CRUMBLING CASTLES

The Harbinger

Fort Hraggstad was easy to take. The Stormcloaks and the wolves dealt with the Imperials in record time. I suppose their anxiousness could have been due to my state. It was still hard to breathe. I scared anyone who passed me by when they looked me in the eye. So now I just look to the ground when I hear the stomping of boots coming near me.

Aerin stayed with me on the edge of the battle. From time to time, I would see fire engulf his hands as he watched a suspicious passerby.

"You feeling alright?" He asks me.

I nod. It's hard to keep my head up with this fatigue. "It's the Princes. They are with me, but instead of invigorating me, it is like they are draining me."

Drain? We do no such thing.

It must be, you were mortal afterall.

Don't let it take you down. You are not this weak.

Their voices were blending together so I couldn't pick them apart anymore to tell who was talking to me. I tried to ignore them the best I could.

Aerin lays a hand on my shoulder. "There must be a reason for it. They must know we are close."

I nod tiredly. "I guess so, they know we are close to Solitude." I look to the east, where the great city sits on the edge of a cliff. It should not be so that such a city can exist, but based on the orientation of the surrounding mountains, Solitude is safe from most weather-related events.

"Wolf." I look up to see Galmar traipsing towards me. He averts his eyes quickly from mine. At least he was able to suppress his shudder this time. "How are you feeling? We cleaned out this wasteland of a fort in less time than I thought." I can feel the man itching to take his men east. I know based on his energy they could take down the Imperials in no time.

But we need them first. We need them to destroy the Dark Brotherhood before we advance. I swallow a lump in my throat with that thought. The Princes were talking amongst themselves, it was hard to hear exactly what they were saying, but the message was clear.

"I need some sleep, then I will be no worse for wear. Take me back to the Palace of the Kings. I need to speak with Ulfric before we make a move."

It seems Galmar has fostered a healthy respect for the wolves as of recent. He was nice enough to lend more cloaks to Aerin, Farkas and Aela when the cold began to advance. We pushed through the worst of the snowstorm and soon the Palace of the Kings was in sight. It seemed to be the eye of this storm. As if Ulfric himself had summoned it to blanket his city. I know those powers rarely exist outside of closely guarded mage secrets, but I would not be surprised if he had those, considering how desperate he's been.

We walked through Windhelm with little attention from the people. It used to be that we could barely avoid anyone gawking at our presence. I was happy for this reprieve, who knows how people would treat me in the state I'm in?

Vilkas kept my hand held tightly in his. I gave it a quick squeeze. You think the Bear of Eastmarch will like my new set of eyes?

Bear of Eastmarch? Wasn't that his father? He opens the grand door before one of the guards can, all so he can enter before me and give me more time to compose myself.

As far as I am concerned, Ulfric is now the Bear of Eastmarch. We have almost all the strategic Holds under Stormcloak control.

I suppose so, let's hope he can take back the Northern Holds before the witch returns. He finishes with. That is what we need to focus on. When we enter the great hall I see, over the banquet table, sitting in his throne is Ulfric Stormcloak. A majestic man, clothed in his own armor, and eyes gleaming with the anticipation of the fight.

The wolves fan out around me, Galmar steps up next to me. Go get food and water, rest, whatever you need. I tell my companions.

They seem reluctant to leave, feeling my own anxiety over what I need to ask Ulfric. But I soon hear their footsteps. Farkas and Aerin fall to sit at the table filled with so much food. I notice Aela sneak upstairs, hopefully for rest. After staying a wolf for so long in the battle, it is surely taxing.

"Well? How did the battles go? I know you were victorious based on word I've received, but I would like to hear it from your own lips." Ulric lazily leans on his arm. I'd find him being relaxed a good thing. It is a reassurance that he knows we will succeed. But I also worry he is depressed. The Night Mother was working against him the whole time. Even though he realizes he ended up in her emotional web, and was nearly killed by her, it is hard to rationalize those feelings. They are probably bringing him down.

"This is all the proof you need, Ulfric." Galmar pushes me, softly ahead of him. I now stand, feeling naked and exposed in front of the Bear of Eastmarch. Ulfric assesses me head to toe, when his eyes rise to my face again, I see terror in them.

"By Talos, what happened to you?" He snaps.

I flex my hands, halfway between woman and beast, at least I didn't have fur growing from it yet. "The Daedric Princes, they are with me."

He leans forwards in his throne, "Tell me how."

"I still don't understand it fully," I admit, "But they are adamant that we get into that Castle first. We need to free them from the Night Mother's hold. Take down the moondial, then we can enter Solitude."

