Armand insists that I sell more stolen stuff to a guild fence before I can get another mission.
I am going to head to Bruma to do just that.
I manage to sell about 749 gold worth of stuff.
I could very easily get the full thousand needed to do all thieves guild missions, but for some reason only stolen goods count.
This is enough for now, though.
I head back to Armand to get my next mission.
Sounds simple enough.
I change into my secret identity and head to Cheydinhal.
By the way, for those that don't read the other posts in this thread, the name of this secret identity is now the "Crystalhead Fistman".
It is a name that shall soon become legend and strike fear into the hearts of guards everywhere.
So apparently the bust is in a guarded chapel that is also haunted.
Greeeaaaaat...
This is the chapel.
Time to break in and hope I don't get caught.
The place seems to be empty.
So far, so good.
I pick the lock to the undercroft and head in.
The chapel guard patrols this area. Luckily, she is nearly blind and somehow doesn't manage to spot me.
I mange to find the bust fairly easily.
I also decide to loot the coffin.
That's right, I just defiled a grave for some stuff that is nearly worthless to me.
I am not a good person.
Suddenly, the ghost of the dead countess attacks!
I guess maybe looting a coffin in a supposedly haunted tomb was a really bad idea.
It seems pretty obvious now.
The noise of the ghost attack attracts the chapel guard, who spots me and attacks.
You can't really see her in this picture very well because she just turned invisible. You can KINDA see the blur that is her invisible self and the green glow from her casting the spell.
Lucky for me, the ghost does my job for me and murders the chapel guard. Despite the fact that the chapel guard was helping to guard the tomb and thus should really be on the same side as the ghost.
Unfortunately, the ghost then continues to attack me.
Wait a minute...
Why does the ghost of a countess have a beard!?
THAT IS MOST CERTAINLY NOT THE FACE OF A LADY
THE KIND OF QUESTIONS THIS RAISES ARE NOT THE SORT OF QUESTIONS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO PONDER FOR VERY LONG
Anyway, the ghost soon falls from the wrath of my punches.
Well, I'd say that went very well.
I'd better fast-travel back to the Waterfront and talk to Armand.
After fast-traveling, the first thing I see is a guard standing right in front of me who immediately asks me about the location of Armand.
I don't respond, and he quickly runs to the next nearest citizen to ask them the same question.
In fact, the whole place is swarming with guards.
I try asking the guard what's going on, but the only thing his response tells me is that he is a major slowpoke when it comes to news.
Seriously, I closed that gate like months ago! Even more in in-game time!
Hey, the body of that guy who was part of that family I murdered is still here.
This city has some serious sanitation issues.
Anyway, the is swarming with guards, and they are clearly on to the Thieve's Guild, what with the way they are asking about Armand and all.
I have no choice.
I will have to resort to violence and teach this guys a lesson they shan't soon forget.
That'll teach that guard to mess with the Thieve's Guild.
However, this place is swarming with guards. I still have many more to kill.
Another guard shows up and starts shooting arrows at me. I charge toward him and we engage in combat.
However, Methredhel (one of the people I was competing with for a spot in the Thieve's Guild, who is now a member herself, apparently) shows up and talks to me while I am in mid-combat.
Can't she tell that I am a little busy fighting to the death!?
That's great and all but I have a guard currently trying to kill me so this can all wait just a daisies moment!
Okay, I'll make sure to pin the crime on her after I am done making sure I don't get cut in half!
Wait, I'm going to half to talk with Lex?
...Huh...
That's going to be hard now that I'm going to be wanted for several murders.
And the only guy who can get rid of my bounty has gone into hiding.
I probably should have thought a bit further ahead with this one.
Anyway, she runs off and the battle continues.
A couple more guards show up.
This is starting to get ugly.
Some lady shows up with a dagger and starts helping me. Presumably, she is a member of the Thieve's Guild, since almost everyone in the Waterfront is.
You can't really she her in this picture. She's the one in the background charging forward wearing the green shirt with the really lightly colored hair.
She manages to finish off one of the guards and then runs off.
That was nice of her, although I had already beaten that guard to within an inch of his life.
She's probably going to be slaughtered by the guards now, though.
...You know, the way she suicidally attacked those guards gives me an idea...
I quickly talk to a nearby citizen.
I think raise his disposition to a very high level.
Hopefully, he now likes me enough to fight to the death with the guards for my sake.
Orrrrr he'll just continue to run away like a pansy.
Wimp.
Martin soon shows up, and dagger-lady comes back. I could have sworn I left Martin at the Garden of Darecloth. I didn't think that he would be able to hear the battle from that far off.
Anyway, he attacks me, as usual.
Lex himself even shows up.
The resulting battle is incredibly chaotic.
I jump on to the nearby wall to heal, and several of the guards and dagger lady run away because their bad A.I. tells the guards that they would have a better chance of hitting me from the other side of the wall.
