The Soul Cairn unnerved Akiseta a great deal.
First, there was no temperature. It wasn't cold, it wasn't warm. It wasn't anything. The lack of temperature was disorienting. The only scent dominating the place was similar to the graveyard soil scent at Falkreath's cemetary, though it was far more prevalant.
The skeletons here were strange. Their bones were the color of ebony. Some only had upper torsos. Others were clothed in armour that was made of rusted metal or withered bone, it was hard to tell. They melted into small pools of wispy black goo when they were struck down.
The pale grey ground has a thin mist coating it, and the purple sky seemed to be shifting constantly. And souls were everywhere. So many, of all the races. Some acknowledged the arrival of the two visitors. Others spoke of the effects the Soul Cairn had on them. And some spoke of the last things they remembered before they died. Akiseta felt sorry for them.
A few had asked for her help in a few matters. One asked her to find his horse, Arvak. She saw the steed a few times, but he always vanished before she could get close. She made a mental note to track him down after they found Valerica. If they found Valerica.
As they walked, Akiseta couldn't help but feel like they were being watched. It wasn't from any particular direction. It felt like they were being watched from everywhere. Akiseta wondered if it was the Ideal Masters. Serana explained that no one knew what the Ideal Masters even were. They could anywhere, and anything. The thought of being watch by unseen, possibly etherical beings made Akiseta shiver.
She tried to ignore her misgivings, tried to ignore the hollow ache in her chest. It was hard to not give attention to it all.
Serana wasn't often disturbed. But this place made her uneasy. She felt like they were being watched. 'Mother must have been truly desperate to come here.'
She kept telling herself that being in a place like this was worse than being locked away. But she was having doubts. There were things to see in this place, things to hear. Even the graveyard scent was better than nothing. This place was beyond creepy, but it was better then being trapped alone in endless darkness.
She glanced over at Akiseta. The Argonian kept looking around, and her tail twitched nervously.
Serana felt a pang of guilt. She was the one who had asked Akiseta to get involved in all this in the first place. She knew Akiseta didn't technically have to agree to help her back then, but she knew the Argonian wouldn't have let the world fall to the prophecy.
Still, she couldn't help but feel responsible for her friend's current condition. She couldn't imagine how it must feel to have a piece of one's soul removed, or how it felt to be existing with it gone. She promised to try and find a way to fix this.
The Soul Cairn seemed to stretch on forever. How were they going to find her mother? After what felt like hours, the came across a structure that looked like some kind of keep. A thin purple veil wrapped around it.
"That thing makes me nervous." Akiseta remarked.
Serana was about to respond, but froze as they neared the structure.
"Serana? What's wrong?"
Serana couldn't bring herself to respond. She almost couldn't believe her eyes. Behind the veil, leaning against a pillar with her eyes closed, was Valerica.
"Mother..." Serana whispered softly. Part of her was sure this wasn't real, was sure she was tricking herself. No, it was real. It had to be. It was her mother.
She broke from her trance, and ran forward. "Mother!" She called.
Valerica's eyes snapped open, and she turned her head. She stepped away from the pillar and approached the veil, looking bewildered.
Serana stumbled up the steps, reaching the veil. She placed her hands against it. It radiated magic, but felt solid.
"Oh, mother! It's really you! I can't believe it.."
Valerica looked at Serana as if she were an apparation. "Serana? How can this be? It can't be you."
"Mother, it is me! I'm here."
"How... how? No.. Harkon did this, didn't he!?"
Serana shook her head. "No, mother. He has no idea where I am or what I'm doing."
"What are you doing, Serana?"
"Stopping Father."
Valerica shook her head. "Serana, you can't possibly think you can stop your father alone."
"But I'm not alone."
Akiseta stumbled up the steps, panting a little. She walked over, trying to catch her breath.
Valerica looked from Serana to Akiseta a few times. "What the...a mortal?" She sniffed. "A.. a werewolf? How did you.. what in the name of Oblivion is going on!? Who is she!?" She demanded.
"Her name is Akiseta. She's helping me. She freed me from Dimhollow."
Valerica turned her gaze on Akiseta. "You freed her?"
Akiseta nodded.
Valerica's expression turned cold. "You foolish little mortal! Do you have any idea of the danger you've placed my daughter in!?"
Akiseta crossed her arms, expression calm. "She was in danger before I even got there. I've given her a fighting chance in all this stupidity."
Valerica's gaze was hard. "You have no idea what you've done. You're in way over your head, and you're too blind to see it."
"Mother, please don't.." Serana started to beg her mother, but Akiseta held up her hand.
"It's alright, Serana." Akiseta regarded Valerica. "You want to talk? Then talk."
"You've given Harkon exaclty what he needs, you little fool!" Valerica snapped.
"No, you almost did." Akiseta swished her tail. "His little minions almost got to Serana before I showed up. If I hadn't been there, he would have gotten the scroll."