He hesitates, "I can't send my men in there while they are fighting the Imperials in their own home. It would be suicide."

I figured he would say as much, "I would go."

"Send my best warrior in there?" He shoots back.

I nod. "We need them back, the Night Mother will be in Solitude when we arrive, they told me as much."

Ulfric goes silent. "They told you this?"

I think back to that message I read in the Hunting Grounds. It was a quickly written letter, but it was easy to read. It still burned clearly in my mind. "She is with one of the Princes as we speak, they are going to let her free. There will be an assassin there to finish her off."

His face is stony, hard to read. I pray to whoever is listening that he is not rekindling some long-lost feelings for her. "She would have killed you if given enough time." I remind him.

He shoves his hand through his hair, wipes it down his face. "I agree. After hearing the story from Galmar I was nothing more than a pawn to her."

Vilkas squeezes my hand to reassure me. "I am sorry." I say. Even though I know his feelings for her were nothing like what I feel for Vilkas, it would still be devastating to be betrayed in such a way.

Ulfric's eyes burn when they pierce mine. "Make no mistake, if I were given the opportunity, I would not hesitate to kill her myself. She had my men and my wolves skinned alive and left to die in the dungeons. She gains no sympathy from me."

My stomach clenches with the memory of my time in the dungeons. I keep my focus. "More reason to let me go in. I would go alone."

"With me." Vilkas says immediately, "I'm going with her."

I keep a good hold on his hand. We never discussed this, but I should have seen it coming. It was expected.

"If you feel the Daedric Lords," His voice dips at the mention of them. I sometime forgot how religious Galmar and Ulfric tended to be, "Will help us, then I would be a fool to keep you from it. I will need you in Solitude though, so we will plan this assault for the day prior to marching on the city. I will have Galmar ferry you to the Castle and send you on your way. I hope you understand that I cannot expend more men to help you, so you better know what you're doing." He gives me a pointed stare.

I smile, "I do. I've been there once before and remember some of the layout. I know the moondial sits in the gardens. I have no doubt they will help me get there."

"Then it's set. Once you finish your work in the Castle, you will meet us at the gates of Solitude and join me in taking it from the Thalmor puppeteers." He relaxes back into his throne.

"I will be there." I promise him.

Galmar grins at me and claps me on the shoulder, "That you will be! Let us get ready, I want this witch dead and buried as soon as possible."

"And the Imperials?" Vilkas jokes.

"Bah! Not even a thought is spared for those poor bastards. I fear for them in the fight against the Brotherhood. They won't stand a chance…" He ponders.

I'm readying my own response when I feel a soft hand on my shoulder. I spin to find Aela watching me with intent eyes. "Sister, I have found something that might be useful to the cause."

Upstairs, after the guards allowed it, I was able to walk in to Ulfric Stormcloak's bedchamber. It was clean and immaculate, the large bed nice and tidy, but those things held my attention for only a few seconds. My eyes danced over all the objects. The bed held the bulkiest of weapons. Spellbreaker, Volendrung, The Skull of Corruption, the Ebony Mail, and surrounding the room on various tables and drawers sat the rest of the Artifacts.

"How did you find this?" I ask Aela, shocked.

She shrugs, "Did some digging. I told you I would find our weapons for us."

I don't respond in the way she expects, I fling myself at her and pull her into a great hug. "Thank you." I tell her. I have no idea how she would have been able to see it. Since I was the only one thus far to hold the Artifacts and witness them.

She saw them because I showed her. Hircine speaks to me. Everyone else can see them as well. The Artifacts are now in your command again. Use them wisely.

We do. I told the others and soon, I was holding all the Artifacts back in my skin. They will last in this way until we are back, then the Artifacts will scatter once again. Hircine reminds me.

I'm not sure if that means after the Night Mother is dead, or once they step foot on Mundus, but I don't get an answer to that. The next few days are spent on horseback, traversing the province to get back to Solitude. When we reach Fort Hraggstad, Galmar commands most of the soldiers accompanying us to stay put.

I broached this topic on the rest of the ride west, we were nearing shore based on the lower elevation. The other wolves were with me. I wanted Aerin and the others back at the Palace of the Kings but now I know I should not have told them that. They were adamant to follow me.

"Galmar, why didn't you stay with the men?" I ask him.

"And miss this? No. I need to make sure no Imperials are skulking about and send you off to cut the head from this bitch's plans. And I needed to make sure he wouldn't screw with you." He nods ahead of him.

