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In My Time Of NeedBy Stephanie Lee, Hector Madrigal, Brendan Graeber, +162.5k moreUpdated: Jul 27, 2022 8:41pm UTC

To start this Skyrim Side Quest, you must talk to the Alik’r warriors in or around Whiterun. You will receive 500 Gold if you choose to kill Kematu. Scroll down to see the full walkthrough guide.

Quest Objectives

• Find the Redguard woman
• Speak with Saadia or Inform the Alik’r of Saadia’s location
• Kill Kematu or talk to him

In My Time of Need Walkthrough

Sometime after you speak with the Jarl, a pair of Alik'r warriors stand just at the entrance to Whiterun and beckon you over. (Alternatively, you can start this quest by finding them elsewhere and approaching them as they are harrassing a Redguard woman) They commission you to help them locate a Redguard woman hiding somewhere in Whiterun. They're willing to pay for any information you can find about this woman.

She is the waitress named Saadia at the Bannered Mare. Speak to her and she’ll tell you to meet her upstairs. Here is where you are presented with two choices:

OPTION 1

Talk to the Alik'r Prisoner in Dragonsreach dungeon behind the entrance to Dragonsreach itself. Pay the prisoner's fine to a guard (100 gold). Go to Swindler's Den in the west, where you can kill Kematu. Even when you reach Kematu, you are offered one more chance to turn your back on Saadia (see below) or stain your hands with Kematu’s blood. By the way, Kematu has something like five or six other warriors with him, so be ready for lots of crowd management during this fight. Search Kematu for 100G. Return to Saada. She will give you 500G for your effort. (Alternatively, see option 4 for an easier way to complete this without a major fight and obtaining more gold from Kematu)

OPTION 2

The other path is to go to Rorikstead to tell the two Alik’r at the Frostfruit Inn that you found Saadia. They then want you to lure her out to the Whiterun Stables. Return to the Bannered Mare, go upstairs, and you’ll be locked into a series of “(Lie)” dialogue options that will have her walk to the Whiterun Stables on her own. Kematu will paralyze her there and give you 500G as a reward. Also, if you talk to Kematu, he claims that she was the actual traitor. This “lure to the Whiterun Stables” scheme also comes up when you talk to Kematu inside Swindler’s Den.

OPTION 3 (Or 2a)

After completing the quest, kill Kematu anyway. Saadia will eventually regain her ability to move, needless to say, she's pretty p'oed at you. Kill her and steal her stuff.

OPTION 4

Complete the quest up to the point where you get to choose to "speak to" or "kill Kematu" in Swindler's Den. Opt to speak and agree to bring Saadia to the stables. Back at Whiterun, convince Saadia to leave as above. Run to the stables ahead of Saadia. Kematu will be waiting. Rush up to him and kill him there (without all his bodyguards to protect him) Search his body for booty, 250g, some armour and his two scimitars. Speak to Saadia who thanks you and gives you the 500g reward she offered earler. Win win

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The Elder Scrolls V: SkyrimBethesda Game StudiosInitial Release: Nov 10, 2011+4Learn moreGo to comments