Chapter 6 – The Wrath of the Thrall
Arian felt bad about how he left things with Ysolda. Considering they had slept together, twice, he owed her a little bit more than just a note. But Arian had known in his gut she wasn't safe around him, and to Arian it made more sense to rip that bandage off as quickly as possible.
At least Frosty, his bizarrely intelligent and faithful frost troll, was travelling beside him. The two journeyed east, Arian planning on visiting the city of Windhelm for work. There was no guarantee there'd be any there, but Arian figured the Stormcloak capital would be so busy waging war that they'd have no time to deal with bounties. Leaving plenty for Arian to scoop up.
On the second day of their traveling, once they had passed Valtheim Towers where the bodies of the bandits Arian had slain earlier were still lingering, Arian took Frosty off the main trail. The last thing he wanted were for patrolling guards to see him with a frost troll without a leash of some sort. Arian was worried that a guard's first instinct would be to attack his hairy friend and Frosty probably wouldn't leave any prisoners.
Once they were off trail Arian decided he should keep working at training Frosty. Frosty had managed to come to his rescue when the thugs had kidnapped Ysolda, so that gave Arian the idea that Frosty had a sense for combat. That could prove invaluable so Arian found a nice secluded section of the woods to test out his theory.
"Frosty, you wait here," Arian said, and he pointed to the ground. "Then when I give the signal, umm…ka-kaw….then I want you to go to that tree, then right fifty paces." Arian made sure to point this all out to Frosty, and Frosty stared at Arian in what was possibly confusion. It could be hard to read what those beady black eyes were thinking.
Taking the chance, Arian ran to hide where he wanted Frosty to find him. He waited a moment, and noticed he didn't actually hear anything beyond the ambience of the forest. Was Frosty staying quiet on purpose?
Then cupping his hands over his mouth Arian made the awkward 'ka-kaw' noise. Arian tensed as he waited for a minute, anxious to know if Frosty had understood him. As another minute passed, Arian was starting to wonder if Frosty had just fallen asleep standing up. It wouldn't be the first time in their travels.
Arian took a step away from the tree he was hiding behind to look for Frosty, when much to his surprise Frosty was standing right in front of him. With a yelp Arian fell backwards, startled at how quiet and sneaky his large frost troll friend had been. Frosty hopped up and down on the spot, laughing its low quiet rumble.
"Ha ha, very funny," Arian commented as he stood, smiling sheepishly. "You think you're so clever, don't you?" Frosty kept laughing as it kept nodding its head.
"You're a stinker," Arian remarked as he ruffled the hair on top of Frosty's head. They were suddenly interrupted by a large booming sound in the distance. Both Arian and Frosty looked to the source.
"Come on boy, er, girl, er…what are you?" Arian asked. He realized he had never confirmed Frosty's gender. Frosty stared at him blankly, and Arian shrugged his shoulders helplessly. He didn't really want to check Frosty's fine plumbing, so that question would have to wait.
The two started to run to where the sound came from, and as they grew closer the commotion grew louder and louder. They slowed to a walk as they neared, and Arian could see ahead there was a break in the forest. Arian fell to his stomach and ordered Frosty to wait as he went to inspect what was happening.
It sounded like a large battle was taking place, and as Arian reached the edge of the forest, his suspicions were confirmed. The conflict was taking place in a large low valley in the middle of the forest. Down the hill from Arian were two armies that were interlocked in fierce combat, and all around them was the forest. From what Arian could tell, it was the Imperial army battling the Stormcloaks. The red clashing against the blue as warriors from both sides duked it out painted a tapestry for Arian.
On either end of the valley were generals, sitting stoically on horses shouting commands at their respective armies. The Imperial general was marked by a helmet that curved forward with a large black trim of bristle along the top. As for the Stormcloak one, he wore the top of a bear's head for a helmet, no doubt a trophy for his actions. It must have been a skirmish between the two factions, but likely an unplanned one as they didn't seem to be fighting over anything of interest.
Arian watched the battle with interest, unable to take his eyes off the conflict. In one section of the battle, there was an Imperial warrior locked in a sword fight with a Redguard Stormcloak. The two were trading blows, side stepping around each other and aiming for vulnerable spots in the others armor. They danced for several moments, and just before they charged in again an arrow suddenly entered the Imperial's back and he fell to one knee. A Stormcloak archer nodded to his comrade, who then proceeded to behead his enemy in gory fashion.