I search the forest we are about to enter. I should have heard his heart earlier, but I was once again distracted by the whispers in my mind. I am frozen. Readying my body for a fight. Instead, when I see the small smirk on his face, I relax.

"Nazir. How did you get here?" I ask him.

"Your friend, Aerin, was kind enough to send a letter of your current affairs. I thought I might tag along for some fun." He lazily walks over to the horses.

I keep my eyes on him. His posture shows ease but there is a certain tension with him. "You wish to find Babette." I guess.

His warm brown eyes find mine. "Yes. I'm hoping by now she won't be so hesitant to abandon the sinking ship. I will also say, I won't let you kill her. And I won't let her kill you. I'm going to deal with her myself."

Images of the small vampire come to mind. I nearly shudder with the thought of having to impale her with a stake. "Please do."

"I'll do my best. I also figure you might want that mental image of the Castle map locked up in my mind. Sithis knows how often Mother made us memorize it." He sighs then looks up at me. "If you don't mind?"

"Oh," I'm ready to scoot forwards to let Nazir ride on horseback behind me, but Vilkas just dismounts his own.

"Take this. You're good with horses?" He asks Nazir before releasing the black and white mare to him.

The former Dark Brotherhood member hesitates, "No. I am not keen on the equestrian lifestyle. I would much prefer someone steers the beast for me."

Galmar groans, certainly becoming impatient. "Come on, lad. No doubt I'm the best here for the job."

I hide my smile as Nazir climbs on back of Galmar's horse. I know the right hand of Ulfric wasn't squeamish with having others ride his horse. But I'm sure an assassin at his back was something he would be uncomfortable with. Yet, his expression changes once Nazir is ready to go. "Let's go. We've wasted enough time. If we can get through these woods quickly, I can get you into the Castle by sunset."

Nazir laughs behind him when we start the horses off at a canter, "You might want to rethink that and spend the night around these parts. Little do you know that will be the most dangerous time to enter."

No one acknowledges that to my knowledge. We all know it is dangerous, but then again, any time in that Castle is dangerous. What we need is speed and commitment. Determination. I just need to make sure I don't panic when I see the great fortress again.

Galmar made good on his promise. The sun was just setting off in the sea when we found the shoreline. The Castle stood, tall, imposing, and covered by the relentless fog around here. I paused for a moment, just to study it. It looks the same as the last time I saw it. But my emotions towards it are different.

A great fear is simmering under my determination. One that was not there when I first entered the Castle. Then, I just had to get in there and find Aerin. Now…I know what they might do to me. I might be locked up in those chains again.

"Mjoll." Vilkas stands near me, he put his horse near the other's, tied to a tree and feeding from hay. "Are you alright?"

For once, I am grateful he doesn't have the ability to see into my mind. "I'm fine. It's just hard seeing it again."

I see his expression change. His eyes harden, "You don't have to go in there again. I can go with Nazir."

"No." I say immediately. "I need to be in there."

I see him readying another argument. But I stop him by jumping from my horse and handing him the reigns. "Take her to eat with the others? I need to talk to Galmar."

He nods but his eyes still show me this argument might not be over. Ignoring that, I find Galmar peering across the way to the great Castle with Nazir. They were deep in conversation on the logistics of getting over there, so I set my sights on my other friends.

Aela and Farkas were scouring the area, just as alert and attentive to anything that could aid us. Aerin was watching the Castle. The soft wind blows over the water to ruffle his hair. I open my mind to him.

What I see is nightmarish.

I see flashes of images of his torture. The Dark Brotherhood members towering over him and cutting him, piece by piece, parts of his stringy flesh, taken from him and left to sit on the side of the table. His pain. His fear. The way the chains dug into his skin and left festering blisters that left a fire trailing his person.

"How do you feel?" I ask him, shutting myself off from his mind. I can barely breathe myself after that intrusion. All the more reason I need to stop him from running through it in his own head.

He flinches, as if I just woke him from a dream. "Fine. Fine, Mjoll. I just can't believe I'd see this place again so soon."

"I know. I as well." I finish.

I wish to lay a hand on him. Bring him close to me in a great hug and whisper that it will all be okay. But I know any touch right now might backfire. He might be drawn back into the memories further.

"You don't have to go in." I whisper.

He shudders, "I need to help you. However I can."

I just watch him. "Aerin…"

"Wolf!" Galmar snaps branches and trudges through the leaves to us. Making such a commotion I am surprised the Dark Brotherhood hasn't seen us yet. "We have a plan, but I need your input."

