Online:A Keep's Ransom

Infiltrate an occupied fort and rescue the hostages. Zone: Blackwood Objective: Borderwatch Quest Giver: Brigadine Scout Iscaria Commander Axius Location(s): Borderwatch Reward: Borderwatch Brigadine Commander's Helm Average Leveled Gold XP Gain: Standard ID: 6625

Rescue the hostages

The Ivory Brigade garrison of Borderwatch is seeking help with a hostage situation.

Quick Walkthrough

1. Speak to Commander Axius outside Borderwatch.
2. Enter the sewer beneath Borderwatch.
3. Find and talk to one of the infiltrators.
4. Locate Seeks-the-Dark and talk to him.
5. Rescue the hostages from the southwest guard tower and talk to Calixto Tunifus.
6. Rescue the hostages at the smithy and talk to Shanil-Tee.
7. Rescue the hostages in the stable and talk to Otten.
8. Escort the hostages to the sewer entrance.
9. Rescue the Ayleid Scholar from the keep.
10. Find the crypt key within the keep
11. Enter the crypt with Seeks-the-Dark.
12. Find and enter the Ayleid ruin.
13. Stop the Painted Eye ritual.
14. Confront the Painted Eye leader.
15. Escape the Ayleid ruin.
16. Speak to Seeks-the-Dark and Erilthel.
17. Speak to Commander Axius.

Detailed Walkthrough

You can start the quest by either talking with Brigadine Scout Iscaria or Commander Axius. If the former, she will direct you to her commander to explain the situation. He is east of Iscaria's location.

It seems that Borderwatch was overtaken by a mysterious faction called the Painted Eye, who have taken several hostages and will kill them if any of their demands are not met. As seen in the nearby ransom note, these demands are near impossible for Commander Axius to meet. He suggests that you infiltrate the keep by entering through the sewer, but warns that the two folks who went in prior have not been heard from since.

The entrance to the sewer lies northwest of the commander's camp in the wilderness surrounding Borderwatch. Begin your search of the complex: in doing so, you may have to kill a few Painted Eye agents. Suddenly, you hear a voice cry out in the sewers: it could be one of the hostages. Follow the voice to a nearby side room and you will find a Bosmer woman stamping on some dead spiders. This is Erilthel, one of the infiltrators who entered the keep before you. Speaking with her, she will explain how they got involved with hostage situation and how her companion, Seeks-the-Dark, lured the Painted Eye away just when they were about to find her.

Erilthel will ask for your help to rescue him. Accept, and she will then join you in your search of the sewers. You will head eastward through the sewer, fighting the local wildlife and patrolling Painted Eyes along the way, until you reach the door to the Borderwatch Cellars. Erilthel will mention that she hasn't been here before, and it would be a good place to check for hostages. Inside the room, you will find an Argonian locked in a cage. This is Seeks-the-Dark: he is annoyed to see that Erilthel came for him.

Erilthel: "Seeks! Hold on, I'll get the lock!"

<Erithel runs up to the cage and crouches down to begin picking the lock.>

Seeks-the-Dark: "Erilthel! I told you to run!"

Erilthel: "I did, but then I ran into our friend here and-hey, did you let yourself get caught so I could get away?"

Seeks-the-Dark: "Pfft, unlike you I know when to make an escape. You. Come here. We need to talk."

While Erilthel works on the lock, you can talk to Seeks-the-Dark. He has a plan to free the hostages: he wants you to find and free the hostages while Erilthel leads them out and Seeks acts as a distraction once more. He will suggest that you check the southwest tower first once you search topside.

Going through the door to the east will bring you to the large courtyard within Borderwatch. The Painted Eye forces are roaming the area. Despite Seeks-the-Dark saying to search for hostages southwest of the keep, on the map you will need to go east-southeast from your location to reach the tower where three hostages are tied up. Calixto Tunifus, one of the hostages will have some information for you, firstly that the Painted Eye's demands are a ruse and that another group of hostages are being held at the smithy. You can then tell him to head to the cellar entrance so Erilthel can lead them out.

To get to the smithy, head west all the way across the courtyard. Again, you'll be approached by an hostage, Shanil-Tee, to learn about where more hostages are being held. She directs you to the stables.

