Chapter 8: The Obvious Spy
"Down this hall," the gate guard commanded. "Try to guard your unruly tongue and your wandering eyes, Dragonborn."
"Easy to do, since you're all ugly."
Serana put up a valiant effort not to roll her eyes, but that didn't mean she didn't shoot a glare over at the fire mage, who smirked when the guard sighed. Such a child. It wasn't the last such instance where Ashes brought out all the ammunition she had to fluster the guard with typical Nord insults and vulgarity, abnormally more so than ever, and it didn't take long for Serana to figure out that it was an act to mask the wandering eyes with the unruly tongue. The vampire kept a check on her own gaze since plenty of the Thalmor they had passed by had stared at her in the eyes, and the smell of fear gradually collected enough to drench the stench in the air. At least their attention on her gave Ashes the liberty to do whatever it was she was doing.
They passed by a hallway where the fire mage stopped. Serana caught the ends of an echo that sounded like a broken sobbing plea, and the crack of a whip that stopped it. She could feel the tension in Ashes' body the moment their shoulders accidentally brushed, and the scent of fiery fury exploded in that instant. Serana glanced over and saw how the amber orbs flashed bright for a second, where the pupils flickered between slits and orbs. She gently grabbed Ashes' forearm and had to call on a burst of frost magic to protect her hand from the intense heat that radiated from skin.
"Hey!" The guard barked. "You're supposed to follow!"
Ashes sucked in a breath. Her eyes connected to Serana's, who squeezed the fire mage's arm. A sigh.
"I'm not a hound," Ashes grumbled. "Bring your superior to us, someone competent. I'm heading down this way."
Sparks exploded in the guard's palm, and the fire mage retaliated by doing the same with flame. Serana wanted to bury her head in her hands and groan.
"You will not," the guard growled through clenched teeth. "That area is off limits and for Thalmor Justiciars only."
"Then that's where I need to be," Ashes retorted. "They're the highest ranking of you, are they not? Stop playing games with me before I turn you into a snowback."
The fire mage slipped out of Serana's grip, and it wasn't a surprise when the ball of sparks was shot at the floor beside Ashes' feet as a warning. She whirled around with her second fist aflame, and in that moment, guards poured out from the other rooms with arrows aimed at them. Serana glared at the fire mage.
"This is my Elder Scroll, so I'm in charge. Not you. Extinguish your fire before I do it for you. We will follow and speak to whomever this guard will introduce us to."
"But-"
Serana held out her palm and called on a frosty mist. Ashes averted her eyes and scoffed. It was long stubborn seconds before her flames petered out of existence, where smoke was the only evidence left. Serana ignored the smug smirks on the Thalmor's faces, though they were wiped off and replaced with that putrid stench of fear when their gazes connected with the vampire. Good. They needed to establish a more powerful dynamic to ensure they weren't going to be crossed inside of here, now that they were out of sight of the fake clan not watching over them. The Thalmor needed to continue to fear her if they were to escape from here peacefully, and unscathed.
She still didn't know what they were looking for inside this fortress though.
The gate guard wisely withheld wisecracks and continued to lead down the hallway, and Serana stole many glances behind her alongside Ashes, to determine where the other Thalmor were and what they were doing with their weapons. The tension was boiling rapidly, and the air was being choked out by the body heat of the fire mage alone. Serana was wasting valuable magicka and energy trying to sustain a chill over her own personal space so that she could remain sharp and have a clear mind.
They were brought into a spacious room, where the gate guard gestured to the table that looked like it was the sight of a grisly interrogation once. The table itself may have looked innocently immaculate, but Serana could smell the blood that dried in between the cracks of the wood. She frowned with distaste over the fireplace that was the source of light in the room. It did not escape her mind that this was potentially a tactic of the guard's in order to hinder Serana.
"Take a seat, make yourself comfortable," the guard said with surprising politeness. "I will go report to the officer in charge and he will decide what to do next."
"Not decide what to do next. Meet us," Ashes demanded.