I nod, now on alert with him but listening to Aerin's heart. It was finally slowing.

The man goes on, unaffected by our plights. "We need a distraction in the city. I was thinking I could go scout the place, see where Ulfric and I might be best suited for taking the bastards down. It would keep the Imperials from noticing you."

Something tugs in my mind. I know it is one of the Princes, I am shown an image. Fire falling through the sky, trailing down through the dark night to ignite the Castle.

Tell them.

"I have a better idea." I say before Galmar can go on. He pauses, taken aback, but he listens. "What if you and some of the others fought the Imperials? Made it seem like the attack was coming from the Castle. It would hasten their assault against them and might wipe the Dark Brotherhood out before they became a problem."

He stares off behind me, "By Talos, you're right. Then the Dark Brotherhood will have nothing to do but defend themselves."

"Yes. It would give us an opening."

"You wouldn't have much time." He argues.

I clench my fists. That doesn't sit well with me, but I'll take the chance. It would mean they wouldn't be able to chain us. "We would be quick. If it's only me and Nazir." I look over Galmar's shoulder and find Vilkas walking towards us with intent. "And Vilkas." I add.

Even though I want him safe, it wouldn't be wise of me to leave Vilkas behind again. It separated us for too long. Vilkas stands next to me. Watches me with those beautiful eyes before taking my hand. The separation also kept him alive.

My instincts rear up to leave him here. But I resist.

"So, the other wolves will stay?" Galmar asks me.

I nod, making the decision for them. It would be quicker with less people in the Castle anyways. "Aerin, Farkas, and Aela. They are competent warriors. They'll follow your command."

He eyes the mountain behind us, no doubt imagining taking on the Imperials from such a position. "I'm no miracle maker, but I have enough heart to hold off the Imperials for days. Just watch yourself when you're over there and be ready for when the catapults are set."

Aerin almost didn't let me go. I just had to remind him of the horrors of the Castle. I was surprised when it only made him push further. It seems these new wolf powers are making him more confident. He thought he could save me by leaving me behind.

This only enraged me. He didn't understand all I had done to protect him, and all I would do. I told him sternly, a little too harshly, that if he wanted to help, he should follow Galmar. He did. After one last, pleading look, he took off with the other wolves to follow Galmar into the forest.

"I feel a protective streak in you." Nazir says in a voice that could be considered serious, but I heard the mocking undertone.

"He was hurt by the Dark Brotherhood once, as you know. I would be a fool to let him go back in again." I say as we make our way to the water.

"What about you? You aren't scared of getting sliced open again?" He gives me a look, mocking but underneath, I see the concern.

"No. I survived once and I will survive again. I won't let them take me." I tell him honestly.

He shrugs, "Fine by me. Just know I'm not the one signing your death warrant."

We dive in. I feel Vilkas behind me, I know he is wanting to speak with me telepathically, but I keep him out. He is no doubt concerned over Nazir's lack of seriousness, but I am not. I will just kill him if he turns on us.

A dark laugh sounds in my mind, nearly taking away the sound of the water sloshing around me. Gut him good. Use my mace.

I feel it begin to materialize in my hand. I push it away.

What? You don't want to play? Molag Bal asks me.

I grit my teeth but keep swimming. He taunts me some more but after ignoring him for some time, he finally gives up. I realize I was nearly sucking in water as we make our way to land. All I can do is lay on the shore while the water laps around my body. I cough up as much water as I can. I had no idea Molag Bal would startle me so. If that Artifact came to me in the water, and were to fall…

"Mjoll. Are you hurt?" Vilkas is next to me.

I blink up at him. "No. Just more Daedric Price intrigue."

He gives me a brief smile before pulling me up to my feet. Nazir stands on my other side, his eyes trained on the Castle ahead. "Here we are, home sweet home. Don't tell the others but no matter how nice it was to be waited on hand and foot; I still prefer a damp cave as my residence."

Vilkas and I have no reply to that. Nazir sighs and leads us on. "It's this way. Careful about where you step. I'm sure some of my brothers and sisters have booby trapped this place recently."

The hair on the back of my neck stands at attention with our walk. I saw some sand flung around to create mounds and did my best to avoid it. Only then did I realize we were walking slowly. Too slowly.

"Down there! The wolves are back!" I hear a creaky male voice sound from above.

I duck and shove Vilkas down when a rain of arrows comes towards us. Nazir swears and races away to one of the larger rocks. Vilkas twists and rolls, dragging me with him and out of the way of three more arrows.

