Kuroinu Dawnbreaker - A light shining in darkness - Chapter 3
Restoration is often overlooked as an underwhelming school by many magic practitioners on Tamriel, it's not a school where you can burn an enemy to death, summon powerful creatures or charm other people to get a better deal during bartering. For most ordinary citizens on Tamriel, restoration seem to only involve healing the body from many different kinds of physical ailments and curing many diseases. However, the limits of restoration are based on the willpower, skill, knowledge of the healer itself. While a novice healer can heal minor injuries in a short amount of time, a master can manipulate the life forces inside their own or their patients to heal the most grievous of internal injuries and even extend their own lifespan.
There is also another part of the restoration school that is often wrongly categorized as destruction or conjuration, those spells involving the purification of the undead or other abominations. And many religious orders dedicated to Stendarr and Arkay often employ these offensive restoration spells in their battles against the undead like zombies, skeletons, vampires and other abominations were ever they travel on Tamriel.
For Thorson, his primary school of magic has always been restoration as he continued expanding his knowledge from various practitioners on Tamriel during these past years. His motivation for choosing this school can be traced to his early childhood where he witnessed his parents brutal treatment at the hands of the Forsworn, a night where he cried his heart out at the sight of his parents mutilated corpses. After this horrible event he was forced to join the Vigilants of Stendar when they found him, and during his stay with them he immediately jumped at the chance to learn everything about the restoration school. For him, it's a way to honor his parents, for he hated himself for being weak, wishing he could have done something during that night, something to make their pain go away…
The Dragonborn casted a conjuration spell in the room, and before them a Dremora wearing fine cloths walked out a portal. Thorson's Dremora butler looked at the three individuals in front of him, he saw his master and two naked woman behind him, "You need cloths, I guess… Master?"
Thorson managed to obtain a couple of his spare robes and leather boots from his Dremora butler and gave them to both women in the room. After his Dremora butler returned to Oblivion, he took a defensive position at the prison door while not looking at the women as they dressed up. "I'm sorry, but these are all I have now, but they should be easy to wear at least provide you with some warmth" he apologized to both as he waited for them to dress up, "And modesty…" he then mentally finished.
The prison room was then silent expect for the sounds of cloth's ruffling, as the Dragonborn was on the lookout as he began to think about their escape, "The lightning storm should be subsiding by now, and Durnehviir would have already left for the Soul Cairn at this time…" he said out loud, he should be able to cast his portal spell here and evacuate both women to safety when there is still some time left. "When you are both dressed up, I'll open up a portal to Tamriel," he announced as he looked at Dawnbreaker in his hand, "I'm not sure how things look above us, but I can't take any risks…"
After dressing up in the cloths they were provided by their savior, Alicia then awkwardly notified him, "We are dressed, Y-you can look now." After checking the hallway for the last time, Thorson turned around and saw that both women were now dressed up in the cloths he provided. Alicia wore a black robe that seemed to fit her well enough while Celestine's white robe was obviously not of the right size; her large chest caused her robe opened a bit up at the top, revealing a bit of cleavage, "At least she's dressed up…" Thorson thought as he quickly diverted his gaze and took a green gem from his satchel, "This should take a moment; I need to concentrate on my destination…" The Dragonborn announced as he started casting his spell.
"Wait!" A voice belonging to Celestine interrupted him, "You told Alicia before that you attacked Vult's men on the surface when you were looking for us, right?"
Thorson nodded in response to her question, "Yes, I killed many of Vult's men on the way here and I commanded my dragon allies to attack them were ever they are in the city." He noticed their worried expressions when he mentioned dragons, he then quickly added, "Don't worry, they won't kill innocent people." he reassured both women, "I can promise you that, they follow my orders to the letter."
Celestine and Alicia showed some signs of relief after hearing that, but they still had more questions, "And the lightning storm you just mentioned?" Celestine asked the Dragonborn.
"Created by me… a massive lightning storm to strike down Vult's men should they venture on the streets of Ken." he explained to the Elf.
"So, you used the Thu'um, the 'Storm-voice'?" a now curious Celestine asked him, "I recognize some of the words, it's the dragon language, right?"
The Dragonborn nodded at her question, "You are correct on both accounts, I used the Thu'um to command the weather and the elements to assist me during my search for you," he answered the blonde Elf's question as started gathering the Magicka for his portal spell.
The former Elven queen seemed impressed after hearing what he was done, but she needed to know how her people fared during his latest attack, "And Ken's citizens? Do you know what happened to them? Did they flee?"
Thorson thought about this, while he was sure what the fates were for any of Vult's forces on the surface, but he could not fully predict what the ordinary citizen would do in such a situation. Most would have sought shelter inside their homes or other safe areas in the city. "They should remain unharmed by the storm and my dragon allies, so I suspect they could be hiding in their homes or other places while some could have fled the city," he admitted to both two women.
