, as it would make three Guilds that will have come under Capper's control, because even if Rarity wasn't the Arch-Mage she knew that Savos trusted her enough to elevate her to a high ranking position in his own organization, meaning she was next in line to be the Arch-Mage when he decided that it was time to retire since she was better than Mirabelle, and if they dealt with the Dark Brotherhood nearly all of Skyrim would be in Capper's hand.

"Yes, though I suspect Karliah will want to have words with us later." Capper stated, because he had the Skeleton Key and the dark elf was looking for it so she could likely have it returned to Nocturnal's lair at some point, plus she likely had some sort of information to tell him about, all of which interested him greatly, "Plus Midnight wanted to check in with Grelod and see if she was as horrible as the kid said she was, so she can check that out before we check in with the guild."

The group nodded as they departed from the carriage for a moment, allowing it to disappear as they used the gate that was in Winterhold to return to the Opulent Lands for a few seconds, allowing Capper to see that Morokei and the new dracthyr were adapting to their new lives. It was clear that they were still coming to terms with things, even though Ithelia was doing her best to help them learn what they needed to know, just like she did with some of the newcomers, but it did put a smile on Capper's face as he watched them. After checking in with them they used Riften's gate and returned to the city where all of their adventures had started, since it was Maven who sent all of them out into the world to do her bidding and ended up drawing them in so he could deal with the Thieves Guild, and, sure enough, none of the guards even noticed them as they slipped into the city. Capper found that some of the members of the Guild were out in the city, some dressed more akin to civilians while others were in their full attire, the latter was proven when he spotted Sapphire outside the local tavern with her gear on, but he let Midnight head into the orphanage while he remained near the entrance to the Keep.

A few moments later she emerged with a golden soul gem in her hand, which she passed into Capper's without wasting even a second, which meant that whatever happened in the building had set her off, informing them that Grelod was just as bad as she had been told.

"Well, I wasn't expecting you to actually do it... but at least the boy will be happy, and so will the other children since their tormentor will be gone." Capper softly said, though in the following moment he stored the golden soul gem away before he started to head down into the Ratway, causing the others to follow after him without delay, all while noticing that the rest of the Guild's members noticed his movements, because he wanted them to, and made their way towards the secret entrance while he used the main one, "Now then, let's get this show on the road."

Sure enough he found that nothing had changed in the area outside the Flagon, but inside the tavern that the Guild used as a base they discovered merchants had moved in during their time away from Riften, a blacksmith, a potion maker, a fletcher, and an enchanter. All four of them were clearly skilled in what they did, they had the air of being masters, and Capper could tell that some of the undecided kobolds came out to see them, no doubt interested in seeing if they could learn how to do what the masters did, but eventually regrouped with the main group. In addition to that Capper found that there were more thieves than before, as in there were new recruits around the Flagon, each spotting the attire of a thief, as in those that were actually members of the Guild, but they stopped what they were doing when he approached the Flagon. Even Delvin was very interested in them now, but Capper knew why, he was the thief that had, against all odds, completed a grand number of jobs in a single day, all of which their contacts had confirmed, and in no time had completed the special jobs like they were nothing.

He was, all in all, a god tier thief when compared to the others, a literal walking legend in the making, and when they walked into the main Cistern he discovered that there were more items and better looking stuff around, meaning the thieves might have picked up some luck despite him still having the Skeleton Key in his possession.

"Capper... I'll be honest lad, I wasn't sure when you would be coming back." Brynjolf commented, which Capper thought was a fair thing to think, he had been gone for a while now, leaving time for Delvin and the others to confirm that he had actually done all of the jobs he told them about, though at the same time many of the other thieves were looking at him, no doubt due to his legendary reputation, "Are you ready to get down to business?"

"I've been busy, as have my friends. Now, however, I am ready to do some business." Capper replied, which was a true fact, now that two of the four Guilds were dealt with, and they were starting on another with Midnight's deed back in the main part of the city, he knew it was time for him to speak with the thieves and see what was on their minds, "So tell me, what is on the Guild's minds?"

