Greetings everyone. This is my first fanfiction, so please refrain from compliments. I would prefer only critisisem and the mention any spelling errors I may have missed. Also try to refrain from unconstrucive critisism. Do not tell me you didn't like my story, without telling what parts you didn't like.
Disclaimer: I do not own Elder Scrolls V : Skyrim, nor any characters, places, weapons, spells, etc. in the following work. All rights go to bethesda and any others who worked on the game. I gain no profit, endorsement, or compesation of any kind from this work of fiction.
The ancient door groaned as I forced it open. "C'mon, before you freeze to death," I shouted back into the snow. Brushing past me, Aiela stood shivering in the entrance hall. Taking a step out of the frigid wasteland and into the ruins, I could tell that we were the only living things in here. Too bad draugr didn't count as living.
"This place looks so dead I can't believe anything alive was ever in here," Aela said through shivering teeth.
"It was used as a tomb, so I doubt they cared about making it lively," I retorted. Aiela simply shruged before heading of to a large braizer to get warm. Walking further in, I could see an old iron gate, which was closed, and three levers. Oh how the ancient nords loved their traps. I approached tentatively, and gave the middle lever a pull. No sooner had the lever reached the end of its slot, than a loud bang resounded through the room.
My reflexes kicking in, I wheeled around while simultaneously drawing my sword. Blocking and attack from the mysterious assailant, I kicked it in the stomach. The force of my kick sent it crashing into the opposite wall. As I drifted down from the adrenaline rush, I realized that it was a draugr that had swung its blade at me, and that the loud boom was its coffin lid shattering on the ground. The draugr having been dazed, but not killed, was pulling itself up. Getting into a battle stance I prepared for the fight. The undead brute charged at me, but I easily sidestepped its uncoordinated attempt to knock me down. It then wheeled its whole body around, slashing its blade. My arm moved almost by itself, blocking the attack, and forcing the draugr back. The beast tried again to attack, but I grabbed its arm, ripping it out the socket. Giving a guttural roar of pain, the draugr fell to its knees, stunned by what just occurred. Seeing it was defenseless, I lopped its head of with one swing. "Why didn't you help?" I yelled.
"You had it coverd," replied Aiela, cluthing her fur scarf. I simply shook my head, deciding to drop the coversation. Proceeding back to the levers, I opted to pull the one on the left. The iron gate screeched in protest as the ancient mechanism hauled it up. Proceeding to the gate, I saw that it was protecting a set of stairs that led into a darkness my eyes could not penetrate.
The stairs led to a wide hallway. Small iron braizers hung from the ceiling, the fires lit by magic. Small alchoves were cut into the wall. The other end of the hallway so distant it fell out of sight.
After a short time walking, the silence began to feel intolerable. "So, why did you join the Companions?" I asked.
Aiela looked mildly suprised before answering,"Tradition," she said, "Why?"
"I was just wondering," I responded. We walked for a few more secnds before a quistion popped into my head. I looked at her and asked,"What do you mean 'tradition'?
She brushed her aubern hair behind her ear before sighing. "My mother was a Companion, and her mother before, all the way back to Ysgamor's original hundred companions." She took a small breadth before continuing, "I knew it was what I wanted to do since I was just a whelp."
"Oh, so you've never even wanted to do anything else?" I wonered.
"Well I did want to be a Preistess of Dibella," she said, a blush crossing her pale face. "That's not important right now," she said, eager to change the subject. Deciding that silence was better than words at the moment, we continued along this unneciarly long hallway.
After a bit of walking we came to the old fork in the road. One passage led to the left, and the other to the right. Both with narrow openings and scones, no discernable diffrence was presented. "I go left, you go right?" Aiela suggested.
"Sure," I said, "though I don't like splittng up."
Aiela gave me a mocking look and cooed, "Is the big bad Dragonborn scared?"