Celestine got more agitated when she heard that, "So they all could be scared and helpless while there is no one to help them?" she concluded in her mind, Celestine could not leave them behind after this. She needed to know if she can help them in any way, it's the least she could do for those she abandoned before. "W-wait" she called out to her savior, "Could you bring us to the surface instead?" she asked the Dragonborn, "I can't leave my people behind from all of this…"
"You can't be serious…" Thorson interrupted her, he felt there was no time for his kind of sentimentality, "You can't risk your life at this moment, I don't know how many Black dogs are still alive on the surface. Not to mention in these dungeons…"
Alicia then joined their argument, advising her former queen, "Lady Celestine, he has a point… we are unarmed, outnumbered and not in shape for a fight."
She then turned towards the Dragonborn "Your magic can bring us back, right?"
Thorson nodded at Alicia's question, "Yes, once you both are fully recovered, I can bring you back here, if that's what you wish," he informed her.
"No… I won't leave them behind again… I just can't…." the Elf sobbed as she started to tear up, "I-I can't…"
"Enough!" Thorson harshly cut the Elf off as he turned around and continued casting his spell, "We don't have the much time and we are wasting time and are too many unknowns that I can't risk something bad happening to you both…" he sternly advised her as he continued casting his portal spell. However, before he could complete it, he heard a cry from behind him, "Please! I beg you… 'Child of Auriel'!" as Celestine then leaped forward and grabbed his robes from the back. Thorson turned his head and saw Celestine's teared-up face as she grabbed his robes with both her hands and begged him for the fourth time on this day.
"Dammit, I can't just leave her like that, she will just worry herself to death… Is she really so compassionate towards her people that is willing to risk her life after all that she had to endure?" the Dragonborn asked himself. He cancelled his spell and turned around to see a shivering Celestine who was now holding on to his robes, her wet eyes staring intensely at his own, "I really want to help her, but I can't risk her life now… but why am I so inclined to help her that much?" he asked himself as the then thought about the alternative, "but what if the city was cleansed from those animals… Its citizens may need our help after all of this, and if there are wounded among them because of my actions…"
Memories of the Skyrim's civil war then started to flood Thorson's current thoughts, as he remembered how Skyrim's citizens suffered during that war, "Please, Dragonborn! My mother and father are still inside our burning home, they are trapped!" a young Nord girl from a certain memory begged him after a skirmish in a village in the Reach.
"Alright… alright…" Thorson finally gave in to her request, "Please calm down… my lady… I'll see what I can do for you…" he said to the crying Elf. He gently grabbed both of Celestine's hands so she could release her hold on his robes, "I pray to the Divines that I won't regret doing this…" he whispered to himself as he moved towards the cell door to first have a look around, making sure no unexpected surprises shows up.
"LAAS VAH NIR!" Thorson suddenly shouted in the room surprising both women, the Dragonborn's vision began to change as red aura's were now visible to him, signifying life signs through the thick dungeon walls.
He looked up a couple of times noticing several life signs at the surface, he saw Odahviing on the ground and seemed not to be doing anything at this moment. But he saw a large group of life signs surrounding the dragon, however they don't seem not to be doing anything erratic. Moving his eyes towards the dungeon surrounding them, he saw multiple life signs spread in different areas, but they don't seem to be moving. They could be prisoner's, perhaps those belonging to that knight's group that man mentioned before…
This vision started to change back to normal and looked towards Celestine, a small smile was now present on his face, "It all looks quiet on the surface, no sign of fighting, and I don't see any threatening activity in this dungeon," he stated to both women. He then walked towards both of them and put away his portal stone, "I'll first send a scout of mine to make sure we won't get ambushed on the way, if things are safe then ill escort you to the surface. Sounds good for you both?"
Celestine eagerly nodded her head as she showed a small smile and hugged the tall man in front of her, "Thank you… Thank you!" she genuinely thanked him. Thorson laughed awkwardly at her unexpected hug, he then turned towards the other women in the room, "Alicia, how about you?"
Alicia who seem distracted quickly looked at him and nodded, "I-If it makes her majesty happy then I'll help her, if possible." she told Thorson, "However, I would feel safer if I had a weapon…"
The Dragonborn gently released himself from Celestine's hug as he then began to cast a conjuration spell to summon a creature that would help him. A white portal formed before him and an ethereal wolf appeared from it, "head towards the surface, check for any threats and come back here." Thorson commanded his conjured wolf.
After his summon quickly moved away, he then conjured two ethereal swords in each hand, and offered each to both women, "Here, take these just in case… Also don't touch the blade, its touch can make your soul feel very 'uncomfortable'," he advised as he then stood guard at the door, waiting for his summon to return to him.
At the surface of Ken, a large number of its citizens were now attempting to surround a large red dragon in the city's main plaza. At first, they were weary and intimidated by the creature as it started talking to them in a mix of a strange language and their own. It took the actions of a brave or foolish young boy as he ran up to the dragon and stared at it in awe, the dragon itself looked amused at this and began chuckling, "Drem, Goraan Gein. Greetings, young one."
"A-Are you a friendly dragon?" the innocent young boy asked the large red dragon in front of him.
"Zu'u Ni Hin Hokoron. I'm not your enemy, young one. I am called Odahviing, my master tasked me to… cleanse this city of its enemies."
A few older citizens following their conversation felt there was no immediate danger to them and slowly moved forward, many of them had questions about what they have just witnessed today….
