Whooo, man, it took me a while to get this one out. Sorry about that! I actually already have the next three chapters already written, so there won't be as long of a wait as there was for this one.

To respond to both of Annoy Mouse's reviews: Yeah, the "By the Eight" thing was an editing error on my part, sorry about that! You're completely right. As for your other review, I think I covered it in the A/N on the previous chapter.

Now back to our not-so-regularly scheduled story! I hope you enjoy!


"I've decided to bring Tali and Liara alongside Analyn and myself to the Dwemer ruin," Shepard said, her crew assembled before her in the center of camp.

"Aw, come on." And there was Wrex's expected reaction.

"I need you to stay here and guard the shrine."

"But that's boring! What the hell is gonna happen here?" Yeah, the Krogan was definitely steamed.

Shepard drew a blank and looked at Analyn for support.

"Uh, well… Necromancers! Yeah, necromancers! They come here a lot to try to corrupt the Lady's shrine. You need to fight them off."

"They sound pathetic."

"But they're not! They can summon the dead! And… and… Summon the dead!"

"Bah, fine." The Krogan walked off to go sulk and sharpen his blade, mumbling under his breath, "If they're dead, then they weren't very good warriors." At least he respected the Commander's authority, to some extent.

"So we just wait here for you to get back?" Kaidan asked, sounding worried. "Will we have any way to communicate with you?"

"Uh no, not unless you want to try to find a courier every time we near a town or city." Analyn scoffed.

"Is that the only way to relay a message?" Shepard asked.

"Pretty much. Unless any of you happen to be telepathic, couriers or carriages are the only way. Even then, it would be nigh impossible to get any letter in or out of a Dwemer ruin."

"Fair enough." Shepard said. She had not figured in the lack of communication. "We'll send a message ahead on our way back so that you will be ready for our return. Other than that, I guess waiting is your only option."

Neither Kaidan nor Garrus looked pleased with that revelation.

"You should probably say your goodbyes. There's a long road ahead of us and the days aren't getting any longer last time I checked." Analyn said. She seemed unusually tense.

Brief, friendly farewells were given, and soon it seemed like everyone was ready to go.

That's when Kaidan came up to her. "Can I talk to you for a moment? In private?"

"Of course." Shepard replied, slightly confused. They walked off a little ways until they were fairly separated from the rest of the group by the frost-covered trees.

"Please promise me that you'll be careful." He said, looking into her eyes. "I-I don't know what I would do if anything happened to you." Clearing his throat, he continued, "I don't know what any of the crew would do without you."

A smile crept over the Commander's face at his concern. Normally, people worrying over her just annoyed her, but with Kaidan, she appreciated it. "I'll come back. I promise."

"Thanks." He was smiling now, too.

A silence fell between them, but it wasn't the uncomfortable kind. It was the kind where you don't feel like you need to fill it with meaningless pleasantries. It was the kind where simply the company of another human was enough. It was the kind that said more than words could. The kind that made you realize just how close you were to the other. The kind where you slowly started to close your eyes and move even closer.

"Hey, if you spend any more time back there, I'm going to assume the worst."

Damn that Argonian.

"Shut up." Shepard called back, and shot an apologetic look at Kaidan. He shrugged awkwardly and offered his hand for the Commander to shake. She took him up on it, and they started back to the group.

"Everyone ready?" Analyn said when they had rejoined.

Shepard, Tali, and Liara all nodded in response.

"Then let's get going." The Argonian turned and started walking down the road that had lead them to the shrine. "Vuldorahl is just southeast of Dawnstar, the capital of The Pale in the north. On the way, we'll stop in Morthal, which is another capital city, then on to Dawnstar, and finally to the ruin."

"How long do you think the trip will take?" Liara asked.

"Around four to five days, depending on how often we stop. Six at the absolute most. Once we get past Morthal, the terrain and weather will be against us, so that'll definitely slow us down."

"What sort of terrain?" Tali followed up.

"Icy. Cold. Miserable." The Argonian said the last word with a chuckle. "Skyrim can be a very unforgiving place. You think it's cold where we are now, just wait till we reach The Pale."

By this point, Dragon Bridge was visible down the road. Analyn halted, and said "Can you all swim?"

"Swim? Like in water?" Tali sounded taken aback.

"I'll take that as a no."

"Why do you ask?"

"I don't want to go back through that town, and it'd be easier to just find a low shore and swim across the river."

"I don't think I can do that."

"Me neither." Liara added.

"That's ok. We'll just keep our heads down." Analyn continued to walk.

"I take it you're a good swimmer then? That river did not look particularly lazy."

"Argonians are naturals at it; we can even breathe underwater. Our homeland is basically a giant swamp, so it's a necessity."

Shepard realized that she knew nothing about Analyn's home. In fact, she didn't really know much about any of this place. Maybe she'd ask the Argonian more about it later.