Valerica let out a mirthless chuckle. "You really don't understand. Do you really think I'd have the audacity to place my own daughter in that crypt just to proctect the scroll? The scrolls are nothing more than a means to an end, a way to guide the prophecy along. The true key to it is Serana herself."
Akiseta couldn't belive what she was hearing. She looked at Serana, who appeared just as stunned. "What?" was the only word she could muster.
Akiseta looked back at Valerica. "What do you mean?"
Valerica sighed. "The fullness of the prophecy states that, using Auriel's bow, the blood of Coldharbour's daughter can blind the Eye of the Dragon.
"The blood of Coldharbour's daughter.." Akiseta repeated. Serana was a Daughter of Coldharbour. Sired directly by Molag Bal. Her blood was needed to darken the sun? A sick feeling settled inside of Akiseta. She swallowed dryly. "Are you saying... Harkon means to kill her?"
Valerica nodded, her expression somber.
Serana wrapped her arms around herself. "N..no... no... he wouldn't.." Her voice trembled.
Valerica looked at her daughter sadly. "I'm sorry, Serana. But he would. As far as he's concerned, your death is nessecary for his goal. All you are to him is a needed sacrifice."
Serana hugged herself tightly, looking on the verge of tears. She turned her head away, trembling. She looked so... frail. It broke Akiseta's heart to see her like this.
Akiseta's hatred towards Harkon burned intensely. If she could reach the bastard now, she'd rip his head off. He really wanted to kill his own daughter? He would really sacrifice Serana to complete a prophecy that would lead both mortals and vampires to their dooms? He was truly that heartless?
"No. I won't let that happen." She growled.
Valerica looked at her with an almost amused expression. "What do you intend to do, mortal?"
"Whatever I have to do. I'll do whatever it takes to keep Serana safe. I'll do whatever I must to stop Harkon. I'll kill him, if that's what it takes." Akiseta stated. She meant it. She wasn't going to let that thuxis get away with any of this.
Valerica shook her head. "If you truly believe that, then you're a bigger fool then I thought. Don't you think I consider that before I enacted my plans?"
"No, I don't. I think you were to much of a coward to even try."
Valerica clenched her hands into fists. "You dare speak like that to me, mortal!?"
"I do dare!" Akiseta hissed. "Your foolish plan almost placed Serana directly into Harkon's clutches, and got your hide stuck in here. Rather that try and fight, you ran, and dragged Serana down with you." Akiseta stepped closer to the veil. "That make you a coward and a kuuda."
Anger burned in Valerica's eyes. "You damn dog! You think you can speak to me like that! You don't understand anything about this! If you were a mother..."
"I am a mother!" Akiseta snapped, tail lashing. "My daughter is my world. She means everything to me. She is what I hold most dear, and Harkon threatens to take that from me! If anything threatened my daughter, I would give my life to make sure she'd be safe. I would never do to my daughter what you did to yours!"
Akiseta leaned so close to the veil that her snout almost touched it. "You put yourself before your daughter, and that was a pathetic thing to do. You are a poor exuse of a mother, you topee-rajta bitch!"
Glaring, Valerica leaned closer to the veil. "You are lucky this barrier is between us, mortal. Or I'd sink my fangs into your damn throat!"
"No, you wouldn't, Mother. I wouldn't let you. Akiseta's right."
Valerica and Akiseta both looked at Serana in shock.
Valerica gave her daughter a hard look. "Exuse me?"
Serana took a deep breath. 'No going back now.' "Akiseta's right."
"You would take the side of this.. this mortal!? This stranger!?"
"She's not a stranger! She's my friend! The only friend I've ever had. And she's done more for me in a number of weeks then you did for me in centuries!"
Valerica looked aghast. "How dare you!? Do you realize what I sacrifed for you!?"
"You didn't sacrifice anything for me!" Serana snapped out. There was heavy tension in her chest. For too long, she'd bottled it in. For too long she'd lied to herself, convinced herself that her mother had done the right thing. Now, it was finally Valerica's turn to hear the harsh truth. "Maybe you convined yourself that it was for me. But everything you did was out of fear and hatred towards Father."
"That is not true, Serana! I.."
"Yes, it is!" Serana cut her off. "It's been that way for years! All you did for years was feed me your thoughts, your opinions. It was always about you. Never once did you ever ask me what I thought, about him, about your plans, about anything!" Serana felt the hot sting of tears on her skin. She didn't try to stop them. She wanted her mother to see her pain.
"Your motives may have been different from Father's, but you're just as bad as he is. I've been nothing but a pawn to you, him, and everyone else, for so long. And I'm sick it! The only person who's treated me like a person in ages has been Akiseta. She's the only person who hasn't expected anything from me, hasn't wanted or demanded anything. She's the only person who's ever really cared about what I wanted, what I felt."
Serana gave Akiseta a tearful smile. The Argonian smiled back.
Serana looked back at Valerica. "I wish we could just be a normal family again. But I know we can't have that. Too many bridges have been burned. But I can't stand by and watch the world suffer, watch my friend suffer, because of our mistakes. We have to stop Father, Mother. Before he goes too far. We need your help."
