Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I own nothing in this work, the Elder Scrolls series belongs to Bethesda Game Studios and Bethesda Softworks

The swamp was eerily quiet on the way to the lair. There were no signs of life as the mass of people moved onwards, and coupled with the dense fog the environment served to greatly unnerve many in the herd of anxious souls. Nadiya reassured everyone that there were no ambushes lying in wait as they all proceeded, though this did little to comfort the others especially once the townsfolk that had tagged along realized the predicament that they faced. At least the guards and the Legionnaires had combat experience, while the crowd at large only ever swung an axe to chop wood at most. After about twenty minutes of marching, Nadiya spotted a couple of torches in the distance, and upon inspection realized that this was the entrance to the lair. One of the Legionnaires skillfully dispatched the sentry before she could alert the coven with a single arrow, and then the mass of people halted. At this point, the townsfolk had almost unanimously elected to return to Morthal out of fear, but also confident that the rest of the force was able to handle the vampires much more effectively. The sole exception was a vengeful Thonnir. Being the only person in the crowd directly affected by the actions of the coven, he offered to continue with the force as he'd like to deal with Alva personally and seek retribution for his losses. Nadiya agreed reluctantly, and the Legate asked him to stay with a couple of the town guards for his safety. After taking a moment to check their gear and brush up on tactics one more time, the Legate ordered some of the force to stay and watch the entrance. Satisfied with their progress, all began to move into the lair of vampires.

Under her instructions Nadiya took the lead once again thanks to her claims of experience in vampire hunting. This wasn't untrue, but her primary reason in wanting to lead was to detect hostile entities before they could strike, hoping to limit and even prevent casualties on the rest of the force. Behind her, the Legate led his Legionnaires in a phalanx formation wielding their polearms or swords with their large steel shields, and the guards took up the rear with arrows drawn on their bows, Thonnir carrying his hand axe and a rough wooden shield among them. Normally the Legate would have taken the lead, but he and his troops were inexperienced with fighting against vampires. To compensate, he reluctantly gave Nadiya command since the Jarl trusted the adventurer's proclaimed skills in vampire hunting, though he kept a close eye on her thinking that her blunder earlier in the day was an indication of her fighting ability.

The force walked onwards cautiously, following Nadiya's commands carefully. For a few minutes nothing happened as all continued deeper into the lair. Shortly after traversing a winding tunnel, they came upon an enlarged cavern where inside stood a couple of thralls and some subservient frostbite spiders. Nadiya motioned for the guards to eliminate them, and after drawing their bows, careful not to make noise, they let their arrows loose. The thralls fell quickly without noise thanks to well-placed headshots, and most of the spiders met similar fates with the exception of one that only suffered a missing leg. Rather than facing the array of solders, the wounded spider instead retreated deeper into the lair through another tunnel. Upon seeing this, a couple of the guards tried to shoot down the retreating monster to no avail, and Nadiya sprinted forward to try and catch it against the Legate's protests. Passing by a cart containing some bodies, she managed to bring her waraxe down on the spider as they exited the tunnel. She paused to catch her breath, and then heard a loud shout. Nadiya looked up to see some more thralls and a vampire readying their weapons, one of the thralls slipping away to get help. Just as she got up to confront the coven, the Legate and one of his Legionnaires caught up, with the rest of the force catching up noisily. With a war cry, Nadiya and the Legate charged forward to meet the incoming hostiles while the Legionnaire followed his superior.

Nadiya managed to kill the vampire with a thunderbolt after sparring with him for a few moments, while the Legate and the Legionnaire handily dispatched several of the thralls. Seeing themselves outmatched, the remaining thralls retreated further into the lair to reinforce the rest of the coven. As the rest of the force arrived, they all regroup accordingly, and then the force marched as one onwards following Nadiya and the Legate.

As they marched, they all passed by several holes and carts containing more corpses and mortal remains, to the forces' collective disgust. Nadiya sorely wanted to drain some of the remains for blood, but she had to hold that off until later. After going through another tunnel, they emerged into a bedchamber of sorts and encountered several vampires and thralls that were prepared for their coming. It so happened that Alva was behind them and wearing some leather armor instead of her scanty dress as from earlier. Upon recognizing her, Thonnir roared and pushed forward to attack Alva. The Legate tried to hold him back, but Thonnir managed to escape his grasp and continue. Fearing for his life, Nadiya charged forward as well, and shaking his head in disapproval the Legate called on his force to engage.