To find the stables, head east to the broken statue in the center of the courtyard, then run straight south (or just run southeast from the smithy and barrel over the short ledge). Free the prisoners. Otten is too terrified to escape on his own and asks you to escort him to safety. He informs you that the Painted Eyes are holding a High Elf who studies Ayleid ruins hostage somewhere in the keep. Lead Otten and Pintia Ventrilla north to the sewer, then talk to Seeks-the-Dark, who is waiting for you.

The Argonian is in fact a thief sent by the Thieves Guild sent to "retrieve" an Ayleid relic. He suspects that the Painted Eye might seek to do the same. Seeks asks you to free the scholar Otten told you about so you can learn more about the relic. Head south away from the sewers, climbing the hill to reach Borderwatch Keep. Take the northern hallway to reach the dining room. Once there, enter the passage on the north side of the room to find Teldundindo in the library.

Stop the ritual

The scholar tells you that the ruin that holds the relic is hidden in the tombs beneath the chapel, but you'll need a key to unlock the area. The Crypt Key is in the commander's quarters. Head back into the dining room and head into the hallway on the west end. You'll find the key in the backpack next to his bed in the next large room.

Once you have the key, exit the keep and head towards the crypt, which lies up the hill north of the sewers. It's the northernmost point on the map, clearly distinguished by its graveyard. Seeks-the-Dark will be waiting for you at the door, noting that Painted Eye agents are already turning the whole place upside down. Make your way through the dungeon. At the very end, there is a metal gate through which you can access the Ayleid ruin.

You finally arrive at the ritual site. Three Attunement Crystals are maintaining it, and need to be destroyed. They are protected by Sister Ignatia and Brother gro-Mora. After defeating them and destroying the crystals, you can continue into the vault. Here, you will find the Painted Eye's leader, Phedre Lampronius, still conducting the ritual. Erilthel comes crashing in through the ceiling, landing on top of the relic and effectively ending the ritual. Phedre discorporates in the process. There's no time to waste: the ruin is collapsing. You'll need to head through the hallway ahead and evacuate the ruin. Once you have escaped, you can listen to Seeks and Erilthel's conversation:

An unexpected savior

Seeks-the-Dark: "Erilthel."

Erilthel: "I know. I said I wouldn't come back, but I heard yelling echoing up from a grate—and I was worried—so I followed—and it was slippery and—"

Seeks-the-Dark: "Thank you. If it weren't for you, we couldn't have stopped the Painted Eye."

Erilthel: "You mean it? It was a pretty dramatic entrance wasn't it? Maybe I should practice—"

Seeks-the-Dark: "Don't push it."

You can then speak with both of them, Seeks will announce the job as "a wash" with the failure of collecting the artifact. Despite having helped save the hostages, he won't go and collect a reward from Commander Axius as there will be too many inconvient questions. He instead asks that you tell the commander that the "infiltrators" died before you got there. When you speak to Erilthel, she will still be excited and enthusiastically tells you how she ended up falling through the ceiling. Once you have spoken with both of them, Erilthel will reveal that their original job wasn't such a wash after all:

Seeks-the-Dark: "Now, I need to figure out how to tell the Guild that we didn't get the relic. They won't be happy."

Erilthel: "What do you mean? I have the relic right here. Oh! Careful, still got bits of Painted Eye lady on it."

Seeks-the-Dark: "What? When did you—"

Erilthel: "When you were all: oh, look at the ceiling, it's coming down around us. This is why I should take the lead next time!"

Seeks-the-Dark: "Absolutely not."

You can then tell Commander Axius that the situation has been dealt with. He will be standing outside the fort's main gate:

"I've got a camp full of liberated hostages, and my scouts tell me there's a significant drop in Painted Eye activity within the fortress.
But I want to hear it from someone who's seen things firsthand. What's the situation in Borderwatch?"

The Painted Eye's leader is dead and all the hostages are free.

"Damn fine work. I'll get my troops together and we'll mop up the stragglers.
So much for those experts. You did the work of both of them. And most of us, for that matter! Borderwatch is in your debt. This is all the payment I could muster."

Notes

• Completing this quest will allow you to recruit some of Commander Axius' men to defend Fort Redmane during Pyre of Ambition.

Bugs

• When you need to enter the crypt, the quest marker will point to an unreachable place outside the walls instead of the chapel. ^?