Wanting to kill some time the Dragonborn turned his head towards both women, "Since we are waiting here, I'm sure you both have some questions about me? I did came here quite unannounced after all..."
Alicia was first to ask, "Who are you? And where did you come from?" she asked the Dragonborn, "Someone with your caliber would be rather known in Eostia but I've never heard of your exploits."
Thorson chuckled at that past part, "Yes… someone like me would have been quite well known here…" he mentally said to himself as he recalled his own experiences in Tamriel. "I'm Thorson Brightsong and I'm from the province of Skyrim on the continent of Tamriel, also known as 'Dawn's Beauty' in the Elven language. It's located north-west of here across the Padomaic ocean."
"I have never heard of such a place." Alicia stated with a hand on her chin, "We would have known your existence by our many explorers who sailed the seas in the past."
"Yes, true…" Thorson admitted, "We surely would have encountered your people too… But for us, Eostia vanished from the face of Nirn around 900 years ago…"
Alicia was visibly surprised at that, "900 years?! W-what do you mean vanished?!" she loudly exclaimed after hearing all of this.
After Alicia calmed down, the Dragonborn continued his explanation, "From a few historical texts I've read, both our continents used to have an active trade relationship until a Bosmer merchant ship found an empty ocean where Eostia used to be. They thought it sank under the ocean but never found any visible trace of its existence…"
"But, but we never disappeared, we would have seen your ships if they sailed here…" Alicia argued, visibly confused by all of this, "For a long time our explorers thought that we were the only ones on this world… some sailed westwards only to arrive on the east side of Eostia after a month or two."
Thorson turned to Celestine who seemed more relaxed in comparison with her human friend, "I think your Elven friend here would provide you with the answers about that." he stated to Alicia, "I have some theories, but I feel she would know more." he finished.
"Celestine? What is he talking about?" a now confused Alicia addressed her Elven queen, "Do you know anything about this?"
The blonde elf sighed heavily as she then began explaining everything, "Like he said, our people used to trade with Tamriel a long time ago but…" Celestine said, "I-I fear I'm responsible for our 'supposed' disappearance all those centuries ago…"
"Hold on," they heard the Dragonborn as he interrupted Celestine, "that's over 900 years ago, you were responsible? But you seem so…"
Celestine smiled unexpectedly at her savior's statement, "Young? Did you expected me to look much older?" she teased him, both her hands on her hips as she looked at him.
"By the Divines, no no…" the Dragonborn sputtered in embarrassment, "That's not what I meant… I know Elves can live for many centuries, but you seem have been blessed with eternal youth…" he unconsciously admitted. Just then Thorson realized what he just said, "Oh Divines no… I'm sorry… forget what I've just said…"
Celestine held a hand in front of her as she softly giggled, "Thank you, for your honesty… Thorson of Tamriel…" she continued teasing him ending it with a playful wink towards the Dragonborn. Thorson could only sigh in response to this and turned his now red head away from both women. "At least it's good to see that she's in a better mood then before, even after what she had to endure…" he thought to himself "I'm not sure if my birth-sign is sometimes a curse or a blessing at this point…"
The Elven queen then continued her explanation, "Over 900 years ago, I've envisioned that Molag Bal was about to attack our Tamrielan neighbors, and in order to protect our people from harm, I hid Eostia from the rest of the world with my magic."
"Impressive use of Illusion and Alteration magic." she then heard Thorson compliment her, "You seem to be a powerful magic user in order to achieve such a feat, especially at this scale." he stated while standing guard at the prison door.
"Thank you for your compliment, Thorson…" Celestine teased with a smile, earning a grunt from the Dragonborn as he turned his head away again.
Alicia witnessed their exchange, seeing her Elven queen teasing her rescuer like this, "What is this? A-are they flirting?! In this place of all things?!" she mentally exclaimed.
Celestine then continued, "But maintaining such a spell drains my power, so much that I need to drink several potions at a daily basis to keep my magical reserves stable…"
"You mean, those blue potions you drink occasionally?" Alicia interrupted, remembering seeing Celestine drinking a blue liquid from a vial when the Shield Princesses occasionally had dinner together.
The blonde Elf nodded at her question, now with a somber expression on her face, "But it seemed Molag Bal was quickly defeated from what our rescuer told me, thus there was no real need to keep Eostia hidden for so long…" she explained, "B-but... I was afraid… Daedric princesses are powerful beings… And I could not risk exposing Eostia to the rest of the world… to protect us from the Daedra…"
"Until now…" Thorson concluded.
"Until now… yes," A now downed Celestine admitted, "the phase spell would have been canceled during my… enslavement." she told both individuals in the room, "And since my power was already strained during the last war, my remaining magical power left me quickly…"
"In the end, it was a good thing though," Thorson interrupted the Elven woman, "else I wasn't able to locate Eostia and free you both."
"Indeed… for that you have my thanks again." the Elf replied genuinely.
Thorson however found it strange that the Divines, who are part of Nirn itself would not have intervened after what happened here. Even using a phase spell like this, they should be able to partially exist in a place like this. Another theory then crossed his mind, perhaps they were aware what took place on Eostia but chose not to intervene. But for what? Some form of punishment? But why would they contact me after all of this?
