Author's Note #1: The following is a list of characters that will be featured throughout Damon's adventure. More will be added as chapters update.
* The Vampire Diaries
Elijah Mikaelson . Klaus Mikaelson . Kol Mikaelson . Malachai Parker
Soft snow trickled from the dark grey sky, a common occurrence in the land of Skyrim. The harsh weather mattered not to Damon, for he was a member of the undead, a vampire. His skin did not turn red from the cold, nor did he feel the need to find a warm crackling fire. He simply continued on his journey for adventure and local Nord booze by crossing the border. The rocky path was tough to make out, but not impossible. Pine trees littered the sides of the road, tall and covered in ice. The grunts and howls of wolves could be heard as Damon walked alongside a mountain, map in hand. The closest thing resembling a town was close by, so he kept on his current path.
While his eyes studied the map leading to Helgen, his ears picked up the sound of footsteps approaching at a quick speed. He turned his head to find a thief standing before him, knife in hand and pointed in Damon's direction. "All right, hand over your valuables, or I'll gut you like a fish." She said, tone of voice suggesting this wasn't the first time she had done this.
"Is that so?" Damon smirked as he suddenly tossed the map on to the ground, freeing up his hands. Embers danced in his palms as he began to wield destruction magicka. In one motion he set the thief ablaze, killing them in a matter of seconds. Damon picked the map back up and brushed the snow off, careful not to tear it. He then bent over to check the thief's pockets, and, for someone who called themselves a thief, they sure didn't have much. A garnet, some gold, and a lockpick. Damon stood back up and used his foot to shove the body onto the side of the road, snow already covering beginning to cover it.
"Now," he clapped his hands together and spoke to himself, smirk now an amused grin. "Where was I?" Damon spun on his heels and faced away from the corpse, map in hand again. 'If I stay on this path, I should get there in no time.' Of course he could get there within minutes if he were to run, but he wanted to save his stamina. Plus the sides of the road held useful potions ingredients, which Damon couldn't collect if he were traveling so fast. In fact he was so distracted with filling his satchel with Snowberries that he didn't even realize the road turned from snow to dirt as he descended further down the mountain side.
As Damon moved from one bush to the next, he noticed a stone tower standing tall in the distance. Upon closer inspection he could see it was a fort, most likely built in order to keep the border safe considering its close proximity. Damon approached the entrance, expecting to see Imperial soldiers, however his eyes were met with what was very obviously a horde of bandits.'Well it's no wonder the border had no one patrolling it.' Damon backed out into the road as three men ran towards him, their weapons flailing.
A harsh chill swept over Damon as an Argonian pelted him with frost magicka, a minor nuisance for a vampire such as himself. He was the first of the bandits to perish at the hands of Damon. He shoved his steel blade into the chest of the Argonian, piercing both skin and lung. Damon's next target was a large Nord wielding a two handed sword, his colossal arms swinging the blade around without any kind of strategy. A loud clang echoed through the air as the bandit's longsword made contact with Damon's steel dagger, their battle over in moments as Damon took his free hand and plunged it into the bandits chest, ripping out his beating heart. The third bandit screamed, stumbling out of fear. Damon used this to his advantage and threw the bloody organ directly at the bandit's face, painting it red with blood. The bandit dropped his weapon and began hastily rubbing the blood from his eyes. Damon didn't give him the chance to see properly. He killed the man and watched as he fell over with a thud. "Who's next?" yelled Damon as he re-entered the fort and eliminated the remaining few bandits.
While Damon turned the bandit's pockets out, he took in his surroundings. While the fort may have been in a bad state, with its walls bearing holes and its drinking well being boarded up, there was a considerable amount of evidence to suggest it was being used not long ago. A forge stood tucked away in a corner, and Damon had doubts the bandits constructed it on their own. Many cargo boxes sat stacked atop one another, along with sacks of various fruit and vegetables. He could even spot a cart parked nearby with boxes and barrels still packed inside. "Hm, I wonder if there's anyone inside." Damon walked to the door and pressed his ear to the wood. With his heightened senses he could just barely pick up the sound of voices from within the stone structure, more bandits he presumed.