They had reached the edge of town, and Analyn took a deep breath. "Move fast, don't make eye contact, and stay behind me."

Practically sprinting through the town, they managed to avoid any confrontations and found themselves on the other side of the bridge.

"Oh thank the Divines." Shepard heard Analyn whisper under her breath.

"That went well." Liara said brightly.

"We'll keep going for a ways, then set up camp. Unless you want to walk through the night, I doubt we'll make it to Morthal until tomorrow."

Three dark figures stood at an altar before a massive, snow-covered statue.

"Master! We have found them! They have gone to your brother, Meridia!" One cried, standing out before the others.

"WHAT?!" An enraged voice yelled back.

"I-I thought you would be pleased, Master!"

"PLEASED THAT THEY'RE IN THE CARE OF MY FOOLHEARTY BROTHER?"

"W-well, pleased th-that we found them!"

The Daedra could be heard to sigh and his tone changed from outright anger to a more annoyed timbre, "Fine, fine, you have a point. You did find them. And now you are going to bring them to me before Meridia converts them to his ridiculous cause or Mora gets his tentacles on them."

"Yes Master!" All three figures echoed, vanishing into the night.

"Wolves!" Tali yelled from the far side of their makeshift camp.

Analyn immediately drew her sword and blasted a fireball at one of the beasts. It went flying, and the other two were quickly dispatched by Tali's daggers and Liara's biotics. Shepard felt a glow of pride for her crew and how quickly they had adjusted to this new environment.

"Damn things, if we're going to get attacked by something, at least let it be a spriggan or a giant or something that will actually be a fun fight." Analyn growled.

Shepard shot her a look.

"I mean I hope we don't get attacked by anything at all." Analyn tried her best to give an innocent smile.

"Mmhm. Sure." Shepard said, her voice full of sarcasm.

"Come on, don't tell me these stupid wolves don't get on your nerves!"

"They get on my nerves because it turns a hike through an unexplored land into a life or death situation."

"But they're pussies. They won't actually kill you."

"You'll forgive me if I'm not used to dealing with wolves on a daily basis."

"Try hourly."

Shepard shook her head and sat by the fire. Taking a seat next to her, Analyn lazily blew flames from her hand into the blaze.

"I'm going to go meditate, I'll be back in a bit." Liara said.

"Don't go too far." Shepard replied.

The Asari nodded, then walked off.

Tali had already gone off to finish setting up the last bedroll, which the wolves had previously interrupted.

"Do you think this is all going to work?" Shepard asked out of nowhere after a few moments of silence had passed.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you think that this Lumis thing will help us get back to our ship? Do you think we'll be able to get off this planet?"

"Yes, I do." She turned to look up at the stars above. "I've done a lot of incredible feats in my time here, ranging from illegal to legal and from immoral to moral. I've faced down gods and armies. I've found secrets hidden for centuries and I've been to Oblivion and back, literally. So trust me when I say that I can do this. I will get you back to your ship no matter what it takes. You have my word."

"I do trust you, and you have my eternal gratitude."

The Argonian got a strangely rueful smile on her face. "You know, you're probably one of the people who knows the most about me, and I've only known you for around a week. And I hardly know anything about you. What does that say about how pathetic I am? I just clung onto the nearest sentient thing that listened. I may be one of the greatest warriors Tamriel has ever known, but I'm so…"

"I know what you mean."

"Do you?"

"I faked my age to join the military and I've stuck with it ever since. I've never really had time for any personal relationships jumping from posting to posting, and even when I did have the chance to, I mostly kept to myself. I knew that the men and women beside me could die the next day, so I didn't see the point in growing attached. All of your passions and your possible conversations and your emotions just build and build inside you when you live like that. Keeping your personality locked up. You can't help but spill it all out to the first person who you feel like you could have a real connection with."

"But you seem really close with the people you came here with."

The ginger smiled. "My time aboard the Normandy is really the first time I've ever really formed bonds with the people I served beside. While I still have to act the part of leader, I can still reveal parts of myself to them. I can still forge friendships. I don't have to bottle it all up anymore."

"Aren't you worried about them dying?"

"Every goddamn day."

"Do you think we are friends?"

"Yes, I think we are."

Analyn smiled again, but this time it was a genuine one. "I'm glad."

"Me too."

Liara had come back to camp without incident, and after a good night's rest, they packed up and continued east towards Morthal.

"Now, we're starting to enter into the area where we'll be running across frostbite spiders, so just be ready. They have more of a bite then the wolves that we're used to do." Analyn warned as she led them down the road. She wasn't sure how these foreigners would react to their poison, and she would rather avoid finding out.

"Spiders? Aren't those small?" Liara asked.

"Not this kind. Frostbites can range from the size of a dog to the size of a small house, although the most common is about as big as a child."

"That does not sound pleasant at all."

"They really aren't."