"I cannot and will not order my superior because of the whims of the Dragonborn," the gate guard spat. "He will do what he decides to do. You will just have to wait."
With that, the gate guard left them. Serana quietly took her seat and positioned herself so that her back was to the fireplace. She kept an eye on the two hallways connected to this room and found it peculiar that no other guard had entered to keep watch over them. It was some time before the stubborn fire mage, who paced about in defiance and tinkered with insignificant inanimate objects, decided to sit down beside Serana. She grabbed the underside of her chair and wedged a bit of distance between them.
"What are you doing?" Ashes whispered.
"You're too hot," Serana grumbled. "You need to calm down and keep a level head. Do you even know what to do next? We can't get by with just thinking on our feet."
"Maybe you can't," the fire mage huffed with the tell-tale boastful tone of Nords that made Serana roll her eyes. Hard. Ashes chuckled. "Did you see your brain that time?"
Serana didn't bite the bait. She glanced around and used her nose to make sure they were still alone. She braced herself and grabbed her chair again to scoot closer.
"What is your plan, Ashes? You gave yourself away earlier by saying you're here to spy, so any attempt at asking questions to get information is going to be suspicious."
Silence. Serana took her gaze off the hallways and looked over at the fire mage, who wore a simple and serene smile that wasn't characteristic of her whatsoever. Before the vampire could press, she caught smells coming their way and created some distance between her and Ashes. Serana reluctantly took the Elder Scroll off and laid it out on the table but wrapped the carrying strap around her hand. She refused to part with it, no matter the circumstance. It was already pushing the envelope to allow the fire mage to use it as a pseudo-bargaining chip. Just to make sure there wasn't any room for misunderstanding, Serana muttered.
"The Elder Scroll is not going to be exchanged for information."
"No, it won't," Ashes murmured in agreement.
Their backs straightened and the fire mage neatly folded her hands on the table when the Thalmor entered. Serana stole a casual glance every now and then to observe the woman beside her, where plenty more things uncharacteristic of her could be read. It was as if the fire mage was a shrewd businesswoman instead, though her attire did little to cement the illusion.
"Dragonborn, how nice to see you again."
A Thalmor stepped forward and unveiled himself by pulling his hood down. What was strange about him was his beard and green eyes, whereas the other elves were clean-shaven and possessed either gold or amber eyes. Ashes stiffened and the room lost it's oxygen within a spark of a breath, and Serana reached under the table with a chilled hand on the fire mage's thigh.
"Rulindil," Ashes growled. Her eyes narrowed at the gate guard. "You brought your interrogator, not your commander."
"I'm the highest ranking officer in this complex, currently." Rulindil's voice was pompous and grating. He wore a smile reminiscent of a snake as he took his seat across from them. "How unfortunate for you that I had visited today to monitor the Justiciars' duties. And how coincidentally curious that we've crossed paths again. I'm intrigued, what story do you bring now, spy?" His gaze landed on Serana and his smile grew. "Does your partner know she will die like your last one?"
"I'm not here to spy," the fire mage ground out through clenched teeth. "I'm here in peace, with an offer that I believe would be beneficial to both the Thalmor and I."
Her folded hands changed colours from how hard she was squeezing them, and it brought no small amount of pleasure to the observant altmer, judging by his growing smile.
"The Elder Scroll," Rulindil gestured to it on the table. He reached, and Serana tugged it closer to her. He smiled at her, scrutinizing eyes picking her apart. His gaze snapped to Ashes. "What makes you think we would work with you, Dragonborn? First Emissary Elenwen gave explicit orders of bringing your head to her on a spike, and I would hate to disappoint the Ambassador."
"She'll just have to get used to it."
The fire mage grabbed the end of the Elder Scroll and glanced at Serana when she tightened her grip. She subtly shook her head. Rulindil laughed.
"It seems your partner isn't willing to die nor work with you, unlike... What was his name again? Malb-"
"I'm not here to play games with you," Ashes seethed. "This offer won't last forever. Take it or leave it."