Damon lowered his body and slowly opened the door, sneaking his way inside. The first thing he noticed was a bandit sitting by his lonesome in what Damon assumed to be the dining hall, however he could hear multiple people mumbling throughout the fort, plus the echo that rang through the halls meant it was harder to place their locations. Damon tucked his dagger away and quickly equipped both his long bow and steel arrows. His weapon now drawn, Damon took aim and shot the arrow at the back of the orc's head, killing him instantly. Unfortunately for Damon the kill went noticed by a nearby enemy. Quickly he drew another arrow and took aim, this time shooting his foe in the shoulder. The Dark Elf let out a strangled cry and stumbled a bit before taking out his own bow and attempting a counter strike against Damon. The bandit's arrow managed to hit Damon and pierce his skin, but Damon's own arrow hit the elf squarely between the eyes, leaving him very much dead.
With one swift tug Damon pulled the arrow from his chest. For a moment he kept his position near the front door, bow drawn and ready to fight in case more were on their way. Silence filled the air. Damon tucked his bow away and inched forward, scoping out the rest of the dining hall. Several wooden tables and benches lined the stone floor and walls, food and drink sitting atop each and every surface. A chandelier filled with burning candles hung from the ceiling, while other sources of light stuck to the wall. Green banners hung from the wall, matching the moss that littered the room nicely. A pile of wood could be seen in the corner, next to it a cupboard that was practically empty. The only thing that sat upon the shelf was a potion of minor healing, and the drawers contained mundane items such as cast iron pots and kettles. Damon swiped the healing potion and stuck it in his apothecary satchel, adding it to the rest of his bottles. As he turned from the cupboard, Damon caught a glimpse of a woman sitting up on a second story floor. She looked like a Nord, but a bandit all the same. He grabbed his bow and attempted a lethal shot from across the room. Unfortunately for him the bandit stood from her chair in that moment, causing him to miss entirely. "Damn it.." he grunted in a hushed tone while sidestepping behind a stone pillar.
"What was that?" The woman turned on her heel, weapon drawn and on the alert.
Damon peeked around the corner and saw an opening, and without hesitating he took it, shooting the bandit while her back was turned. Her death may have gone unwitnessed but Damon kept his guard up all the same. On all sides of the room were closed doors. One he knew led to the outside world while the remaining three were a mystery. He decided to go through the door on the right side of the room. It was dark and damp inside, full of cobwebs, dirt, and dust. Empty weapon racks lined the walls, and the sound of metal clanging mixed with ragged breath could be heard just a few yards away as a bandit trained with a combat dummy.
An arrow to the back on the leg brought the bandit down to his knees, a cry of pain just barely escaping his mouth as Damon hurried forward and thrust his blade through the man's back, killing him in seconds. He quickly rummaged through the bandit's pockets and took the few gold pieces he had, along with a lone lockpick. Damon spotted the staircase leading to the second floor, so he moved around the room quickly and took anything of worth before ascending the steps. As he peeked round the corner, he could see yet another lonely bandit, sitting by candlelight at a small round table, sloppily singing a song to himself. To the right of the bandit was yet another door leading to who knows where. He drew another arrow and killed the bandit with quiet precision. Damon moved to the now unattended door and slowly pushed it open, revealing what looked to be living quarters. He could see two women standing near a roaring fireplace making conversation, a Redguard and a Dark Elf. With his bow Damon killed the Redguard who happened to be within his line of fire. This caught the attention of the Dark Elf, who immediately cast Oakflesh on herself before getting struck by one of Damon's arrows. Their fight lasted mere moments as Damon fired another shot at her, causing her to fall to the ground and not stand back up. Damon crouched down and looted the corpses, actually finding food and wine on one of them. After grabbing any useful items off their bodies, Damon dragged the bandits out of the hallway and into the room so as not to draw any unwanted attention. He then closed the door and went about his business at his own pace.
