Chapter 7
A touch of madness, A throttling of desperation
The whisper of desire, The wine of idleness
The drum beat of inspiration
Of these are actions of legends born
Claudia awoke the next morning when she heard a thunderous rush of air followed by a loud hiss. With a start she was up, barely dressed, and her rapier was ready. Curious as to what had jolted her awake, she poked her head out door and spotted an also alarmed and equally disheveled Sibylla standing confused in the hallway.
"What was that?" Claudia demanded.
"I was hoping you'd know." the Nord sputtered.
Suddenly, they noticed a fine mist starting to billow rapidly down the staircase, fingers of the moisture slowly plunged in a freefall to the main floor. They scarcely had a moment to swallow this odd sight when the two heard the slight patter of footsteps slowly approaching them on muffled pads. Appearing from the billowing clouds, Do'Ravier emerged covered in frost looking as if coated in a mail of miniature diamonds while tiny icicles hung from his whiskers and weighed them down. He nonchalantly passed them.
"Good morning, ladies. Nevermind the failed experiment...though I honestly don't know how I did this one either. Either way, shall you join us for breakfast?"
Both Claudia and Sibylla took a moment to get dressed before continuing with the cat in the descent of the staircase. Claudia opted for her usual desert robes while Sibylla found a spare, simple dress to wear. They could smell that something was already being prepared as they continued to approach the main floor. They soon spotted Bann-Je working feverishly behind the kitchen bar. Eggs were being hard boiled in a large pot while they could smell bread being warmed on a hot plate, Bann-Je moving to each station of the kitchen like a murderous shadow. A row of Dwarven tankards sat on the counter, one for each of them filled with water. Do'Ravier went to each one, pressing his palms to them and flash chilling them with a small burst of frost magic. Sylva joined them as Bann-Je was feverishly handing everyone their plates.
"So, why is it that the lord of the tower does all the serving?" Sibylla chuckled.
"Like to keep my claws close on hand. Also, I know the food inventory stores better than anyone." the Argonian replied, swallowing a hard boiled egg whole.
"As it turns out, there is something useful for the compulsive need to count, recheck and then double check your stores while monitoring total gains and losses." Do'Ravier shrugged.
"We have not gone hungry yet. Well, at least not in our bellies. Gods, I want to kill something." Bann-Je murmured quietly. Sylva, who had been quiet the whole time, spoke up.
"...I thought you had to handle hostile Bedouins " the Nord asked between bread and cheese.
"They have since learned to behave around the tower. It has been a good six months since there has been an incident."
"So...all of you know each other? I only know Do'Ravier from a previous accident."
"Most people know the Khajiit from an accident." Sibylla jibbed.
"We were a team of Vigilants back in High Rock." Claudia explained.
"Ah, so this is a reunion?" Sylva asked curiously.
"An unplanned one." Do'Ravier murmured.
"...Actually, there is a reason I've been rounding you guys up." the Imperial admitted sheepishly.
"Really? The voices said as much." Bann-Je blurted, ushering another but brief moment of nervous silence.
"Okay, please, hear me out." Claudia urged before taking a breath to ready herself.
"Do you all remember before we had to flee High Rock? Remember we were looking for a mage of Peryite? Some Daedra Lord?"
"The Daedra Lord of pestilence who orders Oblivion's lesser planes." Do'Ravier factoid.
"Right. Well...he's back. And I need to stop him." Claudia admitted with a sigh.
"Back? Are you sure?" Bann-Je inquired.
"He...desecrated an inn in Sentinel. His name was the last on the guest book." the Imperial stated.
Silence hung on all of them as they all got lost within their own thoughts. Claudia knew she was asking a high thing. All of them had their own lives and had gone their own separate ways. And now, having been reunited for less than a week, she was already presenting them with a heavy request. Truth be told, she was not sure she would have said yes if the situation was reversed.
"Claudia, we're not part of the Vigilants anymore." Do'Ravier replied, voice numb.
"I know, but this is important!"
"We have no support from the Inquisition. If there are any sleeper Thalmor agents around, well, I highly doubt the Aldmeri Dominion have forgotten us yet, and for Divines' sake, we've had a year to let our skills deteriorate." the Khajiit argued.
"That's not true, you and Bann-Je regularly trained with the others so that they would be prepared to fight hostile bedouins out in the desert." Sylva pointed out.