You know, the one that's in the water.
The result is an underwater fight
However, underwater fights are pretty annoying, so I decide to head back up to land to finish off some of my other opponents before finish my underwater battle royal.
Martin has apparently dropped his sword.
Rather than pick it up like a wimp would, he decides to just come at me with his bare hands.
I'm so proud of him.
Anyway, soon him and Lex are both unconscious.
They keep waking up, though. They just won't stay down.
More water fighting
Soon, one of the guards is dead.
And then another.
Well, I think that takes care of all my killable opponents.
As I walk back to land, I notice find dagger lady again.
Well, her body, anyway. Looks like one of the guards decided to actually attack her, which is surprising, considering guards usually attack me and only me and completely ignore anyone else around them unless I turn invisible.
See, this is why people should just leave the guard-fighting to me. You can't just charge at guards with a wimpy little dagger and expect to not get brutally slaughtered.
She didn't even have any cheddar on her.
I knock Martin unconscious again.
Since he's in water, he'll probably drown.
Sucks to be him.
Ugh. I still need to pin the murder on that informant. I'm going to have to pay my fine if I want Lex to talk to me.
I let him chase me for a little while longer, however. I want to make sure that all of the other guards in the Waterfront are dead before I pay.
It turns out there was one I missed.
I both kill him and knock Lex unconscious. Again.
I quickly hop on the rooftops before Lex wakes up.
When he does wake up, he has no idea where I am, and just continues his patrol as usual.
He approaches me as I drop down, and I choose to pay my fine.
Obviously, I change out of my Crystalhead Fistman costume before I do this. I'm trying to make the Crystalhead Fistman a legend, and it really wouldn't help if he were to just suddenly want to obey the law and pay his fines.
Also Lex looks really short from this angle.
...You know, it sort of surprises me that Lex still obsesses over catching the Gray Fox. If I were him, I would be obsessing over catching the Crystalhead Fistman. I did, after all, kill innumerable amounts of his guards, and a very high-ranking guard that followed him around and appeared to be his partner.
But, no, the Gray Fox is higher priority because he stole some stuff.
That really makes sense.
Anyway, I end up at the Imperial Prison. I steal my stolen goods back and return to the Waterfront.
I see Martin has decided to pick up a bow.
I knew he would be too much of a wimp to continue with his fists. Still, having a ranged fighter on my side might be nice.
Although, with the way Martin has been attacking me lately, I have to wonder if he is really "on my side". Someday, he is going to have to learn that attacking me is a just a ticket to getting beaten unconscious.
As I head to Lex, I find a citizen walking around with a dagger drawn. He asks me if I would like to purchase a copy of the Black House Courier.
This is the result of a funny little glitch-type thing in a Oblivion that happens when a citizen that is not normally supposed to engage in combat does so (usually when you are fighting guards or something). There is a chance that they won't put away their weapon when the battle ends, and thus they spend the rest of their lives with their weapon drawn.
It's actually pretty hilarious.
As I continue heading to Lex, an orc woman comments on how she's killed people tougher than me.
That is not the kind of thing you say to the Cystalhead Fistman or Charlie Manhuge.
I make sure she understands that.
Well, there's Lex.
I become Charlie Manhuge again and go talk to him.
I like the way he continues to investigate this theft despite the fact that all the guards helping with the investigation have been murdered.
It really shows determination.
And stupidity.
Anyway, I do the conversation minigame to raise his disposition so he will believe me about the statue.
Oddly enough, despite being a guard who seems like the kind who doesn't take shit from anybody, he really likes being coerced.
That is really out of character.
I then break into the informant's house to place the statue there.
It would be so easy to just kill her right now. But, no, we have to frame her like idiots instead. Despite the fact that all evidence other that the statue being in the cupboard should prove her innocent.
I put the statue in the cupboard anyway. I guess guards in this game have proven themselves incompetent enough to fall for it.
Lex doesn't seem to believe me, but he really trusts me from that 30 seconds or so I was talking to him.
He tells me to follow him to the informant's house so I do.
He then proceeds to arrest the informant.
Wow, he actually fell for it.
I really shouldn't be surprised, what with all the other stupid things guards in this game have done.
With Lex gone, Armand can come back out of hiding.
yaaaaaaay
Wait, the Dark Brotherhood trusted me enough to know I wasn't the traitor, even when I murdered their members with my bare hands, but you didn't?
That seems really messed up for some reason.
Yaaaaaay
I ask him if he has any special missions for me.
Apparently, I will have to get my missions from someone else from now on.
I'm gonna miss Armand and his messed-up face.
Oh well. We must always say farewell someday, and I suppose that day is today.
...I have no idea why I'm being so dramatic about this considering I'm probably going to see the guy again anyway...