Near the door a bed sat pushed up against a wall, behind it a cupboard packed with dust. Atop the shelves sat an empty tankard and a few books. While some were damaged and ruined, there stood a couple among them that were still in decent condition. Damon reached out and grabbed the first, reading the title upon the spine; 'The Arcturian Heresy'. He tucked it away for later reading and picked the second book off the shelf; 'Dwemer Inquiries Vol. I'. No harm in keeping that as well. Damon added it to his inventory and searched the rest of the cupboard. The drawers held nothing of value, so he closed them in favor of the little end table that sat next to the bed. It too had little worth taking, just two measly pieces of gold. Damon closed the wooden drawer and moved a few feet down, now occupied with opening a chest that sat at the foot of a neighboring bed. The first thing he made a grab for was the gold, not that there was much to take. After that he took a moment to debate on whether or not he should take the cow hide or goat hide. He noticed there had been a tanning rack outside near the forge, which he could then use to make leather. The profit seemed worth it, so he stashed both sets of fur in his pack and stood, leaving the chest nearly empty. Damon searched a cupboard on the other side of the room and found a pair of fine clothes, which he nabbed and took for himself. He walked around the bed and searched another end table. He found a leather bound book titled 'A Dance In Fire Vol III'. He didn't have the other volumes, so he would have to wait to read it. Adding it with his other books, Damon snatched the one piece of gold he spotted in the corner of the drawer before closing it. The only thing left to search was the bookshelf sitting in the corner. There wasn't much on it either, just four books arranged sloppily on the bottom shelf next to an old rust lanturn. He found a second copy of the first volume of 'Dwemer Inquiries', but found a copy of the third volume of the same series sitting just underneath it. Damon picked up the copy of 'Dwemer Inquiries and wiped the dust off it. He then picked up the other two books, 'Frontier Conquest', and 'The Firmament', and wiped them clean before tucking them all away into his bag.
With the room completely picked apart, Damon moved on to the next one. He noticed a door connected to the living quarters so he walked over and opened it slowly. It was hard to pinpoint what kind of room it was used for, but there was a workbench tucked in the corner, along with a grindstone, so Damon could imagine what went on. Or perhaps the bandits moved those things in when they took over. It was hard to say. Moving further into the room, Damon noticed no one was currently inside it, however there was an open door to his left. He went ahead and closed it, giving him time to explore the room without having to worry about being discovered. There was little to nothing of value hidden in the room, but there was an old worn ladder lying against the back wall with a trap door installed on the ceiling. Damon assumed it would lead him back outside, which it did. A beautiful starry sky greeted Damon as he opened the hatch. He found himself on a tower of sorts, a spot most likely used for keeping watch. On the ground was an unlocked chest, which Damon promptly opened. Inside he found some gold, potions, jewelry, and a piece of paper. He tucked everything in his bag and jumped through the latch, a much faster way than using the ladder.
As Damon searched the rest of the second floor, he came across the young Nord woman he had killed earlier. Looting her corpse proved to be worth it as Damon unequipped the bow he was using and replaced it with the one he just took. She also had gold, lockpicks, arrows, and Honningbrew Mead, plus a Sweet Roll. Blue eyes then darted between two areas; a closed door, and stairs leading downstairs. It made sense to search all of upstairs before going back down, so he moved to the door and opened it a small fraction, looking inside. Immediately Damon spotted a large chest sitting on the opposite side of the room, a large man decked out in iron armor standing nearby. Damon observed the large two handed axe and assumed this was the bandit chief. He put his bow and arrow away and summoned his destruction magicka, fire engulfing his palms. Damon took aim and shot the fire from a safe distance, hopeful the damage would do enough damage before the man could counter attack. He managed to land an attack but nothing strong enough to make an instant kill. The chief grabbed his weapon and wasted no time swinging his axe. Damon let out a frustrated growl as his skin was sliced by the axes blade not once, but twice. He shot more flames from his hands and killed the bandit after being struck for the third time. His wounds began to heal themselves at a slow rate, a sign he needed to feed soon.