In another area, an Imperial covered head to toe in large steel plate armor was battling a quick Khajiit Stormcloak who only wore light leather armor. The Imperial swung a heavy mace cumbersomely, and the Khajiit was easily able to side step every attack and stabbed at the big man with a dagger, leaving little nicks and dents in the armor. Then as the large Imperial swung in the Khajiit easily ducked underneath the attack and then lunged forward and thrust his dagger into the tender spot just underneath the man's armpit. Just as the Khajiit thought he had victory, the large man suddenly reached out and grabbed the Khajiit using his free arm. The Khajiit struggled for a few moments, but then the Imperial slammed the Khajiit into the ground and promptly curb stomped him.
Then Arian's eyes went to another scene, where a dark elf Imperial with two swords was fighting off three Stormcloak warriors. They'd swing in at the dark elf, and the dark elf would nimbly block the attacks and dodge all three warriors. He had a cocky grin on his face, and the three Stormcloak warriors were growing more and more frustrated. One charged in, and the dark elf parried his attack and then lunged and stabbed the man through the chest. The second warrior charged in as the third warrior went to flank the dark elf, and the dark elf turned his body to balance the two. Both warriors charged in, and with an incredible display of swordsman ship the dark elf fought them both off. Just then the warrior on the dark elf's left seemed to gain the upper hand, so the dark elf quickly focused his attention on him. He managed to disarm and then slash the warrior, but then the dark elf was helpless as the third Stormcloak warrior ran the dark elf through from behind.
Snapping himself from his daze, Arian shook his head. He wasn't even sure how long he had been watching the battle for, all he knew was that it was probably too long. The last thing he wanted was for either army to see him, so Arian started crawling away, but took one last look back at the battle. The Stormcloaks were starting to lose, their numbers dwindling and their forces beginning to pull back. Their general was looking around in confusion, as if something was supposed to be going differently than it was.
Arian considered for a moment going down there and helping the losing side. It was in his nature to help people, and right now it looked like the Stormcloaks needed his help. However he knew that helping the Stormcloaks would make him an enemy to the entire Imperial army, and that wasn't something Arian could afford to do. It still bothered him, so with a heavy heart Arian sighed and walked away.
Frosty was waiting exactly where Arian had left him, and Arian gave him a pet. As if he could sense his friend was troubled, Frosty let out a little moan and moved closer to Arian. Arian managed a little chuckle, blown away that this frost troll could show intelligence and compassion.
"Thanks buddy," Arian said. "I'll be okay."
Then there was a sickening scream that didn't come from the battle, and Arian's glanced that way. Frosty seemed to grow agitated, and Arian felt a knot in his stomach tighten uncontrollably. Carefully the two navigated over to the scene, and the sound of another clash grew nearer and nearer. They took cover behind a tree and inspected the scene, Arian not sure what other madness could be taking place.
The horror unfolding here put the other battle to shame. There were ten Stormcloak warriors remaining, originally there must have been twenty, but their remains were scattered all over the forest. The survivors looked terrified as they nervously clutched their weapons and tried to band together. Suddenly there was a black blur and one Stormcloak was dragged away screaming, a trail of blood falling where he had once been. The others gasped and nervously turned to where their comrade had been, not sure what to think.
Only one warrior seemed to keep his wits, an Argonian. He was brandishing a sword and shield and held them with purpose, preparing himself for whatever attack came his way. This was a fight Arian knew he could help with, but he wanted to know what horrors were attacking these man before running in blind.
Just then there was another black blur that charged at the Argonian. Arian was about to shout to warn the warrior, when the Argonian moved into action. With quick and cunning reflexes, the Argonian shield bashed at the black blur. The blur stopped in its tracks and solidified into a form all could see as it fell backwards from the hit. Arian looked at it to see its deformed nose and black leather robes. The same as the vampires that had attacked Reundelf.
Finally knowing what he was up against, Arian instructed Frosty to wait for his signal and then he charged into the fray. The vampire that had been knocked down quickly sprung to his feet. He shared a quick stare with the Argonian and hissed, and then dashed towards another Stormcloak turning into that black blur again. The vampire grabbed another Stormcloak and there was another spray of blood as the Argonian turned to the scene.