Alicia seemed visibly tired when she tried to digest this new information, to know that they used to be part of a much larger world, "I-I don't know anymore…" she said while rubbing her forehead, "All this time we had another nation as a distant neighbor, and we never knew it."
Alicia then realized how things would have been different these past years, "Lady Celestine… if only you could have reached out to these people, to people like Thorson…" Alicia almost pleased, "W-we could have ended this war sooner and prevented all of this!" she loudly finished, her eyes begging her for some kind of explanation from her queen.
Thorson then joined in the argument, "Yes… it seemed all unnecessary, there was no immediate danger after Bal's invasion," he stated to the former queen, "you could have been part of a larger community, Tamriel could have helped your people... I would have helped you…"
Celestine feared for this response, centuries old worries started to surface again, "I-I saw other things in that vision… future events that could threaten Eostia…" she recalled, "An ebony staff broken in eight pieces, a giant brass golem, a red mountain erupting in fire, and…"
The Dragonborn then joined in, knowing where this was going, "The fall of the 'White Tower'…" they both said at the same time.
"W-what?" Celestine was visibly confused when Thorson said the next part with her, "H-How did you know that?"
"Thought so…" Thorson concluded, "You then saw a throne-less Skyrim, brothers and sisters fighting each other, Skyrim bleeding from the inside?"
The former Elven queen was speechless after that, "I-I…"
"And then you saw the re-awaking of the World-Eater? The black dragon Alduin?" he continued.
This revelation froze the blonde Elf as he perfectly guessed her vision, "H-how did you know it all? I never told anyone about this..."
"No, but those events were part of an ancient prophesy by the Akaviri in the first era." Thorson informed as he moved towards Celestine, "You used an Elder Scroll, didn't you?" he finally asked her.
Before she could even think about answering that, the room's temperature started to lower as the three occupants heard a menacing voice echoing in the room, "Hmm-hmm-hmm… it seems we have a special visitor… How 'refreshing'."
Both women became visibly worried by this strange presence, a sinister voice causing them to feel very uncomfortable. For the Dragonborn, it seemed familiar to him as he looked around the room looking for its source, he ended at Hicks corpse as it started to glow blue, "Your methods seem different than usual… Dragonborn… Torturing and soul trapping other mortals…"
Both Celestine and Alicia instinctively moved behind Thorson as they saw Hick's remaining eye glow blue, his mouth started moving as it spoke, "I would never expect this out of you, Champion of Meridia."
"Molag Bal…" Thorson stated out loud as he drew Dawnbreaker, his expression serious, "Of course its him…"
A sinister laugh followed, "It's 'nice' to see you here, Dragonborn. You certainly showed these weaklings how strong you really are" It has been many centuries that I've seen someone worthy in these lands"
"DUR HI! Vult was your champion in all of this?!" Thorson shouted towards Hicks's corpse that served as Bal's puppet, "You tasked him to do all of this Bal?! DAAR NIKRIIN!"
Everyone could hear the Prince laugh at the Dragonborn's accusation, "Hahaha! Him?! No… that weakling's own depraved ambition drove him to lead his little revolt, he and his pathetic group of men are just unaware pawns of mine in this whole game."
Thorson was seething when he heard this, "GAME?! YOU CALL THIS A GAME?! ZU'U KRII HI FAH DAAR!'
"And besides… some of them already serve another…"
The Dragonborn was now visibly confused when he heard that, "Wait? Another?! Who?!"
"Hmm-hmm-hmm, yes… it's so amusing to watch these mortal's corrupt their own… I had to do little to get what I wanted, and now that you are here, things are getting more interesting…"
"WHO?!" losing his patience, the Dragonborn repeated his previous demand as he pointed Dawnbreaker towards Hick's possessed corpse.
"I'll be looking forward when you show your true power to these pathetic mortals, in the end you may be worthy after all…"
Thorson had enough of this and slashed Hicks's corpse with Dawnbreaker, an explosion of holy fire then followed as it turned to ash, he then turned to both women, "We need to get out of here now!"
At that moment a blue wolf came into the room and stood before Thorson, "Everything clear?" he quickly asked his summon, the wolf barked once indicating that their escape route was safe.
Inside the Dark Fortress in the northern part of Eostia, a Black Dog mage named Kin was conducting various experiments as he read instructions from a purple book. He already prepared a few unlabeled flasks containing a purple liquid for this next depraved session in the dungeons with the previous owners of the fortress: The former Dark Elven Queen Olga Discordia and her half breed handmaiden Chloe.
Both Elves were captured when the Black Dogs assaulted their fortress and managed to subdue both of them, after which Vult managed to negotiate an alliance with the demons who resided in vast cave networks under the Dark Fortress. After disabling the Elves magical abilities, both humans and demons had a new toy to play with as they raped both Elven women almost nonstop in their own fortress from that day onwards, sometimes Vult had both transported to some of the conquered cities where his other men could have their fun with their 'former enemy'.
As dusk started to settle outside the Dark Fortress, its human and demon occupants were surprised by a powerful shout followed by a heavy tremor that shock the fortresses foundations.
"DIR SUNVAAR!"