"What do we do?" He asks me.

"Magic!" Nazir yells out.

I pull up Spellbreaker right as the rain of fire happens. Firebolt after firebolt plummets into the shield. It hurts my arm terribly with the force it is being bent at. But I hold on.

Vilkas rolls out from under me and returns his own arrows to the little crowd up above. I hear Nazir swear again and soon he too is using magic on them. Fire and arrows are sent back to them. They are becoming overwhelmed. That is, until I see more members emerge from the building.

I hold out the Wabbajack with my other hand and fling power their way. The fight goes silent. Next to me I hear laugher. "My gods, look at that! They're now poultry." Vilkas laughs.

I hear them squawking up above. I smile when I see Nazir's look of confusion. But I don't wait anymore, I take Vilkas's free hand and race to where the former Brotherhood member was. "They're distracted. But it won't last long. Which way do we go now?" I ask him.

He gives me a wild-eyed glance. "Wouldn't you like to know? It's this way. I hope you're at least mediocre at rock climbing."

We follow him to a steep cliff. I don't care how hard the trek will be, I am just grateful that we don't have to enter the Castle to get to the gardens. My hands curl around each stone. My heart pounds knowing that my good grip is the only thing between me falling into the ocean below. At least there would be something to catch me.

The perk of being a wolf is the increased upper body strength. I feel the pull of my back and arm muscles as I make my way up the rock sides. Based on how Nazir dresses, in long robes, I wasn't sure how athletically inclined he was. But he surprises me, scaling the rocks as if they were nothing.

He helps me up with a single hand. His other holds the rock of this great formation. I briefly wonder how it will stand after the Imperials destroy it. If there will be anything left. Once over, I help Vilkas up and we follow Nazir quickly.

We had to round some parts of the Castle and enter some of the towers before we found the courtyard. I realize I am holding my breath when I look around. We are all crouched, weapons at the ready for any Brotherhood members out here. Instead, there is no one in the green garden before us.

Nazir sighs, "No one's here. Don't let your guard down though."

The moondial sits on the opposite side of us. It would be beautiful if I didn't know what it was doing. It appears as if it is glowing from within. As we creep closer, I feel a pain in my chest. Like a cut in the glass that wanted to crack.

"Well, well, I knew someone would come sooner or later. But I honestly wasn't expecting the lot of you." The deep shadows set by the moon conceal the voice. But I know it is too childish to be anyone near their teen years.

The girl walks out. Confident and without much of a glance at me or Vilkas. She only has eyes for Nazir. "How disappointing. I thought you of all people wouldn't abandon Mother."

"Babette, sweet Babette." He mocks. "Why do you stay? You know the time of this Sanctuary draws to a close."

The little girl's eyebrows quirk. "This? We've been defending this since Mother's been gone. But of course, I wouldn't expect you to know that."

"You've kept in touch with her." Nazir states.

Her little lips curl up in a cruel smile. It is startling on such a young face. "Nazir. You know me well. I hope you know that I would do anything to defend this Castle. Even though I am not the most…active member of the Brotherhood. I still do my best."

"Just leave it, Babette. You don't have to do anything for her. Her death will be her soon enough." Nazir pleads.

But her gold eyes slide right over to me. "Will this be her executioner? I should have known. Eve has been dormant and the only other one to have those Artifacts was the filthy wolf." She nearly spits those last words.

I have little time to prepare when she snaps her hands and launches herself to me. She is very fast for someone so little and even for a vampire. I used to study how they would move if I were ever in a fight with one in my explorations. This is nothing like what I read.

She slams into me, taking me off my balance. Her nails dig into the delicate skin around my neck. I feel her teeth closing in. She screams, possibly from an injury brought on by someone else.

I hear more shouts while taking on this assault. More members are pouring into the courtyard. My hand clamors for Grimsever while I try to hold the vampire by her hair. Her teeth were so close, barely grazing my neck. I grasp the hilt of what I find with my right hand.

She screams when I bring it down on her. Screams again when I clobber her once more. She finally goes limp, and I am able to roll out from under her. I rise to my knees, keeping watch on the fights ensuing around me. Then I look down.

The girl has taken nasty hits to the back. Very fatal ones, but I know she will heal. I can't help it. Bile rises in my throat over what I've done. That mental image of such a young thing…brought to this fate by my hand. I lose what contents I have in my stomach all over the dirty cobblestone.

Wolf. Concentrate. Molag Bal sneers in my head.