"Fight me damn you!" the Argonian yelled, unaware of another black blur dashing in at him from behind. Just before it reached him Arian slashed down, and that vampire howled as it arm went flying off. That vampire crashed into the Argonian's back, making the Argonian stumble forward in surprise. Arian quickly grabbed the newly crippled vampire by the collar of his robes and threw him into the ground. The Argonian turned as Arian stabbed down into the undead monster, it letting out a last defiant scream.
Arian then turned to the Argonian and asked, "You alright? What's happening here?"
"I am fine, thanks to you. We were on our way to flank the Imperials when these beasts came out of nowhere," the Argonian explained. "My name is Ratar, and I would be honored in your aid defeating these monsters."
"I'm Arian. And it would be my absolute pleasure," Arian responded. Just as he finished saying that, there were three black blurs that darted through the battlefield, not attacking anyone but circling the survivors. Arian, Ratar and the remaining Stormcloaks quickly gathered together in a small group, trying to cover all sides.
Arian could tell that was what the vampires wanted, to trap them all at once. He wasn't sure what strategy they were playing at, but it wasn't going to work. Then suddenly all the blurs stopped, and Arian could see surrounding them were three vampires, none of them with weapons. These ones were more animalistic than the ones Arian had fought to save Reundelf. Their hands were more like claws, their teeth more like fangs. Arian stared into one's beady yellow eyes as they glowed.
"Surrender now, and you will live to see a few more days," one vampire offered. "Not many more, but past today."
"Yeah, I have a counter offer," Arian stated. "Ka-kaw!"
The vampire stared at him confused, and Arian grinned as his plan came to fruition. There was a sudden roar from behind the vampire, and the vampire turned to see Frosty standing behind him. He was visibly just as confused as Arian was earlier at how eerily quiet the large frost troll could be. Frosty grabbed the vampire by the arm, digging its claws into the vampire, and Frosty tossed him into a nearby tree.
Arian used the shock as a chance to attack an unprepared vampire. Dashing at the monster, Arian swung downwards quickly. The vampire came to fast enough to dodge out of the way of the attack. Arian thought to swing again, but the vampire reacted faster and lunged forward at Arian fangs bared. Pivoting quickly Arian dodged the attack and swung outwards wildly with the broadside of his sword. The attack hit the vampire in the back and his lunge turned into a tumble as he crashed face first into the ground.
Arian then spun around and jumped into the air, stabbing downwards upon the downed vampire. The vampire just managed to roll out of the way and Arian's sword stabbed down into the ground harmlessly. Back on its feet, the vampire slashed at Arian with its claw, making Arian let go off his sword and dodge the attack. The vampire was fast and attempted a second attack, but Arian just managed to dodge the attempt by ducking low.
He then jumped backwards as the vampire continued to assault him. Planting his feet firmly, Arian got ready as the vampire lunged in with its fangs, going for Arian's throat. As it did, Arian leaned to the side and dodged the attack, and then reached up and grabbed the vampire by the neck. Unprepared, the vampire was helpless as Arian slammed the vampires head into his knee, making it recoil backwards in shock.
Just as the vampire recovered, it turned to receive a debilitating punch in the face from Arian making it stutter backwards more. Arian didn't relent and punched the vampire again, making it stutter backwards even more. Then Arian kicked it in the chest hard, sending it backwards into a tree, and once again beside his sword, Arian then swept low and kicked his sword high upwards. Then with a dexterity Arian didn't even know he possessed, Arian suddenly jumped and kicked his sword in the hilt, sending it flying towards the vampire. The vampire was helpless as Arian's sword impaled it into the tree.
Arian took a moment to catch his breath and commented to himself, "Damn I'm cool." He was consistently impressed with his fighting prowess, not truly knowing what he was capable of. With a look to the others, Arian managed to gather what had happened with the rest of the battle. Frosty was bleeding in a couple of places, but the vampire Frosty had been fighting was considerably less recognizable. The third vampire had managed to kill two more Stormcloaks, but Ratar had managed to kill it, his sword stained with its blood.
