Slayer Gothic 2 - Dawnguard

Part 7

Campsite

We arrived at camp early in the morning after having spent several days hunting down a few people who Isran had thought could aid us. They had agreed.

Of course the sun had to make itself difficult for Serana by deciding not to hide behind any clouds, but I liked it being sunny as it meant I got a good view of the camp as people prepared for a short war.

It was something impressive to see. The fields were absolutely bustling with activity. A group of Nord axe-wielders were fiercely swinging and twirling their weapons about in unison, as they prepared themselves for for the coming battle.

Not to far from them stood a platoon of crossbowmen. Their leader had his hand raised and when his his limb dropped, a barrage of bolts embedded themselves into the line of targets. Then the leader called out a command, and a new set of bolts were loaded into the crossbows. These specialised bolts exploded on contact, sending shards of wood out in random directions. The Dawnguard cheered and clapped upon seeing this.

Further towards the castle that would soon be attacking, I found a man called Gunmar and several of his trolls. The lone frost troll of the batch stood out, being the tallest and most muscular of the group. But like the others, it pounded the ground, and walked around impatiently. They were clearly eager to fight.

As Serana and I got closer to the trolls, Gunmar turned to greet us with a wide grin.

"Greetings, friends" he said "I'd hightail it to Isran if I were you. He's planning the attack as we speak"

The man eyes then wandered to the ornate bow on my back, causing eyes to widen in awe.

"You've got Auriel's Bow just like Isran promised" the man then said "Those vampires won't know what hit them".

I let them man have a quick look at the bow.

"We'll go find Isran" I then said "I want to end this as soon as possible".

Gunmar nodded his head in agreement as I headed for what I assumed was Isran's command tent, with Serana quietly following me.

Along the way a battle troll growled at Serana, they'd been trained to attack vamps and she was one of them so naturally it wanted to start a fight.

The beast's predatory growl had Serana chuckling nervously as she moved backwards. Before the troll could do any damage, Gunmar drove his fist into the its side, causing it to spin around to face him. He pointed a finger at the troll's face, and I noticed the stern look on his face as it was a big contrast to the friendly look he'd give me just moments ago. Then Gunmar motioned to Serana and I,

"Friends" he barked at the troll.

The troll bowed submissively and quickly scampered off towards the other trolls. Gunmar gave a brief apologetic look before going back to the trolls. Serana scowled at me as I was grinning.

As we walked I saw that the vampire hunters were moving about the supplies, they carried crates and sacks of different contents. Contents that I imagined ranged from potions to weapons. As for Isran, he was outside his tent, shouting orders at the men

"Ah, you're here" Isran said upon spotting us.

He directed us inside the tent and led us to a map that was spread out on a small table. Aside from the map, a small assortment of potions, a skull, and a knife rested on the table. The knife was pinned to the map and the table. Upon closer inspection, I saw that it had been driven into an area by a small island. I knew that on the island sat Castle Volkihar.

"The two of you know this castle better than anyone else. I need your help in planning out this attack" Isran told us "We will be arriving by boats".

He then placed a finger on the map, pointing out the direction we attackers would travel in.

"The boats will have to land here" he went on to say "Upon landing, they just need to breach the castle's defences."

Isran nodded before turning his attention to Serana, which made him uncomfortable.

"Uhm... We want you" he then said "And Gothic to lead the attack. Serana, you will play a crucial role in this. You know the castle's layout, and we will need you to direct the hunters when we land. And you will need to take Gothic and I to wherever it is your father is."

Serana nodded stiffly, and Isran noticed her discomfort.

"I... know this might be hard for you" he struggled to say "I won't pretend that I understand what you're going through".

The Redguard then paused, and awkwardly shifted from what foot to the other.

"I.. I mean, we that is, the Dawnguard, appreciate what you're doing" he managed to say.

Serana's expression lightened, and she offered a toothy smile, purposely flashing her fangs to make the vampire hunter all the more uncomfortable I didn't doubt.