Lifting his wounded arm to his face, Damon stuck his tongue out and licked at a deep cut on his arm, the taste of his own blood satisfying his own craving for blood momentarily. While restoration magicka healed what his vampire body naturally couldn't, Damon stepped over the body of the bandit chief and approached the chest. It opened with ease and Damon found a considerable amount of gold inside, along with a petty soul gem. He grabbed both and slammed the chest shut, annoyed that there wasn't any other treasure. Damon began looking around the room for anything else. There was a dresser that held some clothes and boots, which he promptly took. Atop the dresser sat an old skeleton key. Damon was unsure what it belonged to, but he pocketed it all the same. On a nearby shelf he spotted a useful healing potion, so he grabbed it, along with a small branch of Snowberries that sat collecting dust two shelves above. On the top shelf were a few books, which Damon began to pick through.
'An Explorer's Guide to Skyrim'
'Chance's Folly'
The Book of Daedra'
'The Spirit of Nirn'
'The Song of Pilinal '
He stacked them all within his bag next to the other books he had found and crossed the room, searching another pile. Nearly all of them belonged to a set, and none of them were the first in the series. He stuffed them in his bag for later reading and left the room. Before dashing round the corner and heading downstairs, Damon checked to see if the bandit chief had anything of value on his person. While he had obvious items like gold and potions, the bandit also had a journal, along with a copy of the key Damon found lying on the dresser. He swiped the gold and took the journal, reading it as he walked down the steps.
'For once, we actually caught a lucky break. With Pale Pass closed and Helgen wiped off the map, the last few soldiers up at Fort Neugrad were easy should be able to loot the place and be out well before the Jarl has time to respond.' Damon flipped the page and found a second entry.
'Finally found the keys to the Fort's old Library. I sent Brandish down to scour the place. Wouldn't normally waste the time, But I've heard rumor the wizards up north pay good coin for anything magical. At this point, we'll take what we can get. There's a ton of rotten food in the old cellars, but not much else worth taking.' Damon stopped in his tracks. Helgen.. wiped off the map? That was very intriguing. He stepped over to a table that sat in the kitchen and laid his map out. After locating and updating Fort Neugrad on his map, Damon found Helgen. It wasn't far from his current location. "I wonder if that oaf was literal in his writings." Damon expected Helgen to be completely gone, almost as if a town had never been built there. "I guess I'll find out when I get there." As he moved around the kitchen, Damon found clothes worth taking, along with several books he needed in order to finish the sets he already started collecting. A pickaxe caught his eye, so he grabbed it and added it to his inventory.
With the room now devoid of anything valuable, Damon decided to take a break. He grabbed a wooden chair and sat near the kitchen fire and began emptying every bottle of Alto Wine that sat on the table behind him. The taste wasn't very pleasant, but after five bottles Damon felt a nice buzz going. He stood from his seat and left the kitchen, swiping various objects as he searched for the fort's library. As he found himself back in the dining hall, Damon noticed a third door waiting to be opened. He approached and reached for the handle but it wouldn't budge. He then tried the key from his pocket. It worked. This must be the library.
As Damon descended the stone steps he caught a glimpse of a person in black robes. This must have been the man mentioned in the bandit chief's journal, Brandish. Once again Damon used fire to kill his enemy, the battle lasting mere seconds. Damon then looted the corpse, quick to grab the coin purse attached to Brandish's hip. With his attention now focused on the room, Damon was quick in his observation; the library was a dump. It was dusty and held more ruined books than it did legible ones. Damon managed to grab a few worth taking and tucked them away in his bag. He then turned to the large chest sitting against the back wall. It was locked. It took Damon an attempt or two to open the chest, but the contents weren't exactly worth while. He grabbed the coin and enchanted weapon laying at the bottom and closed the lid before leaving the library.
Now back in the same hall where he started, Damon began filling his sack with every piece of food he found lying around the room. Cheese, bread, wine, mead. While he may not need food to survive, Damon still enjoyed the taste. His bag now heavier than when he arrived, Damon headed for the front door, headed for Helgen.