Aphina couldn't say if she left her body or if she was dreaming. She felt as if she walked on something solid, and something that wasn't there at all. It was hard and light, as if she somehow walked on both earth and air at the same time. Beyond an amber glow there was no scenery, no trees, no marshland, or swamp, it was as barren as a desert.

Behind her there were sounds and smells of war and iron and moonstone. There was a rumbling like the earth was angry and shouts that were barely discernable. The further she walked forward, however, the more the sounds and smells disappeared.

"Aphina."

Aphina's focus snapped onto a lonely Argonian, waving to her happily. "Father?" Hot tears came unbidden and she ran forward, jumping into his arms with a cry of delight. "Father, how can this be?"

Itan buried his face in her hair, smiling as she pulled away to look at him, and touch his face as if he could disappear from her grasp if she believed it was him. "The Hist is allowing us this small time to say a proper good-bye." He stroked her hair. "I am so proud of you, my little flower, my Aphina. You have bloomed at last. You have grown so much without me. You have saved the Hist, you have saved us all."

Aphina looked away. "It came at a cost, though, father. I'm a vampire now. I asked for Molag Bal to help me save the Hist, but I doubt I can get a cure from him now."

Itan's smile never wavered as he stroked her hair tenderly. It felt like years ago since she felt him this close. "I am not worried. The Hist fights for the souls that it owns as well. When I found you, you were nursing on the sap, did you know? It is not common for the Hist to take pity on outsiders, and even more uncommon that outsiders survive after ingesting the sap. It is for this reason I believe your soul will still return to the Hist, not to Coldharbour."

Itan's words put a smile on her face, but somewhere deep within her she doubted his words. "Father, there's so much I wish to tell you, so much that you missed…I wish I could tell it all to you."

"It is almost time for us to part. Do not fret, and do not fear. The Hist will make sure we meet again. This," he touched the pendant she kept so close to her neck, the small part of the Hist that used to belong to him. "Carry this with you. This has always helped you listen more clearly. Your soul may be Argonian, but your mind is not. Keep this on you and remember not to drink too much of its sap for it could still prove fatal."

Aphina nodded. "I will. I miss you."

"I love you, Aphina, never forget that either." He stepped closer and bent to kiss her forehead, but the amber world disappeared before she could feel the warmth of his kiss.