Kin was surprised by this, and quickly ran towards one of the balconies and saw a large thunderstorm hanging over one of the cities in the south followed by roars of beasts, more shouts and quakes. "What kind of disturbance is this? I've never seen the weather act is such a way!" he exclaimed as he had no idea what could cause all of this, and he felt intimidated hearing those shouts clash with the walls of the fortress.
As time went by, the strange phenomena stopped as the skies returned to normal, no more shouts could be heard. Before Kin could further ponder what he just witnessed, he was interrupted by a cry from the nearby throne room.
Entering the now empty throne room, Kin saw his boss Vult who was groaning in pain as he tried to sit on his throne while clutching his sides. He saw that a large part of his neck was colored black like he was burned by something… "Boss, what happened to you?" The mage asked his leader, for he knew that Vult was supposed to be in Ken for a meeting with his men, so it was strange to see him now at the Dark Fortress.
The self-proclaimed 'Emperor' and leader of the Black Dogs coughed up some blood before answering his mage's question, "Your t-teleportation scroll… w-we were attacked in Ken…" he explained, "A man came in the city for both Celestine and Alicia… That fucker then crippled me and Hicks in the dungeons…" he finished. After taking a pained breath, he continued, "H-he was shouting all around, causing earthquakes while attacking our men… and he had several d-dragons with him…"
Kin was very surprised when he heard his boss mention dragons, "D-dragons, boss? Where did they come from? Did they destroy the city?"
"Not sure…" Vult weakly answered, as he continued coughing up more blood as he felt his condition worsening, "Patch me up first or find someone who can..."
What other Daedric Princes could be helping Vult on Eostia? Thorson first guess would have been Molag Bal, but that Prince claimed he took no real part in Vult's conquest. His next potential Prince would have been Sanguine from the amount of excess and depravity he witnessed in Ken today, however he currently could not find any evidence of his involvement. Vult's men may had some aid from Boethiah, Mephala or even Mehrunes Dagon, but like Sanguine he had no evidence to support that theory.
Meanwhile, he and the two freed slaves maneuvered the many corridors of Ken's dungeon towards their freedom, Thorson stayed in front while the former 'Princess Knight' Alicia took the rear with Celestine in between. "We should be close to the first of the prison blocks, few more and we should be out of here." Thorson stated as he then looked behind him to check on the condition of the women following him.
The former knight Alicia certainly had some martial experience noticing her stance and the movements of her eyes while Celestine's looked like she could not remain her balance, "How do you feel, my lady?" asked the Dragonborn as they stopped for the Elf.
"I-I don't know… can't stand…" the Elf weakly said.
Suddenly she dropped her conjured sword and lost the will to stand, the Dragonborn was quick to notice this and moved behind her to catch her from falling on the cold dungeon floor. Both Dragonborn and former queen fell on the ground, the man acting as a cushion for the Elf.
"Lady Celestine! Alicia exclaimed in horror seeing her former queen in such a condition. "Easy now. I got you…" Thorson said as he held the exhausted Celestine in his arms, "I knew this would happen sooner or later, my initial healing was not sufficient for a full recovery." he informed Celestine, "You both need some sleep and a warm meal at this moment, that's why I wanted to get you both out as quickly as possible…"
He feared this would happen, while Alicia's health was stable for the moment, the same could not be said for Celestine. It also did also not help that they witnessed that whole exchange with Bal, he could feel them both shivering when they stood behind him.
Thorson then looked towards his wolf summon who seemed to be watching for him, waiting for them to continue, "Keep guard at the next corridor and warn me if you notice anything." the Dragonborn commanded his summon, he then turned his attention towards the Elf in his arms, she was still conscious, but she could not move at all.
"So tired… my heart…" he heard her quietly whimper.
"Your heart?" he quietly asked, wondering what kind ailment she is suffering from, "I don't have any of my curing potions on me…" Thorson mentally noted, as he looked for a way to help her.
Meanwhile Alicia took a more defensive position frequently watching both ways and occasionally towards both Dragonborn and Celestine. "Can you do something for her?" Alicia asked Thorson as she kept watch over her surroundings. After some quick thinking he had an idea that would work, "I have a solution but please don't be alarmed what I'm about to do." he awkwardly told Alicia as he began to move the upper part of Celestine's robe revealing her bare left breast and placed his one hand above her heart. "Alright… here goes…" he announced as he began channeling his Magicka into her body.
It appeared Celestine's condition was worser than Thorson anticipated, her heart was beating irregularly as she was also developing a fever, like her natural defenses were acting up against a foreign presence. "Please, stay calm Celestine" Thorson reassured his Elven patient, "this may feel a bit strange but don't panic…"
This sudden bold move from the man surprised Alicia at first but like he told her before, it was just to help her recover from her current condition. She then noticed Celestine's body began to glow faintly as golden wisps surround her tired form. Both humans could hear Celestine moan weakly, "This feeling, it's so warm… it's good…" she said as she then unconsciously moved her body to relax even more in the arms of the man who held her. Her healer began to awkwardly chuckle in response, "That's what all my patients say when they feel the effects of my healing" he awkwardly stated, "I'm almost done… this should keep you going for a bit longer…"
After another minute he finished his treatment as he retracted his hand from her chest, quickly covering her up. "How do you feel? Are you well enough to travel?" he asked her.