Nadiya managed to overtake Thonnir and swung her waraxe at the coven's members to clear the way for him, while Alva snarled and drew a pair of daggers to meet Thonnir's attack. Nadiya's swing found no target, but her action allowed the enraged widower to sidestep the thralls and other vampires, and directly attack Alva. Meanwhile, the Legionnaires pushed forward in their phalanx with the Legate taking position front and center, while the guards drew their swords and shields and followed the troops, unable to accurately engaged the coven in the enclosed cavern without risking friendly fire.

The next few minutes were chaotic for the coven as they quickly fell to the trained blows and strikes of the soldiers and guards. Here and there a Legionnaire or guard would suffer an injury, a couple losing a limb or so, but fortunately there were no deaths on their side. After dispatching a vampire courtesy of her bloodied waraxe, Nadiya looked up to see Thonnir having trouble with Alva. The vampire was stronger than he anticipated, and despite his relentless attacks her intermittent drain spells were taking a toll on him. After missing a swing with his axe, Alva took the opening and grabbed Thonnir. Baring her fangs, she seethed to him, "When you see Laelette in the next life, tell her that she was a pathetic excuse for a vampire." As she was about to plunge her fangs into his neck and drain him, Nadiya quickly formed an ice spike and fired it at Alva. The spike hit home on Alva's leg, and as the vampire recoiled in pain and surprise Thonnir headbutted her and used his shield to knock her down. Kneeling in pain, Alva attempted to get up but Thonnir grabbed her, spat on her face and raged, "When YOU see her, I hope that she gets her own justice, as will I now!" He then pushed her back and used his axe to hack her to death, leaving Alva a complete mess and Thonnir avenging his fallen wife. Thonnir then looked to Nadiya and nodded in appreciation.

Alva was among the last to die, and once the fighting ceased the force paused to recuperate. Although no one in their force had died, a fair amount of the troops and guards had been wounded, and the ones that had more serious injuries were sent back to the surface with an escort to take them back to Morthal. After the remaining soldiers and guards quaffed healing potions where necessary, the force began to trudge onwards with reduced numbers, Nadiya and the Legate taking the lead once again while Thonnir fell back with the guards.

Very shortly the force emerged into the main chamber of the lair containing the rest of the coven consisting of many vampires and their patron thralls. Nadiya easily located the master vampire Movarth based on his looks alone. He was swathed in elegant apparel, and wielded a beautifully designed, enchanted glass sword. Upon realizing that kin were among the intruders, he decried Nadiya's treachery and commanded his minions to slay them all, and to bring Nadiya to him alive. The Legate immediately ordered his Legionnaires to reform a phalanx and the guards to draw their bows, owing to the openness of the chamber. Deciding to take after Thonnir's example, Nadiya ignored the other members of the coven and used a flame stream to ward off incoming vampires and thralls to engage Movarth one-on-one. After bypassing them, she raised a ward and just managed to deter Movarth's shock attacks enough for her to swing at the master vampire, her ebony waraxe meeting the glass sword with a sharp clank.

The rest of the force was able to shrug off the coven's attacks and press forward slowly while the guards picked off the coven one by one. Desperate at this point, the vampires ordered their thralls to charge directly at the Legionnaires and their shields wholesale in hopes of forcing an opening in the Legionnaires defense. To the Legate's dismay, the coven's ploy worked and several of the Legionnaires tripped backwards from the force of the unexpected charge, exposing the rest of the soldiers. A couple of the downed soldiers fell victim to the thrall's weapons while the frenzied vampires dashed forward to further disorient the intruders. Realizing that his troops and guards needed a new strategy, the Legate ordered the Legionnaires to disperse from the phalanx and go on the offensive, and ordered the guards to do the same. After forcing away several thralls from attacking the Legionnaires still incapacitated, he helped them up and resumed participating in the battle, where the coven continued to fight as fiercely as they could against the trained soldiers of the Legion and the guards of Morthal.

Meanwhile, Nadiya found herself facing her first serious opponent since the Great War. Though she was strong in both arms and magic, Movarth was as well, and he had faced a wider variety of deadly foes. As the fighting went on, both could not gain an edge on the other until Thonnir, having finished off a thrall, picked up the thrall's dropped mace and threw it towards Movarth. Although the weapon flew overhead without causing injury, the master vampire flinched at the sight of the weapon. This opening was all Nadiya needed, and she fired off a charged thunderbolt she had been holding for a while at him. This flung Movarth backwards towards a stack of boxes and stunned him for a brief moment. Sensing her chance to finish him off, Nadiya immediately put her waraxe away on her belt, picked up a nearby greatsword from a fallen vampire and charged forward intending to impale the master vampire. Noticing the rapidly approaching threat, he jumped out of the way and readied himself as Nadiya stopped herself and reoriented towards Movarth.

