Chapter 4: Serana

_Dream_

"Why are we going up to my mother's lab?" Serana questioned impatiently as they ran through the narrow corridors of Castle Volkihar.

"Harkon mentioned it," Sol replied hurriedly, batting away skeevers and death hounds as he ran, "so it must be important."

"Don't you think we could be walking into a trap?" Serana's wariness of entering her mother's lab was obvious. "Putting your trust in a dying follower of Molag Bal isn't exactly the best idea."

"It's not like we have much of a choice." Sol stopped and turned to face Serana, a look of anxiety on his face. "Our best bet is to go in and stop whatever it is he's done in there. He could've gotten to Valerica."

That seemed to do the trick. The wave of sudden realization spreading across her face, Serana barged past the Dovahkiin, ready to confront her father once more. He smiled as she walked past, noticing how in times of crisis and combat she gave off a more pleasing aura.

When all of this is over, perhaps we'll be able to settle down and relax. That would be nice.

"Ready?" Serana braced herself at the door, ready to go.

"Of course, Serana." Sol looked at her with determination, and together, they opened the door. What lied before them was the last thing they expected.

Hermaeus Mora.

It didn't fit. If any of the Daedric princes should be here, it should Molag Bal, not Hermaeus Mora. And what could he possibly want with Harkon?

None of this makes any sense. Whatever it is, it can't be good.

"Hello, Dragonborn. I've been expecting you." The Daedric Prince bellowed, the noise of his voice sounding like it came from a far away, underwater cave. "I see you've met my newest servant, Harkon."

"Bluffing won't work, Hermaeus. Harkon serves Molag Bal, not you." Sol retorted with angered emphasis. He didn't feel like dealing with this creep a second time. "What do you want?"

"Oh, just for you to see that I have no need for you anymore. Molag Bal and I have an arrangement, albeit a tense one. In exchange for some of my knowledge, I asked for him to give me a vampire as my apprentice. And seeing as how you managed to destroy his physical form, I need some sort of payment."

The Dovahkiin reached for his sword, prepared to fight off an attack. "You won't be getting anything from me, foul prince. Twisting Miraak into your slave might have worked in the past but doing so with Harkon will not. Count on it."

"Oh, I have no doubt you'll try to stop me. But your payment has nothing to do with you." The green tentacled eye staring at him seemed to smile, a smile that Sol realized was a hallucination given the tension in the room. "I need a vampire soul to fill a vampire body, and it seemed you've brought me the perfect specimen."

Sol quickly looked at Serana. He hadn't even realized that she had been taken prisoner, writhing in pain as Hermaeus Mora's tentacled constricted her. "Soon she'll be joining me in Apocrypha. Say goodbye, Dragonborn."

Sol took one look down at his feet, realizing what he had to do. Sheathing his sword, he pointed his right arm directly at Serana, palm completely open. "I'm sorry, Serana. I'll find a way out, I promise."

He could barely see it, but Serana had nodded. She understood exactly what needed to be done. A single tear rolled down as he cast the spell. Soul Trap.

An instant later, he drew in breath and released it into the loudest Thu'um he could muster. "FUS RO DAH!" The Shout hit the tentacles covering Serana directly, ripping right through them, and right through Serana. It was obvious his plan had worked when he heard her body hit the floor. He couldn't bring himself to look up and see what he had just done. Hermaeus Mora was visibly enraged.

"How dare you interfere in my plan, mortal! I will have you tortured for an eternity for this!" The Daedric prince shot a tentacle directly at Sol's chest, knocking him backwards into the Soul Cairn. That's when Sol noticed something that he had been oblivious to the whole time.

Isn't the portal to the Soul Cairn purple?

This portal was not, in fact, purple, but a mix of light blue and gold. Hoping he could use this change to his advantage, he didn't try to stop himself from falling. He then slipped through the void without a sound, leaving Hermaeus Mora alone with Harkon's corpse in the lab.

"Interesting. I didn't realize Ankhseram had a purpose for the mortal. So be it." The Daedra then vanished from the room, leaving no trace of his presence.

_Void_

Where am I? What's going on?

Hmm. A Dragon Slayer? I wonder what brought it here.

What? Who's there? Why is there a voice in my head?

Perhaps he belongs with the rest of them. Fine, I'll send him along. Now where are the rest of them?

The rest of who? Why won't you answer me?

It seems that most of them are on island known by the mortals as Tenrou. I guess he'll fit there.

Tenrou? What? That's not in Tamriel? Wait a minute, are you a Daedric prince?

Now for the hard part. Blocking his memory. Always tricky.

Wait, you're going to block my memory! Stop, and answer my questions! Can't you hear me?

Alright, all done. On you go.

Wait, what? What's happening? AHHHGHGH!

The Dovahkiin floats through numerous nebulae and galaxies in a few minutes before quickly reaching a black hole. Suddenly, he fell onto the ground, and there he slept for several hours, before waking up dazed and confused.

Where am I?

The stranger woke without a clue as to what had happened. He laid on the ground, robes caked with dirt and tattered around the sleeves…

_Present_

Sol woke up with a start. His eyes wide open, he remembered everything now. How he had managed to end up in a foreign land.

Frantically searching the light dimension for his stored things, he quickly found the black soul gem and sighed in relief. It glowed with a dark red hue. He leaned back and sighed in relief.

Serana.

"Right. Time to get to work."