The blonde Elf sighed as she could feel the warm feeling of his healing disappear, "Yes… I-I think so…" she softly said, after which Thorson helped her on her feet
"Let's move out, the sooner you get some rest, the better…" Thorson announced, breathing more deeply than usual.
Celestine then noticed his labored breathing, and held his face with her left hand, "What's wrong? You look tired…" a now worried Celestine asked him.
The Dragonborn gave her a reassuring smile, "It's nothing serious, I just used a good portion of my magic and some my stamina to quickly rejuvenate your body," he explained to her, "and your current condition demanded more effort from me to help you…"
Celestine looked guilty after hearing that, "I-I'm sorry… for the trouble I caused you… We should have left like you planned before…"
Thorson shook his head in response to her apology, "Don't worry about me, sometimes we need to carry our patients burdens as a healer." he sincerely admitted, "But I'll accept your apology if you get some good sleep when I get you two to safety" he finished, after which Celestine gave a single nod in return.
Alicia, who was watching her queen and the man converse felt more 'left out' as time went on, her mind seemed distant, "What are they…? No, it can't be that…"
"How about you Alicia?" she suddenly heard Thorson question her, "You seem distracted, are you also not feeling well?"
"No, no." she quickly responded, "I was just thinking about… what we could encounter on our way out" she lied.
"Well, let's hope we don't encounter much trouble on the way…" Thorson admitted, "Let's continue to the surface…" he announced as he once again took the lead position in the group.
Meanwhile, on the surface on Ken. A large group of mostly older citizens gathered around a giant red dragon as one of them questioned the creature, "So this glowing man, this Dovahkiin; came here to free Celestine after a vision from your gods?" he asked the dragon, "All of this death in our city, just to get to her?"
"Yes, that's true Joor. The Dovahkiin wanted us to hunt down these Black Dogs while he looked for this Elf" Odahviing answered the man's question, "Why? Los Daar Aan, is that a problem? the dragon then asked them in return, ending it with a low growl.
Most of Ken's citizens surrounding the dragon seemed riled when they heard the dragon's question, Odahviing could hear some of them blaming him or the Dovahkiin for the death of their son's.
The red dragon then looked towards the entrance of the temple and saw a ghostly wolf at the doors looking at him, shortly after it disappeared back into the building. Seeing this Odahviing stood up, causing the crowd surrounding him to quickly back away in fear, "Lost Drem. If you want to see the Dovahkiin, he will be here shortly," the dragon growled at the mortals surrounding him, "and he will give you your answers. Daar Joor…"
Entering the first prison block they could hear voices yelling from several cells, "It's you again! is that her Grace?! Has she been freed from Vult's clutches?!"
The whole cell block erupted as more prisoners witnessed their 'Goddess' in presence of one of her 'Shield Princesses' and a tall man wielding a glowing sword, "Who are you?! What are you going to do with queen Celestine?!" a familiar voice announced himself.
"That voice…" Celestine pondered as she tried to remember who that voice belonged to, "I recognize that voice… Could it be?"
Alicia then joined in, "I think that voice belongs to Knight Sergeant Aurelian, it can't be!" she exclaimed "I thought all resisting 'Holy Knights' were executed after Vult's conquest!"
As they reached the door where they heard the voice, they saw dozens of men locked up together, some seemed sick and malnourished, but they were alive. And in front of these prisoners stood a man both woman instantly recognized, "It's really you!" Celestine joyfully cried out, feeling less weight on her already troubled soul, "I thought Vult killed you all a week ago!"
The prisoner named Aurelian then saluted as did the men behind him, "I'm not sure why we were kept alive my Liege," the man named Aurelian said, "but the men who did not want to surrender were imprisoned here ever since." he explained, "But our female college's were taking away by Vult's men… I pray we can rescue them somehow…" he sadly stated to his superiors.
Aurelian then looked behind his superiors as he recognized the man behind them, "So, this man really freed you both?" he asked his queen.
"Yes, he saved us both, he can be trusted…" Celestine informed the imprisoned knight "He also crippled Vult and Hicks when they came for us, but unfortunately Vult managed to escape…"
Alicia then joined in, "And I personally dealt the finishing blow to that filthy dog Hicks, one less of his kind to deal with…" she informed the Knight Sergeant, her expression almost one of dissatisfaction.
When the men heard that happened to Vult and Hicks, their mood seemed to lighten up. "Y-you fought both and crippled them?" Aurelian asked out loud, "I wish I could have seen that…" He finally addressed the tall man in front of him, "Thank you for freeing both of them, we all feared what happened to her highness after Vult took her away." he thanked the Dragonborn, his expression now one of relief.
Thorson gave Aurelian a nod in confirmation, and then turned to Celestine, "What do you wish to do here Celestine? I understand that you may know a few of them but can they all be trusted?" he informed the Elf, "I've seen a couple of former knight's working together with the Black Dogs when I infiltrated the city."