Rulindil rested his elbows on the table and folded his hands in front of his mouth. "What do you want in exchange for our assistance, and what exactly are you offering with this Elder Scroll? To share it's information, or to relinquish it to our custody completely?"
"Share it's information," Serana blurted. She ignored the side-eye she got. "We've yet to uncover it's secrets. We know the Thalmor would have the knowledge and resources to do so."
"It sounds like we would be doing the majority of the work, then. What would stop us then, say, if we were to eliminate you both here right now? You've nothing to offer."
"Information on the Empire," Ashes stated. "As I told your gate guard, I'm obviously here to spy. But I have information more valuable than what I could give the Empire."
All eyes fell on her. Serana was tempted to take her hand off the fire mage's thigh when it had burned intensely through the sash and applied more chilling energy to combat it in a last ditch effort to make Ashes come to her senses. The vampire did her best to compose her expression when she looked over at Ashes. What in the world was this woman thinking? Correction: she wasn't thinking. She was digging herself a deeper hole and proving herself as untrustworthy to Thalmor with every breath she took. They were here, exposed, and factually had nothing to offer but the Elder Scroll, thanks to the lack of a well thought-out plan.
Rulindil's smile showed outside the corners of his knuckles. His hands fell on the table.
"Interesting. I'll ignore how you said you aren't here to spy a minute ago."
Yes. Contradiction typically happens when one doesn't plan. If looks could curse, Serana would have hexed Ashes' life and soul to the ends of time with her glare.
"What kind of information are we talking about?" Rulindil inquired.
"Troop movements, names of spies, hidden coffers of coin and weapons."
"Names of spies... Such as yourself?"
"Yes. I work with General Tullius as one of his top officers." Ashes' swallow was audible. The fire mage's throat was slowly growing red, flustered.
Serana was blank on ideas to get them out of this, and she still had no clue what in the world they were infiltrating this place for. Ashes was sabotaging herself. She wasn't kidding when she had exclaimed the insanity of her being chosen for a subterfuge mission. Reality crashed down at the nerve-grating sounds of Rulindil's laughter.
"You, one of the Empire's top operatives?" The gate guard asked incredulously. She exchanged smirks with the others. "Are all Nords imbeciles? I can't believe she's admitting this. Or that she is actually one of their officers. This will be an easy war for us to win."
"Yes, and it would be equally foolish for us to turn away such an opportunity," Rulindil stated aloud, as if telegraphing their intentions bore no consequence.
With Ashes' evident lack of wit, it really didn't.
"Turn away?" Ashes inquired.
Something in the atmosphere shifted. Serana's hand was gently pushed off from the fire mage's thigh, and the Elder Scroll was rolled off the table, into her lap. The Thalmor's jovialness died a second too late when Ashes' demeanour changed as well as her eyes, where her pupils shrunk into slits, and her teeth appeared sharper when she grinned with a noteable bloodthirstiness as she shot the gate guard's old question back.
"What makes you think you would be leaving here alive?"
The fireplace roared deafeningly and Serana was dragged off the chair, thrown on the ground. Ashes used her body to cover the vampire as something in the room exploded, and screams filled the halls. When the fire mage climbed off and tugged Serana up into standing, Ashes' sash was offered and forcefully wrapped around the vampire's mouth.
"Move!" Ashes yelled above the screaming and flames spreading rapidly, engulfing hay stacks and furniture.
"What are you doing?!" Serana shouted.
She was pushed back down the hallway from where they came and scrambled to strap the Elder Scroll to her. She tried to get a look at the insane woman shoving her from behind but wasn't given a chance. Fireballs were shot over her shoulder to hit the Thalmor Agents that came for them from the other end. The exits around them were being blocked, and heavy smoke clumped quickly.
"We need a plan! You're going to trap us and burn us alive, and this infiltration will be for nothing," she snapped, whirling around to grab Ashes by the shoulders.
Serana let out a jet of chilling energy to try and snap the fire mage out of it, and was confused to see that Ashes had actually appeared tranquil and lucid.