"Thank you, Isran" she said "I'll do my best."

He nodded in recognition before turning to me again.

"We have have plenty of crossbowmen. And of course Gunmar's trolls. They will ride together on a larger boat. We'll want the trolls attack them head on".

Risky, but trolls were hard to put down. Only fire was potent against them and this was a weakness that they shared with the vampires so the blood drinkers weren't likely to start throwing fireballs around.

"If a boat were to land here" Serana was now saying.

She drew a curvy line on the map with her finger.

"You could get a small force threw the same way Gothic and I snuck in last time" she then said "and if we attack at midday that part of the castle won't be covered in shadows nor would the beach".

Isran nodded his head.

"Battling at midday would be difficult for you, Serana" the leader of the Dawnguard then said.

Since I'd never commanded armies, outside of a video game, I wasn't really sure that I understood this plan of attack, but I didn't really need to as I would sneaking in with Serana so we could deal with her father.

"It will also be difficult for the Volkihar, and I can handle a little sun" she assured him.

Isran was somewhat impressed.

"Alright, that gives us a few hours to get ready" he said "We can't afford to wait for tomorrow as Harkon must know we are here by now and we're still here by nightfall he'll send out his vampires in force".

I was surprised that Harkon hadn't already sent an army to the Dawnguard fortress in order to wipe them out. Clearly he was foolish as well as crazy.

"I'll speak to the men" Isran then said.

The hunters gathered together in short order, and listen to their leader's words.

"Brothers and sisters! My hunters! Today, we move out, and rip the vampires out at their roots, we will lay siege to Castle Volkihar!"

I had to admit, Isran had a thing for theatrics.

"In a few hours I will lead a force . We will take several boats and land at the front of the castle while a smaller team sneaks inside and slays Harkson. Then when the gate comes down will enter the castle, and eradicate every single one of them!"

Isran was replied to by eager battle cries.

"For too long we've allowed these vampires to poison the night and kill our people! Now we finally have the means to strike back! We now have Auriel's Bow!".

There were more cries and cheers from the hunters, but they were silenced when Isran raised a hand up.

"The gods themselves have favoured us and we must answer with action! The time has come to finally put an end to Harkon and his unholy prophecy! We will march on their lair and destroy those wretched abominations so they can no longer corrupt our world! This is our fight, and this is our fate. This is the time of the Dawnguard!"

With that Isran raised his mighty warhammer into the air, and in response, the hunters drew their weapons, and held them high.

"For Skyrim!" Isran yelled.

"For Skyrim!" the hunters called back in unison

I figured that they were all going to get themselves killed, but in the long run it would be worth it as long as I could kill Harkon. That was all that really mattered.

(Line Break)

Harkon's Castle

Sometimes fights can be little more than a great big blur, and that was what I was experiencing right now I raced towards great hall. I kept moving slashing and cutting down the vampires, demonic hounds, and skeletons as I ran.

I knew that Serana was close behind me, keeping the others off my back as I ran about. I hardly knew where I was going, as I didn't exactly have a map, but my Slayer senses knew where I needed to go.

While acting, rather than planning, leaped off a balcony and to the main dining hall. A vampire cushioned my fall, and my sword pierced his throat as I landed. I then dashed across the hall, weaving past swords and axes, jumping over tables and chairs.

Without further delay, I raced up the stairs, only stopping to behead a vampire who got in my way.

I came to a true halt in front of a pair of large doors. Even through them I could feel the heavy atmosphere in the next room. Whatever was in there was definitely no good. Harkon was undoubtedly beyond these doors, and he was doing something that made my Slayer sense scream at me.

Then I screamed as something hit me, and I found myself pinned against the door. I looked at the offending object to find a large ice spike, red with my blood, it was sticking out my shoulder and keeping me stuck in place.

"How marvellous. You bring your little group of vampire hunters to my home, and in doing so, you brought back my daughter" some one said.