"Anything else we should be on the lookout for?" Tali followed.

"Snow bears and ice wolves when we get farther north, but for now just the usual."

"Giants, wolves, and normal bears?"

"You got it."

That's when a massive roar shook the ground beneath them and a massive shadow glided over.

"Analyn, what the hell is that?" Shepard said, drawing her blade. Tali followed suit, and Liara readied her biotics.

"Dragon."

"You didn't mention those." Tali replied, sounding a little panicked.

"Well I forgot."

Showtime.

Luckily, it appeared to be a plain dragon, and not one of the more deadly varieties. She pulled her Daedric sword from its sheath and conjured a Flame Atronach. Then came Dragonrend. As she unleashed the words from her throat, she could feel the pain shooting throughout her body and the hate fill her soul. The Argonian hated using that shout, and she only used it in emergencies; however, she did not want to take a chance with Shepard and the others. It seemed apparent that they were not used to fighting dragons, and so she needed to dispatch this dragon quickly in order to prevent any sort of unfortunate casualty.

The dragon collapsed to the earth, and immediately Analyn was upon it, slashing and blasting it with Destruction magic alongside the summoned Daedra. By fighting in close-quarters with it, she hoped to avoid it using its breath. That was always how the most civilian damage was caused.

That's when she noticed Shepard beside her, slashing at the beast's wing.

"GET AWAY!" Analyn screamed desperately, but it was too late. It thrashed its wing out and sent Shepard flying.

Analyn resumed her attacks with a renewed vigor and rage. If she was going to save the commander, she had to hurry.

With one final slash directly between the dragon's eyes, it fell. The Dragonborn stood panting, victorious, as the dragon's soul flowed into her, sending waves of relief through her body. It was euphoric, the feeling of absorbing a dragon soul. Analyn couldn't help but admit that she also enjoyed the looks of wonder she got from bystanders when they saw she was Dragonborn.

Alas, there was no time to wallow in her glory, as the memory of Shepard flying into a tree jolted her back to her senses. She ran over to approximately the direction she had been flung in, and saw Liara and Tali already crouched next to a form lying on the ground.

"She's… She's really hurt." Liara said, tears starting to well in her eyes.

"Do we have any-" Tali started, but was interrupted by Analyn. "Prop her up. Against that tree will suffice."

Liara complied, and Analyn pulled a small red bottle from her bag. She really hoped that the commander wasn't too far gone. Carefully, she pulled out the stopper and tipped it into Shepard's mouth.

"What are you-" The Asari stopped as her eyes widened. Shepard's wounds were healing right before their eyes. The red gashes along her body soon disappeared as new skin formed. Soon, just scar tissue was left, and even that faded after a few moments.

"Can you hear my voice?" Analyn asked calmly and clearly.

Slowly, Shepard's eyes opened. "Yeah, I can." Her voice sounded raspy, like her throat was full of phlegm.

"Good, good. I recommend staying still for a little bit. Healing potions work fast, but if you're not used to them, it can take a while to get used to the lingering aches."

"Is that what that was? A healing potion?" Tali said from somewhere behind Analyn.

"Yes, it was. My own brew, in fact. Quite potent. You couldn't get a better one anywhere in Skyrim."

"Well, we're lucky you were here then."

"Is that what that taste in my mouth is?" Shepard asked, trying to stand.

Analyn helped her, and replied "Yup. I try to make it more palatable than the standard stuff."

"It tastes like… bread."

"Yeah, I try to bring out the wheat more than the blue mountain flower. You're lucky I don't use ash hopper jelly or charred skeever hide."

"That was… amazing." Liara breathed.

"Alchemy is also part of my skill set. Probably one of the best in Skyrim, although I wouldn't say Tamriel. There are some Elvish alchemists to the south that are just ridiculous with their talent. They've had lifetimes to study-"

"Well you're the best alchemist we know."

"I'm the only alchemist you know." Analyn turned to Shepard. "Do you feel like you can walk?"

She tried, and managed a step, but not without an audible wince.

"Here, let me use some Restoration magic." Analyn's left hand started glowing with a "heal other" spell which she started to cast on Shepard. "Potions are good in a pinch, but they cause quite a shock to the system. Restoration magic is much more gradual, but more soothing as well."

"That does feel better."

"Do you feel like you can keep going?"

Shepard took a deep breath. "Yes, I think so. That spell worked wonders."

"No problem. That dragon was an unexpected road block, but if we get started now, I believe we can make it to Morthal before nightfall."

"Then let's get going."

Slowly but surely, the group started back on the road towards Morthal.


I always wondered what the potions in Skyrim tasted like. I kind of imagine the Stamina potions tasting like grass and the Magika potions tasting like sour milk (I'm not really sure why, that's just what came to mind), and, of course, warm bread for a Healing potion.

As always, please review and tell me what you think! I appreciate it!