"You fight like the greatest of beasts, traitor. You would have done well in our coven. Why do you insist on fighting for these mortals?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"Because what you and your clan are doing is ridiculous. Enslaving a whole town, a capital in Skyrim is bound to end badly for everyone. This way, only you and your coven need to die, while I will walk amongst the living with no fear."

"You think you could dwell peacefully with cattle such as these? Humph. It is clear that you are not from Skyrim. You seem like one of those from the Vampyrum Order in Cyrodiil. I suppose I cannot blame you for your actions then. But no matter. You will die for your actions against us, kinslayer." With these concluding words, he then cast his drain spell upon Nadiya to heal himself at her expense.

Shocked at how quickly the spell was deteriorating her body and health, she took the greatsword and dashed forward to strike at the ancient vampire. Movarth paused his drain to block her attacks, and as did so he sensed an incoming foe from behind. He quickly used a telekinesis spell to fling Nadiya away and he spun around to block the Legate's sword and focus on this new arrival, believing that Nadiya sufficiently dealt with for the time being.

Recovering quickly, Nadiya grabbed the greatsword and looked over to see the Legate becoming quickly outmatched. She cast her muffling spell and dashed forward intending to land a critical blow upon Movarth. As the Legate was about to be overwhelmed, Thonnir rushed forward to assist the Legate, and his arrival was able to completely distract Movarth away from Nadiya. As the ancient vampire swiftly turned to deal with the two mortals, Nadiya raised the greatsword up in a thrusting position and with incredible strength managed to impale Movarth from behind, lift both sword and vampire up in the air to Thonnir and the Legate's astonishment, and slammed the greatsword into the ground, Movarth screaming in pain the entire time.

With their leader now near certain death, the remaining members of the coven attempted to flee the chamber but all were caught in one way or another by the Legionnaires and guards. As the Legate and Thonnir rushed elsewhere to engage the rest of the coven, Nadiya kneeled down to receive any final words from the ancient vampire before she beheaded him. "I am sorry that you and your coven had to die. But I couldn't allow you to have taken so much control. Anything you want to tell me before I off you?"

Movarth hung silently for a moment, and started to chuckle at his fate. To have been a vampire hunter, then a vampire, then the victim of a vampire-hunting vampire. Although he was confident that Lord Bal would welcome him for his work, Movarth wished that he could have achieved his plan of domination. But now, that was moot. Deciding that his time had come after centuries of walking Tamriel, he spoke to the girl in a hauntingly even tone and voice as the battle raged on, with hints of resentment here and there.

"I admit I would not have expected my death to come at the hands of a kinslayer. And for you to possess such strength and skill, young as you are? Unbelievable. I will not tell you to how to live the odd way you do kinslayer, but I will tell you this. My ally will be disappointed in hearing of me and my coven's destruction, and he would be looking for someone like you to replace me. Should you ever meet the Lord Harkon, you may tell him that it was you that slayed me, and you may show him my ring as proof. Whatever you do after this kinslayer, may the blood flow as rich and delightful as honey. Now, finish it. I desire to see Lord Bal as soon as I can. I have waited Ages for this moment." After handing her his oddly enchanted ring, Nadiya took her waraxe and beheaded him without any other fuss, taking his valuable sword before walking away.

Once the last of the coven had been put down, a resounding cheer of victory echoed through the lair, loud enough to catch the ear of the guards left to watch the entrance. Although the force had suffered some losses and more injuries, their mission was accomplished with better results than they anticipated. As the force recuperated and searched the lair for anything noteworthy to take back to Morthal, Nadiya went off to see if there was anything else of interest in the lair. As she looked around, she noticed a small alcove that had been missed by the others. Walking forward to see if it had any treasure within, she was taken aback by the sudden appearance of Helgi. Visibily happy at how things turned out, she thanked Nadiya deeply for bringing her and her mother justice, and asked her to tell her father that she forgives him. After telling Nadiya of where to find some treasure she had found, Helgi waved goodbye and wished Nadiya luck before going to sleep, as she described it.

There were many signs and indications that the coven was hastily preparing to evacuate their lair, which made sorting out goods and supplies among treasures easy work. After a little more searching, Nadiya snagged some gold as well as a few weapons, armor pieces, and jewelry that she could take back to Morthal and sell off. She also managed to fill her canteens with blood, and even found extras that were hidden among the valuables the coven had accumulated over time. With her looting done, she debriefed with the Legate who commented on her brash yet devastating fighting style. Upon informing him that she was about to head back to Morthal, he requested that they meet later in town once everyone had slept and ate a hearty meal in the morning. Although his intent was for him to offer her a place in the Legion, Nadiya could tell the Legate was interested in her as well to her amusement. Agreeing to meet once more later at daytime, she set out with Thonnir and several of the guards, while the Legate and the other guards and Legionnaires continued to strip the lair of anything useful to take back to Morthal, whether it be weapons or luxury items.

