The Traveler sat next to a fire, as the mine burned behind him. Even as far down as the lab had been, he had taken no chances. Using every method available to him, he had set the lab on fire, and let the fire grow. He fully expected it to burn for days, but he wanted to stay for at least a little while, to make sure nothing important survived.

Besides her. He glanced down at the woman sleeping in his bedroll. He wasn't sure she looked peaceful in her slumber, but at least she was comfortable, at least as much as he could do.

He stared into the fire as another one raged behind him, and another one smoldered within him. He was not angry at the man, not anymore. He had paid for his crimes, as much as he could. But he was sad. The people who had been lost were truly gone. They were not imprisoned somewhere, hopeful to return. They had been used in horrid experiments for a misguided purpose. And now there was this woman. He could guarantee that she had not asked for this, and now her life was irreversibly changed. She was now, more than likely, involved in the much bigger picture that was Skyrim. The chance of her going back to whatever life she had was nonexistent, and the Traveler knew she couldn't go alone.

Would she travel with him? He was already resigned to it, seeing it as her best option. He knew she'd be sad. Likely angry. He could only hope that she wouldn't hurt herself, and at least listen to what he had to say. He would not force her to do anything she didn't want to do, but he hoped she would understand what he was offering.

Hours later, the woman stirred. The Traveler stirred as well, raising his head and blearily glancing around. He fell asleep at the fire, he supposed. The fire was barely smoldering, while the mine was still going strong. He stared at the woman, seeing if she would move again. She did, groaning as she did. The Traveler set about rebuilding the fire.

Avsuo stirred, slowly coming out of her uneasy slumber. She felt wrong. Her whole body ached, and some parts felt foreign. Her legs felt hard, like they had fallen asleep, and not yet woken up. Her head felt heavy, and it felt like she was laying on something. She slowly gathered her bearings, trying not to move as to prevent her body from protesting. She was in a bedroll. She wasn't sure what type, as she still wasn't sure what she was laying on. Opening her eyes, she saw the stars. She was momentarily captivated by the sight. Had they always looked so beautiful? So bright in the night sky. Glancing away, she saw trees as the edge of her vision, and light from the other edge. She turned toward the light, grimacing as her neck protested, and saw a figure sitting next to a campfire.

The Traveler stared into the fire, keenly aware that the woman had woken up.

"Hello." His words were soft.

The woman looked at him. He noticed her eyes were reptilian.

"H-hi." The response was not timid, merely uncertain.

"What's the last thing you remember?"

What an odd question, the woman thought.

Then Avsuo remembered. She had been preparing to go hunting. Her family needed to stock up for winter, after all. She had been rather proud of herself for the hunt that ensued. Several rabbits, a few birds, even two foxes! It certainly wouldn't be enough for the whole winter, but it'd be a start. She had been heading home, humming a merry tune as she did, when movement had caught her eye. She had glanced toward it, and merely saw a figure before everything went dark.

She felt her mouth go dry as she slowly looked around, trying to ignore her protesting body. She was in the foothills of the Reach. There was something large burning some ways behind the figure. She recognized nothing around where she was.

"W-what do you want with me?" Avsuo tried to make herself sound strong, but her voice faltered.

"That little, huh?" The Traveler did not wait for a reply. "I am not the one who abducted you. I'm the one who freed you, but I fear that'd give me more credit than I deserve."

Something about the way he said that rang true with her, but the knot of unease in her stomach and the headache that had been rapidly growing remained. She decided to switch topics, trying to slowly prop herself up, trying to ignore the constant pain her body felt.

Her body said otherwise, as her arm gave out and she collapsed back onto the bedroll, crying out in pain.

She lay there, slightly stunned at her own reaction, before feeling firm, yet gentle hands turn her onto her stomach. She didn't resist, not that she could have, as she suddenly realized just how tired she felt.

"Your entire body feels wrong, correct?" The figure spoke. "Constant aching, foreign sensations?"

Avsuo was not given adequate time to respond before feeling pressure on her back. After that, any desire to respond left.

It felt so good, the pressure on her aching body. Where the pressure went, the aching stopped. It returned once the pressure left, but muted ever so slightly.

The Traveler worked his hands over the woman's back, feeling knots of tension, as well as unfamiliar muscles. He spoke as he began to work in earnest. "I can only imagine how this must feel for you, but I will need you to pay attention." He paused. "There's much to explain."

The woman nodded. He could tell it felt good for her, but he could also tell that she was genuinely paying attention. He liked that.

He sighed, then began again. "There is no easy way to put this, and I ask only for your attention. You are now Dragonborn." He felt her tense under him as he said that, but she stayed silent. "Not the 'traditional' way, though that phrasing may already tell you something. No, you were, dare I say, forced to become a Dragonborn. Someone who had far too much curiosity, and far too little morals, found some Dwemer writings talk about making a Dragonborn, and they expanded on it." He sighed again. "I have since stopped him from doing anything else, but damage was already done."

Avsuo was having issues comprehending what this man was saying. The relief she felt from his ministrations weren't helping, either. As such, she simply concluded that she was now this 'artificial' Dragonborn, and, while she didn't remember any of it, she gathered it had been unpleasant.

The Traveler paused, giving the woman a little time to absorb the information, before continuing. "Now, what all has changed? Well, to begin, you are now, overall, stronger and hardier. You heal faster, hit harder, can lift more. You have a moderate resistance to fire, electricity, and ice. You now have wings, which I imagine must be rather strange for you. Horns, scales, a tail. You should also have a disposition to learning Words of Power. Notably, these extra parts were not grafted onto you, but the information was taken from the dragon and implanted into you. It might not sound big, but it does mean that if you wanted to remove them, It'd be more akin to cutting off your arm, than, say, removing a cyst or malignant growth."

The Traveler paused, gathering his thoughts, before continuing. It was already heavy information, but the heaviest was still to come.

"Now, these new abilities certainly did not come with no price, as you are already experiencing. From the man's notes, I figured that the draconic growths of yours are in conflict with your regular body. The aching you feel now is caused by that." He paused again. "I won't lie to you. This aching may never go away. What I am doing right now will relieve it temporarily, and with regular treatment, it will hopefully become manageable, but it will more than likely never truly go away."

In the relief she felt due to the strangers' ministrations, Avsuo did have a few questions.

"How do you know all of this?"

"Simple." The reply was quick. "Before I consigned that cursed place to Oblivion, I learned as much as I could about what the man had done. I was not going to kill you, but I needed to learn about what could be done to help you."

Avsuo wasn't entirely sure what to make of what he had said, so elected to leave it for when she had more clarity of thought.

"So, what happens now?"

The stranger took a moment to reply. "I know some of what must happen, but they are better left for when you are more awake and cognizant. For now, simply rest."

Between what the stranger was doing, and the fatigue that was quickly coming on, Avsuo was more than content to do just that.