"I'm not scared, and watch it before I punch you through a wall," I retorted. Aiela held her hands defensively before heading down the left passage. Steeling my nerves, I began down the right passageway. The silence was blanketing. Even my steel plated boots failed to make noise. I suddenly feel the stone under my left foot shrink down ever so slightly. I immediatly lept back as a steel cage door, doned with spikes, swung outward from its hiding spot. It slowly retreated as the preassure plate rose up. Taking care to step over it, I continued on my trek. But a few moments later, I came to a stairecase leading into an all-consuming darkness.
After several minutes in the practical black hole, I saw a small ligh ahead. The room at the bottom of the stairs was beautiful. The wall to my left was a gleaming bronze, and embedded with shining sapphires. To my right, an open expanse revealed a flowing waterfall of crystal clear water. Below the waterfall, were several large emerald plants. Even the floor was amazing: a solid ebony, the black luster broken only by intricate swirls of gold. The ceiling was a deep hue of green, cut to resemble events from the dragon war. A throne lay in the middle of the room, and on it sat a draugr overlord. Silently unsheathing my blade, I stepped towards it, intent to strike first.
I wordlessly cursed as my steel plated boots clanged loudly on the metal floor. My attempt at quit walking sounded more like a war party with symbols on their boots. When I was but ten steps away, its head snapped up. I let out a very manly shreik at the sudden movement Its ancient jaw opened like a rusty drawbridge, and from it, erupted an earth-shattering shriek. Jerking its battle-axe up with its body, it cackled at the prospect of a new victim. Before I could react, it had breached the distance, slamming its axe into my chestplate. The steel giving way to the ancient metal, the skin of my chest was cut deeply. Raising its axe for another hit, I stabbed my sword right through its heart. The creature however, simply looked at the sword buried hilt deep in it with surprise. I took the moment of surprise to roll away. However, dread filled me as I realized my blade was still in the draugr. The shocked look on its face soon changed to one of fury. Letting out a roar to rival the thunder, it charged. I barely dodged the heavy swipe, and took the chance to grab my sword. I yanked it out, rolled behind the beast, and struck it in the head. The loss of blood was starting to make me dizzy, and I knew that I had to end this soon. The draugr overlord turned to face me, its glowing blue eyes conveying a pure hatred. It charged at me again; however, this time I was prepared. Sidestepping the swing, I kicked its legs out from under it, and pulling out a scroll of fireball, I launched the spell at the draugr overlord. The bolt of fire hit it, and a flaming explosion burst from the the draugr overlord.
Its flaming body lay limp, and I took the opportunity to grab a key, two health potions, and its axe. As I pulled my arm away, I was grateful my steel gauntlets absorbed the heat. Walking to the throne, I saw that there was a lever behind it. Taking my chances, I pulled the lever. A screeching groan filled the as the ancient throne slowly moved backwards, exposing another set a stairs. Descending the stairs, I found an old door at the bottom. However, unlock the other wooden doors, this one was made of iron. Pushing the door, I found that it was locked. Taking out the key I looted from the draugr overlord, I pushed into the little keyhole, and turned it. The lock clicked, and the door opened.