"Infiltration?" Ashes stared with a blank look as if she was confused, or a sudden onset of amnesia.
"Yes! You were supposed to find something in here, who knows what that even is... And instead of finding out, you're destroying it all! Have you lost your mind?"
"No." Ashes smiled. "I'm about to find and do what I was sent here for."
Serana's forehead scrunched in confusion. She didn't get a chance to ask and figure out what exactly what going on in the fire mage's mind when she was pushed down the hallway from where they had heard the echo of the broken sob. Ashes squeezed between the space of Serana and the wall to take lead and charged down, slinging her fire with a lot more control than she had demonstrated minutes earlier. She was able to create shapes, of sorts, where her flames stretched out from her arm and formed a majestic fiery hand, grabbing a Thalmor around the core to burn them and slam them on the ground.
How had she even known how to manipulate an element and give it physical attributes? Shouldn't it have passed through skin? This mission was a lot more eye-opening than all the days Serana had travelled with this woman, and it worried her to be learning all these things now, suddenly, situationally, rather than naturally.
There was more than what met the eye with this obvious spy.
They descended stairs, and the source of the sobs came to light. Serana froze in her tracks when there were cages everywhere, some holding multiple prisoners, dead or alive. There were torture devices everywhere, and the pieces of the puzzle fell into place when her gaze fell on shelves upon shelves of armour pieces emblazoned with the insignia of the gear Éclair hid beneath her robe. The Empire. These prisoners were soldiers.
"Where is the key?!" Ashes shouted to no one in particular.
A prisoner crawled to the cage and squeezed an arm through the bars, choking, voice weak and raspy from dehydration. "In that room... Justiciars...!"
"Just hold on a little longer, you're almost free!" Ashes yelled as she charged for the next room.
She yelped when the door had flown off it's hinges and slammed into her. The wood cracked, shattering from the forceful impact of a lightning bolt. Serana laid down a barrage of ice spikes to force the guards to take cover and give Ashes time to recover. The vampire rushed over and knelt by her side, connecting her hands with the cold stone of the fortress to erupt a wall of ice before them as a shield. She had buzzed with energy and adrenaline, never feeling more alive than now for the longest time than she had remembered, and they had fought a dragon for crying out loud!
Ashes' grin filled her peripheral vision, and the fire mage readied herself as she ignited her fists. They watched from beyond the ice as the distorted reflections of the enemy neared.
"I'm going to shatter this wall when they get closer. Do you think you can build another one in time to protect us and the prisoners from the ice that'll come back our way?"
Serana saved her strength and nodded. She rushed back a few steps and went to the cages, chilling the metal and using it as a conductor to spread the cold faster. As soon as Ashes began to sprint to her, the vampire called on the rest of her magicka and infused it in the bars to help her create a snap-freezing zone. The fire mage accidentally slammed into Serana as she pivoted sharply to throw her fireball at the first ice wall. Serana didn't wait to see what would happen and cast her spell to erupt another one for them and the prisoners. There was a symphony of screams of agony and a sharp series of sounds as if hundreds of vases were shattering against the floor. She had even felt specks of ice fall on her hair and grunted when she felt a forceful blow against the wall her essence was connected with.
Then silence fell, save for the roaring of flames coming from the floors above. Ashes poked out of the corner of the ice wall and gave the vampire a thumbs up, who dispelled it and nearly fell on her rump from exhaustion. She felt gross and coated in sweat, just like the fire mage, who instead of searching the bodies for the keys, had grabbed the bars and set her hands aflame. She grunted and pulled and pulled and pulled until the metal warped, and she squatted and she opened up the lower part so that the prisoners could squeeze through.
Serana had followed the fire mage's lead and instead snap-froze the bars, using the furniture to break them as she threw chairs. When they freed the prisoners, Ashes wordlessly charged on and cut through a bloody path. It was clear her energy was dwindling rapidly when she resorted to using the Thalmor's weapons against them and closed the distance, deflecting strikes to grab the hilts and change the angle for enemies to fall to their own blade. The prisoners that followed armed themselves and shouted rallying cries that drowned out everything else.