"Fighting bedouins is not the same as fighting Daedra, undead, Daedra, ghosts and Daedra!" the Khajiit snapped.
"I'm sure you'll do just fine. Besides, we always needed you for your magical abilities than anything else and from what I've seen, you've picked up a few more tricks over the year." Sibylla said, trying for once to calm things down.
"...This one needs to think about this." Do'Ravier finally said before marching up the stairway towards his room. He left them all again in silence.
"I'll go talk to him." Sylva offered, hurrying up the steps. Claudia meanwhile shook her head and sighed.
"I wonder what got into him." Sibylla murmured.
"It's partially my fault. I came down hard on him before we all parted ways. You too, Bann-Je. I'm sorry about what I said a year back." the Imperial murmured before drinking from her tankard.
"So what do you think, lizard?" the Nord asked hopefully.
"It's been a long time since I killed something. So messy."
"...I take it that means you're on board?"
"Sure...Wait, what did the other voice agree to?" the Argonian blurted, his voice sounding like it shifted a bit.
Claudia took the awkward silence as an opportunity to regard the architecture of the tower. Like most Dwarven ruins it was made of a bronze like metal while the floors were a heavy stone and she wondered how they remained in place despite there being many floors throughout the tower. The stone tiles lacked any design, simply being smoothed by the years and were at least cool to the touch, which was more than could be said by the metal which could warm all too easily in the desert heat.
They heard footsteps approaching and this time saw a lone Do'Ravier returning, face grim under the fur. He mechanically walked up to them and folded his arms in front of his chest. There was a moment before he decided to speak.
"I will not promise anything. But I should at least hear how exactly this mage desecrated the inn. I might be able to help you somehow if you describe it to me."
"So, that basically means you're going to eventually give in and help us." Sibylla teased.
"I did not say that."
"You never do but you always end up helping!"
"Just tell me the details!"
A few minutes later, they were following Do'Ravier around in the library as he piled several books on a large desk. The number of shelves and books was impressive although it was easily dwarfed by an actual library.
"How were you able to acquire all these books in a short time?" Claudia asked.
"Give a bunch of Dwemer trinkets and artifacts to a caravan and tell them to send the rest to a library in exchange for several ordered books. The libraries are still trying to print all the books I ordered and the caravans return them to me when they can. You'd be surprised how many times I've needed information on Daedra. The Dwemer were not unfamiliar with them." the Khajiit explained.
"So, what can you tell me about Peryite and this attack?" the Imperial pressed.
"That's the problem, few people even know that Peryite exists. As far as Daedra go, we've only just recently have become familiar with him and even then, even his followers can't say much. Now, the...gore, for lack of a better term, in the inn. Did it seem living or decomposing?"
"...both?"
"Hmph. Well, that just muddies it. I'd say...he's still experimenting." Do'Ravier offered.
"Experimenting? To do what?" Sibylla demanded.
"I wouldn't know, I'm not him. I remember those creatures he summoned that we fought. There's also reason to believe he set off some sort of tormenting agent on those vampires we fought a while back. He has a dual fascination with life and death and Peryite is a logical patron for that matter being the Daedra lord associated with pestilence and disease. It's not solid but considering everything we saw before we fled here and what you've told me now, it's the only hunch that would make sense."
"That still does not give us much. It only gives us more motivation." Claudia sighed.
"I've done all I can." Do'Ravier shrugged simply.
"You should still come with us." Sibylla urged.
"For the love of the Divines, let me think about it." Do'Ravier grumbled again and abruptly left the library.
"What is his problem?" Sibylla snapped after he left.
"He's happy here."
"What?"
"He has a Dwemer tower all to himself where he can study to his heart's content. He has the means to experiment without anyone being bothered by him. And call me crazy, but I think there's something going on between him and Sylva. He's happy to sit here in this tower, offer help to passer bys and maybe zap the occasional bandit. He's under no obligations to do anything we used to do as Vigilants anymore." Claudia explained.
"Yeah, but where else are we going to find a battlemage that knows how to work with us? Besides, Bann-Je didn't need a lot of convincing." Sibylla argued.
"Bann-Je is crazy and you just heard him muttering. He wants to go assassinate something again. And we're not going to find another battlemage that knows exactly how to work with us. You remember all those times we nearly killed each other when we first started out."