The room I found myself in was not nearly as alluring as the last one. Stone floor, walls, and ceiling. Simple stone pillars supporting the ceiling dotted the room. However, a dragon wall at the other end of the room made it much better than the last. Almost running near to the dragon wal, I was stopped in my tracks. Just before the dragon wall was a coffin, which could only mean one thing. The dragon priest, Vorkandetur, was here. No sooner had these thoughts entered my mind, had the lid had been blown clear of the coffin. It hit the floor, shattering into a million pieces. Vorkandetur slowly floated out of his tomb. Taking one look at me, it raised its staff of fireball and attacked. A fireball shot out of the dragon staff head,and came flying at me. The fireball collided with me, and the explosion sent me flying clear across the room. "Bring it!" I yelled a the floating Dragon Preist. Good thing was, the heat from the fireball cauterized the wound; bad thing was, it destroyed my steel armor. Barely rolling out of the way, the wall where I had been exploded, scattering rubble everywhere. Diving behind one of the stone pillars, I crouched low. The moment I caught my breath,the pillar above my head got blown straight across the room as another fireball was launched. Pillar after pillar were destroyed as I tried to find cover. Running across the room, another fireball caught me and sent me crashing into the wall. Floating over, Vorkandetur looked down on my burnt body with triumph. As he raise his staff to stab me through with the blade upon the bottom, I saw a blood coveed gold wolf charm. Rage filled me unlike one seen before. My mouth opened and from came, "FUS ROH DAH." The last syllable left my mouth accompanied by a wave of pure force. The wave collide with Vorkandetur, and sent him flying into, and then through, the ceiling. However, my moment of victory was ruined as the whole ruin began to shake. With the pillars destroyed, and my thu'um unstabilizing the ruin, it collapsed. I could not say a thing as a large piece of rubble crashed into my head.
The cold nipped at my skin. Slowly forcing my eyes open, I realized that I was alive. A face was above, and as my vision cleared I could see that it was a woman. Soft black hair framed her beautiful young face. She had a soft chin and a small nose, with shiny black hair half braided down her shoulder. She wore a black dress with red outlines, and a cape getting blown in the wind behind her. Flawless pale skin and a lithe frame only added to her beauty. She likely had somehow managed to rescue me from the ruins of Vorkeschet. However fiery red eyes, and a sharp to smile showed she was a vampire. So here I lay. Unprotected with a vampire mere inches from my face.
"Who are you?" I asked. She simply stared at me, her red eyes wide open. Propping myself up on my shoulder, I stared right back into her eyes. "I said, where am I?" I demanded. Still no answer. I began to get annoyed. Trying a gentler tone, I asked again, "What is your name?"
"Serana," she responded. Her voice was smooth and light. I liked it. "You almost died, but I managed to pull you out," she finnally responded.
"Was I the only one you pulled out, Serana?" I Quistioned.
"No, you were the only one I found," Serana said, her voice laced with concern, "why?"
"No reason," I said, voice cracking while my mind conjured up images of Aela's dead body, crushed under thousands of pounds of ruuble. Placing my hand on the snowy dirt, I began to force myself up. A burning pain in my chest forced me back to the ground.
"Don't move," Serana warned, "I had to pull a peice of rubble out of you." Her face conveyed worry, probally at the prospect of losing a fresh meal. "Here, I found this near your body," she said, holding out my sword, "thought it might be yours."
"Yeah, it is," I said, "thanks." Grabbing my sword out of Serana's hands, I forced myself to my feet. The pain was almost unbearable. The moment I was on both feet, I stumbled foward. Serana caught me with inhuman strenght. Using her as a stand, I managed to gain my footing. "What's the nearest town?" I asked.
"Dawnstar," came Serana's curt reply. She looked at me for a few seconds before saying, "You don't have any armor, and I don't have any to fit your particular physice."
"Well then we better get going," I praicticly chuckled out. Turning to the north, sword in hand and pain a distant memory, I set off on my next grand adventure.
Not being able to stand boredom, I opted to learn somthing about the bloodthirsty monster to my side. Sucking in my breath, I began the conversation. "So, where are you from?" I akwardly asked. Turning her head to face me, Serana raised an eyebrow at the sudden question.
She smirked for a second before answering, "I'm from a small castle to the north of solitude." A sigh left her mouth before continuing, "I think we should head there, I need to deliver somthing and I promise will be rewarded."s
"Okay, but Dawnstar is just ahead, and unlike you, I need to eat food," I said, not really happy about going to a whole castle full of bloodsuckers. She did save my life though. Not to mention the reward. Getting bored in the silence once again, I decided to ask, "What are your parents like."
A pure look of suprise crossed her face, and she missed a step before answering, "My mom was always nice. She actually taught me some alchemy. But one day she dissapeard, and I never saw her again." I was confused that she didn't mention her father.