It took me a moment to realise that it Harkon's snobbish voice that had just spoke. I also figured that he must be able to teleport as he had left the room he'd been in without opening the doors.

"And you, my daughter's little pet" the vampire lord was now saying "You brought me Auriel's Bow. The prophecy is as good as complete now, is it not?"

When I looked past Harkon's menacing glare I saw Serana, whose fear probably matched my own at he moment, although she hid it well. I wanted to tell her not to worry, but that would be a lie and while I'd never consider a vampire to be my friend I respected here too much to lie.

"I'm going to kill her, she is going to be the catalyst that brings about a golden age for vampires" the lord of this castle told me "A perfect world. A world without a sun to hamper our progress in earning our rightful place as the dominant species."

The evil glint in Harkon's eyes showed me how mad it really was. He had to be crazy to think that blotting out the sun was a good idea.

"And you, Serana" Harkon said as he turned to face his daughter "You've taken everything I've provided for you and thrown it all away".

Serana's sudden ferocity startled her father. Gone was any fear or doubt she might have had about challenging Harkon. All that remained was her anger.

"Provided for me?!" she shouted "You've destroyed our family. You've killed other vampires. You want to kill me. All over some prophecy that we barely understand".

Serana shook with rage, and her eyes burned with an inner fire that would have scared the wits out of me had she directed them my way

Harkon scoffed at his daughter before turning to me again. He stared with a look of slight amusement as I tried and failed to reach for my dropped weapon. It wasn't until the katana flew towards me that the vampire lord reacted. He reached out, grabbed the handle, and then threw the sword so hard into a wooden pillar that the tip of the blade came out of the other side.

"It appears I have you to thank for turning my daughter against me. I knew it was only a matter of time before she'd return with hatred in her heart" the vampire lord said "But I wonder what would have happened if you had been able to slay me?".

My hope would have been, and still was, that I would be able to return to Sunnydale.

"Would Valerica your next target?" he wondered "or Serana?"

I found my voice, but before I could speak the vampire lord hit me hard enough to keep my mouth shut.

"Now for the Bow" the powerful blood drinker said.

Harkon reached forward, and grabbed the top of the Bow with one hand.

"I'll be sure to leave you here to bleed out. I'll let you watch the life drain from Serana's eyes" the vampire lord was now saying "A fitting punishment for the both of you for daring to oppose me".

Harkon's eyes then widened as the holy weapon burned his hand. While he was distracted by that pain I pulled the ice spike out of my shoulder and my sword flew into my hand as I summoned it to me.

The vampire lord snapped his fingers, and gargoyles began to come out from the shadows. They instantly went for Serana, but left me alone. It was clear that Harkon wanted to deal with me personally.

"Just you and me, hunter" Harkon said with distaste. "When you showed up on my doorstep, a voice whispered into my mind. It told me to kill you."

I remained silent and kept my blade up in defence.

"Perhaps I should have listened to it!" he then said.

He lunged and struck twice at me with great speed, while also draining me with his vampire powers. I struggled to fight the symptoms of the drain life spell and to also parry the attacks.

Knowing I had to go on the offencive or I would die, I leaped forward intending to drive my sword into his chest. Harkon sidestepped the attack, and moved to skewer me. I swung my sword and deflected his blade, before spinning on my heels in order to face him.

I then slashed diagonally with my blade, and Harkon blocked easily. But that was what I wanted, as it allowed me to drive an elbow into his face. That arm was wounded so it hurt me to use it, however it worked. Harkon stumbled back, and I followed that up by kicking him in the abdomen.

We then spent at least a few minutes simply parrying each other's attacks, inflicting nothing more than scratches on each other. When I got the chance I saw that Serana was still preoccupied with the gargoyles and skeletons that her father seemed to have in endless supply.

Thankfully for me that my foe was not a true warrior, his moves were flashy, but he had more experience with me using the sword so in desperation I disarmed us both of our weapons without really even meaning to.

