"Beware! Hermaeus Mora will betray you just as he has me." The masked man states as his as his weapon clashes with hers one last time. His breathing is hard as he kneels but she knows he's a formiddable foe. "Gaar Nos!" He teleports away.
His words stick in her weary mind like an arrow stuck in flesh. There's a feeling in her gut that warns her that he is right. But what was she suppose to do? Sit by idly as Miraak sought out to plunge the world into chaos? In reality she could do that. She could have easily kept her distance from Solstheim. Her conscience hadn't allowed for such a notion to stick around in her mind for very long. Perhaps that was the Divines' way of stringing her along like the puppet she was. Once more she answered the call of a hero's fate and started the quest to be rid Tamriel of the troublesome cult and Miraak.
Armor clangs as she runs off in the direction in which she guesses he could have gone. Really it's a shot in the dark. Time seems to not exist in Apocrypha. She's unsure of how long their battle has waged on. At this point she wants to be done and wash her hands of the situation as well as Hermaeus Mora. She'll never be rid of the Daedric Prince though. That was the risk with worshiping any of them. Yet she had no qualms with the others for whom she had been a champion to. They could just as easily kill her as well. So why was Mora different?
Footsteps come to a halt while she gets into in position the second she sees him reappear, floating above a pool of water in the center of the platform. No attacks come. Before she can even take another step forward a tar black tentacle emerges and stabs straight through the other dragonborn. She's seen numerous unsettling things over the past years. For some reason however, that shakes her to the core. It's because that could easily be you, her brain taunts. Despite the contempt she held for the other dragonborn, there's an overwhelming amount of pity she feels for him. The want to be free of this place and the disturbing Daedric Prince is very well understood. There's a small part of her that wonders if maybe, just maybe, she could have actually freed him without all this mess. Why should would want to is another issue. She knows though that even if she had, there was no escaping the Daedra Lords just like there was no escaping fate nor the gods that always seemed to abandon humanity.
"Did you think to escape me, Miraak? You can hide nothing from me here." Hermaeus Mora's voice booms. "No matter. I have found a new Dragonborn to serve me."
"May she be rewarded for her service as I am!" Miraak croaks. His body has started to disintegrate
The exchange makes her sick. What did she expect? Deep in her heart she knew Hermaeus Mora wouldn't just forget about her. The verbal confirmation does nothing but cement the fear she's tried to hard to bottle up.
" Miraak harbored fantasies of rebellion Against me. Learn from his example. Serve me faithfully, and you will continue to be richly rewarded ."
Freydis gives no reply. What was she to say to that? It's not like refusal was an option. Not a viable one anyways. It's impressive really how's been able to keep such a neutral expression on her face and a perfectly intact composure. The same can't be said for inside her being.
She stands tall and proud, head held high and blankly watching as Miraak's body rapidbly dissipates. As it does so she can feel the absorption of his soul into hers with all the dragon souls she's previously collected. His power and knowledge invigorate her, causing a rush of adrenaline through her veins and a very temporary high. Tendrils vanish from the sky but she knows better than to think herself alone.
Once the podium with the Black Book of Waking Dreams arises from the depths, Freydis wastes no time in making her way to it. Her silence is still strong as she opens the tome. The ink on the pages twists and turns just like the tentacles of the devious Daedra Lord. A flash of green light and her vision goes dark.
It's then she feels the stinging of tears in the corners of her eyes. How she longs for the days before all of this. Since the defeat of Alduin something inside of her has changed. Her want for power and reputation has dwindled. Her motivation to live in her role as a hero is no more. Mentally she's become so weary while the void of loneliness in her heart has grown more and more. She tried to busy herself with jobs from the guild or work with Honorhall Orphanage. She's spent many nights drinking till she falls asleep, dreaming of better days. Nothing could cure the constant storm that raged on inside her. She misses doing mercenary jobs with her brother. She misses making potions with her mother and studying with her father. She misses the trouble, the laughs and excitement she shared with Kasaanda. She misses being Freydis.
One of the things that seemed to trouble her the most was the fact that people remembered and would always remember the Last Dragonborn but no one ever remembered Freydis . All she was was a title, a LEGEND and a pawn to fate and the gods. Even in death she would have no freedom.
"Akatosh, guide me." she prays. "Or at least give me a break. A bit of solace if you're feeling generous."
A longer journey home lay ahead of her. She planned to drink herself into a stupor at the nearest in once she returned. Maybe sleep for a day or two before heading back to Markarth. Plans never seemed to work out for her. At this point it's stupid for her to even dare think of planning anything. When she opens her eyes, she's not met with the landscape of Solstheim. Instead it's a field of of lush green grass. The sun overhead seems to be shinning too brightly and the sky is a beautiful blue. It's nothing like the usual landscape of Skyrim.
There's no time to think to hard on it, for she has to dodge several sudden blasts of magic. The mages come into view and her instincts take over. While fighting the few that starting attacking her, more began to show up. And then yells mixed with the sound of metal filled the air. A full out battle of what seemed to be soldiers versus mages. But she isn't able to make it through. For after she slices down another foe she collapses to the ground.