Celestine frowned after hearing what her savior just said, while she understood his reasoning, she was not willing to leave her loyal subjects rotting in a dungeon, "I know some turned their back on me, but I always believed a large part of my 'Holy Knights' would never betray me…" she admitted, "And I've known Aurelian from since he was born, he would never betray us…."
The Dragonborn turned towards Alicia for her opinion, as if she knew what he would ask her she then gave him an affirmative nod in return.
Thorson then looked towards the Knight Sergeant in the cell as he observed the man's posture, "All of these prisoners, are they loyal to Celestine?" Thorson questioned the imprisoned knight as he looked around the cell block, "Some of these cells may still contain criminals…"
Aurelian shock his head as he relaxed his stance, "No, Vult's men let the real criminals out, my guess they were asked to join their group for their freedom" he informed the Dragonborn, he then turned his head to his left. "As for their loyalty, they have always believed in queen Celestine's cause." he proudly stated, however his expression then became one of shame, "Even after 'that' day… when we surrendered…" he depressively admitted.
"That… day?" Thorson was now wondering what he meant by that, when asked for more information, all he got was silence from the man. He then turned around towards Alicia, she showed signs of shame on her face and turned her head away from the Dragonborn. And when he looked at Celestine, she had an expression of horror on her face as she began to shake heavily.
"That's up to her Grace to tell you about it, not me…" Aurelian then added, "Sufficient to say, many of our former comrades lost their faith and committed suicide or even joined Vult's forces…"
The Dragonborn then turned his full attention towards Celestine "Celestine, what is wrong? You are shivering…" a now worried Thorson addressed the shivering Elf, "What happened a week ago?" he asked the former Elven queen. But all he got was silence from her as she continued shaking, "I-I can't remember… I don't remember what happened before my enslavement a week ago…" she stammered, "I-I just can't remember anything … My mind is all clouded when I try to think about it…"
The Knight Sergeant in his cell looked surprised when he heard her, for he could clearly remember what he had witnessed that day for himself, "You can't remember what you have done at day? What you have announced to everyone when Vult…" Aurelian tried to ask her before he was interrupted by a scream from the Elf, "N-No! I can't! I-I fear I've done something h-horrible… I'm a-afraid of myself… What have I done?! I-I can't…" she cried out while hugging her own shaking body.
Thorson looked worried at her current condition, it's like she can't control herself when she tried to recall her memories. He approached her and gently grabbed her arms, "Hey… don't strain yourself, my lady… we can talk about it later" he reassured her, "You were just released from your enslavement, you may have difficulties remembering some things after what you have just endured…" he attempted to comfort the Elf.
The man then held her right cheek with his hand and casted a calming spell on her in an attempt to help her to regain control over her rampant emotions, "this spell should help you calm down, don't think about the past now…" he comforted her, "I can help with your memories when you are in a safe place, not in this dungeon…"
The blonde Elf seemed to shift her body's weight towards the man's hand holding her, Celestine's facial expression relaxing as her breathing slowed down, "A-alright… we talk later…. thank you… again…" she genuinely thanked him. Thorson showed a small smile when she calmed down, wiping her tears away with his finger earning a soft sigh from the Elf.
The occupants in the prison block watched as their queen panicked a minute ago until this stranger managed to calm her down with a spell, many of them seemed distrusting of this stranger, thinking he may have mind controlled their queen as she now relaxes in his arms.
After Celestine calmed down, he gently released her and turned towards the imprisoned Knight Sergeant, "So, why did they bring you all here? To torture you? To force you to join them?" he asked the former knight as he tried to make sense of this situation.
Aurelian who seemed distracted after what he just has seen quickly looked at Thorson, "We all thought so, but we have all been stuck here for days without much food or water, no one came for us… It's like all we are being detained here for some later purpose" he informed the Dragonborn.
"How so?" he asked the former Knight Sergeant.
"A few days ago, one of Vult's mage's came here," Aurelian explained, "it's like he was counting how many prisoners they had in here, and after that he took a few of our men with him in chains."
Thorson had an eerie feeling were this was going, what were the Black Dogs really planning with all of this? Did some Daedric prince order them to bring them prisoners? But at least he could free these men now, "Well, let's get you all out of this prison first, if Celestine trusts you then that's good enough for me." announced Thorson as he unlocked the cell door with his Thu'um.
The city fortress of Rad used to be a prosperous trading hub for the region as you could find any kind of rare product from all over Eostia in its markets and shops. But while Rad mainly focused on commerce there was also a 'vice' part of the city where narcotics, gambling and sex were its main attraction for those who liked to live 'dangerously'. This however changed a couple of week ago after Vult's Black Dogs took control of the city thanks to several bribed politicians and ministers who liked Vult's ideas of 'revolution' for their city.
Any of the male soldiers inside the city were given a choice, imprisonment or joining their corrupted rulers as their private army, tasked to keep things 'in control' in their 'new city' while their new Black Dog allies took control of the streets and its female population…
The once famously 'Mercenary Queen' Maia was once tasked to represent Queen Celestine in Rad as part of an Alliance against the demon hordes of the north. Once she used to be an active member of the Black Dogs before she was chosen by the Goddess herself to join her 'Shield Alliance'. Many of her former colleagues disliked her departure and as time went on, it evolved into pure spite for their former colleague. She herself was once infatuated with the Black Dog's leader Vult during her stay but their relationship never evolved, and it became worser as she left his group to join Celestine's court.