Next I was able to kick Harkon in the midsection, sending him stumbling a few steps back. Rather than back off, or try to recover his sword, Harkon rushed forward and swung his leg to the side in a crude kick that showed he didn't have any true martial art skills. I dropped my elbow low to meet the attack, and then struck back with a punch. Harkon smacked my fist away and spun around me. I narrowly was able to duck under his fist as he swung it at me.

He roared in pain after I hit him again and raked his claw like hands across my face. Then he attacked me once more, aiming for my neck. I grabbed his hands with mine the moment before they reached the soft flesh of my neck. After that I delivered a headbutt, eliciting a crack from Harkon's nose.

This sent him into a rage. Harkon unleashed a fearsome bellow, and grabbed my head before I could react and then rammed his knee into my chest repeatedly. I could do little more than hold my hands in front of my chest, this stopped my ribcage from being cracked.

Next he shoved me backwards and snarled, flexing his claws as he did. I struck with several jabs, with Harkon deflecting them. After the last jab, I struck wide with my right hand and punched him in the face. I received a powerful kick for my effort, and staggered back.

Harkon then took a great leap in my direction, and I raised my foot and delivered a kick of my own, which successfully grounded him.

Only he was suddenly on this feet again, he moved so fast that even with my enhanced senses I had detected the movement.

"Enough games!" he growled "I will fight like how my kind was meant to fight!"

Harkon transformed, his skin was now green, and every inch of him was covered in thick muscles. His head resembled that of a bat, and he had wings to boot. I'd seen this before, but it was still unsettling.

He was about to charge me when another transformed vampire struck him from behind. It was Serana, she both looked and sounded super pissed.

The two vamps exchanged blows, scratching each other and turning each other red as they spilled a lot blood. They rolled about on the ground, scratching, kicking and biting.

While I wanted to watch or even get involved the pain I was feeling told me that this time to inspect myself. I was sure had bruises behind my armour, but what concerned me was my shoulder wound had gotten worse due to me fighting after an ice spike had been driven into it.

Thankfully I had a heal potion in my pouch, which along with my Slayer healing power, fixed the damage very quickly. Which was good as I needed my arms strong in order to fire the divine weapon.

I took one of the special arrows I'd been given, and then aimed the bow at Harkon, when he had driven his daughter to the ground he charged me and I opened fire. The resulting light show blinded me.

(Line Break)

In the end Harkon had died when my new bow sent an arrow into his heart. While the light show had been impressive, overall it had been rather anti-climatic really.

Not long after Harkon became a pile of dust Isran joined us in the main hall, he looked around, and then lowered his weapon.

"It's over" the leader of the Dawnguard said ""He's dead, and the prophecy dies with him. I..."

He then hesitated, while looking at Serana.

"I suppose this is difficult for you" he went on to say.

Serana nodded her head.

"I think my father really died a long time ago," she sad sadly "This was just... the end of something else. I did what needed to be done, nothing more".

Perhaps she really believed that, I couldn't tell.

"I think you did more than that," Isran said begrudgingly. "You have my thanks".

Serana gave the vampire hunter a small smile, and this time she didn't show her fangs.

"Keep that up, and I'll start thinking you like me or something," Serana teased.

He ignored that and addressed me.

"So Harkon is destroyed," he said gruffly "And Auriel's Bow is in safe hands. The Dawnguard will now be dedicated to safeguarding it, making sure that prophecy will never come to pass".

I had a better idea.

"If I can leave this world then I'll take it with me" I said to the vampire hunter "that way no vampire will be able to use it since no one knows of the prophecy where I am from".

Isran shrugged.

"You know even with these vampires gone, the fight isn't completely over. Once we're settled back into the fort, there will be more work to do" he said "We'd be honoured to have you join us".

As soon as the words had finished leaving Isran's mouth I remembered the Sigal Stone that was in my pouch. It was they key to me getting back to Sunnydale.

"I might be around for a while" I told Isran "We'll see how things go".

Hopefully I would find a way home, but if I could I figured there were worse places that I could be than with the Dawnguard.