"Thank you, we could not have done this without you," Ratar stated, to which Arian nodded. Frosty was sitting by its kill, playing with the remains of the vampire. The remaining Stormcloaks were perturbed by Frosty's presence, but Ratar didn't seem to mind.
"You should rethink joining that battle, there are only six of you left and I'm not sure what good you'll be able to do," Arian suggested.
"It is our duty to liberate Skyrim from the Imperial bastards," Ratar firmly argued. "No matter the cost."
Before Arian could argue more, the sound of clapping caught everyone's attention. They looked around as it seemed to echo in all directions, and Arian gripped the hilt of his sword carefully. If it was the Imperials, then Arian would have to accept the fact that he was pretty much an honorary Stormcloak. If it was more vampires, he would be ready.
"Well, well. That was an impressive showing. Three of my elite dead just like that," said a deep, menacing voice. The voice seemed to be coming from every direction, and Arian grew more and more uneasy. Then suddenly the source of the voice came into view.
Floating several feet in the air, arms crossed wearing red and black armor with a flowing cape, was a pale faced man with trim black hair. His eyes were yellow like the others and he had maintained goatee. He seemed bemused at the scene, and Arian readied himself for anything.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lord Harkon, king of the vampires," the vampire said.
"King of the vampires?" Ratar asked. "Your kind are savages, you have no king!"
"Um, let's maybe not piss off the floating vampire?" Arian whispered, this newcomer actually making him nervous.
"Savages?" Harkon questioned. "No. You are all sheep, while we are lions. We are the apex predator while you are simply the prey."
Harkon then looked to Frosty, who was back on its feet and growling at him.
"How intriguing," Harkon stated. "We will have to study this smart beast. Now as for the rest of you, if you surrender now I promise you I will make you comfortable before the end. If you do not, I can't guarantee your living arrangements, or if you'll even leave these woods."
They were going to take them to eat later, Arian realized. It was a sick and terrifying thought, but Arian wasn't about to surrender. He was sure whatever this Harkon threw his way, he could handle it. Not to Arian's surprise, most of the remaining Stormcloaks felt differently. They quickly threw their weapons to the ground and kneeled, much to Harkon's amusement.
"Cowards!" Ratar yelled. "I will never give in to you!" Arian stepped forward and nodded.
"Yeah, what he said!" Frosty roared and ran to Arian's side, standing defiantly in front of Harkon.
"Well, I suppose we don't need all of you alive. Demontor will take care of you," Harkon stated.
Who? Arian thought to himself, when suddenly the ground began to shake. Arian and Ratar shared a quick confused expression, and then they looked forward as through the fog of trees emerged a large figure clad in armor. Standing at least seven feet tall, Demontor wore heavy and huge black ebony armor that jutted out in all directions. His shoulders, elbows and knees curved into large spikes, his gauntlets were razor sharp, and two abnormally large horns poked out from his helmet.
In his hand he carried a large battle hammer. In a normal man's hands it would have been enormous, but in his it almost looked like a plaything. The head of the hammer was covered in spikes with one spike poking straight up from the top, and there was a red gem in its center on both flat sides. It glowed green, and Arian was blown away just by looking at it.
"Impressed?" Harkon asked, judging Arian and Ratar's expressions. "It is the daedric war hammer Volendrung. We claimed it as a prize from the orcs long ago.
"Now Demontor, leave the troll alive. It doesn't matter what happens to the other two," Harkon commanded. Demontor nodded, his large armor clunking as he did so, and Arian and Ratar hastily readied their weapons. Arian had never seen an opponent like this before, but he didn't intend to go down easily.
Arian charged in at Demontor and swung in quickly hoping to score a fast hit. However faster than anything that large should have been capable of doing, Demontor blocked the attack. Demontor held Arian at bay with ease using the hilt of his hammer, and Arian tried desperately hard to push against the titan's strength.
Then relenting his attack Arian stepped back and swung again at Demontor, aiming low to try and take out the monster's legs. Like a flash of lightning Demontor swung his hammer in a low arc and hit Arian's sword. Arian could do nothing as his sword went flying from his grasp, flying and pinning itself into a tree. Arian stared at his sword in bewilderment, and then as he looked back to Demontor there was no way he was fast enough to block what happened next.