While she was a very capable fighter, the redhead never had the change to defend herself as she was unexpectedly betrayed by those she used to trust as Vult's men took control over the city. And thus, her fate was to become the Black Dog's favorite plaything as they raped her constantly in Rad's dungeons, unable to escape her restraints and prison for days. The ultimate betrayal came when Vult showed no interest in her when he came to visit saying she was not good enough for him…
Today, Rad has slowly become embraced its role as a city of vice, as drug and slave trade fully took control, as its once famous markets were filled with vendors selling their 'exotic goods' like captured Elven woman of any kind, female knights and Half-Lings for those who had a different taste. The once strong Maia became a 'carnival attraction' on display in the middle of the main plaza as anyone could have a turn with her in public for the right amount of money. Of course, they gave any Black Dog member a 'discount' for their turn with the one they called 'a traitor'.
Maia, now completely broken after days of nonstop mental and physical abuse by those she used to trust in the past. Her mind never fully recovered during the moments of rest, as she was then raped again by another group of men. The only thoughts she could only think about during these pauses were those of despair, betrayal and the hope for a quick death before her mind was fully rewritten by her betraying body as it succumbed to lust.
But today, things would be different for the occupants as dusk fell over their city as a powerful shout was heard from the capital city Ken west of Rad followed by powerful tremors that shook the fortresses foundation.
"DIR SUNVAAR!"
Those men who were having their turn with their 'favorite redhead' stopped their abuse when they heard a shout, a powerful voice that made their knees go weak from the power behind it. Another shout followed combined with a stronger tremor that broke her abusers will as they quickly let go of their victim and fled into one of the surrounding buildings.
"FAAL STRUN FEN BOLAAV NID AAZ!"
That day, all of Rad's citizens quickly scattered in a panic as corrupted watchmen then sounded the alarm followed by their warning, "A dragon! there is a dragon flying above us!" leaving behind an empty marketplace. And thus, the only soul left in that accursed place, bounded by chains and alone, crying in the rain was the once proud 'Shield Knight' Maia. During the panic she got some respite from her recent abuse, the only thing keeping her mind occupied was the power behind these mysterious shouts and tremors around her.
"NID AAZ, FAH ZU'U DOVAHKIIN!"
Maia slowly looked up and saw a shadow in the sky that looked like a dragon, and the only thing she could think about that evening before fainting in the rain was the hope that this dragon would now just scoop her up and end her quickly…
After freeing hundreds of remaining loyal 'Holy Knights' from their prison cells, they reluctantly decided to follow the Dragonborn back to the surface. Many of them however were still wounded from previous battles before their imprisonment while others showed signs of fatigue, Thorson noticed this and asked those who were not in the best shape to come near him. The freed knights then witnessed what they could only describe as a miracle as their mysterious savior channeled a spell that healed every single knight in the large room with an aura of golden light, those healed loudly exclaimed that they feel refreshed and could feel all their pain vanishing instantly, their opinion on the stranger now seemed have changed as they feel renewed by his actions.
The prison block then became dark again as the Dragonborn stopped his healing, "Let's get out of this place, I would think many of you want to get out of here…" Thorson announced as he turned around and walked out of the dungeon with Alicia and Celestine right behind him, then followed by a large group of dirty but determined former 'Holy Knights'.
As they climbed the stairs leading back to the ground floor of the once Holy Temple, they saw many corpses of Vult's men and demons in the temple hallways, they looked like they had been ripped apart by a vicious predator.
After navigating the ground floor, they arrived at the main entrance of the temple, the hearts of the freed Eostians stopped for a moment as they saw what happened in the city of Ken. The streets were littered with the bodies and ash piles of Vult's forces, weapons of all kinds littered the ground and at the main plaza stood a giant red dragon surrounded by a large mass Ken's citizens armed with personal weapons and torches.
The red dragon in question saw the Dragonborn appearing from the temple's main entrance followed by a large group of individuals behind him "Ah, Dovahkiin, I take you found what you were looking for?"
Hearing the dragon talking to someone behind them, the leader of the group turned around to check who it was. He first saw a tall figure wielding a glowing sword and wearing grey robes descending from the temple's stairs and behind him two women "well-well-well… look who has 'graced' us with their presence!" he announced sarcastically as Ken's civilians started advancing towards the Holy Temple, most of them having an expression of anger or distain on their faces, "Vult's 'Whore Queen' and Feoh's traitor princess…" the 'unofficial' leader of the group announced.
Authors note: Lots of story/world building in this chapter and I'm afraid the following chapter's won't contain a lot of action for the moment. There is reason why I categorized this story as 'drama', especially for a crossover involving the post-ending of Kuroinu…
I also give my thanks to the those who reviewed the story so far, feel free to provide constructive criticisms or story idea's if you wish to post/share it (PM'ing is also good).
Finally, I won't add any 'deadlines' for future chapters in these authors note's, It's a lot more comfortable for me if I don't work with some sort of 'deadline'. But, I'm currently quite motivated to continue writing this story, so I won't stop for now.