"Well, you said yourself that maybe he's still mad at you. You go talk to him." the Nord urged.
"Well...I might as well." Claudia sighed. She stepped out into the massive stairwell and decided to go look for him in his own room. She turned and walked up the steps.
It proved to be a short walk. She saw the next landing overhead but before she got there, she spotted Do'Ravier standing right outside a large, sealed door just before the final floor. He had a small, sealed vial in his hand and was staring at the door in concentration. Claudia felt that he was ignoring her so she decided to get to the point.
"Look, are you still bitter about how I treated you a year back? Because if you are, I'm sorry about that, I really am and I should not have done that to you."
"It's more to it than that."
"Then please, explain to me what it is because I really feel like we need you."
"I have not done any of that fighting in a year, Claudia! I'll need to train. I have no intention of dying immediately after setting up a life I actually enjoy."
"That's...that's it? You're just afraid?"
"Of course I'm afraid." the Khajiit admitted.
"Well, we can spend a few days here with you training with Sibylla. You and Bann-Je will probably need the time to set everything in order in your absence anyway." Claudia offered amicably. Do'Ravier sighed.
"...When this is done, you owe me."
"If I contribute a few more books to your library, will you at least name a shelf after me?" Claudia grinned sheepishly.
"...Deal."
"Who are you talking to?" a voice demanded from behind the door. Despite the initial surprise, Claudia was certain that under his fur, Do'Ravier had turned white.
"Claudia, would you mind if I took care of something privately?" Do'Ravier squeaked, almost in a panic.
"Who is in there?" the Imperial asked suspiciously.
"It's a long and complicated story."
"Are you holding someone captive?"
"Who is out there?" the voice demanded again.
"Claudia...please."
"What's going on, Do'Ravier?"
The door banged and then there was silence.
"Open that do, Do'Ravier." Claudia ordered. The Khajiit glared at her, growled, and then began turning a circular locking mechanism. He continued to turn it long after Claudia thought it would open. It was not until a good quarter of a minute that the locking mechanism finally stopped and would no longer budge. Quietly, the mage opened the heavy door as thick as a person and revealed a darkened room illuminated only by a single light fixture running off of some old forgotten Dwemer magic.
There was a woman standing at the threshold of the door. She had long black hair that hung loose from her head and pale white skin. She wore a black and gold dress and some simple jewelry though Claudia noticed that they were of a make she had never seen before. This stranger had blood red lips and equally crimson eyes where the white should have been. However, the thing that grabbed Claudia's attention the most was what she heard. The woman had no heartbeat.
"You're a vampire." Claudia blurted. The woman responded by reaching out as if in an instant and clamping her hand around Claudia's throat.
"So are you. And you cheat at it." she snarled.
"Zelphia, that's my friend you're threatening and- wait, what?" Do'Ravier asked, aghast as orbs of electricity crackled in his paws.
"What's going on here?" Sibylla thundered, marching up the steps with Bann-Je close in tow.
"Oh...uh, you do not want to meet this person. Long story but with the best of intentions. Do not ask about the woman behind the door." Bann-Je blurted.
"Someone tell me what in the Divines' names is going on up here?" the Nord shouted.
"From what it sounds like, it seems our friends have a semi-living skeleton in their closet." Claudia snapped, not enjoying the woman's firm hold on her neck.
"Yes, but our 'living skeleton' as you pointed out just told me that you're vampire. And she would know. Yes, she is one." Do'Ravier explained, eyebrow raised at Claudia.
"How about you explain what's going on first." Claudia threatened with a hiss.
"Can we all calm down and let me give Zelphia her due, first?" the Khajiit offered, shaking the vial he had earlier.
"Fine."
"Zelphia, please unhand Do'Ravier's friend so he can give you food." he asked with exaggerated politeness.
"Is it the real stuff or another experiment?" the vampire snarled irritably.
"Half camel blood, the other half I donated. No new findings this time."
"It'll do." Zelphia grumbled, letting go of Claudia before snatching the vial from Do'Ravier's paw and downing it swiftly.
"So why do you have a vampire in your closet?" Sibylla pressed.
"It's technically a vault, not a closet. I want to clean it but she won't let me." Bann-Je murmured.
"Can we talk about this downstairs over some tea?" Do'Ravier offered with a sigh.
