In My Time of Need

Background
Saadia is a noblewoman from Hammerfell who claims she fled to Skyrim when she was forced into hiding after an attempt on her life for speaking out against the Aldmeri Dominion. She now works as a cook at The Bannered Mare and stays in the background as much as possible. Alik'r Warriors have been sent by the Redguard Houses as mercenaries led by a man named Kematu to search for Saadia and bring her back to Hammerfell to face justice.

Characters

 * Kematu
 * Saadia
 * Alik'r Warriors (2)
 * Kematu's Alik'r Troops

Quest objectives

 * Find the Redguard woman.
 * Speak with Saadia or Inform the Alik'r of Saadia's location.
 * Talk to the Alik'r Prisoner or Inform the Alik'r of Saadia's location.
 * Kill Kematu or bring Saadia to the stables.

Quick walkthrough
Speak with Saadia inside The Bannered Mare.
 * Help Saadia:
 * Speak to an Alik'r Prisoner in the Dragonsreach Dungeon.
 * Pay the fine for the prisoner, and receive the location of the assassins' hideout.
 * Head to the Swindler's Den to kill Kematu.

OR
 * Turn in Saadia:
 * Tell the Alik'r at Rorikstead where Saadia is.
 * Return to Saadia, and have her meet at the Whiterun Stables for an ambush.

A wanted woman

 * Two Alik'r Warriors appear at Whiterun's main gate in a heated discussion with the city guard, or they may be found on the road near one of the holds arguing with a Redguard. The Alik’r have already been banned from most of the city after an incident and jailing, but the men are determined to try and find a Redguard woman somewhere inside the walls. Upon speaking to one of them, the player is asked to help.


 * The woman in question is Saadia, a cook at The Bannered Mare. After finding Saadia and telling telling her about the two Alik'r Warriors looking for her, Saadia becomes agitated and asks to speak privately. At this point, the player can follow Saadia and speak with her privately or head back to the Alik'r and inform them of her location.

Siding with Saadia

 * Speaking with Saadia privately, she first threatens the player with a dagger. Then she explains her background and comments that if Kematu is removed, the remaining forces are likely to scatter. Saadia also tells the player about an Alik'r Prisoner in the Dragonsreach Dungeon who could help in locating Kematu, (the dungeon is on the east of Dragonsreach).
 * Once inside the Dungeon, the player needs to speak to the prisoner through the bars. He agrees to help if the player pays his bail. After paying the 100 fine to the guard, talking to the prisoner again, and telling him his fine has been paid, the prisoner will reveal that Kematu is in a cave west of Whiterun called Swindler's Den. The guard taunts the prisoner about not being able to hear, losing the key to the cell, etc.; however, he does eventually release him.

Not just a pretty face

 * Swindler's Den can be found due west of Whiterun at the base of a rocky hill in the middle of the plains. To reach Kematu, the player must fight the bandits inhabiting the den, regardless of whose side the player has chosen in the quest (Saadia's or Kematu's).


 * Once the player reaches Kematu, he does not attack on sight, allowing the player to speak to him. Kematu gives his side of the story, claiming that Saadia betrayed Hammerfell, and the Redguard city of Taneth fell during the war against the Aldmeri Dominion. Kematu explains that the Redguard houses wish to bring her back alive to face justice. At this point, the player has a pivotal choice to make: Kill Kematu or side with him

Siding with Saadia

 * To save Saadia from the clutches of the Alik’r, the player may simply attack Kematu and his guards at any point. After the battle return to the Bannered Mare in Whiterun and inform Saadia of the end of her problem. She will reward the player with with 500.

Siding with the Alik'r

 * Kematu informs the player that his troops aren’t assassins but are agents acting on behalf of the Redguard Houses and are tasked with returning the fugitive (Saadia) to Hammerfell. When asked what he wants the player to do, Kematu requests that the player return to Saadia and convince her to meet at the stables, where she’ll be ambushed and brought to justice.


 * Kematu saadia.jpg]]Head back to the Bannered Mare and lie to Saadia by telling her that the attempt to defeat all the Alik’r forces failed, that they are coming for her, and the player has a horse ready for her to escape. Exit Whiterun with Saadia following, and head to the Whiterun Stables. Around to the side of the stable house, Kematu is waiting. He immobilizes Saadia, and the player may speak with him one final time to collect the reward of 500.