"What about your father?" I asked, voicing my confusion. At the mention of her father, her eyes squeezed shut, and a pained look crossed her face.
"I don't want to talk about it, okay?" Serana whispered. I gave a curt nod, agreeing to not press further. In the newfound silence, my thoughts wondered to Aela. Knowing she was dead hurt me inside. I was so focused on my thoughts that I almost didn't hear the sound of paws hittinng snow coverd dirt.
A vicios howl rang through the air a I bent my whole body to the left. An Ice Wolf flew over and hit the ground in front of me, skiding to a halt. It jerked its bodyaround and hurled itself at me once again. The wolf obviusly underestiated my speed. When the Ice Wolf was half-way to my body, I raised my sword straight ahead. The beast immeditaly impaled itself on my sword, skewered to the hilt. "Weird," Serana chirped.
"What's weird?" I asked, genuinly cofused.
She let out a musing sigh before answering, "I thought wolves were supposed to be smart, but they see kind of dum."
"Hey! There are plenty of smart wolves!" I exclaimed indignantly. Serana meerly smirked. Letting out a chuckle, I decided to just stop talking, since Dawngaurd's Windpeek Inn was in sight.
Praticly demolishing the door to get in. I basked in the heat from the inn's masssive fire pit. Taking long strides to the front desk, I put ten Septims on the aged wodden surface. The barmaiden merely looked at me and asked, "What is this for?"
"I want a room," I yawned out. I heard a slight crack, and ralized tht the wooden counter was cracking under the weight of me leaning on it. The barmaiden waved her hand in the drection of a room just to the right of me.
"Hey, you seem like a nice guy, but I don't know you well enough to be sharing a bed with you!" Serana joked. I chose to ignore her, opting to actually shut the cracked wooden door in her face. Grabbing the linen tunic, wich I had found hanging inside the smal wardrobe in the upper right corner of the room, I slwoly lifted it up. Once it was copletely off, I felt for the scar on my chest. It was there. So a peice of rubble had logged itself in me. Bending over to unstrap my greaves, I couldnt't help but think about how beutiful the vampire woman was. Casting these thoughts aside, I climbed into the bed.
The smell of smoke dragged me from sleep. Looking around, I relized that the room was on fire. I grabbed my sword and bolted thorugh the room door, demolishing it. Bursting from the inn, I saw somthing I didn't like. Serana, bound, gagged and uncosius, with nine followers of Stendar srrounding her. One of them had a torch. All of them had weapons. They attacked me.
One swung his mace at me but I leaned away from the attack. I then graabed his arm, broke it, and slamed into the wooden beams holding up the roof. The next one tried to stab me. I ducked under, right hooked his jaw and kicked him several feet away. They came in pairs next, one with an axe and the other with a spear. I sidestepped the spear jabed and grabed the axe mid swing. I squeezed the wooden haft of the axe so hard it broke. I grabbed the spearman's arm and pulled him into my shoulder, knocking him unconcius. In that same second second, I kicked the axe head right into the other man's face. Three came next. Another spearman and two swordmen. The spearman jabbed at me, but I ducked and he hit one of the oter men. I kicked the spearman in his right knee, shattering it. As he fell I rose. One of the swordmen stabbed me in the stomac. I didn't flinch when I pulled the sword out, but he did. Before he could move I choped his head off. The Last sworman swung at me, but I blocked it and chopped his arm off. Before he could scream, I kicked his legs out from under him, and crushed his skull under foot. The last two ran.
Rushing over to Seranah, I pulled off the gag and undid the rope. She stared at me wide eyed for about ten seconds before speaking up. "Um, you might want to put somthing on," She said pointing at me. I blushed as I relized I had left my armor in te inn. I was wearing nothing but trousers.
"Shut up," I grumbled. She laughed lightly. Walking over to the dead follower I had decapitated, I could see he was about my size. I stripped him of his robe and undershirt and quickly put them on.