Her heart thundered along to their marching beat, and in the back of her mind, she wondered how none of them cried vampire or tried to slaughter her. Maybe it was their adrenaline that clouded them, but she wasn't going to stop to ask.
They fought their way outside, where they split up and dispersed as one by one they took off running in the general direction of Solitude, retreating from the overwhelming force that awaited them outside. It was Serana's turn to grab and drag Ashes to seek cover from the powerful ballistas, and though the fire mage continued to try and fight, slewing typical Nord insults, Serana gave her no pleasure to. It was clear Ashes was running on an empty tank when smoke came out of her hands instead of her flames, but she had used even that to her advantage as she grabbed shields or faces to melt them from her temperature.
It wasn't until Serana looked at her own hands in wonder how she hadn't melted from what should have felt like hot temperature, that she realized her hands were burned. Shock and panic almost overwhelmed her, and she called on what little magicka she had left to chill herself. She unravelled the sash on her face and used it to loop around Ashes' waist, tugging on her over and over again until the woman stumbled over her feet and fell.
"We have to go!" Serana yelled. "The others have escaped, we'll die here if we stay and fight with nothing!"
What she predicted would have been an entirely different fight with the fire mage hadn't come to pass. Ashes surprisingly looked and her and listened, and the Nord nodded, pointing in the direction of distant trees.
"There," she wheezed, exhausted. "Let's run to the forest and lose them there."
Ashes scrambled up to her feet, only to be taken down again when Serana dived for her to knock her out of the way of another ballista shot. They rolled down a hill, and got up as soon as they were able to, only for Serana to be the one taken down when Ashes dove for her, and they rolled down the rest of the way.
It felt like they ran for ages, crashing into trees out of fatigue and stumbling over twigs. When Ashes collapsed in exhaustion, gulping for air, Serana came back to her and laid down beside her. Her body buzzed, her mind spun. She tried to process everything that had just happened, staring at the branches in a daze.
"We need to rest," Ashes coughed in between wheezes. "Then we have to go back to eliminate them."
"But-"
"They know I'm with the Empire now. There can be no survivors or the Thalmor will nullify the White-Gold Concordat and march to war with the Empire."
"The ones that knew you're with the Empire are dead, Ashes. There's no way they survived that when you set everything on fire. If the flames don't get them, the smoke will."
Ashes chewed the corner of her lip. Her head lulled away. "Fuck."
Serana frowned. She pushed herself up on her elbow to get a good look at the fire mage's face. "I would be more worried about what this General of yours is going to think when he finds out you failed your mission and did the complete opposite of what he asked for."
Weak laughter danced in the air. Ashes tiredly rolled over to her and shook her head. She gestured to the vampire's bedroll.
"Let's set that up before we pass out here. And I didn't do the complete opposite of what General Tullius asked for. I did exactly what he wanted me to do."
"What? Did you hit your head back there? I'm certain Éclair gave you orders to infiltrate, not destroy."
"Ah, but that's the thing." Ashes' grin exploded to life. "If you remember... I said that they, or at least for sure Éclair, know how I am with infiltration. As soon as I heard that plea echo when we walked down the hallway, I knew what I was sent there for. That was my mission. To free the prisoners and burn that decrepit place to the ground."
Ashes shifted closer and reached over Serana's waist to help herself to the bedroll, burning one side of the strap off to relinquish it's hold. Ashes lazily set up the bedroll and didn't even bother going inside of it, nor asked if the vampire wanted in.
Selfish hoarder. She was the one that said she didn't need one. Serana was stuck on the marvel of the fire mage's thought process, as well as the Empire's. It was sly, but why hadn't they just told her up front that freeing the prisoners and destroying the fortress was her true mission?
Unless... Maybe Ashes wasn't the only obvious spy.
Serana didn't have the heart to ask.