"Despite our misfortune, you have remained true to the Guild, have done what many of us have considered to be one of the hardest, if not impossible, tasks, and revealed a traitor in our midst." Brynjolf said, where Capper noted that they were right in the middle of the Cistern while the rest of the Guild was all around them, meaning this was definitely important if none of them were out there trying to make some gold, he even spotted Karliah approaching with Vex and Delvin, "We have talked this over, discussed everything there was to discuss, and have come to the decision that we would like to nominate you as our new Guild Master. Taking on this role isn't just about the loot, rather it's about being a leader and keeping this rabble in line, and after witnessing how you work as a team, well, I think it's safe to say we'd be in good hands if we accepted you as our newest Guild Master."

"Honestly, you can't do worse than Mercer did." Vex remarked, where a number of the other members seemed to nod and voice their agreement to her statement, which meant that after having his treachery revealed to everyone his popularity went down at a staggering rate, to the point where everyone seriously hated his guts now, something Capper was fine with since it meant they were open to a new leader.

"Also, after hearing about all of your exploits, I'm positive that you would be the best person for the job." Karliah added, to which Delvin simply smirked a little as the dark elf said that, showing that he agreed with the statement despite not wanting to say a word about Capper's skills, and he could see Karliah was pleased with this turn of events, "You did the impossible, made your name for yourself while all thieves were suffering, and completed more jobs in your short time in the Guild than any other thief I've known... you are worthy to be the new Grand Master."

"Since everyone is in agreement on this matter I will accept the position." Capper said, where he could see that the rest of the Guild was happy with this decision, since a legendary figure was taking and that was causing them to hope that their luck would turn around at long last, meaning he should get around to returning the Skeleton Key, "So, is there anything I should know to start things off?"

"Well, speak to Tonilia and she'll set you up with your official Guild Master armor, plus there are these two items that are more like a tradition around here." Brynjolf answered, where he held out a hand and Capper found an elegant key, along with a necklace that was different from anything else he had seen in Skyrim so far, causing him to take both as he studied them for a few moments, all while most of the thieves went back to work, "The key goes to the locked chest in front of the desk that Mercer usually stood near, a tribute chest that you are free to loot every now and then, while the amulet is one of the things that is handed down from Guild Master to Guild Master... it was the only thing Mercer brought back when Gallus was killed, and now it passes to you."

"Speaking of Gallus, there is something I need to discuss with you and Brynjolf." Karliah said, all while Delvin and Vex joined the rest of the thieves in heading back to their business, since there were more recruits to tend to and more jobs to give out, though at the same time Capper was interested in what the dark elf could say to him and his new second, "There's still the matter of our luck, and to restore it we need to track down the Skeleton Key, Nocturnal's personal artifact, and return it to her so she'll remove the curse she's placed on all thieves. To do that we need to head to a standing stone outside Riften and use the area I'll be revealing to you to speak with her... she'll know where Mercer hid the Key, and with it we can appease her and save the Guild."

Capper thought about that for a moment, debating whether or not he should actually tell Karliah that he was in possession of the Skeleton Key, before the air behind him shimmered as Mora slithered out, causing the thieves to raise their guards for a moment as he held a hand out to calm them, before facing the Prince of Knowledge.

"My Lord, I don't want to interrupt your business, but there's... a situation. One of Nocturnal's ravens have arrived." Mora stated, which told Capper everything he needed to know, the Prince that had cursed all thieves, specifically the Guild for the sins that Mercer had committed, was seeking entrance into the Opulent Lands, meaning it was finally time for him to talk with Nocturnal and strike some deals with her.

"I see. Well then, it's time we welcomed her." Capper said, where he turned to leave and then paused, causing him to turn back to look at the pair that was watching him and Mora, as Karliah was curious as to what was going on and Brynjolf was just plain lost right now, which wasn't surprising if he was being honest, "You two, come with us. This will be... enlightening."

He really had no idea what Nocturnal was going to bring to the table, but at the same time he was eager to meet with her for a time and bring an end to the curse that plagued the Thieves Guild, something that caused him to smile as he prepared himself to meet with a Daedric Prince and face whatever might happen next.