Valerica looked at the ground, shame coming to her face. "I'm sorry, Serana. I know it means very little now. But I'm so, so sorry. I didn't realize how much hurt I've caused you. I let my hatred of your father put a rift between us. I didn't mean to cause you so much pain. I'll do whatever I can to help you and your friend. And... I know I don't deserve it, but I hope you can forgive me."
Serana offered Valerica a small smile. "I do forgive you, Mother. You made some mistakes, we all did. All we can do now is try and fix them."
Valerica nodded.
She looked at Akiseta. "I apologize for the things I've said to you, as well."
"I'm sorry too. I think we both got a little carried away. It's alright."
"My daughter obviously thinks very highly of you. Do you truly care about her as much as she says you do?"
Akiseta nodded. "Yes, I do. Serana is one of the dearest people in my life. And I'm not going to let anything happen to her."
"I'm going to trust you on that. I have the scroll you need. You can have it. But you'll need to bring down this barrier."
"Just tell us what to do."
"You need to destroy the three Keepers. You'll find them each at the tallest of the rocky spires."
"Alright. We'll see you soon."
"Please be careful. The Keepers are dangerous." Valerica warned. "And there's a dragon that calls himself Durnehviir here."
"A dragon? Here?" Akiseta asked. 'What is a dragon doing here?'
"Yes. If the Keepers fall, he'll be sure to invesigate."
"Don't worry. I can handle a dragon."
Valerica arched her brows in confusion.
"Tell you later." Akiseta said with a wink. She waved as she and Serana headed off.
When they were a little ways away, she looked over at Serana. "Are you alright, beeko?"
Serana gave a small nod. "Yeah, I think so. For so long, I didn't see how troubled my mother had become. I didn't want to see it."
"We can blind ourselves to what is right in front of us, if it is too painful."
"I know. I tried so hard to convince myself that Mother was doing the right thing. For so long, I kept everything pushed down." Serana let out a sigh. "You have no idea how long it's all been building. If felt.. it felt pretty good, letting it all out."
"I'm glad you did. I think Valerica needed to hear it. And you really needed to say it." Akiseta brushed a stray tear from Serana's face. She felt a little warmer. "I'm very proud of you, Serana."
Serana smiled shyly. She brushed a loose strand of hair from her face. "Thank you, Aki. That means a lot, coming from you. Truly." It looked like she may have been blushing.
Akiseta grinned. She couldn't help but think Serana was cute when she was a little flustered. She tried to get her mind back on track. They needed to deal with these Keepers.
"Hey, that thing you said to my mother, topee-rajta. What does that mean?"
Akiseta frowned. "I don't want to tell you."
"Why not?"
"You'll get mad."
"Just tell me."
Akiseta sighed. "It means older than dirt."
Serana reached up and grabbed hold of one of Akiseta's horns, and gave it a sharp yank.
"Ow! This is why I didn't want to tell you!"
Valerica's warning about the Keepers had been true. They were huge, even taller than the giants in Skyrim. Their bodies were incased in bone-like armour, and black flames made up their heads. Their weapons were equally large. The first one they fought held a bone sword in one hand that was so big that anyone would have struggled to lift it with two.
The second Keeper wielded a battleaxe so massive it could probably have cleaved a dragon in two with only a couple swings. Akiseta and Serana kept their distance from them, Akiseta firing bolts from her crossbow while Serana made use of her spells.
The Keeper's towers were spread far apart. Fortunately, they had found Arvak while heading for the towers. Akiseta could summon him to her side. Serana thought he was a magnificent horse: a body composed of dark purple bones, and a mane and tail of bright purple fire. His 'saddle' looked to be made of smooth, polished bone, and a dark metal chain served as his reins. He made the trip to the third tower much faster.
The Keeper wasn't around the base of the spire, so they went through some strange little portal-like thing to the top. They were pretty high above the ground. The walkway was very small. They carefully made their way around it. Akiseta gripped her crossbow tightly.
As she started to round a corner, she was struck by a huge bow limb, and knocked back towards the edge of the walkway.
Serana tried to go to her, but a bone-clad hand grabbed her by the throat, hoisting her up. She gasped for air and tried to pry herself free.
The Keeper slammed her into the spire wall, her head connecting roughly with the wall. She bit back a cry of pain as she felt the surface of the spire crack.
The Keeper proceeded to toss her to the ground, which she hit hard. Her attempts to stand were met with pain blazing through her body.
Akiseta appeared to be having the same trouble. Blood ran down her nose, and the side of her mouth. Her crossbow was nowhere in sight.
Biting her lip, Serana tried to stand again, leaning against the wall for support. She had only gotten halfway up, when an arrow the size of a sword pierced Akiseta's shoulder. And she watched in horror as the Argonian was knocked off balance, and off the edge of the walkway.
And it felt like her heart stopped. "NO!"
Thuxis: Snake, someone who is deceptive.
Topee-rajta: Loosely translated, means older than dirt.