I pull the Mace I clobbered Babette with just in time to block an advancing Brotherhood member. I won't let him get near her to interfere with her healing. His chest caves in with my swing. The black Mace glitters in the moonlight with the carnage.

I kill two more members, hear the death of others, then the battles are over. I stand over Babette with the Mace at the ready.

"Easy girl. Damn. That's a very fine weapon if I've ever seen one. What price would you part with that for?" Nazir whistles at me.

Vilkas was already here. Holding my face to help keep the tears in. I could only look at the girl, still mangled and bleeding on the ground. But Nazir was taking his sweet time, searching the other members bodies before he reaches us.

"Did you hear me?" He smiles at me.

I shake my head. "It's not for sale. Look at her." I point down to the girl.

"Ah. One of those. Not to worry. Actually, Vilkas was it? Can you help me hold her down? Once she's healed, I'm sure she'll be…antsy." Nazir crouches down next to her. "Babette, can you hear me?"

She's breathing heavily. "Mother would not have wanted this. Why would you betray us so?" She whines.

I avert my eyes as Nazir cuts his arm to feed her. I know she is very old, older than I can imagine but I can't bear to watch the state she is in. "You know why. Astrid was a far better leader than anyone here. Besides, why should we get wrapped up in these games of politics? It makes the art of being an assassin quite confusing, if I do say so myself."

She drinks greedily, her eyes never leave the other assassin's.

"Babette." He says softly. "Very soon, there will be a rain of fire put on this Castle by the Imperials. I doubt many here will survive it. The Night Mother will be slayed when she returns. There isn't much left here."

She still watches him. When I quit smelling the copper scent of blood, I know her wounds have healed. She sits up and glares. "I know what you're saying. I'm just surprised you would throw this all away. After we worked so hard for it."

Nazir shrugs, "There wasn't much in the first place, Babette. This Castle is confusing and makes it harder to reach the mainland. Making our treks that much longer. Besides, you know culling the humans and corralling them for murder wouldn't be that much fun."

"It would be like shooting fish in a barrel." She smiles at him. He smiles back and I can't help but feel I'm watching some secret language between them.

That's when the first flame falls. We all flinch when the debris hits the first tower, bringing brick and scaffolding down with it. "You might want to finish that." Nazir jerks his head to the moondial.

I race over with Vilkas. The moondial is glowing brightly. I am almost afraid to touch it, but we have little time to ponder how to do this.

"Try the glass panes." Babette suggests.

I do. I smack one of them with my fist, expecting it to break instantly. Nothing happens. I see Vilkas fiddling with one on the other side. I pace around it. Another crashing sound comes to us. I feel the ground shake with impact. Another firebolt has fallen.

"Mjoll, what do we do?" Vilkas asks me.

You know what. The voice says again.

I feel the Mace in my right hand and Dawnbreaker in my left. "Take this and break what you can!" I throw Dawnbreaker to Vilkas. He catches it without dropping it, thankfully.

I throw all my weight into it. Smashing what glass panes I can with both hands on the Mace of Molag Bal. The glass shatters on impact, as if it were the most delicate of pieces. I hear Vilkas making the same progress. Soon, the light begins to dim just a little. A little more and soon we will…

That crack in my chest expands. It's like a spiderweb settling in my heart and expanding. I fall to the ground choking with the pain.

"Mjoll!" Vilkas yells.

"Don't worry we have her." Nazir is next to my head. I can barely see him through the blistering fire within. It's like my chest has been lit. Burning me up. "Finish what you started!" Nazir yells.

I am consumed. I feel the pain expanding. Something burrowing in my skin and straight to the surface. When it breaks free, I lose consciousness. There is nothing more to hold onto when my whole being has been broken into two.

I open bleary eyes to watch the Castle recede. A boat takes us away from it. I watch the fire fall from the sky, great bolts of light, flying through the air to slam into the cruel place. I feel a small sort of relief. I will never have to go back there. I am glad to see it go up in flames.

Someone holds my head. Someone holds the rest of my body. I hear three heart beats but feel more passengers. My eyes shift to each familiar face, drinking them in. I never knew what it was like to be Eve. Hearing voices and seeing things. But now I have a little knowledge of it.

The Daedric Princes are here. They smile at me, mock the state of the Castle, they feel so happy and so free. I rest my eyes again. Tired of watching the flames fall on that solitary island. Instead, I let myself daydream of nicer things. Soft breezes in Riften. The great peaks you can see in Whiterun. Vilkas's beautiful eyes gazing down on me. No one says a word on what we must do next until we reach shore. It is far too soon.