Quest Stages

A Keep's Ransom
Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
	A Borderwatch scout told me that I should talk to Commander Axius, commander of the garrison, to learn more about the situation. Objective: Talk to Commander Axius
	First, I need to infiltrate Borderwatch. Commander Axius recommended doing so via a sewer drain in the wilderness near the fortress. Objective: Enter Borderwatch Keep
	I infiltrated the sewers below Borderwatch. I should work my way up to the keep. Objective: Find a Way into the Keep
	I heard a voice cry out in the sewers below Borderwatch. I should investigate it. Objective: Find the Source of the Voice
	I found one of the infiltrators that was sent into Borderwatch to rescue the hostages before I arrived. I should speak with her. Objective: Talk to Erilthel
	Erilthel asked me to help her find Seeks-the-Dark, who lured the Painted Eye away while she was told to escape. We should search the sewers for him. Objective: Find Seeks-the-Dark
	I found Seeks-the-Dark locked up. I should talk to Seeks-the-Dark about what happened while Erilthel works on freeing him. Objective: Talk to Seeks-the-Dark
	Seeks asked me to work to free the hostages while he acts as a distraction and Erilthel guides them through the sewer. Seeks suggested a group was taken to the southwest guard tower of the fortress. Objective: Save the Hostages in the Southwest Guard Tower
	One of the hostages at the southeast guard tower, Calixto Tunifus, has something to tell me. I should see what he knows. Objective: Talk to Calixto Tunifus
	I learned that the Painted Eye is holding a group of hostages in Borderwatch's smithy. I should find and save them. Objective: Save the Hostages at the Smithy
	One of the hostages at the smithy, Shanil-Tee, wants to talk about the Painted Eye. I should see what she knows. Objective: Talk to Shanil-Tee
	I learned that the Painted Eye is holding a group of hostages in Borderwatch's stables. I should find and save them. Objective: Save the Hostages at the Stables
	One of the hostages at the stables, Otten, is practically clinging to me in fear. I should talk him down and see if he knows of anyone else still held captive. Objective: Talk to Otten
	Otten is too terrified to escape without help and asked me to escort him to safety. I should lead his group to the sewer. Objective: Lead the Hostages to Safety
	Seeks-the-Dark approached our group as we made it to the sewer. I should see what he wants. Objective: Talk to Seeks-the-Dark
	After informing Seeks that the Painted Eye still have an Ayleid scholar as a prisoner, Seeks admitted that the Thieves Guild sent him for an Ayleid relic. He suspects that's why the Painted Eye is here as well. Seeks asked me to free the scholar. Objective: Rescue the Ayleid Scholar
	The Painted Eye is attempting to seize a powerful and dangerous Ayleid artifact hidden beneath Borderwatch's chapel. I need to get the key to unlock the crypt, which is in the commander's quarters. Objective: Get the Crypt Key
	I have the key to the crypt. With it Seeks and I may be able to beat the Painted Eye to the Ayleid relic hidden beneath Borderwatch. Objective: Go to the Crypt
	I need to search the crypt for the entrance to the Ayleid ruin if I hope to stop the Painted Eye. Teldundindo said the entrance should be in one of the chapel's tombs. Objective: Find the Entrance to the Ayleid Ruin
	The Painted Eye has already made it to the Ayleid ruin beneath Borderwatch. I need to catch up with them. Objective: Search the Ayleid Ruin
	I entered the Ayleid ruin with Seeks-the-Dark to find the Painted Eye's leader conducting a ritual and drawing power from some kind of crystals to fuel it. They might be key to disrupting whatever the Painted Eye is doing. Objective: Stop the Painted Eye Ritual
	Seeks-the-Dark and I have found the Painted Eye's leader, attempting to claim the dangerous relic in the Ayleid ruin. We have to find a way to stop her. Objective: Confront the Painted Eye's Leader
	We stopped the Painted Eye from claiming the relic, but the catastrophic end of the ritual triggered a cave-in. I need to escape the ruin before it collapses. Objective: Escape the Ayleid Ruin
	Seeks-the-Dark, Erilthel, and I have made it out of the Ayleid ruin beneath Borderwatch. I should talk to them about what happens next. Objective: Talk to Seeks-the-Dark Objective: Talk to Erilthel
Finishes quest	I should inform Commander Axius that the situation at Borderwatch has been dealt with. Objective: Talk to Commander Axius

Notes

* Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the game and will be filled in with the appropriate word(s) when seen in game.

• Not all Journal Entries may appear in your journal; which entries appear and which entries do not depends on the manner in which the quest is done.
• Stages are not always in order of progress. This is usually the case with quests that have multiple possible outcomes or quests where certain tasks may be done in any order. Some stages may therefore repeat objectives seen in other stages.