"Is it daylight out?" Zelphia demanded.
"Yes. Four hours pass dawn." Bann-Je reported, trying to be helpful.
"Bah, too bright. Lock me back in." the vampire snapped at Do'Ravier before walking back into the small vault and hauling the door shut behind her.
"She was here when we first arrived." Do'Ravier explained, sipping a cup of Elsweyr Cactus tea.
It took awhile to get everyone to calm down but Bann-Je and Do'Ravier were insistent that they all take a moment before any talking happened. Waiting for the water to boil and for the tea to prepare was a natural timer. As soon as everyone had sat down, the two took another deep breath before Do'Ravier opened his mouth.
"That's it? She was here first so you just live with her?" Sibylla asked incredulously, eyebrow raised.
"She was mildly unpleasant when we first spotted her on the upper floors-"
"She still is mildly unpleasant." Bann-Je interrupted Do'Ravier.
"-But she explained that while she still felt the need to feed, after some three hundred years of being a vampire, you don't need to feed as much or as often. She was starting to feel...remorse for what she had done was looking for a cure. She had not found one yet but decided hiding in this tower was a good compromise between trying not to kill too many people and not being noticed." the Khajiit explained, taking a sip of his tea.
"And you took her word for it?" Claudia asked skeptically.
"Why not? We were the ones that were about to kill her first, not the other way around. Besides, does not Stendarr instruct us to have mercy?"
"I thought we were also instructed to slay the undead." Sibylla argued.
"True, but I think there might be an exception here. Usually, the undead are not trying to become authentically undead and would rather remain killing as half dead." the Khajiit pointed out.
"That statement hurt two of the voices." Bann-Je grumbled.
"Now...Zelphia called you a vampire. She might be unpleasant, and that's putting it mildly, but she's not crazy and she's not taken to lying. Are you a vampire, Claudia?" Do'Ravier asked bluntly.
"No." Claudia replied quickly. She was met with unrelenting stares.
"Fine...I'm not one. Yet." the Imperial admitted, eyes now watching the floor.
"Wait, what is that suppose to mean?" Sibylla asked.
"It started after I almost died from the vampires a year ago. I could hear heart beats. At first I just...I didn't know, it was strange but I didn't think anything of it. But now...I can still hear heart beats but now there are times I want to...feed. And not in the chewing food sort of way. And I suspect that the fact I burn easily and severely has more to do than just the fact that I have fair skin."
There was a stony silence for a moment as each of them got lost in their own thoughts. Claudia tried to ignore the fact that Do'Ravier was now staring at her like some workshop experiment. She was not sure what the facial expression on Sibylla meant. Bann-Je seemed to be the only one who appeared to be unfazed by the whole thing. Considering the fact that he was the one with multiple voices in his head, having a friend who had vampire issues was probably just another fruit stand at the bazaar for him.
"Don't mind me for a moment." Do'Ravier murmured as Claudia felt one of his fuzzy fingertips touch her neck right under her jaw. She looked at him strangely but he seemed deep in thought. After a moment of silence, Do'Ravier clasped his paws back together and frowned.
"Well, no wonder she thought you were cheating."
"What do you mean?" Claudia inquired.
"Your own heart rate is going at a solid one beat a minute."
"So that means..." Sibylla trailed off.
"Claudia is all but dead. But remember, the vampires claimed they got it from Furaldur who must have cast some sort of enchantment or curse upon them. If we can get to Furaldur, we have a chance of curing Claudia." Do'Ravier explained.
"Are you sure?"
"Nope, but it's your only lead now at this point, isn't it?"
"I suppose you're right." Claudia sighed.
"So does that mean you two are coming now?" Sibylla demanded wearily.
"Sure, but we need to spend a few days training with you." the mage cautioned.
"Hahaha, oh, I'm going to enjoy this." Sibylla laughed with an evil grin.
Bann-Je raced around the counter, stopping to enter and exit three times, before returning to the tower's main floor. Arriving at the center, he began to hop slightly in excitement.
"Can we get started now? Please? All three voices want to have fun." His request was met with Sibylla raising an eyebrow at him and looking a tad bit unsure. Do'Ravier chuckled.
"Enjoy."
Author's Note: I highly doubt I can punch out another chapter during the holiday season here's an early gift. Quick, read it before the world ends or something!