As Arch Mage, my first order was to send out runners to calm the folk at Winterhold and assure them that everything has been restored to normalcy... it helped our case a bit that we explained that the danger was caused by a Thalmor mage, whom the College had dealt with.
Some in the College - my College - still need help. The orc librarian Urug gro-Shub wanted me to track down some writings by Shalidor - the College's founder. The shipment carrying the manuscript was waylaid on the road from Falkreath to Whiterun. Heading there might reveal some clues...
Searching the road, I came across an innocent-looking cottage called Pinewatch. On closer inspection though, Pinewatch is not what it seems - the cottage is in the middle of nowhere and there are no clues as to what the residents of Pinewatch do by trade - no mill, smelter, nor farm adorn the grounds. The cottage itself seemed empty. Nobody exited or entered the building the whole day.
I eventually sneaked into the property to find a bandit at the basement. Strange.
I detected a draft coming from behind a storage shelf. A secret button releases the contraption to reveal a tunnel. Aha. The plot thickens.
The hidden cave complex is swarming with bandits. Their leader - Rigel Strong-Arm - is also exceptionally cunning for a bandit. The the entire base is riddled with traps and the bandits are always in groups, making ambushes that much tougher... still, I eventually confronted the leader and brought her career to an end... in her sleep. Rigel seemed to be running from some man-slaughter (well, cat-slaughter, since the letter specifically mentioned Khajiit) charges at home and had set up shop at Pinewatch.
Her band probably attacked the caravan carrying Shalidor's writings intended for the College. I collected the book and helped myself to her loot.
I also came across a guy who's trying to raise the dead - except that it wasn't working. He said he was descended from mages and insisted that the staff his ancestors passed down would make him a powerful mage as well... but the boy doesn't have a lick of magical talent. I convinced him to turn over the staff before he hurts himself.
The College believed in keeping dangerous magic out of the hands of the untrained - and this fits the bill almost too perfectly; and a good thing too - the staff he was carrying is called the Staff of Zombies.
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