Last minute change of heart

 * After betraying Saadia, the player might feel some remorse, and, despite what she may have done back in Hammerfell, before collecting the reward from Kematu, the player can attack and kill him instead. Saadia will be angry about being led into a trap and comment that she should have warned first, but she will then be thankful for being rid of her persistent pursuers and reward the player with the sum of 500 . Then the player can loot Kematu's body, which holds between 50 and 300 . If the player waits too long and kills Kematu after retrieving the reward, Saadia will wake up and attack the player ferociously with either a dagger or her fists, (if her dagger was previously pickpocketed).

Playing both sides

 * It's possible to earn 1000 if the player does not care about killing both Saadia and Kematu by collecting the reward from both characters.
 * After Kematu immobilizes Saadia, collect the 500 reward from him.
 * Then kill Kematu, and steal his belongings and 50 to 300.
 * Because Saadia was betrayed, she will be hostile to the player after Kematu has been killed; however, if the player casts calm on Saadia, it's possible to explain to her that the Alik'r will not bother her anymore. She will be thankful, and reward the player with 500.
 * Once the calm effect wears off, Saadia will attack the player on sight. Fast-traveling away while she is calmed will not cause her to forgive the player in the long run, and the next time she is approached, she will resume attacking the player. Killing her at that point isn't considered murder, so there will be no bounty, even in the middle of town.
 * Note: If the player has the Destruction perk Disintegrate and kills Kematu with lightning, he will disintegrate, and when Saadia tries to get up, she will vanish away. So using lightning to kill Kematu is not recommended.

Exploits
{| class="wikitable collapsible2 collapsed" style="width:100%; margin-bottom:0px; margin-top:1px;" ! sab="1148"| Click to see a list of exploits
 * - sab="1147"
 * - sab="1149"
 * sab="1150"|
 * Completely avoid having to fight eight of the Bandits between the entrance and Kematu and his band of Alik'r Warriors. In the first room, kill the two bandits who are discussing the Alik'r that have taken up residence. In this room there are a table, chair, and a bedroll; behind these objects is a tunnel that is actually the exit for the room where the Alik'r Warriors are waiting. The tunnel is "hidden" by a large slanted boulder with moss and roots above it. This rock face can be climbed with a series of strafes and jumps. Once at the top, the tunnel will lead directly to the back entrance (the intended exit) of the Alik'r Warriors' training room, completely avoiding the eight bandits throughout the rest of Swindler's Den.
 * Another way to avoid fighting the Alik'r is to agree to lure Saadia to the stables and then go and speak to her in the Bannered Mare. After lying to Saadia, get to the stables as quickly as possible, and tackle Kematu when he is on his own. With a good sneak skill, it's possible to crouch behind him and perform a sneak attack for some extra damage to start with. After he is dead, speak to Saadia to complete the quest and receive 500.
 * The Dragonborn may pickpocket the Whiterun Jail Key from one of the guards, but it won't open the cell containing the Alik'r prisoner.
 * At any point after speaking to Saadia, the player can speak to the original Alik’r warriors that were at Whiterun’s gate. They have moved to Rorikstead. Informing them that that Saadia has been found completes the quest to the point where the player is instructed to escort Saadia to the Whiterun Stables.|}

Trivia

 * While traveling Skyrim, the player may have a random encounter with two Alik'r warriors questioning a Redguard woman. The woman is not Saadia, and the warriors eventually stop questioning her, agreeing that she does not have "the scar" on her face.  If the Alik'r are dispatched, the woman wanders off, unimpressed.
 * The quest is an excellent way to obtain Scimitars, (which are better than most steel weapons), because they are the Alik'r warriors' signature weapon.
 * It's possible to actually kill both Kematu and Saadia without starting this quest and loot up to 800 and items from them; however, this counts as murder, so a 3000  bounty will be accrued if the player is observed killing them and Kematu's guard.
 * If Kematu's request is accepted, and the player helps him capture Saadia, the player may encounter a group of Thalmor Justiciars in the wild that carry a Justiciar Execution Order with the player's race and name. This may indicate that Kematu might have been telling the truth and that Saadia truly was a traitor (source needed, Justiciar questline). Execution Orders are normally issued because of the assault on the Thalmor Embassy in the main questline.
 * Saadia is never considered essential, so it's possible to kill her even right after she is told about the Alik'r. This will, however, immediately cause the failure of the quest, and no dialogue option will be available to tell the Alik'r that she has been killed.
 * If Swindler's Den is cleared prior to the quest, a dialogue option with Saadia will come up stating that Kematu's location is already known to the player, thus avoiding the conversation with the Alik'r prisoner.

Behind the scenes

 * Unless otherwise stated, the information above was obtained from in-game play or from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Creation Kit.

Appearances

 * The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim