"Where are we?" A hooded figure muttered to the other similarly mysterious character to her right whilst snapping the neck of a rabbit and passing it to a volunteer of their cause.

"Another mile, my dear."

"Will they let us in?"

"Whiterun has received threats my dear, Balgruuf personally has seen attempts on his life."

"I doubt the stabbing of his son helped." She whispered, looking over her shoulder to check on the children who sat slumped and asleep on the horses donated to their cause.

"That was an isolated incident."

"The Lady in the Wall didn't shove the dagger in his thigh." She said sharply, turning her head to look at him.

"No, she didn't. But we can't afford to make assumptions. Gods know how many people don't like us." He replied in his calm tones, continuously peering over the horizon.

Silence followed. They continued to follow the path, reaching for weapons upon hearing creatures paw the dirt in the nearby forests and the groans of a giant in the distance.

A woman approached as they reached the first farms outside of Whiterun.

Sandrancia halted to horses and their guards, giving them the signal to run if needs be.

The leader of the orphans reached for her bow, and readied an arrow, walking towards the woman, peering into the darkness beneath the cloak.

"Who goes there? Shall we part with peac-"

"Or dine with death?" A voice replied.

A pair of copper eyes shone in the pale moonlight as Serena removed her hood.

"Serena, how long has it been?" Sandrancia smiled and embraced her old adventurer.

"No time for chatter, my friend, I bear news." Serena replied, touching her shoulder at arm's length.

"Did Whiterun send you?"

"The Jarl himself."

"Well?" She enquired nervously.

"The houses, for the orphans… They've been raided and… sacrifices… they're everywhere…"

"Sacrifices? Who?" She queried, lifting her eyes off of the path floor and into Serena's eyes.

"This wasn't an act of war. It was an attempt at, well, what I think was an attempt at… Oh, Sandrancia, I can't go back in there."

"What was it? Look at me," She grabbed Serena's chin and lifted it to the level of her own, "and tell me what it was."

"Symbols. Ancient symbols. In blood. Symbols of Him, the other Dragonborn."

"What does Miraak want now?"

"This was a call for vampires. We have a long standing connection with Dragonborns, and legend says we can be summoned. When desired, of course. But that is not all."

"Hmm." Sandrancia poked the ground with a toe.

"These symbols asked the vampires to turn the children. He wants an army, he wants yours."

"I don't have an army."

"Look around you, my dear," An elderly voice interjected from the silence between them.

"I don't want them to fight," Sandrancia, said turning to her companion, "I won't let them fight, they're kids for goodness sake!

"By the divines! He won't let us in? I told the Jarl he needed more protection! I offered him…"

Sandrancia paused, stroking her chin and wondering what to call the Dark Brotherhood.

"Old friends."

She took her head in her hands and thought furiously for a moment, her companions watching her with worry.

After a few minutes of pacing back and forth, her thoughts being interrupted by the hisses of vampires as they were hit by beams of dawn's sunlight, Sandrancia made her final decision.

"We will have to camp outside by a farm. I know a guy, an old friend."

"My dear," the old man said, walking up to her side, "he will not let you, you know this."

"He didn't say anything about existing outside the walls. And besides," She said pulling out a blade and checking its sharpness, testing it on her finger with a prick, "I want to do some investigation."

Sandrancia, sheathed her dagger and turned around to her band of children and guards, holding up her hands to signal orders.

"We have been forbidden from living within Whiterun, but nevertheless, we will camp outside by a farm. Guards, half of you will hunt, the other half will set up the camps. Teachers, do as you may in instructing the vitality of knowledge.

"Serena," Sandrancia said, smiling to herself, "let's have an adventure."

Several times were they stopped by guards who instructed them to leave the walls of this city and never return, but some gentle and some not so gentle remarks aided their entrance into Sandrancia's and the orphans' home.

They stood outside, daggers and magicka poised, ready for an attack.

They glanced on last time at each other, nodded, and Sandrancia kicked open the already ajar door with a pointed toe.

They entered in silence, moving at every sound, but they found nothing.

The furniture was toppled, however, and books torn apart, but one remained seemingly perfect. It was placed on the dining table, with candles light around it.

"The hell is this." Serena said as she walked past the door, seeing the light flood into the corridor.

She glanced around the dining room and walked to what seemed like an altar.

She peered down at the 'altar', looking up to see Sandrancia enter with similar caution.

"What is it?" She asked.

Serena, after sheathing weapons, wiped off the dust and the smeared stains of blood and opened the book. On every page was a scrawled symbol, but unlike one that she had seen before.

Her partner came closer and looked at the symbols, touching the ink that scarred the pages.

"Erei laat sul." A voice whispered behind her.

Sandrancia turned around to see what spoke to her. She saw nothing.

"Sandrancia?" Her shield sister enquired with concern.

"I'm fine… it was nothing…" She replied, looking around curiously.

She blew out the candles with frustration and picked up the book, ready to leave as soon as possible.

"Whoever was here, has already left their mark, but unfortunately, we can only find very little of it."

They left in silence, leaving the house and being escorted to the camps by angry and yet fearful guards. But neither of them saw the dark figure pass behind them and leave the house.

Their work was done, and if they died now, the Soul Cairn would repay them dearly.