He took the full force of the hammer to his chest, sending Arian off his feet and flying backwards. Arian crashed and rolled to a stop. His ribs felt crushed, like gravel. All of his energy was gone. It was a miracle he was even breathing. How could something that big move that fast? Arian thought to himself, as he just managed to roll his head to watch the fight.
Frosty had charged in next, roaring in fury at what Demontor had done to Arian. The frost troll swung at Demontor, which Demontor blocked with Volendrung. As Frosty battered at the hammer, the troll seemed to get more and more tired. Then Demontor lunged forward and grabbed Frosty by the neck. The large man thrust Frosty into the ground, but instead of killing the troll, Demontor simply laid his hammer on the troll's chest.
Arian helplessly watched as his best friend moaned and seemed to get weaker and weaker. He then saw a green energy flowing from Frosty into the hammer, and Arian realized there was an enchantment on it. Little good that knowledge did him now as he couldn't move.
Ratar was there next and he swung wildly at Demontor. His hammer otherwise occupied, Demontor let Ratar's sword hit him, but each hit bounced harmlessly off the giant's armor. Ratar kept trying and Demontor only watched for several moments as Ratar searched desperately for a weakness in the large black armor.
Demontor raised a fist slowly, and as it looked like he was about punch downwards Ratar raised his shield. In a terrifying blur of speed Demontor punched down and shattered Ratar's shield. Ratar crumpled downwards in shock, groaning in pain.
"Good luck besting Demontor with a shattered arm," Harkon mocked. Ratar would not give up, and Arian admired his courage. Ratar swung relentlessly with his good arm, striking hits on Demontor's armor. However it still had no effect, and Ratar was helpless mid-swing as Demontor grabbed his arm. Ratar's eyes went wide as Demontor lifted him into the air, squeezing Ratar's arm.
Ratar screamed as there was sickening crack and he dropped his sword. Finally the Argonian warrior seemed defeated, and his head slumped over. There was nothing more they could do. For the first time Arian could remember, he had truly lost.
Demontor looked to his master, and Harkon seemed to ponder for a moment what to do next. He looked from Demontor to the frost troll, and then to Arian, and then at the Stormcloak soldiers. Nodding as if he was content with his thought process, Harkon started to float away.
"We'll take them prisoner. But kill that one. Make sure it is an example for the rest," Harkon instructed as he drifted away.
Demontor nodded, and then looked to Ratar. Ratar stared at the giant in horror, and could do nothing as Demontor grabbed Ratar by the head and shoulder. Arian watched from the ground, and he could even make a sound as his world began to fade to black. The last image he saw would be burned in his mind forever, as Demontor ripped Ratar's head off with his bare hands. Arian lost consciousness at the site of Demontor holding Ratar's head, the Argonian's spinal cord still attached and dangling downwards.
Arian only remembered bits and pieces of the next few days. Occasionally he would awaken from the throbbing in his chest to see himself trapped in a wooden cage. He was part of some convoy in a series of cages that were being taken somewhere. Arian had no way to know.
In the cage in front of him were some of the Stormcloak soldiers. They looked terrified and malnourished, as he expected he was. Behind him was Frosty. They had bound Frosty in something his friend couldn't escape from, and it broke Arian's heart to see Frosty look so defeated.
As the days passed like a blur, Arian felt the temperature grow colder, but he felt a burning in his chest from the pain. If he didn't receive some medical attention soon or a potion, he wasn't sure he was going to recover from that injury.
Was this how Arian was going to die? Arian grew scared at the thought. Would he never see Ysolda again? Frosty? And worst of all, Arian grew scared he'd never find that red-haired girl in the green dress. He would never feel complete. That to Arian was almost a fate worse than death.
At one point, Arian felt himself being shifted from the wagon he was being carried on to the sensation of being on water. Groaning, Arian dragged himself to the edge of his cage to get a better look at where he was heading. There was a heavy fog on the water, but as it started to clear he could hear the terrified murmurs of the Stormcloak soldiers.
Just ahead of them was a large castle on an island. Its towers poked high into the sky, razor sharp rocks guarded the side of the island. Ahead of them was a bridge with gargoyles lining the sides. Arian had no idea where he was or what he was looking at, but as he felt himself get carried from the boat back to land, he saw Harkon walking by his cage.
"Welcome to Castle Volkihar," Harkon said. "This will be where you die."