Once their group returned to town, the faintest streaks of dawn were beginning to break in the night sky. Thonnir gave Nadiya his deepest thanks and wished her luck in her travels before returning to his home, while the guards returned to their barracks exhausted. Nadiya was the same way, and by the time she stumbled into the inn she walked into an empty room to knock out in, to the amusement of a couple of workers waiting for their friends to return from the battle.

It was just after noon when Nadiya awoke from her well-deserved sleep. After changing into her coven apparel, washing up, and eating a massive brunch, she compensated Jonna for the room and the meal, then chatted with her for some time about the events of the previous day. A while later, a Legionnaire came into the inn to request Nadiya's presence with the Jarl and the Legate, and as they went to the Hall they passed townsfolk and guards who soundly congratulated the traveler for helping them. Once inside, Nadiya spent a few minutes being debriefed and was rewarded with a sizeable amount of gold, amounting to two thousand pieces. When this business was all said and done, the Jarl handed her a scroll that authorized her to live in Morthal if she so chooses to return, and then she went away to discuss other matters concerning her Hold.

As agreed, Nadiya and the Legate had a short meeting in a side room where he extended an offer to her to join the Legion as she expected. She politely declined, telling Taurinus, as she learned his name to be, that she would like to continue exploring Skyrim for some time, although she reassured him that she would assist the Legion in any engagement she happens upon. Satisfied with her answer, Legate Taurinus gave her a token with his seal to indicate to other Legionnaires around the province that she was an ally to their forces. After this was said and done, Legate Taurinus then sheepishly asked her if she was spoken for. Nadiya thought well of the Legate, but ultimately was disinterested in him in that manner and simply told him that she wasn't interested in settling down so soon, which was partially the truth. Accepting her answer without any further prodding, the Legate then escorted her outside. As they parted, Nadiya remarked to him about how Jonna the innkeeper seemed lonely at times, which raised his spirits slightly and made him realize that he hadn't really engaged with the townsfolk since being posted in Morthal. Promising to put in a good word for him, Nadiya then went back to the inn to retrieve her pack and find the treasure that Helgi had told her about.

Nadiya spent the day and the next in Morthal, recuperating and making sure everything was in order with herself and with the town. She also sold the loot won from the lair for good money, and Nadiya found herself purchasing another pack just to hold the sheer amount of coins she had accumulated since leaving the College. On the second day, she met with Hroggar and attempted to help the local wizard Falion rehabilitate him. She thought the wizard odd, but she recognized his knowledge vampirism and the undead was beyond even her own, and after they had helped Hroggar as best as they could she stayed with him for the rest of the day to glean as much information as she could about the vampires in Skyrim. He also identified the ring that Movarth had given her as an artifact called the "Ring of the Erudite," a valuable artifact increasing the strength and reserves of a mage's magic ability. As for the identity of the Lord Harkon that Movarth had mentioned to Nadiya, Falion was unsure if this Lord was a mere legend or some master of the night in some remote corner of Skyrim. In any case, he advised her to take caution when dealing with Skyrim's vampires, as he claimed that they were particularly brutal when compared to other vampires across Tamriel. Nadiya took this advice to heart, having seen plenty of examples firsthand in the lair.

In the late morning of the fourth day, she went to the Hall to wish the Jarl well, to which the aged woman responded likewise. She then went say her goodbyes to various townsfolk that she had met, among them a happier Thonnir and his son both adjusting to their conditions and an improved Hroggar attempting to return to a simpler life, having taken Helgi's forgiveness as told by Nadiya to heart. She saved Jonna for last who had been very receptive to a courting Legate thanks to Nadiya's input, and the innkeeper gave the adventurer her warmest wishes. After she had done all that she wanted to do and made sure that she was well-stocked on things, especially blood, Nadiya mounted Windbreaker and set out for Solitude, eager to finally conclude this journey and to continue with her ultimate mission of figuring out how to fight the Thalmor.


A/N: Hey all, if you got this far thanks for reading my work! I'm making this note because it'd be awesome if I could get some reviews on this whether it be noting grammatical errors, logical inconsistencies, uneven pacing, or even a simple "hey, neat job kiddo" among other things. I'm not sure how my writing abilities fare compared to others on this site since I don't spend much if any time browsing stories thanks to other obligations, namely university, so this is why I'd like a review here and there. Since writing is very likely to be central to my future career, it'd be great to have a critique here and there. Once again, thanks for reading and if you have questions, feel free to ask!